Sunday Sermons

Sermon Outline

Jesus is the centerpiece of God's glory.

1. He is the purpose of God’s prophets. (1-2a) 2. He is the source of God’s creation. (2b-3a) 3. He is the heir of God’s majesty. (3b-4)

Discussion/Application

1. Jesus is the centerpiece of God's glory. What do we mean when we say that Jesus is the source and purpose of all things?

2. Describe a time in your life when you came to realize that you were not living with Jesus ...

Sermon Outline

God has written the great salvation story...

...in which Jesus has the lead role. (1:5-14) ...in which our role is to pay close attention. (2:1-3a) ...which God, Himself, declares to and through us. (3b-4)

Discussion/Application

1. God has written the great salvation story, in which Jesus has the lead role. What do we mean when we say that Jesus has the lead role in salvation?

2. God has written the great salvation...

Sermon Outline

God set us apart by making Jesus one of us.

1. God "qualified" Jesus through human suffering. (10-11a) 2. Jesus killed death by dying in human flesh. (11b-16) 3. Jesus can help us because He became like us. (17-18)

Discussion/Application

1. God set us apart by making Jesus one of us. What do we mean when we say God "qualified" Jesus through human suffering? What do we not mean?

2. Describe the time in your life whe...

Sermon Outline

When we see Jesus outshine our heroes, our hope increases...

...by considering His heroic faithfulness. (1-2) ...by counting Him more worthy than any other. (3-4) ...with more confidence in the Son than in the servants. (5-6)

Discussion/Application

1. What does it mean to "consider Jesus"? How is it different than just knowing things about Him?

2. Who is a hero in your life? Why might it be easy to look to your her...

Sermon Outline

God reserves His enduring comfort for the tender-hearted... (7-11)

...who address unbelief as a caring community. (12-15) ...who can identify unbelief as careful historians. (16-19)

Discussion/Application

1. What are some of the ways we see God reserving his comfort for the tender-hearted in Scripture? Why would God withhold His rest/comfort from His people when they're hard hearted?

2. How can you tell the differe...

Sermon Outline

God reserves His enduring comfort for the tender-hearted... (3:7-11)

...who address unbelief as a caring community. (3:12-15) ...who identify unbelief as careful historians. (3:16-19) ...who receive His good news by faith. (4:1-10) ...who embrace His judgment as fitting. (4:11-13)

Discussion/Application

1. Read Hebrews 4:1-10 out loud. What is the good news from God not received by faith in these verses? What does ...

Sermon Outline

Jesus "became" the perfect minister to us...

...with sympathy for our weakness. (4:14-16) ...as appointed by the Father. (5:1-6) ...through suffering on our behalf. (5:7-10)

Discussion/Application

1. Even before He was born, the Eternal Son of God was perfect. What do we mean when, then, we say Jesus "became" the perfect minister to us? What do we not mean? How did He demonstrate His sympathy for our weakness?

2. H...

Sermon Outline

Warning: Abandoned faith looks exactly like stunted growth...

...as needy as a breast-feeding teenager. (5:11-14) ...as immature as a foundation-only builder. (6:1-3) ...as fire-bound as well watered weeds. (6:4-8) ...and yet, hope endures. (6:9-12)

Discussion/Application

1. Warning: abandoned faith looks exactly like stunted growth. What exactly makes this warning so serious? Why would the author of Hebrews write ...

Sermon Outline

Melchizedek's priesthood pointed forward to the eternal priesthood of Jesus Christ.

1. Melchizedek's priesthood was like Jesus. (1-3) 2. Melchizedek's priesthood was superior to the Levitical priesthood. (4-10)

Discussion/Application

1. What makes Melchizedek so significant in the story with Abraham? What part of their story stood out for you?

2. Describe a time when someone planned ahead for you (surprise party, v...

Sermon Outline

Jesus Christ is the final, perfect Priest, forever.

1. The Problem with the Levitical Priesthood (11-14) 2. Jesus, the Perfect High Priest (15-19) 3. Jesus, the Superior High Priest (20-28)

Discussion/Application

1. What was the problem of the Levitical priesthood?

2. Share about a time that you had to be/use a mediator. What made it necessary? Why to we need mediators between us and God? What makes Jesus the perfe...

Sermon Outline

The covenant of Christ is superior to the old covenant.

1. Jesus is seated at the right hand of God. (1-5) 2. The new covenant is superior to the old covenant. (6-13)

Discussion/Application

1. Why do you think there were early-church Hebrews who wanted to go back to the old ways in old covenant?

2. Describe a time in your life when you didnt want to move into the "next stage"? Did you do it anyway? What helped/hind...

Sermon Outline

The blood of Christ brings the pieces of our divided worship together.

1. The tabernacle's dividers made sacrifice safe. (1-10) 2. Christ's sacrifice makes our redemption secure. (11-12) 3. Our redemption will bring our actions and convictions together. (13-14)

Discussion/Application

1. What made sacrifice unsafe in the old covenant system?

2. What was a time in your life when you felt secure/safe? Insecure/unsafe?...

Sermon Outline

Christ is the true mediator of God's new covenant...

...passing His inheritance on to His people. (15-17) ...similar to the old-copy mediators. (18-22) ...better than the old-copy mediators. (23-26a) ...needing no substitute to die in His place. (26b-28)

Discussion/Application

1. What is the inheritance of Jesus? Why is it good news that He passes His inhertance to us?

2. Have you ever had someone break a contract ...

Sermon Outline

God has completely forgiven our sins because of Jesus' death on the cross for us.

1. The Problem with the Old Sacrifices (1-4) 2. The Victory of the New, Once-For-All Sacrifice of Jesus Christ (5-18)

Discussion/Application

1. Why is it so hard to beleive that God forgets our forgiven sin? How should this truth affect our view of who God is?

2. Describe a time in your life when you worked hard to try to make yoursel...

Sermon Outline

Our assurance in Christ challenges us to grow in our faith, hope, and love.

1. Let us draw near in faith. (19-22) 2. Let us hold fast to our hope. (23) 3. Let us consider one another in love. (24-25)

Discussion/Application

1. "The responsibilities and privaleges that we have in Christ should never be separated." How does this truth deepen our understanding of the faith, hope, and love that we have in Christ?

2. Des...

Sermon Outline

Living as Gospel people is hard, but it's worth persevering!

1. An Ominous Warning (26-31) 2. A Reassuring Affirmation (32-39)

Discussion/Application

1. What does it mean to be saved/justified? How are we saved/justified?

2. Describe a time in your life when you ignored the signs of a problem. What made wisdom/discernment imoprtant in that circumstance? What makes wisdom/discernment important in understanding our o...

Sermon Outline

Because God is faithful, we can live by faith. (1-2) 1. We can trust in what is unseen. (3-7) 2. We can obey commands that seem crazy. (8-12) 3. We can want what God promises more than what we have. (13-16)

Discussion/Application

1. Why is it important, in the Christian faith, to trust in what is unseen?

2. Share a command from Scripture that seemed crazy to you the first time you heard it. What (if anything) abou...

Sermon Outline

Because God is faithful, we can live by faith.

4. We can trust God’s promises that outlive us. (17-22) 5. We can refuse to fear the world’s power. (23-28) 6. We can trust God to fight for us. (29-31)

Discussion/Application

1. God's promises outlive us. What makes this good news for God's people?

2. What fear of the world do you tend to experience? Political? Health? Economy? Fear-of-man/people-pleasing?

3. What's o...