Sermons on Salvation (Page 2)
The Kingdom of God Has Come Near
“Kingdom” is the emphasis for our One Word devotional book reading for the upcoming week, so I plan to focus on that theme Sunday. Kingdom is a hugely significant theme in the Bible–it’s used more than 200 times in the Old Testament alone–but sometimes we’re a bit vague on exactly what it means. Sometimes people think of kingdom as synonymous with the church, but that doesn’t come close to explaining the nuances and implications of kingdom thought in the Bible. Sometimes people…
Hope
Everyone has some sort of hope, I suppose . . . or at least almost everyone looks to something for security. For some it might be a job (i.e., “If I can accomplish this or that, then I’ll feel secure”). For others it might be money, or power, or relationships. When we hope in something, we turn to it for feelings of accomplishment, security, or identity. It gives us something to aim for, some reason to get up in the…
The Kindness and Severity of God
Is God kind or severe? Does he act out of love or justice? Is he patient or wrathful? Our congregational reading plan had us beginning with Deuteronomy on Thursday, and if we haven’t read the Old Testament in awhile, we’re probably a bit overwhelmed with how God presents himself to the Israelites. In fact, if I may say so, sometimes God seems a little harsh and demanding. We’re going to wrestle with this theme Sunday morning, considering how God is…
Difficult Conversations – Restoring a Fellow Christian
Our goal as a church is to support one another in our walk with Christ. We want one day to hear these words from Jesus, “Come, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world,” and nothing will ever be sweeter. But, of course, the Christian life isn’t easy, and we need a little help along the way. Sometimes that help comes in the form of an encouraging talk from a brother or sister, or even perhaps…