My 10/27/13AM sermon, Comforted by the Future from Revelation 20:1-15 is now online. In this sermon, I sought to give encouragement for perseverance based on the lessons we learn in this chapter on the millennial reign of Christ. I hope the prospect of future realities leads you to live in specific ways, too. We don’t know these things just to know them. We are blessed, in Revelation especially, as we read, hear and keep the things we read there. I sought to encourage the “keeping” of these things in this sermon. I hope it’s encouraging to you.
Weekend Review – Keeping On…
My 8/25/13 sermon, Endurance Encouraged, from Revelation 14:1-20, is now online. This sermon got at how God works to encourage us to keep on keeping on when the going is tough. Specifically, God gives three encouragements: allowing us to see worship in heaven, allowing us to hear witness to the world and allowing us to envision the future harvest. These three things help us see what God will do and provoke action out of our lives today.
I hope the sermon encourages you and hope you had a great Lord’s Day.
Weekend Recap – Protected People
My 8/11/13AM sermon, Protected People from Revelation 12:1-17, is now online. In this sermon, I attempted to help people see how strong their trust in God can be in light of the victory that is ours through Christ, how we are united to God in this victory and how God continues to help His people until the end. I hope it helps you.
Weekend Recap – Committed to Completion
As I wrote over the weekend, yesterday, 8/19/12AM, my sermon was on Committed To Completing the Race from Hebrews 12:12-17. My opening illustration was from the ’92 Olympics and video of that can be found from Friday’s post. God’s marked out a race for all of us. This passage really encouraged us to demonstrate our commitment to complete the race by a Godly striving for peace and holiness in community and by a zealous fighting against all the things that would detract us from Gospel allegiances. I hope it proved helpful for you. And, I hope you had a great day of worship with other believers. Have a great week.
Committed To Finishing
This coming Lord’s Day, we plan to look at Hebrews 12:12-17 and hear a call from God to strengthen our resolve and commitment to finish the race. This means striving hard after things like holiness and peace and fighting against things like sinful roots, immortality and the anti-grace mindset that so easily raises its head.
To introduce this message, I am going to use the story of Derek Redmond from the 1992 Olympic games where his father helped him finish the race and cross the finish line. Here’s a video of that story. As you watch it, think about your desire to finish the race that God has called you to run and come this Sunday expecting God to give you help in His Word.
Weekend Recap – Marathon
My 7/1/12AM sermon from Hebrews 12:1-2 entitled The Race of Endurance is now online. While there are many directions one could go in this rich passage, I tried to woodenly stick with the main idea which is running the race (of the Christian life) with endurance. I saw the text unfold three helps for running that race of endurance more effectively.
We run in Christian community. The cloud of witnesses surrounding us aren’t there watching us run as mere spectators. They are there to provide a clear witness through their lives that running with perseverance is worth it in light of who God is.
We are also to run unconstrained. We let go of whatever would hinder our enduring. Certainly sin can keep us from running well since it clings closely and hinders our stride. But there are other weights and burdens that can keep us from running the race with endurance as well.
Finally, and most important, we run focused on Christ. He’s the aim. He’s made the race even possible for dead ones like you and me. He’s trailblazed this race before, running His own race to the cross with joy, treating all the shame as a small thing compared to honoring His Father. His ruling at God’s right hand now, makes this race all the more thrilling.
You might need to get your head in the game and run. But today, be encouraged and equipped in God’s Word: He’s given you all that you need for life and godliness, all you need to run well.
Weekend Recap – Entering Rest
Yesterday’s sermon, Entering Rest, from Hebrews 4:1-11 is now online. Augustine said, “Lord, our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.” This sermon is my attempt to lead others into the rest which Augustine, and the Bible specifically, calls us to through faith in Jesus Christ.
Weekend Preview – Enter God’s Rest…
This coming Lord’s day, we hope to gather together to celebrate how we can enter in God’s rest — through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. We will gather at the Lord’s Table and continue to proclaim His death until He returns. We will also plan to spend some time in Hebrews 4:1-11 and its call for us to not miss out on God’s rest.
Commenting on the amazing rest we can know through faith in Christ, Kent Hughes
Fellow-Christians, God does not offer us just any rest. He offers us, in his own words, “my rest” — the repose of soul — divine rest. It is cosmic in its origination, as old as the universe. And as such, a continuing Sabbath is available to all. It is the ideal rest, for it comes from a loving, almighty God.
Take time to consider God’s Word — God offers you rest for your weary soul in Jesus. Come to Him. His yoke is easy and His burden is light.
Weekend Recap – Focus on Faithfulness
After my week off for vacation, I was back at Crestview today with a sermon Focus on Faithfulness from Hebrews 3:1-6. God’s Word seemed to compel us to continue to focus on Christ as the confidence, boast and hope of our lives. Sad to say, but some strands of evangelicalism place stock in a decision and not in Christ. The writer of Hebrews has timeless truth for them and us: Christ.
Weekend Recap – Perseverance
Today’s sermon, Gospel Perseverance, from Colossians 1:23 is now online. The outline was pretty simple, getting at motivations for perseverance…
I. We persevere continuing in our faith.
II. We persevere recognizing the scope of the Gospel.
III. We persevere remembering the change the Gospel produces.
I loved the way the passage unfolded to our corporate practice of the Lord’s Supper. We need the encouragement to persevere because we are so prone to think that because we believed at one point in our lives, we are no longer responsible for living out those truths with more and more belief. We need to heed this passage and “not shift from the hope of the Gospel that we heard.”