Search for sermons - Exodus 20
No Other Gods - Exodus 20:3 - May 31, 1992 - 714
We live in strange times, don't we? A recent Gallup Poll revealed that 84% of Americans believe that the Ten Commandments are a valid guide to life. That's encouraging until you realize that another survey revealed that only 30% of those polled could name even 3 of the Commandments. So before we ... More
Forever Children - Exodus 20:12 - Jun 28, 1992 - 717
We have two problems with this Commandment, and perhaps a third: 1. Many of us have negative memories associated with this Commandment. 2. It seems to be meant mostly for children. 3. It seems to describe a family situation many of us never experienced.The last one is the kicker. How do you obey ... More
Stop, Thief! - Exodus 20:15 - Jul 19, 1992 - 720
Although it is not a matter of any particular importance, this is not the first time I have preached on the Ten Commandments. About 12 years ago I preached through the Ten Commandments at the church I pastored in Downey, California. After I finished that series of messages, I put my sermon notes i ... More
Truth or Consequences - Exodus 20:16 - Jul 26, 1992 - 721
When I was growing up my mother had a little rhyme she often repeated to her four sons. You probably heard it many times while you were growing up: Sticks and stones may break my bones But words will never hurt me.As much as I hate to admit it, my mother (who wasn't wrong about many things) was ... More
The Sin No One Will Admit - Exodus 20:17 - Aug 16, 1992 - 723
We begin the final message in this series with the text of the Tenth Commandment: "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor." The key word "covet" is repeated, ... More
Murder in My Mouth - Exodus 20:13 - Jul 5, 1992 - 722
They had only been married 11 days when she had him killed. It all started when Louie Weber met Eva Garcia. Louie was 41 and she was 17 and a senior in high school. A romance blossomed and they were married in November 1988. Six days after getting married Eva learned that she had won a scholarsh ... More
Adultery in My Heart - Exodus 20:14 - Jul 12, 1992 - 719
This is easily the most difficult sermon to preach in this series. It is also the hardest Commandment to deal with fairly. Perhaps I can illustrate. A few years ago a writer introduced a chapter entitled "The Devil and Sex" with these words: "To the adolescents among my readers who have turned t ... More
No Graven Images - Exodus 20:4-6 - Jun 7, 1992 - 718
"Idols? You must be kidding.""That's what they have in Africa, right?" "Me? An idol-worshiper? What do you take me for? A pagan?""The only thing I worship is my brand-new car." What is an idol anyway? The dictionary offers this definition: "an image used as an object of worship." That sound ... More
Take Time for God - Exodus 20:8-11 - Jun 21, 1992 - 716
Let's begin with three observations on the Fourth Commandment: 1. This is the longest of the Ten Commandments. 2. It is also the most difficult to properly interpret. 3. The Fourth Commandment remains a source of perennial interest.On that last point I call your attention to a survey conducted by ... More
God in My Mouth; The Devil in My Heart - Exodus 20:7 - Jun 14, 1992 - 715
Every Commandment has its problems. Some are difficult to understand, others are difficult to interpret, and some are difficult to apply. The Third Commandment presents us with a unique problem: We understand it all too well. We think this is the commandment against swearing. We tend to think t ... More
The Miserable Millionaire: Christ Speak to the Problem of Misplaced Priorities - Matthew 19:16-26 - Feb 18, 2001 - 116
It has been almost ten years since I last preached on the story of the Rich Young Ruler. That fact wouldn't matter except that in 1991 I started my sermon with the story of a man named Lee Atwater. In the estimation of many people, he was the man most responsible for electing George Bush president i ... More
Homemade Gods: A Warning Against Modern-Day Baal Worship - Acts 17:29 - Jul 19, 1998 - 243
"Idols? You must be kidding.""That's what they have in Africa, right?""Me? An idol-worshiper? What do you take me for? A pagan?""The only thing I worship is my brand-new car."What is an idol anyway? The dictionary offers this definition: "an image used as an object of worship." That sounds like thos ... More
The First Law: He's God and We're Not - Feb 10, 2002
This is the first sermon in a new series called "The Seven Laws of the Spiritual Life." For the last few years I have been thinking about putting together a short list of the basic principles of the Christian life. What are those truths that every believer needs to know in order to have a healthy re ... More
The Second Law: God Doesn't Need Us But We Desperately Need Him - Feb 17, 2002
Last Sunday we started a new sermon series called The Seven Laws of the Spiritual Life. In this series we are discovering the basic principles of the Christian life that meet us where we are and take us all the way to heaven. The First Law teaches us a fundamental truth: He's God and We're Not. All ... More
God's Freedom - Romans 9:6-18 - Apr 26, 2006 - 761
While studying Romans 9, I was struck by Paul's question in verse 14: "Is God unjust?" In our hearts we already know the answer. God is not unjust. But oftentimes he seems inconsistent. The very examples Paul chooses seem to uphold that inconsistency.He chooses Isaac over Ishmael.He chooses Jacob ov ... More
The End of the Beginning - I Samuel 31 - II Samuel 1 - Nov 19, 2000 - 342
The year was 1943. Slowly the Allied forces were squeezing the Germans out of North Africa. From the east Field Marshall Bernard Law Montgomery's British forces sent Rommel's Nazi tanks reeling in retreat across the Libyan desert. From the west a little-known American general named Eisenhower rallie ... More
The God We Hardly Know - Sep 22, 2006
David Mains caught me off guard with his question. "If you had to grade your congregation on their knowledge of the Holy Spirit, what grade would you give them?"Up until that moment, the interview had gone well. David and his daughter Melissa had thrown me fast pitches right over the center of the p ... More
God's Freedom - Romans 9:6-18 - Jun 25, 2006 - 425
While studying Romans 9, I was struck by Paul's question in verse 14: "Is God unjust?" In our hearts we already know the answer. God is not unjust. But oftentimes he seems inconsistent. The very examples Paul chooses seem to uphold that inconsistency.He chooses Isaac over Ishmael.He chooses Jacob ov ... More
Fact or Fable in Genesis: Was the World Really Created in Six Days? - Genesis 1:1-2:3 - Apr 28, 2002 - 221
These are exciting days to study the book of Genesis. A great deal has been written on this book in the last few years and there has been much new research in the area of science and the Bible. It's always a good thing to focus on issues that really matter. Sometimes in the church we spend too much ... More
The Woman Caught in the Act: Christ Speaks to the Problem of a Judgmental Spirit - John 8:1-11 - Apr 22, 2001 - 124
"It is a terrible thing for a sinner to fall into the hands of his fellow sinners." F. B. MeyerThis is the story of Jesus and the woman taken in adultery. It is so popular that even those who rarely read the Bible know about it. Clarence McCartney comments that the great museums of Europe always hav ... More
Chariots of Fire - 2 Kings 2 - Mar 8, 2006 - 193
What would you do if you knew that you were going to die today? What if you knew with absolute certainty that today was going to be your last day on earth? Suppose you had less than 24 hours to live. What would you do? Where would you go? How would you spend your last few hours on planet earth? If y ... More
Babbling for Jesus: Speaking Truth to Highly Intelligent People - Acts 17:18-21 - Jun 7, 1998 - 242
I'd like to begin by telling you about a new mission statement that has just been approved by the elders of the church. Several months ago the pastoral staff and the elders began working together to write a new mission statement for our church. Although we've done this several times in the past, we ... More
The God We Hardly Know: Why I Believe in the Holy Spirit - Various - Oct 29, 1995 - 793
David Mains caught me off guard with his question. "If you had to grade your congregation on their knowledge of the Holy Spirit, what grade would you give them?" The interview, broadcast nationally on the program You Need to Know, centered around my book Names of the Holy Spirit. I got the inter ... More
The Mysterious Doctrine of the Trinity - Acticle B: The True God - Various - Feb 16, 1992 - 747
My introduction to the doctrine of the Trinity came at a very young age. I first learned it through the music we sang at the First Baptist Church. The great hymn "Holy, Holy, Holy" was number one in the Baptist Hymnal. Over the years the words "God in three persons, Blessed Trinity" were tattooed ... More
Do You Have the Courage to be Happy? - Matthew 5:3-12 - Nov 10, 1991 - 787
It started on a Friday night 17 years ago in Lansing, Michigan when a young sophomore came off the bench to lead Everett High School to victory. He scored 36 points, had 18 rebounds, 16 assists and 10 steals. It was the most remarkable high school performance Fred Stabley had ever seen. As he wro ... More
To Every Generation: - Psalm 100:5 - Jun 27, 1999 - 684
“Every experience God gives us, every person he puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future that only he can see.” Corrie Ten Boom Ten years ago today I was sitting in my home in Garland, Texas wondering and waiting. Our family had just returned from our candidating weeken ... More