Best sermon ever?

[M. T. Cross]

While I don't have a lot of great memories about my time in the SDA church (outside of some girls I met at campmeeting) there is one that stands out.

When I was pretty little we had a very small congregation here. Maybe 20 people tops from the surrounding 30 or 40 miles area. We rented the local Scout Hall for services and the pastor assigned to our area was only able to be there once a month. So the rest of the time a member of the congregation gave the sermon.

Well one week it was Richard Thorp's week to give the sermon. He was simply a man that at that time owned and operated a dolomite refinery in this area.

I was likely 5 or 6 at the time of this sermon and I can't remember all the small details. But I remember the subject and the passion. He gave a sermon on the crucifixion. Now this of course is not an uncommon subject. But Richard delivered this sermon in a way that never left me. I remember being in tears at the way he brought out the beauty of an event that many times after I only heard as a horrific torturous event. I was entranced the whole sermon through.

As I have moved through life, and my spiritual beliefs have changed drastically, Richards sermon has stayed with me. It is probably the sole reason I have never lost my interest and respect for Jesus.

So is there a sermon that any of you have heard that stood head and shoulders above all others?

[JoeMo]

Hey MT,

Nice ...

I remember a sermon on the blood of Jesus - how it is not just a few drops here and these offered on our behalf at baptism or at life-changing events; but how it is a waterfall in an ever-continuous flow - constantly cleansing us of sin and unrighteousness. I have referred to this sermon several times in posts on other threads.

The sermon ended with what has become one of my favorite old-time hymns:

What can wash away my sin

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

What can make me whole again

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

O precious is the flow

That makes me white as snow

No other fount I know

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

For my pardon this I see

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

For my cleansing this my plea

Nothing but the blood of Jesus

Thanks for posting this thread, bud! Reminiscing on this made me feel really good just now!

[Gail]

The blood of Christ intrigues me- how it washes sin away, how it humbles and changes us, how it is what makes us accounted righteous in the eyes of the Father.

[Naomi]

Thank you EC for sharing that experience. Yes, many do refer to His death on the cross as a horrific torturous event but it was not ... it was a dramatic event which projected the most beautiful love story ever lived. The passion, the love, the commitment for all of mankind was played out at Calvery.

I am so happy that you heard at least one person speak of it in the beauty and love which it exhibited. All too often we dewell on the negative and overlook the underlying reason for the event.

[Gail]

And I do think it was a tortuous event. That is what Satan is about. There are tortuous events all through history and around the world. God could have sheltered Christ from it, as He never merited that treatment. But He sacrificed to purchase us back from the sovereignty of sin and the torture/suffering it brings.

[Naomi]

just a quick thought: having a baby is tortuous but do we dewell on the pain or the love of our child? I realize the pain of childbirth is nothing compared to the pain and humiliation which Christ endured, but I find it overwhelming that He loved us so much that His blood was shed to bring forth new life for you and me.

[Gail]

The mother doesn't dwell on the pain but a child WILL appreciate better the sacrifice once s/he goes through it (well, his wife then) her/himself. Becoming a parent adds another dimension to our understanding of the word sacrifice and love.

[cricket]

The Best Sermon Ever? Why that has to be the one sermon that touched each of us, individually, whenever we were ready to receive His word, hear His word, and believe His word.