Solid Rock Church Sermons

In the sermon this past Sunday we looked at Acts 6 and 7, where we see the first martyr of the church. Steven, who was selected to serve the church as a deacon in Acts 6, was a man full of the Holy Spirit, of good reputation and full of wisdom. Just after being selected to serve, he is arrested while talking about Jesus in the streets of Jerusalem. After being falsely accused and questioned, Steven stands before his accusers and preaches that Jesus is the Christ. In his final moments on Earth, he encounters Jesus in a very intimate way. Steven serves as a beautiful and tangible example of what it means to trust in Christ alone in life and in death. Do you feel like you are equipped to give a sufficient answer for what you believe and why you believe it? If you truly trust Jesus with your life and death, how should that impact the way that you live?

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked at the inward mission of the church in Acts 6:1-7. In this part of the early church narrative, we see church growth cause the workload of ministry to increase and personal barriers emerge. In response to these challenges, the church is driven by the Gospel and empowered by the Holy Spirit to overcome personal barriers in order to love one another well. Through this example, we see that when the spiritual leaders of the church faithfully and humbly equip the members to serve in ministry, the Holy Spirit causes the church to flourish and the community to be significantly impacted for God’s glory. What are some of the personal barriers that prevent you from loving others well (i.e. business, selfishness, prejudice, stress, etc.)? What spiritual gifts have you been given by the Holy Spirit to serve in the local church?

In the sermon this past Sunday we continued the Acts sermon series by looking at the contrast between someone who engages in ministry as a response to encountering the grace of Jesus versus someone who is involved in ministry for their own glory. Through comparing the example of Barnabas to that of Ananias and Sapphira, we see that giving to God is never really about money. As Jesus taught in Matthew 6 and Matthew 19, our grip on our possessions is an indicator of where our hearts truly are. When a person comes to believe and trust in the great grace of Jesus, there is an inevitable response to freely abandon their trust in possessions in exchange for trust in the Lord; loosening their grip on possessions to hold tighter to their commitments to one another. However when we engage in ministry for our own glory, as Ananias did, we inevitably make ministry about us by manipulating the truth to make ourselves look better and lead others astray. Have you come to the place in your journey where you have encountered

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked at what happened to Peter and John after the religious leaders caught wind of the miracle they performed at the temple. After being confronted, Peter and John were arrested and interrogated. Filled with the Holy Spirit, Peter spoke with boldness and refused to give into the pressure of the religious leaders. After being threatened and released, the church met together and prayed for God to make them bolder. Our hope is to become a church that lives with boldness in our community as we follow the example of the early church and pray, “Sovereign God, make us bold!”How can you take a stand for Jesus in your life this week? In what ways can you step outside of our comfort zone for Jesus this week?

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked at Peter’s response to the growing crowd that gathered outside the temple after God miraculously healed a man who had been lame since birth. Peter begins by shifting the attention of the crowd away from himself and towards God, giving Him the glory for the power to heal the man. Then Peter quickly points the people to God as the architect and designer of His own sovereign plan to work through human history to bring about salvation for everyone. Peter’s main point comes out in verses 19-20 in his call for the crowd to turn from their wickedness to repentance, leading to forgiveness of sins and rest for the soul. What does it look like for you to allow your soul to rest in the work Jesus has done for you? What are some areas in your life where you can lean more on the promises of God and less on your own ability or strength?

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked at the first recorded miracle of the church. In Acts 3:1-10 God worked through Peter and John to miraculously heal a man who had been lame since birth. In this account the apostles went beyond meeting the man’s temporary need for money and addressed the man’s permanent need. As he begged for money, the apostles offered the man the ability to walk. This is a beautiful expression of the Father’s love for us in Jesus. God has done more than answer our temporary prayers of self-prescribed comfort; He has given us eternal life as a free gift to be received by faith. As with the man who was healed, when God makes all things new our hearts are filled with worship and our lives become engaged in the mission. What is your typical response when you encounter someone in need? In what ways has God challenged you to be more intentional in meeting the needs of others?

In the sermon this past Sunday we looked at the portrait of Biblical community described in Acts 2:42-47. The believers of the first church were fully devoted to the principles of Biblicalcommunity: Biblical teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread and prayer. These early Christians had all things in common. Their common faith in Jesus created a common rhythm for living life according to a common system of priorities. Rather than living for themselves, they consistently and faithfully shared life together along with giving their possessions sacrificially and generously. As we see in Acts 2, the mission of Jesus is the natural outpouring of a community living in devotion to Him and His people. Biblical Community begins and ends with mission. Are there things in your life that are cluttering your schedule in a way that is preventing you from fully engaging in Biblical community? What action step can you take today to become more engaged in the Biblical community at Solid Rock?

In the sermon this past Sunday we looked at the launch of the first Christian church. In chapter 2 of Acts we see the apostles carrying on the mission of Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to launch the first Christian church in Jerusalem. In this early example of the church, we see that the primary message of the church is the truth that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. This is the central theme of the Bible and the ministry of the church. The power of the unstoppable church is found in the presence of the Holy Spirit and the proclamation of the Gospel message. In what ways has God used His church to encourage you? Is Jesus the central character in the story of your life? Do you feel like the mission of your life aligns with the mission of God’s church?

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked at the predominant role of the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. Starting at Pentecost in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit has center stage as Jesus’s Church launches and the Gospel spreads from Jerusalem towards the ends of the Earth. In Acts 2, the promised Holy Spirit arrives with the sound of wind and the appearance of fire. As the Holy Spirit rests on the early Church, the people are filled with power. The first major act of the Holy Spirit is to empower the Church to proclaim the Gospel in many languages at once, displaying God’s eternal plan to draw the nations to Himself as one Kingdom. Throughout the book of Acts, the Holy Spirit continually fills believers with power to proclaim the Gospel, serve the Church and find the hope they need to face and endure persecution.

In the second sermon in the Acts series, we looked at what a Christian church is and what a Christian church is supposed to be doing in the world. We concluded that the church is a public gathering of the citizens of God’s Kingdom made up of those who have believed and professed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.Every believer is part of the church and every church is a part of the unstoppable mission to make disciples of the nations. In Matthew 28, Jesus give His disciples a very simple strategy for accomplishing this mission: 1) Share the Gospel with those who don’t know Jesus, 2) Unite new believers to the church through baptism and biblical community, 3) teach new believers to obey all that Jesus has commanded and 4) empower new believers to share the Gospel with those who don’t know Jesus. Through this strategy, the church has grown from 120 believers to over 2 billion believers over 2000 years. The church is the movement of God’s Kingdom, expanding and growing b

In the opening sermon of the Acts series this past Sunday, we looked at the connection between the mission of Jesus and the mission of the Holy Spirit. Jesus came to Earth to live perfectly, die sacrificially, and resurrect victoriously, defeating sin and death. These accomplishments set the stage for God to launch His mission to establish His Kingdom on Earth through those who would believe in Jesus. After His resurrection, Jesus hands this mission to the Apostles and tells them not to start until they have received the Holy Spirit who would guide and empower them for this mission. Working in tandem with the word of God, the Holy Spirit imparts the work of Christ to those who believe and empowers them to carry out the unstoppable mission of Jesus on Earth. Do you believe you have truly encountered the Holy Spirit of God in your life? How is the Holy Spirit leading you to be involved in His unstoppable mission to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth?

In the sermon this past Sunday we looked at the parable of the loving Father found in Luke 15. While this parable is traditionally known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son, we looked at the main focus of the parable as the love of the Father. As we concluded the Redemption Stories sermon series, we looked at how the parable illustrates God’s love for all of us. We have all been marked as rebellious children who are desperate, unworthy and incapable of fixing our situation. It’s into this desperation that the Father comes to us. We find that as we turn to take the first step towards God, he has already made His way to us. When we turn from our rebellion towards the Father, we find that He welcomes us, restores us and celebrates our redemption. In what ways has your life journey reflected rebellion towards God? How have you proven yourself to be unworthy to be called God’s child? Have you taken the step of faith towards the loving Father by turning from your rebellion, acknowledging your despe

In the sermon this past Sunday we looked at the beautiful command to abide in Jesus found in John 15:1-11. Jesus uses a vineyard as a metaphor to describe the relationship between Himself, His Father and His followers. The Father is described as a vinedresser who distinguishes between genuine believers and those who pretend to be a Christian. As you would expect, the Father exposes the nominal or “fake” Christians and cuts them off from the vine. And then we read that the Father prunes and works on those who are genuine believers. Using trials and hardship in our lives, the Father cuts away the meaningless pursuits and futile thinking in every believer’s life that they may bear much fruit. All of this sets up the beautiful command for genuine believers to abide or remain as they already are: attached to the vine. Jesus is illustrating that the Christian life is perpetually dependent upon Him. This is what it means to walk by faith: to live life in complete dependence upon Jesus every day. Do

In the sermon this past Sunday, we looked Paul’s teaching on the amazing grace of God in Galatians 3. Pastor Jason talked about the difference between earning God’s favor by perfect obedience to God’s Law verses receiving God’s favor through faith. Paul says that it should be evident that no person could ever earn God’s favor through obedience, so the only hope we have is to trust in the work that Jesus has done for us. Despite this truth, the Christians in the Galatian church to whom Paul was writing, had begun to drift towards living according to the Law. We see a similar struggle in the church today. Rather than continuing to walk by faith, Christians today drift towards a manmade system that gives a false sense of having God’s favor. Paul lays out a reminder for Christians to continue walking in the same manner by which they were saved: faith alone in the work of Jesus alone. Jesus took our place on the cross and absorbed our punishment in order to offer His righteousne

This past Sunday we looked at how God has designed marriage to be a living portrait of His redemption in the world. After four and a half chapters about redemption in Ephesians, the Apostle Paul describes how God has designed marriage to reflect the greater reality of the Gospel. Paul instructs wives to respect and follow their husband’s lead as they lay their lives down in sacrificial love for their wives. In giving instructions for marriage in Ephesians 5:22-33, Paul lets us know in verse 32 that his primary focus is Jesus and the Church. While his advice is helpful for marriage, his purpose is more majestic than what happens between the husband and wife; marriages are to be a reflection of the Gospel. Through these real-life examples, the Gospel relationship between Jesus and His church is reflected to the world. If your marriage is more about God than it is you, how should this truth change the way you interact with your spouse? How has God challenged you to become a living portrait of His Gospel th

In the sermon this past Sunday, Pastor Jason taught from Genesis 22 discussing how good things can easily become bad idols in our lives. Idols can be anything that we love more or are more devoted to than God. As we learned from Genesis 22, even the good God-given gifts like children or ministries can become idols. As Christians, the essence of our faith is that we have confessed that we trust God more than anything else. That confession plays out functionally when God asks us to lay down things that are important to us. In those moments, we will be like Abraham, and decide if we will fully trust God enough to lay down the things that we love. What is it that you love the most in life? What are the things that you are afraid of losing?What causes you to become angry and defensive?

This past Sunday we looked at the true source of joy in contrast to the vast attempts of our culture to find happiness in fleeting things. In 1 Peter 1, we see the indescribable joy that comes from the living hope we have in Jesus. Because Jesus guards our eternity, we have an imperishable, undefiled, and unfading eternal inheritance. Knowing this truth provides for us a joy that hinges on eternity rather than the cheap momentary things this world has to offer. Our rejoicing in this life is based on who God is and what God has done and is completely separate from how comfortable we may be or how easy life is. When we believe the Gospel, our eternity is secured and our hearts are filled with indescribable joy that catapults our hearts in glorious praise. How easily are you distracted from an eternal perspective by the momentary things in your life? Do you allow the circumstances of any given moment to dictate whether or not you have joy?

This past Sunday we looked at understanding God’s purpose for trials in light of His redemptive story. In James 1, we see that God uses trials of various kinds to mature believers to be complete in Christ. These trials can come from within ourselves through desires and choices we make, the fallen world in which we live, or from the choices that people in our lives make. We are reminded that God’s redemptive story draws our attention from the circumstances of life and points to His eternal purpose for those who place their trust in Christ.How do you tend to walk through trials in your own life? Are you resting in your strength to endure, or are you seeking Christ and understanding the trial through the lens of His redemptive story?

As we continued the Redemption Stories this past Sunday we looked at the implications of our adoption into God’s family. In Galatians 4, we looked at the comparison between the servants of the house vs. the children of the house. While we used to be strangers in reference to knowing God, now through faith we have been immediately adopted in His family. We looked at the example of Jesus as He came to Earth, submitting Himself to the laws of nature that He created in order to rescue us from our bondage to sin and set us free to live as adopted children in God’s family under the law of His grace. Have you come to the place in your journey where you have submitted your life to Jesus and exchanged your sin for His grace? In what ways have you grown to see God’s authority as something good to submit to rather than a hindrance to be avoided?

As we continued the Redemption Stories sermon series this past Sunday, we looked at a clear call from God to let go of any confidence we have in our ability to impress Him and to trust in the work of Christ alone for our salvation. While this struggle manifests itself in the early church through ritual acts like circumcision, the modern day church displays this struggle in the form of religious performance and moral façade. In Philippians 3:1-14, the Apostle Paul ardently denounces any confidence he previously had in the flesh in order that he might gain salvation in Jesus. As one who had diligently performed the religious duties of his culture and excelled in the religious system of his day, Paul stood as an authority in self-based confidence. If anyone had the right to stand proud in his accomplishments for God, Paul was at the top of the list. Plainly put, Paul says it this was: “But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.” Trusting in Jesus alone still leaves room