Theological term
Redemption
52 sermons · All terms
The Blood of the Unblemished Lamb
What makes the blood of Christ 'precious'? Expounding 1 Peter 1:18–21, this sermon works through Peter's characteristic rhetorical pattern — negation followed by assertion — to establish that no corruptible thing, whether material wealth or old covenant religious observance, can redeem a soul bound under sin and condemnation. The sermon then unfolds why the blood of Christ is precious: because of the dignity of the God-man who shed it, what it infallibly accomplishes in the redemption of the elect, what it cost the Father to give his own Son, and its eternal appointment in the counsel of the triune God before the foundation of the world. Preached in the context of a Lord's Supper service, the sermon closes by examining the typological significance of the unblemished Passover lamb, showing that the holiness of God, the depth of human sinfulness, and the logic of penal substitution each demand a perfectly spotless sacrifice — which Christ alone is and was.
The Power and Wisdom of God
How can God justify the ungodly without compromising his justice, and why does the design of salvation leave no room for human boasting? Expounding 1 Corinthians 1:30–31 against the backdrop of Paul's extended contrast between divine and worldly wisdom, this sermon traces the source, content, and goal of every spiritual blessing the believer possesses. Christ is shown to be the believer's righteousness, sanctification, and redemption not as a description of the Christian's progress but as an objective account of what he accomplished as the covenant head of his people. The sermon concludes that because union with Christ is the sole ground of salvation, all glory belongs to God alone — a truth Paul anchors in Jeremiah's call to glory only in the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
Trinitarian Assurance
Ephesians 1:3–14 presents a Trinitarian doxology in which the Father's election and predestination, the Son's redemption through His blood, and the Spirit's sealing together constitute the full ground of the believer's assurance. The passage resists any reduction of the three persons to isolated roles, insisting on inseparable operations even as Paul shines distinct light on each person's work. The sermon argues that the Christian's assurance must be anchored not in self-examination of fruit-bearing but in the objective, Trinitarian work of God accomplished entirely outside of us in Christ.
The Riches of God's Grace
Ephesians 1:7 declares that believers possess redemption through Christ's blood and the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of God's grace. This sermon works through the triune shape of salvation in Ephesians 1:3–14, arguing that the redeemed are not a class of morally capable people who needed modest assistance, but guilty sinners who required blood atonement, divine election, and the sealing of the Holy Spirit. The cross is shown to satisfy divine justice as well as display divine love — God is both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus, as Paul argues in Romans 3:21–26. The sermon closes with a direct application to baptism, presenting the ordinance as an outward declaration of the inward forgiveness and righteousness received through union with Christ.
The Year of Jubilee
Leviticus 25 sets forth the sabbatical year and the Year of Jubilee as divine legislation governing the rhythms of rest, property redemption, and the release of indentured servants within Old Covenant Israel. The laws are grounded in the theological principle that the land belongs to God, who allotted it as gift to his people and therefore retains final authority over how it is held and transferred. The chapter points typologically beyond itself: the Jubilee's proclamation of liberty, initiated on the Day of Atonement, finds its antitype in Christ, who fulfills Isaiah 61 by proclaiming the acceptable year of the Lord through his atoning work. The practical summons of the passage is to express the fear of God in concrete generosity toward covenant members who fall into poverty, resisting every form of oppression.
The Gospel According to Hosea: Part 2
Hosea 3 presents the redemption of Gomer by her husband Hosea as a typological mirror of Christ's redemption of His people from the bondage of sin. God's love for His adulterous people is unconditional not because covenantal conditions go unmet, but because He meets those conditions Himself — the wages of sin is death, and Christ pays that price in full. The sermon calls believers to faithful perseverance in the betrothal period between justification and glorification, and urges the unconverted to flee from the bondage of sin to the Savior who offers full and free salvation.
The Gratitude of God's People
Colossians 1:10–14 presents Paul's apostolic prayer as a template for Christian growth, identifying four marks of a walk worthy of the Lord: fruitfulness in good works, increase in the knowledge of God, divine strengthening for patience and longsuffering, and giving thanks to the Father. The sermon argues that justification by faith alone issues necessarily in sanctification, and that gratitude is not an optional emotional response but the fitting conclusion of a life shaped by the gospel. Believers are called to thankfulness on the basis of three specific gospel realities Paul enumerates: qualification for a heavenly inheritance, deliverance from the dominion of darkness, and transfer into the kingdom of the Son of God's love — all grounded in the redemption accomplished by Christ's blood.
The Active and Passive Obedience of Christ
The obedience of Christ — both active and passive — is the sole foundation of justification by faith alone. Working through two texts in Matthew's Gospel, this sermon expounds the theological distinction between Christ's active obedience, in which He fulfilled all righteousness on behalf of His people, and His passive obedience, in which He drank the cup of divine wrath and was overwhelmed by death as a ransom for many. Sinners cannot contribute a righteousness of their own; they need both the imputed righteousness of Christ's perfect life and the cleansing of His atoning blood. The occasion of three baptisms serves as the concrete illustration: the water publicly declares what God has accomplished inwardly through the finished work of the Savior.
Clip: Breathtaking Kindness and the Danger of Rejecting the Son
Drawing from John 8:21–29, this sermon clip sets before the listener two and only two positions: the breathtaking kindness of the God who sent his Son to save sinners, and the deadly consequence of dying in unbelief. The gospel offer is pressed with urgency — Christ receives all who come to him and casts out none — while the condemnation of those who refuse to believe that 'I am' is stated with equal plainness. The hearer is called to stop wavering and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for everlasting life.
A Psalm of Thanksgiving
Psalm 103 calls the redeemed to bless God with the totality of their being — not passively, but by deliberately rehearsing his mercies against the ever-present tendency to forgetfulness. The psalm moves from the forgiveness of sins as the chief and foundational benefit, through temporal preservation and physical provision, to the perfections of God himself — his mercy, his patience, his covenant faithfulness — as the inexhaustible ground of praise. The sermon presses the congregation to fight spiritual amnesia privately in prayer and publicly in corporate worship, and to understand that gratitude is not an optional ornament but a defining mark of those who walk worthily before God.
The Glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ
How can a perfectly just God forgive guilty sinners without compromising his justice? Romans 3:21–28 answers that question by tracing the righteousness God provides in the gospel: revealed in Christ, received through faith, and grounded in a propitiatory sacrifice that fully satisfies divine justice. The sermon expounds the forensic declaration of justification, the redemption accomplished by Christ's blood, and the vindication of God's righteousness at the cross — showing that boasting is excluded entirely because the righteousness that avails before God is supplied by Christ alone and received freely by grace through faith. Hearers are called to trust in Christ's finished work as the sole ground of their standing before God, and to come to the Lord's Supper remembering that in our place condemned he stood.
Redeemed by the Precious Blood of Christ
God is an impartial judge who will call every person to account for every transgression of his law, and no corruptible thing — no silver, gold, religious ritual, or moral effort — can satisfy the demands of that justice. Redemption comes exclusively through the precious blood of Christ, the spotless Lamb foreordained before the foundation of the world, whose death made propitiation for sin and whose perfect obedience is imputed to the believer's account. Drawing from 1 Peter 1:17–21, this sermon expounds the condition, command, reason, and result of the Christian's call to conduct life in reverent fear: not a slavish terror born of misunderstanding God's character, but a reverent awe that flows from knowing the God who is both perfectly just and perfectly merciful. The believer's ongoing faith and hope are to rest continually in God — grounded in Christ's resurrection, confirmed by his ascension to glory, and oriented toward the certain hope of the new heaven and new earth.
Exodus 15 - Song of Moses
Exodus 15 records the Song of Moses, a celebration of divine redemption and righteous judgment sung by Israel after the destruction of Pharaoh's army in the Red Sea. The sermon expounds the threefold structure of the song — the triumph of the Lord, the defeat of the Egyptians, and the majesty and incomparability of God — before tracing its prophetic reach into the nations' fear of Yahweh and the ultimate goal of covenant dwelling. The bitter waters of Marah complete the chapter, exposing Israel's reflexive grumbling as a failure to trust the God who had already done the greater work of redemption. Hearers are called to praise God for both his saving mercy and his just judgment, and to pass that doxological heritage to the next generation.
Exodus 13 - The Consecration of the Firstborn
Exodus 13 grounds the consecration of Israel's firstborn in the redemptive logic of the tenth plague: because God spared Israel's firstborn while striking Egypt's, Israel's firstborn belong to him — to be set apart, sacrificed if clean, or redeemed if human or unclean. The chapter's twin emphases on perpetual remembrance through the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the catechetical instruction of children press the same truth across generations: God's people are defined by what God has done for them, not by their own merit or strength. The typological weight of substitutionary redemption — one life in the place of another — finds its terminus in the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, making these ordinances intelligible only in light of Christ. Practically, the sermon calls the congregation to remember the mighty works of God, to sacrifice freely in gratitude for redemption received, and to pass this theological inheritance faithfully to the next generation.
The Anointing at Bethany
Sandwiched between the conspiracy of the religious leaders and the betrayal of Judas, the anointing at Bethany (Matthew 26:6–13) presents an act of extravagant devotion that Christ himself defends, interprets, and immortalizes. The sermon works through three movements: the act itself, the disciples' indignant complaint, and Christ's authoritative response, showing that what pragmatic men call a waste Christ calls a good work. Against the tendency toward either-or Christianity, the passage enforces both fervent worship of Christ and genuine care for the poor as inseparable obligations. The abiding lesson is that no expenditure of time, wealth, or devotion directed to the Lord of glory can ever constitute a waste, because he is chief among ten thousand and altogether lovely.
The Nature of the Gospel
Galatians 1:1–5 is not merely a conventional greeting but a compressed summary of the gospel itself. Working through each clause of verses 4–5, this exposition identifies five defining features of Christ's death: it was voluntary, it consisted in penal substitution, it secured deliverance from this present evil age, it was determined by the Father according to His eternal will, and it promotes the glory of God alone. The sermon presses toward the Lord's Supper, calling each hearer to examine whether they can say with Paul in Galatians 2:20, 'He loved me and gave Himself for me,' and to receive the bread and cup only on that ground.
From Alienation to Reconciliation
Colossians 1:21–23 sets the condition of fallen humanity — alienated from God, hostile in mind, and characterised by wicked works — against the sovereign act of divine reconciliation accomplished through the incarnation and substitutionary death of Christ. This sermon works through Paul's three-part description of man's former state before turning to the means and goal of reconciliation: the bodily death of Christ to present his people holy, blameless, and above reproach. The exposition closes with a call to perseverance grounded not in the believer's resolve but in the completed work of the one who reconciles, redeems, and saves to the uttermost.
Psalm 130
Psalm 130 traces the soul's movement from the depths of distress to triumphant hope, and this exposition works through the psalm's four movements: an intense cry to God from affliction, a humble confession resting on God's forgiving character, a trusting watchfulness grounded in God's Word, and a joyful expectation rooted in divine mercy and abundant redemption. The sermon grounds assurance not in personal performance but in the believer's covenant union with Christ, whose blood has sealed the pardon that God delights to bestow. Hearers are called to be people of the Word and of prayer, waiting expectantly upon a covenant-keeping God whose faithfulness is more certain than the rising of the morning.
The Believer's Gratitude toward God
Colossians 1:12–20 presents the believer's gratitude as an essential component of a walk worthy of the Lord — not a sentimental add-on but a theological necessity rooted in what God has actually done. Paul prays that the Colossians would be fruitful, growing, strengthened, and thankful, with gratitude serving as the lens through which sovereign grace becomes visible. This exposition works through two grounds for thanksgiving — inheritance and deliverance — before tracing the movement of Paul's prayer into the great Christological hymn of verses 15–20, where Christ as Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer becomes the ultimate reason for the believer's praise. The sermon applies throughout with the exhortation to rehearse these redeemed blessings, particularly in the context of the Lord's Supper.
The Mission of the Son of Man
Matthew 20:20–28 confronts the persistent problem of pride and the inverted logic of kingdom greatness. Against the backdrop of Christ's third passion prediction, the ambitious request of James and John exposes a desire common to all God's people: the crown without the cross. The sermon works through Christ's twofold instruction — rejecting the Gentile model of top-down authority and embracing servant-greatness — before landing on the theological heart of verse 28: the Son of Man gave his life as a ransom for many, a payment securing the definite salvation of his people and providing the interpretive key to the entire passion narrative of Matthew 21–27.
Free Grace Baptist Church - September 2, 2018 PM
The wisdom of God in the gospel is displayed not in the nobility, intelligence, or virtue of those he saves, but in his sovereign, gracious election of the weak, the base, and the despised — so that no flesh might glory in his presence. Expounding 1 Corinthians 1:26–31, this sermon identifies the three spiritual blessings Christ has become for his people — righteousness (justification by imputed obedience), sanctification, and redemption (glorification) — as the full ordo salutis secured in union with Christ. The ground of salvation is traced through Romans 5, Philippians 3, Zechariah 3, and Acts 13 to demonstrate that the entire plan of redemption flows from God's sovereign grace, not human merit. The inevitable and proper response of those who have received these blessings is to glory in the Lord alone, not in themselves.
Psalm 34: Praise, Deliverance, and the Fear of the Lord
Psalm 34 is an acrostic poem written by David to commemorate a low and shameful moment — his feigned madness before Abimelech recorded in 1 Samuel 21 — yet David weaves none of his own disgrace into the psalm, choosing instead to erect a memorial to God's mercy alone. The sermon works verse by verse through the psalm's two major divisions: verses 1–10, a hymn in which David praises God and exhorts the godly to constancy in faith, and verses 11–22, a sermon addressed to the people of God on how to live before the Lord. The central pastoral burden is that God's redeemed children, whatever the difficulty of their present circumstances, have every reason to bless the Lord at all times, cry to Him in their troubles, and rest assured that none who trust in Him shall ever be condemned.
The Precious Blood of Christ
1 Peter 1:18–20 presents the redemption accomplished by Christ as grounded in the infinite value of his sinless sacrifice, the eternal decree of the triune God, and the certainty of its historical occurrence. This sermon expounds three dimensions of the 'precious blood of Christ': its surpassing worth measured against corruptible earthly things; its origin in the determined counsel of God before the foundation of the world; and its singular reality as a manifest historical event attested by eyewitnesses. The Lord's Supper, observed the same evening, provides the pastoral occasion for calling both believers to joyful reflection on the blood that cleanses from all iniquity and unbelievers to repentance and faith in the one Lamb without blemish and without spot.
The Sacrifice Remembered
What does it mean to remember the death of Christ at the Lord's Supper? Examining 1 Peter 1:18–20, this sermon traces three dimensions of that remembrance: the incomparable value of Christ's precious blood over all corruptible earthly things, the eternal and love-driven divine purpose behind the atonement foreordained before the foundation of the world, and the singular historical reality of the incarnation and sacrifice. The congregation is called to prize Christ above every earthly attachment and to observe the Lord's Supper with the gravity and joy befitting so great a Savior.
The Wisdom from God
Christ is the wisdom of God made concrete for sinners, and 1 Corinthians 1:30–31 inventories what that wisdom consists of: righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. This exposition argues that these three blessings are not coordinate with wisdom but are its very demonstration — the specific ways God's sovereign, gracious salvation exposes the folly of human wisdom and self-commendation. Justification by faith alone, grounded in the imputed righteousness of Christ, is shown to be the necessary foundation for, not the enemy of, holiness. The design of the whole — election, union with Christ, and the triad of blessings — is that the redeemed glory in the Lord alone, not in themselves.
Free Grace Baptist Church - May 1, 2016 PM
The precious blood of Christ as the sole ground of Christian redemption is the focus of this Lord's Supper meditation drawn from 1 Peter 1:18-19. The sermon first establishes the necessary denial — that redemption cannot come through corruptible things such as silver and gold, idolatrous religion, the ceremonial law, or the aimless traditions of the fathers. It then unfolds the proper assertion, showing that the blood of Christ is called 'precious' because of the high value Peter assigns it, the identity of the one who sheds it (the God-man, Christ Jesus), the manner in which it is shed (the cross death), and what it accomplishes (the definite redemption of guilty sinners). Believers are urged to approach the Lord's Supper with cheerful and examined compliance, knowing they congregate on the Lord's Day not out of mere tradition but because the God-man shed his blood for sinners on Calvary.
The Kindness Shown to Mephibosheth
David's covenant with Jonathan, sealed decades before 2 Samuel 9, drives him to seek out Mephibosheth — a lame, fearful descendant of his enemy Saul — and lavish upon him protection, restored inheritance, and a permanent seat at the royal table. The Hebrew word hesed (covenant faithfulness, steadfast love) names a kindness that goes far beyond bare duty, and David's exercise of it toward an unworthy enemy typifies the grace that Christ, David's greater Son, bestows upon helpless, ungodly sinners. The sermon presses two practical conclusions: covenant promises are perpetually binding regardless of changed circumstances or the passage of time, and the grace received from God must become grace poured out toward others.
The Greatness of God
David's prayer in 2 Samuel 7:22–24 structures a twofold ascription of greatness to God: first for who God is in Himself (His unity, triunity, immutability, impassibility, and incomparability), and then for what God has done for His people in redemption, preservation, and positional covenant blessing. The sermon applies David's method directly to the New Covenant, arguing that the greater privileges of the New Covenant demand a correspondingly greater response of worshipful prayer and adoration. The closing movement presses the congregation toward the Lord's Supper as a concrete occasion to extol God's greatness in the very pattern David modeled at the throne of grace.
Free Grace Baptist Church - March 20, 2016 AM
Galatians 4:4–5 announces that when the appointed fullness of time arrived, God the Father sent forth his eternal Son — not to become his Son, but as his Son — born of a woman and born under the law. The sermon traces the fourfold structure of the text: the timing of the sending (sovereignly predetermined by God), the fact of the sending (the pre-incarnate Son dispatched from the Father), the condition of the sending (the Son assuming human nature and human legal obligations), and the twofold purpose of the sending (redeeming those under law's condemnation and restoring them to adoptive sonship). Against every religion that offers man a path upward to God, Christianity declares that God came down in the person of the incarnate Son to accomplish what no fallen creature could — perfect obedience to the law's precepts and perfect satisfaction of its penalty — and freely bestows that righteousness on all who believe.
Colossians 1:10-14
Paul's prayer in Colossians 1:9–14 reveals what the apostle considered most essential for the people of God: not merely physical welfare, but a walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him. This study works through the four participial phrases of verses 10–14 — fruitfulness in good works, growth in the knowledge of God, God-wrought patience and long-suffering with joy, and thankfulness — showing how each flows from being filled with the knowledge of God's will. The practical challenge is double: to pray for others in the manner Paul prays, and to examine honestly whether one's own life resembles what Paul prays for.