Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Adoption. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Sermon Video: Joseph adopts the Messiah, Matthew 1:18-25

 

Joseph of Nazareth was a fairly ordinary man up until the moment he found out that he fiancĂ© Mary was pregnant.  Instead of letting pride or anger rule him, Joseph chose to embrace mercy, he was willing to divorce her quietly.

Having demonstrated this strength of character, an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream to tell him that God had chosen him for a monumental task: Adopt the Messiah.

Joseph may have been an ordinary carpenter, living in the unimportant village of Nazareth, but when he obeyed God's command by marrying Mary, Joseph became an example of faith and obedience that we would all do well to imitate.

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Sermon Video: Adoption into the Family of God - Romans 8:14-17


Adoption is beautiful.  In our world there are always children who need to be loved, cared for, and to have someone worthy of being called mom or dad.  

If you are a follower of Jesus Christ, God himself wants you to call him dad.  God wants you to have a family relationship with him, to be included, welcomed and treasured.  For God, saving our souls from damnation was not enough, neither was beginning the transformation process (sanctification) to make us Christ-like.  Both of those are amazing acts of God's grace, but God is willing to go further, willing to welcome us into his family and call us his own.

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Sermon Video: "to become children of God", John 1:10-13

As the prologue to the Gospel of John continues, John writes of the lack of reception of the Word of God by first his own creation, which did not recognize him, and then his own people, who did not receive him.  This rejection, both baffling and ironic, could have been a disaster for humanity, but God’s mercy triumphed over man’s obstinacy to extend God’s grace to “all who received him” regardless of who they might be.  That God would continue to work to forgive humanity despite the difficulties that effort continues to encounter is certainly a testament to the mercy of God, but John’s explanation of God’s actions doesn’t stop at his mercy, it continues to and showcases God’s grace.  Those who do receive the Word, the Christ, are not only forgiven, but far beyond that they are also given the “right to become children of God”.  God is not only willing to forgive, and avert the wrath we had earned through rebellion, but also desires to reconcile humanity to himself by making those who accept him part of his family.  This spiritual adoption is a blessing unlooked for, and certainly one that is not capable of being earned, a true act of Amazing Grace from God to us.  What does it mean to be a “child of God”?  There are rights and privileges that come with it, but in the end the most important thing may be the knowledge that God chose you as his own, he loved you enough to seek you out, and that is certainly a reason to know joy at Christmas.

To watch the video, click on the link below:
Sermon Video