Timothy Keller Sermons Podcast by Gospel in Life

Jesus was about to come into Joseph’s life, and Joseph thought he was doing the right thing to arrange things so it wouldn’t happen. Joseph was going to dismiss Mary quietly. But the angel comes to Joseph and says, “Your problem is you’re a coward. Do not be afraid.” This passage shows us that you can’t be a Christian unless you have courage. Or put another way, to let Jesus into your life, to receive Jesus into your life, takes courage above all.  Another way to put it is you will not receive Jesus into your life unless you have the courage to accept three other things. They’re all here: three things Joseph had to accept. You can’t receive Christ unless you have 1) the courage to accept the world’s disdain, 2) the courage to accept the adventure of his lordship, and 3) the courage to admit you’re a sinner. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 21, 1997. Scripture: Matthew 1:18-24. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

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 undertstood 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 physical, 2) God has a knowledge of the sorrowful, and 3) God desires the relational. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 18, 1994. Series: The Nature of Faith. Scripture: Hebrews 2:14-18. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

In the Christmas stories, a theme that’s more important than you might think is the theme of exile and home. The book of Isaiah is filled with prophecies about a future messianic age brought by a future messianic king who would put all things right. Because Christians believe that messianic king was Jesus, we’re looking at these prophecies to help us grasp the richness of what Christmas means and who it was who was born in the manger.  Let’s take a look at Isaiah 35 to see 1) what the text means, 2) what Christmas means, and 3) what it means for how we actually live our lives. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 22, 2013. Series: Jesus, Our Hope (Advent). Scripture: Isaiah 35:1-10. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

The themes of Christmas, if grasped, are life-transforming. We’re looking at the book of Isaiah, at the prophesies of the messiah. Because Christians believe the messianic king that Isaiah prophesied was Jesus, we believe these prophecies help us understand the richness of the meaning of Christmas and who Jesus is.  Isaiah 11 tells us three things about this great prophesied king: 1) the justice of the king, 2) the wisdom of the king, and 3) the identity of the king. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 15, 2013. Series: Jesus, Our Hope (Advent). Scripture: Isaiah 11:1-10. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

What does Christmas mean? The Old Testament book of Isaiah helps us come to grips with the riches of Christmas. If I could put it in one sentence, it tells us that Christmas means the unexpected, ultimate light comes through the God-man, which can only be received by grace.  Let’s look at it: Christmas means 1) God does something unexpected, 2) the salvation has to do with the ultimate light, and 3) the hope you get can only be received as a gift of grace. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 8, 2013. Series: Jesus, Our Hope (Advent). Scripture: Isaiah 9:1-7. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

The end of a worship service is always about mission. A minister says, “Let us go forth to serve the world as those who love our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.” Then the people say, “Thanks be to God.”  Do you realize how significant this is? You are being sent out into the world to give your life in service, now reshaped by the knowledge that Jesus Christ is your Savior, and you’re filled with his love.  Let’s look at Psalm 67 to learn about 1) the fact of mission, 2) the character of mission, 3) the dynamic for mission, and 4) the consolation of mission. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 21, 2008. Series: Liturgy: What we do in Worship. Scripture: Psalm 67:1-7. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

What is a benediction? Is it a little perfunctory ceremony that helps everybody know it’s time to find your purse and get ready to leave? No. I’d like to show you tonight that the benediction is the meaning of your whole life.  If you understand the benediction, when it’s said to you, your whole life should flash before your eyes. A benediction is a blessing.  So let’s look at 1) what God’s blessing is, 2) how it comes, and 3) how it reshapes your life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 14, 2008. Series: Liturgy: What we do in Worship. Scripture: Numbers 6:22-27. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

This is a sermon on how to listen to sermons.  Psalm 19 is a great Psalm, and it can teach us a lot about what it means to listen to the Scripture be read and taught. How do we listen to the Scripture read and taught? We’re going to learn three things here: 1) we need a real word from God, 2) why we need that word, and 3) how to receive that word. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 7, 2008. Series: Liturgy: What we do in Worship. Scripture: Psalm 19:1-14. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Every week we gather for worship, and we move through the same order of service. But after a while, do we realize what we’re doing? We’re going to look at each of the elements of our services, so we can understand them and catch ourselves when we’re going through the motions. This week let’s look at the call to worship: what does it mean to be called to worship?  In Psalm 147, we can see 1) what we’re called to do, 2) why we’re called to do it, 3) how we’re called to do it, and 4) when we’re called to do it. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 24, 2008. Series: Liturgy: What we do in Worship. Scripture: Psalm 147:1-20. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Psalm 103 is about how to handle life in general. It, in a sense, gives you the key approach to handle all of life’s circumstances, all of life’s situations, no matter what they are. And at first, this key feels anticlimactic.  What does it say the whole problem of our hearts is? That we need to praise the Lord with our entire souls. How? By not forgetting his benefits. David is saying, “The main thing I need to do, the main thing you need to do, is to not forget.” I know that’s anticlimactic. But it’s because of ur word for remember is so much more shallow than the biblical and Hebrew concept. David is calling for something far deeper than mental recall, and he’s dealing with something far more transforming than just counting your blessings. We’re going to learn here 1) why we need to remember, 2) where we need to remember, 3) what we need to remember, and 4) how we need to remember. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 19, 2000. Series: Psalms – The Songs of Jesus. Scripture: Psalm 103:1-22. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

If we’ve experienced God as a God of grace, how does that change our attitude toward money? The early church was an economic subculture that was radically different from the culture around it. In fact wherever the early church is described, we see the Christians’ drastic generosity—so drastic that it seemed unreasonable to those outside the church. Why were they so different? The answer is an experience of God’s grace. Grace revolutionizes 1) our attitude toward money, 2) our procedure, and 3) the benefits of giving.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 8, 1992. Series: The Attributes of God. Scripture: Acts 4:32-37. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to make a gift to Gospel in Life this Giving Tuesday, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/tuesday.

Guilt and shame, having your heart broken under a sense of failure and general unworthiness—I feel this is probably more rampant in places like New York than anywhere else. Do you know why? Because we have so many successful people in New York, people who, in many ways are driven more acutely than other people by this fear of failure or unworthiness.  In Psalm 130, we see guilt and shame likened to a hole, to something we’ve sunk down in. And then we’re shown a way out that’s available for a person who’s in that hole of guilt and shame. And then we see a little bit about the process of how you climb out.  So let’s look at: 1) sinkhole of guilt and shame, 2) the rope that’s given to a person sinking in guilt and shame, and 3) the climb out. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 12, 2000. Series: Psalms – The Songs of Jesus. Scripture: Psalm 130:1-8. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Your first sound, our first sound, is a wail of fear. The baby comes out saying, “Why is it so cold? Who has a finger down my mouth? Who’s grabbing me? What’s going on?” That’s the way you come into the world. Fear, therefore, is maybe the most primal of all emotions.  In Psalm 3, David has something to be afraid of. He has literal armies after him, trying to kill him. But right in the middle of the psalm, he says he will not fear and he will sleep in the midst of this. He’s found a way of praying his fear so he’s able to handle it. What do we learn from David about fear and how to handle it? The answer is 1) there are two levels down into fear, and 2) there are four steps out. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 5, 2000. Series: Psalms – The Songs of Jesus. Scripture: Psalm 3:1-8; Genesis 15:1, 8. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

What do you do with your tears? This is a psalm about weeping, about suffering, about grief. If you were to break the 150 psalms into categories, one of the categories will will be lamentations: psalms of tears, psalms of weeping and grieving. There are many other kinds of psalms, but I’ll tell you, every commentator says there are more lamentations than any other kind. This is the biggest piece of the Psalter. Tears.  What do we learn here what to do with our tears? We’re told three things: 1) expect tears, 2) invest tears, and 3) pray your tears. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 27, 2000. Series: Psalms – The Songs of Jesus. Scripture: Psalm 39:12-13; 126:1-6. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

The anger, the fear, the hostility, the rawness, the white heat of the emotions expressed in the Psalms really just disturb people today. You look at it, and you say, “What is that doing in the Bible?” The answer is the psalmists are not discussing feelings, and they’re not expressing feelings. They’re praying their feelings. They’re processing their feelings in the presence of God.  What we’re going to look at today is doubt. Doubt always masquerades as more intellectual than it is, but doubt is a condition of the soul and the heart. And in Psalm 73, here’s a person filled with doubts, struggling with doubts about God and about faith. Let’s see 1) what’s the condition, 2) what’s the cause of the condition, and 3) what’s the cure for the condition. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 20, 2000. Series: Psalms – The Songs of Jesus. Scripture: Psalm 73:1-3; 12-26. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

If you want the flourishing, thriving life depicted in Psalm 112, you need to know the God of Psalm 111. They can’t be separated. They are linked. These two psalms are each 10 verses. Psalm 111 describes the great God, and Psalm 112 describes a great, happy human life. If you know the unshakeable God of Psalm 111, you become unshakeable yourself. To truly know the God of Psalm 111 leads to the life seen in Psalm 112.  Looking at Psalm 111 itself, we see a key link between knowing God and having a flourishing life. This psalm teaches about 1) a powerful, involved God, 2) a supernaturally changed life, and 3) the way to connect the power of God to your life.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 25, 2013. Series: Open My Lips: Studies in the Psalms. Scripture: Psalm 111. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Psalm 96 is an astonishingly happy psalm. It depicts the whole human race and even the trees, the earth, and the sea just filled with joy and rejoicing.  That actually raises a question. This isn’t the world the way we know it. Not everybody is filled with joy, and the world itself is a broken place with natural disasters, disease, and death. How could we get from where we are to what we see in this psalm? Is this nothing but just an inaccessible, crazy idea of a world like this, or is it possible to get to a world like this? The answer actually is in here in the links this psalm gives to the rest of the Bible. This psalm is a series of summons or invitations, and there are three basic ones that are being given to us here: 1) the call to see, 2) the call to sing, and 3) the call to rejoice in judgment. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 18, 2013. Series: Open My Lips: Studies in the Psalms. Scripture: Psalm 96. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

On the weekend before I had surgery for thyroid cancer, I wrestled with this question: “How do you face troubles with peace?” I came to realize it’s not petitionary prayer that helps you face troubles.  Of course the Bible is filled with petition, where you go to God and make your needs known. And you should do that. But the ultimate and main way to handle the troubles of life is not just through petitionary prayer, but through worship.  Psalm 95 is the classic text about worship. It tells us almost everything we need to know: 1) what is worship? 2) why should we worship? and 3) how can we worship? This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on July 7, 2002. Series: Psalms: Disciples of Grace. Scripture: Psalm 95:1-11. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Adoration is a practical skill, one we need to engage in if we’re going to grow into the people God designed us to be. Psalm 27 teaches us about individual, personal, contemplative adoration. And in the center of Psalm 27, it says, “one thing I ask, one thing I seek.” What is that one thing?  We learn three things from this psalm about this one thing: 1) why it’s so important, 2) what it is, and 3) how to do it. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on June 2, 2002. Series: Psalms: Disciples of Grace. Scripture: Psalm 27:1-14. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.

Psalm 81 tells us how to handle the wilderness times of life. It tells us how to use various spiritual disciplines as practical skills in order to handle our times of suffering, our times of pain, our times of difficulty.  There are four things we learn here: 1) life is a wilderness, 2) there’s a rock in the wilderness, 3) there’s honey in the rock, and 4) there’s something else that I’ll tell you when we get to it. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on May 19, 2002. Series: Psalms: Disciples of Grace. Scripture: Psalm 81. Today's podcast is brought to you by Gospel in Life, the site for all sermons, books, study guides and resources from Timothy Keller and Redeemer Presbyterian Church. If you've enjoyed listening to this podcast and would like to support the ongoing efforts of this ministry, you can do so by visiting https://gospelinlife.com/give and making a one-time or recurring donation.