“A Time To Wait, and A Time To Act” (Matthew 4:12-17 sermon)

Posted on 2017/05/01 by Shawn Thomas

Ecclesiastes 3 says:

“There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven:
A time to give birth and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted.
A time to kill and a time to heal; a time to tear down and a time to build up.
A time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance.
… a time to be silent and a time to speak.
A time to love and a time to hate; a time for war and a time for peace.”

One of the most beneficial skills we can learn in life is to tell what time it is; NOT the chronological time of the clock on the wall, but understanding God’s time; what He is doing in our lives, our family, our church, and in the world in which we live. In Matthew 3 we find that Jesus, at crucial junctures in His life, knew God’s timing. He knew both when to wait, and when to act. We can learn a lot from His example: Continue reading →

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Does The World Hate You?

Posted on 2017/05/01 by Shawn Thomas

“The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil.” (John 7:7)

Jesus told His unbelieving brothers here that the world “hated” Him. Why? Specifically, He said, because He told them that their deeds were evil. They didn’t like what He was telling them, and so they hated Him.

This gives rise to a good question: Does the world hate YOU? If not, why not? Continue reading →

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A Daily Recommitment

Posted on 2017/04/26 by Shawn Thomas

“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” (John 6:38)

This was Jesus’ guiding principle for His whole life on earth: He did not come here — even as One who was fully God! — to exercise His own will and to do as He pleased. He came rather to do the will of the Father, instead of His own. This should guide our own commitment as well.  Continue reading →

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Be Careful Who You Praise

Posted on 2017/04/25 by Shawn Thomas

“Jesus then said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven.'” (John 6:32)

Note how Jesus was VERY particular here about who was getting credit for the work of God in the world: “It is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven.” It wasn’t “MOSES” who accomplished all of that good for mankind; it was GOD. We need to preserve that same perspective. Continue reading →

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Exclusive, Outrageous Jesus

Posted on 2017/04/24 by Shawn Thomas

“Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me.” (John 6:45)

Many people who think they “like” Jesus today probably have no idea about some of the outrageous, exclusive things He actually said. Here in :45 we find yet another of these statements. Continue reading →

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Philip’s Test — And Yours

Posted on 2017/04/19 by Shawn Thomas

“Therefore Jesus … said to Philip: ‘Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?’ This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do.” (John 6:5-6)

The Bible tells us here that Jesus knew what He was going to do that day. He already knew that He was going to multiply the loaves to feed the multitude. But He asked this question of Philip specifically for the purpose of testing him, to see how he would respond. Has it occurred to you that if He did that with Philip, then certainly He does the same thing with you today? Continue reading →

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Your Works Testify

Posted on 2017/04/18 by Shawn Thomas

“But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish — the very works that I do — testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.” (John 5:36)

Jesus was speaking to the Jews who were seeking to kill Him because He claimed to be equal with God, and He was giving them “evidence”, in a sense, that He really was who He claimed to be. He referred to the testimony of John in :33, but then He added here that there was a greater testimony to who He was: “the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish — the very works that I do — testify about Me …”. Jesus was able to point to His works to prove that He was who He claimed to be.

This should occasion some soul-searching among those who claim to be God’s people today. Are you really what you claim to be? Continue reading →

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“Your Response To The Resurrection of Jesus” (Matthew 28 Easter sermon)

Posted on 2017/04/17 by Shawn Thomas

“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” (C.S. Lewis)

We should ponder these words of C.S. Lewis — especially today on Easter Sunday, as we consider the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If it didn’t really happen, then it is of NO importance whatsoever; we are all just wasting our time. If it DID happen, then it is of infinite importance; then there is nothing in your life more important than following Jesus. The only thing it must not be is of “medium” importance in our lives — and unfortunately, that is JUST the place that I fear many of us try to give it! We try to fit Jesus in somewhere between baseball and your next hair appointment — and that is just where He can NOT be: He must either be of no importance, or of infinite importance — and each of us needs to ask ourselves today, which will it be for me?

Our passage this morning, Matthew 28, describes the people and circumstances around the resurrection of Jesus. As you look at it, you can see that there is a real variety in the way that the people associated with Jesus’ resurrection here, responded to Him. Some totally blew it off — it was evidently of no importance to them. But others took it seriously, and committed their lives to Him. Let’s look at how these different people responded to Jesus — and how WE should. Continue reading →

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Passing On What Was Delivered To Us (Lord’s Supper Message, I Corinthians 11:23-26)

Posted on 2017/04/13 by Shawn Thomas

Several years ago there was a couple who was driving on a remote stretch of highway in Florida, where there had been a number of crimes committed in recent days. Unfortunately the couple had car trouble and got stranded, and for the longest time no one stopped to help them because of the reputation of the area — until one man finally did. He stopped to help, looked over their car, and got it going again. Although they offered, the man wouldn’t take anything for what he had done. As he drove off, the wife said to her husband, “How will we ever be able to pay him back?” The husband said, “We cant. But we can pass on to someone else, what he has done for us.”

The lesson of that real life story is very much in line with our passage for tonight from I Corinthians 11:23-26, as we prepare to share the Lord’s Supper together. In reading this passage again this week, I was struck by the first words of this text, which I had never really focused in on before. This section on the Lord’s Supper begins with :23, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you …” and then he goes on to describe the Lord’s Supper.

I want us to focus tonight on those introductory words: “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you …”. We should never overlook any words in scripture; “all scripture is God-breathed”; “not a letter or a stroke will pass away from” it until all is accomplished. So these words aren’t just an “insignificant” introduction. Let’s think about them for a moment: “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you.” Continue reading →

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How Clear Can It Be?

Posted on 2017/04/12 by Shawn Thomas

“So that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” (John 5:23)

How is Jesus to be regarded by us? As a good teacher? A prophet? God-like but something less? This verse makes it extremely clear: Continue reading →

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