Sunday/Aug/2010 13:57
August 29, 2010
A farmer had a team of horses in which one horse consistently worked harder than any of the others. The farmer said, “They’re all willin’ horses. The one’s willin’ to pull and the rest are willin’ to let him.”
Sadly, that is often an accurate description of the local church. In fact, pastors often refer to what they call the 80-20 rule, which states that 20 percent of the church members do 80 percent of the work. But God never intended it to be that way.
He intended that all whom He saved should serve His cause in some capacity. There are many reasons that Christians do not serve the Lord. Some don’t serve because their commitment to Christ and His church is half-hearted. They attend church occasionally, but their real interests are in the world. Serving in the church would be an inconvenience for them.
Others have tried serving, but they lacked training and grew frustrated and quit. Some quit because other church members criticized them. Others burned out trying to do too much. Some quit serving because they were serving out of the wrong motivation. They were looking for commendation from people, not from God. But for whatever reason, many Christians grow weary of the hassle of serving the Lord and retreat to a more comfortable seat on the sidelines.
Pastor Rick continues in the teaching series: Red Letter Words as we examine the word: serve. Jesus said, “The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28)
Listen Sunday/Aug/2010 13:31
August 22, 2010
There was a man who got lost in the desert. After wandering around for a long time his throat became very dry, about that time he saw a little shack in the distance. He made his way over to the shack and found a water pump with a small jug of water and a note.
The note read: "pour all the water into the top of the pump to prime it, if you do this you will get all the water you need". Now the man had a choice to make, if he trusted the note and poured the water in and it worked he would have all the water he needed. If it didn’t work he would still be thirsty and he might die. Or he could choose to drink the water in the jug and get immediate satisfaction, but it might not be enough and he still might die. After thinking about it the man decided to risk it. He poured the entire jug into the pump and began to work the handle, at first nothing happened and he got a little scared but he kept going and water started coming out. So much water came out that he drank all he wanted, took a shower, and filled all the containers he could find. Because he was willing to give up momentary satisfaction, he got all the water he needed. Now the note also said: “after you have finished, please refill the jug for the next traveler.” The man refilled the jug and added to the note: “Please prime the pump,believe me it works”!
Today we continue in the teaching series Red Letter Words as we look at the word trust. Jesus calls on two people to trust Him in different ways–but both are offered the chance to “prime the pump” of faith by forcing reliance on Jesus Christ. First we have a public figure that must choose trusting Jesus over the jeers and doubts of his loved ones. Then we have an anonymous figure that has faith in Jesus but hasn’t taken a public stand, acknowledging Him before the crowds. The question today is, “Do you really trust Jesus?
Listen Sunday/Aug/2010 13:33
August 15, 2010
In the Gospel, the disciples see Jesus praying and ask him to teach them how to pray. His response to them is what we generally call the Lord’s Prayer. It follows the basic Jewish pattern of prayer: praise followed by petition. That means that Jesus learned to pray, that he was praying within a tradition that was handed down to him.
Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of this simple prayer is that it is a clear and compelling articulation of a relationship of trust. Jesus does not hold back in asking for what he needs, and in encouraging us to ask for what we need. We need daily sustenance, we need forgiveness to take hold of our lives, and we need protection from persecution. Notice how these are things that are most readily found in community, not in isolation.
The prayer Jesus teaches his disciples gives us a glimpse into his relationship to the Father. But it also illustrates the kind of relationships we should cultivate with one another: relationships of trust, of openness, of forgiveness. On our own, we are vulnerable to hunger and persecution. In a loving community, we can be released from our fears, knowing that there will always be somebody to offer us a piece of bread or to stand with us in solidarity. When our own basic needs are being met, we are then free to go out into the world and be bearers of Good News and liberation to others.
The Lord’s Prayer reminds us that prayer is something that can be taught, which means that it can be learned. That should be good news to all of us who worry that we’re not very good at praying. Prayer is not a competition, and it’s okay if it doesn’t come naturally, or if you feel like you have to work at it and you’re not really sure that you’re doing it right. It is also important to realize that the Holy Spirit is always there, ready to pray through us. This also means that it is definitely impossible to ever pray alone. Today we look at the model of prayer given by Jesus when He taught the disciples how to pray.
Listen Sunday/Aug/2010 12:49
August 8, 2010
In his book, "The Art of Forgiveness," author Jack Kornfield shares a stunning portrait of mercy. In South Africa, the Babemba tribe has an incredible way of dealing with criminals and the unjust. When a person is caught committing a crime, they are placed in the center of the village and are surrounded by the rest of the people. One by one the people around the circle face the accused and state the good things the person has done, recounting in great detail positive memories of the man or woman in the middle. The ceremony itself can last for days, and at its closing the person is welcomed back into the tribe with great jubilation.
Many people could never imagine such a picture of love and acceptance. Indeed many of us are used to "getting even" and receiving as good as we get. Yet the Babemba are very close to the heart of God in welcoming home those who have strayed.
Jesus spoke a very difficult truth when he went on a mountainside and began to teach His disciples. He taught them saying: “Yes, if you forgive others for their sins, your Father in heaven will also forgive you for your sins. But if you don’t forgive others, your Father in heaven will not forgive your sins.” (Matthew 6:14-15)
Jesus went beyond telling us about our own forgiveness to tell us to offer forgiveness as well. Perhaps he knew that the one thing we needed in our own lives to grasp the love and forgiveness of God is to provide the same to others. Indeed, maybe it is when we are the most forgiving that we most clearly see the Father.
Listen Sunday/Aug/2010 13:42
August 1, 2010
Red-letter Bibles have become so common that it’s easy to assume they have been around for as long as Bibles have been printed. Not so! The first red-letter New Testament was published in 1899, and the first red-letter Bible followed two years later.
The idea of printing the words of Christ in red originated with Lous Klopsch, editor of “Christian Herald” magazine. Klopsch was a close friend of such contemporaries as T. DeWitt Talmage, D.L. Moody, and Ira Sankey. Klopsch was an early supporter of Moody’s Bible Institute in Chicago, rallying Christian Herald readers to send in contributions for the financially strapped school.
No cause was dearer to Klopsch’s heart, however, than that of Scripture distribution and reading. Through “Christian Herald,” Klopsch published more than 60,000 Bibles and Testaments annually during much of his tenure. But he wanted to do more than get the Bible into people’s hands. He wanted people to read the Bible and understand it—particularly what it says about Jesus Christ.
Klopsch conceived the idea of printing some of the biblical text with red ink. When reading Jesus’ words, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20), he thought of printing all of Jesus’ words in red, the color of his blood.
“Modern Christianity,” Klopsch wrote in an explanatory note in his red- letter Bible, “is striving zealously to draw nearer to the great Founder of the Faith. Setting aside mere human doctrines and theories regarding Him, it presses close to the Divine Presence, to gather from His own lips the definition of His mission to the world and His own revelation of the Father... The Red Letter Bible has been prepared and issued in the full conviction that it will meet the needs of the student, the worker, and the searchers after truth everywhere.”
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