Category: Sermons

Sermons

Romans 13:1-7

Michelle Lesley
Title image courtesy of Woodlawn Baptist Church

It used to be that John 3:16 was the most well-known Bible verse around. Then it was dethroned by Matthew 7:1. Nowadays, Romans 13:1-7 is giving them both a run for their money.

Christians are to obey the governing authorities, but what exactly does that mean? Just how far does the government’s authority extend? And when, if ever, is it biblically good and right to disobey the government?

I’d like to share with you today one of the best expositions and explanations of Romans 13:1-7 I’ve heard since this whole COVID thing began. It was preached by my own pastor, Lewis Richerson. He has been preaching through Romans for a while, and on October 3, we arrived at chapter 13. I found his sermon helpful and clarifying, and I hope you will too.

A few words about the sermon itself before you dive in: In my experience, this is a very atypical sermon format for Lewis, so, like it or hate it, you need to know it’s not the norm for him. This one is almost twice as long as his usual sermons, although, honestly, it flew by for me. Also, he includes a significant amount of historical information and a number of quotes in this sermon whereas he usually just preaches straight exposition of the text. It is probably more akin in style to what you’re used to hearing at a Christian conference rather than on a Sunday morning at church.

Toward the end(ish), Lewis references a number of slides that were projected on the screens. I’ve added those below the audio (in order, I hope!) so you can refer to them.

Sermons

“Did God Really Say?” ~ Free Online Conference

Michelle Lesley

Boy howdy, what a treat! Owen Strachan, Justin Peters, Chris Rosebrough, Joshua Rosebrough, and Phil Johnson are all coming together this weekend for a free, online conference.

The Did God Really Say? conference on YouTube “will equip you and your loved ones with the knowledge to see where cultural changes are happening, what those changes mean to average Bible believing Christians and provide you with practical tools to equip you to stand your ground in shifting sands of cultural change.”

Friday, September 17
1:00 – 5:00 p.m. (Central)

Saturday, September 18
11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (Central)

Get the schedule and all the details at the conference website, subscribe to the conference YouTube channel, and help keep the conference free and online by donating at the conference GoFundMe page.

Sermons

Gathered 2021: Family Worship Conference Teaching

Michelle Lesley

I recently had the exciting opportunity to attend the Gathered conference here in Baton Rouge.

The topic of the conference was family worship in the context of the local church – how parents must disciple their children in conjunction with the church body, and how the church body can, in turn, support those parents and help them disciple their children.

There were four plenary sessions by Dr. Scott Aniol. Currently a professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Scott was recently named Executive Vice President and Editor-in-chief of G3 Ministries. And you’ll definitely want to check out his website, Religious Affections Ministries, a wonderful resource for churches, families, and individuals.

Other presenters included Andrew Pressley, Associate Pastor at First Baptist Church, Lindale, Texas (Tom Buck’s church), and Matt Sikes, Pastor of Discipleship and Worship at Pray’s Mill Baptist Church (Josh Buice’s church).

You’ll find all of the main sessions and men’s breakout session (be sure to share them with your husband!) linked, but I wanted to feature the two women’s breakout sessions taught by Scott’s wife, Becky Aniol, who, among other fine pursuits, is a stay at home, homeschooling mom of four. She gave us a lot of biblical precepts and practical tips for family worship in her two part session A Family Worship Toolbox: Resources and Routines for Monday – Sunday. You’ll find them helpful with your children, grandchildren, or the children you minister to at church. I’m sure you’ll enjoy her sessions as much as I did.

Plenary Session 1: The Goal of Family Discipleship

Plenary Session 2: Practice Makes Perfect

Plenary Session 3: Q&A
(Scott and Becky Aniol, Matt Sikes, Andrew Pressley, and Laramie Minga)

Plenary Session 4: From Integration to Segregation

Men’s Breakout: The Father’s Responsibility in Family Worship Part 1

Men’s Breakout: The Father’s Responsibility in Family Worship Part 2

Sermons, Worship

Sermon: Biblical Worship

Michelle Lesley

It’s not often you get to hear a great sermon out of Leviticus, so I wanted to share this one with you, preached by my friend Laramie Minga, Pastor of Worship and Discipleship at Woodlawn Baptist Church, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

If you’re a new Christian or maybe you’re just coming out of an unbiblical “church” and you’re not quite sure what biblical worship in a doctrinally sound church is supposed to look like, this sermon will help. And even if you are in a solid church with biblical worship, Laramie’s sermon will be an encouragement to you. The worship pastor at your own church might even enjoy giving it a listen.

The text for the sermon is Leviticus 10:1-11.

Here’s the visual for the elements of worship around the 37:34 mark:

I hope you’ll enjoy this great teaching from God’s Word as much as I did!

Sermons

We Must Obey God Rather Than Men

Michelle Lesley

Sometimes the evangelical news stories du jour aren’t worth keeping up with. Sometimes they are. I think this one is worth examining, because it’s one that can help us look at a similar situation we might be in ourselves through a biblical lens – even if we, or our pastor, ends up making a different, yet biblical, decision.

As you may know, the governor of the state of California has issued an edict stating that, due to the Coronavirus, churches may not meet indoors in person (there are also prohibitions on businesses and other gatherings).

Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California (pastored by John MacArthur), released a statement on July 24 entitled:

Christ, Not Caesar, Is the Head of the Church,

which respectfully and biblically explained why GCC would not be abiding by the governor’s restrictions on churches. (By the way, if you read the statement between July 24, and July 31, you might want to read it again. An addendum has been attached, and there is now a signatory page.)

I would like to ask you to read it as an exercise in apologetics. Examine the Scriptures presented. Are they handled rightly and in context? Objectively consider the arguments made. Do they make sense, and are they logical (even if you don’t agree with them)? How would you present a biblical case for another church to make a different godly decision? Which Scriptures and objective, logical arguments would you use to make your case?

One of the phenomenal ways God has uniquely wired women, generally speaking, is the emotional passion He has knit into us. We tend to feel things deeply and strongly. We bring compassion and zeal and kindness and bravery to situations in which they are desperately needed in special ways that God has only equipped women for. But with this beautiful gift He has given us comes the challenge to harness it and use it only in the situations it’s appropriate for. Not in situations such as making a dispassionate, objective, logical, reasoned apologetic argument. Allowing our passions and emotions to run wild in that situation would be using the wrong tool for the job.

I don’t know about you, but I need practice at that. Practice at letting thinking, not feelings, take the lead. And so, the particular issue of meeting/not meeting aside, I found GCC’s statement very helpful in that regard. It’s a good example of how to make a biblical, well-reasoned argument.

On Sunday, July 26, GCC did, in fact, meet together for worship, and Dr. MacArthur preached the following sermon, which I highly recommend:

We Must Obey God Rather Than Men

 

I was remarking to someone the other day that this will probably forever hereafter be known as the “Fresca Sermon” (you’ll see why when you watch it). If you don’t follow me on social media, here are a few of the funnier Fresca memes I came across (if you can’t handle humor, please look away):