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The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher Focus

Text: John 16.12-13

Soon after the establishment of the Lord’s church, persecution of the believers became an ordinary and “to be expected” matter. Starting with Peter and John (Acts 4) and continuing throughout the entirety of the book of Acts, either the Jewish establishment or the Romans acting “on behalf” of the Jews proved to be perennial enemies of the cross. Stephen was the first Christian martyr of whom we read in the Bible (see Acts 7), but he was not to be the last. James,…  ( Click for more )

Monday Miscellany ; November 26,2007

Focus Text: John 18.33-38

We hear a lot about truth. Witnesses in legal proceedings are duty bound to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Under many circumstances, consumers are advised of certain facts under the truth in lending laws. Children are taught the value of truth and the honor that inheres with always telling the truth. Truth is a small word that packs a tremendous wallop when it comes to our lives, our country, our society, our economy, and most importantly to our spiritual welfare.

“Then…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 21, 2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: John 19.38-40

“After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus. And Nicodemus, who at first came to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds. Then they took the body of Jesus, and bound it in strips of linen with the spices, as the custom of the Jews is to bury.” (John…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 20,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: John 3.1-2

It wasn’t easy being a disciple of Christ. Some who followed at the first saw the sacrifices that were involved as well as the dangers and turned their backs. Jesus didn’t blink; His terms of discipleship were non-negotiable! The extraordinary drawing power of Jesus as a man and as a Teacher is reflected in the way some of His disciples reacted to His life and His death. We will talk about one of the more prominent followers of Jesus, and this in spite of the cost.

We first…  ( Click for more )

Monday Miscellan; November 19,2007;

Focus Text: Ephesians 5.14-17

It was just a small roadside sign, not more than about 2 feet by 3 feet, that caught my eye. I was driving through a small suburb of Atlanta toward Sunday morning worship services when I saw it and some thoughts came to mind that might be worth sharing. The sign was actually located in the front yard area of an ordinary looking residence, but the content of the sign was everything but ordinary. All the sign said was, “Psychic” with a phone number below it.

Not to get too personal, but I have…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 16, 2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: John 20.19-23

I think we all have them; friends who seem to delight in showing us their “battle scars.” I know I have a friend who had several surgeries, and he seemed to relish each and every opportunity that came his way to show off a scar from a previous surgery. Of course, he would always preface these exhibitions with, “I hope this doesn’t gross you out, but let me show you where…” That statement would be followed by a display of what ever area had been…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 15, 2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: John 20.11-18

Yesterday’s message introduced a significant conversation that took place between Jesus and Mary Magdalene; to refresh our memories, we will cite a portion of that text again. Recall that the setting is just after the resurrection of Jesus and before knowledge of His resurrection was known except by a very few, Mary Magdalene being one of that select group.

“Jesus said to her, ‘Do not cling to Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father; but go to My brethren…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 14,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: John 20.11-18

Some roomers can be dressed up in respectable garb, but rumors look the same no matter how they are dressed. Jesus, unique and unequaled teacher was and is completely knowledgeable of the destructive capability of rumors. Much of His early ministry was spent in the midst of rumors and innuendo; beginning with Herod’s desire to kill Him as a child and ending with suborned witnesses at His trial, Jesus had a lifetime of experience with rumors that were intended to hurt and even…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 13,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Luke 8.1-3

One synonym for devotee is follower; another is supporter. In the case of Jesus and this miniseries, both definitions are appropriate. We will begin our study by considering a special set of followers about whom we know little, but about whom regrettably we hear even less. “Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of…  ( Click for more )

November 12,2007; I have eaten Ashes like Bread

Focus Text: Psalm 102.8-11

“My enemies reproach me all day long, Those who deride me swear an oath against me. For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass.” (Psalm 102.8-11).

The 102Psalm from which today’s focus text is taken has an introductory statement at its beginning; it reads as follows: “A Prayer of the afflicted…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 9,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 16.29-32

Jesus said to the Sadducees, “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God.” (Matthew 22.29). We are limiting our comments to the first of His two charges, i.e., “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures…”

I was mistaken once when I failed to properly follow directions to a restaurant; I was also mistaken not long ago when I failed to read the time correctly. The Sadducees were mistaken, but in an entirely different way.…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 8,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 16.22-29

Detractors with specific agendas frequently set traps for their “victims.” Such was certainly the case when the things noted in today’s focus text unfolded. “The same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Him and asked Him, saying: ‘Teacher, Moses said that if a man dies, having no children, his brother shall marry his wife and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were with us seven brothers. The first died after he had…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 7,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 16.20-23

Detractors don’t always wear the uniform of the obvious enemy; frequently they come dressed in the garb of a friend. Jesus’ detractors were sometimes from within His own camp, and sometimes from even the most unexpected sources from within that select group. Today’s message will look at one such detractor (for however brief a period) and how Jesus responded to his comments.

“Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 6,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Mark 3.13-21

I wonder what would have happened in 1948 on the morning after the presidential election if Harry Truman had believed the headlines of the Chicago Daily Tribune, the headlines which boldly proclaimed, “Dewey Defeats Truman.” I wonder what would have happened if George Foreman had believed his critics who said a man over 40 could never compete against the young guns coming up in boxing (Hint: You’d probably be eating greasy hamburgers instead of ones with the fat grilled…  ( Click for more )

November 5,2007; Monday Miscellany

Focus Text: Galatians 4.1-6

Dickens opened A Tale of Two Cities with, “It was the best of times; It was the worst of times.” The atomic clock link on my computer says it is twenty-five hours later that it was twenty-four hours ago. The worldtimeserver.com website can literally tell me what time it is in almost any spot on the globe. There certainly are many, many ways of looking at time, and all of them have their merits. However, time really is something that deserves our careful consideration, especially when it comes to spiritual…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 2,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 21.45-46

“Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet.” (Matthew 21.45-46).

It is a clear fact that Jesus could read the thoughts and innermost secrets of men’s hearts if He chose to do so. Sometimes people silently thought things around Him and He miraculously “intercepted” their thoughts and…  ( Click for more )

Nov. 1,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 21.45

Perceptions can be wrong; sometimes they are directly opposite the facts; sometimes they are accurate. In the case of the chief priests and Pharisees, their perception about one matter was dead on. “Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His [Jesus’] parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them.” (Matthew 21.45).

Actually the word “perceived” in the focus text is not as strong as it could be; the underlying Greek word is used 223 times…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 31,2007; The Series - Jesus, Unique & Unequaled Teacher

Focus Text: Matthew 21.40-44

After telling the parable of the wicked vinedressers, Jesus posed a question to the religious leaders in Jerusalem; He asked, “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?” (Matthew 21.40). In spite of their unwillingness or inabilities to follow the Scriptures, these men certainly responded correctly to Jesus’ question! They bluntly stated, “He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 30,2007; Jesus – Unique & Unequaled Teacher (the series)

Focus Text: Matthew 21.33-40

In dealing with the hardhearted religious leaders of His day, Jesus told the following parable:

“There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country. Now when vintage-time drew near, he sent his servants to the vinedressers, that they might receive its fruit. And the vinedressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another.…  ( Click for more )

Monday Miscellany; October 29,2007;

Focus Text: Isaiah 55.8-9

It was just a routine doctor’s visit that took me into the crowded metropolitan area. I turned into the parking lot reserved for all the patients who had a doctor in the multistory office building in which my doctor also had an office. As fortune would have it, the parking lot was jam-packed. I drove up one row and down the next looking diligently for a place to park my car, but without success for quite a while. Finally after minutes of searching and with patience getting thin, I spotted a spot and wheeled…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 26,2007; Part 12 of TBD

Focus Text: Matthew 4.13-17

“And leaving Nazareth, He [Jesus] came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: ‘The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.’ From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, ‘Repent,…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 25,2007; Part 11 of TBD

Focus Text: Matthew 21.28-32

If we listen carefully, compliments come from all sorts of unexpected places. I, like most people, appreciate a genuine compliment and so I listen carefully just in case one is passed and I fail to hear it! The two women that I was visiting had consistently caused trouble of one sort or another in the congregation where I was preaching. I called on them, hoping to understand them better and come away with some hope of how we might work together more effective for the cause of Christ. While talking to them, I learned…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 24,2007; Part 10 of TBD

Focus Text: Matthew 21.28-32

Calloused hearts are not the kind of soil in which the seed of the gospel will grow. For that reason, Jesus warned His followers to beware of false teachers and others whose motives are not genuine. In this series we have sampled how Jesus dealt with the chief priests and elders who came and confronted Him in the temple. After absolutely stopping their mouths with superior reasoning, Jesus directly proceeded to tell two parables, both of which were aimed at them and their ilk. In this view of Jesus, the unique and…  ( Click for more )

Oct. 23,2007; Part 9 of TBD

Focus Text: Matthew 21.23-27

There’s no dilemma like a real dilemma! Jesus knew (knows) about dilemmas; He was confronted with a false one in the focus text and He responded with a real one. Let’s examine this amazing event and the reasoning power of Jesus.

The false dilemma, though it was thinly veiled by the chief priests and elders, was, “By what authority are You doing these things? And who gave You this authority?” As members of the Sanhedrin, these questioners were in positions of authority granted by men. From…  ( Click for more )