2 Cor. 9:1–15
Giving: What’s In It For Me? My sermon title today, “Giving: What’s In It For Me?”, is a bit facetious, but not entirely. You are probably thinking, “Isn’t giving supposed to be about the recipient, about meeting needs, and about serving God?” Yes, but the fact is the Bible speaks often, including in our text today, about the various benefits in a life of generosity–not only for the recipient, but also for the giver. We’re going to read the entire ninth chapter…
2 Corinthians 10:1-18
When you Go to War, Use the Right Weapons For the past two weeks we have been examining a section of 2 Corinthian (chapters 8 and 9) in which the Apostle Paul addresses the issue of generous giving, especially to the poor. It’s related to the rest of the book in that the reason he’s having to address the subject is that certain leaders have come into the church after he founded it, undermined his authority, and caused the people to neglect the…
2 Corinthians 10:12-11:15
Spiritual Predators in the Church My message today is about predators in the church–not a pleasant topic. We’ve heard a lot over the past few years about sexual predators among the clergy. Although the Catholic church certainly has no corner on this plague, I think it’s pretty obvious why they have had the biggest problem in regard to sexual abuse–no doubt because they do not allow their clergy to marry. Forced celibacy is neither biblical nor natural, and as long as they…
2 Corinthians 12:1-10
The Man Who Visited Paradise and Returned to Tell About It We come today to one of the strangest and most fascinating passages in the whole Bible. It contains two remarkable stories–Paul’s visit to Paradise and the thorn in the flesh he was given as a result of his visit to Paradise. This is not an easy passage to interpret or to understand, and I’m convinced we will never understand it fully unless we see it in the context of the dispute…
2 Corinthians 11:16-33
An Apostle’s Reluctant, Yet Intentional Boasting Note: This sermon was preached by Dick High, Associate Pastor at First Free in Wichita. Introduction: In the latter half of chapter 11 Paul continues both his defense of his ministry and his exposure of the false apostles. He will use irony, comparison, and personal example in his effort to present the true character of a leader. His desire is that the believers in the Corinthian church gain understanding regarding God’s leadership values. The ultimate crescendo…
2 Corinthians 12:11-13:1
With Friends Like This, Who Needs Enemies? Next Lord’s Day we will complete our six-month journey through the book of 2 Corinthians. As I mentioned when we began, this has been my first time teaching through the book, so I have been learning along with you. Probably because the book’s primary focus has been on Paul’s personal trials and tribulations as a church planter and pastor, this has been an emotional journey for me. It has shown me areas where I have fallen…
2 Corinthians 13:1-14
Spiritual Authority Is for Building Up, Not Tearing Down Please turn this morning to the last chapter of the book of 2 Corinthians as we wrap up our six-month study of this powerful letter from the hand of the Apostle Paul to the church at Corinth. Please stand with me as I read God’s Word: This will be my third visit to you. “Every matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.” I already gave you a…
Galatians 1:1-5
The Charter of Christian Liberty There are three Bible books that are preeminently “Gospel” books, i.e. they emphasize above all else the good news that Jesus Christ came to save sinners through His death on the Cross. Those books are John, Romans, and Galatians. Today we are going to begin a four-month study of the Book of Galatians. Without doubt one of the most eloquent speeches of the twentieth century was Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech on the Mall…
Galatians 1:6-12
DON’T MESS WITH THE MESSAGE! I’d like to start this morning with a question. “How many of you consider yourselves to be reasonably tolerant individuals?” Will you raise your hands? I suppose that most of those who haven’t raised their hands are worried that I have asked a trick question. A few may even honestly recognize some significant areas of intolerance in your life. I want to communicate a radical idea to you today, namely that . . . Tolerance can be intolerable. Tolerance is…
Galatians 1:11-2:10
Don’t Mess with the Messenger! Our last sermon was entitled, “Don’t Mess with the Message!” It was a hard-nosed, intolerant sermon based upon a hard-nosed, intolerant passage of Scripture. In essence the thrust was that anyone who adds to or subtracts from the Gospel message is playing with fire; in fact, he’s playing with hell-fire. Today I want to speak to you on a related topic, “Don’t Mess with the Messenger!” This, too, is going to be a hard-nosed, intolerant sermon based on another hard-nosed…
Galatians 2:11-14
No Infallible Leaders! This morning I want us to begin our time together by reading our Scripture text for today–just four verses from Galatians 2:11-14: When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong. Before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the…
Galatians 2:15-21
How to Be Right with God The fundamental need in the human heart is to be right with God. There is nothing else that is even a close second. If I know that God and I are OK, then I can handle anything the world, the flesh, or the devil throws at me. Furthermore, if God and I are OK, I have a foundation from which to make sure my wife and I are OK, and my children are OK, to see to…