Sermon Video: With Jesus on the road to Emmaus - Luke 24:13-35

What did Jesus do on the afternoon of Easter Sunday?  As it turns out, he took a walk with two of his disciples and spent a few hours explaining to them how the Hebrew prophets of old had predicted everything that would happen to the Messiah, including his suffering and death.  As we celebrate Easter, let us remember our need to share this Good News with those who need it most.

Our video feed wasn't ended as usual when the sermon concluded, so this video also includes my prayer for Israel and Gaza and our final hymn.

Sermon Video: The Threefold Office of the Messiah: King - Jeremiah 23:5-6

In addition to the unexpected roles of prophet and priest, the long-awaited Messiah would also be what the people hoped for: An heir to David's throne.  At the time this prophecy was given, however, the people of Israel were facing the greatest crisis of their nation's history with the impending doom of God's judgment in the form of Babylon's invading armies close to hand.  Yet even while the prophet Jeremiah was sent to warn them of this coming destruction, God also shared with Jeremiah this promise of hope in the coming of the Messiah.

But, what about the promised kingdom, how can Jesus be the Messiah without ruling on David's throne?  Indeed, Jesus was not concerned during his sojourn among us about establishing a physical kingdom in defiance of Rome, rather he wholly invested his time (and ultimately his very life) in establishing a spiritual kingdom.  However, when Jesus returns it will be to rule, to establish the righteous and just kingdom that Jeremiah promised, those promises stand and will be fulfilled.

Sermon Video: The threefold office of the Messiah (part 1 of 3) - Prophet, Deuteronomy 18:14-22

For this Advent season, we will take a look at the three roles of leadership in Israel that the long-awaited Messiah would fulfill and perfect: prophet, priest, and king.  

With respect to being the greatest prophet, we turn to Deuteronomy 18:14-22 to hear the words of Moses, himself a prophet of great renown, promise that God would one day send another like him to lead his people.

Ultimately, Jesus became the greatest of the prophets by predicting, accurately, his own suffering, death, and resurrection.

Sermon Video: Jesus: Prophet, Priest, and King - Psalm 110

King David wrote prophecy through the Spirit of a descendant to come who would be his 'lord', one who would rule with power and might, but also curiously be a priest as well.  Jesus, demonstrating his own prophetic understanding, knew that his role as priest (both final High Priest and final sacrifice) must come before his rule as king, that the suffering necessary to accomplish an atoning sacrifice for sins would precede the final glory that David foresaw.

Sermon Video: Advent Witnesses part 4 - Prophets and Angels: Curious Messengers, 1 Peter 1:10-12

When considering the 1st Christmas, let us not forget those who had longed to see that days for hundreds, even thousands of years. The prophets of ancient Israel as well as the angelic messengers of God both were curious as to how and when God would fulfill his Messianic promises. In addition, their desire to know more was further enhanced when God revealed that his Chosen One would both suffer AND be victorious, how these two seemingly opposite outcomes could come together was a vexing puzzle.

From our point of view, not only the Advent of Jesus, but his ministry, death, and resurrection, make perfect sense. We are blessed to know the whole story, to see why God's grace is truly so amazing.

Sermon Video: "Be on your guard! Be alert!" - Mark 13:20-37

In this second half of Jesus' teaching on the End Times is contained several important truths: (1) That the tribulation to come will be 'shortened' for the sake of God's chosen people, (2) that in those days God will gather his elect from the ends of the earth, (3) and that nobody but the Father, Jesus included, knows the day/hour of his return. With that in mind, Jesus reiterates his call to his people to take precautions, to live as faithful servants (i.e. righteous and holy lives) here and now, lest we be caught off guard. In the end, we are all mortal, none of us knows how many days, months, or years we have to live. We need to spend that time, as individuals and as a church, as wisely as possible, both making the most of today and planning for the future.

Sermon Video: "the end is still to come" - Mark 13:1-19

Days before his own Passion, Jesus drops a bomb on his disciples that the Temple in Jerusalem is going to be completely destroyed. The disciples follow up with the most pressing question, when? Rather than offer up a timeline, Jesus begins to develop a theme of preparedness and faithfulness through the coming trials and tribulations.

The Problem with claiming to be a Prophet: What happens when you're wrong?

I'll confess up front, I'm not comfortable with charismatic expressions of Christianity, never have been.  They don't fit well with either the more stoic tendency of my personality, nor the analytical nature of my thinking.  In fact, in high school I was asked by one of my best friends to accompany him to a charismatic church service because he was interested in a girl but nervous about going to her church.  Baptists are in many ways adjacent to the Charismatic Movement.  A  minority of the people in our churches like to lift their hands when singing, some like to respond to the prayers of others out loud with "Yes, Jesus!" and the like, this affinity is typically even more pronounced among our majority Black congregations.  In my mind, there has always been a significant divide between enthusiastic worship expressions (more of a personality thing) and manifestations of the Spirit like speaking in tongues or faith healing (a question of theology).

Which brings us to recent events and the question of prophets.  You may or may not be aware of it, but a number of prominent "Prophets" in the Charismatic Movement predicted that Donald Trump would win the 2020 election.  Given that there were only two real possibilities, and the advantage that Republicans have thanks to the Electoral College, that was at least a 50/50 shot.  But he didn't win.  Now what?

Until yesterday I had never heard of Jeremiah Johnson of North Carolina, although he has 60k followers on Facebook which is about 6,000 times as many as follow me.  Jeremiah Johnson was one of the ministers who predicted that President Trump would be reelected, evidently because of a dream in which he also predicted that the Dodgers would win the World Series this year, and Amy Coney Barrett would be elevated to the Supreme Court.  As Meatloaf famously said, "Two out of three ain't bad".  Except when it comes to prophecy it isn't.  Two out of three is as bad as two out of one hundred when you claim to be a prophet, we're not talking about stock tips or guessing answers while watching Jeopardy.  Prophecy is supposed to be the sharing of communication from Almighty God, since God exists outside of time as the Alpha and Omega, how can true prophecy every be wrong?  There's the rub.  True prophets are always right if what they're given by God is a prediction concerning the future.  Their words may unfold in unexpected ways, or at unexpected times, but they never fail because true prophets speak God's words and His Word is forever True.

How did Jeremiah Johnson respond to his error?  He actually did the right thing and repented of leading his flock astray on this issue, and took a step back from his involvement in politics with some introspection.  He also notably didn't blame Christians for failing to pray hard enough to 'make God's will happen' (there's a number of theological questions about that notion that are prickly), or tell them to cling to the false hope that the election results will be miraculously changed in the next few days (as some false prophets continue to do).  The result of this public apology and willingness to admit error?

"Over the last 72 hours, I have received multiple death threats and thousands upon thousands of emails from Christians saying the nastiest and most vulgar things I have ever heard toward my family and ministry. I have been labeled a coward, sellout, a traitor to the Holy Spirit, and cussed out at least 500 times. We have lost ministry partners every hour and counting.

After publicly repenting on January 7th, I fully expected to be called a false prophet etc in some circles but I could have never dreamed in my wildest imagination that so much satanic attack and witchcraft would come from charismatic/prophetic people. I have been flabbergasted at the barrage of continued conspiracy theories being sent every minute our way and the pure hatred being unleashed. 

To my great heartache, I’m convinced parts of the prophetic/charismatic movement are far SICKER than I could have ever dreamed of. I truthfully never realized how absolutely triggered and ballistic thousands and thousands of saints get about Donald Trump. It’s terrifying! It’s full of idolatry!"

Jeremiah Johnson's FB feed, the post quoted is from 1/10/21

Jeremiah Johnson's public apology

When you mix false prophecy with fervent political partisanship, the resulting concoction is highly volatile, like nitro glycerin, shaking it is not recommended.  Rather than focus on the question of how so many 'Christians' can justify such hate in the name of Christ, let us ponder the question of prophetic error.  

What does scripture say about the prophets who predict rightly versus prophets whose word fails?

1. Prophets who try to lead the people away from God will not be tolerated.

Deuteronomy 13:1-5  If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a sign or wonder, 2 and if the sign or wonder spoken of takes place, and the prophet says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” 3 you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. 5 That prophet or dreamer must be put to death for inciting rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery. That prophet or dreamer tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

2. God's people are to reject false prophets whose predictions fail to come true.

Deuteronomy 18:14-2214  The nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do so. 15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. 16 For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.”

17 The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. 19 I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. 20 But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”

21 You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” 22 If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed.

3.  True or false prophets can also be recognized by their morality.

Matthew 7:15-20  “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

4. The claim of being a prophet is no guarantee of a right standing with God.

Matthew 7:22  Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’

5. False prophets are expected and will deceive many.

Matthew 24:24  For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

6. The true prophet speaks for God alone, not himself.

2 Peter 1:20  Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things.

I certainly don't know Jeremiah Johnson well enough to know where he went wrong, his public confession feels like at least a step in the right direction of correcting that error, but in general anyone who claims to be a prophet, that is someone SPEAKING FOR GOD, whose word turns out to be a lie, should clearly be rejected as a prophet.  As I pastor I sometimes misspeak, and I sometimes say things in error, but I've never claimed extra authority as a prophet to tell my congregation a word directly from God.  Those who claim greater authority must accept greater responsibility {Peter Parker's Uncle Ben said something like that}.  The scriptures repeatedly warn the people of God against trusting false prophets.  Israel had to contend with them on a massive scale, both those claiming to speak for the LORD when they did not, and those representing false gods like the prophets of Ba'al that the true prophet Elijah humiliated and then had put to death.  The Church too is warned of the prevalence of false prophets and the need to weigh what someone claiming to speak for God is saying to determine if it is true.

There is a vast difference between attempting to interpret the revealed Word of God enshrined in scripture, what I and many like me attempt to do each week, and presenting yourself as someone with a direct connection to God's words here and now.  When I fail, that's on me, because a correct interpretation of the scriptural passage in question has no doubt been made by many during the history of the Church, but when the supposed prophet fails, that failure calls into question the veracity of God, threatens the faith of those who have followed that prophetic voice, and brings the name of God into disrepute.  To falsely prophecy is no small thing and is in fact extremely troubling, but it should serve as a severe warning to the Charismatic Movement within the Christian Church that Jeremiah Johnson received death threats and profanity laced tirades when he admitted he was wrong, not from those who felt betrayed because they had wrongly trusted him when he was wrong, but for admitting his mistake, from those who would rather believe a false prophecy than objective reality.

Sermon Video: Building up the Church - 1 Corinthians 14:1-12

In 1 Corinthians 13, the Apostle Paul established the supremacy of Love, but how would one rank/evaluate the lesser gifts of the Holy Spirit?  In order to impart perspective, Paul compares the efficacy of two of these: prophecy and speaking in tongues.  Prophecy is designed to encourage, strengthen, and comfort, it 'edifies the church' by sharing with the people of God the Word of God.  Speaking in tongues (foreign languages) has potential, but without an interpreter it can only benefit the one to whom the gift is given.  Thus comparing the effects of the two upon the Church, Paul strongly prefers gifts that are outward focused, rather than inward, and gifts that help the many, rather than the few (in this case individuals).  This then is our principle: seek gifts from the Spirit that build up the Church, by building up the local church, through help that is truly beneficial, in particular the sharing of the Word of God.

To watch the video, click on the link below:

Sermon Video: "On the day the Son of Man is revealed" Luke 17:20-35

During Jesus' public ministry there was much speculation that he was the one who would usher in the Kingdom of God by driving out the Romans and re-establishing the Kingdom of Israel.  Jesus did indeed bring the Kingdom of God into our midst, but it was a very different kingdom than the physical/political kingdom that many longed for.  The kingdom that John the Baptist prepared the way for, and Jesus inaugurated, was a spiritual kingdom, a kingdom built upon repentance and reconciliation, a kingdom without borders or barriers, one open to any and all who were willing to accept it.  So, while the Pharisees, the Zealots, and the disciples, scanned the horizon looking for signs that a revolt was about to happen, Jesus went out spreading the Good News that God was already offering forgiveness from sins.
After his death, resurrection, and ascension, that kingdom grew rapidly from its core of dedicated followers, helped along by the Holy Spirit's power at Pentecost, until it spread throughout the known world within two generations, a remarkable feat unprecedented in history.  But when would he return, when would Jesus sit upon the throne that he had secured through suffering and receive the glory due him?  Beginning with that first generation, Christians have speculated about when the Son of Man would return, and while a natural urge drives that desire, it has remained unfulfilled thus far, for that day awaits the decision of the Father, and only he knows when the trumpet will sound.
What do we do in response?  We know that Jesus will return, but we don't know when, so what do we do?  Our task, our obligation, is to live our lives, here and now, for the betterment of the kingdom of God, i.e. his Church, by living out the Gospel's teaching and spreading the Good News to the ends of the earth.  We may have personally, days, years, or decades left on this earth, and it may be days, years, centuries, or even millennia, until Christ returns.  Our task remains the same: do our part by making the love and mercy of Jesus known, through us, to all we meet.

To watch the video, click on the link below;

Looking to the future: The Terminator movies and Christians

With another installment of the Terminator movies about to be released, I am once again reminded of the harmful attitude of fatalism that permeates much of Evangelical thought about the future.  In the Terminator movies, both a hero and a villain are sent back from the future to try to change what is coming.  The villain wants to prevent the good guys from winning after a horrific holocaust, and the good guy is hoping to not only preserve that victory, but somehow make the entire dystopic future null and void.  Each of the Terminator movies ebbs and flows back and forth with the future fate of humanity hanging in the balance.  What has this to do with the attitude of Christians regarding the future?  Quite a lot actually.  Christians ought to know what the future holds, God has given us a broad outline of what will one day happen along with a variety of difficult to understand pieces of the puzzle.  What we do know, for certain, is how the story ends; it ends in the complete and total victory of Jesus Christ over all opposition: sin, death, and Satan.
So why are so many Christians walking around with an attitude that the future is doom and gloom?  The answer is simple enough, they believe in a Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and thus believe that the future of humanity is a downhill slope that cannot be altered.  Those who believe in a post-Tribulation Rapture, or a Post-Millennial Rapture are far less pessimistic because in the first case, Christians won't be taken away before the trouble starts, in other words, we're going to have to deal with it, and in the latter, the next thing to come on God's cosmic plan is the 1,000 year reign of Christ, a time of glory not tribulation.  Because many Evangelicals firmly believe in a Pre-Tribulation, Pre-Millennial Rapture, they almost welcome bad news in the world. looking at it as a sign that Christ's return is closer.  Why try to alter the world we're living in if it is inevitable that it will decline, and why try to slow the decline if it must reach its nadir before Christ can come back?
In the Terminator movies, when the heroes know that the future is bleak, they are willing to risk anything and everything to try to stop it.  For some Christians, they believe that they're interpretation of Biblical prophecy is the correct one, and therefore there is no point in trying to stop it.
I don't know which interpretation of the Scriptures is right, those willing to have a pinch of humility will agree, so why would I live like a pessimist?  It is our job to do what we can, with what we have, where we have been placed.  We do know how the story ends, but keep in mind, we have no idea how long it will be until the final chapter begins.  Christians need to ditch the pessimism, embrace the final victory of Christ, and roll up their sleeves and get to work trying to claim our world for the kingdom of God.

Are the End Times near?

This past Sunday morning as I was eating my breakfast I did something I don’t normally do, I turned the channel to catch a few minutes of a well known TV preacher.  If SportsCenter hadn’t been talking about auto racing this never would have happened, but they were, and it did.  It turns out that the whole series that this message comes from is about the End Times and how it somehow, in his opinion, relates to the recent financial crisis that began in the US several years ago.  It only took a few minutes of watching for this preacher to proclaim that he sees the signs described by Jesus in the Gospels happening in our world today.  This “insight” culminated in his prediction that he feels confident that he will be alive long enough to see Christ return.  If there is one cardinal sin of interpretation of apocalyptic literature it is erroneously concluding that the events described are being fulfilled in one’s own lifetime.  This same error has been committed again and again throughout Church history, notably at the arrival of the first millennium, and again as the year 1,500 approached.

            There are several things wrong with anyone who claims to know when Christ is going to return, most obviously that Jesus himself declared that “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36).  If Jesus doesn’t know when the Father will bring the Church Age to an end and begin the End Times, how can anyone living here on Earth think that he/she has somehow cracked the code and recognized the signs?

            This predictive folly is dangerous on several fronts: it discourages Christians from investing in the future and allows them to take a guilty pleasure in the misfortunes of our world as they seem like signs that Christ is coming soon.  For that reason alone, such pronouncements need to be countered by preachers everywhere who takes Jesus’ warning that it will indeed be a surprise seriously.  {I don’t have time to get into the Dispensational assumptions that this preacher is using as he interprets the Bible, these too are coloring the conclusion and have him looking for evidence of decline and ignoring evidence of revival.}

            On another level, this sort of thing bothers me personally because of the assumptions that underpin it.  Two primary assumptions that I believe are both false are part of this assessment  that the End Times are near: #1 The United States is in the midst of a moral decline.  #2 The Church in the US is the primary focus of God’s work in our world.  Is there evidence that the U.S. is in some unprecedented moral decline that will end in the ruination of the Church in America?  No, but there are plenty of negative statistics and anecdotes for those looking for such evidence.  This entire line of thinking about America isn’t based on factual analysis anyway, but rather upon a mistaken identification of the US as the new Israel in God’s plans (relates to #2).  People who takes this view are always talking about how good things used to be in some past near-utopia before the current group that is bothering them the most supposedly ruined the country.  That such a prior time of super-virtue never existed is hard to point out when memory is rose colored.  As a student of history, I know that nations as well as institutions like the Church have life cycles; that like a pendulum they swing back and forth from highs to lows.  Are we in a period of decline?  Maybe, maybe not, but I don’t see it; everywhere I turn I see Churches fighting in the trenches, working together as never before, with capable leadership and committed lay people.  Even if decline happens, why can’t God send a revival?  God blessed America with the First AND Second Great Awakenings, why can’t God do something like that in this generation?  The pessimism of those who insist that our days are numbered is certainly not helping the kingdom of God.  I have fought against those who are intent upon a pessimistic view of our nation’s future, but it seems like I’m talking to a wall; instead, I’ll simply keep working for that future by the grace of God.

            The second assumption has pride and racism mixed in with it.  If, and in my mind that’s a big if, America is in decline, doesn’t the rest of the world count in God’s evaluation of humanity too?  Even if America becomes a godless land (which it won’t, but follow me on this), does that necessarily mean the End must be near?  What if God’s work in the Church in South America, Africa, and Asia vastly overshadows the decline in the West?  Here’s some real truth that those hoping for the End Times won’t want to hear: it already does.  The growth of the Church in the Third World, among poor non-white peoples, has greatly overcome the losses in Europe and America that the Church as a whole has experienced in the past few decades.  The balance of “power” for the Church is shifting, much as the global political and economic balance of power has shifted somewhat away from the West toward the rest of the world.  According to God Word, God doesn’t value a white American believer more than a poor African.  How much of the pessimism of those who bemoan the future of the Church is really just misplaced American pride and a bit of latent racism?

            I shouldn’t have starting watching a TV preacher, I know better, 9/10 it just makes me angry; but maybe my insight here will help some of you realize that the future of America is not set, the work we here today do for the kingdom of God will help determine what the next generation of Christians have to work with.  If we screw it up, and leave them a Church that is weaker than the one left to us, it still doesn’t preclude God’s ability to send revival and restore his Church.  Likewise, the growth of the Church in the rest of the world is a cause of celebration in Heaven, as new souls come to accept the saving power of Jesus Christ, this is after all what the missionaries who set out from England and America had hoped and dreamed to see realized.  Is the End near?  I have absolutely no idea, and anyone who says otherwise is full of it.

Sermon Video: Peter's Message, Part 1 - Acts 2:14-24

In response to the Pentecost miracle, which brought together a large crowd, Peter gives in sermon form the Gospel message.  Beginning with the words of the prophet Joel the story of Jesus is related to the Jewish crowd as a fulfillment of God's will.

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

Sermon Video: On the Road to Emmaus - Luke 24:13-35

On the afternoon of  the first Easter Jesus walks alongside two of his followers as they discuss recent events.  Cleopas and the other follower are disheartened by the death of Jesus and their dashed hopes.  Jesus shows them from the Scriptures that what happened to the Messiah (himself) was both necessary and predicted.  When they arrive and share dinner Jesus is revealed to them when he breaks the bread; immediately, they return to Jerusalem to tell the other disciples that Jesus is indeed alive!  When the whole of Scripture is consulted, God's people find the truth burning within their hearts.

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