New Covenant OPC Sermon Podcast

In Revelation 13:1-10 a beast rises from the sea to persecute the people of God. What is this beast? We recognize that it is associated both with a counterfeit form of Christianity and with the persecution of the people of God through temporal power. The Catholic Church during the time of the Reformation was clearly an expression of this beast as is all forms of Leftism today.

In Genesis 19:30-38 is a strange passage for several reasons. First, the passage is about things which naturally make us uncomfortable: Lot has an incestuous relationship with his daughters that causes the ancestors of the Moabites and Ammonites to be born. Second, this is the last time we see Lot in Genesis. Why leave us on such a negative note? Ultimately, we are to recognize that Lot's salv...

In Revelation 12:13-17 we are told more about the persecutions that we will face as a result of the devil being thrown to earth. Though the devil will never overcome the church, he will still pursue Christians vigorously.

In Genesis 19:23-29 Sodom and Gomorrah are destroyed. Just as God destroyed the world with water in the flood, so too he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah by fire. Though this was a unique event, it foreshadows the future judgment to come on the last day and is a warning to repent before the day comes. The passage teaches that what is needed is an intercessor like Abraham. This is what we have in Chris...

In Revelation 12:7-12 we get a glimpse of what was happening in the heavenly realm as Christ defeated Satan on the cross. Satan is thrown down and is unable to bring accusations against the people of God anymore. Satan is overcome by those who trust in Christ who defeated him.

In Genesis 19:12-22 the angels promise judgment will fall upon Sodom. Many, however, are unwilling to leave. Lot's future sons-in-law think it is a joke. Lot himself must be dragged out of the city. How difficult it is to leave the city of destruction! Many grow to love the world of sin found there and will be unwilling to leave even as they hear of the sure judgment to come.

In Revelation 12:1-6 John sees a vision of a woman and a dragon. This vision builds on the first gospel promise in Genesis 3:15. Ultimately the dragon is defeated by Christ, born of the woman, Zion. Though it would be natural to think this would be the end of the persecution of the dragon, we are actually told that this makes it worse. The devil pursues the woman because he knows his time is short...

In Genesis 19:1-11 we see the heinous sins of Sodom. Angels come into the city and are greeted hospitably by Lot. The men of the city, however, surround the house and attempt to rape the angels. The outcry against the city is justified. We see the same patterns of sin in our own country today, and therefore, should pray fervently for God's mercy.

In Revelation 11:15-19 the seventh trumpet sounds signaling the final judgment and the return of Christ. This is something for which God will be praised on the last day. Though many think God unjust in his judgments or think them horrible, on the last day, all of creation will rejoice when it comes. This is because the day of judgment is a demonstration of perfect righteousness, the time when the...

In Genesis 18:20-33 Abraham famously intercedes for Sodom. His intercession is a picture and foreshadowing of the glorious intercession of Christ as our faithful high priest.

In Revelation 11:7-14, the two witnesses are put to death and, like their Lord, are raised from the dead. We understand from this that the church and her ministry will always follow the pattern of her Lord. She will conquer by death and resurrection like her Lord.

Guest sermon from Pastor Nathaniel Vroom of First OPC Sunnyvale

If Christ really is fully God and fully man, if this glorious incarnation has truly happened, what is its purpose? Why did God actually become man? We are told the answer in the record of his birth in Matthew 1:18-25. He came to save his people from their sins. This he did by dying. The Son of God became man, so that he might die.

If the birth of Christ really is the Word becoming flesh, then he is, in himself, the greatest revelation of the Father. He is the exegesis of the Father in his very person. He is the one who came down from heaven to testify of the things that are in heaven. He is the one of whom it can be said, "If you have seen him, you have seen the Father." Such are the prophetic implications of the incarnatio...

In Hebrews 4:14-16 we are told that Christ is a glorious High Priest who has passed through the heavens. He is like us in every way except without sin. As the one who is fully God and fully man, he is perfectly fitted to be the priest who reconciles man to God. He is able to make a full atonement for our sins, intercede for us forever, and to be a compassionate High Priest, sympathizing with us in...

If Christ is fully God and fully man, what does that tell us about who he was born to be? When the angel Gabriel announces the birth of Christ to Mary, he tells her that he will be great, and that he will be given the throne of his father David, and that there will be no end to his kingdom. Christ being fully God and fully man, the eternal Son of God who took on human flesh, means he was born to h...

In Matthew 8:23-27 Christ calms the storm and the waves of the sea on the Sea of Galilee. This causes the disciples to ask the question, "What kind of man is this?" They are seeing one who is truly a man, and yet the things he is doing are demonstrating that he is God. How do we understand this reality, that Christ is both fully God and fully man? The mystery is profound, and the doctrine incompre...

Christ is not only fully God, but he is also fully man. The glory of the incarnation is seen in the humility of the eternal Son of God who took on the form of a man, even the form of a servant for us. He has become fully man for us, having both a true body and a rational soul. This is the glory of Christ, who is both fully God and fully man.

In Hebrews 1:1-14 the author compares the greatness of Christ to the angels. He proclaims that Christ is far greater than the angels because he is the Son of God. As the Son of God, Christ is fully equal to the Father. He is of the same substance, the same essence, being eternal, self-sufficient, immutable, immense, and incomprehensible in his greatness. This is the God we serve. This is our Savio...

In Revelation 11:3-6 the ministry of the church is described under the figure of two witnesses. These witnesses are described like Joshua and Zerubbabel from Zechariah 4. They are the two lampstands who stand before the Lord of all the earth, anointed for a kingly and priestly function as they make known the wonders of the gospel. They are also described like Moses and Elijah, given power as God's...

In Genesis 18:16-19, God asks whether or not he should hide from Abraham what he is about to do in light of the promises he has received. In 18:19 we are told that Abraham has been chosen that he might instruct his children so that the promises might come to pass. Genesis 18:19 highlights the necessity we have of teaching our children the Word of God. It is the normal means God uses to bring our c...

In Revelation 11:1-2 Ezekiel is told to measure the temple. The inner parts of the temple represent where God has communion with his people. This represents the blessings of the people of God in the presence of God during the time between the first and second coming of Christ. During this same time, however, the outer courts are given over to the Gentiles to be trampled. We are told, therefore, th...

In Genesis 18:9-15 God tells Abraham that Sarah will have a son in a year. Sarah falters in unbelief given her circumstances, and yet God affirms again that it will surely happen. We are reminded that nothing is impossible with God and that he will surely bring to pass all of his promises.

In Revelation 10:1-11 Christ, in the appearance of an angel, claims sovereignty over the entire cosmos. He then gives a little scroll to John, who, like Ezekiel, is instructed to eat it, showing that he is to embody this message of Christ's sovereignty, that it is to be proclaimed throughout the world. The message is sweet in his mouth and yet bitter in his stomach because this message is also ass...

In Genesis 18:1-8 Abraham entertains three guests, not knowing who they are. We are told, however, that God himself, along with two angels, had come to Abraham. We are reminded of the need to be hospitable at all times, following the example of Abraham.