by admin | Aug 18, 2020 | Picture This, Sermon Audio and Notes
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ 18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Luke 12:13-21
As we continue looking at the parables of Jesus, this week we hear from Pastor Ken from Blantyre Baptist Church as he shares more insight from the story of the rich fool. Jesus cautions us to “Take care and to be on guard against all forms of greediness, acquisitive behavior. We are not to devote our lives to gathering and accumulation of wealth. It is in human nature to lose sight when we are blessed with wealth, instead of using it to further the Will of God,we are so focused on managing and increasing our possessions.
We are not blessed by God to keep all our possessions to ourselves, we are blessed to be a blessing in our lives to others and to build the Kingdom of God. This life we treasure so much is going to be demanded at some point and we are going to have to account for it. Let us involve God in our lives and how we use our resources. We are not guaranteed tomorrow but that should not stop us from making plans, God should be at the center of those plans.
- Is there any area of your life where you feel like you are putting “things” above God?
- What steps do you need to take this week to live more like Christ this week?
Catch up on earlier Picture This sermons: Week 1, Week 2, Week 3, Week 4
by admin | Aug 12, 2020 | Picture This, Sermon Audio and Notes
1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’ 7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.
Luke 15:1-7
This week we take a look at the story of the lost sheep. We hear from Andee as she enlightens us on how natural it is for children of God to get lost in our lives or communities, and how amazing God is in searching for that one lost individual.
God is just so amazing that He affords us the free will to make our own choices, and oftentimes times these choices are not the right ones, they lead us astray. The God, our King, is going to leave the 99 just to search for the one who is lost. God is going to welcome him/her home and celebrate along with others. His love is just so overwhelming that He will search for you and He will find you, God loves us even more when we are lost.
- Who in our community is lost? Do we need to go and search for them? Go find them! Go get them and bring them back.
- How is your heart? Do you feel lost right now?
- If you are feeling lost, can you reach out to one of us? We will come find you.
Catch up on earlier Picture This sermons: Week 1, Week 2, Week 3
by admin | Apr 19, 2020 | Relationship Goals, Sermon Audio and Notes
17 Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. 18 Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, 19 and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. 20 So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. 21 Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.”
John 11:17-27
Jesus is no longer in the grave. “He is Risen! He is Risen, indeed, alleluia!” church communities around the world chorus together to celebrate that truth every Easter Sunday. But do we live as if this is true? Are our lives changed by the actual true fact that Jesus was crucified and has been raised from the dead? Pastor Yami challenges us to recognize that if Jesus is truly no longer in the grave, we must live differently.
Next Step Questions:
- What do you believe about the resurrection of Jesus?
- How does your life demonstrate the truth of the reusurrection?
by admin | Apr 5, 2020 | Relationship Goals, Sermon Audio and Notes
21 As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied there, with her colt by her. Untie them and bring them to me. 3 If anyone says anything to you, say that the Lord needs them, and he will send them right away.”
4 This took place to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet:
5 “Say to Daughter Zion, “See, your king comes to you, gentle and riding on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’”
6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt and placed their cloaks on them for Jesus to sit on. 8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. 9 The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
10 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” 11 The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.”
Matthew 21:1-11
Prepare him room, the Christmas song sings; prepare room for the king, Diana Nkhoma instructs us on this Palm Sunday of 2020. In this time where many of us are separated from each other when we would normally gather in crowds and processions mimicking the gathering in Jerusalem, Diana invites us to recognize that this might be time for us to prepare room for Jesus not in a city but in our own hearts. In this sermon she helps us to identify the different voices in the crowd surrounding Jesus as proceeded through Jerusalem on his way, ultimately, to the cross at the end of the week. Where are WE among those voices, she asks? We must take stock of where we are and how we relate to this Jesus, as the first step along the way to prepare room for the king.
Hosanna, hosanna, hosanna in the highest!
Next Step Questions:
- Where are you in the crowd that was praising Jesus?
- How do you need to prepare him room in your heart?
- What is the invitation that Jesus is giving you as a response to where you are at?
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