Canceling the Gospel of Grace

"Canceling the Gospel of Grace" - a sermon by Dr. J. R. Norwood

Today, so called "cancel culture" has run amuck!  Anyone goes against popular opinion or fads is quickly shut down... they get "cancelled" by the public.  Any who challenge the momentary fashionable "group think" becomes ostracized and outcast. 

As Jesus proclaimed the truth of salvation... the very people who should have been happy to hear it were instead offended by it... instead of embracing it, they walked away from it... instead of rejoicing over it, they attempted to cancel it.... they shut their ears and turned their backs and left. Unbelievers turned away from the true Gospel of Jesus Christ then and they still do today... they still try to cancel the true Gospel of Grace.

John 6:66-69 (ESV); 66 After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, 69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” 70 Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.” 71 He spoke of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.

Your Primary Identity

"Your Primary Identity" - a sermon by Dr. J. R. Norwood

This sermon is based on Jude 1:1-2 (ESV); 1  Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ: 2  May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

A person's immediate, gut level response to the question of “who you are” is their primary identity. It is the foundation upon which other aspects of a person's life are based. It is the underlying chief value that orders decisions and behavior. A person's primary identity guides the way they live, the way they think, the way they view the world, the way they interact with others. 

Because your primary identity is the way you view yourself, first and foremost above all other things, then - for a disciples of Jesus Christ - being a servant of Jesus Christ, a follower of Jesus Christ, a worshiper of Jesus Christ, one who has been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ… must be, in an ever-increasing way, your primary identity.

What God Requires - Doing Justice, Loving Kindness, Walking Humbly with God

What God Requires - Doing Justice, Loving Kindness, Walking Humbly with God

Dr. J.R. Norwood 

Preached on June 7, 2020 - Ujima Village Christian Church

12th Online Sermon during Coronavirus Pandemic Lock-down

The Prophet Micah lays out a charge against the sinful hearts and actions of his people…  He tells them that God himself has indicted them… Micah 6:2 (ESV); “2  Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the LORD, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the LORD has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel.”

 

Micah not only lists the charges against his people, but also proclaims the will of the Lord.  He not only condemns their sin, but also summons them to faithfulness… In the dog-eat-dog days of the privileged elite ignoring the plight of the oppressed downtrodden… when people of every station point out the faults of others but justify their own fault… when we shout about the sins of others but don’t repent of our own sin, the words of our text ring out… Micah 6:8 (ESV); “8  He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”