Sermons

This passage deals with the turning point in the faith of the apostle Paul, when he boldly threw away his former legalistic pride and counted Christ alone as his boast. Paul regarded everything the world recognizes, including his education, his family background, and his Roman citizenship, as ‘refuse,’ and laid it all down for the gospel. This shows that salvation is not earned by works but given by grace, and that the Christian life is one of painting a picture of faith in response to that grace.

Through the examples of Rahab's scarlet cord and the salvation of Noah's family, the sermon explains that one person's right faith brings about the salvation of a whole household. Just as God chose special people and saved them out of a world guarded by Satan, believers too must overcome the darkness and answer the call of God, who loves souls. Paul preached the gospel even in hardship and persecution because he knew the torment of hell and because he had experienced the power of Christ's resurrection.

As those who have died and risen with Christ, believers must leave the body of sin behind and live holy lives. The sermon helps us see that the mission of believers is to become the light of the world and lead souls trapped in darkness. Believers must run toward the goal, the finish line, without looking back, and through this they receive the wisdom and understanding of the Holy Spirit. The sermon sets out that when believers run with their focus on God's call and the salvation of souls rather than on their own comfort, God will commend them.

This sermon finds a picture of the gentle in the way a river flows steadily toward the sea without wavering. Spiritual gentleness comes from a wide heart that embraces everything and from an unshakable faith, and it means quietly carrying out the work one has been given without being swayed by emotion. True maturity is not showing one's true colors at once like a small puddle, but enduring until hardship passes and becoming God's instrument.

Through the martyrdom of Stephen, the sermon shows how this gentleness is lived out. Even as he proclaimed the gospel to the people throwing stones at him, he did not lose the peace on his face, and to the very moment of his death he prayed for those who were killing him. This attitude goes beyond simple endurance; it includes the courage to face one's own sin squarely and to proclaim the truth as it is, without hiding it. Through the case of the apostle Paul, who was saved through Stephen's prayer and went on to walk the same road and enlarge its borders, the sermon also emphasizes that gentleness leads in the end to the growth of the kingdom of God.

When believers obey God's word rather than their feelings and endure hardship, God uses them as holy instruments to save many souls. The sermon asks believers to proclaim the gospel with a gentle heart like Stephen and Paul, unshaken by the world's temptations, and to enlarge the borders of the kingdom of God.

This passage proclaims that among those called blessed in the Sermon on the Mount are ‘those who mourn,’ and it sheds light on the meaning of spiritual mourning, which is different from worldly sorrow. The sermon points out that it is hard to accomplish God's will by human willpower, and that the grace of the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary. When the Holy Spirit comes, a hardened heart is turned into a stream of life, and one comes to see the ugliness of sin and gains the wisdom to pursue God's righteousness.

Through the deep anguish the prophet Jeremiah went through as his people faced destruction, and the tears Jesus shed at the death of Lazarus, the sermon shows what true mourning is. Through Martha and Mary, whose confessions of faith stayed at the level of knowledge and did not show a faith for real life, it warns how powerless a faith known only in the head is. The sermon emphasizes that rather than complaining in the face of others' unbelief or one's own pain, we need to look at our own spiritual state and have a heart that truly mourns.

The sermon says that when believers mourn and pray for the salvation of souls, the Holy Spirit becomes their Comforter and pours out great grace. Finally, it asks whether believers are receiving true comfort from God, and whether they have become people who pray and mourn earnestly for their nation, their people, and the church.

This passage deals with the blessing of ‘the poor in spirit,’ the heart of the Sermon on the Mount that Jesus proclaimed. It emphasizes that, unlike the Jews who tried to fill themselves with works of the Law, true Christians must throw away useless greed and lust and fill their spirits with steadfast faith. It teaches that we need the attitude of a steward, who acknowledges that the world's power and possessions were created for God's glory and regards everything as belonging to God.

Being poor in spirit does not mean laziness or indifference; it means letting go of the attachment of calling things mine, and living a life of obedience and devotion to God. It is not so much that pursuing worldly success or wealth is wrong for believers; rather, they must guard against the attitude of regarding it as their own and being greedy for it. A heart that manages what God has given, does good, and loves one's neighbor is the very way to store up treasure in heaven, and it becomes a testimony that exalts God's name even amid the world's persecution.

We already live hoping for the unseen glory of the kingdom of heaven. Yet what choices must we still make so that our hearts are not captured by the things of the world?

This passage tells how King David, stirred up by Satan, committed the proud sin of counting the people, and how God's wrath and judgment came as a result. Joab points out David's wrong judgment and gives him honest counsel, but he shows a double standard, criticizing only David while failing to look at his own sin. God uses David's unbelief as an instrument to judge Israel, and at the same time gives David the chance to repent sincerely.

At the critical moment when he must choose one of three judgments, David earnestly asks God for forgiveness in order to stop the deaths of his people. He pays the price for the threshing floor of Araunah and offers sacrifices there, showing what true repentance looks like as he entrusts everything he has to God. Joab, by contrast, kept up only the outward show of pointing out David's sin and, failing to examine his own heart, in the end walked the road to ruin. This event shows God's wisdom in accomplishing many things through a single event, and it emphasizes that people of faith must look first at their own sin and humbly repent.

We must think carefully about which path we will choose: that of David, who sinned but was forgiven to the end, or that of Joab, who could not repent and was ruined. It is time to meditate deeply on what true repentance is: going beyond knowing God's word to living it out, and returning to God without being shaken by the world's temptations.

This passage deals with the praise and the last words David offered to God at the end of his life. David introduces himself as an instrument through which the Spirit of God speaks and as God's anointed, confessing that all his authority and achievements were the work of the Holy Spirit, not of human ability. At the close of his life he realizes how futile worldly glory and personal desire had been, and he sings a song of thanksgiving, acknowledging God alone as his rock.

Through the event in which David would not drink the well water that three mighty men had brought at the risk of their lives, but poured it out to God, the sermon points out how serious sin is and how important repentance is. David immediately realized that his careless words had become a sin that endangered his men's lives, and by repenting he showed how great a responsibility a leader's words and actions carry. It also emphasizes that the wicked, like thorns, cannot escape judgment, and that believers must hope for God's righteous rule and live honest and holy lives.

The sermon asks how believers will introduce themselves at their final moment, and whether their words and actions now are causing pain to the people around them. It poses the question of living, like David, as those who deeply repent of their sin and faithfully convey God's will.

This passage warns of the danger of the pride that puts God in second place, and asks what true humility is. For a king to think he can live without God is pride, and the mistaken belief that we will do well enough without God is what pushes God to the back. When we pray, we must live out with our lives the confession that we cannot live without God, and this is the attitude of seeking God with the lamp of faith in the darkness of the world.

When Christ opens his arms to embrace us, we cannot let go of the sword we have taken up to protect ourselves from wolves. This is a choice to put our own safety and interests ahead of God, and in the end it pulls us out of God's embrace. Like the hardship of a small child who does not see the bicycle coming and fails to take his father's hand, and so has to be scooped up by force, God wants us to throw away worldly greed and honor and come to the Lord. When we let go of that sword, God sets us down safely and gives us a sharper sword.

When, in our places of devotion, whether singing in the choir or serving in our own roles, we do not treat God as first but put worldly matters or our own convenience first, we are putting God in second place. God wants the sincere voice of each individual more than the praise of the whole group, and he wants our devotion to be acknowledged by him. Yet we can put our own feelings first, treat God carelessly, and fail to obey. Even though God has forgiven us in love and given us life, we are still swayed by the world's temptations and fail to follow him. Worshiping God in first place, obeying his commands, and devoting ourselves to him: is this the true life of faith, and what choice are we making now?

This passage deals with the praise David offered to God in the midst of Saul's relentless persecution and the threat of death. David realizes that it was not his own will or effort, but God, with tender love, who protected him and rescued him from his enemies. He acknowledges that when Satan, the ruler of this world, attacks, believers cannot possibly overcome by their own strength, and he confesses that they can survive only by the grace of the Holy Spirit and within God's protecting fence.

The sermon sounds a warning through the case of King Saul, who lost God and was ruined because of pride. Drunk on the power and glory God had given him, Saul chose to set his own wisdom and judgment above God. David, on the other hand, admitted his shortcomings, obeyed, and relied on God. The sermon emphasizes that the motive for believers' devotion and worship must not be their own gain or reward, but love for God and the lifting up of his glory. God shows himself merciful to the merciful and perfect to the perfect, and he remembers a faith that lives the present truthfully.

Finally, the sermon asks how urgent it is to share the gospel and save souls while we are alive. Sacrifices for the dead are meaningless, and every relationship formed on this earth ends the moment life is cut off. Therefore we must devote the time we have left to God and hold fast to the hope of heaven. The sermon leads believers to look back on whether they are truly relying on God alone, rather than on what the world offers or on their own wisdom.

This passage deals with the three-year famine that struck Israel because King Saul had unjustly killed the Gibeonites. God points out that Saul's act was a grave sin that harmed his people and disregarded God's covenant, and he sent judgment as its penalty. When David set right the wrong done to the Gibeonites and judged Saul's descendants, rain fell and peace was restored. This shows that God hates sin and establishes justice through righteous judgment.

The sermon warns of the reality of a world that proudly pursues pleasure and ignores God's wrath. Many people set their hearts on worldly wealth rather than fearing the day of judgment, and even within the church they try to turn away from the message of sin and judgment. Through the example of Saul, who was humble at first but became God's enemy as he was absorbed into power and the world, it emphasizes that even believers cannot escape judgment if their faith becomes corrupted. It also urges us, when we are shaken by Satan's temptations, to imagine the final day of judgment and look at ourselves objectively.

We must remember that repenting while we are still alive and resting in God's embrace is our only refuge. If believers are absorbed into the sins of the world and do not keep themselves holy, they will in the end perish under God's wrath. Having heard this word today, we must reflect deeply on where our hearts are, and on what confession we will be able to make when we stand before God on the last day.

This passage deals with the selfishness and lack of spiritual discernment that came to light as David regained his throne. After Absalom's rebellion, the tribes of Israel and Judah, eager to welcome David back, quarreled over who would meet him first and be rewarded; in this the sermon points to the endless greed of people who gave no help in time of trouble but joined the scramble for power once things went well. It also warns, through the way Joab, the commander of the army, murdered a fellow commander for his own advancement and defied the king's orders, that those who cannot tell the spiritual from the fleshly will end up as chaff rather than grain.

The sermon sets side by side the wisdom with which David kept the wicked Joab in check and stabilized the kingdom, and the good sense of the wise woman of Abel, who handed over Sheba to save lives. It emphasizes that believers who hold offices in the church must not bring the world's methods and greed into the church, but must judge by the word of truth. It teaches that although God sets a time and judges, in the meantime believers must take care not to be used as tools for raising others up, and must have the patience and wisdom to accomplish good purposes.

The sermon asks what believers must hold on to so that their devotion will be recognized as grain, and how they can develop the spiritual discernment to drive out sin like Sheba quickly.

Today's passage sheds light on what true faith and character are, through the various people King David met on his journey back to Jerusalem after Absalom's rebellion had been put down. Joab uses the victory in battle for his own power and fails to understand David's heart, while Shimei tries to save his life with a false repentance that is really fear in disguise. Barzillai, by contrast, served David sincerely when he was at his lowest, and even when the king's power was restored he did not covet luxury or glory but kept to his own place and humbly declined.

Through these contrasts the sermon distinguishes the calculating logic of the world from the heart of God. Joab and Shimei knew grace and opportunity when they saw them but did not turn back, and in the end they were judged, while Barzillai, through a wise life with God at the center, was blessed even by David's descendants. It emphasizes that true faith is not shaken by outward circumstances or human righteousness, and comes from having a character that carries out one's given mission with gratitude.

Do we now judge good and evil by the world's standards, or do we choose a life of obedience to God's will? We are led to look back on how deeply a life of devotion and thankfulness like Barzillai's has taken root in us.

This passage deals with the tragic course by which David's son Absalom rebelled, attacked his father, and in the end lost his life. Absalom's name means peace, but he is portrayed as a man who, through anger and greed, broke his peace with God and with his father. Unable to control his emotions and ruled by an evil spirit, he gradually lost his judgment and finally crossed a river from which there was no return.

During the battle, Absalom's hair, which had been his pride, caught in a tree, and he was left hanging there defenseless. At that point, even though David had earnestly asked that his son's life be spared, Joab put his own interests and judgment first and killed Absalom. Joab's action was the result of confusing God's will with human greed; he cut himself off from the chance to make a good choice and committed a great sin.

Absalom set up a monument to leave his name behind, but in the end it became a disgrace that announced his failure and death. In the face of death all honor and wealth are meaningless, and every person will surely stand before God, the Lord of life. How should we come to realize how precious our present life is, and that wrong choices can lead to eternal loss?