Tag Archives: life

Mar 3 2013

sermon – a people of God; a people of the Book

He gave some apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. His purpose was to equip God’s people for the work of serving and building up the body of Christ until we all reach the unity of faith and knowledge of God’s Son. God’s goal is for us to become mature adults—to be fully grown, measured by the standard of the fullness of Christ. As a result, we aren’t supposed to be infants any longer who can be tossed and blown around by every wind that comes from teaching with deceitful scheming and the tricks people play to deliberately mislead others. Instead, by speaking the truth with love, let’s grow in every way into Christ, who is the head. The whole body grows from him, as it is joined and held together by all the supporting ligaments. The body makes itself grow in that it builds itself up with love as each one does their part. (Ephesians 4.11-16 CEB)

And so we say without apology, with firm conviction, but with deep humility: we seek to be a “people of the Book.”

By that we mean two things.

First, the Bible is revelation from, and about, God.

Without this Book, we’d be in the dark about God. Oh, we would know something of God from creation. But, without this Book, that would be all we know of Him. This Book lights up our walk through this dark world. This Book gives us truth, and takes us into understandings of truth, that we would not have without it.

And so, we’re determined to continually open our eyes to the light this Book shines on us. We do this even though the bright light it shines on us can sometimes be glaring or painful. We are not “holy.” But we believe this Book leads us to Him who alone is Holy.

Second, this Book teaches us how to live our life with God.

This book tells us of Him who is Life. Our Life. This Book is not “our life” or our “God.” We do not worship it. But, we do worship the One who gives us life and who speaks to us through this Book. And so, we seek to belong to Him, and to Him alone. Both as individuals and as a community. This is our task in every possible way for all of our days.

In sum: He who reveals Himself to us through this Book is our Life and Light.

In a world full of uncertainties, this Book gives us certainties. Certain truth that comes from Him who alone is True.

He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And we are His people. This is our past, present, and future. Walking because of, with, and toward God.

In this walk, He encourages us by telling us He is with us and equips us to do His will. Our Life is beside us and inside us. Our Light, gives us ways and means to use His light.

What a tremendous blessing it is to see His Life and Light in each other! A people of God; a people of the Book!

Thanks and glory be to God!

And so we will serve Him forever!

Let the whole church say … “Amen!“

Feb 4 2013

this went thru my mind

 

Conflict & relationships: Sometimes Fault Really Is on Only One Side by John Stackhouse

“Jesus ran into conflicts all the time. Was there fault on both sides?”

Homeless: * Learning to See Homeless People by Jeremy Myers; * Homeless People: Your Neighbors With No Address by Jeremy Myers

* “I don’t know any poor or homeless people, do I?”

* “How can I help people like these? Should I even be helping them?”

Ecology & technology: The Periodic Table of iPhones [infographic]

“Right now, more that 90% of rare-earth minerals come from China, mostly because mining for rare-earth metals has been an environmental nightmare. But new processes are reviving rare-earth mining in the United States and elsewhere.”

Listening: How to Listen by Seth Godin

“The listener has nearly as big a responsibility as the speaker does … The hardest step in better listening is the first one: do it on purpose. Make the effort to actually be good at it.”

Marriage: Everyday Idolatry: The (Wrong) One by Jonathan Storment

“We always marry the wrong person. We never know whom we marry; we just think we do. Or even if we first marry the right person, just give it a while and he or she will change. For marriage, being [the enormous thing it is] means we are not the same person after we have entered it. The primary challenge of marriage is learning how to love and care for the stranger to whom you find yourself married.” [Stanley Hauerwas]

Pharisees: Pharisees: Revisiting an Old Problem by Scot McKnight

“…  I am asking for the many who are still using “Pharisee” in the old-fashioned ‘religious bigot’ sense to be much more careful.”

Super Bowl: * Super Bowl 2013 Commercials; * 7 Life Misconceptions Portrayed in the Super Bowl Ads by Joshua Becker

* [Links to the Super Bowl Commercials on one page]

* “… as somebody who has developed great frustration over the consumer-driven culture that we live in, I observe marketing with a skeptical eye. I often seek to determine the underlying promise of any advertisement and uncover what else, other than the product itself, marketers are trying to sell me. Far too often, I discover their underlying message promotes foolish misconceptions about life. We would be wise to recognize and intentionally reject each of them. Consider just a few misconceptions on display during Sunday night’s Super Bowl.”

Jan 11 2013

this went thru my mind

 

Alzheimer’s: Speaking More Than One Language Could Prevent Alzheimer’s by Nancy Shute

“The latest evidence from the bilingualism-is-good-for-you crew comes from Brian Gold, a neuroscientist at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington.”

Bible manuscripts: Cambridge Digital Library

Codex Bezae

Christians, guns, self defense & violence: * An Unexpected Topic–But Just In Case: How to Respond to an Active Shooter [required reading]; * Swords into Ploughshares: Voluntary Disarmament in the Kingdom by Caleb Coy [essential reading]; * Youth Fires Shotgun at 2 High School Students, Hits One; Suspect in Custody

* “An Active Shooter is an individual actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a confined and populated area. In most cases, active shooters use firearms(s) and there is no pattern or method to their selection of victims. … If you find yourself involved in an active shooter situation, remain calm and use these guidelines to help you plan a survival strategy.”

* “…  rather than being on the front lines of peace and laying down of earthly weapons, contemporary American Christians often put themselves on the front lines of stocking up on weapons in fear of the next big revolution.  Why do we do this?  I have no answer other than to point to our love for our nation and it’s 2nd amendment exceeding our love for the kingdom and it’s greatest commandment. If we look to the first century, we will find a different story.  We see a people willing to be martyred before their enemies as witnesses to their faith, a people with a tendency to refuse to become soldiers, or attend public executions (unless it was their own people). …

“As a Christian I will try to demonstrate how to treat potential threats and enemies as I believe Christ would have us do.  ”Do good to those who hate you”. “Pray for those who persecute you.” “Resist not the evil-doer.”  Jesus wasn’t just talking about the guy down the street that gets on our nerves, as if his kingdom were some kind of sitcom. He meant something very earth-shaking. He was preparing us to be ready for martyrdom in any generation, in any land.”

* “The gunman was in custody Thursday after he was talked into dropping the firearm by his teacher and another school staff member, said authorities …”

Fear: Fear: This is a Heart Issue [Part 2] by John T. Willis

“Fear is a powerful motivation in personal, church, and national life. Sometimes this is positive, sometimes this is negative. Here are some motivations which affect our lives.”

Life: * Take Back Your Life in Ten Steps by Tony Schwartz; * Moving Forward by Scott Elliott

* “You’re smart, hard-working and good at what you do, but the truth is you also too often feel your life is just a relentless set of demands you have to meet, and too rarely a source of satisfaction. You long to feel more in control of your days, but the reality is you’re frequently racing just to keep up. This is the story I hear over and over at every level in organizations, from first line managers all the way up to CEOs in large companies. I’m convinced it doesn’t have to be this way, and that the solution has to do with deeply embedding a series of simple practices into your life. … The suggestions are in order from the most basic and fundamental, to the highest level.”

* “… let me offer you several practical things you can do in 2013 to alter the direction of your life.”

Dec 15 2012

devoted: walk this way

 

NOTE: Following is a copy of the discussion guide that will be used in MoSt Church’s LIFE groups tomorrow (Dec. 16). This guide will enable your follow-up of my sermon tomorrow morning entitled Devoted: Walk This Way. This sermon will mark the conclusion of the Devoted sermon series. Look under the category title “LIFE group guides” and you’ll find an archive of previous discussion guides. All Scripture texts reproduced below are from the CEB.

Aim

To consider what it means to devote our legs and feet to walking with God.

Word

• Enoch walked with God. (Genesis 5.22)

• Love the LORD your God. Walk in all his ways and obey his commandments. Hold on to him and serve him with all your heart and being. (Joshua 22.5b)

• Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no danger because you are with me. Your rod and your staff— they protect me. (Psalm 23.4)

• I  put all my hope in the Lord. He leaned down to me; he listened to my cry for help. He lifted me out of the pit of death, out of the mud and filth, and set my feet on solid rock. He steadied my legs. (Psalm 40.1-2)

• Everyone who honors the LORD, who walks in God’s ways, is truly happy! (Psalm 128.1)

• Better to be poor and walk in innocence than to be on crooked paths and wealthy. (Proverbs 28.6)

• Many nations will go and say, ‘Come, let’s go up to the LORD’s mountain, to the house of Jacob’s God so that he may teach us his ways and we may walk in God’s paths.’ … Come, house of Jacob, let’s walk by the LORD’s light. (Isaiah 2.5a,9)

• He has told you … what is good and what the LORD requires from you: to do justice, embrace faithful love, and walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6.8)

• … we were buried together with him through baptism into his death, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too can walk in newness of life. (Romans 6.4)

• And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, How beautiful are the feet of those who announce the good news. (Romans 10.15; cf. Isaiah 52:7; Nahum 1:15)

• The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. (Romans 16.20a)

• … put shoes on your feet so that you are ready to spread the good news of peace. (Ephesians 6.15)

• Make straight paths for your feet so that if any part is lame, it will be healed rather than injured more seriously. (Hebrews 12.13)

Open

Icebreaker questions are meant to help us all start talking. Choose one of the following to discuss as a group.

1. What’s the most “distinctive characteristics” of your feet?

2. In what sort of footwear do you find yourself most comfortable in to walk? Least comfortable?

Dig

These questions are meant to help us grapple with Scripture related to this morning’s sermon. Choose one.

1. Life and our behavior are often depicted in Scripture as a journey. Why do you suppose this is?

2. What is the point Heb. 12.13 is trying to get across to us?

Reflect

These questions facilitate our sharing what we sense God’s Spirit is doing with us thru his word. Choose some.

1. If you were to chart your walk with God since you became a Christian, what would that line look like in terms of crookedness and straightness? What have you learned along the way?

2. What experience or habit do you find most consistently helps you walk with God?

3. How can you encourage others Christians to stay on the path with God?

4. A fellow Christian tells you their walk with God is no longer satisfying. They read Scripture, but find it boring. They pray, but they say it just sounds repetitious. What do you advise?