Sermon Point #1 – The story of God is one of transformation

Luke 18:35-43 - As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, I want to see,” he replied. Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you. ”Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

Philippians 2:3-4 - Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is here!

Sermon Point #2 – We must want to see as Jesus sees

Matthew 9:35-38 - And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Job 42:2 - “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Sermon Point #1 – God’s Kingdom expands during difficult times.

Acts 8:1-4 - On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off both men and women and put them in prison. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

Sermon Point #2 – When the church pursues and/or achieves power, the power of the Gospel is diminished.

1 Timothy 6:3-10 - If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, they are conceited and understand nothing. They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions and constant friction between people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

1 John 2:16-17 – For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

Revelation 3:14-17 - “To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

Sermon Point #3 – The Gospel of Jesus is a sacred trust

1 Thessalonians 2:4-8 - On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, even though as apostles of Christ we could have asserted our authority. Instead, we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.

Joshua 4:1-9 - When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the place where you stay tonight.” So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.” So the Israelites did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down. Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.

Sermon Point #1 – As we look forward, we need to look back and celebrate God’s goodness.

Psalm 145:3-7 - Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom. One generation commends your works to another; they tell of your mighty acts. They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty and I will meditate on your wonderful works. They tell of the power of your awesome works and I will proclaim your great deeds. They celebrate your abundant goodness and joyfully sing of your righteousness.

Sermon Point #2 – God’s Plans Can Never Be Defeated

Job 42:2 - “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.

Sermon Point #3 – In 2022, we need God’s thoughts and God’s wisdom – not our own

Isaiah 55:8-9 - “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Isaiah 46:9 – NLT - Remember the things I have done in the past. For I alone am God! I am God, and there is none like me. Only I can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish.

SERMON POINT #4 – God’s Story Is Still Being Written

Isaiah 2:2–4

In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it. Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the temple of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths.” The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples. They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.

Joel 2:28–32

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said, even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.

2 Timothy 3:1–5

You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult times. For people will love only themselves and their money. They will be boastful and proud, scoffing at God, disobedient to their parents, and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving; they will slander others and have no self-control. They will be cruel and hate what is good. They will betray their friends, be reckless, be puffed up with pride, and love pleasure rather than God. They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly.

Hebrews 12:1–3

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Deuteronomy 31:6

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Genesis 1:27–2:3

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground—everything that has the breath of life in it—I give every green plant for food.” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day. Thus the heavens and the earth were completed in all their vast array. By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.

John 3:16-17 – For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

Sermon Point #1 – Why would God love someone like me?

Job 42:5-6 – My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in the dust and ashes.”

1 Corinthians 15:9 – For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

Exodus 3:11 – But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go do Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

Sermon Point #2 – God is love

1 John 4:8-10 – Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but the he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.

Sermon Point #3 – God’s love is unmerited

Ephesians 2:8 – For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God

Sermon Point #4 – We love because God first loved us

1 John 4:13-19 – This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us his Spirit. And we have then seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God live in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.

Matthew 1:21 – She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.

Romans 5:6-8 – You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Isaiah 9:6 – For to us a child is born, to us a son in given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Sermon Point #1 – Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the presence of Christ

John 16:33 – “I have told you these things, so that in my you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world!”

Shalom – Hebrew word that means wholeness, completeness, soundless, health, safety and prosperity

Luke 17:20-21 – MSG – Jesus, grilled by the Pharisees on when the kingdom of God would come, answered, “The kingdom of God doesn’t come by counting the days on the calendar. Nor when someone says, ‘Look here!’ or, ‘There it is!’ And why? Because God’s kingdom is already among you.”

Romans 14:17 – For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit

Sermon Point #2 – Jesus came to give us peace with God, peace with others and peace with ourselves

John 14:27 – Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Sermon Point #3 – Peace is a person

Mark 4:36-39 – ESV – And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

Sermon Point #4 – Peace in our relationships

Matthew 22:37-39 – Jesus replied: “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Sermon Point #5 – Peace in our minds

Matthew 6:25-27 - “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

Sermon Point #6 – Peace in our souls

Luke 2:13-14 - Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Joy – “The settle assurance that God is in control of every detail of my life, the quite confidence that ultimately everything will be all right, and the determined choice to praise God I all things.”

- Kay Warren

SERMON POINT #1 - Destroyer of Joy – Anxiety

SERMON POINT #2 – When Mary was afraid, she chose to trust God and accept his plan.

Luke 1:26-30 - In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabrielto Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid,Mary; you have found favor with God.

Luke 1:31-33 - You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus.He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

Luke 1:34-37 - “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin? The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. For no word from God will ever fail.”

Luke 1:38 – “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

SERMON POINT #3 – Destroyer of Joy – Resentment Over A Hurt

SERMON POINT #4 – When Joseph was hurt, he chose to offer grace and let the pain go.

Matthew 1:18-19 - This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

Matthew 1:20-21 - But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

SERMON POINT #5 – Destroyer of Joy – Confusion

SERMON POINT #6 – When the Magi were confused, they chose to follow God’s light, one step at a time

Matthew 2:1-3 - After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.” When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

Matthew 2:8 - He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

Matthew 2:9-10 - After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.

Matthew 2:11 – On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

Psalm 51:12 – Restore to me the joy of my salvation and grant me a willing spirit to sustain me.

Sermon Point #1 - We All Worship Something

Romans 1:21-23 - For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

Sermon Point #2 - Exchange : Substitution

Deuteronomy 6:14-15 - Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; for the Lord your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land.

Sermon Point #3 - Exchange : Pride

John 12:42-43 - Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not openly acknowledge their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved human praise more than praise from God.

Sermon Point #4 - Exchange : Spectatorism

James 4:8a - Come near to God and he will come near to you.

Hebrews 10:22a - let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings…

Sermon Point #5 - Exchange : Tradition

Matthew 15:3,6-9 - Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? …they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: “‘These people honor me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me.

9 They worship me in vain;

their teachings are merely human rules.’

Psalm 50:8-15 - NLT - I have no complaint about your sacrifices

or the burnt offerings you constantly offer.

9 But I do not need the bulls from your barns

or the goats from your pens.

10 For all the animals of the forest are mine,

and I own the cattle on a thousand hills.

11 I know every bird on the mountains,

and all the animals of the field are mine.

12 If I were hungry, I would not tell you,

for all the world is mine and everything in it.

13 Do I eat the meat of bulls?

Do I drink the blood of goats?

14 Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God,

and keep the vows you made to the Most High.

15 Then call on me when you are in trouble,

and I will rescue you,

and you will give me glory.”

Sermon Point #6 - What God Really Wants:

Thank Him With Sincere Affection

Sermon Point #7 - What God Really Wants:

Offer Him Control Of My Life

Romans 12:1 - Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

Sermon Point #8 - What God Really Wants:

Include Him In Every Aspect Of My Life

Acts 20:35 – In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

Sermon Point #1 – GIVING AND BEING GENEROUS ARE TWO SEPARATE THINGS

Sermon Point #2 – Scarcity: Consume – Lack – Fear

Sermon Point #3 – Abundance: Give – Multiplies – Faith

Sermon Point #4 – WE ARE GENEROUS BECAUSE GOD HAS BEEN SO GENEROUS TO US

Sermon Point #5 – Abundant Givers:

Give Spontaneously

Luke 10:35 – The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

Sermon Point #6 – Abundant Givers:

Give Strategically

Isaiah 32:8 – NLT – But generous people plan to do what is generous, and they stand firm in their generosity.

Sermon Point #7 – Abundant Givers:

Give Sacrificially

Mark 12:41-44 – Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crown putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coin, worth only a few cents. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything – all she had to live on.”

Sermon Point #8 – WE ARE GENEROUS BECAUSE GOD HAS BEEN SO GENEROUS TO US

Matthew 28:19 – “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

Βαπτίζω – transliterated to baptize.

Literally means to wash, plunge, soak or dip.

Mark 7:4 – When they came from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.

Luke 11:38 – But the Pharisee was surprised when he noticed that Jesus did not wash before the meal.

Five Requirements

- Circumcision

- A Covenant Meal

- Acknowledgment of the Law

- A Sacrifice

- A Ceremonial Washing

Matthew 3:1-2, 5-6 – In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

Sermon Point #1 – Baptism is a public declaration of a new association.

Acts 2:41 – Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

Acts 8:13 – Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

Acts 16:32-33 – Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his household were baptized.

Sermon Point #2 – Baptism is not a condition for salvation, it is evidence of salvation.