Timothy Keller Sermons Podcast by Gospel in Life

When you become a Christian, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead comes into you spiritually, internally. You have the power to change. You have an unsurpassed power to change. So we have to ask ourselves right away, “Are we settling for too little?” I mean, how much have you changed so far? The power that raised Jesus from the dead, that broke the bands of death, is in you. Now, how does it actually work? Let’s look at 1) the signs of spiritual deadness, 2) the signs of spiritual life, and 3) how you move over from death to life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 12, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 5:13-25. 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.

Freedom is the greatest value in the modern Western world. The secular model of freedom is basically freedom from something. It says, “I am only free when there’s nothing in my way.” When people come to Christianity, they would like inspiration and help, but they don’t want to give up their freedom. Very often, Christians say to them, “You must give it up. God has a will,” but the Bible doesn’t come at it like that at all. The Bible instead is dripping with the language of freedom. So let’s look at what this text shows us about 1) the failure of secular freedom, and 2) the nature of real Christian freedom. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 5, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 5:5-18. 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.

How could the idea that you’re saved by grace alone be any incentive to live a good life? Paul says the gospel of salvation through free grace, not works, is actually a greater incentive to a life of honesty, sacrifice, and love than anything else. He’s talking about how we change the human heart, and he says the motivation behind what we do is all-important. Paul tells us 1) what the new motivation is, and 2) how the new motivation works. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 29, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 5:5-12. 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.

Most people think the job of religion is to call people into a life of morality. But Paul says that’s not what Christianity is at all. Gospel transformation is completely different than moral reformation. In Galatians 5, Paul says there are two different reasons you could obey God—and the reason for your obedience makes all the difference in the world. Paul tells us 1) there is a wrong reason for moral obedience, and it enslaves us, and 2) there is a whole other engine for obedience, and it is hope and love. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 22, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 5:1-12. 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’s the purpose of writing a letter to somebody? The purpose is to get something across. So when we read the Bible, we need to have the intellectual integrity to treat it the way we’d want our own communications treated. Galatians 4 is a text that many find difficult to read and interpret. What is Paul saying? What does he mean? But if we understand the context, it really is very simple in the end. If we look at Galatians 4, we’ll see 1) he talks about two sons, 2) then he talks about two covenants, and 3) then he gives two applications. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 15, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 4:21-31. 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 difference between a sword and a scalpel at first sight doesn’t seem that great. But you can either cut in order to defeat or in order to heal. The book of Galatians is counseling, and for Paul, truth is a scalpel. He’s not using truth to bludgeon, but to do surgery. And the reason this truth changed other people’s lives was because Paul brought the truth through the mode and channel of true friendship. We’re told three things in this passage about transforming friendships: 1) a friend has a vision for who God is making you, 2) a friend has a vision for Christ being formed in you, and 3) a friend is willing to go into labor pains for it all. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 8, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 4:21-31. 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 to be an agent of reconciliation and change and healing in the lives of others, Paul says something that applies to us all. Paul says the essence of his ministry was this: “become like me, for I became like you.” There are two sides to that sentence. Only by the power of God can you do both. But if you can do both, you can change people’s lives. Here’s what you need: 1) you need ministers, 2) you need the kind of ministers who understand the gospel, and 3) you need ministers who labor until Christ is formed in you. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 1, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 4:12-20. 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.

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? and 3) how can we be free? This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 22, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 4:8-20. 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.

On Today's episode of Gospel in Life, we're previewing the first episode of our new standalone limited podcast series: Cultivating a Healthy Marriage with Tim Keller. Cultivating a Healthy Marriage with Tim Keller is a short podcast series featuring the messages from the most popular sermon series of Dr. Keller’s time at Redeemer Presbyterian Church. Preached in 1991, this series was the basis for the bestselling book by Tim and Kathy Keller, The Meaning of Marriage. Whether you’re single, married, widowed, or divorced, through this podcast you’ll learn new ways to apply God’s wisdom about marriage to your life. To listen and subscribe, visit https://marriage.gospelinlife.com or search for Cultivating a Healthy Marriage wherever you listen to podcasts.

As a new Christian, I thought of salvation as taking things off of me: that my sins were taken off. But at the very same moment, there’s another part of that legal transaction: something is put on me. I’m adopted as God’s own son. Galatians tells us that because we’re legally adopted, we have an agent—it’s the Spirit. The Spirit is sent not into the world but into our hearts. And the Spirit comes to give not the objective status, which we already have, but the subjective experience of sonship. Let’s break it into three things: 1) what is promised, 2) what it’s like, and 3) how it comes. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 8, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 3:26-4:7. 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 gospel insists on putting two things together that no other religion tries to put together, that all other human categories of thought insist is impossible. How is it possible to have both law and grace in your life? It’s a striking apparent contradiction. In fact, if it doesn’t create some tension in you, you’ll never experience the glorious release Christianity can give. I’d like to pose the central question Paul asks in Galatians 3: is the law opposed to grace? I’d like to show you 1) the significance of the question and 2) the significance of the answer. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 25, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 3:19–29. 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.

I don’t think there’s any competition on this: the cross is the single most visible and recognizable symbol in human history. It’s everywhere. But what does it mean? Before Christ came, the cross was a gallows, a firing squad, a guillotine. All the cross meant was that you’d lost. It was not a symbol of strength—it was a symbol of weakness. Galatians 3 is perhaps the most complete picture on the meaning of the cross. Let’s look at 1) why the cross is necessary, 2) what actually happened on the cross, and 3) how the cross makes us different. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 18, 1998. Series: Galatians: New Freedom, New Family. Scripture: Galatians 3:10-14. 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.

Whenever we listen or read about marriage we bring our own filters. We have filters based on our experiences and cultures. So before we pick at this passage in Ephesians 5, let’s stand back and consider that the passage presents a view of marriage that may be challenging to our very filters. Because the biblical model of marriage is neither optimistic nor pessimistic about human nature, and it’s neither traditional nor modern. Let’s look at it. The model of marriage in this passage has three things to it: 1) a power, 2) a purpose, and 3) a pointer.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 16, 1998. Series: Ephesians – God’s New Society. Scripture: Ephesians 5:21-33. 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.

When we think of temptation, we tend to almost immediately think of physical kinds of sins. But there are a lot of other temptations. There’s temptation to pride, to despair, to dishonesty. Anything, whether it’s good or not, can become addicting—it becomes your master. That’s what temptation is about. Temptation is about something which may be good or may be bad, but it becomes your master, and therefore, it’s bad. Let’s look at 1) temptation and the devil, 2) the way of attack, and 3) the way of defense. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 22, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: Genesis 3:1-7; 39:6-12. 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.

When Jesus Christ came into the life of the demon-possessed man in Mark 5, it says the man sat at Jesus’ feet, clothed and in his right mind. That’s the result of Jesus’ resurrection power: self-control. All of us who look fairly polished on the outside realize, in many cases, our spirits are completely out of control. We look pretty well-manicured, but on the inside, we desperately need to have Christ’s power come into our lives so we can sit as his feet, clothed, and in our right minds. Let’s look at 1) the problem of self-control, 2) the counterfeit solution, and 3) the real self-control. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 15, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: Ephesians 2:1–3; Luke 11:14–26; 1 Corinthians 9:23–27. 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.

We all have a problem with self-control, right? You can probably think of some emotion or some habit you have trouble controlling. And if you can’t think of anything that’s out of control, your pride is out of control. The fruit of the Spirit is a singular word, which means it’s like a diamond with many facets. That’s very important. Because you can manufacture a kind of self-control that is nothing more than willpower, that has nothing to do with love or joy or peace. And that’s not self-control. Let’s look at 1) what self-control is, 2) what self-control is not, and 3) how to get self-control. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 8, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: Galatians 5:19-26. 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.

Goodness and faithfulness are greatly interrelated. They both have to do with integrity, with living honestly. The word integrity is related to integer—a whole number as opposed to a fraction. A person of integrity lives in a unified, not a fractured, way. But today we live in a fragmented world, in which one area of life has one set of values and another area has another set. What does it mean to have a truth-centered life? Let’s look at 1) what the Bible teaches about truth, and then 2) what the Bible teaches about getting the truth into your life, about becoming a person of goodness and faithfulness. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 25, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: 1 John 1:5-2:8. 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.

The Bible says one of the marks of a real Christian is that your love finds expression in deeds of kindness—especially toward those with material, physical, and economic problems. Kindness is loving deeds, doing something for someone out of love. And in a number of places, the Bible says a real Christian will care for the poor. It’s the Christian’s social concern, social responsibility. Let’s look at 1) the definition of kindness 2) the opposite of kindness 3) the counterfeit of kindness, and 4) how we cultivate kindness in our lives. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 11, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: 1 John 3:16-20. 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.

When the Bible says the fruit of the Spirit is patience, it’s saying a Christian is somebody who at last knows how to deal with anger. You know, anger is a scary thing. Almost all murders and wars start with anger. It’s a tremendously dangerous emotion. And this ability to deal with anger, to really release and remove it, to pray for enemies, to forgive people, to pray for oppressors, to repay evil with good is an essential sign of Christianity. Ephesians 4 shows us three things about anger: 1) anger in itself is not a sin, 2) anger usually is a sin, and 3) your motives are always impure. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 4, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: 1 John 3:11-20, Ephesians 4:26-32. 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.

When we talk about the fruit of the Spirit, love and joy seem like they’re in a higher league than patience. We think, “everybody gets impatient!”  But in James 5, it says impatience and grumbling is worthy of judgment. You may say, “Why?” But what do you think murder is? It’s just grumbles that were planted and watered and fertilized. Impatience is at the root of things.  Let’s look at 1) the danger of impatience 2) what patience is, 3) what patience is not, 4) the counterfeit of patience, and 5) how you develop a patient heart. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 25, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: James 5:7-16. 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.

A lot of Christians are cast down, losing their peace and joy because they don’t expect attacks on their peace and joy. We’re sad that we’re sad. We’re upset that we’re upset. We say, “it’s not supposed to be like this!” because we don’t have the proper expectations.  Before you became a Christian, your main enemy in life was God: someone who loved you, who was doing everything he could to wake you up. But the minute you make peace with God, instantly, all of God’s enemies declare war on you—and they’re not nice enemies.  We’re going to look at 1) what the Bible says about peace and joy, 2) our three enemies, and 3) the attacks on assurance.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 18, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: Philippians 4:4-9. 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.

When the Bible says joy comes in the morning, it doesn’t mean you’ll wake up every morning with a smile on your face. It means there’s a joy of such intensity in the Christian life that nothing can put it out.  A Christian will receive a joy of such intensity that no sorrow, in the end, can overwhelm it. Sorrow is always a temporary condition for a Christian, and joy is a permanent condition.  To look at the fruit of joy, let’s ask 1) what’s the definition of joy? 2) what’s the opposite of joy? 3) what’s the counterfeit of joy? and 4) how do we cultivate joy in our lives? This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 11, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: John 16:16-22. 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.

They say if you’ve been married long enough you start to look like each other. Whether or not that’s true in marriage, I know that’s true about God and you.  We’re being transformed into the image of his Son. Every fruit of the Spirit, every aspect of holiness comes from looking at God himself. We look now at 1) what it means to study the fruit of the Spirit, 2) why love is more important than anything else, 3) what the opposite of love is, 4) what the counterfeit of love is, and 5) how you develop love in your life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 4, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13. 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 a single acorn is not only the entire tree, but all the acorns on that tree and all the acorns on that tree and so on and so forth. It’s all already in that one acorn.  In the same way, a Christian already has the divine nature in them. When we talk about love, joy, peace, and patience, we’re not talking about how to import these into our hearts. No. The Bible says we must grow up into our salvation. So instead of saying, “Oh, I’ll never get there,” the question is: “When are you going to grow up?” We’re looking at this passage on the fruit of the Spirit as a whole. Galatians 5 shows us 1) there are two natures in every Christian, 2) what it means to live in the Spirit, and 3) how we can walk in the Spirit. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 7, 1990. Series: Fruit of the Spirit. Scripture: Galatians 5:16-25. 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 point of Robert Louis Stevenson’s book, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, surely is to make us look at ourselves and say, “Are we that bad? Is the evil in us that evil?” Therefore, another question immediately rises up. Since this story is inspired by the Bible, is this the biblical view of human nature?  On the one hand, Stevenson is profoundly right about human nature, but in another way, he is profoundly wrong. The biblical view of human nature is more pessimistic and more optimistic than any other view I have ever heard of.  Looking at Romans 7, we can see 1) how this pessimistic view is right, 2) how this pessimistic view is wrong, and 3) how to defeat evil and sin in your life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 24, 1997. Series: The War Between Your Selves. Scripture: Romans 7:1-25. 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.

All of life is a battle between two selves, but there’s a war before you become a Christian that’s different from the war that happens after you become a Christian.  When you become a Christian, you don’t move from warfare to peace. You move from a battle you cannot win to a battle you cannot lose. To understand the difference is extremely important.  If you look at Romans 7, you’ll see 1) the battle you can’t win, 2) the battle you can’t lose, and 3) how you make the transition. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on August 17, 1997. Series: The War Between Your Selves. Scripture: Romans 7:1-25. 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 Psalm 73, Asaph is mad at God. He’s been living right, but everything is going wrong. Yet all kinds of abusive people are having great lives. Life seems unjust. Asaph’s just about to chuck his faith. Yet at the end, he’s able to say in his pain, “God is always good.”  I’ll tell you, if you’re trying to live a decent life, this is going to happen to you. At some point, you’re going to say, “God, why are you letting this happen? You’re not running my life right. You’re not running history right.” It’s going to happen. How will you handle it?  How does Asaph do it? He goes through a number of steps: 1) he grabbed hold of a negative, 2) he entered the sanctuary for understanding, 3) he saw the big picture, and 4) he asked the ultimate question. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 28, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 73. 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.

A lot of people are mad at God. People who believe. People who don’t believe. And people who don’t know what they believe. And in Psalm 73, we see Asaph get mad at the way God seems to be mishandling the world. Asaph has been living a self-controlled, compassionate life, but everything is going wrong. On top of that, he sees all sorts of people who live abusive, immoral lives, and they’re having a great life. Yet we’re told that Asaph finally comes to the conclusion that God, in spite of it all, is good.  How does he get there? We’re going to look at this psalm over two weeks. This week I want to show you 1) the situation he was in, 2) how he escaped it, and 3) how he finally came to say, “God is good, no matter what happens to me.” This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 21, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 73. 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.

Jesus’ teaching about money here is triggered by an event: a Pharisee gets upset that Jesus didn’t wash his hands before he ate his food.  The ceremonial washings of the Old Testament were visual aids for the idea that you need to approach God with a clean heart. But the Pharisees had turned religion into a matter of externalities. Jesus slams that whole idea. He refuses to emphasize the external over the internal, but he also refuses to pit the external against the internal. Instead, Jesus says true religion is living externally out of an inner reality.  Jesus applies this to the issue of financial giving, teaching us three things about our attitude toward our possessions and our giving: 1) there’s an external aspect, 2) there’s an internal aspect, and 3) there’s a spiritual motor that energizes and drives both. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 14, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Luke 11:37-42. 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.

Everyone points to a different reason for why the city has problems. The futurologists will say, “Technology has doomed the city. We don’t need to live in proximity anymore.” The liberals will say, “Racism has doomed the city.” The conservatives will say, “Big government and taxes have doomed the city.” Many Christians will say, “God has doomed the city for its wickedness.” But what the Bible says about the city is far more optimistic and far more pessimistic than anything you’ll find in the newspapers. It’s far more hopeful and yet far more realistic than any of the defenders or the detractors of the modern city. The Bible teaches 1) that God invented the city, 2) why God invented the city, and 3) that God sends us into the city. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 7, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Genesis 11, Proverbs 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.

Guilt is a lot like an iceberg. You don’t see much above the surface, but if you really look, you’ll see it’s under everything. So how do you deal with a guilty conscience?  In Psalm 51, David has been plunged—through the shock of recognizing the magnitude of evil he’s done—into the depths. Imagine the guilt, the shame, the horror, the self-hatred. He’s plunged into an emotional and spiritual dungeon. And yet this psalm is a record of his rescue. There’s no good human explanation for how he got out. But he got out. Here’s how he did it: he made two critical distinctions. He learned 1) the distinction between remorse and real repentance, and 2) the distinction between a reprieve and regeneration. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 31, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 51. 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.

Of the articles and books I survey on worry or anxiety, they almost always say, “The things you’re worried about may never happen. So don’t think about them.” But in Psalm 27, David does the opposite: he visualizes the worst things that can happen. Why? Because he wants to have a strategy of life that can stand up to anything.  Psalm 27 has a refreshing realism, even though it’s full of tremendous promises. It shows that you can have a way of dealing with anger, anxiety, and fear that assumes the worst things may and can happen.  How can you have a strategy that will enable you to face any of stresses of life? By 1) dwelling, 2) gazing, and 3) seeking. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 24, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 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.

A Newsweek cover story said that after a 30-year spree, our entire society is waking up with a monstrous hangover, facing a values vacuum. It said that we realize unlimited personal freedom is not the way to build a society, but now we face the question of whose values we should use. If you think the Bible’s answer to the values vacuum is simply “Let’s get back to traditional values,” you don’t understand how penetrating and nuanced and sophisticated the biblical answer is.  What is the biblical answer to the search for values? Psalm 19 tells us three things: 1) so-called “moral values” must be based on universal moral absolutes, 2) submission to God’s moral absolutes do not enslave—they liberate, and 3) God’s moral absolutes will destroy you unless they have assumed the right role in your life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 17, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 19. 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.

When it comes to building up identity and self-esteem, I’m afraid Americans are very pragmatic—and our pragmatism gets to us. Our books and articles say if you want self-esteem, you should lose weight, change your friends, switch your career, and so on. But nobody asks why. They don’t like to think about the underlying theory. It’s important to understand that there are certain reigning theories of identity formation. Unless you recognize them and analyze them, you’ll just pick them up like a virus.  Let’s divide our inquiry into two parts: 1) what the world says is the way to find out who you are and 2) what the Bible says is the way to find out who you are. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 10, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 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.

A fool can be brilliant and a fool can be stupid. Foolishness is not a function of your intelligence. Foolishness is a function of how you use your intelligence.  The Bible says every human being is born with a heavy streak of foolishness. It’s like a deposit. It’s foolishness, according to the Bible, that destroys our sense of God’s reality. And it’s a common reason why people have trouble believing God is real. The Bible tells us 1) foolishness is a proud willfulness that keeps us from learning, 2) foolishness is a superficiality that makes it impossible to see our own heart commitments as alternatives to believing in God, and 3) foolishness can’t understand grace. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 3, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 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.

There is a thirst in the human heart that will not be denied. It cannot be denied. That thirst is for transcendence. Transcendence is intimacy with the infinite. Psalm 63 is about the search for transcendence. It says there is irreducible knowledge, there is terrible thirst, and there’s only one resolution for it.  Psalm 63 tells us 1) the human heart needs transcendence and 2) how the human heart can find transcendence. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 26, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 63. 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.

A plant without roots is at best a tumbleweed. Is a tumbleweed freer than an oak tree? Yeah, it’s free to be blown about forever.  There is what the Bible calls a rootlessness and a weightlessness about our society right now. Many of the problems you face today are that you’ve been affected deeply by this weightlessness we experience in our culture and society.  The roots of this rootlessness were addressed long ago in Psalm 1, which tells us 1) the diagnosis of rootlessness and 2) the prescription for rootlessness. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 19, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 1. 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.

Have you in this modern world learned how to become happy and stay happy? I hope you don’t think that’s a trivial question. Because if you read the psychology books, the urban planning books, the biochemistry books, the political science books, they’re really about this problem: we’re not happy. How can we be happy?  The Bible has always said the issues that make you happy or unhappy are profoundly cosmic and spiritual. In Psalm 1, we see 4 principles: 1) happiness is possible, 2) happiness is fundamental, not superficial, 3) happiness can never be found directly, and 4) happiness is something you choose. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 12, 1993. Series: Modern Problems; Ancient Solutions. Scripture: Psalm 1. 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.

Jesus, in Matthew 18, uses a word for conversion that means to turn completely around and face in a whole new direction. That’s a perfect image of what Christian conversion really is.  Christian conversion is a radical inner transformation. But it’s not so much a replacing of what you are as a re-facing of what you are. Your temperament doesn’t go away; your culture doesn’t go away. But everything you are is now lived on a whole new basis. The case study of Cornelius the centurion teaches us four important facts. Christian conversion comes 1) through God’s initiative, 2) through the challenge to religion, 3) through the transformation of the Holy Spirit, and 4) through the words of the gospel. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 30, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 10:27-47. 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.

Christianity was originally never understood as a set of teachings that one took on. Christianity was a power that took you up. It completely turned you inside out, transformed you from the inside.  The classic example is the conversion of Paul. Paul was an abusive, violent zealot. He went from someone who was deeply unhappy and restless to someone who was utterly unflappable, absolutely content. How? A radical, deep conversion.  We all need to know how to live deeply converted lives. And though Paul’s conversion is dramatic, it shows three things involved in every conversion: 1) an untame God, 2) a stubborn fact, and 3) a radical relationship. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 23, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 9:1-19. 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.

Conversion is a radical change of life. And in its early days, Christianity grew through conversions. It spread so rapidly that it changed a hostile society completely. What does it mean to become a Christian? By looking at the conversions in Acts, we can see what Christianity really is.  In this passage, the conversion of an Ethiopian, we learn three things: 1) who converts, 2) the context of conversion, and 3) the key instrument conversion uses. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 16, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 8:26-40. 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.

Christianity was born into a culture that was every bit as resistant and unsympathetic to its claims as ours is. So how did its message come into the lives of people and actually change them?  In Acts, we have more case studies of conversion than anywhere else in the Bible. And in this passage, Luke chooses three to show us both how incredibly different and yet how incredibly similar Christian conversions can be.  What does it mean to be a Christian, and how do you become a Christian? 1) Lydia is a case of the gospel for the religious, 2) the slave girl is a case of the gospel for the oppressed, and 3) the jailer is a case of the gospel for the secular. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 9, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 16:13-34. 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 biggest problem people have in believing in God is probably the problem of evil and suffering.  In the Greek imagination, the voyage was a metaphor for your life’s journey, and a storm was a metaphor for the evil and suffering and tragedies that come upon us. In this passage in Acts, Luke is in a boat, and he includes this account to teach us about the problems of evil and suffering. Let’s take a look at what he teaches under three headings: 1) the paradox of the storm, 2) the product of the storm, and 3) the presence in the storm. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 2, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 27:15-32. 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.

Christianity was born into a society hostile to its claims. And the claim that was most revolting to that society is also what our society sees as the most repugnant: the shocking claim that salvation is found in no one else. It’s critical to realize this claim was as implausible in the Greco-Roman world as it is in ours. The Roman Empire was every bit as religiously pluralistic as our society, if not more. If they were as revolted as we were, why did so many believe it?  Acts 4 shows us four important things: 1) the claim was an implication, not arrogation, 2) the claim is no more exclusive than the claim of religious relativism, 3) this exclusive claim led to a transformation of identity, and 4) this exclusive claim led to the most inclusive human community the world had ever seen. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 26, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 4:8-14, 31-37. 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 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 culture in which Christianity was born was every bit as skeptical of the claims of Christianity as ours is. But the case for Christianity was made so strongly that skeptical people believed in numbers so great that it changed the entire Roman culture.  There’s no better place to see the case that changed the whole Roman Empire than the book of Acts. Within it, there are a number of spots where Paul or Peter make the case, including this famous spot where Paul speaks to the intellectual elites on Mars Hill in the Areopagus.  This text shows three aspects to the persuasive power of gospel: 1) the cultural, 2) the intellectual, and 3) the personal. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 19, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 17:16-34. 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.

It’s a simple fact that in the Greco-Roman world, the claims of Christianity were found every bit as implausible, if not more, than people find them now. So why did so many people believe?  Fortunately, we have a case study in Theophilus. How does a cultured, intellectually sophisticated person living in a culture that’s hostile to the basic claims of Christianity come to believe Christianity is true? The answer in a nutshell: the resurrection.  Whether we already believe or aren’t sure we believe, because of the resurrection we can know three things: 1) the truth is out there, 2) the truth is up there, and 3) the truth is in there.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 12, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Acts 1:1-11. 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.

When the Jewish exiles got to Babylon, they found a huge city—hostile, big, brutal—and it was filled with other exiles, with different people groups and radically different views. Our culture is not so different. Liberals feel our country is so conservative that they’re pulling their hair out, and conservatives feel our country is so liberal that they’re pulling their hair out. Both groups feel like exiles. Millions of ethnic minorities feel like exiles. So how do you respond to a city that’s hostile to your views? How do you live in a fragmented society?  God’s answer to the Jewish exiles is astounding. In it, we see three things: 1) wrong ways to relate to the city, 2) God’s way to relate to the city, and 3) how to get the power to do it. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 5, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Jeremiah 29:4-14. 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.

We’re not at home. We live in a world that doesn’t sustain or support the deepest needs of our hearts. Martin Heidegger (a fascist sympathizer) and Karl Marx (the father of Communism) were very different, prominent thinkers; yet, they both agreed that we can’t understand the human condition without the concept of alienation. Of course, that immediately raises the question, why wouldn’t we feel at home here?  The prophet Jeremiah gives us a lot of insight: 1) why we long for a home, 2) how we can get home, and 3) what life there will be like. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 28, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Jeremiah 31:10-17; 31-34. 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 a culture where people really don’t know who they are and what life’s about—in a fragmented culture like ours—the fastest way to still feel good about ourselves is romance. It’s the ultimate philosophical narcotic.  “I don’t know what life is about, but when I’m with her or him, I feel somehow life is significant.” Do you see? It’s an end run. That’s the reason why in all fragmented cultures, romance and sex and marriage can either be the ultimate fatal detour or a clue to how to find your way home.  Jeremiah tells us about 1) an incredible offer: the ultimate lover; 2) the problem with the offer: that we’re faithless lovers; and 3) the resolution: a redeemed love relationship. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 21, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Jeremiah 2:31-36; 3:12-16. 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 a fragmented culture like ours, identity formation is a challenge. We decide our own goals and standards, and we get our sense of worth from whether we can achieve them. Jeremiah shows us that there’s something profoundly disordered and sick about the way in which we form our identities. In a traditional culture, where identities and roles are assigned, it might be hard to recognize this. But in our culture, where we’re actively aware of identity formation, we can better see what Jeremiah means. Jeremiah shows us 1) how identities are formed, 2) why our identities are sick, 3) a glimpse of a cured identity, and 4) the medicine that can cure it. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 14, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Jeremiah 9:21-26. 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.

We live in a fragmented culture. There’s no consensus about the big questions of what’s right and wrong and true. Jeremiah is a prophet in this same situation—he lived and wrote in a fragmented culture.  One of the challenges of a fragmented culture is living in the cafeteria of different worldviews, religions, and systems of thought. It’s typical to respond by saying, “I don’t think anybody has the answer.” But Jeremiah shows us that this very statement is ignorant of how the heart works. Jeremiah shows us that we need to see three things about the human heart: 1) the radical faith of every heart, 2) the radical flaw in every heart, and 3) the radical cure for every heart. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 7, 2003. Series: The Necessity of Belief. Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5-17. 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.

Jesus Christ says not just “I was resurrected,” but “I am the resurrection.” Present tense. He comes after his resurrection with his arms full of newness.  I don’t know why we get into gift-giving at Christmas—I think we ought to be getting into it at Easter. Because as soon as Jesus Christ shows up risen from the dead, he is giving out all kinds of gifts of newness.  Let’s look at these gifts and divide them into two parts: 1) there is the gift of faith, and 2) there are all the rest of the gifts that come out of that. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 15, 1990. Scripture: John 20:10-29. 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.

We’ve been looking at the life of Jesus and we come now to the risen Jesus. At the end of the gospel of Luke, the risen Jesus does four things that change the lives of his disciples forever. And because he’s the risen Jesus, he can do the very same things for us right now.  Jesus 1) answers the doubts of their minds by arguing with them, 2) satisfies the needs of their hearts by eating with them, 3) reforges the direction of their lives by sending them, and 4) shows them his hands and his feet. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 20, 2003. Series: The Meaning of Jesus Part 3; Seeing Him. Scripture: Luke 24:36-49. 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 night Jesus was betrayed has a theme: darkness, night. Right in the middle of the passage, Jesus makes an odd statement: “But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.” What that must mean is the physical darkness is a representation of something deeper.  There’s a darkness that blinds the eyes, and then there’s a darkness that blinds the heart and the mind and the soul. It’s a spiritual darkness. This is the thing Jesus came to deal with. Because he came to deal with it, there’s a solution for it.  There are three incidents that happened in the physical dark. The first two tell us about our condition, and the third tells us what Jesus has come to do about it. The incidents: 1) the soldiers reject Jesus, 2) the disciples reject him, and 3) even his Father rejects him. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 13, 2003. Series: The Meaning of Jesus Part 3; Seeing Him. Scripture: Luke 22:39-64. 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.

One of the great questions of history is, “Why in the world did the early Christians adopt the cross as their main symbol?”  All the other founders of the great religions died old and successful. In absolute contrast, you have Jesus, who dies at age 33, ignominiously, in agony, abandoned by everyone. But on the night before he died, Jesus gave his disciples the interpretation, the meaning of his death on the cross, and when it was all over, it changed them and the world.  Jesus tells us four life-changing principles about his death: 1) Jesus’ death is the center of history, 2) Jesus’ death is the foundation for a radically new, profoundly different community, 3) Jesus’ death is the solution to the great mystery, and 4) Jesus’ death is appropriated personally. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 6, 2003. Series: The Meaning of Jesus Part 3; Seeing Him. Scripture: Luke 22:14-34. 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 last week of Jesus’ life addresses not just our minds or our wills, but our hearts. We are to see Jesus, to meet Jesus.  As Luke shows us the last days of Jesus’ life, all the doctrines and themes will be narratively depicted in the most vivid way. They’re driven home so we can really see Jesus and have an existential encounter with him.  Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem shows us who he is, what he can do for us, why he can do it, and how he can do it. In other words, it shows us 1) he’s the actual king, 2) he’s the transformational king, 3) he’s the paradoxical king, and 4) he’s the confrontational king. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 30, 2003. Series: The Meaning of Jesus Part 3; Seeing Him. Scripture: Luke 19:28-40; 45-48. 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 ask the question, “Why should a believer in the gospel of Jesus Christ be passionately involved with the poor?” this text gives you the answers.  Isaiah 61 is the last of the Servant songs, a prophecy about the Servant of the Lord. And Jesus Christ preached from this in his first sermon. When Jesus reads this, he’s saying, “This is the essence of my mission. I have come to bring good news for the poor.” What does that mean?  The three reasons why a believer in the gospel of Jesus Christ should be deeply involved with the life of the poor are 1) because of the future, 2) because of the present, and 3) because of the past.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 28, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 58:6-10. 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.

This is a text of realism. There are many promises in the Bible about the great blessings Jesus’ salvation brings. In Isaiah 57, we have a reminder that we still live in a world filled with tragedy, difficulty, and suffering.  The salvation we get from Jesus is by no means an exemption from the same brokenness that everyone else in the world is experiencing. Rather, the salvation is wonderful because it gives us the resources to face the brokenness in a way we never could without it.  In this chapter, let’s look at 1) what we face in life as Christians, 2) how we should try to face it, and 3) why we can be assured that we’ll be able to. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 21, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 57:12-21. 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.

For some, when they hear that salvation is absolutely free, their first response is to say, “If I really believed that, then I wouldn’t have any incentive to live a good life.”  To that, I would say, “If, when you lose all fear of being smacked by God, you lose all incentive to live a good life, then the only incentive you ever had was fear. You need a better incentive.” See, if you realize the implications of the costly love of Jesus, it’s going to change your whole life. Isaiah 56 shows that when we receive salvation 1) it creates a new concern for living justly in the world, 2) it creates a new kind of community of believers who are absolutely equal before God and radically accepting of differences, and 3) we get an everlasting name that will never be cut off.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 14, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 56:1-8. 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.

There are two pictures of two different women in Isaiah 54. And they teach us something miraculous. These last chapters of Isaiah are about a figure called the Servant of the Lord who is going to bring God’s salvation to the world. The New Testament writers identify Jesus Christ as the Servant of the Lord. And Isaiah 54 talks about the salvation he brings. From the two pictures in this passage, we learn about 1) miraculous births, 2) a miraculous marriage, and 3) the kind of miraculous life that flows from them. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 28, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 54:1-10. 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.

Isaiah 52 is the best chapter in the whole Bible to explain what happened on the cross. We know that because the New Testament writers were constantly referring back to it. It was the basis for their understanding of what happened on the cross.  As I stand as a preacher before this text, I not only see too much in it to tell you, I feel too much about it to express to you. Therefore, I want to give you a due sense of the solemnity of this text. I want you to exercise the mental equivalent of taking your shoes off, because this is a holy place. Looking at each of the five stanzas, it teaches us to 1) understand the mixture, 2) accept the ordinariness, 3) realize the magnitude of the love, 4) commit to justice, 5) live out of and live off of the principle. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 21, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 52:13-53:12. 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 did Jesus come into the world to do?  In the final chapters of Isaiah, a mysterious figure called the Servant of the Lord is prophesied. This figure is going to come into the world and bring God’s salvation. And the New Testament writers identify this prophesied Servant of the Lord as Jesus.  Isaiah 50 is the third of the Servant songs, and it 1) tells us about the life we ought to live, 2) shows us where to get the power to live that life, and then 3) explains why that power works. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 14, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 50:4-11. 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.

Isaiah 49 gives a sweeping, panoramic view of God’s salvation. But immediately following that promise, there’s a fascinating skeptical response. This is the second of the Servant songs, a prophecy about the Servant of the Lord, who the New Testament writers identify as Jesus. In it, it shows that there’s a salvation soon… and then eventually… and then ultimately. But to this view, Israel skeptically says, “There are all these promises of loving action, but I don’t feel loved.” And God responds. Let’s look at these verses to see 1) a painful question, 2) an answer to the question, 3) a cure for the pain. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 7, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 49:1-16. 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.

Isaiah prophesies about a mysterious figure called the Servant of the Lord. In the New Testament, the writers identify the Servant of the Lord with Jesus Christ.  These prophecies tell us some things about Jesus, about his work, about what he brings, and about ourselves that we learn nowhere else. Many of the prophecies are called songs, the servant songs. Let’s introduce ourselves to this servant, and therefore, to what this tells us about Jesus Christ. The first of the servant songs is in Isaiah 42. We see depicted here 1) a servant king, 2) a healing king, and 3) a suffering king. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 31, 2010. Series: The Songs of the Servant (from Isaiah). Scripture: Isaiah 42:1-9. 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 thought when you became a Christian you were leaving the fight to get into peace and tranquility, Paul says you were wrong. The Christian life is a fight. But now you have divine resources.  We come now to the last piece of the armor of God: “the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” At the beginning and at the end of talking about how to live a victorious Christian life, Paul talks about the Bible. It shows that everything we do in putting on the armor is a matter of taking Scripture and digesting it, applying it, working it out.  Let’s look at how 1) the truth is in the beginning of the armor, 2) the truth is at the end of the armor, and 3) how to take it up. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 12, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-18. 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 Bible, salvation is a broader term than what we usually use in the Christian church. We’re looking at the armor of God, and we turn now to another piece: the helmet of salvation. A lot of churches use the word salvation in the past tense: “I’ve been saved,” or “When were you saved?” If you’re accustomed to this, you might get confused when you see that often in the Bible, the word salvation for Christians is used in the present or future tense.  Let’s look at: 1) the past tense of salvation, 3) the present tense of salvation, 3) the future tense of salvation, and 4) how to put it on. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on April 5, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-18. 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.

Fiery arrows do not come all throughout the battle. When do they come? Right when you’ve decided to storm the stronghold of the enemy.  We’re looking at the armor of God—it’s an illustration Paul uses as a way of saying we have everything we need to meet the battles of life, but we must make use of those resources. And in looking at the shield of faith, we see that the more we decide to get our lives together, the more likely we are to find fiery arrows coming at us. This passage on the shield of faith teaches us: 1) God lets Satan send us fiery trials, 2) we should expect fiery trials, and 3) faith is not a passive thing. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 29, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-18. 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.

If you’re trying to do anything more important than to just get ahead in life, you’ll know the shield of faith is extremely important. Because let’s face it: the enemy attacks at the front line.  Your front line is the place where you go out on a limb to do something because you know it’ll make a difference—perhaps in this neighborhood, this city. When you go to the front line, there are all sorts of flying missiles with your name on them. That’s the reason we’re talking about this piece of armor: the shield of faith. Let’s look at 1) what it is, 2) when you need it, and 3) how to put it on. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 22, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20. 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.

Paul says a Christian should be characterized by readiness, a spiritual buoyancy that comes from the use of the gospel of peace.  We’re looking at the armor of God and we’re in the third part of our examination of the shoes and this one little phrase about the gospel of peace. There are three basic parts this phrase teaches us: 1) there is a joy through the gospel, 2) that brings peace with God, and 3) that brings peace with people. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 8, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-18. 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.

When Paul talks about shoes, he’s talking about a kind of spiritual athleticism.  The idea behind the armor of God is that God has given us all sorts of things we aren’t using. The shoes were part of the armor, and the shoes of the Roman soldier had to be gripping, tough, and light. The only kind of shoes in our culture that need these qualities are athletic shoes.  We’re going to continue our look at the shoes of the readiness of the gospel of peace by looking at 1) what is spiritual athleticism, 2) what you have to have for spiritual athleticism, and 3) how to develop spiritual athleticism. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on March 1, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:14-18. 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.

Some of you may be surprised that when Paul thinks about armor, he lists the shoes.  Paul goes through the pieces of equipment that a Roman soldier would wear. It’s an illustration on how to live the Christian life, and it gets at a balance that is critical to understand: the balance of how much of the Christian life is your exertion and how much is God’s working in you. To understand this particular piece of armor, we have to ask ourselves a couple of questions about the footwear of a Roman soldier: 1) what role did shoes have? 2) what do the shoes represent? and 3) what’s the gospel of peace? This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 23, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20. 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.

When you fail, when people accuse you, when people reject you, how do you defend yourself? How do you look yourself in the mirror?  We all have a problem of feeling unpresentable, of deeply seeking to be examined and approved. In Ephesians 6, Paul talks about the breastplate, about the fact that we all have to have a righteousness to cover our hearts. We have to have some way of defending ourselves against accusation.  In continuing our look at the breastplate of righteousness, let’s look at 1) the false solution that is the secular way, 2) the false solution that is the religious way, and 3) how to put on the real remedy. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 16, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20. 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.

If you’re on your back and you’re a Christian, it’s because there are resources in your faith that you’re not using. Paul exhorts Christians to take the benefits and resources in the gospel, and to not just believe in them but to use them—so that in day-to-day challenges you’re able to stand. Each piece of the armor of God is one of those benefits, and we’re looking now at the breastplate of righteousness. In this series, we’ve talked about what this righteousness is not. Let’s continue our inquiry now and ask two questions: 1) what is this righteousness? and 2) how do you put it on as a breastplate?  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 9, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20. 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.

When you become a Christian, there’s a sense in which you receive all of the blessings and all of the privileges and power and benefits instantly. But there’s another sense in which you don’t.  You’ve received the armor when you became a Christian, but then the process of growing in grace is actually a process of sticking each piece on, piece by piece. We’re continuing our look at the armor of God by looking at 1) what it means to put on the belt of truth, and then, 2) what it means to understand the breastplate of righteousness. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on February 2, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-20. 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.

The armor of God is the benefits, the privileges, and the freedoms you have in the gospel.  To put on the armor of God means to get a new mindset. It’s to look at yourself and look at the world in a new way—through those truths and through those freedoms.  Let’s continue our look at 1) what the armor of God is. Then we’ll turn to the first item of armor, the belt of truth: 2) what it is, and 3) how to put it on. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 26, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-18. 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.

What are we supposed to do so we don’t lead defeated lives? Ephesians 6 tells us about spiritual warfare, about the problems that get thrown at us. And it also tells us about our arsenal, the full armor of God. We’re now going to look not so much at what is being thrown at us, but at what we can do to respond to it, how we can defend ourselves.  We’re beginning a series on the full armor of God, looking at 1) what is is and 2) how to put it on. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on January 19, 1992. Series: Spiritual Warfare – The Armor of God. Scripture: Ephesians 6:10-18. 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.

You make or break your life on the basis of your choices. In Hebrew Scriptures, the word for guidance is usually derived from the word for rope because the ropes were the method of navigation for sailors. They used ropes to lower or move or raise the sails. Without them, they’d be blown totally off course. So the question is how do you get God’s guidance? How do you get God’s navigation, so that when you have all these choices, you know the right course to take?  By looking at these proverbs we can see 1) the guidance God does, 2) the guidance God gives, and 3) the guidance God purchases for us. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 12, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 11:3; 12:5, 15; 15:22; 16:1-4, 9, 25, 33; 21:5; 27:1. 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.

We all at certain times have a lot of trouble dealing with the deep, conflicting, confusing, powerful, sometimes warring dynamic impulses and feelings that just roll through our hearts.  Sometimes we don’t feel we have any power over it. We don’t know how we got to feeling like that. We don’t know what to do about it. We need wisdom with regard to the complex realities of the inner being, the inner life, or what we would today call the psychological life. Proverbs shows us that we won’t be wise unless we understand 1) the priority of the inner life, 2) the complexity of the inner life, 3) the solitude of the inner life, and 4) the healing of the inner life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 5, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 12:25; 13:12; 14:10, 13, 30; 15:4,13-14; 16:2; 18:14; 28:1. 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.

We’re looking at qualities you must have in order to live a wise life. Today, we come to self-control.  A man or woman without self-control is not going to live a wise life, is not going to make wise choices. They’re going to mess up their lives, and they’re going to mess up the lives of people around them.  We learn three things from Proverbs about self-control: we learn 1) the problem of self-control, 2) the principle of self-control, and 3) the practice of self-control. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 28, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 18:10; 23:19-21; 25:28; Titus 2:11-14. 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.

Anybody who reads the book of Proverbs will see how often the book talks about the subject of work.  It talks positively about work under the heading of “diligence.” It talks negatively about work under the heading of “sluggard” or “sluggardliness.”  Proverbs says if you want to have a fulfilled human life, you have to do four things regarding work: you have to 1) do your work, 2) love your work, 3) re-narrate your work, and 4) redeem your work. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 21, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 8:1-4; 10:4-5; 12:10-11; 15:19; 22:29; 27:18. 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.

Americans are how-to oriented. We want a technique. But Proverbs doesn’t give methods for wise decisions. Instead, it says, “Here’s the kind of person you have to become to make wise decisions.”  And here is the one character quality that’s most crucial for becoming a wise person. Over and over, the Bible says, “If you think you’re wise, you’re a fool; but if you’re aware of your foolishness, you’re on your way to becoming wise.” This is about pride and humility. We’re going to learn three things from these texts: 1) the diagnosis of pride (what it is), 2) the destructiveness of pride (what it does), and 3) the antidote for pride. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 14, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 11:2, 12; 13:10; 15:25, 33; 16:18-19; 21:4; 28:26. 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.

Very basic to the development of wisdom is the ability to understand and channel the deep currents of our hearts. The book of Proverbs looks at the subject of wisdom. And in these passages, we come to a theme the Bible says is very important to understand: envy.  Let’s look at three things: 1) how to understand envy, 2) why to deal with envy, and 3) where to take your envy. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 7, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 23:17-18; Psalm 73:1-3, 20-26. 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.

You will have a mess of a life if you only follow the rules and don’t have actual wisdom in the area of money. Wisdom is not less than being moral and good; it’s much more. It’s knowing the right choice in the majority of life situations that moral rules don’t address. People who only look to the rules in the area of money are going to be destructively unwise in their lives. Proverbs shows three things you need to know to be wise in the area of money and possessions: 1) the power of money, 2) the reasons for the power of money, and 3) how to break the power of money and use it in your life. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 31, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 10:15-16; 11:1, 4, 24, 26; 13:21, 23; 30:8-9. 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 order to be wise, we have to learn how to understand and manage the power of sexuality.  Wisdom is not less than being moral and good, but it’s quite a bit more. It’s knowing the right decision to make in the vast majority of life situations that the moral rules don’t address. If we’re going to be wise with regard to sex, we have to know three things: 1) why and how we tend to undervalue sex, 2) why and how we tend, at the same time, to overvalue sex, and 3) how we can solve that. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 24, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 5:15-19; 11:16, 22; 30:18-20. 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.

If you’re going to live a wise life and have a discerning heart, you need to understand anger.  Wisdom is knowing the right decision in the vast majority of life situations that the moral rules don’t address. And in order to be wise, you need to be able to understand and handle anger—not only in yourself, but in other people as well.  There are four things we need to learn about anger: 1) its dangerous power, 2) its basic goodness, 3) why it goes wrong, and 4) how it can be healed. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 17, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 14:29-30; 15:1, 18; 16:32; 19:11, 19; 24:28-29; 25:21-22. 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.

One of the main themes of the Bible is that the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. But what does that mean?  There’s a place in Job where God shows how important this term is when he says, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is none like him in all the earth; a man who fears God and shuns evil.” It’s obvious the term “fear of the Lord” is something that summarizes everything we’re supposed to do and be. So why is it important and what in the world is it?  From these passages from Proverbs, I’m going to show you that I think the fear of the Lord is 1) beginning with God, 2) knowing God, 3) trusting God, and 4) discovering the grace of God.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 10, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 3:5-6; 9:10; 16:6; 19:23; 20:9; 23:17-18; 28:14. 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.

The appeal of legalism—of multiplying more and more rules—is so we don’t have to think. We want a rule to cover every situation. We don’t want to have to actually think out the implications.  But you know what? No matter how much you multiply rules, you’ll never cover all of the situations. It just doesn’t work. You need wisdom. Wisdom is being in touch with and understanding reality. What does it mean to be in touch with reality?  In these passages in Proverbs and Revelation we’re taught 1) the persistence of reality, 2) the problems with reality, and 3) how it gets healed. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 3, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 5:16-23; Revelation 21:1-5. 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.

Most of the situations you face in life aren’t covered by moral rules: “Do I say something, or do I wait? Do I act, or should I be more passive?” The rules don’t cover those things. And yet, you will sink, and the people around you will sink, unless you get wisdom.  Wisdom is not having a technique for making choices. Wisdom is having the character of mind and heart that enables you to make the right choices. How do you get that character?  Proverbs 4 shows us 1) how this character develops, 2), where this character comes from, and 3) how character can be transformed. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 26, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 4:11-27. 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.

It’s not good enough to be a person of vision, a person of high principle, a person of high moral values. Not if you’re not a person of wisdom.  Wisdom is knowing the right thing to do in the 80 percent of life situations to which the moral rules don’t apply. For most of our decisions, there are four or five different options, and they’re all moral. Which is the right one? We have decisions to make, and if we don’t make them wisely, we’re going to blow up our lives and the lives of people around us.  How do we get wisdom? Proverbs 3 shows us 1) the path of wisdom, 2) the process of wisdom, and 3) the man off the mountain. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 19, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 3:1-12; 30:1-4. 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.

Ancient societies usually had more consensus about morality. Partly because of that, I think they saw something we have a harder time seeing: that moral standards, as important as they are, don’t actually address most of the situations we face.  If you’re going to avoid making an absolute mess of your life, you need something we hardly talk about today. It’s not identical to knowledge, and it’s not identical even to moral goodness. It’s wisdom.  For wisdom, there’s no better place than to go to the book of Proverbs. And this passage shows us 1) the importance of wisdom, 2) the definition of wisdom, 3) the problem of wisdom, and 4) a clue to its solution. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 12, 2004. Series: Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living. Scripture: Proverbs 8:10-16; 22-31. 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.

Jesus addresses our worry about money.  We are in the grips of anxiety about money, about what we will eat, about what we will drink, where we will live, whether we can make the rent. We are in deep anxiety. Jesus comes to us and says, “Stop it!” But he’s a surgeon, not a sergeant. He goes underneath and says, “Let me show you why. Let me help you out.”  Jesus teaches us 1) that money makes us deeply anxious, 2) why money makes us deeply anxious, and then 3) how to break the power of money. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 23, 1997. Series: Stewardship, Generosity and Money. Scripture: Luke 12:22-34. 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.

Jesus addresses a crowd with some things he wants them to hear, but he also gives them some things he wants them to overhear. Jesus wants the crowd to overhear him talking to his disciples about their money. And I’ve begun to realize that one of the main ways you will come to know and understand who Jesus is and what he’s done is if you see him talking to his disciples about their money.  If you’re not sure what you believe, Jesus is not asking for your money. But if you want to understand him, you need to hear what he says to his disciples. This passage shows us three r’s: 1) a request, 2) a refusal, and 3) a rebuke.  This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on November 16, 1997. Series: Stewardship, Generosity and Money. Scripture: Luke 12:13-21. 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.

Christmas shows why Christianity is unique. In all other religions, a prophet arrives and teaches how we can find eternal life. In Christianity, God himself comes to us and gives himself as the way to eternal life. Christmas shows that salvation is by grace, that we can have true intimacy with God, that love really matters, and that there exists an unceasing river of joy beneath all the sorrows of this world. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 18, 2011. Series: Christmas 2011. Scripture: 1 John 1:1-4. 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 public these days, Christmas is seen as meaning that if we work hard, if we hold hands and breathe in unison, if we get together, we can make the world a better place. It’s like the song in the Live Aid concert in 1985, “We Are the World.” That’s what most people think the meaning of Christmas is.  But after that 1985 concert, Bob Dylan said to the press that he was uncomfortable singing a song like that. They asked him why. He said, “Because man cannot save himself.” So we look today unto Bob Dylan for the true meaning of Christmas—because he got it right.  The Bible says Jesus Christ came because we cannot save ourselves. Colossians 1 shows us 1) the need for reconciliation, 2) the way of reconciliation, and 3) the radical, thorough results of reconciliation. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 24, 1995. Series: Advent: God and Sinners Reconciled. Scripture: Colossians 1:19-23. 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 the baby in the manger was God—not just a guru, not just a supernatural being, not just the first created thing, not just a hologram, but God himself—it should make a difference in our lives. Christmas is about the incarnation: God becoming human. And Colossians 1 is a roller coaster ride through the doctrine of the incarnation. There are hairpin turns: Jesus was God, and though he was God, he was dead. But let’s look at what this means to us.  If that baby was God, it should make three differences in our lives: it should lead to 1) a reordering, 2) a relinquishment, and 3) a rejoicing. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 17, 1995. Series: Advent: God and Sinners Reconciled. Scripture: Colossians 1:15-20. 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.

No place gives us a loftier and more penetrating view of who Jesus is than Colossians 1, which tells us that Jesus is a king.  This passage tells us Jesus is the king of all kings. One paragraph tells us about the kingship of Christ that is. The other paragraph tells us about the kingship of Christ that can be. He is king of the cosmos, but he needs to be, and he can be, king of your personal life.  Let’s take a look at both these aspects: 1) that Christ is cosmic king, and 2) that Christ must be your personal king. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 10, 1995. Series: Matthew 9. Scripture: Colossians 1:9-17. 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.

It’s one thing to have the gospel presented to you. It’s another thing to have it come to you.  According to this passage, it is very easy to miss the gospel. How do you know if the gospel has come to you?  This passage tells us four tests so you can know if the gospel has come to you or not: 1) the gospel is joy, 2) the gospel is a power, 3) the gospel is grace, and 4) the gospel is Christ himself. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on December 3, 1995. Series: Matthew 9. Scripture: Colossians 1:1-8, 28-29. 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 an idea of who Jesus is, he says he’s more like the bridegroom than anything else. If you want an idea of what it means to be a Christian, he says it’s more like going to a wedding feast than anything else. When Jesus says he’s the bridegroom, he’s telling us something about himself, he’s telling us what it means to be a Christian, and he’s telling us about our relationship to him.  When Jesus says he’s the bridegroom, he tells us that Christianity is 1) a bond that consists both of duty and love, 2) a bond of completing love, 3) a bond of absolutely permanent love, 4) a bond of utter exclusiveness, and 5) a bond of ravishing love. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 24, 1995. Series: Matthew 9. Scripture: Matthew 9:9-17. 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.

Jesus tells us that to become a Christian, there has to be a smashing. Christianity is new wine: it ferments, it swells, it’s organically and chemically active, and it will smash the old, inflexible wineskins.  Jesus teaches that there’s an old way that everybody, religious or not, operates under. You will not be a Christian until all your old foundations, your whole approach to yourself and God, are utterly smashed. You must be called away from mere religion. What’s the difference between religion and Christianity? In Matthew 9, we see 1) what religion is, 2) how Jesus smashes it, and 3) a few tests by which we can judge whether we’ve moved away from religion. This sermon was preached by Dr. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on September 17, 1995. Series: Matthew 9. Scripture: Matthew 9:9-17. 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.