An Independence Day Message for Christians

independence

Today, across the country, we celebrate the day our Founding Fathers officially declared independence from England.  For 242 years, we have enjoyed the unprecedented liberty to live our lives according to our dreams and principles.

But today, we find our country at a moral crossroads.  As Jesus followers we have enjoyed the freedom of religious expression since the founding of our country.  Many of us fear that freedom eroding.

Along with the erosion of our religious liberty, we sense the decline of the moral principles that have led to our country’s greatness. Sadly, most seem to fail to identify the true root of our problems and offer insufficient solutions.

Let me ask you to take the time today or in the next few days to view the sermon video below.  My prayer is that we, as Christians, will seek to influence our culture as Jesus had in mind.

Make America Godly Again from Jim Duggan on Vimeo.

Sunday Sermon – Life Is How You View It

We are faced today with two competing worldviews, two ways to view and interpret the realities around us and ascribe value and priorities to the days that lie ahead.

The meaning, purpose, and value of life comes into sharper focus when we view it through the lenses of a proper worldview.

 

Worldview #1 – The CHRIST-CENTERED Worldview

– based on a Relationship with Jesus
– is constantly growing in this relationship (John 3:30 – He must increase…)
– does not waver in commitment to Jesus – established

Worldview #2 – The SECULAR Worldview

– Pseudo-intellectual
– Man- Centered
– Devil-Driven

The Christian worldview is superior because Jesus has given us:

– full salvation
– total forgiveness
– ultimate victory

 

Are You Prepared to Hear the Sermon?

ear helpMost pastors I know work very hard at the most important thing we do – teaching and preaching God’s Word. I am sure there are a few who take short cuts and preach sermons already prepared in a book or online, but most that I know spend a good amount of time and pour a lot of spiritual energy into each sermon. Many of us prepare three sermons a week.

More than 20 years ago, God led me to Colossians 1:28-29, and that passage has since been the Biblical motivation for me as I prepare and preach. I see it as God’s commission to me as a preacher and because I take the verse and commission seriously, I prepare as fastidiously as possible.

Him [Jesus] we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all His energy that He powerfully works within me. – Colossians 1:28-29

I’ve heard some preachers confess that they spend as much as 12-20 hours on the Sunday morning sermon alone. Thirty years of preparing sermons week after week has taught me how to research and compile material more quickly than I did at first. Digital tools and resources (which I have amassed over the last several years at the cost of a small fortune) have made the process more streamlined for me and saved me some time as well.

I wondered what would happen if listeners prepared themselves to hear as diligently as preachers prepare themselves to preach. I certainly wouldn’t expect it to be an equal amount of time, but my fear is that most hearers sit down in church to hear a sermon having given little to no thought or prayer to prepare themselves for what God wants to say to them.

Yesterday, Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources posted an article on his blog that gave some practical steps we can take to prepare ourselves to hear God speak through the sermon. I am including a link to the article below, and I want to challenge you to read it and take some time this week (and every week from this point on) preparing yourself to hear what God wants to say directly to YOU on Sunday.

I believe your preparation will make you a better hearer and certainly make your preacher a better preacher.

Use the comment section below to share ways you prepare yourself to hear God’s Word.

 

Seven Ways Church Members Should Prepare for a Sermon by Thom Rainer

 

 

Preaching My Own Funeral

Since preparing to make some remarks at the home-going celebration of a dear saint of God last week, one question has stuck with me, “What do I want the preacher to say about me at my funeral?” 

In the chorus to their hit song “A Good Man,” country band Emerson Drive sings this lyric:

I want to be the one when all is said and done who lived a good life, loved a good wife and always helped someone in trouble, on the day they lay me down I want everyone to gather ’round and say, “He was a father, a brother, a neighbor, and a friend… he was a good man.” 

Preaching in the synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia, Paul had the following to day of King David: 

For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption. – Acts 13:36

We can find a plethora of good things with which to occupy our lives. It is a noble intention to be good spouses, parents, teachers, workers, friends, and citizens.  In the end, however, will we be able to say honestly, “I have served the purposes of God for my lifetime”?  Have we lived our lives in a self-serving manner, doing what we want, when we want, and how we want to do it; or have we given our lives to discovering and fulfilling God’s purpose for our lives?

Take some time today to ponder the direction your life is going.  God has set your life on a trajectory of His choosing.  His purpose for our life has both “big picture” elements as well as everyday carpe diem elements.  Ask God to reveal what He wants from you today, and set about serving His purpose.