"Sunday Morning" Tagged Sermons (Page 36)

"Sunday Morning" Tagged Sermons (Page 36)

Sunday Morning

God’s humble messenger (John the Baptist)

One of the greatest men of all time, according to Jesus, is John the Baptist. Yet in so many ways he is an enigma to us. He lived in the desert, wore weird clothes, ate weird food and wasn’t afraid to offend people, even the governor and his wife! Yet this eccentric man was also profoundly godly. In the tradition of an Old Testament prophet he fearlessly called people to repent and get ready for the arrival of the Messiah. But he was also deeply humble as he consistently pointed people to Jesus and flatly refused any special attention for himself. His greatest joy was to see other people following Jesus: “He must become greater. I must become less” was his modus operandi. May we be as faithful in pointing others to Jesus in our day.

Four very personal questions

The 2016 “Word of the Year” according to the Oxford Dictionary is “post-truth”. Sadly, truth doesn’t seem to matter in many circles these days. Truth is a matter of personal opinion rather than objective fact. But that’s not the way Jesus understood truth. In today’s passage He calls us to decide clearly between different options, because the consequences of the decisions we make in life have profound implications. He talks about a “road that leads to destruction”, a “tree that is cut down and thrown into the fire”, and a house that “fell with a great crash”. Where are you looking for truth? Because according to Jesus, truth does exist and it really does matter!

“Thank you, Lord!” (Thanksgiving Service)

The old Psalm expresses it like this: “Praise the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits.” (Psalm 103:2). It might sound somewhat quaint to the modern ear, but in our so-called “age of entitlement” we can so easily take God’s goodness for granted. We expect life to treat us well and grumble when it doesn’t. Today, the day of our Annual Church Meeting, we want to stop for a moment and consider some of the ways God has blessed us this year… and there are many! Then let’s take a moment to say “thank you”.

Living dangerously (Stephen)

How much risk or danger should a Christian expect to face in the normal course of life? Of course, that depends on where you live. As Christianity is increasingly pushed to the margins of western society, there is a growing antagonism which is forcing many modern-day believers to take a risky stand for Christ. Surely Stephen, the first martyr of the church, is a wonderful model on how to do this. Whether by his godly life, his fearless courage or his inspirational death, he shows us how to live and, if necessary, die for the glory of God. May God spare us from a safety-first, comfortable Christianity that costs nothing and watches on apathetically as Jesus is mocked and rejected today.

Ground-breaking evangelism (Philip)

How does anyone become a Christian? By hearing the message of Jesus from another person (Romans 10:17). And each generation is responsible for passing that message on to the next generation. Otherwise Christianity will die out within about 50 years. Philip, the evangelist, is the classic example of a man who was passionate about telling others about Jesus. Threats and dangers didn’t stop him. And God was clearly directing and using him. Wherever he was, he had one message… and it was always about Jesus. Let’s not over-complicate evangelism. Some people have a special spiritual gift of evangelism. But for most of us it’s a matter of sincerely and simply telling others about Jesus.

A ministry marriage (Aquila and Priscilla)

Two of the more intriguing characters in the NT are the couple, Aquila and Priscilla. They obviously had a strong marriage, but it was how they used their marriage for God that makes them so impressive. They were very mobile, with records of them living in Rome (twice), Corinth, and Ephesus (twice). They were extremely hospitable. And they relished the opportunity to serve as Paul’s gospel “coworkers” wherever they went. How do we see ourselves and our circumstances in the bigger scheme of God’s purposes? This is the question Aquila and Priscilla force us to ask ourselves. You’ll be challenged as Pastor Murray sheds light on this amazing couple.

The rich young ruler

Listen as Pastor Dave looks at three reasons the rich young ruler failed to gain the certainty he so desperately longed for.

The day is coming!

Have you ever felt disappointed with God? He hasn’t answered your prayer. Your life is a mess and He doesn’t seem to be there for you. Perhaps you’ve even been at the point of saying like the people of Malachi’s day: “It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out His requirements…?” Then you need to hear this message! We all get an occasional dose of self-pity. However, this is the time for us to stop, take a look at ourselves, remember who we are as God’s people, and get some perspective on life. As our passage clearly states, the day is coming when the wrongs of this world will be put right, the arrogant will be punished, and God’s people will be fully vindicated. Will you be ready to meet the Lord on that day?

Blessing blockers

Israel is guilty of robbing God in the giving of their tithes and offerings. Their disobedience is preventing them from receiving the blessings that God has in store for them. God calls his people to return and sets before them a challenge – do they trust God enough to give him what they should? Do we?