Finishing up 1 Thessalonians this morning. 1 Thessalonians was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. Let’s begin by reading the final section: 1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 - May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. 25 Brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss. 27 I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters. 28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Before I dive into this passage, let me give a big picture about what I have tried to do the past couple of months. I have tried to help you understand what this letter meant in its original context and what it means for us today. There are right and wrong ways to read the Bible. The right way is to read it in context. Specifically, to read it in four contexts: The grammatical, literary, and historical context – this is why I give the history, say it’s a letter, and read the whole letter. We don’t pick passages out of the air like a fortune cookie. We pay attention to genre, and we seek to understand the historical context.The context of the Biblical metanarrative – creation, fall, redemption, new creation. This is why we reference so many other passages. Every passage fits within a larger storyThe context of Christian community – resources, church tradition, community of faith. This is why I cite commentaries and other books and encourage discussion. If I’m coming up with an interpretation that no one else in history has come up with, I should question my reading.The context of a life of Spirit-led, obedient discipleship – we’re not just reading for intellectual knowledge, or worse, to argue against it. The Bible is God’s Word delivered through human words. Its purpose is to call people to repentance and faith in Jesus and then to align their lives with God’s purpose, living lives of faith, love, and holiness. 1 Thessalonians 5:23-28 - May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful, and he will do it. 25 Brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all God’s people with a holy kiss. 27 I charge you before the Lord to have this letter read to all the brothers and sisters. 28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.

This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. We are nearing the end of 1 Thessalonians, and the short passage we will be reading today as the power to dramatically change your life for the better if you would only put these words into practice. 1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 - Do not put out the Spirit's fire;  20 do not treat prophecies with contempt.  21 Test everything. Hold on to the good.  22 Avoid every kind of evil. This is a short passage with a lot of power, and it raises a few questions that we need to answer: Who is the Spirit?What is the Spirit’s fire, and how do we avoid putting it out?What are prophecies?How do we test prophecy to see if it’s genuine or not? Who is the Spirit? The Bible teaches us that God is a Trinity, three-in-one, same in nature but distinct in persons. Followers of God interacted with God the Father in the Old Testament, while the Holy Spirit would empower specific individuals at different times. Then Jesus shows up, and it is clear to His followers that while He is distinct from God the Father, He is also divine – He receives worship, He forgives sins, He is eternal, He is without sin. And then, as his death was getting closer, Jesus told his disciples about another who would come after him, the Holy Spirit:

This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. Last week, we looked at the vision Paul gave them regarding their horizontal relationships with others in the church. This week and next, we will look at what he tells them about their vertical relationship with God. I want to focus on three verses this morning: 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 - Rejoice always;  17 pray continually;  18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. This passage may be short, but the exhortations in this passage are truly what you need, more than you even know, at the core of your being. You need a joy and a peace that can survive the ups and downs of your life and can weather the hardest storms and worst enemies of life. Clearly Paul is communicating that no matter the circumstances, we ought to be rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks. In the good times and the bad. In sickness and in health, whether wealthy or in poverty. Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances. This is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. This is what your loving and good Father desires for you. Now, the NIV used to translate this as “Be joyful always,” which I think was a really unhelpful way of phrasing this. After all, how do you honestly tell someone to be joyful always? Am I supposed to instinctively feel joyful when a loved one dies, or I find out I have cancer, or my spouse divorces me? After all, even Paul told us in Romans 12:15 to rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn, and Jesus himself was called a man of sorrows. We do not always feel joy, nor should we, especially in tragic circumstances. But we can CHOOSE to rejoice. We can CHOOSE to pray. And we can CHOOSE to give thanks. More specifically, we can choose to rejoice in the Lord, even when we don’t find joy in our circumstances. And we can give Him thanks in every circumstance, even we are not thankful for our circumstance. Paul notes this apparent contradiction in 2 Corinthians:

This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. In the first section of this letter, Paul reminds them of the gospel and of his love for them, and he defends himself against his critics’ accusations and slander. In the section we are currently in, Paul transitions to instructions about how to live as a Christian. We have already looked at God’s vision for our sexuality and our work and what we need to know about death, Jesus’ return, and the final judgment. Over the next couple of weeks, we’ll be looking at the vision Paul lays out for relationships and worship within the church. 1 Thessalonians 5:12-15 - Now we ask you, brothers and sisters, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you.  13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other.  14 And we urge you, brothers and sisters, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone.  15 Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else. This is a short section. He begins with a couple of statements about how we should relate to leaders in the church, and follows up with a couple of statements about how we should relate to each other, and so we will look a little at both of those. But I think that if we are going to set this passage in its proper context and understand how we are to relate to each other, it is helpful to have a proper understanding of Biblical anthropology, the doctrine of man. Let me say four things to help set the context: We are all created in God’s image, with dignity

This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. In the first section of this letter, Paul reminds them of the gospel and of his love for them, and he defends himself against his critics’ accusations and slander. In the section we are currently in, Paul transitions to instructions about how to live as a Christian. He mainly focuses on three areas of life: sex, work, and death. We have already looked at God’s vision for our sexuality and our work, and last week we looked at death, Jesus’ return, and the Christian hope. This week we’ll look at the final judgment: 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:11 - Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.  14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.  15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.  16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.  18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.  NIV 1 Thessalonians 5:1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you,  2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.  3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.  4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.  5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.  6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.  7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.  8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.  10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.  11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. In the beginning of chapter 5, Paul references the day of the Lord, which will come like a thief in the night, bringing destruction on those who are not prepared. The day of the Lord is a common expression in the Bible for the day at the end of time when God will judge the world. On that day, we will all stand before God and be judged for how we have lived our lives.

Series: 1 Thessalonians: Faith + Love + Hope - This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. In the first section of this letter, Paul reminds them of the gospel and of his love for them, and he defends himself against his critics’ accusations and slander. In the section we are currently in, Paul transitions to instructions about how to live as a Christian. He mainly focuses on three areas of life: sex, work, and death. We have already looked at God’s vision for our sexuality and our work, so this morning we’ll look at death, Jesus’ return, and the Christian hope. We will be in this passage for a couple of weeks: 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:11 - Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.  14 We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.  15 According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.  16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.  18 Therefore encourage each other with these words.  NIV 1 Thessalonians 5:1 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you,  2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.  3 While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.  4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief.  5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness.  6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled.  7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night.  8 But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.  9 For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.  10 He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him.  11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing. Remember that Paul is writing this letter in response to what he has learned from Timothy about issues facing the church in Thessalonica. And so, as we read this passage, we should try to read between the lines in order to understand what questions he is answering...

This morning, I am continuing in my sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. In the first section of this letter, Paul reminds them of the gospel and of his love for them, and he defends himself against his critics’ accusations and slander. In the next section, which we began last week, Paul transitions to instructions about how to live as a Christian. He mainly focuses on three areas of life: sex, work, and death. Last week we looked at God’s vision for our sexuality, and this morning we’ll look at God’s vision for our work. In addition to the passage from 1 Thessalonians 4, I’m going to read one verse from chapter 5, as well as a section from his second letter to the Thessalonians, as this issue of work appeared to be a recurring issue in this church: 1 Thessalonians 4:1,9-12 - Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more… 9 Now about brotherly love we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.  10 And in fact, you do love all the brothers throughout Macedonia. Yet we urge you, brothers, to do so more and more.  11 Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business and to work with your hands, just as we told you,  12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. 1 Thessalonians 5:14 - And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12 - In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.  7 For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you,  8 nor did we eat anyone's food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you.  9 We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow.  10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: "If a man will not work, he shall not eat."  11 We hear that some among you are idle. They are not busy; they are busybodies.  12 Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat.

This morning, I am in the fifth week of a sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul has not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends Timothy, one of his fellow missionaries, who brings back a report about how the Thessalonians are doing and what issues they are facing. In response to Timothy’s report, Paul sends this letter. In the first section of this letter, Paul reminds them of the gospel and of his love for them, and he defends himself against his critics’ accusations and slander. In the section that begins in chapter 4 this morning, Paul transitions to instructions about how to live as a Christian. In this chapter, he’ll focus mainly on three areas of life: sex, work, and death. The next two weeks we’ll look at works and death, but this morning, we will look at verses 1-8 and what Paul has to say about God’s vision for our sexuality. NIV 1 Thessalonians 4:1 - Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more.  2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.  3 It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;  4 that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable,  5 not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God;  6 and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or sister or take advantage of them. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you.  7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.  8 Therefore, he who rejects this instruction does not reject man but God, who gives you his Holy Spirit.

This morning, I am in the fourth week of a sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Paul and his fellow missionaries had been driven out of Thessalonica by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul had not been able to return to Thessalonica, so he sends this letter. In the passage we are going to read this morning, we will see Paul addressing his inability to visit, and as we consider his words, we will see that we have a lot to learn about what we need to make it through difficult times. 1 Thessalonians 2:17-20 - But, brothers, when we were torn away from you for a short time (in person, not in thought), out of our intense longing we made every effort to see you.  18 For we wanted to come to you-- certainly I, Paul, did, again and again-- but Satan stopped us.  19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you?  20 Indeed, you are our glory and joy. NIV 1 Thessalonians 3:1 So when we could stand it no longer, we thought it best to be left by ourselves in Athens.  2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,  3 so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.  4 In fact, when we were with you, we kept telling you that we would be persecuted. And it turned out that way, as you well know.  5 For this reason, when I could stand it no longer, I sent to find out about your faith. I was afraid that in some way the tempter might have tempted you and our efforts might have been useless. 6 But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.  7 Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith.  8 For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.  9 How can we thank God enough for you in return for all the joy we have in the presence of our God because of you?  10 Night and day we pray most earnestly that we may see you again and supply what is lacking in your faith. 11 Now may our God and Father himself and our Lord Jesus clear the way for us to come to you.  12 May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you.  13 May he strengthen your hearts so that you will be blameless and holy in the presence of our God and Father when our Lord Jesus comes with all his holy ones.

This morning, I am in the third week of a sermon series through 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Over the past two weeks, we looked at the message that Paul brought to the Corinthians as well as his relationship with them. The message, which he calls “our gospel,” is that Jesus Christ died for our sins, as God made a way for us to be restored to a right relationship with Him, to be saved from eternal separation from Him, and to have eternal life. God is the initiator of our faith: He chose us, He gave us spiritual life by giving us His Holy Spirit, and is the power for our ongoing spiritual growth. Our role is to respond to his offer by repenting – turning from our idols, the things of this world that we trust in for our salvation and comfort and joy - and turn in faith and trust to Jesus. And last week we looked at God’s vision for the church, that we would be a place where people are genuinely concerned about the welfare of each other, and where discipleship happens, as we follow people worthy of imitation and live lives worthy of imitation. This morning, we are going to read 1 Thessalonians 2:1-20. The context of this passage, as you may remember from week 1, is that Paul and his companions were driven out of town by a mob of angry Jews who found his message about Jesus being Lord to be blasphemous. And 2-3 years later, Paul had not been able to return to Thessalonica. In the meantime, all kinds of slanderous accusations had been leveled against Paul by his opponents, and he takes the time in this section of the letter to address those accusations and assure them of his integrity and his devotion to them.

This morning I am in the second week of my sermon series through the New Testament book known as 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. Last week we looked at chapter 1 of this 5-chapter letter, focusing on the message that Paul brought to them, the gospel that Jesus Christ died for our sins so that we might have the opportunity to be right with God and have eternal life. Specifically, we looked at how God is the initiator of our faith: He chose us, He gave us spiritual life by giving us His Holy Spirit, and is the power for our ongoing spiritual growth. Our role is to respond to his offer by repenting – turning from our idols, the things of this world that we trust in for our salvation and comfort and joy - and turn in faith and trust to Jesus. If you want to understand all that more, you can listen to last week’s sermon. This week I want to look at what we learn about the relationship between Paul and the Thessalonians in chapter 1 and some of chapter 2 and what relevance it has for us today. Let’s read chapter 1 again: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10 - Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace and peace to you.  2 We always thank God for all of you, mentioning you in our prayers.  3 We continually remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.  4 For we know, brothers loved by God, that he has chosen you,  5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction. You know how we lived among you for your sake.  6 You became imitators of us and of the Lord; in spite of severe suffering, you welcomed the message with the joy given by the Holy Spirit.  7 And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia.  8 The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia-- your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we do not need to say anything about it,  9 for they themselves report what kind of reception you gave us. They tell how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God,  10 and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead-- Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.

This morning I am beginning a new sermon series through the New Testament book known as 1 Thessalonians, which was a letter written by a leader in the early church named Paul to a church in Thessalonica that he had been instrumental in starting around the year 49 AD. If you’re unfamiliar with the Bible, there is the Old and New Testament. The New Testament begins with the birth of Jesus, and contains four gospels – Matthew, Mark, Luke & John – which tell the story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. After that is Acts, which was written by Luke as a sequel to his gospel, and tells the story from Jesus’ ascension to heaven to the spread of Christianity and the rise of the early church. One of the most prominent figures is Paul, who was a Jewish religious leader named Saul who was miraculously converted by Jesus and then went around preaching the gospel of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection and starting churches. The rest of the New Testament consists of letters, many by Paul, that outline the significance of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection and deal with issues that arose in the various churches. The New Testament ends with Revelation, a very different kind of book about what is going on spiritually behind the scenes of our every day life. Before we dive into the letter, I want us to read about Paul’s experience in Thessalonica in Acts 17:1-10: Acts 17:1-10 - When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue.  2 As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,  3 explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ," he said.  4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.  5 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason's house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.  6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here,  7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar's decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus."  8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil.  9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.  10 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea.

We are continuing this morning in our sermon series The Power of One Life, looking each week at a minor character in the Bible and the impact they had, for better or worse, on their world. This morning I want to look at the life of a man named Bezalel in Exodus 35:30-36:7. The book of Exodus begins with the story of the deliverance of the Jewish people under the leadership of Moses from slavery in Egypt. The whole nation passes through the Red Sea, and comes to Mt. Sinai, where God makes a covenant with them that explains to them what it means to be the people of God and how they are to interact with each other. One of the central features of that covenant is the restoration of God’s presence, which was lost in Eden, to the midst of God’s people.  To this end, a big part of the book of Exodus is given over to explaining how to construct the Tabernacle, which will be the place where God dwells in their midst. It’s not easy reading for a 21st century American, but the point of all the details is that this is where God’s presence will be among them. This is why the finest materials are used – gold, fine linen, silver, bronze, precious stones – because this will be the place where people meet with God, where he dwells, so only the finest materials must be used in order to give him the honor He is due.  And in the midst of the tabernacle instructions, we read about a man named Bezalel, in Exodus 35:30-36:3. Exodus 35:30 - 36:7 - Then Moses said to the Israelites, "See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,  31 and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts--  32 to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze,  33 to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship.  34 And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others.  35 He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers-- all of them master craftsmen and designers.  NIV Exodus 36:1 So Bezalel, Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD has given skill and ability to know how to carry out all the work of constructing the sanctuary are to do the work just as the LORD has commanded."  2 Then Moses summoned Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD had given ability and who was willing to come and do the work.  3 They received from Moses all the offerings the Israelites had brought to carry out the work of constructing the sanctuary. And the people continued to bring freewill offerings morning after morning.  4 So all the skilled craftsmen who were doing all the work on the sanctuary left their work  5 and said to Moses, "The people are bringing more than enough for doing the work the LORD commanded to be done."  6 Then Moses gave an order and they sent this word throughout the camp: "No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary." And so the people were restrained from bringing more,  7 because what they already had was more than enough to do all the work.

This morning, I am continuing in my summer sermon series “The power of one life,” looking at minor Biblical characters whose lives can be preached on in one Sunday. This morning, we’ll be looking at an unnamed blind man and his interaction with Jesus in John 9. John 9:1-41 - As Jesus went along, he saw a man blind from birth.  2 His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  3 "Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.  4 As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work.  5 While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  6 Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes.  7 "Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.  8 His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?"  9 Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him." But he himself insisted, "I am the man."  10 "How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded.  11 He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see."  12 "Where is this man?" they asked him. "I don't know," he said.  13 They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind.  14 Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath.  15 Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see."  16 Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided.  17 Finally they turned again to the blind man, "What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened." The man replied, "He is a prophet."  18 The Jews still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents.  19 "Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?"  20 "We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was born blind.  21 But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself."  22 His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue.  23 That was why his parents said, "He is of age; ask him."  24 A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God," they said. "We know this man is a sinner."  25 He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!"  26 Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" ...

This morning, I am continuing in my summer sermon series “The power of one life,” looking at minor Biblical characters whose lives can be preached on in one Sunday. This morning, we’ll be looking at the life of a man named Uzzah, who shows up during the life of David in 2 Samuel 6 but, unfortunately for him, does not last very long. Nevertheless, his life has a lot to teach us about worship and our relationship with God. The context of 2 Samuel 6 is that David has recently become the king of Israel, after King Saul has been killed in battle. David is 30 years old, and he establishes Jerusalem as his capital city. And the first thing he wants to do is to get the ark of the covenant to bring it back to Israel: 2 Samuel 6:1-2 - David again brought together out of Israel chosen men, thirty thousand in all.  2 He and all his men set out from Baalah of Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the Name, the name of the LORD Almighty, who is enthroned between the cherubim that are on the ark.  The ark was a wooden box overlaid with gold, 4 feet long, 2 ½ feet high & wide. It had rings on the sides with poles that would go through it so that it could be carried. On the top was a slab of pure gold called the mercy seat, with 2 golden angels facing each other. And in the box were the 10 Commandments, and Aaron’s staff, and a golden pot with manna. But more importantly than what was inside, the ark was where the presence of God met with His people. It was the central piece of furniture in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle, the portable temple in Israel, and over the ark appeared the shekinah, the kabod, the glory of God, the presence of God. As God said to Moses in Exodus 25:22 - There, above the cover between the two cherubim that are over the ark of the Testimony, I will meet with you and give you all my commands for the Israelites. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest would go in and offer sacrifice for the sins of the people, sprinkling the blood of slain bulls and goats on the mercy seat. Leviticus 16:14-15 - He is to take some of the bull's blood and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.  15 "He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people and take its blood behind the curtain and do with it as he did with the bull's blood: He shall sprinkle it on the atonement cover and in front of it.

I am continuing this morning in my summer sermon series The Power of One Life, looking at the lives of minor Biblical characters whose lives can be preached through in one Sunday. This morning we will be looking at one of the most important of all the minor Biblical characters, a man known as John the Baptist. Each one of the gospel stories of Jesus’ life tells us about John, who occupied a critical role in salvation history and the story of Jesus. Let’s read the gospel of John’s account. John the Baptist is not the same person as the John who wrote the book. The one who wrote the book was most likely one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, or else an early church leader named John. John 1:6-37 - There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John.  7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe.  8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.  9 The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.  10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God--  13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.  14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.  15 John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'"  16 From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another.  17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.  18 No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.  19 Now this was John's testimony when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was.  20 He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, "I am not the Christ."  21 They asked him, "Then who are you? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" He answered, "No."  22 Finally they said, "Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?"  23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, "I am the voice of one calling in the desert, 'Make straight the way for the Lord.'"  24 Now some Pharisees who had been sent  25 questioned him, "Why then do you baptize if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"  26 "I baptize with water," John replied, "but among you stands one you do not know.  27 He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie."  28 This all happened at Bethany on the other side of the Jordan, where John was baptizing.  29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  30 This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.'  31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel." ...

We are continuing this morning in our summer sermon series The Power of One Life, looking at the lives of minor Biblical characters whose lives can be preached through in one Sunday. This morning we will be looking at a man named Asaph, who appears in 45 verses in the Bible. The Bible text doesn’t tell us much about him, other than that he was a recorder, which was sort of an archivist in the temple, and more importantly that he was a percussionist and writer of Psalms. 1 Chronicles 16:4-6 - He appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to make petition, to give thanks, and to praise the LORD, the God of Israel:  5 Asaph was the chief, Zechariah second, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom and Jeiel. They were to play the lyres and harps, Asaph was to sound the cymbals,  6 and Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests were to blow the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God. As a musician and songwriter, Asaph is someone that we learn about mainly through the songs he wrote, and so I wanted to focus on one of his Psalms this morning, Psalm 73, in which he confesses his struggle with envy and how God helped him deal with it. Psalm 73:1-28 - A psalm of Asaph. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.  2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.  3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.  4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.  5 They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills.  6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.  7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.  8 They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression.  9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth.  10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance.  11 They say, "How can God know? Does the Most High have knowledge?"  12 This is what the wicked are like-- always carefree, they increase in wealth.  13 Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.  14 All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning.  15 If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have betrayed your children.  16 When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me  17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.  18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin.  19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!  20 As a dream when one awakes, so when you arise, O Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.  21 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,  22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.  23 Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.  24 You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.  25 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.  26 My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.  27 Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you.  28 But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.

This morning, I am continuing in our sermon series “The Power of One Life,” where we are looking at a different minor Biblical character every week. This week, we will look at a man named Onesimus. We first hear of him at the end of Colossians. Colossians 4:7-9 - Tychicus will tell you all the news about me. He is a dear brother, a faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord.  8 I am sending him to you for the express purpose that you may know about our circumstances and that he may encourage your hearts.  9 He is coming with Onesimus, our faithful and dear brother, who is one of you. They will tell you everything that is happening here. This passage seems like a simple list of people traveling with Paul’s letter, but hidden in these greetings is an incredible story of the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. To our ears, Onesimus, who Paul describes as “our faithful and dear brother,” sounds like a fellow worker with Paul. But there is more to the story. Tychicus has brought this letter to the church in Colossae. In v. 16, we find that he has also brought a letter from the church in Laodicea. And he has also brought one more letter, a letter to a Christian man in Colossae named Philemon, that is going to shed more light on just who this Onesimus is. We don’t have the letter from Laodicea, but we do have the letter to Philemon. Turn there. Philemon 1:1-25 - Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker,  2 to Apphia our sister, to Archippus our fellow soldier and to the church that meets in your home:  3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  4 I always thank my God as I remember you in my prayers,  5 because I hear about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints.  6 I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.  7 Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.  8 Therefore, although in Christ I could be bold and order you to do what you ought to do,  9 yet I appeal to you on the basis of love. I then, as Paul-- an old man and now also a prisoner of Christ Jesus--  10 I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains.  11 Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me.  12 I am sending him-- who is my very heart-- back to you.  13 I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel.  14 But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do will be spontaneous and not forced.  15 Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back for good--  16 no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a man and as a brother in the Lord.  17 So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me.  18 If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me.  19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back-- not to mention that you owe me your very self.  20 I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ,,,

This morning, I am continuing in my summer series, The Power of One Life, looking at minor Biblical characters and what we can learn from their lives about knowing God. This morning we’ll be in Luke 7:36-50, looking at a nameless person who is called “a woman who had lived a sinful life.” We’ll go through the passage a little at a time. Luke 7:36-50 - Now one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, so he went to the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table.  37 When a woman who had lived a sinful life in that town learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee's house, she brought an alabaster jar of perfume,  38 and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.  39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is-- that she is a sinner." Stop there. What is going on here? Let me give some background. The Pharisees were in many ways the religious leaders of Israel. The word Pharisee is from the Hebrew word Parash – to separate. The Pharisees’ chief concern was that the Jewish people would be pure and faithful to God’s law, separate from pagan influences. One of the reasons for this focus on purity was so Israel could maintain their Jewish identity and hopefully achieve freedom from the Roman oppression. They believed that the Messiah would liberate the Jewish people from their Roman oppressors, but that he would not come until the people were pure. So, they tried to steadfastly keep all of God’s rules from the Old Testament, and even added more in order to help the Jewish people maintain their purity. The laws were boundary markers, keeping pure people in and impure people out. You can imagine, with such a focus on purity, what kind of people they would not be happy with. They weren’t happy with the Jews who broke God’s laws, because they were preventing the Messiah from coming and the Jews from achieving freedom. So, their goals were admirable – purity, freedom, faithfulness to God – but it caused them to behave in ways which caused Jesus to criticize them vehemently.

This morning, I am continuing in the sermon series “The power of one life,” looking at minor Biblical characters and what we learn from them about God and our relationship with Him. Today I want to look at a woman named Gomer, who is found in the book of Hosea. Hosea was a prophet, the last prophet to prophesy to the northern kingdom of Israel before it fell to the Assyrian Empire in 722 BC. The role of a prophet was to be a covenant mediator. At Mt. Sinai, God had made a covenant with Moses and Israel – I will be your God, and this is what it means to be my people. Whenever the people of God were breaking the covenant and were in danger of bringing upon themselves the curses found in the covenant, God would raise up a prophet who would speak His words of warning to the people. Chief among God’s expectations was not to have any gods before Him, and not to make or worship any idols. In Hosea’s time, as was the case throughout much of Israel’s history, they were guilty of worshiping foreign gods, most notably Ba’al, the Canaanite fertility god, who the Canaanites believed lived with his consort Anath. The Canaanites believed that Ba’al was responsible for giving the water and fertility to their crops. Their method of “prayer” and worship was to stimulate him to acts of fertility by having sex with the sacred shrine prostitutes. Naturally, many Israelites came to believe that they needed to honor the local god, Ba’al, in order to have a rich crop. Perhaps you can understand why God commanded them to drive the Canaanites out of the land, lest they be a stumbling block to them. So that is the setting. God’s people are falling into idolatry and worshiping other gods, compromising their sexual purity in the process. They are violating their covenant with God and are in danger of bringing upon themselves the curses. And into this scene, God raises up a prophet named Hosea, and gives him a unique calling.