Audio Sermon / The Fullness of God
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Audio Sermon / The Mystery of Messiah
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How-To Videos for The City
If you are wondering how to go about using The City, we’ve uploaded series of How-To videos here.
See you on the City! If you have any questions get in touch with Pastor Dave at david.shaw@sibckorea.org
You can also see a video of how the City might work for you by going to the following link: https://citymarketing.s3.
God bless
Fans or Followers?
It is amazing how a small passage of Scripture can on the surface appear to be so easy to understand. However if we dig a little deeper, we often find that it is not quite as easy or as simple as we first expected. Case in point: a friend of mine recently had to preach from Matthew 4:23-25 for a seminary class and he titled his sermon “You Want Me to do What?” Here are the verses below:
23 And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and pains, those oppressed by demons, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them. 25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan (Matt 4:23-25 ESV).
My friend’s basic premise was that because Jesus was teaching, preaching, and healing, we as his disciples should do likewise. By his own admission, he said he didn’t have enough time to prepare the sermon and as such he only approached the text at face value. In doing so he made a common mistake that affected his interpretation and later his application. It is a mistake that I too have made. Simply put, my friend took a descriptive passage and made it prescriptive. That is to say, my friend took what Jesus did (descriptive) and preached that we should go and do likewise (because Jesus did it, so must we – prescriptive). In taking this path, my friend made the verses more about us than about Jesus! Let me be clear: application is important, indeed necessary, for sound preaching. A good preacher must answer the “So what?” question if his hearers are to be challenged and changed. But in this passage, what is it that Matthew wants us to see and where is the application? Let me offer my observations:
- In verse 23, Matthew places teaching and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom ahead of healing in terms of Jesus ministry. It is not that the healing was unimportant, but that here Matthew gives priority Jesus’ teaching and preaching ministry, not to the healing ministry.
- Verses 24-25 tell us that his fame spread dramatically, but notice why the people came. Was it to hear the gospel or was it to be healed? The passage clearly says that they came for healing. Could it be that the people are concerned not with Jesus’ mission but with what he can give them? In short, are they are seeking the gifts, but not the Giver himself?
- To be sure, Jesus healed them. He gave grace because he is good to us, even if our own motives may at times be impure. But the same crowds that come for blessings are the same crowds that later shout “Crucify him!” These people are not true followers, but fair-weather fans who quickly turn their back when Jesus does not give them what they want (we see the same phenomenon in John 6:1-69).
If we take this text then as being about doing as Jesus did in terms of his preaching, teaching and healing ministry, we milk the passage for good advice but in so doing lose the Good News. On the other hand if the text is about Jesus, it challenges our heart and makes us aware of our need for the Gospel: are we fans of Jesus who only want him for his blessings? Or are we true followers seeking to trust, listen, and obey him faithfully no matter the cost because he paid the ultimate price to save us?
Ephesians: Riches that Money Can’t Buy (Sermon by Sermon)
For those of you who want to look ahead to what the next few months looks like in terms of our Ephesians series, here is a foretaste of what is to come between now and Easter 2012. In addition, we will also be posting resources to help you with your own personal study of Ephesians. We pray this series would be a blessing to you as you seek hard after Jesus.
THE FIRST HALF OF EPHESIANS: DOCTRINE
SEPTEMBER 18 – OVERVIEW: RICHES THAT MONEY CAN’T BUY
SEPTEMBER 25 – PRAISE FATHER, SON, AND HOLY GHOST (1:3-14)
OCTOBER 2 – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: THE NATURE OF SPIRITUAL TRUTH (1:15-23)
OCTOBER 9 – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW (PART 2)
OCTOBER 16 – WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW (PART 3)
OCTOBER 23 – FROM DEATH TO LIFE (2:1-10)… DUE TO A TECHNICAL ISSUE, WE WERE UNABLE TO RECORD THIS SERMON. PLEASE ACCEPT OUR SINCEREST APOLOGIES.
OCTOBER 30 – OUR PEACE (2:11-22)… TO BE PREACHED BY PASTORS DAVE SHAW (AM) AND DARRELL CASIÑO (PM)
NOVEMBER 6 – THE PRISONER OF JESUS CHRIST (3:1-13)
NOVEMBER 13 – GUEST PREACHER, PASTOR NELSON CHAPMAN (Break from Ephesians series)
NOVEMBER 20 – THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST (3:1-13)
NOVEMBER 27 –THE FULNESS OF GOD (3:14-21)
THIS CONCLUDES THE DOCTRINAL PORTION OF EPHESIANS
DECEMBER 4 – JANUARY 8: SERIES BREAK FOR CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEAR
THE SECOND HALF OF EPHESIANS: PRACTICAL APPLICATION
JANUARY 15 – WALKING WORTHY (4:1-6), Part 1 & Part 2
JANUARY 22 – THE GIFTS AND THE GIVER (4:7-16)
JANUARY 29 – THE OLD AND THE NEW (4:17-23)
FEBRUARY 5 – THE NEW MAN (4:17-23)
FEBRUARY 12 – THE IMPORTANCE OF THE MIND IN CHRISTIAN MATURITY (4:17-23)
FEBRUARY 19 – RAGS OR ROBES? (4:25-32)
FEBRUARY 26 – IMITATING GOD (5:1-21)
MARCH 4 – SUBMITTING TO ONE ANOTHER–WIVES AND HUSBANDS (5:21-33)
MARCH 11 – SUBMITTING TO ONE ANOTHER – CHILDREN AND PARENTS (6:1-4)
MARCH 18 – SUBMITTING TO ONE ANOTHER – EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES (6:5-9)
MARCH 25 – CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS (6:10-17)
APRIL 1 – PRAYER WARRIORS (6:18-24)
APRIL 8 EASTER SUNDAY – OUR LIFE IN CHRIST (CONCLUSION OF EPHESIANS)
Audio Sermon / Prisoner of Jesus Christ
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Audio Sermon / One In Christ
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Audio Sermon / Bricks in the Temple
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