Solid Rock Church Sermons: Recent Episodes
Solid Rock Church
We should be encouraged and confident that Jesus is going to return just as He said... in the timeframe determined by God the Father. We should be ready for His return.
Colossians 2:15 - And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
The Last Days... are we living in the Last Days? People have been asking this question for centuries! Perhaps this question is being asked more today than ever before. There may never be a time in history when end times prophecy is more aligned with the culture and circumstances of the world than it is today.
What’s keeping you from a life full of service to your Lord and king? Has low self-esteem hampered you from fully giving yourself to the Lord? Have past mistakes made you a failure in life? Has your pride gotten in the way of fully committing yourself to the service of Jesus? Jesus is watching and waiting for you to decide what you are going to do next.
Life is filled with unknowns…and that’s never going to change. But there is a way to live life unafraid of an unknown future. You see…even in the unknown…there is Someone who can be known… Someone who desires to be known... Someone that when you know them…you can face an unknown future unafraid.
Throughout the ages, people have become absolutely fixated and obsessed with finding out just who the Antichrist is, and the attempts have been numerous. Recently too, there has been a lot of speculation about the identity of the Antichrist. So, who is the Antichrist, and how will we recognize him?
Some people ask me, “If we (the church) will be raptured before the time of the Great Tribulation, why do we even need to know the details... “the what or the when” of Revelation?” “If I’m saved, I won’t even be here.” That’s a good question worthy of a straight, upfront answer. Pastor Tom Stimpson shares a few reasons why we should read all of Revelation and why it's message is important.
The doctrine of the Rapture has captivated the mind and heart of the church like very few other doctrines have, mainly because we believe we are in the last of the last days, and we don’t see our world lasting much longer. Further, the Rapture has probably done more for evangelism and discipleship than most anything else. Therefore, seeing that the time is short, we should be getting ourselves ready, and telling others the good news to get them right with God now; rather than get left behind later.
Today, we are going to read the letter that the apostle John was given to write to the church at Thyatira... a church that had an issue with tolerance.
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
For many people in today’s church, the term worldliness has a quaint, old-fashioned ring to it. They associate it with prohibitions against things like dancing, going to the movies, or playing cards. Today’s user-friendly, seeker-oriented, market-driven church doesn’t preach much against worldliness. But unlike much of the contemporary church, the Bible doesn’t hesitate to condemn worldliness for the serious sin that it is.
We’re looking at the seven churches of Revelation. There were real churches just like Solid Rock. They existed at the end of the first century in what is today the nation of Turkey. They help us understand what it means to be the church. The first letter to Ephesus taught us that the church is to love God first, passionately and fervently... and then love its fellow members. A church may have many admirable qualities, but if it lacks a first love for God and then its believers, it is in danger of God removing His hand of blessing. Smyrna has a different message. Definitively stated, the church will suffer for Christ. There is no criticism of this church. Of the seven churches, only two escape any criticism: Smyrna and Philadelphia. At some time in your Christian journey, you will be tempted to lose heart and quit. Jesus encourages us to trust Him.
Why aren’t we the church we should be? Because we have forgotten what it is that we are to be. It all starts with the right attitude of the heart. This morning... let’s pause long enough to ask ourselves... if we care about our relationship with the Lord. I’m not asking if you are a Christian, I’m asking if you care about your relationship with the Lord.
Jesus calls each one of us today to be assured that he is alive and ascended and glorified and reigning in heaven. He still has a loving concern for us. And he wants each one of us to live in wholehearted obedience to his every command. For that is the only way to know his blessing in this life.
The ultimate tragedy is that there are people who are almost ready to make a decision. There are people who stand right on the brink of saying, "I surrender all. I'm going to follow Jesus." And they almost do it. Others are just like those soldiers casting dice at the feet of Jesus. They're so engrossed in what they're doing that they never look up and let the message sink in and make a change in their lives. They're so near and yet so far.
How can we win others to Christ? When you are in the pits with the king, cry out to the Lord like a helpless child; then humbly and hopefully wait patiently for the Lord; and when he comes in his own time and makes you secure, then sing a new song to his grace so people can see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.
Preparation time begins now. If you don’t do anything else in this life make sure you are ready for his appearing. As you can see, this is the most important appointment you have to get ready for and you don’t want to miss it.
I wonder what it might be like if we as men and women committed fully to put on Christ daily. Imagine if we swore off bad habits and foul speech, daily studied scripture to prepare for duty, faithfully worshipped God, and honored his name with our heart and our life? What if a cross was more than just a piece of pretty jewelry, but rather a sign of the highest honor, demanding faithfulness to the One who sent his son to bear that pain?
Do you ever get sick and tired of being attacked by the devil? In your Christian walk, does it ever seem like you take one step forward and two steps back? Have you ever felt condemned in your sin and just wanted to give up the fight? If you said “yes” to any of the above, then I have good news for you: Your life does not have to continue in this direction! The Bible gives us a plan of action to overcome the devil and his tactics... so that we can be shielded from accusation!
How are you doing with temptation? Do you have an appetite or do your appetites have you? Are there areas where you are testing God, trying to force His hand, seeing if He really means what He says? There is nothing in all of creation that is worth your worship! God alone deserves all the honor, glory, and praise that we can possibly give Him!
Knowing the end of his life is near, Jesus needs to make sure that His disciples have the proper understanding of what their responsibilities are as they await His return. And so, Jesus tells them a story that had a familiar ring... the parable of The Ten Minas.