There are several different appearances of Jesus after his resurrection with many different responses. Some are afraid at first and then overjoyed. Some, like the chief priests, assume the disciples will steal the body and try to fool the people into believing Jesus has been resurrected. Some, like the soldiers, welcome the opportunity to make extra money by being silent about what they saw. Some doubt and need more evidence. Some, like those in our text this morning, are sad and confused and leaving town. 1.  They were so lost and headed in the wrong direction. They had been in the room when the women returned from the tomb and…

1.  The first several chapters of Romans can be described as Paul’s use of four pronouns. In chapter 1:24 he is talking about “them” – the Gentiles. In Chapter 2:1 he is talking about “you” – the believing Jews. In Chapter 3:9 he addresses everyone – we have all sinned. In 3:25 he finally addresses “him” and the work of God in addressing the issues and problems of all the others. “But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference…

The Scottish preacher Andrew MacLaren said this is the most profound page in the entire New Testament – and he is right. It is also the most controversial and the source of most Christian heresies in the early church. What you think about this one page pretty much defines what you believe about Jesus, God, and the Gospel. That is why it is so important not to read it as an isolated page but as part of the whole of Scripture. It is the same Jesus as in Matthew, Mark and Luke but intended for a different audience. 100 years after the death of Christ the Gospel had migrated from…

1.  After 70 years in Babylonia, Cyrus, the King of Persia issues a decree that the Jews who wish to return to Judah are free to do so. While Nebuchadnezzar’s policy was to completely conquer nations and bring people to Babylonia in exile, the Persians allowed conquered nations to become client states or colonies. The book of Nehemiah is the history of the return and the rebuilding of the city. 2.  So we read in Ezra an account of those who returned. After 70 years, not everyone wanted to return, of course. People had lived their whole lives there and had no interest in uprooting and rebuilding. They had no…

1.  We know there were three invasions of Israel over a period of two hundred years. The first was by the Assyrians who carried off the ten Northern tribes. We know very little of what happened to them. They just disappear from history. The second invasion is Babylonia’s first invasion and defeat of Judah. Nebuchadnezzar carries off 10,000 of the upper class leadership of Jerusalem as well as the military commanders, the craftsmen, artists and educated – the best of the Jewish society. Among these are Ezekiel and Daniel. He left the poorest. It is those who were left behind to whom Jeremiah is speaking in Jerusalem. It is the…

1.  At the height of its power, sophistication and influence Israel is invaded by kudzu. Well, not really but it’s something like that. Kudzu was introduced to the United States in 1876 from Japan for the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia and was recommended by the Soil Erosion Service as an excellent ornamental plant and cover to help prevent soil erosion. Left unattended when farmers moved due to the boll weevil infestation, it was left to grow with no controls and with no natural predators it now covers 7.5 million acres of the South. We call it the “vine that ate the south”. Remember the outbreak of cholera in Haiti…

1.  There are more than enough examples of the need for wisdom today. Just read the headlines in today’s paper. Everything seems to be a moral choice, doesn’t it? What do we do about gay marriage, the Boy Scouts, abortion, the environment, immigration, religious liberty, education, national debt, genocide, gun control, corruption and the list goes on. How many voices are there we can trust? How many people can we identify who have genuine wisdom on any of these issues? To whom do we turn for answers? Who are the wise men and women? We all want them, don’t we? One of our favorite Friday night programs is “Blue Bloods”…

1.  A little background From the time the people have come out of Egypt they have been loudly and consistently dissatisfied with God’s treatment of them. With the exception of Joshua and the best times of Samuel they have complained about their conditions. When they get what they want they only want more. When they do not get what they want they whine. Moses saved them from destruction in the wilderness. Joshua led them into Canaan. The Judges saved them from being overrun by their enemies and Samuel protected them until he was old. But that was not enough. They wanted more. They wanted to be like the world around…

1.  First, why study the Law if there is a new covenant and the Law has been fulfilled by the new Law of love? Isn’t the Law obsolete? Hebrews 8:10-12: 10 This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 11 No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 12 For I will forgive their…

1.  Genesis 11:27- 12:3: This is the account of Terah’s family line. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran. And Haran became the father of Lot. While his father Terah was still alive, Haran died in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the land of his birth. Abram and Nahor both married. The name of Abram’s wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor’s wife was Milkah; she was the daughter of Haran, the father of both Milkah and Iskah. Now Sarai was childless because she was not able to conceive. Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of…