Sermons on Fuller:

Lesson 4: Don't Trust Your Mind - Trust God's Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Oct 4, 2010

The mind is one of the most amazing and most dangerous things we possess. It is incredibly creative, self-justifying and horribly deceiving and sick. So Paul tells us when it comes understanding God, using our minds only will never get us there.

In our series: Lessons in how NOT to be a Christian, we have seen: Lesson 1: You (and your church) do not belong to you, but to God Lesson 2: Don't worship your pastor Lesson 3: Don't confuse the world's wisdom with God's And now Lesson 4: Don't rely on your own mind Scientific ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 2:1-16

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Lesson 5: Don't Remain A Baby Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Oct 11, 2010

One of the most dangerous places to find yourself as a Christian is thinking you are more mature than you really are. This was one of the main reasons the Corinthian church had so many problems and may be a reason you are not moving forward in your walk.

I have a granddaughter, little Maya. She is our first grandchild and, of course, she is the cutest baby on planet earth. Up until now Maya has only known her mama's milk as her food. She is just starting to eat puréed foods like bananas and the like. We saw the cutest video of her and she actually ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:1-4

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Lesson 6: Get Over Yourself - Get On With The Work Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Oct 18, 2010

One of the greatest blessings is when God works through you. One of the greatest dangers is when God works through you. Learn how to avoid the penetrating gaze of the Lord and simply rejoice in His work through you.

What’s the hottest thing you’ve ever been close to? I remember once being near a log deck fire that was so hot that it was melting the asphalt under my feet. I’ve seen the effects of intense heat and fire reduce a full house to a pile of ashes and a chimney, with things melted in ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 3:5-17

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Lesson 7: Look Out For The Culture Of Celebrity Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Oct 25, 2010

Is there such a thing as the celebrity pastor? Is that a good or bad thing? How should I look at a church to make sure I will be fed as a believer?

As we’ve seen in looking at the problems of the Corinthian church, the members of this congregation had expended a great deal of energy putting certain leaders up on pedestals and then aligning themselves with that leader and claiming their leader was better than theirs. In the first part ...read more

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Lesson 8: Watch Out For Pride Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Nov 1, 2010

Pride is a sneaky thing. It's the default program for humans and is at the root of the problem in Corinth, and often at the root of our problems as Christians.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines sarcasm as: "A form of irony in which apparent praise conceals another, scornful meaning." An example might be to someone who is always late and you say to them: "Oh my, you're right on time!" Now if I told you that the Bible has several excellent examples ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 4:6-21

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Lesson 9: Sin In The Church Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Nov 8, 2010

Handling sin in the church has become very difficult from both angles - in our PC world much bad behavior is actually celebrated, but Christians are also wounding each other over weakness instead of supporting and helping. We'll try to walk the fine line

In Chapter 5 we move from pride of surface appearance over internal substance to pride over major sin in the body. It's issue two on Paul's mind as he writes to the Corinthians. It's a tough subject—sin in the church. This chapter can easily be misconstrued in several ways and I want to try ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 5:1-13

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Who Do You Belong To? Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Sep 16, 2010

Often times we think of our society today as so different from Bible times. But it may surprise you that the things facing the Corinthians are much the same as today, and so is God's grace!

1st Corinthians was written in A.D. 56 from Ephesus at the close of Paul's 3 year residence there (Acts 20:31, 1 Corinthians 16:5-8). Paul's relationship with the Corinthian church is in Acts 18:1-18. He met Aquila and Priscilla there and taught in a house next door to the synagogue for 18 months. ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Don't Worship Your Pastor Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Sep 20, 2010

You might never think of yourself as worshiping your pastor. But that's just what has happening in Corinth and it happens in churches all over the world to this day. What are the dangers, how to spot it, and how to avoid it are the subject of part two in

It had been only 18 months since Paul left his newly formed church at Corinth. A trusted family had filled him in on what had happened to this fledgling body: fights, divisions, class envy, a return to paganism, and out and out sin. I picture Paul pulling his hair out and tearing his clothes as he ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Plotting, Power, And The Way To Get Ahead Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Dec 11, 2006

Though evil plotted heavily against Jesus He remained in total control of every situation. Sometimes do you adopt the ways of the world to accomplish God’s will?

Have you ever met someone who really comes across as having it together and being pretty impressive? I’m reminded of that old TV show The Pretender. In it a guy named Jared could instantly become anyone he wanted: a doctor, a cop, a scientist, whatever. He wasn’t really any of those things and ...read more

Scripture: Luke 22:1-30

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

The Power Of Darkness Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Dec 19, 2006

Satan has a plan for each of our lives - to sift us like wheat. If we recognize it we can overcome it in the power of the Holy Spirit

There is a philosophy out there today that says man is basically good and if you take off the restraints and the laws we will eventually grow into a utopian world where crime and poverty will be a thing of the past. There’s only problem with that philosophy: its dead wrong; its 180 degrees out of ...read more

Scripture: Luke 22:31-72

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Reactions To The Crucifixion Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Dec 31, 2006

How do you react to the cross of Jesus? It may say a lot about your spiritual condition and your relationship to Christ. Learn how many of the witnesses reacted.

If you really want to get a reaction on something from somebody-mention the cross of Jesus Christ. From the recent Mel Gibson movie The Passion of the Christ, right on back through the generations and millennia-mentioning the cross instantly puts people into several camps and creates a response ...read more

Scripture: Luke 23:1-56

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Leaning Against Legalism

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 20, 2011

We often measure our success by how closely we stick to a set of expectations - whether on the job, at home, or in our walk with the Lord. We do good, we feel good - we do bad, we feel bad. But measuring success is really much different in a relationship

When you apply for a job you supply your resume—it’s that collection of information that tells why you are qualified for a particular position. Until not too long ago, a very important thing to have when going to a new area was a letter of recommendation. We still use them occasionally. ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:1-18

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Super Cool Or Super Real?

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 27, 2011

Are you real? That might seem like an obvious question but consider the lengths you go to in order to present yourself as "all together" to your friends and brothers and sisters. Being impressive by appearance can actually impede both your growth in the L

We talk a lot about natural human behavior and how that often runs counter to the real life given to us in Jesus Christ. Today I want to talk about your image. In our natural state we try really hard to present a good image to the world. We try to clean up, dress well, and act civilly. Beyond that, ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:1-18

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

The Coming Evaluation

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jul 5, 2011

One of the worst pieces of mail you can receive comes with three little letters in the return address: IRS. Getting audited is like going to the dentist without the novocaine. As troubling as it may seem, an even more important audit is coming for all of

In the first part of Chapter 5 I have some good news and some not so good news depending on how you look at it. The good news is that you’re due for an upgrade. The bad news: you’re being audited. First, the upgrade. We talked last time about the fact that to God we are ordinary clay ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:1-11

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Jesus Became Sin For You

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jul 12, 2011

Just how did Jesus pay for your sins? To understand this will give you a new appreciation for just how bad evil is, how good God is, and the value of what Jesus did for you on the cross and bears for you each and every day. It also makes our job descripti

A few weeks ago we talked about the masks we as Christians put on that sometimes hides our true selves from one another. But those who do not know Christ also put on masks—to hide themselves from an awful reality that they don’t want to face—that we as humans are evil at the core. We distract ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

Denomination: Calvary Chapel