Christian Immaturity

Sunday Sermon
August 2nd 2009
Rhema Community Church

Sermonic Skeleton

Sermonic Scripture: ESV Galatians 1:6-9 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel- 7 not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. 9 As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

Sermonic Theme: Saved & Set Free (The Doctrine of Grace/ the Gospel)

Sermonic Tension: Spiritual Chastisement (Apostolic Authority/Christian Leadership)

Sermonic Question: Do you know Gospel Preaching when you hear it? (Biblical illiteracy robs the Christian church of its authentic power.)

Sermonic Sentence: Christian immature people are hard to Pastor. (The business of the Pastor is to preach salvation to humanity.)

Sermonic Help: Gospel gos´pel (τὸ εὐαγγέλιον, tó euaggélion): The word gospel is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word which meant “the story concerning God.” In the New Testament the Greek word euaggelion, means “good news.” It proclaims tidings of deliverance. The word sometimes stands for the record of the life of our Lord (Mk 1:1), embracing all His teachings, as in Acts 20:24. But the word “gospel” now has a peculiar use, and describes primarily the message which Christianity announces. “Good news” is its significance. It means a gift from God. It is the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins and sonship with God restored through Christ. It means remission of sins and reconciliation with God. The gospel is not only a message of salvation, but also the instrument through which the Holy Spirit works (Rom 1:16).

The gospel differs from the law in being known entirely from revelation. It is proclaimed in all its fullness in the revelation given in the New Testament. It is also found, although obscurely, in the Old Testament. It begins with the prophecy concerning the ‘seed of the woman’ (Gen 3:15), and the promise concerning Abraham, in whom all the nations should be blessed (Gen 12:3; 15:5) and is also indicated in Acts 10:43 and in the argument in Rom 4.

In the New Testament the gospel never means simply a book, but rather the message which Christ and His apostles announced. In some places it is called “the gospel of God,” as, for example, Rom 1:1; 1 Thess 2:2, 9; 1 Tim 1:11. In others it is called “the gospel of Christ” (Mk 1:1; Rom 1:16; 15:19; 1 Cor 9:12, 18; Gal 1:7). In another it is called “the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24); in another “the gospel of peace” (Eph 6:15); in another “the gospel of your salvation” (Eph 1:13); and in yet another “the glorious gospel” (2 Cor 4:4 the King James Version). The gospel is Christ: He is the subject of it, the object of it, and the life of it. It was preached by Him (Mt 4:23; 11:5; Mk 1:14; Lk 4:18), by the apostles (Acts 16:10; Rom 1:15; 2:16; 1 Cor 9:16) and by the evangelists (Acts 8:25).

We must note the clear antithesis between the law and the gospel. The distinction between the two is important because, as Luther indicates, it contains the substance of all Christian doctrine. “By the law,” says he, “nothing else is meant than God’s word and command, directing what to do and what to leave undone, and requiring of us obedience of works. But the gospel is such doctrine of the word of God that neither requires our works nor commands us to do anything, but announces the offered grace of the forgiveness of sin and eternal salvation. Here we do nothing, but only receive what is offered through the word.” The gospel, then, is the message of God, the teaching of Christianity, the redemption in and by Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, offered to all mankind. And as the gospel is bound up in the life of Christ, His biography and the record of His works, and the proclamation of what He has to offer, are all gathered into this single word, of which no better definition can be given than that of Melanchthon: “The gospel is the gratuitous promise of the remission of sins for Christ’s sake.” To hold tenaciously that in this gospel we have a supernatural revelation is in perfect consistency with the spirit of scientific inquiry. The gospel, as the whole message and doctrine of salvation, and as chiefly efficacious for contrition, faith, justification, renewal and sanctification, deals with facts of revelation and experience.

Sermonic Title: “Christian Immaturity” (Notice Paul isn’t shocked that another gospel is preached, proclaimed, promulgated or published however he is shocked that they so quickly deserted God and the gospel of Jesus Christ.)

Sermonic Structure:

I. Their Departure Points to Christian Immaturity (V. 6)
a. The Apostle Paul is astonished that they listen to it!
b. The Apostle Paul is astonished that they left God for it!
c. The Apostle Paul is astonished that they were so willing to live with it!

II. Their Doctrine Points to Christian Immaturity (V. 7)
a. They had a doctrine without God
b. They had a doctrine without Grace
c. They had a doctrine without the Gospel

III. Their Disobedience Points to Christian Immaturity (V. 8-9)
a. Transforming immature Christians is hard work
b. Teaching immature Christians is hard work
c. Task setting for immature Christians is hard work

Greetings from an Authentic Apostle

Sunday Sermon
July 26th 2009
Rhema Community Church

Sermonic Skeleton

Sermonic Scripture: ESV Galatians 1:1-5 Paul, an apostle- not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead- 2 and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Sermonic Theme: Saved & Set Free (How to respond when you’ve been lied on.)

Sermonic Tension: The Mosaic Law verses the doctrine of Grace.

Sermonic Sentence: Glorify God alone for the wonderful things He has done.

Sermonic Help: Galatians 1.4 “Who gave himself for our sins.” Christ died for our sins, not for our virtues. It is not your efficiencies, but your deficiencies which entitle you to the Lord Jesus. It is not your wealth, but your lack. It is not what you have, but what you have not. It is not what you can boast of, but what you mourn over that qualifies you to receive the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Spurgeon at His Best)

Grace, Irresistible: Grace which cannot be rejected, since God always achieves His aims: “The work of the Holy Spirit in bringing men to faith never fails to achieve its object.” The doctrine of irresistible grace teaches that a person cannot resist God’s choice to save him, a choice to save him a choice determined before the foundations of the world. Also known as, “Effectual Calling,” irresistible grace is one of the five points of Calvinism.

Grace (common, efficacious, prevenient) One of the central concepts of the Scriptures, grace speaks of God’s loving actions toward creation and toward humankind in particular. Grace is the generous overflow of the love of God the Father toward the Son, Jesus Christ. This love is most clearly demonstrated to humans through God’s selfless giving of Jesus to enable people to enter into a loving relationship with God as the Holy Spirit enables them. Common grace speaks of God’s extension of favor to all people through providential care, regardless of whether or not they acknowledge and love God. Efficacious grace refers to the special application of grace to a person who comes by faith to Christ for salvation. It is the special act of God that brings about the true salvation of a person. Prevenient grace, though often thought to be synonymous with common grace, refers more specifically to the Wesleyan idea that God has enabled all people everywhere to respond favorably to the gospel if they so choose.

Sermonic Cross Reference: NLT Acts 9:1-9 Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath. He was eager to destroy the Lord's followers, so he went to the high priest. 2 He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them-- both men and women-- back to Jerusalem in chains. 3 As he was nearing Damascus on this mission, a brilliant light from heaven suddenly beamed down upon him! 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?" 5 "Who are you, sir?" Saul asked. And the voice replied, "I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting! 6 Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you are to do." 7 The men with Saul stood speechless with surprise, for they heard the sound of someone's voice, but they saw no one! 8 As Saul picked himself up off the ground, he found that he was blind. 9 So his companions led him by the hand to Damascus. He remained there blind for three days. And all that time he went without food and water.

Sermonic Title: “Greetings from an Authentic Apostle”

Sermonic Structure:

I. Paul The Apostle has God given Authority (V.1)

II. Paul The Apostle has a Gentile Audience (V.2)

III. Paul The Apostle has a God centered life, Amen (V. 3-5)

Living under the Sun

Sunday Sermon
July 12th 2009
Rhema Community Church

Sermonic Skeleton

Sermonic Scripture: ESV Ecclesiastes 9:11-12 Again I saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but time and chance happen to them all. 12 For man does not know his time. Like fish that are taken in an evil net, and like birds that are caught in a snare, so the children of man are snared at an evil time, when it suddenly falls upon them.

Sermonic Sentence: You’ve been given a season and opportunity so live to the glory of God.

Sermonic Tension: Live life to the fullest for tragedy may strike at any moment. (Take no day for granted.)

Sermonic Theme: The providence of God (God will provide.)

Sermonic Help: Proverbs: Sayings and Themes The books of Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes are commonly classed as the Wisdom literature of the OT, and together they form a significant and distinctive literary and theological strand within it. In Jer 18:18 (Ezek 7:26; Mic 3:11), the “counsel” of the wise is set alongside the “law” (torah) of the priest and the “word” of the prophet as sources of divine authority and guidance for the life of the community. It is significant that this threefold division is reflected in the canonical division of the Hebrew into the Law, the Prophets, and the Writings—the latter of which includes the Wisdom literature.

Proverbs is generally recognized as the earliest and most representative deposit of Israelite wisdom. The question of the original setting of the material it contains has occasioned some debate. It has many points of contact in form and content with Egyptian Wisdom literature, notably with the Instruction of Amenemope, whose thirty chapters may have been adapted to produce the “thirty sayings” in Prov 22:17-24:22. Egyptian wisdom instruction was centered in the royal court and was designed for the training of the royal princes and state officials. It has, therefore, been suggested that Israelite wisdom originated among royal scribes at the Israelite court in dependence on Egyptian instruction and thus reflected an “upper class” ethos. Others have argued that wisdom had native Israelite roots in the early Israelite clans. While the book evinces close connections with the royal court (1:1; 25:1) and contains sayings dealing with the king and his officials, the majority is concerned with the community at large. Therefore, it seems most likely that wisdom flourished in a variety of settings and had a number of different exponents: e.g., the father, the elder, the royal scribe and counselor of the monarchic period, and the lay scribe of the postexilic period (Sir 51:23, 26, 28; cf. Eccl 12:9). That more than one such influence has been at work in the production of Proverbs helps to explain the richness and diversity of the material it contains and the many facets of the wisdom it inculcates.

Providence Although providence is not a biblical term, both the OT and NT set forth an understanding of God’s gracious outworking of the divine purpose in Christ within the created order in human history. The world and humanity are not ruled by chance or by fate but by God, who directs history and creation toward an ultimate goal. Providence therefore refers to God’s superintending activity over human actions and human history, bringing creation to its divinely determined goal. Providence from the Latin providere, “to provide.” The word “providence” does not occur in the Bible. It refers, however, to the three biblical concepts: (1) In theology, providence is the general foresight, love, and care of God for people. Romans 8.28 Providence can also refer to the idea that (2) God has divinely ordained or preordained certain events, or that (3) the universe is under God’s control so that ultimately good will be produced.

Sermonic Title: “LIVING UNDER THE SUN”

Sermonic Structure:

I. The frustrations of life lived under the sun. (V.11)

II. The finality of life lived under the sun. (V.12)

The Act of Redemption

Sunday Sermon
July 5th 2009
Rhema Community Church

Sermonic Skeleton

Sermonic Scripture: Ruth 4

Sermonic Theme: The Providence of God. (God will provide)

Sermonic Subject: Redemption (Boaz the kinsman redeemer)

Sermonic Tension: Ruth’s concern is who’s responsible for perpetuating her dead husband’s name? (According to the social mores of the ancient near east, Ruth could have publically humiliated the first redeemer who will remain nameless.)

Sermonic Sentence: Redemption is a journey made by foot. (Don’t worry God will make away.)

Sermonic Title: "The Act of Redemption"

Sermonic Structure:

I. The act of redemption is revealed through this legal contract (V. 1-12)

II. The act of redemption is revealed through this loving consummation (V. 13)

III. The act of redemption is revealed through this little child (V. 14-22)