Jordan Rimmer Sermons

Salvation History Pt 12: What is the Gospel?

In this sermon I finish the series on Salvation History. I take a look at what the Gospel means in light of this grand story. I owe a lot to the work of Matthew Bates in his books Salvation by Allegiance Alone and Gospel Allegiance. Both helped me think through what the Gospel is and what faith really means.

Salvation History Pt 11: The End of the Story

I take a look at how the story of the Bible ends by looking at 6 symbols. Each of these represents expectations of the First Testament that Jesus fulfills yet also leaves undone. I then look at how Revelation shows the fulfillment of those expectations. We live in the "now and not yet" of this conclusion, and that should give us hope. 

Salvation History Pt10: The Gospel Spreads

Here we look at the rest of the New Testament and the movement of the Gospel from Jerusalem, through Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the world. We are part of that movement today. 

Salvation History Pt9: Peter and Thomas

Here I slow down the pace of this sweeping salvation history and look at the personal stories of Thomas and Peter after the resurrection. 

Salvation History Pt8: Easter

This sermon for Easter 2020 looks at the death and resurrection of Jesus and why it is the crux of salvation history.

Salvation History Pt7: The Life of Jesus

Here we look at the life of Jesus, what he was about, and what led to the cross.

Salvation History Pt6: We are in Exile

We are moving through the whole story of the Bible--salvation history. Here I take a look at the story of the exile and where it fits in the Bible.

I didn't know when I laid out this series the way the coronavirus would be impacting our world. But God did. As I studied the exile, I realized that we feel in some ways that we are in exile.

Salvation History Pt5: One King to Rule Them All

Here we look at the monarchy and what the kings mean for how we view Jesus.

Some Trust in Toilet Paper

This sermon was preached for video on the first week of a cancellation of church due to the Coronavirus. I reflect on the situation and ask where our hope really comes from.

Salvation History Pt4: Don't Judge Me

When we were young, we read about the judges as heroes. As adults, these stories seem more fitting for an HBO series than a Sunday School lesson. What is the meaning of this dark and violent book, especially in the grand narrative of salvation history?

Salvation History Pt 3: Exodus Stage Right

Here is how Moses, the Exodus, and the Wilderness fit into the large story of the Bible and point to Jesus.

Salvation History Pt2: Father Abraham had many Sons (and daughters)

In part 2 of this series, I look at Abraham and his descendants. I consider Abraham's faithful responses to God's leading as well as God's promises of blessing.

Salvation History Pt1: How Bad is it?

I am kicking off a sermon series that will go 10 weeks (with a few gaps) telling the large story of the Bible through some of the epochs of the story. Here, I develop the problem of sin and how bad it is, so that we look through the rest of the Bible at how God will fix this problem.

In this sermon, I flowed right into communion. Each person came forward, saw themselves in several mirrors with words of the fall written over them (unloveable, worthless, sinner, ugly, broken...). Then they took communion and came to another set of mirrors with other words (holy, forgiven, loved, valuable, precious...).

 

Catching the Spirit: Week 3- Life in the Spirit

In this sermon, I talk about what it means to walk in the Spirit. If you are not producing fruit, then there is something blocking and/or you are not walking.  I reflect on my experience with the Holy Spirit, then I talk about spiritual gifts.

Catching the Spirit: Week 2- Understanding the Spirit

This sermon is ten facts about the Holy Spirit.

I used THIS HANDOUT.

Catching the Spirit: Week 1- Understanding the Trinity

I get a lot of questions about the Trinity and specifically about the Holy Spirit, so I am taking three weeks to give a crash course. In this first sermon, I develop the Trinity not as a theological construct but as a means for experiencing and relating to God. I use a picture of this carving, coming from the Cartmel Priory.

 

3 Wise Men and 3 Unwise Men

The three wise men saw the star, interpreted it, pursued it, and found and worshipped the baby Jesus. But some other men were less wise. I call them the 3 unwise me who, like the chief priests and scribes that identified Bethlehem and did not go and see for themselves, missed their moment. There are stars on our horizons. How do we make sure we wisely see, interpret, and follow them.

Christmas Christians

In this sermon after Christmas, I talk about the implications of Christmas. I first talk about the theology of the incarnation, but then I turn much more practical to talk about what it means for us to be incarnational Christians.

Christmas Road Trip: Bethlehem

This year, for Advent, we are taking a little road trip. We are going to go to Nazareth, Jerusalem, Egypt, and Bethlehem. We are particularly interested in what these places add to the story of the birth of Jesus. In this sermon, we visit Bethlehem, the city of bread, salvation, and kings.

You can see the slides I used as a PDF HERE.

You can watch the video on YOUTUBE HERE.

Christmas Road Trip: Egypt

This year, for Advent, we are taking a little road trip. We are going to go to Nazareth, Jerusalem, Egypt, and Bethlehem. We are particularly interested in what these places add to the story of the birth of Jesus. In this sermon, we visit Egypt, which Matthew uses to clue us in to the identity of this baby.

You can see the slides I used as a PDF HERE.

You can watch the video on YOUTUBE HERE.

Christmas Road Trip: Jerusalem

This year, for Advent, we are taking a little road trip. We are going to go to Nazareth, Jerusalem, Egypt, and Bethlehem. We are particularly interested in what these places add to the story of the birth of Jesus. In this sermon, we visit Jerusalem, the city with so much history and meaning that the birth of Jesus almost had to relate to it.

You can see the slides I used as a PDF HERE.

You can watch the video on YOUTUBE HERE.

Christmas Road Trip: Nazareth

This year, for Advent, we are taking a little road trip. We are going to go to Nazareth, Jerusalem, Egypt, and Bethlehem. We are particularly interested in what these places add to the story of the birth of Jesus. In this sermon, we visit Nazareth, which is most notable for how un-notable it is.

You can see the slides I used as a PDF HERE.

You can watch the video on YOUTUBE HERE.

 

The Story of God's Faithfulness

This sermon I gave while the confirmation class was leading the service and I let them make suggestions for my sermon. We had been working at telling the big story of the Bible. They have to do it in 7-8 minutes. In this sermon, I tell the story of the Bible chronologically in 12 minutes, and talk about why knowing the big story of the Bible is important.

 

Gutsy Life Gutsy Ministry

Sermon about Ezekiel, the dry bones, and how to prophesy.

 

The Call: Paul's Legacy (or "Show Me Your Scars")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

Here I look at what Paul may have looked like, how to understand his suffering, and his ultimate legacy.

The Call: Paul's Writings (or "Why did Paul Get Writer's Cramp?")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

In this sermon, I look at Paul's writings, how to read someone else's mail, and the entire book of Philemon.

 

The Call: Paul's Personality (or "Was Paul a Jerk?")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

In this sermon I take on some of Paul's harsher moments, particularly his view on women. Along the way, we learn about the importance of historical and literal context and reading ancient books for modern wisdom.

I am indebted to the book Paul Behaving Badly for helping me think through some of these issues.

The Call: Paul's Heart (or "Why did Paul Travel so Much?")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

In this sermon, I take a look at Paul's missionary approach. I reference a missions fair that we are having after the service and the fact that it is World Communion Sunday.

The Call: Paul's Mind (or "What were Paul's Ideas?")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

In this sermon, I take a look at Paul's theology, but I do so without using any jargon or insider language.

I am indebted to Rob Bell's film The God's aren't Angry for inspiring the overall message of this story.

The Call: Paul's Life (or "Who was Paul?")

In this series, I am looking at the Apostle Paul. The series runs parallel to my congregation reading the book The Call by Adam Hamilton and doing the same study in Sunday school.

In this sermon, I take a look at the big picture of Paul's life and set the stage for our study of Paul.