Sermon Archive
A Good Return
The reason for the gifts? It must come out of response to everything that God has done for us. When Paul is telling the Corinthians to “excel in this grace of giving” he says that the motive is the work of Jesus. “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (II Corinthians 8:9) The word from Psalm 116 connects a giving heart from us to a giving heart from God. “How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people.” (Psalm 116:12-14)
View SermonDuty
I know that duty isn’t one of those great words – we would rather have words that choice and decisions and doing something for a much higher purpose, but duty is actually a great word. William Willimon has this great word about duty, “Have you ever been truly in love with someone? If you have, you’ll know what I’m talking about… Have you ever been so in love that you find yourself doing all sorts of things, many things you would have never done on your own, things that really bring you very little enjoyment in themselves, all because they reflect the wishes of the one whom you love? Someone once changed your diapers out of nothing more than love. Being a disciple is much like being in love.” (Pulpit Resource, October 4, 1998, Page 5)
View SermonForce Against Force
It was force against force. It was not an easy, or short, battle. It had been planned by God the Father since the curse of sin came. In April of the year 30 the battle between the devil and Jesus happened. The Garden where sweat became blood, the cross where the victory cry, “It is Finished “ was hollered, the resurrection from death on Easter was the day when the devil was cast out of heaven. In April of the year 30, Michael and all the angels were there to witness and to encourage and to participate in this great event. Jesus fought against the devil and won.
View SermonWhat’s Your Net Worth?
Sadly, this is the attitude that our society has to the most vulnerable among us – the unborn, the disabled, the terminally ill. If you are “unwanted,” if you are not able to produce, if you are incapable of taking care of yourself, if you are seen to be a burden to society, then your net worth is nonexistent and you become an object to be discarded. That’s the ethics that pervades our society’s attitude towards abortion and assisted suicide.
View SermonWeeping and Rejoicing
Before there is rejoicing there is weeping. Repentance comes first. In our lives and in the lives of anyone who needs grace, repentance is first. Repenting – the “I’m sorry”; “I screwed up”; “I was wrong”; “I’m to blame.” It is when we turn from evil and turn to God. It is when we are broken and in pieces. There is rejoicing when one sinner repents. You want to make God happy? Repent. You want to make angels happy? Repent. You want to make your wife or husband, your friend or co-worker happy? Repent. You want to be happy? Repent. We turn from ourselves and we seek the cleansing from God. When we read the word, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them”, we have a sense of peace that we have found the place of safety and life.
View SermonHow Far Does Grace Go?
How far does grace go? It comes right to you, right to me, directly from heaven. When we ask God for His forgiveness, when we repent of sin and seek His cleansing, He joyfully gives it and we humbly receive it. It is a gift. When we ask for eternal salvation, a mansion in heaven, we receive the key to open the door because Jesus willingly died for us and rose from death. Our faith begins vertically. From heaven comes our Savior to us, our faith makes those gifts ours. Like I preached on July 21, We beg of God, “Forgive us our sins.”
View SermonBlind Faith
What about living? Before we die and head to glory we have to live with more than we can handle by self. How will you live? Live in faith. Your eyes will look to see your Savior, your Lord and your God. Habakkuk tells we truly live when we live by faith, “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” (Habakkuk 3:17-18)
View SermonMan’s Enemy
The passage that I base my message on is I Corinthians 15:25-26, “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.” The last enemy is death. Death was not part of God’s good plan for mankind. This whole process of dying, getting older, catching some disease, becoming diminished in abilities, physically or mentally, and then to have soul separate from body, was never God’s plan for us. Paul states, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned.” (Romans 5:12) Paul doesn’t look at death as some harmless event. In this great I Corinthians chapter he says that death has a vicious sting, “The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.” (I Corinthians 15:56) In Hebrews 2 it says that it is the devil who holds the power of death. (See Hebrews 2:15)
View SermonThe Type of People God Rescues
God doesn’t rescue those who don’t want to be rescued. Judgement
comes upon those who turn back. Yet, for you and me there is no reason to
turn back. The hellfire and brimstone came down upon Jesus 2,000 years
ago. He was the victim of God’s wrath upon the cross of Calvary. Because
of Jesus we are cleansed of our sins. There is no reason to turn back.
Here’s some good advice: Don’t get too attached to the things of this
world. We’re on a journey. We’re going someplace. Time is passing by. It
won’t be long. Don’t give up now because heaven is just around the corner.
Our Lord is guiding us every step of the way. Yes, sometimes we are weak
and weary. Some of us are burdened down with battle scars. But don’t turn
back now. Take the Lord’s arm. Believe His Word. Rely on His power. It
won’t be long before we’ll be home. And one more thing. Let’s do all we
can to bring our unbelieving friends and relatives to Jesus while there is
still time. It’s vitally important. It’s eternally important.
To Destroy…To Build and to Plant
God’s purpose in life is to save us, forgive us, give us a new life. He wants to touch our lips, put new words in our mouth. I liked what Pastor Crabbe said, “Homosexuality doesn’t get me into hell just as heterosexuality doesn’t get me into heaven. It’s WHO my Savior is that gets me anywhere.” Last week our epistle from Corinthians destroyed and built. Listen to these great words, “Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” (I Corinthians 6:9-11)
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