When I was young, my sister was a dancer. She did jazz, tap and ballet. I remember, with some level of angst, all the hours spent with my mom waiting in the car or in the hallway while my sister engaged yet again in another dress rehearsal for some major performance that was imminently coming in the next few days.
Author: joemarino (Page 47 of 50)
We all make plans. Some of us even make plans for the plans we make. We premeditate and obsess over what we want, why we want it, what we will do to get it and how we will do what we need to do to get it. The questions we need to ask as we examine this passage today are: What do our plans reveal about what we really want? What do our plans reveal about the condition of our hearts? In what ways do our plans bring honor or dishonor to the Lord? What will you do when you realize that all of your best-laid plans intersect with the plans of the cross of Christ?
In this passage Jesus is telling his disciples that they can have the assurance of his second coming and that they need to get ready for his return. Assurance and readiness are the themes of what we will study today. Just stop and ask yourself if you live with the reassurance of Christ’s return and then ask yourself what you need to do to get ready for Jesus to come back. Are you living with the assurance of Christ’s return today? Are you ready for Christ’s return today?
I have nearly a million pictures in my phone. The reason I have so many pictures in my phone is because my kids love to steal my phone and take selfies. While this can be frustrating sometimes… I really do love looking at the many pictures they leave for me because it reminds me of how much we love each other.
Before diving into preaching this text I want to set the scene a little by letting the cat out of the bag so-to-speak by explaining that over the next few weeks because of the breakdown of the text we will be focusing heavily on a theology of eschatology which is to say that we will be examining what the Bible teaches us in regards to what will happen as the end of the world and Christ’s return draws near.
There are people that I don’t admire and never want to be like. But there are also people that I do admire and do want to be like. This is the warning and the invitation of this text. The warning of our text is to beware of this. The invitation of this text is to be like that. Beware of the scribes and be like the poor widow!
Today as I speak, the political scene in the United States is like a ticking time bomb. Christians in America are becoming more & more marginalized. People in our culture live in open hostility to the gospel while they totally embrace what God says is evil. Good is called evil and evil is called good. The talking heads on our news feeds spread deceptive propaganda. Our social system is a basket case. The church throughout our country suffers from so-called Christians with lazy hearts & itching ears. The institution of the family is broken. Our culture is permeated with a victim mentality that has undermined accountability and empowered people to believe they are entitled to handouts. Self-expression is valued over self-denial. Self-esteem is desired over God-esteem. The times we live in seem dismal & scary but the truth of this passage is that… “In the midst of a hostile & deceptive world, Jesus is the answer that silences the opposition.” Continue reading
“What do you want from God?” If you could ask God for anything right now what would you ask him for? What is the one thing that you’ve been asking for lately that you believe would radically change or alter the course of your life if God answered your prayer?
One of my favorite television shows on T.V. is called “The Voice”. Participants on “The Voice” have the opportunity to compete for a musical recording contract with a major recording label by showcasing their vocal talent during blind auditions where they sing for the opportunity to be chosen by a coach to join that coaches team and then they proceed to the battle rounds & the knock out rounds where they compete against other participants to make it into the finals and then finally they head to the finale where 3-4 participants compete for America’s vote.
This passage is all about worshipping King Jesus. It’s all about how Jesus’ followers worship their king by giving their possessions to him, lifting their voices in praise of him and shattering the stony silence of the pride filled Pharisees. This passage is really an invitation for us to come and worship the King of Kings with our possessions & our voices while disrupting the silence of the dying world around us.