Sermons found for the topic Unity

Inside the Wedding Ring - Romans 15:5-7

I was twenty-five years old and fresh out of seminary when I became the pastor of a small church in Downey, California. I stayed there almost five years and then moved to Garland, Texas to pastor another church for fi More

Harambee! - Romans 15:5-7

With this sermon, we are almost to the end of the “Praying with Paul” series. There is one more sermon after this and then we are done. The prayer we are looking at in this sermon is different from any of More

Church of the Living Dead - Revelation 3:1-6

The Sardis spirit overtakes us whenever we begin to take God’s gifts for granted. How quickly we can become the Church of the Living Dead and not even know it. More

Will the Real Sinner Please Stand Up? - Jonah 4

You’ve got a Nineveh in your life right now. Your Nineveh might be someone you love whose behavior has provoked you to the point of anger and bitterness. Nineveh ultimately stands for any part of the will of God that you are afraid to face. More

Bad Manners at the Dinner Table - Galatians 2:11-14

We need an infusion of God’s love to make us open in our friendships, open in our churches, and open on Sunday morning to new people who love the Lord but don’t fit our particular target group. More

Love Means Telling the Truth - 2 Corinthians 7:8-13

God intends for the church to become a body of committed, loving truth-tellers. Easy to say, hard to do. 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

How to Kill a New Christian - Part 2 - Romans 14:1-12

Christians have always disagreed - a lot! And it’s not a bad thing. But there is always a danger that our own personal preferences will grow so important that we no longer accept our brothers and sisters in the Lord who disagree with us. The great unifying factor for the people of God is the Lord Jesus Christ. He has broken down the wall that separated us from God and from one another. In Him we are joined together in the body of Christ. If we truly believe in Him, we can let Him deal with those who disagree with us. In the meantime, don’t forget to treat those who disagree as brothers and sisters in the Lord. More

How to Meet the Enemy - Ephesians 6:14-17

No believer is safe who faces Satan in his own strength. No believer is more secure than he who goes into battle wearing the whole armor of God. More

What If - Ephesians 6:18-20

Jesus said, “My house shall be called a house of prayer.” Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that were true of your church? My church? Every church? More

A Warning to Wine-Drinkers - Romans 14:13-23

Christian Liberty - You are free! Absolutely free. Christ has liberated you from the terrible burden of having to prove your worth by keeping a set of rules. You are free from the law, free from rule keeping, and free to make responsible choices. God has set you free so that you can please him with the choices you make. More

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

Our sovereign God allows enemies to enter our lives for our ultimate good. They are often people we are close to; family, people at work, or even in our church. God’s message to us is to love, bless, and pray for them. In doing this, He will bless us. We cannot be set free until we set them free to be blessed by the Lord. 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

Joy in the Trenches - Philippians 1:27-30

Dr. Ray Pritchard issues a stirring call to live worthy of the gospel. We can make an impact for Christ in our world if we will stand without division, strive without compromise, speak without fear, and sacrifice without shame. More

Creation-Evolution Teaching Statement - Various

Here are 12 statements that provide a framework for teaching about creation and evolution in the local church. More

Lessons Learned Along the Way

Shortly before Christmas Dr. David Olford called and asked if I would consider speaking in early January at an evening session of the Stephen Olford Center for Biblical Preaching in Memphis, Tennessee. He told me that More

Getting Along With Cantankerous Christians - Philippians 2:1-4

Here is the text taken from The Message, a contemporary translation of the New Testament by Eugene Peterson: If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your More

The Church Christ Prefers - Revelation 3:7-13

Jesus wants his churches to be motivated by love, founded on the truth, strong under pressure, and unashamed of his name. More

The Eyes of God Are Upon You - Various

Our story begins in 1833 when a man named Joseph Kettlestrings, an Englishman from Yorkshire, arrived in the Chicago area. He settled first along the Des Plaines River where he worked at a saw mill. Two years later More

When Christians Disagree - Acts 16:36-41

Christians disagree about almost everything. And when we disagree, we usually start a new church. Which reminds me of a story I heard a few years ago. A Scottish Presbyterian is rescued after many years of living alon More

This Must Be the Place: - Various

Seven times in nine years I have given a State of the Church address to Calvary Memorial Church. In my first message I quoted the famous words of Daniel Burnham, architect and author of The Chicago City Plan: “M More

Life Has Been Good - Various

This is the fifth year I have been privileged to give a State of the Church address to Calvary Memorial Church. In my first message I quoted the great Chicago architect Daniel Burnham who said, “Make no small p More

First Century Patterns For 21st-Century Churches - Various

How closely should local churches follow the patterns of the New Testament? The answer is, as closely as possible, understanding that no one is 100% consistent and that outward forms will change over time. That means we need to focus on the key functions of the church, giving freedom to differ on how those functions are expressed. More

REACHING PEOPLE WITH GOD'S LOVE - Various

Friday morning I did something I had not done since becoming pastor of this church. I took a few minutes and sat on the steps in front of the sanctuary. It was a typical March day in Chicago–clear and cool wit More

The Mysterious Doctrine of the Trinity - Acticle B: The True God - Various

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 More

A Place to Serve - Acts 6:1-7

"Anyone can be great because anyone can serve.” Those are the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. They remind us of the words of Jesus who declared that he did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give h 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.&r More

THE P.U.I.H. - Acts 2

I don’t know what image comes into your mind when you hear the word Pentecostal. When I hear the word, my mind always goes back to the small town in Alabama where I grew up. Back then, there were only four chu More

Trouble in the Church! - Romans 16:17-20

Greet one another with a holy kiss … but don’t go kissing everyone.That will serve as a useful summary of our text. Sometimes it’s not what you say but when you say it that matters. Paul writes thes More

God Has a Big Family—Part 1 “I Believe in the Holy Catholic Church” - Matthew 16:18

Jesus said, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18 ESV). The Apostles’ Creed says, “I believe in the holy catholic church.” Peopl More

God Has a Big Family—Part 2 “I Believe in the Holy Catholic Church” - Ephesians 4:1-6

“I believe in the holy catholic church.” The Apostles’ Creed Let’s begin at the most basic point. What does the word “church” mean? In the New Testament the word “church& More

Always Dying, Always Living - 2 Corinthians 4:10-12

We can live in such a way that others see Christ in us. But for that to happen we must be broken so that the light of Christ can come shining through us. More

A Place to Share - Acts 4:32-37

This is the third sermon in the four-part series “A Place to Belong.” In this series we are examining the incredible dynamic that made the early church reach so many people so quickly. As I noted in the fi More

Sola Scriptura: The Bible and Only the Bible - 2 Timothy 3:16

"Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.” Psalm 119:89 “You have exalted above all things your name and your word.” Psalm 138:2b “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my w More

God's Mountain Man - 1 Kings 17:1

Last December right after the tsunami disaster, my friend Ramesh Richard, a professor at Dallas Seminary, sent an email that contained a simple, one-sentence prayer. He called it a “dangerous prayer.” The More

Risky Business: The Other Side of Christian Freedom - Galatians 5:13-15

"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1a). What exactly is this Christian freedom that Paul talks so much about in Galatians? In order to help us understand the answer, I’d like to b More

The Law of the Harvest: God’s Plan for Spiritual Prosperity - Galatians 6:6-10

Over lunch this week, a friend and I discussed the spiritual implications of the terrorist attacks on America. My friend commented that this ought to be a wake-up call to every Christian to seek first the kingdom of G More

Why I Am Not a Pessimist - Ephesians 5:15-17

Christians are both pessimists and optimists, but we are much more optimistic because though we see what is happening in the world around us, we know that Jesus Christ conquered the grave. And because he lives, we too will live. More

Babbling for Jesus: Speaking Truth to Highly Intelligent People - Acts 17:18-21

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 More

Swimming Upstream - Romans 12:2

There are times when we need to see a familiar verse in a new way. The ESV translates the first part of Romans 12:2 this way: “Do not be conformed to this world.” Simple, clear and concise. But what exactl More

Seven Signs Of The Second Coming

(Revised and Expanded January 9, 1991)The following things have happened in the last 72 hours:*Yesterday the Iraqi Revolutionary Council met with Saddam Hussein and reaffirmed that there would be no withdrawal from Ku More

The Church on its Knees: Unleashing the Power of United Prayer - Acts 1:12-14

"Prayer is that slender nerve that moves the muscles of omnipotence." Charles SpurgeonI don’t often begin a sermon with a confession but this week it seems the appropriate thing to do. Over the years when More

Acts of the Apostates - Jude 1-25

I’d like to begin my message with a word we don’t often use. Though it has been around for many generations, this particular word unfamiliar to most of us. Few of us use it in ordinary conversationsand som More

A FIVE-YEAR PLAN FOR CALVARY MEMORIAL CHURCH - Various

First Draft: January 15, 1991(Version 2.30) Submitted by: Ray Pritchard, Brian Bill, Bill Miller, Bob Boerman, Terry Strandt More

Seize the Day! - Various

The scene is a prep school somewhere in New England. On a beautiful fall morning the bright young men have gathered in English Literature class, fearing the worst—long, boring hours arguing about Beowulf and th More

Bestseller and More: Why I Believe in the Bible - Various

We begin with the simple observation that the Bible is the best-selling book of all time. More copies have been printed in more languages and read by more people than any other book in history. It is so far out in f More

God in Three Persons: A Doctrine We Barely Understand

My problem this morning is simple: to explain a doctrine that all Christians believe but no one really understands. And I have to do it in 30 minutes!So let’s start at the very beginning. All Christians believe More

When Christians Disagree - Acts 15:36-41

We Christians disagree a lot, sometimes about the craziest things. I don’t know if you know it or not, but Christians have been disagreeing with each other since the very beginning. It goes all the way back to More

Level Three Faith and How to Get There - Hebrews 11:13-16

Every time a church enters a stewardship campaign, there is danger and there is also opportunity. The main danger is that the church will talk so much about money that people will begin to equate the whole of Christia More

Make No Small Plans - Various

Before we moved to Oak Park last August, someone gave us a copy of the Chicago Magazine’s Guide to Chicago. Nestled between the Title Page and the Table of Contents is this quote from Daniel Hudson Burnham, au More