Brian's Sermons

Ephesians 5:8-20 8  For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light  9  (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth)  10  and find out what pleases the Lord.  11  Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.  12  It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.  13  But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.  14  This is why it is said: “Wake up, sleeper,     rise from the dead,     and Christ will shine on you.” 15  Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise,  16  making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.  17  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.  18  Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit,  19  speaking to one another with psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit. Si

The Seventh Word: “Father, into your hands, I commit my spirit!” (Luke 23:46) Easter Sunday (Luke 23:44-49) 44  It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon,  45  for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.  46  Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last. 47  The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.”  48  When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away.  49  But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things. All week, we have been looking at Jesus’ words from the cross. We are reminded that while God had a plan all along, a plan of resurrection and glorification, this doesn’t mean Jesus had an easy time. Jesus suffere

The Sixth Word: “It is finished!” (John 19:28-30) Reflection 28  Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.”  29  A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips.  30  When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. I love long-distance running. I have loved running since I was a little boy. But there is something about running a long race. My first long race was a 40 km trail race. It was over some very difficult terrain, and the last two or three km were all uphill. When I saw the finish line, I got tears in my eyes. I was finished, not just done with the race, but I was finished. I had nothing else left. You’ve probably seen football matches where, at the final whistle, the players collapse on the field. They’ve given their all. They a

The Fifth Word: “I am thirsty.” (John 19:28) Today as we reflect on Jesus’ last words from the cross, I want to start elsewhere. I want to start earlier in Jesus’ ministry, in John 4. Jesus was on his way from Judea to Galilee, and on the way, he went through Samaria. Around noon, he stopped by Jacob’s well to rest. There he met a Samaritan woman who had come to draw water. He asked her for a drink. She responded, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?” Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks

The Fourth Word: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mark 15:34) One thing I’ve heard frequently, especially since I have arrived in Zambia, is what is sometimes called the Prosperity Gospel or “Health and Wealth Gospel” or “Name it and Claim it.” This is the teaching that if you ask for something in faith, God will necessarily give it. In this teaching, suffering is never in God’s will, so if one suffers, it stands to reason that they are out of or apart from God’s will. Perhaps they have sinned and they suffer the consequence of sin. Perhaps they do not have enough faith, and so they suffer. There are several problems with this teaching. The big reason is that it does not fit within the context of scripture. Though there are some verses that seem at first blush to support this teaching, in context they do not. When the Apostle Paul begs God three times to remove the thorn from his flesh, God does not remove it in order that through Paul’s weakness, God’s strength w

The Third Word: “Dear woman, here is your son.” (John 19:25-27) We have been looking at Jesus’ seven words from the cross. His first word was a word of forgiveness. He told his followers to love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them, and even while he is being tortured to death, his heart is for those who caused his suffering. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. The second word was a word of salvation. He told the criminal on the cross “Truly, today you will be with me in paradise.” He opens the door to heaven to those who will in faith accept him. Today we come to Jesus’ third word. While Jesus suffers on the cross, he is not the only one who suffers. He recognizes that there are others who are suffering along with him. What will happen to those who he leaves behind? What will happen to his disciples? Will they be able to carry on his work, or will they end up as he has? What will happen to his mother? In Jesus’ time, a woman was given her worth

The Second Word: “Very Truly, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43) We are part of a culture who says one thing but does something else. Zambia is a Christian nation, but daily, we all see corruption, abuse of power, abuse of women and children, misuse of money, stealing, lying, and all sorts of other sinful behavior. Our politicians promise us heaven but don’t deliver. People attend church, or at least claim allegiance to a church, but their lives do not demonstrate the Fruit of the Spirit. We are just like the people to whom Isaiah prophesied when he said, The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught.” (Isaiah 29:13) As Jesus hung on the cross, he was mocked by the religious leaders and the soldiers. He hung between two criminals, and one of them, even while being crucified himself, also mocked Jesus.

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Luke 23:34 [ Before we get started, I want to acknowledge several things. First of all, it is an honor to be invited to come and preach as a guest preacher. It is a distinct honor to be trusted with the Word of God, even though we have had little or no interaction before. This week as we worship together, I hope to get to know you better and for you to get to know me as well. The second thing I’d like to acknowledge is that it is hard to preach to people I don’t know. I don’t know your names, I don’t know what you’ve struggled with, and I don’t even know your language. I apologize for needing to use a translator, but I thank you for the chance to bring God’s Word to you. ] I also admit that I am not fluent in your culture. There are things that are perfectly normal here in Lusaka that are completely foreign to me as an American. There are things that I do that you would find completely crazy, but they happen