Nine Sermons on the Ministry of the Lord Jesus

Dear friends,

Some of our recent discussion Sunday evenings has reminded me of a sermon series I had the privilege of hearing in-person when I was a seminary student.

At that time, Amanda and I regularly attended morning and evening worship at First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC. The church's ministers included both Dr. Sinclair Ferguson and Dr. Derek Thomas.

This series focuses particularly on the earthly ministry of the Lord Jesus. The series is called "ICHTHUS," the Greek word for fish, because Christians in the early church, in order to avoid being persecuted for their faith, would signal to others that they were believers by drawing a half of a fish in the sand. If someone else completed the fish, then that was the "secret code" to signal that the other person was a believer as well. The fish symbol was chosen, I think, because it's easy to draw and because it can be a Christian acronym.

I - The first letter in the Greek spelling of Jesus' name
C - First letter in the Greek word for Christ, or, "anointed one"
TH - First letters in the Greek word for God
U - First letter in the Greek word for "son"
S - First letter in the Greek word for "savior"

Jesus Christ, God's Son, Our Savior

Of course, I've used English letters in place of the Greek, but you get the idea.

This sermon series had a great impact on me and I think on it often. Especially when I think on the role of the Holy Spirit in the earthly ministry of the Lord. The whole series is well worth your time, but the two sermons that I think best relate to our recent discussion are "The Incarnation" and "The Son is Tested."

If you listen to any, please let me know your thoughts. You know I'm always excited to talk sermons!

-Pastor Brooks