TagChristian faith

Sermon Audio: Nicodemus

2 Min read
[audio:http://www.gregchaney.com/wordpress/audio/0613_174059.MP3]

Nicodemus

When:  Sometime after he cleared the temple

Who:  Ruler on the Jewish ruling council (71 members tasked the elite) V1

  • “As under the Greek rulers the Jews were allowed a large measure of self-government, many points of civil and religious administration fell to the lot of the high priests and the gerousía to settle. http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13444a.htm “
  • “Teacher of Israel”  v10 Only the most trained became teachers of the Law in general, the ruling council, and certainly “Teacher of Israel.
  • the Jewish Encyclopedia and many Biblical historians have theorized that he is identical to Nicodemus ben Gurion, mentioned in the Talmud as a wealthy and popular holy man reputed to have had miraculous powers.
  • Sanhedrin…put Jesus to death

Motivation:

  • Sent by the ruling council “we know” to address the incident in the temple (Sadducees were the target)
  • Possibly sent to recruit him
  • Inspired by his message…a prodigy recognized by a Jewish master. ILLUSTRATION: The master musician and the hillbilly prodigy

[SEGUE NOTE:  Regardless of the motivation Nicodemus becomes flustered with Jesus’ answer to a question he never asked.)

The Message:

v3-5 The kingdom is experienced by rebirth not reform ILLUSTRATION:  The president of a college of theology

v5-8 Rebirth is spiritual not physical

  • ILLUSTRATION: Jewish ceremonial rebirths.
  • The Jews were fixated on the Messiah coming as a physical King of Israel (Triumphal entry)
  • Pharisees were the experts in external

v13- 14Jesus is not from God he is God (Jesus finally answers implied question) Jesus must be lifted up on the cross (compare to Moses in Numbers 21)

Conclusion (The Cameos)

John 7:45-52 Nicodemus, knowing the law risks retribution to defend  Jesus but was not yet willing to give up his status

John 19:38-42 Nicodemus gives Jesus the burial of a king

Call

John 3:16:  The message to Nicodemus is clear Jesus isn’t  just from God he is God.  He was lifted on the cross so that whoever like Jews on the serpent gazes on it will be saved through a rebirth through the spiritual cleansing of baptism.  Our rebirth isn’t just a new addition to our life or a way to reform it…we die to the old life.  If Nicodemus can do it so can we.

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Sermon Audio: The Journey

1 Min read

Sermon Audio “The Journey”

When the Israelites stood at the far side of the Red Sea they had escaped certain death and were delivered to life by the hand of God, but their journey wasn’t over.  The Israelites wandered through the wilderness before reaching their promise, and it wasn’t always pretty.  At times God’s anger burned toward them but in the end both He and they looked back their wanderings with fondness.

The Israelite’s story is our story.  When we stand at the banks of our salvation we have to know that our spiritual journey is not over, it’s only beginning.  We will journey through the wilderness of our lives and like the Israelites, Christian wilderness travelers trust God, need each other, look for God’s glory, and never turn back.

Exodus 14, Exodus 33, Jeremiah 2:1-2, Psalms 103, Luke 9:23, Matthew 22:36-40, 1 John 1:7, Philippians 3:12-14

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Bible Class: Defining the Kingdom of Heaven (God)

6 Min read

Bible Class Audio May 23, 2010 “Kingdom of God (Part 2)

Bible Class Audio May 16, 2010 “Kingdom of God (Part 1)

“From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Matthew 4:17 (TNIV)

1.  A Central Theme of Jesus Teachings

The Kingdom of heaven is a central theme in the teachings of Jesus throughout his ministry.  It’s difficult to gain the deeper faith and understanding from his message without understanding the kingdom message first.

As you discover the depth to which the kingdom of God message is infused into the preaching of Jesus and the Apostles you have to wonder where in our church history was that message lost?  If it was so central to the original message, why did we water it down?

“It may be said that the teaching of Jesus concerning the Kingdom of God represents his whole teaching. It is the main, determinative subject of all his discourse. His ethics were ethics of the Kingdom; his theology was theology of the Kingdom; his teaching regarding himself cannot be understood apart from his interpretation of the Kingdom of God” (Dr. F. C. Grant, from “The Gospel of the Kingdom,” Biblical World, 50, pp. 121-191).

The gospel  (good news) message is still preached proudly, something from which we can never stray.  Jesus is the salvation for the world, He is the final sacrifice for sins, He was crucified and buried in a tomb, He was triumphant over death, He is the mediator of the new covenant.  What has been lost I’m afraid is the rest of the story, that Jesus has redeemed us into the Kingdom of God.  As Jesus said,

“The Law and the Prophets were proclaimed until John. Since that time, the good news of the kingdom of God is being preached…” (Luke 16:16 TNIV) (more…)

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Bible Class: Jesus the Rabbi and the Talmidim

2 Min read

Bible Class Audio May 9, 2010 “Jesus and the Talmidin”

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

1.  Galilee – The most religious Jews in the world, a place of intense study of scripture (Torah and Mishnah)

2.  Jewish Education:

At five years old [one is fit] for the Scripture, at ten years the Mishnah (oral Torah, interpretations) at thirteen for the fulfilling of the commandments, at fifteen the Talmud (making Rabbinic interpretations), at eighteen the bride-chamber, at twenty pursuing a vocation, at thirty for authority (able to teach others) Aboth 5:21, The Mishnah, Herbert Danby, ed., Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1985

  • Beth Sefer – (elementary school) All Jewish children attended, focused on the Torah and memorization
  • Beth Midrash – (Secondary School) Only the best children attended after learning a trade, began to learn interpretations of the Mishnah (Oral Torah) Luke 2:41
  • Talmidin – Very few of the Beth Midrash students sought permission to follow a Rabbi with S’mikhah
  • The education of Jesus:  Grew in wisdom – Luke 2:52, Participated in Passover – Luke 2:41, Learned a trade Matthew – 13:55, spent time with John the Baptist -John 22-26, Began his ministry about thirty – Luke 3:23

3.  The Rabbi (Teacher of the Law, Scribe)

  • Taught in the Synagogue, Beth Sefer, Beth Midrash
  • Teachers of the Law could only teach accepted interpretations
  • Those with authority (S’mikhah) could make new interpretations and pass legal judgments Matthew 7:28-29
  • Authority must be confirmed by the witness of two other rabbis

4.  The Talmid (Disciples)

  • Disciples would “Yoke” to a Rabbi
  • “be covered with the dust of his feet
  • Followed, learned, imitated, devoted

Next Week: The Kingdom of Heaven “From that time on Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.'” Matthew 4:17

Links to resources:

Life of Jesus in the First Century Context

Religious Leaders in Jesus Day

Wikipedia on the Mishnah

Rabbi and Talmidim

Jesus as Rabbi

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Starting at Zero

5 Min read

About an hour into my four hour journey home on Wednesday March 10, 2009, it occurred to me that the clothes on my back and the few things in my truck were what I had.  My thinking changed from “How bad is it?” to “What’s the recovery plan?” to “What did I have in that house?” More slowly than you might think an understanding of the situation crept up on me:  we were going to be starting at zero. (more…)

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The Most Powerful Person in the Room

4 Min read

All who are blessed with the gift of leadership will at some point discover they are the most powerful person in a group.  It may be when an older sibling realizes the influence they can bear on the youngsters or when an adult is promoted to a position of authority.  How we handle power is key to successful leadership, as a Christian the decision  is absolutely critical.

Popular culture will beg for us to wield the power like a weapon.

Christian example will inspires us to wield power like a servant.

The Gospel of John records that on the Passover Feast before his crucifixion Jesus realized he was the most powerful man in the world with ALL things under his power, a power given by God:

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God

There is no other example of a man realizing more power, any power we may have is minute in comparison.  The real lesson from the most powerful man to ever live is what he did with that power…

…he washed his followers feet. (more…)

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Truthfulness

2 Min read

Arrogant [Eloquent] lips are unsuited to a fool
how much worse lying lips to a ruler! Proverbs 17:5-7 (NIV)

Truthfulness is an elusive habit for leaders.  We are assaulted daily by situations that beg for lies, half-truths, misinformation, deception, and withholding.  These situations arise at work from difficult communication, positions of disadvantage to us, and fear of retribution.  Within our families they arise from personal pride toward spouses, fear of children’s actions, and discomfort with admitting to wrong actions.

The mad boss asks, “Who made this decision?”
The Christian brother states, “I’m only flirting with her, I can control it.”
The inefficient employee asks, “Am I doing ok working for you?”
The spouse demands, “Where did all of our money go?”
Your child asks, “Where do babies come from?”

A Christian Leader’s response:

1.  Just tell it. The benefits of truthfulness outweigh the costs in the long run as your boss learns to appreciates your trust and candor, your spouse loves the open communication, and your children model.  Warning, blunt truthfulness will mark you as a jerk and harm your ability to influence.  Use gentleness and patience to form your communication in a way that creates an environment of appreciation.

2.  Demand it in return. My initial briefing to new employees has always included the requirement of truth.  My nature I am a trusting person, tell me something and I take it to the bank until that something is proven false.  Once you lose my trust it’s hard to get it back.   My daughters were raised with the same requirement.  I marvel at parents who severely discipline children based on honest disclosure.  Since birth we have demanded truth and lessened discipline with it.  The result, open communication… something seemingly rare in today’s youth.

To be persuasive we must be believable; to be believable we must be credible; credible we must be truthful. Edward R. Murrow

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Motivation 3.0 for the Christian Leader

4 Min read

I grew up in a time when church frequently included special gospel meetings that featured a guest preacher imploring nightly over the course of a week to get right and reap the rewards of heaven or certainly go to hell. We were encouraged to invite our friends and neighbors where every night the message and volume would escalate until a satisfactory number had responded to avoid the punishment of hell. Unfortunately, the fear motivated responses rarely resulted in life-long change, many left the church quickly never to return.

As I read Daniel Pink’s book Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us it struck me that we have built a church, family, and work culture based on an inferior motivational model. In a sense, our churches are stuck in a 20th century when such practices were the norm, but fall short with today’s generation. Because we were raised in this environment most of today’s leaders are just modeling what we know.

Pink presents a compelling case for a deeper method of personal, peer, and subordinate motivation. He contends that human motivation has evolved from a basic needs model, to a “carrot and stick” model, and as he proposes, a more stable intrinsic motivation model. In modern vernacular he labels these models in the style of a progressive human operating system upgrade: Motivation 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0.

(more…)

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Seeing God Clearly

3 Min read

Picture God in your mind…

If you’re like most of the people I’ve asked, you probably thought of some combination of a man in a gray beard floating in the clouds or a scowling judge glaring down from his judgment bench.  Both are wrong.  God has a presence in the world today, and how we see Him determines how we see ourselves and others.

When the Spirit of God descended into the Temple built by King Solomon the power was so great the priests couldn’t perform their ceremony (I Kings 8).  There was no doubt that God was present and the temple would be the dwelling place for God among His people.  In those days the temple was the center of the Israelites life and worship.  Their lives revolved around the presence of God in the Most Holy Place.  Then…

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14 NIV

Jesus is the Son of God, is God, and was His physical presence on this earth.  Jesus said, “But I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (NIV).  He became the center of life and worship drawing everyone to Him.  From the moment Christ was crucified and the temple was torn in two everything changed.  God is no longer contained in one building or one group of people.  (John 12:32, Mark15:38)

Through Christ’s death and resurrection God is once again present in His temple, the center of life and worship.  Believers are God’s temple. We are His dwelling place through His Spirit.   When we clearly see God it will change how we see ourselves and how we see others.  (1 Corinthians 3:16-17, 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16)

  1. When we see the Spirit of God dwelling in ourselves it focuses our worship, actions and lives.  (1 John 3:9-10)
  2. When we see God in fellow Christians we are able to unconditionally love each other deeply (1 Peter 1:22, 4:8; 1 John 3:16-18)
  3. When Christians see God in each other we can join in unity and the body of Christ is lifted up to “draw all men to [Himself].” (Ephesians 2:18-22, 4:12-13)
  4. When Christians are built together as the temple of God we become God’s workers in His plan of redemption. (Ephesians 2:6-10)

How we see God determines how we see ourselves and others.  How we see ourselves and others determines how, through the unity of the Spirit, the work of God is accomplished.

We have work to do…

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