Sermons on Providence
Job 38:11
SERIES: Our Great and Awesome God The Power and Providence of God SPEAKER: Michael P. Andrus PLACE: Dallas Theological Seminary DATE: October, 1996 I wish to share with you today an experience that changed my life. It happened three years ago on the 20th of September, 1993. I was returning home one night from a prayer meeting for the victims of the terrible flood St. Louis was experiencing. I was about two miles from my home when a horse that had been spooked jumped over…
1 Kings 17
The Widow of Zarephath: A Double Blessing for a Single Parent Introduction: Do you know the origin of Mother’s Day? It’s not a biblical holiday, though the honoring of mothers and of motherhood is certainly a biblical concept. Mother’s Day was first celebrated in 1908 in a little church in Grafton, West Virginia. Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her own mother, which she did by declaring the day Mother’s Day. Today it is a widely recognized opportunity to express our love and appreciation for our…
Ezra 1, 2
The God Who Moves Hearts Introduction: We embark upon a new series this morning that will take us, Lord willing, through the end of the summer. We have just finished a heavily theological book from the NT (Colossians), and we are moving to an historical narrative portion of the OT (Ezra and Nehemiah). In 2 Timothy 3:16 we are told that “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.” I trust that will become evident as we…
Ezra 5, 6
The Lord of History Introduction: The other day I watched a news program which indicated that gambling is the fastest growing industry in the United States. Forty-eight states now have some form of legalized gambling—lotteries, horse racing, dog racing, casinos, etc. Even East St. Louis has finally discovered the golden egg that is supposed to pull it out of poverty—legalized gambling. When you add to that all the legal and illegal gambling that goes on in sports, office pools, card games, church bingo, and…
Matthew 6:25-34
A Sermon for the Ages: The Utter Foolishness of Worry Introduction: Today I want to speak about one of the most useless, debilitating, and destructive habits a person can possibly engage in, yet one that is so common that I suspect scores in my audience are doing it right this very moment. In fact, I suspect a few are so involved in doing it that they haven’t even heard a word I’ve said so far. I’m talking about worry. Not concern, not responsibility, not…
Genesis 45
Forgiving the Hard to Forgive It has been a great privilege to be back with you these four weeks. Thank you kindly for your warm reception. This return to First Free has been especially encouraging in that I have been able to see many marriages at which I officiated still prospering, kids I dedicated still in the church, and individuals who came to Christ still growing in their faith. I take great joy in the continuing spiritual prosperity of First Free. This morning…
Genesis 47:13-31
How a Wise Leader Functions Under the Providence of God Note: This sermon was preached at a Bible Conference in Sebring, Fl. There is much in this sermon that is repetitious of the sermon on Integrity at Work (#3 in the series), but there is a section that is new that I draw your attention to on pages 3-6. We are facing a leadership crisis in our country. Everywhere one looks—at politics, business, education, academia, or the clergy—one sees a lack of integrity or competence…
ecclesiates 3:1-22
The Tyranny of Time and Eternity Two of the most incomprehensible terms in the English language are “time” and “eternity.” Have you ever tried to define these words? Years ago I conducted a rather thorough search for a workable definition of time. About the best I could come up with was the following: “Time is the mere abstract possibility of events in durational sequence.” Now if you take pains to examine that definition and to digest each part of it very carefully, you will probably be forced to admit you don’t understand what time is…
Esther 1
When Chauvinism Confronts the Domino Theory Today we are beginning a new series on a much-neglected book of the Bible, the Book of Esther. There are reasons why it has been neglected (which I will enumerate in a few moments), but no excuses. Many evangelical preachers and commentators never touch it. I regret to admit that during my 40 years of preaching and teaching, this is the first time I have tackled Esther with any thoroughness. I think I did…
Esther 5-6
The Tables Are Turned Introduction: Scripture tells us the same truth in countless ways: “Whatsoever a man sows, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7); “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall” (Proverbs 16:18); “Let him who thinks he stands, take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). Nowhere can one find a clearer illustration of these truths than in the life of Haman, the Agagite–one of the key characters in the OT Book of Esther. Jeremy…
Ruth 3
Strategic Righteousness We come this morning to the 3rd chapter of the Book of Ruth, where the romance between Ruth and Boaz develops into full bloom. For the sake of those who haven’t been with us the past few weeks, this Old Testament narrative tells the story of an Arab girl from Moab who married a Jewish boy from Bethlehem. His parents, Elimelech and Naomi, had left Israel and traveled to Moab because of a famine. After Elimelech died, both…