Sermons by Joshua Hartwigsen
Kingdom Emotions: Lament and Thanksgiving
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 — My phone gives me accurate, simple, and constantly updated directions to whatever destination I enter into its maps app. Its accuracy, simplicity, and adaptability to the conditions around me have made the app an essential part of my daily life. Even though I claim the Bible occupies an even more important place in my life, it does not have the features I prize in my map app – it instead possesses a sprawling complexity that, while…
Work Out Your Own Salvation
Paul’s letter to the Philippians includes what might seem to us a contradictory instruction. Consider what he wrote in Philippians 2:12-13: Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. While his comment ‘you work/its God working in you’ might…
The Story of Jesus’ Ministry – the People of God’s Kingdom
Matthew 5:1-12 A tendency exists to interpret Jesus’ life in terms of his birth, death, and resurrection. However, the gospels dedicate considerably more time to Jesus’ ministry than his birth and death. In fact, two of the four gospels do not even record Jesus’ birth. While volume alone does not determine significance, it does contribute to how we assess importance. Given the weight the gospels give to the long middle section of Jesus’ ministry, we began a short series two…
THE STORY OF JESUS’ MINISTRY – The rule of God’s kingdom
Matthew 28:18-20 A tendency exists to interpret Jesus’ life in terms of his birth, death, and resurrection. However, the gospels dedicate considerably more time to Jesus’ ministry than his birth and death. In fact, two of the four gospels do not even record Jesus’ birth. While volume alone does not determine significance, it does contribute to how we assess importance. Given the weight the gospels give to the long middle section of Jesus’ ministry, we began a short series last…
The Story of Jesus’ Ministry – the Arrival of God’s Kingdom
Luke 17:20-21–Next month, at Easter, many people will observe Jesus’ death and resurrection. That holiday pairs with Christmas, a date when many celebrate Jesus’ birth. Our calendar revolves around the beginning and end of Jesus’ life but includes no special times to recognize his ministry. That gap reveals the tendency to interpret his life in terms of his birth, death, and resurrection. However, we should notice that the gospels dedicate considerably more time to Jesus’ ministry than his birth and death.…
WHAT DOES THE LORD REQUIRE?
Micah 6:6-8–I have many Bibles. I buy different translations with different layouts, different size fonts, and different thicknesses of paper. Various purposes drive my purchases; I use some for reading, some for writing in, some for studying, and some for teaching. Despite those differences, all my Bibles have a common feature – they all have A LOT of pages filled with A LOT of words. English translations have, on average, 750,000 words, not including references, footnotes, and other added features (by comparison,…
Love One Another
In the book of 1 John, John wrote to Christians facing challenges from a group who separated themselves from him and the other church leaders and who denied Jesus’ identity (1 John 2:18-23; 4:1-3). Motivated by the turmoil they were creating (1 John 3:4-10), John wrote to address those Jesus-denying “antichrists” (1 John 2:18-19). His response revolves around two central messages: “This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no…
God is Light
Christianity spread throughout the Roman world despite encountering fierce, consistent resistance. Its growth reached a tipping point early in the fourth century when Rome officially legalized the religion and, only ten years later, adopted Christianity as its official religion. Roman emperor Julian (AD 332–63) came to power shortly after Christianity’s legalization and adoption and wanted to undermine its rise by reinvigorating Rome’s ancient religion. However, his agenda met with resistance that he blamed on Christianity’s practice of love. Writing about…
Parable of the Unforgiving Servant
Even though he composed them in intentionally challenging ways (cf. Matthew 13:10-17), Jesus’ parables provide insight and direction to the life of those who meditate on them. We have been considering some of his parables this month to see what insights they offer us that will guide us as we navigate the hopes, heartbreaks, successes, and failures we will encounter in the coming year. We have considered the following parables this month: ¨ The parable of the weeds – even though we…
Parable of the Friend at Midnight
Storytelling holds an essential place in speaking and writing. Good communicators draw their audience into a narrative that resonates with them, giving identity and meaning to their message and those receiving it. Even though he composed them in intentionally challenging ways (cf. Matthew 13:10-17), Jesus’ parables offer stories that can provide insight and direction to the life of those who meditate on them. We have been considering some of Jesus’ parables this month to see what insights they provide us…
Parable of the Tower Builder
We are beginning a new year, a beginning we commonly believe contains the potential for many good things. We are using some of our Sundays this month to help us think about what we will do as a church family in 2023. However, I do not wish to prescribe a series of goals. Instead, I want to take a few weeks to consider Jesus’ parables that he used to offer insights into his kingdom and its expectations for those who claimed…
Parable of the Weeds
Even though only a date in our calendars, the New Year carries weight for many people. It signals the beginning of something new that brings opportunities for change, renewal, and the potential for countless (good) things. However, our culture has married a cynicism to its anticipation of the New Year. How often do you hear people joking about New Year resolutions, making light of peoples’ intentions and their failure to accomplish them? We are beginning a New Year, and I…
JESUS’ UNEXPECTED SALVATION
Matthew 1:18-21–The Christmas season offers a time when many people around the world think about Jesus’ birth. While his birth most likely took place in the Spring and the date of his birth possesses no sacramental value, as a family of people committed to following Jesus, we want people to think about him. So, last Sunday, we began a three-lesson series taking advantage of the attention given to Jesus in December. Last week, we considered the announcement that Jesus’ birth…
Jesus Unexpected Kingship
Luke 1:26-38 Every December, people around the world think about Jesus’ birth. While Jesus’ birth most likely took place in the Spring and while the date of his birth possesses no sacramental value, it is nevertheless a time when much of the world around us turns its attention to Jesus. As a family of people who have committed to following Jesus, we want people to think about him. So, we will take advantage of Christmas’ focus to remind ourselves about…
I am Thankful for Church Family
1 Corinthians 12:12-26 — We live in an individualistic culture whose definition of ‘the good life’ focuses on self-centered, impersonal things. Our place in the world, our value, we are told, connects to things like our career, our money, our car, our clothes, and our appearance. Happiness, our world markets to us, involves beings true to oneself and asserting one’s wishes and rights. The ‘good life’ our world advocates comes with a widely known secret – impersonal things and self-centered…
I am Thankful for God’s Grace
Considering our upcoming celebration of Thanksgiving, we are using some of our Sunday mornings this month to explore things for which we should be thankful. However, more than mere opportunism motivates this series; we are using the holiday as an occasion to focus on thankfulness because it occupies an essential place in our Christian identity (cf.Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:18). Therefore, this lesson explores another reason motivating our thankfulness: I am thankful for God’s unexpected and undeserved grace.
I AM THANKFUL God chooses to dwell with us
Revelation 21:1-4— November concludes with Thanksgiving, a holiday intended to offer us a time to remember the blessing we enjoy. For us, the holiday provides us more than a chance to remember the many good things within our lives; it allows us to intentionally practice the thankfulness the Bible describes as an essential Christian characteristic (cf. Philippians 4:6; Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:18). To help us focus on that part of our identity, we will use this month’s Sundays to remind…
How Shall the Young Secure Their Hearts
As a parent, I worry about my sons. While I experience the usual worries about injury and happiness, my most profound and persistent concerns center on the culture they inhabit and how it influences their thinking. I know I am not alone. My parents felt the same fears about me, and I know other parents wrestle with similar concerns for their children. And so, I worry about my boys, as I am sure you worry about your families. But what…
Moses Implored the Lord
The New Testament repeatedly reminds its readers that evangelism occupies a central and non-negotiable place in Jesus’ expectations. Yet that expectation makes people uncomfortable. Therefore, we have been considering features of that responsibility over the past few weeks by studying stories from the Hebrew Bible that offer us insights into Jesus’ evangelistic expectations. In this lesson, we will explore Moses’ intercession for Israel in Exodus chapter thirty-two and consider how it models for us the intercessory role we have as Jesus’ representatives in the world.
Please Send Someone Else
NBC debuted a new game show in 2001 called “Fear Factor.” An instant hit, the show pitted people against one another in stunts designed to test them physically and mentally under the premise that the activities forced them to confront their ‘fears’. The voyeuristic pleasure that spurred the rise of reality television in the early 2000’s played a role in the show’s popularity, which drew on viewers’ recognition of how fear impacts thinking and behavior. Good reasons generally prompt fear’s…