Liberti Church Carrara Sermons

Acts 17:16-34 | David Foster Wallace wrote that, “There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship.” As Paul addresses the Areopagus he is fuelled by a holy indignation toward the Athenian idolatry, yet delivers the message of the gospel with a harmonious blend of tenderness and truth. As we examine the model of Paul we can consider our own sense of provocation toward an idolatrous world and how we ought to respond compassionately & intelligibly as ministers of the good news.

Acts 17:1-15 | Contrary to popular opinion, the Bible does not call Christians to blind faith. Rather, our faith is to be based on the evidence of Jesus’ life, fulfilled prophecies, and tempered by personal testimonies of life-change in other believers. What would our world look like if we examined what we are taught against the true source of truth? How would it both challenge and grow your faith?

Acts 16:16-40 | Experiencing injustice for the sake of the gospel can be difficult to handle. While we cannot always control what happens to us, we can control how we respond. This week we see the gospel reaching out to people at very different places in their life - one is out of control; another is losing control. Through it all, it becomes clear that God is in control, and He secures safe passage for the gospel in the city of Philippi.

Acts 16:6-15 | In light of God’s sovereignty, Paul and Silas rejected any form of Christian passivity. They’d received their marching orders in the Great Commission and their lives were marked by prayerful, deliberate intentionality. After ending up in Philippi, a wealthy woman named Lydia becomes the first Christian in that city. As the Lord opened her heart to receive Christ, she opened her home to receive the disciples. Intentionality and hospitality are indispensable to God’s mission through our lives.

Acts 15:35-16:5 | Wherever there is relationship, there is potential for conflict. Paul and Barnabas have a falling out over John Mark, and end up parting ways, forming two missionary teams instead of one. Rather than taking sides, we can learn a lesson from both. Paul (and later Timothy) teach us that to follow Jesus faithfully means to embrace sacrifice. Barnabas teaches us to see others through the eyes of hope. Both are essential to fruitfulness on God’s mission.

Acts 15:1-35 | The early church had arrived at theological crossroads: “Are we made right with God through faith in Jesus and His work, or faith in Jesus plus our works?” The Jerusalem Council declared that we are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus alone. In light of the gospel, we are to eliminate any obstacle to people turning to God, and use our freedom in Christ to serve one another. We can know that the gospel has moved from our heads to our hearts, when beauty shows up in the way we treat one another.

This world seems to have so much to offer, yet it is only temporary. Where then will we find true riches? If all else will fade away, we must look to what is eternal. This passage in Luke reveals that our only hope of eternal significance lies in Jesus.

Acts 14:20-28 | The gospel is not just for our salvation, but also to sustain and strengthen us in the trials of life. In Acts 14 we see a model of strengthening and encouraging work that is comprised of gospel-shaped discipleship, God-centered prayer, and grace-filled stories.

Acts 14:1-20 | As the gospel continues to spread, Paul and Barnabas engage the surrounding pagan cultures with boldness, missional humility, and perseverance. When the gospel is preached, some will get saved and some will get mad. Christians should not be shocked by either response. It is only when we no longer need the acceptance of this world, that we’ll be able to truly serve it and speak prophetically into it

Ruth 4:1-22 | The story of Ruth reaches its finale as Boaz finds a way to redeem Ruth and restore the family name of Naomi. Emptiness turns to fullness, bitterness turns to sweetness, death is replaced with life! In God’s hands, our setbacks become setups for God to display His glory. Nothing will be wasted. He is weaving every trial and triumph together into a beautiful tapestry of redemption for those who love Him.

Ruth 3:1-18 | Every one has anxieties and fears about the future. Who will we spend it with? How will we be provided for? These same concerns drive Naomi to make a risky plan and Ruth to make a bold move toward Boaz. Will he respond with indifference? Immorality? No, Boaz responds with grace and gives us a glimpse into the heart of God.

-- Apologies for the poor audio quality on this recording, we will be back to normal next week -- Ruth 2:1-23 | The world will know that our good news, is true news, when beauty shows up in the way we treat one another. Through the undeserved kindness of a man named Boaz, Ruth experiences the grace, tenderness, and provision of God. In the same way, the gospel radically transforms both our vision of humanity and our hope for the future. When our hope is anchored in Him, not only will we endure the inevitable storms that come our way...we'll be empowered to live lives of risk-taking love.

Ruth 1:6-22 | Pain and loss have a way of bringing to the surface what's truly inside us. And oftentimes, like Naomi, our response to life not going our way is we become blinded by bitterness. But when we cannot trace God's hand in our circumstances, we must learn to trust His heart. Dark days will not last forever; He brings forth beauty from our brokenness.

Ruth 1:1-6 | No matter who we are, all of us will experience crisis and suffering at some point in our lives. How can we prepare? How do we suffer well? It all comes down to how big our vision is of God.

What wearies us and lays heavy on our hearts, is our driving compulsion to prove that we matter. It is here, at the point of our restlessness and anxiety that Jesus calls to us, "Come to Me..." In this passage Jesus gives us an invitation, a condition, a promise, and a new way of life, so that the rest of God may become a reality in our busy lives

John 20:1-31 | Christianity stands or falls on the resurrection of Jesus Christ! Because Jesus really is risen, we have good news to celebrate, good news to tell, good news that’s true, and good news that brings life.

Mark 15:6-15 | In the most famously rigged yet sovereignly ordained trial in history, Jesus stands in front of three audiences before the verdict is announced: Pilate, the crowd, and a murderer named Barabbas. And in each of these three, we get a deeper glimpse of not only ourselves, but what it means when Christians say, “Jesus took my place.”

John 18:28-38 | The two issues that come up as Jesus stands trial before Pontius Pilate, are the very issues that our culture in the 21st century still has a complicated relationship with today: authority and truth. The Bible sets forth Christ as King and Christ as Truth. And like Pilate, every single one of us will need to make a decision about Jesus.

Matthew 26:36-46 | Jesus' prayer in the garden of Gethsemane is both instructive and inspiring. We see him stand firm through trial as his disciples falter and fail. Through his actions, we learn to pray to be prepared for temptation, persist through pain, and to be submissive with confidence before our Father.

Mark 14:12-31 | The Passover meal was of immense significance for Jesus and the disciples. During the “last supper” Passover meal, Jesus revealed to his disciples that the Passover story they grew up with was ultimately pointing to himself; and that only through him, the true Passover lamb, we can be saved.