Solid Rock Church Sermons

In this sermon from John 6:35-37, we looked at what it means to find our ultimate satisfaction in Jesus. Earlier in John 6, Jesus fed the multitude and they all ate, at no cost to them, until they were satisfied. In the same way, when we believe in Jesus as the Son of God, He completely satisfies our souls, and our only payment is to simply believe in Him. Though this passage, we’re reminded that the source of our greatest satisfaction in life comes at the lowest cost to us. When we truly believe in Jesus, He satisfies every longing of our souls, and gives us eternal satisfaction for free.

In this sermon, we looked at how Jesus challenged the crowd that followed Him to evaluate their motives for seeking Him. In John 6:22-34, we see that the crowd Jesus had miraculously fed has now followed Him Capernaum. They were hungry for another meal and wanted to see what miracles Jesus would perform next. As He addresses the crowd, Jesus questions why they are following Him and exposes their pure heart motives. As our church body begins to gather in person again today, this is a good reminder for us to consider what draws us together. Are we gathering to worship Jesus as our Savior or are we gathering seeking temporary satisfaction in other things? May we be true followers of Jesus, knowing Him as our Savior and finding our satisfaction in Him alone.

In this sermon, we looked at how Jesus intentionally led His disciples into difficult situations in order to reveal Himself more deeply to them. In John 6:16-21, Jesus tells His disciples to get into a boat at night and travel to Bethsaida and, eventually, Capernaum. This led to a long and difficult time of rowing against the wind in rough seas and the dark of night.  Walking on water in the midst of the raging sea, Jesus went out to the disciples and said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Through this event, Jesus shows us that part of God’s perfect and loving plan for His followers sometimes includes sending us into difficult, and even scary, situations. He does this not to show off His power, but to show us who He is and to lead us through the sanctification process to something better.

In this sermon, we looked in 2 Timothy 1:3-14 at a message for moms that applies to us all. In one of the final letters before his death, Paul writes to a young pastor to encourage him to remember his spiritual heritage. Paul reminds Timothy that his sincere faith, which produces power, love, and self-control, first dwelt in his mother and his grandmother. Paul encourages Timothy to fan this spiritual gift of faith into flame by following the pattern that has been set for him and by guarding it like a precious deposit. This is a call for mothers to see the significance of their role in their children’s spiritual journeys. It’s also a reminder for all of us to fan into flame the gift of faith deposited into our lives by living boldly for Jesus in power, love, and self-control.

In this sermon, we looked at John 6:1-15, in which Jesus miraculously fed a group of 15,000 to 20,000 people on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This large crowd was following Jesus from town to town in order to witness His miracles of healing. From a small amount of bread and fish, Jesus created a meal for the entire crowd and everyone ate until they were satisfied. The people were so enthralled with Jesus’ miracle-working power that they wanted force Him to be their king. Knowing that He would soon be crowned King through His gracious sacrifice rather than by the force of men, Jesus withdrew from the crowd to be alone on the mountain. Through this miracle, we see a distinct difference between being part of the crowd who follows Jesus for what He has to offer and being part of the few who follow Jesus solely for who He is. At a time when we are not able to gather as a large crowd, this challenges us to consider why gathering on Sundays is important. While there are many good reasons we desire to be together, the primary purpose of us gathering as the church is to worship Jesus as our gracious Savior and King.

In this sermon, we looked at the role of the Bible in revealing Jesus to His followers. In John 5:30-47, Jesus names three sources that bore witness to His identity as the Son of God. The first witness was John the Baptist and the second witness was the miraculous signs that Jesus performed in His public ministry. However, these two witnesses were insufficient to open the eyes of the people to see Jesus as the Son of God. Jesus tells us that a better witness is His Father’s witness, revealed in the Scriptures. Jesus says that when the Scriptures abide in us, God’s love lives in us, and leads us to salvation.

In this sermon, we continued The Gospel of John series by looking at John 5:18-29. Here we find Jesus’ response to the Jews who were seeking to kill Him because He claimed to be equal to God. Instead of attempting to pacify those who were growing in hostility toward Him, Jesus further explained His identity. Jesus challenged the Jews, and the crowds who followed Him, to see Him in His full authority as the Son of God. Too many of us come to Jesus as our Savior but reject Him as our Lord. If Jesus is your Savior, the only way He has authority to save you from sin and death is because He truly is the Son of God, the King of Kings, and the Lord over all the Earth.

In this sermon, we looked at the powerful hope found in the resurrection of Jesus. Before the resurrection, Jesus’ followers were in the middle of the greatest tragedy in human history: The Son of God was brutally put to death for our sins. His followers had placed all of their hope in one man and this man, their Messiah, had been killed. In Luke 24, Mary Magdalene and Mary, Jesus’ mother, visited the tomb to drop off spices they had prepared for the body of Jesus. To their surprise, they found the tomb empty and two angelic beings who reminded them that Jesus had said He would be crucified, buried, and raised from the dead on the third day. With great excitement, they immediately left the tomb to go tell the world about the risen Savior. The resurrection isn’t the end of the story; after the resurrection, Jesus transferred to His followers His mission to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Easter is not the happy ending; it’s the happy beginning that reminds us that something new has begun. Like the women at the tomb on the first Easter morning, our mission for Jesus began at the resurrection and continues until He returns.

In this sermon, we looked in Matthew 21:1-11 at Jesus' return to Jerusalem, where he rode into town like a new King victoriously returning from battle. Despite this triumphant return, Jesus is greeted with mixed responses, from the adoration of His faithful followers to the hatred of the Jews seeking to kill Him. As Jesus made His way into Jerusalem, some people gathered along the streets to shout that He was their King, the Messiah, the Savior of Israel. Despite these proclamations, the parade fell short of the standard welcome for a respected and adored King. Some responded to Jesus with faith and adoration, others as fans following at a distance until things became hard, while others altogether despised Jesus. There were no valuable gifts offered and Jesus wasn’t ushered to the most important place in the city to be adored. Instead, Jesus headed to the temple to drive out the money changers, who had distorted God’s house of prayer. As Matthew points out, everything that happened on this day was to fulfill Old Testament prophesies, initiating the final series of events leading up to Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection.

Think about your current relationship with Jesus. If you were there that day with Jesus entering in to your city, which group of people would you be in? Would you be one of the faithful few, one of the fair-weather fans who followed at a distance, or one of those who opposed Jesus? 

In this sermon, we looked at the fullness of Jesus’ grace displayed in an unusual occurrence of healing, leading to a confrontation with the Jewish religious leaders over His identity as the Son of God. In John 5:1-18, Jesus went to the Pool of Bethesda, where there was a crowd of people in need of healing. After Jesus sought out and healed an invalid man, the Jews’ persecution of Jesus turned from disgruntled opposition into a plot to kill Him. Not only did Jesus heal a man who didn’t have faith, He chose to heal him on the Sabbath, and He didn’t use the Pool of Bethesda for the healing. While the persecution began because Jesus had healed the man outside of Jewish religious customs and cultural superstitions, the persecution quickly intensified into a death-plot because Jesus claimed to be the Son of God as He announced, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” Through this healing encounter, we see the grace of Jesus fully displayed and we’re reminded that God still works far beyond our own religious practices and cultural expectations.