Solid Rock Church Sermons

In this sermon, we looked at God’s great love for us and how it was always God's plan to offer His Son, Jesus, who has always existed as part of the Trinity with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Out of love, Jesus willingly came to rescue us from condemnation and the consequences of sin. The Bible says that He did this by dying on the cross then rising again on the third day, conquering sin and death. As a result of His sacrifice, we are freely given forgiveness of our sins, eternal life, and healing from the effects of sin. Jesus perfectly accomplished this work on the cross and lovingly calls us to place our trust and faith in Him.

In this sermon, we looked at Romans 3:9-24, in which the Apostle Paul addresses the universal nature of sin. Paul begins by affirming that both Jews and Gentiles are under the power and judgment of sin. Referring to several Old Testament passages, Paul makes the point that no one is righteous or seeks God on his or her own, and that the sinfulness of humanity is made visible through the words that come out of our mouths and our violence toward one another. Paul concludes that every human has sinned and has fallen short of God’s glory. He ends this section of Romans with the good news of the Gospel: while all humans are sinners and under the curse of sin, all who believe the Gospel are justified by God’s grace as a gift through faith in Jesus.

In this sermon, we looked at Isaiah 6:1-7 where the prophet Isaiah shares his transformative vision of the holiness and majesty of God, revealing the immense chasm between God’s holiness and our sinfulness. In this vision, God was seated on a throne as seraphim worshipped Him, declaring, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!" When confronted with God’s holiness, Isaiah was brought to a place of humility where he confessed his sin and the sin of his people, recognizing their unworthiness and their need to be cleansed. In response to Isaiah's confession, one of the seraphim moved toward Isaiah, revealing God’s grace and initiative to move toward us to cleanse and redeem us from our sin. As the seraphim touched Isaiah's lips with a coal from the altar, cleansing Isaiah of his sin, we see a beautiful foreshadowing of the cleansing work of Jesus on the cross. We, too, are called to respond to God’s holiness by turning toward Him in confession and repentance, leading us to the miraculous cleansing grace of Jesus that comes from believing the Gospel.

In this sermon, we looked at how Ephesians 2:1-10 unveils God's transformative kindness toward us in the Gospel. The good news of the Gospel is that, while all people are spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins, we are graciously offered a new and eternal life through Christ. The Gospel reminds us that God is our Holy Creator and we are accountable to Him for breaking His Laws. The Gospel also reminds us that Jesus did all that was required by the Law to pay for our disobedience and render us as righteous. God graciously gives this righteousness to all who believe. As believers, we are not saved by our own merits; we are saved by grace through faith. Not only has God done the work to save and transform us, in His grace, He also prepares good works for our future and calls us to walk by faith instead of walking in our own strength.

In this sermon, we looked at the kindness of God seen in Malachi 3:1-5 and 4:1-6, as He speaks through the prophet Malachi to give His people a vision of a future transformation when He will change their hearts. Malachi 3:15 points to the first Advent of Jesus, when His arrival will follow a divine messenger who will prepare the way for Him. The next time He speaks to His people, He won’t be sending a prophet to speak; He will be coming Himself to speak. Also, when He arrives, He will usher in an era that will bring about purifying refinement rather than destruction. Malachi 4:1-6 points to the second Advent, which will bring judgement and healing. Even as God reveals the inevitability of His judgement at the second coming of Jesus, He also reveals His compassionate desire to renew and heal His people and restore their relationships with Him and one another. The Church today sits between the two Advents of Jesus. He already arrived and brought with Him the Good News of the Gospel that transforms and purifies the hearts of those who believe. We now await His second coming, when He will usher in the final era that brings permanent and eternal healing and joy for His people as He, once again, makes His dwelling place with man.

In this sermon, we looked at Malachi 3:6-12 and saw how God confronted Israel's unfaithfulness in tithing. God begins by reminding Israel of His unchanging character and nature then confronts them about robbing Him through their neglect of tithes and offerings. God challenges them to bring the full tithe into the storehouse so there may be provisions for ministry. The principle of the tithe is that God provides more than enough for His people to live off 90% and give the additional 10% to provide what is needed for His Church. God has not promised to make His people rich; He promises that when His people bring the full tithe to the storehouse in wholehearted worship, He will provide for them until there is no more need. Not only that, God also promises that His provision for those who tithe will become a testimony to the nations. This is God's promise for the Church today: When God's people bring their tithes and offerings to Him in wholehearted trust and worship, they will be blessed by being provided for until there is no more need and there will be an abundance of resources for God's mission to take the Gospel to the nations.

In this sermon, we looked at Malachi 2:17, where Malachi addresses the Israelites' questioning of God’s justice. Israel was in a time of rebellion against God and was experiencing the consequences of God withholding His blessing. In response, they questioned why God seemed to favor the evildoers. Instead of asking God to reveal to them their sin and humbling themselves in repentance, they saw everyone else as the problem. We looked at the answer to their question in Romans 3:21-26, where Paul unveils God's master plan for righteousness and justice through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Paul explains that the law could not make anyone righteous but that the righteousness of God has been revealed apart from the law: the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ. This righteousness is a gift of grace and is accessible to all who believe. This righteousness also demonstrates God's justice, resolving the issue of "delayed punishment" for past sins. By sacrificing His Son, God remains just, and becomes the justifier, addressing the Israelites' doubts and extending salvation to all mankind.

In this sermon, we looked at Malachi 2:10-16 and how God spoke through Malachi to address the Israelites' negligence in maintaining their covenant with God and their covenants with one another. He rebukes the Israelite men because they were divorcing their Israelite wives and marrying wives who worshipped other gods. This violated their marriage covenants with one another and the greater covenant that God had made with them. This section of scripture ends by calling the people of Israel to guard their spirits against unfaithfulness. Today in the Church, fulfilling our covenants still matters. When we break our covenants with other believers, we also violate our covenant with God. Just as God spoke to the Israelites, He is calling the Church to guard our faithfulness to our covenant relationships with God, our spouses, and other believers.

In this sermon, we looked at Malachi 1:6-14, in which God rebukes the people of Israel for their insincere worship. As God addresses Israel, He confronts the priests for offering defiled sacrifices and treating His name with contempt. God declares that He deserves better than their half-hearted offerings and threatens to close the temple doors to such offerings. This passage highlights the significance of sincere devotion and proper reverence in approaching God in worship. In verse 9, God invites Israel to turn its face toward Him, that He might be gracious toward them. This is true of our worship today: God doesn't want us to just show up and go through the motions. Our songs, our prayers, and our serving mean nothing if they aren’t rooted in honor and reverence toward God. As with Israel, God invites us to turn our faces toward Him, that He may be gracious toward us.

In this sermon, we looked at how Malachi 1:1-5 reveals the amazing love of God, expressed through His sovereign choice of Jacob over Esau. Despite Israel's disobedience and shift to pagan worship, God's deep affection for His chosen people remained unwavering. Through His deliberate choice to love Israel before they even existed, God establishes a covenantal bond that transcends human shortcomings, displaying His unconditional love and commitment. This passage calls for God's people to return to His love with sincere worship and obedience, inviting us to recognize and respond to God's unchanging love with hearts changed by its transformative power.

In this sermon, we looked in Isaiah 61:1-4 at God's promise to send a Messiah who would bring good news to the oppressed, brokenhearted, and captive. In this passage, God promises to send a Messiah to comfort those in sorrow, liberate those who are imprisoned, and provide hope and healing to those who are suffering. Here we see a beautiful and kind invitation from God to bring our pain and sorrow to the Messiah. We learned that in and through our mourning, the Messiah will heal our heart wounds and restore hope to our lives. In Luke 4, Jesus claims to be God's fulfillment of this promise and, all throughout Jesus' life and ministry, we see Him live out this claim in the way He gives comfort to those who are suffering, and healing to those who mourn. God's promise in Isaiah 61 is still unfolding today. Now, through the Holy Spirit, God gives us comfort and healing, and restores our hope when we take our mourning to Him.

In this sermon, we looked at the suffering of Jesus through the lens of Isaiah 53. Our Suffering Saints series began by looking at Adam and the fall, when sin and death came into the world. Sin and death had to be dealt with, overcome, and undone. Through His suffering, death, and resurrection, Jesus defeated sin and death once and for all. Jesus, the Lamb of God, the perfect sacrifice, the sinless substitute, was crushed for our sin. Through His sacrificial death, those who come to Him in faith have peace with God and are healed. In His resurrection, we have a blessed hope that we will spend eternity with Him in heaven.

In this sermon, we looked at 2 Corinthians 1:3-9 in which the apostle Paul praises God as the ultimate source of comfort and compassion in times of affliction. Paul reminds us that God doesn't promise to fix our afflictions this side of heaven, but He has promised the abundant comfort of His presence. God's presence and grace are sufficient to give us what we need when we face affliction. Paul also tells us that the ultimate purpose of suffering is to move our dependence away from ourselves and onto God. It’s also meant to foster a shared experience of comfort in Christ within the Christian community as we confess our needs to God and others within our Biblical Community. Paul encourages believers to trust in God's comforting presence amidst suffering, knowing that our struggles lead to a deeper understanding of His grace and a strengthened faith in Him.

In this sermon, we looked at Acts 6:1-8:4 and saw how Stephen was persecuted for his faith in Jesus and how God used his suffering to bless others. Stephen was one of the chosen men appointed to oversee the distribution of food among the widows in Acts 6. Despite faithfully serving the community, some of the religious leaders falsely accused him and arrested him. In the face of these charges, Stephen fearlessly defended his faith and delivered a powerful sermon recounting the history of God’s people. This further angered his accusers, so they put him to death by stoning him. Although Stephen endured immense suffering, his unwavering commitment to his beliefs and his bold proclamation of the Gospel started a movement of Christians from Jerusalem to the other parts of the world, spreading the Gospel and fulfilling the Great Commission.

In this sermon, we looked in Job 2:1-13 at the suffering of Job and the comfort we can have from knowing that God is always in control, even when we don't understand the reason for our suffering. Because God is sovereign, we can know that our suffering is never meaningless and is always "preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison." We also looked at how we can walk with others who are suffering. When Job was facing affliction, Job's wife was harsh and urged him to forsake God but Job's friends began comforting Job by being present and silent with him in his affliction. As we seek to understand our own suffering and the suffering of those around us, we can be assured that God's presence is with us as we are present with one another.

In this sermon, we looked at the suffering Joseph endured at the hands of those around him. Joseph's own brothers sought to harm him, other people lied about him, and there were still others who forgot about him over the course of his difficult trials. Through all of this, God was with Joseph. In each instance, God preserved Joseph's life, blessed his endeavors, and gave him favor with those around him. When Joseph was reunited with his brothers, he did not seek revenge against them; he displayed forgiveness and a desire to reconcile with his family. While Joseph endured many hardships, he came to understand the truth that he shared with his brothers in Genesis 50:20, “As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good.” This is true for us today when we face harm and suffering at the hands of others. In Christ, we have the assurance that God uses even our most difficult circumstances for our good and His glory.

In this sermon, we looked at the how the prophet Daniel suffered under ungodly leadership. From the time he was born through his time in exile, the kings who ruled over him were most often in opposition to God's will. However, when confronted with the expectation to disobey God, Daniel stood firm in his convictions. In Daniel 1:8-16, God mercifully granted him favor among the leaders despite Daniel's resistance to the king's orders. When Daniel was specifically targeted by people seeking to harm him and was found to be breaking the law in Daniel chapter 6, he didn't abandon his conviction to obey God, despite it possibly leading to his death. In his visions, Daniel saw a future in which the king was God Himself, and His dominion would be forever. As God's people today, we can face suffering and wrestle with obedience to God while, ultimately, placing our hope in the future reign of Jesus.

In our opening sermon of the Suffering Saints series, we looked at the suffering of Adam and how all suffering began with him. Genesis 2:15-17 describes how God placed Adam in the Garden of Eden and entrusted him with the responsibility of caring for it. God allowed Adam to eat freely from all the trees, except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil which would lead to death, but Adam and Eve were tempted by the serpent and disobeyed God’s command by eating the forbidden fruit. Because of their disobedience, God pronounced various ongoing judgements in Genesis 3:16-24 - the serpent would crawl on its belly, there would be pain for women in childbirth, husbands and wives would now turn against one another, and man would have to toil and work hard for sustenance. Adam and Eve were then banished from the Garden of Eden and God placed cherubim with a flaming sword to guard the way to the tree of life, ensuring they would no longer have access to it and would live forever in their fallen state. Since the time of God's initial judgement toward Adam and Eve, God has been patiently bearing with the objects of His wrath. Instead of unleashing His wrath, God has freely given His grace and kindness toward mankind, first to the Jews and then to the Gentiles. In His love, God is undoing the power of sin and death in us through our faith in the resurrection of Jesus.

In our Father’s Day sermon, we looked at how Jesus taught about the Father's love for us through a parable in Luke 15:11-24. In this parable, Jesus introduces us to a kind father who provided well for his family and was generous with his children. One of his sons asks for, and receives, his inheritance early then leaves his father's home. After living recklessly and losing everything the father had given him, the son comes to the end of himself, which is where he actually finds himself. Luke 15:17 says that the son “came to himself.” In this moment, the story turns and the son decides to go home empty handed and ask for his father's forgiveness, hoping the father will let him back into his home as a servant. Instead of hesitantly receiving the son as a servant, the father celebrates his son's return and immediately restores him to full sonship. This parable shows us a beautiful picture of what a loving father looks like and illustrates what every earthly father needs more than anything: an invitation from God, the perfect Father, to be accepted as His son. It's through experiencing our own sonship to God that we have something to give away to our children.

In this final sermon of our 2 Peter series, we looked at the Apostle Peter's view of the sacred Scriptures. In 2 Peter 1:16-21, Peter passionately affirms the credibility and reliability of his message as an eyewitness of Jesus Christ's majesty. He declares that he didn't follow cleverly devised myths but was an eyewitness of Christ's transfiguration, during which he saw the glory of God firsthand. Peter emphasizes the authenticity of the prophetic Word, reminding us that it serves as a light shining in a dark place. He warns against private interpretation of Scripture and highlights the divine origin and authority of God's Word by emphasizing that prophecy wasn't the result of human will but from holy men who spoke as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. In 2 Peter 3:14-18, Peter ends his letter by urging his readers to be on guard against the twisting of Scripture and encourages them to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory now and forever.