Sermon Overview
Scripture Passage: 1 Corinthians 2:14

It’s important to know where we are in our spiritual maturity, in order to grow into what we could be. The Bible places men and women in three different categories: natural, spiritual, or carnal. As Christians, we want to be spiritual men and women, but in order to get there, we must begin to see the Bible as a roadmap to maturity.

1 Corinthians 2:14 says, “But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him: nor can he know them because they are spiritually discerned."

The natural man is born into the natural world, just like anybody else. But because he has not been born again through faith, he can’t appreciate or understand spiritual things; he is bound to the material world.

Adrian Rogers says, “The natural man does what comes naturally; the spiritual man does what comes supernaturally.”

The spiritual man has been born again, through salvation in Jesus Christ. He now lives by the Spirit, who inhabits his humanity. A Christian is not a natural person who decides to do better; he is someone who has been radically, dramatically, supernaturally changed. The spiritual things he once could not understand become apparent to Him. Now liberated through the Spirit, he sees with the mind of Christ, discerns everything with wisdom.

Finally, the Bible warns us about becoming a carnal man. He is one who has been saved, yet he is defeated and dependent on others to decipher Scripture. He is spiritually immature because there has not been any growth. He cannot walk, war, or work spiritually. The carnal man is also very divisive. He likes to stir up debates, provoke fights, can’t get along with anyone. They are saved, but no one would ever know it.

Unfortunately, the carnal Christian is a lot more common than we want to believe. In order for us to grow in truth and maturity, we must take an honest inventory of where we are, so that we may grow in Christ, and follow the roadmap of maturity.

Apply it to your life
Take time today to prayerfully figure out where you are in your relationship with Christ. Do you have the markings of a natural man, a spiritual man, or a carnal man? Live by the Spirit, learn, and be liberated by Him.

Sermon Overview
Scripture Passage: Acts 8:35-39

There are two common misconceptions people have about baptism: that it is either necessary for our salvation, or that it is not important at all.

In order to grow as Christians, we cannot minimize what the Bible has emphasized: starting right with believer’s baptism.

In Acts 8, God gave his servant, Philip, the specific assignment to witness to a eunuch of great authority.

“Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:35-39).

The word, “baptizo” means, “to immerse.” The biblical method of baptism is by immersion: placing a person under water and bringing him out.

Adrian Rogers says, “The method and the meaning are inextricably interwoven; you cannot change the method without destroying the meaning.”

Romans 6:4 says, “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

Baptism symbolizes the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, as well as our death, burial, and resurrection with Him. There are three reasons to be baptized:

It proclaims our commitment to Jesus.
It portrays our conversion; it is our way of testifying.
It is a command from God that we must obey.
While baptism is not necessary for our salvation, it is necessary for our obedience. It shows that we belong to Jesus Christ.

Apply it to your life
Baptism is not a suggestion; it is a command from Scripture. Have you come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ? Have you been baptized?

Sermon Overview
Scripture Passage: Romans 8:28

Romans 8:28 says, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”

This is the chemistry of the cross: that God can work bad situations for our good and His glory.

This verse reiterates the certainty and completeness of this ironclad, rock-ribbed promise of God. He works all things together for His glory and for our good. When we know this, we can appreciate the blessings we would otherwise mistake as burdens.

Adrian Rogers says, “It takes a lot of faith to say it is good for me that I have been afflicted. But it’s then that we begin to look up into the face of God. A sick bed can often teach more than a sermon.”

By the chemistry of the cross, the sweet, the sorrowful, and even the satanic and sinful things work together for good. The same God who rules in the affairs of this world can work the enemy’s attacks for our benefit.

Romans 5:20 says, “where sin abounded, grace abounded much more."

Because we are bound to sin, we are bound to suffer. But because of the cross, our suffering is met with God’s grace.

The simple and the smallest things are in God’s master control; He is the cause of it all.

Though this is a beautiful and big promise, it is not for everyone. There is a condition to Romans 8:28, which is, “to them that love God.”

When we accept the condition of Romans 8:28, we can fully understand the consequence of it, found in Romans 8:29: “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

The “good” that we receive is our sanctification; we are becoming more like Jesus. God is not finished with us; He will continue to use circumstances to make us look more like our Savior.



Apply it to your life
Are you the one who loves God and believes your circumstances are there to make you look more like Jesus? Spend time in Scripture today, so that you can gain perspective on all things: the sweet, sorrowful, satanic, sinful, simple, and small. He is working them for your good!