CALL TO WORSHIP
WELCOME and THANKS for joining us.
OPENING COMMENTS
FIRST READING
Psalm 107:1-7
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His [a]mercy endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
3 And gathered out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.
4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way;
They found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He delivered them out of their distresses.
7 And He led them forth by the right way,
That they might go to a city for a dwelling place.
OPENING SONGS
SERMONETTE
Expect the Unexpected
Greg Williams
We typically don’t like the unexpected. We don’t like it when our car unexpectedly refuses to turn over, or our computer unexpectedly crashes. Worse, an unexpected loss of employment creates great turmoil and loss of personal confidence. And we certainly don’t like unexpected health difficulties. But these are the realities we face, and we quickly learn to expect the unexpected along with all the frustration and heartache it can bring.
However, not all things unexpected are bad. An unexpected gift or raise can turn a sour day around in a hurry. I’m sure we can all remember with joy some unexpected blessing that came our way, large or small.
So, here’s a question. What should we expect from the Lord? Is he full of unexpected surprises?
The biblical witness seems to present … well, an unexpected answer to that question. We are presented with a God who is unchanging, yet, at the same time, full of unexpected surprises.
Listen to Psalm 107 the paradox of God’s unchanging nature described by images of unexpected natural events.
31 “Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of man! 32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.
33 He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, 34 a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. 35 He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. 36 And there He lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; 37 they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield.”
Psalm 107:31-37 (ESV)
It’s interesting how the psalmist refers to the Lord’s steadfast love but then equates that steadfastness with images of great reversals. It appears that the Lord is steadfast in bringing the unexpected. But did you notice the direction of the unexpected? It was always for blessing. We can expect the rivers of evil to run dry, while also expecting the deserts of His children to become fruitful.
With God, there is always good news ahead. Rivers run dry, but he refills them. Deserts become springs of water. Sinners become believers and followers of Christ. It’s easy to look around and get discouraged at the state of the world, so Jesus tells us to lift our eyes and gaze upon Him. He is the restorer of all things. He is the one who works his blessings in unexpected ways.
As we wind down the season of Ordinary Time and enter the season of Advent, let’s continually look to him and learn to expect the unexpected. Ordinary Time ends with Christ the King Sunday – and no one expected the King of kings to enter our world as he did. God loves to surprise with the unexpected – it’s part of the mystery of who he is.
I’m Greg Williams, Speaking of Life.
Joshua 3:7-13,14-17
And the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt[a] you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 You shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan.’ ”
9 So Joshua said to the children of Israel, “Come here, and hear the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “By this you shall know that the living God is among you, and that He will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Hivites and the Perizzites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Jebusites: 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is crossing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore, take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from every tribe. 13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap.”
14 So it was, when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan, with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest), 16 that the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heap very far away [b]at Adam, the city that is beside Zaretan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan.
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3 Therefore whatever they tell you [a]to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. 4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. 6 They love the [b]best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, 7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’
8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your [c]Teacher, [d]the Christ, and you are all brethren. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. 11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 And whoever exalts himself will be [e]humbled, and he who humbles himself will be [f]exalted.
Matthew 23:1-12 (NKJV)
1 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples,
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- Whom is Jesus speaking to?
- the crowd and the disciples
- Why is what He says relevant to us?
- He was speaking to His disciples … We are His disciples today.
- Whom is Jesus speaking to?
2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.
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- What does it mean to “sit in Moses’ seat”?
- They have legitimate authority when it comes to passing on the law.
- What does it mean to “sit in Moses’ seat”?
3 Therefore whatever they tell you [a]to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do.
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- What were the disciples to do?
- What the scribes and Pharisees said.
- What were the disciples not to do?
- What the scribes and Pharisees did.
- What were the disciples to do?
4 For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.
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- Why were the disciples NOT to do what the scribes and Pharisees did?
- They were hypocritical.
- They were uncaring and selfish.
- They were only doing things to be seen. (see verse 5)
- Why were the disciples NOT to do what the scribes and Pharisees did?
5 But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments.
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- Why mention the phylacteries and the borders of garments?
- They were being used/worn for the wrong reason … to draw attention to themselves (as righteous) rather than to the law.
- Why mention the phylacteries and the borders of garments?
6 They love the [b]best places (places of honour) at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,
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- best places — as beside the host
- best seats — as the front seats in synagogues
- Again, those were desirable because of their high visibility
7 greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’
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- What so great about being called Rabbi?
- Because of how important a rabbi was in the Jewish culture
- According to Barclay … Some saw one’s rabbi as more important than his parents because whereas the parents gave physical life, the rabbi could help secure eternal life.
- What so great about being called Rabbi?
8 But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your [c]Teacher (Leader), [d]the Christ, and you are all brethren.
9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
10 And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.
11 But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.
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- This is not the first or only time that Jesus Christ is saying this. Why do you think Jesus sees serving others as so important?
- It’s a Kingdom principle … one of the bases of life in the Kingdom of God.
- Can you think of an example of serving others that Christ gave?
- when He washed His disciples’ feet
- This is not the first or only time that Jesus Christ is saying this. Why do you think Jesus sees serving others as so important?
12 And whoever exalts himself will be [e]humbled (put down), and he who humbles himself will be [f]exalted (lifted up).
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- Why do you think Jesus sees being humble as so important?
- It’s a Kingdom principle … one of the bases of life in the Kingdom of God.
- Can you think of an example of serving others that Christ gave?
- when He washed His disciples’ feet
- when He (the Word) became human
- Why do you think Jesus sees being humble as so important?
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- DO AS YOUR LEADERS SAY … BUT NOT AS THEY DO (if they do bad/wrong)
Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
WHEN YOU DO WHAT YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO DO …
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- … DO IT FOR THE RIGHT REASON
- … AND DO IT WITH THE RIGHT ATTITUDE
There’s a lot more that could be taken away as we’ll see in the sermon I’m about to share.
(Editor’s note: Some may think it’s not good idea to share a sermon within a sermon … and I’d agree with them, but … there are exceptions. A good sermon should be shared, if possible, because good sermons changes lives … but good sermons don’t just happen. They take time and effort … and the pastor we’ll be hearing obviously took a lot of time to prepare his message. I hope we can appreciate what he produced.)
According to David Anderson, a teaching pastor at Littleton Bible Chapel in Littleton, Colorado … his takeaways were …
Five Descriptions of the Kind of Leaders Christ Rejects (23:1-7).
#1 – They don’t practice what they preach (Matt.23:1-3).
#2 – They place heavy burdens on people, which they don’t do (Matt.23:4).
#3 – They practice their righteousness as a show (Matt.23:5,7).
#4 – They do things to be seen and noticed and recognized as spiritual important people (Matt.23:6).
#5 – They love their titles – their titles are more about status than about function (Matt.23:7).
Two Descriptions of the Kind of Leaders Christ Produces (23:8-12).
#1 – They reject titles of privilege and status (Matt.23:8-10) … because their focus is on serving, not on being served.
#2 – They accept lowly service (Matt.23:11-12) … because they are humble.
SONG OF RESPONSE / CLOSING SONG
CLOSING PRAYER
BENEDICTION
SHARING TIME
- PRAYER UPDATES
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- THANKSGIVING
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- PRAYER REQUESTS