The Cross

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#TheBoastoftheCross

Thursday, April 20th, 2023

There is something curious about boasting. Despite the fact that nobody likes a braggart, everybody brags in some way. People boast about their grandchildren (Guilty); their bank accounts (not guilty); their waistlines (is that really something to brag about?); sports feats (days gone by); travel plans (will Alaska ever happen again?); and sometimes even their indiscretions.  Get a bunch of pastors together on Monday morning and ask them how things are going and you will probably hear the biggest game of one-upmanship take place that you have ever heard.

In Galatians 6:14 the Apostle Paul said, “May I never boast except in the cross of Christ.” What does that mean? I want to dive into that verse and the passage which surrounds it this coming Sunday. I invite you to join me in person or via live stream at 9:00 and 10:45.

 

#ItIsFinished!

Thursday, March 30th, 2023

I suspect all of us from time to time have heard or even used the expression, “Famous last words.” We use them to sorta say, “Yeah. So you say.”  “I’ll clean my room” or “I’ll take out the garbage” or “I’ll clean the garage.” And we say? “Yeah, yeah, yeah, famous last words.  As I prepared for this message and was thinking about Jesus’ last words, I decided to do a little research, aka Google it, on famous last words.  🙂 I found some irreverent ones. I found some thoughtful ones. I found some ironic ones. And I found some sad ones.  (I would encourage you to look them up yourself).  I’m actually going to give some examples during the introduction part of my sermon.

Jesus’ words “It is Finished” are loaded with meaning, often misconstrued. Each of Jesus’ last words tell a story, a truth, to know and remember. My desire this Sunday is to explain what that phrase means and why it is so important for us to get it right.

I just want to say this: In His dying moments, the mind of Jesus was filled, not with hopeless despair, but with a sense of accomplishment. His imminent death was not something inflicted upon Him by others, but something He Himself had achieved! That is why He could say, “It is Finished.”

Please tune in if possible. In person or via live stream.  Our services are at 9:00 and 10:45. They are live streamed on the church’s FB page and also YouTube. You can find those links at the church’s website.  I’m looking forward to preaching on these last words of Jesus.

 

#DarknesstoLight

Thursday, March 23rd, 2023

We have all been there I’m sure. Darkness covers a room. We are sound asleep, cocooned in a warm, soft bed, wrapped in blankets that keep in the warmth. Suddenly our bliss is grossly interrupted by someone doing the unthinkable-turning the light on!  A-a-a-a-a-a-h! All peace and tranquility is shattered by the sudden interference to our “sound sleep pattern.”  An intruder (light) has entered our world.

The story of the cross is a story of two views.  It is the story of darkness where one of the ugliest, if not the ugliest of confrontations, took place. It is also a story of light where the ultimate victory was won.  To see the complete story is eye-opening and powerful.

My purpose this Sunday is to show the darkness and the light of the cross. I want to show the contrast which is so evident as we take a closer look at the bad (darkness) and the good (light).  My main Scripture will be Mark 15:33-39. I’ll bring others in as well.

Please join us this Sunday at 9:00 and 10:45 in person or via live stream. You can find the links at the church’s website.

#InsultsandParadise

Thursday, March 16th, 2023

There are many folks who have read the narrative of the cross so often that the reality of the pain and suffering Jesus went through “goes in one ear and out the other.” It is also true that life is a mixed bag. There are moments of pure, unadulterated exhilaration combined with moments of sheer agony.

The Apostle Paul wrote, “But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to the Gentiles.” (I Cor. 1:23) The Jews wanted supernatural signs and the Greeks sought wisdom. But as we look at the cross, we see more.  We see a combination of both the simple and the profound. The Jews weren’t going to find their sign of the miraculous on the cross, and the Gentiles weren’t going to find their wisdom in it. 

What I plan to bring to light are four scenes full of meaning. As I said, many who read the account of the cross sort of just take these four scenes for granted. They are filled with meaning for us.

Scene #1- The weeping women.  Luke 23:26-31

Scene #2- The heartless soldiers. 23:32-34

Scene #3- The mocking bystanders. 23:35-39

Scene #4- The thief on the cross. 23:39-43

After introducing the four scenes, my primary focus will be on the latter. I will making these three points:

  1. No one is ever too far gone to become a Christ-follower.
  2. All God wants from any individual is simple faith.
  3. Never doubt that God accepts you.

Please join us at 9:00 and 10:45 either in person or via live stream. Check out the church’s website for the ways and means to connect.

 

#TheStingofFailure

Thursday, March 9th, 2023

Quick: Word association. Disciple of Jesus. Failure:

PETER

It is hard to disassociate Peter’s name from failure.  But the fact remains: all of them failed. All of them ran. Peter gets notoriety because his was so public. Brash. Bold. Boisterous. Braggart.

Peter is not alone though. We all have failed. We all have made promises to be faithful and to stand tall, only to see ourselves do a face plant.  History is marred with failures. So is Biblical history.

But failure is not the end. You have heard it said in some way, I’m sure: “Falling is not failure; not getting back up is.”  But the great part about Peter’s failure and what he realized is that there is forgiveness in spite of failure. 

I’m guessing that no one’s failure is more highlighted than Peter’s.  I’m preaching on The Sting of Failure this Sunday. But I have absolutely no intention whatsoever of leaving Peter flapping in the breeze. Jesus didn’t and I certainly won’t. Nope…Jesus restored him and made him the leader of the ragtag band of disciple/apostles.

Please join us at 9:00 and 10:45 either in person or online as we live stream our services. I know many will be traveling this week due to Spring Break in our school system, but I hope you will join us via the live stream.

ONE MORE THING! REMEMBER TO TURN YOUR CLOCKS AHEAD THIS SATURDAY NIGHT FOR DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME.

 

 

#Don’tForgettoRemember!

Thursday, March 2nd, 2023

Communion has been part of the church’s experience since shortly after Jesus’ meal with the disciples in the Upper Room. Down through the years there have been different ways to celebrate it:

  • There have been arguments and debates over its frequency (weekly, monthly, quarterly, twice a year).
  • There have been arguments over who can partake.
  • There have been arguments over the elements themselves (wine or grape juice for example). During the pandemic I had one person tell me they had crackers and pop as a substitute.
  • There have been different names give to it (Lord’s Supper,  Last Supper, Holy Communion, or Eucharist).

If you are looking for a doctrinal treatise from me on those arguments you have come to the wrong place. My focus in this Sunday’s sermon is on the meal itself and why we have been told, “Do this in remembrance of Me.” Long story short: me must not forget to remember.

This Sunday starts a two-month series on To and From the Cross. I’m taking this break from my series on Revelation to focus on the season of the Cross and the Resurrection.  I plan to resume the Revelation series the first Sunday of May. Please join us in person or via live stream at 9:00 and 10:45.

 

#Feasts#Passover

Thursday, November 10th, 2022

One of the understandings that I believe many NT followers of Jesus lack is that of the importance and purpose of the OT feasts. We hear they are in the OT and we turn our antenna off. And to make it even more drastic, we know that we need to read the OT to hear about them and what their purpose was.

Read the Old Testament? Read Leviticus? Are you kidding me? For many, that is a recipe for sleep mode. I confess…I have had that attitude in the past. But I decided to stop snoring publicly when I talk about the OT. I decided to stop downplaying its importance.  There were several reasons for doing that. 1) It was making a mockery of God’s inspired, written Word. 2) I began to really come to grips that Jesus is throughout the Bible. I mean, I knew that, but I finally allowed it to sink in. I began to read some books about it. Jesus on Every Page. The Unfolding Mystery. Christ from Beginning to End were just some of them.

And then…and then…I decided I would do something I had never done before. I would focus on the feasts in the OT as they relate to Thanksgiving and, of course, to NT followers of Jesus. I begin that 4-week series this Sunday. My title is God Redeems His People. I’ll be looking at the Passover and this is the only sermon in which I will focus on only one feast. But how can I not? This is possibly the most important feast/meal the Jews were to observe and there is absolutely no doubt it relates to us.

I invite you to join us we all work our way through a new subject for me and most likely for all who are there. We have two services at 9 and 10:45 and live stream both as well.

#BloodofJesus

Wednesday, April 13th, 2022

After preaching on The Cross is Still the Cross this past Sunday, and knowing this is “Holy Week” i.e. the last week of Jesus on earth before His crucifixion, I was struck by the words to an old hymn.  Honestly, I am not into many hymns because much of what I sang as a youngster fit more in the Spiritual songs genre. But there are some hymns which are real diamonds…diamonds we ought to mine and never forget. Here is one of them:

“What can wash away by sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus/What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus/

Chorus:

O precious is the flow that makes me white as snow/No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

For my pardon this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/ For my cleansing, this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Nothing can for sin atone, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/Naught of good that I have done, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/

This is all my hope and peace, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/This is all my righteousness, Nothing but the blood of Jesus/

O precious is the flow that makes me white as snow/No other found I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

Words and music Robert Lowry

A blast from the past. But what a punch! Remember this truth as you celebrate the death of Jesus this week.

#CrossStilltheCross

Friday, April 8th, 2022

On March 24, 1989 the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Alaska’s Prince William Sound, spilling almost a quarter-million gallons of oil into the sea. Cleanup removed all visible traces of the oil spill within a year. But now scientists believe some of the methods used actually harmed the ecology of the area rather than helped it. The plankton and other microbial organisms may take another decade from now to return to normal.

Looking back at that disaster, it seems almost ironic that the whole story makes a fitting illustration of self-reform and the necessity of divine grace for cleansing from sin.  To the progressives, the cross is one of the most offensive elements in historic Christian teaching. They simply cannot and will not accept or believe God would sacrifice His Son for others.

For the orthodox (small “o” not big “O”) follower of Jesus, the cross is absolutely essential.  I will be sharing the teachings (translated: heresy) of the progressives while comparing them to what the Bible says.  Examples used will be William Paul Young (The Shack), Steve Chalke, Rob Bell (yes, that infamous one), Richard Rohr, and Brian McLaren.  I believe you will be shocked what they say about the crucifixion and the cross.

And by the way: do you know what penal substitutionary atonement is? They don’t either.

I look forward to seeing you Sunday in person, or if not, then via live stream.

#InMemorium#ThankYou

Monday, May 17th, 2021

In 2003 my brother, Garry, and his wife, Deb, adopted a little girl from China. Lia’s “delivery” was delayed a year due to the SARS virus which shut down the whole adoption from China wheel, but eventually they held beautiful Lia in their arms.

Early in my blogging years, I faithfully followed (and he me) a pastor (Jason) who lived in Alaska (yes, I am jealous). He and his wife were already parents but chose to adopt 2 children from Japan.

Some in the church I serve have adopted children from other nations. One family  has two-one since a baby and the other in her elementary years. They have both grown into beautiful young ladies. One graduates high school this year and the other I look for her to be seen as an Olympic diver if she realizes her dream.

Foster parents and grandparents are making life different for hundreds, even thousands of children every day.

The Bible speaks of adoption into God’s family.  Take a moment and read Romans 8: 14-15; Gal.4:5; and Eph. 1:5. Adoption says we are legally His. He has put His stamp on us. We are identified as His child. He is our Abba Father.

There are several reasons for adoption. One is the desire to make life better for someone. While withholding my comments about what is going on at the southern border, there is a reason so many are making their way here. They see a better life.  For most of them, if not all, they see America as the “land of opportunity.”

We have those who have served our country whom we should thank for that perception (which I do believe to be true). America and its capitalistic ideals, despite all its flaws (which I will not go into), is still the greatest place to live. (And here I will make a statement: if you don’t like it here…leave. See if you can get away with your free speech, etc in China or Russia or some other socialist regime).

I am grateful I live in America…flaws and all. And I just want to stop and say thank you to all the men and women who served, are serving and are training to serve this great nation to keep us free. Have you taken the time to say thanks?

THANK YOU!!