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

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 the te 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

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

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 happened 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

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

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

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

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 summer not 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 from The 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 portions o 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 understand the flow of eve 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 you ar 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 first dan 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

"They Gave Themselves First to the Lord" Why Giving Begins with the Heart, Not the Pocketbook - II Corinthians 8:1-5

Last night some Moody students came over to our house for some pizza and to watch a football game. One of them asked what I planned to preach on today. When I told him, he said, "Too bad." Then, "Too bad you have to p More

Where Grace and Wrath Meet: What the Cross Meant to God - Romans 3:24-26

Easter comes in just six weeks. In order to prepare our hearts we are going to take the five weeks leading up to Palm Sunday to focus on the cross of Christ. I do not intend to repeat the details of what happened on G More

Two Ways to Go to Heaven: Make Sure You Choose the Right One - Galatians 3:1-14

With this sermon we turn a corner in our journey through Galatians. This short letter has three parts:The Personal Section: Chapters 1-2The Doctrinal Section: Chapters 3-4The Practical Section: Chapters 5-6As we begin More

No Hopeless Cases - Romans 11:11-16

I first met Jacob Gartenhaus about forty years ago. When I was a teenager growing up in a small town in Alabama, our pastor invited Dr. Gartenhaus to speak to us on the subject of Jewish evangelism. It was the first t More

The Woman Caught in the Act: Christ Speaks to the Problem of a Judgmental Spirit - John 8:1-11

"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 kno More

Faithful to the Defeated - Lamentations 3:22-23

The year was 1866, and in a log cabin in the little town of Franklin, Kentucky, Thomas Obadiah Chisholm was born. Although he never went to high school or college, he became an elementary school teacher at age 16. Fiv More

Is Total Forgiveness Realistic? - Ephesians 4:29-32

A few days ago I received an e-mail with a comment about these sermons on forgiveness:Since you started this series, I have made some important discoveries in my life, but am enjoying it all the same. Maybe ‘enj More

Only One Gospel: Why We Preach an Unpopular Doctrine - Galatians 1:1-10

Today we are beginning a brand-new sermon series on the book of Galatians. Whenever a pastor starts a new series, especially an exposition of a book of the Bible, it's always useful to know why this book and why now. More

The Only Thing That Matters: Faith That Works By Love - Galatians 5:1-12

These are the closing words of the Declaration of Independence:We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the World for the Re More

The Heart of A Champion - I Samuel 16:1-13

We are beginning a brand-new series of sermons called Journey to the Throne: Meeting God in the Turning Points of Life. Over the next few weeks we will follow the early years of David as he rises from obscurity to bec More

Hanging Tough for Jesus - II Thessalonians 1:11-12

I would like to call your attention to verses 4-5 as we begin: "Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. All this is evidence that More

Strangers in a Strange Land - I Peter 1:1-2

Today we are beginning a journey through I Peter. I encourage you to crease your Bible open to this little book because we're going to be here for several months. We're going to go through this epistle verse-by-verse More

Anatomy of a Backslider - Genesis 20

One of the great proofs of the supernatural origin of the Bible it that it tells the truth about people. As you read the Bible, you will find that it discloses the whole range of human activity—including the da More

Faithful to the Fallen - Luke 22:31-32

“Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:31-32 This text gives us More

God's Altar Call - Romans 12:1

"I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship" (Romans 12:1).I must have been about eight or nin More

"We Did Not Give in to Them:" Why Unity Must be Based on Truth - Galatians 2:1-10

I want to begin by calling your attention to the most important verse in our passage—verse 5, which reads, "We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might remain with you." If you More

Our Awesome God - Romans 11:33-36

It's not often that a book title tells the whole story. Usually titles are chosen because they are catchy, not because they are informative. But occasionally you stumble on a title that both catches your attention and More

How We Know What We Know - I Corinthians 2:10-13

"But God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows More

The Most Sought After Things in the World - Romans 5:1-5

A number of years ago a major American magazine published the results of a most fascinating survey. The editors had asked 16 prominent Americans what they did in order to find peace of mind in the midst of our stressf More

Jacob's Ladder - Genesis 28

A long journey, a hard pillow, a guilty conscience, a heavy heart. These are the things that make men dream. It had been two days since he had left home— Esau seething in the background Rebekah weeping Isaa More

A Tale of Two Women: Are You a Child of Promise? - Galatians 4:21-31

Almost all the commentators agree that this is the hardest passage in the book of Galatians. It's not easy to understand on a quick reading exactly what Paul means to say. Or perhaps more accurately, we know in genera More

Mighty Oaks and Graceful Pillars: A Prayer for Our Children - Psalm 144:12

"Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace" (Psalm 144:12).Today is Children's Sunday at Calvary. In all of our services we are fea More

Why God Allows Good Men to Fall - Luke 22:31-34

Today I want to talk to you about why God allows good men to fall. My attention was drawn to this subject a few weeks ago when I got an e-mail message from my college roommate – a man I haven’t seen since 1 More

Curing the Itch Mites

Ray: How many of you know what itch mites are? We had never heard of them until two months ago. Marlene: We learned all about itch mites when we hosted a wedding reception in Chicago for Mark and Vanessa who had gotte More

Repent! The Forgotten Doctrine of Salvation - Acts 17:30

In 1937 the American Tract Society sponsored a contest in which they offered a prize of $1,000 for the best new book written on one of the "essential evangelical doctrines of the Christian faith." Sixty-one years ago, More