Brian's Sermons

Luke 2:25-35   25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. 27 And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, 28 he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,   29  “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,   according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”   33 And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointe...

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...

Acts 1:8 When I was a kid, I had a paper route. I walked the route – it was about  1 ½  miles all told – a lot of time to daydream. One of my daydreams was about having super powers. I came to the conclusion on those walks that I would want the super power of teleportation. That would have cut at least nine blocks off my route. Plus, I figured that I would probably use most super powers for evil or at least for mischief if pressured. Have you ever wished for a super power? What power did you wish for? Today’s scripture is in the beginning of Acts – which is the second installment of Luke’s orderly account of the Truth concerning Jesus’ life. Luke and Acts are each about the same length, which is not-coincidentally the same length as a scroll was. At the end of scroll 1, which we know as Luke, Jesus told his disciples to stay in the city until they were clothed in power from on high. (Luke 24:49). Luke recaps the end of the first scroll with further details, as the ...

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With...

...after righteousness, for they shall be filled. Have you ever been hungry? Not the "Pastor Brian is preaching long and I haven’t eaten yet" kind of hunger, but really hungry? I don’t think most of us really, really know what it’s like to be truly hungry or thirsty. When we’re hungry, we generally know that soon we’re going to get to eat. When we’re thirsty, we know that soon we’re going to get a drink. But when you’re really hungry, I mean really, really hungry, when you’re starving, there’s nothing else that you’d rather have but food. When you’re really, really thirsty, there’s nothing else you’d rather have but water. Nothing else will even get your attention. This is what Jesus is calling blessed: to be starving for God – to want nothing more than Him. And if we put this into the context of the first three blessings: the poor in spirit, the mourners, and the meek, we realize that the more we put aside what we do have, the more we long for what God has. Truth be known, w...

...for they will be filled. Matthew 5:7 Have you ever been hungry? I mean really, really hungry, where your stomach won’t leave you alone. I have participated in the Thirty Hour Famine several times – it’s an event that World Vision does to raise awareness and funds for world hunger. Part of the event is going without food for (you guessed it) thirty hours. One year when we were doing it, we took a group of homeless kids to Cosi Museum in Columbus. Each of the homeless kids was given some money to spent, and I remember one of them bought pizza… and made one of our kids, who was fasting, hold the pizza and carry it around all afternoon. If you’ve gone without food for a significant amount of time, you know what it’s like to be hungry. But what about when you are hungry for something specific, and nothing else will do? There are times when I have a few of that kind of cravings – El Famous Burrito is one such craving, and there’s a Thai restaurant in Lima I really like. I remember ...

A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in...