October 28, 2018: What's Holding You Back?

Jude series message 6

Text: Jude 24-25

Jude closes with one of the most well-known and beloved doxologies in the entire Bible. It's great to use it as a self-standing benediction, but leveraging its scope within its context is something we don't often see. Jesus has come. He's conquered the grave; the tomb is empty. All authority is His and He's with us until the very end. Yes, there are lies and deception and false teachers. Yes, there is opposition but we are called to rescue the perishing and help those who are struggling. What's holding you back from getting into the game? Fear? Insecurities? Your past? Feeling inadequate? God calls us to make disciples, He will guard us as we contend for the faith.

October 21, 2018: Advice to a Young Christian

Jude series message 5

Text: Jude 17-23

If I sat down with a young Christian who was looking for some basic advice on living his newfound faith, I'd pass along what Jude says. After listing, in the most vivid manner, the characteristics and behavior of these false teachers, Jude now sums all of that up before telling us what to do. Contending for the faith can take form in many different ways (i.e., apologetics), but we contend for the faith in the most practical and personal way when we live on a balanced diet of God's love and truth. We build ourselves up in our holy (not tailor made) faith when we are faithful in prayer, remembering the apostolic warnings, and looking for His mercy. 


October 14, 2018: Who Wins?

Jude series message 4

Text: Jude 14-16

Jude opens his letter with this plea, “…contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (vs. 3). Why? Because there were those in the body that were distorting the grace of God to give them license to be their own gods, doing what they wanted, when they wanted, how they wanted. This same temptation is a danger for us as well, but Jude shows us that this doesn’t even bring satisfaction in this life, much less when we come face to face with the Lord. This week we will see how Jude wraps up his warnings regarding false teachers and how “contending for the faith" might not mean what we often think it means.

October 7, 2018: Empty Promises!

Jude series message 3

Text: Jude 8-13

Empty promises! False teachers promise the world but can't deliver. They leave people bankrupt in every way. We need to identify them, guard the flock, and point people to the Way, the Truth and Life!

September 30, 2018: So We Don't Forget

Jude series message 2

Text: Jude 5-7

Judas likes his triads. This week we'll see three groups who face(d) God's judgement: fallen angels through rebellion, the Israelites through unbelief, and Sodom & Gomorrah and surrounding cities through immorality. Our message matters; our lifestyle matters. Those who have lived in open defiance of God's truth have faced judgement. I'm praying we develop a sense of holy fear regarding the message we've been entrusted with, as well as a holy boldness in proclaiming it.

September 23, 2018: Here Come the Apostates!

Jude series message 1

Text: Jude 1-4

Jude is a fascinating book, rich with vivid images from the Old Testament. It is thoughtfully written and, in great detail, calls out the apostates - those who depart from the truth. Their teaching and behavior go hand-in-hand, and both have consequences. Two big questions: what does contending look like, and what are we contending for? Jude's humble posture is followed by an authoritative ‘smackdown’ of those who deny Jesus Christ and the gospel, one that we surely cannot ignore today.

September 16, 2018: Resurrection Power!

Text: Ephesians 1:19-23

God's power toward us is seen in all aspects of our salvation! The power exerted in the resurrection/exaltation of Jesus is evidenced in the past, present, and future tenses of our salvation. It is at work in those who believe as we pursue holiness, seek to forgive others, and love our neighbor. He is always for us! We will never stop talking about the resurrection, but this is the last message in this series.

September 9, 2018: Faithful God, Triumphant Hope

Text: 2 Samuel 7:11-16

We resume our focus on the resurrection. My goal has been to show how the truth of the resurrection is woven deeply into the fabric of Scripture, not just a Christian invention drawn up around campfire that Paul later made into a religion. The resurrection of Jesus is of first importance to us and yields incredible hope, comfort and power. We'll look at a little talked about promise that is called by some the "theological highlight of the Old Testament". The Davidic Covenant contains a staggering promise which is unconditional and appears dramatically in the New Testament. How is this connected to the resurrection? A King can't reign if He is dead. The New Testament is clear: Jesus is the firstborn of the dead, the firstborn of the church, and the firstborn among many brothers in eternity. Because of his physical resurrection, to include a resurrected and glorified body, we will enjoy the same. All because of grace. 

August 26, 2018: Firstborn!

Text: Romans 8:29

The term firstborn is a fascinating word study, particularly in the NT. Jesus is the firstborn of creation, of the dead, and of the new order, which he purchased with His own blood. Jesus being the firstborn of many brothers is the powerful result of God's unswerving commitment to conform us to the image of Jesus Christ. It yields strong Christian comfort and encouragement and it's something I don't hear many talking about. We definitely need to understand it and receive it now, during this challenging time for us all.

August 19, 2018: Our Risen Lord

Text: Hebrews 7:15-28

What does the resurrection mean for the believer? It means that our living Savior continues His work of intercession on our behalf. He does more than the old testament High Priest ever could, and on so many levels. He is bigger and better for us. We need to preach these truths to ourselves every single day.

Our resurrected Lord:

1) Speaks a better word than our past, our failures and our infirmities

2) Speaks a stronger word than our adversary

3) Speaks a better word than our own condemning thoughts of self-defeat and               condemnation 

August 12, 2018: The Resurrection Factor

I plan on spending some weeks on the topic of the resurrection. Many people, such as myself, have heard about it since they were a kid, making it easy to lose the "wow" factor. Many also do not know how the resurrection is intrinsically connected to so many areas of theology and, hence, our Christian life. So, I want to 'ramp us up' for the new ministry year with a healthy dose of the resurrection. My focus in this message will be to establish that Jesus really did actually die - we need a resurrection. No resuscitation or substitution (i.e., Judas) option for us. As well, the unbelievably believable record before us of the resurrection. 

August 5, 2018: That's a Wrap

Philippians series message 21

Text: Philippians 4:14-23

We'll wrap up Philippians this Sunday. I'm struck by how, in his personal remarks, Paul conveys remarkable kingdom principles - very important and highly applicable: church partnership, acceptable sacrifice, and God's rich and sufficient supply. 

July 22, 2018: Context Matters!

Philippians series message 20

Text: Philippians 4:8-13

"Finally...". Paul begins to wrap up his letter by giving specific instructions and promises in the Lord to help the Philippians (and, us) live victoriously and face challenges common to every believer and to every church. The God of peace is with us, and we should park our minds on that which edifies. We need each other and we should support each other, but contentment is found in Jesus Christ and we can do all things through Him. In our Christian culture we find that last statement adorning pictures, jewelry, and t-shirts but we would do well to understand its context and the Spirit's original intent with that statement. 

July 15, 2018: "Singing in the Dark"

Philippians series message 19

Text: Philippians 4:4-7

In the hard times of life the question we often most want to ask is, "why?" Why are You allowing this God? Why is this happening? But consider for a minute if God answered and you understood the reasons behind the trials. How much comfort would that really bring? As we continue in Philippians this week, we will see in God's word that understanding it all might not live up to our expectations while God's peace will certainly exceed them.

 

 

July 1, 2018: "Your Message Matters!"

Philippians series message 18

Text: Philippians 4:2-3

What does pressing on look like? It's a lofty concept, but it's often expressed in the little things - like getting along with people who get under your skin or with people with whom you don't see eye to eye. It's preserving unity and taking the high road -  knowing the mission is bigger than your ego or opinions. Euodia and Syntyche weren't rookies in kingdom service, but needed to come to agreement, put their differences aside, and keep laboring for the kingdom. The key to success is found in yet another occurrence of the phrase, 'in the Lord'. This phrase changes everything! I love this small 'real life in ministry' snap shot with Paul. 

June 24, 2018: "That's how it's done, son"

 

Philippians series message 17

Text: Philippians 4:1

There's an aspect of the Christian life which is "pressing on" towards the goal and prize. There's also an aspect which is standing firm in the Lord. Even though it's placed in chapter four, it really is the ending to the thoughts given in chapter three. So what does it look like to stand firm in the Lord? Chapters 1-3 yield the answer:  being confident of the Lord's work in your life, contending together for faith of the Gospel, being intentional about unity, knowing the Gospel, knowing Christ and His resurrection power, etc. 

 

June 17, 2018: A Compelling Vision

Philippians series message 16

Text: Philippians 3:17-21

Paul leads by example by pressing on toward PRIZE. He reminds us, pointedly, that there are those who are enemies of the cross who will distract and pull us down. They are set on earthly things but we are citizens of HEAVEN, now. We are sojourners. This is not our home. It's not as if the prize is something completely future, as if it's tacked on to our current state. No, we live here as citizens of another kingdom - our hearts should be comforted by this and this is what should define our personal conduct.