Fellowship Presbyterian Church. PCA

True saving faith is inseparable from a heartfelt belief in Christ and an inevitable, outward confession with the mouth that confirms and proves its authenticity. This confession is not a mere verbal formula but a transformative expression of a life radically changed by the gospel, evidenced by repentance, obedience, public identification with the church, and a willingness to suffer for Christ's sake. The New Testament consistently shows that genuine faith produces visible fruit—repentance, discipleship, moral transformation, and bold witness—because the believer's heart, mind, and actions are now governed by the lordship of Jesus Christ. To confess Jesus as Lord is to submit to His authority in every area of life, to reject worldly wisdom, to prioritize fellowship with believers, and to live with a constant concern for God's glory, even at great personal cost. Ultimately, such confession is not self-justifying but a testimony to the reality of regeneration, where the inner transformation inevitably breaks forth in word and deed.

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

The sermon centers on the necessity of genuine, heart-transforming faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, rooted in the biblical claim that salvation comes through confessing with the mouth and believing in the heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. It warns against two extremes: reducing faith to mere intellectual assent or decisionism, which leads to superficial belief without true regeneration, and adding human traditions or doctrines—such as papal authority or specific Marian teachings—to the core gospel, which distorts the sufficiency of Christ's work. True saving faith, the sermon emphasizes, is not a human achievement but a divine gift, involving the whole person, not just the mind or emotions, and is evidenced by a transformed life and dependence on Christ rather than self. While full assurance of salvation is not required for faith to be genuine, believers may experience fluctuating confidence, and the Holy Spirit sustains them through doubt, ultimately leading to growing certainty through faithfulness and the Word. The sermon concludes with a call to diligently pursue assurance through Scripture, prayer, and obedience, grounded in the unshakable truth of God's grace.

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

The sermon centers on Romans 10:9–10, presenting saving faith as a precise, objective confession rooted in two essential truths: that Jesus is Lord and that God raised Him from the dead. It emphasizes that true Christian faith is not defined by moral behavior, personal experience, or cultural sentiment, but by a doctrinal commitment to the historical, divine person of Jesus Christ, whose lordship and resurrection are the foundation of salvation. The preacher underscores the necessity of this confession as a test of genuine faith, warning against modern distortions that reduce Christianity to subjective feelings, political ideals, or self-help spirituality. Drawing from Colossians, Hebrews, and other New Testament texts, the message affirms Christ's deity, cosmic sovereignty, and redemptive work as the only means by which God will ultimately restore all things. Ultimately, the sermon calls believers to a daily, unwavering confession of Jesus as Lord, recognizing Him as the sole source of justification, sanctification, and hope in every circumstance.

Paul focuses in on the simplicity of the Gospel and another reminder that salvation is all of God without any assistance whatsoever from us. Christ has already done all that is necessary for our justification; therefore any additional effort on our part to add to that work or to take away from it, is at best a denial of Christ's finished work.

There are three points in the sermon, "All Things for Good": Creating is Good, Providing is Good and Meaning is Good. The scripture emphasizing all three points is from Genesis 1-2:3 where the creation story is given. Our God is good and provides for us and gives us meaning in this life we live through his creation.

This lesson centers on the foundational Christian doctrine of justification by faith alone, contrasting the law's demand for perfect obedience with the gospel's promise of salvation through faith in Christ. It emphasizes that the law, as revealed in Scripture, requires complete and flawless adherence—something no human can achieve—thereby exposing the futility of self-justification through works. In contrast, the righteousness of faith declares that salvation is not earned but received by confessing Jesus as Lord and believing in His resurrection, with the Word of faith being near, in the heart and mouth. The preacher underscores that true faith arises only after the law has driven one to despair of self-righteousness, revealing the depth of human sin and the necessity of Christ's atonement. This message, vital for both historical and contemporary believers, warns against the subtle danger of moralism and self-reliance, affirming that any reliance on personal merit nullifies the gospel and leads to spiritual ruin. Ultimately, the sermon calls for a radical surrender to Christ alone as the sole basis of salvation, rooted in divine grace and not human effort.

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Salvation demands a perfect, precise and complete knowledge of the truth. The truth will set you free. The Jews and many today are ignorant of the Righteousness that God demands and seek to establish their own by their own ideas, experiences and works. All such are destined for judgment unless they repent of dead works and turn to life in Christ.

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Even though we know that God is sovereign in all things. Even though we know that salvation occurs only according to God's purpose of election; Paul's example for us is that we still pray for the lost. Doctrine and practice must always go together, else they are in vain.

Cooper Starnes - Westminster Confession Faith

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Cooper Starnes - Westminster Confession Faith

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Cooper Starnes - Matthew 2025

Cooper Starnes - Westminster Confession Faith