Turn to the Rock of Our Salvation

Psalm 95

Speaker: Anthony Anderson, Deacon & Ministerial Student

Purpose: Come to the LORD, our Creator and Savior, with praise and thanksgiving and do not harden your heart with doubt and sin.

1. Praise to the LORD of Salvation (Psalm 95:1-2)

1. Praise to the LORD of Creation (Psalm 95:3-6)
        Exodus 20:3; Genesis 1; Romans 8:22

1. Praise to the LORD Our Shepard (Psalm 95:7a)
        Corinthians 6:20

1. Repent and Turn to the LORD of All (Psalm 95:7b-11)
        Exodus 17:3; Matthew 7:21-23; Hebrews 3

Bless The Lord
Psalm 103

Speaker: Stan Blythe, Deacon & Ministerial Student
Purpose: to praise the Lord in all things and for all that He has done for us.

1. Praise the Lord Personally (Psalm 103:1-5)
      With all our being, give praise to the Lordd
      Remember the benefits that the Lord provides for
      those who belong to Him.

2. Praise the Lord Corporately (Psalm 103: 6-19)
      God shows love, compassion, and grace to His
      people.
      Man is here today and gone tomorrow, but God is
      eternal and sovereign over all. 

3. Praise the Lord, His Angels (Psalm 103: 20-21)
       Servants of the Lord who do His will.

4. Praise the Lord, All Creation (Psalm 103: 22)
      Everything created by God, even the stones cry
      out.

5. Praise the Lord!
      A call for all created things to unite in praising the
      Lord.  

We must not forget all that the Lord has done and has provided; we must love and praise Him with all our hearts, minds, souls, and strength.

Everlasting God

Psalm 90

Purpose: to live our lives in the light of eternity

1. Everlasting God (90:1-2)
        The Lord is the everlasting Creator and Ruler of the Universe

2. Temporal Man (90:3-6)
        Dust (Genesis 2:7; 3:17-19; Psalm 103:14)

3. God’s Pervading Judgment (90:7-9)

4. Man’s Fleeting Life (90:10-11)

5. The Lesson Learned! (90:12-17)
        Teach Us to Number Our Days!
        Store Up Treasures in Heaven (Matthew 6:19-21)
        Trust the Lord’s Salvation, in God’s Time (2 Peter 3:7-10)
        Life is a Vapor, Make it Count! (James 4:13-16)

Life is so short and goes by so fast, we must live in light of the eternal God!

No Better Place
Psalm 84

Purpose: To encourage the believer that there is no better place to be in all of time and space, than the presence of the LORD.

1. The LORD Our Stronghold (Psalm 84:1-4)

2. The LORD Our Sustainer (Psalm 84:5-8)

3. The LORD Our Shield (Psalm 84:9)

4. The LORD Our Satisfaction (Psalm 84:10-12)

In the presence of the LORD, we find more than we ever need or could ever desire.

God, Our Portion Forever
Psalm 73

Purpose: God really is good to His people. Even though the circumstances of this life might shake our confidence, when we enter into God’s presence for guidance and comfort, we find that He amply supplies everything that we need.

1. Circumstances Give Rise to Questions. (Psalm 73:1-12)

2. Questions Drive Us into the Presence of God. (Psalm 73:13-20)

3. God Takes Us by the Hand and Resolves All Questions. (Psalm 73:21-28)

Stephen’s Ultimate Testimony

Acts 7:54-8:3

Purpose: to rightly see salvation in Jesus Christ as our greatest treasure, even unto death

1. The Reaction (7:54)

2. The Final Testimony (7:55-56)
       Trinitarian!
       The Holy Spirit
       Jesus is Alive
       At the right hand of God

3. The Sentence Carried Out (7:57-58)

4. The Ultimate Testimony (7:59-60)
       Luke 23:34
       Revelation 6:9-11; 12:11

5. The Blood of the Martyrs is the Seed of the Church (8:1-3)
       We must expect the Lord to grow His church through all means!
       Murderer turned Missionary: We are introduced to Saul/Paul, author of 13 NT books

Nothing will stop God from advancing His gospel of salvation to all the nations!

The Burning Bush and the Burning Church
Exodus 3:1–12 / Acts 2:1–4

Purpose: To remind the Church that the same Holy Spirit of Exodus and Acts still burns in us today.

1. God’s Presence — The Fire That Draws (Exodus 3:2–4)

2. God’s Holiness — The Ground That Trembles (Exodus 3:5)

3. God’s Mission — The Voice That Sends (Exodus 3:7–10)

4. God’s Spirit — The Flame That Stays (Exodus 3:12; Acts 2:1–4; Romans 8:11)

5. God’s People — The Church That Burns (Acts 2:3–4; Exodus 3:12)

God's fire in Exodus and Acts isn’t just a symbol of power—but of presence, purpose, and promise—and to remind the Church that the same Spirit still burns in us today.

God’s Promise Rejected
Acts 7:39-53

Purpose: To show the Need for People to Repent and Believe

1. A Failure to Be Faithful (Acts 7:39-43)

2. A Failure to Understand (Acts 7:44-50)

3. A Failure to Recognize the Redeemer (Acts 7:51-53)

Jesus Christ is the messiah and fulfillment of the law and true temple. Repent and place your trust in him.

God’s Promise Kept

Acts 7:17-38

Purpose: not to miss God’s way of salvation through Moses in the past, and in Jesus now!

1. From Abraham to Moses, God Kept His Promise (Acts 7:17-29)
       God’s promise to Abraham (7:17)
       God’s people in need of a Deliverer (7:18-19)
       Moses born, lovely in the sight of God (7:20)
       Moses arises in Egypt (7:21-22)
       Moses kills an Egyptian (7:23-24)
       Moses, God’s Deliverer Denied (7:25-28, esp. v. 25’s key theme!)
       Moses Flees Because of their Denial (7:26-29)

2. God Calls Moses (Acts 7:30-34)
       God came down to rescue them! (7:34)

3. The Deliverer: Abandoned by Men, Approved by God! (Acts 7:35-38)
       Jesus is the Prophet Like Moses (see Acts 3:18-22, Peter’s 2nd Sermon)
       Moses Taught You a Deliverer Would Come! (7:38)

In order to be saved, we must receive the Deliverer Jesus Christ, sent by God Himself!

God's Promise of Redemption
Acts 7:1-16

Purpose: To show that God has a plan for a people of His own possession.

1. God Promise Initiated (Acts 7:2-5)

2. God’s Promise Unchanged (Acts 7:6-10)

3. God’s Promise Sustained (Acts 7:11-16)

The promise to Abraham, explained by Stephen, is both a picture of His providential work in the Old Testament, and part of His greater promise of redemption to the world.

Living In & Living Out the Gospel!

Acts 6:1-15

Purpose: To solve conflict and prioritize biblical teaching, ensuring the church’s continued health and growth

1. Defined by Christ, not Conflict (Acts 6:1-6)
        Apostles Devoted to God’s Word!
        Deacons Designed for Unity!
        This is living in the gospel!

2. God-Given Growth (Acts 6:7)
     The Pattern of God-Given Growth
     when the Church is Faithful
        (Acts 2:41) 3,000 faithful to repentance and
                          baptism at Pentecost
        (Acts 2:46) adding to their number as they do
                           church together
        (Acts 4:4) number grows to 5,000 due to faithful
                         gospel preaching in spite of prison
        (Acts 5:14) multitudes added after ethical issues
                          are upheld in the body
        (Acts 6:1, 7) great increase
        This is living in and living out the gospel!

3. Witness to the World (Acts 6:8-15)
        Guard the Unity Within
        Expect Opposition from Without
        This is living out the gospel!

Living in and living out the gospel takes God-given unity, prioritizes God-given teaching, and results in God-given growth.

The Peace and Joy of Persecution
Acts 5:17-42

Purpose: There is peace and joy to be found in the midst of persecution.

1. The Persecution and Vindication of the Apostles (Acts 5:17-21a)

    

    

2. The Embarrassed Surprise of the Authorities (Acts 5:21b-25)

    

    

3. The Apostles’ Peaceful Response (Acts 5:26)

    

    

4. The Continued Witness of the Apostles (Acts 5:27-32)

    

    

5. The Practical Wisdom of Gamaliel (Acts 5:33-39)

    

    

6. The Increased Persecution of the Apostles (Acts 5:40)

    

    

7. The Apostles’ Joyful Response (Acts 5:41-42)

When we trust the LORD, peace is found in persecution, and persecution becomes a cause for joy.

Integrity for Gospel Advance!

Acts 4:32-5:16

Purpose: to uphold integrity in the church for the sake of gospel advance!

1. Unity that Glorifies Jesus (Acts 4:32-37)

2. Selfishness that Threatens Ministry (Acts 5:1-10)

3. Sin Corrected Restores Integrity, Advancing the Gospel! (Acts 5:11-16)

The church must uphold Christian integrity so that the witness of the gospel of Jesus Christ is unstained, and so that the message of salvation powerfully advances!