Category Archives: Sermons

Discipleship, Jesus, Preaching, Sermon Series, Sermons

Bringing the Heat

This Summer, I’ve been preaching out of Proverbs for my Summer Sermon Series: Wisdom for Living. Since it’s 4th of July weekend I decided to stick with the fireworks theme and talk about what God’s Word has to tell us about handling Relational Conflict. Light that fuse!

Where there are relationships, you will find conflict. When people interact and bump up against each other there will be conflict – big and small. Our culture loves to disagree over so many things: race, religion, family issues, politics, world views. You name it and people are fighting over it.

Now you might say, “Micheal, surely those of us who love Jesus don’t have to worry about conflict in the church!” After you’ve stop laughing and finished wiping the laughter-tears away, read this story:

In 1995, a man named Chuck Noland was stranded on a desert island after a horrific crash. He was alone on the island for nearly twenty years until a passing freighter spotted him on the beach last February. When his rescuers told him that they were there to take him home, he was overjoyed. Noland asked them if they would accompany him to the shelter he had built so that he could retrieve some of his belongings. When the group arrived at the shelter, they were amazed at how big and beautiful his island home was. Then someone noticed another structure to the right, larger and more grand than his home. When they asked Nolan what the other structure was he told them that it was his church – the place where he worshipped. Amazed at what Nolan had been able to build there in the jungle all by himself, the group turned to head back to the rescue ship. That’s when the saw a third building just as large and grand as the other two. They asked what this was and Nolan said in a hushed tone, “That’s the church I used to go to.”

BOOM!

The truth is that there is no perfect church because there are no perfect people. Churches split and relationships crumble, not due to conflict, but though the way we handle conflict. There are ways to approach conflict that can be life-giving and there are ways that can be soul-crushing. The number one reason that the church is irrelevant, ineffective, and gasping for air can be tied back to our unwillingness to deal with and work though conflict biblically.

As followers of Jesus Christ we must learn how to effectively deal with conflict when it arises. It is my hope through this lesson will help us, in light of our relationship with Jesus, RETHINK conflict and RELEARN how to effectively and positively deal with it in your life.

Here is what I truly believe: when we learn how to biblically handle conflict we will REVEL in our relationship with Jesus, experience RESTORED relationships with one another, and we will better REVEAL to the culture around us the God who pursues and redeems relationships broken by conflict.

 

 

Sermon Series, Sermons

2013 Sermon Series: The Word Overview

Series Title: THE WORD
This Week: THE WORD ABOUT THE WORD

life by the book_wide_t_nt

Passages:
John 1:1
Psalm 119:16
Hebrews 4:12-13 NIV11
Psalm 119:11

Series message: The Bible isn’t simply a book. It is actually a collection of 66 books, written by over 40 authors, over the course of thousands of years, on 3 different continents. The Bible tells stories, sings songs and poems, lists rules and regulations, and recounts history. It address topics as wide ranging as love, hated, life, death, family, war, sin, suffering, fear, joy, worry, worship, choices, and wisdom. However, there is ONE THEME that is constant in all this diversity: God, the creator of all things, is at work redeeming the world through his love and grace. The Bible is not just a book; it is the Living Word of God.

This week’s message: The Bible is the world’s bestselling book (and it’s most shoplifted) yet many people today take The Word for granted. If we truly want to know about God and his desire for our lives than we must make The Bible a TOP PRIORITY in our lives. It is my prayer that this week’s message will help you fall in love with God’s Word. Let The WORD feed you. Let The WORD minister to you. Let The WORD change you. Let The WORD shape you.

Why is this important? Statistics show that nothing has a greater impact on our spiritual growth and development than ENGAGING with God’s Word. When we READ Scripture , God reveals himself to us- his character, his will, and his desire for our lives. When we MEDITATE on His Word, God can speak to us through the noise of our day and call us to repentance and new life. When we LIVE out the invitation and challenge of Scripture, we are demonstrating our FAITH that God’s ways are greater than anything else we can choose. However, most of us are missing out on this incredible opportunity to know God and His will for our lives. Our Bibles sit unused on a shelf or on our desks or in our cars. The Bible is the way we can connect to God and his desire for our lives.

What do I want people to do with this message? I want everyone to be awakened to the potential spiritual growth that can come from ENGAGING with THE WORD everyday. I want people listening to this message to be inspired, encouraged, equipped to read their Bible- reflect on Scripture and it’s meaning for their lives. The Bible must function as the DNA of the church. I want people to become crazy passionate about connecting with God through THE WORD.

What is the single most persuasive idea? THE WORD of God is the greatest opportunity we have to come to know the story of God and his work of redeeming us through his love and grace. When we make reading our Bibles a top priority we will be changed.

Week One: THE WORD ABOUT… THE WORD
Week Two: THE WORD ABOUT… GOD
Week Three: THE WORD ABOUT… YOU & ME
Week Four: THE WORD ABOUT… JESUS
Week Five: THE WORD ABOUT… LIFE

Bible Study, Discipleship, Mission, Preaching, Sermon Series, Sermons

NEXT: Identify with Jesus

Earlier this month I started a new sermon series entitled, NEXT: Taking Your Next Steps in Faith. In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus gives us the goal of Spiritual Growth when he says that we are to increase in our Love for God and our love for Others. Next Steps help us grow in our love for God and others by giving us the opportunity to put our faith into practice by following or obeying what he is calling us to do.

In each week, I have had a specific agenda for those listening to my words.

In week one, I was clear that I wanted us to take the next step to CONNECT WITH A CHURCH. A church isn’t a building or an address in Google Maps. A church is a group of people who seek out God together, live together, and work together in order to bring glory to Jesus Christ. Connecting to a church doesn’t mean your growth is automatic or that growth only happens within the four walls of the church. However, when you CONNECT with a group of disciples you are putting yourself in an environment where you can grow in RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ, your FRIENDSHIP with God’s people, and your INFLUENCE with those who are far from God.

The following week I my agenda was to get all of us to ENGAGE WITH GOD’S WORD. According to Move: What 100 Churches Reveal About Spiritual Growth (Hardback, Kindle), the number one catalyst for spiritual growth whether you’ve been a Christian for 5 minutes or 50 years is reflecting on Scripture or ENGAGING with God’s Word. That looks a little different than simply reading your Bible everyday. To ENGAGE encompassing READING the Word, THINKING about what God is saying to us, PRAYING that God will reveal himself and his will to us, and LIVING out what you see God calling you to.

This week, I want those who have not yet been baptized to take that next step to privately and publicly IDENTIFY their lives with Jesus Christ through being BAPTIZED.

Baptism can be an emotional topic to discuss because everyone has different opinions and traditions depending on how they grew up. My motivation isn’t to teach on how everyone else is wrong or misguided. I have one goal and that is to invite and challenge those who have not yet been baptized to do so. 

There are three things that I want to avoid with this week’s message on Baptism:

  1. I don’t want to cause conflict. There was a time in my life when I thought I knew everything there was to say about baptism. At our Christian high school, I can remember starting quite a few arguments with my classmates around this subject. “The Bible told you to do it, you should do it.” was my line and I delivered it with all the care and concern of General Rommel taking North Africa. I was too bombastic and failed to understand that we all come to this topic with our own personal histories. The last thing that I want to do is create conflict around what is, by far and away, the best way to IDENTIFY yourself with the message and person of Jesus Christ.
  2. I don’t want to cause pain. Typically what happens when we begin to talk about baptism is that some pain and angst begins to well up inside of us when we think about friends and family members- primarily those whom have passed away- that were not baptized. We begin to worry about Uncle Sal or we get hurt because someone suggested that our friend may be downstairs when we believe they are upstairs. When I’m discussing baptism I want those that I’m sharing with to think about their own decision in the here and now. I do not want to speculate about theological positions or postulate on things that I just do not and cannot know.
  3. I don’t want to cause confusion. I want everyone who chooses to IDENTIFY with Jesus Christ through being baptized to be sure of their decision. I don’t want someone to look back and be confused about the reasons why they were baptize or to question their own salvation. Baptism paints a perfect picture of what Jesus did on our behalf and is a beautiful expression of our relationship with him. Just as Jesus died for our sins, we are to die to ourselves and our ways of living life. Jesus as Jesus was buried and in the tomb for three days, so we are buried under the water. Just as Jesus was raised to life again through the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit empowers us to live the resurrection life as a disciple of Jesus Christ.

In my past, I am sure that I caused some conflict, pain, and confusion when I have argued about baptism. If you were one of those people, I am truly sorry. I promise this weekend, I will take more care as I discuss this highly emotional topic.

My goal this weekend will be to invite others to IDENTIFY with Jesus through taking the next step and being baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Sermon Series, Sermons

Get Back- Sermon Series

Happy Memorial Day!!!

I’ve been putting the finishing touches on my outline for our summer sermon series today. I have been feeling a push to walk our congregation through the book of Ephesians and I am really excited about it.

In Revelation 2:4, Jesus tells the church in Ephesus that they have forgotten their love and affection for Him and his people. Jesus then invites them to return back to the relationship they once had with him.

The church of today would do well to look to the church in Ephesus and to heed the call of Jesus to return to our first love. It’s time we fell back in love with Jesus.

It’s time to Get Back.

getbacktemp2

Get Back – A Study in the book of Ephesians
Week 1- Back to Where You Once Belonged (Ephesians Introduction)
Week 2- Across the Universe (Ephesians 1:1-10)
Week 3- Baby You’re a Rich Man (Ephesians 1:11-22)
Week 4- Here Comes the Sun (Ephesians 2:1-10)
Week 5- Come Together (Ephesians 2:11-22)
Week 6- Ticket to Ride (Ephesians 3:1-13)
Week 7- Got to Get You Into My Life (Ephesians 3:14-21)
Week 8- All You Need Is Love (Ephesians 4:1-16)
Week 9- A Day In The Life (Ephesians 4:17-32)
Week 10- Revolution (Ephesians 5:1-20)
Week 11- PS I Love You/Two of Us (Ephesians 5:21-6:9)
Week 12- The End (Ephesians 6:10-24)

I am so excited about what God may do through this series. The plan will be to use this outline. We may not go 12 weeks with it but we’ll see where God leads us.

I am honored and blessed that I get to share the Gospel of Jesus each week. I look forward to sharing more from Ephesians here on the blog. Keep an eye out for all summer.

Until next time… Have a great week!

(I’d love to say that I came up with the artwork completely on my own. I got inspired by a series on Elisha from Elevation Church a few years ago that used this title and artwork that looked just like this. I messed around with some files in Photoshop and came up with this. I got real close.)

Ethos, Experience, Film & Theology, I Love My Church, Life, Preaching, Questions, Remarkable, Sermons

The Hero’s Journey

I’m in the middle of preaching through The Sermon on the Mount and I have been so excited about what I’m learning and how God is connecting me to his overarching story. In my study over the last few weeks I have seen a connection between Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey. If you are unfamiliar with the Hero’s Journey, let me give you a quick tour of what I’m talking about.

There are two things I love to do- read and watch movies. I feel that these two pursuits often go hand in hand.  In fact, I have heard it said that movies are today’s literature.

Both movies and literature seek to tell us a compelling story and when we interact with those stories we can’t help but try and find ourselves within the narrative. We imagine ourselves in the role of our favorite characters and often times we try and emulate what we see on the screen or what we read on the page.

While watching the King’s Speech, I began asking myself how I would react if I were in Prince Albert’s position. If I had a debilitating speech impediment, how would I react? Would I become a mute- so embarrassed by my stutter that I decide not to speak at all? Would I seek help? Would I pretend nothing was wrong with me?

As the film progressed, I began asking what if I were asked to give a speech to rally the entire empire against an enemy as fierce and evil as the Nazis? What would I say? How could I convince the people around me to join the cause and fight for a better tomorrow?

Stories force us to look at our lives and how we are currently living them and they give us a glimpse into how our lives could be and they whisper to us concerning what should be.

In 1949, a man named Joseph Campbell published a book entitled, The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Campbell studied thousands of myths and stories from every era of human existence and out of all those stories and myths, he identified a similar patter regardless of time and culture. He called this pattern The Hero’s Journey. This is absolutely fascinating to me. If you went home and pulled out your favorite book or movie, there is a very good chance that you would see this pattern.

I just turned your quiet Friday night into an academic exercise. You’re welcome.

In every story, the hero or the main character starts out living his life just like everyone else. He is knee deep in living an ordinary life. Rick owns a nightclub in N. Africa. Dorothy lives with her Aunt and Uncle on a farm in Kansas. Tomas Anderson is a computer programer. Ben-Hur is a Jewish noble.

Then our hero is Called into an Adventure. Sometimes this is an actual call- Build It and They Will Come. Sometimes it is an event or something outside their control.

In all the gin joints, in all the world Ilsa walks into Rick’s American Cafe. Dorothy is carried away by a tornado. Neo meets Morpheus. Frodo is given a ring. Ben-Hur is betrayed by Messala.

This call to adventure is really the opportunity for something greater. The hero is invited to change their life and USUALLY the lives of those around them by entering into a great adventure.

The hero has to make a choice– life as they know it or take the journey and change the world. They can Refuse or Respond to the call.

Will Rick help Ilsa and Victor Lazlo get to America so they can continue the Resistance against the Nazis? Will Dorothy stop the Wicked Witch of the West? Will Neo embrace his destiny and free the human race? Will Frodo destroy the ring?

If the decision is made to respond and answer the call then the Hero begins his journey. There is usually some spiritual help or aid- A Fellowship, a French police officer, a yellow bricked road, Yoda- that guides our hero toward his/her goal.

Then our Hero comes face to face with a Road of Trials.

The German Major Strasser and the Gestapo arrive in Casablanca. Dorothy is captured. The Fellowship is broken. Cypher makes a deal with Agent Smith. The Empire decides to Strike back.

Barriers arise and seek to derail our hero and try to keep them from achieving a new life. These Trials are difficult to overcome but if our Hero desires to change their life and the lives of those they care for the Trials must be dealt with and overcome.

So what does this have to do with The Sermon on the Mount? Like any great story, this post is To Be Continued….

Jesus, Ministry, Sermon Series, Sermons

Sneak Peek

On Sunday I’m wrapping up our series UNSTOPPABLE on the life of Elisha. Our next sermon series is…

King's Speech iPad Wallpaper

THE KING’S SPEECH will be a study in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus has so much to say to us about LIFE, PRAYER, WORRY, and what it means to really FOLLOW HIM. I am so excited about this series! We kick it of on March 27th!

Best Practices, Leadership, Planning, Preaching, Sermons, Study

Sermon Prep

Over the last few years I have been experimenting with my weekly schedule in order to maximize my time studying, ministering, teaching, and planning so I can then make sure that I am growing personally and relationally in my own faith and with my family. I have to stay on top of things organizationally because, frankly, organization doesn’t come naturally to me. I get a real kick when people tell me they think I am “really good at organization.” Any semblance of order has come from many hours of trial and error, flexibility and expiermentation.

Now that I am having to present a message in the form of a sermon each week, I’ve been playing around with my schedule again trying to figure out how I can adequately prepare for the weekly message and do everything else I need to do. Nelson Searcy says, “Someone pays the price for the sermon preparation. Either the pastor pays the price during the week or the people pay the price on Sunday!” I firmly believe that!

One goal I have set is to have everything for Sunday- outline, presentation, notes, full sermon- ready to go by Thursday afternoon. For the most part, this has happened and I have felt like my schedule and crazy life has really benefitted from this goal.

Having the message finished by Thursday allows for a few thing:

1. Friday is my day off. The last thing I want to do is worry about, fiddle with, and obsess over my message for the weekend. My day off is for me to abide with the Father and spend time with my family. Fridays are Hewson and Daddy days. I owe the Father and my family my attention for the day. Having my message finished by Thursday actually helps me be present where I need to be on Fridays.

2. Everything is ready for the bulletin. Each week, I provide a fill in the blank outline for people to follow along with on Sunday morning. It is my responsibility to make sure that I’m not throwing something together at the last minute.

3. After spending the whole week on my message, stepping away for a few hours helps me internalize the message. This is a personal conviction I have: I believe that standing and reading a script (not-so)subtly communicates to people that “This message didn’t impact my heart enough to make much of a difference in my own life so… yeah.” How sad.  If I can’t remember the message to deliver it, no one who hears it will remember it or apply it tho their life either.

4. I’m not staying up late on Saturday putting together a PowerPoint presentation. When I was a campus minister I had to put together a ppt presentation almost every single day so I’m pretty proficient. Still, that last thing that I want to do is mess with my slides. I want to be running through my message, memorizing, cutting unnecessary tangents, and praying over the words I’ll be saying. Visuals are super important to me but they aren’t what I want to spend the bulk of my time on when the pressure is on.

There have been other benefits to getting everything together by Thursday but these are the ones that I have seen week in and week out. Sure, life gets in the way and the Spirit has challenged me to stray from my outline late Saturday night. However, I have found that when I am prepared I am much more flexible and in a position to react with an open heart and open mind because I’m not rushed and frantic.

This has worked for me. Maybe it will inspire you to find what works for you.

Discipleship, Jesus is the Christ, Sermons

Unstoppable

Unstoppable iPad Bgrnd

Yesterday, I kicked off a brand-new series entitled “UNSTOPPABLE” that is based on the life of Elisha.

Elisha was FULLY COMMITTED to the mission that God called him to. In fact, he was so committed that long after Elisha was dead and buried a group of Israelites were in the process of burying their friend near Elisha’s burial place. Their funeral was interrupted by the news of a Moabite raiding party and since there was no time to bury their friend, they threw his body into Elisha’s tomb. When the dead man came in contact with Elisha’s bones THE MAN CAME BACK TO LIFE! (2Kings 13:20-21)

Elisha was so committed to God that even his bones did miracles!!! Take about a legacy of faith!!!

We too can have the ability to impact and change lives long after we are gone.

This faith legacy begins when we COMMIT TO FOLLOWING JESUS. Jesus doesn’t just want some of our life- He wants it all. He tells us that he wants all of us- our heart, mind, soul, and body.

Are you FULLY COMMITTED to FOLLOWING JESUS with EVERYTHING you have?

If not, what are you waiting for?

Advent, Mission, Sermons

You Are The Song That I Sing

Today I am preaching the second part of my Christmas series, Do You Hear? We will be looking at three of the Songs of Joy that accompany the birth of Jesus, the Savior. These three song-prayers are found in Luke (Luke 1: 46-55; 1:67-79; 2:29-32) and are sung by Mary, the mother of Jesus, Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and a man named Simeon. What makes these songs so special is that each of them are marked with praise to God for all that He has done in the past and marked by joy for the promises that are being fulfilled.

Mary, Zechariah, and Simeon have spent their entire lives preparing for the coming Messiah. Now each of them was being asked to play a role in the Savior coming to earth. Their response speaks volumes to their level of faith and willingness to follow wherever God would lead them.

Mary’s song set about Magnifying God for his power and grace. Zechariah’s song Blesses the Lord and praises Him for sending His salvation for Israel and for the Gentiles. Simeon’s song is all about promises fulfilled and asks God to Release him to tell the world of his experience with the Savior.

What song are you singing today?

Christmas, Jesus, Jesus is the Christ, Sermons

Blindsided

When I was a Senior in High School, I was injured during a football game and had to endure a few weeks of physical therapy in order to even walk without pain. The day I was cleared to return back to football was a Friday afternoon. Even though I knew I wouldn’t get to play that night I was so excited about being able to be on the sidelines, dressed in my gear, with my teammates. I couldn’t have been happier. That’s when it happened.

As I was driving to the game, I lady in a giant Cadillac t-boned me. She just decided that  she might try to cross 4 lanes of traffic by sliding under my Chevy pick-up. The back end of my truck popped up and I would have flipped or landed on my side but “luckily” the nose of my truck came down on the back end of an Infinity Q45.

I was disoriented. “What happened?”
I was angry at the lady. “Are you SERIOUS!!!”
I was confused. “Why did this happen to me?”
I was angry at God. “Why did YOU let this happen?!?!”

I had been blindsided. Things were looking up for me. Then out of nowhere… this. I had been enduring pain and frustration for so long. Now that I was better and things were getting back to normal how could this have happened? What’s the purpose? Why?

Have you been blindsided by life? I know you have because all of us have experienced a moment where everything changes in an instant.

The phone call with the test results.
When he told you that this isn’t working out and would like the ring back.
The heartbeat isn’t on the ultrasound.
A parent having to move in with you so you care care for them.
The scholarship that never materialized.
The rumors swirling around the break room about the cutbacks.

As I’ve been studying a preparing for my sermon this week I have been thinking about what our response to these moments should be. As children of God and as disciples of Jesus our response to pain, suffering, frustration, and disorientation is directly related to what we believe about God and His Son, Jesus Christ.

I wrote this down: In all things do not fret and do not fear, take courage and know that God is near.

God is with you. Jesus is here. That’s the underlying message of the Incarnation. God became flesh and dwelt among us.

Do you believe that? I hope you do. May that belief- the belief that God is with you- sustain you the next time the Cadillac of life decides to plow into you.

Do not fret and do not fear, take courage and know that God is near.