Summer Sermon Series

It has been several months since the last entry here, largely in part to being gone for Chaplain Officer Basic Leadership Course. Now I am back and will be starting a series of sermons for the summer as part of a fulfillment for a course I am taking in graduate school. I hope you enjoy the series.

It is Firday

Well today is Friday, and my last day of classes for this semester. (internal celebration). So this will be short as I have to study for one last Greek Vocab test of the semester. But my thought for today is from John 3, where Nicodemus comes to Jesus.


You Must Be Born Again

3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named hNicodemus, ia ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus1 jby night and said to him, k“Rabbi, lwe know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do munless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is nborn oagain1 he cannot psee the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born qof water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 rThat which is born of the flesh is sflesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.1 7 tDo not marvel that I said to you, ‘You1 must be born uagain.’ 8 vThe wind1 blows wwhere it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

9 Nicodemus said to him, x“How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel yand yet you do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, zwe speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but zyou1 do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 aNo one has bascended into heaven except che who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.1 14 And das Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man ebe lifted up, 15 that whoever believes fin him gmay have eternal life.1

For God So Loved the World

16 “For hGod so loved ithe world,1 jthat he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not kperish but have eternal life. 17 For lGod did not send his Son into the world mto condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 nWhoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not obelieved in the name of the only Son of God. 19 pAnd this is the judgment: qthe light has come into the world, and rpeople loved the darkness rather than the light because stheir works were evil. 20 tFor everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, ulest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever vdoes what is true wcomes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Taken from http://biblia.com/books/esv/Jn2.21 

Why

Does life seem empty at times and you wonder what you are doing or why you are where you are. Are you lacking purpose? Maybe it is because you have moved away from the one who gives all life meaning and purpose. No, I am not just talking to those who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior for as much as their life may lack purpose and meaning, we who have accepted the we are sinners and that we have no way to pay for the sins we have committed and trust wholly on the sacrifice Christ offered for us, we still have times in life where we wonder what we are doing or why are we where we are.
    I will admit that I was feeling and thinking this way even this morning. I was wondering why I was subjecting myself to the rigors of school and working and why I was here? But, then I asked myself why am I wondering about the purpose and meaning of my life. Then through a singspiration  in a class today I realized through the words of the hymns that we sang, I was the reason I was questioning and felt a lack of purpose. You see I had taken God's purpose for my life and walked off trying to do it on my own. In doing so I left the empowering and gracious surety of provision that God provides when we are doing His will. It is there that I found myself today seeing life hollow and without purpose or meaning.
   Now there is someone out there that is going yeah I had the same situation whether they really would admit it or not they know that they fell a lack of purpose and meaning in their life even though they are on the outside "doing the right thing." And they like I have walked out of the presence of God to try and do life on our own. So how do regain purpose and meaning, how do we face without drudgery the rigors of our calling? The answer for both you and I is return. Return, to God, in our pride we have said "I can do this on my own" but reality is we have no power or ability to accomplish the will of God in our lives. When we walk away to do in our own strength we quickly face reality that we have no power, endurance or desire to do what God wants us to do. At this point we can face a pivitol decision and go one of three ways. We, can just drudge on and postpone to a later time, we could just become fed up and quit whatever it is we are doing to make life easier for ourselves, or we could return to God who gives us power, endurance, purpose, joy, peace, and meaning to all that we do. If we quit yes we may alive the temporal discomfort but the hollowness and lack of purpose and meaning remains. But if we return to God we can return to joy and accomplish goals and tasks with purpose and meaning. I had to spend some time this morning and just read Scripture and pray, returning to God and away from self reliance. What will you do? Will you quit or return? As you make that decision think about this statement that I once saw on a sign: "If you feel away from God who does not change, who moved?"

Who is your God

Who is your God? Is He in complete control? Scripture tells us that God's will (sovereign will) will cannot be changed, that it will be completely fulfilled (Daniel 4:35). So if God's will will be done and that He is in full control. Does this challenge our attitudes and our worry warts? If God is in control why do we worry and why do we "woe is me"? Is God not in control and His will will be done no matter what.
    This is something that I had in class a week or so ago and some other circumstances have challenged this in my life. But every time I want to worry or I want to complain to my mind the truth is recalled about who God is. So if you are worrying or you are having the woe is me attitude who is your God. Is He in control and will His will be accomplished. Or, is your god weak and inept? Is your god of your own designs?

Questions on Technology

Today where I attend Seminary we had a panel on technology and the Christian. For once the panel actually was composed of some whose area is in Bible and others whose area is technology (this is an improvement over my undergrad years when they had biology and rhetoric professors doing such panels). This panel returned a question to my mind that I have had before and not found a completely adequate answer. The question is what place does technology have in the body of the church, specifically in the local evidence of the universal church being the local church? As an extension to that question are the questions, what place does technology have in the edification and instruction of the saints? Also, how does technology engender the communal aspects of Christian fellowship?

I have not come up with a patent answer or heard one that satisfies biblical principles. Then today because of the panel my mind added the question of then based upon the answer of the above question(s) what is the appropriate use of technology in the life of the Christian in relation to the church and the proclamation of the gospel? Such as, using technology for witnessing, for studying, even in worship, or maybe even just should Christians being using electronic devices in church?

This topic is one that it may be worth for some trusted expositors to start writing  in an expositional/applicational basis.