Sermons Ordinary Faith

There is a point. You have a purpose. There is wonderful hope for tomorrow and the future. You were built for eternal life that begins right now. This is why we long for more, are often disappointed, give up, and then try again. There is good news. Great news. Today God wants a conversation with us about the hopelessness we often feel.

Once Jesus was invited to a nice diner with some Pharisees. He proceeded to heal a man, reprimand the guests, and critique the host, only to tell a story lampooning their view of God's Kingdom. Through His story, we, along with the Pharisees, are challenged to ask if our vision of the Kingdom has enough room for everyone God invited to the party.

When we started this journey 17 years ago, we just wanted to help people follow Jesus without all the distractions of denominationalism, judgement, guilt, shame, and fear. We wanted people to be able to have a conversation and take the journey with Jesus.

|Through the love poetry of Song of Songs, seen through the lens of Jesus’ love for His Bride the Church, the heart of God for us becomes revealed. Jesus is desperate to spend time with the one He loves so dearly. He is calling us to come away with Him and spend some face to face time. One helpful response to this call is contemplative prayer, helpfully explained by John Mark Comer as “looking at God, looking at you, in love.”

There is a supernatural nuclear weapon that will change natural realities. There is a way, a tool, and a strength that reveals the enemy coming at you, paralyses the forces trying to destroy us, and conquers every difficulty. When your faith grows from private and personal, to shared and community, your prayers will terrify the darkness.

Prayer was critical to the advance of the church in the book of Acts. Through the history of Christianity, prayer has been the foundation of every move of God. Prayer was not necessarily a pleading with God to move, but rather an increasing dependence upon and enjoyment of God. Take a moment to consider what the early Christians did in and with prayer.

Jesus' prayer life challenges us, but it is meant to inspire us. We often feel alone or isolated. Jesus never allowed that “aloneness” to persist. He preferred prayer and enjoyment of His Father. (Your Father)

Jesus' most “violent” outburst is often used to justify all kinds of things He never did. While seldom producing the one thing It was meant to do. He clearly defined and confirmed the commision upon the House of the Father as a house of prayer. We should take caution when we use Jesus' actions in the temple as justification for things that are not prayer and not immersed in prayer. Prayer is priority in this house and in your house as the Temple of God.

God is excited about this year. He has good things planned for you. Can you believe that? Well, Jesus said it. Jesus began His earthly ministry with a mission statement. He says that this year He is going to proclaim the good news to the poor, proclaim freedom to the oppressed, proclaim sight for the blind, and finally to proclaim this year as the year of God’s favor. This short passage is a comfort and a commission for us as Christ followers in this and every year.

Jesus carried the Father’s heart. In doing so, he established a family of people around Him. A distinct group of people who SHINED long after He was gone. God’s family was always meant to shine in a dark world! 

Let’s choose to focus beyond the busy-ness, stress, anxiety, and sadness that often shadows the season. Tonight, we choose together to reflect upon the goodness and love of God as the primary focus and brilliant light of the Christmas Story. In the Christmas story, we see this powerful truth: God shows up.

It is difficult to comprehend the darkness to which we are accustomed. However, when a significant light is present, then the contrast becomes clear. Jesus was and is the light of the world. He is the contrast. There is nothing else like Him.

The problem that the humans created is complex enough that the humans were never going to solve it on their own. So, God made a plan to step into creation to do what the humans alone could not. The humans had turned themselves over to the Snake ‘god,’ so God would crush it. The humans were failing to be God’s representatives because they rejected God so God would demonstrate His goodness, crown Himself Lord, and empower the humans to live as faithful image bearers. Suffering, death, and evil were brought into the world, so God would defeat them. He would do all this through His life, death, and resurrection

What is God like? How is a person to know God? Is it possible? Yes, knowing God is a gift that was given to us. God made sure that He could be known by sending Jesus.

God’s plan was not only that one Son would impact many, but that many would impact all. When we learn to live as children inhabited by their Father, they carry the good news deep into lives, communities, and countries. The key to this mission is declaring our belief in Jesus above our belief in the things we fear.

We should reconsider the idea of a prophet. There is an important place in the future of God’s kingdom on earth for people who are at ease with ideas regarding prophetic prayer and speech. New Testament prophecy is likely not what you think it is and holds much more comfort and encouragement than you realize.

When we follow Jesus, we embrace a calling and mission to help and serve our world, community, and families into a better reality. This isn’t merely about saving people out of the world, it is about helping the people into the best place possible. That place is the good, kind, and thriving lordship and leadership of Jesus.

Theosis is a mystical union with God. That may sound scary or uncomfortable, but it is how the bible talks about our relationship to the Father through the Spirit and the Son. We are being transformed through an inexpressible personal relationship with God, and one way we participate in that process is through sacrifice.

Be weird! Be powerful in prayer! People who enjoy and employ prayer have learned that God is amazingly good and WANTS to do wonderful things for us and others.

 We learn about the things we love. We enjoy learning about the things we love. We invest time, energy, and finances into the things we love. The more you learn about God, the Son and the Spirit, the more you will love God. What we learn and experience transforms our life.