FOUND Part VII: Rewired

Pastor Dan's sermon from 4/6/2008
Scripture Reference: II Corinthians 7:9-13 & Acts 16:16-40
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See as God Sees

Be transformed...this is the instruction of Paul in Romans 12:2. Be transformed. What will happen when we are transformed? We will know what God's will is. What does this mean to us? We will see as God sees. In respect to what? We will see God, ourselves, sin and righteousness in a new light as we live a new life. This is the walk of repentance.

Repentance often has bad connotations. When we are told to be transformed and to walk a life of repentance we conjure up visions of whipping our backs and mourning all of the time. Although we are to mourn over our sin we are not to live a life of sadness but rather of joy. When we are transformed we have an understanding of walking a joyful life of repentance. We are transformed when God implants new life and we respond by placing our faith and trust in Jesus Christ. We understand that we cannot do what Christ has done. As a result we live a faithful life of repentance. We see the world the way God sees the world.

In respect to God he is now the loving Father and not the one we hate. We were once the enemies of God (Romans 5) but now are loved by him and love him. We approach the throne with humility and confidence (Hebrews 4). God is to be worshipped when we are transformed.

In respect to ourselves we come to an understanding that we were once lost in sin (Romans 3) but now have been rescued (Galatians 4). We were once lost and in need of salvation but are now found and awaiting glory.

In respect to sin we now hate it with all that we are. We still sin. In fact, when we are redeemed the battle has just begin (Romans 7). Sin has been dealt a mortal wound yet we continue to do battle until the day that we are present with Christ Jesus in heaven. Yet our view concerning sin changes. When we do sin, we confess it to the Lord and desire to never do it again. Our consciences are no longer seared and scarred (Romans 1).

In respect to righteousness we now crave to be made so. We understand that nothing we do makes us righteous. No, it is by faith that we are justified, not by observing some code of conduct (Romans 4, Galatians 2). Being justified we have been made righteous in the sight of God by the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Have you been transformed by the renewing of your mind? Are you walking a life of repentance? It is then that you will know what God's good, pleasing and perfect will is for you.

FOUND Part VI: 180 Degrees

Pastor Dan's sermon from 3/30/2008
Scripture Reference: II Corinthians 7:9-13 & Acts 16:16-40
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Repent! This was the message this past Sunday. Repent! Where do we go from here? How does the message on Sunday translate into our weekly walk with the Lord? If you are a believer this message is an every day message to be learned. We don't just simply repent once, but rather bring our sinful burden to the Lord every day.

What are the sins in your life that need to be confessed to the Lord? What have you not given over to him? What is causing the guilt? Repentance unto life is an understanding of our sin and guilt but also the apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ Jesus. In other words, we know how deep our sin goes but we also understand that the grace of God is even deeper. So deep that the Psalms tell us that our sins will no longer be remembered by God. Yes, they are as far as the east is from the west! Praise the Lord Jesus Christ for his atoning work.

This is how the message translates: repent of your sin this week. Turn from it and unto God with a full purpose of obedience after his law. Know that Christ has done what you cannot do and that as such you are forgiven if you have placed your faith in the person of Jesus Christ. Amen.

For the Glory of it All

Pastor Dan's sermon from 3/23/2008
Scripture Reference: Luke 24:13-35
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Oh what a Happy Day this past Sunday was. I knew around 8:50am that the Lord was moving in our church and that we were in for quite a ride. It was very exciting to see the earlier service with so many people ready to worship the Lord on Resurrection Sunday. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

This Sunday I realized once again how blessed I am to minister to such a great congregation. It was good to see all of your faces and to worship with you on such a special Sunday. We were able to experience a little piece of the joy that the disciples experienced when Cleopas and his friend from Emmaus reached Jerusalem after seeing Jesus alive.

This is what church is all about! We are to declare to each other the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. His resurrection is the proof of our salvation! Praise be to God our Father. Jesus lived, died, rose again and is coming back again for the glory of it all!

FOUND Part V: Faith is Blind... and Other Lies About Christianity 2

Pastor Dan's sermon from 3/16/2008
Scripture Reference: Acts 16:16-40
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As I was greeting my brothers and sisters at the door this past Sunday some of you commented on how you were encouraged to hear about the different elements of faith (knowledge, conviction, and trust). The elements are part of our mind, heart and will. Some of you had never heard these distinctions before.

Do you know that young people used to carry around pocket sized versions of John Calvin's institutes when he was first publishing them? I wonder what has happened in the past 500 years that we need everything in a magazine form now. Reading will challenge you to think deeper and to grow stronger in your faith.

I want to encourage all of you to go deeper in your faith and to study theology to a much greater depth. Theology is simply the study of God and his relationship to us and the world. There are some great books I would like to recommend that will take you past the normal Christian Bookstore readings and into a much greater depth. Some of these include:

Summaries of Christian Doctrine by Louis Berkhof. This is a short book and summary of his larger works "Manual of Christian Doctrine and the even larger Systematic Theology. This Summaries book is a great start to studying theology.

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis. It is interesting to me that many Christians find this writing to be "too deep". The title explains how these are the basics. Still Lewis takes us into a deeper understanding of our faith.

The Gospel for Every Day Life by Jerry Bridges. This is a great book that takes theology and speaks in every day terms. You will study the how's and why's of the Gospel as Mr. Bridges leads you into the edges of the theology of salvation.

Redemption Accomplished and Applied by John Murray. This is another incredible small work that packs so much into so few pages. You could read a chapter a day and be completely blessed for the entire day.

These are just a few books to get started with. I hope that you might take me up on this idea and go a little deeper into the sermon series by reading some of this material. In the mean time, the Lord keep you and bless you this week.

PD

FOUND Part IV: Faith Is Blind... and Other Lies About Christianity

Pastor Dan's sermon from 3/9/2008
Scripture Reference: Acts 16:25-38
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This past week we began to take a look at Faith and Repentance. These are two of the effects of Regeneration or being "born again". God implants new life and enables the believer to respond in faith and repentance.

This upcoming week we will take a close look at Faith and Repentance as we continue with part 2 of Faith is Blind...and other Lies About Christianity.