September 29, 2013
Stetson Memorial United Methodist
Church
“Cruising
Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Sermon
11 of Summer Series
Worship
Theme: Lordship
Revelations
19:11-16 MSG
Philippians
2:1-11 CEB
Every
Knee Shall Bow. . .
Let us pray. . . (Pray for Spirit to open the word of God. . . )
A reading from the
letter to the Philippians written by Paul, we will be reading from the second
chapter of this letter, verses one through eleven. Listen to the word of God
for you and me, the children of God.
Imitate Christ
Therefore, if there
is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort in love, any sharing in the Spirit,
any sympathy, complete my joy by thinking the same way, having the same love,
being united, and agreeing with each other. Don’t do anything for selfish
purposes, but with humility think of others as better than yourselves. Instead
of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better
for others. Adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus:
Though he was in
the form of God,
he did not consider being equal with
God something to exploit.
But he emptied
himself
by taking the form of a slave
and by becoming like human beings.
When he found
himself in the form of a human,
he humbled himself by becoming obedient
to the point of death,
even death on a cross.
Therefore, God highly honored him
and gave him a name above all names,
so that at the name of Jesus everyone
in heaven, on earth, and under the
earth might bow
and every tongue confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory
of God the Father.
Good morning. . . there are so many
ministries that we can be involved with in life. Some of them may not seem like
ministries but they are in fact some of the most important ministries there
are. Take for instance the ministry of hospitality. Now we may think that it is
just something we do. . . it is part of our makeup but this ministry is very
important. It what makes people feel loved and accepted. Without this ministry
I think most churches would be closed. If people didn’t feel accepted and loved
in a church why would they bother going?
I think one of the most rewarding and
insightful ministries is the ministry of raising children. Yes. . . raising children is a ministry even if we don’t think of it as
a ministry. . . I find that it is
one that I love doing but there are times when it is hard. It is hard to raise
children now a day. With all that is going on in the world it is a tough job.
But I find that not only do I teach my children but they also teach me about
God and how I act towards Him.
It seems like today most parents want be
friends with their children. Now don’t get me wrong. It is nice to have my
children as my friend. But sometimes they forget that the parent is a parent
first. They act as if their parent is just their friend and when we, as
parents, try to correct them when they are wrong it is as if they don’t need to
listen. They treat them as they would a friend who just doesn’t agree with them
so. . . they can just ignore them and go on their way. Maybe this is part of what’s wrong with the younger generation today.
They have no respect for parents and others. . . they have forgotten who the
parent is and why they have one. They have no respect or cherish those who have
lived longer and may know a little more than they do.
Now as I said. . . parenting has really
taught me about myself and my relationship with God and Jesus. So, my question
is this. . . have I treated God and Jesus with the respect and awe that is due
them or have I forgotten and just treat them as a friend? Ok. . . do we as Christians forget
who Jesus is? We live in a world that Jesus is thought of as our brother and
friend. Have we lost that holy awe towards Jesus? Is He just a friend that we
visit once and a while? Do we ignore what He has to say because it doesn’t fit
in our agenda? Who is Jesus to you and to me?
This summer we are on a cruise together on
the SS Stetson Memorial. We are
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”. Last week we stopped at the port called
“Ambassadorship” and what it means to be an ambassador for Christ. We decided
that in order to take on this call we need to be contagious Jesus Freaks...we
need to spread our joy and our story and infect the world with the love of
Jesus. We talked about how children have the right idea. If we just trust in
God and do all that He asks. . . If we would follow Jesus no matter what. . . the
world would be a better place. . . be on fire with Jesus. . . do what Jesus did
for and to others. . . be a mirror image of Christ to the world. It’s just that
simple. Just be a “freak for Jesus”.
Our next port gives us a new perspective of
who Christ is. This week’s port is called the port of “Lordship”. . . the Lord
ship of Jesus and why we can get excited. . . our spirits are set on fire. . . Let’s look at what this port has to say to us
about Jesus’ Lordship. Who is this Lord we have and why should we, as
Christians be excited about this port we are visiting? Is Jesus still Lord of
all?
OK. . . so this Lord we have has lessons to
teach us. As a matter of fact, the Philippians I just read tells us one of the
lessons we should learn from the Lord. We should imitate. . . have the same
mind as. . . Jesus our Lord. Now Jesus our Lord is our friend but look at what
He did for us. Even though He is equal to God. . . even though He is part of
the Trinity. . . the Three in One. . . He came from His throne in Heaven to not
only teach humanity the way but to die for humanity’s sake. He what?! This King died for His subjects. .
. His followers. This is crazy. . . really!?
Yes. . . Jesus died for you and for me. He
didn’t think that the cost was too high. He had a choice to follow God’s will
for His life or to follow what society would have Him do. Society would have
had Him be a savior like David that “took Rome by storm.” His disciples thought
that this is the type of Savior. . . the type of King He would be. But God had
different plans for Him. He was to be a savior not just for a short time as a
king of earth but a Savior for all time as He conquered sin and death to free
humanity from the bonds of sin. Instead of flaunting His power and might He was
gentle and loving. He had compassion. He was fully human and divine. His human
part wanted to have this not happen but His divine part said “not my will but
your own.” Jesus was equal to God but knew that God was the Supreme and that He
needed to remember that. Jesus came and in His human form remember that God was
equal. . . a friend but God was to be revered.
The other scripture form this morning is from
the Book of Revelations. . . OK. . . forgive
me about that whole flying to the rafters while reading it. I have told you
that this is one of my favorite Books of the Bible and that it gives me hope
and excitement. Our friend. . . this Jesus. . . is not just a friend. Jesus
is King of kings and Lord of lords. This friend is judge and jury of the world
but He does so not in the way our legal system is but how God judges. . . with
righteousness. This Lord is full of power and might. As a matter of fact. . . this
Lord. . . will subdue the nations. . . all nations. He will rule with an iron
rod. He cannot be bought by the kings and lords of this world. He is not in it
for His own glory but for the glory of God. . . no agenda of His own.
But here is an awesome piece that we may not
think about when we read this description of this King. We. . . you and I are
part of that heavenly army. We will ride that white horse, dressed in dazzling
white and follow Him. Through Jesus. . . because of the choice He made to
follow God’s will for His life. . . we are washed white as snow when we accept
Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
Think about it for a moment. . . maybe you will get as excited as I do.
It is the end of days and Jesus is coming back with the heavenly army. We too
are there with Him and we are ready for battle. We are following our King and
we are fighting the final battle that will bring about a new world. Just picture
yourself there for a moment. . . What an
awesome picture is the one you are picturing now. Jesus is King of kings and He
is coming back to rule the nations and we get to fight with Him. How Awesome is
that?!
Church. . . Christ’s warriors, we. . . as
Christians. . . need to be sure that we are not taking Jesus for granted. Yes
Jesus is our friend but He is so much more than that. He is King of kings and
Lord of lords and we have the honor to call Him friend. But with this honor
comes with a price. The price is to put Jesus in authority in and over our
lives. The price is to not only call Him friend but to remember who He is and
where He came from. Is the price to high for you? Are you happy with calling
Him just friend or are you wanting to be part of that battle that He leads not
as friend but as Lord? Some day everyone in heaven, on earth, and under the
earth WILL bow and every tongue Will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. We have
an awesome Lord in the person of Jesus. How will you choose to be parented by
God. . . to be lead by God? Will Jesus be just a friend or will He be not only
your Brother but you King? Which will you choose?
Amen.
September
29, 2013
Worship
Theme: “Lordship”
Philippians
2:1-11 (Common English Bible)
Revelations
19:11-16 (The Message)
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Every Knee Shall Bow. . . ”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Sermon 11 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
September 29, 2013
&
September
22, 2013
Worship
Theme: “Ambassadorship”
Matthew
5:13-16 (The Message)
2
Corinthians 5:17-20 (New Living Translation)
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Jesus Freak”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 10 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
September 22, 2013
&
Worship
Theme: “Sonship”
Galatians
4:1-8 (God’s Word Translation)
“You Are God’s Children”
Romans
8:15-17 (New Living Translation)
Romans
8:1-17
“Life in the Spirit”
Worship
Songs,
particularly:
-
“Friend of God”
-
“Blessed Assurance”
Opening
Prayer
Offering
song – “White as Snow”
pastoral
prayer
children’s
message
“God loves you no matter what,
God gushes over you,
God forgives you,
and there is nothing you can do about it.”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Adoption at the Cross”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 9 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
September 15, 2013
&
Worship
Theme: “Discipleship”
Mark
8:34-38 (The Message)
Philippians
3:12-14 (The Message)
1
Corinthians 13:1-13
pastoral
prayer
children’s
message
“Jesus
says” (not “Simon says”)
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Communion
and
sermon “Game Time. . . ”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 8 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
September 8, 2013
&
Worship
Theme: “Fellowship”
John
15:11-17 (The Message)
1
John 4:7-12 (The Message)
“God
is Love”
Ecclesiastes
4:9-11
children’s
message
Love
them anyway
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Communion
and
sermon “The Love Zone. . . ”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 7 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
September 1, 2013
&
Worship
Theme: “Worship”
Luke
4:5-8 (The Message)
(extract of Luke 4:1-13)
Matthew
22:34-37 (New Living Translation)
(extract of 22:34-40)
John
4:19-24 (The Message)
(extract of John 4:1-42)
children’s
message
how
to make good decisions
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Worship. . . It Does A Body
Good”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 6 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
August 25, 2013
&
Worship
Theme: “Do We Make Room for God . . .?”
Ephesians
2:11-22 (CEB)
“The
reconciliation of God’s people” (CEB)
“One
in Christ” (NIV)
2
Samuel 7:1-7 (NLT)
Mark
6:30-44, 53-56 (CEB)
“Jesus
feeds five thousand people” (CEB)
“Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand” (NIV)
children’s
message
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Make Room for Yahweh”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 5 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
August 18, 2013
&
Prayer
Vigil at the Park
after
worship service
7/28/2013
&
Theme:
“Do We Worship Only on Sunday?”
Worship
song – “I Sing Praises”
Ephesians
1:3-14 (Gods Word Translation)
Ephesians
1:3-14 (The Message)
Acts
2:38-47 (New Revised Standard Version)
children’s
message
sharing
our joy
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Live Your Worship Out Loud!”
“Shout
It From the Mountaintops”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 4 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
July 28, 2013
&
Theme:
“Can we see the big picture”
“Big
Picture Followers”
1
Corinthians 13:9-12 (GOD’S WORD translation)
Mark
6:1-6 (The Message)
“Just
a Carpenter”
Mark
6:1-6 (NRSV)
“Jesus
Rejected in Nazareth”
children’s
message
sometimes
our vision is foggy
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Seeing More Clearly. . . ”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 3 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
July 21, 2013
&
Luke
7:36-47 (The Message)
Mark
5:21-34 (GOD’S WORD Translation)
Matthew
13:44-46
children’s
message
We
are precious to God
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “How much does Jesus really matter?”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 2 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
July 14, 2013
&
Mark
4:35-41 (The Message)
Luke
4:16-21 (Common English Bible)
Matthew
14:22-33
children’s
message
We
are not alone
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
and
sermon “Who Is this Captain”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
Sermon 1 of Summer Series
“Cruising Sacred Waters with Jesus”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
July 7, 2013
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