Sermons on Commitment

The Cost of Discipleship

Sueanne and I were thinking recently about some of the safety features that cars have today that we didn’t have when we were growing up – air bags, antilock brakes, backup camera system, seat belts (well, we had seat belts back then but nobody used them).  And I think you would all agree that safety…

Mrs. Zebedee

This morning, I want us to take a look at a conversation between Jesus and Mrs. Zebedee.  Now, I call her that because the only way Matthew identifies her in our text is as “the mother of Zebedee’s sons”, although her name was probably Salome (and you can figure that out by comparing all the…

Reviving a Tired Church (Hebrews)

            About thirty years ago, Sueanne and I spent a couple of weeks in Scotland.  On that trip, we saw a lot of huge cathedrals.  Those cathedrals are among the most beautiful buildings in the world.  If you were to build one today, it would cost millions and millions of dollars.              But, to me,…

Saved to Do Good Works (Titus)

          Just about every preacher is familiar with the Pareto Principle.  They may not know it by that name, but they understand how it works.  Vilfredo Pareto was an Italian economist who noticed that approximately 80% of the land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population.  Later, his principle was expanded to say…

No Turning Back (1 and 2 Kings)

I’ve told the story before of Hernan Cortez.  In 1519, that Spanish explorer sailed to Mexico.  He brought with him only about 600 men, and yet over the next two years his vastly outnumbered forces were able to defeat all the warriors of the Aztec empire.  The interesting thing was how he was able to…

Following Jesus is For Losers

            The story is told of a father who was driving down the road and his 5-year-old son was in the backseat.  And the boy says, “Dad, how do you spell God?”  And his father is thrilled.  Because he thinks to himself, “Finally!  After all those nights reading Bible stories, going to church, being a…

The Persecuted Church

This is Memorial Day weekend, one of the most significant holidays that our country observes.  A time for us to remember those who have given their lives so that we might enjoy the freedoms that we do in this country.  It is an especially significant time for those of you in the military who know…