Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 5:7

Matthew 5:7 says, "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy."

Mercy is not just softness or mere sentiment; it is compassion in action. And the magnificence of mercy is that those who have received it will show it. Mercy is a godly characteristic, one that resides in the hearts and minds of those who have accepted salvation from Jesus Christ. And it actively reveals itself as compassion for others.

First, consider the beauty of mercy: it is godlike.

Lamentations 3:22-23 says, “Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Your faithfulness.”

Every morning, we get to wake up and greet the mercy of God, which is faithful and fails not. In Luke 10, Jesus tells the Parable of the Good Samaritan and reveals the symbolism of salvation. When others passed by us in our despair and need, Jesus rescued us, healed and cleansed us, and covered our debts. After He told this story, Jesus called us to do the same for our neighbors. He explained that when we are merciful, we are godlike. (Luke 10:37)

Second, consider the basis of mercy: truth.

Psalm 85:10 says, "Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other."

To show mercy is not to minimize sin. There can be no mercy without truth, which is that the justice of God says our sins must be punished.

When we show mercy, we withhold judgment; when we withhold judgment, it implies judgment was deserved. But thank God that He doesn’t give us what we deserve! Adrian Rogers says, “God doesn't deal with us on the basis of fairness; God deals with us on the basis of mercy.”

We are not forgiven because we show mercy; rather, we show mercy because we are forgiven.

This is the magnificence of mercy: The more mercy we show, the more mercy we get.

Apply it to your life

Do you have a heart full of compassion in action? If God has forgiven us, how much more should we forgive one another? Remember this beatitude, today: Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 5:6

The word “blessed” means to be satisfied. In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus revealed the secret of satisfaction. Matthew 5:6 says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”

Many of us think of righteousness as something to do. But in the Bible, righteousness is wrapped up in a person, and His name is Jesus. When we hunger and thirst after righteousness, we are actually hungering and thirsting after Jesus Christ.

Jesus is Our Spiritual Sustenance

In the material realm, food and water are necessities, not luxuries; if we don’t eat or drink, we will die. And so it is in the spiritual realm: Jesus Christ is not some luxury; He is a necessity. Without Him, our spirits will die.

We should desire Jesus preeminently, above all other things. In Matthew 6:33, Jesus tells us, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”

Jesus will not work in second place. A lack of joy, peace, or fulfillment is a symptom of unrighteousness. When we hunger and thirst after Jesus, we are blessed, but it is crucial to remember that the blessings are just a by-product. Jesus is the cure; not the joy, peace, and fulfillment that comes with Him.

Adrian Rogers says, “You’ll never go beyond Jesus: you may only go deeper and deeper into Jesus.” We should seek Jesus passionately—with a huge appetite. A hungry man is interested in one thing: food. If he is hungry enough, he will go anywhere, do almost anything, and pay any price. Likewise, our quest for Jesus Christ should be marked by deliberation, determination, and desperation.

Jesus Satisfies the Strongest Appetite

Finally, we should enjoy Jesus perpetually. Adrian Rogers says, “I don’t know how much of God you have, but you have all you want. Shallow thirst equals shallow satisfaction; small hunger equals small satisfaction.”

Contrary to popular belief, we don’t lose the good things of life when we come to Jesus. In fact, we enjoy things more in the context of righteousness. In Jesus, we are completely, continually, and certainly satisfied.

Apply it to your life

A person who is hungry and thirsty for righteousness is on a deliberate, determined, desperate quest for Jesus Christ. Do you seek Jesus Christ as a starving man would seek food?

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 5:5

Matthew 5:5 says, “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

In His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus revealed that it is not the mighty men who are blessed; it is the mighty meek.

Meekness is not weakness. Jesus was meek, yet He was a strong man. To be meek means to be yielded, to have a compliant spirit. Meekness is strength under control. When we were created, God put certain drives, instincts, and ambitions into our very natures. These are not evil in themselves, but they must yield to the Holy Spirit so that we may bring Him glory and honor.

While some believe releasing or restraining our strength will lead to control, true meekness comes after we see ourselves as poor in spirit. Once we are broken over our condition, we can develop strength under control.

Step One: Submit to the Son of God.

Matthew 11:28-30 says:

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle [meek] and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.

Jesus offers our wild spirits rest and invites us to submit to His lordship and learn true strength from Him.

Step Two: Receive the Word of God.

We cannot snatch pieces of the Bible to feed our pride or our opinions.

Adrian Rogers says, “The Bible is not meant to be interesting; it’s meant to be disturbing.”

We must welcome the Word into our lives with humility, reaching out to Jesus Christ with both hands, letting Scripture be our bridle and bit.

Step Three: Be Filled with the Spirit of God.

The Holy Spirit of God produces meekness in us; we simply bear the fruit of it.

When we are meek, we will receive our inheritance. This dynamic is explained in 2 Corinthians 6:10, which says, “...as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things.”

Apply it to your life

Have you yielded to the Holy Spirit and developed a meek spirit? Take these steps today: submit to God, receive His Word, and be filled with His Spirit.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 5:4

The world tells us that a life without tears, sorrow, and heartache is a blessed life; but this is not true. In fact, in Matthew 5:4, Jesus says, "Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted."

We do all we can to avoid pain. We call on psychologists, self-help coaches, and entertainment to change our conditions. In reality, condition does not dictate character.

Jesus, Himself, was a Man of sorrows. He teaches us how to turn our tears into telescopes. He teaches us to bring our sorrows and heartaches into focus in such a way that we can see beyond the present and into the future. Our tears today can become telescopes to make the future all the brighter and all the more meaningful.

Turning tears into telescopes is a two-step process. We must identify the convicting guilt that causes us to mourn, and we must recognize the grace that comforts us.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives insight into the deceptive power of sin. Man looks on the outward appearance and sees outward sin. But God looks on the heart and at our inner intentions that led to our sin.

Our hearts are “deceitful above all things and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9). Our hearts are subject to sin’s defilement, which perverts the beautiful things we see and touch.

If we are truly convicted by our guilt, it should lead to consuming grief and sorrow.

There are two kinds of sorrow: godly and worldly. Godly sorrow leads us to repentance, but the sorrow of the world leaves us with remorse.

Adrian Rogers explains, “Remorse without repentance can be a dangerous thing. A person filled with remorse is one who loves his sin and hates himself at the same time. A person who has repented is a person who hates his sin because he loves his Savior. Remorse looks at the sin and its consequences. Repentance looks beyond the sin to Calvary.”

Looking at Calvary, we recognize the grace that comforts us. Mourning is the only way to know the comfort of our dear Lord. The word comfort is not a word filled with sympathy. The word “comfort” translates to mean with strength. When we receive God’s comforting grace, we are receiving His Spirit, which is our strength and our advocate

Apply it to your life

Have you experienced guilt for your sins? Have you experienced the consuming grief of an unrepentant life? Have you experienced the comfort of God’s grace?

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Matthew 5:1-9

“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3)

In our world today, there is a stronger emphasis on what we have than on what we are. The world says, “Blessed are those with wealth, strength, power, knowledge, and popularity.” But in his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus puts an emphasis not primarily on what a man has, but on what a man is. The first of these character qualities is a poorness of spirit.

Matthew 5 reveals how bankruptcy can become a blessing. “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” In this passage, Jesus is not talking about financial poverty. Rather, He is identifying the spiritual poverty of a man.

In the spiritual realm, we are absolutely, totally bankrupt—beggars before God. We must discover this truth, and admit it; if we don't see it or refuse to acknowledge it, we will never receive the kingdom of heaven.

Adrian Rogers says, “This discovery comes when we see just who God is, and then we understand who we are.” Brokenness follows this discovery; we realize we cannot depend on the things we once believed we could. We cannot depend on our pedigrees, our education, or knowledge; these things cannot help us.

Those who are spiritually bankrupt cannot afford to be proud. All we can do is declare our dire condition. Because, as Matthew 5 reveals, spiritual beggars are blessed…“for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

This condition is a blessing because it is the only way we can get to heaven. Adrian Rogers says, “Until a man lays his pride in the dust, he cannot be saved. Even God cannot fill that which is already full. We'll never live spiritually until we admit we are dead spiritually.”

When we lay aside our pride and receive salvation from Jesus Christ, we are, in turn, received by God, just as we are. It is the only way we can come to the Father.

Apply it to your life

Discover your spiritual bankruptcy, depend on God’s promises, and declare it to others today. Adrian Rogers says, “Evangelism is one beggar telling another beggar how to find bread.”

Sermon Overview

Scripture Reference: Isaiah 6:1-3

The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is one of the great distinctions of the Christian faith. It’s what makes Christianity stand out in a world of religions. It is the idea that we worship one God who has revealed Himself in three persons.

Isaiah 6:8 says, “Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’”

In this passage, God, using the plural pronoun, “Us,” indicates His triune nature. This is not the same thing as polytheism; we do not worship three gods. There is one God, and He is triune: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

We will never understand the Holy Trinity by human investigation, logic, or science. The only way we can know about the Holy Trinity is by divine revelation. We can only understand by reading Scripture. If we try to understand it on our own, we will lose our minds; if we deny it, we may lose our souls.

Isaiah 40:18 says, “To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare to Him?”

Though it may be difficult to comprehend, we can see God’s triune nature reflected in everything He has created. Space is made up of height, width, and depth. Time is a culmination of past, present, and future. Man is at once body, soul, and spirit.

The idea of the Trinity was not created in the New Testament. God’s triune nature is evident in creation (Genesis 1:1) and in the greatest commandment (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). God is spoken of as a unity, or as a collective one.

The life of Jesus Christ did not begin at Bethlehem. Jesus says so Himself in John 8:58: “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”

The Son of God is spoken of throughout the Old Testament, in prophecy (Isaiah 48:12) and physical presence (Daniel 3:25). He has no beginning and He will never have an ending.

The treasure of the trinity is that we have the Father above us, the Spirit within us, and the Son, who died for us.

Apply it to your life

Praise God that He is bigger than our understanding. Today, worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Lay down your intellectual pride and offer your heart to Him.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: John 7:37-39

Most of us have had all the religion we can stand; what we actually need is a personal, vital relationship with Jesus Christ, the Son of God. We need to stop enduring religion and start enjoying salvation.

John 7:37-38 says, “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”

There are four simple steps to deeply drinking in the satisfaction of Jesus Christ.

First, we must understand the subjects—those who thirst.

Jesus was not speaking to everybody, rather only to thirsty people. If we’ve been filling ourselves with shallow things like self-love and worldliness, we will not long for the living water of Jesus Christ.

Second, we must understand the source of this living water—Jesus Himself.

We don’t find living water in rituals or religion or rules, rather, we receive it through Jesus. We will never live “right” until we are filled with the Holy Spirit.

Adrian Rogers says, “Holiness is not the way to Christ; Christ is the way to holiness. We don’t work our way to the Way; He is the Way.”

Third, we must recognize the secret: “Come to Me and drink.”

This living water is free, but it costs everything within us. We must let it sink into our hearts so that we claim Him so deeply that we believe in Him and appropriate His promises.

Finally, we must remember the supply.

Ezekiel 47 prophecies what we, as believers, are to look like today: a mysterious river, flowing past the altar, which represents Christ crucified.

This river’s mighty force brings life where there was death and success where there was failure. This living water brings fruitfulness where there was barrenness and health where there was sickness.

When we are filled with the Spirit, our lives will overflow with joy, praise, and service. Not only will there be an income, but there will also be an outflow. We will become springs of revival and rivers of blessing.

Apply it to your life

Have you experienced the living water bubbling up from within? Have you experienced satisfaction in Jesus Christ? Don’t wait until you’re better or stronger; bring Him your failures and heartaches. Come to Jesus.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Reference: John 15:12-25

It is a privilege to call Jesus our friend—to know Him intimately as a close companion. John 15:12-25 highlights five things about our friendship with Jesus: what it means, and what it makes of us.

First, friendship with Jesus elevates us.

“No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you” (John 15:15). Simply being His servant would be an honor. But friendship with Jesus lifts us to a level we could not reach without Him. We didn’t choose Him; He chose us (see John 15:16).

Adrian Rogers says, “A man is known by his friends; if you’re a friend of Jesus, you’re somebody.”

Friendship with Jesus also enlarges the company we keep.

“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). Friends of Jesus become friends with each other; He is our common bond. Because we love Him, we love one another, and the circle grows.

But we must also remember the cost of friendship with Jesus.

“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends” (John 15:13). Real friendships are expensive, but they are worth it. The highest service is when we serve because we want to, not because we have to. Serving and obeying Jesus does not earn us His friendship; it proves our friendship.

However, friendship with Jesus still enriches us.

Healthy friendships with good people sharpen us and make us better. On the contrary, unhealthy friendships make us dull and drag us down. Friendship with Jesus, who is the Vine, makes us fruitful.

Finally, friendship with Jesus means entering inevitable conflict with the world.

“If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you” (John 15:18). Just as His friends become our friends, so do Christ’s enemies become our enemies. But it is an honor to be counted worthy of suffering as Jesus suffered.

Our deepest need is to have someone who understands us, and Jesus does; He is all we need.

Apply it to your life

Are you friends with Jesus? Have you made friends with His friends and seen His enemies rise against you? Consider your relationship with Jesus today.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Psalm 119:97

Psalm 119:97 says, “O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.” Because it is Jesus Christ Himself who makes us more like Him, it is crucial to spend quality time with Him and in His Word, and there are five factors that go into having a meaningful quiet time.

First, it must be early in the day, at our most optimal time, when we are preparing for the day.

We must:

-Be physically alert, so we can think clearly.

-Be morally pure and clean, so we can blamelessly bow before a holy God.

-Be mentally aware, so we can be receptive to what He has to say.

We should have our quiet time in an isolated place; somewhere we can shut the door on the world, to avoid distractions. Adrian Rogers says, “What you are when you’re alone is what you are. The mark of your prayer life is not how well you pray in public, but in private. Your Father who sees you in secret will reward you openly.”

We also need the right tools: a Bible we can read and understand, a journal to record your time with God, and a second journal to record prayers. Practically, it’s also good to have a notepad to write down your spiritual instructions for the day.

Having prepared for a meaningful quiet time, how should we proceed?

1. Get quiet; take a deep breath and focus your thoughts on the Lord.

2. Get into the Word of God; read the Bible before praying.

3. Meditate on it; reading for quality, not quantity.

4. Record what God has given you through His Word in your journal.

5. Record instructions, goals, and decisions revealed from your time with God.

6. Pray; pour out your soul to God with reverence and honesty. Tell Him everything; He already knows.

7. Share what you’ve learned. We ought to be in the habit of exhorting and encouraging one another.

8. Obey what God tells you. Our spiritual lives run on revelation and obedience. One does not run without the other.

Apply it to your life

Is your quiet time with God meaningful to you? Have you properly prepared and set yourself up for a fruitful time with the Lord? Consider these steps today, and talk to God.

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Genesis 2:7

If you have “unction,” it means you have the power of God upon your life, energized and directed by the Holy Spirit of God. To understand how to function with unction, we must first understand how God designed us and why.

Genesis 2:7 says, “And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” When the Bible says “God formed man,” formed is a word used for a potter molding clay. God made the complex, intricately woven man out of dirt.

We have a body, made of the dust of the ground. God’s crowning creation. But we are not our bodies… we just live in our bodies.

We also have souls, which is what lives inside our bodies. Our souls are our real personality, our sense of humor, intelligence, likes and dislikes, idiosyncrasies —all of those things that make us the uniquely wonderful person that you are. Roughly speaking, our soul is mind, emotion, and will.

The human spirit is inextricably united with its soul, completely inseparable, but they are not the same thing. The difference between the soul and the spirit is the spirit’s uniqueness to the human design. The human spirit is the organ of spiritual knowledge. The spirit is evidence that God put Himself into man.

Proverbs 20:27 says, “The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD…” As a lamp is fed with oil, the Holy Spirit feeds our spirit, which is the innermost part of our nature that enables us to know and worship God.

Adrian Rogers says, “With your body, you know the world beneath you; with your soul, you know the world around you; with your spirit, you know the world above you.”

When the Holy Spirit speaks to the human spirit, it then speaks to the human soul. The soul speaks to the body through mind, emotion, and will. Then the body goes out and lives in the world, showing the life and love of the Lord Jesus.

Apply it to your life

How is a man to function with unction? Pray for the Holy Spirit to illuminate your spirit.

Adrian Rogers says, “When your body is right, you’re healthy. When your soul is right, you’re happy. When your spirit is right, you’re holy.”

Sermon Overview

Scripture Passage: Romans 8:18-23

If we live long enough on this Earth, we will know sorrow, disappointment, and pain in a personal way. Suffering is inevitable, and if we aren’t careful, it can consume us.

If we want to make sense of our suffering, there are three words to consider from Romans 8:18-23: bondage, liberty, and hope.

We must first consider the bondage of yesterday’s curse.

Sin entered the perfect world God created because, in His love for us, God gave us free will to choose. Because mankind chose to sin, we are condemned according to the law of the Bible. God could not destroy evil without destroying freedom. Because there is evil, there is suffering. Though our suffering cannot be destroyed, God has defeated evil.

Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”

Liberty is tomorrow’s conquest.

Through Christ’s death and resurrection, we are liberated from the curse of sin. There is no more condemnation for our sin; and when Jesus comes again, He will restore everything. However, though we have been freed from the curse of sin, we can still feel the hurt of it.

Our hope is our comfort for today.

Romans 8:18 says, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”

Adrian Rogers says, “The groans we endure are temporary, but the glory we expect is eternal.”

All of creation groans as a symptom that there is something wrong with this fallen world.

Christians groan, for we are not immune to suffering, and there is a lot of it in our world today. We live in a cursed world with other sinners, in bodies that have not yet been redeemed.

But there is comfort in knowing the Comforter groans, too. God sees our pain, and the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we hurt so badly we don’t know what to pray for.

Finally, we must remember that we’ve been prepared, predestined, and preserved for glory— that is the Gospel.

Apply it to your life

Are you facing suffering that doesn’t make sense to you? Remember: the Holy Spirit intercedes for us in our pain. Spend time with God and ask for His victory over your life.