24

Jump Start # 3053

Posted on March 24, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3053

2 Timothy 4:2 “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.”

The other day I was looking for something on my shelves and ran across a book that someone had given me some time ago. It was a compilation of sermons by six physical brothers. The book is called, “Sermons we like to preach,” by the Andrew brothers. They were all siblings and all six of them preached. There is about ten sermon outlines by each of these Andrew boys. What caught my eye to this book was the title, “Sermons we like to preach.”

More than once, when I have been asked to preach at another place, I have been told, “Just bring your favorite sermon.” Sermons we like to preach—let’s put some thought to that.

First, often the sermons I like, few others do. I find something in the Scriptures and become passionate about preaching it and it just seems to hang in the air. Other times, often because of a packed schedule, I put something rather simple together and people will leave saying, “It’s the best you’ve ever done.” In my mind, it’s not even close to the best. Preachers have sermons they like. I wonder if Paul had some that he liked? I wonder if the sermon on the mount was the Lord’s favorite sermon?

Second, the value of a sermon should not be measured by how many people rave about it, but rather how much good it accomplishes. Did that sermon make people think? Did it lead them to change? Did it bring them closer to the Lord? When Peter preached that Pentecost sermon in Acts 2, the people were pierced in the heart. That doesn’t sound like a good feeling. When Stephen preached Acts 7, the people were cut to the quick. The success of sermons is not in smiles, laughter or entertaining a crowd. That’s not the function of a sermon. Sermons are to put us before the Cross. The sinfulness of our ways is not something that we are proud about. Being lost and alienated from God is not a good place to be. The warnings of Scriptures may make us upset, even mad. But the mercy and grace of our God ought to melt away any pride that we have and open our eyes to how much we need Jesus.

The nature of “out of season,” means simply that, “it’s not in.” Where I live, a person cannot get a fresh, locally grown garden tomato in January. Won’t happen. They are out of season. And, out of season sermons may not be our favorites. They may be controversial, hard to listen to, and calls upon us to change. But, it is those sermons that can do the most good for us. We can’t preach always about Heaven. If we did, some would never know that there is a Hell. We can’t always preach about the love of God. If we did, some would never know about the wrath of God. Preaching just what we want or like can make our theology lopsided and unbalanced. The opposite of these things is just as true. If we always preach about the wrath of God, some may get the impression that God doesn’t like us.

In season and out of season. There will be sermons I like and sermons I don’t like. There will be sermons that knock the shine off my shoes and sermons that will warm my heart. Gotta have both of them. We need both kinds. We need to preach about the Authority of Scriptures, as well as raising kids, and cultural differences, and character studies, and worship, and Jesus, and church and on and on.

Third, as one preaches to an audience, some will be helped and some won’t. It’s not uncommon for two people hearing the same sermon to have totally opposite reactions. One may think it’s the best he has ever heard. The other, hearing the same sermon, may think, “I’ve heard better.” Why does that happen? It’s because of where the audience is on their journey with the Lord. Some enter Sunday morning, feeling good, confident and strong. Others enter, with a world of worry and stress. They both hear the same sermon. One benefits greatly. The other not so much.

Fourth, our mind and heart has so much to do with how we hear a sermon. If we are not paying attention, if we are filled with troubles, then the words pass right over us. But if we come, Bible in hand, with the intention of seeing, learning and growing, that most times is exactly what takes place. The work of the preacher can be lost because the audience isn’t ready or prepared to hear a sermon. The chit-chat of the world fills our time before worship begins and as soon as the last amen is uttered, we immediately return to the chit-chatting of the world again. What about those words we just heard in the sermon? What about the challenge to change and become? How quickly we may drive those thoughts out of us and forget things before we reach our cars in the parking lot. Taking notes, writing things in your Bible—wonderful ways to keep the sermon alive. Talking about the sermon over lunch is yet another powerful way to pull as much out as you can.

“Sermons we like to preach.” I have a few of mine that I like. Most were only preached one time. What I’d rather preach is what you need to hear.

Roger

23

Jump Start # 3052

Posted on March 23, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3052

Acts 3:6 “But Peter said, ‘I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk!’”

Our verse takes place on the temple steps near what is called the ‘Beautiful Gate.’ A crippled had been left there. He was spending this day, as every day, begging. People would pass by and he’d likely hold out a cup and beg for mercy. At the end of the day, those who left him there would pick him up and take him home. What he had collected in his cup would be what he had to live on. The next day, it was the same thing. His pitiful life didn’t have much of a future. This wasn’t a temporary set back and he’d soon be able to get back to work again. No, not this man. He was born a crippled. All his life he has depended upon others.

But on one particular day, two apostles, Peter and John pass by this crippled beggar. Instead of putting some coins in his cup, and rather than looking away, as most would likely do, they told the crippled to “Look at us.” And, taking his hand they pulled him up and immediately he could walk and even leap. He entered the temple with those chosen two and Peter used the occasion to preach Jesus.

Within our verse, Peter makes a profound statement that we need to consider. He said, “…what I do have I give to you.” The beggar was hoping for a few coins. He got something far better. He got what no one else could give him. He now was cured. He walked for the first time in his life. Now, he could get a job. Now, he could move on with his life. Now, he no longer needed someone to carry him each day to the temple steps. Healed. Whole. What a blessing from Heaven.

And, with that simple statement, “…what I do have I give to you,” let us consider what we have.

First, what we have is worth sharing. Some things we do not want to give to others. No one wanted to get the Covid from others. No one who had it wanted to give it to their families. There are some sentimental things we possess that we really do not want to part with. But the most valuable possession is eternal life. It’s worth more than your home. It’s worth more than your net worth. Peter understood that what he had was worth giving to this beggar. Peter could have given this crippled a shovel, but what would he do with that? He gave something that the crippled never expected to receive. He gave him something that would make his life better. A few coins would have been nice, but the crippled would have to be brought back to that spot again the next day. What Peter gave him, was freedom from begging. Peter gave him life.

And, what is it that we have? We have the good news of Jesus Christ. We have the message of salvation and redemption. Freedom from sin is found in Christ. A second chance is offered by the Lord. This is more than “do you wanna come to church with me?” This is the message of God throughout the Bible. This is hope, life and eternity. It doesn’t matter the size of our congregations, the look of our church buildings. Those things do not matter. What matters is that there is a message that can change lives and we must share it. Don’t keep that message locked up in the church house. Don’t keep it to yourselves. Share and share it freely.

Second, Peter recognized the great treasure he was giving this man. Peter could have made the man’s toes wiggle. He could have restored one leg. But he brought life to what was dead. As the man was leaping and praising God in the temple, I can just see Peter and John looking at one another and smiling. It wasn’t them, it was the power of God. They were simply instruments of God. They were doing what God wanted. And, that’s our cue. That’s our call. We simply do what God wants us to do. We are instruments of the Lord.

Third, Peter cared enough about this man to stop and talk with him. How easily it would have been to ignore him. Peter could have looked the other way. Peter could act like most do around those who beg. But he didn’t. He could have done what the Levite and priest did to the injured man in the story of the Good Samaritan. They walked on the other side. He not only looked at the man, he had the man look at him. He talked. He extended mercy. Peter didn’t ask him about his injury. Peter didn’t ask how long he had been this way. Peter didn’t ask what all the man had done to try to get better. Those things didn’t matter. What mattered was that Peter cared. Peter loved. And, love will drive you to try to make a life better.

Fourth, Peter gave without any expectations or promises. Peter didn’t say, ‘I’ll make you better, but you have to promise me that you’ll go to church on Sunday.’ Nope, he didn’t say that. He didn’t say, ‘I’ll make you better, but I want you to give us all the money you got today begging.’ Nope, no of that. The man might have jumped up and ran home. But he didn’t. He followed Peter and John into the temple. He was so happy, excited, praising and leaping that others came running to see. A crowd gathered. Peter used that moment to preach Jesus. When we attach strings to the things that we do, it cheapens the gift. It appears that we are buying someone’s dedication. It makes the person feel obligated to us and they may not want to be. That’s not the way to do things. Do good. Help others. Shine your light. But don’t use those things to strong arm someone into obeying the Lord. If they do, it most times will not last. Let them see love. Let them taste the goodness of the Lord. Let them experience grace.

What do we have? We have the truth in Jesus Christ. We have a Father who is in Heaven. We have hope. We have confidence. We have knowledge. We have a fellowship. We have forgiveness. What I have, I give to you.

There is an expression preachers long ago used to use: Are we fishers of men or keepers of the aquarium?

Sure is something to think about…

Roger

22

Jump Start # 3051

Posted on March 22, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3051

Titus 2:8 “Sound in speech which is beyond reproach, in order that the opponent may be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us.”

I was watching a college basketball game the other day on TV. A shot was missed and several were jumping, reaching, trying to grab the rebound, as others were trying to tip the ball in. It was tight under the goal. The ball went in and the score counted. In the replay, it showed that one of the defensive players actually tipped it in. He tipped it in the wrong goal. The other team got points because of what he did.

And, in this section of Titus, twice Paul brings up a similar concept. Don’t help the enemy. Don’t give the enemy ammunition that they will use on you.

The first mention is toward younger wives. The older ones were to teach the younger ones. They were to be shown and taught to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, that the word of God would not be dishonored. There it is. God’s word dishonored. This wasn’t being done by pagan priests. This was not being done by fools or infidels. This happened because the wrong team put the ball in the basket. You gave the other team points. You helped the enemy. You partnered with Satan. How was this done? By not walking the way we are supposed to walk. Rather than being sensible, one is foolish. Instead of pure, one is impure. Rather than working at home, they are idle at home. And, instead of being subject to their husbands, they were in rebellion. God’s word is dishonored this way. You claim to believe it. You say you follow it, but your actions don’t show it.

The second way this happens is from our verse today. Rather than being sound in speech, we are offensive, unfaithful, unkind in our speech. That gives our opponent evidence. It supplies him with the weapons he needs to use against us. It proves his point. And, as he speaks badly about us, all he’ll have to do is point to us. There’s all the proof I need, he says. Listen to the way they talk. Instead of shaming the opponent, we are put to shame.

Putting the ball in the wrong goal. Some things for us to consider.

First, our enemy doesn’t need our help. We don’t want to help our enemy. In basketball, tipping the ball in the wrong basket is a mistake. It wasn’t intended. Here however, our choices determine whether we are faithful to God or flirting with the enemy. Our enemy is strong and powerful. It takes all that we have to resist him and to walk faithfully with the Lord. Don’t help him out. Don’t give him justification by allowing him to use us as exhibit A in his defense. Make it hard on the enemy by being true to God. At work, in school, in the community, that calls upon us to watch our words, pay attention to our attitudes, be careful what we post and like on social media. Put up a fight. Resist the devil and he’ll go the other way.  Are you a complainer? The world is listening. Are you one who walks through life with a long face and a heavy heart? The world is watching. Are you one who leaves your faith at the church building? The world notices. Don’t help the enemy. Make it harder on him, but living faithfully to God.

Second, we have opponents, enemies and those who would like to see us fail. When someone says, “I have no enemies,” that may be from the standpoint that he hasn’t hurt anyone. But if one is walking as we should, we will have enemies. The world loves darkness and hates the light. Jesus said we would be hated because he was hated. When a Christian says he has no enemies, maybe his light has gone out. Maybe the world doesn’t recognize him as a Christian. The opponents of Jesus tried to trap Him and trick Him and twist what He said. They’ll do the same to you. The opponents of Jesus were not honest and fair. Our opponents will not be honest and fair. We have enemies. Don’t score points for the other side.

Third, scoring for the wrong team hurts our team. The game I watched on TV was a blow out at the end. One team beat the other easily. But imagine that tipped ball by the wrong side determining the outcome of the game? How excited the other team would be and how sad your team would be. And, in spiritual matters, how discouraging it is when one of us acts more like the world than often the world does. That happened in Corinth. Someone was so immoral that even the Gentiles knew it was wrong. A month of sermons can be lost because one of us simply isn’t committed enough to know who we ought to be following. Demas left Paul. That hurt. Alexander was harmful to Paul. That hurt. And, when we talk, think, dress, drink, and act like the world, it hurts. It hurts the good that a church is trying to do in the community. “Oh, I know that guy,” says someone at work. “He cheated me when I bought his car.” Impressions are formed. People judge the whole church by the actions of a few. And, the right actions can open doors and hearts to conversions. The wrong actions can convince someone that I want nothing to do with those kind of people.

Helping the right side or the wrong side…sure makes a person think, doesn’t it?

Roger

21

Jump Start # 3050

Posted on March 21, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3050

2 Corinthians 5:21 ‘He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Omniscience is the word used to describe the all-knowing God. God knows. God knows everything. Now, we know a lot of things. We can split atoms, send a rocket to the moon, build electric cars that drive themselves, and beat the daily Wordle in five steps. But we don’t know how to make things out of nothing. God does. We don’t know how to create life. God does. We don’t know how to create a soul. God does. We don’t know what tomorrow will be, or even if there will be a tomorrow. God does. We don’t know what it is like to be on the other side of life. God does.

However, there is something that we know that Jesus doesn’t. Our verse today brings that to the surface. We know sin. Jesus doesn’t. He became the sin sacrifice, but He never tasted sin. He was tempted. He was tempted in all ways. He was tempted like we are. Yet, He knew no sin.

Here are some things:

  • Jesus never knew what it was like to break the heart of His Father. We do. We’ve disappointed, rebelled and walked away from God. That created a distance and a transgression in our lives. It took Jesus to restore, rebuild and reunite us to the Father.
  • Jesus never knew what it was like to tell a lie. Satan does. He lied to Eve. We do, because we’ve told lies. Lying may have been one of the first sins most of us ever committed and we told it to the people who loved us the most, our parents. And, for many of us, those lies continued. In school to our teachers, then to our coaches. We’ve lied at work. Some have lied on their taxes. Others have lied to their mates and their children. We’ve told lies to avoid getting a ticket. Jesus never lied. He never lied to the apostles. He never lied to His Father. He never lied to us. If Jesus said it, you can believe it and trust it, because He knew no lie.
  • Jesus never knew what it was like to hurt others by sin. Vows broken. Promises forgotten. Mean things said. As Ephesians states, bitterness, clamor, wrath, anger, slander, malice—all tools of mass destruction. Homes divided because of divorce. Theft. Violence. Hatred. Prejudice. Wars. The river of tears created by our sins. The disappointment because we let others down. The worry we have caused. The fear we have manifested. When Jesus showed up, people gathered. Good things was going to happen. The sick would be cured. God’s word would be taught. No one ran and hid from Jesus. There was no fear when Jesus was around, except by the demons. They knew what He was going to do to them. Can’t say that about us. There are some who are just prone to do wrong. They will hurt if they can get away with it. They will take, steal and do harm, whenever and however they can. Jesus knew no sin.
  • Jesus never uttered words that were out of place and wrong. Even in that powerful Matthew 23 exchange with the Pharisees, His words are blunt, powerful and to the point, but not condescending, not degrading, not destroying. We’ve cussed. We’ve blasphemed. We’ve threatened. We’ve spoken things in anger. Our lips have said things that should never have been said. Yet, we’ve said them. Not Jesus. Jesus knew no sin.
  • Jesus never worshipped God falsely. Oh, we have. We’ve slept in church. Our minds have been a million miles away from the words we were singing and the thoughts that we’re prayed. Some of us have worshipped God in ways He has never described or prescribed. We’ve bowed to the idols of modern religion. We’ve danced with the devil. And, while doing this, we had the time of our lives, never realizing that we were standing in the shadows of Cain, Nadab, and Jeroboam. Not Jesus. He never worshipped vainly. He never went through the motions. Jesus knew no sin.
  • Jesus never knew what it was like to have to ask for forgiveness or to apologize for being wrong. Oh, we sure have. Most of our public prayers have “forgive us for our sins,” in them somewhere. We say that often and I suppose it is because we sin often. Not Jesus. Never had to swallow His pride and tell someone He was sorry.

Yes, there are things that you and I know that Jesus doesn’t. He knows what led to our sin. He knows what our sins have done. He knows what He had to do to redeem us from our sins. However, Jesus never sinned. We know something that Jesus doesn’t know, and, this isn’t something to be proud about or to brag. I wish we didn’t know those things.

But thanks be to God for His wonderful gift of salvation in Jesus Christ. He who knew no sin became sin that we might be righteous. We can be like Jesus, forgiven, honest and Heaven bound.

Roger

18

Jump Start # 3049

Posted on March 18, 2022 by Jump Starts Daily in Jump Starts Daily | Tagged | Leave a comment

Jump Start # 3049

Revelation 20:11 “And I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and Heaven fled away, and no place as found for them.”

As I write these words, things are tough. There is a war going on in Europe that we do not know how it will end. Gas prices are at an all time high. There is just a lot of uncertainty that fills the air. But, it’s not just these times. Uncertainty is a part of life. Which team will win the championship? We don’t know. Will our investments grow and make money or will they tank? We don’t know. Even the weatherman often gets the forecast wrong. The future is simply a mixture of the unknown. And, that alone is enough to make some worry. We want to know. There are some things we simply cannot know. Thus we walk by faith and not by sight, as the apostle reminded us. Some have turned to the extremes, such as reading tea leaves, lines in one’s hand, looking at the stars or even asking questions to crystal balls. But all of those things are bogus. They are just a way for some to be taken advantage of.

However, as Revelation ends, there are five divine truths that God shares with us. This is what is coming. And, we know. We know, because God knows. We know because God has revealed. The most important things, we know. We know just what will happen.

First, Satan is punished forever. The Revelation vision has Satan being cast into the lake of fire where he will be punished for eternity. No longer able to tempt mankind, this accuser will be put where he belongs. The cartoon images of Satan jabbing people with a pitchfork in Hell is made for the comic strips. It’s not Biblical, nor hopeful. Satan will get what he deserves. We know the outcome.

Second, Christ is reigning forever. That’s a running theme not just through Revelation, but the entire Bible. God has always been on the throne. Jesus ascended to Heaven to sit on the right hand of God. There He reigns. God has always been in charge. Christ wins, that’s a simple two word description of the book of Revelation. Rome was nothing. Satan was nothing. There is no power, no forces, no times in which Jesus will not be reigning. Everything will turn out fine, and how we know that is because Jesus is reigning. Everything will turn out just as the Bible says. We know that because Jesus is reigning.

Third, Troubles will cease, at least for the righteous. The book of Revelation is filled with trials and trouble. Some would be tossed in prison. Antipas lost his life. Satan has been engaging in a war against God’s people. But as Revelation closes, so do those troubles. Troubles don’t go with us to the other side. Troubles are not resurrected as we are. Troubles will trouble us no more. Now, for those who are not righteous, they will experience trouble like they never have before. They may think their life is “hell” now. It’s nothing like the real Hell. Corruption. Arrogance. Oppression. Wars. Crime. Anger. Hatred. Evil. Wickedness. They will all end for the righteous. As one of our hymns announce about the coming of Jesus, “There is a great day coming.” It will be great.

Fourth, our story ends with us surrounding the throne of God in Heaven. That’s the picture presented. The cemetery cannot hold us. Our story does not have a “The End,” to it. Around the throne, with all the angels, and the righteous from all time, that’s the glorious conclusion to God’s story of the world. That’s where He wants us to be. That’s where we belong. The righteous that we have read about in our Bibles. The righteous that we fellowshipped and worshipped with. The righteous from other times and other lands. All of us together, rejoicing, happy and never again to be bothered by the things of the world. No lights to turn on. No doors to lock at night. No medicine to take. No cemeteries to drive by. No bad news. No tears filling our hearts.

We know the outcome. We know how all of this will end. We know because God has shown us. What blessed hope this brings us. Little to worry about. Nothing to fear. Back in the presence of God, just where we want to be.

Roger