Sermons That Exalt Christ

The preaching of God’s Word is central to the life of the church. Tom's pulpit ministry is dedicated to providing clear, biblical teaching to equip believers, strengthen faith, and exalt Christ.

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Your Faith, Dead or Alive?
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2015-04-26

The Impartiality of God

This sermon on Romans 2:11, "The Impartiality of God," explains that while human justice is inherently flawed and biased, God embodies perfect impartiality. Paul's letter highlights the Jews' mistaken beliefs about God's justice and judgment, stressing that all people, Jew and Gentile, are guilty and need the gospel. The core message is "there is no partiality with God." This means God does not show favoritism or prejudice, nor is He swayed by external factors like appearance, wealth, social status, ethnicity, intellect, or even religious rituals if not from a sincere heart. God's character is unequivocally free of bias, and He commands believers to reflect this impartiality in all aspects of their lives�from legal judgments and leadership to church discipline and personal interactions. Significantly, God's impartiality extends to His future judgment. Every person will be judged solely on their deeds, knowledge, and motives, without any consideration for worldly standing or circumstances. This judgment will be against His perfect law, not "on a curve." The cross powerfully demonstrates God's impartiality, as He did not spare His own Son when bearing humanity's sins. Despite this sobering truth, God is also impartial in His offer of salvation and grace.

Tom Pennington
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Romans
2015
2015-04-19

Getting What We Deserve - Part 2

This sermon, "Getting What We Deserve (Part 2)" from Romans 2:6-10, asserts that salvation cannot be earned through human effort. It begins by examining Jesus' encounter with the rich young ruler, who sought eternal life by doing good. Jesus exposed the man's idolatry and failure to perfectly obey God's Law, demonstrating the futility of self-salvation. Paul's argument in Romans 2 parallels this, outlining God's judgment "according to deeds" and presenting two groups. "Group One" represents those who, through perfect and persistent good works, motivated purely by God's glory, would earn eternal life. However, Paul emphasizes that this standard is humanly impossible; all people fail due to inherent selfish ambition, disobedience, and evil deeds. Therefore, everyone naturally belongs to "Group Two," deserving God's fierce wrath and eternal punishment. The Law's purpose is to shatter all hope in self-righteousness, revealing our universal sinfulness. This "bad news" highlights the profound goodness of the Gospel: Jesus Christ, the only one who perfectly fulfilled the Law, died for "Group Two" sinners, offering eternal life and freedom from condemnation as a free gift through faith in Him.

Tom Pennington
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Romans
2015
2015-04-12

Getting What We Deserve - Part 1

This text, centered on Romans 2:6-10, explores God's perfect justice and universal judgment. While humanity instinctively desires justice, most seek impunity for their own sins, often mistakenly believing God is unaware or unconcerned. However, God sees and remembers everything, and will judge every individual based solely on their "deeds"�a collective term for thoughts, motives, words, and actions. For those in Christ, Jesus received the punishment they deserved, granting them His righteousness. For all others, God's judgment will be certain, individual, universal, and evidential, completely disregarding ethnic identity or religious heritage. The passage describes two groups: those pursuing good for eternal life, and those pursuing selfish ambition, facing wrath. The speaker emphasizes that Paul is not offering salvation by works, as this contradicts the Bible's teaching that no one can perfectly obey God's Law or please Him apart from faith. Instead, Paul uses the Law's impossible standard to reveal humanity's inherent guilt and desperate need for a Savior, acting as a "tutor" to drive all people to Christ. Ultimately, humanity's only hope for justification is through God's grace and redemption found in Jesus Christ.

Tom Pennington
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Romans
2015
2015-04-05

The Rescue Mission

The sermon "The Rescue Mission" unpacks Luke 19:1-10, illustrating Jesus' core purpose just a week before his crucifixion. Having predicted his death as a ransom for many, Jesus encounters Zaccheus, a wealthy, despised chief tax collector in Jericho. Despite his Hebrew name meaning "righteous one," Zaccheus was spiritually lost, known for greed and dishonesty. Driven by a deep spiritual dissatisfaction, Zaccheus, short in stature, risked his public dignity by climbing a sycamore tree to see Jesus over the crowd. Jesus, demonstrating supernatural knowledge, stopped, called Zaccheus by name, and declared he "must" stay at his house. This "unavoidable call" was a divine appointment, revealing Jesus' mission to "seek and to save that which was lost." Zaccheus responded with immediate joy and an "undeniable conversion," publicly confessing his faith in Jesus as Lord and demonstrating radical repentance. He pledged to give half his wealth to the poor and repay anyone he defrauded fourfold, far exceeding legal requirements. Jesus affirmed his salvation, declaring Zaccheus a true "son of Abraham." This story exemplifies Jesus' mission to rescue the ruined through his sacrificial death and resurrection, and how God sovereignly calls individuals to himself through the gospel, leading to genuine, transformed lives.

Tom Pennington
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Passion Week Sermons
2015
2015-03-29

The Perfect Son

Pastor Tom Pennington's sermon "The Perfect Son" (John 19:25-27) underscores the profound significance of Passion Week, focusing on Jesus's third saying from the cross: His tender provision for His mother, Mary. Uniquely recorded in John's Gospel, this moment reveals Jesus, amidst excruciating pain and impending death, entrusting Mary to the care of "the disciple whom He loved," John. Pennington outlines the severe circumstances of Jesus's crucifixion, detailing the rapid succession of Jewish and Roman trials. He explains Jesus's choice to appoint John, His cousin, over His own biological brothers, who at that time did not believe in Him. John, as the closest believing male relative, became Mary's designated caregiver. This act, resembling a first-century legal adoption, demonstrates Jesus's unwavering commitment to His earthly duties even amidst His divine mission. The sermon draws three crucial lessons from this incident. First, Jesus's example commands that we, too, must honor and care for our parents, as emphasized in 1 Timothy 5. Second, our inevitable failures in consistently honoring our parents reveal our desperate need for the gospel, as disobedience to parents is a rebellion against God.

Tom Pennington
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Passion Week Sermons
2015
2015-03-22

The Far Country

The Book of Ruth, lauded as a "perfect story" set during Israel's turbulent period of the judges (c. 1100 BC), serves several purposes. It illustrates the cycle of sin and deliverance through one family's journey, highlights God's faithful remnant, and provides examples of virtue in Ruth and Boaz. Significantly, it introduces the kinsman-redeemer (Boaz as a Christ-figure), demonstrates God's grace for women and even Gentiles (like Ruth, a Moabite), showcases divine providence, establishes King David's lineage, and ultimately points to Jesus Christ. The text begins by analyzing Ruth 1:1-5, depicting desperate national circumstances�a famine in Israel, a divine judgment for their disobedience. Amidst this, Elimelech, Naomi, and their sons Mahlon and Chilion make a disastrous choice, abandoning Bethlehem ("house of bread") for pagan Moab. This move, a violation of God's covenant and trust, leads to tragic divine consequences: Elimelech's early death, followed by both sons, who had also married idolatrous Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Naomi is left utterly bereft and alone in a foreign land, interpreting her plight as God dealing "very bitterly" with her.

Tom Pennington
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Ruth
2015

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