Sermon Video: In Remembrance of Jesus - 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

In his effort to reform the way in which the church at Corinth was participating in the Lord's Supper, the Apostle Paul reminds them that his instructions were received, "from the Lord" and then passed directly onto them.  The Early Church greatly valued Apostolic Authority, the teachings that were received directly from Jesus and then passed on to the Church during its first generation.  It was this teaching that was then incorporated into the Scriptures, nearly all of which had an apostolic author or someone closely associated with an apostle (i.e. like Mark with Peter).  For the Church this connection to Jesus is crucial, providing confidence in what we believe and teach.
What Paul received from Jesus regarding Communion was simple enough: (1) Jesus gave thanks, (2) acknowledged that his body would be broken and blood shed, (3) and then distributed it to his disciples to partake.  Our task, as the Church, while not spelled out in great detail by Paul, is still simple: do likewise.

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Sermon Video: Thanking God for the faith and love of his people - Colossians 1:1-8

In the introduction to Paul's letter to the church at Colossae, we see the concern of Paul, the apostle, for a church that he himself did not found, manifested in prayers of thanksgiving from Paul (and Timothy) to God on behalf of fellow faithful brothers and sisters in Christ.  Having heard about their faith, Paul describes it as a faith combined with love that springs forth from their hope in heaven, a powerful combination of growth in the Spirit made possible by their acceptance of the "true message of the gospel".  Paul ends the introduction by crediting the founder of the church at Colossae, Epaphras, whom Paul calls "our dear fellow servant" and a "faithful minister of Christ", a reminder that Paul considers those who worked with him in the harvest field of the Lord by witnessing to the Gospel to be teammates not rivals.

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A world without extra food: The not very distant past.

While reading Tom Holland's The Forge of Christendom: The End of Days and the Epic Rise of the West, I was struck once more with the realization that most of modern humanity has no real notion as to what life was really like only a few short generations ago before the food surpluses we enjoy came to be following the Industrial/Agricultural Revolution.  Our ancestors lived season to season.  Every spring was a time of want, last year's harvest having been exhausted and this year's produce not yet available.  A single bad harvest could throw a family, a village, even an entire region into famine and starvation.  Is it any wonder that a people living such a precarious existence, while having faith in God, were still superstitious as they looked to the heavens and prayed that nothing would destroy their crop before the harvest?
Famine still exists in the modern world, much of it the result of human malfeasance, but weather related disasters still occur that threaten once more to plunge people into hunger.  There is a profound difference, however, between modern hunger and its past manifestations.  When hail, locusts, or a band of marauders ruined the harvest in 10th century Francia, 12th century Bavaria, or 14th century Ireland, there was no outside help to come to the rescue.  The U.N. did not exist to send relief, nor did international charities, or friendly foreign governments.  We still have humanitarian crisis in our world, and they still do spiral out of control at times, but a possible solution to them always exists.  There is enough food in the world to feed everybody, our ancestors couldn't imagine such abundance.
If you know history, you learn perspective, if you have a reality based perspective on the world, finding wisdom is far easier.  Is life difficult now?  Yes.  Do people suffer in the Third World and in even rich nations?  Of course.  Understanding that things were worse, significantly worse, in the past doesn't minimize the suffering of the present, but it does remind us that gratitude ought to be near to our lips far more often than grumbling.  There are a lot of people who don't know what they will eat tomorrow, but gone are the days when nobody could prevent starvation following a bad harvest.  Shouldn't we therefore be a people who don't have to be reminded to offer up thanksgiving to God?

Sermon Video: Paul Gives Thanks - 1 Corinthians 1:1-9

Following his regular greeting to start a letter, the apostle Paul writes of his thankfulness to God for the success of the Gospel at Corinth.  Corinth was a city steeped in iniquity, in particular sins of lust associated with its reputed 1,000 prostitutes at the temple to Aphrodite.  Paul, in contrast, brought a message of grace and peace to Corinth, preaching the reconciliation with a holy God.  It was an amazing act of mercy from God, one that Paul himself remembered from his own conversion, that Paul was able to found a church in Corinth.

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Sermon Video: "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD" - Psalm 118:22-29

When Jesus entered Jerusalem on the day we now commemorate as Palm Sunday, he was greeted with cheering crowds waving palm branches and spreading their cloaks on the path as they shouted, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD."  Where did the inspiration for that particular cry of acclamation come from?  The words are from Psalm 118, the last of the six psalms that were part of the celebration of Passover, Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles.  When pilgrims came to Jerusalem for these important festivals, the words they chose to apply to Jesus were already on their minds.
When looking at the context of Psalm 118:26, we discover that just a few verses earlier in verse 22 is the line that Jesus applied to himself after telling the parable of the tenants, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone".  There in that one psalm is both the joyous praise offered to God because of the miracles and teaching of Jesus, and the realization that he will be rejected at first only to be vindicated by God.
The psalm ends as it began, with thanksgiving to God for his goodness and his unfailing love.  As Jesus entered Jerusalem to the cheers of the crowd, he well understood that he would be leaving the city less than a week later to the sound of jeers, and he wouldn't wouldn't be gently riding a donkey, but struggling under the weight of a cross.  Jesus knew this, and he also knew that he was following the will of the Father, that death would be swallowed up in victory, and that God would deserve even more thanksgiving when the implications for humanity of the triumph of Easter were shared as the Good News of the Gospel.

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Sermon Video: "Give thanks to the LORD" - Psalm 107

“Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.”  A familiar refrain from Psalm 107 that is echoed throughout Scripture.  In this psalm, there is a clear pattern that repeats itself of ABCD, ABCD, ABCD, and ABCD.  For each time through, the “A” is an example of on type of trouble that people endure in life, “B” is the universally appropriate response, “they cried out to the LORD in their trouble”, along with God’s ever-merciful response, “and he delivered them from their distress”. “C” is the description of how God saves, and “D” is the necessary response of thanksgiving from humanity, “Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men”.  Thus the “B” and “D” are like the chorus of a hymn, repeated each time through to show that no matter what the problem is, where it came from or what caused it, the proper response is still to cry out to the LORD who will hear and help, and then to follow that deliverance up with thanks given back to God.  The purpose of the psalmists words is to show us that we have only one place to turn in times of trouble, for only God can save and he is willing to do so, and to teach us that we owe God our gratitude for all that he has done for us.  In much the same way as the venerable hymns of Luther, Wesley, Crosby, and our other favorites, not only is the psalm meant to be pleasing with its sound when sung, but thought provoking to our minds as we consider its words.  The last verse sums it up, “Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD.”

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Sermon Video: Simply say thanks - Psalm 117

There are a lot of ways to say thanks, there are a lot of things to be thankful for.  The Psalms contains a variety of thanksgiving psalms that express gratitude to God primarily for his Covenant faithfulness to either individuals or to the nation of Israel.  Psalm 117 is different, rather than the Covenant people being called to praise God, it is "all you nations" and "all you peoples" who must raise their voices.  The question then becomes, what have the Gentiles received from God that would require their thanks in an era prior to the Gospel's call?  Rather than being an anomaly, the inclusion of the Gentiles in Psalm 117 continues the pattern that began with God's initial conversation with Abraham during which God clearly indicated that his concern went beyond this man and his descendants to all the nations and peoples of the earth. 
As we consider this psalm today, we have much to be thankful for; we can agree with the writer that, "great is his love toward us", and we can also affirm that, "the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever."  Psalm 117 is the shortest psalm, but it still says all that needs to be said.  When you have put your trust in the love and faithfulness of the LORD, you will not be disappointed.  We, as a Church, have much to be thankful for; we, as a nation, have much to be thankful for, what praise do you have to offer to God in addition to these great things?

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One man, one job, 45 years

It isn't very common anymore for a man to work his whole career for one company, it isn't even that common anymore for somebody to spend their whole career in one industry or field.  Modern Americans, especially, move around a lot; we get antsy and want to see what else is out there.  There are two things that you need to spend 45 years working for the same company: integrity and good fortune.  My dad, Walt Powell, "retired" (he's still going to work 30 hours a week for them as a consultant) from Amway this week after 45 years of service (with two years in there of service to Uncle Sam with the Air Force).  It has been our family's good fortune, in other words our blessing from God, that Amway has grown and prospered over that period of time.  How many of the companies that were manufacturing in America in 1968 are still doing so today?  This family owned company is a fixture in West Michigan, a leading employer and a leading source of charitable funds.  For our family, this company has been a steadying influence, something that allowed my siblings and I to attend the same school, the same church, and have the same friends as we grew up.
I also mentioned integrity, that word sums up the hard work, dependability, and dedication that has been common in my dad's years of working for Amway.  Walt rose from the factory line to the front office; climbing each step of the way because he was good at what he did and teaching himself advanced mathematics and engineering along the way.  His career has been a shining example of the American Dream (Amway stands for "American Way"), a hard working family man who is able to enjoy the fruits of his labor and advance in his career by being a good employee.
It goes without saying that my mom, Kathy, was an integral part of my dad's ability to work this job all of those years.  I'd be celebrating her retirement, but my mom hasn't shown any indication that she intends to stop mothering her long-since grown children, and has of course enjoyed starting all over again with the grandchildren.
In the end, I'm writing this post to do two things: encourage those of you out there who are wondering if hard work and loyalty is worth is anymore, and share my pride in my father's accomplishment as a way of saying thanks; good job dad.
Hmm, I've been at the First Baptist Church of Franklin almost 2 years, that means I've only got 43 to go to match my dad...Will they still want me around here when I'm 82?

Sermon Video "make my joy complete" Philippians 2:1-4

Just prior to his memorable homage to Christ in vs. 5-11, Paul begins by asking the people of the church of Philippi if they have had any encouragement, comfort, fellowship, compassion, or tenderness because of their faith.  The question is rhetorical as any believer will quickly understand, these qualities are the hallmark of God's efforts to restore humanity to a relationship with him through the work of Jesus and the Holy Spirit.
Because the answer is "yes", the believers then is asked to respond to God's grace by being "like-minded", which Paul explains to mean that we must have the same love, be of one spirit, and be of one purpose.  In other words, we need to take our faith seriously and start living by it.  In addition, we need to start viewing others as God does, seeing their inherent worth, so that we can humbly help those in need through acts of service.

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In EVERYTHING Give Thanks??

I Thessalonians 5:18 says, "give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." While on vacation in St. Ignace over Labor Day weekend with my wife, my parents, and about 35 other people from the Saranac/Clarksville area it came to my attention that Jay Frank (the son of the pastor of my home church while I was growing up) was giving thanks for the weather before our group meals despite the fact that the weather sucked. We had all driven up to Northern Michigan to enjoy the great outdoors and the outdoors was having the last laugh. It was cold, it was raining, and very few people were all that thrilled about it. And yet, before each meal, Jay would specifically give thanks for the weather along with the food and the fellowship, etc. After this had happened a couple of times, someone said to me, "he really shouldn't give thanks for this weather, God will think we like it"...the whole thing was good natured; funny actually, and when I prayed for the next meal I didn't make mention of the weather (which at the time was getting better, but not out of the woods yet) and followed it up by telling Jay that his previous thanks for the miserable weather hadn't been received with much enthusiasm...While this whole thing was just good natured fun during a time of vacation, it begs the question. Are we REALLY supposed to give thanks to the Lord in ALL things? Doesn't God know that I'm not happy with this or that current situation; how can he expect me to thank him for it? In the end, the reason that we do give thanks to the Lord in All things is because we're not thanking God for the circumstances (good or bad); we're thanking God for being who he is; for giving us life and for caring enough about our lives to send His Son to redeem us from sin. When you look at the big picture like that, you can still thank God for his goodness, his love, his mercy, his grace; despite the times when life is anything but good.