Chapter 15 of the Baptist Confession of Faith focuses our attention on the theme, “Repentance unto Life and Salvation.” We who were spiritually dead received spiritual life through repentant faith in Christ. That is the beginning of the Christian life. But Christians still struggle against the vestiges of the old nature. Christ, our Advocate, graciously…
Chapter 14 of the Baptist Confession of Faith deals with “Saving Faith.” On May 28th we worked through Ephesians 2:1-10 to understand the effect that sin has on the human will. Verse 8 of that passage explains that salvation is by grace through faith. In that sermon, we devoted only 2-3 minutes to the subject…
Chapter 13 in the Baptist Confession of Faith explains the Bible’s teaching on sanctification or, the Christian’s pursuit of holiness. The confession strongly and correctly makes the point that salvation in Christ always sets in motion the transforming process by which Christians become come more and more holy. The sermon and the service this Lord’s…
The twelfth article of the Baptist Confession of Faith focuses on God’s gracious work of adoption. This topic seldom receives the attention it deserves in the preaching and teaching of the churches. That is, perhaps, because it is seldom mentioned by name in the Bible, but the concept appears often. We will explore this important…
How can sinners such as we ever have a right relationship with a holy God? That is the central concern of the Gospel. There is only one true answer to that question—and we have to get it right. This is the concern of the eleventh article of the Baptist Confession of Faith, “Justification.” The sermon…
The subject of the service for this Lord’s Day is “The Effectual Call” (article 10 in the Baptist Confess of Faith). It refers to the initiative God takes to bring his people to salvation. He does this—not because of anything in our character or because of what we do. He calls us on the basis…
The subject for the Lord’s Day sermon this week comes from The Baptist Confession of Faith, Article Nine: “Free Will.” The Bible teaches that all people make free choices, but that does not mean that the human will is free in an absolute sense. The human will is subject to various constraints. We will see…
I. God requires us to live as we ought. A. In harmony. B. In humility. Scripture: Philippians 2:1-5 II. This prepares us to adorn the gospel with our deeds. A. Adorn it with sober obedience. B. Adorn it with attractive speech. C. Adorn it with joy-filled perseverance. Scripture:…
On the night before Jesus died, he prayed a prayer that puts God’s plan of redemption on display. The opening verses of the prayer (John 17:1-5) reveal the driving motive that lay behind all that Jesus came to do: the glory of God. Contrary to our tendency to evaluate the value of all things according…
Joel Owen will preach this Lord’s Day. His sermon will deal with a turning point in Jacob’s life: God’s self-revelation and covenant confirmation at a place he called Bethel (the house of God).