Sermon 05.12.13 :: Sent

“Nothing that you have not given away will ever really be yours.” - C.S. Lewis

Acts 1:1-11

In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.

And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

                                                                        

John 17:20-26

“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 05.05.13 :: Keep Your Fork

Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 04.28.13 :: Promises

“The problem with promises is that once you've made one, it's bound to be broken.  It's like an unspoken cosmic rule.”   - Bree Despain, The Dark Divine

"Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime."

-  Martin Luther

 

“For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ!  And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God.” - The Apostle Paul

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Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 04.21.13 :: Seasons of Uncertainty

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“Above all the gifts of the Holy Spirit is that of overcoming self, and for love of Jesus to bear pain and buffetings and revilings and discomfort.”  - Francis of Assisi

“Speaking the gospel in our world is not a pastime of peaceful fishing, but rather a battle to land the fish.” 
- Bryan Green

“Christ can fight his battles even with broken swords.”  - Friedrich Zundel

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Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 04.14.13 :: Home

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Most of the world’s population believes in some sort of future existence.  Some look to enlightenment, others a nirvana.  Some believe in reincarnation.  Some believe in a heavenly existence replete with wings and halos.  But only followers of Christ believe in a bodily resurrection.  We continue to celebrate and reflect on the empty grave that reveals a mystery for the ages – that a man rose from the dead.  It is the stunning hope of the resurrected Jesus that marks this message as completely unique.  As his followers, we follow Jesus from the cross to the grave, and to new life.  We live as Easter people.

“The resurrection completes the inauguration of God's kingdom. . . . It is the decisive event demonstrating that God's kingdom really has been launched on earth as it is in heaven."  ― N.T. Wright 

“If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”  ---St. Paul

Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 03.31.13 :: Recognized

Easter Sunday

Most of the world’s population believes in some sort of future existence.  Some look to enlightenment, others a nirvana.  Some believe in reincarnation.  Some believe in a heavenly existence replete with wings and halos.  But only followers of Christ believe in a bodily resurrection.  Today the empty grave reveals a mystery for the ages – that a man rose from the dead.  It is the stunning hope of the resurrected Jesus that marks this message as completely unique.  As his followers, we follow Jesus from the cross to the grave, and to new life. 

“Know then you – sin, death, and devil – that I am not one of those who are afraid of you.  For Christ has presented to me that triumph and victory of His by which you were laid low.  And from this gift I derive my name and am called a Christian.  My sin and death hung around his neck on Good Friday, but on the day of Easter they had completely disappeared.  This is why I do not worry about you.”   - Martin Luther

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Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org 

(Including children's sermon)

                                                                       

 

Sermon 03.24.13 :: Consumption

Turning requires a physical reorientation.  You move your body from one direction to another.  Simply put, this is the nature of what it means to repent.  God’s Word calls us to turn from one direction to another, from sin to righteousness.  This Lent, we consider what it means to turn.  What do we need to turn from?  How do we turn from deeply engrained sins?  Underlying all of this turning is the graciousness of God in Christ.  His “turn” to Jerusalem and to Golgotha reoriented our destiny for eternity. 

Based on member feedback, each week we will consider a different sin that we’re called to turn from.  As we celebrate Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week we consider our place in the reality of our consumer-driven culture.  When we are surrounded by endless options offering us exactly what we want there is only one I AM who gives us abundantly more than we need.  Today he reveals himself to us through his Word and Sacrament in this community.

“If there is no Day of Judgment (justice being served) what hope is there for the world?  If there is a Day of Judgment what hope is there for you and me?  - Tim Keller

“There are two kinds of people; those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done,’ and those to whom God says, ‘All right, then, have it your way.’"  - C.S. Lewis

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Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 03.17.13 :: Reluctance to Reconcile

"Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
  
From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."

- 2 Corinthians 5:11-21

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Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 03.10.13 :: Comparison

Today we consider selfish comparison, and its jealous need to be better, stronger, prettier, more successful...

“Strength is for service, not status.” - Eugene Peterson

"There are two kinds of people; those who say to God, 'They will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'All right, then, have it your way."  - C.S. Lewis

Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org

Sermon 03.03.13 :: Your Body

“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. “Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food”—and God will destroy both one and the other. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? Never! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” But he who is joined to the Lord becomes one spirit with him. Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.  1 Corinthians 6:12-20 ESV

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“We are all born sexual creatures, thank God, but it’s a pity so many people despise and crush this natural gift.”  - Marilyn Monroe

 

Sermon posted at reliantchurch.org