Tri-State Community Church - Sermons

One of the most glorious passages in all of Scripture reads: “There is now, therefore, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” This verse should take our breath away. Sadly, too often, it does not. In this message, Rick looks at one of the principle reasons for this lack of awe and from there moves to gaze at what God has done to make this verse a reality.

The Christian life is a battle. As believers we deeply desire to obey God but we often fail. In this message, Rick takes us through Romans 7:14-25 showing us that though we are free from sin's dominion we are not free from its presence.

In this message, from Romans 7:7-12, Rick shows that the law is both a mirror and a window.

In Romans 7:1-6 Paul presents a principle, an illustration, and an application. The principle is: “The law is binding on a person only as long as he lives.” The illustration is marriage. The application is one of the most beautiful pictures of salvation in the whole of Scripture. In this message we glean from this picture and behold our husband, Christ Jesus our Lord.

In Romans 6:17 Paul says that the believer has been committed to “the standard of teaching.” In this message we examine what Paul means by this and in doing so we learn how God shapes and molds us into the likeness of Christ.

The passages of Scripture are not put together willy-nilly, there is a divine order and we do good to pay attention to it. Overcoming sin in the Christian life requires an active contemplation of what God has done to us. He has set us free to become slaves; slaves of righteousness.

If you are a true believer then you received a bundle. This bundle includes a death, new life, and empowerment to live out this new life. In this message, Rick explores this bundle showing that, in Christ, we really have the resources to overcome our sin and worldliness and live lives that are increasingly Christlike.

Life can be difficult but God has not left us without hope! Listen and learn how Psalm 62 provides hope for those in the midst of life's most difficult trials.

We live in a day where doctrine is considered unimportant, divisive, and in some cases to be avoided. But sound doctrine is essential in overcoming sin in our lives. In this message, Rick demonstrates the importance of doctrine and then looks at the doctrinal consideration of Romans 6:6, namely, that the believer is no longer enslaved to sin.

Romans 6 teaches us that the true believer is united or with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. In this message, Rick begins to discuss how this “withness” empowers us to walk in newness of life.

Paul begins Romans 6 by asking, “Shall we go on sinning that grace may abound?” After answering emphatically in the negative, Paul begins to explain why. In this message, Rick begins to expound upon Paul’s explanation with a call to think, ponder, and reflect on what God has done to every believer. In short, reckon yourself dead to sin.

If God’s grace is greater than our sin. And if where sin increased grace abounded all the more. Shall we continue to sin that God’s grace would abound even further? In this message Rick discusses Paul’s answer to this question looking at the role of the law in the believer’s life.

As we come to the end of our discussion of Romans 5 we come to the very heart of the gospel. In this message Rick takes up the glorious news that God’s grace is greater than our sin.

We have heard and even sing the phrase: “We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:2). But what does it mean? In this message Rick opens up this phrase giving us three concrete promises that fill our hearts with hope.

In Romans 5:12-21 Paul makes reference to two historical events that changed everything. In this message, Rick develops how each of us have been affected by these events.

In Romans 5:14, Paul says that Adam was a type of Christ. But after saying this, the Apostle immediately shows us how Christ is different than Adam. In this message, Rick develops the significant difference between the accomplishments of Adam and that of Christ.

Many in every generation have asked “What is wrong with the world?” In this message, Rick develops the Apostle Paul’s answer to this important question.

If Romans 5:1-11 were to be summarize with one word a good candidate for this word would be Hope. Not the hope of popular conversation which is largely desire or wishful thinking but hope that is certain. In this message, Rick first stands back for a “Bird’s eye” view of the letter to this point and then develops the two reasons Paul gives us for the certain hope we have.

In Romans 5:1-11 Paul calls us to rejoice in hope, God, and even suffering. We may see ourselves rejoicing in the first two, but how do we rejoice in suffering? In this message, Rick answers this question concluding with the tools God has given us to empower us to rejoice in suffering.

Christianity is not a lifeless religion--Jesus is alive. In this message, Rick takes us through Luke 24 with an eye to the active and living ministry of Jesus. The believer is far from pulling him or herself up by their bootstraps--they are the recipients of Christ’s active ministry to them!

In our message this morning, we look at this well known text from three perspectives: Christ’s identification - who He is; reception - how He is received; and compassion - the loveliness of His heart.

Christianity insists that access to God is only through Christ. Many in our culture receive this as an offensive and arrogant claim. In this message we take up the idea of “access” to God and His blessings, answering the objections and looking to the treasures to which the believer has access.

The word peace is popular but little understood by many of us in the West. But the word peace takes us directly to the very heart of the gospel. In this message we look at the beauty of this word from it common usage as a greeting to it pinnacle in Christ Jesus. This message is especially for those who are going through tough times but all will find comfort for their soul.

In our study we have seen that the Apostle Paul emphatically states salvation is not through works but through faith in Christ. But James 2:24 says, “a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” In this message, Rick shows us how these two apostle are not contradicting each other but teaching the same doctrine from different vantage points.

In this message, Rick develops the fact that it was perfectly reasonable for Abraham to believe that he would father a son even though he was nearly 100 years old and his wife 90. From there we see it is perfectly reasonable for us to trust in all of God’s promises with equal conviction.