TODAY’S “GOOD NEWS” – March 28, 2004

 MESSAGE:  “C R O S S I N G   O V E R:

…And Walking the Calvary Road!”

SCRIPTURE:  Matthew 16:21-27

KEY VERSE:  v. 24  “Jesus said to His disciples:  ‘If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.’”  (NASB)

FOCUS:  God’s grace, flowing from the cross, makes for a healthy soul.

INTRODUCTION:  “A Christian is a person who glories in the cross.  If the cross is not central to you, you are not a Christian.  You may say that you admire Jesus and His teaching, but that does not make you a Christian.  You can do that and be a Mohahammadan.  You can do that and still remain in the Jewish religion.  You can do that and remain a moralist.  No, the cross is vital, the cross is central, everything comes out of it.”    ~ Martyn Lloyd-Jones

I.         THE CROSS IS THE TOUCHSTONE OF CHRISTIAN FAITH

II.    THE CROSS COMES INTO OUR LIVES BY OUR OWN CHOICE

III.  CHRISTIAN LIFE IS INTERTWINED WITH THE CROSS

CONCLUSION:   “A walk through the valley of shadows may be more revelatory than a stroll on life’s mountaintops.”        ~ E. Glenn Hinson

PREACHING:  Pastor Holland Lewis