Think Different | A Sermon on Romans 12:1-3

Introduction
Long ago God chose you to be holy and different.  Have you ever noticed that all the heroes of the Bible were a little different?  Some might say, they were a little off or weird; they were definitely different.   

Noah built an ark out in the middle of dry land.  Can you imagine what his neighbors thought when he build the biggest boat they'd ever seen and there wasn't anywhere to sail it?  

Abraham took his only son up on top of Mt. Moriah to sacrifice him, because "God told him to."  That's just crazy!  

King David got so excited when he brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem, he started dancing so hard and worshiping God his clothes came off.  He embarrassed his wife and she had to scold him for exposing himself and not being dignified like a king should be.  David was different; his heart was different.  He loved God more than his own dignity.  

The prophet Ezekiel ate a biblical scroll and said it tasted as sweet as honey!  That's different! 

Jesus was the most different of all.  He is the divine son of God.  If He was going to be born on earth, he should have been born in the most majestic palace or temple with the most important people in the world gathered around, but he did things different.  He decided to be born in a manger with cows and sheep and shepherds gathered around. 

The Son of God came to change the world and he had the power to do it all by himself, but he instead he chose 12 mortal men to help him do it.  I would have chose the 12 most gifted, smartest, powerful, influential people in the world to help me, but Jesus did something different.  Instead of picking the best and brightest, he pick a bunch of smelly fishermen, a Roman collaborator, and a terrorist determined to kill collaborators!  Peter was a bragger. Thomas was a doubter.  James and John were a manipulators. And Judas was a betrayer!

And instead of conquering His enemies by force, Jesus chose to be different—He let them crucify Him on a cross and He forgave them.  And then He said to His rag tag team of disciples, “Alright boys, you know what to do.  Go change the world.”  And today, Christianity is the largest religion on the face of the earth!  

Apparently God sees things different than we do and He has a thing for people who are different.  God wants you to be different! Don’t you want to be different?  

Romans 12:1-3 (Emphasis added)
¹And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. ² Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

³ Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.

God Chose You to Think Different
Let me first point out a few key insights about this passage that we need to hear.  First, don’t copy the world.  The world has a way of doing things and ideas about right and wrong, but we don't pattern ourselves after the world.  We should be different. 

The Amish people seem to take this verse to heart.  They very literally choose to be different and reject the innovations of modern society.  They dress in old-fashioned clothes, refuse to use TVs or cell phones, and even still ride in horse and buggies.  I admire their dedication to being different, but I don't think that's how God wants us to be different.  The passage says let God change the way you think.

We may dress like everyone else in the world, use modern technology, and do many similar things as everyone else, but God has changed the way we think.  And when you think different, you have a different attitude and you do things for a different reason and you will often act different.

And finally, I want to point out the passage says, "Don’t think you are better than anyone else—evaluate yourself honestly..."  I love the way the Word instructs us on this because it addresses two ends of the same spectrum. 

There are some people who are arrogant and conceited, who think they are "all that and a bag of chips."  To them the Word warns, "Don't think you are better than anyone else."  If you're full of pride or look down on others, you need to change the way you think. 

But there are others who struggle with low self-esteem.  And the Word addresses that too.  It says, "Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us." God made you and God doesn't make junk.  You are special.  God's fingerprints are all over you.  So let God change the way you think.

3 Ways We Need to Think Different:
I want to give you three ways we need to let God change the way we think.  First, stop thinking this world we see is all there is.  This world is an amazing place and it's full of wonders.  We are blessed to be able to enjoy this life, but there is more going on than just what we see.  In fact, this life in this world, is not what it's all about. 

We are tempted to think that because it's all we see right now.  However, the Word teaches us there is more.  There is a spiritual battle going on behind the scenes we can't even see.  Eternity hangs in the balance.  There is Life to come when this life is over.  And the rewards of this life aren't that important when measured in the scales of Eternity.  So, as the old hymn says, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of of his glory and grace.”  Stop thinking this world, this life, is all there is.

Second, stop thinking this life is more important than the Life to come.  Since this current life is all we've known and is what's immediately pressing in upon us, we get so wrapped up in its joys and concerns.  Have you ever thought about this when we are praying about those who are sick?  Suppose we pray for someone who has terminal cancer and God miraculously, unexplainably heals them.  (The cancer was there one day and gone the next.)  We would praise God and be so happy! 

But what was really achieved?  That healing—at best—is only temporary.  Even if they live 40 or 50 more years without any other traces of cancer, they will still die.  Everyone in this life dies.  The True Healing comes when they are resurrected in Eternal Life.  And a million years from now, when we are praising God on that Golden Shore, no one will give a second thought to the few measly years we lived in this fallen world or the joys or sorrows we faced here.  All the things we spend so much time fretting over will then seem infinitely inconsequential. Romans 8:18 - “What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.”

Some would say: “Yeah, but I want glory in this life and in the future one."  Why do you deserve that?  Do you think you are any better than the saints that have gone before you?  Think of those saints who suffered and died for Christ. 

Think of Stephen in the book of Acts who was stoned to death simply because he preached about Jesus' death and resurrection.  What about the Disciple Peter who was crucified upside down or the Apostle Paul who was beheaded in Rome. 

Do you deserve more rewards in this life than those protestant reformers in the 1500s who worked so hard to help the Church return to true faith in Christ and received as their only reward in this world to be hanged, drawn and quartered, burned at the stake, or drowned—simply because they believed what God said in the Bible more than the Pope? 

We need to change the way we think.

And third, we need to stop thinking the rewards and consequences of what we do now are primarily realized in this life.  People ask, "Why do the wicked prosper?  Why do bad things happen to good people?" 

First of all, I would say who is really good?  The Bible says, "No one is good.  Not a single one." (paraphrase of Romans 3:10).  We might think of someone who is especially good, but that's only because we are comparing them to ourselves.  But if we place them next to a holy God, all their imperfections and sins are immediately clear and we see they are far from "good."  

Jesus said, "[God] sends rain on the just and the unjust alike" (Matthew 5:45).  And He also taught that we would have to wait until God's sorts out all the weeds from the wheat at the end of the age.  We have to accept that some things will not be settled in this life.  

Your faithfulness in this life may not be rewarded until you get to Heaven, but God will bring justice according to His perfect wisdom in eternity. 

Are You Ready to Think Different?
God has chosen you to be different.  1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession.”

In the Bible, oil was used to set people apart for God’s purposes. So today, I want to invite you to come to the altar and be anointed with oil—not because there is anything magical about the oil, but as an outward sign of an inward commitment:  “Lord, I belong to You. Set me apart. Change the way I think, so I can live the life You have called me to live.”

After you are anointed, I’m going to give you a small vial of oil to take home. Let it remind you this week: I have been chosen. I have been set apart. I am called to think different, live different, and be different for Christ.  You can use this oil to anoint and pray for others.

 

Holy Different | A Sermon on 1 Peter 1:1-2

Introduction
I’m proud of all my kids.  They're all intelligent, independent, and successful.  They’ve never been afraid to be different, to be themselves.  My son Gavin graduated from High school 3^rd in his class.  He went to college and used to ride his bicycle from his dorm to his classes.  But two wheels got boring to him.  So he decided he wanted to learn to ride on one.  So he got a unicycle!  He's older now--28.  He decided to learn Vietnamese.  Why?  Because his girlfriend's family immigrated from Vietnam and he want to be able to speak to her mother.  

My middle child, Grace, is a talented creative.  She started singing solos in church when she was in Kindergarten and then with our praise band when she was 13.  Now that she's a young adult, she has sang with rock bands on stage, and I'm always proud to remember who she cut her teeth on performance in church.  She loves plants and birds and decided to go back to school recently to study horticulture.  

My youngest daughter is Abigail.  She also graduated 3rd in her class from high school.  She's a talented musician on a full ride scholarship to West Georgia College studying music education.  She can talk to anybody and loves everybody.  She is firm in her Christian faith, but has never shied away from making friends with people of all walks of life and loves to talk to people and understand their point of view, while always being firmly planted in her own beliefs.  

I've always been proud of their individualism.  They not afraid to be different.  And people like that have always impressed me.

Colonel Sanders was different.  He started his dream when he was 65 years old! He got a social security check for only $105 and was mad. Instead of complaining, he did something different.  He thought restaurant owners would love his fried chicken recipe, use it, and sales would increase, and he’d get a percentage of it. So, Sanders drove around the country knocking on doors, sleeping in his car, and wearing his white suit.  Can you imagine how strange people must have thought Sanders was?  They did.  His idea was rejected 1,009 times before someone finally said yes.  The rest is history.

1 Peter 1:1-2

¹This letter is from Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ.  I am writing to God’s chosen people who are living as foreigners in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. ² God the Father knew you and chose you long ago, and his Spirit has made you holy. As a result, you have obeyed him and have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.  May God give you more and more grace and peace.

God Chose You!
Do you remember thos pickup games we used to play when we were kids?  Maybe it was kickball or touch-football.  Two captains would pick kids to be on their teams.  They always picked the most athletic kids first.  And you never wanted to be last.

Well, in this life, God chose you to be on His team. 

And He chose you long ago.  Abraham lived about 4,000 years ago when God chose him.  He told Abraham if he would life his homeland and go where God sent him, God would make him a father of many nations.  And Abraham chose to follow God.  

And we who follow Jesus are Abraham's spiritual descendants.  Over 4,000 years ago, God already knew He was going to choose you.  His choice has been in the works for at least 4,000 years.  So if God ever asks you to do something and you feel overwhelmed, like you're not up to the task.  Remember, God already knew He was going to choose you and help you do His will, millennia ago.  You can do it, with God's help.

God's Spirit has made you holy.  Holy means “set apart for the special, sacred purposes of God” – Not to be used for unholy purposes any more.

A communion chalice is just a fancy cup.  But you wouldn't use it to drink you morning coffee with breakfast.  It could, technically, do it.  But coffee is not that chalices intended purpose.  No, the communion chalice is set apart for a different, sacred purpose.  It was made to serve Holy Communion.

Likewise, you were set apart for a different, holy purpose by God.   When you are holy, you are different, not like the rest.

It's interesting to me that so many people have tattoos these days.  When I was a kid, it was unusual to see someone with a tattoo.  They were considered different.  (Now, I want to be clear--I don't have any problem with tattoos and I don't think God does either.)  These days, it seems everyone has a tattoo (it's actually 32 % according to a 2023 survey).  If you want to be different today, maybe it's not getting a tattoo that makes you different, but not getting one!

God doesn't want us to be like everyone else.  God wants us to be different.  Then we stand out as special.  When you are holy, you are special.  Perhaps you've known someone who was special, who was different, because of the way they walked with the Lord.  The loved people and were full of God's grace in ways that were different from most people.  People remember folks like that.  And they have a positive impact on people and the world.

·         When you are holy, you stand out--like a diamond.  Diamonds are so valuable because they sparkle.  And that's how God wants His people to be.  He wants us to sparkle and shine for Jesus.  Stop trying to blend in.  Be yourself--the unique, special, sparkling work of art God made you to be.

But some people might say, “I don’t want to be different…”  An interesting thing happens with most teenagers that causes their parents a lot of anxiety.  Doctors and psychologists tell us that teenagers are biologically engineered to start separating from their parents and create their own identity.  From the time they are babies to about the age of 13, most kids adore their parents and want to be just like them.  

Then they turn into teenagers and start to pull away.  All of a sudden, they stop admiring their parents and start thinking they are boring and old and uncool.  And parents often get frustrated because it feels like their teenagers are going off the deep end, rejecting everything they've worked so hard to teach them.  

This is natural, because teenagers are trying to establish their own identity apart from their parents.  They want to be individuals. It isn’t until teenagers mature a bit more, maybe in their twenties, that they truly find their own identity.  They stop trying to be like everyone else and discover it's ok to just be themselves.

Unfortunately, many people never grow out of the human desire to “fit in”.  Most people want to adhere to “social norms.”  We want to be in fashion; we want to "fit in" our community; we want to be accepted by everyone else.  Many still define themselves in relation to others.  Few ever stop to think what they really want without regards to what other people have.  Even fewer stop to think about what God really wants for them and trust that what He wants is really best.

I've always been a little bit nerdy and curious.  That's the way God made me.  I was at the beach on a family vacation a few years ago staring out at the ocean.  I thought, "I wonder how much salt is in that ocean water and if there's a way I could extract it out?"

So I got a empty gallon jug and filled it up with ocean water and went back to our condo.  I put the water in a pot on the stove and boiled it for over an hour until all the water was gone.  And in the bottom of the pan was about a half a cup of salt!  I was so proud of myself, I used some of it to season my dinner that evening when we got together with our extended family.  My brother-in-law looked at me and said, "Chris, I'm all about this DIY stuff you like to do.  But salt?  Really?  You're a wierdo!"

And I said, “Hallelujah!”  I own it!  I'm proud to be weird--to be different, to be the way God made me!

God wants us to be Different
Anybody can start a fast food restaurant, but Chick -fil-A founder Truitt Cathy said, “We should be about more than just selling chicken. We should be a part of our customers’ lives and the communities in which we serve.”  And that's what they do.  Not only do they make great chicken, they also help schools and churches and community groups.  And they take young employees and teach them skills and values that stay with them long after they go on to work in other companies--values that make the world a better place.  And when all other restaurants are open and working on Sunday, Chick-fil-A make a bold statement "We're different!" and they are closed on Sunday.

God wanted the Israel to be like that.  He gave them all kinds of weird laws about what food to eat and what cloth to wear and how to act.  And they were to rest on the Sabbath.  All the other nations around them would look at them and say, "Those are some weird people!"  And yes!  That's what God wanted!  God wanted Israel to be special, to stand out, so everyone would know they were His people and they would represent Him to the world.

In the New Testament, Jesus told us the most important way we would be different be in the way we love.  He said in John 13:35, “Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”  He even said His followers are to love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them.  Now that's different!  And when Christians truly live this way, people take notice.  And many even want to follow Jesus themselves.

God Chose You, but Do You Choose God?
Long ago, God chose you to be holy.  How long will it be before you humble yourself, bow down, and choose to follow God?  When you choose God through faith in Jesus Christ, Peter says you, “have been cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.”  Then, you are holy and forgiven and you will have more grace and peace.  People will begin to see you are Holy Different and you will live a Holy and Different life, a better life, and you will have eternal life.  And you will know you are loved.  And you will love people like Jesus loves.  

Are you ready? If you are, turn from your sins and follow Jesus and let Him make you Holy Different today!

 

Building a Soilid Foundation | A Sermon on Deuteronomy 6:4-9 & Luke 7:24-27

Introduction
This week our church was filled with children. They sang songs, played games, made crafts, memorized Scripture, and learned about God.  It was a wonderful week.

VBS was incredible.  But VBS alone won't build a lifetime of faith.  You can't build a house on one good week.  A solid foundation is laid one brick at a time. 

That's exactly what Moses tells Israel in Deuteronomy 6.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9
⁴ “Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.^{[a] 5} And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. ⁶ And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. ⁷ Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. ⁸ Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. ⁹ Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

The Lord is Our God, the LORD Alone
The very first thing this passage reminds us is The LORD is our God.  Now you will notice the Bible capitalizes the word LORD in this passage.  Whenever the Scripture does that, it is translating the name of God, the name of God He gave when He spoke to Moses out of the burning bush.

God said His name is Yahweh.  That is the Hebrew word for God's name.  It is not really translatable, but it means something like, “I Am Who I Am” or just “I Am”.  Yahweh, God, is the only true God.   He is who He is.  We do not get to change Him into something we would like.  We are made in His image, not the other way around.  We can have our opinions about what we think god is like or what we wish He is like, but that doesn't change anything about who God really is.  He has always been the same and always will be the same.  He is sovereign.  He is the great I AM.

They may be other spiritual beings or demons, but there is only One God–the Creator of everything.  He made everything that we see and nothing exists that He has not made and does not have authority over.  And so, we are to worship God alone.  We are not to have any other gods.   And we are never to put anything else ahead of God in our lives.  “Listen, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the Lord alone.”

There are so many things that vie for our attention in this world today.  We are so busy.  We have work and family, and leisure activities, and family obligations.  And if we are parents, then their are so many activities we feel pressured to be involved with for our children and grandchildren.  And sometimes, worshipping God or studying His word or prayer feels like just one more activity we have to fit in an already busy schedule.  But The LORD should be our number one priority.  He should always come first and then we fit the other things around our time devoted to Him (or they don't fit in); but God should always fit in because He is FIRST. 

The Greatest Commandment
Then Deuteronomy spells out what Jesus said is the greatest commandment:  “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.”

Love Him with all your Heart – Your affections and desires. Love God with what you value most and what your heart longs for. Ask yourself: What do I love the most?

And we are to love Him with all our Soul – Your whole life and being. Love God with your identity, your worship, and your commitment to Him. Ask yourself: Who do I belong to?

And love Him with all your Strength – Your energy, abilities, resources, and actions.  Love God not only with your feelings but with what you do and what you have.  Ask yourself: How do I live out my love for God?

Building a solid foundation starts here–by Loving God with all your heart, soul, and strength.

The Second Greatest Commandment
In the New Testament, when they asked Jesus about the greatest commandment, he said, “A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:39)

And when asked, “Who is my neighbor?”  Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan, making it clear that everyone is our neighbor–even those who are different than us, even those who we might despise.  And Jesus went even farther, teaching we must even love our enemies, and pray for those who persecute us. 

1 John 4:20 teaches, “If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?

Building a Solid Foundation with Kids
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 says, “you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands…  Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.”

 Our faith in God is so important to us.  We want to pass it on to our children and grandchildren.  That is why we go to the extraordinary effort to provide a great VBS each summer.  This was a focused time of fun and learning for our children (and for the adult volunteers too).  It was hard work, but also a labor of love.  And I bet our volunteers got as much out of it as the kids!

But you can’t build a solid foundation of faith with children with just one week out of the year over summer.  Think about it.  Children go to school 5 days a week, 10 months out of the year, for 12 years (plus one for kindergarten).  It takes that much effort to educate them in the basics of mathematics, English, social studies, etc.  On top of these, there will also be interests in extracurricular activities like sports, music and the arts, etc.

But if we are going to instill in our children a true love of God and a desire to value His commandments and the knowledge for how to know Him and trust Him and pray to Him, it must be done through regular lessons and time spent in worship. 

Kids are constantly inundated with worldly ideas.  We must be sure they hear the Truth from God’s Word even more.  And we as parents or grandparents, we too must be so marinated in God’s Word and filled with God’s love that our children see in us a faith they want for themselves.

So we must must commit ourselves wholeheartedly to God’s commands.  Repeat them again and again to our children. Talk about them when we are at home and when we are on the road, when we are going to bed and when we are getting up.

Built on the Rock/Built on the Shifting Sand
In Luke 7:24-27, Jesus said, “²⁴ Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. ²⁵ Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. ²⁶ But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. ²⁷ When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

I have an unfortunate truth to share with you (in case you don’t already know it).  The fact is, everyone faces storms in their life–times when troubles come that threaten to blow you away like a terrible storm.  It is not a question of if the storms will come, it is only a matter of when.  They come for us all–health problems, divorce, financial problems, the loss of a job, the loss of a loved one…  Many are the storms that can shake our lives to the very foundations.

But when they come, will your life stand because it’s built on the solid rock of faith in Jesus?   Or will you have wasted your time building on the shifting sands of something else?  

We choose what our lives are built on not by words or wishful thinking or good intentions.  We build our lives by our daily practices and disciplines.  Here are some of the spiritual practices that ensure our lives are built on the solid Rock of Christ.

Regular Spiritual Practices that Help Build a Solid Spiritual Foundation

Here are some activities and spiritual disciplines that, when practiced regularly, help you build a solid foundation of faith for your own life and your family.

Be Part of a Church.  Christians need to be part of a church.  There is a lion out there, a great enemy, who wants to devour you--especially when you decide you want to follow Jesus.  And like a young, vulnerable zebra separated from the heard, you can be sure the lion is going to come for you if you are not part of a church.  So, be part of a church.  Attend regular.  Share your life with the church family.  Be committed.

Read Scripture.  If you really want to know God and spend time with Him (and not just what you imagine God to be) read you Bible.  It tells you who He really is and allows you to hear His Word.  

Prayer.  Prayer is the heart of a relationship with God.  He wants you to ask for what you need.  But prayer is not just asking for things.  It is also thanking God, praising God, listening to God, and sometimes just sting with God in silence.  Prayer is so much deeper than we realize, and it is essential to a vibrant relationship with God and a strong spiritual foundation.

Discuss God.  Spend time talking with others about God and about the Bible and your prayer life and what you are learning and experiencing.  We like to talk about people we know or celebrities we admire.  How much more fruitful it is to discuss God with our friends and family.

Express Gratitude.  Be thankful and express it.

Forgive.  Forgiveness can be very hard, but it is at the heart of the Christian faith.  God has forgiven us.  We need to practice forgiving others.

Serve.  Somethings can only be learned by serving.  And serving helps us stop focusing on ourselves and our own problems.  It helps us see others and practice compassion and empathy.

Encourage One Another.  Be an enxourager.

Worship Regularly.  Regular worship is vital to a fir spiritual foundation.  God is worthy of our worship and praise.  And if we love Him with all our heart, soul, and strength, we must honor Him with our songs and prayers and presence and praises and attention.  The routine of regular worship reshapes us into the people God wants us to be and unites us together as the body of Christ on earth.

Repent.  We all make mistakes.  And we are all sinners in need of the saving grace of God.  Repentance opens the door to God's forgiveness in Jesus Christ and starts us along the road to true holiness God wants us to live.

What Are You Building Your Life On?
You know, no one builds a foundation because it's exciting.  No one drives by a construction site and says, "Look at that beautiful concrete slab!"

The foundation isn't the part people admire.  But it's the part that makes everything else possible.  A beautiful house without a foundation won't last.  Neither will a beautiful family.  Neither will a successful career.  Neither will a busy life.

If we neglect the foundation, eventually the storms will reveal it.  Jesus said the wise man builds his house on the rock, because storms will come and test it.

So today I'd simply ask:  What are you building your life on?
Is Christ truly the foundation of your home?
Or has He become just another activity squeezed into an already busy schedule?

This week our children learned songs about Jesus.  They memorized Scripture.  They laughed.  They played.  They made crafts.  But they need more than one week of Vacation Bible School during summer break.  They need parents and grandparents who are building their own lives on Jesus every single day.  They need to see us reading God's Word.  They need to hear us pray.  They need to watch us forgive.  They need to see us worship.  They need to know that when life gets hard, Mom and Dad don't run from God—they run to Him.  Because children usually learn more from what we practice than from what we preach.

Invitation – Maybe today your family needs to begin laying a new foundation.
Maybe you've been trying to build your life on success, or money, or sports, or simply trying to "be a good person."  None of those things can carry the weight of a human soul.  Only Jesus Christ can.

The greatest gift we can give our kids is a faith that will carry them for the rest of their lives.
So I invite you to pray to God and make a commitment…

God is Love | A Christmas in July Sermon on Luke 2:1-7, 22:39-24:12 & Psalm 136:1

Introduction
VBS starts tomorrow!  I’m so excited!  We’ve been working our way through the themes for each day of VBS to get ready.  Today, let’s explore the theme for Day 4, which is God is Love.  Our memory verse for Day 4 is Psalm 136:1

Psalm 136:1
¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!  His faithful love endures forever.

Christmas in the middle of July is a crazy idea, but it can actually help us move beyond the commercial hoopla that is so prevalent in December that clutters the true meaning of Christmas.

In December, everyone is so busy running around trying to buy the perfect Christmas gifts we forget why we give gifts in the first place.  Why do we give gifts at Christmas?  Well, the Wisemen gave gifts. But it’s deeper than that.   It’s because God gave the first Christmas gift – John 3:16 - "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son so that whoever believes in him would not perish but have eternal life." 

Christmas is God giving the very best Christmas gift of all–His Son, the Messiah.  Israel was expecting the Messiah to be a mighty warrior, but God had a better plan–a plan full of grace and love, an offer of peace and reconciliation.  So instead of a mighty warrior charging in on a horse to conquer with a sword, God sent a precious baby born to loving parents.

Luke 2:1-7
¹ At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. ² (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. ⁴ And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. ⁵ He took with him Mary, to whom he was engaged, who was now expecting a child.

⁶ And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. ⁷ She gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.

Jesus is the Greatest Christmas Gift of All
Jesus came as a baby–God’s great gift to the world.  But this gift wasn’t complete yet. 

Jesus had to grow up in our broken world, experience it,  and remain faithful.  And He did. 
Jesus is the only person who ever lived who never sinned.  He lived a perfect life of love.

We hear mixed messages about love.  Songs say it’s about feelings.  Back in the 90s, Bon Jovi sang a song, "I'd die for you!  I'd lie for you..."  I used to love that song.  I guess when you're a teenager overwhelmed with hormones and your "in love" you might actually do something crazy like die for your romantic interest because they make you feel so in love.

But Jesus reveals a different kind of love--one that’s selfless, sacrificial, and unshakeable.  Jesus didn’t just love based on who deserved it, He loved because that’s who He is. God is love.

And that’s why God’s perfect Christmas gift wasn’t complete without the cross.  Though Jesus never sinned and only spoke the Truth and helped people, His very existence threatened religious leaders and Roman authorities who wanted to stay in power.  So they arrested Jesus, lied about Him, convicted Him in a kangaroo court, and sentenced him to death by crucifixion.

Jesus could have saved Himself and avoided the humiliation, the suffering, and death.  He could have run away and hid before He was arrested–He knew it was coming.  He could have recanted during the trial.  But He didn’t; He confirmed He was God’s Son, the Messiah.  And ultimately, as God’s Son, Jesus could have called down 10,000 angels to rescue Him and destroy His enemies.  But He refused, because He knew His death on the cross would pay the penalty for the whole world’s sin.  Because He died, you and I can be forgiven. 

And so, because God is Love, Jesus went to the cross and died for you and me.  Isn’t that incredible?  Think of what that means for us.  This was a great Christmas gift, but it still gets better!

Jesus Defeated Death
Because God’s love is even stronger than death!  Jesus died on the cross for our sins.   

His brutalized body was taken down and placed in a borrowed tomb.  There it lay, until on the third day, the stone rolled away and Jesus walked out alive!

The cross shows us the depths of God’s love–He suffered, bled, and died.  The resurrection shows the power of God’s love–it can overcome anything, even death!  Now think about that.  Have you ever known anyone who can defeat death?  No one. Some have been revived from death–brought back to life–but even this is temporary.  Only Jesus has the power to defeat death–completely.

And those who put their faith in Him, will overcome death too.  We will be raised to new life–eternal life forever in the Kingdom of Heaven.  But it’s not just about heaven.

You see, because if Jesus can defeat death in you, He can defeat anything in you.  Well, what does that mean?  Well, I don’t know what you’re struggling with, but whatever it is, Jesus can help you overcome it!  

So, we're not just looking forward to what happens after we die.  No, we're also expecting how Jesus can heal and perfect us in this life.  Because if He can defeat death in you, imagine how He can perfect life in you.

Closing
The baby born in a manger tells us that God is love.
The Cross shows us the gave everything for you.
The empty tomb tells us that God’s love wins. 
Sin doesn't win.  Hatred doesn't win.  Fear doesn't win.  Death doesn't win.  The love of God wins.

And because God's love wins, you don't have to let your failures define you.  
You don't have to let your guilt keep you away from God.
You don't have to let fear control your future.
You don't have to believe your brokenness is beyond repair.

Because the same Jesus who walked out of the tomb is still alive today.
He still forgives sinners.  He still heals broken hearts.  He still gives hope to the hopeless.
He still changes lives.  He still loves people like you and me.

The greatest Christmas gift God ever gave wasn't wrapped in colorful paper or tied with a bow.
It was wrapped in swaddling cloths.  And that gift was unwrapped on a cross.
Then, on the third day, it burst forth from an empty tomb so that everyone who believes in Jesus might have eternal life.

The manger points to the cross.  The cross points to the empty tomb. 
And together they proclaim one glorious truth:  God is love.

Today, if you've never trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior, receive God's gift. You don't earn it. You don't deserve it. You simply receive it by faith.

Jesus has already done everything necessary for your salvation.
All that's left is for you to say yes.

In just a moment, we're going to stand and sing one of the best-known Christmas hymns ever written: "Joy to the World."

Most people sing it at Christmas—a song about Jesus' birth. 
But it's really a song about Jesus’ reign.
It celebrates the King who came at Christmas, gave His life at the cross,
rose from the grave on Easter morning, and reigns forever.

As we sing, "Joy to the world, the Lord is come! Let earth receive her King,"
don't just sing about a baby born in Bethlehem.
Receive your King.  Receive His love.  Receive His forgiveness.  Receive His gift of eternal life.

God is Forever | A Sermon on Psalm 115:8 & Revelation 21-22

Introduction
I feel like I have a tall order in my sermon today. Because, this weekend, we celebrated the 250th anniversary of the founding of our great nation–the land that I love. But, we are also working our way through the themes for our upcoming Vacation Bible School, which will be July 13-17 from 6:30-8:30. 

But God is good, and I believe He’s given me just the right Word to share this morning. But in order to make this work, I sensed God wanting me to skip ahead and preach on the Day 5 theme for VBS today and then do Day 4 next Sunday. So I flip-flopped my original plans, because I want to be obedient to the Holy Spirit’s direction. 

The title for Day 5 of VBS is God is Forever.  The Memory verse for the lesson is Psalm 115:8. But to give a broader context for this pass, lets read verses 1-9. 

Psalm 115:1-9
1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name goes all the glory for your unfailing love and faithfulness. 2 Why let the nations say, “Where is their God?” 3 Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes. 4 Their idols are merely things of silver and gold, shaped by human hands. 5 They have mouths but cannot speak, and eyes but cannot see. 6 They have ears but cannot hear, and noses but cannot smell. 7 They have hands but cannot feel, and feet but cannot walk, and throats but cannot make a sound. 8 And those who make idols are just like them, as are all who trust in them. 9 O Israel, trust the Lord! He is your helper and your shield.   

The Book of Revelation
In addition to the memory verse in Psalm, our VBS lesson teaches about John’s vision of Heaven in the Book of Revelation. That’s pretty bold! Revelation 7:17 - For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes. 

People often think the point of Revelation is to predict the future. But the purpose of Revelation’s more than that. (By the way, there is no “S” in Revelation) 

In Revelation, God shows John what’s really going on in his world–things we can’t see. Now, John (one of Jesus’ 12 Disciples) lives in a world dominated by the Roman empire. Rome is the superpower that controls John’s world (and all the Christians in it). It is a pagan world, unchristian to its core, and the Romans empire is anti-Christian. Christians are this tiny, persecuted minority, with no political power, seemingly at the mercy of Rome and everyone else. Because they believed in Jesus, Christians were often ostracized. Their businesses failed because often no one wanted to do business with "those Christians".  For the same reasons, they often can’t find work. They are kicked out of synagogues and they sometimes even lose their homes or are driven out of town. 

And Christians often became scapegoats who got the blame for any disaster that befell a town. When a terrible fire destroyed much of Rome, emperor Nero blamed Christians.  Many historians (even Roman ones) believe it was actually Nero who started the fire.  So Nero had to do something.  He had many arrested and doused in pitch, tied to stakes, and turned into human torches to light the streets of Rome--all in a effort to divert the blame from himself.  

And so these Christians were asking, “What’s the point of being a follower of Christ?” It is into this world of hurt that God gives the Apostle John his Revelation. And Revelation isn’t just a vision about what’s going to happen at the end of time (why would the hurting people reading Revelation in the 1st century care; tell me how this helps me NOW). 

Revelation Pulls Back the Curtain
God gave Revelation to pull back the curtain on their CURRENT events and show Christians: there is way more going on around you than what you can see. Everyone thinks Rome is a mighty empire, that it’s permanent, but it’s not. It will soon be gone. But the Kingdom of God is forever. And you are citizens in God’s Kingdom that will last forever. 

Think about all the things people back then thought were so important and would last forever. The Temple. Caesar. The Roman Empire. Their own suffering. But God pulls back the curtain in Revelation and says, “These things are temporary. But My Kingdom lasts forever. And ultimately, all the empires of this world will fall, and all the rulers of this world will cease, and every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord of all.” 

And here’s the thing, God’s Kingdom isn’t just something we look forward to in the future. No. God’s Kingdom is now. It starts for us the moment we say YES to Jesus and it exists behind the curtain of what we can see. It’s not just coming; it’s here now. And when we follow Christ faithfully, we participate in God’s Kingdom. 

Many Things We Love Are Temporary
God’s Word also reminds us that many of the things we love are temporary. When I was a kid, I used to love swimming in pool.  I would hate it when my parents said, “It’s time to go!” As a parent myself, I tried to soften this with my own kids by giving them a 5 minute warning.  

But we all know that some things we really like don’t last forever. (Vacation ends. Summer break ends. Baseball season ends. Favorite toys break. Pets die.) We even know that houses deteriorate. Careers end. Health fades. Even church buildings don't last forever. And on a wider scale: nations rise and fall. Ancient Egypt lasted 3,000. Greece lasted 600 years. Rome lasted 2,000. But all faded away. 

This weekend we celebrate 250 years of our nation. I'm deeply thankful for America. I love this country. I'm grateful for the freedoms we've enjoyed. But Scripture reminds us that every earthly kingdom—even the greatest ones—are temporary. We can be thankful we live in a great nation, with a proud history. We should be grateful for the patriots who made tremendous sacrifices to build our country and preserve it for 250 years. And we should do our best to honor them by taking care of America the best we can. 

Where Is Your Hope?
Where is your hope? Since we’re in church, we would probably all answer “Jesus!” It sounds good and we know it’s probably the right answer. We should put our hope in Christ. But here’s what I’ve found about myself (and maybe it’s true for you too): Our reaction to world events can reveal where our hope is and, sometimes, how we may need to ask God to help us change our thinking.

Consider: 

If we lose hope because our candidate doesn’t win, it could reveal that we have placed too much hope in a candidate instead of in God. 

If we give up because we see our community or our nation changing in ways we don’t agree with, it might reveal our priorities are misaligned. 

What happens inside you if: The stock market crashes… If your health changes… If life doesn't go the way you hoped… 

If our hope dies because of these things, it is a clue that maybe we’ve put too much hope in the things of this world instead of God. We might not want to hear that, but that’s what God wants us to know. 

By all means, Christians should be actively involved in trying to shape the world around us to match the values of God’s Kingdom. Our prayer is always with Jesus’ in the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven…” Yet we don’t put our ultimate hope in the systems, people, governments, or kingdoms of this world. Our hope is in the Lord and our eternity is the Kingdom of Heaven. 

Revelation 21:3-4
Revelation 21 gives the grand vision of God’s heavenly Kingdom. Verse 3-4 says: “I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” 

God’s love never runs out, never changes, never leaves. God’s love is permanent, His promises are unbreakable, and His home is waiting for all who trust Him. That means we don’t need to be afraid of the future. It means we don’t have to lose hope in the present–even if things don’t go our way. We can live with hope, confidence, and joy–because no matter what happens, our “forever” is safe in God’s hands!