Sermons by Tim Keller, founder of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in NYC and NY Times best-selling author of ”The Reason for God: Belief in an Age of Skepticism.” For more sermons and resources, visit www.gospelinlife.com.
Who is Jesus? In Mark 2 and 3, Jesus makes a claim about himself that’s so immense it almost defies categories. In this text, two incidents are detailed and they both have to do with how we observe the Sabbath day. To understand the magnitude of Jesus’ claim here, we have to unpack the meaning of the entire text and then ask what he’s actually claiming. Let’s look at the features of the story and learn from each of these: 1) the anger of Jesus, 2) the enemies of Jesus, and 3) the claim of Jesus ...
In this unparalleled text in the Bible, we learn not so much what the church does, but what the church is. We’ve been looking at the animating gospel principles that have profoundly shaped our church’s life in the city and service to the city. And that often means we’ve looked at something the church does. But now, let’s look at what the church is. In 1 Peter 1, we can get insight into the church’s 1) glory, 2) gifts, and 3) grace. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presb...
In The Bride of Frankenstein movie, the monster stumbles into a blind man’s cottage, and they become friends. The only humanity he ever develops is in that cottage, where a person grabs him by the hand and calls him friend. And what it’s saying is that there’s nothing more humanizing than friendship and there’s no pain more horrible than loneliness. In fact, all kinds of studies show that people who have fewer friends die more readily of disease and heart attacks. So as we look at John 15, there...
For centuries this famous passage has been called the parable of the prodigal son. But it’s a great mistake to think it’s a story about one son. It’s a story of two sons, of a younger and an older brother. If you don’t compare and contrast the two, you’re going to miss the radical message. Jesus is saying every thought the human race has ever had about how to connect to God—whether East or West, ancient or post-modern, religious or secular—has been wrong. Jesus shatters all existing human catego...
In Mark 2, Jesus makes a claim that is so over the top, so out of all categories, so outrageous that the religious leaders don’t even have a word for it. They’ve called him blasphemous before, but this claim goes beyond their words. In this passage, two incidents are linked together, both having to do with the Sabbath. And what Jesus says is that he’s not here to reform religion—he’s here to absolutely end religion and replace it with himself. What we’re going to see is, 1) on the one hand, the ...
We’re looking at the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus. After his resurrection, Jesus is still teaching his disciples—and us—preparing us to go out into the world and represent him. And in John 21, he teaches the disciples four things that should be true of us if we’re Christians. Another way to put it is four marks the Christian church ought to have in the world. And those four marks are 1) supernatural unity, 2) new identity, 3) continuous intimacy, and 4) comprehensive certainty. This se...
In our times, friendship is relatively ignored. Every other kind of love, every other kind of relationship is a hot topic. Everybody is writing about romance or family, while friendship is seen as uninteresting. And yet, friendship is absolutely vital. Do you understand how crucial it is to make, find, maintain, and develop friendships? Let me just ask three questions: 1) why is friendship so neglected today? 2) why is it so vitally important and crucial? and 3) how can the resources of the Chri...
Hannah is a woman in enormous pain. At the beginning of 1 Samuel, she is roaring with pain, roaring with grief. And yet, in Hannah, we have a case study of a woman at prayer, a woman who has a spiritual encounter with God. Hannah eventually becomes the mother of the prophet Samuel. And we can all learn something from her fascinating account. To understand this passage, we need to see 1) the anatomy of Hannah’s pain, 2) the change in Hannah’s heart, and 3) the secret in Hannah’s song. This sermon...
What’s described in Isaiah 60 never happened in human history and never can happen in normal human history—and it has much to teach us about how we view our work. Isaiah 60 looks to the end of time when God makes everything right and paradise is restored. And in that restoration, something happens that we often overlook: all the nations of the world bring their work products—their gold, silver, flux, and grain—as offerings to God. Just as there was work in the original paradise, there’ll be work...
There are two typical approaches to work today, and both of them are wrong. Both of them cut right against what God meant work to be. One approach says, “Work is a curse—something to be endured for a paycheck.” The other approach says, “Work is my way to find self-esteem through achievement.” But the Bible, and the fourth of the Ten Commandments, shows us a different view of work. Let’s see what the fourth commandment and Ephesians 6 show us about work: 1) work is not a curse; it’s a calling, 2)...
Proverbs says you’re not going to be a wise person unless you’re great at choosing, forging, and keeping terrific friendships. For the vast majority of your decisions, there will be many options that are all moral. Wisdom is being so in touch with reality that you know the right thing to do in the situations moral rules don’t address. And Proverbs says you will not lead a wise life unless you are really good at friendships. If we look at various verses in Proverbs, we can learn 1) the uniqueness...
This is a startling passage. The context is that the Galatians, who became Christians out of pagan backgrounds, are now falling under the influence of teachers who say, “It’s not enough just to believe in Jesus Christ. You also have to obey everything in the Bible.” Paul says something here which is astounding. He says that if they do that, they will fall back under what he calls the slavery of the non-gods. So we ask ourselves three questions: 1) what are the non-gods? 2) how do they enslave? a...
The meaning of Christmas is that God got flesh and blood. In Jesus Christ the holy and transcendent God became really and fully and truly human. He shared in our humanity. I submit to you that the traditional, moralistic religion has completely forgotten this whole idea. In fact, I submit to you that if you and I really understood the fact that Jesus Christ shares in our humanity, we’d live differently. What does that teach us about God? It teaches us three things: 1) God has a concern for the p...
Abraham is a lot like many of us, who are not from where we now live. We’ve been brought somewhere from elsewhere. Abraham is the same. Abraham left his home community and became an exile. The Bible tells us repeatedly in the New Testament that each of us should see ourselves as exiles. We should live where we’re called to live as exiles. What does that mean? What did Abraham actually do in his exile? Let’s look at what the Bible says about how Christians are supposed to relate to the cities to ...
Hebrews is written to people who had suffered a great deal of persecution and difficulty. They were getting discouraged. Some of them were saying, “What good is this Christianity? We’re good people. Why are such bad things happening to us?” The writer is showing them that they have resources as Christians such that they can face life, no matter what it throws at them, with greatness and power and stamina. And in Hebrews 12, we come to the final case study that shows this. We come to Jesus himsel...
Tim Keller explores the profound meaning of the Passover and the symbolism of the Lamb of God, drawing lessons from Hebrews 11 and Exodus. He elucidates how Jesus's sacrifice serves as a propitiation for God's wrath and highlights the balance between divine mercy and justice. Keller emphasizes the importance of beholding Jesus as the Lamb, fostering love, strength, and peace within believers.
In this sermon, Tim Keller explores the concept of endurance through the life of Moses, as described in Hebrews 11. He discusses the crises Moses faced and how faith enabled him to persevere. Keller highlights three key actions: assessing true value, choosing obedience despite suffering, and seeing the wisdom of God, particularly through the example of Jesus Christ, to find strength and durability in life.
Tim Keller explores Hebrews 13:1-6, focusing on how genuine faith empowers a life of courage and generosity. He emphasizes openness in hospitality, social relationships, and finances, urging listeners to move beyond fear and embrace a lifestyle marked by love and service. Keller challenges cultural elites to identify with the marginalized and depend on God's promise.
Tim Keller explores the nature of faith through the story of Abraham's test in Hebrews 11:17-19, explaining how God uses tests to refine and strengthen believers. He discusses four key aspects of God's tests: knowing they exist, understanding how they work (contradictory commands and promises), recognizing why they are needed (de-centering our 'little onlys'), and learning how to pass them (reasoning and looking to the Lamb). Ultimately, these tests lead to spiritual growth and a deeper reliance on God's love and provision.
There’s one guy who is so preeminently an example of a life of faith that three religions look to him as the paragon of faith. That guy’s name is Abraham. Here’s the story of Abraham’s life: God said, “Get out!” Abraham said, “Where?” God said, “I’ll tell you later. Just go.” The Lord said, “I will give you this land.” Abraham said, “When?” God said, “I’ll tell you later. Just wander around in tents.” The Lord said, “I will give you a son.” Abraham said, “How?” God said, “I’ll tell you later. Ju...
Abraham had greatness in the face of a completely uncertain future. He had no idea what was coming, and yet he lived a life of greatness. How can we? The writer of Hebrews is writing to a group of Christians whose lives were going very badly. And in chapter 11, he says to them, “You don’t understand. The great men and women of God have never had designer lives. Yet they lived great lives.” And Abraham is perhaps the greatest case given. How we can live life with greatness, with stability, with c...
Enoch is a very mysterious Old Testament figure. God took him right to heaven without him tasting death—because he walked with God. What’s so special about walking with God? In the garden of Eden, in the beginning of time, God took long walks with us every evening. And yet the minute human beings disobeyed God, they couldn’t stand intimacy with infinity anymore. Humans no longer walk with God. But suddenly, in Genesis 5, Enoch shows up and he still walks with God. What? It’s still possible? Yes,...
Many of us are wondering how we’re even going to face Monday, but the men and women in Hebrews 11 didn’t just know how to face life—they were enabled to even go against the whole world. And the thing that enabled them was they were commended by God. Abel got the commendation from God—he was shown God accepted him as absolutely righteous, and as a result, he became one of these great hearts who can face the world, can face anything. By looking at Abel, and the contrast with Cain, we can have some...
Christian faith is more than thinking, because the Christian message, the gospel, is much more than an idea. It is not just an idea; it’s a power. The gospel bears fruit in you. It’s a living thing. But how does faith move from being an idea to being a power? You stop just believing in God and you start believing God. Noah shows us the way. Hebrews 11 shows us that Noah does three things that bring the power of faith into life: 1) he believes God, 2) he condemns the world, and 3) he hides in the...
The Bible tells us faith begins with thinking. The Bible says faith requires and stimulates the profoundest thinking and reasoning. You cannot be a Christian without using your brain to its uttermost. Nowadays, we’re told by our culture from the time we’re very little that the big questions—what is real, what is right and wrong, and what we should be living for—are questions for the philosophers. We’re taught that the important things are standard of living, career, appearance, and psychological...
What is faith? What is it made of? How do you know if you have it? How do you lose it? How do you get it back? Hebrews 11 deals with all of these things through specific personal case studies of men and women who wrestled with issues of faith. I would suggest that it’s the easiest to understand the parts of faith as three layers, one of which comes first, then the others resting upon it. But the reality is it’s more complex than that. If you look hard enough at any one of these aspects, the othe...
One mark of a supernaturally changed heart is a changed attitude and view of races and cultures. In social relations, grace-changed Christians use their power to serve, not exploit. We’re going to look at this by looking at a dispute that happened in the church of Rome, and by comparing it to another dispute. These passages show us 1) the problems that culture poses, 2) the solutions, true and false, and 3) how we get the power to implement the true solution. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timo...
Some people say there’s a cultural crisis of integrity. For example, Volkswagen was revealed to have deliberately used software designed to lie about emissions. It was a failure of integrity from one of the biggest corporations in the world. And some of you may be yawning, thinking that’s just the way things are. But the Bible says a supernaturally changed heart rejoices with the truth. Let’s talk about 1) how important integrity is, 2) how you practice integrity, and 3) how you can become peopl...
When the Greeks and Romans met the early Christians, one of the first things that surprised them was how Christians handled suffering. Christianity brought into the world a view and a way of handling suffering that the world had never seen. It was one of the evidences of a supernaturally changed heart. And in Romans 8, a passage that looks at all the benefits of salvation, we learn a lot about suffering. Romans 8 shows us 1) the unique Christian view of suffering, 2) the unique resources we get ...
What are the characteristics of a supernaturally changed heart? You can be very moral and active in church and still be an incredibly impatient, bitter person. So we’re looking at what Paul says are the marks of a supernaturally changed heart. And for this, Romans 12 is an explosive passage. Let’s look at what this passage says about 1) patience and graciousness in life in general, and 2) love and forgiveness in the face of mistreatment. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer...
