Please join us as we open the Word of God. This sermon, drawn from Mark 9:42–50, confronts the church with the urgent call to preserve spiritual integrity by confronting sin with radical seriousness, not through literal self-mutilation but through heartfelt repentance and disciplined surrender. It emphasizes that Jesus' harshest warnings are directed not at outsiders, but at believers who cause spiritual harm—especially through pride, criticism, and hypocrisy—by discouraging others from following Christ. The central metaphor of salt, which loses its value when it becomes insipid, illustrates how Christians lose their influence when they prioritize comfort, self-righteousness, or religious performance over grace, humility, and love. The passage calls for internal transformation, urging believers to embrace the refining fire of conviction, not as condemnation, but as divine purification that restores authenticity and preserves the witness of the church. Ultimately, the sermon challenges every believer to examine where they have compromised their faith, to cut off what hinders their walk with Christ, and to live in such a way that the world sees God's character reflected in their mercy, forgiveness, and grace.
