Sermon Central
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Heartbreak And Holiness In Hosea
Contributed by Johnny Wilson on Feb 12, 2009 (message contributor)
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1. When Theology Gets Personal
Contributed on Feb 12, 2009
For Hosea, theology wasn’t merely theoretical, it was life-changing. So should it be for you and me.
When John Claypool was pastor of Crescent Heights Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky, he underwent significant personal tragedy—including having a beloved daughter diagnosed with leukemia. Throughout the turmoil and torture of losing his, as I recall, 10-year-old daughter, Claypool kept his ...read more
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2. Like Priest, Like People
Contributed on Feb 12, 2009
If Israel’s priests were accountable for Israel’s ignorance and wickedness, what does that mean for all believers as priests and pastors in particular?
[Note: I felt led to preach this sermon during the period leading up to Christmas.] Today is the beginning of the Advent season in churches that follow the ecclesiastical calendar. It celebrates the past, present, and future of God’s coming into the world. In fact, “advent” originates in the Latin ...read more
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3. Sue Your Own Mother!
Contributed on Feb 12, 2009
Our relationship with God can require a strained relationship with others when we take sin seriously and need to avoid it.
I was watching an old movie on television and I heard a line that I’d missed before. The villain of this comedy was talking on the phone and said something like: “Sure, I know what kind of low-down person would sue his own mother, but we’re not talking about me!” It caught me off-guard and I had ...read more
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4. To The Rescue
Contributed on Feb 13, 2009
Hosea didn’t merely redeem Gomer with "cheap grace," but established a plan for "sanctification," as well.
My wife enjoys watching movies over and over again. She’s the perfect target market for DVDs because, if she is really into a movie, she’s willing to watch that movie several times over a short period of time. I’m different. I like to watch a film and then, I won’t want to watch it again for a ...read more
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5. That Special Invitation
Contributed on Mar 2, 2009
God’s purpose in judgment is to give us a chance to make a "comeback." Here is an invitation to repentance in the midst of "negative" prophecies.
This week, I heard a radio interview with a fellow who has built a business on invitations to Super Bowl parties. He calls his business, “Man-vite.” It’s an online invitation service that helps men organize social events. The whole reason this service exists is because the first such service, ...read more
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6. Bad Medicine
Contributed on Mar 2, 2009
Settling for answers other than God’s answers is like taking poisoned medicine for a headache.
Bad Medicine More than 25 years ago (1982), seven residents of the Greater Chicago area made an assumption that proved fatal. They all took a dose of Extra Strength Tylenol® that had been laced with potassium cyanide. What they thought was medicine proved to be poison. This crime, still being ...read more
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7. Hot To Trot
Contributed on Mar 30, 2009
When God’s leaders, whether secular political, secular business, or church religious leaders, fail, the result is disastrous for both God’s people and those around them.
Some of you are bound to be offended at the title of this sermon. If you are familiar with the slang of a couple of generations ago, this was the ‘40s and ‘50s description of a person who had cast moral considerations aside and wanted to have a hot and heavy affair. It usually denigrated women as ...read more
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8. Who Ya Gonna Call?
Contributed on Mar 30, 2009
Life offers many answers, but only one Answer. Hosea calls God’s people out for their lack of faithfulness to God’s Answer, and by implication, challenges us to faithfulness.
If you’re a fan of comedy movies like I am, the title of today’s sermon will ring a bell. The theme song of “Ghostbusters” went something like, “When there’s something weird in your neighborhood, who ya’ gonna’ call? Ghostbusters!” There was something about the idea of a S.W.A.T. team ready to deal ...read more
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9. Overrun Or Overwatch
Contributed on Mar 30, 2009
When Israel went "over the line," God had to pull back his protective "overwatch." We need to be certain that we are depending upon God instead of other answers.
Students of military tactics will have recognized the two terms in my title for today’s sermon. The first refers to a superior force finding a weak point in the enemy’s defenses and rolling right over and through the enemy without having to stop for a pitched engagement. The aggressor defeats the ...read more
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10. Army Or Arena
Contributed on Apr 19, 2009
Hosea apparently interrupts a feast (possibly Passover) in order to say that loyalty and faithfulness are vital to authentic living/worship.
Army and Arena Text: Hosea 9:1-9 In The 24-Hour Christian, Pastor Earl Palmer warns that people, in general, flock to any proof of power. “Political tyrants always use the army and the arena, the power of the sword and the circus.” (p. 47) This is as true in the church as it is in the political ...read more