Love Worth Finding | Audio Program

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Acts 2:22-26

Adrian Rogers says, “A New Testament, Spirit-filled, Bible-believing, Christ-honoring church is a mighty weapon in the hands of a holy God.”

As the Body and Bride of Christ, the Church is the world’s first idea of Jesus. How do we exhibit the same power as the amazing first-century Church which turned the world upside down with the Gospel?

First, we must remember that the Church exists to exalt the Savior.

Acts 2:23-24 says, “Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it.” In this passage, Peter proclaims the manner of Jesus’ life, the meaning of His death, and the miracle of His resurrection.

Later in the same chapter, Peter proclaims the magnificence of Christ’s reign: “Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear” (Acts 2:33).

One day, whether we believe in Jesus in this life or not, we will confess that He is Lord.

Second, our purpose as the Church is to evangelize to sinners.

True salvation begins with conviction by the Holy Spirit: “Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart…” (Acts 2:37). Once convicted, a sinner must repent, changing his mind about sin and self. This conversion leads to a confession that Jesus is Lord.

Finally, the Church exists to enlist the saints.

The Holy Spirit resides in believers; we must urge each other to continue in His Spirit. We depend on each other to mature in the faith, through Bible study, fellowship and worship. We are bound together by stewardship, in tithes and offerings. And we are joined together through evangelism. We must be in the business of making Jesus known by living supernaturally. We cannot do it naturally, and we cannot do it alone. But if together we learn the Word of God and continue in obedience, we will make Jesus known to our neighbors and our nation.

Apply it to your life

Are you a part of a New Testament, Spirit-filled, Bible-believing, Christ-honoring church? Consider your purpose today: to exalt the Savior, to evangelize to sinners, and to enlist the saints.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Acts 2:1-4

The Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 marked the birth of the Church, and the burst of the Holy Flame that is the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:1-4, the Holy Spirit was symbolized by fire and wind; it was vocalized by the speaking of tongues. This power was actualized in the disciples, as the Holy Spirit inhabited them and filled them.

We must remember the principles of power, first given to us that Day of Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit is a promise to be received.

“For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call” (Acts 2:39). The Holy Spirit is the one who communicates the things of God. Our human spirits are the instruments of spiritual knowledge. The Holy Spirit of God speaks to your human spirit that you belong to God. God’s promise to us is clear: When we receive the Lord Jesus Christ and obey Him, the Holy Spirit lives in us.

Second, the Holy Spirit is a power to be released.

God wants us to live with power. We cannot depend on ourselves to be holy; we can’t earn it and we are not worthy of it. But if we repent of our sins, this power is gifted to us. Adrian Rogers says, “Holiness is not the way to Christ; Christ is the way to holiness.”

Finally, the Holy Spirit is a Person to be recognized.

The Third Person of the Trinity works in us. If we try to take credit for what the Holy Spirit of God is doing, we are taking praise under false pretenses. We need to constantly give God the praise and glory for what He is doing.

When we do this, some will be amazed. Others will be amused, mocking us, for they don’t understand the Holy Spirit. But most importantly, there will be those who acknowledge Jesus as their Lord and Savior: “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized, and that day about three thousand souls were added to them” (Acts 2:41).

Apply it to your life

Are you consciously, conspicuously filled with the Spirit of God? If not, you’re not just missing a blessing; you’re guilty of rebellion and sin. Consider your faith today; meditate on these principles of power.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Acts 1:1-3

Our greatest need in this world is Jesus; as believers, it is our greatest privilege to make Jesus known to our neighbors and nation.

If we want to make Jesus known, we must first recognize His presence in us.

Acts 1:1-2 says, “The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen…” The Book of Acts takes place after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into Heaven. Yet, His work had only just begun, as He continued it through His disciples.

Adrian Rogers says, “In the Gospel, Jesus began; in Acts, Jesus continues. In the Gospel, He did that through His literal body, in the Book of Acts, He does that through His mystical body.”

We are now His Body; He wants to live and work through His Church, supernaturally, not superficially.

Secondly, we need to rely upon His promise to us, which is the Holy Spirit.

Jesus has commanded us to make disciples through evangelism, mark them through baptism, and mature them in ministry. (See Acts 1:8.) Yet, in Acts 1:4-5, Jesus instructs His disciples to wait in the city until they have received the Spirit to begin. The promise was fulfilled at Pentecost, and the disciples carried out this impossible mission. We are not waiting for the Spirit anymore. If we are saved, He has equipped and anointed us with the Holy Spirit to accomplish His work.

Third, we need to respond to His program through us.

As Believers, we are witnesses of Jesus, having seen and heard His power in our lives; we don’t have to know all the answers in order to share the Gospel with others.

If we only recognize His presence in us, remember His promise to us, and rely upon His program for us to make disciples, we will see Jesus do something wonderful through us.

Apply it to your life

There are no barriers: no matter our age, education, or social status, God can use you right now, with what you have. God will supply all that you need to make Jesus known.

Adrian Rogers says, “It’ll be a great day when we learn that Jesus doesn’t want us to do anything for Him; He wants to do something through us.”

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Genesis 24:56

God takes pleasure in the prosperity of His servants. To prosper means that God’s hand is upon us, helping us do the things He wants us to do.

In Genesis 24, Abraham chose his most trusted servant, Eliezer, to find a bride for his son. In the same way, God has commissioned the Holy Spirit to call out the Bride of Christ, so that we may prosper.

This passage reveals five principles of prosperity.

First, we must establish our cause.

Each of us needs a purpose—something that drives and motivates us. It must be specific, clear, and balanced. A worthy goal is God-given; it creates enough motivation in us to accomplish it and demands our very best. To test the worthiness of our goals, we must ask: If we accomplish our goals, where will we be and what will we have? Are the things we are living for worth Jesus dying for?

Second, we must examine our condition.

We need to determine where we are now in order to know where to go and in order to plan for the obstacles in between. But remember, problems do not mean that God is not with us. 1 Corinthians 16:9 says, “For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.”

Adrian Rogers says, “Opportunity swings on the hinges of opposition.”

We must encourage our confidence by remaining in the Word of God.

Scripture reminds us of the reward of our work: our Master will be pleased, there will be a Bride for Jesus and God will be glorified. Then we must pray. Eliezer asked God to prosper him in his purpose: “Then he said, ‘O Lord God of my master Abraham, please give me success this day, and show kindness to my master Abraham’” (Genesis 24:12).

We must enforce our character.

We will not drift into success; we need to be disciplined in our decisions, appetites, and time. We will pay a price for prosperity, but God gives us everything we need to fulfill our purpose for Him.

Finally, we must enlist our comrades.

We cannot accomplish our goals by ourselves; God designed us to depend upon one another.

Apply it to your life

Prosperity is more than wealth or extravagance; it is knowing your God-given purpose and being given the grace to accomplish it.

Adrian Rogers says, “The bottom line is: when we die, we leave behind everything we have and take everything that we are.”

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: 1 Kings 18:1-39

In 1 Kings 18, there were dark days of apostasy in Israel. The people had forgotten God and begun worshiping a false god named Baal in obscene and immoral ways. Then God sent the prophet Elijah to challenge them.

1 King 18:24 says, “Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.

In our own troublesome days, this story offers hope for those of us waiting for fire to fall again and ignite a church revival.

First, there are some enemies of revival we must be aware of.

There are the compromisers, represented by a man named Obadiah. (See 1 Kings 18:5-6) Like Obadiah, there are believers who have compromised and backslidden in their beliefs. In an attempt to befriend the world, they have become salt that’s lost its savor, and stumbling blocks to the saved.

There are the corrupt, represented by Ahab and Jezebel. King Ahab was deeply religious, praying to idols and gods that fed his own pride and lust. But praise God—no king, court, or president can hold back revival.

There are the confused, who are on the fence, represented by the crowd in 1 Kings 18: 19-21. The crowd will be swept into the Kingdom of God if there’s true revival in the Church.

And there is the competition, the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. But as we see, the competition was not even close. No amount of praying and praising from Baal’s prophets could make fire rain down.

This passage also reveals the elements of revival:

The solidarity of God’s people, coming together in unity for an altar fellowship.

-The separation of God’s people from the world.

-The sacrifice of Jesus Christ, whose powerful blood is our only hope.

-The supernatural power of God, which shines even brighter through odds stacked against Him.

-The strength of believing prayer.

-The evidence of revival was immediate.

Once Elijah called upon the Lord in prayer, God answered by fire. The worshipful response from the crowds reveals that revival fire from Heaven is all-consuming, convicting, and converting.

Apply it to your life

Adrian Rogers asks, “How much of your prayer life is consumed for the glory of God?” Pray for revival today—that God would send fire from Heaven through a Church revival; pray that God’s people will climb off the fence and serve Him.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Ezekiel 47:1-12

John 7:38 says, “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

As we ask God to do something supernatural in our desperate world, we must pray to become like the rivers of revival pictured in Ezekiel 47.

“Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and there was water, flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the front of the temple faced east; the water was flowing from under the right side of the temple, south of the altar.” (v. 1)

The Mysterious Source of the River

It is a humble source; it flows from under the threshold. Adrian Rogers says, “Revival never begins without God’s people humbling themselves.” It is a holy source; it flows past the altar, the holiest of holy places. It is a heated source; it flows out towards the east, where the sun rises.

The Marked Course of the River

It flows into the depressed, deserted, and deadly places. There are people who are fearful and perplexed, unsatisfied, and spiritually dead. They don’t know the joy that we know or have the answers to life that we have. They need the rivers of revival to flow out of us.

Ezekiel explains the mighty force of this river, declaring that where the water flows:

Trees will grow: “When I had returned, there, along the bank of the river, were very many trees on one side and the other” (v. 7).

Ezekiel is talking about Christians who have strength and life, becoming trees that will not wither. (See Psalm 1:2-3.)

Fish will go: In Matthew 4:19, Jesus said that we’re to be fishers of men. Evangelism is a by-product of revival; when the church gets right with God, others will come to Jesus.

Fruit will show: Galatians 5:22-23 reveals the fruit of the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”

Health will glow: When the rivers of revival flow through, the result is spiritual health: for us and those around us.

Apply it to your life

Are you thirsty for revival? Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness; for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6). Pray for a river of revival to flow through you today.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: 1 Kings 18:1-6

1 Kings 18:1-6 tells the story of revival in dark days. After a severe drought, God told Elijah that He would send rain upon the earth. This story is a reminder to us that what God has done before, He can do, and will do, again.

But there are some enemies of revival we must be aware of, many of whom belong to the Body of Christ.

“So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; and there was a severe famine in Samaria. And Ahab had called Obadiah, who was in charge of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly…)” (1 Kings 18:2-3).

Obadiah feared God. However, when it came time to obey God or King Ahab, he chose Ahab, and sought out other solutions to the problem instead of God’s promise. (See 1 Kings 18:5-6.)

There are many in our churches today who would, for some reason, rather line up with the enemy than stand with God. They are believers who have compromised and backslidden in their beliefs. In an attempt to befriend the world, they have become salt that’s lost its savor, and stumbling blocks to the saved.

King Ahab was deeply religious, praying to idols and gods that fed his own pride and lust. No king, court, or president can thwart the power and plan of God. True corruption comes when the people of God refuse to take a stand.

Enemies of revival are confused, and don’t want to understand. The ones who are on the fence will hold back revival.

1 Kings 18:22-29 tells the story of the competition on Mount Carmel—God vs. Baal, a false god. But the competition was not even close. No amount of praying and praising from Baal’s prophets could make fire rain down.

Adrian Rogers says, “The great danger in America is not that the people of Baal pray; the great danger in America today is the people of God don’t.”

Once Elijah called upon the Lord, fire rained down; God answered by fire. This reminds us that revival fire from Heaven is all-consuming, convicting, and converting.

Apply it to your life

If we want to see revival happen like it did in 1 Kings 18, there must be:

1. Solidarity and unity of the people of God

2. Separation between the worshippers of God and worshippers of idols

3. Sacrifice, which is the Blood of Jesus, our only hope

4. Spiritual power, directly from God

5. Supplication—precise, powerful, and purposeful prayer

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: 2 Chronicles 20:1-30

Praise is a powerful thing, in times of joy and in times of help, but especially in times of trouble.

A story from 2 Chronicles 20:1-30 shows us the power of praise when facing opposition. King Jehoshaphat was a God-fearing King, facing opposition from Ammon, Moab, and Seir. Likewise, we have three mighty kings that come against us on a regular basis – sin, sorrow, and death. Every Christian will meet these, and sometimes, the opposition will be fierce.

In the case of King Jehoshaphat, powerful foes caused the king to focus on God through fasting. Fasting does not earn God’s blessings (which are given solely through God’s grace), but it does sharpen our focus on God.

As a result, the nation came together in purposeful fellowship: “So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord, and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord” (v. 4).

When we seek God together, He shows up and reveals His true nature. This passage shows us that God is:

-Sovereign: There is no problem too big for Him.

-Steadfast: God has worked miracles in the past, and He will never run out of them.

-Sympathetic: If we cry out to God, He will hear and He will help. He is touched with the feeling of our infirmity.

Seeing: God knows our situations, our enemies, and our danger. There’s nothing that escapes His notice.

Saving: “O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You” (v. 12).

The people of Judah learned that the battle was never theirs to win, but God’s; their part was to join the fight with praise.

Adrian Rogers says, “Praise infuses the energy of God and it confuses the enemy of God. Praise fractures the unity of the enemy and formulates the unity of the believer.”

As a result of the praise and obedience of the people, there was a provided fortune and peaceful future.

Proverbs 16:7 says, “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”

Apply it to your life

Have you learned to praise God in your problems? Pray, and consider fasting, as you ask God for His guidance. Remember: the battle is the Lord’s; your part is to praise.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Reference: Matthew 25:21

God preserves the faithful (see Psalm 31:23). Faithfulness is God’s measurement for our blessing. One day, our reward, or lack of it, will be according to our faithfulness.

Faithfulness means integrity, loyalty, and steadfastness. In Matthew 23, we see what, why, and how to be faithful men and women of God.

Matthew 23:21 says, “His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’”

A man of God is faithful to family.

He keeps his promises. 

He is faithful in his finances. 

He knows that how he handles money is an indication of how he handles spiritual treasure. He gives proportionally, as God prospers him.

He is faithful in his friendships. 

Friends are bound to fail us, stumble, and do us wrong; but a faithful man is a good friend, who gives the benefit of the doubt and overlooks offenses.

He is faithful to attend church.

The Body of Christ owes each other fearful loyalty; for the Lord’s sake, a faithful man does not forsake the assembly (see Hebrews 10:25).

He is faithful to the Word of God.

To pass truth onto the next generation, a faithful man understands he has to be firmly rooted in Scripture.

We ought to be faithful in these areas because Jesus is faithful to us. He is faithful to us in our failure, our temptation, and our falling. He is faithful to us to the very end, so we can be faithful to the end.

We must be faithful in the small things because that is where success or failure truly lie.

Adrian Rogers says, “Do you know what the big things In life are made up of? Little acts, little words, little thoughts.”

We must be faithful in the secret things; Adrian Rogers says, “What you are in secret is what you are, nothing more or nothing less.”

And we must be faithful in the sacred things; meet with God daily, fully committed, abiding in Him.

Apply it to your life

Yield to God, and ask Him to make you faithful in every area of your life. No amount of resolution or gritting your teeth will make you a faithful man of God. It comes from abiding in Jesus and showing up to meet Him every day.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Ephesians 4:7

When God saved us by His grace, He gave each of us spiritual gifts. However, many of us do not understand how to use them. In order to be faithful in ministry, we must identify and develop our spiritual gifts.

Ephesians 4:7 says, “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift.”

Spiritual gifts are God-given abilities for service and ministry. We do not choose our spiritual gifts; as our natural talents are embedded in us at birth, our spiritual gifts come at our new birth.

There are several spiritual gifts identified in the New Testament, such as wisdom, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, and discerning of spirits. Other gifts include speaking in tongues, acts of service, ministry, exhortation, teaching, giving, ruling, and mercy.

Ephesians 4:11-12 says, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ…”

There are five ways we can know our individual spiritual gifts:

-Desire: We consider what we enjoy doing—what do we feel we naturally do well?

-Discovery: We discover our gift as we endeavor to do it.

-Development: Though they come naturally, our gifts must be crafted and studied.

-Dependence: Our gifts must operate in the power of the Holy Spirit.

-Deployment: We understand how our gifts operate as we work alongside other believers.

-Finally, our gifts are displayed as we mature in our ministry.

Ephesians 4:13 says, “...till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ…”

Adrian Rogers says, “You can tell when the gifts are working in a church when the church becomes like the Lord Jesus Christ.”

When the gifts are working, we will not be blown about by every wind of doctrine. Instead, we will learn how to speak truth in love and find that all of our gifts work together in flexible harmony.

Apply it to your life

It’s important to know our spiritual gifts and to discover and develop them, so that God may be glorified as we serve the Church.