Crosstown OKC Sermons

owing the Flood story, the Bible describes the spread of the nation-state and the dangerous concentration of human power. God intervenes to disrupt this development and to expose the confusion that comes from human attempts to consolidate power apart from his presence among them. The tower of Babel sets the stage for God's calling of Abraham and for his promise to redeem all creation through his p...

Noah's flood is one of the most well-known stories in all the Bible. But being captivated by its imagery we can easily lose sight of its message. God's interactions with Noah and his family are meant to teach God's people about the reason why he has delivered them from destruction. Brought into a covenant relationship with him by grace, God intends to bring order to his creation through his people...

God's promise after the failure of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden was that the seed of the woman would prevail over the seed of the serpent. Comparing the genealogy of Adam through Seth with that of Adam through Cain, we see the contrast between the two family trees. But God's promised victory seems to be on the verge of failure as the evil seed infiltrates the royal line and brings great trou...

Genesis 4 contains the first murder in human history. It did not take long after the Fall and the Curse for the children of Adam to be enmeshed in sin, pride, disobedience, and false worship. Cain killed Abel, but the Lord still showed him mercy. Lamech, the first bigamist, boasted in killing a young man. The offspring of the woman appears all but lost. But the Lord revealed hope to humanity by gi...

God put the man and the woman in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it. But they soon succumbed to the temptation of the serpent and disobeyed God's command. The devastating consequences of Adam and Eve's rebellion are not only the cause of all that troubles our world but also the pattern we are tempted to follow every single day.

Genesis 2 tells us about a garden that God planted in the land of Eden, and about the man and woman that he put there to manage it. This particular vocation given to Adam and Eve is a sacred duty, more like a priestly function than an agricultural one. So long as they, as God's chosen people, carry out their sacred responsibilities, they will enjoy the delights of God's kingdom and promote its joy...

he creation account in Genesis 1 is often suspected of being in conflict with the findings of modern science. Many attempts have been made to make peace between the two. The best way to do that is to see the unique contribution of the creation account and what it urges us to believe about God and his purpose for the world.

God made the world and everything in it. The Trinity was at work in creation, making all visible things out of nothing. God made a beautiful world for us to dwell in, and he made it all for the praise of his glory. The narrative was not intended to give exquisite details on debatable topics, but was meant to tell future generations who made them, for what purpose, and how he still pursues people u...

Christians in a particular church should find that their life together is the most meaningful relationship they have. Because they find their truest identity together in Christ, they can live as whole, healthy people. Whatever their circumstances, they can approach the living God in prayer, for help or for praise. Standing at the intersection of heaven and earth, even ordinary Christians are calle...

The brevity of life and the allure of prosperity can tempt the Christian to give up faith in the gospel. But we must remain patient, confident in the Lord's return. Those who do not give up will be the most blessed of all as they enter into the joy of the Lord's eternal kingdom.

Being rich is not wrong in itself. But pursuing riches at the expense of others, or at all cost, will come with a price. Giving oneself to the love of riches comes at the expense of an eternal treasure. Riches come with a warning to heed, but also a call to good stewardship and generosity toward God and his people.

The people of God ought to be known by the blessing they bring to the world. Something is seriously wrong, then, when Christians engage in heated quarrels among themselves. God's grace is able to put out these fires, and is available to all through genuine repentance. It is also what will produce the radical love for others that God demands of us.

When the women came to the tomb where Jesus had been buried, they were surprised to find that his body was not there. Even more surprising was their discovery that Jesus had risen from the dead. From now on, all those who believe in Jesus would begin to proclaim the astonishing news of Easter and its hope for life in the world today.

Just as God has made himself known in the world through Jesus, so the people of God are to be known in the world as those who live by God's wisdom. Rejecting the wisdom that is ubiquitous in a fallen world, Christians receive from God a supernatural wisdom. And when that wisdom is lived out in their lives, peace begins to emerge, even in the most disordered places.

Everyone knows how destructive our words can be and how difficult it is to control what comes out of our mouths. Christians know how serious this issue is because the power of our words is a feature of our humanness. Failure to control our tongues is a symptom of an insincere faith, but only by real faith in Jesus can our hearts become pure and our words lifegiving.

No one can be saved apart from faith. But neither can anyone be saved by faith apart from works. Saving faith and righteous works belong together because the Christian religion is about believing God's promise to bring about a new creation of love through Jesus Christ.

Partiality is incompatible with faith. Favoritism means we doubt the faithfulness of Jesus. It is absurd to practice partiality among believers. God who is rich in mercy became poor for us so that we may receive mercy and become rich in Christ. Mercy and love in Christ are the remedy for partiality. They lead us to obey the laws of the kingdom of heaven.

The Christian faith is meant to be enacted. Christians who profess faith in Jesus but do not live out that faith are deceived and do not know the gospel. Whatever value such a faith may give to them, it is ultimately worthless and offers no hope to the world.

Christians face trials all the time, and James sets out to help his audience endure these “tests of faith.” The kingdom of God offers us a single-minded perspective that can quiet our hearts and give stability to our lives. The pursuit of kingdom values proclaims the counter-cultural life that resists and overcomes the worldly powers of death.

The book of James is loved by many Christians because of its practical teaching and vivid illustrations. But as with all the works of Scripture, we should pay attention to who wrote this book and to whom he wrote it. The practical teaching of James needs to be situated in the practical setting of James and the world-changing news of the resurrection of Jesus.

When God created human beings in his image, he purposefully made them male and female. Although we were made to be partners together, ruling and reigning together over God’s creation, sin has caused frequent division between men and women. The salvation that Jesus secured for us provides the answer to this division, and makes it possible not only for there to be peace between men and women but for...

Sin dehumanizes us. In taking away our sin, Jesus came to redeem us from the slavery of sin and restore our hope of glory once more. As we follow Jesus, putting away the old, sinful self, we begin to experience a new way of being human that transcends all the old distinctions by which we tend to identify ourselves.

The majesty of God is on display for all to see in his creation. But his creation is not a finished project. God intends for his majesty to continue to be revealed through his image bearers who are tasked with advancing God's creation project. Though human beings have radically failed in this task, in Jesus the creation project is put back on track.