Ablaze Church Sermon Podcast (Audio)

The book of Esther is a beautiful portrayal of courage in the face of danger and the triumph of good in the face of powerful sinister forces. This weekend we follow a beautiful young Jewish virgin who becomes the queen of a pagan Persian empire. God has a plan and Esther will play an important role in saving her Judean people from destruction.

God used Esther, a Jewish exile, as His instrument in setting her people free from annihilation and fromthe hatred of others in the land of Persia. The book of Esther never mentions God’s name, yet God clearly orchestrates every event in the book. We find Him in the faith of Mordecai, in thedetermination of Esther, and in the One to whom the Israelites earnestly turn to in prayer andfasting for three days.

Paul is facing death so he impresses upon young Timothy the importance of carrying on where Paul will leave off, preaching the Word of God faithfully. Paul talks about how people with itching ears will want their leaders to talk about only what they want to hear. Paul encourages Timothy to be sober-minded, to endure suffering, to do the work of an evangelist, thus fulfilling his ministry to teach sound doctrine.

Paul writes about temptation that specifically attacks the leaders of a church. The temptation clearly also applies to all Christians. Paul mentions two men of the Old Testament who were corrupt and opposed God’s Word. Today we must be very careful because there are those who oppose the truth found in the Bible. That is why Paul clearly states that, “All of Scripture is breathed out by God.”

Using many comparisons like a soldier, an athlete, and a farmer, Paul encourages Timothy to find faithful men who are willing to share in the work of serving the Lord by teaching others the Word of God. He warns them not to get bogged down in quarrels or to give into temptations of the flesh, but to be generous and kind to all

Paul’s last letter that he ever wrote was to young Timothy who was Paul’s replacement and representative to the churches of Asia Minor. Despite that Paul was facing the end of his ministry because of his imprisonment and persecution, he managed to send a letter that encouraged Timothy in his ministry and Christian hurches to show boldness, endurance, and faithfulness in the face of false teachings.

Paul describes fighting the good fight as an act of faith. A Christian is always engaged in an ongoing contest in which sound doctrine advances against the forces of darkness and evil in our world. This fight of faith does not earn us salvation, but because we know the prize earned by Jesus for us, we fight on in good faith taking hold of eternal life.

Today we celebrate Trinity Sunday. We confess and believe in our God who is three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. On this Sunday, as on all Sundays, we confess the great mystery of the Holy Trinity. We will also take a close look at Paul’s instructions for the Church of Ephesus.

God daily and richly provides us with all that we need. Paul teaches to reject God’s good gifts or to receive them without thanksgiving is a sin against God’s graciousness. Paul prepares his listeners to contend against false teachers and silly myths. Paul shares that the reading of Scripture is the key to combat falsehoods and disinformation.

Paul offers a summary of prayer in the life of the worshipping community. Prayer is strongly encouraged for all people, emphasizing especially prayer for those who exercise authority over us. Along with emphasis on prayer, Paul gives proper qualifications for service within the Christian church and spiritual leadership.

We begin a new series this weekend called, “Paul’s Word to Timothy.” Timothy was, in every way, Paul’s spiritual son. Young but gifted, Timothy had been assigned to lead the church at Ephesus. The congregation that gathered in Ephesus needed order in worship as well as doctrinal correction. It was also plagued with false teachers. This letter from Paul guided and counseled young Timothy in his duties.

In Chapter Four, Jonah came to realize that God was going to spare Nineveh from destruction. Several days had elapsed since Jonah had begun preaching that Nineveh would be overturned if they did not repent. When Nineveh repented, Jonah became very angry. His anger is mentioned several times by God. In contrast, God is “slow to anger and abounds in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression of sin” (Ex. 34:6-7).

The people of Nineveh hardly seem like prospects for responding to God’s Word because they were not Jewish, yet they did turn from their sin, fasted, and put on sackcloth. Upon seeing their turn from evil, God relented from sending disaster. We thank God that His Word bore the fruit of repentance in Nineveh and in our lives.

Have you ever asked, “How low can you (or I) go?” It is just a figure of speech, but it definitely has a scary meaning behind it. In our reading from Jonah Chapter 2, we will see how low a prophet of God is allowed to go. Some might say, “You can’t get any lower than Jonah.” God wanted Jonah to go to Ninevah, but he ended up below sea level. The good news is, that after three days in the belly of a great fish, Jonah finally reconsidered going to Ninevah.

We begin a post-Easter new series, based on the Old Testament book of Jonah. This is one of the most compelling and well-known stories in the Bible. It is full of drama, action, human interest, and practical lessons for Christians and for the Church today as it teaches us to remain true to our calling and mission. When we drift away from it, God may intervene dramatically to get us back on track.

Easter is not merely a one-day celebration, it is a fifty-day season from the Day of the Resurrection of our Lord to the Day of Pentecost. During the Easter Season, we have a tradition to greet one another with a special Easter greeting and response, “Alleluia Christ is Risen!” “He is risen indeed! Alleluia!”

Beginning with Chapter 14 of Mark we learn about how desperate the Jewish leaders were to find a way to execute Jesus quickly and quietly before He gained full support for His mission. Yet, God is at work even in these events using the opposition of His enemies for the fulfillment of His plan of salvation for mankind. The Lord is likewise at work in the events of our lives today bringing about good even amid suffering. We must trust that He has a plan for all that happens in our lives.

Rather than being an external regimented, dry list of rules, Jesus describes the commandments as being centered on loving God and our neighbor. We are told that the greatest commandment is to love God with all our being; that is, with all our heart, soul, and mind. This Jesus calls the most important commandment. Then Jesus shares what is the second most important commandment, which is to love our neighbors as ourselves. These two commandments Jesus sees and explains as the heart of the Old Testament, revealed by the law and the prophets.

Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem is the place He openly accepted messianic titles and at the same time fulfilled many Old Testament messianic prophecies. The disciples and the crowds expected Jesus to establish an earthly kingdom. The express purpose of Jesus’ arrival into Jerusalem was to usher in God’s plan of salvation for mankind. Jesus entered Jerusalem in humility to fulfill the plan of salvation by laying down His life for sinners.

The transfiguration was an event where Jesus showed the light of His heavenly divinity. Jesus was metamorphosized before three of the disciples to display His divine glory and to prepareHis disciples for His death and resurrection. At this historical event, two Old Testament figuresappeared, Moses and Elijah, to verify who Jesus was and what was to happen to Him.The glory of Jesus reminds us that He freely chose death and resurrection for our sakes. Thisshould make us all the more want to listen to Him.