Category: Sermons (Page 4 of 11)

Micah 1 (ESV)

1: The word of the Lord that came to Micah of Moresheth in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

2: Hear, you peoples, all of you; pay attention, O earth, and all that is in it, and let the Lord God be a witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.

3: For behold, the Lord is coming out of his place, and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.

4: And the mountains will melt under him, and the valleys will split open, like wax before the fire, like waters poured down a steep place.

5: All this is for the transgression of Jacob and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? Is it not Samaria? And what is the high place of Judah? Is it not Jerusalem?

6: Therefore I will make Samaria a heap in the open country, a place for planting vineyards, and I will pour down her stones into the valley and uncover her foundations.

7: All her carved images shall be beaten to pieces, all her wages shall be burned with fire, and all her idols I will lay waste, for from the fee of a prostitute she gathered them, and to the fee of a prostitute they shall return.

8: For this I will lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make lamentation like the jackals, and mourning like the ostriches.

9: For her wound is incurable, and it has come to Judah; it has reached to the gate of my people, to Jerusalem.

10: Tell it not in Gath; weep not at all; in Beth-le-aphrah roll yourselves in the dust.

11: Pass on your way, inhabitants of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame; the inhabitants of Zaanan do not come out; the lamentation of Beth-ezel shall take away from you its standing place.

12: For the inhabitants of Maroth wait anxiously for good, because disaster has come down from the Lord to the gate of Jerusalem.

13: Harness the steeds to the chariots, inhabitants of Lachish; it was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion, for in you were found the transgressions of Israel.

14: Therefore you shall give parting gifts to Moresheth-gath; the houses of Achzib shall be a deceitful thing to the kings of Israel.

15: I will again bring a conqueror to you, inhabitants of Mareshah; the glory of Israel shall come to Adullam.

16: Make yourselves bald and cut off your hair, for the children of your delight; make yourselves as bald as the eagle, for they shall go from you into exile.

John 11:17-27 (ESV)

The Reality of Death

17: Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days.

18: Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off,

19: and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother.

20: So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house.

The Limitedness of Faith

21: Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.

22: But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.”

23: Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

24: Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

The Sufficiency of Christ

25: Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,

26: and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?”

27: She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”

John 11:1-16 (ESV)

For His Glory

1: Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2: It was Mary who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was ill. 3: So the sisters sent to him, saying, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” 4: But when Jesus heard it he said, “This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

For His Work

5: Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6: So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was. 7: Then after this he said to the disciples, “Let us go to Judea again.” 8: The disciples said to him, “Rabbi, the Jews were just now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?” 9: Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10: But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”

For Our Faith

11: After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.” 12: The disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.” 13: Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep. 14: Then Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus has died, 15: and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” 16: So Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

Luke 1:5-25 (ESV)

5: In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth.

6: And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.

7: But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.

8: Now while he was serving as priest before God when his division was on duty,

9: according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of the Lord and burn incense.

10: And the whole multitude of the people were praying outside at the hour of incense.

11: And there appeared to him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

12: And Zechariah was troubled when he saw him, and fear fell upon him.

13: But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John.

14: And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth,

15: for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb.

16: And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God,

17: and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

18: And Zechariah said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.”

19: And the angel answered him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I was sent to speak to you and to bring you this good news.

20: And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things take place, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.”

21: And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they were wondering at his delay in the temple.

22: And when he came out, he was unable to speak to them, and they realized that he had seen a vision in the temple. And he kept making signs to them and remained mute.

23: And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home.

24: After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived, and for five months she kept herself hidden, saying,

25: “Thus the Lord has done for me in the days when he looked on me, to take away my reproach among people.”

John 10:7-21 (ESV)

Redemption through the Door

7: So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.

8: All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them.

9: I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.

10: The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

The Sacrifice of the Shepherd

11: I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

12: He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them.

13: He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

14: I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,

15: just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.

The Nature of His Authority

16: And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

17: For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.

18: No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”

Reason and Conclusion

19: There was again a division among the Jews because of these words.

20: Many of them said, “He has a demon, and is insane; why listen to him?”

21: Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

John 10:1-6 (ESV)

The Authority of Access

1: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.

The Nature of Recognition

2: But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

3: To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.

The Trust in Submission

4: When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

5: A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

The Grace of Understanding

6: This figure of speech Jesus used with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them.

John 9:8-23 (ESV)

The Neighbors: Doubt

• 8 The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, “Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?”
• 9 Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.”
• 10 So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?”
• 11 He answered, “The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.”
• 12 They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

The Pharisees: Accusation

• 13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind.
• 14 Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.
• 15 So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.”
• 16 Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.
• 17 So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, “He is a prophet.”

The Parents: Fear

• 18 The Jews did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight
• 19 and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?”
• 20 His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind.
• 21 But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.”
• 22 His parents said these things because they feared the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should confess Jesus to be Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue.
• 23 Therefore his parents said, “He is of age; ask him.”

John 9:1-7 (ESV)

The Glory of God’s Work

1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.

2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

3 Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.

The Completion of God’s Work

4 We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work.

5 As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”

The Trial of Obedience

6 Having said these things, he spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then he anointed the man’s eyes with the mud

7 and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.

John 8: 31-38 (ESV)

Freedom and Truth

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,
32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Freedom and the Son

33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?”

34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.
35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.
36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

Bondage and the slave

37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you.
38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

John 7:53 – 8:11 (ESV)

“The Law Enforcer”

53 They went each to his own house, 8:1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

2 Early in the morning he came again to the temple. All the people came to him, and he sat down and taught them.

3 The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst

4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery.

5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?”

6 This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground.

“The Law Keeper”

7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground.

9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.

10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.”