"Sermon Notes"

Sermon Notes for June 13

2010-06-15T10:03:00.000-07:00

SERMON NOTES

LET US GROW TOGETHER

OBJECT LESSON: Branch removed from bush (blantanly looking dead)

Question: Do you feel like this spiritually?

Point: It cannot survive without the rest of the bush (John 15: 4 & 5)

CALL TO WORSHIP (Lord, I want to Be A Christian)

What is it that you want this morning?

Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart.

What is it that the Lord can help you with?

Lord, I want to be more loving in my heart.

OPENING PRAYER

Lord, I want to be a Christian in my heart. Soften my heart to hear how I shall grow. Awaken with me the desire to be more loving and to be more like Jesus.

PASSING OF THE PEACE

SCRIPTURE:

QUESTION: How many years have you been a Christian?

TWO WEEKS AGO: Matthew 22:1 - 9 (Wedding Party: Come as you are - all invited)

LAST WEEK: Matthew 22: 11-12 (to remain at the Party: must receive grace)

kicked out of the wedding for not wearing wedding clothes (metaphor not receiving the grace)

THIS WEEK:

PROBLEM: We Need To Grow

QUESTION: How long (years) have you been a Christian?

GROWTH REQUIRES CHANGE

QUESTION: Who likes change?

IMPLICATION: If I am the one implementing it (my idea). Then change is good

If it is someone else's idea. Then change is bad

SPIRITUAL CHANGE REQUIRES: Good Soil (Puppet Message)

OBSERVATION: To grow good plants

the secret is the soil. (good, rich stinky soil)

fertilize often

POINT: Spiritual growth same way

QUESTION: What kind of soil do people need to become what God intended?

IMPLICATION: Sometimes the most spiritual people have stinky previous lives

NEED: One good reason to OPEN WIDELY THE DOORS

A culture (DNA) allowing stinky lives to enter (my friend)

Requiring: Grace (Come as You Are)

Admitting: No Perfect People Exist

FIRST QUESTION: deep down inside, do you feel that you are all of who

God intended you to be? Fully grown. Fully spiritually mature?

SECOND QUESTIONS:

Do you love like in I Corinthians 13?

Do you serve like the parable of the sheep & goats (Matt 25)?

Do you financial give like David, out of sacrifice and not excess?

Do you give the shirt off your back when asked (Matthew 5)

Do you walk with God like Enoch

Do you have a heart like David?

Do you trust like Esther?

SCRIPTURE: John 10:10b (Jesus said)

I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (abundant life)

THIRD QUESTION: is there room for improvement?

IMPLICATION: Cannot improve without change.

POINT: Open Widely the Doors; Come as you are....but don’t stay that way (Mt 22:11)

God loves us, just as we are, as is; but is also looking for us to grow.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 10:22 - 25

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience … And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another.

POINT: a church of authenticity (Come as you are … but don’t stay that way)

QUESTION: So how are we to change?

IMPLICATION: There’s so much more we can be

God wants us to walk with us in this change

GOAL OF THIS CHANGE: Love

PUPPET MESSAGE

SCRIPTURE: Corinthians 3:6-7

Paul said, “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow

QUESTION: Do you believe it?

SCRIPTURE: John 15: 4 - 5

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful apart from me. Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.

POINT: remain in relationship (disconnected nothing grows)

Then fruit will appear / Growth will happen

You cannot accomplish or become who he created you to be without him. Without staying connected to him, you can gain the whole world—but lose everything of eternal value and worth in the process!

PURPOSE OF LIFE: Relationship with God

QUESTION: How do we do this?

#1 (How do we "know thyself"?)

#2 (How can we be "feed"?)

Regular Personal Inventory.

Socrates declared that “the unexamined life is not worth living.”

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 139: 23 - 24 (prayer)

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

See if there is any offensive way in me,

and lead me in the way everlasting.

REQUIRES: Grace

QUESTION: How do we do this?

ANSWER: Many different ways (important: what works best for you)

A. Asking why you do the things you do

B. Spiritual Discipline checklist

C. Scripture: (Sermon on the Mount, etc.)

D. Prayer: ask God, “what do you want me to work on?

E. Covenant Group (triad)

2. Regular Basis Feeding (Puppet Message: Water & Fertilizer)

A. Worship

B. Small Group

C. Wherever you feel feed by God

CHALLENGE: How much do you want to grow this year? and in what ways?

THEREFORE: Pick one of the above and challenge yourself to work on it.

May 23 - PENTECOST

2010-05-24T10:16:00.001-07:00

Sermon Notes

Pentecost 2009

Passing of the Peace

Question: What do you do in the midst of a crisis?

Retreat or eat? Hold up or Party? Sleep or Work? Easy or Right thing?

INTRO TO PENTECOST

Today is Pentecost. Pentecost is the 50^th day after Passover. It is both a Harvest Festival and a celebration of the receiving of the law.

INTRO

Question: What are the different images in the OT representing the presence of God?

We are all different and some of the images may resonate over others

SCRIPTURE: Exodus 3:2

EX 3:1 Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. 3 So Moses thought, "I will go over and see this strange sight--why the bush does not burn up."

POINT

God often times appears in the form of fire/light

SCRIPTURE: Exodus

21 By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

POINT

During the exodus, the Hebrews followed by God, when they followed the fire.

OLD TESTAMENT: Ruah (wind/breath/spirit)

NEW TESTAMENT: Penuma (wind/breath/spirit)

SCRIPTURE: Leviticus 16:2

2 The LORD said to Moses: "Tell your brother Aaron not to come whenever he chooses into the Most Holy Place behind the curtain in front of the atonement cover on the ark, or else he will die, because I appear in the cloud over the atonement cover.

POINT: Aaron (the High Priest) can only enter the Most Holy Place (once a year: Day of Atonement)

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 27: 50 & 51

50And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

51At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.

POINT: The veil no longer separates the ark (God) from the people.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 4:14

14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens,[e] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. 16Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

POINT: Jesus is THE High Priest

We can access the throne directly.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE (Acts 1)

The book of Acts is what the church did after Jesus was resurrected and ascended into heaven.

SCRIPTURE: Acts 1:4

4On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: "Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.

SCRIPTURE: Acts 1:8 (theme verse for the book of Acts)

Jesus said (after resurrection) before ascending to heaven:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

WHERE: “to the ends of the earth.” (NEW SERMON SERIES: OPEN DOORS)

NOTE: Matthew 28: 19 – 20 GREAT COMMISSION (purpose of the church):

Jesus said (after resurrection):

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

QUESTION: How will this be achieved?

ANSWER: When the (church) individual receives POWER.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE (Acts 2)

The disciples were waiting for the power as they gathered together in worship.

SCRIPTURE: Acts 2: 1 & 2

AC 2:1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.

SCRIPTURE: Acts 2: 3

3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them.

REMEMBER: Matthew 27:51 (curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom)

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 8:6

But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, and it is founded on better promises.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 9:15

HEB 9:15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance--now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 12:4

4 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

SCRIPTURE: Romans 5:2

RO 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God

SCRIPTURE: Ephesians 2:18

For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.

QUESTION:

What did this do them?

4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

POINT

Pentecost is the birth of the church. Pentecost is a reminder that each of us have direct access to God.

PROBLEM:

Acts 1:4 - WAIT (until they receive the POWER)

Acts 1:8 - GO (When you receive the POWER)

Acts 2 - STAYED (did not go, instead they Party On in Jerusalem)

OBSERVATION: Sometimes the church does not DO until it is in CRISIS

Sometimes we as individuals are the same way. Sometimes we do not DO the right thing until we are in the midst of crisis. Sometimes it is is crisis that causes us to do the right thing.

CHALLENGE

On Pentecost we celebrate each of us having been called into ministry to be the church. If you feel like God is calling you into a deeper ministry here at the church, Or if you wouLd like to participate in the ministry of helping others get more involved in ministry contact LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT.

Sermon Notes: April 25, 2010

2010-04-26T16:48:00.000-07:00

SHOWING INSTEAD OF TELLING

Sermon Notes

John 15

INTRO

Today is CHANGE THE WORLD Sunday.

So, we are going to talk about one of the essentials to CHANGE THE WORLD.

Question: Do you want to change the world? Why? To what?

Passing of the Peace

Scripture:

When an EMT arrives on an accident scene, they check for vital signs:

(pulse, breathing, etc.)

Question: Imagine yourself as an EMT and you arrive at a church

and you check for vital signs, what do you check for?

What is one vital sign of the church?

Call to Worship

What does God call us to do?

To Love God and others.

To be love driven and sharing that love beyond ourselves into the world.

OPENING PRAYER

Lord, we are called to be love driven. We are called to emulate the full extent of

your love. Help us to Change the World through your love. Amen.

LAST WEEK

John 13: “full extent of his love” = CROSS

PUPPET

There are many reasons to attend worship

A. Tradition

Obligated
Fun
Inspirational

There are many reasons to be a part of a church

Relationships
Involvement

INTRO TO JOHN 15 (Farewell Discourse)

This section (Book of Glory: the path to the cross), Jesus is teaching the disciples that he will still be connected (remaining in relationship) with the disciples even though he is going to the cross. In moments: Garden of Gethsemane

CHANGE IS ABOUT TO TAKE PLACE: 3 years of relationship with Jesus / cross

Jesus speaks about three relationships that involve the disciples:

their relationship with him,
their relationship with one another, and
their relationship with the world around them.

John 15:1-11 is about the relationship of the disciples with Jesus. The very existence of the group depended on the union of each individual with Christ. Jesus uses the analogy of the vine.

VINEYARDS - are cool (Napa & Paso)

orderly and they are pruned ???

In Judaism, Jewish people were quite familiar with vines and their maintenance. Most likely they could have easily seen the vines of Israel during this discourse. And even possibly the great golden vine, the national emblem of Israel, on the front of the temple.

SCRIPTURE: John 15

1"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.

Last of the “I am” statements (Exodus 3:14

2He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful.

4 Players

Vinedresser (God)

Vine (Jesus)

Branches (Us)

Fruit (works)

NOTICE: Cannot bear fruit, unless we are in relationship with God (connected).

POINT: Need to remain connected to the vine,

the disciples need to remain connected to Jesus

we need to remain connected to Jesus

point: if we remain connected, we will bear fruit

Question: what is the fruit that you bear?

a grape vine produces grapes

A GOD vine produces what kind of fruit?

And when we are not bearing fruit, does that mean we have severed ourselves from the god vine?

Are there times that we feel severed from the vine?

TO PRODUCE FRUIT

we need to remain connected

a grape vine produces grapes

what are you producing

to grow spiritually, we need to remain connected and produce fruit

NOTE

This is the last “I am” statements of Jesus. Notice that the vine is not the People of God in this case, but Jesus.

SCRIPTURE: John 15:4

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

POINT: The following verses remind us that we cannot bear fruit unless connected to THE VINE.

QUESTION TO PONDER

How connected are we to God and to each other

POINT: GENUINE/AUTHENTIC Followers of Jesus bear fruit

IMPLICATION: Not pew warmers (called to be in the game: GO!)

Not here to be entertained, but to SERVE

VITAL SIGNS OF THE CHURCH: FRUIT

SCRIPTURE: John 15:8

This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

QUESTION: What kind of fruit?

SCRIPTURE: Galatians 5:22-23

22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control.

NOTICE: First on the list is LOVE

This is probably why, we see:

SCRIPTURE: John 15:9

9"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.

AGAPE/LOVE/CHARITY

Agape was a generic word for love (greeks have a word for everything). They like specific/exact words, thus agape was hardly used because it was generic. when Christians were talking about love, they wanted a word for love that was different than the usual greek words for love, and pulled agape “off the back shelf of the closet” and redefined it as: grace/unconditional-love.

CELSUS: Critic of Christianity (2nd Century)

In one of the oldest literary attacks on Christianity

True Discourses

“These Christians love each other even before they are acquainted.”

John 13:

they will know we are Christians by our love

TODAY

WHAT IS YOUR CRITICISM OF US?

NO FRUIT, NO LOVE

NO LOVE, NO FRUIT

IF NO FRUIT,

WHAT THEN?

GET CONNECTED TO THE VINE (ReJesus)

Return to your first love (Rev 3)

Some folks act like a branch

that does not want to be connected to vine

and they are trying to bear fruit

BACK TO JOHN 15:1

"I AM the TRUE vine

I don’t know what that means to you,

but to me....it means, I need to be connected to Jesus

if not, i won’t produce fruit.

And then he connects TRUE,

i suppose there are a lot of vines, and things that look like the vine

but Jesus is THE TRUE VINE

we can’t do it on our own, we need to be connected to Jesus

and to each other.

JESUS IS LORD!

Sermon Notes: April 18, 2010

2010-04-18T17:55:00.001-07:00

Sermon Notes

April 18, 2009

A New Commandment

PASSING OF THE PEACE

Scripture: Luke 10 (Good Samaritan)

Question: Which one are you? Being helped onto the donkey? Or helping?

CALL TO WORSHIP (John 13:34 & 35)

Jesus Gave us a New Commandment

Love One Another

Question: How well do you “love one another”?

LAST WEEK, Greg preached on “love our enemies”?

How well do WE, as a church, “love one another”?

INTRO TO JOHN 13

Beginning of a new section in John (2nd half of the gospel). The first half, Book of Signs (regarding Jewish institutions/festivals) (public ministry); the second half Book of Glory (the cross) (public ministry). Thus the Book of Glory is focused on one sign, one event; the cross. The cross is not a tragedy, but New Wine. CROSS is a new paradigm

SCRIPTURE: JOHN 13:1

1It was just before the Passover Feast.

PASSOVER

A new feast for Jesus to reinterpret or fulfill (old wine to new wine).

LAST SUPPER/Holy Communion

Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father.

TIME HAD COME (hour had come)

prior to this moment (“my hour had not come” (john 2? etc.?) (1st half: book of signs)

But now, it’s time!

The focus is now on the disciples (as before it was beyond the disciples)

Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

FULL EXTENT OF HIS LOVE - you ever hold back your love?

There are many good reasons to hold back your love (full extent of his love)

1. risk

2. vulnerability

REMEMBER: Call to worship

how wel do you love one another

how well do WE love one another

However, if love is unconditional, does that impact the issue of risk?

Jesus is preparing the disciples for his “full extent of his love”

First Act of “full extent of his love” - Foot Washing

SCRIPTURE: John 13: 2 - 17

Foot washing is a menial task.

According to some Jewish sources,

Jewish slaves were exempt (only Gentiles)

Jesus washes the feet of his disciples,

by first wrapping a towel around himself(13:4)the posture of a slave

serve:

Jesus is to serve us as a ransom (CROSS)

A NEW COMMANDMENT: LOVE

SCRIPTURE: John 13: 34 & 35

34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.

POINT: We are to love as Jesus loved. Jesus is the model (WWJD)

And, as Jesus was about to show his “full extent of his love”

we are to show the extent of our love

In other words, don’t hold back: RISK

35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."

POINT: The Litmus Test for Church & Us as followers: LOVE

In other words, what is a christian? someone who loves like Jesus

What should Christians do better than non christians: love

The reputation of each church should be love (above anything else)

GREG Preached on this last week: Love Your Enemies

POINT: Followers of Jesus are to show a quality of love unparalleled in the world

IN OTHER WORDS: The full extent of our love

INTRO TO LUKE 10

Let’s go back to the bulletin cover and look at the story

and ask these two questions:

is this a model for us to live our lives?

Is it also a model for us as a church?

OBSERVE THE RISK in this act of love

SCRIPTURE: Luke 10: 25 - 37

QUESTION: DID THEY SHOW THE FULL EXTENT OF THEIR LOVE?

25On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?"

26"What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?"

27He answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'[c]; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[d]"

28"You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."

29But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"

30In reply Jesus said: "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. 35The next day he took out two silver coins[e] and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.'

36"Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?"

37The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him."
Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise." (Love thy neighbor) Greg: Love our enemies

FINAL QUESTION: WHAT DOES FUL EXTENT OF LOVE LOOK LIKE?

Jesus talked about it and the Jesus did it.

SCRIPTURE: John 15:13

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.

POINT: The full extent of his love, is to lay down his life for us.

Why? Because the purpose of life is RELATIONSHIP (God and others)

Sermon Notes: March 28 (John 12)

2010-03-29T11:10:00.001-07:00

SERMON NOTES

PALM SUNDAY 2010

Throne vs Thorns

PASSING OF THE PEACE

SCRIPTURE: John 12:13

They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

"Hosanna!" "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!"

"Blessed is the King of Israel!"

QUESTION: Have you ever been excited about something (waving palm

branches); then less a week later, decided it was a bad idea (“Crucify Him”)?

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE:

Last Week: Jesus raised Lazarus from the grave

Remember: SHOUT (Greek word: war like; horse)

6x (COME OUT! HOSANNA! CRUCIFY HIM(4x)

Remember the Disneyland commercials Joe Montana

So, Lazarus, you’ve been raised from the dead.

What are you going to do now?

“I am going to Disneyland.”

QUESTION: What do you do when you’ve been dead and now you are alive!

A: You most likely want to honor the reason why you’ve been brought back to life

A: In Lazarus case, FOOD (12:1) a feast (celebrating Lazarus?)

This Week: The people celebrate the Triumphal Entry of Jesus

SET THE SCENE

Lazarus had been raised from the grave (town talk: Messiah?!?)

The Chosen People have been waiting 400 plus years for the Messiah.

They will see the parade as a victory parade of a temporal king

SCRIPTURE: John 12: 12 The Triumphal Entry

12The next day the great crowd that had come for the (Passover) Feast heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. 13They took palm branches (symbol of the Jewish State) and went out to meet him, shouting,

"Hosanna!" (Give salvation now!)(Psalm 118:25)

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" (Ps 118:25 & 26 - Messiah)

"Blessed is the King of Israel!"

POINT: Nationalistic fervor(temporal King/Messianic Expectation-War Horse?)

They are pumped! “THRONE NOW!” Take the throne Jesus!

Preconceived Idea: US? What is our political hope today?

Their preconceived idea: restore Israel the kingdom (free at last)

IMPLICATION: He did not meet expectations, which lead to “CRUCIFY HIM!”

QUESTION: If you had been there, would you have been waving the palm branch?

we’re post resurrection people, they are pre resurrection people

does it make a difference?

would you wave the palm if you knew in five days you would be

SHOUTING: CRUCIFY, CRUFIY!”?

He was a failure as Messiah (like Judas Macabeaus)

CROSSROADS - Decision Making Time

To take the throne or not to take the throne, that is the question.

To take the thorns or not to take the thorns, that is the answer.

POINT: Jesus chose not (public peer pressure); but the right thing to do; because

Jesus was in harmony with his purpose/plan/vision

US: We choose correctly when we remain in harmony with our vision/purpose/

SCRIPTURE: JOHN 12:14

14Jesus found a young donkey (NOT like Judas Maccabaeus, on the war horse)

and sat upon it,

as it is written, (Zechariah 9:9)

15"Do not be afraid, O Daughter of Zion;

see, your king is coming,

seated on a donkey's colt."

EXPECTATION: As the people returned from exile in Babylonian,

So the people shall return from exile under Roman Rule

Hence: restoring Davidic Kingship, again

POINT: Jesus demilitarizes their Messianic Expectation

16At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that they had done these things to him.

17Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. 18Many people, because they had heard that he had given this miraculous sign, went out to meet him. 19So the Pharisees said to one another, "See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!

POINT

Jesus rode through the streets of Jerusalem, as king and their is joy as he claimed to be king. As the people SHOUT out HOSANNA, the message is clear: WE WON!

It is the joy of V-day in europe and across our country during WWII, WE WON!

JOY TO THE WORLD, the Savior comes!

ISSUE

I can't imagine, what's going on in the mind of Jesus. He knows the parade leads to cross. He knows He is about to enter the Lions’ Den. He knows His fate.

He knows how quickly the crowd will turn. SHOUTS of HOSANNA will turn to SHOUTS of CRUCIFY HIM. WHY? Because he does not satisfy their expectation of their vision for him (Messianic Expectation).

HOW ABOUT US?

Have we ever followed the parade knowing that it is about to lead to no good? Have we ever followed the parade right into the lion den?

Or, on the other hand, have you ever knew that what you are about to do is good? Have you ever known that this good is going to lead to pain?

BIBLICAL MODEL OF EVANGELISM - begin with the listener

Jesus will use the Passover and the triumphal entry into Jerusalem as a teaching platform to convey his message. Using the popular fanaticism and national fervor, as a way of teaching them the kingdom of God is not temporal; the Messiah is not temporal;

that the Kingdom of God is within and spiritual.

OLD WINESKINS: Kingdom (temporal) Messiah (temporal)

NEW WINESKINS: Kingdom (spiritual) Messiah (eternal)

CHALLENGE FOR JESUS (Garden of Gethsemane)

the Palm Sunday Parade was a crossroad for Jesus. He cold bow to public peer pressure and seize the old wineskins and accept a temporal kingship and the path to the throne..

Or, he could do what is right and his eternal purpose, the path to the cross

we ourselves are face with significant crossroads

choosing what is easy and receiving the accolades of peer pressure (temporal)

or we too can pick up our cross and do what is eternal

POINT: Jesus wears no temporal crown except the temporal crown of thorns

CHALLENGE

This Holy Week, let us all reflect on (John 15:13):

Greater love has no one than this, that they lay down their life for their friends.

SUNRISE SERVICE: 6 a.m.; Traditional Service: 9 a.m.; and Contemporary: 10 a.m.

Sermon Notes: March 21 (John 11)

2010-03-22T13:57:00.001-07:00

Sermon Notes

March 21, 2010

Come Out!

PASSING OF THE PEACE

Scripture: John 2 - Jesus first miracle: water into wine

Scripture: John 11 - Jesus brings back from the dead Lazarus

Question: Which would you have picked as Jesus’ first miracle

ISSUE: You can never have too much wine; or

You can never have too much time.

IMPORTANT: Answer is driven by: World View (presupposition) or

thinking outside the box (coffin)

Both address a problem (lack of wine, lack of time)

If Jesus could perform a miracle in your life,

What problem would you want to escape from/leave behind?

CALL TO WORSHIP (John 10:25)

Jesus said, “I am the Resurrection and the life”

Do you believe?

Yes Lord, we believe.

OPENING PRAYER (John 10:43)

Lord, when we are sick, come and heal us. When we lack faith, give us a new sign. When we die, come and say “Come out!” Amen.

INTRO TO JOHN 11

The Gospel of John now shifts from New Wine impacting religious institutions and festivals to impacting belief as Jesus makes his final move toward Jerusalem.

This chapter wrestles with the finality of death. Today death (human institution) has been sanitized. Even the prettiest funeral cannot disguise our fear of death.

Jesus is about to do a new thing (wine). Nobody has ever brought somebody back from the grave.

Sadducces did not believe in life after the grave

Pharisees believed in life after the grave

But no one believed in life back from the grave

SCRIPTURE: John 11

1Now a man named LAZARUS was sick.

LAZARUS - a very popular name in 1st century Jerusalem

He was from BETHANY,

BETHANY - 1 1/2 half miles east of Jerusalem

the village of Mary and her sister Martha.

2This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.

Luke 7:36 and John 12:3 (foreshadowing anointing for burial)

3So the sisters sent word to Jesus, "Lord, the one you love is sick."

4When he heard this, Jesus said, "This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God's glory so that God's Son may be glorified through it." 5Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.

7Then he said to his disciples, "Let us go back to Judea."

8"But Rabbi," they said, "a short while ago the Jews tried to stone you, and yet you are going back there?"

NOTICE: The disciples are frightened to return to Jerusalem

9Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours of daylight? A man who walks by day will not stumble, for he sees by this world's light. 10It is when he walks by night that he stumbles, for he has no light."

11After he had said this, he went on to tell them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up."

12His disciples replied, "Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better." 13Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.

14So then he told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead, 15and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him."

16Then Thomas (called Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."

Jesus Comforts the Sisters

17On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18Bethany was less than two miles[a] from Jerusalem, 19and MANY JEWS had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother.

MANY JEWS - Funerals were public events (community ties). Friends and family from far off come and support Mary and Martha during the mourning process.

Formal mourning last for seven days (shibah) and it commenced immediately on the day of burial, which took place on the same day as death. There would be great wailing and crying (raw - beating their chests in grief). flute players were common.

20When MARTHA heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.

21"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."

23Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."

24Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."

NOTE: This was a common belief (old wineskins)

25Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.

NOTE: Jesus is the resurrection (new wineskins)

LIFE - don’t have to wait to die to experience the gift of resurrection, they can have life now. The power of Jesus is not just beyond the grave, it is also prior to the grave (new wineskins).

He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; 26and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

27"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ,[b] the Son of God, who was to come into the world."

28And after she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. "The Teacher is here," she said, "and is asking for you." 29When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

32When MARY reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."

33When Jesus saw her WEEPING (loud), and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit (Greek: describes the snort of a horse (in war or in a race) and troubled. for humans it describes outrage, fury or anger)

Question: Why was Jesus angry (outraged in the deepest level of his being)?

Answer: not at Martha, Mary, or their mourners.

Some have suggested: He is overcome by the futility of this sorrowful scene in light of the reality of the resurrection.

POINT: They act defeated when they have the solution at their disposable.

34"Where have you laid him?" he asked.
"Come and see, Lord," they replied.

35Jesus wept.

Question: Why?

Not for Lazarus, he knows what he is about to do.

HUMAN CONDITION: the reality that we lack the ability to see the “new wine” because we keep drinking from the well of “old wine.”

36Then the Jews said, "See how he loved him!"

37But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?"

Jesus Raises Lazarus From the Dead

38Jesus, once more deeply moved (v33), came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 39"Take away the (rolling) stone," he said.

"But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odor (decomposing), for he has been there FOUR DAYS"

FOUR DAYS - Jewish belief that the soul of a dead person remained in the vicinity of the body, hoping to reenter it for three days, but once decomposition set in , the soul departed. Thus the soul is gone

POINT - John wants us to know that Lazarus is truly dead, thus no resuscitation (ironically will be the response to Jesus and the resurrection).

40Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

41So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."

43When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice (6 times in John, 1 - Palm Sunday; and 4x “Crucify”), "Lazarus, come out!"

CAN YOU IMAGINE?

DISCIPLES - following Jesus around because they saw the trick with fish and bread, and that’s pretty cool; And that water into wine, that’s pretty convenient. And the blind man and the paralyzed man given life back...but now....you gotta draw the line somewhere...the guy’s been dead four days....

44The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.

CAN YOU IMAGINE THE RESPONSE OF

The DISCIPLES

Or, MARY and MARTHA

Or, those there to mourn Lazarus

Or, even the response of Lazarus

that’s a new line for Amazing Grace..I once was blind but now I see...how many can sing, I once was dead but now I live

i would have to say that’s the best OBJECT LESSON I have ever heard.

Not many teachers/pastors could do that one.

CAN YOU IMAGINE

your at a funeral, and the pastor says “come out!” and out comes the deceased.....What would you do? I’d believe whatever that pastor told me from then on....

QUESTION: What is the Object Lesson?

What is Jesus trying to teach us?

Did Jesus do it because he was weeping?

Did he do it because he loved mary and Martha?

Did he do it because he wanted to spend more time with Lazarus? Sit around eat fish and bread and drink new wine?

Why bring him back from the grave?

He only does it once. Not like 5,000 times (fish and bread)

Why bring Lazarus back from the tomb?

ANSWER: Remember the word miraculous sign (means a miracle that points beyond itself). Bringing Lazarus back from death, was not just an end in itself. It was a means of conveying a message. Jesus wanted to show the folks something about life and death; about himself.

In other words, every miracle/sign, the most dramatic, in the Gospel John is a message to the people about who Jesus is and what Jesus is about to do; it’s not just a cool magic trick.

Well the message is obvious for those of us on the other side of Easter. Lazrus being brought out of the tomb is Jesus’ way of conveying to the disciples, he’s going to do the same thing. Lazarus has an empty tomb; Jesus has an empty tomb.

IN two weeks, we celebrate that empty tomb, that resurrected boy of Jesus.

But for Lazarus, Mary & Martha, those who came to morn the death of Lazarus , and the Disciples; the message is not clear yet...

This message will not be clear to them; until the empty tomb of Jesus.

We are fortunate, we know the message post empty tomb.

The real question for us now: have we applied that message to our lives today?

Have we lived under the resurrection lives

Do we live as though there is an empty tomb?

OR, DO WE LIVE AS THOUGH WE ARE HELD WITHIN THE CONFINEMENT OF THE TOMB.

DO WE NEED TO HEAR THE MESSAGE OF JESUS TO LAZARUS, COME OUT!”

TODAY, there are many TOMBS

Tomb of unemployment

Tomb of broken relationships

Tomb of loneliness

Tomb of despair

Tomb of disappointments

Tomb of meaningless

And like Lazarus, we need to hear the message of Jesus, COME OUT

But in some ways, we also have a message from Jesus that is pre empty tomb.

For us, the message that Jesus gives us each day, is not clear yet...

until we are risen from the grave...

Lazarus would have made an excellent evangelist

Imagine

“I was dead. My body decaying, my body stunk, I was in the grave

and Jesus said “Lazarus come out!”

God can do that for you today.

Are you dead?

COME OUT!

Of the tomb of holding you back

Of the tomb of bad relationships

of unemployment

SCRIPTURE: John 11:

Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."

The Plot to Kill Jesus

45Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him.

46But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. 47Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin.

"What are we accomplishing?" they asked. "Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. 48If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place[c] and our nation."

IRONY: THE END OF CHAPTER 11 the enemies are now plotting the death of Jesus.

QUESTION: Why did they not get it?

ANSWER: Held captive within the tomb of old wineskins (previous world views, the institution)

not able to think outside of the box

SCRIPTURE: Luke 16

The Rich Man and Lazarus

19"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

22"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23In hell,[c] where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'

25"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'

27"He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.'

29"Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.'

30" 'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'

31"He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.' "

POINT: According to Jesus, not even a resurrection miracle will not be sufficient to persuade some people of the power oand the reality of God; because they have Abraham, Moses and the Prophets, and they like the flavor the old wine. If it was good enough for Moses and the Prophets, it is good enough for them today.

49Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, "You know nothing at all! 50You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people than that the whole nation perish."

51He did not say this on his own, but as high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the Jewish nation, 52and not only for that nation but also for the scattered children of God, to bring them together and make them one. 53So from that day on they plotted to take his life.

54Therefore Jesus no longer moved about publicly among the Jews. Instead he withdrew to a region near the desert, to a village called Ephraim, where he stayed with his disciples.

55When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, many went up from the country to Jerusalem for their ceremonial cleansing before the Passover. 56They kept looking for Jesus, and as they stood in the temple area they asked one another, "What do you think? Isn't he coming to the Feast at all?" 57But the chief priests and Pharisees had given orders that if anyone found out where Jesus was, he should report it so that they might arrest him.

POINT: These same people will continue to refuse to believe despite Jesus himself raising the from the grave.

CLOSING

Jesus is not just the light of the world, he brings sight to the blind

not just the bread of the world,

he feed 5,000

not just the resurrection and life,

he brought Lazarus back from the grave

March 7 - Third Sunday of Lent

2010-03-03T14:22:00.001-08:00

Sermon Notes

John 9:39

The Blind will See and the See will Become Blind"

THEME VERSE: Matthew 9 :17

Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

SYNOPSIS OF JOHN 1 - 8

John 1a - Prologue (The Word was with God, and was God..took on flesh)

John 1b - John the Baptist baptizing (OW) Jews (NW) to prepare for the WORD

John 2 - Wedding at Cana, water in purification vessels (old wine) was transformed into wine (new wine); and the Temple (institution) cleared out (new wine)

John 3 - A respected Pharisee named Nicodemus, representing tradition/law (old wine) dialogued with Jesus about New Birth (new wine)

John 4 - The antithesis of Nicodemus, a Samaritan woman of questionable character drawing water from Jacobs well (old wine) dialogued with Jesus about Living Water (new wine)

John 5 - A story about a disabled person wanting to be healed as he sat beside a pool

John 5 - Jesus broke the (Sabbath) law when he healed a paralytic on the Sabbath. The religious clergy wanted him arrested.

John 6 - Passover (John 7, six months later) into Holy Communion (NW)

John 7 - Tabernacles (living water) into Jesus the Living Water (NW)

John 8 - Tabernacles (I am the Light of the World) (NW)

INTRO TO JOHN 9

Keep our eyes open for old wineskins (institution/tradition) being transformed/fulfilled into new wineskins (movement)

PASSING OF THE PEACE

SCRIPTURE: John 9:39b, “I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind."

QUESTION: Have you ever been blind?

Intro to Scripture

It is still the feast of Tabernacles (tents). It is the Sabbath. Light is one of the important imageries of the Feast of Tabernacles. The temple light ceremony consists of four large stands each held four golden bowls, these were placed in the heavily-used Court of the Women. These sixteen golden bowls (reached by ladders) were filled with oil and used the worn undergarments of the priests for wicks. When they were lit at night, all Jerusalem was illuminated. In a world that did not have public lighting after dusk, this light shined.

SCRIPTURE: John 9: 1 - 12 (Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind)

1As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth.

Note: this person lives in “darkness”

What would it be like to be blind 2000 years ago? (hopeless)

How do you know if you live in darkness? (or need New Wine)?

Remember: “sign” is a miracle that points beyond itself

2His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

Common belief: sin leads to suffering (Job, etc.)

3"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. 4As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.

Jesus is using this natural ailment to provide a spiritual cure.

5While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."

I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

Another example of Exodus 3:14

6Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. 7"Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.

POOL OF SILOAM

The only living water in Jerusalem and the source of the water for the water ceremonies for the Feast of Tabernacles

SILOAM means “sent.” Jesus is the one who was “sent.”

Thus, it is Jesus who is the source of healing and not the pool.

8His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" 9Some claimed that he was.
Others said, "No, he only looks like him."
But he himself insisted, "I am the man."

10"How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.

11He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."

12"Where is this man?" they asked him.
"I don't know," he said.

SCRIPTURE: John 9:8 - 34 (Interrogation)

The healing of the blind person took place on the Sabbath. The religious leaders (who could not see) now interrogate the blind man who can now see.

SCRIPTURE: John 9:28b

You are this fellow's disciple! We are disciples of Moses!

(Fiddler on the Roof, TRADITION!)

in other words, you must choose whom you shall follow:

Jesus or Moses? (Old Wine or New Wine)

As a result, the blind man who now sees is expelled

from the synagogue by those who cannot see.

SCRIPTURE: John 9 The Pharisees Investigate the Healing

13They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. 14Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. 15Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see."

16Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath."

LITMUS TEST of SPIRITUALITY: Keeping the Sabbath (Exile)

each of us have our own litmus test of spirituality:

1. eating and drinking (Jesus was tested under this one)

2. play cards (100 years ago)

3. dance

4. etc.

But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided.

17Finally they turned again to the blind man, "What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened."
The man replied, "He is a prophet."

18The Jews still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents. 19"Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?"

20"We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was born blind. 21But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself." 22His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ[a] would be put out of the synagogue. 23That was why his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."

24A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God,[b]" they said. "We know this man is a sinner."

JESUS is outside of their box (he broke the sabbath - healing)

They can’t think outside of the box (tradition/institution/old wineskins)

sinner (broke law) the reason for BABYLONIAN EXILE

BUT the message of the PROPHETS

was more important than the mere breaking of the law

they broke the RELATIONSHIP (Rules of)

EVERY Saturday night, chocolate and roses (the LAW)

but if your heart isn’t there - relationship dies

They were UNFAITHFUL in their relationship to God

25He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"

26Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"

27He answered, "I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?"

28Then they hurled insults at him and said, "You are this fellow's disciple! We are disciples of Moses! 29We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't even know where he comes from."

30The man answered, "Now that is remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. 31We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. 32Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. 33If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."

34To this they replied, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" And they threw him out.

POINT - Sometimes in our lives, we have to be ready to receive the New Wine

PROBLEM: There are some Old Wineskins in our lives that need to be discarded. But we don’t SEE it, because it is an INSTITUTION.

if we don’t, it hinders our future.

QUESTION: Because of our availability to retrieve data instantly (i-phone or google) are there some things that we are trained as a kid that may now be considered not necessary?

SCRIPTURE: John 9:35 - 41 Spiritual Blindness

35Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

36"Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him."

37Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you."

38Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him.

the blind man now sees Jesus. Jesus gave him more than sight, he gave him life.

POINT: The blind man becomes a metaphor for our spiritual transformation

39Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind."

NOTE:

IRONY: one who is blind, now sees, and those who see are blind spiritually

POINT: JESUS is the fulfillment of Tabernacle light has come to Jerusalem

90 DAY BIBLE

Ezekiel 12: 1 - 2

1 The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.

POINT: The People of God, the Chosen People, we’re being sent into Exile, because they no longer saw spiritually. They were blind spiritually.

JOHN WESLEY

Those who spiritually see also spiritually hear (John Wesley) and those who spiritually hear, can hear the voice of God

POINT: The Spiritual Leaders were Spiritually blind

Question: if they did not know they were spiritually blind,

then how are we to know if we are spiritually blind?

The Answer: Next week

40Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?"

41Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

SCRIPTURE: John 9:39

The old wineskins can’t see the movement of the New Wine and New wineskins. they are blind to it.

POINT: Jesus is the fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles

New Wineskins & Old Wineskins

The Old Wineskins, institution of the Feast of Tabernacles was always pointing to the fulfillment of the Feast, which is Jesus.

But who can’t SEE it, the ones that we think can see.

who SEEs it, the ones that we think should not be able to see it.

EXAMPLES: the Slide Rule (VHS/Mimeographs/stenographs/rotary phones)land lines)

No longer learn Slide Rule in math classes

Why?

With the advent of the Hand Calculator, no longer needed

The Slide Rule has out lived its purpose (festivals)

With the advent of Jesus, no longer needed are the festivals

The Festivals have out lived their purpose

Jesus fulfills what the festivals ultimately point to

A good example of that is PASSOVER and HOLY COMMUNION

CLOSING

At AGO concert on Monday, Michael sang a piece, “Tantum Ergo, Op. 55,

Gabriel Faure, text, Thomas Aquinas

With bowed heads let us celebrate this great sacrament, let the old practice yield to the new sacred rite.

Old wineskins: Passover New Wineskins: Holy Communion

February 21 - First Sunday of Lent

2010-02-20T17:57:00.003-08:00

Sermon Notes

John 7

The Feast of Tabernacles

PASSING OF THE PEACE

Question: What is your favorite feast/festival/holiday/etc.?

PURPOSE OF LIFE: Relationships

OLD WINESKINS: Relying on past relationships to get us through the present.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE

The scene is TABERNACLES (v 2) (despite the danger, religious obligation)

This was one of the three feasts/festivals where God decreed that all males would appear before God at the Temple (Ex 23:14-17). (Passover: Grain Harvest; Pentecost: end of Grain Harvest; and Tabernacles: Tree & Vine Harvest) (Autumn: SEP/OCT, near equinox; the decline of light - CEREMONIES OF LIGHT - JOHN 8:12)

It was a very popular feast.

People built “tabernacles” (booths/tents/temporary dwellings) to symbolize their trek through the wilderness out of bondage to freedom on the way to the Promised Land (US: we dwell in temporary dwellings)

It was during the DROUGHT SEASON (low water)(hills brown): water festivals

Many animals were sacrificed

SCRIPTURE: Numbers 29:12

12 " 'On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. Celebrate a festival to the LORD for seven days. 13 Present an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, a burnt offering of thirteen young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without defect. 14 With each of the thirteen bulls prepare a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil; with each of the two rams, two-tenths; 15 and with each of the fourteen lambs, one-tenth. 16 Include one male goat as a sin offering, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering.

NOTICE: More animals sacrificed at the beginning and it lessens with each day until the 8th day.

It was a time of joy because sins were forgiven.

Question: Is this feast a sign? New Wine?

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE:

John 5 - Jesus broke the (Sabbath) law when he healed a paralytic on the Sabbath. The religious clergy wanted him arrested.

John 6 - Passover (John 7, six months later)

SCRIPTURE: John 7: 12 - 20

12Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, "He is a good man."

Others replied, "No, he deceives the people."

NOTE: Debate

13But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the Jews.

Jesus Teaches at the Feast

JESUS BEING QUESTIONED ABOUT HIS IDENTITY

14Not until halfway through the Feast did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15The Jews were amazed and asked, "How did this man get such learning without having studied?"

16Jesus answered, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from him who sent me. (John 3:16) 17If anyone chooses to do God's will, he will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18He who speaks on his own does so to gain honor for himself, but he who works for the honor of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?"

20"You are demon-possessed," the crowd answered. "Who is trying to kill you?"

SCRIPTURE: John 7: 21 - 24

21Jesus said to them, "I did one miracle, and you are all astonished. 22Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a child on the Sabbath. 23Now if a child can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing the whole man on the Sabbath? 24Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment."

POINT: It is okay to heal a part of the man; but not the complete man?

SUMMARY OF THE ANSWERS OF JESUS

School - Heaven (7:15) (educational requirements not met)
From - Heaven (7:25 - 27)
Going - Heaven (7:35)

NOTE: Part of the celebration of Tabernacles was a daily water ceremony in which a procession of priests descend to the south border of the city to the Gihon Spring. There a priest filled a golden pitcher as a choir chanted Isaiah 12:3: “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” The water was then carried back up the hill to the “Water Gate,” followed by crowds carrying in their right hand (tree branches reminiscent of the desert booths) and in their left hand citrus branches reminiscent of the harvest. The crowd would shake these and sing Psalms 113 - 118. When the procession arrived at the temple, the priest would climb the altar steps and pour the water onto the altar while the crowd circled him and continued singing. On the seventh day of the festival, this procession took place seven times. In some ways, this was their version of a rain dance. It was seen as a reminder how God brought water from a rock (Num 20:8) On the final day of celebration, Jesus proclaimed:

SCRIPTURE: John 7: 37 - 39

37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink.

38Whoever believes in me, as[a] the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.

POINT: Jesus is announcing himself as the replacement for the temple, again (John 2); while at the same time, He is the permanent tabernacle.

TODAY: Jesus is on trial as he was in John 7. Jesus divides the audience.

BOTTOMLINE: We must choose which side we are on.

UNFORTUNATELY: The religious can stand in opposition to the new wine of Jesus.

When God moves, do not stand in opposition, but we do because we are encased in old wineskins.

SCRIPTURE: Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Sacrifice was intended that an innocent animal would die in the place of the sinner. The reality was that the sacrifice was not intended to be efficient, but to be a sign of a future sacrifice that would be efficient.

SCRIPTURE: Ezekiel 18:20

The soul who sins is the one who will die. The son will not share the guilt of the father, nor will the father share the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous man will be credited to him, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against him.

SCRIPTURE: Hebrews 10 (remember Leviticus)

1The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, 4because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:
"Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but a body you prepared for me;
6with burnt offerings and sin offerings
you were not pleased.
7Then I said, 'Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—
I have come to do your will, O God.' "[a] 8First he said, "Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them" (although the law required them to be made). 9Then he said, "Here I am, I have come to do your will." He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. 13Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, 14because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

15The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:
16"This is the covenant I will make with them
after that time, says the Lord.
I will put my laws in their hearts,
and I will write them on their minds."[b] 17Then he adds:
"Their sins and lawless acts
I will remember no more."[c] 18And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. 19Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

26If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"[d] and again, "The Lord will judge his people."[e] 31It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. 33Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.

35So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. 36You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37For in just a very little while,
"He who is coming will come and will not delay.
38But my righteous one[f] will live by faith.
And if he shrinks back,
I will not be pleased with him."[g] 39But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.

POINT: Jesus is the new Tabernacles (new wineskins)

Jesus is the sacrifice (Numbers )

Jesus the perfect sacrifice that only needs to be sacrificed once (Hebrews)

Every time we celebrate Holy Communion, we remember Jesus is the sacrifice

SCRIPTURE: I PETER 1:18

For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers.

THE POINT:

SCRIPTURE: Proverbs 8: 35

For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the LORD.

CLOSING

TABERNACLES is about residing in temporary dwellings

It’s a celebration of the people on their way to the Promised Land

TODAY

We are a people on our way to the Promised Land

We are not perfect, but we’re on our way

We are not 100% spiritual beings, but we’re on our way

We have difficulties in our relationships, but we’re on our way to the promised Land

We have difficulties in choosing the right over the wrong, but we’re on our way to the Promised Land.

February 14

2010-02-20T17:57:00.001-08:00

February 7 - Scout Sunday

2010-02-20T17:56:00.000-08:00

January 31 - John 4

2010-02-01T11:00:00.000-08:00

SERMON NOTES

JOHN 4

DRINK!

Neither does one pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."

Matthew 9:17

CHALLENGE CARD (Last Week)

QUESTION: Are there times when bitten by the “venomous snake” that you look to other places than the cross (God)? Why?

WHERE DO PEOPLE LOOK:

the bottle (country and western song)
drugs (Rock song)
??? (Jazz)
loneliness (Blues)
TBD (Classical)
Solitude (isolation from society & turn back our backs on society)

NEXT SUNDAY: What group of people do you find offensive? Difficult to love as your neighbor?

PASSING OF THE PEACE

Scripture: Jeremiah 2:13 (God tells the people through Jeremiah)

"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

Question: Have you ever dug your own cistern and drew water?

INTRO TO JOHN

Signs (not) miracles

THREE WEEKS AGO

John 1: John the Baptist baptizing (old wineskins) Jews (new wine)

TWO WEEKS AGO

John 2: Wedding at Cana (purification vessels filled with water transformed wine)

Temple (institution) cleared out for new wine

LAST WEEK (John 3)

Question: Who did Jesus talk to?

Answer: A respected Pharisee (representing: tradition/law - old wineskins)

Question: What person represents the antithesis?

Answer: A Samaritan woman

Why? Samaritans were despised by the Jews. Women were...(Bible in 90 Days)

And this woman was questionable moral character (5 husbands +)

THIS WEEK

The story begins with Jesus, thirsty and a woman who is at the well drawing water

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE

Here is a person in real need. (we all have needs, each is different)

Her need is to have a better relationship with God and the man she lives with (“husband”)

themes: thirst, love, racial acceptance

The woman comes to the well for one PURPOSE

To draw water to live.

Question: do you have a well that you draw water to live?

JUDAISM has a well: LAW/TEMPLE/TRADITION

What is your well?

How do you draw from it?

What BUCKET do you use?

The Pharisees thought they had a problem with John (old to new) baptizing, here’s Jesus.....

SCRIPTURE: John 4

1The Pharisees heard that Jesus was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John, 2although in fact it was not Jesus who baptized, but his disciples. 3When the Lord learned of this, he left Judea and went back once more to Galilee.

4Now he had to go through SAMARIA.

NOTE; even though this route is quicker; it is not preferred by religious jews

Samaria

Question: Why were they despised?

Answer: 722 B.C. Assyrians conquered the 10 tribes to the north and dispersed the throughout their kingdom (II Kings 17:23 & 24). The remnant that remained inter with Persians and other conquered kingdoms (i.e. they’re not “pure blood”). The Samaritans only accepted the Torah (and excluded prophets, etc.) and they worshippped at a new temple on Mount Gerizim (not temple in Jerusalem). In 128 B.C. the Jews attacked Samaria and burned down their temple.

5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the SIXTH HOUR.

Sixth Hour

What time is it? NOON (light)

What time was it when Nic came to Jesus? NIGHT (dark)

She’s a Samaritan Woman (immoral)

He was a Pharisee Man (moral)

7When a Samaritan WOMAN came to DRAW WATER

Woman

it was the responsibility of the woman to draw/collect the water

Draw Water

women met at the well and fellowshipped.

typically they would draw water at morning/dusk (sunrise/sunset)

But this woman comes at the heat of the day,

perhaps indicating she does not want to fellowship with other women

implication: an attempt to avoid social ridicule (ie. she is socially issolated)

7b Jesus said to her, "Will you give me a drink?" 8(His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)

9The Samaritan woman said to him, "You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?" (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.

RULE: Single men did not talk/touch women. (esp: rabbis)

10Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water."

Living Water

Living water is water not from a well/cistern; but from a river/stream.

Living water is the only water that can be used for purification

(ritual washing to make pure unclean worshippers)

There were no river/streams in Shechem

That is why Jacob had to dig a well for water.

She is aware of every water source in her community.

How could an outsider, a jew, know of a water source of living water?

11"Sir," the woman said, "you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?

earthly question to a spiritual statement

12Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?"

13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will

become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."

PASSING OF THE PEACE

Scripture: Jeremiah 2:13 (God tells the people through Jeremiah)

"My people have committed two sins: They have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

Question: Have you ever dug your own cistern and drew water?

POINT: God is the source of our spiritual renewal (NEW WINE)

Jesus is talking about a new life that is available through the spirit of God.

13 "My people have committed two sins:
They have forsaken me,
the spring of living water,
and have dug their own cisterns,
broken cisterns that cannot hold water.

NOTE: In other words, Jacob’s well is no match to Jesus’ well

Question: Which well do you draw from?

CHALLENGE QUESTION

Jesus takes a step further. It is not simply an experience that changes or transforms us, but a dynamic experience that makes a life as living as the water itself. we are transformed into a well of living water.

15The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water so that I won't get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water."

NOTICE: that the woman is intrigued and incredulous.

she sounds more like Nicodemus (John 3:4)

BUT: Jesus raises the dialogue

16He told her, "Go, call your husband and come back."

17"I have no husband," she replied.

Jesus said to her, "You are right when you say you have no husband. 18The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true."

HENCE: The reason for the noon drawing of water and the social isolation.

She has broken the rules of relationship, she is an immoral woman

Question: Have you ever been shunned by society (venomous snake)

NEW: Jesus is talking not only to a samaritan, who is a woman, but who happens to be a woman of questionable character (reputation)

What’s next? eating with tax collectors and prostitutes?

NOTICE: That Jesus dialogues with her at where she is (husbandless)

(begin with the listener)

19"Sir," the woman said, "I can see that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on THIS MOUNTAIN,

This mountain

The first place Abraham (torah) built an altar was at Shechem beneath Mount Gerizim

but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in JERUSALEM."

Jerusalem

this is where David built the temple

NOTE: The change in subject/tone (from romance to religion)

Question: Why?

Answer: Jesus sees her heart

21Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.

salvation is from the Jews

23Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.

NOTE: Theological debate (Mt Gerzim vs Mt. Zion “Jerusalem”)

The Mount represents:

identity
refuge
sometimes they function negatively: as substitutes (badge)
old wineskins: (neither cure thirst)
an end int themselves (and not the means)
wars erupt

POINT: It’s not about the mountain (mean), it’s about God (end)

Question: which mountain are you willing to die on?

NEW WINESKINS: “will soon be over”

24God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."

25The woman said, "I know that Messiah" (called Christ) "is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us."

26Then Jesus declared, "I who speak to you am he."

am he

Exodus 3:14 (I am)

QUESTIONS

Why did Jesus spend time with a Samaritan woman (NEW WINE)
Have you ever felt like this woman?
Have you ever been disenfranchise by society/group?

WHAT IS THE JAR?

It is a means of pulling out water from the well
It is a means of providing the needs for Jesus as well as for her
It is something she leaves behind when she discovers something NEW
Have you ever felt like the jar?

in some ways we go to a WISHING WELL

And we cast down our bucket down deep into the well, in hopes of drawing up something that fills our bucket with hope

IN THE NEWS: STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS

For some, their buckets were filled; Others, their buckets remain emptied

POINT: But we all go somewhere to fill our buckets

JESUS SAYS The bucket is cast down and needs to contiously be cast down into the well, but then he offers the woman hope, not the kind of hope of repeatedly casting down the bucket into the wishing well, but the kind of hope that truly sustains. It’s LIVING WATER, DRINK!

MAYBE THROW THE NOTES OF HOPE INTO THE BUCKET:

IMAGINE YOURSELF HOLDING THIS JAR. (FIREPLACE?)

A jar that brings water. This is your water spigot at home.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE: John 4: 27 - 30

notice the disciples reaction and what that says about racial acceptance

or the issue of clean/unclean holy/unholy

The Disciples Rejoin Jesus

27Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, "What do you want?" or "Why are you talking with her?"

REMEMBER THE RULE: No single male is to talk to a female

28Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29"Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?"

NOTE: The Samaritan woman responds positively to Jesus (living wagter)

Nicodemus, were not sure?

IRONY: The religious seem to remain silent and the anti-religious was vocal

NEW: Jew talking to a SAMARITAN and WOMAN!

NOTE: For complete sermon notes go to: wwwNorthridgeumc.org

BENEDICTION

Lord, accept the hopes and burdens of these disciples. Give us the Living Water. Let us DRINK. Amen.

INVITATION (11 am only) (Katherine’s bottles)

All and any are invited to come forward to drink from the Living Water as a symbol of renewal of putting Jesus back in our hearts

CHALLENGE CARD THIS WEEK

QUESTION: Are you open to hear the words “drink from the well of the living water”?

NEXT SUNDAY: What ailment have you had for “38 years”?

January 24 - John 3

2010-01-26T12:21:00.001-08:00

Sermon Noes

John 3

Cast Your Eyes Upon the Cross

“Who you gonna Call?”

Passing of the Peace

90 Day Bible (Numbers: The Chosen People following Moses out of Egypt were confronted by venomous snakes. Moses prays to God concerning the venomous snakes.

Scripture: Numbers 21:8 & 9 (The Bronze Snake)

8 The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

Question: Where/who do you look to in times when you’ve been bitten by the snake? When confronted by the venomous “snake”?

“VENOMOUS SNAKES”

When was the last time you saw a venomous snake? Unless you were recently at the zoo, chances are you have not confronted a venomous snake?

But reptiles are not the only venomous snakes we encounter.

There are some people....

There are some circumstances....

There are some ...

Question: who ya gonna call? (when confronted by venomous snake) Ghostbusters?)

Who ya gonna call...

in trouble

without hope

without purpose and meaning

IMPLICATION: what is the venomous “snake” in your life that is confronting you?

Determines who ya gonna call

INTRO to the Gospel of John

In the Gospel of John. God is doing a new thing through Jesus

LAST WEEK

First Sign (more than miracles): Water into Wine in the purification vessels

Temple cleansing

POINT: Jesus is replacing and overwhelming the established religious institution

that’s why the religious clergy did not appreciate him.

It’s out with the old and in with the new (wine and wineskins)

QUESTIONS

What signs/miracles were necessary for you to first believe?

What signs/miracles do you think are necessary for you to grow deeper

in your relationship with Jesus?

What signs/miracles of Jesus do you think help others to believe?

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE

The fruition of the new is at the appointed “hour”

John 2:4; my hour has not yet come

SCRIPTURE: John 3 (Jesus Teaches Nicodemus)

1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named NICODEMUS, a member of the Jewish ruling council.

NICODEMUS

Questioin: What do we know about Nick?

Represents the status quo (the institution: the clergy of his day; old wineskins)

John 1: Prebaptized Jews (institution)

John 2: Vessels (purification) (Institution)

John 2b: Pre cleansed temple (Institution)

John 3: Nic (Instiution)

REMEDY:

John 1: rebaptize

John 2: New wine

clean temple out

John 3: rebirth

He was not lacking for knowledge, he was lacking relationship with God

He was lacking new wine

2He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous SIGNS you are doing if God were not with him."

3In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."

4"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"

5Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' 8The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

9"How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.

10"You are Israel's teacher," said Jesus, "and do you not understand these things? 11I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our TESTIMONY.

TESTIMONY

Signs are part of the testimony

12I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.14Just as Moses LIFTED UP the snake in the desert,

LIFTED UP (ascent)

Same word in Acts (when Jesus ascended to heaven). and, EXALTED (Acts 2:33 & 5:31). In other words, the cross is a sign(more than a miracle). The cross is simply not just the death of Jesus, but a place of departure. In other words, the cross, is a sign where Jesus is glorified.

14b so the SON OF MAN must be lifted up,

SON OF MAN

Jesus needs to be “lifted up” on the cross; like the snake.

Question: Why?

15that everyone who BELIEVES in him may have eternal life.

BELIEVES

Just like the folks in the Exodus on their way to the Promised Land, salvation is experienced when one looks to the cross.

POINT: Our greatest need is to restore the relationship with God. Restoration takes place on the cross and is experienced when we cast our eyes upon the cross in faith and believe.

the venemous snake confronting us lack of relationship

SCRIPTURE: 2 Corinthians 5:7 (18-19)

7Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, (IN WITH THE NEW AND OUT WITH THE OLD) the new has come! 18All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God. 21God made him who had no sin to be sin[a] for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

we need Jesus: we need to reJesus (reboot)

POINT: The primary purpose of life is RELATIONSHIP with God

Nicodemus knew it, but wasn’t living it and that is why he went to Jesus.

the venomous snake confronting Nic is that he was out of relationship with God and needed to be reconciled, made new

QUESTION: What venomous snake was Jesus confronting?

JOHN THE BAPTIST

When John the Baptist was out in the wilderness preparing the way for Jesus, he was baptizing people in the Jordan River. He saw some Pharisees coming up to him’

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 3:7

7But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

JESUS

When Jesus healed a demon possessed person, the Pharisees said Jesus was able to heal because he had “Beelzebub,the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons."

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 12:4

4You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.

SCRIPTURE: Matthew 23:33

33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?

Answer: the religious establishment/clergy

Intro to Scripture: John 3:16

It’s not story time, but a commentary on the Nicodemus story.

SCRIPTURE: John 3: 16

16"For God so loved the WORLD that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

WORLD (humanity)

Typically in the Old Testament, God loves Israel, or the Chosen People.

New Testament (Matthew 28: 19 & 20; Acts 10) God loves the world

POINT: God’s love extends beyond nation and race.

17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son.[g] 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."[h]

Januaury 17 - John 2

2010-01-26T12:13:00.000-08:00

Sermon Notes

John 2

Passing Of the Peace

If you were Jesus, what would be your first miracle?

INTRO

TWO WEEKS AGO

New wineskins, (New Years’ Resolution. MATTHEW 9:17

LAST WEEK

When John the Baptist (Jean Valjean) knew who he was, his decision was easy on what he was called to do. Our identity leads our action. Are we true to our identity? Being true to his identity as the one who makes the path straight for the Lord,” he was baptizing people in the Jordan, that’s not new, what is new he is baptizing Jewish folks, now that’s outrageous! For the Jewish form of baptism is to baptize gentiles into becoming Jews; but John was baptizing jewish folks into becoming more jewish (new wine, new wineskins).

THIS WEEK:

The beginning of the ministry of Jesus, the New Wine

JEREMIAH 31 (New Covenant)

31 "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

32 It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant,
though I was a husband to them, " declares the LORD.

33 "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts.
I will be their God, and they will be my people.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE: John 2

Jesus performs a miracle that talks about something new (testament/covenant) coming. In this passage, (new wineskins: not the same old way of doing business) the days of Jesus, weddings (receptions) lasted a week. They were times of "eat, drink and be merry..." The following passage is one such wedding. Notice that Jesus is present, as you read this familiar passage, think about the concept of inviting Jesus to your wedding and how would you celebrate?

SCRIPTURE: John 2

1On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee.

third - coincidence?

WEDDING

Q: Who here likes weddings?

Do you like weddings or wedding receptions better?

Cana - small town north of Nazareth

Jesus' mother was there, 2and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.

WEDDING

Were recognized by the entire village (big event)

lasted a “week” (eat, drink and be merry)

Can you imagine?

NOTE: Jesus did not abstain from wine or parties (criticism of Pharisees)

Relationships! Not antsocial

Matthew 11: 18 - 19

8For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.' 19The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and "sinners."

WEDDING/BANQUETS (illustration of the Kingdom of God/Heaven)

Matthew 22 (v 2, "The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son....

Matthew 25: (v.1"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom...

Revelation 19: (v7 , For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready. 8Fine linen, bright and clean,
was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

9Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added, "These are the true words of God."

POINT: eat drink and be merry, God’s way (Ecclesiastes)

Q: Who here has gone to a wedding reception and they had an open bar

(you didn’t have to pay for what you drink)

Do people drink more at weddings with open bar ($$$)?

This wedding had an open bar

3When THE WINE WAS GONE,

THE WINE WAS GONE

Question: Are you kidding me?

That’s like going to a wedding and they said, the Bride is gone.

impossible!

No wine is a huge mistake (dishonors the couple)

What are they going to do now for a whole week?

It’s like going to a New Year’s Eve party and they are serving tea.

Jesus' mother said to him, "THEY HAVE NO MORE WINE."

Question: why does Jesus’ mother feel responsible about the shortage of wine?

THEY HAVE NO WINE(?)

Question: is this a theological observation of the spiritual environment

Does this relate to the issue of New Wine & New Wineskins? (Mk 2:22)

Scripture: II Corinthians 5:17 The old has gone, the new has come”

4"Dear woman, why do you involve me?"

This sounds insulting/rude, but it is not. It is simple and formal.

It is odd because of it’s formality and some what inflexible.

John 19:26 “woman, your son”

4b Jesus replied, "My TIME (hour) has not yet come."

time/hour

(Foreshadowing) referring to the cross. Several times in John

5His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you."

This is so parent-like.

6 Nearby stood SIX STONE WATER JARS, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.

SIX STONE WATER JARS

These are not merely water jars, they are for purification (Mk 7:1-4)

purpose: unclean to clean (hands, etc.)

7Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim.

NOTE: 20+ gallons each, over 120 gallons of wine

What do you do with over 120 gallons wine?

(first you take it to the master of the banquet)

8Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet."

They did so, 9and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now."

POINT: Jesus brings something unexpected to the wedding banquet, good wine. Better than any wine that has been drunk thus far.

11This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed his glory, and his disciples put their faith in him.

POINT: Jesus was one more visitor to the wedding, until he was called to act.

It was then, that the disciples saw for the first time something

they had not seen before, a sign.

signs - different than just a plain miracle (it is meant to be a sign)

Miracles reflect power; signs reflect that God is at work.

In other words, it is not about the act of power, it is more about what

the act of power says about Jesus.

the sign is a means to an end, not an end in itself

Question: If you were Jesus, what would have been your first miracle?

Of all the possibilities for the first recorded miracle, wine was chosen, why?

Why at a wedding?

SCRIPTURE: John 2: 12 - 16

13When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14In the TEMPLE courts

TEMPLE

the symbol of judaism (the hub: Vatican City/Washington/)

14b he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. 15So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16To those who sold doves he said, "Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father's house into a market!"

QUESTION

Was Jesus happy about what was going on in the temple area?

POINT

Both of these stories need to be together.

New wine in the stone Jars, New wine in the temple (Jesus)

Jesus is the fulfillment/replacement to the Jewish institutions

Out with the old and in with the new (the ministry of Jesus begins)

The messiah has arrived, eat drink and be merry God’s way

TRANSITION

This is how the ministry of Jesus began, as recorded in the Gospel of John, with a sign

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE: Luke

Tomorrow is Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s birthday. He preached a sermon “Guidelines for a Constructive Church” (Bulletin Cover). His text:

POINT

In a sense, in the gospel of John, the ministry of Jesus begins in new wineskins, a wedding. In the gospel of Luke, the ministry of Jesus begins in old wineskins, the synagogue.

I’d like to share some of his thoughts on the beginning of ministry of Jesus as recorded in the Gospel of Luke.

BASIC GUIDELINES TO FOLOW

“And through his prophets, and above all through his son Jesus Christ, he said that “there are some things that my church must do. There are some guidelines that my church must follow. And if we in the church don’t want the funds of grace cut off from the divine treasury, we’ve got to follow the guidelines. The guidelines are clearly set forth for us in some words uttered by our Lord and Master as he went in the temple one day, and he went back to Isaiah, and quoted from him. And he said.

Scripture: Luke 4:28

18"The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed,

“You see, the curch is not a social club, although some people think it is. They get caught up in their exclusivism, and they feel that it’s a kind of social club with a thin veneer of religiosity, but the church is not a social club.

The church is not an entertainment center, although some people think it is. You can tell in many churches how they act in church, which demonstrates that they think it’s an entertainment center. The church is not an entertainment center.

But ion the final analysis the church has a purpose. the church is dealing with man’s ultimate concern. And therefore it has certain guidelines that it must folow.

“...if the church is following its guidelines, it seeks to HEAL the broken hearted. ...”

“...if the church is true to its guidelies, it heals the brokenhearted.

In his day, Dr. King looked at the brokenehearted of school segregation and addressed it.

I do not know what he would look at as the brokenhearted today,

but I suspect on this very day, he might look beyond our country to the people of Hatiai

I do not know how many people were killed

I do not know how many people lost loved ones

I do not know how many homes were destroyed

I do not know how many things have come to a complete stop

What i do know is that as a church, one of our guidelines is to reach beyond ourselves in love and send what we can.

One way to do that is to make a donation and write on your offering in the special part of your envelope Hatai.

SCRIPTURE: Revelation 3:20

4"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write:

These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. 19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and EAT with him, and he with me.

QUESTION: Where is Jesus?

Outside the church, knocking.

January 10 -John 1

2010-01-13T12:14:00.001-08:00

SERMON NOTES

January 10, 2010

WHO ARE YOU?

INTRO

As we make our New Year’s Resolutions, one must wonder if they are in harmony with our true identity. sometimes our Resolutions fail because we have chosen a New Year’s Resolution that is out of character to our true being.

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE

This week we begin a sermon series on the gospel of John (until Lent, then Les Miserables). In our passage for this week, John the Baptist is being questioned to "who is he?" In this passage the religious clergy take a guess and ask John, are you Elijah?

INTRO TO SCRIPTURE (The Testimonial of John the Baptist)

John has been introduced earlier in the chapter in the prologue (John 1:1 - 18); “There was a man who was sent by God, his name was John.”

JUDAISM AND BAPTISM

Not new. Baptism was for gentiles who wanted to become Jews, they were cleansed completely (total cleansing to pass through the threshold into Judaism).

Question: what does it mean when John the Baptist wants to baptize Jews?

There not complete Jews, yet?

John’s baptizing out at the Jordan cultivated the interest of many people who came out to either be baptized or to inquire. One such group was the religious clergy who sent out a group to interrogate John the Baptist. Thus they will inquire to wether or not he is one of three characters: the Messiah, Elijah or the Prophet. All connected to the messianic (end) times

SCRIPTURE: John 1: 19 - 23 (John the Baptist Denies Being the Christ

19 Now this was John's testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. 20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, "I am not the Christ."

QUESTION: Why would the Pharisees think John the Baptist is the Messiah?

The Messiah was to be a Moses like spiritual and political leader

There was need for a Moses type leader (held in bondage to Rome)

ANSWER: Nope. Not the Messiah.

INTRO TO v. 21

Okay, not the Messiah, how about Elijah (the Herald, the forerunner)

21 They asked him, "Then who are you? Are you Elijah?"

QUESTION: Why did they ask if he was Elijah? Why Elijah and not someone else?

Answer: Elijah is the herald for the Messiah (relationship between two)

Scripture: Malachi 4:5 (II Kings 2 v 11 - Elijah did not die & return at end times)

"See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and

dreadful day of the LORD comes.

21b He said, "I am not."
POINT: once again, Nope. Not Elijah

"Are you the Prophet?"

PROPHET: Deuteronomy 18: 15 - 19

15 The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him. 16 For this is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, "Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die."

17 The LORD said to me: "What they say is good. 18 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. 19 If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.

SCRIPTURE: 21c

He answered, "No."

POINT: once again, Nope. Not the Prophet

POINT: John the Baptist knew he was not Elijah, nor a prophet. He knew who he wasn't. Tomorrow we will find out that John the Baptist not only knew who he wasn't but also knew who he was.

QUESTION: Have you ever been asked, "Who are you?"

Do you know who you are not and who you are (like John the Baptist).

QUESTION TO PONDER

What is the first step for self discovery. To know who we truly are, not a being that merely responds the stimuli of our society.Have you ever been asked, "Who are you?"

INTRO TO V 22

As we continue the dialogue of John the Baptist with religious clergy of the day, they are frustrated with John the Baptist not answering the question, "Who are you?" In their frustration they point blank ask him:

22 Finally they said, "Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, "I am the voice of one calling in the desert, 'Make straight the way for the Lord.' "

Scripture: Isaiah 40:3

A voice of one calling:
"In the desert prepare the way for the LORD ; make straight in the wilderness
a highway for our God.

NOTE: Theme verse claimed for Qumran. John knew who he was,. Because he knew who he was he was able to accomplish his task.

APPLICATION

All of us have a quest, not only to know who we are, but our “mission” in life. For John, he was the herald for Christ/Messiah. His mission (task) was to “Make straight the way for the Lord.”

To know our mission, it begins with knowing who we are and who God is. This is the most important journey for each of us.

LENT

Lent begins in about a month, our Lenten Series is on Les Miserable, a powerful story of FORGIVENESS. In the musical, Jean Valjean is confronted by the tension of his own identity. His real identity is Jean Valjean, but for the last decade or so, he has changed his mind to Monseiur Mandeleine (the Mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer). During that time, a criminal was arrested and the authority believe that he is Jean Valjean. If Jean Valjean, and "inocent man" will serve a jail sentence in place of Jean Valjean, but if Jean Valjean claims his true identity, he then must stand in place of the innocent man and serve his rightful sentence. If he turns himself in, many will suffer because they rely on Jean Valjean for their financial support. If he does not turn himself in, only one suffers. What shall he do? His answer is easy, when he realizes he must be true to his real identity, to know thyself, to be who he is.

When we are true to our true identity, decisions are easier to make. John the Baptist knew what he had to do, because he knew who he was. Jean Valjean knew what he had to do because he knew who he was.

THOUGHT TO PONDER

Once Jean establishes his identity in his decison making process, he does the right thing and in the musical breaks out in song, "Here I am." In our own lives, perhaps we need to break out in song when we are true to who we are and sing "Here I am (Lord).

POINT OF JOHN 1: 19 -

To illustrate that John considered jesus his superior and that John was just preparing the way for Jesus who is to replace him. Thus beginning the ministry of Jesus.

POINT: It’s not about John, it’s not even about us; its about Jesus.

If the purpose of life is relationship; the implication is that the focus is not to be entirely on the self, but how we relate to the other. If the greatest purpose is our relationship with God, then our focus is to love God completely, and that is why we worship. worship is not about us, but conveying how worthy our God is and how our God is to be worshiped.