Sermon Central
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So Many People Believe They Can Be Right With ...
Contributed by Bret Toman on Dec 10, 2012 (message contributor)
So many people believe they can be right with God, they can have peace with God, they can deflect God’s anger from them by being good and doing good. They rightfully understand there’s a debt that they owe. But they don’t understand it’s a debt they could never repay. And to try to repay it does not bring them closer to God but farther because it adds insult to insult.
Suppose I owed more money than I could ever repay. My creditors are soon going to be coming to take my house, my car, my microwave, my Atari, everything. My children would be taken to work in a sweatshop and I would be thrown in a dungeon. But Bill Gates hears my story and is moved to write a check to cover everything I owe. Turns out he’s glad to do it. Then I meet up with Bill Gates and I tell him “Mr Gates, that was very kind of you to cover my debts but I’m going to repay you.” And I dig deep into my pocket and I pull out 37 cents and I hand it to him. There. That ought to do it. Might that be offensive to Mr. Gates? Why? I think, primarily because of my lack of appreciation for what he has done. He pays my enormous debt and I think 37 cents covers it?
This is what we do to God when we try to earn his favor. And we owe infinitely more than money and we have less to offer than 37 cents. All we have to offer is filthy rags. Isaiah 64:6 says all of our righteous acts are like filthy rags. They’re disgusting and worthless in our attempt to make things right between God and us.
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A Young Man Had Been Promoted To An Important ... PRO
Contributed by Charles R. Swindoll on Nov 1, 2004
A young man had been promoted to an important position in his company. He’d never dreamed he’d be in such a position, much less at such a young age. So he went to see the venerable old timer in the company, and said, "Sir, I was wondering if you could give me some ADVICE." The old timer came back ...read more
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Gary Richmond, A Former Zookeeper, Had This To ... PRO
Contributed by Donnie Martin on Sep 6, 2004
Gary Richmond, a former zookeeper, had this to say: Raccoons go through a glandular change at about 24 months. After that they often attack their owners. Since a 30-pound raccoon can be equal to a 100-pound dog in a scrap, I felt compelled to mention the change coming to a pet raccoon owned by a ...read more
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Do You Ever Feel Like Robert Orben Who Said, ... PRO
Contributed by Pat Cook on Nov 15, 2004
Do you ever feel like Robert Orben who said, “Sometimes I get the feeling the whole world is against me, but deep down I know that’s not ...read more
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People Want To Work. People Are Telling Me ...
Contributed by Fred Mueller on Sep 7, 2005
People WANT to work. People are telling me they’d LOVE to go down to New Orleans to help the people in misery there. People woul dgladly enter the smell and danger to do ...read more
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This Is A True Story, About A German Artist Named ... PRO
Contributed by Chris Appleby on Oct 18, 2000
This is a true story, about a German artist named Albrecht Durer and one of his famous drawings, "The Praying Hands." Durer’s Father was a goldsmith and apprenticed him in his early years to learn the family trade, but Durer loved painting and really wanted to be a painter. So his father ...read more
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