Sermons

This Sunday we begin a sermon series from the book of Isaiah: "Holy, Wholly, Holy." The prophet Isaiah is the Shakespeare of the Bible. He covers the heights and depths of human experience, takes us from the cesspool of our depravity to the very glory of the presence of God, and calls us from his first words to his last to be wholly God's. Our tendency is to be immersed in our own lives and to dabble in the things of God. Isaiah beckons us to stop and consider the King who gave us the breath....

Last Sunday I looked at the topic of homosexuality and tried to speak clearly and lovingly to the issue. One thing I didn't do is provide specific help for those who struggle with same-sex attraction. This post is a small attempt to do that. Most of it comes from Michael R. Emlet, who wrote a 2014 article on the topic ("Five Ministry Priorities for Those Struggling with Same-Sex Attraction," Journal of Biblical Counseling 28:3).

In a 2002 Dilbert cartoon, Wally hands a piece of paper to the "pointy-haired boss." The oblivious boss says, "Wally, your status report is just a bunch of buzzwords strung together." Wally responds in the next panel, "I've been giving you that same status report every week for eleven years." And in the third panel he adds, "Five years ago you adopted it as our mission statement."

That's the risk with a mission statement—that it would become a trite, trendy, and lifeless set of words that mean something at one time but die out after a few weeks of use.

It is fitting that our sermon on Mother's Day happened to be on the grace of God. There's nothing a mom needs more than that. And both prove to be very different than we at first expected.

A tired, older ex-convict once sent a letter to a younger minister of the gospel. The two had worked together for years, and now the younger minister was venturing off on his own. The older man had traveled extensively for the sake of the gospel and wanted his younger protege to do well in the face of significant challenges. He would need guidance on some critical areas, courage to face the inevitable challenges to gospel ministry in a hostile land, and a heavy dose of reminders about the grace of God. We call this writing, "The Letter of Paul to Titus."

This summer we have been thinking about Personal Reformation in our sermons. The first series was on change—How Can I Change? The second series, Scandalous Mercy, challenged us in many ways through the Minor Prophet Jonah. The third series of the summer, How Firm a Foundation, will focus on the Bible.

To think rightly and live rightly as Christians we have to think rightly about the Bible. If we get off here, we don't just get off a little bit. We create Grand Canyon-sized gaps in our thinking and living. Before long we will be…

Some of us grew up with Mr. Miyagi echoing in our minds, "Wax on, wax off. Wax on, wax off." Danny LaRusso eventually learned that this odd counsel had a lot more to it than he thought. 

God's counsel has a similar ring to it, but a vastly different impact: "Put off, put on. Put off, put on." These words come out of Ephesians 4:17-5:2, Sam's text from last Sunday when we finished out our series on on change. One of the key aspects of this passage is the series of "put offs" and "put ons" that we find…

There aren't many Bible stories that can claim a recent Bruce Springsteen song and a Veggie Tales movie, but Jonah can. And it makes sense. The story offers everything we love: a villainous hero (or is he a heroic villain?), fast-paced action, profound insights about the human condition, and a mesmerizing look at God's scandalous mercy. It is one of the few Old Testament books that seems to speak to everyone—scholar or preschooler, the specialist in Hebrew syntax or one who barely knows English (and it's your mother tongue!).

Of course, the best way…

Last week's sermon looked at Romans 6:1-14 and our union with Christ. We need to grasp this union to find faith for real change in our lives. Reading Sinclair Ferguson's The Whole Christ this week he explored the idea of our union with Christ and unpacked even more blessings that are ours when we are in Christ and thus possess Christ. In doing so he cited a powerful passage from John Calvin:  

Our whole salvation and all its parts are comprehended in Christ [Acts 4:12]. We should therefore take care not to derive the least portion of it from anywhere else.

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