Brian's Sermons

The Benefits of Discipleship Being a disciple of Jesus Christ is hard. Two weeks ago, we looked at how hard it is. Following Jesus doesn’t mean everything will now be easy. He said we have to prioritize him over everything else. Today we will look at the benefits of discipleship. Before we get to today’s topic, I have a question for you. Would you invite a false prophet to speak at church? Would you invite a false prophet to come and teach you individual lessons at home? Would you willingly look to a false prophet for guidance in your daily life, to disciple you? This is exactly what we are doing when we leave the television on. When we’re watching Bollywood, African Magic, Telemundo. They are discipling this nation, and they are offering a false gospel. They offer guidance that says: Money is the answer to your problems. Your spouse isn’t good enough; you need to have an affair. There is adventure in lying and cheating. You need this product or that product to fulfil...

Last week’s sermon was all about discipleship.We focused on Jesus’ last command before ascending into Heaven: Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I will be with you always, even to the end of the earth . (Matthew 28:19-20).   Since this was the last thing Jesus said to his disciples, we also looked at how Jesus called his first disciples, Peter, Andrew, James, and John, who were all fishermen. He told them to “come, follow me” and he promised that he would make them fishers of men. They immediately followed. It can be easy to say “be Jesus’ disciples” — especially as a pastor — but listen to what Jesus said in Luke 14:25-33.   25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, ...

Matthew 6:19-34 When I was a little boy, I always loved going on a treasure hunt. One of my favorite moments was when I was hiking at my aunt and uncle’s house in Missouri along a dry creek bed, and I found a huge geode. But I loved poking around my grandma’s old barn where I would find other cool treasures (I loved finding feathers and coal – remember, I am from a generation that never used coal to heat the house). My grandma would give me a paper bag to keep my coal and feathers and I would take them home and put them in my trunk with my other treasures. Most of us have some treasures of some kind. In fact, people in our culture seem to really treasure material possessions. What are your treasures? If your house was on fire and you could only rescue the things you could carry in your hands, what would you save? Those things might be your top treasures. But most of us have more than just that. Some people treasure different things. Family heirlooms. Photo albums. Jewelry. Ele...

Matthew 28:18-20 Many famous last words have been spoken in history, whether they were inspirational words, unpleasant words, defiant words, or insightful words. There is no balm for the wounds incurred when the last conversation you have with a loved one is an angry one; I’ve heard too many times, “I wish I’d said ‘I love you’ instead of shouting.’” or “The last thing I said to him was…” (something unpleasant). Sometimes, someone’s last word is patriotic. Nathan Hale uttered the famous words, “My only regret is that I have but one life to lose for my country.” A last word can be inspirational; Alben Barkley, former Vice President of the United States, who suffered a fatal heart attack, is said to have said, “I would rather be a servant in the house of the Lord than to sit in the seats of the mighty.” Of course, there is also the redneck’s last word: “Hey, come here – watch this!” I was walking through a cemetery in Kokomo, Indiana, when I saw the gravestone. “See, I told...

When I was a little boy growing up in church, we learned the steps to becoming a Christian. We learned that we first had to realize that we were sinners, confess our sin, repent of our sin, get baptized, and live-the-Christian-life. The last step was always said as almost an afterthought; the focus was to get us in the door. I left children’s church thinking that it would be easy to live the Christian life. If you’ve been here for long, especially if you attend our 11 service, you have doubtlessly heard Jesus’ words repeated: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ” (Matthew 11:28). These are words from Jesus himself, and they are true, and they go hand in hand with my early understanding that it was easy for adults to live the Christian life. Some of you are new along this journey and you might still be under the illusion that it’s easy for the rest of us. After all, you might only know us all from Sunday mornings, when we all look our best and wh...

1One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God, 2he saw at the water's edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." 5Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." 6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am...

I’ve been giving a lot of attention to our UMC mission statement: making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world , because it is important. It is important to remember that transformation is what God’s all about. I want you to think about yourself for a moment. Could God use you for transformation? If you’re like me, you can probably find lots of excuses as to why God wouldn’t or couldn’t use you for radical transformation. This morning, we’re going to look at a nobody. But first, some background. It was the days of the judges who led Israel. But Israel had stopped obeying God, and the Midianites had overrun Israel, so badly that the Israelites were hiding in caves in the mountains. Whenever they planted crops, the Midianites would invade, ruining the crops and fields. Finally Israel cried out to the Lord for help. Judges 6:11 The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wh...