Joel Gilbert

General theme - Our hatred, biases, prejudices, and bigotry cause us to miss divine opportunities. In Jesus day, Jews and Samaritans did not get along. Jesus travelled through a despised land, talked to a despised woman, of a despised race, and a despised reputation. All of these were despised - not because Jesus viewed them that way, but because His culture did. As a result of Jesus breaking through the social barriers, many people believed in Him. In the movie “Avatar,” the Na’vi have a phrase “I see you” - meaning - not only do they see you physically - but they see who you are. Jesus truly saw this woman who was socially outcast because of her lifestyle and showed her compassion. Jesus saw the people of this Samaritan village and willingly remained with them for two days, opening scripture to them. Do we see the people around us the way that God does? Is there latent prejudice that keeps us from engaging with people who are different than us?

The Wedding Party joy of performing weddings preparing couples for a life-long covenant ceremonies can be stressful So many moving parts and players Attendants (groomsmen and bridesmaids) - serve to honor and glorify the bride and groom Some attendants make it about them - not the bride or groom - leaving…

Nearly 20 years ago, Tony Campolo and Brian McLaren teamed up to write a book entitled “Adventures in Missing the Point.” Their book was a thought-provoking and challenging look at the way that the church in America (and generally the church in western culture) has developed. It’s been a while since…

There are a variety of times when things are just a bit better when shaken. James Bond likes his drinks shaken not stirred Taylor Swift would tell us to shake off people’s bad actions Balsamic vinegar dressing needs to be shaken and eaten quickly in order to get the full affect of the flavors together…

Jesus turned the water into wine, and so much more.

We all like to follow someone at various times in our lives. We may be motivated by curiosity, fear, ambition, knowledge, information. Sometimes our following is a simple and non-committed social media follow - we might just want to be in the know. Other times our following results in a certain college…

I’m not very good at social media, but you probably already know that if you’re on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. I don’t post very often - except to give away bread. When I do, I don’t take very good pictures - in fact I sometimes re-do old pictures - especially of bread. I suppose in some ways, I’m…

What is a prologue? If we were to take that apart, it divides neatly into two words pro- meaning before logos - meaning word or saying So, in a very real sense, a prologue is a word that happens beforehand - a fore-word Composers, Filmmakers, and Authors alike have utilized preludes, prologues, overtures,…

Every faith system has a need for apologetics - or defense of the faith. Some would say that apologetics are geared more to reinforce the faith of those who already believe - rather than providing arguments to convince non-believers of the validity of the faith. Ultimately, as Christians, we believe…

01/02/2022 Sermon Outline Text: 1 Chronicles 28-29 Focus: A Legacy for the Next Generation Introduction One of the major questions that a careful modern reader of the historical books of the OT can ask is: why did the author of Chronicles repeat, omit, and add contents of 2 Samuel and Kings? Why did…