Category: Salvation
Subject: Salvation
Examine Yourselves – Are You Saved?
It is an unfortunate truth that many are deceived in their belief that they are saved. While they may sincerely believe such to be true, their view is based upon their own subjective feelings in the matter, rather than the objective reality that they have satisfied the requirements given by the Holy Spirit in scripture.
Others may be unsure of their standing before God. This can be beneficial if it brings a careful examination of their faith before Him. However, constant questioning can undermine the faith, bring anxiety and unhappiness, and have a negative affect on the spiritual growth of the Christian. With this in mind, we ask the following questions as a means to “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith” (2 Corinthians 13:5).
Invitation: Being in Christ
Invitation delivered by: Josh Jackson
In this talk, Josh describes the hope, peace and promises that are ours when we are in Christ, and work to add the fruit of the Spirit to our lives (cf. Galatians 5).
Sermon: The Tax Collector
The sermon uses the Lord’s interaction with Tax Collectors and other sinners to point out the importance of not judging by stereotype, and God’s willingness to save all men who will come to Him.
Invitation: Liberty in Christ
Invitation delivered by: Stan Cox
On July 4, 1776, America declared her independence. In a similar vein, one who becomes a child of God obtains independence from sin – liberty is found in Christ Jesus (cf. Galatians 5:1).
Sermon: The Preeminent Christ
In his epistle to the Colossians, the apostle Paul establishes the Preeminence of the Lord Jesus Christ, and calls for Christians to avoid human philosophies, traditions and worldliness, and place their trust in Him.
Invitation: The Greatest Gift of Love
Invitation delivered by: Jeremiah Cox
Jeremiah points out in his talk that God’s gift of His Son, sent to earth to die on the cross for the sins of man, constitutes the greatest gift ever given to mankind.
Sermon: Salvation and the Man from Ethiopia
Sermon 5 of 9
Gospel Meeting May 5-10, 2012
Speaker: Chip Foster
The conversion of the Ethiopian Eunuch (Acts 8) is examined, to determine what did and did not happen in the conversion. The lesson’s application contrasts what men teach and what the Bible reveals that a man must do to be saved.
Invitation: Familiar, but Profound
Invitation delivered by: Justin Carrell
Many of the passages detailing God’s scheme of redemption are familiar to us. It is important that we not allow familiarity to breed contempt. If the words of inspiration are read with care, they are profound and uplifting.
Sermon: 7 Promises of God
The sermon first establishes that all of God’s promises are sure. Then, discusses the following promises of God:
- To supply every need we have.
- That His grace is sufficient for us.
- That His children will not be overtaken in temptation.
- Victory over death.
- That all things work together for good to those who love Him.
- Those who believe and are baptized will be saved.
- Eternal Life.
Sermon: Walking in the Light
Walking in the light of God’s will reaps great benefits, including: Fellowship with other Christians, access to the cleansing blood of Christ, joy and exaltation and the assurance we will never stumble (cf. 1 John 1:7).
Sermon: Five Great Bible Questions
The sermon, based on a sermon chart by Steve Hudgins, seeks to answer the following questions that appear in the Bible: 1) “Where Art Thou”; 2) “To Whom Shall We Go?”; 3) “Lord What Will You Have Me to Do?”; 4) “What Must I Do to be Saved”; and 5) “What Doth Hinder Me?”
Note: In addition to the audio link, there is a link to a zip file which extracts to a self-contained Prezi presentation. Also, there is a link to a handout that was included in the sermon as a hardcopy reminder of the material.
In the News: Last Second Shot!
Friday night the Castleberry girl’s basketball team won a game with the most exciting finish you can imagine. They were playing Mineral Wells, and were shorthanded. One of their players had blown an ACL ligament the previous week, and was out for the season. Their best player had a virus, and though she was playing, was struggling physically. None of their shots were falling, and they were down 12 points to start the fourth quarter.
The deficit continued until about halfway through the quarter, and then all of a sudden the shots started falling. The girls knew they had to win to keep their hopes of going to the playoffs alive. They dug down deep, and narrowed the deficit to one point. With 2.6 seconds left, Castleberry had the ball out of bounds. Josh (my son is the coach) drew up a play, and their best player banked home the shot for the win. The stands erupted, the girls (and Josh) went crazy, and everyone cheered.
Sermon: Peter’s Sermon
A simple examination of Peter’s gospel sermon in Acts 2, answering the five questions: 1) Who was it preached to? 2) When was it preached? 3) Where was it preached? 4) What was preached?, and 5) Why was the sermon preached.
In the News: Criticizing the Five Step Plan
I recently was sent an article titled, “Do We Have A Catechism?”, written by Ken Green. The form the article took, and the comments following, indicate that brother Green had posted it to his Facebook page.
Though brother Green gave no specifics in the article, it was critical of the preaching and attitudes of Christians in the past. Notice the following two quotes:
We do not have catechism classes that insist on the rote learning of the proper responses to various questions about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the church, faith, baptism, worship, and other doctrines. But, by and large, our people have done quite well in memmorizing (sic) things they can recite on a moment’s notice, while, too often, having little understanding of the material and never really growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.
But there was a stretch of many years when at least a couple of generations grew up in our churches without hearing much about love, grace and forgiveness and how we’re supposed to treat each other, and it had some devastating effects.
Brother Green took issue with the call made for “distinctive preaching” and said that what was meant is that we should be “reciting the catechism.” It is becoming fairly common to hear a rather dismissive attitude towards the faith and practice of earlier generations of Christians. This is unfortunate.
Continue reading “In the News: Criticizing the Five Step Plan”
Invitation: The Joy of Salvation
Invitation delivered by: Stan Cox
Using the example of the Philippian Jailor’s conversion, Stan points out the joy that we obtain when we are obedient to the gospel (cf. Acts 16:30-33)
