Rivercrest Presbyterian Church - Sermons

Jesus enters into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil for 40 days. While anyone else would have failed, Jesus never gave in to the lies and schemes of Satan. Being well prepared and in full trust of the Word of God and His Heavenly Father, Jesus succeeds. He is truly able to sympathize with our weaknesses as one tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin.

Luke provides a genealogy of Jesus just as He begins His earthly ministry. From the line of David and Abraham, Jesus fits the requirements of being the Messiah, but Luke's record traces Jesus' roots all the way to Adam and ultimately to God. Being the Second Adam, Jesus does was the First couldn't. He lives a perfect and obedient life so that all can be saved to redemptive life. Through salvation and adoption, no matter where you come from or what you've done, Jesus represents you and is enough for you, bringing you into the family of God by grace.

As John the Baptist preaches from Isaiah about the coming Messiah, many wonder how they can live according to the high standard of the law. True heart change doesn't come from behavior modification, it isn't earned or found within someone's own willpower; it is only through Jesus Himself. 

Jesus grew in favor with God and man. As any human grows, so did the Son of God. He perfectly honored His earthly mother and father, while also perfectly honoring His Heavenly Father. Jesus at the age of 12 stays behind at the Temple to keep growing in wisdom and stature in the Lord, having an understanding of His role in the plan of redemption and bringing in the New Covenant. He sought first the kingdom of God in our place.

As the angels appear to the shepherds, there is a humbling and beautiful reality taking place. Though Joseph and Mary are to listen to Caesar Augustus, the real King is being born in a stable. And the command from the Lord to His angels isn't to go tell it to the Roman leaders, the people in positions of power - but to the least of these. Shepherds were unwanted and cast out to do dirty work, yet they are told of the birth announcement first. Their haste to see the Savior born King is how we are to be each and every day, then returning to our daily lives spiritually changed.

The Lord comes, not just to the affluent, and not just to the most prominent, but the witness of Scripture is that He comes to the needy, He comes to those who understand that without Him coming to us, we'd have no way of getting to Him. And Mary serves as a model for us, not for how to earn the favor of the Lord, but as a model for receiving the grace and mercy of the Lord.

In the ordinary life of Zechariah and Elizabeth, the Lord remembered them and His promises to His people. God meets us in the same way, in our lives to love Him with our heart, soul, mind, and strength; and to love our neighbors as ourselves. Zechariah is sent home to tell the truth and good news to his wife, not change the world. Christians today can have peace knowing that a life with Christ is one of ordinary yet marvelous love and faith.

The gospel of Luke begins with the goal of a witness and his pattern for presenting the truth of Jesus Christ. Luke is believable not because of his convincing arguments or intelligent writing, but because of his real-time witness of the Son of God. And why does he write this? So that all who read his account will have certainty about Jesus.

Without Christ we are completely needy and unable to do any good, yet through Christ we can do all things. Dependent upon the Lord is the faithful walk of a Christian, and the Church is to uplift, support, and encourage each other to be content and joyful regardless of circumstance, because God will supply our every need. We don't need to doubt, we need to trust.

Conflict, anxiety, and fear arise in all human beings, including inside the church. Engaging with these struggles requires the redemptive work of Christ, who cultivates peacemakers and teammates in the gospel. To think about the good, to dwell on truths of God, to rejoice in this great salvation must be how the church moves forward in love, to make disciples and live freely in hope of our Savior's return.