Luke 2: 8-11 says;
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord."
The shepherds were
- Together, as a community
- Living, in their normal environment
- Working, doing their normal task
This is what we are called to this Christmas season, to live and work together. God does not call us to abandon others, to abandon our lives, or to abandon our tasks - He calls us to live life together for Him.
An angel of the Lord came to the shepherds with a message of comfort, good news, and great joy. Then, the glory of the Lord shone around them. And their reaction was terror!
The glory of the Lord came to the shepherds (and to us). "Today...a Savior has been born to you, He is Christ, The Lord."
WHAT WILL THE GLORY OF THE LORD BRING TO YOU THIS CHRISTMAS SEASON?
o To some it brings fear (vs. 9)
o To some it brings comfort (vs. 10)
o To some it brings good news (vs. 10)
o To some it brings great joy (vs. 10)
o To some it brings a Savior (vs. 11)
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Preaching The Bible
I have heard a lot of sermons over the years, some very good, some not. Yet I can almost always find some aspect to complement the preacher on or some element appreciate for myself. A few months ago I found myself listening to a sermon and taking mental notes on many of the main points. And then it hit me; this is not Biblically based, in fact no Scripture was used at any point in this "sermon".
For the next few days I thought about this "sermon" and about this "preacher" and questioned how a person could claim to preach The Word of God without sharing any of it with their hearers. And, I wondered, how could I avoid falling into this same type of mindset.
That's when it hit me; it's not a manner of falling into this mindset, not jumping into it as a choice that is made, the issue is that many preachers are sliding into it on a very slippery slope. This is due to preachers and church leaders wanting to grow their churches, speak to the felt needs of their congregation and their community and they soon find themselves preaching pop culture and self-help from many sources not built on The Holy Scriptures.
When I came to this conclusion I was convicted to go back to the drawing board on all upcoming sermons in order to base them on Scripture. I was convicted to go back to the calendar and redesign all our upcoming series and teaching plans.
If you are called to be a preacher or teacher of God's Word than you need to teach it and nothing less. We need to be people that teach God's Word because people need to hear it. If we fail to speak The Truth of Jesus Christ, who will. If people are not hearing The Scriptures from us, we are failing them, we are failing ourselves, and we are failing God.
For the next few days I thought about this "sermon" and about this "preacher" and questioned how a person could claim to preach The Word of God without sharing any of it with their hearers. And, I wondered, how could I avoid falling into this same type of mindset.
That's when it hit me; it's not a manner of falling into this mindset, not jumping into it as a choice that is made, the issue is that many preachers are sliding into it on a very slippery slope. This is due to preachers and church leaders wanting to grow their churches, speak to the felt needs of their congregation and their community and they soon find themselves preaching pop culture and self-help from many sources not built on The Holy Scriptures.
When I came to this conclusion I was convicted to go back to the drawing board on all upcoming sermons in order to base them on Scripture. I was convicted to go back to the calendar and redesign all our upcoming series and teaching plans.
If you are called to be a preacher or teacher of God's Word than you need to teach it and nothing less. We need to be people that teach God's Word because people need to hear it. If we fail to speak The Truth of Jesus Christ, who will. If people are not hearing The Scriptures from us, we are failing them, we are failing ourselves, and we are failing God.
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