This sermon uses the story of Zacchaeus to outline the process of conversion, emphasizing that it begins with a seeking heart and culminates in a joyful submission to Christ, free from the constraints of social pressure and religious works. It asserts that salvation is a gift of God's grace, received through faith in Jesus' imputed righteousness, which empowers a transformed life of obedience and generosity.

This sermon warns against the love of money, using the parable of the rich young ruler to illustrate that material wealth is a spiritual hindrance that can lead to pride and a failure to trust in God. It posits that true wealth is spiritual, rooted in God's grace and the sacrificial example of Jesus, who became poor to make humanity spiritually rich, thereby motivating believers toward radical generosity.

This sermon redefines biblical hospitality as a radical, non-reciprocal act of welcoming the marginalized and strangers, motivated by the costly grace and hospitality Jesus extended to us. It challenges believers to move beyond social circles and offer true, life-giving refreshment to other Christians, non-believers, and the needy, mirroring Christ's own self-sacrificial love that brought us into God's family.

This sermon reveals the "secret sauce" of the Christian life to be "by grace for good works," using the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector to illustrate that a desperate pursuit of self-righteousness and external approval is a universal problem. It proclaims that true righteousness is not achieved through human effort but is a gift received through the finished work of Jesus, which then empowers a joyful and spontaneous life of good works.

This sermon challenges a "second generation" mindset of comfort and complacency, urging the congregation to embrace a "first generation" mindset of sacrifice and radical commitment to a new ten-year vision for the church. It uses Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem to illustrate that true discipleship involves following an unexpected king, dying to oneself, and embracing sacrifice as the path to glorification and eternal fruitfulness.

This sermon uses the biblical account of the bronze serpent in Numbers 21 to illustrate that humanity's spiritual poison is its inherent discontentment, which is healed not by effort but by "looking" to and believing in Jesus's atoning sacrifice on the cross. The sermon's main biblical topics are sin, divine judgment, salvation, and faith, with the Old Testament story serving as a prefigurement of Jesus Christ's redemptive work.