Sermons from 2021 (Page 4)
Hebrews 11:32-40
God’s Hall of Faith: The Gallery of Israel’s Golden Age, Captivity, and Dispersion In our journey through God’s Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11, we have walked through the Gallery of the Ancients, the Gallery of the Patriarchs, and the Gallery of the Exodus and the Conquest. But once Israel inherited the Promised Land, did the need for faith disappear? Not at all. It was still essential and still evident during Israel’s Golden Age, Captivity, and Dispersion. These are the final galleries of the…
Hebrews 12:1-13
The Absolute Supremacy of Jesus Christ Many word pictures are used in the Bible to describe the adventure that is the Christian life. It is spoken of in agricultural terms (planting and harvesting), military terms (fighting the good fight), stewardship terms (faithful management), and even slavery terms (we are bond slaves to God), but no word picture is used more frequently or effectively than that of the athlete, and particularly the runner. The author of Hebrews follows up his brilliant exhibition…
Hebrews 13:1-6
Marks of Authentic Christianity Our time is brief today, so allow me to jump right into our text in Hebrews 13. Up through chapter 12 the emphasis in our study of Hebrews has been largely doctrinal, focusing upon the person and work of Jesus Christ. Scattered throughout have been severe warnings for those who neglect or turn their backs on Him. As we come to the last chapter we find a major shift—a shift from doctrine to duty, from principle to practice. In…
Hebrews 12:12-29
Holy Living for a Holy God Note: This sermon was preached by Josh Black, Associate Pastor at First Evangelical Free Church of Wichita in 2010. He has been Lead Pastor since 2011. Throughout his letter the author of Hebrews urges his readers to persevere in the faith. In chapter 12 he compares the Christian life to a race that must be run with perseverance. As I studied our passage for this morning I began to realize that the second half of chapter 12 is…
Hebrews 13:7-25
Many years ago Allen Funt took his Candid Camera television show to an elite prep school out East, posing as a vocational guidance counselor. Most of the students in this school anticipated being college presidents, bank presidents, or famous corporate lawyers. The producer called the young men in one by one to give them the results of the vocational test they had taken, secretly filming their reactions. A very fine young senior came in, veritably trembling with anticipation of the result of…
2 Corinthians 1:1, 2
Going Against the Grain Let me begin this morning by expressing my gratitude for the study month I just experienced. When I went to St. Louis in 1984 one of the really attractive carrots the leaders there enticed me with was a 3-month sabbatical every five years. I suspect their thinking was that within five years the church plant would either succeed to the point they could afford to let me have the sabbatical or it would fail and they wouldn’t have…
2 Cor. 1:3-11
No Preferential Treatment Last Lord’s Day we launched a six-month study of the book of 2 Corinthians. I would encourage you to listen to that message if you happened to be out of town over the holidays. We provided lots of important background information for the book and talked about what we can expect to gain from this study. This morning I would like to review just a couple of important points made last Sunday. Second Corinthians is a very personal and emotional…
2 Cor. 1:12-2:4
When Your Integrity Is Impugned Introduction: One of the most painful experiences we can endure is to have our integrity attacked, especially when we have gone out of our way to do what is right. Has that happened to you lately? It has to me; I guess it just comes with the territory when you’re a church leader. But I have plenty of friends in the corporate world and education who face the same thing regularly. Even the Apostle Paul endured such attacks from…
2 Cor. 2:5-11
Satan’s Greatest Scheme What would you say is the most representative symbol of the Church of Jesus Christ? Would you suggest a cross? If so, you’re probably in the majority. What about a fish? The ICTHUS symbol of the early Christians would not be far off either. Or maybe you think of the open Bible or the Bread and the Wine or the helping hand. All of these are positive, even sacred, symbols of the Church, and they have profound meaning and significance for all who…
2 Cor. 2:12-17
How Do You Smell? Last December our church staff had its annual Christmas party. We did one of those white elephant gift exchanges where a person opens a gift, but if he doesn’t want it, he can take someone else’s gift or pick out a new one. Well, the wife of one of our pastors, who shall remain anonymous for reasons you will shortly understand, opened a box of scented candles. She was having some sinus trouble, and after sniffing the candles she…
2 Corinthians 3:1-6
Living Letters A couple of weeks ago I received a very nicely packaged public relations folder of information from a traveling evangelist. He sent me some information about himself, his education, his background, his seminars, and there is a nice picture of him, his wife, and four boys in a window of the folder. There is also a series of letters from various Evangelical Free Churches where he has spoken. Each letter was apparently solicited from the pastor and is designed to help…
2 Corinthians 3:7-18
The Superiority of the New Covenant I want you to engage your sanctified imaginations this morning. Transport yourself with me back to the year 950 B.C. Solomon is the King of Israel; the magnificent Temple of Solomon, which took 150,000 workers seven years to build, is just about 15 years old, having taken the place of the Tabernacle which was built in Moses’ day some 500 years before. You live in Jerusalem and are a devout believer, so you walk to the Temple…