The Joshua Victor Theory

Sermon Outline: In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. ·          Who can you call down from heaven to your attention, or to pay honor to you? Underscores the power and identity of Jesus. Son of God. ·          Note Moses and Elijah— alive . Promise of resurrection. Who they were… ·          After six days …setting, time reference, Moses, and events parallel one of Moses’ own mountaintop encounters with God in Ex. 24, the first time he received the stone tablets. Whether or not this intends for us to see the similarities, Moses-Law + Elijah-Prophets = represent OT, together pointing to and in service to Jesus ·          Moses—prophecies of a greater prophet, like him, to be raised up from among them and to speak God’s Word, and we must listen to Him. Elijah—mountaintop encounter w...

Grace, mercy, and peace to you, from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. Last week we heard in 1 Peter 3 about the Christian living their life with good conscience, despite persecution and opposition for their faith. The theme continues in today’s reading. We’ve talked before this year about how we don’t experience persecution anywhere on the order of how millions of Christians in foreign countries do today, or early Christians. Yet Peter almost took it for granted that persecution was a basic reality of Christian life. Our reading opens with, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.” This challenges us to consider why we don’t experience more persecution. Is it because we enjoy a period of relative peace in our country? Or do we see warning signs that the “goodwill” toward Christianity is fading in society? Or does it tell us we aren’t speaking up or witnessing ...

Sermon Outline: 1.       Encountering the miraculous—foreign to our everyday experience. Skeptical. Miracles strewn through Jesus’ life. Public miracles…private: only the inner circle of disciples. Miracles bound up with His identity. Followers were eager to proclaim it—enemies grudgingly admitted it. Enemies gave unflattering explanations, but had to admit the miracles. To take Jesus’ identity seriously, we must take account His miracles. What do they tell or prove about His identity? 2.       Jesus’ puzzling command after this particular miracle. Why not rake in the glory and attention from this miracle? Why tell them in the verses that follow this story, that He would first have to suffer, die, and be raised from the dead before they could talk about it? Why put this glorious experience beneath the cross? 3.       Even after all the cross and resurrection when Peter wrote about it, he was reluctant to...

Sermon Outline: 1. What’s in a highway? Part of our everyday landscape—don’t think about it much. But roads are the quintessential sign of rule and dominion. By roads a kingdom is made. Joined together, united for trade, travel, military, communication. Isaiah 40 speaks of preparing the “The Way of the Lord” (not the people of Israel), make straight in the desert a “highway for our God.” It’s the way of God back to Jerusalem, to visit His people restored from exile. The way of God to our hearts. “Make straight the way for God within, and let us all our hearts prepare for Christ to come and enter there” (On Jordan’s Bank the Baptists’ Cry) 2. Part of God’s plan is to level the “mountains” of human pride, in His way to their heart. Repentance is to clear, straighten, level the highway to our heart. 3. Resistance to repentance. Obstacles we raise: “mountains of pride,” crooked hearts, stubborn hearts and stiff-necks. Sin tries to blockade God out of our heart. This i...