The Joshua Victor Theory

  Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Amen. When you are watching an intense movie or reading a great book, you can instinctively tell when the plot is building to the climax. Jesus’ disciples, James and John certainly sensed something big around the corner, in Mark 10. And they weren’t wrong about that. Jesus had made His third and final prediction of His death and resurrection. He had just talked about eternal rewards, their persecution, and His own betrayal, death, and resurrection. But with the particular skill of selective hearing that we humans are best known for, James and John were caught up anticipating great things, while completely ignoring all the sacrifice and crosses on the road in between. Their request seems audacious: “ Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one a...

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen. One of the most fascinating stories in the Old Testament is the prophet Jonah. Jonah happens to be the only prophet Jesus directly compares Himself to, and He says the Sign of all signs that will prove who Jesus is, would be the Sign of His three day burial and resurrection. Jesus says this was foreshadowed by the 3 days and nights Jonah was in the belly of the whale. Jonah lived about 800 years or so before Jesus, during the time when Assyria was the mega power in the Middle East, and had a reputation for its terrifying armies and the total destruction they brought on conquered lands. Nineveh, the capital city, was the heartland of the wicked empire that spread violence across the Middle East, even to Israel. It’s not too hard to figure out why Jonah didn’t want to obey God’s command to go there and cry out against their evil. The prophet Jonah can teach us a lot about ourselves. Instead of obeying God, Jo...

Sermon Outline: ·          Jesus was undoubtedly a person, who if He entered into your life, you could not leave unaffected. We shouldn’t expect any different today. Controversy followed—divided opinions among Jews. Teachings and miracles magnetic—drawing crowds. His Word was challenging, at times provocative, acclaimed for being authoritative. Not just quoting others, building authority on what 5 generations of rabbis had taught. He was authority—He spoke and His Word commanded attention. His Word was self-evidently true—it rang true with the very authenticity that spoke for itself. Taught from God’s Word as though He was its author and rightful interpreter (and He was in fact both!). His teaching compelled people of every stripe to look deeper than mere outward signs of good behavior and church going, to see if their hearts and minds were right with God. To see whether your “inner and outer reality” were in sync. That is—hypocrisy, or sho...

Sermon Outline: 1.       What is it that makes farewells with a loved one so tearful and emotional? The distance, separation, longing to see them, time away. Contrast to Jesus’ farewell. Worshipped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. What made this different? 2.       1) Jesus has promised that He is not “absent” from us. 2) Jesus has been exalted to His rightful position of honor and glory—a joyful “well-done” to His divine rescue mission here on earth. 3) Jesus left us with an important purpose, with much still to do! 3.       Matthew 28:20b, “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” How? In various ways: His Word spoken to us, John 14:23, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” Jesus remains in us if we remain in His love and love one another. He will make His home or dwelling with us. ...

Sermon Outline: 1.       Ever been stuck? Places: in traffic, in a long line, in an airport. Situations: caught in trouble with no apparent way out, stuck for ideas (when writing a sermon perhaps?), between a rock and a hard place, left to deal with someone else’s mess or problems. Emotions: fear, anxiety, or doubt freezes you from taking action; an emotional wound cripples you from moving on; guilt or shame puts you in a self-imposed retreat into isolation. Knowledge: can’t solve a problem, lack the know-how; fail to comprehend the situation. Spiritual dimension. 2.       Pres. Newton remarked that Jesus is “the master of getting stuck people unstuck. ” Not always by snatching them out of the situation though! Often we learn only through hardship and experience and failure. Prunes, shapes, matures us. 3.       Ethiopian eunuch was “stuck” on a confusing passage of Isaiah. Searching to understand, but a b...

The following Lenten series I will be preaching on is adapted from Dr. Reed Lessing's series on Jonah the prophet. Dr. Lessing is professor of Old Testament at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, MO.              After a somewhat less than graceful exit from the belly of the whale, Jonah was back on terra firma . And it was no time to rest or to hatch another escape plan—that have proven to be fruitless (267). God had work for Jonah to do, and he was to get right to it. God was persistent in His call, and wasn’t going to let up. Perhaps we can recall times when we’ve had a less than graceful course-correction in our lives, and were humbled, somewhat unsteady on our feet, and back to facing the call that God has for us. Because of God’s grace, we are given a second chance—we are renewed for His service yet again. Jonah obeyed at last the command to “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.”  ...