A long time ago (in a state not too far away), I posted about possibly posting a sermon to my blog. It never happened. I did not anticipate that in a short 3 days from that post, my life would be changing more rapidly than I had anticipated. I also didn't anticipate having the opportunity to preach at my home church, First Christian Church of Tallahassee, multiple times after my return. However, Jim Fenderson, our senior minister, is not shy about tapping locals to fill the pulpit while he is indisposed (in this case, on vacation). So without further adieu, I am posting the notes (and a link to the audio recording) that were distributed during the church service for my most recent sermon (the confession here is that this was already done on church's website, which makes it easy to reproduce here), the Price of Victory.

The Price of Victory
Lesson Notes
  1. Victory brings joy!

    Commands to rejoice: I Thessalonians 5:16; Philippians 4:4

    Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and said,
    "I will sing to the LORD, for He is highly exalted;
    The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea.
    The LORD is my strength and song,
    And He has become my salvation;
    This is my God, and I will praise Him;
    My father's God, and I will extol Him.    "     (Exodus 15:1-2, NASB)

  2. We are locked in a war that started before the world began.

    And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. (Revelation 12:7-9, NASB)

  3. We were promised the victory.

    "And I [God, speaking to the serpent] will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." (Genesis 3:15 (NIV)

    But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:54-55, NASB)

  4. Our victory has a price (or a cost).

    The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:56-57, NASB)

    "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." (Mark 10:45, NASB)

    But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8, NASB)

Audio Recording-The Price of Victory (7.1 MB)

Labels: ,