Simeon's Song - Jesus Saves!

When Simeon saw baby Jesus he was filled with joy!  Everything he had hoped for had finally arrived in this tiny bundle!  In Jesus, Simeon recognized the salvation that God had promised thousands of years ago.

Great Joy!

The Christmas story is very familiar - so much so that the nativity scenes on display at Christmas bring the whole story to mind. Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus in the stable - the shepherds in the fields watching over their flocks - the angels appearing with their message.

In the account in Luke chapter two all of the narrative details are given their meaning by the message that the angel delivered to the shepherds. There is a very specific reason that this scene should be the cause of great joy. Don't miss the message in the middle of the scenery.

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Savior who is Christ the Lord!"

Something To Celebrate

Some groups that call themselves "Christian" do not celebrate Christmas. But the Bible focuses a lot of attention on the incarnation of Christ. If we believe what the Bible teaches about the birth of Jesus is calculated to make us worship. We have something that is worth celebrating!

Something To Celebrate

Should Christians celebrate Christmas or not?

Some groups say, "NO!" because of ancient syncretism between Christianity and Paganism in the Christmas celebrations.

The modern pagan's certainly agree.  One recent morning, Lola and I sat in our local McDonalds and realized that all the Christmassy sounding songs were devoid of any mention of Christ. The songs are all about Santa Claus, Rudolph, White Christmases and so on - but no Christ.

Where possible, they scrub Christ right out of Christmas and end up with "Happy Holidays" without any explanation of why these days might be considered happy or holy. Christmas has continued its slide into crass commercialism - all about buying more, newer, bigger stuff. Christmas Holiday Trees can be decorated, of course, and presents can be wrapped. There is plenty of nostalgia for Christmases "long long ago" - as long as you don't mention Christ. The legal eagles of the "Freedom From Religion" group are ready to swoop down wherever they think they can force people to remove Manger Scenes.

So, back to my original question. Should Christians celebrate Christmas or not?

Well, we certainly should not celebrate Christmas the way our pagan culture does. If Christmas is not about Christ, then what is it about? Seems that materialism, greed and excess are all that is left. If that is where our hearts are, then even putting up a manger scene will not redeem it.

We should celebrate Christmas if Christmas is about Christ. Christ should be at the center of a Christian's Christmas. We should spend the season reflecting on the biblical accounts - prophecies promising Christ would come, announcements to Joseph, Mary and Zechariah about his coming, the songs of praise from Mary and Zechariah and Simeon, the birth of Jesus in the stable, the angelic announcement to the Shepherds and their response, the testimony of the magi who traveled from Arabia to meet the new King.

"Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners..."  That is what Christmas should be about for Christians and we should focus on that. When we do focus on that, how can we help but celebrate?

And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,Luke 1:46–47

Our Secret Lives

Batman and Superman are not the only ones - we all have two aspects to our lives. There is the public life we live in the view of others and the secret life that is unknown to anyone but us.

It is tempting to say that all of the inane social media posts revealing seemingly every detail of some people's lives must take the place of an internal life that is unknown except to the person. But in fact, that social media presence is likely to be more of a mask than an X-ray. You only see what the person wants you to see - their created persona.

To some extent we don't even know ourselves perfectly. We don't fully understand our own motives for what we say and do. We surprise ourselves - usually in a bad way. We suppress certain memories, we live in denial of certain characteristics, we are blind to various flaws.

But God knows us perfectly - far more perfectly than we can know ourselves. Nothing is hidden from him. He can see right through us. We might bluster or pontificate. We might weep or shout. We might charge the enemy or flee for our lives. But God knows our fears, our rage, our pain, our doubts.

God knows and he offers us a mirror that will show us the truth about ourselves. Not only that, but he will show us the way to resolve our inner turmoil and find true rest.

Hebrews 4:11–13 (ESV)

¹¹Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.

¹²For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

¹³And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Striving To Rest

It seems contradictory to say we should "strive to enter God's rest," but it is true. The rest God offers is not inactivity. It is refreshment and renewal and blessing that comes from a right relationship with him. The path to this rest is laid out for us in God's word - his living and active and sharp word.

No Turning Back

Jesus never told anyone that following him would be easy.  He said that people should "count the cost."  He warned us that if the world hated him, they would hate his disciples too.

But Christians from the very beginning have been struggling with the temptation to wander away from Jesus and to let their commitment fade.  This is what the original recipients of the book of Hebrews were facing - and the author is warning them - "Do not turn back from following Jesus."

Fulfilled In Christ

As humans in a vast universe we seem to have unreasonable expectations. Why should we think that we, as individuals, have any particular meaning or purpose in our lives?

The answer is in Jesus Christ!  Because of who he is and what he has done for us, we can have eternal life with eternal purpose. We find our fulfillment in him.

Sermon In A Sack: The Extension Cord

How is Jesus like an extension cord, you might be asking yourself?  Well, let's talk about that...

Hallowed Be Thy Name...

Jesus taught his disciples, "When you pray, say: “Father, hallowed be your name." (Luke 11:2)  This beginning to our prayer confronts us with the nature of our relationship to God. That he is our father means we honor him and are dependent on him. 

The phrase, "hallowed be your name" expresses our respect. It means, "let your name be exalted as holy."  It is not that we are urging God to live up to our standards of holiness - but that we recognize and want others to know that God, our Father, is HOLY.

God is not holy because he measures up to some external standard.  God is holy because he is God.  As God, he is the measure of all perfection.  Good and Evil, Right and Wrong, Moral and Immoral and any other similar standard is eternally calibrated by the ultimate reality of God and his holiness.  What conforms to God's holy character is good, right and moral.  Whatever conflicts with God's holy character is evil, wrong and immoral. To sin is to transgress God's standards of holiness.

When we come to God in prayer, one of the first things we must do is acknowledge who God is and who we are in relation to God.  We do not come to God to give him something he lacks or to tell him how to manage the universe or the circumstances of our lives.  We come to God in worship, desiring to be used by God to exalt his name as the measure of all perfection.

This is a very important thing to remember in 21st century America and it would be well for Christians to return to praying according to this formula, "Father, hallowed be your name."

Somehow we have strayed from these essential truths.  Instead of acknowledging God as the measure of all perfection we have come to think that we are the measure ourselves.  Too many nominal Christians have bought into the American idolatry that tells us good and evil are determined by cultural consciousness.  Views on abortion and human sexuality are prime examples, but not the only examples.  Instead of asking, "What does God say about these things?" so called Christians are parroting the views of secular humanists who have sold their ideas through various cultural channels over the past sixty years.

Let God be exalted as the measure of all perfection.  Let his kingdom come and his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  Let it begin today by his rule and reign in my life.

How Shall We Escape?

God has spoken through the ages by means of prophets and angels, but finally he sent Jesus - his only Son and God in the Flesh as the ultimate revelation. Since God's word has alwayJs come true and he has judged sinners according to his truth - how much more should we pay attention to what he has said through his ultimate revelation - Jesus Christ?

Jesus And The Angels

There are many popular myths about angels, but in scripture they are special servants of God. The carry special messages or fight in spiritual warfare or lead worship in God's throne room. Some look like men in white, others have six wings and four faces.

The author of Hebrews wanted to encourage his readers by telling them how great Jesus, their Savior, really is.  One way to do that is to point out how much he is superior to the angels.

Jesus The Divine Word

It has been a long time since Jesus ascended into heaven.  But what has he done for us lately?  Why should we continue to follow Jesus?  The human author of Hebrews launches into this with strong points that should prompt us to be more enthusiastic over what we have in Christ.

The End of The Beginning

The gospel of Mark starts with a bang and ends very abruptly.  What is his purpose in this sudden ending?  Not to tell us everything we might want to know, but to give us necessary information and to leave us with a certain impression about what happened at the tomb that Sunday morning.

Change The World

Do you want to change the world? What would you change?

How would you go about changing the world?

People try all kinds of things - writing, joining boycotts or street protests or even armed resistance. As Americans we are prejudiced toward action - we want to DO something that will make changes happen fast!

But Mark's account of Jesus on the cross seems very passive. He doesn't struggle. He doesn't argue. He simply submits and lets the situation unfold.

What does this tell us about Jesus view of changing the world?

Recipe For Failure

Would you buy a book titled, "A Recipe For Failure?"  Don't you think most people would use a title like, "7 Simple Steps To Success?"  But the Scriptures in Mark 14 tell the story of a tremendous and shocking failure.  Peter - a man's man - a devoted disciple - an apostle of Jesus Christ - crashes and burns in a spectacular and devastating way.

If Peter can fail like this, all of us are in danger of failure.  We had best learn from his experiences.

Who Wants Truth?

We are used to the idea that at a trial the judges would be seeking the truth... but when Jesus was on trial in Mark 14, the judges had already settled on his sentence - DEATH.  Now they just needed to figure out the charges.

We live in a time and place where anti-Jesus prejudice is growing. He is being rejected to some extent because in our culture it is assumed that there is not a single objective truth. Rather, people think that everyone has his or her own truth. They think there is no singular absolute truth and they reject Jesus because he said, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me."

What is the truth about Jesus?

Where Do You Stand?

When Jesus was arrested in the garden of Gethsemane it was the last time all twelve of his disciples would be together in the same place. Judas would soon be seized with remorse and would take his own life. The other eleven were scattered for a while, but eventually regrouped.

None of the disciples did very well in that last moment and the lessons for us here are a number of bad examples. We should avoid making the mistakes that they made.

Sermon In A Sack: Sheep's Wool

The Bible uses sheep and shepherds to illustrate things about our need for salvation and a heavenly shepherd.  Jesus says that he is his the Good Shepherd who gives his life for the sheep.

Thy Will Be Done

When Jesus taught his disciples to pray he included this line... "Let your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  Then when Jesus was in the difficult hours just before his arrest, he prayed, "Not my will, but your will be done."

Do you pray that God's will would be done?  Is it safe?  Don't you really want YOUR will to be done instead?

What does it mean to us to pray, "Thy will be done?"

Watch & Pray

When Jesus came to the point where he was about to be betrayed, arrested, tried and crucified it was a very difficult crisis. The scripture says he was terribly distressed. He told the disciples that he was so sorrowful that he was at the point of death.

But Jesus was successful in handling the crisis.  His disciples all failed and ran away, but Jesus remained faithful to his commitment to the Father.

How can we be successful like Jesus and avoid the failures of the disciples?

The Irrational Hubris of Atheism

Last week I was reading statements made on a site for secular humanists.  One particular author made the statement I had heard many times before, that he became and atheist when he decided that God was not necessary.

This reminded me of the time when I was four years old and decided to run away from home. I suppose that I was angry at my mother because of some limit she had placed on my freedom. I packed my tiny red and white suitcase and, in full view of my mother's watchful eye, traveled to the end of the driveway. There I sat on my suitcase and petted my cat, Lovey, while I considered the unlimited options for my future.

I had obviously decided that my mother and father were no longer necessary. Staying with them just cramped my style. Without them I would have unlimited freedom.

Of course, as a four year old I had no idea why parents were necessary. I didn't understand human reproduction and genetics so as far as I was concerned I didn't owe my existence to them. The story of the stork or babies in a cabbage patch would have been a fine story of origins for me.

I did not understand economics and how it happened that we had a house to live in, clothes to wear and food to eat. How hard could it be for me to live on my own? I had my suitcase packed with what I supposed would sustain me. (Of course my mother never took her eyes off of me and would have intervened immediately if I had offered to go into the road. Poor Lovey unfortunately did not have the same level of supervision and eventually met her end in that very street.)

So God is not necessary, you say?  Well what do you know about it, really?

The modern theories of the origin of the universe and the origin of life and of evolution are simply "just so stories" to placate people who want to run away from God. They may satisfy someone who is determined to disbelieve in personal God and allow him to be an "intellectually fulfilled atheist" but what does it have to do with the truth?

What do we know, apart from divine revelation, about our personal existence or the nature of life or the matter of morality and human conscience? The modern atheist is confident that he knows enough, when in fact he knows nothing at all except that he exists and does not like the constraints placed on him by the idea that there could be a God to Whom he might need to give an account. There is nothing new about this.

(Romans 1:28) And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting;

Jesus Never Fails

Mark chapter fourteen describes some of the events of the last day before Jesus was betrayed, arrested, tortured and crucified. Everyone was on edge, but Jesus provided just what they needed even in these difficult circumstances.

We face difficulties ourselves - but the way Jesus worked with his disciples then will still help his disciples now.

Jesus never fails.

Where There Is Life...

The saying says, "Where there is life there is hope." I suppose that this means to suggest that any circumstance short of death contains the hope that things might get better.

As a statement of an optimistic outlook, it leaves much to be desired. Over a million Americans attempt suicide every year and over 40,000 of them succeed. Maybe someone had hope for them while they were alive, but their own hope collapsed under the weight of cynicism and despair.

Perhaps the saying would be more accurate if it was turned around. "Where there is hope there is life." People need hope to live.

They hope that things will get better. They hope they will discover existential purpose and find meaning. They hope that the bad guys will be brought to justice and the good guys will be rewarded. They hope they will find true love and friendship. They hope they will escape debilitating disease and ultimate death.

As long as they have hope, they keep plugging along. But when everything crashes in on them, they begin to lose hope and the resilience they needed to go on.

This is why the gospel of Jesus Christ is such an important message.  This good news says that Jesus conquered sin and death.  By his resurrection from the dead we have "a living hope" (1 Peter 1:3). While there are frustrations and difficulties now, our future in Christ is salvation in a perfect world. Life has meaning because there is a personal Creator who brought us into existence on purpose. God has in Christ provided for both justice and mercy.

Hope is what people need and the gospel of Jesus Christ is the best source of hope.

(1 Corinthians 15:58 ESV) Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.

The Worth of Jesus

One evening while Jesus was eating dinner with some friends, a woman came and poured out perfume on his head - perfume worth more than a year's wages.  Why did she do that? Should she have done that? Was it a good thing or a very expensive waste of time?

What is Jesus to you?  How much is it worth to you to bring him glory?

Wake Up Call

Prophecy is a popular study in many places. People like to think they are privy to shadowy secrets about the future through a special knowledge of secret codes. But while Jesus does provide a glimpse into future events in Mark 13, it is not a secret code. It is a very clear message.

WAKE UP! JESUS IS COMING BACK!!

Honor Contest: Knock Out

Honor was very important in the eastern culture of Israel in Jesus' day. The temple leaders were doing their best to make Jesus lose face in the eyes of the people, but he showed great wisdom and parried every challenge. Finally they didn't dare ask him any more questions and he taught several lessons about what genuine faith should look like.

Honor Contest: Round 3

If you can't beat them by force, maybe you can beat them by joining them... The last challenge to Jesus seems friendly enough, but it is still part of the challenge. "What is the greatest commandment of the law?"

Jesus quotes scripture and while pointing to the scripture, also points to himself as the perfect savior. The scribe seems to agree with Jesus, but he was not recognizing where Jesus fit into this truth.

Sermon In A Sack: The Mirror

What biblical lessons can we learn from a small mirror?

Honor Contest: Round 2

The temple leaders had a good thing going and they were not about to let an upstart, hick from the sticks, self styled rabbi come in and disrupt everything. They were determined to show him up and if possible get him in trouble.

In this second round they tried to make him look ridiculous. The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection and had many arguments against it. But they didn't realize they were talking to the One who was Himself - "The Resurrection And The Life."

Honor Contest: Round 1

The Passover was approaching and the people of Israel were gathering in Jerusalem. They were selecting lambs for the Passover observance and took them to the temple officials to make sure they were acceptable - no blemishes - no deformities - perfect as the law prescribed.

As this was happening, Jesus was presenting himself in the temple as the Messiah - the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. The temple authorities approached him in an attempt to disqualify him.  Would he pass their hostile examination or not?

God's Deadbeat Tenants

What would you have if you had everything you wanted? Some people will never know contentment, no matter how much they have. Others find contentment with surprisingly little in the way of material things.

Jesus tells a parable about a Landlord and his tenants. The Landlord has been kind to the tenants, but they are never satisfied. They want to claim the property as their own and to shut the Landlord out.

What are we supposed to learn from this parable?

Free Will Or Determinism?

There is a fascinating article in "The Atlantic" about the modern debate over the perception and reality of free will. (http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/06/theres-no-such-thing-as-free-will/480750/)

The premise is that science has proven there is no such thing as free will.  If evolution and naturalism are true (and the scientists who are quoted assume this) then humans are no more than very complex meat machines. Each machine operates according to the programming built into the individual through genetic inheritance. There is no such thing as a spiritual component of the human being (or, for that matter, a spiritual reality outside of human beings.)  Decisions are not made consciously, they are made by the meat machine before the conscience is even aware of them.

So the scholars (3x), scientists (6x), philosophers (6x), intellectuals (2x), physiologist(s) (1x), and especially Sam Harris (14x) believe that the truth is that there is no such thing as "free will." They believe in determinism.

Now, some of these "intellectual elites" believe this is a very dangerous truth. They say that if this truth is widely accepted it will undermine any culture and result in antisocial, selfish, unethical and dishonest behavior. The article points to several experiments that supported this idea.

The article explores the various approaches that have been put forward - from hiding this "truth" from the unwashed masses (that is us) and promoting the illusion of free will - to proclaiming the truth while teaching the subtile difference between determinism and fatalism so that people are motivated to be "the best version of themselves they can be." (Harris)

How should a Christian respond to these things?

To begin with, as a Christian, I do not attribute authority to any scientific theorists. They have assumed but have not proven their premises that 1) there is no reality beyond nature and 2) life came from non-life and evolved into higher life forms from lower life forms.  Based on these assumptions, they argue about the implications of their assumptions. Experimental science plays a very small role in their discussions - especially since much depends on the architecture and operation of the most vast and complex structure in the universe - the human brain.

As a Christian, I believe in a supernatural spiritual reality and I accept the authority of the Bible as God's written revelation of himself and his works in relation to mankind. I believe that God is eternal and the universe is created by God according to his plans and purposes. I believe that God created mankind in his own image and gave him the ability (and responsibility) to make real moral choices.

In spite of the musings of the intellectual elites, the vast majority of the world's population of humans believes in their own and other's moral agency and responsibility. It is quite natural for people to talk about what they or others ought to do or ought not do. The Atlantic article mentions this as the source of a human idea of holding people responsible for their actions. This is the basis of any idea of justice, but Harris and others would tell us that such an idea is irrational because of determinism.

As I read this article and similar writings, I am amazed that anyone can take these ideas seriously. The discussion should really be seen as a refutation of the underlying assumptions.  If their assumptions were truly true (i.e., conforming to an objective reality) then there would be no objective reality to the ideas of justice, responsibility, ethics, morality, etc. So it would be ridiculous to argue about a person becoming "the best version of" himself or herself. It would be silly for these theorists to have any concern over how they "ought" to handle the so called truth of determinism.  Given their assumptions there is no "ought" - there is only what is.  Justice, ethics, morals, responsibility and so on have no meaning.

The discussions and arguments about these things disprove the assumptions on which they are based.

Fruitless Figs

In Mark chapter eleven, Jesus is disappointed when he doesn't find figs on a leafy green fig tree.
But Jesus doesn't leave it there - says, "My no one ever eat figs from you again" and the next day this trees is found to be all shriveled up, right down to the roots.

What is going on here? Is Jesus THAT concerned about getting figs?
Isn't he being kind of harsh with this helpless tree?

What is it we are supposed to learn from this?

Ready & Willing

In Mark's gospel he spends several chapters describing Jesus' travels with his disciples on their way to Jerusalem. Jesus has, on more than one occasion, told his disciples that he will be arrested, tried and crucified, but they haven't really gotten the message.

In chapter eleven they finally arrive at Jerusalem and they join the happy crowds arriving there for the Passover.  The disciples are excited because they think this is the beginning of Jesus' exaltation as King.  Jesus rides into the city on a donkey in fulfillment of the prophecies. People pave the way with their garments and branches from the trees. Everyone is shouting praises from the Psalms.

But what does it all really mean?  And how does it relate to us?  And what should we be doing in view of this passage?

Invisible People

We tend to think that some people are better candidates for discipleship than others. In Mark ten we have a parade of possible disciples... the pious Pharisees, the rich young ruler who was keeping the ten commandments, James & John (and the other ten disciples) who traveled with Jesus and wanted prominent positions in his kingdom administration...

But Mark chapter ten focuses on a man who was at the margins of society and who seemed to most to be an unlikely disciple... or at least an unimportant disciple.  Blind Bartimaeus was invisible to most - but even though he was blind, he saw that Jesus was the light of the world.

Great Disciples: Lesson 2

As Jesus led the way to Jerusalem where he would give his own life as a  sacrifice for sins, his disciples were still concerned about how they could claim the highest positions of honor and power in the coming kingdom.

If they had listened more closely, they would have realized that Jesus himself was the true measure of greatness. To be truly great they needed to follow his example.

He came, not to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many.

Sermon In A Sack - Plane Tickets

Traveling is a big part of modern life. We have destinations in mind... how will we get there? Can we get there on a bus? A train? A plane? Are there flights to our destination? How much do the tickets cost? Can we afford them?

Good Ole Boys

Sometimes Jesus didn't make sense to the disciples. While little children were not important or influential, Jesus said that unless someone came like a child, he could not enter the kingdom of God.

Then, when an influential man came to Jesus asking about eternal life, Jesus disappointed him and told the disciples that wealthy people would have difficulty getting into the kingdom of God.

One of the disciples asked, "Then who can be saved?" 

Who indeed?

Rationalizer Man

When the Pharisees tried to put Jesus in a corner with their question about divorce, they got more than they bargained for. Jesus pointed out that they were misusing the law for their own evil motives.

Great Disciples: Lesson 1

Jesus was headed for Jerusalem and the cross. Meanwhile, his disciples were arguing about which of them was the greatest. This prompted a lesson from Jesus.

As sinful human beings we are prone to pride and we are concerned about what other people think of us and how we compare to others. Jesus says this is not the path to greatness as a disciple.

Do you want to be a great disciple? GOOD! Take Jesus at his word!

Limiting God

When Jesus came down from the mountain where he was transfigured, he found the disciples embroiled in an argument with the scribes because of their failure to deliver a boy from the demon who was trying to destroy him.  Jesus responded with exasperation... “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?”

This passage shows how people responded in faithlessness and suggests some ways in which faith should change our approach.

Resurrection Impact: It makes all the difference

History is the partial record of the events that brought us to the present. As we look back we see that certain events and certain people had a significant impact. But nothing in history is more important than this one thing: On the third day Jesus was resurrected from the dead! Nothing will ever be the same!

Mountaintop Message

The transfiguration of Jesus is a well known event in the ministry of Jesus for people with even a Sunday School level of Christian training. Jesus takes Peter, James and John with him to the top of a mountain and is transfigured before them so that he is shining with a light that is brighter than the sun. Moses and Elijah appear and have a conversation with him. A cloud envelops them all and a voice speaks out of the cloud, "This is my beloved Son. Listen to him!"

The question is, "What does this mean?" Why did this happen at this point in Jesus' ministry? What did it accomplish for these disciples? How does it fit into God's programs for Israel and the Church? What does it mean for us today? How should we respond?

What Kind Of Savior?

It is hard to forget that the 2016 presidential election is in full swing. The polarization of America between left and right has never been more evident.

On the far left is Bernie Sanders, a self-styled "Democratic-Socialist" who is doing very well with young adults who presumably do not remember the socialists of the past century. Bernie is pulling Hillary Clinton to the left... but she was already pretty far left to start. Either one of these candidates will, if elected, shift the balance of the Supreme Court to the point where the constitution and bill of rights are completely meaningless and "constitutional" will only mean "the current cultural prejudice of progressive theory."

The candidate most popular with the people on the far right is Donald Trump. I cannot say that Mr. Trump is himself on the far right, because all of his extreme conservative positions are completely opposite of his historic positions on the same issues. He is, at best, a political opportunist, capitalizing on the anger and frustration of conservative Americans who are sick of having been force fed progressive social dogma over the past generation.

What do we know about the character of this man? He is a narcissist, a blowhard, immoral, unfaithful, violent, bigoted, misogynistic, dictatorial, obscene and arrogant. And the so called "evangelicals" are evidently voting for him in the primaries. So Mr. Trump is not even a standard bearer for a position. He is only a mirror reflecting a seething rage among millions of Americans who feel disenfranchised. Will he accomplish anything good if he becomes president?

Who should we vote for? You will need to decide for yourself.

Against this "black-drop" of decay, think about Jesus Christ - the Savior of the World.

Sinless Savior. Loving God. Humble and Meek. The Righteous Judge. Exalted to the right hand of the Father. Glorious in majesty.

Jesus is our hope - our only hope.

I fully expect America to continue its descent into the moral abyss, no matter who is elected. Communities will become increasingly lawless and impossible to police. Vigilante justice will result in shootings and lynchings. Polarization will increase. Despair will be the norm.

But Jesus will stand as a bright light - a beacon of hope - a ray of sunshine - inviting people to come to him for transformation - sins forgiven - new hearts for God - new hope for life everlasting.

Polluted Water

Once I was high in the mountains of eastern Arizona and I needed some water. There was a spring of water there on the top of the mountain, but it had been used as a wallow for the elk. It was all torn up and crisscrossed with elk tracks.

The water was there - in muddy elk tracks polluted by elk droppings.

Would you drink it?

This is a good illustration of what our hearts look like to God when we are polluted by sin.

True Disciples

The original twelve disciples of Jesus were pupils, traveling with and learning from their Rabbi. They evidently figured that when Jesus made it big and came to rule the world from Jerusalem that they would have high positions in his government.

But Jesus had a different plan and a very different idea about what makes a disciple.

Seeking A Sign

Some people suggest that what the gospel needs is "signs and wonders." If we would only do miracles of healing, raising the dead and calling down fire from heaven - then people would believe what we say about Jesus.

But Jesus, who was doing such miracles, was still not believed by the vast majority of the people. Besides that, when the Jewish leaders came to him and demanded a sign from heaven, Jesus refused. Seems that Jesus knew something about this that is greater than what we know.

Children & Dogs

Jesus is such a nice person in most of the gospel accounts. But what is going on when he is approached by the Syrophoenician woman? He ignores her, refuses to help her and insults her? What are we supposed to learn from this?

Jesus & The Posers

When the Pharisees and Scribes came to see Jesus they did not notice his exceptional teaching and miracles. They focused in on the fact that his disciples did not conform to the "traditions of the elders." This really bugged the Pharisees.

But Jesus points them to something far more important. He says that their traditions are not going to help them achieve godliness and purity. They need something else.

Serving With Jesus

We all think that it would have been better if we could have lived in the first century when Jesus was doing his ministry. But we have the biblical record of his ministry in the gospels and in many ways we can enjoy the same relationship with Jesus today as the original disciples did so many years ago.

Sent By Jesus

What are the implications of following Jesus? Does he just want us to make ourselves comfortable until he comes?

Jesus sent out his disciples into the surrounding towns to preach the good news about him. We need to learn from them what Jesus expects from us.

The Too Familiar Jesus

The Gospel accounts tell us that although Jesus was well received in many towns and villages during his ministry, at home in Nazareth people were offended by his teaching. They thought that he couldn't be more than the young man they had known. They kind of thought, "Who does he think he is?"

Is it possible to be too familiar with Jesus?  What happens when we are?  How should we relate to him instead?

Playing Powerball Lottery (or not)

Well, I didn't win the 1.6 billion dollar powerball lottery last night.

Not too surprising, since I didn't buy a ticket.

As I see it, I had a great deal more to lose than I had to gain from entering the lottery. Even if I had won 1.6 billion dollars I would have lost something of infinite value.

God has blessed me with great blessings. My wife and I have been able to purchase our own home. Our combined income is not huge, but it supplies our daily bread. Every week I can sit down and pay our bills. We can buy modest items we desire. We have enough left over to give generously to our church and to help out some people in their various needs.

But it is not so much about what we can afford to buy or do. It is about our sense of gratitude and contentment in God's daily provision. 

Sometimes our cash flow is tight. There are many things we cannot afford to buy. There are things we cannot afford to do. But we are ok with that. We are genuinely content. We have a general sense of peace and wellbeing. We have what we need. We are secure in God's gracious care for us.

There is no better place for us to be. Contentment is the goal and we are already there.

As I spent time in prayer the other morning I was thanking God for all his blessings when it occurred to me that I could buy a lottery ticket. But as I thought about it I realized that I could not enjoy this great sense of contentment and pursue windfall riches through a lottery (or any form of gambling) at the same time. That pursuit of riches is contrary to a sense of contentment. If you are content, you don't need to play. If you play, you will be damaging your sense of contentment.

So I didn't play and I didn't win - and I'm not a bit sorry. I am perfectly happy throwing myself into God's arms every morning and asking him to provide my daily bread. This is where I want to be.

Hope For The Helpless

What is it like when someone comes to the end of their resources? What can they do when there is no hope? How can they proceed when they are desperate?

How can we comfort people who are facing suffering and death? Should we give them a pep talk? Should we shoot them a slogan like "You've got this!" or "Everything will turn out ok!"??

Jesus offers real hope for the helpless - and we all need this help.

Sermon In A Sack - A Dollar

Jesus said that we are all entrusted with different gifts that we are supposed to put to use in a way that will honor and please God. We should take that very seriously. How we respond tells us more about ourselves that we may realize.