To understand forgiveness, consider Jesus on the cross. In his dying moments He uttered words that still ring across the centuries: “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Even as he said those words, the crowd laughed, mocked, cheered, jeered. They taunted him. When he died, the people who put him to death were quite pleased with themselves. No one seemed very sorry. No one said, “I was wrong. This is a mistake.” And yet he said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” That is precisely what we must say if we are going to follow Jesus.
Text: Romans 15Christians 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.
Text: Romans 14:1-12Part 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?
Text: Romans 14:1-12Christians, do you know what time it is? The Apostle Paul tells us it’s time to wake up, put off the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. In light of the return of Christ, and the lateness of the hour, how should we then live?
Text: Romans 13:11-14Is ministry your Spiritual Gift? No man calls himself into the ministry or into local church leadership. A self-called man and a God-called man are two different people. One man thinks he’s qualified so he calls himself. The other man feels unworthy but responds to God’s call. If God has called you, rise up, go forth and serve the Lord.
Text: 1 Timothy 4:14Love 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.
Text: Romans 13:8-10When Leslie Lynch King, Jr. died earlier this week, it made headlines around the world. Commentators talked about his legacy, […]
Sermon Series: Key Words of the Christian Life“Christmas is full of surprises.” Somewhere in my reading this week I ran across that sentence. While I am sure […]
Text: Luke 2:12“If I had not come” (John 15:22). “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of […]
Text: John 15:22; Galatians 4:4Jesus stands at the end of life’s road for all of us. In the end there can be no middle ground.
Text: Matthew 2:1-6