What Happens When We Forget Who We Are I. Sexuality: DEALING with a Corinthian “SITUATION”. (5:1-13)A. CONFRONTING a shocking REALITY. (5:1)B. Taking ACTION to ADDRESS it. (5:2-5)C. It’s an ISSUE of our IDENTITY. (5:6-13) This passage is no easy...
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On Mission in Corinth – Part 2 | Selections from 1 Cor. 1:10-4:21
At the Crossroads of Wisdom I. A human TENDENCY and Divine WISDOM. (1:10-4:21)A. ELEVATION by means of DIVISION. (1:10-17)B. The WISDOM of the FOOLISH cross.(1:18-31)C. PAUL as a prime EXAMPLE. (2:1-5)D. A radically DIFFERENT type of WISDOM...
Read moreOn Mission in Corinth – Part 1 | Acts 18:1-18; I Cor. 1:1-9
Location, Location, Location I. The STORY behind the LETTER. (Acts 18:1-18)A. UNDERSTANDING the CITY itself. (18:1)B. Paul MAKES a lot of CONNECTIONS. (18:2-11)C. The BIRTH of a new CHURCH. (18:7-11)D. The TENSIONS that inevitably FOLLOW...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 10 (Easter) | Mark 15:42-16:8
Resurrection Life I. Resurrection ALWAYS start with DEATH. (15:42-16:1)A. SOMETHING we’d like to FORGET. (Jer. 29-45)B. A SOLEMN process of HONOURING. (15:42-16:1)C. A POWERFUL, yet neglected, METAPHOR. (v.46; I Cor. 12:27) Resurrection Sunday is...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 9 (Palm Sunday) | Mark 15:16-41
There’s More Going on Here than Meets the Eye I. A MESSIAH prone to MISUNDERSTANDING. (Mark 1-15)A. The PEOPLE want a KING. (8:29-33; 10:35-37; 11:8-10) B. Jesus DOESN’T meet their EXPECTATIONS. (14:41-15:15) Today we move back from Jeremiah to...
Read moreLent 2021 – I am broken, but loved by God | Jeremiah 45
Week 5 – “I’ll give you your life…” I. Who is BARUCH?A. Jeremiah’s SCRIBE (36:4, 32; 45:1)B. Jeremiah’s STUDENT (36:5-8)C. Jeremiah’s FRIEND (36:17-19) II. A Legitimate COMPLAINT (45:3)A. SORROW upon GRIEF (v. 3; Ps. 6:6, 69:3)B. Hope...
Read moreLent 2021 – I am broken, but loved by God | Selections from Jeremiah 38-44
Week 4 – What to do when the world falls apart I. The story of the END and a new BEGINNING? (Jer. 38-42)A. Telling the KING to SURRENDER. (Jer. 38)B. The city FALLS, yet Jeremiah STANDS. (Jer. 39:1-40:6)C. The PLOT to kill the PUPPET ruler...
Read moreLent 2021 – I am broken, but loved by God | Jeremiah 35:1-19
Week 3 – An Old Testament Real Life Parable I. An unusual STORY, to say the LEAST. (v.1-11)A. WHO are the RECABITES? (2 Kings 10:23-26)B. An INVITE from the PROPHET. (v.1-3)C. A STRANGE request and an EXPECTED response. (v.4-11) I have to...
Read moreLent 2021 – I am broken, but loved by God | Jeremiah 29:1-23
Week 2 – Reading someone else’s mail I. What LEADS to the LETTER. (2 Kings 24)A. The first WAVE of EXILE. (v. 1-3; 2 Kings 24:14)B. Why US and why not THEM? (v.15-19; 2 Kings 24:17-20) Have you ever gotten a letter with advice from a...
Read moreLent 2021 – I am broken, but loved by God | Lamentations 3:1-40
Week 1 – Learning to Lament I. Lamentations: FIVE heavy POEMS. (Lam. 1-5)A. A CONTEXT of great LOSS. (2 Kings 24-25)B. Attempting to bring STRUCTURE to CHAOS. (Lam. 1-4)C. Hope BURIED in the MIDDLE. (Lam. 3) The book of Lamentations is an...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 8 | Mark 14:3-11
The Kingdom of the Messiah I. The IMPLICATIONS of What SHE Did (14:3-5; Isaiah 61:1-3; I Sam. 16:13)A. A SYMBOL of RECKLESS Devotion (14:4-5)B. ANOINTING the ANOINTED One (Isaiah 61:1-3; Mark 1:1, 8:29)C. Preparing to DIE (14:8, 16:1) II. The...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 7 | Mark 11:1-33
Here He Comes…the Messiah I. The COMING of the PROPHESIED Messiah. (v.1-26)A. ZECHARIAH tells of the ENTRY. (v.1-11; Zech 9:9)B. MICAH (and Hosea) explain the TREE. (v.12-14, 20-26; Hos. 9:10; Mic. 7:1)C. Isaiah and Malachi – CLEANSING the...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 6 | Mark 8:22-26; 9:2-13 10:46-52
Opening our eyes to reality I. The ORGANIZATION of the TEXT. (Mark 8-10)A. The QUESTION for the DISCIPLES. (Mark 8:29)B. BOOKENDS of healing BLINDNESS. (8:22-26; 10:46-52)C. The MOUNT of TRANSFIGURATION. (9:2-13) We often forget that when the...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 5 | Mark 8:27-38; 9:30-41; 10:32-45
“You keep saying that word…” I. The BIGGEST of all QUESTIONS. (8:27-30)A. With Jesus it ALWAYS gets PERSONAL. (8:27-29)B. The RIGHT answer, but the wrong UNDERSTANDING. (8:29-33) Today we look at the very heart of the Gospel of Mark. He has...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 4 | Mark 4:1-34
The Parables of the Messiah I. The PURPOSE of the PARABLES (Mark 4:10-12, 21-25, 33-34)A. To CONNECT and to SUBVERT (v. 3, 8, 21, 24-25, 26, 29, 31)B. To REVEAL and OBSCURE (v. 11-12, 21-25)C. To EXPLAIN His ACTIONS (Isaiah 6:8-13) II. The...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 3 | Mark 2:13-3:34
The People of the Messiah I. Two TYPES of PEOPLE. (Mark 2:17)A. The “SINNERS” – Those on the MARGINS. (2:14-16,18,23-24; 3:1,10-11,13-14, 34)B. The “RIGHTEOUS” – Those with the POWER. (2:16,18,24; 3:6,21-22)C. Words of IRONY and...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 2 | Mark 1:21-2:12
The Power of the Messiah I. The POWER that comes from AUTHORITY. (1:21-2:12)A. Power OVER the SPIRITUAL realm. (1:21-34) B. Power over PHYSICAL SICKNESS. (1:29-34; 41-42) C. Power to RESTORE those EXCLUDED. (1:40-45) D. One EVENT that COMBINES it...
Read moreMark – The Misunderstood Messiah – Part 1 | Mark 1:1-20
Let’s start at the beginning… I. Mark gets RIGHT to the POINT. (v.1-8)A. The long AWAITED coming of GOD. (v.1-3; Mal. 3:1; Is 40:3) B. Right HERE and RIGHT now. (v.4-8) Mark is, as far as we know, the first gospel that was written. Scholars...
Read moreFourth Sunday of Advent 2020 | Jeremiah 33:1-16
LOVE ~ From Big and Beyond to Small and Beside I. God is BIG and BEYOND. (v.1-13)A. ACKNOWLEDGING our limited VIEWPOINT. (v.1-3)B. WHAT God will do – RENEWAL. (v.4-13; Jer. 31:3-6)C. WHY God will do it – LOVE. (v.11; 31:3; Lam. 3:22)...
Read moreThird Sunday of Advent 2020 | Jeremiah 31
JOY: Grace Found in the Wilderness I. A Story of EXILE and RETURN A. From SLAVE to FAMILY Jer. 31:1, 9, 20, 22 B. From TORN DOWN to REBUILT v. 4, 12, 28 C. From SORROW to JOY v. 13, 25 II. The CONTEXT of Joy v. 10-14 A. It’s not mere HAPPINESS v...
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