Sermons on Spiritual Growth (Page 18)
Do you love me more than these?
Our 2018 theme is “Love God. Love People. Change the World,” and this Sunday we’re going to continue this emphasis by studying Jesus’ post-resurrection interaction with Peter. Just a few weeks earlier Peter had infamously denied any connection to Jesus and had almost certainly been dealing with overwhelming guilt and regret since then. Corresponding to Peter’s denial of Jesus three times, Jesus asked Peter if he loved him three times. We’re going to focus primarily on the first question: “Do…
Learning to Trust God: He is “for us”
Last Sunday we studied the importance of trusting God: it changes everything about us, from the way we face tragedies to the consistency with which we obey. All of us want to trust God more, but how do we? That’s the point of the message this Sunday. Romans 8 is one of the most beautiful and most-loved chapters in the whole Bible. In the culminating paragraph at the end, Paul encourages the Christians at Rome to know that nothing can…
Trust Changes Everything
The more I read the Bible and try to follow Jesus, the more I realize that the basis of our relationship with God—at least on our part—is learning to trust him completely and unreservedly. Most of us struggle at times with doubt, anxiety, fear, and uncertainty. We don’t obey God as fully or consistently as we should. Sometimes (often?) we make choices based on what WE think is best rather than trusting that God’s way is best. Why is that?…
Your Identity in Christ
There’s a tendency for us as Christians to hide the things we’re struggling with, especially the sins that are often considered to be particularly “bad.” In 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, Paul mentions many “bad” sins that these Christians had formerly practiced: sexual immorality, idolatry, homosexual practices, theft, drunkenness, etc. Many of these are considered taboo . . . more so than other sins. We often handle these sorts of sins differently than other sins, so it becomes okay to struggle with…
Gratitude and Grace
The nine healed lepers probably had several reasons to keep them from turning around and thanking Jesus. They needed to see the priest, who would officially pronounce them clean and admit them back into the community. And they had families they hadn’t seen in months, maybe years. Who would blame them for wanting to hug their wives and kids as soon as possible? But Luke focuses our attention on the one who thought to turn back. Consistent with his emphasis…