recently soulforce's equality ride stopped at acu. this is a bus of lesbia, gay and bisexaul college students protesting religious based vilonce against lesbians, gays and bisexuals. the other "christian" colleges and universities they visited gave them the cold shoulder and their bus was vandalized at some places.
acu's reception was different. they invited them on campus and had discussion forums withe the equity riders and acu students. the riders were invited to chapel and worshiped at the univeristy church's sunday night communion service.
acu policy on the sinfulness of the homosexaul lifestyle and sexual practices have not changed but they showed the riders love instead of the hate they had been recieving else where. for more info chech out these websites
http://www.acu.edu
the optimists
soulforce's report on thier visit to acu
preachermike.com
Thursday, March 30, 2006
Thursday, March 16, 2006
The Last Meal of Jesus
The Last Meal
His Words not Ours!
Mark 16.14-20
In what is sometimes called the long ending of Mark we find our last meal. Jesus appears to the 11 remaining apostles and takes them to task for still having a hard time believing the reports of his resurrection.(Mark 16.14) They like us are stubborn and lack faith. In spite of their stubbornness and lack of faith Jesus has a job for them to do. He tells them that they are to go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation. (Mark 16.15) They are to go everywhere and tell everyone the Message of Jesus. People who believe this message and are baptized will find salvation. (Mark 16.16) There are also signs which confirm the message and the salvation. (Mark 16.17 & .18) We see all of the signs mentioned here (ecept for drinking poison) in the story of the early church we find in Acts. The believers will drive out demons in Jesus name (Acts 8.6-.8,16.16 & 19.12), speak in tongues (Acts 2.3, 10.46 & 19.6), pick up snakes with no harm (Acts 28.4 & .5) and heal people (Acts 3.1, 5.12 & .15-.17, 8.6-.8, 9.34, 14.8-10 & 28.7-.9)
After sending the Apostles out Jesus is taken into heave and sits at the Right Hand of God. (Mark 16.19) The Right Hand of God is a place of power, rest, authority and salvation. In the Song of Moses after the Israelites have crossed the Red Sea he tells us that the right hand of the Lord is majestic in power and shattered the enemy. Psalm 118.15 & .16 as well as Isaiah 62.8 describe the power of the right hand of God. The right hand of the Lord is described as bringing salvation in Psalm 20.6 and 98.1. Finally it is a place of rest Psalm 110.1 describes the Lord (Jesus) sitting at THE LORD's (The Father) right hand until his enemies are made the Lord's footstool. Jesus gets to rest while the enemies are his footstool by the Father. This passage is also quoted in Matthew 22:43-45, Mark 12:35-37,Luke 20.42-.44, Acts 2:34-36 and Hebrews 1:12-14 to describe Jesus Christ our Lord.
The story ends with the disciples going everywhere and preaching and the Lord works with them. Jesus confirms his word by the signs that accompanied it.(Mark 16.20) It is not the word of the disciples or of other men that they preach but is it the Lord's Word! This is the same Message we take with us as well. When we share the Good News of Jesus it is not our words but it is his word. He works with us to confirm what we are saying. We are not left alone in this world to do the Lord's work but he is working with us. Imagine that the Lord is working with you to confirm His word. It is not our power. It is not our word. Instead it is the Lord's power and the Lord's word!
His Words not Ours!
Mark 16.14-20
In what is sometimes called the long ending of Mark we find our last meal. Jesus appears to the 11 remaining apostles and takes them to task for still having a hard time believing the reports of his resurrection.(Mark 16.14) They like us are stubborn and lack faith. In spite of their stubbornness and lack of faith Jesus has a job for them to do. He tells them that they are to go into all the world and preach the Good News to all creation. (Mark 16.15) They are to go everywhere and tell everyone the Message of Jesus. People who believe this message and are baptized will find salvation. (Mark 16.16) There are also signs which confirm the message and the salvation. (Mark 16.17 & .18) We see all of the signs mentioned here (ecept for drinking poison) in the story of the early church we find in Acts. The believers will drive out demons in Jesus name (Acts 8.6-.8,16.16 & 19.12), speak in tongues (Acts 2.3, 10.46 & 19.6), pick up snakes with no harm (Acts 28.4 & .5) and heal people (Acts 3.1, 5.12 & .15-.17, 8.6-.8, 9.34, 14.8-10 & 28.7-.9)
After sending the Apostles out Jesus is taken into heave and sits at the Right Hand of God. (Mark 16.19) The Right Hand of God is a place of power, rest, authority and salvation. In the Song of Moses after the Israelites have crossed the Red Sea he tells us that the right hand of the Lord is majestic in power and shattered the enemy. Psalm 118.15 & .16 as well as Isaiah 62.8 describe the power of the right hand of God. The right hand of the Lord is described as bringing salvation in Psalm 20.6 and 98.1. Finally it is a place of rest Psalm 110.1 describes the Lord (Jesus) sitting at THE LORD's (The Father) right hand until his enemies are made the Lord's footstool. Jesus gets to rest while the enemies are his footstool by the Father. This passage is also quoted in Matthew 22:43-45, Mark 12:35-37,Luke 20.42-.44, Acts 2:34-36 and Hebrews 1:12-14 to describe Jesus Christ our Lord.
The story ends with the disciples going everywhere and preaching and the Lord works with them. Jesus confirms his word by the signs that accompanied it.(Mark 16.20) It is not the word of the disciples or of other men that they preach but is it the Lord's Word! This is the same Message we take with us as well. When we share the Good News of Jesus it is not our words but it is his word. He works with us to confirm what we are saying. We are not left alone in this world to do the Lord's work but he is working with us. Imagine that the Lord is working with you to confirm His word. It is not our power. It is not our word. Instead it is the Lord's power and the Lord's word!
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Meals of Jesus: Come and Eat
Meals of Jesus: Come and Eat
John 21.1-.25
This sermon was delivered on the evening of November 27th 2005, there is a video clip of of John 21.1-.25 from the movie The Gospel of John.
John 21.1-.25
This sermon was delivered on the evening of November 27th 2005, there is a video clip of of John 21.1-.25 from the movie The Gospel of John.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
The Meals of Jesus: Resurrection, Witnessing and Waiting
The Meals of Jesus: Resurrection, Witnessing and Waiting
Luke 24.36-.49
Acts 1.3-.5
Luke is in a hurry to end his Gospel account so he wraps things up fast leaving us with just one meal after the resurrection. This meal takes place immediately after Cleopas and his traveling companion return from Emmaus. They had traveled all day with a stranger who turned out in the end to actually be the resurrected LORD Jesus Christ. Cleopas and his friend leave Emmaus immediately and return to Jerusalem. They find the 11 Apostles to share what had just happened to them. As they are all talking the LORD Jesus Christ appears in their midst. (Luke 24.13 - .36)
The 11 and those with them are troubled, full doubt, full of joy and amazed! Can this really be Jesus returned or it is a ghost? Jesus makes a very strong point to show them that he is not a ghost or an illusion but that he is an actual physical person. To do this he has them touch him and see his wounded hands and feet (Luke 24.39). Then he eats some fish in their presence (Luke 24.41). He is not a ghost. He is not an illusion. This is not a body double or a pretender. This is not a counterfeit resurrection or tall tale but the real thing! Jesus is physically resurrected. The raised body is the same body that died. It bears the scars of the death he went thru!
After they touched him. After they saw his hands and feet. After they watched him eat. He reminds them that he had been telling about this the whole time (Luke 24.44). He tells them that all this was to fulfill what was written about him in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24.44). The suffering, death and resurrection of the Christ/Messiah was not something new but part of god's the plan the entire time.
At the end of this visit Jesus does something interesting. First, He opens their mind so the can understand the Scriptures (Luke 24.45). Then he tells them that they be witnesses and will go preach repentance and forgiveness (Luke 24.46 & .47). Finally he tells them to wait (Luke 24.48). Instead of sending them out immediately to bear witness they are to wait till they are clothed with power from on high (Luke 24.49). They are waiting for the Holy Spirit. They can not be witnesses without God's power. They cannot preach without God's power. They must wait for the Holy Spirit to come and give them the power, courage and strength they need to be witnesses.
We are witnesses of Jesus too. Each of us has read the gospels, or been in a class about one of them, or had listened to Mike preach out of Matthew. Thru all this we become witnesses too. We also have a commission to preach but we need the Holy Spirit to give us the strength courage and power to be witnesses. We are witnesses to the life, death and resurrection of our LORD Jesus Christ!
--
gmail
from
josh byrd
youth minister
@ the church of Christ in falls church, va.
Luke 24.36-.49
Acts 1.3-.5
Luke is in a hurry to end his Gospel account so he wraps things up fast leaving us with just one meal after the resurrection. This meal takes place immediately after Cleopas and his traveling companion return from Emmaus. They had traveled all day with a stranger who turned out in the end to actually be the resurrected LORD Jesus Christ. Cleopas and his friend leave Emmaus immediately and return to Jerusalem. They find the 11 Apostles to share what had just happened to them. As they are all talking the LORD Jesus Christ appears in their midst. (Luke 24.13 - .36)
The 11 and those with them are troubled, full doubt, full of joy and amazed! Can this really be Jesus returned or it is a ghost? Jesus makes a very strong point to show them that he is not a ghost or an illusion but that he is an actual physical person. To do this he has them touch him and see his wounded hands and feet (Luke 24.39). Then he eats some fish in their presence (Luke 24.41). He is not a ghost. He is not an illusion. This is not a body double or a pretender. This is not a counterfeit resurrection or tall tale but the real thing! Jesus is physically resurrected. The raised body is the same body that died. It bears the scars of the death he went thru!
After they touched him. After they saw his hands and feet. After they watched him eat. He reminds them that he had been telling about this the whole time (Luke 24.44). He tells them that all this was to fulfill what was written about him in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms (Luke 24.44). The suffering, death and resurrection of the Christ/Messiah was not something new but part of god's the plan the entire time.
At the end of this visit Jesus does something interesting. First, He opens their mind so the can understand the Scriptures (Luke 24.45). Then he tells them that they be witnesses and will go preach repentance and forgiveness (Luke 24.46 & .47). Finally he tells them to wait (Luke 24.48). Instead of sending them out immediately to bear witness they are to wait till they are clothed with power from on high (Luke 24.49). They are waiting for the Holy Spirit. They can not be witnesses without God's power. They cannot preach without God's power. They must wait for the Holy Spirit to come and give them the power, courage and strength they need to be witnesses.
We are witnesses of Jesus too. Each of us has read the gospels, or been in a class about one of them, or had listened to Mike preach out of Matthew. Thru all this we become witnesses too. We also have a commission to preach but we need the Holy Spirit to give us the strength courage and power to be witnesses. We are witnesses to the life, death and resurrection of our LORD Jesus Christ!
--
gmail
from
josh byrd
youth minister
@ the church of Christ in falls church, va.
zoom in all the way!
if you zoom in all the way on google moon you discover what the moon is really made of just click the link and see http://moon.google.com/
--
gmail
from
josh byrd
youth minister
@ the church of Christ in falls church, va.
--
gmail
from
josh byrd
youth minister
@ the church of Christ in falls church, va.
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