Without mentioning his name, God shows in the Book of Esther that he is absolutely sovereign over man’s institutions of family, church, and government.
Transforming Ordinary People into Extraordinary Followers of Christ
Sermons on Isaiah
Sunday we look at the first Messianic prophecy. It hints of a human redeemer who will give Satan a mortal wound while sustaining what amounts to a wounded heel. As future revelation unfolded, this prophecy became clearer. This redeemer was born on the first Christmas–his name is Jesus!
In this message we will take a deep dive into Jesus’ final hours on the cross. We learn as much about him in his death as we do in his life. The day of his crucifixion changed forever those who witnessed these events first hand and continue to reverberate through history.
When Pilate asks Jesus directly, “Are you the king of the Jews?” Jesus replies simply, “You say so.” Pilate is amazed that Jesus does not defend himself against this charge!
Later, an angry crowd shouts for the release of Barabbas instead of Jesus. When asked what to do with Jesus, this guilty mob lobbies for the execution of an innocent man, chanting, “Crucify him!”. Little do they know that Jesus is the key to their own divine pardon! Next Jesus will be mocked, scourged and led away to be crucified.
In this message we explore Jesus’ betrayal, his arrest, his sham trials, as well as Peter’s three denials. In all this Jesus displays a supernatural calm in the midst of intense interrogation and ridicule. He endured all of this because of his great love for humanity.
In previous sermons, we learned what are not signs of Jesus’ return. But God wants us to know what is a sign of Jesus’ return. In Sunday’s message, we learn what happens when Jesus returns and when it begins.
In this portion of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus commends the giving of a poor widow and addresses his disciples misconceptions of the end times. Concerning giving, we learn that God is pleased with the sacrifice rather than the amount of the gift. With respect to the end times, Jesus addresses many non-signs of the end times that should not disturb us. These things will occur, but are not in themselves signs of Jesus’ second coming.
Can you imagine arguing with Jesus? In Sunday’s message, Jesus tells a parable condemning the Jews for rejecting both God’s prophets and now his only Son, opening the church to both Jews and Gentiles. In an attempt to put Jesus in his place, the Sadducees try to undermine his authority and popularity by asking him a series of tricky questions—the fail.
TaLKING POINTS / WALKING POINTS View the sermon summary or dig deeper into the message during the sermon, in your personal Bible study, or with your family or Community Group in application-driven discussion. TAKE ONE STEP Each week, write down one doable concrete step of obedience, small or large, that you will put into practice…
All of us want to live lives of significance. We want our lives to count. We want to be somebody! The problem is that our culture tends to shape the kind of somebody we want to become. In Sunday’s message, we see the disciples being influenced by the values of their culture. They wanted to be great. They wanted positions of power in Jesus’ kingdom. To reframe their vision of greatness, Jesus directs them to the cross.