third Sunday after Pentecost sermon 1 0f 10 Ten Commandments
Third Sunday after Pentecost
06/21/09
Text: Mark 4:33
Title: Let Jesus be Lord of my life!
There are literally millions of dollars spent each year on self-help books in the United States. Christians flock to purchase the books, videos, at a rate that equals those who do not have Christ in their lives. I find that amazing because God’s Word has all one needs to live a happy life. I think the problem is that most Christians do not want to take the time to study the Word of God.
As your pastor I want all of you to have a better understanding of God’s Word so that you can live happier lives, as you wait for Jesus to come back and take us all home. Because I want you to live happier lives I am going to talk to you about the Ten Commandments. Each week we will cover one commandment, so you can better understand how it can help you live happier lives.
Today we will start with the First Commandment, “You will have no other gods before me.”
Now, if you are like me you probably heard the Law in that statement. If you did you would be right, for it is Law. Your conscience was more than likely struck by that command, for we all know we have not kept that command.
While it is Law we, as Christians live under that command in a different manner. We live under that command in a different way because God’s Commandments do not condemn us anymore. They cannot, for Jesus in his birth, perfect life, death, resurrection, and ascension took care of the condemnation.
The purpose of the commandments then is to help the people of God to lead happier lives. Maybe you remember how you felt when you were confirmed. How you knew that with God’s help you would obey God and live a godly life. Maybe there was time when you experienced God in all his power. Maybe it was at a healing, or someone spoke in tongues. Maybe it was in the midst of a prayer meeting or at the deathbed of a loved one who came to faith. Maybe it was witnessing a dramatic rescue where you could almost see the hand of God reaching down and pulling the person to safety.
Whenever it was I would say that more than likely you probably became on fire for the Lord. You were determined to put God number one in your life. You probably decided right then and there that you would never let any of those gods in your life ever rule again. You were going to be faithful to God, but as time went on and life settled into its usual rut you probably found that your self-centeredness and self-service asserted themselves into your life once more. It is just the way it is. We are sinful human beings who struggle with keeping God number one in our lives.
Ever since Adam and Eve sinned that has been the struggle of those who believe that God should always be number one in their life. And in that struggle unhappiness occurs, for we all know how much we have failed in keeping the first of God’s Words for leading a happy life.
It was early on the course of history when Elijah called down fire from heaven on the altar that he had built and soaked with water. God answered and everything was consumed, rocks and all. Elijah in that great show of God’s power told the people that they would have to choose whom they were going to follow. The people cried out “Yahweh is God” and promised to change their lives as they kept God number one, but we all know the rest of the story, for they were soon sinning against God and his wrath fell on them.
Jesus’ disciples in our Gospel reading this morning had just witnessed Jesus’ power and in the storm that night did not keep Jesus in their hearts. They relied on themselves and when that failed they then called out to Jesus, “Don’t you care that we are drowning?” Imagine that, they were asking Jesus who created all things, including themselves whether or not he cared for them. That is why Jesus admonished them so severely when he said they had no faith. You see at this point they only had head knowledge of Jesus. They had not kept Jesus number one in their life.
Can you imagine what they must have felt like after Jesus spoke, “Peace, be still.” and the wind and seas obeyed him. They were afraid. Who is this man that even the seas and wind obey him?” You see they still did not get it. God was God somewhere up there, but a Jesus God; that just was not possible. Jesus is God. He is not less than God. He is fully God.
He once said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” Jesus invites us today to see the Father in him. Jesus is the visible love of God. And because he is the visible love of the Father we can then say that the First Word of God says not only, “You will have no other gods!” but also says “Don’t give up on Jesus, for Jesus is God.”
Our response then should be, “Give up on Jesus? Never! I want Jesus to be Lord in my life.” If that is our cry and it should be then we should fear, love, and trust in Jesus. We don’t fear him as someone who would on a whim squash us, but fear him in the sense that we stand in awe of him, for he created and sustains everything. He is our very being.
We love him more than anything in the world, for John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit tells us that “if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” Jesus puts it another way when he said, “What shall if profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?” God’s Word for leading a happy Christian life then calls us away from building our lives on temporary things, as much as we love them, and valuing his invitation to eternal life by loving, valuing more than anything, Jesus, the one who loved us first.
When we truly fear and love him then we will trust him, for trust means basing our confidence on something or someone as we face life and death. Long ago a psalmist reminded God’s people that they are not to put their trust in things of this world, for as strong as they might be eventually they will succumb to dust and in doing so they will show that their trust has been misplaced.
The words of the psalmist say the same thing to us, for all the gods of the world that we depend on will finally in the end fail us. We need to keep Jesus number one in our lives. Sure we don’t see him, but we know of him in his Word and because we know of him in the Word we are to have faith in him to do what he says he will do.
This past week I read an article in which a man describes the meaning of faith using each letter of faith. He wrote, “Faith is forsaking all; I take him.” Let Jesus be Lord in your life. He wants to be. He keeps pursuing you. Have no other Gods in your life except Jesus your Savior, for those words will lead to you having a happy life. And when you work on forsaking everything in your life you will find that the other 9 words of God that I will be talking about in the coming weeks will fall into line for you.
Leave this morning truly believing that you free of God’s condemnation. Keep Jesus number one in your life and you will be better equipped to face all the challenges life presents to you. Amen.
06/21/09
Text: Mark 4:33
Title: Let Jesus be Lord of my life!
There are literally millions of dollars spent each year on self-help books in the United States. Christians flock to purchase the books, videos, at a rate that equals those who do not have Christ in their lives. I find that amazing because God’s Word has all one needs to live a happy life. I think the problem is that most Christians do not want to take the time to study the Word of God.
As your pastor I want all of you to have a better understanding of God’s Word so that you can live happier lives, as you wait for Jesus to come back and take us all home. Because I want you to live happier lives I am going to talk to you about the Ten Commandments. Each week we will cover one commandment, so you can better understand how it can help you live happier lives.
Today we will start with the First Commandment, “You will have no other gods before me.”
Now, if you are like me you probably heard the Law in that statement. If you did you would be right, for it is Law. Your conscience was more than likely struck by that command, for we all know we have not kept that command.
While it is Law we, as Christians live under that command in a different manner. We live under that command in a different way because God’s Commandments do not condemn us anymore. They cannot, for Jesus in his birth, perfect life, death, resurrection, and ascension took care of the condemnation.
The purpose of the commandments then is to help the people of God to lead happier lives. Maybe you remember how you felt when you were confirmed. How you knew that with God’s help you would obey God and live a godly life. Maybe there was time when you experienced God in all his power. Maybe it was at a healing, or someone spoke in tongues. Maybe it was in the midst of a prayer meeting or at the deathbed of a loved one who came to faith. Maybe it was witnessing a dramatic rescue where you could almost see the hand of God reaching down and pulling the person to safety.
Whenever it was I would say that more than likely you probably became on fire for the Lord. You were determined to put God number one in your life. You probably decided right then and there that you would never let any of those gods in your life ever rule again. You were going to be faithful to God, but as time went on and life settled into its usual rut you probably found that your self-centeredness and self-service asserted themselves into your life once more. It is just the way it is. We are sinful human beings who struggle with keeping God number one in our lives.
Ever since Adam and Eve sinned that has been the struggle of those who believe that God should always be number one in their life. And in that struggle unhappiness occurs, for we all know how much we have failed in keeping the first of God’s Words for leading a happy life.
It was early on the course of history when Elijah called down fire from heaven on the altar that he had built and soaked with water. God answered and everything was consumed, rocks and all. Elijah in that great show of God’s power told the people that they would have to choose whom they were going to follow. The people cried out “Yahweh is God” and promised to change their lives as they kept God number one, but we all know the rest of the story, for they were soon sinning against God and his wrath fell on them.
Jesus’ disciples in our Gospel reading this morning had just witnessed Jesus’ power and in the storm that night did not keep Jesus in their hearts. They relied on themselves and when that failed they then called out to Jesus, “Don’t you care that we are drowning?” Imagine that, they were asking Jesus who created all things, including themselves whether or not he cared for them. That is why Jesus admonished them so severely when he said they had no faith. You see at this point they only had head knowledge of Jesus. They had not kept Jesus number one in their life.
Can you imagine what they must have felt like after Jesus spoke, “Peace, be still.” and the wind and seas obeyed him. They were afraid. Who is this man that even the seas and wind obey him?” You see they still did not get it. God was God somewhere up there, but a Jesus God; that just was not possible. Jesus is God. He is not less than God. He is fully God.
He once said, “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” Jesus invites us today to see the Father in him. Jesus is the visible love of God. And because he is the visible love of the Father we can then say that the First Word of God says not only, “You will have no other gods!” but also says “Don’t give up on Jesus, for Jesus is God.”
Our response then should be, “Give up on Jesus? Never! I want Jesus to be Lord in my life.” If that is our cry and it should be then we should fear, love, and trust in Jesus. We don’t fear him as someone who would on a whim squash us, but fear him in the sense that we stand in awe of him, for he created and sustains everything. He is our very being.
We love him more than anything in the world, for John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit tells us that “if anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” Jesus puts it another way when he said, “What shall if profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your soul?” God’s Word for leading a happy Christian life then calls us away from building our lives on temporary things, as much as we love them, and valuing his invitation to eternal life by loving, valuing more than anything, Jesus, the one who loved us first.
When we truly fear and love him then we will trust him, for trust means basing our confidence on something or someone as we face life and death. Long ago a psalmist reminded God’s people that they are not to put their trust in things of this world, for as strong as they might be eventually they will succumb to dust and in doing so they will show that their trust has been misplaced.
The words of the psalmist say the same thing to us, for all the gods of the world that we depend on will finally in the end fail us. We need to keep Jesus number one in our lives. Sure we don’t see him, but we know of him in his Word and because we know of him in the Word we are to have faith in him to do what he says he will do.
This past week I read an article in which a man describes the meaning of faith using each letter of faith. He wrote, “Faith is forsaking all; I take him.” Let Jesus be Lord in your life. He wants to be. He keeps pursuing you. Have no other Gods in your life except Jesus your Savior, for those words will lead to you having a happy life. And when you work on forsaking everything in your life you will find that the other 9 words of God that I will be talking about in the coming weeks will fall into line for you.
Leave this morning truly believing that you free of God’s condemnation. Keep Jesus number one in your life and you will be better equipped to face all the challenges life presents to you. Amen.
posted by Pastor Rhoads | 1:49 PM
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