Sermons @ Shepherd

When any Star Wars movie starts, there's a moment of anticipation between that famous blue text and the blaring theme music and the Star Wars logo. Jesus' entry into Jerusalem is saying the same thing; something important is about to happen. But a lot of terrible things happen in between Palm Sunday and Easter. The Good News is that love overcomes the pain, betrayal, and even death of Jesus.

The first thing to remember about that first Easter was that Jesus was dead; not "mostly dead", but all dead. As one preacher said, "It's Friday, but Sundays a comin.'" The resurrection of Jesus is an invitation to new and abundant life - come just as you are. Will you live in Jesus, and let Jesus live in you?

Jesus' rebellious streak was on full-display on Palm Sunday. On the outskirts of the temple, Jesus pushes the money changers aside.  Faith, our faith, often gets pushed to the outside of our lives by the our own clutter. This faith requires that we leave something behind.

Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday is a choreographed event designed to move the people. It even moves Jesus as he weeps over the city. Walking with Jesus changes us from the inside out, knowing both the joy and pain God experiences with humanity.

We have been told for most our lives that we simply don't measure up. Even the church often tells us that if we pray and praise enough, everything will be fine. But advertisers and social media constantly tell us we don't measure up. Jesus starts at the very core with his beatitudes: in the eyes of God, in the midst of our broken, YOU are blessed, just as you are! Matthew 5:1-16

In our current culture, blessing is often associated with "winning" - victory over our competition, having more money, more followers, more stuff. Matthew's Sermon on the Mount begins the counter-cultural revolution of Jesus, and upside-down world were our weakness, wounds, and brokenness are the qualifications of walking with God. Matthew 5:1-16.

When Jesus calls the disciples, he does not seek out followers with status or elite credentials. Instead, he reaches out to the humble fishermen of Galilee. With Jesus' last words in John, he asks us to do the same, to feed his sheep -  the least, the last, and the lost. Matthew 4:18-22; John 21: 15-17.

There is one basic rules for any journey - never walk alone. After Jesus preaches his first home-town sermon in Nazareth, he is forced to leave, making the long journey back to Capernaum. When we walk with Jesus, we are never alone. Luke 4:16-30. (Note: the video can be found on the church Facebook page: Shepherd of the Hills UMC Mission Viejo Campus)

Preaching for the first time in home town, Jesus breaks the rules: he offends and challenges their notion of what "religion" is all about. The religion of Jesus is one that recognizes the danger of a faith that is determined by the limits it sets rather than the boundaries it breaks. Luke 4:16-20.

Disqualified - a word used to describe Peter, James, and John, who were not religious all-stars but a group of fishermen. Yet Jesus chose them to help usher in the Kingdom of God. Like these first disciples, YOU are abundantly qualified to be part of the transformation of the world through the authority of Jesus the Christ. Matthew 4:18-22.