Holy Week

Yesterday (Wednesday), I bought a new Bible at Mardel's for only $15. It is bound in European leather. It is the TNIV Study Bible. What a great buy! Everytime I pick up a NIV/TNIV Study Bible I am reminded of what a great Bible it is. I think it is truly one of the best. I own several copies of the NIV Study Bible but not the TNIV Bible. This morning I spent about an hour purusing the 2000 page study bible. I found myself oneself again amazed at the quantity of information that is in the Scriptures. Quickly turning page after page, I found myself caught up in the biblical story. How amazing it is to consider the fact that God has been unfolding his salvation history for thousands of years!

I am expecially interested in parts of the Gospels which relate to the events surrounding Holy Week. Page 1658 in my TNIV Study Bible provide details abou Last Week of Christ's life.

• Sunday -- the Triumphal Entry (Matthew 21:1-11)
• Monday -- Cursing the Fig Tree (Matthew 21:18-19) & Clearing the Temple (21:12-13)
• Tuesday -- Jesus Questioned; Temple Teaching; Anointing in Bethany (21:23-23:39; 26:6-13)
• Silent Wednesday
• Thursday -- Last Supper; Comfort Disciples; Gethsemane, Arrest (Matt 26:17-29; John 14:1-16:33; Matt 26:36-46; 26:47-27:26)
• Friday -- Crucifixion and Burial (Matt 27:-46,57-66)

Because today is Thursday of Holy Week, we remember the Last Supper meals Jesus had with his disciples. We remember how he comforted them and then went to Gethsemene to recent comfort from his Father. Then he was arrested, tried, and on "Good" Friday he was crucified.

296 Lifestyle

This Sunday we continue our series of messages based on 2 Corinthians 9:6 which teaches the importance of "sowing and reaping." Just as farmers understand the importance of sowing seed to reap a harvest, Paul encourages Christians to understand that our financial resources are entrusted to us by God to use for the betterment not only of our lives but for the kingdom of God.  

Part of the reason we do not give more of our financial resources to benefit God's kingdom around the world, is because of the type of lifestyle many of us in America live.  We make choices that often prevent us from being generous in ways that God instructs.  The bottom line is that we need to adjust our lifestyles in America and European countries to relfect the true values we claim as Christians.

This series of message is devoted to chaning our lifestyles to change the world! 

The message database can be found here: http://woodlawnbc.org/349669.ihtml 

The the series of messages and what they will be about can be found here: http://woodlawnbc.org/356744.ihtml

WorshiPs96

Tomorrow morning, I begin a new sermon series based on Psalm 96 and focusing on the important theme of Worship.  We live during a period of time in which churches are engaged in "worship wars." Books are being written to help churches navigate through this suprisingly difficult time in the church.  

Final Instructions

This Sunday morning we will look at the last sections of 1 Thessalonians 5. Verses 12-18 contain examples of instructions which Paul wants to leave with the church. One of my favorite verses is found in this section (vs 16) which says "Be joyful always" which is followed by (vs 17) which says "pray continually." It is often said that "Jesus wept." (John 11:35) is the shortest verse in the Bible. However, in the Greek New Testament vs 16 is even shorter.

• John 11:35 has 16 letters
• 1 Thess 5:16 has 14 letters
  

Other short verses here include:

• 1 Thess 5:17 has 22 letters.
• 1 Thess 5:19 has 18 letters

A Thief in the Night

This Sunday morning I will be preaching on 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11 which is a passage where Paul directly takes the issue of the return of Jesus. The so called "second coming of Christ" is an important theme in the New Testament. The term Paul uses is parousia which means "appearing" or "coming." The language of "coming" invokes the tripartite universe that ancient people, like the Greeks and Romans, expected. Basically heaven is above, the earth is the middle region, and there is a lower region. The coming of Jesus would then be the great event signalling the moment when God would finally break into the world and bring his justice upon the earth. This was the great hope of the OT prophets who prophesied just such an event. Technically this field of study is called eschatology which means "study of end times."

Paul emphasizes several things. One, he emphasizes the inevitability of the return of Christ, in spite of the delay. Two, he emphasizes the tragedy that this return will be mean for many people who are unaware and unprepared. Third, he stresses the fact that God's people will be saved not destroyed through this. Paul uses the word "wrath" to describe God's righteous judgment which will fall upon the world.

In Acts 17, Paul stood at Mars Hill and preached to the Athenian philosophers and the pagan scholars of the time. He preached about Jesus and about God's great plan for the world. Paul drove the point home with these words:

"In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. ³¹ For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:30-31 NIV)

These words of Paul are a reminder of Jewish eschatology which includes the idea that the one true God will act in the future by bring his righteous judgment upon the world. This will happen in a singular day sometimes called "Yom Yahweh" which is Hebrew for the day of the Lord.

July 28, 2008

It is hard to believe that it is already July 28. The summer is half gone. For many, school will be starting back. Cooler weather is around the corner. However, since we live in Texas there will be many more warm days ahead.

With the summer winding down, my sermon series on God of This City, a study of the book of 1 Thessalonians, is coming to an end. There are only four sermons left and these include:

1. A Case of Rapture (1 Thess 4:13-18) -- August 3
   
2. A Thief in the Night (1 Thess 5:1-11) -- August 10
   
3. Follow These Instructions . . . (1 Thess 5:12-18) -- August 17
   
4. The Spirit's Fire (1 Thess 5:19-28) -- August 24

Contending for the Faith (Jude 1)

This afternoon because we did not have Sunday evening service, I spent some time thinking and reading through the book of Jude. It is an interesting letter which challenges Christians in the first century to be ever vigilant in regard to their faith. Jude uses the key word faith differently than how other authors use it. For Jude faith is not about salvation or a life of good works but rather it is about doctrine, pure and simple. Jude calls on believers to "contend for the faith" that was given to Christians once and for all.

In the realm of the academic, contending for the faith is sometimes called apologetics. Apologetics comes from the Greek word apologia meaning, a defense of the faith. Christian apologetics is a reasoned defense of one's faith. All of us use apologetics in one way or another because all of us enter into conversations and debates about our faith. Who of us has not gotten into a discussion about the Trinity or about creation? The release of a recent movie by Ben Stein entitled Expelled has led to some controversy concerning the origin of the universe (creation vs evolution). As Christians our non-believer friends and family members want us to be able to provide a "reasoned" explanation for why we believe. This is apologetics and this is an important subject for anyone who wants to be taken seriously as a Christian in the 21st century.