Sermons found for the topic Grace

Amazing Grace - Ephesians 2:1-9

Since this is a sermon series on the gospel, I would like to point out that my text contains the whole gospel message in just six words. If you know what these words are and what they mean, you will know the gospel. A More

Sunrise at Bethlehem - Luke 1:78-79

On the first Christmas morning the sun began to shine in Bethlehem. Now that he has come into the world, nothing can ever be the same again. Now we have light in the darkness, pardon from our guilt, and peace that passes all understanding. More

Unless You Forgive - Matthew 6:12

When we pray, “Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors,” we are asking God to forgive our sins according to the same standard we have used in forgiving the sins of others. When you pray this prayer you are really saying, “O God, deal with me as I deal with other people.” More

Sola Gratia: By Grace Alone - Titus 3:7

I’d like to begin this sermon with a thought-provoking quotation from Kim Riddlebarger. He works with Michael Horton in an organization called CURE: Christians United for Reformation and Evangelism. When we use More

What Christ Does With Failure - John 21

John 21 is in the Bible so that all of us Peter-types would know that though we fall again and again, by God’s grace we can keep on getting back up. If he did it for Peter, he can do it for me and for you. More

The Year of Good Riddance - 2 Corinthians 2:5-11

Maybe we should make 2010 a Year of Good Riddance in which we say farewell to anger, bitterness, blaming, finger pointing, self-justification and a critical spirit, and ask God to grant us a fresh infusion of his grace in all of our relationships. More

Now I See - 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:6

We can preach the gospel and we can pray. Satan will do all he can to keep the lost blind and confused so they cannot “see” the gospel. Only God can lift the veil and speak the words that will bring light to those who walk in darkness. More

Why God Chooses Splendid Sinners and Lovable Losers - 1 Corinthians 1:26-31

When God chooses people for his family, he picks those the world considers losers. This means that imperfect people make excellent candidates for the grace of God. Since we are all imperfect, when we boast, let us boast only in the Lord. More

Theology at Midnight - Acts 16:25

Anyone can sing “Shout to the Lord” when life is good, your health is good, your marriage is strong, your kids are doing well, and all is right with the world. If with Paul and Silas you can sing praise to God at midnight in jail, then what you’ve got is real. More

Why We Keep Believing - Hebrews 11:13-16

Because Christians are aliens and strangers on earth, we are destined to live and die feeling slightly (and maybe more than slightly) out of place. But we will not quit, give up or go back because our home is in heaven. We have expectations of something much better than anything the world has to offer. More

Praying From the Footnotes - Matthew 6:13

When we pray, we are to begin by asking that God’s name be hallowed and we are to end by praising God for his sovereign rule over the affairs of men. Thus the Lord’s Prayer begins with God and ends with God. More

Paid in Full - John 19:30

Here is the gospel truth. Jesus died. God is satisfied. When Jesus said, “It is finished,” he meant it. Will you believe it? More

The Days of Noah: Why God Sent the Flood - Genesis 6:1-8

This is the first of several sermons on Noah and the flood. As we begin our study of this important event, I’d like to focus our attention on a very crucial point: If this story is true, that is, if it really ha More

The Final Difference Between the Church and the World - Hebrews 11:29

At the Red Sea, the Hebrews were delivered while the Egyptians were destroyed. From this we learn that the church and the world have two different destinations. This is the final difference between them. More

How Faith Works - Luke 7:1-10

The life of faith is inherently a life of risk. It is not for those timid souls who want to play it safe all the time. As long as we limit God to what we think he can do, we will never see anything great because our faith remains so small. But once we are willing to suspend our disbelief and renounce our skepticism, then and only then do we become candidates for a miracle. More

God Our Father - Matthew 6:9

The Lord’s Prayer answers the greatest question of the universe–Is there anybody up there who cares about me? Is there anybody up there who knows my name? And the answer comes back-Yes. Yes. Yes. There is a God in heaven who cares about you. And he is called Father. More

Korazin: Knowing Too Much and Believing Too Little - Matthew 11:20-24

Don’t make the mistake of Korazin and take Jesus for granted. The day of grace comes to an end sooner or later. What will you say in the day of judgment if you have neglected the Son of God? More

Why You Need Your Enemies and Your Enemies Need You—Part Two - Jeremiah 29:7

Our enemies are a gift from God. If we didn’t need them He wouldn’t send them. God has a beneficial purpose in sending enemies our way - to make us more like Christ. Therefore, the person we might consider an enemy is, in reality, our best friend. More

Strength for the Journey - 2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

In this message Pastor Ray reminds us everything we believe rests on the sovereignty of God. Salvation starts with God, not with us. Because he has chosen us, we can stand firm amid the trials of life. By standing firm we prove to ourselves and to the watching world what we truly believe. More

Bestseller and More

I submit to you that the Bible will stand the toughest test and the hardest scrutiny because it is indeed the Word of God. That’s why after 2000 years it is still the best-selling book in the world. No other book contains the plan of salvation. No other book can tell you how to get to heaven. More

Why I Believe in God - Genesis 1:1

I believe in God because nothing in the universe makes sense without him. After all the arguments on both sides are finished, you still have to decide for yourself. You still have to choose. What choice have you made? More

Daily Bread Living - Matthew 6:11

When you pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” you confess that God is the sources of every blessing. Daily bread living means taking life one day at a time, being confident that God will take care of your needs day by day by day. More

Unfading Glory - 2 Corinthians 3:7-11

You can have the fading glory of the law and all you’ll get for it is death and condemnation. Or you can come to Christ and you will have the unfading glory of life and righteousness forever. More

Grumblers Anonymous - Matthew 20:1-16

This parable is not just teaching us about final rewards. It is also probing at the level of our motives. Why are we doing what we do? If it’s a straight reward you want, fine, you’ll get it. God will never cheat you. But that’s all you’ll get. And you’ll go to heaven grumbling all the way, always checking to see how you are doing compared with someone else - overestimating your own importance and underestimating the grace of God. But if you decide to do your work for the Lord’s sake alone, you will never be disappointed. More

What God Remembers That We Forget - Psalm 103:6-18

If you’re wondering what God thinks about you, let’s take a journey through Psalm 103 and discover seven liberating truths about God’s heart. These verses reveal that he shows mercy to those who don’t deserve it, he remembers that we are dust, and he links us with eternity by linking us with himself. More

Are We All Hindus Now? - Exodus 20:1

Christians must reassert the supernatural basis of the Christian faith. We must not stutter where God has spoken clearly. And we must make clear the utterly exclusive claims of Jesus Christ. More

The Midway

If only a few people will be saved, how can there be a vast multitude in heaven? And why do so many people miss the narrow gate while many others find it? Life on the midway helps us answer those questions. More

Dirty Feet - John 13:6-10

We are not imaginary sinners! We are great sinners who need a great Savior. And we have one in Jesus Christ who stooped so low that he was not ashamed to wash our dirty feet. More

It’s the Faith, Brother - Hebrews 11:3-7

There are those who have faith and those who don’t. And if you don’t have faith, you cannot please God. True faith, faith that rests on God and his Word and believes all that he has said, true faith sees the unseen and say, “Yes, it is true.” More

The Blessed Benefits - Psalm 103:1-5

Many of us need to give God a “one-minute praising” for all his blessings. We’re sure good at telling the Lord what we want him to do for us. We need a good dose of Psalm 103 to wash out that complaining spirit and replace it with a heart of gratitude to the Lord. More

What Is Your Isaac? - Hebrews 11:17-19

From the story of Abraham offering Isaac, we learn that God calls us to yield our dearest treasures to him. Anything good can become an idol when it becomes too important to us. What is your Isaac? Are you willing to lay it down for Jesus’ sake? More

Be Still and Know - Psalm 46:10

Why did the deadly cyclone hit Myanmar and the earthquake devastate the Sichuan Province in China? Our first response to questions like that is critical. Psalm 46:10 teaches us to be silent, and in our silence we will know God in the midst of great tragedy. More

God’s Medicine for a Sick World - Romans 13:8-10

Love is the medicine for a sick and fallen world. We need to see love and feel love and experience it in our lives. And we need to know how to pass it along to others. This is the fulfillment of all that God asks of us. More

Deliver Us From Evil - Matthew 6:13

This petition reminds us of how weak we really are. We are sitting ducks for the flaming darts of the devil. Unless the Lord helps us, we will not only face temptation, we will succumb to it every single time. More

How to Kill a New Christian - Part 1 - Romans 14:1-12

Part 1. There are many ways to kill the faith of a new Christian, but the easiest way - and the quickest - is through criticism and a lack of acceptance. We all have a tendency to criticize people who don’t do or say things the way we think they ought to be said or done. Terrible things can happen when we are too quick to offer personal judgments on believers who don’t meet our personal standards. How can we overcome the impulse to criticize our brothers and sisters in Christ? More

Peace, Be Still!A Short Sermon from the Sea of Galilee - Mark 4:35-41

Lord, don’t you care - that my child is sick, my marriage is falling apart, I have no money, I feel so alone? All of us have moments when life tumbles in around us, when we feel utterly alone and forgotten by God. In those moments we have a choice to make. More

In His Steps - I Peter 2:21-25

The Christian walk is synonymous with innocent suffering and pain, through which Christ our Lord suffered and died. He left us all an example of how to follow him in this. A Christian’s call to this behavior goes against the grain of his human tendencies: to suffer unjust treatment without retaliation, trusting only that God would be the judge of things ultimately. Jesus lived the sacrificial life to which he calls all his believers. It is a life that leads to the cross, and he has modeled how to live this sacrificial life for us. When we suffer unjustly, we share in a tiny portion of what happened to him. When we are mistreated, we are to turn the other check, bless those who curse us, and return good for evil. We are not to retaliate, not to threaten, not to get even. Jesus showed us how to live, and he showed us how to die. This response is a miracle in itself and is under girded and made possible only by the gift of grace from God. More

What Happens to Those Who Never Heard About Jesus? - Romans 2:12

No question is more central to the missionary enterprise than the state of those without Christ. Are they really lost? Are those who never hear also lost? And that raises an important question. How can God send people to hell for not believing in Jesus, if they never even heard of him in the first place? More

God’s Graffiti - Daniel 5

Babylon became great because of the sovereign blessing of God. In their greatness they forgot about God and began to take him for granted. God judged them and they were no longer a great nation. In the end God judges that nations who forget him, and that judgment often comes at the hands of another nation God raises up for that very purpose. More

A Survival Kit for Tough Times - I Peter 5

We come this morning to the end of our series on I Peter. This is the 24th and final message. We started on the last Sunday of July and we end on Mother’s Day. It was summer when we started and we end with summe More

Faithful to the Tempted - I Corinthians 10:13; Genesis 39

We begin with two quotations. The first comes from British playwright Oscar Wilde who said, “I can resist anything except temptation.” We smile when we read those words because they speak an important truth More

The Truth About Same-Sex Marriage - Genesis 1:26-28; Revelation 22:17

My story today begins a long way from Oak Park, and a long way from our current controversies. In order to get the proper perspective, let’s go all the way back to the beginning of the Bible. To quote a line fro More

When Doing Right Gets You in Trouble - I Peter 2:18-20

"Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering More

Paradise Regained - Romans 5:15-21

In our study of the book of Romans we have come to the last few verses of chapter 5. It’s interesting to read what the commentators have to say about this passage. They all say that this is one of the chief port More

Branded for Christ: A Solemn Call to Glory in the Cross - Galatians 6:11-18

Six months after we started, we come at last to the end of our journey through the book of Galatians. It has been an exciting trip! Time and again we have been brought face to face with the grace of God as the only ho More

Has God Lost the Battle? - Romans 11:1-10

In this sermon series we are looking at Romans 9-11, arguably the three most difficult chapters in the New Testament. I’ve called it “Understanding God’s Plan” because these chapters help us un More

The Third Law: What God Demands, He Supplies

In this sermon series we’re looking at the basic laws of the spiritual life that apply to all Christians everywhere. These are the principles that every Christian needs to know because they meet you right where More

Unworthy - I Corinthians 11:27

There are two dangers we face whenever we come to the Lord’s table. The first danger is that we will feel that we are not worthy to be here. And the second danger is that we will feel that we are worthy. The fir More

A Friend in High Places - Hebrews 4:14-16

If you were raised in Chicago, you no doubt recognize the name of Mike Royko. For over 30 years he was the voice of Chicago to the nation. At the height of his career over 600 newspapers carried his columns. After he More