Collinsville Church of Christ Sermons

God moves in many ways to get our attention, to call his people back to the path they should be on. But are we listening? Will we make the changes he calls us to make, or will we ignore or change the message he sends us?

Things are most definitely not right in our world, and because of his great love, God will not allow cruelty and corruption to continue unchecked. His justice will prevail, and his judgment will make things right once and for all. The question is… Are our neighbors ready to face judgment? Are we? This series in the Book of Amos calls us to take our faith seriously.

Being a follower of Jesus is more than an intellectual exercise; it is a life that we are called to live. If we aren't taking our faith seriously enough to actually do what Jesus calls us to do, what is the purpose of our belief?

When we find ourselves in an overly negative mindset, it's like we have a filter in our brains and all we see is the bad around us. God calls us to something better—away from incessant grumbling and complaining to a life of hope.

If we are honest, we all have doubts from time to time, and those doubts are not necessarily a betrayal of our faith. In fact, if we are taking our thoughts captive, our doubts can lead us to the great questions that push our faith even deeper.

What do you see when you look at others? When you look in the mirror? Too often we evaluate people based on the standards of the world and as a result, we mistreat others and devalue ourselves. But our God tells us a different story about the value of a person.

What really gets under your skin and makes you angry? Our anger can often be a recipe for disaster, but if it is brought into obedience to Christ, it can be a catalyst for great godly change.

What are the thoughts that stir up your anxiety? For some of us, anxious thoughts about both big and small things seem to beat us down day after day. The good news is that we can learn to let go of those thoughts as we learn how to grow in our trust in God.

One of the biggest obstacles we face in getting our minds right is our own ego. We want to be kings and queens of our own kingdoms, but we are called to be servants in God's kingdom. In this lesson, we explore how to keep Jesus on the throne of our hearts.

We are at war within ourselves. We have thoughts we know we shouldn't have and others that aren't leading us where we need to go. What are we to do? How can we get control of our thoughts so that they overflow into a life that is pleasing to God? That's what we will explore through this series…

The prayer that Jesus prayed on the night he was arrested was not just for the disciples, it was for those who would believe in him in the future. His prayer was for people like you and me. The essence of his prayer was that his followers would be one, as he and the Father are one. Resurrection hope comes from knowing that in the midst of a divided world, we can trust that the love of Jesus knows...

Lazarus was one of Jesus’ friends. He fell sick and died before Jesus could arrive to restore him. The loss was devastating to Lazarus’ sisters, Mary and Martha. It all looked like one big mistake. If Jesus had been there, Lazarus wouldn't have died, right?. Jesus joined Mary and Martha in their pain and… he wept. If we want to know how God responds to loss, look no further than Jesus’ tears in Jo...

We can only imagine how Peter must have felt as the final days of Jesus’ life unfolded… discouraged that his friend had been killed on a cross, disappointed that Judas had turned his back, heartbroken that Rome had seemingly won. But, perhaps Peter was most disappointed in himself after denying Jesus, not once, but three times. We all know the pain of discouragement that comes from things outside...

The days following Jesus’ crucifixion must have been some of the darkest times for his followers. They had placed all of their hope in him, and now he was dead. They believed that he truly was the Messiah and that through his life, he would change the world. It was not until a woman named Mary Magdalene went to visit the tomb that hope was restored. The tomb was empty and Jesus had risen!

Conclusion to the series

It's ironic that the very thing we work so hard to attain is the thing that can be our undoing. Wealth and comfort can be blessings from God to be used for his glory, but when they are ends in themselves it can lead us to an apathetic lukewarmness that makes us unfruitful and ineffective in God's kingdom. In that, we can learn from the mistakes of the church in Laodicea.

How do you press on when you feel powerless? Jesus sent a message of encouragement to the Church in Philadelphia who was marginalized and pressed on every side. The heavenly perspective he gave them still gives us the strength we need today.

The cultural attitude in Sardis was similar to what we see today: "Believe whatever you want as long as you tone down anything someone else might be offended by." Some Christians and Jews seem to have survived there by watering down their message. It is certainly easier to get along that way, but what happens to our identity? And at that point, do we even have anything left of value to offer the w...