Sermon Video: Speaking Truth to Power - The Martyrdom of John the Baptist, Mark 6:14-29

 When confronted with a morally repugnant situation, John the Baptist spoke with clarity, unafraid of the power wielded by Herod Antipas. As a result, he was imprisoned, and eventually martyred. Why did he speak? Because he represented God, and God's Word on the matter was clear. When called to speak, we need the three things that John had: (1) A righteous reputation that doesn't allow our words to be dismissed, (2) Knowledge of the Truth, and (3) the courage to speak, especially to those with power. While you or I may never speak before a king or president, our own families, workplaces, and communities also have those with power, when they abuse it, when they utilize it for immoral purposes, we too must speak up.

Sermon Video: A House Divided - Mark 3:20-34

 Accused by his critics of being an agent of evil, Jesus responds by warning of the danger of 'a house divided'.  The warning rings true to this day, whether it be a nation, a denomination, a local church, or a family, the danger of disunity and discord is real.  How do we combat it?  With the Fruit of the Spirit.  By working at building up and holding together, consistently and with great effort, so that we can overcome the efforts of those who would divide and destroy.  As Christian Americans, we must ask ourselves a question: Am I a part of the forces that restore, heal, seek justice, and build up, or a part of the forces that tear down and destroy?  There is always hope, as long as those who are righteous and filled with the Spirit are willing to continue working for it, unity is possible: for America, for the global church, for our local churches, and for each of our families.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: A House Divided - Luke 11:14-26

As Jesus resume his journey toward Jerusalem for the final confrontation, he heals a man tormented by an evil spirit which had made him mute.  The miracle itself was no different than dozens of other miracles that Jesus had performed, and the healing no different than many, many others that Jesus had healed, but some in the crowd saw this not as the act of grace that it was, but as an insidious attempt by the devil to deceive the people of God.  The doubters in the audience accused Jesus of casting out demons under the authority of Beelzebub the prince of demons, in other words, they were calling Jesus a double-agent, saying that his acts of righteousness were in reality acts of deception.  That such an accusation, against Jesus of all people, is ludicrous doesn’t stop it from happening, just as the lack of evidence doesn’t stop some people from withholding vaccines from their kids.  This crazy situation is troubling, but it does provide Jesus with a chance to illustrate a principle that is applicable in nearly every human interaction and even within the life of every person: A house divided against itself will fall.

The universal principle given by Jesus has wide application, it applies to nations, too many of which are torn by civil strife, it applies to businesses, institutions, churches, families, and marriages.  We cannot long endure when were are fundamentally divided as a group of people.  This is a danger in secular situations just as it can be deadly to a church.  Because division is so dangerous, we ought always to be supporting reconciliation and healing, trying to hold together those who are in danger, and helping to pick up the pieces when splits do occur.  That this is a fundamental problem in the church and society as a whole is beyond doubt.  The divorce rate in America confirms our weakness on the issue of unity, as does the poor record of church splits.

Beyond the groupings of people in danger because of division, we must also be aware that individual people can be torn internally by conflicting goals, an unclear sense of purpose, or even simply a lack of commitment.  We cannot serve two masters, both will be disappointed in us, and we cannot avoid choosing which side we are on because we have already begun by being on the side at war with God, our only chance is to make peace with God through Jesus Christ.

Jesus ends his comments with two important additions to this principle: Those who aren’t with me are against me, and it will be worse for those who see the light but don’t change.  These two thoughts remind us that this is no game, God takes very seriously our choice to either continue as we are or repent and follow him, the good news is that when we do choose to join his side and help out in the work of the kingdom, we’ve chosen the side that has already been victorious in the battle, a battle won by Jesus on Easter morning.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video

Getting shot at from both sides...

I thought of something today; the kind of thing you probably should keep to yourself unless you want to get people mad at you...As you may know, that's not really my worry in life, God has placed a burden of truth telling on my heart; so here goes...

I know there is a lot of angst and soul searching going on over this week's election.  There are plenty of God-fearing Americans who are worried about the future of their country...

Let me offer this historical analogy: It took Abraham Lincoln (a politician) to finish off the drive to end slavery, {the parallel in England is William Wilberforce, a generation earlier} but it took Harriet Beecher Stowe to galvanize the people into seeing slavery as a moral evil.  For decades, Abolitionists worked to win hearts and minds when there were no political prospects, and in the end, they fought by teaching people that the Bible speaks of all mankind as made in God's image, not a select group of humanity.  A finale to the drama was in the political arena (as the upcoming Lincoln movie demonstrates), but the work was done in churches long before.

America is a democracy (a representative republic for the technical minded people out there).  We have the government that the people want.  If you aren't happy with the government the people have, you need to change the people, not the politicians.  They reflect society; they reflect the morality of this nation, they do not create it.  America isn't ready for Lincoln, if he came now we'd boo him off the stage.  We will not have another Lincoln until we have another Stowe; we won't change the immorality of American society until we make the Gospel of Jesus Christ known to the lost among us.  The world will be what it is.  We cannot expect Christian morality from those who do not know Christ.  If you want to change the politics, change the people; show them the love of Christ through your actions, not your words. 

This is the dangerous thought: If those on the right are afraid for those on the left because of the alliance between sexual immorality (abortion, homosexuality, etc.) and the Democratic Party, shouldn't those on the left be afraid for those on the right because of the alliance between money (greed and avarice) and the Republican Party?  The Bible speaks an awful lot about sexual immorality and condemns it in no uncertain terms; the only thing that seems to tick God off more is the abuse of money.  What makes one side feel like they have God's ear more than the other, when both sides have made an unholy alliance in the name of politics?

What is the solution?  We must solve the moral issues that plague our society ourselves.  We, as a Church, must witness to a lost world, and we must cleanse our own house of the immorality that has infested those who claim the name of Jesus Christ.  The politicians will not save us no matter what party they belong to; Jesus Christ already has.

Commence firing!  I'm ready for the arrows from both sides.