GCF NAGA English Sermons

The author, John, recounted the betrayal, arrest, and initial trials of Jesus. He focused on showing the willingness of the Lord to submit to the Father’s will, in contrast to the failure of His disciples, with a highlight on Peter. John also revealed the injustice of the religious leaders. Jesus was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane with Judas and a group. Despite this betrayal, God uses it to...

Judas led the soldiers and Jewish chief priests to the garden, where Jesus waited. When they asked about Jesus, He replied, “I AM,” which caused them to fall back and fall. Even though Jesus had the power to resist the arrest, He yielded Himself to fulfill the Father’s plan to sacrifice Himself. The arresting party would bring Jesus to a former high priest and the current high priest. The Lord wou...

The Lord Jesus prayed for the disciples’ preservation, sanctification, and mission. He revealed that His truth would sanctify them, causing the world to hate them. Instead of asking for their removal from the world, He prayed for their protection from evil.  Jesus also prayed for all who would come to believe through the testimony of the eleven disciples, later known as Christ’s apostles. Believer...

The Lord revealed that His disciples were gifts from the Father and that He would be glorified in them. The author, John, earlier revealed that God gave His Son to the world so that those who believed would have eternal life (John 3:16). God gave His Son as a gift, and He gave each disciple as a gift to His Son. The Lord prayed for the disciples’ protection and unity.  The Lord Jesus intercedes fo...

The Lord Jesus prayed to be glorified, which would also glorify the Father. Their shared glory existed before the world began, revealing Jesus’ divine nature and His mission to redeem. Through His life, death, and resurrection, He displayed God’s character—His love, justice, holiness, and grace.  In this prayer, Jesus would then turn His focus to His disciples. The Father gave them to Him out of t...

The Lord Jesus warned His disciples of coming persecution but assured them of peace and joy in Him. He also proclaimed His assured victory over the world. Following His words of comfort, the Savior lifted His eyes and prayed to the Father, seeking mutual glorification through His impending sacrifice and resurrection. In this prayer, He affirmed His authority to grant eternal life to those the Fath...

Jesus spoke of the disciples’ sorrow turning to joy through His resurrection (16:16–24). He assured them that the Father would hear their prayers in His name, bringing fullness of joy. Now, Jesus shifts to speaking plainly about the Father, emphasizing the peace and confidence His disciples can have despite their coming trials. Though He knew they would fail, He assured them of His victory over th...

The Lord Jesus explained why He needed to leave (John 16:1-4) so the Holy Spirit could be sent, who would guide them into all truth. Moreover, the Holy Spirit, would convict the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Spirit of God would also glorify Christ (John 16:5-15). Without fully revealing the specifics, Jesus spoke of His coming departure and return, alluding to His death and resurr...

The Lord Jesus prepared His disciples for His departure by warning them of the difficulties that would happen to them: there would be persecution. Moreover, those who would persecute them would think they were doing it for God (John 16:1-4). He explained the necessity of His departure. If the Lord leaves, the Holy Spirit will come. If He did not, the Holy Spirit would not. However, the departure w...

In times of crisis, we ask hard questions and seek meaning, looking for a basis. We can look to His word and trust in His wisdom. After the recent flood, our community faces loss, uncertainty, and the challenge of rebuilding. But Scripture gives us the wisdom to face these challenges with resilience, foresight, and hope. Today, let us consider three lessons from Proverbs that guide us in respondin...

The Lord Jesus taught the necessity of forgiveness and the consequence of unforgiveness. Believers must forgive those who offend them, and the person removed from fellowship due to unrepentant sin (Matthew 18:15-20). However, forgiveness does not mean tolerance of sin, nor should the believer fellowship with the one who has been removed. Forgiveness is trusting God in everything and removing the b...

God designed the church community as a vital part of His plan. Through it, believers grow and mature in Christ Jesus. It is a haven of spiritual growth, biblical truth, encouragement, comfort, accountability, and correction. Yet, this same community can be endangered by the creeping influences of sin and stubbornness. The author of Hebrews instructed the readers to pursue peace and holiness and to...

Paul instructed Titus to avoid foolish controversies and speculative debates because such discussions do not benefit the church's spiritual life. They distract from the most essential things of the Christian life. The focus should be on teaching sound doctrine and instructions on godly living. Controversial discussions that do not contribute to the building up of the body should be avoided; it tak...

Paul, the apostle, wrote a letter to the Church in Corinth after he learned about a scandal. He cited the church's arrogance for not mourning the incident, and for not taking decisive action. The church should have removed the guilty person from fellowship. 

Every church community should practice church discipline. Otherwise, it would not be obedient to the Holy Scriptures. Church discipline is a community dynamic that encourages the members to grow in holiness as individuals and as a collective. It also helps preserve the unity of the faith, which believers must diligently work on (Ephesians 4:3). However, it is not cheap unity, focusing merely on hu...

The Lord Jesus stated the reason for His words: so the disciples would remain and not fall away. The events that would happen would test His disciples. Jesus' arrest, suffering, and death would surprise them, but if they remembered His words, they would be comforted. The Lord Jesus also promised the coming of the Holy Spirit, who would be with the disciples. The Lord instructed His disciples to re...

The Lord commanded His disciples to love one another as He loved them, signifying that it involved service and sacrifice. He would demonstrate the greatest love through His suffering, death, and resurrection. Moreover, Jesus called His disciples friends instead of servants because He would give His life for them, and He revealed to them the Father’s plan. The Lord Jesus emphasized His sovereignty...

The Lord continued His farewell discourse, which began by washing their feet, demonstrating servanthood despite being their Lord (John 13:4-17). But the Lord’s ultimate act of service would be His death on the cross. Although the disciples cannot match His sinless sacrifice, He still commanded them to serve one another. At least they could replicate the washing of the feet, a symbol of humble serv...

The Lord Jesus presented a powerful illustration: the vine, the branches, and the vinedresser. The Father is the vinedresser, Christ is the true vine, and the disciples are the branches. He warned that the Father would remove branches that did not bear fruit, but the branches connected to the true vine would be pruned. Another word for pruning is cleaning. The Lord said that His word cleaned the d...

The Lord Jesus explained that He was the true vine, His Father was the vinedresser, and the disciples were the branches. This illustration shows the vital union of Christ and His disciples, where the disciples would not be able to bear fruit without Him. Moreover, the Lord explained the Father’s role as the one who prunes the branches, which is cleaning them, so the branches can bear more fruit. T...

The Lord Jesus prepared His disciples through instructions and promises. He admonished them not to be troubled and promised to prepare a place for them in His Father’s house. Jesus explained that the way to the Father is through Him and that He who has seen Him has seen the Father. The Lord also promised the coming of the Holy Spirit, who would teach and remind them of His words. He promised that...

The Lord Jesus prepared His disciples for what was about to happen: His suffering, death, and resurrection. He promised the coming of the Holy Spirit to dwell in them forever. The Lord Jesus stated that if they loved Him, they would obey His commandments. He assured them that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit will dwell with those who love and obey. The Lord Jesus would then reiterate the promise o...

In the earlier verses, Jesus spoke with His disciples about His perfect unity with the Father, to know Him is to know the Father. He exclaimed that He is the way, the truth, and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him. Moreover, Jesus made an astonishing promise: those who believe in Him will do the works He has been doing, and even greater works, because He is going to the...