Sermons by Bruce Pratt (Page 2)
I Know What Love Is
Sermon text: 1 John 3:16-17 You cannot know true love apart from accepting Jesus as your Savior and Lord. You can read about it and hear others talk about it. But you cannot have a real personal knowledge of what God’s love is unless you surrender your life to Jesus. When you do, you gain an understanding of His great gift. His crucifixion is definitely key to this, but Jesus’ entire life was one of service and sacrifice. Every follower…
Make Jesus Famous
Sermon text: Luke 3:16-17 John the Baptist was massively famous in Israel around 30 AD. Yet he knew his mission. He was a forerunner of the One to come. He was to prepare the people’s hearts for repentance. When the people began to question whether John may be the Messiah, he wasn’t coy about it at all. He pointed them to the One who was truly the Messiah.
Our Fuel
Sermon text: Colossians 3:16 In the midst of Paul’s instructions to the Colossians, he tells them to let the word of Christ dwell richly in them. This directive is to the individual believer and to the entire church body. In Ephesians, he gives a similar command but tells them to be filled with the Spirit. This speaks to the powerful relation between God’s word and the control of the Holy Spirit. When we allow God to lead us in this…
The Real Mover and Shaker
Sermon text: Joshua 3:3-4 Joshua was preparing to lead the Israelites into the Promised Land. Between them and their goal was the Jordan River. But God had a specific plan for how they would cross the flooded torrent. And how Joshua and the Israelites received that plan can be a help to us in the 21st century. To see God really move, we must first be willing to let Him initiate the action. God will always…always know the best plan…
Follow Jesus on Purpose
Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 The apostle Paul was asked about eating meat offered to pagan idols. A key to his response was to not allow our rights to hurt others. As Paul unpacked this concept, he talked about the Christian life as a race. He explained that every follower of Christ needs to follow Him on purpose. Aimlessness and imprecision will not get the job done. Instead, the follower of Jesus must willingly discipline the flesh in order to…
Completion Guaranteed
Sermon text: Philippians 1:6 Contrary to what many believe, none of us can merit God’s forgiveness. Our salvation is entirely through His grace. Once a person repents and asks Jesus to be their Savior and Lord, the process of Christian maturity begins. This is also referred to in Scripture as completing and perfecting. But we’re not left to do this on our own. God, who started the good work of salvation, is faithful to carry us to maturity. The challenge…
Stay Safe
Sermon text: Colossians 2:8 The church at Colossae was being ravaged by false teaching. All sorts of aberrant ideas were pulling the people away from the truth of the gospel. The apostle Paul’s letter to them was geared to combat the error threatening the fellowship. Paul explained that they must not let philosophy and vain teachings take them captive. Two thousand years later, the church is again facing a similar threat. We would do well to heed Paul’s instructions and…
Being Social Biblically
Sermon text: Galatians 5:22-23 Maybe you’ve memorized the fruit of the Spirit. Nine words that describe the working of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer. But what do these words really describe? Based on the context in which they reside, they give a picture of servanthood. They provide a portrait of a life in tune with God and others. Ultimately they give a brief depiction of how the follower of Christ should behave and interact with the…
Good Sorrow
Sermon text: 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 In writing to the church in Corinth, Paul contrasts worldly sorrow and godly sorrow. When it comes to sin, worldly sorrow is what we experience when we get “caught.” Worldly sorrow wants to blame circumstances and other people. On the other hand, godly sorrow can be at work even if no one else knows you’ve done something wrong. Godly sorrow seeks to bring restoration through repentance. Godly sorrow is even willing to take whatever penalty…
Real Freedom
Sermon text: John 8:31-36 We talk about freedom a lot. But man’s idea of freedom pales in comparison with the true freedom that comes through faith in Jesus Christ. Humanity is in the throes of slavery to sin. Unfortunately, people cannot see this reality apart from the truth of God’s word.