These sermon outlines are published by the Evangelical Immigration Table and إغاثة العالم. Used with permission. Individual attribution noted under each outline.
Sermon 1: Stranger Things Will Happen
Speaker: Dr. Jim Goodroe, former Director of Missions, Spartanburg County Baptist Network
Main Text: Matthew 25:31–46
Big Picture: What determines whether you will be called out of heaven, or be safe to get in?
The Context
In Matthew 25:31–46, Jesus — the “Son of Man” (a title He uses 30 times in Matthew) — describes final judgment. King Jesus judges into heaven those who welcomed the stranger, and into hell those who did not.
Why This Passage Is Hard to Understand
- It’s not about geopolitical nations but ethno-linguistic groups — none are excluded from judgment.
- It seems to teach salvation by works — but James reminds us: faith without works is dead. We demonstrate our faith in God by doing God’s will.
- The “strangers” include refugees and immigrants — both groups include a higher percentage of Christians than the general population.
Hard to Undertake
We have a short perspective. We forget where we came from. God commanded His Old Testament people to welcome the stranger because they themselves had been strangers in Egypt (Leviticus 19:34). Jesus remembered the immigrant strain in His own family tree: Rahab the Canaanite, Ruth the Moabite, Bathsheba the Hittite. His family fled to Egypt when Herod ordered the massacre of infants.
We must move from xenophobia (fear of strangers) to philaxenia (love of strangers) — Hebrews 13:1–3.
Sermon 2: Immigration — Opportunity or Threat?
Speaker: Matthew Soerens, National Coordinator, Evangelical Immigration Table
Main Texts: Genesis 37–47 (Joseph and Pharaoh); Exodus 1 (Moses and Pharaoh)
Big Picture: While some see immigration as a threat, Scripture challenges us to see it as an opportunity to “make disciples of all nations” within our own communities.
Model 1: The First Pharaoh — Immigration as Opportunity
- Joseph was an involuntary immigrant forced to migrate to Egypt (Gen 37:28).
- Pharaoh recognized that Joseph, an immigrant, brought unique skills and wisdom (Gen 41:38–40).
- When Joseph’s brothers and father arrived as immigrants, Pharaoh welcomed them and offered them the best of the land (Gen 47:5–6).
Model 2: The Second Pharaoh — Immigration as Threat
- A new Pharaoh came to power who “did not know Joseph” (Exod 1:8). When we only see people as a mass, rather than as individuals, we respond as this Pharaoh did.
- He was afraid of demographic challenge, worried about national security, and refused full rights while exploiting their labor (Exod 1:9–14).
- Because he perceived immigrants as a threat, he responded with hostility — ultimately ordering genocide (Exod 1:22).
The Missional Opportunity Today
Too many American Christians are missing the missional opportunity because they have accepted a media-driven narrative that leads them to view immigrants as a threat. But only 12% of evangelicals say their views on immigrants are primarily influenced by the Bible. Fully 60% of those of non-Christian religious traditions in the U.S. — most of whom are immigrants — say they do not even know a Christian.
“86% of the immigrant population in North America are likely to either be Christians or become Christians. That’s far above the national average… The immigrant population actually presents the greatest hope for Christian renewal in North America.”
Dr. Timothy Tennent, Asbury Theological Seminary
Sermon 3: Nowhere Are Warm Welcomes More Important Than God’s House
Speaker: Reverend Keith Draper, Regional Director of Church Relations, World Relief Chicagoland
Bible Texts: Matthew 21:1–13; Isaiah 56:7; Jeremiah 7:11; Acts 2:1–11; Revelation 7:9–17
Occasion: Palm Sunday, April 2023
Today is Palm Sunday — we remember the warm welcome that Jesus received as He entered Jerusalem. God’s people gave up their coats and waved palm branches to welcome Him. We also remember the many people who still need warm welcomes. Across the world, 100 million people have left their homes because of an immediate threat to their lives.
God Sees and Cares
The Bible is full of stories of God helping people forced to leave their homes: Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, and Jesus himself — who as an infant was taken by his parents to Egypt to escape Herod’s massacre. God is a God of compassion and mercy, always willing to help those in need.
This is evident in three key moments in the Bible where strangers were welcomed into worship with God’s people:
- When Jesus was welcomed into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday
- When the Holy Spirit came to the early church on Pentecost (Acts 2)
- When God is worshiped in heaven at the end of time: “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language” (Revelation 7:9)
What God Is Telling His Church Today
- Do as Jesus did: welcome strangers with open arms.
- Bless the nations with your faith.
- Cross barriers and show the world that Christ is Lord for all people.