 |
 |
 |
 |  |  |  |  |  |  | | |
If you have any feedback on how we can make our new website better please do contact us and we would like to hear from you. | |
|
|
 |
|
| 
 |
|
Matthew 6:5-15 Five Steps to Forgiveness Part I
Introduction: Forgiveness is one of the greatest gifts that Christ bestowed upon us and also one of the greatest gifts that we can pass on to others. The problem with forgiveness is it is something we think that has to be asked for and sometimes we hold it over others like the executioners ax above the intended victim. We will give that forgiveness but it doesn’t mean that we really intend to forgive, we just push the anger or bitterness under the corner of the rug of life and it continues to lift its ugly head whenever anyone else gets on our bad side. Jesus as he hung on the cross didn’t give partial forgiveness, or forgiveness that was asked for or requested, he gave undeserving forgiveness to the those who crucified him and extended forgiveness to all who would receive it.
I. Recognize the need - unforgiveness is a sin
A. In the Lord’s prayer we pray, “forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” How can we expect God to forgive us if we do not forgive others.
B. Another translation uses the word trespasses and another debts and debtors. When we sin, we have a debt hanging over our head until it is forgiven by Christ.
C. We often do things that offend others and just kind of expect them to forgive us, but when the shoe is on the other foot, then we hold a grudge like it is a dear friend.
D. Jesus was very clear on what he believed about unforgiveness...it is wrong, it is a sin, and it will affect us the rest of our lives unless taken care of at the cross.
E. In Matthew 5:23-24 Jesus said, “Therefore if you are bringing you gift to the altar, and while you are there you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go your way; first be reconciled to your brother and then come and present your offering. This always sounds good in principle, but in churches it is seldom practiced. Holding on to unforgiveness in churches becomes a national pastime in some places.
II. Understand the cause and effect - nothing takes place in a vacuum, there is something that causes it and there is an effect that changes you and the way you treat others
A. Often the cause of unforgiveness is hardness in your own heart and an unwillingness to let go of pride. You think it is because of what others have done to you, but it goes back to your relationship with Christ.
B. The effect is how you treat others as a result of the root of bitterness in your soul. Now I know that many of you know that I don't like onions. You can give me a big juicy hamburger and if there is just one tiny sliver of onion on that sandwich, my meal is ruined. It causes bitterness in my mouth. Unforgiveness causes bitterness in your soul.
C. The effect is also a separation between you and God. every time you want to get close to Him, He brings up this unforgiveness and you turn away from Him
III. Ask God to help you be willing to forgive
A. Sometimes it is too difficult to just outright forgive someone. You feel it is something you just can’t do
B. Asking God to help you have the willingness will create a change in you. God may even help you begin to pray for that person or situation in a way you never thought you could
C. Karl Menninger, the famed psychiatrist, once said that if he could convince the patients in psychiatric hospitals that their sins were forgiven, 75 percent of them could walk out the next day!
IV. Visualize Christ forgiving from the cross
A. Picture yourself bowing down before Christ at the cross.
B. See how the weight of the burden of unforgiveness has caused you to be stooped over in anguish
C. See how your unforgiveness has caused his suffering on the cross for Jesus took our sins on himself - He who knew no sin, became our sin
D. Take the unforgiveness off of your shoulders or back and literally lay it at the cross at Jesus feet
E. Thank God for taking this sin and burden from you and LEAVE IT THERE!
V. Be reconciled to that person if at all possible
A. Go to that person and explain what God has done in your life.
B. Ask THEM to forgive you for carrying bitter feelings against them for so long even though it is they who should ask for forgiveness - They may not have even known that they offended you and that you have been bitter towards them. Other times they are too embarrassed for what they said or did to you or are just outright afraid to bring it back up again.
C. Often when you ask them to forgive you, they in turn will ask you to forgive them - but this is not the reason for going to them, it is just to clear your heart before God, so if they don’t ask for forgiveness, let it go and praise God for who He is.
Conclusion: In Ernest Gordon’s “Miracle on the River Kwai.” The Scottish soldiers, forced by their Japanese captors to labor on a jungle railroad, had degenerated to barbarous behavior, but one afternoon something happened. A shovel was missing. The Japanese officer in charge became enraged. He demanded that the missing shovel be produced, or else. When nobody in the squadron budged, the officer got his gun and threatened to kill them all on the spot.
It was obvious the officer meant what he had said. Then, finally, one man stepped forward. The officer put away his gun, picked up a shovel, and beat the man to death. When it was over, the survivors picked up the bloody corpse and carried it with them to the second tool check. This time, no shovel was missing. Indeed, there had been a miscount at the first check point.
The word spread like wildfire through the whole camp. An innocent man had been willing to die to save the others!… The incident had a profound effect.… The men began to treat each other like brothers. When the victorious Allies swept in, the survivors, human skeletons, lined up in front of their captors … and instead of attacking their captors insisted: "No more hatred. No more killing. Now what we need is forgiveness."
Genesis 28 and 29 A Story of Love and Faith
This being the Sunday before Valentine's Day, I would like to share with you a true love story. It has been one that has been told for centuries, one of love and romance, one of treachery and cunning and one of faith and faithfulness. It begins like this.
It had been a long and difficult journey, over lands and roads he had never traveled. There were dangers on this journey, always the threat of robbers, occasional dust storms and the concern of running out of water or food before finding where he was going. He had no map, only the instructions given to him by his mother before he hurriedly left the house on a journey to find a wife. Now as strange as this tale may seem, it is not so strange, for many a young man has gone out in life seeking fame, fortune and a wife.
Sleeping accommodations on this journey were uncomfortable to say the least. It was usually hiding behind some bushes near the pathway with his cloak for his blanket and a rock for a pillow. Now I don't know about you, but I have never found a rock that I would choose for a pillow. His meals consisted of dried meats, usually lamb, dried fruit and stale water that he hoped would last until he could find the next well. Whether it was the rock for a pillow, the dried fruit or the stale water, as he slept he had a dream and in this dream he met God. God told him that he would bless him and he would have a great family that would spread as the dust covered the earth and through his family all the families of the earth would be blessed. An impressive dream to say the least, for a young man who had no wife, and no means of support to raise a family if he had a wife. But in this dream God had given him a promise and he was not about to lose out on this blessing from God. So east he continued traveling as his mother instructed, searching for a nomad who lived in the land of Haran.
With his water supply now extremely low, he spotted a well not too far off in the distance. As he neared the well others were gathering with their flocks to water them in the heat of the day. The smell of the sheep, even from a distance reminded him of his days as a shepherd working his father's herds. He asked the shepherds where they were from and their reply brought joy to his heart. They were from Haran, the place that he sought, and he knew his journey to his uncle's home was coming to an end. He asked them a second question, did they know of Laban? They did and said things were well with him. In fact his daughter, Rachel, had just come over the hill with her sheep to water them as she was a shepherdess.
Jacob looked in her direction, and whether it was the glow of the sun behind her or the excitement of finally meeting a relative of his, to him she was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. As an act of valor, he uncovered the well and poured out water for her sheep. He looked deep into her eyes and kissed her on the cheek in greeting and he wept with joy as he explained that he was a relative of her father. She ran and told her father, Laban, and he ran out to greet Jacob with a warm embrace and welcomed him into his home.
Jacob stayed with his uncle for a month, working with the sheep as he would at his father's place. He also kept his eye on that same girl he had first met at the well, Rachel, and her beauty and grace captivated him. Laban was impressed with Jacob's work with his flocks and told Jacob it was unfair for him to work with no wages. He asked Jacob what he would like for his wages and Jacob, who by now had fallen in love with Rachel asked to marry her, in exchange for seven years of labor, and it must have been true love, for to Jacob, the seven years seemed but a few days and the time finally came and he asked for Rachel as his wife.
Laban agreed, but did not tell Jacob of the little problem that existed. He was willing to give Rachel as a wife, but she was the younger sister in the family and Leah the older. Their custom was to not marry off the younger before the older, but Laban had a plan. Since the bride would be wrapped up in a veil Jacob wouldn't know who he was marrying and given vast amounts of fermented drinks, he would not know who she was until the morning after. Laban sent Rachel to a neighbors house and had her locked away for the night. How she wept for her Jacob, oh how she desired to be in his arms that night after seven long years a waiting.
Laban's plan worked and when Jacob awoke the next morning he must have thought his hangover was severe for his eyes didn't seem to focus right and his beloved Rachel looked like her weak eyed sister Leah. It didn't take long though to sober up and realize what had taken place and he confronted Laban. Laban admitted the ruse, but explained the custom of not marrying off the younger daughter before the older and he had thought that someone would come along in that seven year time period and marry Leah, but no one had. He told Jacob he could marry Rachel as well though if he would complete the bridal week with Leah and then promise to work another seven years for Rachel. Jacob agreed and after seven years, one month and one week after meeting Rachel by the well, Jacob took his beautiful bride into his home and fulfilled his promise to Laban and worked another seven years.
This is my abridged version of Genesis 28 and 29. It is a beautiful story of love and romance, but it is also a wonderful story of faith.
When Jacob had his dream while sleeping on the rock for a pillow, God appeared to him and God laid out Jacob's future for him. When Jacob awoke from that dream he was amazed and said, "How awesome is this place! This is no other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." Jacob named the place Bethel which means house of God. He also made a vow to God and said, "If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father's house in safety, then the Lord will be my God. And this stone which I have set up as a pillar will be Gods house; and of all that Thou dost give me I will surely give a tenth to Thee."
It was at this place that Jacob found faith in God. Before this time, faith in God was something that was his father's religion. Jacob had never experienced a closeness with God and wasn't really searching for it. From that point on, Jacob and a personal relationship with God, often through dreams and visions, but he was faithful to give God credit for all he had.
This place was a place of repentance. Before this time in life, Jacob had agreed to treachery with his mother by tricking his father into giving him the birthright blessing that belonged to his older brother. Before the presence of God, Jacob had to recognize his sinfulness and later in life when returning home, made up with his brother for his sin against him.
This place was where Jacob found God's promises to be true. Jacob told God that if he would follow through with his promises, he would serve Him throughout life.
This place was where Jacob learned to be faithful. He promised God that in returning he would tithe 10 percent of all he had. At this point in life Jacob had nothing, but when he returned from serving Laban 20 years later, he was a very wealthy man with many children, grandchildren, sheep, camels and goats. With tithing, when you make $10 a week giving a dollar seems easy. When you make $100 a week, giving ten dollars isn't too hard. But often for many people that is where it stops. No matter how much you make, $10 is all you are going to give to God.
Life for all of us is like a journey and it is a story of love and faith. For some the journey seems to always be over rocky ground, and finding love and faith takes many starts and restarts in life. For others, the journey seems easy with the pathway smooth before them and the right one in their life encouraging them onto faith. Following Christ does not mean there will never be stones along the pathway of life, but like Jacob, that stone may become the gateway to heaven if you let Christ be your guide.
Who Will Escape The Judgment Of God?
Romans 2 1-16
Introduction: As we look at God’s judgment of mankind today, besides Romans 2 we need to also look at Rev. 20:10-15 to see the final judgment of sin. When we ask the question, “Who will escape the judgment of God?”, the answer in reality is that no one will. Let's look at Revelations 20, “And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night forever and ever. Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." This is not a very pretty picture of your future if you don’t know Christ. Consider then what Paul writes to the Romans as well.
I. God will render every man according to his own deeds
A. Everyone will be judged
B. Not what others have done to you, but what you have done to or for others
C. Elva J. Hoover - “In the day when all men will stand before God, the significant question for each of us will no longer be what we think of Christ, but what he thinks of us.”
II. God’s judgment will rightly fall on the wicked
A. Most of us would have no problem with that, if a person is evil, they should be punished with the wrath of God
1. Because of the things (sins) listed before these verses (1:24-31) we would expect them to receive the full wrath of God.
2. But we too are deserving if we are stubborn in our mind and unrepentant in our heart.
3. Vance Havner - “If God dealt with people today as he did in the days of Ananias and Sapphira, every church would need a morgue in the basement.”
B. It is those who lived good lives but not as Christians that we have trouble thinking God would punish
Charles Haddon Spurgeon -- “Is it not foolish to be living in this world without a thought of what you will do at the end of it? A man goes into an hotel and restaurant, and as soon as he sits down he begins to order his wine, his dinner, his bed; there is no delicacy in season that he forgets to order. He stays at the hotel for some time. By and by, the bill comes due, and it takes him by surprise. "I never thought of that--I never thought of that!"
"Why," says the hotel manager, "here is a man who is either a born fool or else a clueless. What! Never thought of reckoning--never thought of settling with me!"
After this fashion too many live. They eat, and drink, and sin, but they forget the inevitable hereafter, when for all the deeds done in the body, the Lord will bring us into judgment.”
C. There is no partiality with God's judgment. It won't matter if you are rich or poor, educated or not. The judgment of God will be just and fair, but it will still be judgment.
III. If you judge others but do the same you are just as guilty
A. How often have we accused someone in our hearts of being a terrible gossip, and then found ourselves doing just the same? Or maybe someone angrily berated someone and we thought them as terrible, yet when we do the same, we think it is righteous indignation.
B. John R.W. Stott -- The secret of our relationships with one another in the Christian Church, especially when we have our differences, is "Jesus Christ is Lord." To despise or stand in judgment on a fellow Christian isn't just a breach of fellowship. It is a denial of the Lordship of Jesus. I need to say to myself, Who am I, that I should cast myself in the role of another Christian's lord and judge? I must be willing for Jesus Christ to be not only my Lord and Judge, but also my fellow Christians' Lord and Judge. ... I must not interfere with Christ's Lordship over other Christians.
IV. God even judges the secrets of our hearts
A. For many the Christian walk may look good on the outside but inside one would see the darkest of secrets of the soul.
B. We think we are living a good Christian life, because no one sees what we are like inside. But inside we are filled with jealousy, anger, bitterness, pride. Whatever it is, if it is sin, God will judge us for it.
C. That great saint and missionary pioneer, Hudson Taylor said, "The real secret of an unsatisfied life lies too often in an unsurrendered will." Halfhearted obedience satisfies neither us, nor God.
Conclusion: Years ago on the TBN television channel I heard a testimony about a death or near-death experience. The man, Ronald Reagan (not to be confused with the President), lived a hard and sinful life. He was cut with a broken beer bottle in a fight and started to bleed to death. The store owner loaded him in his car and took him to the hospital where they told him they couldn’t treat a wound this difficult here, so they loaded him in an ambulance and took off to another hospital. As they were working to keep him alive, and losing the battle, one of the ambulance workers looked at him and told him he needed Jesus. Ronald started swearing at him and next he found himself floating into a darkened tunnel. At the end of the tunnel was light, only this light was not inviting, but terrifying. As he came closer he could make out a lake of fire and he heard cries of people warning him to stay away. Then he began to see the forms of the people’s bodies in the flames, being burned but not burning up. The screams of agony were deafening. Finally he saw their faces. Faces that were in pain and suffering, faces of many people he knew on earth, but had died violent deaths. People who he had done drugs with, or got drunk with. All of them warning him not to come to this place and to escape if he could. Then he felt himself being lift up from this burning hell and passing back through the tunnel. When he opened his eyes he was in a hospital room. His wife was at his side and seeing the fear on his face asked him what happened.
Today, Ronald Reagan is a Christian. He believes he was given a second chance so that he might warn others that hell is a real and final place for those who don’t believe in Christ. The question for you today is, “Will you escape the judgment of God?” God has provided a way. God sent His Son, Jesus, so that none would have to perish. What choice are you going to make today?
Hymn #240 Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling
Watch this video before reading the sermon... http://www.youtube.com/user/erichornermusic
Psalm 139:13-16 “All Life Begins With God”
She was an American woman living in a foreign land and she contracted amoebic dysentery, caused by a parasite in contaminated food or drink. She went into a coma and they treated her with very strong antibiotics to save her life. Then they discovered that she had another condition that needed attention. She was pregnant.
The doctors now concerned for her safety and their belief that the medicines that she was on had caused irreversible damage to her baby, strongly urged her to have an abortion. Because she and her husband were strong Christians, they refused the abortion and cited their Christian faith as the reason they had for hope that their son would be born without the devastating disabilities that the doctors had predicted. The doctors told her it wasn't really a baby yet, but just a mass of fetal tissue.
During her pregnancy, she nearly lost the baby four times. Again the doctors encouraged her to have an abortion, but she refused to even consider it. She eventually spent the last two months in bed and gave birth to a healthy baby boy on August 14, 1978.
She recalled making a pledge to God with her husband: If you will give us a son, we'll name him Timothy and we'll make him a preacher, and today their youngest son is indeed a preacher. He preaches in prisons, makes hospital visits, and serves with his father's ministry in the Philippines. He also plays football. This fine young man whom doctors said should be put to death before he could be born played football for the University of Florida and became the first sophomore in history to win college football's highest award, the Heisman Trophy. Today he is the Broncos’ quarterback, Tim Tebow. His current role as quarterback of the Denver Broncos has provided an incredible platform for Christian witness.
Psalms 139:13-16
13 “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. 14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well. 15 My frame was not hidden from You, When I was made in secret, And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; 16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.”
I. All life begins with God
A. For God, life begins at conception - whether in the womb or in a Petri dish, from the moment that the sperm enters the egg, life is formed.
B. Not all babies make it into our world - some die due to miscarriage, millions die each year at the hand of an abortionist. Of the 4.4 million confirmed pregnancies in the U.S. every year, 500,000 end in miscarriage. Over 800,000 ended at the hand of a physician who had taken an oath to not harm. “Most especially must I tread with care in matters of life and death. If it is given to me to save a life, all thanks. But it may also be within my power to take a life; this awesome responsibility must be faced with great humbleness and awareness of my own frailty. Above all, I must not play at God.”
C. Abortion in our country came about, not because a mother’s life was endangered by her pregnancy, but because their lives were endangered by the back ally abortionists who often not only killed the baby within, but caused harm to the mother, even leading to her death.
D. C. Everett Koop, M.D., formerly the Surgeon General, states that during his 35-plus years of practicing medicine, "Never once did a case come across my practice where abortion was necessary to save a mother's life."
E. A professor in a world-acclaimed medical school once posed this medical situation -- and ethical problem -- to his students: "Here's the family history: The father has syphilis. The mother has TB. They already have had four children. The first is blind. The second had died. The third is deaf. The fourth has TB. Now the mother is pregnant again, the parents come to you for advice. They are willing to have an abortion, if you decide they should. What do you say?"
The students gave various individual opinions, and then the professor asked them to break into small groups for "consultation." All of the groups came back to report that they would recommend abortion.
"Congratulations," the professor said, "You just took the life of Beethoven!"
II. God has a plan and purpose for every human life.
A. “Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; And in Your book were all written The days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was not one of them.”
B. Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”
C. Even those whom in life are mentally or physically challenged have a purpose in life, and often that purpose is in how it challenges and changes us.
III. God has an appointment with each individual he has created.
A. God actually has three appointments for us in life. The first two he calls them birth. The first appointment is birth from our mothers. The second appointment is the birth day in our history when we open our hearts and lives up to Christ and receive him as Lord and Savior.
B. The first birth gives us life outside of the womb, the second birth brings us into the womb of the church universal, where we are to be enveloped with the love of others in Christ.
C. The first birth requires us to keep growing to maturity in life, the second birth requires us to grow in a relationship with God and to mature spiritually as disciples of Christ.
D. Then there is the third appointment. It comes at death or the rapture of the church. It is an appointment that all of mankind will keep. Those who know Christ Jesus will be welcomed into the kingdom of heaven, but those who did not receive him as Lord and Savior and lived the holy life, will be destined for an eternity in Hell.
In our society today there are many women who have experienced the pain of abortion. They have participated in an act, often after being told lies by an abortionist, that what they have in their body is just a blob of tissue, yet from the moment that she knew she was pregnant, she had said in her mind and told others that she was expecting a baby. For her, there is forgiveness offered by Jesus. There is healing from the trauma and the heartache that she experienced when she agreed to take the life of her baby.
On this Sanctity of Life Sunday remember that:
· All life begins with God
· God has a plan and a purpose for each life
· God has an appointment with each individual he has created.
If Christ thought that you were worth dying for, isn’t He worth living for?
Ephesians 2:17-22 Christ Our Cornerstone Of Life
When a builder builds a building of stone, he has to be sure that the stones he uses for the corners are some of the hardest stones in the quarry for if they are soft stone, then the whole building can shift as that stone deteriorates. It is like stacking bales of hay, if you put bales on the bottom corners that are not compacted tight enough, then the weight of the bales above them will cause the pile to shift and finally fall. Jesus in our cornerstone of life as foretold by the prophet Isaiah, pronounced in Ephesians as the fulfillment of it. We will also look at 1 Peter and see that we too are precious building blocks for the kingdom of God.
I. The Prophecy Isaiah 28:16-18
A. a tested stone - tested by Satan - as a builder tests the stone for defects
B. a costly corner stone - a higher price than a common stone - it was God's only Son
C. to be the foundation - this stone was not going to be placed just anywhere - this stone was to be the foundation of our faith
D. a stone firmly placed - Christ is immovable - He is the solid rock we can stand on
E. he who believes in it - here God gives us the direction of foundation faith - the beginning of faith has to have a solid foundation
II. The fulfillment Eph. 2:19-22
A. Christ being the chief corner stone - the first one laid into place on which to build all the rest
B. This is as Jesus taught
C. A foundation laid by the prophets and apostles making it bedrock solid
D. This is taught in the Bible, not just any book
E. Being built together or fitted together - God now works us into the building
F. The purpose of Christ being the cornerstone is that we would be become a holy dwelling place for God
III. As Peter sees it all together I Peter 2:4-5
A. We are to become the living stones that God's temple is built of
B. We are not common stones, but choice and precious to God for he bought us with a high price, the blood of his son
C. We are being built up to be a holy priesthood, someone God can use, not just junk on a shelf
D. We offer ourselves to God as a spiritual sacrifice and are only acceptable because of Christ as our cornerstone
IV. The cornerstone is Christ
A. As the prophecy said, He is a precious cornerstone
B. He is our rock in whom we must believe to be saved
C. He was the stone rejected, but our cornerstone of faith
Closing illustration – In 1980, Maria and I had the privilege to go to Israel with a tour group from our seminary. It was an amazing time to visit the places that I had heard and read about since I was a child. Of all the things that impressed me, the one that stuck out in my mind the most was visiting the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. This church not only has the empty tomb of Christ, but it is so huge that it also houses the hill that they believe Christ was crucified on, Golgatha. Our tour guide, a Lutheran pastor spoke about the significance of the crucifixion site. It is a limestone hill that the three crosses were placed upon. What is interesting about the limestone on this hill is that as the area was quarried out, this hill was left because the stone there was not solid enough to be used as building material. It was a soft limestone. When the word of God proclaims that the stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone of our faith, it is a two- fold prophecy. One in that the actual rock on which Christ was crucified was rejected by the builders. The other is that Christ, who was called in the Old Testament, the rock and refuge of our faith, was rejected by the builders, i.e. the priests, as not worthy and a heretic.
Is your faith built upon the solid rock of Christ, although rejected by many, is He whom you build your life and faith upon?
#438 “My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less”
Matthew 25 31-40 When Did We See You, Jesus?
When we become a Christian we are given special gifts by the Holy Spirit. With those special gifts we are given responsibilities to carry out in our lives along this journey that God sends us on. Often though, as Christians we go through life clueless about our spiritual gifts and what to do with them even if we know we have them. As they say when you get a ticket from the police, “ignorance of the law is no excuse,” and ignorance of what God has given you and what he expects you to do with it is no excuse. Part of the problem for us is that when we become Christians we take on that macho thought process of believing, “we have arrived,” instead of, “we are just beginning.” Following Christ is a journey not the landing of the plane. It is like buying that bicycle for your child for Christmas that needs assembled. You don’t just wrap it up the way it is and expect them to be happy with a bunch of parts in a box; you have to put it together. And you don’t just decide, “hey, I can do this with my eyes closed,” you had better get the instruction book out and follow it carefully or your son or daughter may be on only child on the block with a bicycle with the handle on the back of the bike and the seat under it between the wheels.
Life as a Christian would be so much easier if we just had some kind of magic glasses that when we put them on, or signs that they wore around their necks, then when we looked at someone we could tell what their need was in life and then focus in on how to help them. Maybe glasses that would look like this. “Wow, now when I look at you, I can see what is behind that smile that you bring to church every Sunday.” (Walk around looking at the various signs people are wearing. Discouraged, hurting, hungry, lost, suicidal, angry, etc.)
Read with me the scripture on the screen this morning from Matthew 25:31-40. 31 "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. 32 "And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; 33 and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left. 34 "Then the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 'For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; 36 naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.' 37 "Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? 38 'And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 'And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' 40 "And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'
I. We will see Jesus when we have discernment and ask for wisdom and in life.
One reason we are clueless about the needs of others is our lack of discernment. Paul prays in Philippians 1:9-11 “9 And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment, 10 so that you may approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless until the day of Christ; 11 having been filled with the fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Discernment is like reading between the lines. When you read a book, you read the words on the page, but when you understand a book, you understand the intent of which the author wrote it. That is called discernment. When our exchange daughter Nadia attended Oskaloosa High School, she had an English class where she had to read the book Fahrenheit 411. Understanding the meaning of that book was hard enough, but she had to translate it into Russian to understand much of what she was reading. I remember the day when she had that “eureka moment.” Everything finally fell into place and she not only understood what she was reading but had discernment into what the author was trying to say.
When we see others as Christ sees them, we have found discernment in our hearts and lives. We no longer see them for what they portray, but for what they feel. We have compassion for their hurts, needs and sins. When we discover that in our lives, we have a “eureka moment” with the Holy Spirit.
This is where part of our problem comes in. We like to build the bike without reading the instructions. The scripture teaches us in James 1:5, “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.” We need wisdom from God to know what to share with others who have needs. We need wisdom from God to know how to best help those in need. This is part of our government problem with helping the poor. They use no wisdom in solving the poor issue, they just believe if they dump more money at them, their lives will improve, but that is not true. Because they did not have to earn the money they spend it on frivolous things and never save up for emergencies expecting the government to just keep bailing them out. There is an old Chinese proverb that goes like this, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” We are to help the poor, but we can help them more by teaching them how to get out of poverty.
II. We will see Jesus when we help the less fortunate.
To know that people have needs and do nothing about it is an affront to God and a mockery of our Christian faith. There are many scriptures that underscore that we are to help the less fortunate.
We often hear the scripture quoted, “The poor will be with you always,” and use it as an excuse to do nothing to help the poor. But when you look at that scripture in context it reads like this. Deuteronomy 15:11, "For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land.’” Who does that scripture tell us will help the poor? The government? The non-believers? No! This scripture is written to believers teaching them how they are to help the poor around them.
In Proverbs 21:13 the writer says, “He who shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be answered.” Unanswered prayer can be a result of not helping others in need. The writer also writes in Proverbs 22:9, “He who is generous will be blessed, for he gives some of his food to the poor.”
James puts it this way, (James 2:15-16) “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, " Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?”
III. We will see Jesus when we are doing what we are called to do as Christians.
Just taking care of the poor is not the only way we see Jesus. We see Jesus everyday when we are involved in the lives of others and using that discernment and wisdom that God give us, we take time to listen and help others with their needs or problems. We are to pray for one another. We are to pray with each other. We are to lift up the down trodden. We are to visit those in prison. We are to be involved in the lives of others as Jesus was, and when we do this we will see Jesus daily working in our lives and transforming the lives of others. Life will no longer be about the big “ME” but will be about “HIM.”
We are going to watch a video and as we do, you will see how this service all fits together about God opening our eyes to see others as Christ sees them, and how we can be involved in changing others lives while ours are changed as well.
Watch video, “My Own Little World.” http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=FJ2F91NU
Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You drink? 38 'And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? 39 'And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?' 40 "And the King will answer and say to them, 'Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.'
Are you part of the righteous? Do you see Jesus daily in your life and in others?
Joshua 3:1-4 2012 – The End Of The World Or Return Of Christ
There has been a lot of hype about the end of the world coming in 2012, mostly because of the Mayan calendar that ends on December 21, 2012. Now we have a world of people who might believe the Mayan’s, a people we know very little of, but they doubt the Word of God, written by a people we have volumes written about. We have the Word of God which has been proven over and over again to be accurate. On one hand we have scientists saying that in 2012 we have the potential of the greatest solar flares in centuries, so great they could knock out anything with a computer chip in it, which would be just about anything mechanical today from your toaster to your car. On the other hand we have God’s Word telling us that God cares about us and is watching out for our well being.
Whether or not there are great solar flares or calendars that quit on December 21 of this year, we do know one thing for certain, 2012 has the potential to be a life changing year in many ways, and if you do not know Christ you might find yourself riding in a roller coaster without any safety harness or bar to hold on to. I believe entering 2012 is much like Joshua and the Israelites felt millennia ago. They had followed Moses for many years and now that he had died, it is time to pass over the Jordan River into the Promised Land.
Joshua 3:1-4
1 Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3 giving orders to the people: "When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4 Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about a thousand yards between you and the ark; do not go near it."
I. There are things that will take place in 2012 that will cause your life to change.
A. We in America will elect a new president.
B. What happens to the European countries can cause an avalanche on our economy in America.
C. Israel may finally take out Iran’s nuclear capabilities.
D. More Muslim countries will fall under the leadership of the Islamist fundamentalist groups that want to wipe out Israel and destroy America.
E. More teenage violence will shake faith in our own safety in America.
F. A major earth quake will shake the planet.
G. Famine will devastate and kill millions more on the earth.
II. As Christians we are not to go into 2012 unprepared.
A. As with Joshua leading the people across the Jordan into the Promised Land, they were told to keep their eyes on the Ark of the Covenant. And by watching where it goes, they would know where to go. As Christians we are to keep our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith.
B. Joshua told the people to keep their eyes focused because they had never passed this way before. They were going into an unseen land facing unseen forces and enemies. They were going to be tested like never before by circumstances that they had never had to face.
C. As Christians in 2012, we are entering a year we have never faced before. We do not know the difficulties that we will be facing. We do not know the changes that will take place. We do not know the circumstances that will put us to the test like never before.
III. As Christians when we see these things taking place, we better get ready.
A. In Luke 21:28 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
B. When you see these times of turmoil, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
C. When you see these times of wars, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
D. When you see the god of money melting down before your eyes, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
E. When you see Israel launch their attack against Iran, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
F. When you see the anti-Christ of Islam claiming more countries for their false religion of peace, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
G. When you see violence fill our land, Christian get ready for the return of Christ!
H. When you see earthquakes and famine ravage the world, Christian get ready for your redemption is drawing near and the trumpet is being place on the lips of the archangel ready to announce the return of Jesus and for those who have mocked Him, and for those who have denied Him, and for those who have rejected Him, and for those who have only played games with faith in Christ, it is going to be too late, for the hour will have chimed and the rapture of the church will have taken place and the GREAT TRIBULATION, unlike anything ever experience since the day of the flood is about to begin.
Conclusion: If you do not know Jesus and you are either in church at New Hope today, or reading this on the internet or received this message in the mail, don’t put it off another day, ask Jesus Christ into your heart today!
If you have claimed to be a Christian, but your life choices do not fit within the Word of God and you are mocking Christ by openly living in sin, repent of it before it is too late!
If you have denied or rejected Him and you have any twinge of remorse, it is not too late for you today. God’s Holy Spirit has just spoken to your heart and you know it. Do not put it off another moment! Repent before it is too late!
Whatever we are going to be facing in 2012, it will have to be faced with faith. You will either face it with faith in your own abilities which will crumble under the onslaught that will hit you, or you will face it with faith in Christ’s abilities to keep you safe in his arms of love. The choice is yours. What will you decide?
"Father, I know that I have broken your laws and my sins have separated me from you. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward you. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that your son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. I invite Jesus to become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."
Matthew 2:1-11 “The Fourth Gift Of the Magi”
We all remember this story of the Magi or Kings from the East who brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. Of the Christmas stories this one sticks out most in my mind not because of what they brought to Jesus, but because it caused trauma in my life. I must have been around 6 or 7 at the time and it was the annual Christmas program for the children at my church. I think that the lady in charge of the program didn’t like me because she overlooked me for the leading rolls. As a matter of fact, I don’t know if I had a roll in the play. Maybe I was a shepherd or a sheep. But I do remember the morning of the program she came to me and said there had been a change. One of the three kings was sick and couldn’t make it and she said I had to fill in. I was terrified. I didn’t know the song, “We three kings,” and I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, but she just said mouth the words and carry this wrapped present to the front of the church where the manger was with baby Jesus. Somehow I made it through that trauma in my life and have enjoyed watching children be traumatized each year by the same Christmas program.
What I do remember about it most of all was bringing a gift to Jesus. Now I had heard of gold. I couldn’t pronounce frankincense, and myrrh was too strange of a word. But whatever it was that I was supposed to carry, it was a gift to Jesus and I got to give it to him.
Now fast forward a few years, maybe 6 or 7 years. You know the age, where you start buy gifts for others in the family and the excitement of watching them open that gift is greater that seeing what socks or sweater you got. From that time I have always enjoyed sharing gifts with others. I love surprising them with something out of the ordinary. And when you look at the gifts that the Magi brought they were truly out of the ordinary.
The first gift is gold. Babies don’t have much need for gold. They can’t eat it. They can’t play with it cause they might try to eat it or it might be a gold bar and too heavy for them to lift. They can’t wear it. Babies need clothes and diapers, mostly diapers. But a king doesn’t travel hundreds of miles just to bring diapers. He brought what he felt was the most appropriate gift to give a greater King. Gold. Gold for a family who had to give birth to their baby in a stable and who probably would have been considered low class, being from Nazareth. Gold for a family who would have to flee to Egypt to avoid the wicked King Herod and would need something to live on for the next several months until Joseph could get back to his carpenter work in Nazareth. Gold turned out to be the right gift for what they would need in their lives.
The second gift is frankincense. Frankincense begins at a resin from a tree found growing in Arabia. It is created when the tree that it grows from is cut to allow the resin to flow out. Like tree sap from a pine tree it hardens and is collected. It has been used for centuries for religious ceremonies where it is burned and the aromatic aroma fills the air. It is also used for embalming the dead. Did this Magi who traveled hundreds of miles bring a gift for the burial of Christ? When you consider the collecting of the sap, the tree had to be cut first. For Christ to save us, he too had to be cut and crucified. Frankincense was one of the spices that they would have used to prepare him for his burial. Was it the same frankincense that the Magi brought that they were bringing to the tomb the day of his resurrection? They were bringing spices to put around his body.
The third gift was Myrrh. It too comes from a tree that is cut to get it to bleed out it’s resin. But the difference in this tree is that this tree has thorns. Was it from this tree that the crown of thorns was made that was crushed upon the head of Christ before he was crucified? Though it too was used in religious ceremonies and embalming procedures, it was most highly prized because of its value. It often carried the same value as gold or even higher, so for a gift for a King, it was most highly prized.
The fourth gift of the Magi was something not usually recognized. If you were to do a survey of the gifts of the Magi, almost always people will say, “gold, frankincense and myrrh.” But the fourth gift was the most important gift of all. Without this gift the other gifts would be meaningless. Without this gift, the other gifts would not have arrived. The gift that I am talking about here is the gift of themselves. Because they were wealthy, they could have sent them by FEDEX donkey or UPS camel. But they took the time to do something themselves. They didn’t fly on a airplane, or ride in a comfortable SUV. The rode most likely on a camel’s back over hot and dusty terrain; sleeping not in Holiday Inns, but on the ground and maybe in tents. Their meals most likely were not hot meals every day. Some of it might have been smoked, dried meats, dates and warm water they carried in goatskin bags. But they were willing to do all this to give the best gift of all, themselves.
I’m sure when Joseph and Mary opened the first three gifts they must have scratched their heads wondering what purpose these could have in their lives. But in God’s wisdom and planning, these gifts would become very valuable. For the Magi, the gift of giving themselves to Jesus on that first Christmas was priceless.
We are going to watch a video and as you watch it, think of someone you might give a gift of yourself to. You still have a week before Christmas to get it planned and carried out and when you do it, you will be truly blessed as the Magi were giving their gifts and themselves to the baby in the manger, Jesus Christ, the Messiah. To see the video go to http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=FE109FNU&utm_source=GodTube%20Must-See%20Video&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12/13/2011 .
You still have time to be a Christmas miracle to someone. Do you already have someone in mind that might need help? Offer to pay a utility bill, bring them food, take them shopping at Good Will for winter clothing or gifts. Be someone’s Christmas miracle this year.
John 3: 16 The Inconvenience of Christmas
As I was lying in bed around 5:30 the other morning I began to think about Christmas time and the inconvenience of it all. Now before you think I am Scrooge and say “Bah, Humbug,” hear me out on this strange and unusual message about Christmas.
I. It is very inconvenient to have to do all that shopping at Christmas.
A. Black Friday has come and gone. Some got trampled on the floor, others sprayed with pepper spray, all to buy those gifts that last a lifetime. Well maybe for about 20 minutes until the newness wears off. Our littlest ones play in the cardboard box all day, forgetting about the other $120 of gifts we got them.
B. But after Black Friday comes the short march of 30 days until Christmas Eve.
C. For us men, it is like waiting for the gallows to drop from under our feet. If we are married our spouses have given us lots of clues, but unless it is written in black and white, we are pretty much clueless as to what to get for our wives. At the last minute we rush out and go shopping. We pass by the clothing department, because we don’t know her size, and if we get something to big she will think we think she is overweight, and if we get something too small she will know we didn’t take time even to look at the tags in the clothes she already owns. We spend 45 minutes in the hardware department, not because she wants anything from here, but we feel more comfortable here. Finally we find the clearance isle. We get mesmerized looking at the movement in the lava lamps. Who couldn’t like something as pretty as this? We grab it running to the checkout to discover the lines start at the back of the store. We feel like we are suffocating, we need oxygen. Then we remember the tire department and take this beautiful lava lamp to the check out there and we are out the door in two minutes and we have survived one more year of Christmas shopping. On the way home we stop at the ATM and get the gift that keeps on giving for our children, cash!
D. Oh how inconvenient shopping is at Christmas.
II. It is very inconvenient to prepare for all the company that may stop by at Christmas time.
A. With the shopping all done, the next thing that comes our way is preparing the house for company. Everything has to be perfect. All the papers have to be kept out of sight, the floors spotless, with not a piece of lint anywhere. The top of anything has to be dusted to the point of passing the white glove treatment, all because of that one relative who thinks she used to be the inspector general for the army.
B. Of course, this is just the inside of the house. Even though it is now freezing outside, we have to make sure that our house looks inviting to strangers who might be traveling a great distance to have a baby in our inn.
C. Finally we rush out to buy a 40 pound turkey and a half a hog, because for some reason, all that turkey and ham that we had at Thanksgiving wasn’t enough and we know they will be hungry again.
D. Oh how inconvenient it is preparing for company at Christmas.
III. It is very inconvenient to have to travel hundreds and for some, thousands of miles to go see those relatives who in some cases may not have given you much of a thought until Christmas.
A. It used to be that at Christmas, all the kids after opening the gifts on Christmas morning would put on their new clothes and off to grandmas’ house we would go. I don’t know why it was grandmas’ house, because grandpa still lived there, but for some reason it was deeded to her in our minds.
B. But grandma’s house was only a few miles down the road, maybe 30 or 45 at the most. Today things have changed. The children are grown and if they come home they spend $1000 for airfare, or a hundred in gasoline, fighting long lines at the airport security, or snarled traffic on the roads. They finally get to your house and your kids look like they have just got out of an insane asylum and the grandkids after getting out of their cramped quarters are running throughout your house undoing all the work of cleaning you have just spent the last week doing.
C. Of course that’s if they are coming to your house at all. Instead, you might be going to their house, and all those traditions that were important to you have just gone out the door. Weeks of preparing your home vanish as you now fight the traffic or long airport lines to spend a few nights with your children in their home.
D. Oh how inconvenient Christmas travel is.
IV. It will be very inconvenient this Christmas and New Years Day because they happen to fall on the most inconvenient of days, a Sunday.
A. Once in a great while, somewhere between 5 and 11 years, Christmas day falls on a Sunday and when this happens the great struggle takes place in your mind. Do I drag the kids to church or just skip it today? After all, I hardly miss a Sunday during the year, and who would even notice if we are not there. Besides the kids have all their new toys, they will just throw a fit if I tell them now that they have to get ready for church.
B. And why would God even think of having Christmas come on a Sunday. He knows how important my family time is. He knows how hard it is to get them to come on any other Sunday. I will just make up my tithe this next week if I remember.
C. Oh what was God thinking having Christmas day on a Sunday?
V. When you get right down and think about it, it must have been inconvenient for God to plan out and come into this world to start with.
A. I mean, why should God care about a bunch of people who think more of themselves than others? Why should God care enough to come to a place in this universe where the people there would spit on him, mock him, beat him and kill him? Talk about inconvenience!
B. Why should Christ come to this world full of sin, leaving behind his home in glory, just to suffer the indignity of taking your sins and my sins upon himself? Taking the filth of what we have done, covering himself with the excrement of our impurity onto a cross of corrosion. Nailed there by our narrow-mindedness to not care if our neighbor goes hungry or without clothes or is in prison.
C. How inconvenient it must have been for God to cram himself into the body of a human baby. The God who created the universe fitting into the womb of a woman whom he had created, then, being born not in the nicest hospital room but a dirty, damp and cold stable that smelled like a barn full of animals.
D. How inconvenient it was but how necessary it was as well, for mankind had gotten lost in the true meaning of life and was in need of a Savior, not just any savior, but one who could save them from their sins. One who would not just talk about love, but would become love itself. John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life. Not just talk about giving, but would give his life for us. Galatians 2:20 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and delivered Himself up for me.” Not just talk about sacrifice, but would become our sacrifice, for (2 Corinthians 5:21) “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”
Is Christmas really inconvenient? No I don’t think so, but what has happened is that we have replaced the simplicity of God’s revelation with the enormity of commercialism, forgetting for a moment that without Christ there would be no Christmas and without Christmas then we would die in our sins, separated forever from God.
John 3:3 The Four Towns of Jesus’ Birth
The place where we are born may seem insignificant to us in life, after all, we were pretty young back then and don’t remember a whole lot of those first few days, weeks and sometimes years. But the place you are born is significant to the government. It can be a key factor in a historical sense when working on family history. The hospital and county courthouse should have official records in regards to where you were born. Thousands of illegal immigrants from Central and South America and even Asia sneak into the United States to give birth here because our government gives citizenship status to their baby because he or she was born in the US. We know that this has been a controversy as to where president Obama was born.
The town where Jesus was born, while insignificant to most of the other towns in the world, was significant in the life of Jesus as were three other towns and one other place, because if it were not for Jesus’ connection to those towns, he could not have been the Messiah.
I. The first town in Jesus’ life is the town of Nazareth
A. A town where Jesus’ earthly father had a carpenter shop.
B. It is the town where Mary may have been born and lived a pure life.
C. It is the town where the angel Gabriel came and visited Mary telling her that she would conceive a child by the Holy Spirit.
D. It was here that Joseph struggled with the knowledge that his girlfriend was pregnant was told to go ahead and take her for his wife but to keep her pure until the baby was born.
E. Nazareth would seem to be a small and insignificant town with a population of 150 to 400 at the time of Jesus’ conception. They were most likely people who had been taken into Babylon as slaves and had returned just two centuries before to reclaim their land and may have been closely related to each other.
F. It is here that Jesus would return to spend most of his life, growing up and then working in his father’s carpenter shop until he was 30 years of age and started preaching and teaching.
G. This fulfilled the prophecy regarding Jesus as the Messiah being from Nazareth as found in Matthew 2:23 “ and came and resided in a city called Nazareth, that what was spoken through the prophets might be fulfilled, "He shall be called a Nazarene."
II. The second town of Jesus’ life is the town of Bethlehem. We sing of it at Christmas time, “O Little Town of Bethlehem,” but though it was little the significance of this town is world shattering.
A. Bethlehem is a historical town in the Old Testament as it is the place where Jacob’s beloved Rachel died and was buried. Her traditional gravesite sits at the entrance to Bethlehem yet today.
B. Bethlehem is also known as the City of David as it was here that David was born and also anointed king. Jesus in the New Testament and in the prophecies of the Old Testament is called the Son of David.
C. It is here where Joseph was born and most likely spent part of his childhood growing up.
D. It is here where Joseph had to travel with Mary in her last days of pregnancy to register for the census that was decreed by Caesar Augustus.
E. It is here where Jesus was born, in a stable which was probably nothing more than a cave at the edge of town.
F. It is here that the shepherds and magi came to discover and worship the new born king.
G. It is here he had to be born to fulfill the prophecy by the prophet Micah, Micah 5:2 “But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity.”
H. It is here that in a jealous rage, King Herod who had his own sons killed, had all the baby boys age 2 years and younger killed in Bethlehem because of fear that a new king had been born there. The prophet Jeremiah wrote of this horror, Jeremiah 31:15 “Thus says the Lord, " A voice is heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; She refuses to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more.”
III. The third city in Jesus’ life is His beloved city of Jerusalem
A. According to the Law of Moses, Jesus being “the first born male that opens the womb,” was to be brought to the temple for dedication to God. A sacrifice according to the Law, was offered of a pair of turtle doves or 2 young pigeons.
B. Here they met the first of two individuals who prophesied concerning Jesus. Simeon who was waiting for many years at the temple and looking for the Messiah made the first proclamation. Luke 2:28-33 “28 then he took Him into his arms, and blessed God, and said, 29 "Now Lord, Thou dost let Thy bond-servant depart In peace, according to Thy word; 30 For my eyes have seen Thy salvation, 31 Which Thou hast prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 A light of revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Thy people Israel." 33 And His father and mother were amazed at the things which were being said about Him.”
C. The second was a prophetess named Anna. Luke 2:36-38 36 And there was a prophetess, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was advanced in years, having lived with a husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. And she never left the temple, serving night and day with fastings and prayers. 38 And at that very moment she came up and began giving thanks to God, and continued to speak of Him to all those who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
D. It would be here in the city he first proclaimed to be the holy anointed one of God, where he would someday be taken through a mock trial and beaten. He would be taken outside of the city to Golgatha and crucified, taking upon himself the sins of the world.
IV. The fourth is the land of Egypt. Although this is not a town, it is a place where Jesus went as a baby.
A. We know the least about this part of Jesus’ life. We don’t know where Joseph took Mary and Jesus, only that Joseph was warned in a dream to flee to Egypt from King Herod.
B. King Herod was a murderous man and even had some of his own sons killed to prevent them from taking the throne from him someday. He was very ill at this time in Jesus life and may have lived maybe 6 to 8 months after Joseph took Jesus into Egypt.
C. Going to Egypt fulfilled the prophecy of the prophet Hosea, Hosea 11:1, “Out of Egypt did I call my Son.”
D. Just as Moses led his people out of Egypt from slavery to freedom, so Jesus coming up out of Egypt will someday lead those who believed in Him into Freedom from the slavery of sin and into eternal life.
Conclusion: It does make a difference where you were born in life, at least according to our government records. But those records, although important to getting a job in this country and allowing you the rights and privileges of this country, do not mean a thing when it comes to getting into heaven. Jesus told Nicodemus in John chapter 3 something similar. He told him it doesn’t matter where you were born, it only matters that you are born again. John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” It is not enough to just believe there is a God, you need to have a spiritual rebirth where you die to your own wants and desires, and surrender and live for Christ. Where Jesus was born and lived was important in our lives to prove that he was the Messiah. Where we are born again will be our city of birth on our citizenship papers to gain access to heaven someday.
Luke 2 1-7 One Solitary Life
Introduction: What difference does one birth make? Does the life of one person ever outweigh that of another? With so many babies being born in this world, would one more ever make a significant difference other than to increase the population of the world? Over the many years that I have been in ministry, I have had the privilege to dedicate many babies to the Lord. Each one is a celebration of joy that God has brought new life into the lives of the families present. But the birth that we celebrate this time of year is of even greater significance than any other birth. The birth of Jesus marks the change of history on this planet called earth, where God intervenes in the lives of men and women and gives them the opportunity of new birth. The birth of Christ was at no ordinary time in history. It was no ordinary birth. He was given no ordinary name and He was born for no ordinary purpose. Read with me Luke 2:1-7.
I. No ordinary time in history - As we look at the birth of Christ it is with utter amazement from our side of life that we find God’s timing being perfect to bring His Son into this world.
A. For 400 years the Jewish people had not heard God’s voice through a prophet.
B. Because of Roman rule, the Gospel could spread freely throughout the world. Israel was the center of the trading routes of the known world.
C. One language was common as a result of Roman rule.
D. There was an expectancy that the Messiah would soon come.
II. No ordinary birth - When each of our children were born, we celebrated, sent pictures out, called family and friends. The birth of our children in our eyes was special, but in the realm of mankind, these births were ordinary.
A. Jesus had no ordinary birth through, for it was foretold by the prophets of old
1. Isa 7:14 "Behold, the virgin shall be with CHILD, AND SHALL BEAR A Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel," which translated means, "God with us."
2. Micah 5:2 "But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity."
B. Born to a teenage mother unwed at time of conception, who conceived through the power of the Holy Spirit, Himself.
C. Born in a stable amongst the smell of damp earth, animal manure, cattle, sheep, and hay.
D. Announced by the angels
1. First to Mary - Luke 1:26 & following
2. Second to Joseph - Matthew 1:20
3. Third to the shepherds - Luke 2:8 & following
E. Proclaimed in the stars - the magi and kings knew of His birth and a bright star stood above His home.
F. This birth was God Himself coming to earth in the form of man.
III. No ordinary name - when we choose names for our children, often we choose a name that gives meaning to who we hope that child will be. Many names in the Old Testament were almost prophetic in the life of the individual. Mary and Joseph were told that their son would be called Jesus.
A. The Prophet Daniel called Him the Messiah, the anointed one of God
B. In the New Testament He is called “Christ” the Lord - Christ is the Greek for Messiah.
C. Immanuel meaning God with us
D. In Isaiah 9:6, God gave a prophecy concerning this Messiah who was to come. He was called -
1. Wonderful - a miracle, wondrous thing
2. Counselor - advise, counsel, guide
3. The Mighty God
4. The Everlasting Father
5. Prince of Peace
E. In the Book of Revelations he is known as the King of kings and Lord of lords.
F. Jesus - His name in Hebrew means, He will bring salvation, or He will save us.
IV. No ordinary purpose - In the movie that we all watch this time of year, “Its A Wonderful Life,” the lead character, Jimmy Stewart, wants to take his life because he believes he has messed everything up. The angel Charlie saves his life and then proceeds to show him what the lives of all around him would be like if he had never been born. In the end he realizes how important his birth was as well as every birth.
A. Jesus was born with no ordinary purpose. He was willing gave up the glory of heaven to come to earth, to dwell among us, to show us the heavenly Father through Himself and to save His people from their sins. This was the proclamation by the angels.
1. The main purpose for Jesus coming was to save us from hell.
2. Only He can forgive your sins.
3. Just as important He can help you forgive others.
4. Those you sin against can forgive, but not forget, God in Christ, forgives and says He remembers your sin no more.
B. Only Jesus can fulfill the promise found in John 3:16. In many pew bibles and Gideon’s bibles you will find John 3:16 in many languages. Find it in your language and read it, that “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.” Truly, He was born with no ordinary purpose.
Conclusion: One Solitary Life by James A. Francis
Here is a man who was born in an obscure village, the child of a peasant woman. He grew up in another obscure village. He worked in a carpenter shop until He was thirty, and then for three years He was an itinerant preacher. He never wrote a book. He never held an office.
He never owned a home. He never set foot inside a big city. He never traveled two hundred miles from the place where He was born. He had no credentials but Himself.
While still a young man, the tide of popular opinion turned against Him. His friends ran away. One of them denied Him. He was turned over to His enemies. He went through the mockery of a trial. He was nailed upon a cross between two thieves.
His executioners gambled for the only piece of property He had on earth while He was dying -- and that was His coat. When He was dead, He was taken down and laid in a borrowed grave through the pity of a friend.
Nineteen wide centuries have come and gone and today He is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of progress. I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as that One Solitary Life.
Email me at drmosky@mahaska.org and let me know how this message helped in your life.
Pastor Daryl Martin
 |
|
