Offerings for Us
We have a problem. Everyone knows that much. But humans do not agree on what that problem is or who that problem is with. According to Scripture we have a problem of forgiveness. We have offended a holy God and are guilty before him as sinners. This is the central problem that drives the Bible’s story of which Leviticus plays a central part. With this sermon we come to another difficult stretch of material, yet the heart of the matter is this: the Lord deals graciously with his offenders. Ludicrous grace, it has been called.
Offerings for the Lord
Leviticus gets off to what feels like a slow start with instructions for five different offerings. Why so many offerings? How are they alike and how are they different? What help are these ancient rituals for my present-day walk with the Lord and for our communion as a church? In this sermon we will reflect on the first three of these offerings: the burnt offering, the grain offering, and the peace offering.
Welcome to the Tent of Meeting
Life. Other ideas come to mind when we think of Leviticus: rock badgers, laws about fabric, cloven foot animals, and many things that might disturb you if I mentioned them here. What do these have to do with our relationship with God? What do these have to do with life, even abundant life with God? Listen in and find out as we explore the first two verses of Leviticus.
For a Tough and Tender Church
Two words came to mind as I studied Peter’s closing greetings: toughness and tenderness. Those sound like opposing ideas. But biblically speaking, you need both to have either one. Listen in and hear the conclusion of our Elect Exiles series.
Welcome to The Resistance
Peter is not wrong. The devil is real and he is a real threat. In fact, he is the threat behind every other threat. Peter has told us how to treat our enemies here, with gentleness and respect. But that is not what we owe to the invisible Enemy behind all unofficial and official persecution of Christians. When it comes to the devil, we are not respectful. We are watchful and we resist. How do we resist him? And what hope is there for success? Listen in to find out.
Cast All Your Anxieties on Him
Peter knows his readers well. Because he knows himself well. That’s why he turns now to the matter of anxiety. Or, rather, anxieties. In a simple sentence he tells us where to go and what to do with all of our anxieties, every single one. This is not a set of instructions we were expecting. But it is exactly what we need to hear right now and until we are raised from the dead and exalted with him.
Out of the Updsidedown
To be in exile means that you are not in the place you most long to be: home. In this week’s sermon, we answer this question: How do exiles get home? Our text shows us that there is only one way home; and as we will see, it has everything to do with Christmas.
He Drove Out the Man
We are all lonely exiles here. Part of what it means to become a Christian is to understand this simple truth. This world for all of its wonder and beauty is ultimately a corrupted place because we are a corrupted race. With this sermon we begin a five-part series, Out of Our Loney Exile, a title that takes its cue from the song, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” We will begin at the beginning of the Bible and work our way to the end, tracing our movement from the garden to the new creation, a story of exile and deliverance.
Godly Shepherds for Ungodly Times
What more can Peter say to help our church along to faithfulness in an age of trial and tribulation? We’ve received great encouragement and hope. We’ve been instructed on what we should expect, suffering on the way to glory, just as it was for Jesus. We’ve been comforted by the promise of vindication. In this week’s text, Peter speaks to us all about a proper structure for leadership within the church. Apparently, leadership is crucial for our perseverance in an age of exile. Taking Peter’s lead, let’s give ourselves to this subject.
Fiery Trials, Faithful God
Peter is not unsympathetic with his readers’ troubles. He calls these troubles, “fiery trials.” Insults for Christ’s name are painful. It is a grievous thing to lose standing in the community for Christ. But these are no surprise and they are no reason for shame. Rather, they are a reason for rejoicing and giving God glory. Easier said than done. So, how exactly is that so? And how may we find ourselves a church that rejoices in our trials for Jesus’ sake?
Living Together in the End Times
The end times scare many of us. Not even because we’re afraid of what may happen, but because we’re afraid of topics that are confusing or known for conflict. That’s not at all what Peter has in mind for us when he begins our passage, “The end of all things is at hand” (1Pet. 4:7). Those words are supposed to fill us with encouragement and energy for the hardest things we do together, things like prayer, hospitality, forgiving one another, and serving without respect to our own glory. Plenty to ponder here.
Arm Yourselves
Peter has encouraged us greatly. But that doesn’t mean we have an easy road ahead. There is a kind of encouragement that says, “Hey, everything is going to be alright.” And the there is the kind of encouragement that says, “Hey, everything is going to be alright, so get in there and fight.” Peter has been encouraging us, in part, so that he can call us to take up arms. We need encouragement and resolve.
Don’t Be Evil, Be Encouraged
In this sermon we come to a dreaded passage. This is a passage that calls us not to return evil for evil but to bless those who persecute us instead. This sounds perfectly like something the Bible should say to us, but this is no easy command to obey when it’s our turn. What do we need when our government, our bosses, and our spouses are evil toward us? Where will we find the help to bless and not return evil for evil? The Apostle Peter has been pondering those same questions.
Instruction for the Husbands
In our previous sermon we considered Peter’s words to wives, to submit to their husbands as holy women who hope in God. In this sermon we consider Peter’s words to husbands to live with their wives according to knowledge and to honor their wives as the weaker vessel. What on earth does that mean? Whatever it means, Peter didn’t feel like he had to explain. It was obvious, but it needed saying. These ancient words are no less important for husbands in our day. Our unique challenge is that we are tempted to deny the basic and beautiful truths under this basic command; the truth of how we are the same and different as men and women and husbands and wives. Peter can help us here
A Word to the Wives
Our great and merciful God has shown us mercy and he extends his mercy to others through our good deeds. This is certainly true in the most intimate of our relationships: marriage. But what about those instances where a woman is converted but her husband is not? It is in these marriages where the Lord is often pleased to show the greatness of his mercy through the conduct of a wife. In fact, it is through the conduct of believing wives that he is often pleased to save the husband. In this sermon we will hear as Peter leads us to consider the spectacular, often challenging, and always rewarding role of a godly wife. We’ll also talk about submission, jewelry, and laughter.
God Is At Work
We are now several sermons into the body of Peter’s letter and the meat of his instruction to believers. This week we consider what it means to do good in the sphere of vocation, especially under difficult authorities. The first century context was quite different from our own, owing to the secondary effects of the gospel manifest in how workers are treated in our present day. We’ll have to do some work of our own to hear and apply the Word properly.
Be Good Citizens
God and government. That’s what we’re going to be talking about from our next passage in Peter’s first letter. As it turns out, God’s people have always needed teaching on this topic. The issues and pressures and points of confusion are different in each age, but God’s Word remains ever true and needful. We have our own conundrums and this text won’t address them all. But this ancient fisherman, inspired as he is by the Spirit of God, will give us some timely instruction.
Foreign Lives
If you’ve ever been in a foreign country, you know the feeling of being out of place. As strange as the people and their customs may have been to you, you were just as strange to them. This experience of foreignness provides a helpful analogy to us as we seek to live faithfully as Christians in a world that is not our home. In this sermon we enter the body of Peter’s letter, where he transitions from speaking largely about who we are as elect exiles to how we are to live as foreigners here.
A Chosen Race
We come this week to a controversial topic, God’s sovereign choice of his people. But Peter doesn’t seem to think this truth is a problem. In fact, he seems to assume that the message of God’s choosing is a comfort for his readers. For Peter’s first readers, rejected and attacked, indeed it was good news to know that as far as heaven was concerned they were chosen and precious. In this sermon we will meditate on all that God wants us to hear when we hear that he has chosen us for himself. We’ll also consider some of the surprising implications of this truth for how we think about the church.
Sincere Love: A Sermon on the Heart of the Church
After overwhelming us with a declaration of our hope, Peter moved last week to his first of two exhortations, an exhortation to personal holiness. This week we move from the personal to the corporate with an exhortation to sincere and brotherly love. Here in this command is the heart of the church. What is it, where do we get the capacity for it, and how can we grow more of it? Listen in as we consider how to love one another with a sincere and brotherly love.
Hope-Filled Living: A Sermon on Personal Holiness
In this week’s sermon we move from the initial declarations of the letter to exhortations. Peter has filled us up with a living hope. Now he calls us to live by and according to that hope. In short, he calls us to be holy as God is holy. Holiness is on hard times. Some get excited about a sermon on holiness because of what they think everyone else needs to be doing. Some people are ready for something practical after all these sermons on hope. Others are fine with holiness as long as it doesn’t come off like God expects anything of us, because after all the gospel is about grace. In these and other ways, we simply go wrong on this topic. But getting our heads right on holiness will go a long and surprising way for our joy and our witness.
Our Past
Elect exiles need to hear about this glorious future, make sense of their difficult present, and rejoice in the privilege delivered to them by a glorious past. It’s that third area—the past—to which Peter sets our attention this week, with the hope of stirring our affections for God and his praise in the midst of our various trails. The gospel is a thing of the future; as it turns out, it is also a thing of the past.
Our Present
In this text, Peter moves from speaking about our future to our present, from future glory to our present grief. But our present griefs, so we will learn, are not merely something to bear up through but to rejoice in. We can rejoice in our trials because they purify our faith.
Our Future
What is the first thing that elect exiles need to hear? We might answer that question in all sorts of ways. On the one hand, we should know, for we’re the ones away from home. On the other hand, God knows our need better than we do. The first thing we need to hear is a word about our future.
Some Encouraging Mail
Most of us get a lot of junk mail, the kind of mail that messed up your perfectly good day. Or at least your goal of cleaning out your in-box. Peter’s letter is not that kind of mail. It arrives to us in a hard day for Christians. With this sermon we will open this letter and read Peter’s greeting, a fitting way to begin a season of life together through this book.
Jesus’ Resurrection, Our New Beginning
We come to the end of Mark’s gospel, and to a new beginning. In fact, Mark intends his entire gospel account as a beginning of the rest of Jesus’ story and of ours. He began his book with the words, “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God,” and he ends his book with the resurrection of Jesus, the firstborn from the dead for a whole new creation. With this sermon we will ponder the fact and the meaning of the resurrection together in light of the many themes that have emerged in our journey through this book.
Pilate Granted the Corpse to Joseph
As we come to the final two sermons in our series through Mark’s gospel, we linger on the burial of Jesus. The death and burial of a loved one brings with it a sense of finality. In this sermon our text is a similarly sober moment in which we watch different parties respond to Jesus’ death, one whom we’ve met before and one new character.
Truly This Man Was the Son of God
Through Mark’s gospel and especially in the telling of Jesus’ passion, we have been presented with the responses of different characters to him. As we have gotten closer to Christ’s death, the responses have become increasingly hostile. In this sermon we meet a different response from a least likely character.
They Crucified Him
We have been slowly approaching the moment of Jesus’ crucifixion and with this sermon we come to that moment. Interestingly, when we think of the crucifixion we think of the physical suffering. It was a moment of great physical suffering. But the emphasis of Mark in this account is different if we slow down to contemplate his account. Mark highlights the mockery of Jesus from every party involved and what their perspectives ironically tell us about who Jesus truly was.
Crucify Him
Crucifixion was not something first century Romans talked about, at least if they were being polite. It was gruesome. It was an unspeakable terror to behold. It was also the guarantee of peace throughout the Roman world. With this sermon we begin a new day in Mark’s gospel, the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. On this day we will meet several characters who teach us about the human problem and what Jesus endured to solve it.
The Rooster Crowed
We come this week to that famous moment when the rooster crowed a second time, indicating that Jesus’ words to Peter were right. He indeed would fall away and deny his Lord three times. What should we hear in the sound of that rooster? This isn’t just a story about Peter, but a story about Jesus and what it means to follow him as a disciple on the path of the cross. Peter and Mark intend for us to learn something about both through this story.
They All Condemned Him
Jesus has been handed over. He is now among his enemies. It’s night, it’s cold, and he’s on trial for his life. With this sermon we will linger on the event of Jesus’ trial before the Jewish authorities. We’ll see Jesus respond with silence, and we’ll see him respond with a full confession. We’ll see our Lord suffer for us a verdict of condemnation.
They All Left Him
In the garden Jesus was alone with his Father and the disciples were sleeping. With this sermon, Jesus will be alone in a different way when the disciples flee. The scene of Jesus’ arrest is violent in more than one way, represented by clubs and swords and a kiss on the cheek. Here in this moment between Jesus’ ministry and his passion we see both our Lord and ourselves.
A Meal to Remember
Everything Jesus is doing at this point in Mark’s gospel is moving us directly to the crucifixion. In this passage, Jesus makes meticulous plans for a meal he intended to share with his disciples, a meal that would tell them all they needed to know about his death and their need for it. There are some unexpected guests at this meal. Listen in to find out more.
Not What I Will, But What You Will
On our path to the cross we have seen Jesus pray twice now. This week we will hear him pray as we meet Jesus and his disciples in the garden of Gethsemane for a brief calm before his arrest. What are we to learn through this encounter for the path we walk in following Jesus?
Be On Your Guard
Mark 13 is a very difficult chapter in our Bibles. This is true for various reasons. In the first place, this chapter speaks of the handing over and killing of Jesus’ followers. But this passage is also difficult for several curious statements. In fact, for some this chapter confirms the truthfulness of the Bible, but for others it offers an easy attack on Jesus’ and the Bible’s credibility. We will need to sort much of this out in order to hear what the Lord Jesus has to say to us. Listen in and remember Jesus’ words, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (13:31).
A Beautiful Thing
Paul wrote to a little church 2,000 years ago—a little church which was being told that they needed to experience something in addition to Jesus. That kind of message continues to crop up today: “You need something else. You’re deficient unless you’ve done [fill in the blank].” As the Colossians needed to hear Paul’s answer, we need to hear it as well. Pastor Abe begins the sermon by reciting the book of Colossians by memory, something he does for us from time to time.
You Are Not Far from The Kingdom of God
There is something Jesus could say to us that would be both encouraging and unsettling. It’s what he said to one of the scribes: “you are not far from the kingdom of God” (Mark 12:34). That’s a great place to be, close to the kingdom of God. But it’s also not quite where we should want to be, still outside. In this sermon we will visit a familiar passage that will help us get our priorities straight in more ways than one.
He Is God of the Living
Jesus is on the home stretch—if we could call it that. His public ministry has made a direct move into public conflict with the religious elites. In this sermon we come to a third of four rounds of intense conversation between Jesus and his opponents. This time, the topic is the resurrection. Jesus believes that the end of the age will involve a resurrection of the dead to new life, some to judgment and some to joy. Apparently, this is an idea that could get him killed. Why is that? What is it about the resurrection that is so offensive? That question will help us see just how crucial and wonderful this doctrine is for us.
The Things that Are God’s
How can we prepare for proper biblical resistance in the face of growing government opposition to the things and people of God? That’s not a fun question to ask, but it is the question that Christians have normally had to engage together. The key is not so much to focus on our resistance to governing authorities, but rather our allegiance to God and what that requires of us. In Mark 12:13–17, Jesus answered a question about taxes in which he said, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
The Things that Are Caesar’s
This is our second sermon in a series of sermons through an important passage on God and human government. In Mark 12:13–17, Jesus answered a question about taxes in which he said, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” In this sermon we will train our attention on the topic of human governing authorities, how to identify them, what we owe them, and how to relate to them.
Baptism: A Sign of Addition
There are choppy waters ahead for the church and for believers. One of the most important things we can do for our church and the next generation is get baptism right. That’s one reason we’re studying this sign of the new covenant. Our previous sermon considered the invisible realities to which baptism points. This sermon will consider the visible realities which baptism involves. That is, what baptism calls us to and creates. Our sermon will be from one simple and beautiful verse.
Baptism: A Sign of the New Covenant
We wade into this short series with a sermon from Jeremiah 31, for a sermon titled, “Baptism: A Sign of the New Covenant.” What is the new covenant? What’s new about it? How does baptism symbolize it? Should we baptize believers only, or infants as well? These questions are at the heart of how we understand the nature and structure of the church in God’s plan.
Our Table Turning, Cursing, Temple Closing, Hell Raising Savior
Throughout our journey through Mark, Jerusalem has been coming to Jesus, and Jesus has been carefully concealing his identity. Now, Jesus comes to Jerusalem and the tables are turned. There is plenty here to pique our curiosity, and all we need for a healthy church.
Heaven’s King is Here
The journey had to be exhausting. This week Jesus and his disciples arrive in Jerusalem from Jericho, a fairly serious hike with significant elevation gain. But for even greater reasons, the sense of expectation is great: the last three years with Jesus have led to this moment, even the entire story of Scripture. Adam was sent out of the garden, and now heaven’s King is coming to dwell with us. But things will not go as we expect, for Jesus is not the sort of king that we are used to.
Alliances, Power Grabs, and a Better Way
One of the great threats to our church’s peace and mission is our individual sinful lust for power. Maybe we have some and we want more. Maybe we’re insecure about our lack of influence and we want to protect what we have or maneuver for more. Find a church or leadership conflict and you will follow its origin back to someone’s personal ambition. Often enough, the spark took flame when two bonded over their personal ambitions for influence. There will be plenty of Bible verses to make the sins look spiritual. Let the church be warned. Thankfully, there is an antidote to this common problem. That’s the message of this segment in our journey through Mark.
What’s Wrong with Having Nice Things?
Most of us have some nice things, some earthly possessions. Some of us have a lot of nice things. God made the world, and he has given us many gifts. But these possessions can be a real problem for us. Whatever they may have cost us to purchase, they may well cost us eternal life. Part of following Jesus is taking on an entirely new relationship to the things we own in this life. This is not a sermon about giving to the church. This is a sermon about getting into heaven.
The Re-Genesis of Marriage
Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any reason? Ever since we left Eden that question has been on our mind. It was a matter of controversy in Moses’ day, Jesus’ day, and in our day of easy divorce. When that question was put to Jesus, however, he changed the subject. He talked about marriage itself—what it is and what God intended for it. The obsession in his day was about exceptions. There’s more that the Bible has to say about this topic than what we have recorded here, but we desperately need the emphasis that Jesus lands in this sermon.
Jesus Schools His Disciples
Kids are back to school, which is hard but exciting. Imagine if Jesus was your teacher and the classroom was only twelve students. This week we will sit in on just such a classroom. But in this case we aren’t dealing with math problems, but with sin relationship problems.
Prayer on the Path of Discipleship
We know we should pray. But we don’t. Why not? In this sermon we find the disciples walking the path Jesus has called them to and doing so without prayer. Jesus artfully leads them into a lesson on his strength and their weakness and what to do about their hardest challenges on the path of discipleship.
The Transfiguration: Seeing Only Jesus
What will sustain the church in the face of the worst hardship in this world? Worse than physical pain or suffering can be isolation and social rejection. It all comes with the territory of following Jesus. We don’t love it or long for it, but we do accept trouble as part of the path we’re on together. What will ready us for the worst? We find out on a diversion up and down a mountain.
Who Do You Say That I Am?
With this sermon we come to the heart of the book, not only in terms of its central themes of the cross and discipleship, but the literary hinge of the story. We have been following Jesus all over the place at a rapid pace. Here the story slows to a walk and confronts us with a question and a call that none of us can escape.
He Makes Bread and Heals Blindness
Have you ever had a dream that kept coming back, but maybe with some of the details rearranged? That’s what this passage is like for us and it’s what this account must have been like for the disciples. We have another feeding, another boat scene, another conversation about bread, and another healing that involves spit. We’re going to handle it all in one sermon. But not because it’s just more of the same, but because there is a point to be made in this rolling cadence of familiar action. Where is Jesus leading us this time?
Jesus, the Hiding Healer
This passage is utterly perplexing. Jesus travels to a new region but hides. Jesus answers a woman with a derogatory comment. Jesus performs a strange ritual with spit before healing a man. Jesus, again, tells people not to speak of him and they tell everyone. Jesus’ actions and intentions seem to conflict, and both run counter to our own human expectations for him. Yet this counterintuitive text will teach us something important about the cross.
Worship and the Word
With this sermon we return to our series through the Gospel according to Mark. We drop in at a point of increasing conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees, between Jesus and Jerusalem. What is at the heart of the conflict that will lead ultimately to Jesus’ crucifixion? The answer to that question may be the start of your own way to salvation.
Take Heart, It Is I
The winds are blowing hard against the church. They’re against us and they are relentless. We live in difficult times, yes, but there is no reason for us to lose heart. We’ll find out why on a boat ride with Jesus’ disciples this Lord’s Day.
Twelve Baskets Full
The world is a hungry place. Not just hungry for food, but hungry for something else. We just don’t know what it is. The world is a wilderness and that’s one reason why Jesus sets the stage for his next miracle with a hungry crowd in the wilderness. There, Jesus will teach us concerning our real hunger and his willingness and ability to meet it.
The Cost of Disciple Making
Jesus has inspired us with his teaching and works. He has instructed us concerning the inevitably of hard ground but also good soil that bears incredible fruit. We have a promising mission. But there is another point to make concerning our call to discipleship and disciple making: the cost. Mark will get this across to us in a way that is both round-about and straightforward. We cannot afford to miss the cost of discipleship.
Hometown Scandal
It’s usually an exciting thing to go home. A college graduate would be celebrated at home, and her achievements bragged on. That is not the case for Jesus on the occasion of his homecoming. He’s been plenty successful, but he is not the pride of his town. As always, there’s a lesson for those who follow Jesus.
Talitha Cumi
Sometimes the author of a Bible book leaves a phrase untranslated. In this text, Mark quotes Jesus’ Aramaic words, “Talitha cumi.” Jesus said those two words to a twelve-year-old dead girl. They must have left an impression on Peter, who relayed them later to Mark. Let’s pray for these words to leave an impression on us as well.
Jesus Breaks on Through to the Other Side
This week we come to a second in a series of three encounters with Jesus between desperate people and the only one who can deliver us from our trouble.
Jesus Stills (and Stirs) the Storm
Some passages are almost too familiar. Christian or not, churchgoer or not, you know about how Jesus stills the storm. It’s not a terribly surprising story, unless you were in that boat with Jesus. But there is a surprise here that you are not expecting.
Hearing the Hidden Kingdom
Listen in to hear how you can perceive the invisible kingdom of God.
The Sower and the Sifter
Jesus is a good teacher, right? Then why so many diverse responses to his teaching? Shouldn’t he be the most persuasive, most compelling, and most agreeable preacher ever? In Mark’s gospel we find a host of responses to Jesus. We find the same in our own day. We find the same in our own hearts! In Mark 4:1–20, Jesus takes up the task of explaining why the Word seems effective at times and ineffective at others. But this is no simple lesson. It’s a lesson that will shake up our own understanding of how the Word works
Jesus Creates a Family
Jesus’ unique authority made for his growing fame. Jesus’ concerning behavior raised concerns. Now we get to find out what it’s like to hitch ourselves to him. Since the first century, opposition to Jesus has taken many forms. In this sermon we see four problems that come with following Jesus. What makes following Jesus worth it?
Jesus’ Concerning Behavior
Jesus’ teaching raised all kinds of questions, specifically about his authority, which we explored last time. But his behavior raised all kinds of concerns. In this sermon we’re going to read a passage that might make us a little uneasy about Jesus. But my hope is that it will make us uneasy about ourselves, to be concerned about our concerns, and thankful that Jesus, at cost to his reputation, has concerned himself with the likes of you and me.
Jesus’ Questionable Authority
Authority is a topic of daily conversation right now. Federal authorities are making decisions, and local authorities are doing things. There are plenty of good decisions being made. But it seems there are also governments in other lands gathering more authority to themselves than is safe. Listen ins as we explore the authority of Jesus.
A New Beginning
With this sermon we begin our new series through the gospel according to Mark. On the one hand, this is a new series from a book in the New Testament. On the other hand, we are picking up where we left off at the end of the book of Exodus. Much has transpired in the history of God’s plan to save, but it is all one story.
Into the Tent
Social distance is all the rage. It should be, and I don’t need to get into that. None of us like it. But in our relationship with God, spiritual distance is the way things begin, and it’s our doing. He is holy and we are sinful. Whatever we might want to say about that, it’s not him; it’s us. What can be done about it? Surely this is a more insurmountable and serious problem than the coronavirus. And yet God has done something in order that he might dwell with us, in a way that is even better than Eden. This sermon will take us from Exodus 24–40.
Up the Mountain
God saved us from bondage, but is that all he has in mind for us? Is God’s whole intention simply to get us out of the trouble of our sin and out of trouble with him? No, he has something much greater for us. God delivers us from something, and for something. He delivers us from servitude and into his service. Or, in other words, into a life of worship. With this sermon we engage our second of three sermons through the book of Exodus.
Out of Egypt
It seems there are a growing number of what are coming to be called, “de-conversion stories”—stories of how a person who identified as a Christian came to identify themselves, in one way or another, apart from Christ. These stories should sober us up to look out for our own soul and the souls of our brother and sisters. These stories are worth listening to, to understand how one person got from confessing Christ to rejecting Christ. They’re also a reason to re-examine the question of how one becomes a Christian. With this sermon we begin a short series through the Bible’s second book, the story of Exodus. The story of Exodus is a conversion story. It’s our conversion story. How does a people go from bondage to Pharaoh to bonding with the Lord? How does a people go from servitude to a wicked master to sonship to God? How does a people go from building cities for the world’s kingdoms, to building a tent for the Lord’s presence?
God Will Surely Visit You
Bones are a bad sign. Inside our bones is a factory of life, the marrow inside producing our white and red blood cells. But when we die, our bones are the last part of us to hang around. But with the eyes of faith, we see more than death in our bones, but the object of God’s determination to bless us with life everlasting.
I Wait for Your Salvation, O Lord
Surely this isn’t it. We have come to salvation in Christ, we have received the Spirit, we are members of a great church. But surely this isn’t it. In Genesis chapter 49 we have a string of blessings on the sons of Jacob; blessings filled with difficult to understand references, even for many scholars. Nevertheless, in this chapter, the last chapter of Jacob’s life, we find the answer to what we are waiting for—the same things God’s people have been waiting for since we left the garden.
By Faith . . . When Dying
The things we say in our last conscious moments might be meaningless. Perhaps we’re on a lot of medication. Or perhaps our mind has been eroded by some terrible disease. Otherwise, the things we say in our last years and days and moments are revealing. They reveal the place and posture of our faith. Jacob’s words at the end of his life sure did. And they are instructive for us. His eyes were dim, but he was the clearest seeing person in his room.
Into Egypt . . . Out of Egypt
How do we know that our pain is actually a part of God’s plan? How do we know that so many of the hardships we know here aren’t some grand mistake in God’s attempt to get salvation done? Is he well meaning, but incapable or incompetent? Chapters 46–47 of Genesis were written to answer this question for Israel on the other side of her deliverance from Egyptian bondage.
You Sold Me . . . God Sent Me
There are some passages of Scripture atop which we can see a long way in every direction of the story. There are some passages of Scripture atop which we can see a long way in every direction of our lives. Genesis 45 is one of those passages. Bringing together so many of the themes and promises we’ve uncovered to this point, Genesis 45 is an emotional and memorable encounter between Joseph and his brothers.
Found
With this sermon we’re back in the book of Genesis, picking up where we left off with Genesis 43. From here through chapter 45 we will follow Joseph’s brothers back and forth between Canaan and Egypt. Joseph won’t reveal himself for a few chapters yet. In the meantime, we find strained and at times confusing interactions between the brothers and Joseph. What is Joseph’s design in all of this? What is God doing in the lives of these brothers?
Mercy
With this sermon we’re back in the book of Genesis, picking up where we left off with Genesis 43. From here through chapter 45 we will follow Joseph’s brothers back and forth between Canaan and Egypt. Joseph won’t reveal himself for a few chapters yet. In the meantime, we find strained and at times confusing interactions between the brothers and Joseph. What is Joseph’s design in all of this? What is God doing in the lives of these brothers?
We Are Guilty
Guilt doesn’t go away with time. We may put it out of our minds, but in a moment the weight of that guilt can be brought back to the surface. The problem of guilt and what to do with it shapes our lives and our world, from the smallest decisions we make, to entire political systems and agendas. The Bible is straightforward about this basic human problem. It also comes to us with an answer that can truly take it away. That answer was an unsuspecting child among animals in Bethlehem so many years ago.
Bow the Knee
Every person bows the knee to something; that something or someone who is the most important, the most powerful, most worthy. In this sermon we find the ancient world’s most prominent civilization bowing to a man named Joseph. Only days before he was in prison, where for thirteen years he waited. God will make his suffering servant king and savior, and the nations will bow to him.
Forgotten
A fear of forgottenness hangs over each of our lives. Imagine getting a midnight order to move to another land, never to see your family again. A sense of forgottenness would be a problem for you at that moment. If we wonder how hard-wired this fear is, consider how hard we try to be noticed, to be liked, to be popular, and how much we make of celebrities that seem to be remembered everywhere by everyone. Joseph was forgotten, and so were many others on salvation’s storied path through Scripture. What is God doing through it?
The Lord Was With Joseph
Have you ever had a hard time believing that the Lord is with you? You’re not alone. The first thing to get in order is the matter of your salvation. Do you know the Lord? But if you do know him and wonder about his presence in light of your circumstances, then you’ll take some comfort in the story we find in Genesis 39. It’s a familiar story to many, the story of Joseph’s flight from sexual temptation. But there’s more here for us than moral instruction.
Her Name Was Tamar
Can the hardest hearts be changed? We’ll get an answer to that question from an unlikely passage, Genesis 38. This is the most sexually explicit passage in the book of Genesis. It’s also one of the darkest passages. But there is encouragement here for God’s work in our lives, and in our church.
We Will See What Will Become of His Dreams
In this sermon, we will hear God make good on the promises he planted despite a descent into the pit.
Now the Sons of Jacob Were Twelve
The last sermon closed out with Jacob and the family stuck. They were stuck in their sin and stuck in sin’s consequences. This sermon opens with the encouraging and hope-giving words, “Arise!” The Lord has not left his people even when they have forgotten him. In fact, he has come to get his people and to bring them home. It will mean radical transformation, and that, of course, is his specialty. In Genesis 35 and 36 we come to the end of an era in the story of our origins, with the stage set for the next era.
An Outrageous Thing
This sermon brings us to one of the Bible’s most disgusting and humiliating stories, a story of rape and revenge. Why is this story here? What does it teach us about ourselves, about God, and about the only way out of this mess of ours?
You Have Striven with God
What must we do to be saved? There is one answer to that question that is both harder and easier than we might think. With this sermon we come to the climax of God’s transforming work in Jacob as he readies him for the land of promise.
Laban Removed the Male Goats
Christians have good reason to fear harm: Jesus has promised trouble for his sake in this world. Sooner or later, in one form or another, following God’s man, Jesus, will cost us something. For some it will cost them everything. But that’s not the whole story. We get a hint at God’s bigger safe-keeping purposes for his people in this story from the book of Genesis.
Give Me Children, Or I Shall Die
Sometimes we say the darnedest things. And actually, I should use the more unacceptable word there. Idolatry leads us to say things to ourselves and others that can only come from hell. In this week’s episode from the book of Genesis we hear something along those lines on the lips of Rachel. How will the Lord make anything good out of her worst moment? What can the Lord do with such unacceptable material as we are, sinful people?
Jacob Went on His Journey
The Lord gave Jacob a dream with a ladder from his place to heaven, with angels ascending and descending. What would the Lord have in store for this chosen of Abraham’s line? The Lord would be with Jacob, but not as he might expect, and perhaps not as we would expect.
Who Are You?
We have good reason to think that God’s plans for his people will not quite come to pass. It’s a little much to look around at the world, and even at ourselves, and think, “surely, the Lord is with us.” Genesis chapter 27 isn’t the first place you might have thought to look for assurance, but go ahead and take a look. You’ll find there even better reasons to expect, against all odds and all opposition, God will in fact do as he has promised. How much can we throw at God’s plan before it comes off the rails?
I Will Be With You
In this sermon we will hear the Word of the Lord promise the blessing of God’s promise to those who have been abandoned.
Baptism: A Sign of Danger
In this sermon we consider the costs associated with discipleship and the danger inherent in following Jesus. Baptism, as we’ll see, is a high-stakes, high-cost endeavor for both the baptized and the congregation baptizing. We’re in this together, and with this text we’ll remember what we’ve gotten ourselves into.
Jacob Was Cooking Stew
The book of Genesis could be divided three ways: Before Abraham (1–11), Abraham (12–24), and after Abraham (25–50). With this sermon we begin that last section, and we begin with no uncertain reminder of why God must save and God alone.
The Lord Has Led Me
How does God lead us? The Bible is filled with fantastic accounts of divine intervention. He parted the Red Sea and led his people through. He stopped the sun and led his people to victory. But where is he when he isn’t doing these things? Perhaps the Israelites who first read Genesis were asking these same questions. Genesis 24 answers that question for us. This chapter closes out Abraham’s life and gives us a template for the normal deliberate and invisible workings of the God to advance his promises.
And All The Trees
Those involved in education can appreciate the importance of a test, though I suppose it depends on whether you’re student or a teacher. Those of us who have graduated and don’t teach, are glad to be done with tests. But tests are a part of our relationship with God. And the Bible’s first book turns on the test of its main human character, Abraham. What is required of him and how does it go? Listen in and find out.
Take Your Son, Your Only Son, Whom You Love
Those involved in education can appreciate the importance of a test, though I suppose it depends on whether you’re student or a teacher. Those of us who have graduated and don’t teach, are glad to be done with tests. But tests are a part of our relationship with God. And the Bible’s first book turns on the test of its main human character, Abraham. What is required of him and how does it go? Listen in and find out.
Who Would Have Said?
Abraham was a man of faith. He was also a man who did some terribly stupid things. He looked to a better country, yes, as Hebrews tells us. He also looked out for himself a good bit. In this sermon we see God’s grace come to a man who needed grace. And that’s the point.
Sulfur and Fire from the Lord
Some places are remembered for their contribution to the world. Ancient Rome would be an example. Sodom and Gomorrah are infamous for their demise. The tale is sobering, and yet more bearable than the judgment promised by Jesus in the days to come (Matt. 10:15). Thankfully, there is good news here greater than this judgment.
