Loving God with all my heart, mind and soul and loving my neighbor as myself by making disciples, baptizing and to teach all things commanded by Jesus Christ in the Gospels, the Acts, the Epistles and the Revelation. HEAR THIS GOSPEL - Romans 10:17 BELIEVE ON CHRIST - John 6:47 REPENT OF EVERY SIN - Luke 13:3 CONFESS JESUS AS CHRIST - Matthew 10:32 BE BAPTIZED FOR THE REMISSION OF SINS - Acts 2:38 LIVE FAITHFULLY - I John 1:7 SPREAD THIS SAME GOSPEL - Acts 8:4
Sarai, Abram, Hagar and GOD. High drama in the Negeb desert as pragmatism is once again shown to be utter foolishness as Sarai has a meltdown, Hagar flees, Abram acts like a poltroon and...God shows His Sovereignty to all! (Video may be shortened due to a battery failure in the computer.)
Sunday night sermon at the Archdale church of Christ in Charlotte, NC - 21 August 2016.
Text: Mark 9.30 – 32; Matthew 17.22 – 23; Luke 9.43 - 45
Thesis: Forgiveness,
Remission and Redemption are made Unilaterally and Unconditional by God through
Jesus Christ.
1Introduction
A.He
and the disciples have left the region of Caesarea Philippi
1)Golan
Heights
2)AKA
as Caesarea Paneas per Josephus
3)Center
of worship of the Greek pagan god, Pan(eas), the god of “desolate places”
(Hades)
4)A
great cave is there of which flowed much water then
That formed the
headwaters of the Jordan
5)The
cave was known as “The Gates of Hades”
a.This
where Peter made his great confession
6)Herod
Agrippa had his palace here
B.They
now passed through Galilee
1)Located
in the region of the tribes of Naphtali and Dan
2)West
and SW of the Sea of Galilee
3)Solomon
rewarded his ally, the Phoenician king Hiram, with 20 cities here, hence the
name; “Galilee of the Gentiles”
4)Here
was Jesus’ center of operation, Capernaum
2Delivered
to the Hands of Men
A.John
3.14 – 17
B.Isaiah
52.13 – 53.7
C.When
man is given total control – He plots to kill God
1.The
most prolific murderers of all time, Mao – Stalin – Hitler were all disciples
of Charles Darwin
3Murdered
by the Hands of Men
A.Isaiah
53.8 – 10a
B.His
life was not taken, it was given as “a ram in the bush”
1.Genesis
22.9 – 14
C.John
10.14 - 18
4Raised
for the Sins of Man
A. Isaiah 53.10b – 54.1
5The
Meaning of the Text
A.God
delivered Him
B.We
murdered Him
C.He
was raised for our
1.Forgiveness
2.Remission
3.Redemption
6The
Challenge of the Text
A.Repentance
B.Forgiveness
of others as Christ forgave us
C.Do
justice, love mercy, walk humbly before God
7“The
Gospel Call”
A.How shall we neglect such a great salvation?
·My fifth great uncle was Hugh Gaston who was
rector at the Ballywillan Presbyterian Church (pictured above left) in County
Antrim, Ulster Plantation (Northern Ireland) and wrote the most dangerous book
of his time; Gaston’s Collections. It
allowed “the ploughman to know more Bible than his clergyman.” Hugh fled to South Carolina where he died
prematurely of the measles. He is buried
just one hour south of Charlotte in Chester County, S.C. in “Burnt Meeting
House Cemetery.” Uncle Hugh continues
to inspire my ministry to this very day.
You can read more about Uncle Hugh here: http://www.ballywillanpci.org/rev-hugh-gaston
A. The scribes assert that the disciples are a fraud
B. The disciples assert that the scribes are a fraud
C. Christ asserts that we are all frauds without Him
3The
Conflict of Faith is Confessed – 9.19 - 24
A. Not great faith, not little faith but FAITHLESS is who we
are at the core.
B. Jesus inquires before Jesus takes action. It’s not about “who’s right” but WHAT’S
right.
C. “IF” not a faithless word but a faithful word
D. ALL things are possible for one who believes!
1. “I can
do all things through Christ who strengthens me!”
Philippians 4.13
4Profound
Weakness is Victorious in Christ – 9.25 - 29
A. “Immediately”
B. He didn’t simply ask, he CRIED out, he shouted with
passion
C. A private expression of faith becomes a public blessing
D. Despite all this, doubt and disbelief remains
E. Despite all this, the disciples still wanted to know;
“What’s wrong with us?”
F. It’s not “us,” it’s “ME”
5The
Meaning of the Text
A. Arguing about “who’s right” is pointless and futile
B. Any “faith” preceded with the word “self” is less than
worthless
C. All power to do anything is in Christ Jesus alone!
6The
Challenge of the Text
A. We must admit that, at best, our faith is in conflict
B. We must admit that “self” has absolutely no power
whatsoever at all
C. We must admit that all power, all authority and all
results lie in Christ and in Him alone
7“The
Gospel Call”
·My fifth great uncle was Hugh Gaston who was
rector at the Ballywillan Presbyterian Church (pictured above left) in County
Antrim, Ulster Plantation (Northern Ireland) and wrote the most dangerous book
of his time; Gaston’s Collections. It
allowed “the ploughman to know more Bible than his clergyman.” Hugh fled to South Carolina where he died
prematurely of the measles. He is buried
just one hour south of Charlotte in Chester County, S.C. in “Burnt Meeting
House Cemetery.” Uncle Hugh continues
to inspire my ministry to this very day.
You can read more about Uncle Hugh here: http://www.ballywillanpci.org/rev-hugh-gaston
Ruins photo courtesy of:
ballywillanpci.org.
·On Friday night, August 19, 2016 Russ will
dramatically portray the life and times of his 5th Great
grandfather, John “Justice” Gaston entitled; “A Patriot of the Revolution.” A
portion of the event will cover also the life and times of his brother, Hugh
Gaston. The event will take place at the
Archdale church of Christ, 2525 Archdale Drive, Charlotte, NC 28210 at 7 p.m. The public is invited to this free
presentation.
NOTE: I bungled a statement regarding Ephesians 2. In truth, we are saved "by grace and not works lest any man boast." We work, not to get saved but because we are saved. Though we are not saved by works of man, we ARE saved by the work of God, a work applied to us in baptism per Colossians 2.11 - 12.
