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Victory Sermon Series: Sin Is Real

the big idea:

During the Lenten season we sing: If you think of sin but lightly Nor suppose the evil great, Here you see its nature rightly, Here its guilt may estimate. The place the hymn writer is referring to, the place where we cannot help but be repulsed by the horror of our sin, is the cross, where our bruised and bloodied Savior suffers the pangs of hell itself—FOR OUR SIN. Lent is a time to remember our sin, to repent of our sin, so that we may be refreshed and renewed at the foot of our Savior’s cross. Unfortunately, the old sinful nature in us constantly tries to downplay or minimize our sin and its ugly fruit. This year our Lenten worship will help us see and understand more clearly the reality of our sin, its dark nature and its gruesome consequences so that we may see more clearly the amazing power and love of our Savior.

the breakdown:

February 21: Strong

Sin is stronger than we imagine. We think we can fight it. We believe that we can resist. But without the Sword of Spirit, without divine intervention, we are as helpless as Achan and we will stand under the same judgment he did. But there is One who is stronger than our sin.
Scriptures: Joshua 7:16-26; Hebrews 4:14-16; Luke 4:1-13; Psalm 3
Sermon Text: Joshua 7:16-26

February 28: Deceitful

“Try it. You’ll like it!” Sin promises all the pleasures of this world. The problem is: the pleasure sin has to offer is an empty pleasure and the aftermath bitter. We know that in Christ we’ve been recreated for more than this life. Yet, the world keeps sucking us in with its deceitful lies. God help us live what we believe—that heaven is our home!
Scriptures: Jeremiah 26:8-15; Philippians 3:17—4:1; Luke 13:31-35; Psalm 42-43
Sermon Text: Philippians 3:17—4:1

March 7: Serious

We like to comfort ourselves with the thought that our personal sins are not really that big of a deal. There’s a lot of people out there doing a lot worse things than me. But to the perfect and holy God every sin is serious. There are a number of places throughout the scriptures that God makes this sobering truth very clear. The clearest? The cross.
Scriptures: Numbers 16:23-50; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; Luke 13:1-9; Psalm 38
Sermon Text: Number 16:23-50

March 14: Sticky

Sin has a “sticky” quality. There are certain sins that, no matter how hard we try to avoid them, we keep committing them over and over again. We see these sin patterns in the lives of God’s Old Testament people too. What’s overwhelming is seeing the “stickiness” of God’s patience and love— not only for them, but also for us.
Scriptures: Judges 10:6-16; James 4:7-10; Luke 15:1-3,11b-32; Psalm 115
Sermon Text: Judges 10:6-16

March 21: Deadly

Our sinful nature is shortsighted. It keeps us from seeing the unpleasant consequences of our sin. What’s worse is that we fail to see that our sin begins a chain reaction of sorts, that, if not countered, will most certainly lead us away from faith in Jesus. And that’s a place no sinful human being wants to be.
Scriptures: Isaiah 43:16-24; Romans 11:11-21; Luke 20:9-19; Psalm 73
Sermon Text: Luke 20:9-19