I love the music written by Keith Getty. It is new and has an Irish feel to most of his music. There is a lot of good music coming out of Ireland and England and, along with Robin Mark, Keith Getty is one of these gifted writers. Here is a song by Keith Getty and Margaret Becker.
"Jesus, Draw Me Ever Nearer"
Jesus, Draw me ever nearer as I labor thro' the storm.
You have called me to this passage and I'll follow tho' I'm worn.
May this journey bring a blessing, may I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart's resting, with Your likeness let me wake.
Jesus, guide me thro' the tempest, keep my spirit staid and sure.
When the midnight meets the morning, let me love You even more.
May this journey bring a blessing, may I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart's resting, with Your likeness let me wake.
Let the treasures of the trial form within me as I go.
And at the end of this long passage let me leave them at Your throne.
May this journey bring a blessing, may I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart's resting, with Your likeness let me wake.
Jesus, draw me ever nearer as I labor thro' the storm.
You have called me to this passage and I'll follow tho' I'm worn.
May this journey bring a blessing, may I rise on wings of faith;
And at the end of my heart's resting, with Your likeness let me wake.
Jesus, draw me ever nearer;
Jesus, draw me ever nearer;
Jesus, draw me ever nearer to You, to You.
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Monday, March 17, 2008
What DID Jesus Do?
I really can't stand that phrase "What Would Jesus Do?" The obvious is that He would do what is fair and just and, in most cases, that would not be what we expect. The better question for me is "What DID Jesus Do?" Throw away the speculative and look at the scripture.
As I have started looking at Matthew 10, I am struck by four things that Christ did. He summoned the disciples, He gave them authority over demonic forces, disease and sickness, He instructed them and then He sent them out.
He summoned the disciple - Jesus calls each of us to join Him in His work. He calls us to Him and wants us to join Him in His work. Think about it! He calls us! He doesn't need us at all, yet He calls us. We are allowed to work with and for the King of Kings. What an amazing and humbling thought.
He gave authority - Jesus equipped each disciple with the tools for ministry. I personally believe that the miracle gifts were only for the apostles, but that does not mean that miracles do not occur. Miracles are from God. But the idea is that the disciples were given what was needed to spread the gospel and reach people for Christ. Eventually, Jesus would have a huge following of people who were waiting to see more miracles and probably were healed by Jesus. Jesus was not going to send these guys into ministry without giving them the abilities, power and confidence needed.
He instructed them - The rest of chapter 10 is the instructions given to the disciples. What to do, what to expect, how to behave, who to rely on and the encouragement needed for the journey. Again, Jesus was not sending these guys out until they were equipped to face the battle. That doesn't mean that they had a lot to learn. Of course it did! Nobody goes into ministry without receiving some battle wounds along the way.
He sent them out - He had the confidence to send these rough fishermen out to preach the gospel of Love.
These are four points that will probably make up the foundation for the sermons from this chapter. Any thoughts?
As I have started looking at Matthew 10, I am struck by four things that Christ did. He summoned the disciples, He gave them authority over demonic forces, disease and sickness, He instructed them and then He sent them out.
He summoned the disciple - Jesus calls each of us to join Him in His work. He calls us to Him and wants us to join Him in His work. Think about it! He calls us! He doesn't need us at all, yet He calls us. We are allowed to work with and for the King of Kings. What an amazing and humbling thought.
He gave authority - Jesus equipped each disciple with the tools for ministry. I personally believe that the miracle gifts were only for the apostles, but that does not mean that miracles do not occur. Miracles are from God. But the idea is that the disciples were given what was needed to spread the gospel and reach people for Christ. Eventually, Jesus would have a huge following of people who were waiting to see more miracles and probably were healed by Jesus. Jesus was not going to send these guys into ministry without giving them the abilities, power and confidence needed.
He instructed them - The rest of chapter 10 is the instructions given to the disciples. What to do, what to expect, how to behave, who to rely on and the encouragement needed for the journey. Again, Jesus was not sending these guys out until they were equipped to face the battle. That doesn't mean that they had a lot to learn. Of course it did! Nobody goes into ministry without receiving some battle wounds along the way.
He sent them out - He had the confidence to send these rough fishermen out to preach the gospel of Love.
These are four points that will probably make up the foundation for the sermons from this chapter. Any thoughts?
Patrick and the Revival in Ireland
Dustin, at Pastor and People, has a nice summation of Patrick's life.
Can You See It?
“If you are in some valley from which you can’t see the cross, you need to work a little bit more [on sermon preparation]; because from every text you should be able to see the cross.”
-Mark Dever
Wearin' o' the Green
I am wearing my Ireland Gaelic Football shirt today. I have always had an affinity towards St. Patrick's Day. Mainly, because my birthday is the day before (44 years and counting) but more so after all the Irish history books and Irish church history that I have read.
I have my own opinions and ideas of who St. Patrick was (he was adopted as a saint by the Catholic Church, but you will not find any documentation that he was Catholic). I have been to 3 church sites where he founded the first church. One church is still holding services today, nearly 1600 years after the founding!
If you are wearing green today, then I salute you and wish you a great day. If you are wearing orange, I will pray for you and question your loyalties! If you don't understand the difference, then you need to read some history books.
I have my own opinions and ideas of who St. Patrick was (he was adopted as a saint by the Catholic Church, but you will not find any documentation that he was Catholic). I have been to 3 church sites where he founded the first church. One church is still holding services today, nearly 1600 years after the founding!
If you are wearing green today, then I salute you and wish you a great day. If you are wearing orange, I will pray for you and question your loyalties! If you don't understand the difference, then you need to read some history books.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Authority Given
It has been a slow couple of weeks for me, posting wise. I had a Greek mid-term on Monday plus I had 11 verses to translate and diagram as homework. Needless to say, my mind was on other things!
Even so, God has been dealing with me concerning the cost of discipleship. Plus the fact that a' Kempis' "The Imitation of Christ" is about being a disciple of Christ (I wrote a paper on this recently) means that I have been thinking on this topic for the last 6 weeks or so. In January, I preached on Matthew 9:35-38 which is about the compassion of Christ. This was the point in Jesus' ministry where He transitioned from doing all the work Himself to telling the disciples to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send more workers. Then, chapter 10 begins with Jesus giving them authority over demons, to cast them out and to heal sickness plus telling them to preach the Gospel.
Here is a quick outline of chapter 10:
I will be preparing a series of sermons concerning this chapter. I feel that these words of Christ are important in the life of my church, especially the singles ministry and to be shared during the different mission opportunities I will have this summer. I anticipate at least 6 sermons out of this chapter. I am looking forward to digging into the text and context and application of this important chapter of Matthew.
Even so, God has been dealing with me concerning the cost of discipleship. Plus the fact that a' Kempis' "The Imitation of Christ" is about being a disciple of Christ (I wrote a paper on this recently) means that I have been thinking on this topic for the last 6 weeks or so. In January, I preached on Matthew 9:35-38 which is about the compassion of Christ. This was the point in Jesus' ministry where He transitioned from doing all the work Himself to telling the disciples to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send more workers. Then, chapter 10 begins with Jesus giving them authority over demons, to cast them out and to heal sickness plus telling them to preach the Gospel.
Here is a quick outline of chapter 10:
- Verses 1-4 Jesus calls His disciples
- Verses 5-15 Instructions for Service
- Verses 16-23 Expect Adversity Along the Way
- Verses 24-39 The Meaning and Cost of Discipleship
- Verses 40-42 The Reward of Being a Disciple
I will be preparing a series of sermons concerning this chapter. I feel that these words of Christ are important in the life of my church, especially the singles ministry and to be shared during the different mission opportunities I will have this summer. I anticipate at least 6 sermons out of this chapter. I am looking forward to digging into the text and context and application of this important chapter of Matthew.
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