A Place Called Calvary
The Plot of the Cross
April 27, 2014 • Pastor Danny Lovett
Let me tell you a little story to introduce our sermon topic this Sunday. The devil was once crossing the Libyan Desert when he came upon some of his friends who were tempting a holy hermit. They tempted him with the seductions of the flesh, they sought to sow his mind with doubts and fears, they told him that all his discipline and uncompromising righteousness were worth nothing. But it was all in vain. The holy man of God was impeccable. Then the devil stepped forward. Addressing his friends he said, "Your methods are too crude. Permit me for one moment to make a recommendation." Going up to the hermit, he asked, "Have you heard the news? Your brother has been made Bishop of Alexandria." The fable says that "a scowl of malignant jealousy clouded the serene face of the holy man." Jealousy will often rouse our flesh to do terrible things. This Sunday, in The Plot of the Cross, we complete our series of messages about the cross. We'll examine the real reason the High Priest and Sanhedrin had Jesus crucified. It's not exactly a secret, for even Mark recorded in his gospel that "Pilate knew that the chief priests had delivered Jesus for envy", Mark 10:15.
The Persons of the Cross
April 20, 2014 • Pastor Danny Lovett
The crucifixion itself was the most horrible of deaths. There has never been a more cruel and painful form of execution than crucifixion upon a cross. There was the pain of the driven spikes forced through the flesh of Jesus' hands and feet. There was the weight of His body jolting and pulling against the spikes as the cross was lifted and rocked into place. There was the scorching sun and the unquenchable thirst gnawing away at His dry mouth and throat. There was the blood oozing from His scourged back, His thorn-crowned brow, His stick-beaten head. Then in addition, just think about the aggravation of flies, gnats, and other insects. On and on the suffering could be described. And for Jesus, the crucifixion was the summit of sin and love. He suffered the separation from His heavenly Father as He became sin for us. He bore not only the physical punishment of the cross, but the spiritual suffering was something we can't even imagine. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ is both the most shocking event and the most wonderful event of human history. It is the most shocking event in that it is the creature murdering the Creator, and it is the most wonderful event in that it is the Creator saving the creature. But the story doesn't end at the cross! After three days in the grave, He arose with power, having defeated the final enemy of our souls - death. Hallelujah, He is risen and our sins are forgiven! Don't miss this exciting time of worship this Easter Sunday. He is risen indeed! Pray for great Easter services in all of our churches, that the gospel would be preached and men, women, and children would come to know Christ.
The Pain of the Cross
April 13, 2014 • Pastor Danny Lovett
A man came back from a weekend retreat experience and when a friend asked him how it was, he said, "I died!" The friends asked him what he meant. "You see," the man answered, "I went to this thing not knowing what to expect. But in the process of that long weekend, I discovered that I had spent my whole life hiding behind a lot of masks. I realized that I had never even let my wife see me as I really was. I'd been playing games with her, and playing games with my children, and playing games with others--never letting anybody know who I really am. The worst of it was to discover than even I didn't know myself. And, as all of this was being exposed over the weekend, I died over and over again." It is a painful thing for a middle-aged man to discover that he is not even in touch with his own honest feeling about himself. "I am convinced," he said, "that I had to go through this death experience in order to become the new person that I hope to be now." Unless a grain of wheat falls to earth and dies, it remains alone, but if it dies, it bears rich fruit (John 12:24). When Christ died, we who believe in Him, died with him. We died to sin, to self, and the world. While this may sound like something you might want to avoid, dying is the only way to live.
The Priority of the Cross
April 6, 2014 • Pastor Danny Lovett
The cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is the outworking of God's redemptive purpose in time and in eternity. For this very reason the cross is central in God's word as well as being central to God's world. Throughout the Bible we find the message of the cross of Christ, central in the Law, the Psalms, the Prophets, the Gospels, the Acts, the Epistles, and the Book of Revelation. To remove this recurring truth is to render the Bible meaningless. But the cross is also central to the world. The cross is central in history, because the death of Christ divides human history, the centuries before Christ and the centuries after Christ. The cross of Christ is central to human experience, having an important relevance to the relationships of government and people, businesses, families, churches. It is clear from scripture that unless we accept the redemption offered from the cross, there will be no hope of peace, harmony, or good will. The cross stands as the only means to forgiveness of sins and a relationship with God.