SERMON ABOUT THE TRUTH

So often preachers angle their messages. They preach the peace of the gospel, the power of the gospel, the truth of the gospel, and we accept peace, but not the cross; we seize power, but reject the cross; we seek truth, but forsake the cross.

Saint Paul said, “I will do all things for the sake of the gospel…” Can you say that? –that you do all things for the cause of Christ? The verse continues, “…so I may share in its rewards…Every athlete disciplines himself in every way…” Why? “…to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Thus I don’t run aimlessly; I don’t box as if beating against the wind.”

There was a film about a boxer, and the movie director was asked why he chose to direct it. He said, “There’s something about the way a boxer walks. There’s a directness. There's an economy of movement.” I believe that all men want to have direction in life, to have a focus.

What are you searching for? To be liked among your friends? To drink? To party?

Jesus Christ! Only in him can you find fulfillment and peace. When you come into that relationship with Christ, you are changed from the inside out.

In First John, the Bible says, “We have only come to know him if we obey his commands. The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do as he commands is a liar. The truth is not in him.”

What are the commandments? Thou shall have no other gods before me. Thou shall not take the name of the Lord God in vain. Thou shall honor thy father and mother. Thou shall not steal or lie.

But there isn’t a person in this room absolutely blameless. We all have sinned and broken God’s Law and therefore have to pay the penalty, which is death and an eternity in hell separated from God.

God loves you so much that He sent His son to take your place. Jesus came to the earth, took the punishment for sin (the sins of the whole world) on his back by dieing on a cross and paying the penalty. Three days later, Christ rose again, proving victory over sin and death.

Jesus did his part on the cross. Now you must do your part by turning and following him. In the gospels, whenever Jesus met someone, he always said, “Come, pursue me, follow me.” He never said, “Accept, relax, and enjoy.”

“Come, be trained, walk as I walk,” and those who do will have fellowship with God; yet those who hear the Word and the Law of the Lord and reject it will spend an eternity in an inescapable hell.

SERMON ON A KNOWING SALVATION

I want to ask you a question today: are you completely, absolutely, totally convinced in your own mind that if you were to die today, you would go to be with God in heaven? Are you assured by the Scriptures that you have eternity to spend-not in hell-but in fellowship with God in heaven? How can one know Christ when they’ve never sought him through that which reveals him (the Scriptures)?

Jesus said, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, we did many things in your name, didn’t we?’ Then He will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you evildoers.’” In the Greek, it actually says, “I never, never, ever knew you.”

When you consider your life, do you feel fulfilled?

I look at some people and I see joy beaming off their faces. Something’s been revealed to them, something that one could search the entire universe for and still not find. You can’t find it in television. You can’t find it in a good book. You can’t find it in socializing. You can be the most social person and still have no peace, no joy.

It’s found in Christ.

The Bible says about a nation spoken of in the Old Testament who weren't finding their delight in God: “The Lord will give them an anxious mind, eyes weary with longing, and a despairing heart. They will live in constant suspense, filled with the dread of day and night, never sure for their life.”

In the past thirteen years, there’s been a 92% increase in unchurched Americans. Think about it! More than three out of five of the unchurched consider themselves Christian. Never before has humanity been so open to pornography, substance abuse, and sinful living. What’s the reason? The Bible tells us: sin. Romans eight says, “Those controlled by sin cannot please God.” You say, “Well Pastor, I’m a good person; do many nice things; respected by many.” But God says, “All men have sinned and fall short of my glory.”

And because of our sin, we have been cut off from relationship with a holy God. We are restless and without peace. The Bible says, “In the last days men will go about shouting, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace.” We have the Nobel Peace Prize, global peace initiatives, the spread of democracy, all in the hopes of what? -world peace.

Right now there’s hatred for America in the Muslim world. Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Seymour Hersh said that “the only hope for the US in the Muslim world” was Barack Obama. From the beginning of time, men of wisdom have come from the dust, and men have sought in them the hope of the world, yet back to the dust they went.

What is the hope of the world? Eternal God- being proclaimed before you today- sent his Son to make one statement. If you don’t remember a thing I say today, remember this, that the Bible says, “Christ in your hearts is your only hope of glory.” America will never be at peace until she stands at the foot of the cross and bends her head.