Episodes

  • The Economy Of The Cross

    The Economy Of The Cross
    Aug 21 2022
    The Economy of the Cross:  Matt 20:17-28 - Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, 18“We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death19and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!”20Then the mother of Zebedee’s sons came to Jesus with her sons and, kneeling down, asked a favor of him.21“What is it you want?” he asked.             She said, “Grant that one of these two sons of mine may sit at your right and the other at your left in your kingdom.”22“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”             “We can,” they answered.23 Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.”24 When the ten heard about this, they were indignant with the two brothers. 25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.26Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  All of Matt chapter 20 is about the Kingdom of God. It has great insights to the way that God has established His own Kingdom and how we should gain to understand more about it, especially since we are considered “Ambassadors of that kingdom”.  ·      I think that since we are going to have such a strong focus on the serving through this year, in particular this summer we should understand some key principles of God’s Kingdom economy.·      The first 7 words of the first verse of Matt 20:1 – For the Kingdom of heaven is like… He then proceeds to tell his disciples a parable about a vineyard owner and some workers. ·      It literally is setting the stage for the next section which we read just a moment ago. It is as if Jesus is attempting to press upon their minds and hearts that some of the things that they think are right about this world and the way it works are actually completely upside down in God’s kingdom. ·      It’s as if we are all living in the upside down (from Stranger Things) and God is living in the right side up. The thing is we think (much like the disciples that we have it the correct way).  3 key points about this passage I want to us to grab hold of and try to apply to our own lives. Not just tonight but embrace them as the “new normal” we should be trying to live within.   1.    Kingdom economy is not like the economy of this world. Vs:22 - “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”  “We can,” they answered.   Jesus plainly told them many times that His kingdom was not of this world. In fact in John 18 when he is arrested he states – My kingdom is not of this world if it were my servants would fight that I would not be arrested. So Jesus was operating on a different OS. His priorities, mission and work  were directly connected to that Kingdom and the principles that were set forth to rule within it!  To prove it – Jesus speaks of a cross but they were speaking of a crown.   They were looking for position with Jesus when he would rule on His throne. Jesus quickly tells them that “you don’t know what you are asking”.  We know that the others were feeling the same way as James and John. Because later on the in text were told that the “others” were indignant with the 2 brothers! They only had the guts to approach Jesus (well through their mommy) and seek this position with Him in the Kingdom.  I can imagine why. They were seeing Jesus do amazing things like heal the sick, feed the hungry, raise the dead, control the weather, cast out demons, rebuke the Pharisees… Of course you would begin to wonder to yourself, “what do I get out of all this?” It’s only natural to begin to think that way. It is after all our normal human nature. Which only proves my first point all the more.  The first step that Jesus brings them to is to help them understand that they truly don’t know what they are asking…. 2.    There are no short cuts through the Kingdom.  Vs:23 - Jesus said to them, “You will indeed drink from my cup, but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared by my Father.” Jesus declared to them that there is a cup that must be accepted in order to move forward in the kingdom.  Cup – is symbolic of the life of a person. It is symbolic...
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    33 mins
  • Moving Into God's Purposes

    Moving Into God's Purposes
    Aug 21 2022

    1 Sam 3:1-10 - The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.

    2One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was. 4 Then the LORD called Samuel. 

                Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5 And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” 

                But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.

    6Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” 

                “My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”

    7Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 

    8 The LORD called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.” Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

    10The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” 

                Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

     

    ·      Samuel was dedicated to the service of the priest and temple by his mother Hannah who had been barren, but prayed to God earnestly and was rewarded with Samuel. 

    ·      He was probably around 11-12 yrs old at this time.

    ·      The place where he would sleep was only lit by a 7 branch candle stick, that represented the light of Gods Word that would come through the people of Israel. 

    ·      The priests were instructed to keep it burning always as a symbol of God’s faithfulness and their responsibility to live as a submitted people. 

     

    Vs: 1 – Visions were rare in those days. 

    [We should take an honest evaluation of our heart and obedience]

     

    Why? – Gods leaders were corrupt and Gods people weren’t obeying anyway. 

    Prov 29:18 - Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint;

                            but blessed is he who keeps the law.

    ·      There seems to be this intrinsic connection to Gods revelation and His Law. 

    ·      God’s Word and God’s will are like 2 sides of the same coin. 

    ·      Think that you can’t get into God’s will by doing anything that is contrary to God’s Word. If you break His word, His written and spoken commands then how could you ever plan on getting His will in your life? 

     

    Vs:7 – The Word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. 

    [We should be eager to listen close for the Lord’s leading]

     

    ·      Then Samuel tells us that the Word of the Lord had not been revealed to him. 

    ·      He literally did not recognize the Lords Word or His voice. In essence His leading. 

    ·      There is a time when we will come to a place in our life and our relationship with the Lord, where things begin to be revealed to us by Him. It is at that point that we need to make a decision what we will do with that voice, that leading, that prompting. 

     

    Vs:9 – Say “Speak Lord, your servant is listening” 

    [We should be eager to obey what is revealed]

     

    ·      Samuel went back to bed and waited for the Lord to speak again

    ·      Once he heard the Lord he reasoned by faith that it was God and not Eli but also that he would ask what the Lord was asking and then obey it! 

    ·      Warren Weirsbee says that “when God can’t find an obedient adult he calls a child to do His will. That’s exactly what happened with Samuel. 
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    32 mins
  • 1 Peter 3:18-22 - Jesus Proclaims our victory!

    1 Peter 3:18-22 - Jesus Proclaims our victory!
    Aug 15 2022
    1 Peter 3:18-22 – Christ sufferedfor our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.19 So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. 21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.22 Now Christ has gone to heaven. He is seated in the place of honor next to God, and all the angels and authorities and powers accept his authority.Recap:We learned a few weeks ago that as we examine why and who this letter was written too, we can conclude that the overall theme of 1 Peter is that Christians must withstand persecution and persevere in their faith. We see this in Vs:14-15 – But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. 15 Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it.Jesus has become an example for us when we face suffering. There are 2 ways Peter shows us from this letter:1.     His attitude and disposition during unjust suffering (which we will/should expect at some point in our own lives) 2.     His identification with our suffering and therefore he is not un-relatable as some might think.  But what's with baptism? And then adding the ark of Noah and spirits in prison? And does this passage say that baptism saves us?  I am going to get into some of this in a bit, but before we jump into that section we should look at Vs:18 first. Peter gives us 3 great takeaway points from these verses that we all need to remember. 1.   Jesus our sacrifice (Vs: 18) Christ sufferedfor our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.The word “suffered” is used 2 x’s in this verse. In fact the word “suffered” is used a total of 11 times from the KJV in the book of 1st Peter, more than any other book in the NT. Jesus not only suffered in his life but he is the ultimate suffering servant who gave His life for us as a sufficient and acceptable sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Peter perfectly sums it up in chapter 2:24 - 1Peter 2:24- He personally carried our sins    in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin    and live for what is right. By his wounds    you are healed.His death brings us life. His wounds bring us healing and I would add His suffering brings us communion with Him. Deuteronomy tells us that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.  Jesus gave his literal body and shed his literal blood so that we could have forgiveness and cleansing from our sins!  2.   Jesus our salvation (Vs:19-21) So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago when God waited patiently while Noah was building his boat. Only eight people were saved from drowning in that terrible flood. 21 And that water is a picture of baptism, which now saves you, not by removing dirt from your body, but as a response to God from a clean conscience. It is effective because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. What in world is Peter talking about when he writes in Vs:19-20A - So he went and preached to the spirits in prison— 20 those who disobeyed God long ago?Prison:Peter is actually making a reference to something that happened way back in Gen 6To summarize for the essence of time: ·      The sons of God (fallen angels) came down to earth (likely the 3rd of the deceived by Satan who fell with him) and they procreated with human women. ·      The result is a hybrid race of part human, part fallen angels called “Nephilim”. ·      The further result is that the human condition becomes so perverted that the bible tells us that mankind only thought of evil all of the time.·      God thus takes action and decides (with great sorrow) to eradicate the earth of all living things except Noah and his wife, 3 sons and their wives. 8 in total will be saved. So, I know you are probably thinking “Turner how do you get spirits in prison?” from Gen 6? I want to introduce to you to the book of Enoch.  ·      The Book of Enoch is an ancient Hebrew apocalyptic religious text, ascribed by tradition to Enoch, the great-grandfather of Noah. ·      Enoch contains unique material on the origins of demons and Nephilim, why some angels fell from heaven, an explanation of why the Genesis flood was morally necessary, and prophetic exposition of the thousand-year reign of the ...
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    39 mins