Forerunner

Good morning. It’s great to be back home with you, celebrating Christmas together. Many thanks to those of you who prayed for me on my recent trip. Those prayers were answered in so many ways. It was amazing that we could take 21 flights on 10 different airlines to 9 different countries and not miss a single connection or lose our luggage even once! Even more of an answer was the blessing of hearing so many wonderful stories of how God is at work in the world: saving, redeeming, restoring, and growing his people.

This will be a sign for you. We talk a lot about signs around Christmastime, don’t we? There is the sign of the virgin conceiving and bearing a son, prophesied by Isaiah and fulfilled in Mary, as Carl talked about last week. The shepherds were given a sign by the angels: a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger. Signs confirm the truth of what God is saying and doing.

Foretold

Welcome! Today we begin a new series on the events surrounding the birth of Christ. Today’s message, “Foretold,” looks at the opening events in Matthew and Luke. But I want to first back up a bit to talk about what it was like to wait for the coming of the Messiah. Interestingly, one of the people who the Bible informs us was waiting for Messiah was the Samaritan woman at the well who meets Jesus in John chapter 4. At the time, she doesn’t know who He is at all, except that He is Jewish. During the conversation Jesus reveals a supernatural ability to know things about the woman, and He also talks about the deep and ancient conflict between Samaritans and Jews about the proper location for worship. Finally the woman replies,

The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” – John 4:25

Wrong Life

Welcome! Today is our third and final message in this series on common mistakes that Christians of all ages and maturities can make in their lives. Our first message was entitled “Wrong House,” and we looked at how people can have misconceptions about the Christian life that lead them to go to the wrong “house”, the wrong spiritual “place” that they think God wants them to inhabit. Three such wrong houses we looked at were (1) the idea of adding rules and requirements to live by beyond the principles of the New Testament, (2) the idea of focusing on outward actions to the degree that a lukewarm heart towards God is not addressed in one’s life, and (3) the idea that is OK to live out the Christian life apart from seeking and maintaining deep interdependent relationships with other Christians.

Wrong Name

Welcome! Today is our second message in this series on common mistakes that Christians, both those new to the faith and those who have been believers for decades, can make in their lives. Our first message was entitled “Wrong House,” and we looked at how people can have misconceptions about the Christian life that lead them to go to the wrong “house”, the wrong spiritual “place” that they think God wants them to inhabit.

Wrong House

Welcome! Today I am excited to begin a new series dealing with common mistakes that Christians, both new and old, often make in their lives. The series is motivated in part by things that I see on campus. There is a stereotype that college freshmen are clueless and gullible, and, although I am not sure how true that stereotype is, I do see certain mistakes that freshmen make again and again. One of the most common mistakes freshmen make is that they significantly underestimate how much time they need to devote to their classes if they hope to do well. There is a big difference between high school courses and college courses; in most cases, material in college is presented at literally double the pace that it is presented in high school. Furthermore, a greater burden is placed on the student to actually sit down and study the material for mastery; there is a lot less “hand-holding” in college classes than there is in high school.

"Idle" Worship

2 Thessalonians 3:6-18

Good morning!  Today is the final message in our series “Follow Christ. He Comes!” which has been a study of the two letters to the Thessalonian church.  Acts 17 tells the story of how Paul and his friends came to Thessalonica as they passed through Macedonia preaching the gospel.  They spent only a short time in the city, two to three weeks, before the Jewish leaders who opposed the gospel formed a mob and incited a riot to drive them away.

Hold Fast

2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5

But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth. He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.

May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.   –2 Thessalonians 2:13-17

Holding Him Back

II Thessalonians 2:1-12

Good morning!  Today we are going forward in the second letter which Paul, Silas and Timothy wrote to the church in Thessalonica.  As Tim pointed out last week, this letter was written not long after the first letter, just a few months at most.  Its purpose is similar to the first letter as well.  This letter serves to encourage, exhort, and explain.

Bringing to Fruition

2 Thessalonians 1:1-12

Today we launch into the second letter from Paul to the Thessalonians. Scholars believe that it was written probably just a few weeks or months after the first. It seems that not much has changed in the situation. The church is facing many of the same issues, so the themes of this letter line up quite closely with those of the first. So why did Paul write this letter? Did he really need to? Have you ever faced that question? Does staying in touch with people ever feel routine or even a bit of burden? You know you owe someone a letter or email, but you’re not sure if you have anything new to add to what you said the last time you wrote. But keeping in touch is important, isn’t it? People need to know you care. And we have already noted Paul’s special concern for these new believers in Thessalonica. We can assume that Silas and/or Timothy have delivered the first letter and returned. Paul is still thinking of the Thessalonians, and he wants them to know that. And we will see that he certainly does have some new insights to share and areas to exhort in this short letter of just three chapters. Once again he wants to correct some misunderstanding concerning the return of the Lord Jesus and what will happen around that time. In Chapter 2 Paul writes about the “man of lawlessness” who must revealed and exalt himself before the “day of the Lord” comes.

Instruction and Prayers

Here we are at the end of 1 Thessalonians in our series “Follow Christ. He Comes!”  But before we start, let’s ask God’s blessing on our time in the word and then we’ll jump in together.

Father, I do praise You that we need no more than Christ. The work is finished, we can do nothing else.  Thank You for Your word that equips us for every good work and is profitable for righteousness, instruction, correction, and reproof.  Father, I just pray that You will bless our time in Your word, that You would teach us, and that we would have open ears and receptive hearts.  In Jesus’ name, amen.