Sermons

The Beatitudes are the greatest introduction to the greatest sermon ever preached by the greatest person to ever walk the earth. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus introduces us to his teaching by beginning with the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are declarations of what the Christian is and what has been given to them. In just a few words, Jesus crucifies our effort to achieve real happiness on our own and shows us that it is only when we pursue him that we can have real happiness.

Jude reminds the church that heresy and those who have fallen away should not come as a shock. The times we live in should not come as a shock. Where there is faithlessness there will be persecution and there will be those who do evil. This should not thwart us in our mission to preach the Gospel, in our love for others, our love for Christ or in our own salvation. Jesus has sealed our redemption. So we can go to war, dive into the lives of others without ever fearing that we will lose what Jesus has secured.

Jude tells the church that people in and out of the church are condemned. Even some who claim faith in Jesus are not really saved – their lives have no connection with what they say that they believe. This is motivation enough for the church to know what they believe, to be able to identify.

We need a prophet. We need a priest. We need a king. We need a prophet so that we can know what God wills and wants for us. We need a priest because we cannot approach God on our own due to our sinful nature. We need a king who has the authority and power to crush our enemies and protect us from evil. Jesus is the only prophet, priest and king that we will ever need. He has fulfilled and is fulfilling all of these roles perfectly in our place.

The Psalm's are so beautiful because they contain the breath of God in the words of man. They are simple and Psalm 24 continues the simplicity so that our hearts can sing with the Psalmist these songs that are over a three millennia in age.

Where do you turn in times of trouble? We have been trained to call our counselors, our spouses, our kids, our parents or our teachers when we are up the creek. We have been taught to read the latest self‐help book rather than the Word of God. Others of us turn to drugs, alcohol, food, spending money, buying junk, or self-medicating with some other addiction. Our nature is to turn from trouble and steer into more trouble. But Jesus shows us what it means to turn to the Father when we are in trouble and to trust in Him through dangerous or grievous situations.

The statement from which all of the other words flow in Psalm 23 can be found in the opening verse. These are earth‐shattering, life changing words. These words establish a relationship so grand, so holy, so incredible that the claims of the Psalmist must be true. He writes, "The Lord is my shepherd."

The big question you must ask when reading Psalm 22 is simple – Did Jesus die for me? We can talk about his suffering and be moved by it. We can talk about his love and be encouraged by it. We can talk about his teaching, his healings, his sense of humor, and his wisdom and be wowed by it. But did Jesus die for you? That is a big question.

Humanity continues to rage against God. The Church often looks past themselves and to the rebellion of the culture around them and gleefully looks for the day when the laughing God of heaven will destroy all the great sinners. We can't wait for God to rage against the machine of debauchery, rock n' roll, druggies, whores, opposing political parties, our next door neighbor's barking dog, and liberal theologians. We miss the point, the conviction of Scripture, and the words of the Holy Spirit.