The Transformative Power of the Cross
Sermon Summary
Sermon Clips
"You see, the cross is central to our understanding of what Jesus did because the why of the cross is essential for us to understand as well. Why did Jesus go to the cross? Well, we know that Jesus came to earth to die. And there are two key words that we need to understand when it comes to what Jesus was doing on the cross and why the cross was necessary. See, Jesus went to the cross to pay the ransom for sinners." [01:00:34] (32 seconds)
"Redemption means buying back something that you already own. That's what redemption means. So just kind of think with me about what that might look like today. Imagine somebody stole your phone and sold it to somebody else. But you hadn't put the thing that your phone had been like stolen yet. You actually used to find my phone and you went and found your phone. And you bought it back from that person. That's the idea of redemption. God bought his people back at the cross." [01:01:13] (37 seconds)
"Now, I know a lot of us don't like this idea of God being angry. We're like, shouldn't God just be nice all the time? Like, shouldn't he just be a version of Santa Claus? Just jolly all the time. But the Bible tells us that God is angry at sin and at the brokenness of the world, which is something that is really good. Because I talk to people all the time who are going through tragedy, and they go, where is God? Does God not care that this terrible thing is happening?" [01:02:56] (30 seconds)
"God is angry because he loves. And you do this all the time too. When you're passionate about something, your emotions flare. When you love somebody greatly, anger can be a part of the equation. For example, when my children fight and one hits the other, which may or may not happen sometimes. Hey, listen, your kids probably do it too. Don't look at me like mine are crazy, okay? But when that may or may not happen, guess who gets angry? Me!" [01:03:40] (36 seconds)
"You can not have the gospel without the cross. It is the instrument of God's love for his people. Look with me at Romans chapter 8 verse 5. You see this very clearly. Romans 8, Romans 5 verse 6 says, for while we were still helpless at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. So what that means is like you couldn't save yourself, you were helpless, Christ died for you." [01:05:01] (28 seconds)
"That's what the gospel says. It says, man, you were not a good person, although maybe somebody would die for a good person, but while you were sinners, which by the way the Bible tells us sin is rebellion against God. Saying, God, we want your stuff. We don't want you. That's ultimately what sin is. God, we love you. I have the people you created, the stuff you created, the planet you created, but we don't want you in it. It's rebellion. Cosmic treason." [01:05:50] (31 seconds)
"And God's wrath was turned aside. That's the idea of propitiation. That the blood of Jesus that he shed on the cross now covers us so that when God looks upon those who believe that Jesus Christ can and will save them, that when God looks upon you, if you choose to make that decision, which some of you will have an opportunity to make a decision like that today if you've never made one." [01:06:23] (25 seconds)
"At the cross, Jesus says, you don't have the resources to pay it. I'm paying it for you. That's the power of the cross. In fact, Colossians 2 .14 says, he erased the certificate of debt with its obligations that was against us and opposed to us and has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. That's what Jesus accomplished. And he said, it is finished." [01:14:42] (33 seconds)
"Why do we still think I need to be perfect in order to get to heaven? Why do we still feel like we have an open loop with our baggage? Why do we feel the anxiety of our sin? Perhaps it's because we've never really fully trusted Christ with all of it. Listen, you can be religious. You can be somebody who claims to be a Baptist in the South or a Christian or just somebody who believes in God and never actually take the step of trusting God with your guilt and with your shame." [01:15:18] (39 seconds)
"And the thing that you think that will disqualify you from coming close to God. You may be feeling like, hey listen, I'm here. I'm just glad the walls didn't come down in on me. Or if my spouse ever found this out about me, they would leave me. Or if anybody really knew what I'm really like, I would never be loved again. Listen, all of us have baggage. All of us do. There are no perfect people in this room or in any room." [01:15:50] (27 seconds)
"Listen, if you prayed that prayer, you need to tell somebody. And I would love for you to tell me first. So if you want to tell somebody, just so we can help you, walk with you, you can talk to me after the service. But if you have the courage to do it right now, just raise your hand if you prayed that prayer. I'd love to see it just so we can help you and our team can help you. Anybody? I see you. Anybody else? I see you in the back. I see you. Anybody else? Made that choice. I'm saying it's finished. Maybe for the first time." [01:20:59] (30 seconds)
"As we're leaving This morning's worship gathering I just wanted to give you One last opportunity To trust Jesus Christ You know The idea of trusting God Is sometimes A scary thing Because it means That we're not In control anymore But that's the point Jesus knows us Better than anybody else And part of our condition As people who are far from God Is that we're putting our trust In other people Or other things Rather than the God Who made us and created us And following Jesus Comes down to this decision Of saying I'm not in charge anymore I need to trust Jesus With my life With everything I've ever done All the times I've messed up All the times I've trusted other things And put my trust firmly On Jesus Christ" [01:33:13] (44 seconds)
Ask a question about this sermon
"Redemption means buying back something that you already own. That's what redemption means. So just kind of think with me about what that might look like today. Imagine somebody stole your phone and sold it to somebody else. But you hadn't put the thing that your phone had been like stolen yet. You actually used to find my phone and you went and found your phone. And you bought it back from that person. That's the idea of redemption. God bought his people back at the cross." [01:01:13] (37 seconds)
"Now, I know a lot of us don't like this idea of God being angry. We're like, shouldn't God just be nice all the time? Like, shouldn't he just be a version of Santa Claus? Just jolly all the time. But the Bible tells us that God is angry at sin and at the brokenness of the world, which is something that is really good. Because I talk to people all the time who are going through tragedy, and they go, where is God? Does God not care that this terrible thing is happening?" [01:02:56] (30 seconds)
"God is angry because he loves. And you do this all the time too. When you're passionate about something, your emotions flare. When you love somebody greatly, anger can be a part of the equation. For example, when my children fight and one hits the other, which may or may not happen sometimes. Hey, listen, your kids probably do it too. Don't look at me like mine are crazy, okay? But when that may or may not happen, guess who gets angry? Me!" [01:03:40] (36 seconds)
"You can not have the gospel without the cross. It is the instrument of God's love for his people. Look with me at Romans chapter 8 verse 5. You see this very clearly. Romans 8, Romans 5 verse 6 says, for while we were still helpless at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. So what that means is like you couldn't save yourself, you were helpless, Christ died for you." [01:05:01] (28 seconds)
"That's what the gospel says. It says, man, you were not a good person, although maybe somebody would die for a good person, but while you were sinners, which by the way the Bible tells us sin is rebellion against God. Saying, God, we want your stuff. We don't want you. That's ultimately what sin is. God, we love you. I have the people you created, the stuff you created, the planet you created, but we don't want you in it. It's rebellion. Cosmic treason." [01:05:50] (31 seconds)
"And God's wrath was turned aside. That's the idea of propitiation. That the blood of Jesus that he shed on the cross now covers us so that when God looks upon those who believe that Jesus Christ can and will save them, that when God looks upon you, if you choose to make that decision, which some of you will have an opportunity to make a decision like that today if you've never made one." [01:06:23] (25 seconds)
"At the cross, Jesus says, you don't have the resources to pay it. I'm paying it for you. That's the power of the cross. In fact, Colossians 2 .14 says, he erased the certificate of debt with its obligations that was against us and opposed to us and has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. That's what Jesus accomplished. And he said, it is finished." [01:14:42] (33 seconds)
"Why do we still think I need to be perfect in order to get to heaven? Why do we still feel like we have an open loop with our baggage? Why do we feel the anxiety of our sin? Perhaps it's because we've never really fully trusted Christ with all of it. Listen, you can be religious. You can be somebody who claims to be a Baptist in the South or a Christian or just somebody who believes in God and never actually take the step of trusting God with your guilt and with your shame." [01:15:18] (39 seconds)
"And the thing that you think that will disqualify you from coming close to God. You may be feeling like, hey listen, I'm here. I'm just glad the walls didn't come down in on me. Or if my spouse ever found this out about me, they would leave me. Or if anybody really knew what I'm really like, I would never be loved again. Listen, all of us have baggage. All of us do. There are no perfect people in this room or in any room." [01:15:50] (27 seconds)
"Listen, if you prayed that prayer, you need to tell somebody. And I would love for you to tell me first. So if you want to tell somebody, just so we can help you, walk with you, you can talk to me after the service. But if you have the courage to do it right now, just raise your hand if you prayed that prayer. I'd love to see it just so we can help you and our team can help you. Anybody? I see you. Anybody else? I see you in the back. I see you. Anybody else? Made that choice. I'm saying it's finished. Maybe for the first time." [01:20:59] (30 seconds)
"As we're leaving This morning's worship gathering I just wanted to give you One last opportunity To trust Jesus Christ You know The idea of trusting God Is sometimes A scary thing Because it means That we're not In control anymore But that's the point Jesus knows us Better than anybody else And part of our condition As people who are far from God Is that we're putting our trust In other people Or other things Rather than the God Who made us and created us And following Jesus Comes down to this decision Of saying I'm not in charge anymore I need to trust Jesus With my life With everything I've ever done All the times I've messed up All the times I've trusted other things And put my trust firmly On Jesus Christ" [01:33:13] (44 seconds)
Chatbot
-
I'm an AI bot trained specifically on the sermon from Apr 13, 2025. Do you have any questions about it?