Total Sermons: 201
Total Amens: 1
Easter 2008 - Unexpected Hope
Nearly two thousand years ago the scared and dejected followers of Jesus were told on a Sunday morning that their beloved leader, who had been brutally executed three days before, had risen from the dead. They were all incredulous and did not believe the account until Jesus came to them, and they saw his scars and felt his wounds. The reality of the resurrected Christ changed these followers from timid men who were mainly concerned with their own status into people who would boldly proclaim the greatness of Christ to all regardless of what it cost them. They could do this because the same God who rose up out of His grave promised them that if they believed in Him He would bring them up out of their graves to spend eternity with Him. This great promise is extended to everyone in the world and we too can rise and be with Christ forever if we trust in Him.
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Genuine Faith Meditates on the End
People will often speculate about how close we are to the end times and how many prophecies have been fulfilled and how many are left to go. Sometimes this speculation can go too far and cause people to get so wrapped up in when Jesus is coming back that they lose sight of Jesus Himself. The thought that Jesus will come back soon also tends to lead people to withdraw from the world and stop caring about its condition. Peter reminds his readers that the end of all things is at hand and exhorts them to do the exact opposite. He urges us to be self-controlled and hospitable, to serve one another with the gifts that God has given us, and to love each earnestly, because earnest love covers over sins.
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How Genuine Faith Redeems Fellowship
Christian community should be marked by mutual love and understanding but far too often it rife with bitterness, gossip, and harsh words between members. This is often caused because people do not forgive each other when they are sinned against but instead harbor a self-righteous attitude and think that they are above committing the kind of sin in question. Peter reminds us that we are all to be united because we have all been forgiven by God because Christ died for our sins, and just as God did not repay us evil for our evil towards Him but instead gave us forgiveness and grace we too are to bless and forgive those that sin against us.
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How Genuine Faith Redeems Family
God’s roles for men and women in marriage have been offensive in varying ways in each of the cultures that the Gospel has met. Some people are offended that women are asked to submit, and some are offended that the man is called to honor his wife and treat her as an equal. God has set up His plan for marriage in such a way that it enables each other to stop jockeying for power in the marriage and love each other sacrificially. The husband is to step up, take responsibility for the family. He is to lead by example and with sacrificial love, not by intimidation, domination, or abuse. The wife is to willingly submit to this sacrificial leadership and not nag, boss around, or emotionally manipulate her husband. When both people do this according to God’s good plan it is a beautiful picture of how Jesus Christ loves the church as His beloved bride.
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How Genuine Faith Redeems Work
We often grumble about the toil and injustice that can come from our jobs. Peter reminds us that we are to be ambassadors for Jesus at work as well, respecting our bosses and doing good to everyone there while patiently enduring the letdowns and frustrations that come with any job. We should do this because Jesus set the example for loving people while He was being insulted and abused, enduring the cross for our sake so that we could be reconciled to God.
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How Genuine Faith Transforms Neighborhoods and Communities
The Apostle Peter reminds us that we are foreigners here in this life, and because of this we should not get distracted from our journey by empty worldly passions that cry for our attention like lame roadside exhibits on a road trip. Instead, we should live honorable lives and respect the authorities over us because God has put them in power for our good. If we do this it will help quiet those who would slander and oppose us because we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
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Jesus the Foundation of Genuine Faith
Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of our faith. Everything we do is built and founded upon who He is and what He has done for us on the cross. In light of this we are called with the same command that Jesus repeated throughout His ministry on earth to the people He encountered: “follow me.†People can stumble over the idea of following Jesus for a number of reasons. Some people don’t believe in the supernatural, some don’t want to admit that they are sinners in need of salvation, and others consider the cost of following Christ as too high. Those that do follow though are being built up into a spiritual house that honors Him by praising and serving Him.
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Done With All of That
In light of the fact that we as Christians have been ransomed from our futile old ways of life by the blood of Jesus and now have a great inheritance waiting with Him the Apostle Peter calls us push aside all of the sinful passions and habits that used to enslave us like malice, jealousy, deceit, and hypocrisy, and instead love each other sincerely and hunger to learn more about Christ through the Scriptures.
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Genuine Faith in Salvation and Suffering Part 2
Religion is often used as a means of obtaining material blessings in this life like wealth, success, protection, health, and a good family, and when that religion fails to provide us with these things we lose faith in it. The Apostle Peter wrote to remind us that our hope doesn’t lie in such present circumstances but in the eternal realities promised to us in heaven, and we can put our faith in these promises because they were bought for us by the death of Jesus on the cross. This hope helps us to endure the trials and suffering that come in this life because they prove that our faith is genuine and prepare us for the blessings that will be ours when we see Jesus face to face.
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Genuine Faith in Salvation and Suffering Part 1
The Apostle Peter reminds us that we have a great source of hope because God has promised a pure, eternal inheritance for those who believe in Him. This great inheritance has been secured for us because Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and rose from the grave to prove beyond a doubt that He was in fact God in the flesh. The historical evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ is rock solid and we can put our trust in the God who made it happen. Fixing our thoughts on the hope that we have in heaven will help us to endure the suffering that we go through in this life.
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