Christians should have favourite sermons. We have favourite movies. Favourite books. Favourite songs. Favourite Bible passages. We play our favourite songs again and again on our music playing devices (inclusive language to include the record and cassette generations!), why shouldn’t we also replay our favourite sermons?
I heard a sermon recently that was helpful in thinking through our motivations when we listen to sermons from celebrity preachers on our iPods. So we ought not have favourite sermons because they have been delivered by the latest celebrity preacher, but rather our favourite sermons are the ones (whether they are delivered by the celeb or your local pastor) that help us to see Jesus more clearly, proclaim Jesus more boldly, love Jesus more deeply and cling to Jesus more tightly.
I can think of at least one sermon 10 years ago that I played again and again. Have you got any favourite sermons?
yep, a particular sermon I heard in first or second year uni I think. It was part of a conference on ‘guidance’ I heard for the first time that I wasn’t at the centre of the universe, but that Jesus is. changed my world!
I have it on CD, but haven’t listened to it for a while …you’ve inspired me to go back and check it out!
I think that my favourite sermons have been the ones that showed me who Jesus is in a way that has made me want to live for him. the ones that God has used to really turn my heart from selfishness and mediocrity…
Sermon on the Mount?
:)
I remember so clearly 3 years ago a sermon from Ephesians by our MTSer. The penny dropped in understanding that on the cross not only did Christ carry the burden of our sin but also the wrath that it deserved. Huge!
but sermons I do listen to over and over are ones done for Youth Meet by Bob K and others… It’s about the holiness of God! It’s good at putting me in my place – strange thing that being told you aren’t the centre of the universe can change our worlds and bring us joy! ah such a glorious God hey Reuben!!!
reuben – sounds like you had a Copernican Revolution!
justin – i’d add the book of Hebrews to that list of sermons straight from the Bible.
hayley – praise God that Jesus deals with our sin AND turns aside the wrath we deserve.
Sweet man.
Lately I’ve been listening to the Dwell conference and especially Tim Keller’s Dwelling in the Gospel – where he talks about “one gospel, many forms”
Probably listened to it about 10 times while I work.
Hehe!
hey joel – you should blog on that talk!!
Probably listened to it about 10 times while I work.
sometimes it’s necessary to listen to a sermon multiple times when you’re multi-tasking so you get the bits you missed the first time(s)!!
Piper: To Be A Mother Is A Call To Suffer
piper has some great pastoral teaching on suffering.
he did a series i think in 86 (maybe??) from job – his aims is to prepare his people to suffer.
the prosperity gospel is so far from what the Bible actually teaches! it is refreshing to hear pastors teach biblically about suffering
The talks at KYCK this year were among the best I’ve heard! (Given by Graham Stanton and Steve Chong.)
The most memorable was Andrew Cameron at college preaching on bitterness and giving unsuspecting students cloves to chew on during the talk, and if they were too bitter, you could wash them down with some tonic water.
I was okay with it, but others vomiting in church didnt really lend itself too well to the hearing of the word. Memorable though!
In my first days of my first year of University, a speaker (young then, and a bishop now) asked the question: ‘Is it arrogant to say you are going to Heaven?’. Walking to the meeting, I saw the poster, and answered it in my heart: ‘Yes.’ But the answer in the talk was ‘No, not if Christ has done the work for you’. Simple. Brilliant. Counter-intuitive to me then.
It was as though Heaven was first opened to me.
(PS jpj — I was at Dwell. That was a brilliant message in many ways. I’m astounded at listening to it 10 times! What did you learn from times 3-10?)
Justin: Nice. Would have been an awesome experience being there.
I listened to it the first time uninterrupted to fully reflect on the message. The other 9 sporadic times helped in clarity. (maybe i’m a slow learner!)
I find learning important truths well places it in the forefront of my mind and helps me share my faith clearly.
A long time favourite sermon would be Tim Keller’s Luke 15 prodigal son talk
I found evangelising the three ways to live style very culturally relevant and truer to the scriptures.
jpj — It was good being there (like being at church is good), but it wasn’t awesome in any extra way. In fact, it is no different being there than listening online: Same message; same content. You heard what I heard. It was good here, and good online.
What was awesome about being there was simply hearing the stories of saints working hard for the sake of Christ. Hearing their stories was awesome, but you can’t get their stories online. You have to meet them to get it.
My thought about listening to anything 10 times! — I appreciate you really wanting to learn. But 10 times on one message is 10 hours of your life you may never get back again!! You may need to fast, dude!
:)
Keep loving Christ.
thanks for the comments guys.
nathan – i heard that the talks were challenging for people.
steve – sounds fun!! i say more vomitting in church!!
justin – was that talk conversion for you? or just greater understanding on what it means to be a Christian
jpj – i’ve found the 3 ways to lives stuff very helpful.
A conversion in the sense that it was a turning point. A significant one. But not a conversion in the traditional meaning of that word. My ‘heaven opened’ was a little Lutheran Hyperbole.