Saemoonan

Our Sermons are Always Christ-Centered, Gospel-Centered.

Contrary to the sermons of popular, mega-church pastors that focus on man and his felt needs, our sermons centers on Christ and the Good News – on what Christ has done for us through His life, death, burial, and resurrection (1 Cor. 15:1-8). In 2 Cor. 4:5, Paul exclaims that he does not preach himself, but the Gospel. In 1 Cor. 9:23, Paul states, “… I do all things for the sake of the Gospel.” In more than 30 references, and in just about every one of his epistles, he speaks boldly about his central calling and his sole purpose to preach the Gospel. To underscore his point, Paul even goes as far as to say: to hell with me, if I do not preach the Gospel! (vs. 16). 

 

Not only Paul, but our Lord Jesus also places a high importance on the preaching of the Gospel. Jesus states that it was His anointed calling: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the Gospel” (Luke 4:18). In fact it is His purpose: “I [Jesus] must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose” (Luke 4:43).

 

Not only Jesus, but also the Apostles were commissioned to preach the Gospel.Jesus Himself sends His Apostles: “He sent them out to proclaim the Kingdom of God” (Luke 9: 1, 2).  “And He [Jesus] ordered us [the disciples] to preach to the people” (Acts 10:42).  The Apostles boldly declare, “… we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers …” (Acts 13:32). 

 

Not only the Apostles, but the church today is commissioned to declare the Gospel of Christ: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit!” (Matt 28:19).Jesus prophecies that the church would testify to the Good News of the Gospel to all the nations: “… you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you shall be my witness in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).We see the commandment to Timothy in 2 Tim 4:2: “… preach the word in and out of season.”The Bible also states that the church is a “… chosen people, a royal priesthood …” called to declare the praises of God (1 Peter 2:9). Thus, we clearly see that the church is commissioned by the Word of God to go and spread the Gospel to the nations.

 

If Paul, Jesus, the Apostles, and the church are all commissioned to proclaim the Gospel, then we must continue with the same mission: to preach Christ and to know nothing else (1 Cor. 2:1).

 

Our Sermons are Biblical.  

We believe sermons must be preached from the Bible. The preacher is the mouthpiece of God, so he must preach soundly from the Word of God and not from what the preacher wants to preach or what people’s ears want to hear (2 Timothy 4:3,4). Hence, the preacher must resist the temptation to preach man-centered messages that are worldly, popular, and entertaining.

 

The message of our preaching should emulate sermons found in the Bible. Peter in his sermon in Acts 2 -- while preaching Christ life, death, and resurrection –repeatedly referenced the Bible for support. The book of Hebrews – a sermon from the New Testament – is peppered throughout with references from Scripture to explain the Gospel in detail. We believe our sermons should be modeled after such sermons from the Bible. To this end, our sermons, you will find, are replete with Scriptural references.

 

Our Sermons are Deep

SEM places a high value on sermons that are well-prepared, well-researched, and substantial. Sermons of this nature demand the preacher to invest much time in study, research, exegesis, and meditation of the Biblical text. This may entail the pastor to investigate the original Biblical languages -- Koine Greek and Hebrew – and to look at the historical context of the text. Some may bristle at “hard” sermons that may be initially challenging to the hearer, but Jesus was criticized by the multitude for his “hard” teaching (John 6:60). In light of Jesus’ hard teachings, our church believes that sermons should contain substance because Christians must advance from milk to solid food. And in keeping with Jesus’ hard teaching, our sermons may challenge the hearers to be attentive and to grow in grace and in knowledge (2 Peter 3:18); but the challenge will, in the long run, produce a firm, steadfast faith. In view of the benefits, our church desires its members to enjoy a deep and solid understanding of the Bible. Once the mind understands, the heart will naturally follow suit (Luke 24:32).  

 

Our Sermons Strengthen Your Faith

In Romans, Paul states that faith comes from hearing and hearing the word of Christ (Rom. 10:17). As you hear the sermons, not only will faith be produced in your heart through the Holy Spirit, but your faith will be strengthened. The pastor not only gives the message of the Gospel -- what we believe -- but also offer provides reasons for our faith – why we believe what we believe. The sermons reinforce the veracity of the Bible, thereby deepening our faith. In his sermons, the pastor unswervingly upholds the uniqueness of the Bible over other books and acknowledges that it is a divine book packed with fulfilled prophecies. The sermons provide apologetics (cogent reasons for the faith that lies within the believer [1 Peter 3:15]), often offering historical and archaeological evidence to substantiate our faith. Sermons provide evidence to equip the Christian to confidently defend their faith.

 

Our Sermons Produce Gratitude, and Love and Good Works for God and Neighbor

 

Because our sermons focus on preaching the Gospel – what God has done for us through Jesus Christ – rather than on laying heavy burdens of commandments and laws which often reaps resentment or apostasy (Matt.11:28-30; 23:4,15) – we know that the God’s message of grace, mercy and love will produce gratitude, love and good works for God and neighbor.

 

We hope through our sermons your faith be strengthened and the joy of your salvation be steadfast. May all glory go to Him and Him alone! Soli Deo Gloria!