Sermon notes
My dad preached an interesting sermon tonight entitled Using Time Wisely.
It was based on Psalm 90:1-12. In particular, he focused on the
last verse: "Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a
heart of wisdom." Dad pointed out that in the traditional
Biblical sense, the heart is the center of being, not just where love
comes from. Your true essence is your heart, so the author is
asking God to make him holy and to do things accordingly to His will.
Why are you?
As Christians, we are called to serve as example of Christ's love. Dad brought up the fact that everyone asks each other questions of introduction that include how, what, who, and where. However, you rarely hear "why" in introductory statements or inquiries. We are here to give love, honor, and glory to God. That is why we are here, so then the question comes: How do we accomplish this? Right teaching and learning, and holy living. Just as a fantastic employee who helps you makes you want to do business with a particular company again in the future, we should be living in a way that shows God working in us and appealing to those who don't fully know Him yet.
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
This is the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray. "Hallowed" refers to honoring and glorifying God's name. "Thy will be done" shouldn't just be an empty expression, but a plea to God to work within us and in the world around us. Thus, we are made holy -- not sinless, but fully dedicated to the Lord and His purposes. We have the ultimate example in Jesus himself: "I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do." (John 17:4) Just living in a God-pleasing way and fulfilling our duties gives honor and glory to God. You don't have to be a millionaire or travel halfway around the world on a pilgrimage to satisfy the Father. Martin Luther pointed this out, as well as the reiterating the fact that God is with us when we're alone, with others, at work or at play. If he is with us always, we should be acting in a way that makes Jesus glad to be with us! Dad said we should make sure we aren't behaving in a way that causes Jesus to feel awkward, to frown, or to even cry. Since he is with us and we can pray sincerely to him, we will have what we need to accomplish His will and to fulfill our goals as followers of Christ. The kingdom, the power, and the glory are His forever indeed.
(If you are interested, please check out my Apostles Creed poll on poll_a_day!)
Why are you?
As Christians, we are called to serve as example of Christ's love. Dad brought up the fact that everyone asks each other questions of introduction that include how, what, who, and where. However, you rarely hear "why" in introductory statements or inquiries. We are here to give love, honor, and glory to God. That is why we are here, so then the question comes: How do we accomplish this? Right teaching and learning, and holy living. Just as a fantastic employee who helps you makes you want to do business with a particular company again in the future, we should be living in a way that shows God working in us and appealing to those who don't fully know Him yet.
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
This is the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray. "Hallowed" refers to honoring and glorifying God's name. "Thy will be done" shouldn't just be an empty expression, but a plea to God to work within us and in the world around us. Thus, we are made holy -- not sinless, but fully dedicated to the Lord and His purposes. We have the ultimate example in Jesus himself: "I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do." (John 17:4) Just living in a God-pleasing way and fulfilling our duties gives honor and glory to God. You don't have to be a millionaire or travel halfway around the world on a pilgrimage to satisfy the Father. Martin Luther pointed this out, as well as the reiterating the fact that God is with us when we're alone, with others, at work or at play. If he is with us always, we should be acting in a way that makes Jesus glad to be with us! Dad said we should make sure we aren't behaving in a way that causes Jesus to feel awkward, to frown, or to even cry. Since he is with us and we can pray sincerely to him, we will have what we need to accomplish His will and to fulfill our goals as followers of Christ. The kingdom, the power, and the glory are His forever indeed.
(If you are interested, please check out my Apostles Creed poll on poll_a_day!)