Coram Deo Church Sermons

Neutrality is not an option.Neutrality about Jesus is impossible. Every human being wants to keep their options open, to stay uncommitted, to avoid making ultimate decisions. But in Matthew 12, Jesus heals a demon-possessed man and declares that whoever is not with him is against him. In this sermon, we explore the inescapable reality that because Jesus is King, neutrality is not an option — we must choose to follow him or reject him.

Coming to Jesus means repenting and resting.Freedom and authority seem like opposites, but they're not. We assume that submitting to a master means losing our freedom, yet the opposite is true. In this sermon, we explore how, because Jesus is Lord, we can live in freedom — not freedom to do whatever we want, but freedom from rules that crush and harshness that destroys.

Coming to Jesus means repenting and resting.Every human being is weary. We carry burdens we were never meant to bear: the weight of performance, the exhaustion of trying to prove ourselves, the endless striving for approval. In this sermon, we explore how Jesus offers rest to the weary — but receiving that rest requires repenting of our pride and trusting in him alone.

Jesus both subverts and fulfills our expectations.To be human is to have expectations about how we hope life to go. Even John the Baptist, the forerunner of the Messiah, has expectations about who Jesus is and what he should do. In this sermon, we explore how Jesus both subverts and fulfills our expectations, and why that is good news.

The essence of mission is putting Jesus first.Every human being longs to live with a sense of purpose or mission. But it can be easy to get caught up in strategies, methods, and outcomes while losing sight of the mission. In Matthew 10, Jesus sends out his disciples with sobering warnings as he calls them to mission. In this sermon, we explore how the essence of mission is not success or safety, but putting Jesus first — above safety, comfort, and even family.

Christians are a going people.Every human being longs to be part of something bigger than themselves. In Matthew 9:35-10:15, Jesus looks at the crowds with compassion and sends his disciples out to proclaim the kingdom, thus calling them into a vast and compelling mission. In this sermon, we explore how God’s people are to be a "going" people, sent into the world to further Christ's cause.

Faith looks to Jesus when despair would be easy.We often think of faith as something we must work up or conjure within ourselves. But what if faith is actually a response to being pursued? In Matthew 9:27-34, we read about Jesus healing two blind men who persistently pursued Him, followed by the healing of a mute man who needed to be brought to Jesus by others. In this sermon, we explore the beautiful truth that because Jesus pursues us first, we are free to pursue him in return.

Faith looks to Jesus when despair would be easy.Every human being faces moments of despair. In Matthew 9:18-26, two people approach Jesus in despairing situations: a synagogue leader whose daughter has died and a woman who has suffered for twelve years. In this sermon, we explore how faith looks to Jesus even when despair would be easy.

Jesus has come to set people free.Many people think following Jesus means adding more rules, more obligations, more religious performance to an already exhausting life. In this sermon, we explore how Jesus doesn't patch up our religious systems; he offers us something entirely new: freedom from sin, separatism, and scrupulosity.

What you need in your life is not less authority, but good authority.We live in an age that's deeply suspicious of authority. Yet every human being lives under authority of some kind; whether it's our own desires, cultural pressures, or destructive forces beyond our control. In this sermon, we explore the truth that what we need is not less authority in our lives, but good authority — and Jesus is the King whose authority brings peace, not oppression.