FBC Benbrook Sermons

I Sought the Lord

Psalm 34 proclaims that God delivers those who seek Him. David, fleeing from Saul, faced his greatest fear in Gath—surrounded by enemies who remembered him as the one who struck down Goliath. In desperation, David changed his behavior and appeared insane, prompting the Philistine king to dismiss him instead of taking revenge. Though 1 Samuel 21 doesn’t mention prayer or divine intervention, Psalm 34 reveals the unseen reality: David cried to the Lord, and the Lord heard him.
Scripture testifies that God works even through ordinary actions. David’s quick thinking alone did not save him; the Lord empowered his plan and softened the heart of the king. The psalm reinterprets this experience through the lens of faith: “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him.” God responds not to the strength or eloquence of prayer, but to humility, belief, trust, and submission.
Psalm 34 also reminds believers to reflect on their own deliverance stories. When God acts, He deserves exaltation. David gathers others and says, “Magnify the Lord with me.” He boasts not in his plan, but in God’s goodness.
Scripture invites the fearful to trust the Lord, to cry out with confidence that He hears, and to recognize His presence in the ordinary. “Taste and see that the Lord is good,” David urges. Those who take refuge in Him will be blessed. The Word calls God’s people to reflect, remember, and rejoice in the God who delivers.
Sermon Date: June 9, 2025
Sermon Text: Psalm 34.1-3 ESV

Therefore, the Table

The Scripture calls believers to approach the Lord’s Supper with sincerity, as seen in 1 Corinthians 11, where Paul instructs the church to partake in remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice. God despises empty worship, urging His people to engage their hearts, minds, and souls fully.
In 1 Corinthians 15, the Word of God reveals the foundational truths of the gospel: Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose on the third day. His resurrection is essential—not just an event, but the guarantee of believers’ future glorification. The Scripture affirms that Christ reigns now, though all things are not yet subjected to Him, and one day, death itself will be defeated.
The Word exhorts believers in verse 58: “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.” This directive anchors faith in resurrection hope. Because Christ lives, believers are called to persevere in their labor, knowing their work in the Lord is never in vain.
The Scripture encourages personal reflection, asking each believer to consider their current labor, the obstacles threatening to move them, and how resurrection hope strengthens their endurance. Through God’s grace, weaknesses are overcome, and faithfulness is sustained.
At the Lord’s Supper, believers are invited to proclaim Christ’s victory, speaking truth over His body broken for them. The Word of God assures that in Him, all labor done for His glory will bear eternal fruit.
Sermon Text: 1 Corinthians 15.58
June 1, 2025

Gospel Rich Words to Face the Sting of Death

The Scriptures declare in 1 Corinthians 15:50–57 that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; the perishable must put on the imperishable. This teaches that our mortal bodies are unfit for the new creation God has promised. Instead, believers will be transformed—whether through death or at Christ’s return—in a moment, at the sound of the last trumpet.
Scripture presents death not as the final defeat, but as the necessary process by which the mortal is laid down to make way for the immortal. Though the sting of death is real, especially because of sin, the Word of God promises that this sting will ultimately be removed when the perishable is clothed with imperishability.
The trumpet imagery throughout Scripture—from Mount Sinai to the coronation of kings, to the final gathering of God’s people—culminates in the “last trumpet.” At this sound, Christ will reign fully, judgment will be complete, and believers will be gathered to eternal life. This trumpet signals the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan.
Isaiah foretold that death would be swallowed up in victory, and Hosea warned of death as judgment. But thanks be to God, the Scriptures proclaim, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of this hope, believers are called to remain steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord.
Thus, the Scriptures provide a gospel-saturated view of death: not as defeat, but as the doorway to glory for those in Christ.

Fitted for a New Creation

What will our bodies look like in heaven? That is a good question, one that the saints in Corinth were asking, too. The problem is that we are thinking about being raised with the perfect mortal body when resurrection hope is so much greater! When Christ returns and makes all things new, we will need to be fitted with an imperishable and immortal body for a new creation that is mind-blowingly new. To help us understand these things, the apostle Paul used images from agriculture, the animal kingdom, even heavenly bodies. (1 Corinthians 15.35-49) May 18, 2025

Thorns Among the Roses

In one of the most difficult passages of Scripture to understand, the apostle Paul asks why some people were being baptized for the dead. While scholars have struggled to understand what exactly Paul was talking about and why he didn’t correct this practice, these words challenge us to rightly handle the word of truth so that we do not need to be ashamed. How does this confusing paragraph of Scripture guide us to both ends? (1 Corinthians 15.29-34) May 11, 2025.

Christ Must Reign Until

The bodily glorified resurrection of Jesus was not an isolated event in history. Christ is the firstfruits of those who belong to Him, meaning we will share in a resurrection like His. As we wait for His coming, Christ must reign until all things are in subjection to Him, which is why we live lives of hope, trust, and prayer. And because Christ reigns, and we are in Christ and Christ is in us, we reign with Christ as agents of His rule on earth today. How do these truths change how we live? (1 Corinthians 15.20-28) May 4, 2025

Pitiable Hope

The resurrection of Christ is good news! Through His resurrection, we are no longer in our sins, and we will share in a resurrection like His. But even more, we have hope in this life and hope in life eternal. This hope is so life changing that it causes us to live in such a way that looks “pitiful” to those who know not this hope. (1 Corinthians 15.12-20) April 27, 2025

The Transforming Grace of the Easter Story

On Easter Sunday, we take a moment to reflect on the three miracles of the Easter Story: the incarnation, the atoning death of Jesus on the cross, and the glorified resurrection of Jesus. Paul shares his story of how the miracles of the Easter Story radically transformed his life when Jesus appeared to him, when he was convicted of his sin, when he believed, and when he experienced the ongoing and transforming grace of God in his life. How does Paul’s testimony help us to give thanks to the Lord for His saving grace in our lives? (1 Corinthians 15.8-11) April 20, 2025

According to the Scriptures

One of the earliest confessions of faith is captured in 1 Corinthians 15.3-7: Christ died for our sins, He was buried, and He was raised on the third day. But the confession states that Christ was raised on the third day was in “accordance with the Scriptures.” This has puzzled Bible readers for there is no Old Testament Scripture that clearly prophecies the resurrection of the Messiah on the third day. However, “the Scriptures” bear testimony that “three days” is sufficient time for certainty and that God often acts “on the third day” to reverse a situation from potential death to life. How does this pattern in the Old Testament help us to understand the resurrection but also our hope that God continues to act in our present time to deliver His people? (1 Corinthians 15.3-8) April 13, 2025

Faith: Worthless or Worthwhile?

In the longest teaching in the New Testament about the resurrection of Christ and the resurrection of the saints, the apostle Paul begins by comparing and contrasting genuine saving faith with “believing in vain.” Being saved means confessing we are sinners who need to be saved, who can’t save ourselves, and who can only be saved through the atoning death of Jesus. Saving faith receives, stands, and holds fast. How do these images help us to understand how saving faith is different than believing in vain? (1 Corinthians 15.1-2) April 6, 2025