2009-01-23 - Jesus with People - Touching the Untouchable Jesus had compassion and healed the man with leprosy - Luke 5:12-18 Jesus was different:
What Jesus did we can also do (beside healing):
Society shrinks back - hospitals are not our favorite place Somehow, we think that the person is responsible for his or her condition Job "friends" did not understand what God was doing How can I imitate Jesus by "reaching out" in compassion to the sick? |
2009-02-11 - Jesus with People - Heart Determined to Love Jesus' strongest and clearest denunciation of the Pharisees came in Matthew 23
His last and strongest words were spoken to wake them up He was trying to open their hearts and win them over to God |
2009-04-06 - Promises of God - Abrahams Faith By faith Abraham, called to place even through he did not know where is was going - Hebrews 11:8 Obedience to God is the only thing that makes sense Ludicrous to think that our limited and mortal minds can out smart an omnipotent and omnipresent God We will never find the blessing of God if we constantly question the wisdom of God How do you feel about the word of obey? |
2009-05-05 - No one like him - Dependence In Prayer Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed (Luke 5:15-16) Gave up a night - All night praying (Luke 6:12-13) Lord teach us to pray (Luke 11) – some disciples were taught to pray from infancy Prayer was more important than eating or sleeping – Jesus could no go without it Jesus called God, Father, what perceptions of a father-son relationship are correct and incorrect? We have a perception that Jesus had a great advantage over of us but Jesus needed the Father like we do. |
2009-05-07 - No one like him - His servant heart (part 2) Many ways to set our mind
Not looking for comfort Not about the way he looked Jesus saw himself as a servant, leading others to be servants How would this thinking change – marriage, family, church, workplace, neighborhood? Jesus was about meeting needs
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2009-06-03 - No one like him - The Empty Tomb (part 2) What it means for us: 1. Jesus can be trusted a. Jesus taught with truth and compassion i. No man can come to except through me c. Gives us a place to stand – embolden the disciples2. Shows the kingdom has come 3. God fully intended to continue Jesus mission a. Jesus was the foundation4. Those who follow him also share in the resurrection a. Died with Christ, now we can live a new life with him – Romans 6:4,5,8 |
2009-07-30 - A Life of Impact - Popularity Popularity Mark 10:46-52
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2009-08-01 - A Life of Impact - Anger Anger Mark 11:11-19
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2009-08-07 - A Life of Impact - A Champion A Champion Mark 12:35-37
Reprobation Mark 12:38-44
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2009-08-19 - Wild at Heart - Intro (part 1) Eve was created with the lush beauty of Eden’s garden Adam was created outside the garden – wild from the beginning Men have an insatiable longing to explore When most men come alive Discover it when they first cross the street or when they first ride their bikes to the store Adventure – all the danger and wildness (longing into the soul of men) Man needs a place where it is not prefabricated Moses – in the desert of Sinai Jacob – wrestling with God (somewhere east of Jabbok) Elijah recovered his strength in the wild So did John the Baptist and Jesus |
2009-09-01 - Wild at Heart - The wound (part 1) There comes a time when we simply have to face the challenges in our lives and stop backing down Men rarely praise each other directly - by way of accomplishments (“you are a wild man”, “what is up stud” The question – Do I have what it takes? Am I powerful? Until a man knows he’s a man he will forever be trying to prove he is one, while at the same time shrink from anything that might reveal he is not Boy learns who is he and what he’s got from a man
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2009-09-05 - Wild at Heart - Battle for a mans heart (part 1) Jesus told us to turn the other cheek. We can not turn a cheek we do not have. Church full of such men Many have their soul hanging in the balance because no one invited them to be dangerous and to know their own strength or to discover they have what it takes I feel like I have to ask for permission Nearly every blow ends up falling in the same place - against our strength Life takes one vertebra at a time until he has no spine at all Boy are 3-4 times more likely to be diagnosed as suffering from ADD Society teaches to be a nice guy -– to be soft Women are often attracted to wilder men, but once have caught him they settle down to task of domesticating him How do I get my husband to come alive? Invite him to be dangerous Women don’t start wars Violent crimes aren’t really committed by women. Our prisons aren’t filled with women |
2009-09-08 - Wild at Heart - The fathers voice (part 1) A man needs to know his name - He needs to know he has got what It takes Can not know who we are until we know God Adam knew Eve intimately - this how we need to know God. Deep knowledge comes from a process of initiation. You have to know where you come from. Some try to get their identity from others – girlfriend/wife, friends, job, and hobbies Who can we turn to for this need? God could take him on that journey, provide what is missing Who will give your name and mean something? God! There is a terrible assault Adam was created for adventure and battles; he created us for a unique place in his history Abram becomes Abraham, Jacob becomes Israel, and Saul becomes Paul |
2009-09-10 - Wild at Heart - False self (part 1) Place of our woundedness we construct a false self People can shutdown their heart and focus on what they are good at - Spock like Can become a perfectionist An impostor - don’t ever be your real self anymore because nobody likes you as you are As a defense against pain It becomes OUR plan for salvation - will fail time and time again until we give up God must take it away Those plans to protect and save us will actually destroy us - leads to death - Proverbs 16:25 Seems right to shield ourselves from pain and to save a little love There is a critical point in every man’s life True test of a man is when he starts to longer rely on what he’s used all his life Not women want a man that just exists |
2009-09-13 - Wild at Heart - False self (part 4) A masculine journey always takes a man away from the women, come back to with his question answered A man does not go to a woman to get his strength; he goes to her to offer it. Addiction comes when we have taken our soul to her for validation. What else are we looking for? God Adam had God God gave Adam Eve out of His humility Eve eventually took the place of God Adam was not deceived Time where Eve had fallen but Adam had not Adam choose Eve over God Men without his true love, God, will try to find another Why do you remain thirsty after you have had a drink… it is the wrong well In God will only find the true healing of the wound |
2009-09-17 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 3) Wound unfelt is wound unhealed Door may be your anger – perhaps from a girl, failure The way to God is stopping the false self It may a simple prayer – Jesus, take me into my wound Jesus never seems to heal the same way twice There are no formulas with God Insists on working personally Masculinity is bestowed by masculinity Healing never happens outside of intimacy with Christ It begins with surrender; until you have given yourself to him you will not have a real self …to set you free – What? Your heart So take him at his word – ask him in to heal all the broken places within you But you can’t do this at a distance I simply allow myself to say that the loss of my father mattered Important for us to grieve our wound Grieving we admit the truth, we hurt by someone we loved Few men are ever so vulnerable as to simply let themselves be loved by God Why don’t you just let God love you? The imitate union with Jesus and with his Father is the source of all healing and all our strength Unforgiveness and bitterness can wreck our lives and the lives of others – Ephesians 4:31, Hebrews 12:15 Forgiveness is setting a prisoner free and then discovering the prisoner was you. |
2009-09-19 - Wild at Heart - Healing the wound (part 5) Until we are broken, our life will be self-centered, self-reliant, our strength will be our own. So long as you think you are really something in and of yourself, what will you need God for? Think of the poser you know – are they the kind of man you would call 2am, when life is collapsing around you? Where a man’s wound is, that is where his genius will be. Because the wound was given in the place of your true strength Out of your brokenness that you discover what you have to offer the community When we begin to offer not merely our gifts but our true selves, that is when we become powerful That is when we are ready for battle |
2009-09-20 - Wild at Heart - The Enemy (part 1) Any castles? Any great battles? Are there any great dragons? A man needs a battle to fight Early death of a man’s warriors keeps the boy in him from growing up If we can reawaken that fierce quality in a man – higher purpose, release the warrior within, then the boy can grow up and become truly masculine Every man is a warrior inside but the choice to fight is his own A man must have a battle to fight, a great mission to his life that involves and yet transcends even home and family. He must have a cause to which he is devoted even unto death – in the fabric of our being That is why God created you. Your whole life is in preparation for The lie from the enemy is that your role is insignificant No other man can replace you You are the hero in your own story - the main man A warrior has a vision Root of all our woes and false self was this: We are seeking to save our life and we lost it “Who ever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it” – Mark 8:35 For years all my daily energy was spent trying to beat the trails in my life and arrange for a little pleasure. Mercenary fights for pay, for his own benefit, his life is devoted to himself |
2009-09-23 - Wild at Heart - The Enemy (part 4) The world is a carnival of counterfeits, counterfeit battles. Counterfeit adventures, counterfeit beauties Men should think of it as a corruption of their strength Battle your way to the top says the world and you will be a man World give a false sense of security
Want to know how the world really feels about you – start living out your true strength Say what you think, stand for the underdog, challenge foolish polices Many of us have actually been afraid to let our strength show up because the world doesn’t have a place for it |
2009-10-12 - Wild at Heart - The Strategy (part 5) We don’t need accountability groups we need fellow warriors, someone to fight alone side, someone to watch our back We don’t need a meeting of the Really Nice Guys Never a more devoted group of men than those who have fought alongside one another You will be wounded To lose a leg is nothing compared to losing heart Enemy knows the wounds of your past and he will try to wound you again in the same place It is an honor to be wounded in the service of the Lord Boys are proud of their scars, they are badges of honor Kingdom forcefully advances and forceful men take hold of it - Matthew 11:12 Jesus says it is going to take every ounce of passion and forcefulness you’ve got |
2009-11-10 - Repentance - Transfigure Our Minds (part 3) Issue with Lust
Apply spiritual disciplines with dramatically different results How would Jesus think? Once you see the world through God’s eyes your mind and heart become so transformed that you “automatically” respond to every situation differently Questions
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2009-11-20 - Repentance - Its Time To Go Home (part 2) Where are you on this path? Are you part of “all people, everywhere”? Good, you quality for the command to repent – Acts 17:26-27; 30-31 Ignorance of Jesus perpetuates a self-focused paradigm Jesus is Lord – changes our heart, mind-set, allegiances, purpose, and agenda Subsequent repentance has lesser fan fare (like 2nd to the moon or Mt. Everest Satan doesn’t want you to know that he created your dilemma His scheme:
Shame is the greatest obstacle to post-baptismal repentance How to escape? You already have – Trust god’s grace Light is not a place of condemnation |
2010-01-16 - Kingdom First - Above and Beyond (part 2) If someone forces you to go one mile; go two - Matthew 5:41-42 3. Addressed going to the extra mile Roman law said you were required to carry a certain amount of baggage to another place Such a law and its frequent use of it cause great resentment among the Jews Jesus said we should go beyond what our authorities required Message condemns any resentment we may feel against a legitimate authority If reform seems necessary, we should seek it - 1 Corinthians 7:21-23 Should be done with lawful means God demonstrates his own love for us He gave up revenge, rights, and his energy for us While we were sinners, Christ died for us - Romans 5:6-7 |
2010-02-12 - First the Kingdom - Expectations 1. Jesus promised to judge us at the last day by his words - John 12:48 Ignorance is anything but bliss Reliance on the teaching of the religious is dangerous 2. Jesus intends for us to act on his words once we have heard them Knowing without doing is worse than not knowing in the first place - Luke 12:47-48 To hear the Word without obey is to be self-deceived - James 1:22-25 3. Storms of life are a reality Disciples will in one way will have more storms because the persecution they face 4. The type of value system we have will be revealed It will be revealed via the storms we face - our foundation (faith) will be tested - 1 Corinthians 3:11 |
2010-02-14 - One Another - Bearing With Another (part 1) How are we to bear with someone sin?
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2010-03-02 - To Live is Christ - Partners in the Gospel Philippians 1:16 Philippi was named for Philip of Macedon It was a roman colony - not actually a place one would expect the message of Jesus to take hold A roman jail is where you would expect Paul and Silas to be Paul made a career of being with other and influencing their lives - reduced to visits from the guards Through many hard times he had learned to overcome the most challenging of circumstances Five lines into the letter, Paul remembers his relationship with God and other disciples:
Only when we have been in the trenches with others will we have relationships that are full of life |
2010-04-24 - Life to the Full - In His Steps (part 5) According to Peter, evangelism must be:
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2010-05-02 - Renewing Your Spiritual Passion for God (part 1) Preached by Richard Dixson (1997-05-18) 1 Samuel 16:7
Psalms 51:4-9
Psalms 63:2-4 - Remember God's Power Psalms 63:6-7 - The night bed and protection from God Psalms 91:4 - We are being attacked all the time Psalms 63:8 - Confidence - God holds us up |
2010-05-11 - World Hates Jesus (part 3)
John 5:16-23
John 6:68-69
What are you going to do? |
2010-05-30 - Desire's Journey - Assault on Desire Battle of desire is not something that just takes place with us or even between us - but against us Advirtisers play on our desire of creating an image that everyone who is anyone has the object for sale The evil one has two ploys:
Our addictions are our own worst enemies Like the rich, young ruler - we find we can not give up our treasures even though God has something much better |
2010-05-31 - Desire's Journey - Cruel or Kind? Sometimes God seems cruel:
Isn't this the reason we fear to desire in the first place? Unless we understand our desperate hearts and our tenacity to arrange life as we want it - these events seem cruel Eden - we had it all but we threw it away by mistrusting God's heart and taking control of what we wanted Addiction exists whenever persons are internally compelled to give energy to things that are not their true desires Addition becomes our idol - we must give it up |
2010-07-03 - Desire's Journey - Great Restoration (part 4) Too many of us have placed eternity somewhere out there I will create new heavens and a new earth - Revelation 21:1 Won't the whole earth be destroyed? Noah's day of the Lord |
2010-07-06 - Desire's Journey - The Grand Affair (part 3) On that day, Jesus appears and announces himself as the Bridegroom - Matthew 9:15 Jesus makes his proposal: I will prepare a place for you - John 14:2-3 We have become betrothed to the Bidegroom The whole life of the good Christian is a holy longing - Augustine |
2010-07-11 - Desire's Journey - The Adventure Begins (part 3) You would expect:
More often than not we think of godliness only in moral terms We are made like God because we are to be like God on earth - Genesis 1:26 We humans beings are never happier than when we are expressing the deepest gifts that are truly us The opportunity reveals the our creative nature All we want is to be released to be who we are God has created us and our gifts for a place of his choosing Our creative nature is essential to who we are as image bearers It brings us great joy to live it out with freedom and skill |
2010-07-13 - Desire's Journey - The Adventure Begins (part 5) Creation awaits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed - Romans 8:19 The kingdom of God prepared for you since the creation of the world - Matthew 25:31-34 He will put the faithful and wise servant in charge of all his possessions - Matthew 24:47 They will reign forever and ever - Revelation 22:5 We will take the position for which we have uniquely made and will rule with him Much of the activity of God in our lives brings us to the place where we can be entrusted To each their own Each person will live out the passion of their heart - given by God The kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it - Revelation 21:24 Hard to believe that we can add anything to the splendor of God That is exactly what we are designed for and what our future involves |
2010-07-22 - Desire's Journey - Orchestra like worship You may have heard an orchestra tuning up before a concert Then the violins plays a long C and all the instruments join in The the players become focused, centered, and ready to preform This is what happens with chaos of our desires when we turn our souls to God in worship All the other desires find their place as we give God his place Delight yourself int he Lord and he he will give you the desires of our hearts - Psalms 37:4 Our delighting in God, he heals our false desires as our souls come true in the light of the Maker Worship becomes the means by which we most deeply heal our desire |
2010-07-27 - Desire's Journey - Letting Go (part 4) If we do not give our ache a voice, it does not go away It becomes an undercurrent of our addictions Pleasure becomes necessary in larger and larger doses The paradox of grief is that it is healing - somehow it restores our souls Control is the enemy; grief is our friend When we let go of controlling, something better takes its place - mourning Comfort is in store for those who mourn and healing for the brokenhearted - Isaiah 61 This idea was the center of Jesus' mission None of this makes sense until we admit our brokenheartedness and give our sorrow a voice in mourning Only then will we know His comfort Solomon said that it is better to go to the house of mourning that it is to a house of feasting We need to mourn, it is the only way our hearts can remain both free and alive in this world |
2010-08-10 - Waking Dead - Myths (part 1) Myth - sometimes thought of as not factual true Jacob saw earth in a whole new way in his dream - Genesis 28:12 |
2010-08-13 - Waking Dead - Heart of All Things Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life - Proverbs 4:23 Tin man had once been a real man
After a series of blows, his humanity was reduced to efficiency If we can disable or deaden your heart, then we have effectively foiled the plan of God |
2010-08-17 - Waking Dead - Thoughts and Courage of the Heart Our deepest thoughts are held in our hearts Our behavior is driven by our heart Scripture judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart - Hebrews 4:12 Not the feelings of the heart but the thoughts It is with your heart you believe and are justified - Romans 10:10 They hear with their ears and understand with their hearts - Matthew 13:!5 The heart is the dwelling place of our true beliefs It takes courage to love and takes courage to follow Jesus Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid - John 14:27 Courage > Old French cuer > Latin cor = heart The battle for the heart is going to take all the courage you can muster |
2010-08-18 - Waking Dead - Point of all Living Everything you love is what makes a life worth living Action: Set down the book and make a list of all the things you love
Jesus was asked what was most important He boiled it down to loving God and loving others - everything else will fall into place The heart is the connecting point; can not love without it If we can truly love, be loved, and never lose love - we would be finally truly happy If we worship efficiency, we can not grow in our love Some try to master all sort of principles and and never know God intimately, heart to heart. If do all sorts of Christian things without knowing God, he will say "I never knew you" - Matthew 7:22-23 The point is not the activity but intimacy with God Taking a course on anatomy won't help you love you spouse Taking a religion class will not help you love God You will find God when you seek him with all of your heart - Jeremiah 29:13 |
2010-09-02 - Waking Dead - Ask God
When Christ arose, he did not let Peter sweep the whole matter under the rug - John 21:15-17 It would have haunted the old fisherman for the rest of his life Most of us try to "put things behind us"
Jesus was asked would he feed his sheep times - for each betrayal Lessons that have been laid down in pain can be accessed only by pain Christ must open the wound not just bandage it over Instead of burying the pain, ask God what he is wanting to speak to you |
2010-09-06 - Waking Dead - Deep Restoration (part 3) Chris came not only to pardon us but to heal us Jesus can and wants to heal your heart. What does that rouse in you?
The heart is God's dwelling place If you ignore your heart, it is like looking for him everywhere but at home It might be a surprise to you that Christ ask our permission to come in and heal Behold, I stand at the door and knock - Revelation 3:20 He does not force his way in There are sometimes rooms we have kept locked up We must give him permission to come in there - ask Jesus for your whole heart back |
2010-09-07 - Waking Dead - Deep Restoration (part 4) We need time in the presence of the Lord - Pslam 86:11-12
We declare the authority of Jesus over our hearts - he made our hearts - Psalms 33:15 He has redeemed our hearts - Romans 2:29 Sometimes he will take us back to a memory, a time and place where a shattering blow was given Anytime someone says, "I feel like there's this part of me..." we need to listen - somewhere in the heart Hidden many times because of a false comfort |
2010-09-08 - Waking Dead - Deep Restoration (part 5) Our sin give the enemy a certain claim to our lives - Romans 6:16 As we renounce any sin, we also renounce any claim we've given to Satan in our lives This often comes in the form of "agreements" - Satan has suggested something to us and we have said yes.
As long as we have unhealed places in our hearts, it is next to impossible to live in freedom and victory No matter how much discipline we apply to it Our enemy knows them well and trying undermine us and uses it against us with a disabling effect |
2010-09-19 - Waking Dead - Setting the Heart Free All spiritual warfare follows a simple pattern - James 4:7 Submit and resist Submit ourselves to Christ and resist whatever has come against us or those we love Their needs to "dailyness" to our walk 1. We have to choose to abide in Christ Consecrate our whole body:
Take our place under the headship of Christ The faith of centurion, he understood authority - Matthew 8:10 Most sins fall under:
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2010-09-22 - Waking Dead - It Must Be Small Jesus did not march around backed by hundreds of followers He had a band of brothers - the Twelve Through we are part of a great company, we are meant to live a little platoons Groups small enough for each of the members to know one another as friends and allies Who's heart will you fight for? Who will fight for your heart? He spoke to the masses but lived with his closest twelve His followers took his example and lived this way too
Anytime an army goes to war or expedition, they break down into platoons and squads You can not be devoted to a mass of people Devotion takes place in small units like a family |
2010-09-28 - Waking Dead - Devotion and War Caring for your heart is also how you protect your relationship with God Your heart is where life flows Whoever believes in me - streams of living water will flow from within him - John 7:27-38 God's friends care for their heart because they matter to Him What does your heart need? Some needs are common to all hearts like silence and solitude Very early Jesus went away to a solitary place - Mark 1:35 We need to make time to get away - our entire lives are ruled by the expectation of others and the heart is the first to go The enemy will tell you this is foolish "You have many more important things to do with your time" Caring for your heart is an act of obedience, faith and an act of war The first wave of any strike against us is to rob us of the heart to fight it Hyenas cannot bring down a lion in its prime - they run it, taunt it, and wear it down to the point of exhaustion The strategy of our Enemy in the age we live is busyness and drivenness Most will say when asked how they are doing is "really busy" That we way we are going to get burned out and lose touch with our hearts The empty heart is more vulnerable to temptation |
2010-10-01 - Contagious Christian - Benefits (part 1) Ever had an idea only to find your enthusiasm fading when you realize the effort it would take? The goal may be noble, the intentions sincere, the plan in place but we still do not take action What is holding us back? We must be convinced that it is worth the effort and expense Business managers understand this and have developed process called cost/benefit analysis to help them see the whole picture In Christianity, this is called counting the cost - Luke 14 While reaching out to irreligious people may sound great, it is the actual effort that will entail significant personal expense Personal Benefits
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2010-10-31 - Contagious Christian - Barriers to Relationships (part II) 1 Corinthians 15:33 - Bad company corrupts good character
Jesus not only risked his reputation but ruined it He was accused of being a glutton and a drunkard - Luke 7:34 Tells you want kind of people He was around Jesus said that He associated with sinners because they are sick people that need a doctor - Matthew 9:12-13 The danger was that the doctor may be mistaken as one of His patients The religious people mutter how inappropriate it was for Him to associate with such disreputable people Jesus cared much about the lost than his reputation |