Easter

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Restored

Thursday, April 4th, 2013

Is there any greater story to hear than someone who was down and out being restored?

One of the saddest stories I have read is of Stephen Foster, the writer of Oh Susanna, Camptown Races, My Old Kentucky Home, Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair, and others. His fortunes sank, while his love for booze rose. He died a derelict on Bowery Street.

Contrast that to the story we often hear of Abe Lincoln and his rise and fall and rise and fall and rise and fall and rise (you get the point) with his political career. We like to read or hear of people rising out of the ashes to make something of themselves.

Perhaps no person in the Bible represents this more than Peter. You know…

Open mouth insert foot Peter.

Foot-shaped mouth Peter.

Confess Jesus is the Christ and deny He knows Jesus. Yeah, that Peter.

For those who know the Bible there may not be a story more well-loved and appreciated than the one found in John 21. There is hardly a passage to be found in the Bible with more grace offered than Jesus and Peter on the seashore. Jesus took a broken man, a man who had returned to his beloved fishing-

maybe out of grief.

maybe shame.

maybe defeat.

Maybe all the above.

Doesn’t really matter though. Not to Jesus. He had one goal in mind…Peter. More specifically…Peter’s restoration. He needed it. Only Peter can really know the depth of his anguish and shame of his denial of Jesus after so boldly declaring, “Even if everyone else falls away I will not!”

I love this story!! I can’t wait to talk about it Sunday. But the real question is not “Peter, do you love me more than these?” The real question is “Bill, do you love me more than these?” That sound you heard was a huge gulp.

Have you been restored?

Have you been able to point someone to the ONE who does restore and watch them turn their life around? He is in the Restoration business.

I’d appreciate your prayers for Sunday. Thanks.

Posted in Easter, Preaching, Scripture look, Sermon Series/Topic, Story | 28 Responses »

Quitting

Sunday, March 31st, 2013

“I’m taking my ball and going home!”

“If you can’t play by my rules then fine. I’m done!”

We have all heard them. We probably played with a few of them. Shoot, those very words may have come out of our mouths. But those are minor compared to these:

“I can’t trust God. I quit.”

“I can’t believe in all the chaos and junk that there is really a God who cares. I am done with Him.”

“I am tired of the whole church thing. Time for me to check out.”

Unfortunately, we have all probably heard those somewhere along the line as well. After just celebrating the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, it seems unfathomable to me that we can use those excuses for turning our backs, i.e. quitting. But it happens. I am ashamed of the times I have wanted to throw my hands up in despair because God’s answer was not immediately forthcoming. G-r-r-r-r.

I. FEEL. LIKE. QUITTING.

Then I remember the goodness of God and how He has never let me down. On time. Slow time. Hesitation time. But never late time.

You may have heard the story of Polycarp, the pastor of the church in Smyrna during the time Marcus Aurelius was ruling Rome. He found out they were coming for him he fixed the soldiers breakfast. He then asked for an hour to pray, and the story says they were so moved by his prayer they apologized for arresting him.

Brought before the proconsul, he was found guilty and sentenced to be executed by being burned at the stake. At his inquisition, the proconsul offered freedom if he would denounce Christ.

Polycarp is said to have answered, “Eighty and six years have I served Him and He has never wronged me. How can I blaspheme by king?” When they staked him to the “tree” to be burned, they tied his hands instead of nailing him because he assured them he would not try escape. The fire formed a ring around him, but would not burn HIM, so the executioner put a spear into him. The blood was so much it put out the fire. Eventually the Jews made sure his body was burned. Source: Foxe’s Book of Martyrs

Quitting was not an option for Polycarp. Quitting was not an option for many of the early Christ-followers. Quitting should not be an option for me. For you. For anyone. The Easter story reminds us quitting should not be part of our vocabulary. The cross couldn’t stop Jesus. The grave couldn’t hold Him.

AND IN KEEPING WITH MONDAY’S “HISTORY”…THAT IS NO FOOL’S STORY

Hope you had a blessed Easter and found renewed hope for your journey. What lesson did you take away from your weekend?

Posted in Christian living, Church, Easter, Monday "I Needed That" Moment, Sunday Meanderings | 19 Responses »

Victory!

Thursday, March 28th, 2013

QUESTION: What do you say that no one has either said before or won’t say this weekend?

ANSWER: Not a thing. Not one new thing.

I’m not even going to pretend to have any original thought for this post. I would be lying to myself and trying to fake you out, so it isn’t worth it. However, I will lay claim to this one unquestionable truth:

EASTER BRINGS HOPE

My sermon for Sunday is from John 11, the story of Jesus, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. When Jesus told Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die,” He was offering hope. To them, the death of Lazarus was devastating and could have been prevented. To Jesus, it was another chance to glorify His Father. To them death seemed cruel, harsh, and final. To Him it was another opportunity for God’s power to be shown. Hint: He won.

Easter…Resurrection Sunday…whatever you want to call it, is just one more way to be made aware of the power of God displayed in the Resurrection of Jesus from the grave. We live with an undying hope of a forever future…courtesy of the Risen One.

Enjoy celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus this weekend. We have two services this Sunday: 9:00 and 10:45. I would appreciate your prayers for both services- for me as I bring a message of hope, and the folks as they listen. Thanks.

This is an older song but well worth being repeated.

Posted in Easter, Jesus, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic | 18 Responses »

Secretive

Thursday, March 21st, 2013

As I mentioned in my last post, Ryan (our youth pastor); Peter, a young man from the church; and I were attending Catalyst OneDay in Lexington, KY. If this is like the other ones I attended and taught by Craig Groeschel and Andy Stanley, it will be well worth it. As you notice, I am writing this in future tense, so I am writing this ahead of time and setting a time for it to publish.

Whenever you study the Scriptures, it is not unusual to learn new things, no matter how many times you have read it. When we read the accounts of the crucifixion, it is not unusual to highlight Jesus (for obvious reasons); his seven last sayings; or even the people around the cross (John, Mary, the centurion, the thief). We often leave out two significant characters who played a major role in Jesus’ burial. They are almost treated as appendages to the story. They are my two “Reclaimed characters” this week: Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus.

One of the reasons, I think, we treat them as we do is because up until crunch time-until push came to shove- they both were content with remaining in the background. For lack of a better word we might call them “secret disciples.” And that would be accurate because that is exactly the way John describes them in chapter 19.

There are times secrecy is good. If someone tells you a secret and trusts you with information, keeping a secret is vital. To not do so is betrayal of the worst kind. To be part of a secret celebration of some kind relies on, well…secrecy. When it comes to being a disciple of Jesus, secrecy is not good.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the follower of Jesus who took a stand against Hitler and died just days before Hitler did, once wrote, “When Jesus calls a man, He bids him come and die.” Nothing secret about that. Half-hearted people need not apply. A follower of Jesus is not one who simply buys “fire insurance,” and “accepts Christ” to avoid hell. True followers express their faith in submission and obedience. “Stealth commitment” is not what is called for.

Joseph and Nicodemus finally put aside their religious cloak and found boldness. They stepped forward to take down Jesus’ body from the cross and put him in Joseph’s tomb. I don’t know, but I seriously doubt their lives were ever the same. Neither will ours.

The challenge this Sunday is to Step Out and Step Up. Be bold. Get rid of a stealth “religion” and get in the game. How do you handle those who believe “I won’t say anything. I’ll just live it?” I’d like to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for your prayers.

Posted in Christian living, Easter, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic | 20 Responses »

Hardened

Thursday, March 14th, 2013

It is not unusual to read a book/magazine, watch a TV show, or hear someone speak of a “hardened” criminal. That description is used to describe someone who is jaded, desensitized, and/or usually practiced in criminal activity. While looking for a definition for “hardened criminal” I came across an article on a 13 year old who is being branded as one. All I can say is “Ay-yi-yi!” (spelling dubious). Hardened criminals are often seen as incorrigible. Unreachable. Unchangeable. ‘Course I am of the belief that no one is until they breathe their last breath.

That, in part, is why we are drawn to the thief on the cross. We like the idea that he was near the end of his (miserable) life and one word from Jesus changed everything. Let’s face it: unless you are really, really, really (did I say really) unique, we have all done things we would just as soon forget. It was a big thing among bloggers a couple of years ago to write letters to their younger self. Australian blogger, Rodney Olsen, took a unique approach this past week to that. I followed suit in my comment with a much shorter one. “If I had to do it all over again…” can easily become the moniker of many of us. There are many things I would do differently that’s for sure. But one thing I do know is this;

GOD’S GRACE IS SO MUCH GREATER THAN MY SIN!!

And man am I glad! That doesn’t give me a license to sin. This Scripture says so. I am one of the blessed ones-I came to know Jesus early. But what about those whose whole life has been about lying, cheating, stealing, murder, war, mockery, and various other “qualities?” Take, for example, the two characters I will be dealing with this Sunday in my series “Reclaimed.”

THE THIEF ON THE CROSS

THE CENTURION

Both hardened, but in different ways. One hardened by his evil life; the other hardened by his military life. One by his sinful choices; the other by his life choice. The centurion may have been a more honorable man than the thief, but they both needed the Savior. They both realized they were in the presence of majesty. One found peace and promise at death; the other found truth at death (Someone else’s).

What matters is not how hardened someone’s life is at death. What truly matters is how hardened someone’s heart is at death. I believe, without a shadow of a doubt, it is never too late for salvation…except when that last breath is breathed. Thief on the cross. Roman centurion. Bill. No matter. The ground is level at the foot of the cross. Just don’t come with a hardened heart.

I’d appreciate your prayers for Sunday. Have any thoughts you would like to share on this topic?

Thanks to Dan for the banner.

Posted in Easter, Preaching, Scripture look, Sermon Series/Topic, Sin | 27 Responses »

UGH!

Sunday, April 8th, 2012

Only a pastor can probably truly know what I am about to relate. Forgive me if you are not and this bores you.

I. “HATE”. IT. WHEN. GOD. SENDS. ME. IN. ANOTHER. DIRECTION. THAN. ORIGINALLY. PLANNED. OR. PREPARED.

Okay, so I don’t literally “hate” it. I much prefer to say, “I get an uncomfortable feeling when it happens.” Let me give you the scenario so you know what I am talking about.

Good Friday Noon was the Community Good Friday service at which I was asked to preach. My original thought was to revamp last week’s Sunday message on Peter and Judas and talk about that. But Thursday, God said, “Nothing doing Bill.” Ooooh man! What started it was watching the Matt Chandler video that I posted here. I got this distinct impression from God that I was to do something else…something focusing on the cross. Imagine that! Good Friday and focusing on the cross! So Thursday afternoon I worked on and then spoke on I Corinthians 1:18-25. I spoke for about 10 minutes on the Superiority of the cross vs. man’s wisdom. I am a poor judge of how I do, but others felt I did fine. Good, I am done with “freelancing” for awhile.

UNLESS, OF COURSE, IF GOD HAS OTHER IDEAS.

As you have probably gathered by now, He did. Saturday morning as I was studying the message, I began to get this uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Uh-oh. “Something isn’t right here.” Not a good sign for the home team.

AND. HE. WOULDN’T. LET. ME. ALONE!!!!

I told Jo about it Saturday afternoon, and then after a meeting with a missionary that lasted close to 2 hours, I spent some time working on the updated sermon for Resurrection Sunday. I incorporated the message on the Superiority of the cross from I Cor.1 with the Crown of the Story (Resurrection) from John 20:1-18. Using Mary Magdalene and John I showed how their lives were transformed by the resurrected Lord. Death. Burial. Resurrection. The story of Easter. The story of Redemption. The story of Hope.

After all…what is better to give on the most hope-filled day of the year? The apostle Paul wrote it well: “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (I Cor.15:19)

I hope your Resurrection Sunday was one of hope and victory. Care to share how your “Easter” experience was? I would love to hear how things went all over the country. As I write this the jury is out on the results of my “freelancing”, oops, I mean, God’s leading.

Posted in Christian living, Doctrine, Easter, Preaching, Scripture look, Sermon Series/Topic | 32 Responses »

2:12

Thursday, April 5th, 2012

Normally on Friday I post about my upcoming Sunday message. For some reason, that just does not seem right to me today. Instead, I want to post something I found. It lasts 2:12 (hence the title) and will bless your socks off.

http://youtu.be/x6T0m7uGJd4

Is there anything more to say on this day we remember the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross? I am speaking at noon today (Friday) at a Good Friday community service. The church building I am speaking in does not have the modern technology available to show this, or I would, and then close with prayer. However, I did change the direction of my message from a shortened version of my message last Sunday of Judas and Peter to a message on the cross.

Hope you enjoy Pastor Matt’s presentation. Any thoughts? Have a meaningful and blessed Resurrection Sunday. I will see you on Monday.

Posted in Doctrine, Easter, God, Jesus, Preaching, Scripture look | 34 Responses »

Mordor

Sunday, April 1st, 2012

I like Lord of the Rings.

NO…MAKE THAT I LOVE LORD OF THE RINGS!

Funny thing is: I didn’t see it any theater. Confession: I had no desire to see it. To make it even worse: I had heard of the LOTR, but couldn’t have told you one iota of anything about it.

UNTIL…I BORROWED “FELLOWSHIP” FROM SOMEONE ON A LARK.

That was all she wrote. I went back the next day to borrow the next two. Then I asked for them for Christmas and was rewarded with the Director’s Cuts of all three. I thought I had died and gone to heaven! Okay…not quite but you get the idea.

MY POINT:

I love the scene near the end of The Return of the King. The fellowship is now physically scattered but forever bound together. Frodo and Sam are somewhere in Mordor. The city of Gondor has won a costly victory in their stand against Mordor’s forces. A war council is called and they are reduced to a desperate measure: storm the gates of Mordor hoping to distract the eye of Sauron momentarily to buy Frodo and Sam, wherever they are, some time to accomplish their mission of destroying the ring. Like all councils there are two sides: don’t attempt it at all vs. die trying. That is when it gets interesting.

Gimli, the dwarf, speaks up and sums up the council so far. “Harrumph. Vastly outnumbered. Zero chance of success. Certainty of death.”

Then he pauses. He bunches up his bristly eyebrows and skewers everyone with his fierce gaze. And then he delivers the resolve: “Well, what are we waiting for?”

I am reminded of Someone else who gave about the same sort of “speech.” He said He would build His church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it. The church built on the foundation of Jesus will stand. We will storm the gates, crash them, topple them, and raid the kingdom of darkness.

Vastly outnumbered? It may appear so, but No. “Greater is He who is in me, than He who is in the world.”

Zero chance of success? It may appear so, but No. The gates of hell will never prevail no matter the evil that comes at us.

Certainly of death? It may appear so, but we will live again.

That is no more evident than this week…the week that ~~WAS~~ IS! Begin today preparing yourself for the triumph of Sunday. Don’t wait until Resurrection Sunday to say, “Oh yeah…today is the day.” Mordor (Hell) has no power anymore over the follower of Christ.

What plans do you have to prepare yourself for this coming weekend? Will you be doing anything special for Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday? Care to share?

Posted in Church, Doctrine, Easter, Jesus | 40 Responses »

Hope

Thursday, April 21st, 2011

Time for the semi-annual trek to the local place of worship. In all honesty, I used to get pretty “honked off” about that. I used some valuable time when I could have been talking about the power of the resurrection and the power of the Risen Christ to change lives, to talk about the C & E “Christians.” I look back into the mirror of my life and think, “What in the world was I thinking? “ Let’s face it: that is a pure waste of precious time and energy. If people want to come C & E they are not going to change just because some “duded up Easter dude” harps on them about coming more than twice a year. Fortunately, I stopped that practice long, long time ago and spend my time talking about the most important thing of all: the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Billy Graham is credited with saying, “If I were an enemy of Christianity, I would aim right at the Resurrection, because that is the heart of Christianity.”

I certainly have no disagreement with that statement. It goes without saying that if Christ did not rise from the dead then He is no different than all the other religious leaders/teachers who have lived throughout history. Paul says, in I Corinthians 15 that our faith is futile (v.17); we are still in our sins (v.17b); we will never see our loved ones again (v.18); and we should be pitied (v.19). How much of a downer is that? Quite simply…we are fools of the first order. To borrow the Epicurean philosophy: “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we may die.” It brings to mind a song by group from the ’60s, the Grassroots, who sang a song, “La la la live for today..and don’t worry about tomorrow.”

Hope for today. Hope for tomorrow. Hope for the future. That is what the Resurrection of Christ offers. I will close our my short series on Jesus: The Center this Sunday. I would appreciate your prayers for me and the church community I pastor. Friday night we will be showing The Passion of the Christ. The young people will be watching a more spiritual movie: Kung Fu Panda with maybe a little Veggie Tales mixed in. We are also offering three worship experience opportunities in order to take the pressure off our normal second service on Sunday: Saturday night and then two Sunday morning. It will be a long and taxing weekend for all involved, but I am praying we will see people come to know the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords in all His glory as the Resurrected Lord. I know that is “church talk” but that is what I hope and pray for.

HOW CAN I PRAY FOR YOU THIS WEEKEND?

Thanks to Dan for the banner. I begin a new series next week I am calling “Resigned.” Have a great Resurrection Weekend.

Posted in Church, Easter, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic | 38 Responses »

Two-sided Coins

Friday, April 15th, 2011

Have you ever seen Dark Knight, the movie in which Heath Ledger played the Joker? We did not see it at the theater, but we found it at Target for something like $5 at Christmas time. We promptly brought it home and forgot about it. It was when I was doing some cleaning (yes I do that. Does that delete my ManCard?) when I saw it on Jo’s movie shelf. I grunted and took it to my ManCave determined to watch it. I did. It is a powerful movie. WOW! Anyway…all that to say this: if you have seen the movie do you remember when Harvey Dent, the District Attorney who eventually became Two-Face, used to flip a coin and say, “Do you feel lucky?” He would catch it and say, “You are lucky.” It was only later, after his accident, that we find out the coin had the same thing on both sides.

Whenever you hear a story about someone, we might say or hear, “Remember, there are two sides to every story.” Another way of saying that is “There are two sides to every coin.”

I BELIEVE WE CAN VIEW THE CRUCIFIXION IN MUCH THE SAME WAY. THERE IS BOTH A TRAGEDY AND A TRIUMPH INVOLVED.

The tragedy involves a man…not Jesus. The triumph involves a man…yes, Jesus. The tragedy of the crucifixion is actually the tragedy of betrayal…a betrayal we now know by Judas Iscariot. You know, for all the pain of chemo, or surgery, or a root canal…nothing hurts like betrayal. If you have been there you know what I am talking about. Nothing hurts like being betrayed by someone you thought was a friend. You would expect it from an enemy. But a friend? How could they? And yet, there was Judas betraying the One who loved him more than anyone else did.

The other side of the coin is the triumph of the crucifixion. Zechariah 12:10, one of the Scriptures I will be using, is so powerful, so prophetic, so on-the-money, that it cannot be denied. And yet…and yet…there is triumph in the crucifixion!! “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew so sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” 2 Cor.5:21 (cue Chris Tomlin song “Jesus Messiah”). Gives me chills just thinking about it. What was Jesus’ darkest hour becomes our finest. The real triumph came three days later. YES!!!

I will be preaching this week on this two-sided coin. I am praying that the church community I pastor will grasp what this coin is all about in a fresh and new way. I pray that for you as well.

Have any thoughts about this two-sided coin? If you are a pastor, what will you be preaching about this week? I would love to hear your thoughts. Have a blessed weekend my friends. And thanks again to Dan for the banner.

Posted in Church, Easter, Preaching, Sermon Series/Topic | 25 Responses »