Sermon Video, "As a father has compassion on his children" Psalm 103

When searching for a sermon text for Father's Day, it becomes painfully clear that there are few fathers in the Bible who are known for being good fathers.  This lack of proper fathers is the single greatest need in American society, affecting millions of homes and countless children growing up without a godly father's influence.  In Psalm 103, David highlights the action, heart, and mind of an amazing father, our heavenly father.  God, because of his love and compassion, is an example of the type of father each of us would want as our own.  Throughout the psalm, the example of God resonates with father's as a how-to guide to parenting.  Not only biological fathers, but father figures and anyone and everyone trying to fill the void of a missing father, all would benefit from copying the attitude of God toward the wayward children of humanity.  In the end, God earns the praise directed to him, and so will earthly fathers if they too learn from his love, compassion, and wisdom.

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

The Stream Internet TV/ radio interview about Mustard Seed Missions

It's not everyday that you get the chance to do a tv/radio interview, so I was happy for the chance to speak to The Stream about Mustard Seed Missions.  The show is 2 hours long, the segment about MSM begins at 1:34:45 and last about fifteen minutes.  (You can skip ahead without having to buffer the whole thing)
To watch the interview, click on the link below:
Mustard Seed Missions interview

Where are the fathers?

When special Sundays roll around it's always an option to take a break in whatever sermon series I'm doing and write something appropriate to that day.  With Christmas and Easter, it isn't an option, the message always reflect the holiday (they are after all, holy days).  With Mother's Day, Father's Day, Memorial Day, the 4th of July, and Thanksgiving, the option is always there when I decide to take it.

This year for Mother's Day I didn't break from the messages I've been preaching in Philippians.  This upcoming Sunday is Father's Day.  Having preached eight messages in a row out of Philippians (from 1:1 to 2:11), I thought it was time for a break.  So where do I turn for a message that will speak to God's people on Father's Day?

If it had been Mother's Day, there would be no shortage of stellar mothers whose stories I could use to illustrate a moral or theme.  I could have used Jochebed, Hannah, Naomi, or Mary (to name some of the easiest choices).  But what fathers can I use who distinguished themselves in the Bible as a father?  Suddenly, the list seems short.  Let's see, how about Abraham?  Ishmael votes no.  How about Isaac?  Esau says try again.  How about Jacob?  Joseph isn't too keen on that one.  What about Eli?  Yikes, both of his sons were notorious sinners.  Then certainly we could use Samuel, his mother was on the list for ideal mothers; nope, both of his sons "did not walk in his ways".  I'm getting worried here; this doesn't look promising.  Then certainly we could use David, isn't he a man chosen by God?  Sadly, Absalom thinks we ought to avoid talking about his relationship with his father.  We could use Joseph, after all he was a man of character in the birth narrative, but we don't know anything about his relationship with Jesus.

Do you see the pattern?  To find a good mother one need simply look around in the Bible, there's plenty of them.  To find a good father, you need the scour the Scriptures or avoid the unpleasant sides of the stories of men like David.

Are you surprised?  If you've spent any time looking at and analyzing our society you shouldn't be.  The single greatest flaw in modern American culture and society is a lack of fathers.  We have plenty of boys willing to create children, but precious few men willing to be fathers.  Men, this indictment falls squarely on our shoulders.  You or I may have fulfilled our obligations, but literally millions of men have miserably failed their children.  Single moms raising their children may be awesome, but they're not meant to carry that burden alone.  Some kids may turn out OK without a father, but the education, social welfare, and criminal justice systems are full to the brim of kids who haven't been so lucky.  We, as American men, have failed.  It doesn't matter which statistic of social ills you look at, they're all made worse by absent or lackluster fathers.  Can anybody honestly not see the connection between teen pregnancy/abortion and absent fathers?  Is it hard at all to see the connection that gang activity, gun violence, and drugs have with fathers who are MIA?

Father's Day is a tough one.  I'm just glad that I can preach about our Heavenly Father; at least then I'll know that everyone in the congregation has a good one.

Sermon Video: Be like Jesus - Philippians 2:5-11

As Paul continues to encourage the church at Philippi about how to live as Christians he offers them this straightforward, yet tremendously serious, command: be like Jesus.  The focus of Paul's message is that we need to emulate the attitude displayed by Jesus.  The Gospels are full of examples of the words and actions of Jesus that Jesus himself tells us to copy, but here in Philippians Paul focuses on the attitude (i.e. worldview, mindset) that made those words and actions in the Gospels possible.
The first step in adopting a Christ-like attitude is humility.  As God, Jesus didn't seek to hold onto the rights and privileges that were justly his, rather he set them aside in order to be a servant.  If we are going to make a difference in this world, we too must serve.
Secondly, Jesus took upon himself the very form of humanity, including all of our limitations except the sin nature, in order to truly offer humanity a once and for all salvation.  How could any of us fail to stoop to help others when God himself embraced human frailty, became "God with us", in order to save us?
Lastly, and most importantly, Jesus was obedient.  This isn't a case of being obedient because it is convenient or expedient, the obedience of Jesus to the will of the Father led to his gruesome and humiliating death upon a cross.  Why would Jesus do such a thing?  It was the only way.  Therefore, we too must take up our cross and follow in the footsteps of Jesus.  The only way to truly be like Jesus is to also be obedient to the Word of God.

Thankfully, Paul also includes a vision of Jesus' future glory to encourage us to follow him.  On that last day, everyone and everything that has speech will bow the knee to Jesus and proclaim that he is Lord.  There is no question that we will be there and participate in the honor that is due to Jesus.  The question to you is: Do you want to join willingly in the celebration of Jesus' glory?

What does it mean to "be like Jesus"?  Humility.  Obedience.  Glory.

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

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.

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