02-16-20 What does Jesus think about our 2020 theme? RED LETTER EDITION

Scripture    John 5:24-26

About 1830, a man named George Wilson killed a government employee who caught him in the act of stealing the mail – he was a thief and killed the one who caught him. Wilson was tried and sentenced to be hanged. The President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, sent Wilson a pardon. But, Wilson did a strange thing: he refused to accept the pardon.

No one seemed to know what to do because of this, so Wilson's case was sent to the U. S. Supreme Court. Chief Justice Marshall wrote the opinion: "A pardon is a slip of paper, the value of which is determined by the acceptance of the person to be pardoned. If it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must be hanged." And he was.

The death of Christ on the cross is the pardon God has sent. But before it becomes a pardon, we must accept it in faith and obedience. It is through the cross, and only through the cross that we can be saved from sin and its consequence of eternal separation from God in hell. It is the only way for us to receive eternal life.

Matthew 7:24-27

These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit — but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock. "But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards.

          The parable of the sower may be less about the parable and more about its meaning that Jesus explains to his disciples.

Mark 4:13-20

Then Jesus said to them, "Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop — thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown.

          Notice it said, “HEAR the word, ACCEPT it, and PRODUCE a crop!”

Luke 8:19-21

Now Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you." He replied, My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice.

Some people find it impossible that they must believe in Jesus (therefore that his words are true) to receive eternal life. Actually, if we look at it another way it is the only thing that does make sense. What should happen to me if I said, “I don’t believe in eating!” and I refused to ever eat again. Within a few weeks, I would die. The same is true of our spirit – we must feast on the one who gave us our life – our spirit.

Matthew 4:4

Jesus answered, It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'

          Have you ever noticed, at an airport, the difference between those who have confirmed tickets, and those who are on standby? If you just learned that you must stand in judgement before God in 15 minutes, what would you be doing? Do you think he would say “Welcome home my child?” Or “depart from me you evil doer”?

Luke 9:23-26

Then he said to them all: If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.

John 15:5-8

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

John 14:10

Don't you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.

Author Kevin Huggins tells the true story of a church quiz team who had hit outstanding heights in the knowledge of the book of Romans. He tells of an unusual situation arising form the team’s actions. “The kids knew the book so well they could finish any verse, word for word, if the quiz master called out the chapter and verse numbers.

          After winning the district championships that year, the team traveled by van to the naitonals in Florida.  On the way there, the team stayed overnight at another church. After the adult leaders fell asleep, some of the team members snuck out of the church and vandalized the neighborhood, tearing down mailboxes, damaging cars, and spray painting some property.

          These were the same kids who had just spent a year memorizing and studying the book of Romans!  It isn’t enough to get the word of God in to you – it is also about getting the word of God out of you!...lived in your life!

John 14:23-26

Jesus replied, If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. "All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

John 12:47-50

As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.

Luke 11:27-28

As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, "Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you." He replied, Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.

John 8:51

I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.

          As we near the end with 3 more texts to read – let’s end where we began, with a story about a pardon. This time we will see that the pardon takes place because of the power of the word (in fact showing the difference of what a single comma can make. Maria Fedorovna, the empress of Russia and wife of Czar Alexander III, was known for her philanthropy. She once saved a prisoner from exile in Siberia by transposing a single comma in a warrant signed by Alexander. The czar had written: "Pardon impossible, to be sent to Siberia." After Maria's intervention, the note read: "Pardon, impossible to be sent to Siberia." The prisoner was eventually released.

John 5:24-26

"I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life. 25 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself.

These verses tell a story when put in reverse order.

If a comma can make such a difference for one person, imagine what difference the words of Jesus can make for all people.

John 6:63-64

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.

Matthew 24:34-35

I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

A final pardon from the mouth of Jesus: Luke 23:41-43  One thief on the cross said to the other, “we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise!”

02-09-20 "2 or 3"

Scripture     Matthew 18:18-19

18 "I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

19 Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.

20 For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

v18 does v 18 sound familiar? (whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.) Matthew 16:16-19  Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 17 Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.  19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."

When Jesus is recorded in Matthew 18 saying the exact same words he said in Matthew 16 – the circumstances are vastly difference but the principle is the same. Who is at the ‘top’ doesn’t matter – what matters is praying in agreement within God’s will which we are often taught.

  What does it say in the Lord’s prayer? “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

ON EARTH as it is IN HEAVEN?

          The context of this passage – Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? A child – meaning someone humble who simply believes (ie the church) then how is discipline carried out when there has been an offense? By the two people but ultimately, if needed by the one with authority (ie the church). Who is greatest, and who has authority? The church. Who is the church? When 2 or 3 come together in Jesus name. That doesn’t mean 2 or 3 people can act with authority for anything they want because they use the name Jesus. Matt 7:21  "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

          Authority for something done on earth as it is in heaven comes from the church – that is 2 or more people agreeing, in the will of God and in the name of Jesus.

          What does it mean to pray in God’s will? How do we know? What is the best example? Jesus said Luke 22:42 "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." Prayer is like a father and a son simply talking. The son does not always know what is best and so he asks the father for something but in the end trusts the father for what is best.  When you pray for someone’s salvation – that is 100% God’s will. There are general things we know are God’s will for all people – salvation. But specific situations are for individuals are different and we can know God’s will only by knowing Jesus more and even then, we can still be misguided by our earthly understanding where God sees everything form a heavenly perspective, so we pray for His will to be done.

v19 the word “agree” = The word used here in the original is “sum-pho-na-o,” from which comes our term symphony. It literally means “to agree in sound’ or “to be in harmony,” as may be heard in a symphony orchestra. Harmonic sound of two instruments is more beautiful than the sound of one, though more difficult to obtain. And the harmony, as well as the difficulty in achieving it, becomes greater as more instruments are added.

v20   For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

The oft quoted verse of promise. It is based on the conditions of the previous verses. 1) know that what you are doing on earth is finding its authority in heaven, 2) we must pray together 3) when praying we must agree in harmony like the instruments of an orchestra.

This flies smack in the face of “individual Christianity”. “I don’t need the church!, I can pray on my own?” True, but that assumes what you are praying for is in God’s will – you can be much more certain of praying in God’s will when you are finding agreement from others who have devoted themselves to Christ AND His church. Someone can play a cello solo and it has a certain beauty but put it with a violin, a bass, a piano and a flute and now the sound has taken on a richer, stronger quality – so too with our prayers.  This is why we offer prayer at the end of nearly every worship service.

Some people love being with other people. Some people would prefer to just be left alone. God created us to be in community. I am now part of a small group of pastors who meet monthly. I can say the best times of prayer in my life have been when I have been part of a small group of people who prayed – from self-led youth bible studies, to Wednesday evening prayer meetings, to various pastor’s groups, to times when I have prayed regularly with a single prayer partner. I can picture specific times of prayer with others at Hillcrest Baptist, at West High school, at Church camp, at Greenlake, at Judson College. There is something so special about praying with someone. It creates accountability to pray, it confirms your prayer, and God’s word has blessed prayer when people come together in Jesus name.  Let’s look at God’s desire for us to be together in unity.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:  If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Mark 6:6-13

Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. Calling the Twelve to him, he sent them out two by two and gave them authority over evil spirits. These were his instructions: "Take nothing for the journey except a staff — no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. Wear sandals but not an extra tunic. Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them." They went out and preached that people should repent. They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.”

Luke 10:1-3, 16-17

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 16 He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me. The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name."

          If Jesus were sending you to someone you know whom either needs Jesus for salvation, and or needs to be in church (particularly this church) who would that be? What one ‘thing’ would you like prayer for right now that you hope is in God’s will? That you be healed? That you get clarity or wisdom? That you find your life partner? That you serve in a new way? That you become more generous? That you become a kinder person? That you become less anxious? That you speak only positive words to others? / What is one thing you could pray for in agreement with the church – with one or two other people?

CONCLUSION

Gather in groups of 2 or 3-5

Share what a praise from the past week. Share who the person for salvation/church is and something you would like prayed for. Out loud or quietly, pray for each member of your group. Pray for the spiritual and numeric growth of Ashland Church. Pray for what your part will be in the spiritual and numeric growth of Ashland Church. Make sure you pray, not our will but yours be done, in Jesus name.

2-02-20 IT is written! it IS written! it is WRITTEN!

Scripture    Matthew 4:1-11

As the Union Pacific Railroad was being constructed, an elaborate trestle bridge was built across a large canyon in the West.  Wanting to test the bridge, the builder loaded a train with enough extra cars and equipment to double its normal payload. The train was then driven to the middle of the bridge, where it stayed an entire day. One worker asked, "Are you trying to break this bridge?" "No," the builder replied, "I'm trying to prove that the bridge won't break." In the same way, the temptations Jesus faced weren't designed to see if He would sin, but to prove that He wouldn't. 

Matthew 4:1-11

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread."

4 Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

Deuteronomy 8:2-3     Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. 6 "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written: "'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'"

          Psalm 91:11-12     For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

          7 Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

          Deuteronomy 6:16     Do not test the Lord your God as you did at Massah. Ex17:2 the people argued with Moses about no water and Moses called the place “Massah” meaning testing? “Why do you test the Lord?”

8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. 9 "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me."

          10 Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'"

          Deuteronomy 6:13-16      Fear the Lord your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 16 Do not test the Lord your God as you did at Massah.

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

          There was a PHYSICAL, MENTAL, & SPIRITUAL temptation. Jesus was tempted in every way that we are.

1 Corinthians 10:12-13     So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall! No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.

How does God help us stand against temptation? The same way Jesus did. How did Jesus stand against Temptation? With God’s word.

Jesus responded to the Physical temptation with “It is written.”

Jesus responded to the Mental temptation with “It is written.”

Jesus responded to the Spiritual temptation with “It is written.”

How was Jesus able to do that? He read and studied God’s word and was able to recite the proper scripture to stand against the specific attacks of Satan. What does that mean for us? We need to read and study and memorize God’s word to use it as a sword to cut down Satan’s temptations.

Ephesians 6:17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Hebrews 4:12a For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword.

          So we have this Temptation Weapon - but what if you were in a sword fight and you had never learned to use a sword before and you are in war with an expert swordsman? You would lose - Well let me tell you, even Satan known’s how to use God’s word as a weapon against us so we better be more practiced than he is.

          But there is an even greater principal at work here that is not immediately seen. Jesus didn’t resist these temptations, like each of us face simply by quoting the appropriate scripture. He resisted temptation by knowing God - and the fact that he knew these specific scriptures shows us that he knew God by spending time in His word. It was that relationship, even more than the word that gave him the ability to fight off temptation - the specific scriptures were the weapon, but that close relationship was the wisdom and the power to use that weapon.

          Notice, he did not go looking for a fight - the fight found him and he simply resisted. Stop picking a fight with the devil because you will lose. But when the Devil comes to you, and he will, stand up and resist. James 4:7  Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

          Resisting is more than just having the temptation removed - you have to know Jesus to stand strong:

Toad baked some cookies. "These cookies smell very good," said Toad. He ate one. "And they taste even better," he said.  Toad ran to Frog's house. "Frog, Frog," cried Toad, "taste these cookies that I have made."

Frog ate one of the cookies, "These are the best cookies I have ever eaten!" said Frog.

Frog and Toad ate many cookies, one after another. "You know, Toad," said Frog, with his mouth full, "I think we should stop eating. We will soon be sick."

"You are right," said Toad. "Let us eat one last cookie, and then we will stop." Frog and Toad ate one last cookie.  There were many cookies left in the bowl.

"Frog," said Toad, "let us eat one very last cookie, and then we will stop." Frog and Toad ate one very last cookie.

"We must stop eating!" cried Toad as he ate another.

"Yes," said Frog, reaching for a cookie, "we need willpower."

"What is willpower?" asked Toad.

"Willpower is trying hard not to do something you really want to do," said Frog.

"You mean like trying hard not to eat all these cookies?" asked Toad.

"Right," said Frog.

Frog put the cookies in a box. "There," he said. "Now we will not eat any more cookies."

"But we can open the box," said Toad.

"That is true," said Frog.

Frog tied some string around the box. "There," he said. "Now we will not eat any more cookies."

"But we can cut the string and open the box." said Toad.

"That is true," said Frog. Frog got a ladder. He put the box up on a high shelf.

"There," said Frog. "Now we will not eat any more cookies."

"But we can climb the ladder and take the box down from the shelf and cut the string and open the box," said Toad.

"That is true," said Frog.

Frog climbed the ladder and took the box down from the shelf. He cut the string and opened the box. Frog took the box outside. He shouted in a loud voice. "Hey, birds, here are cookies!" Birds came from everywhere. They picked up all the cookies in their beaks and flew away.

"Now we have no more cookies to eat," said Toad sadly. "Not even one."

"Yes," said Frog, "but we have lots and lots of willpower."

"You may keep it all, Frog," said Toad. "I am going home now to bake a cake." 

          “IT IS WRITTEN IN RED” Man will not live by cookies and cake alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of Jesus/God!

01-26-20 Strike up the band! Let’s Roll!

Scripture   Matthew 3:1-17

 Mathew 2 ends with Mary and Joseph leaving Egypt to return to Nazareth where Jesus would be raised. Chapter 3:1 jumps ahead approximately 28 years.

Matthew 3:1-17

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'"

          4 John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

          7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

          13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?"

          15 Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented.

          16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

Matt 3:15

 But Jesus insisted. "Do it. God's work, putting things right all these centuries, is coming together right now in this baptism." So John did it.      (from THE MESSAGE)

dikaiosunh = righteousness = Jesus acknowledges and affirms the standard of righteousness as the will of God in His kingdom.

          In other words – there is a right way to live and the standard for that right way has been set by God and God’s standard for living is found in His instruction manual called the Bible.

          HEAR THIS: This is not saying there is a better way to live than you are currently living – that is true; but that is not what Jesus is saying. Jesus is saying there is a RIGHT way to live – there is only one set of standards to live by and those standards are God’s standards. Living by those standards – or in that righteousness – makes life better. There is not one righteous standard of God that makes life less enjoyable, yet we all live beneath those standards.  That was true in the beginning when Adam and Eve ate from the fruit tree they were told to leave alone, that is true today for each one of us.

          Just like the people of that day – we need a fresh one-two punch to remind us of what is right and best. The first punch was this camel hair wearing, wild honey and locust eating, living in the desert wilderness guy named John. He came out of nowhere with a strong declaration and warning – The kingdom of God is near. Repent! The second punch came with Jesus saying – LOOK standing before is the standard of righteousness you need to live by.

I can…maybe…repent and not do the wrong stuff, but to do the right stuff – that is a whole other ball game.

          People see standards and boundaries as constrictive and judgmental. YES, they are! We are creatures of habit – of bad habits and we rarely get it right when left to our own way of living. We need boundaries and judgement and I would rather have God, the one who created me, giving those to me than someone else or even myself for that matter.

          So, that is the original meaning of the scripture – Jesus announces that he is not only fulfilling righteousness by letting John baptize him but also that he is the embodiment of all righteousness so that we are without excuse when we can see what God’s right way of living looks like in human flesh – Jesus!

Romans 3:21-24     But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

          That is our exegesis of the scripture but there is something more tangible – more inspirational, more practical taking place at the same time and we see that when we do some ExeJesus!

          When there is a big football game – how do the teams come onto the field? Do they saunter out? Are they casual about it? No, they come out together and fog machines and cheer leaders and bands and break through a Let’s Win banner to cheering crowds.

          What about a marching band? Have you ever been under the stadium just before the Ohio State Marching Band does “ramp”? It is filled with excitement and joy and exuberance (explain)

They don’t just walk onto the field and take up position – they announce their presence with every step they take.

          We saw God announce the creation of the world with six marvelous days of “AND GOD SAID…” Then we heard about God coming in the flesh with Angels proclaiming the coming of God into the world. Now we have John getting the people pumped up – getting them ready – letting them know that the world is on the verge of the most important event in the history of the world. Then Jesus comes, after 30 years of near total silence and says – Here I Am – let’s go! Strike up the band! Bust open the doors! Let’s get moving, I have a church to build and I am ready to do whatever it takes to make that happen.

          Jesus was not able to do anything He did without the Holy Spirit. Notice the end of this story that came with his baptism – the Spirit of God was upon Him and gave him  the strength to do all things – to fulfill all righteousness and build His church! The ONLY way we can fulfill all righteousness and build His church is by being filled with that exact same Holy Spirit of God!  Jesus didn’t have a different Spirit – He had the same Spirit available to us who need to strike up the band, who need to bust through the curtain, who need to get up and get going.

2 Cor 3:13-14, 16-18

Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold. We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. / But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

01-19-20 First words first!

Scripture    Luke 2:41-52

          SLIDE: Title Slide - Temple

SLIDE: Let’s do some ExeJesus

Imagine a young newly married couple being forced to travel far away from home at the time their baby is due, and no arrangements had been made for their arrival and they were essentially homeless when they gave birth to their child. Then they couldn’t return home right away because the mother was in no condition to travel, yet they had to scrape by for provisions and a place to stay. But they loved God and held to the traditions having their son circumcised on the 8^th day according to the Jewish law and had to wait 40 days before the mother was pronounced pure after having given birth. Now they could go to the temple and present their newborn son to be dedicated to God. They returned to where they had been staying until she was strong enough to travel. After a while, some astrologers show upbringing gifts for the couple’s child but with that, they brought trouble as well. The king of the land, through the astrologers and his own officials, determined that this couple’s child was potentially going to be the new king of Israel. So, the king – Herod, decided to have the couple’s baby killed. To make sure no one would switch children or hide the baby, he had his soldiers kill all male babies two years old and younger in the town where the baby was.

SLIDE: Map Fortunately, the dad got word what the king was up too – and if things had not been bad enough, they had to go further away from their home to a completely different country and hide out there to protect their baby. They also had to bear the weight of all those other babies who were killed because the tyrant king wanted their baby dead.  Later, after King Herod died that they felt safe to return home and allowed any talk about their child being someone special to subside for his own protection.

          And quiet it was. In fact, we hear not a word or an action about Jesus, unless you read false documents like the infancy gospel of Thomas written in 125 AD. You can see hear that what was determined to be scripture and what was not as simple as it seems because there were many non-inspired writings as well. (READ)

SLIDE: Thomas

1.             When this child Jesus was five years old, he was playing at the ford of a stream. He made pools of the rushing water and made it immediately pure; he ordered this by word alone. 2. He made soft clay and modeled twelve sparrows from it. It was the Sabbath when he did this. There were many other children playing with him. 3. A certain Jew saw what Jesus did while playing on the Sabbath; he immediately went and announced to his father Joseph, “See, your child is at the stream, and has taken clay and modeled twelve birds; he has profaned the Sabbath.” 4. Joseph came to the place, and seeing what Jesus did he cried out, “Why do you do on the Sabbath what it is not lawful to do?” Jesus clapped his hands and cried to the sparrows, “Be gone.” And the sparrows flew off chirping. 5. The Jews saw this and were amazed. They went away and described to their leaders what they had seen Jesus do.

2.     1. The son of Annas the scribe was standing there with Joseph. He took a branch of a willow and scattered the water which Jesus had arranged. Jesus saw what he did and became angry and said to him, “You unrighteous, impious ignoramus, what did the pools and the water do to harm you? Behold, you shall also wither as a tree, and you shall not bear leaves nor roots nor fruit.” 3. And immediately that child was all withered. Jesus left and went to the house of Joseph. The parents of the withered one bore him away, bemoaning his lost youth. They led him to Joseph and reproached him, “What kind of child do you have who does such things?”

3.             Once again, he was going through the village and a child who was running banged into his shoulder. Jesus was angered and said to him, “You shall go no further on your way.” And immediately the child fell down dead. Some people saw this happened and said, “From whence was this child begotten, for his every word is an act accomplished?” 1. The parents of the dead boy went to Joseph and blamed him: “Because you have such a boy, you cannot live with us in the village; your alternative is to teach him to bless and not to curse, for he is killing our children.”

4.     His father was a carpenter and at that time made plows and yokes. He received an order from a certain rich man to make a bed for him. One beam came out shorter than the other, and he did not know what to do. The child Jesus said to Joseph his father, “Lay the two pieces of wood alongside each other, and make them even at one end.” 2. Joseph did as the child told him. Jesus stood at the other end and grasped the shorter beam; he stretched it and made it equal with the other. His father Joseph saw and was astonished, and embracing the child he kissed him and said, “I am blessed because God has given this child to me.”

You can tell these are made up stories – but imagine the real conflict for Joseph and Jesus. Any middle schoolboy has a hard time figuring out who they are – imagine what Jesus must have been going through beginning to understand he was God in the flesh and Joseph trying to help him. The Superman movie with Kevin Costner I think shows us a more realistic view of what it might have been like for Jesus in his early childhood.

VIDEO: Jonathan Kent: You Are My Son | Man of Steel

          Now that we have looked at a lot of background – let us get to the truth – what we know for certain. What we know are the very first recorded words of Jesus at age 12 in the temple.

Prelude to his first words – the last words said about him:

Luke 2:30-32   “For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.”

Luke 2:38   Anna, the prophetess gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

Luke 2:41-52

Every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover. 42 When he was twelve years old, they went up to the Feast, according to the custom. 43 After the Feast was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44 Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45 When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46 After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47 Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48 When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, "Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you."

          49 "Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"  50 But they did not understand what he was saying to them.

          51 Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart. 52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.

The question Jesus asks is not mean. He simply can’t believe they would not know where he was. Another person might wonder, how could you not know I would be at Starbucks? Or, didn’t you think first to look for me in the shoe department? Jesus is saying, I didn’t stay here to hide from you and make you upset, I didn’t even know you had left – I am here because I can’t imagine being anywhere else. I love being at church….in…my Father’s House.

          Church is NOT JUST FOR ADULTS! Jesus at age 12 thought it was the coolest place to be – a place to learn, to worship, to get close to God. Not only are these words his first recorded words – they are the only recorded words during the first 30 years of his life. The only words for the son of God on earth for us to know that he says make them SUPER IMPORTANT.

          Jesus says there is no better place for us to be, at any age, than in church. And to be there with intention, not out of habit or as one who is forced to be there. You ought to want to be there. That wanting to be at church only comes if you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. If you are here for ANY OTHER reason, it will not last. Worse than that, you will be miserable just coming to church.

          What can I do, what words can I say to convince someone how important it is to be part of the church and be in God’s house with God’s people no less than once a week for the rest of your life? There is nothing I can do or say – but I can point you to Jesus and hope his actions and his words stick in your heart and won’t let go. Then maybe some Sunday someone will be looking for you and you can respond: "Why were you searching for me? Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house, worshipping Jesus, my savior?" 

01-12-20 2020 Theme Introduction RED LETTER EDITION

Scripture:   Matthew 7:24-27

We’re obsessed with our phones; a new study has found. The heaviest smartphone users click, tap or swipe on their phone 5,427 times a day, according to researcher Dscout.

That’s the top 10 percent of phone users, so one would expect it to be excessive. However, the rest of us still touch the addictive things 2,617 times a day on average. No small number.

 “And by every interaction, we mean every tap, type, swipe and click. We’re calling them touches,” it explains.

Averaging out the numbers, the aforementioned figures mean the heaviest users are touching their devices a couple of million times in one year, Dscout says.

... Probably the most interesting thing in all this was that the people surveyed completely underestimated their phone touching. While they were initially shocked by the numbers, 41 percent said “it probably won’t change the way I use my phone.”

APPLICATION

How many taps, types, swipes and clicks take place between you and God in a day?

If the number of times you were in contact with God on a daily basis could be tracked, would you be shocked by the result? Would it be because of how often, or, how infrequently you reached out to Him?

"Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded" (James 4:8). 

“You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.  Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first.  Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place” (Revelation 2:3-5). 

When you think about love, what color comes to mind? RED and so you see our new theme for 2020 is RED LETTER EDITION based on: Matthew 7:24-27

GARY talk about Q

"These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. 25 Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit — but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock.

26 But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. 27 When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards."   (THE MESSAGE)

I want everyone to purchase or borrow a red-letter edition bible for this year – or many bible apps have the words of Jesus in Red for you. 

How did the Red Letter Editions begin?

          On June 19, 1899, Louis Klopsch, then editor of The Christian Herald magazine, conceived the idea while working on an editorial. Klopsch asked his mentor Rev. Thomas De Witt Talmage what he thought of a testament with the Dominical words (words of Jesus) rubricated (artistically singled out) and Dr. Talmage replied, "It could do no harm and it most certainly could do much good." Klopsch published the first modern red letter edition New Testament later in 1899. The first modern, fully rubricated (Red Letter) bible was published in 1901.  The idea for red letters for Jesus comes from Luke, 22:20: "This cup is the new testament in my blood, which I shed for you.”

RED LETTER CREATIVITY CHALLENGE:

Write a song, a poem, memorize a passage, write a skit, make a video or pictorial representation of the words of Jesus, do a painting, drawing or any other creative endeavor related to the words of Jesus. Create a children’s story about the words of Jesus that you could share with the children during Picnic with the Pastor.

LET’S BEGIN TO EXEGETE THE TEXT

Slides: 1 – EXEGESIS

            2 – EXEGESIS (Basically add EXEJESUS to the first one)

                  EXEJESUS

3        – EXEJESUS (Then just this word alone)

(1)     Exegesis = noun - critical explanation or interpretation of a text, especially of scripture.

Exegesis includes a wide range of critical disciplines: textual criticism is the investigation into the history and origins of the text, but exegesis may include the study of the historical and cultural backgrounds of the author, text, and original audience. Other analyses include classification of the type of literary genres presented in the text and analysis of grammatical and syntactical features in the text itself.

In short – Exegesis means “Drawing out”

(2)     Exejesus = noun - critical explanation or interpretation of the Messiah, Jesus.

(3)     Exejesus will include looking most directly at the words Jesus spoke – the words written in red – as well as the cultural background, history, genre, audience, intent of his words, and what they mean for us today.

The meaning is plain: Two people each built a house. They built in the same neighborhood. They built similar houses. The only difference was the foundation they built upon.  Both people described heard the teachings of Jesus (they read – or listened to the red letters – the words of Jesus.) One decided not to live by the things Jesus said and the other one not only listened but also put those words into practice in his or her life. Both had the same storms hit their house – torrential rains and rising water came against each house – the one built on the words of Jesus stood strong in the storm – the one built without following the words of Jesus came crashing down and great was that crash.

The Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy is going to fall. Scientists travel to the town of Pisa every year to measure the building's slow descent. They report that the 179-foot tower, which was built in 1173, moves about one-twentieth of an inch a year, and is now 17 feet out of plumb. Recent renovations may have saved the 810-year old tower and prevent it from collapsing. Quite significantly, the word “pisa” means “marshy land,” which gives some clue as to why the tower began to lean even before it was completed. Also, another issue is the fact that its foundation is only 10 feet deep! No matter how deep you put your foundation in the sand (the ways of the world) it is certain to collapse when the storms come. Likewise, the house built on the words of Jesus will stand strong no matter how severe the weather becomes.

CONCLUISON

How many taps, types, swipes and clicks will you have with the words of Jesus this year? 2617 a day?  How about no less than 1 a day?  Will you read God’s word daily? Will you join attend a current bible study or attend one of our new small groups? I know there is nothing that will boost your spiritual life more than spending time in the Word of God, most particularly looking at the words of Jesus where you will get to know your savior.