Sermon Central
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The Remarkable Power Of Jesus
Contributed by David Dykes on Oct 9, 2014 (message contributor)
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1. The First Baptist Preacher
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
“It’s not about me. It’s all about Jesus.” If you make that your motto, then you’re on your way to understanding what abundant life is all about.
INTRODUCTION Most towns in America have a “first Baptist church.” That means they were the first Baptist church organized in a particular city. For instance, First Baptist Church Tyler was established in 1848, two years after Tyler became a city. They are our mother congregation and ...read more
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2. The Devil After The Dove
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
Sometimes after we experience some of our greatest spiritual victories, we’re faced with our greatest spiritual challenges.
INTRODUCTION This is the second message from the Gospel According to Mark. According to strong tradition, it could be called the Gospel According to Simon Peter as told to Mark. In this message we’re going to look at the baptism of Jesus. Through the years, I’ve had some ...read more
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3. If You Aren’t Fishing, Then You Aren’t Following
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
Good fishermen always EXPECT to catch fish, even if they don’t.
INTRODUCTION This is the third message from the Gospel According to Mark. I was walking along the shores of the Sea of Galilee just a few days ago where Jesus called His disciples. I got up before sunrise and went out with my Bible to watch the same sun rise over the same mountains around the ...read more
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4. A Day In The Life Of The Lord
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
Life is more than just moving through the decades. Jesus came that you might have life and live it to the fullest.
INTRODUCTION During their drug-fueled psychedelic phase, the Beatles recorded an album entitled “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” in 1967. One of the songs was entitled “A Day in the Life.” John Lennon wrote the first and last verses. Paul McCartney wrote the ...read more
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5. The Healing Touch Of Jesus
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
You may think you're too sick, too vile, too sinful, too far gone for Jesus to help; that you'll clean up your act first, and then come to Jesus. It’s a good thing that the leper didn’t wait until he was clean to beg Jesus for a touch.
INTRODUCTION For the past six weeks we counted down the last 94 hours of the life of Jesus before the discovery of the empty tomb on Easter morning. In this message I’m going to resume my verse- by-verse study of the Gospel According to Mark. This series is entitled, “The reMARKable ...read more
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6. Working For The Faith Skylight Company
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
There are hurting people living in spiritual darkness. In order to work for the Faith Skylight Company you've got to care enough for them that you'll do everything you can to let the light of Jesus fill their darkness.
INTRODUCTION As we follow Jesus through the Gospel According to Mark we come to one of my favorite miracles in the life of Jesus. It’s the story where four men tear up a roof and lower their paralyzed friend until he’s hanging in front of Jesus. These four friends dug a skylight in a ...read more
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7. Hosting A Supper For Sinners
Contributed on Oct 9, 2014
When Jesus started His ministry He selected twelve team members as His first round of draft picks. The twelve disciples were an eclectic group. He had fishermen, farmers, a terrorist and a wolf in sheep's clothing.
INTRODUCTION Happy Mother’s Day to all you moms out there. There are all kinds of stereotypes of different moms. Most of us are familiar with the overbearing Jewish mother. Joel Rosenberg told me a joke about a Jewish son who called his mom. He asked, “How are you doing?” She ...read more
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8. Old Whiners Or New Wineskins?
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
We all have a tendency to reject a new idea, or a new revelation of truth because we like the old too much. Like an old, stiff wineskin, our hearts and minds can calcify until we become so inflexible we can’t accept change.
INTRODUCTION Have you ever known someone who was a chronic whiner? They are constantly whining about their health or the weather, or what’s going on in Washington. Do you know someone like that? Now, do you think anybody was thinking about YOU? Chronic whiners and complainers are everywhere. ...read more
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9. Sabbath: Enjoy The Rest Of Your Life
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
Who said Sunday is the new Sabbath? Roman Emperor Constantine did in 321 A.D. The Roman Catholic Church did. The Church of England did, and the Puritans did. But the Bible never did.
INTRODUCTION The wife of a man who died assumed they had plenty of money so she gave him a very nice funeral and a fancy tombstone that said, “Rest in Peace.” However, when the estate was settled she learned he had wasted all their money on gambling and bad investments. This made her so angry ...read more
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10. The Day Jesus Got Good And Mad
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
What caused Jesus to get angry?
INTRODUCTION We’re going to be talking about anger in this message. When I was a kid, I enjoyed reading Marvel comic books. I can remember when they were only ten cents. Of course, Superman and Batman were my favorites. But I also remember reading about The Incredible Hulk. Cartoonist Stan Lee ...read more
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11. The Remarkable Power Of Teamwork
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
When Jesus launched His ministry, He could have been a one-man show, but rather than going solo, Jesus chose a team and trained them to help Him.
INTRODUCTION Happy Father’s Day! I thank God for every father who has accepted the role to be the spiritual leader of your family. A father who was walking down the hall outside his young son’s bedroom heard hin pray, “Dear God, make me the kind of man my Daddy is.” That night, the Father ...read more
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12. The World's Strongest Man
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
What is the "unforgivable sin?"
INTRODUCTION Macho men always want to brag about how strong they are. Some boys on a school playground were bragging. Johnny said, “My dad has a list of all the men he can beat up—and all your dads are on his list!” Later that afternoon a knock came on Johnny’s house and his dad answered the ...read more
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13. We Are Family
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
There's something about families. Our families can be the source of the greatest joy and deepest heartaches. There's more emotion attached to our families than any other unit in society. And Jesus had some revolutionary things to say about family.
INTRODUCTION Over the years, it’s been my joy to officiate more than 500 weddings. Sometimes funny things happen at weddings. I’ve had a groom who passed out not once, but three times during the ceremony. I’ve had several groomsmen pass out—but never a bride or a bridesmaid. And they call ...read more
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14. The Perceptive Art Of A Receptive Heart
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
What's the main difference between the people who have hard hearts, shallow hearts, crowded hearts, and the one who has an open heart? The person with the open heart hears it and does it.
INTRODUCTION Here’s Bob and here’s Jerry. They’re both in Celebration Worship at Green Acres listening to the Pastor. They’ve both been Christians for over twenty years. But there’s a big difference between Bob and Jerry. During the message, Bob has his Bible open and he’s taking notes. He ...read more
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15. Light And Truth
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
When people reject the light God gives them, they lose that truth and move deeper and deeper into darkness.
INTRODUCTION We all know people who are not too bright. I’ve decided I don’t pick on Aggies and I don’t pick on Longhorns or even Baylor Bears, so today I guess I’ll make all the Razorback fans mad. There were two Razorbacks who had heard about a $50 all-inclusive cruise just for Razorback fans. ...read more
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16. The Mystery Of The Mighty Mustard Seed
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
Never despise the day of small beginnings. Three ways in which God’s Kingdom is like a mysterious mighty mustard seed.
INTRODUCTION How many of you were raised on a farm? Raise your hand. How many of you have parents or grandparents that were raised on a farm? Since we’re becoming an urban and suburban culture, many of us have lost the appreciation for agriculture. But when Jesus was teaching people 2,000 ...read more
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17. How To Faith The Storms Of Life
Contributed on Jan 24, 2018
I love the fact that Jesus was asleep during the storm on the Galilee. First, Jesus was a man who experienced fatigue just like us. Second, He possessed such a strong sense of tranquility that He could sleep through the storm.
INTRODUCTION That’s not a typo. We all face storms, but do you have the ability to faith the storms of life? Faith is more than a noun; it’s also a verb. I think one of the hardest jobs would be a weather forecaster. There was a Native American chief on a remote reservation in South Dakota ...read more
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18. Jesus' Power Over Demons
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Don't be deceived by the lie of self-help. Jesus is your only hope.
INTRODUCTION Thank you for your prayers for Dale Pond and me as we traveled to Uganda and Tanzania to train pastors and to preach in the churches. We worked with over a thousand pastors who are hungry to learn how to build a Healthy Church. Greg Smith, our friend from Atlanta, joined us. Greg ...read more
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19. The Life-Changing Touch Of Faith
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Suffering is God's way of making us stronger and suffering forces us to depend on Him.
INTRODUCTION Life is full of setbacks. Did you hear about the milk cow that tried to jump over the barbed wire fence? It was an udder disaster. Did you hear about the guy who fell into a furniture upholstery machine? He is fully recovered. Did you hear about the butcher who accidentally backed ...read more
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20. Disappointments May Be His Appointments
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
The story of Jairus teaches us that when we face grief, we never should never lose sight of the fact that Jesus gives hope whenever there is death.
INTRODUCTION In the past few miracles we’ve seen that Jesus has power over danger. He calmed the scary storm. He has power over demons; He transformed a scary man. Jesus has power over disease; He healed the woman with the scary sickness. In this miracle we’re going to see that Jesus has power ...read more
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21. What Amazes Jesus?
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
When you face any challenge in life, you're going to approach it with either doubt or faith and it's your choice.
INTRODUCTION Throughout history there have been many examples of misjudgments. Here are seven of my favorite famous misjudgments: (1) “Drill for oil? You mean drill into the ground and try to find oil? You’re crazy.” (Hibernia Bank’s response to Edwin Drake’s request to borrow money to drill ...read more
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22. Shake Off The Dust
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Too many people are slaves to their past mistakes.
INTRODUCTION In my opinion, one of the greatest televisions shows ever produced was the Andy Griffith show. I’m talking about the old black-and-white episodes when Ron Howard played a young Opie. One of my favorite episodes was “The Sermon for Today.” Here’s a question for you TV trivia buffs. ...read more
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23. Is Anything Worth Dying For?
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
A story of betrayal, wickedness and great faith. How Herodias used her daughter, Salome, to trick her husband, Herod, into beheading John the Baptist.
INTRODUCTION You might recall a few years ago when the U.S. was part of a coalition to invade Iraq and depose Saddam Hussein. Not all Americans were in favor of that war and I recall seeing some protestors on the news. They interviewed one angry young man and asked him why he opposed the war. ...read more
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24. The Miracle Of The Minnows And Muffins
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
When we face a problem, our immediate reaction is to reach into our pocket and count our change; we want to see how much emotional or physical currency we have on hand to meet the crisis.
INTRODUCTION Let’s play Final Jeopardy! The category for Final Jeopardy is the Bible. The Answer is: “Other than Jesus’ resurrection, this is the only miracle mentioned in all four gospels.” You have thirty seconds. Good luck. If you said, “What is the feeding of the 5,000?” Then ...read more
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25. Jesus Says, "Don't Be Afraid"
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Can you remember a time when you were so afraid you thought you weren’t going to make it? The most dangerous storm that night wasn’t the weather on that lake. It was the storm of fear raging in the minds of the disciples.
INTRODUCTION One of my favorite stories is about the country preacher who used to visit a widow in his church named Mrs. Jones. He liked to visit her around lunchtime because she had a vegetable garden and she loved to cook fresh vegetables for her pastor. One day the preacher arrived at lunch, ...read more
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26. The Heart Of Your Problem Is The Problem Of Your Heart
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
The reason we like traditions, whether it’s washing your hands or dressing up for church, is that it is something we can do outwardly and feel good about ourselves.
INTRODUCTION Part of this message is about traditions. Why do we do the things we do? Sometimes we do them because we’ve always done them the same way and we never questioned the reason. Growing up, I had exactly the same breakfast every morning: two fried eggs, bacon, grits, and toast. And the ...read more
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27. Faith That Feeds On Crumbs
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
We don't always recognize when God is testing us. Most of the time the tests are disguised as trouble, trials, and adversity. A discussion of the four characteristics of great faith.
INTRODUCTION This year we’ve been going through the Gospel According to Mark and we’re picking up where we left off before we started our emphasis on Missions and Christmas. This message is entitled, “Faith That Feeds on Crumbs.” When I first read this passage, I was in for a big surprise. ...read more
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28. The Day Used Sigh Language For A Deaf Man
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Sometimes we are so burdened we can't even express words in our prayers. When you're praying if you don't know the words to say, don't worry. God understands sigh language.
INTRODUCTION After a break for the holidays and the Treasure Truth series, we’re back in the Gospel According to Mark. I’m calling this series, “The reMARKable Power of Jesus.” What you don’t know can hurt you—or embarrass you. It’s important to understand what things mean. I found an actual ...read more
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29. When Your Situation Seems Impossible
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
Our greatest need to fill the sense of spiritual hunger. If you are hungry, you can eat bread and be satisfied for a few hours and then you get hungry again. But Jesus can fill a spiritual need that will satisfy you for eternity.
INTRODUCTION Life is full of impossible situations. And everyone has different advice to pass on to you during tough times. Someone has said the best way to deal with your problems is to laugh at them. But someone else said that laughing at your problems is like changing a baby’s diaper. It ...read more
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30. Clear Eyes. Full Hearts. Can't Lose.
Contributed on Jan 25, 2018
The New Testament records Jesus healing seven different blind men. And in each case He employed a different method. God is a God of variety. He seldom saves two people the same way.
INTRODUCTION You might recognize the title from the television series, “Friday Night Lights.” When I moved from Alabama twenty-four years ago I thought High School football was big there, but I soon learned that, like everything else, High School football is HUGE in Texas. The movie “Friday ...read more