April 26, 2015
Stetson Memorial United
Methodist Church
Sermon
1 in Sermon Series
“Five
Marks of a Christian”
Adapted
from: “Five Marks of a Methodist”
By
Steve Harper
Matthew
22:36-38 CEB
1
John 4:16-21 MSG
Loving God…
A
reading from John found in 1 John 4, verses 16-21, listen for a word from God
to you and me, the people of God.
Prayer for God’s word
to be heard through me or in spite of me…
It has been pretty great
being able to be a parishioner instead of the pastor for the past couple of
weeks. I have been able to sit back and listen to sermons instead of giving
them. But to tell you the truth, I am so glad to be back in the pulpit this
week. But sitting in the congregation has really given me things to ponder
over.
A couple of weeks ago, Steve
Curtis preached on the “rest of the story” after Jesus rose from the dead. He
talked about how Jesus was seen by others after His resurrection and victory over
sin and death. For some reason they were
not able to recognize Jesus. Even Mary, who wept at the tomb because Jesus was
not there, thought Him to be the gardener. Could it be that there whole faith
was hinged on the visible rather than the invisible? Why do we not recognize
Jesus at times when He is standing right in front of us? Could it be that theirs
and our relationship with Jesus sometimes misses the mark so to speak…? We
also learned about how we are given
the commandment to go and do likewise as we share the story of Jesus to a world
that is in need of a resurrection.
When Ray Foss preached last
week, we saw how the story should change us. Not only are we called to make
disciples but we are also to let the story change us into Easter people. We
can’t preach the resurrection if we are not first transformed by it. How is that story changing you and me? How
do we know that we are being changed by the story in order to become part of
the story that began with Jesus’ resurrection, giving us new life in Him for
all who believe? Is there some “tangible”…some “measurable” way…something
visual…to tell if we are changing or not?
Now since my surgery I have
been able to catch up on some reading I have been wanting to do. As I have been
reading, there has been one book that has really caught my attention. It is
written by Steve Harper and it is titled “Five
Marks of a Methodist: The Fruit of a Living Faith.” It has been very
interesting to read. But as I have been reading it one thing has stuck out in
my mind. This book is not just for
“Methodist”, it is for all who follow Christ. It gives five distinct ways to tell…to
visually see…that you are being “changed by the story”, not just reading it.
The five ways are as
follows:
A “Christian” not just Methodist:
1.
Loves God
2.
Rejoices in God
3.
Gives Thanks
4.
Loves Others
These are the five things I would like for us
to take a look at over the next few weeks. I think it is important to not only
change but to see the changes that have taken place in our lives since we
decided to follow Jesus and let the story change how we live out our faith
walks.
So
the first of these character traits is that we love God. Now I am not just
talking about your every day love but truly loves God from the bottom of our
feet to the top of our heads. The love we have for God is what drives us in our
relationship with Him. The more we are in love with Him the more we want to
know Him. And the more we know Him the more we want of Him in our lives.
The scriptures that were
read this morning were all about loving God…Loving God with all that we are. .
. from the very depths of our soul. But as the scriptures tell us, we did not
love God first but it was He who loved us. As
a matter of fact He loved us to the point of sending His Son to die in our
stead. Now I don’t know about you but that fact alone would make me want to get
to know this God better. And as we draw near to Him and learn more about Him,
our love for Him grows. But it began with His love for humanity not the other
way around.
As
Peter was asked by Jesus in John 21 “Do you love me” three times, we can hear
Jesus asking us the same thing. As He asks us, each time we look deeper within
ourselves and ask “what does it mean to truly love God. . . what would that
look like. . . am I madly, truly, deeply in love with my First Love?”
Salvation
means wholeness. . . we as Christ Followers need to realize that. It doesn’t
just mean we are going to heaven but it also means living abundantly while we
are here. But as the scripture from Matthew tells us. . . we must love God. For
all that God has done we love Him in return with all that we are and have. We
do this in every aspect of our life. We do it every day and to everyone. As we love God we love other people that God
created as well. . . this is part of loving God. This is loving God. . . with
all that we are. . . loving the One who loved us first.
Jesus
is calling us to a radically different relationship as He calls to His
disciples, past and present, asking “do you love Me”. How do we know that the
story is changing us? We love God. But are we like Peter when the Lord asked
Him if he loved Him? Do we get upset, not really understanding the question
being asked or do we let the question resonate within us as we ask ourselves do
we love God?
Listen
to the words of John Wesley and let them sink deep into your soul:
“God
is the joy of our heart, and the desire of our soul, which is constantly crying
out. “Whom have I in Heaven but you? And there is none upon the earth that I
desire but you!” My God and my all! You are the strength of my heart, and my
portion forever!”
These words open the door to our whole being,
commencing a journey that moves us from the superficial to substance. We move
from membership to discipleship. We move beyond churchianity to Christianity. A
disciple loves God.
Loving God is something that
grows each day as you learn to trust and obey. Loving God is not something that
is a onetime thing. It is something that is a lifetime of growing and
developing. Let the story change you into
whom God would have you be. How much do you really love God? Listen; can you
hear Jesus asking do you love me?
How will you answer Him?
Amen!
May
1, 2015
Fourth
Sunday of Easter
Matthew
22:36-38
1 John
4:16b-21
and sermon,
“Loving
God. . . “
video:
text:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
Children’s Message
-
mystery
box – bracelet of fishing hooks
-
“We
are all called to be fishers of men”
video:
text:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
centering
song – “Surely The Presence”
Opening
Prayer
“There
Is Power In The Blood”
“Deep
and Wide”
“The
Lord Reigns”
“Glory
To The Lamb”
Offertory, “People Need The Lord”
Pastoral Prayer
closing song, “Pass It On”
Departing Blessing
song after departing blessing, “The Lord Reigns”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
April 26, 2015
&
Third
Sunday of Easter
Acts
3:12-19
1 John
3:1-7
Acts 3:1-19
Matthew
28:18-20
2 Kings
2:1-11
and sermon,
“Let
the Story Change You”
video:
text:
by
Raymond A. Foss
Children’s Message
-
mystery
box – sunglasses and mint/candy
video:
text:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
“Sweet,
Sweet Spirit”
“Do
Lord”
“My
Life Is In You Lord”
“Your
Love, Oh Lord”
Offertory, “O How I Love Jesus”
closing song, “The Dancing Heart”
song after departing blessing, “Sweet, Sweet
Spirit”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
April 19, 2015
&
First
Sunday after Easter
Isaiah
52:13-15
Luke
24:13-53
Walk to
Emmaus
Christ
Appearing to Disciples
Ascension
and sermon,
“The
Rest of the Story”
by
Steve Curtis
Children’s Message
-
mystery
box – large candle
-
“Shine the light as copies of Jesus”
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
“Trees
of the Field”
“Trading
My Sorrows”
“You
Are My All In All”
“Agnus
Dei”
Offertory, “Behold the Lamb”
https://youtu.be/m0vHQHIlQ8kPrayer of
Thanksgiving
Communion, “You Have Been Given” and “I Sing
Praises”
closing song, “The Power Of Your Love”
closing songs, “My Tribute” and “The Strong Name
of Jesus”
song after Departing Blessing, “Trading My
Sorrows”
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
April 12, 2015
&
April 5, 2015
Easter
Sunday!
Surely the Presence
Greetings and Announcements / Opening
Prayer
Let The Glory Come Down!
Matthew
28:1-10 (The Message)
John
20:1
John
20:11-16 (Amplified Bible)
Communion
and sermon “The End Is Just
the Beginning…”
scan:
video:
text:
by
Pastor Ruth Foss
sermon blog
meditation blog
“God’s
Whisper” blog
“I
Believe in Jesus”
“Go
To The Rock”
“Joyful,
Joyful We Adore Thee”
“Fairest
Lord Jesus”
Matthew 28:1-10 and
Offertory, “He’s Alive”
Prayer of Thanksgiving
Children’s Message
Communion, “The Old Rugged Cross” and
Because He Lives
closing song, “This Is The Day”
Departing Blessing
Stetson Memorial United Methodist Church
Patten, ME
April 5, 2015
All of my
poems and photographs are copyrighted by Raymond A. Foss, 2000, 2001, 2002,
2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015.
All rights reserved. Contact me at Ray Foss (raymondafoss@gmail.com) for
usage. See all 40,400+ of my poems at www.raymondafoss.blogspot.com
Poetry Where You Live.
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