LivingHopeWELS

Guest preacher Pastor Joel Seifert from Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church, Marietta, Georgia.

Acts 26:19-29 Faith seeks to win the soul

You’re not just a blob of cells riding on a rock through space, a speck of dust without any consequence that the universe will soon forget. You’re not the follower of a fraud who only lives on in legend, the best he can offer is hollow hope that’s worse than nothing. You’re a flesh-and-blood human being, for whom the God of the universe joined in your humanity and died to take away your sins and rose to give you real life.

1 Corinthians 15:19-26 I believe in...the resurrection of the body

When you're confronted by fear and shame as Jesus' disciple, lift up your eyes and fix them on the one you follow.

John 18:15-18, 25-27 You're not one of his disciples, are you?

When the mob arrived with Judas to arrest Jesus in the garden, he didn't try to run. He did the opposite.

John 18:1-9 Who is it you want?

When Peter's table behavior obfuscated the gospel, it was necessary for Paul to rebuke him publicly.

Galatians 2:11-14 Paul rebukes Peter

Then after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to get acquainted with Peter and stayed with him fifteen days. I saw none of the other apostles—only James, the Lord’s brother. I assure you before God that what I am writing you is no lie. Later I went to Syria and Cilicia. I was personally unknown to the churches of Judea that are in Christ. They only heard the report: “The man who formerly persecuted us is now preaching the faith he once tried to destroy.” And they praised God because of me.

Galatians 1:18-24 Unity with Jerusalem

I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. <br />
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For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.

I want you to know, brothers, that the gospel I preached is not something that man made up. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. 

For you have heard of my previous way of life in Judaism, how intensely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it. I was advancing in Judaism beyond many Jews of my own age and was extremely zealous for the traditions of my fathers. 15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not consult any man, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before I was, but I went immediately into Arabia and later returned to Damascus.

Galatians 1:11-17 A great reversal

It was easier for the Israelites to see the Lord when they had less. So as they put away their tents on one side of the Jordan River and prepare to move into palaces on the other side, God warns them: "Just so you know, now the hard part begins."

Deuteronomy 8:10-18 Give me only my daily bread

AND THERE'S NOTHING MORE VALUABLE TO JESUS THAN YOU!

Matthew 13:44-52 There's nothing more valuable for you than Jesus

And if we succeed at silencing or ignoring our conscience—Lord, have mercy! Because all we’ve accomplished is to turn off the smoke alarm before we die in the fire. Maybe washing his hands made it easier for Pilate to sleep that night, but it did not wash away his sin. To whatever extent that soothed his conscience, it entrenched him in his sin. Because who’s going to care about escaping something with which they’ve grown comfortable? It’s tragic self-deception, because even if you no longer have to answer to your conscience, you’ll still have to answer to God.

Romans 2:14-15 When your conscience won't let you sin in peace

God has forgiven your anger, and now gives you the strength and desire to forgive. He has forgiven your adultery, and now gives you the strength and desire to be faithful in your relationships and chaste with your eyes. He has forgiven your lies and broken promises, and now gives you the strength and desire to let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No,’ —to be someone that others can trust. He’s forgiven them all, and that’s why he says it to you: You’re salt. You’re light. You’re exactly what the world needs.

Matthew 5:21-37 Jesus teaches the kind of obedience God requires

(The video doesn't pick up until late in the sermon, but the audio is good all the way through.)<br />
They aren’t hungry for food. They’re hungry for answers. They’re hungry for peace. They scour the earth, roaming from one thing to the next, even the underworld of the occult. The only thing they find is distress—no peace—and the distress grows into anger. Then they look up to God, not for peace, but to shake their fists at him, "Why aren’t you helping me?!" And they don’t even realize the irony: They never wanted God’s help. They searched for it in everything but him.

(The video doesn't pick up until late in the sermon, but the audio is good all the way through.)
They aren’t hungry for food. They’re hungry for answers. They’re hungry for peace. They scour the earth, roaming from one thing to the next, even the underworld of the occult. The only thing they find is distress—no peace—and the distress grows into anger. Then they look up to God, not for peace, but to shake their fists at him, "Why aren’t you helping me?!" And they don’t even realize the irony: They never wanted God’s help. They searched for it in everything but him.

Isaiah 8:19-9:2 In darkness there is only distress; only in Jesus is there light

But the tone of Jesus’ teaching that follows—even though every sentence describes in some kind of catastrophe or deception or persecution or brokenness or hatred—it’s not a pity party, that things are going to get bad and then worse and some of you will even be killed at the hands of your own families, THE END. It’s a pep talk, that as hard as it’s going to get and as bleak as it’s going to look, you’re on the winning side. By standing firm you will gain life.

Luke 21:5-19  You're on the winning team

Habakkuk wasn’t overreacting or exaggerating. Jerusalem’s kings had become drunk on their own power. As far as they were concerned, they had no need for God and God couldn’t do anything to stop them from abusing and corrupting and killing anyone they wanted to. So, at least from a human perspective, Habakkuk’s question was legit. Had God grown soft? Would he sit on the sidelines forever? How long?

Habakkuk 1:1-3; 2:1-4  Surrounded by evil, the righteous will live by faith

What do you do when someone you love is committing spiritual suicide by clutching onto the very thing that Jesus died to take away? If you love him, there’s definitely one thing you can’t do. You cannot do nothing.

2 Corinthians 2:5-11 Christians share Christ's love for the sinner

As far as everyone else can see, he’s the most pitiful creature in the world. Whenever things started to look up for him they quickly came crashing down—even though he’s faithful. BECAUSE he’s faithful. But that little phrase lets us in on something that nobody else could see and that Joseph could only hold onto in faith: "The LORD was with Joseph."  Joseph spent thirteen years of his life in Potiphar’s house and in prison. But it wasn’t that God didn’t understand or didn’t care. He had a plan for Joseph.

Genesis 39:6-23  God had a plan for Joseph (and for you!)

Of all the priceless things a father can pass on to his children, none is more precious and critical than to show them your repentance that trusts in Jesus and your Jesus that never fails to forgive the repentant.

2 Chronicles 33:1-6, 10-18 This is a story of your Father's love

When Paul prays that the Ephesians know and grasp God's love, it's not in a I-read-it-in-a-book sort of way. He wants them to know and to grasp it first-hand. But the way we arrive at that experiential knowledge where we can see God's love stretching to infinity in every direction--it's through a book.

Ephesians 3:14-21 Through his Spirit your Father reveals the immeasurable love of Christ

Through a story of a woman who benefits from remembering her baptism, we can see the benefits of baptism in our own lives.

Titus 3:3-7 Remember your baptism

It's when we realize that there's nothing good in ourselves to hold onto that we hold onto Jesus as our only good.

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