Emmanuel Baptist Church Sermon 4 18 20

Brother Benny Keck

November 25, 2018 The Searchers Psalm 132:1-5 Synopsis: Let me begin by saying I am not trying to rush into Christmas although I truly do love this time of the year. My sermons over the next few weeks will be drawn from Matthew’s telling of the Wise Men. I know we usually wait until after telling about the shepherds coming to the stable to see the baby Jesus, but this year I want to invite you to image with me the story of their search and ponder what wisdom we might discover for our own journey. What are you searching for? Where are you searching for truth and meaning or purpose in life? What comes next beyond life as we know it? Text (NLT): Psalm 132:1-5, Scripture Reading: Matthew 2:1-2 Children’s Lesson: Barbara Brown Taylor; illustrated by Melanie Cataldo, Home by Another Way, Louisville, KY, Flyaway Books, 2018.

October 21, 2018 Ignorant and Wayward People Hebrews 5:2 Synopsis: “Ignorant and Wayward People,” (Hebrews 5:2) surely that’s not us, right? OK, so at times we do fit the bill, maybe even a lot of the time. How do we fit the bill? We live uninformed lives demonstrated in our daily activities or in the lack of activities. Our “ignorant and wayward” lives demonstrate our need of a priest to intercede for us. At times, the priest we need is as close as our brother or sister in Christ Jesus. Believers are empowered to serve one another as a priest of the Most High God. The priesthood of all believers basically calls on us to do what we can for one another. There are times when there is not one among us who can do what we need. These are the times in our lives when only Jesus can deliver us and be our interceding High Priest in the presence of God the Father. Text (NLT): Hebrews 5:1-10; Genesis 14:17-24; Psalm 110:4 Scripture Reading: Psalm 104:1

Guest speaker Rev. Rick Bennett from the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.

Guest Speaker Rev. David Bluford

September 9, 2018 Raising the Dead James 2:17 Synopsis: I love the resurrection hope of the Gospel and I love affirming the faith of those who believe, but I also know that too many people are way too dependent on affirmation. Disciples of Jesus Christ are believers who have moved beyond their need for “affirmation” of their faith to seek the “confirmation” of their faith in what they do. That is what James is saying. If believers want to live in the hope of the resurrection then they need raised from dead faith to living faith (James 2:17). Raising the Dead has always been the work of God. It has been demonstrated a few times in Scripture, but it is not an everyday experience. What can believers do to move from affirmation to confirmation to live in the hope of the resurrection? Ask! That is what the woman did when she moved beyond affirmation to confirmation and discover healing for her daughter in the experience the hope of the resurrection in Christ Jesus (Mark 7:24-30). Where is your faith? Are you living in the assurance of the resurrection? When your faith is tested, and it will be tested, will it produce the evidence of your transformation? If not, then your faith needs to be resurrected. [ Listen for the use of these words: Affirmation; Confirmation; Demonstration; Resurrection; Transformation] Text (NLT): James 2:14-17, 1-9

September 2, 2018 Labor Day Weekend Do What It Says! James 1:22 Synopsis: “Do what it says” sounds so much like Jesus that I sometimes think James was quoting Jesus. It is a problem that we all have especially as we hear the word of the Lord on a very personal level. We put on a good show, but only wind up fooling ourselves. The salvation of God begins in the heart of men and women, boys and girls and works its way out in every aspect of life or it is not the salvation of God at all. We may be putting on a good show but the reality is we are just fooling ourselves. God knows. Text (NLT): James 1:19-27: 1 Thessalonians 5:17; Mark 7:1-8; Isaiah 29:11-14; Mark 7:14-15, 21-23.

August 19, 2018 What’s Ya Need? 1 Kings 3:5 Synopsis: Have you ever been in one of those situations where you were caught not knowing what to ask for? Maybe it happened when you were getting ready to order something at a new restaurant or searching for something online. There are times when you really do have to be careful about what you ask for because you might get it. That is not always a good thing. Solomon had what might be classified as a very enchanting “dream” one night (1 Kings 3:3-14). He dreamed that the Lord told him to ask for anything he wanted. WOW! You would like to have had that dream? What would you have asked for? More wishes? What Solomon asked for was not so much a wish for what he wanted as much as it was a prayer for what he needed in order to do what God had positioned him to do. Believers today need to learn the lesson of Solomon and ask God for wisdom (James 1:2-8) to make the right decisions in their lives (Ephesians 5:15-20). Did you say you had more experience in doing the “don’t” than in doing the “dos?” God has a cure for that if you will trust Him (Psalm 111:10). Text: 1 Kings 3:3-14, NIV; James 1:2-8; Ephesians 5:15-20, NLT Ephesians 5:15-20, NLT; Psalm 111:10, NLT Scripture Reading: Psalm 111:1-4

Guest Speaker Rick Loy

July 29, 2018 For This Reason Ephesians 3:14-21 Synopsis: The first half of the letter to the church in Ephesus tells the story of God’s work in Christ Jesus and the Apostle’s prayer for the growth and development of the church. “For this reason” is the phrase that Paul used to emphasize that work. It is found in the beginning of the letter and later on in chapter 3, my text for today. It is because of what God has done in Christ and will do in the church that he prays for their “strength”, “love”, “knowledge” and “fullness”. With these the church may know God’s love and share God’s love with others. Text (NIV): Ephesians 3:14-21, 1:3, 15-23 Scripture Reading: Psalm 14:1-2