Guerrilla Christianity

Sermon #221

Our journey through Lent and the Psalms concludes with this Easter message based on Psalm 16, the very same text that Peter preached from (pointing to the divinity of Christ) on Pentecost. In these uncertain times we need a steady and secure refuge, and God (according to the Psalmist) is that refuge. He is where we can find our security. We try to place our trust in human-made things, but God establishes a foundation that is eternal, where human fortresses are destined to crumble and decay. In this Psalm we find three things that we can learn about the world. We find that the world has no physical foundations; the world has no intellectual foundations; and the word has no emotional foundations. For those we must turn our eyes to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who established our foundations in God when He emerged from the tomb.

Psalm 16

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on April 16, 2017 (Originally published April 17, 2020)

S.D.G.

Sermon #220

What sets Christianity apart from every other world religion is that we are not reliant on what we do, but rather on what God in His grace did for us through Jesus Christ. Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, has no marker where His body lay. Millions of Christians travel to the holy land every year to see where Jesus walked, where He taught, even where He was buried, but there is no grave of Jesus today, for He is risen. He is risen indeed. The resurrection is the central tenet of our beliefs, and it is critical that we get this. It's all about the resurrection. Without the resurrection, Christ does not defeat death, and we have no hope beyond this life (and how's that going?). We must constantly remind ourselves that the resurrection matters a great deal, for it is everything to those of us who believe.

John 20:1-18

Recorded at Hudson UMC Cemetery (Easter Sunrise service) on April 16, 2017 (Originally published April 16, 2020)

S.D.G.

April 9, 2023

First Lesson: Acts 10:34-43

Psalter: Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24

Epistle Lesson: Colossians 3:1-4

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 28:1-10

Easter Gospel Lesson: John 20:1-18

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #544

On this Palm Sunday we consider the hymn of Christ from Paul's letter to the church in Philippi.  Paul, writing this letter from a Roman prison, exhorts the Philippian church to put aside their pride-filled disputes and be of one mind - and then demonstrates what kind of mind they should have by showing them the mind of Christ.  In a Chiastic structure, Paul walks us through the descent of Christ from Heaven to earth to the cross, and then the ascension of Christ to exaltation and praise, all to the glory of God the Father.  It is a structure that is echoed both in the Christology of the Apostles Creed and the timeline of Holy Week - beginning with Jesus' triumphal entry in to Jerusalem, leading to his betrayal and death, then his resurrection and ascension into heaven, and finally his giving of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

Philippians 2:5-11

Recorded at Hudson UMC on April 2, 2023

S.D.G.

April 5, 2023

Old Testament: Isaiah 50:4-9a

Psalter: Psalm 70

Epistle Lesson: Hebrews 12:1-3

Gospel Lesson: John 13:21-32

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #50

When we get to Palm Sunday we are tempted to go straight from the celebration of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem to the ecstacy of the empty tomb and the promise of the resurrected Christ. But first we must go through the cross. It's easy to forget that the cross on which they nailed our Lord was meant for the murderous Barabbas. Easier still to forget that Christ took our place on the cross as well. As Max Lucado once said, it was not the nails that held Jesus to the cross, but the love of God. And so we invite you to lean in to the passion narrative as we raise our Palms of Praise.

Matthew 27:11-54

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on April 13, 2014 (Originally published April 8, 2020)

S.D.G.

April 4, 2023

Old Testament: Isaiah 49:1-7

Psalter: Psalm 71:1-14

Epistle Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Gospel Lesson: John 12:20-36

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #543

One question I am often asked as a pastor is this: Am I truly saved, if I am still struggling with sin?  The answer to that question may surprise you, especially if you ask this question yourself.  Today we are talking about assurance, and how we can know we are saved, and saved to the uttermost.  The simple fact of the matter is, those who are not born again, those who are unregenerate, do not ask that question, because the thought of their salvation never crosses their mind.  In Paul's letter to the Romans he makes a strong case for this.  Those in the flesh cannot submit to God, but those in the Spirit can and do.  If we are asking this question it means we are saved, but also that we are focused more on our own efforts and not on the one who saves.

Romans 8:6-11

Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on March 26, 2023

S.D.G.

April 3, 2023

Old Testament: Isaiah 42:1-9

Psalter: Psalm 36:5-11

Epistle Lesson: Hebrews 9:11-15

Gospel Lesson: John 12:1-11

Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

S.D.G.

Sermon #218

Our journey through Lent and the Psalms brings us to this prophetic Psalm that looks forward to the coming of the Messiah who would deliver God's people. In the center of the Christian Bible, and s andwiched between the shortest and the longest chapters in the entire Bible is this beautiful song of praise, a prayer for deliverance from trouble. When we come to Palm Sunday we find that the people used these words - "Save us now!" (Hosanna), and that is what Jesus came to do, but it wasn't to save the Jews from Roman oppression, it was to save the world from slavery to sin and death.

Psalm 118

Recorded at Hudson UMC on April 9, 2017 (Originally published April 7, 2020)

Buy the companion DVD and other resources for A Journey Through Lent

S.D.G.