Solid Rock Church Sermons

In our opening sermon of the Suffering Saints series, we looked at the suffering of Adam and how all suffering began with him. Genesis 2:15-17 describes how God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden and entrusted him with the responsibility of caring for it. God allowed Adam to eat freely from all the trees, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which would lead to death, but Adam and Eve were tempted by the serpent and disobeyed God’s command by eating the forbidden fruit. Because of their disobedience, God pronounced various ongoing judgements in Genesis 3:16-24 - the serpent would crawl on its belly, there would be pain for women in childbirth, husbands and wives would now turn against one another, and man would have to toil and work hard for sustenance. Adam and Eve were then banished from the Garden of Eden and God placed cherubim with a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life, ensuring they would no longer have access to it and would live forever in their fallen state. Since the time of God's initial judgement toward Adam and Eve, God has been patiently bearing with the objects of His wrath. Instead of unleashing His wrath, God has freely given His grace and kindness toward mankind, first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. In His love, God is undoing the power of sin and death in us through our faith in the resurrection of Jesus.

In our Father’s Day sermon, we looked at how Jesus taught about the Father's love for us through a parable in Luke 15:11-24. In this parable, Jesus introduces us to a kind father who provided well for his family and was generous with his children. One of his sons asks for, and receives, his inheritance early then leaves his father's home. After living recklessly and losing everything the father had given him, the son comes to the end of himself, which is where he actually finds himself. Luke 15:17 says that the son “came to himself.” In this moment, the story turns and the son decides to go home empty handed and ask for his father's forgiveness, hoping the father will let him back into his home as a servant. Instead of hesitantly receiving the son as a servant, the father celebrates his son's return and immediately restores him to full sonship. This parable shows us a beautiful picture of what a loving father looks like and illustrates what every earthly father needs more than anything: an invitation from God, the perfect Father, to be accepted as His son. It's through experiencing our own sonship to God that we have something to give away to our children.

In this final sermon of our 2 Peter series, we looked at the Apostle Peter's view of the sacred Scriptures. In 2 Peter 1:16-21, Peter passionately affirms the credibility and reliability of his message as an eyewitness of Jesus Christ's majesty. He declares that he didn't follow cleverly devised myths but was an eyewitness of Christ's transfiguration, during which he saw the glory of God firsthand. Peter emphasizes the authenticity of the prophetic Word, reminding us that it serves as a light shining in a dark place. He warns against private interpretation of Scripture and highlights the divine origin and authority of God's Word by emphasizing that prophecy wasn't the result of human will but from holy men who spoke as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. In 2 Peter 3:14-18, Peter ends his letter by urging his readers to be on guard against the twisting of Scripture and encourages them to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory now and forever.

In this sermon, we looked at Peter's encouragement to the exiled Christians in Asia Minor to ignore the skeptic false teachers who deliberately overlook the promises of God. Peter tells these suffering Christians to remember that God is not bound by time and, in His patience, God is allowing more people to come to repentance. While God's patience is prolonging the suffering of some, the big promise of the Bible is that Jesus will return to put an end to all His enemies and usher in the New Heaven and the New Earth. Here there will be no more suffering and God will again make His dwelling place with man. Just like the Christians in Asia Minor, this is where we find our encouragement to hold fast to our faith even in the midst of suffering.

In this sermon, we looked into 2 Peter chapter 2 at Peter's warning against false teachers who will infiltrate the church and lead people astray by promising freedom while actually leading them into captivity. Peter says that these false teachers will preach destructive heresies and, ultimately, deny Jesus as Lord. He also warns that these false teachers will take advantage of "unsteady souls," luring them into temporary relief through sensuality that winds up enslaving them. They will teach that God isn't going to bring a future judgement, which leads people to live however they desire. In the end, these false teachers will distort the way to God and lead people into destruction. The good news of the Gospel is that God delivers on His promise to give freedom, and the commands of the Lord lead to life, not destruction. In the final judgement, those who oppose God and refuse to believe the Gospel will be condemned, but those who know Jesus will be saved to eternal life.

In this sermon, we looked at Peter's call for Christians to continue pursuing godliness and spiritual growth even in the midst of persecution and suffering. Drawing from the spiritual reality that Christians are partakers in God's divine glory, Peter calls Christians to add to what we already have in Christ by pursuing and practicing Christ-like qualities. He reminds us that God is restoring us back to the "Imago Dei" (Image of God) of Eden. While this transformation doesn't happen instantly, we are invited to participate in what the Holy Spirit is doing in us by pursuing the Christ-like qualities of virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. When we practice these things, we will experience them in increasing measure, and we are kept from being ineffective and unfruitful for God’s Kingdom.

In this sermon from Luke 1, we looked at the fulfillment of prophecy through the promise of the coming Messiah. Luke writes of the unmerited favor given to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and shares her song, in which she praises God for all He has done for her and all those who fear Him. Through Mary’s beautiful song, we are reminded that the promises of God are true and that His unmerited favor is available to all who humble themselves before God and come to Him in faith.

In this first sermon of our 2 Peter series, we looked at Peter's call for persecuted Christians to find their strength in knowing God more deeply. Peter begins by reminding these Christians that God’s grace and peace are multiplied to them through knowing Him. This knowledge is more than knowing a lot about God; the Greek word Peter uses implies a full knowledge of God that can only come from a personal relationship with Jesus. Peter goes on to remind them that God gifts His divine power for Godly living through their knowledge of Jesus and trust in His precious promises to them. This is a helpful reminder to us today that God's grace, peace, and power are still given to us through our deepening relationship with Him and our trust in His promises.

With this sermon from 1 Peter 5:12-14, we finished our 1 Peter series by looking at how the Christians in Asia Minor were called to stand firm in the true grace of God in the midst of their suffering. Peter calls those who are weak and suffering to be strong by finding strength in what God is doing in them, not what they can do for themselves. Peter tells them that the strength to stand firm is possible because God is still working in their lives to restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish them. This gives us hope today, knowing that even when we are feeling weak and experiencing difficult circumstances, God is still working to strengthen us and give us what we need to stand firm in His grace.

In this sermon from 1 Peter 5:6-11, we were reminded that we are not of this world. We were created for Eden, and God is faithfully redeeming us unto Himself. As we live in the tension of this world, awaiting the new Eden, Peter encourages us to humble ourselves under God's mighty hand and cast our anxiety on Him. This reminder helps us to not focus on the things of this world but on God's sovereign and caring nature. In verses 8-9, we are warned that Satan seeks to devour. We have an active enemy. We are called to resist the devil by standing firm in our faith, knowing that one day Christ will restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish us with Him forever.