Sermons on Fuller:

Who Am I More Important Than? Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jan 30, 2011

Divisions are never good in the body of Christ. But when the divisions take place over a celebration of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, things get serious real fast. In this lesson, we learn about avoiding the things that separate us, and clinging to that

Among the many problems of the Corinthian church was division. Earlier in the letter he talked about division around choosing one leader over another. In the second half of chapter 11 he focuses on another type of division that was splitting the Corinthian church: the division of rich and poor and ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 11:17-35

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

The Gifts Of The Holy Spirit - Part 1 Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Feb 7, 2011

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit has split churches and The Church for thousands of years. Paul delves into this lively and controversial subject in the next three chapters of 1st Corinthians. His reason for the discussion is not to provide a complete guide t

Chapter 12 might look to some as a right turn in the letter—Paul introducing a totally new subject that has nothing to do with what came before. Although it appears to an answer to yet another question from the Corinthians, the undertone of the letter continues—“let the gospel shine brighter than ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:1-11

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

How To Find Your Place In The Body Of Christ Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Feb 13, 2011

Finding your place in the body of Christ is made difficult by the very nature of the spiritual gifts. People with upfront or flamboyant kinds of ministries can make the rest of us feel insignificant, like we are not contributing or maybe just aren't a par

As humans we like two things: to impress and be impressive. That was one of the main problems the Corinthians faced in many areas including spiritual gifts. The more flamboyant the gift, the more impressive the show of the Spirit, the better. So in chapters 12 through 14 Paul corrects this ...read more

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Positive Giving

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Aug 8, 2011

What motivates you to give? The Corinthians had an easy time setting unrealistic giving goals that set them up for failure, but a hard time giving in a way that released the gift to God and brought Him glory. In this chapter Paul gives us some valuable le

Giving is one of those subjects that pastors either ignore or really focus on. For us at Calvary Chapel, we teach through the Scriptures so when a chapter comes along on any particular subject then we teach it. Giving should be a part of every growing Christian’s experience, and I’m not ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 8:1-24

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

What You Get When You Give

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Aug 15, 2011

What happens when you give of your time, talents, and money? Many ministries teach that you will receive a material blessing for material giving. I think they completely miss the mark. Paul, in this chapter, sets out a wonderful pattern of the true result

Last time we talked about the motivation behind giving, and the process for how to give: it comes from the word “generosity” which means simplicity, sincerity, and singleness. We give who we are, and what we have, back to the Lord who owns it all, for Him to take our simple gifts given ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 9:1-15

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Who Is Better?

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Aug 29, 2011

It is human nature to compare ourselves to one another. We do it all of the time very naturally and almost without noticing it. That's what was happening in Corinth and it was giving the Corinthians a false impression about who to trust.

There is an old saying “appearances can be deceiving.” Or: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” In the case of the Corinthians, those sayings apply very well. They fell into a trap that many of us fall prey to, using human senses to judge spiritual realities. In this ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 10:1-18

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People?

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Sep 11, 2011

This question haunts many of us, especially as Christians. We think that things should go well if we are blessed of the Lord. When bad things happen, even seemingly disconnected things like losing a job or getting into an accident, we wonder why? Paul won

Finally here in the latter half of Chapter 11, Paul defends himself to the super-apostles by listing his accomplishments. He does it very reluctantly as he should. Taking credit for what you’ve done was normative for the false teachers in Corinth but is “this age” thinking. God is ...read more

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

How Will God Find You?

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Sep 18, 2011

Many times we as Christians live our lives in the dark. We think we are reasonably good people trying our best. But our past, our associations, the flesh, and the culture around us, conspire to blind us to many things that are not like the Lord going on i

The church today is in trouble. Two recent surveys show that church attendance, even among professing Christians, is way down. Many people today also feel that while they acknowledge faith in Jesus, also want a Burger King style religion—the “have it your way” mentality of ...read more

Scripture: 2 Corinthians 12:11-21

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Who Owns You? Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on May 21, 2012

Our idea about success involves three things - all of which were possessed by a man who approaches Jesus. What is he looking for and why? The answers should affect your outlook on this life and the one to come.

As human beings there are four main things we rely on for security: money, control, intellectual power, and our abilities—including the ability to be good. But these four things also work to keep us away from real security. Today we delve into the story of a young man who had it all, but ...read more

Scripture: Mark 10:17-31

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Trotting In To Save The Day Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 4, 2012

What image comes to mind when you think about a hero riding in to save the day? Jesus, our ultimate action hero, rides into Jerusalem to save the day for humanity, but not in the way you would imagine, not this time anyway.

When you picture the hero coming in to save the day you probably think of a tall guy in a tall hat riding in on tall white horse with a couple of shotguns off of his saddle and two in his hands. Well, our ultimate action hero, Jesus, rides into Jerusalem all right—but on a tall white horse? ...read more

Scripture: Mark 11:1-24

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Ganging Up On Jesus Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 11, 2012

In this portion of Mark we get a clearer picture of what it means to rely on God for things, and what it means to rely on the government. Here the religious leaders try to trip Jesus up, but they fall right into His trap.

After the episode in the Temple on the previous day, I guess Jesus should have expected the religious leaders of Israel to react. In fact, the Lord is trying to get them to react and eventually figure out a way to arrest and condemn Him. In the end of Chapter 11 and into Chapter 12 we see a series ...read more

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Who Is God And How Can You Get To Know Him? Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 18, 2012

Jesus had to answer some very complicated questions designed to trap Him. But being the master chess player, Jesus turned the traps into times of teaching and revealing much about His true identity.

Jesus is in the middle of debating the religious leaders who have come to challenge Him after He cleared the Temple. Last time they demanded that He prove His authority (He wouldn’t because they wouldn’t admit where John the Baptist got his authority) and then they tried to trap Him ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:18-37

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Learning To Love God Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jun 25, 2012

What is the most important thing in the universe? The answer might surprise you but goes right to the heart of both the Old and New Testaments. Jesus reveals it to us in Mark 12 as we go in depth into loving God.

During the course of a heated debate between Jesus and the religious leaders, something happens that is like an oasis in the midst of the desert. A scribe approaches the group as the Sadducees are trying to trip Jesus up with some theological argument coming out of their misinterpretation of the ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:29-31

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Radical Trust Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jul 2, 2012

Mark wrote nothing by accident in his gospel. Just prior to the arrest of Jesus, he presents a stark contrast between those who think they have it all and those who have nothing. Which group is which? The answer may surprise you.

As we begin this portion of Mark 12, Jesus has just finished his series of debates with the religious leaders. They’re done, but Jesus isn’t. He came to Jerusalem to first proclaim His hostile takeover—retaking for God the thing man had conformed to his own image. He proclaimed ...read more

Scripture: Mark 12:38-44

Denomination: Calvary Chapel

Looking To The End Times Series

Contributed by Tom Fuller on Jul 9, 2012

There is a lot of excitement generated in the Christian community around the return of Jesus. Jesus' men were excited too, but what Jesus tells them is not a timeline or series of events, but how they should act while waiting. It's good advise for us too

There’s one thing that is pretty clear—no one understood Jesus’ mission as the ultimate action hero. The people that followed Him closely were starting to get that He was the Messiah—but what did that mean? As I’ve mentioned several times in our journey through Mark, ...read more

Scripture: Mark 13:1-23

Denomination: Calvary Chapel