Sermons by Bruce Pratt (Page 4)
Get Your Praise On
Sermon text: 2 Samuel 6:12-23 David wrote many of the psalms we have in our Bible. He was without a doubt a great worship leader. That didn’t change when he became the king of Israel. The high water mark of David’s life of worship was when the ark of the covenant made its way into Jerusalem. After years of obscurity, this most venerated of all worship articles finally was back in a place of prominence. And David let everyone know…
Portrait of an Encourager
Sermon text: Acts 4:36, Acts 9:27, Acts 11:22-30, Acts 15:36-41 Barnabas played a major role in the first years of the Christian church. He was respected and trusted by the apostles. They were the ones who gave him the name Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement.” The life and ministry of this man can teach us a lot about what it means to be an encourager.
Expect Correction
Sermon text: Proverbs 3:11-12 If you have trusted as your Savior and your Lord, you belong to God. And if you belong to God, He is going to correct you. It could a be a minor course adjustment or a major redirection, depending on the dynamics of your relationship with Him. And He will use whatever He needs to make the correction. Often God instructs through circumstances. But He also uses prayer, His word, and other people to get the…
Which Soil are You?
Sermon text: Mark 4:1-20 The message of the parable of the sower is that we must be faithful in telling others about Jesus, regardless of how they receive it. Jesus presents four different hearers in this parable. While not the central purpose of the parable, one cannot help but ask, “Which soil am I?” This takes introspection and honesty, which can be difficult for many of us. But the reward of unflinching self-assessment can be a closer walk with the…
More Effective Sowing
Sermon text: Galatians 6:7-9 The law of sowing and reaping is universal and God ordained. But it’s easy to miss the finer points of this important principle. First, if you plan to have a worthwhile harvest you need to sow with intention. A willy-nilly approach to sowing won’t yield very much of worth. Second, we must be careful to not limit our sowing opportunities. There are many occasions in our everyday life when we can sow seeds which honor God.
High-Octane Grace
God gives His grace to everyone. Whether someone worships God or curses Him, they benefit from God’s grace in their life. This is known as God’s common grace. We all receive this from God innumerable times a day. The air we breathe, the sunshine, what we eat, our families, our jobs, and everything else good is a product of God’s common grace. But there is another aspect of God’s grace known as special grace. This is reserved for those who…
Good News
Sermon text: John 3:16-21 The third chapter of John’s gospel centers on a nighttime conversation between Jesus and the Pharisee Nicodemus. This passage ends with one of the strongest gospel presentations in all of Scripture. There is debate as to whether Jesus said these words or they were written by John. Regardless, they are given to us by God. In these six verses we see the great love of God, the singular sacrifice of Jesus, and the two possible responses…
Going Deeper
Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:1-3 You know when a baby is hungry. Everyone in earshot knows as well. Peter compares this sort of hunger to how believers should crave God’s word. This is much more than just reading a short devotional every day, or going to church once a week. Instead, this is a life-altering, desperate desire to connect with Scripture. Peter makes it clear that the absence of this in a believer’s life can lead to a critical and…
Holy Spirit on Board
Sermon text: 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 It’s easy to think we’re free to do whatever we want. But the reality is that if you are a follower of Jesus Christ your life doesn’t really belong to you. Every Christian was bought with the blood of Jesus on the cross of Calvary. And because we’ve been bought with Christ’s precious blood, we’re not our own. At salvation, the Holy Spirit indwells every believer and is there to guide, comfort, convict and teach.…
When Times Get Tough
Sermon text: James 1:2-8 We all go through trials in life. It’s just part of being human. What’s different for the believer is how we respond to those difficult situations. James tells us that we should meet obstacles with joy. We don’t need to be thrilled about the struggle. But we should see every setback we encounter as an opportunity for growth in our faith walk.