10/1/17-Eph. 2:11-22-In Christ: God’s Holy City

Last week we looked at what it means for an individual to be “In Christ” by grace through faith. This week we are going to go from looking individually to looking at us as a group.

 

At first glance, this text looks like old, dusty history, but when we see the implications, we are going to understand this has just as much to say to us today as back then.

 

The three sections we are going to see is the Problem of sin (v. 11-13), the Peace of God (v. 14-18), and the People of God (v. 19-22)

 

The Problem of Sin (Sin divides and builds walls of hostility, between us and God, and between each other).

 

In this text, both Jews and Gentiles had hostility toward one another, and so in sin, they put walls up against each other (walls of suspicion, mistrust, and ignorance).

 

How often we too jump to conclusions about a person or group before getting to really know them, only to find out we may have been off base the whole time.

 

Paul in this section focuses mostly on Gentiles (most of us) and lays out the hopelessness and isolation that a life apart from Christ brings. Elsewhere, Paul puts Jews and Gentiles in the same boat (“There is none that is righteous, not even one, for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”)

 

Here, Paul says that Gentiles were without Christ, and they were outside the Old Testament covenant so that they did not know God or His love.

 

Maybe we too felt like that. Like we are never good enough, not possessing the right name, education, wealth, etc.

 

Yet Paul lays out the gospel hope in vs. 13-When we were far away and isolated from God, He took the initiative. He loves us and through that love, drew us to Him so that we could be a community. This community of redeemed people is called the church.

 

Christ’s death has destroyed all kinds of barriers and so now there is…

The Peace of God-In Jesus Christ, God drew close to humanity, walked alongside us, entered into our evil world, took responsibility for our evil, & bore it all in His body on the cross.

 

Christ is our peace, and through the cross, God is extending the olive branch, His peace, to you and I. When we gather as a church, we do so in the shadow of His cross, that new reality, because we are in Christ. Remember, He became what we are so we could become what He is.

 

In Christ, humanity is recreated. In Christ, the hostility that sin built between us and God=gone

 

Christ killed that hostility within Himself as He carried sin to the cross. So use the cross to remember this. A cross has two pieces, a vertical piece, and a horizontal piece. In Christ, He gave us vertical peace between each of us with God. He also gave us a horizontal peace between us and our neighbor.

 

For when the true peace of God, Christ’s peace, touches us, it touches every part and we must live it out. This means not just “inner peace”, but the gospel must be the foundation for being at peace with one another.

 

Paul says in Christ the hostility between Jew and Gentile is gone now. Christ accomplished this by abolishing the law. This does not mean that the Old Testament is no longer a moral guide. Rather, what once separated Jew and Gentile (circumcision, sabbath law, food laws) are no longer to be enforced so that neither Jew nor Gentile is excluded from Christ’s table of fellowship.

 

In Jesus’ death and resurrection, we are re-created, born again, made new men and women and now we are in a new family.

 

Today there seems to be an interest in dividing people. We have division through different races, genders, income, citizenship, political views, and Paul is not necessarily saying that when we become Christians, these differences vanish.

 

Simply put, in Christ the differences no longer matter as “identity badges”. Instead, the cross and resurrection are the events which shape our identity. Who unites us is stronger that what could ever divide us.

 

He is the peace that breaks down all the walls of hostility, because in Christ, we only carry one label: Christian.

 

We went from problem of sin, to the peace of God, and now it is the people of God.

 

Another way of putting is that Christ is building us into a city of God.

 

We are God’s temple, not a building of concrete and steel, but of followers of Jesus, and He is the chief cornerstone, which means he bears the load and determines the lines. In other words, Jesus is the foundation of the church and our truth.

 

We in the church are the dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Our hearts are where God resides, and if He has called us out from darkness to light, then He has given us different gifts in his body that we must use to glorify Him

 

Yet, just as importantly if not more importantly, we must show the world what it means to be united in Christ as a church. We must be the “family of God”, understanding one another not by any differences that we may have, but rather by Whom unites us. In Christ, there is the foundation for peace and reconciliation.

9/24/17-Eph. 2:1-10-In Christ: By Grace Alone

This is the Gospel Message. Without clearly understanding this text, we won’t have an understanding of who we are individually, who we are corporately as a church, or how to be effective witnesses and evangelists.

 

Paul is contrasting life before an encounter with Jesus with life after. Paul does this by looking at our lives as a journey between two kingdoms.

 

It all surrounds the statement: Jesus Christ became what we are so we could become what He is”

 

-1) Paul says in v. 1 that we were all dead in transgressions and sins. Paul isn’t saying that were were all pretty good and moral people, then Jesus came and added a bit more goodness.

 

He is saying that we were dead men walking, enslaved to sin. We were dead with no hope.

 

The Reason: We were living for ourselves, following our own desires. The Bible calls this our sinful nature. When we listen to it, we end up worshipping something that is not God, and then we feel trapped by it, even if it is something good.

 

We take the good things and make them ultimate things, then they become false gods or idols. What is worse is that if we fail to get these things, they never forgive us, and even if we succeed to get them, they never satisfy us.

 

Well why is the world like this? Paul gives us the answer in vs. 2. He says this world is a kingdom into which we were all born, and this kingdom has a ruler sin. (NOTE: sin is not all-powerful, for the world only has one true Ruler, God)

 

Sin touches every part of our lives and corrupts it, from our will to our mind and our emotions and our body. Satan may tempt us but he never forces anyone to sin. We make the choice and hence are responsible.

 

And after sin touches every part of our lives, it only has one end result: death. Before we knew Christ, we were part of a kingdom whose tyrants were sin and death.

 

We have tried to find life in ourselves and our desires and in doing so, cut ourselves off from God. In the end, life without God is meaningless.

 

We thought we were our own masters, but we were slaves to our own desires and brought death upon ourselves. No amount of “good works” or charity or religion could save us.

 

Gospel: Even though our situation looks pretty hopeless, God out of His love, looked at our state, and out of His love, He did something about it.

 

In Jesus, a divine trade happened: He became what we are so we could become what He is. He became a human being (tired, hungry, weak, etc.) and lived the life we should have lived and died the death we should have died, so that we could become what Jesus is (holy, righteous, eternally alive).

 

God has made us alive in Christ Jesus-He did not just give us rules or good morals, for that would be like putting a band-aid on a mortal wound. Rather He saw we were dead, and showed us grace and made us alive again!

 

God gave us his grace, which means He gave us Himself. Humanity’s problem si that were were spiritually dead, so the only hope is if God gives us spiritual life.

 

When we are born-again, we switch kingdoms! Christ takes our sinful nature, our “heart of stone” and gives us His heart, a heart of love.

 

To enjoy this gift of salvation, we must be united to the Giver. We must be “in Christ”. That means He is to be living in us and we are to be living in Him, a brand new reality, a brand new way of life!

 

In Christ, our will, our heart, our mind, our emotions, our everything is transformed, so that now, where it was once impossible to choose to love God, that is all we want to do!

 

He shapes us and molds us. The cross and resurrection of Jesus is not only done for our benefit, but it must be something in which we as believers participate. We must daily die to self, and trust God to give us new life to live for Him.

 

We have transferred our identity, from the kingdom of darkness and death to the kingdom of Jesus. We live in His reality, and that is why we say “Jesus is Lord”. Now, we must “live out” that identity.

 

That we are no longer slaves to sin, but alive and free in Jesus Christ. This is accomplished only and completely by grace through faith. Faith is the way we receive grace.

 

Faith is the way that God changes us to desire what He desires. Faith is not just saying “I believe in God” but “I believe God” (understanding who He is and trusting Him)

 

If we are trying to save ourselves by our own goodness, then it will never work for if we are comparing ourselves to God, how can we measure up to perfection?

 

But if the way to God is through a person, Jesus Christ, who lived the life we should have lived, and died the death we should have died, and saves us by sheer grace, then it is a loving relationship and a joy to be free from sin. God saw where we were, and loved us so much He became what we are so that we could become what He is.

9/17/17-Eph. 1:15-23-The Local Church: Jesus is Lord

Paul’s prayer is that we would know God and understand the benefits of the gospel

We are Christians. That means we are adopted children of our heavenly Dad, and we have a new identity. Christian means “little Christ”. Our lives are no longer dominated by sin, unrighteousness, or pride, but now ruled by Jesus.

The bottom-line truth for the Christian is this simple statement: Jesus Is Lord

We have a new life in His kingdom, and as members of that new kingdom, we participate in His life, and we continue His mission. This is so much deeper than simply “making a decision for Christ”. Rather this includes “becoming one with Him”, and this is not some strange mystical union. It means what John the Baptist said, “He must increase, while I must decrease”. It means becoming more like Jesus.

This passage in Ephesians shows that we as a church have 6 aspects.

First-The church is a caring community
-If we are going to be a church that is proclaiming, promoting, and providing the gospel through love, service, and prayer, then the first of these three is love.
-If we strive to love one another as Christ loves us then the world who struggles with loneliness will be drawn to that
-Too hard to love someone? Remember Jesus Christ and His love for you, and allow His love to be the power you use to love others. If you have trouble, then try serving them. If you can serve another, you can eventually learn to genuinely care about them.
-If we strive to be a caring community, through Christ-given love, not only will we love each other, but it will overflow to those outside our walls.

Second-The church is a praying community
-Remember our vision statement, “…through love, service, and prayer”
-Church that prays together stays together
-Church that prays together grows spiritually
-Church that prays together, God will give her a mission to the world. (Not just busywork, but purposeful work)

Third-The church is a thinking community
-Just because we are Christians, doesn’t mean we turn off our brains
-If anything we ought to be thinking more for the Bible calls us to be wise.
-With all of the issues that face our world, we as Christians no longer have the luxury to not think biblically about each of them
-If we don’t think, then the Gospel won’t look relevant to any of this.
-The Gospel is our foundation. Creation, Fall, Redemption (crucifixion, resurrection, sending of the Holy Spirit)-everything falls under one of these categories.
-Want to solve racism, war, poverty, bullying? Look to the Gospel
-Before we act, we as Christians must think
-Point of knowing the Bible is to know God and His ways, to be in relationship with Him, and understanding Him

Fourth-The church is a time-understanding community
-What?
-We understand what God has done in the past
-We understand what He will do in the future (the details may be fuzzy but we have a sense of who comes out winning, Jesus)
-So with a healthy knowledge of both past and future, we live confidently in the present.
-We don’t hid from the pain of live, but we understand and take hope in the fact that death does not have the final word, Jesus does.
-”Faith is patience with the lamp lit”
-God wants us to take hold of that lamp, to have that faith that gives us confidence to understand yesterday and yet face tomorrow.

Fifth-The church is a confident community
-Confident, not arrogant, because we place no confidence in ourselves, only in God
-Paul was writing to a church that was living in a real superstitious culture
-They would try to manipulate Fate by using magic
-The world today isn’t that much different. For all of our advancements in science, people can still be superstitious
-So why do people fear the stars instead of trusting in the One who made the stars?
-Paul wants the Ephesians (and us here at Conemaugh) that everything is under the Lordship of Christ. He rules over all, and He proved this when death could not even defeat Him!!
-Paul is saying we don’t need to quiver before some “unseen hand of Fate”, for we trust in a God who has plans for us and they are good!
-No power is greater than Christ. He rules over all-We aren’t slaves. Nothing can stand against HIM!

Sixth-The church is a power community
-We have the power to serve others.
-The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is given to every believer when we become Christians and it is always available.
-Paul’s prayer wasn’t that God’s power would be given to us but that we would be aware of that power already given to us in Christ, and use it!
-Our culture today offers no basis for hope
-Hope was just as rare in Paul’s day as it is in ours.
-But God’s work in christ addresses meaninglessness, the problem of evil and death.
-The Gospel does not just offer nice words, but power and living hope
-God does not always remove us from danger or difficulty or death, but His power, He makes us more than conquerors! How?

→ He may not remove these things, but redeems them. Our hardships have purpose now, and even if we cannot see it, God still is redeeming our suffering and using it for His glory

If we are in Christ, We have His power to do good in the world, to change lives!

“Jesus is Lord”-This all springs from this simple truth. Cling to it.

“If anyone be in Christ, he is a new creation. The old things have passed away, and behold all things have become new”

Jesus is Lord

“The local church is the hope of the world”-Bill Hybels

Ephesians-No other biblical book describes both the individual believer’s life and the life of the church.

The first half of the book describes God’s initiative in saving us (His works) and the second half is our response.

Ephesus was a city of idols, and each city, town, village, even career had their own. When people worshiped these, what they were really doing was worshiping what they represented. They tried to control fate, but instead they ended up controlled…by fear and evil spiritual powers.

People today still worship idols, and the kicker is when it comes to an idol, you are the one who does all the sacrificing (your money, dignity, freedom, integrity, etc.), but worshiping the true God is different. He is the Creator not part of the creation; worshiping is based on relationship, not manipulation; in Jesus Christ’s death on the cross, it is God who sacrifices His dignity, freedom, and so much more.

Paul here is reminding Ephesians, they have nothing to fear from these idols and can instead have freedom from them, for it is the true God, the Creator who loves you and has given you everything.

The work of the Triune God is at work in this section and this text is really a doxology-praise for what God has done.

Father-God is the author of our salvation. He chose us for no other reason than He loves us. He knew our flaws and still chose us, for not other reason that His grace.

We can not take any credit for having earned our salvation, for later on in Ephesians, Paul says, “It is by grace you have been saved through faith, not of your own doing; it is the gift of God-not the result of works, so that no one may boast”

I cannot stress this enough: It is God’s work in us and through us. We didn’t earn it. He chose us simply because He is love, He is gracious, and freely gives salvation. Now in Christ, it is as if we never sinned.

Jesus Christ, who is God by nature, became man by choice. now , if we choose Him, we who are human by nature are being made perfect by grace.

Being a Christian does not simply mean, “inviting Jesus into your heart”, but accepting Christ’s offer to be part of His life, and it is that life that is still at work in the world. That grace is still drawing and wooing anyone who would listen.

The fact that God has chosen us ought to give us both value and humility, for it says that we cannot do anything to earn eternal life, but the gospel of grace says we don’t have to because we are loved. God loved us enough to take on flesh and lay down His life for us!

God chose us to be His people to be holy and blameless, and this is both a privilege and a responsibility.

Son-In Jesus, redemption and forgiveness are lavished upon us.  

The Gospel is a divine trade. In Christ, His death was traded for our death and His life is now our life.

When Jesus came to earth, He identifies with us, and in faith, we identify with Him.

Grace is God giving us Himself. He makes us His children! Grace is God inviting criminals to His table to meet and eat. The Pharisee and the tax collector can now sit together.

Christ not only knocks down walls and builds bridges, but pulls down barriers in His church so that we can be one in Him. In the first century, Jew and Gentile became one in Jesus. Today, the rich can sit with the poor,  black can take their place with white, different backgrounds who call on Jesus’ name can be together.

It is easy to simply say the way of Jesus is simply “going to heaven when we pass away” but it is so much more than that. Jesus came and brought the Kingdom of God. That Kingdom is on a mission, to redeem and reclaim all of creation, and God is inviting us to help! Not because He needs it but because He values us!

The first evidence of that redemption is point 3

The Holy Spirit-This is the proof that God is no idol. Idols are cons for the promise everything and give nothing, or at least nothing substantial.

God makes a promise: Redemption will be completed and as a down payment, we have the Holy Spirit, God’s signature.

The Holy Spirit is the lifeblood of the church, and because we have that life, the church is not an organization, but a living organism, growing, creating, expanding, learning. We all depend on one another, and that is why the spiritual gifts are so important.

With the Holy Spirit, we are in Christ, and in Christ we are in God’s presence constantly. If we remember that we live in God’s presence always, our lives will change.

If we live in Christ, we will become more like Him, not through rule-keeping, but inward transformation based on relationship we will be friends with God.

The church as we will see in Ephesians,

→ It is called to be God’s people, by His grace

→ A community for the broken

→ A hospital for sinners

→ a redeemed and free people of God

We may live in Johnstown, we may live in the United States of America, but that is ultimately not our identity. Our identity is in Jesus Christ.

In Ephesians, the Christians there had to live in Christ and remember His superiority over idols. We are called to do the same here today! Not to run from our culture, but to challenge it to accept the freedom that Jesus Christ gives.

God has chosen us out of His love, to be saved in Jesus Christ, and secured by the Holy Spirit.

Are you ready to journey into Ephesians to get a glimpse of what church is supposed to be about? To see God’s vision for it? TO see how the local church is the hope of the world?

Remember: For the Christian, religion is grace and ethics is gratitude

8/21/16-Luke 9:57-62-Discipleship 101

(This Sermon was highly influence by Kyle Idleman’s book Not a Fan as well as Craig Groschel’s book Christian Atheist

What does it mean to follow Jesus when nearly 2,000 years separate us from Him when he walked this earth? God, through Luke, has given us a timeless tract of Christian discipleship taken straight from the life and teaching of the Master himself-the Servant-King who has come to give His life so that all might live.

He has given us life through his death; now we, too, must learn to die so that we can learn to see life as he saw it. It means follow Jesus to the cross, and this is not easy, but remember, through the cross, there is life, eternal and perfect, and we experience a taste of that here and now, when we follow Jesus.

The gospels are more than just simply stories about Jesus. They are discipleship manuals, leaving us examples of how to live like Jesus in our daily lives. A life dedicated to God daily is our gift to Him for the gift of salvation He has given to us in Jesus.

When we look at these two chapters (Luke 9-10), we see that Jesus begins by talking about taking up a cross and following Him and losing your life but finding true life. It ends with one of the most familiar stories we know, the Good Samaritan.

The Good Samaritan is a story about what being a disciple is all about: Loving God and loving people, even those people we didn’t think we could like. This is a radical idea!

Here in Luke 9, let us take a look at 3 would-be disciples to see if their love for God was genuine. I call these guys the Enthusiast, the Play-It-Safer, and the Family Man.

*Case 1-This guy wanted Jesus to be his way to get a leg up in the world. This happens today too, as sometimes people will want to follow Jesus because of what He can do for them, rather than what they can do for Him.

Jesus answers this guy by saying: If you think following me is going to give you a place in the world, you have your eyes on the wrong kingdom. Being my disciple means living as a citizen of heaven while still on earth, and you may even lose your place in the world. You won’t always be comfortable, but if you are willing to be uncomfortable for my sake, I promise you it will be worth it.

This first guy did not leave his life to follow Jesus, but Matthew the tax collector did. Yes, it was not easy for Matthew, but there is a reason why we don’t even know the name of this other guy, yet we are still talking about Matthew after all these years.

To the enthusiast who says, “I will follow wherever” Jesus says, “what about there?”

*Case 2-Play-it-safer. This guy wants to follow Jesus, but first to go and bury his father. Jesus’ answer seems cold, but we must look back in time to see what is going on here, and then we will understand.

There was a chance that even though he said, “bury my father” that his father was not dead yet. So, he wanted to wait to claim his inheritance, when “all was safe” then follow Jesus.

But Jesus wants a commitment from us now, not when things seem to be going perfect in our lives, for who can truly make our lives perfect if not Jesus?

Just like he did with would-be #1, Jesus exposes this guy’s true motives, and just like He told disciple #1 that it would cost him, He told #2 to come out of this world, follow Him, and find life, and “let the dead bury their own dead”

Jesus wanted him (and us) to get our mind on the eternal of His Kingdom rather than the temporary of this world. Seek first the Kingdom of God, make it #1 in your life, for a disciple who does not cast off the cares of this world will be choked by them like the seeds and the thorns that Jesus spoke about elsewhere.

This Play-It-Safer could not follow immediately. He could not decide. This man turned down Jesus’ offer and found death. The apostles Andrew, Peter, James and John, left “immediately” when Jesus first called them, and they found life.

To Case #1, Jesus said discipleship is costly and not easy. To Case #2 He says, “you had better be ready to cut ties to safety”. So to the question of wherever, Jesus says, “why not there?” and to the question of whenever, Jesus says “why not now?”

*That brings us to Case #3 the Family-Man. Now, look at his reason, doesn’t seem so bad right? What’s wrong with running home real quick, giving mom a quick kiss goodbye and grabbing his coat?

Actually, what this guy is saying is “I will go with you Jesus, but I must tidy up a few loose ends first”

Jesus answers by basically saying to him, “if you keep waiting until you think you are ready, you won’t get there”. See, if the man returns home to his family, he may change his mind, because this was not a quick goodbye to home and mother, but many weeks of spending time with family to really say goodbye.

This man wants to follow Jesus, but not with everything he has. He is not willing to go all-in because something else has his attention, and he keeps looking back at it. We sometimes have the idea that we can follow Jesus, but also keep looking back at other priorities, and make them “share the space” with Jesus.

But we cannot serve two masters, and any who have been married know, you never want to share your spouse’s love with anyone else. Jesus’ love may seem selfish, but it isn’t because He knows us and the one thing in our lives that causes us to keep looking back…is the one thing that may one day become the idol we worship. It is not wrong to have these other things in our lives (families, career, money) we just can’t let them become ultimate things.

We must keep our eyes on Jesus and grow in our faith, for radical discipleship takes radical commitment. To the question of wherever, Jesus says, “what about there?” to the question of whenever, Jesus says, “what about now?” and to this guy’s question of whatever, Jesus says “what about that?”

Ask God to take your relationship with Him deeper, so that you believe in God and the gospel enough to give your life to it. Once we do, anything less than that won’t seem like true Christianity. Weigh your options, count the cost, and ask, “Do I want life as it is or as it could be. Count the costs. Do whatever it takes. Step across the line, and Jesus will be there saying to us, “welcome to true Christianity”.

8/11/16-Matt. 25:31-46-F.I.A.=Faith In Action

This parable here is the third of three parables in Matt. 25. The first is the one about ten bridesmaids we looked at last week. The second is one we looked at a few weeks ago, where each servant was given different amounts of money to know how to handle it.

Now we come to this one, and all three of these parables teach us about responsibility. In other words, how did we handle God’s gifts given to us?

If we use these gifts as God intended and use them for His glory and for our neighbor’s good, then God uses us to change things, to become co-laborers with Christ, part of His body.

For we gather as a community of disciples not to escape or hide from the world, but to come to an oasis, drink from the Living Water that is Jesus, nourish our souls through worship, energize our heart through song, sharpen our mind through study, then go out, taking what we have learned, and applying it.

Jesus in this parable taught us practical ways of showing our faith, not only with words but with action. He says, “you fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, clothed the naked, nursed the sick, visited the prisoners, welcomed the stranger, and you did this all for Me; and you did it by doing it for “the least of these”.

Visiting prisoners, sitting with the sick, feeding the hungry, assisting strangers are all works of mercy. Works of mercy combine with works of piety, like prayer, Scripture readying, even fasting, are the spiritual disciplines that provide a bridge for God’s grace to invade and pervade the lives of us Christians, and they act like a hammer and chisel that the Holy Spirit uses to chip and sculpt, smooth and polish us like a Divine Sculptor who present us to our Heavenly Father saying “Look, I have made another one that looks just like Jesus.”

Taking care of “the least of these” does that. Now you may be asking, “Wait, does that mean we are saved and let into heaven by our works?” Not at all! Remember, It is by His grace that we are saved through faith, not our works. It is a gift of God, so none of us can brag. Even here Jesus says the Kingdom is prepared for you, stressing that it was God, not we who prepared the Kingdom, and salvation is His gift.

So, Jesus is not saying we get into heaven based on our good deeds, but He is saying that, “before you get to heaven let your light shine on earth” We show we are saved by that amazing grace when we let our light shine.

So who are “the least of these, My brethren”? Well it literally means “suffering Christians around the world”, and then taking a step further to extend mercy to suffering people everywhere. The point of this parable is not the who but rather the what (the importance of serving where service is needed) and the why (why we do it).

Remember last week we said that since Jesus hasn’t come back yet, that therefore there still must be work for us to do? And so a disciples who loves Jesus discerns what needs to be done, and does it.

For being saved by God’s gift of grace does not decrease our responsibility, but rather increases it. Increases it to shine the light of the gospel like a lantern in this dark world, showing the path to his Kingdom.

The Gospel is indeed good news exactly because it changes people, conforming us to Christ, and promises us that not only a new world is possible, but that it has a name, the Kingdom of God, and we are to have the attitude that we are part of it now.

If we in the church are to live out this Kingdom in our lives, this is no less than a revolutionary act. If we are called to be faithful to Christ by promoting justice, lifting up the sanctity of human life and family, speaking out against cruelty, and fighting for the needy and the oppressed, then we in the church must be out in front of these issues.

Often times we as Christians do a good work for people, yet we must also ask that pivotal question, Why? Why is it that drug use has become an epidemic in Johnstown. Why do these ills plague us today and what can we do about them? We need not be afraid brothers and sisters, for greater is He that is in us, than He that is in the world.

Christ won the war at the cross, and that is why we have the victory in Him. Why do we love the least of these? Because it is love that gives us the courage to challenge evil, because love is the practice of the Christian life that marks all our being and doing. Because love is what the gospel makes us; we are being rescued and saved and therefore are invited by our Rescuer and Savior to be fellow rescuers.

Because the three foundation stones of Christianity are creation, sin, and redemption. The least of these, no matter who they are, are still made in God’s image, they too are broken and enslaved by sin, and they too are within the reach of the nail-pierced hands of love that belong to our Lord Jesus Christ.

He calls us to love the least of these. It is we who make up the church who are God’s strategy for eliminating evil in the world through acts of kindness and mercy. The work that started on the cross is being continued here and now, for it is Christ who has laid a firm foundation and then handed the tools over to His church and says, “Carry on what I have started”

We as disciples are called to stand against the injustice and tyranny of sin, to tell others that there is a kingdom of freedom and peace, the Kingdom of God.

They will see that Kingdom in us when we show it in our lives, through acts of mercy done every day, for these acts do not depend on wealth, ability, or intelligence, but on a willing heart that wants to obey God, and that is something we can all do.

For although we are saved by God’s mercy and grace, it is how we act that shows proof of our salvation. In other words, we do not do good works to be saved, we do good works because we are saved.

We do good because we are so thankful to God and therefore delight to serve Him because He loves us. Think of it like a tree: You only see what is above ground, not the roots. The roots are what we believe that no one can see with their eyes because they are private, in our hearts and minds. Yet, healthy fruit is proof of healthy roots. The fruit of our good works, that come from healthy faithful roots, are what people can see.

We are saved by grace through faith but we are saved to do good works, for we Christians are to be salt and light. And in doing so, we make our faith both private and public, for no one lights a lamp and puts in under a bucket.

True faith must be matched by action, for if you show it by your lives, the world will see that you know Him.

8/7/16-Matt. 25:1-13-Keep On Keeping On

This parable of Jesus says that we must be prepared for His return, and He uses a story about a wedding, but the wedding that Jesus mentions here is a bit different, because it is the most important wedding we will ever attend. Why? Jesus Himself is the groom.

Weddings back in Jesus’ day are not like they are today. Today’s weddings go fairly quickly, but back then it was a full night and day of dancing, and then you actually got to the wedding.

If you were a bridesmaid, that was a great honor. So before the feast started, all bridesmaids left the bride’s house, went to meet the groom with torches for light that was lit with oil, and then they would escort him back to the bride, whom they all, in turn escort to the groom’s house, and because this was a great honor you had to be prepared.

5 Bridesmaids were prepared because they had oil, 5 were not because they lacked oil. Well what does it all mean? There are a couple of important points to see here.

Who is the groom? Jesus. The bridesmaids? Well, that is us. What does this all have to do with our lives today? It is about how we live our lives knowing this day is coming, and it is about being ready for it.

Some people out there say that Jesus is never coming back, and they are like the bridesmaid that is a naysayer to the bride and groom. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want that bridesmaid anywhere near my wedding, because they are not encouraging.

They don’t have the best interests of the bride (which is the church by the way), and the best interests of the bride should be equal to the interest of the groom (Jesus).

Notice something here, it is not because the bridesmaids slept that they were unprepared. It was because 5 of them had what the other 5 lacked…oil, fuel to keep the fire going.

Staying up all night would not have solved the lack of oil problem, they needed to be ready before that.

What does the oil mean for us today?

It is The Holy Spirit. For unless we have the Holy Spirit’s constant presence in our lives, giving us energy to be diligent for the work of the Kingdom of God, then we aren’t born again, and therefore we are unprepared like the 5 bridesmaids.

That is why the 5 prepared bridesmaids couldn’t share. IT was because of lack of love, rather it was because every person has to be responsible for their acceptance or rejection of God’s grace, and God’s grace is the wedding invite.

Try as we might, we cannot ask for the Holy Spirit from others, and we cannot give the Holy Spirit to others.

If we want the Holy Spirit, we must be born again, and how? We must repent, turn from our sins, and believe the good news, believe the gospel.

THEN we receive the oil, the Holy Spirit, and we are invited to the wedding, but there is one more piece here. Notice the groom was delayed, which was common back then.

People think that because Jesus has taken so long and has not returned yet, that maybe He is not coming at all.

Well, I can tell you this, as a future groom, that any groom who loves His bride as much as Jesus loves His bride (the church), will come and will come at the right time.

So why hasn’t Jesus come yet? Did you ever think that it is because He still has work for us to do?

YES! The fact that Jesus has not come back yet means the church still has a purpose, still has work to do in this world.

God is not done with us here yet, so we must keep on keeping on. We still have a reason to be here! We still have glorious work to do!

The point is to endure. Whether you are working or resting, we must be like the faithful bridesmaids, and the point is to endure.

And we endure by keeping the oil supply up, by asking for more of the Holy Spirit, the Living Water, the Bread of Life!

How? Ask God. Believe the Gospel deeper, spend time with God, spend time in prayer, spend time with other believers.

Keep that oil going so that your torch shines brightly, keep the Holy Spirit so that your life shines brightly, so that rather than being locked out, instead the Groom will say to you, “well done good and faithful servant, come to the wedding feast”

(Much of the flow of this sermon was inspired by “Not a Fan” by Kyle Idleman

We have spent many weeks studying the parables of Jesus to look at how life is to be lived now that we are in God’s Kingdom.

As such, we must ask ourselves, “Are we fans of Jesus or followers of Jesus?” There is a difference. Fans know many facts about their celebrity, athlete, etc, but there is no relationship there. We many know details and characteristics of our spouses or best friends, but knowing these truths alone does not make a relationship.

We actually have to know the person, not simply know about them. There has to be that inner confidence that we know the person.

We have to spend time building trust, being vulnerable, and yes, that is risky, for what if we are rejected by this person?

Friends, God has shown us in Jesus that He never rejects those who come to Him. For God knows each of us intimately, and that is how He wants us to know Him…completely.

Let us go to this story to discover more. Simon at this party wants to know more about Jesus, which is a good thing (not all Pharisees were bad).

Yet, Simon did not do all the acts of hospitality that he could have done, now compare this with the woman who came, (who never would have been invited to this party ever!)

What brought her to the party? Simon had the wealth to invite Jesus. She had nothing, but something about Him drew her there, and she makes bold to see Him. Maybe what Jesus taught or how Jesus looked at her with compassion, showed her, “Maybe God has not given up on me.”

“Maybe God even still loves me!” Why does she do what she did? Because it was God who came into her life, and she accepted it,

just like God came into Simon’s life in the person of Jesus, and Simon did not understand it. It is a great big reversal.

The one who was supposed to be looking for the Chosen One, the religious scholar (Simon), does not understand, and the last person we would expect to understand (this sinful woman), does get it. Jesus gives Simon clues as to who He is,

Notice in verse 39, when Simon said these comments to himself…no one was supposed to hear those words…but Jesus did. (this is the first hint)

Jesus actually read Simon’s thoughts, and this should have shown Simon, “this is no mere man you have in your midst at this party”

Then Jesus tells Simon the parable, and the parable is easy to solve. The one who has been forgiven the bigger amount is more grateful than the one forgiven the small amount.

So, Simon gets it right (good for him!) Then Jesus hits him out of left field with this comparison.

Jesus explains what the woman did to show Jesus love and hospitality is exactly what Simon should have done.

Jesus is saying, “Simon you wanted to know more about me, which was good, but you did not treat Me as I deserve to be treated. This woman on the other hand, may have lived a sinful life, but she did treat Me as I deserve to be treated.’

And how does Jesus deserve to be treated? Look at vs. 48, CHECKMATE! Who is Jesus? GOD. More than a man, more than a prophet, He is God.

Simon wanted to be a fan, but this forgiven woman wants to be a follower. Everyone carries a debt. Simon, this woman, and you and I.

Some of our debt (sins) may be large, others may be small, but we all carry the debt. Jesus showed us by His perfect life just how short we fall in trying to please God by our broken lives, but praise the Lord, that out of the same mouth comes, “Your sins are forgiven”

Jesus says to Simon what He says to all of us here. “Compared to God, we are no better or worse than this sinful woman, and if you realized the depths of our own sin, and my love for you, you would have the same reaction she did…gratitude…and you would have done the same thing she did…put your trust in Me”

That is the difference between a fan like Simon, and a follower like this woman, because the offer is made to both.

Simon figured he did not have to be forgiven much, so there was not that much gratitude. The sinful woman knew the depths of her sin and the forgiveness and love of God, and so showed much gratitude.

Simon kept Jesus at arms length, this woman threw herself at Him to love Him, and to be loved by Him. Jesus came into Simon’s life and Simon did not answer with trust. Jesus came into this woman’s life and she answered with complete trust.

We can be fans of Jesus and not know Him fully or we can be followers and know His living presence daily…How? Love Him, because He first loved us, and build that relationship, because He desires to have that with you.

7/24/16-Luke 15:11-32-The Heartbeat of God Pt. II

It gives our Father in heaven the most joy when His sons and daughters turn from a life of sin and wrong and return to Him.

–Often we picture God as only being sad and serious, troubled at the brokenness and pain of the world, and make no mistake, God does grieve, weeping with the victims and angry at the perpetrators.

…but even in the midst of the darkness, a light shines forth! Even in the pain, there is hope: The good news of Jesus Christ is still reaching people, and God is still saving people by His grace, for this message is smashing down walls and saving people and God is using His church (us!) to bring them into His kingdom.

–Therefore, even in the mess and chaos, God still has that constant joy for all this is part of His plan. For God is still in charge, and He is drawing people to salvation like an ice-cold water draws a desert-parched traveler.

–So the party in heaven does start after 1,000 people repent. The party does not start after 100 people repent. Rather, the party starts just after one person turns from evil and follows Jesus, and so the party is always happening and is on full blast!

–It is this joy that Jesus has in mind when he tells us of the familiar parable of the lost son. So let’s set the stage: Just like last week, Jesus is being criticized by the religious teachers for hanging out with “sinners” and tax collectors, those people that would not even give God a second thought.

–Hence, in Luke 15, after the parables of the lost sheep and the lost coin, Jesus tells this story of the lost son. This is the gospel story told in one parable. IF you have ever struggled to explain the gospel (good news) of Jesus and His love to yourself or others, think of this story!

—A father has two sons, and one day the younger says to his father, “Father, give me the share of the inheritance that belongs to me”. This was not a simple request.

—Instead it was a grave insult, for by saying this the son basically wished his father was dead! And the father does something just as shameful…he gives in to the son’s requests!

–So the son takes off and spends the money in selfish living, but soon the money ran out and there was a severe famine in the land. The son was so poor he had to go work in the pig farms! We cannot miss the message here. For a Jew, to work with pigs showed just how low the son had sunk in the world.

—He was the worst sinner imaginable, dishonoring God, dishonoring his father, and dishonoring his people by immoral living, just like the “sinners” Jesus had around him.   

—And even though he insulted and shamed his entire family and village, the son finally comes to his senses, and even though he is afraid to face his past, what choice does he have? For he will die otherwise. He thought, “If I go back, maybe dad will show me mercy, and although I will never be his son again, I can work as a slave to pay back what I owe him”

—In other words, the son repented. BUT little did he know, His loving never gave up on him, but was always watching, waiting for him to return.

—When he finally did, the father sprints out to meet his son, wrapping his loving arms around Him and kissed him, showing that all has been forgiven. He then gives him his cloak, ring, and sandals, showing the world that this son will not work as a slave but is instead welcomed back as a son! Even the calf is killed so that there can be a party!

—This is the story of the tax collectors and sinners. Even though they were the worst of the worst (like the prodigal son), God still loved them! You may think you are beyond His love, but He loves you too!! When those same sinners put their trust in Jesus, God welcomed them no matter their past!

—But what of the other son? The other son was supposed to represent the religious teachers and leaders. Notice, the other son did not have a relationship with his father either, because he had no idea the actions of his brother.

—Even so, the father (God) still goes out to meet the older brother and invites him to join them in the festivities!

—God’s grace is open to any who would accept His offer. You could be the worst sinner you know, or you could think to yourself, “well I live a pretty good life.”

—Christianity is about the gospel. The gospel is not a list of rules that one must keep, and it is not moral reform, good behavior, or self-discovery. Rather, it is realizing that God loves you and wants to have a relationship with you. It is about turning from your old life, to accept the new life that God has in store for you. It is about submitting to Jesus as the Lord of your life.

—Fear not, no matter who you are, or where you see yourself as either one of two sons, you are loved, and God is searching for you to redeem you also.

---

WHAT IT ALL MEANS-This is the story of us as humanity. Back in the garden of Eden, we enjoyed the intimacy of a close walk with God, but like the prodigal, we decided to go our own way. Yet, just when all seemed lost, and we were all beyond hope, God took on flesh and lived among us (Jesus). Just like the father chased after the son out of love, getting dusty and dirty in the streets to embrace his child, so too God took on flesh and got dusty and dirty in our world so that we would know His embrace of love.

7/17/16-Luke 15:1-10-The Heartbeat of God

When we lose something that is precious to us, we may go crazy trying to find it, but if it is a person that we lose and cannot find, we go reckless, crossing over every barrier to get them back!

When we find them, we have such joy and relief that they are found and back where they belong with us.

*Did you know God experiences joy and relief as well? We sometimes picture God as serious. solemn, stern, and with no joy.

It is true that we should take our relationships with God seriously, but also be seriously joyful! What gives God joy? It is when those who are lost to sin are found by His love, when they who were captured are set free, when they who were broken are now restored!

Just like our recklessness in find our lost child, God gets reckless when it comes to finding us His lost children!

See last week we mentioned Jesus hung out with a pretty rough-cut crowd. These were the worse of sinners, broken and they knew it.

They did not think God could ever love them, and no religious leader (the very people who should have been the first to show God’s love) did not even want to be seen with them!

The Pharisees did not even go near them to try to get them to accept God and come into His Kingdom. Worst of all, by slamming the door in the sinners’ faces, the Pharisees thought they were making God happy.

Jesus is going to show all of them, including us, what really makes God happy, and that He loves human beings so much, He is reckless in order to save them, as the shepherd in this parable shows us.

In the first parable, the shepherd tears the wilderness apart and risks it all to save the life of the one lost sheep compared to the other 99. When he finds the lost sheep, there is not scolding or yelling at the sheep, there is only rejoicing.

The second parable has a similar picture. The woman who lost the precious coins tore her house apart to find the lost coin.

When both are found, there is a cause for much celebration. IT’S PARTY TIME! God celebrates and has joy over you and me and over all sinners who repent.

The Pharisees when they heard this, probably thought, “God cannot act like that! Maybe if these sinners clean up their act and get more moral and upright, God will forgive them from His throne in heaven, but He won’t go chasing after them or anyone else. He can’t love them that much! Can He?

Answer from Jesus: Who do you think I am? Who do you think sent Me? I am the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep.

The Parable of the Good Shepherd is the Gospel in a story: We all were like sheep who went astray, but God does not stay in the safety of the sheep pen and expect us to find our way back. NO He rescues us!

Jesus is the Good Shepherd who is on a rescue mission, chasing us down, and saving us, and when that happens, heaven rejoices! For remember, the gospel is not moral behavior, it is not saying “clean yourself up and then God will love you”. No, He already does, which is why He sent a Savior.

Jesus Christ is not just a teacher, for to give us good rules to live by does not pay our sin debt. We had to be saved from sin. Christianity is not about rules or “be moral and go to heaven” It is about accepting the offer the Good Shepherd has made you to save you and bring you back to where you belong…with God

Jesus is saying to the Pharisees in this parable that “God delights and rejoices when people are saved, and when these tax collectors and sinners take His hand and accept Him, they are more friends of God than you are. In fact, you Pharisees, if you think God doesn’t rejoice in others being saved, You don’t know God!

God is in the redemption business. Before we became believers, we were all sinners and lost sheep, and just as that love saved us, that same love is reaching out to others, and we cannot be afraid, or think anyone is beyond the Gospel, for no one is beyond it.

We run into both Pharisees and sinners in our lives today. We know people who think either “I don’t need Jesus” (moral Pharisees) or “Jesus could never love me” (immoral sinners), but the Gospel is a wrecking ball, breaking down walls. The cross both makes us humble and gives us joy. It humbles us because it shows the depth of our sin, but it gives us joy by also showing the depth of His love for us.

The Gospel is the ministry of reckless redemption and reconciliation. That was Jesus’ mission then, and it is our mission now: To show all that Jesus is the Good Shepherd, pursuing and loving the lost sheep. That is what brings God joy, and it should bring us joy as well, and that should motivate us to spread the Word. It may not be easy, but just as the friends rejoiced, so we too will rejoice when those who were lost are found.