Crosstown OKC Sermons

Lasting Transformation is found in the gospel, lived out in community and while being on mission.

The book of Genesis ends with the deaths of Jacob and Joseph, both of whom express interest in their physical remains resting in the Promised Land rather than in Egypt. Within the context of Genesis this is not surprising, because the emphasis is on God's promise, a promise which is not about "going to heaven when you die" but about Israel's fate in the land God promised to them. Assured of God's love for them, God's people dare to believe that even after they die God will finish the plan that he started in the beginning.

As Jacob nears the end of his life, he passes on the patriarchal blessing to Joseph and predicts the future for each of his twelve sons. We get a sense of what is coming in the rest of Israel's history, replete with the surprising twists and turns that have characterized the lives of the three patriarchs in Genesis. Hope that Israel's God will be faithful to his promise to his people lives on, along with the prospects that the entire world will be blessed because of it.

Convinced that Joseph was still alive, Jacob moves his family to Egypt. The reunion of father and son is a touching scene, but a larger story in unfolding. Israel has arrived in Egypt where they will flourish and become a mighty nation and where God will begin to demonstrate his saving power through them.

The 4th part of the Genesis story is coming to a climax. Joseph sees his dreams come true. Judah's character is transformed and we see redemption in his words and life. Joseph tests his brothers to see if their jealousy is gone and their honesty is real. As Joseph is revealed, we see the coming of peace and unity to the brothers, and of revival to the nation. There is real reconciliation and a new beginning.

When ten of Jacob's sons went to buy food in Egypt, they came face to face with the brother they had betrayed and sold as a slave many years earlier. Although they did not recognize him, their encounter with Joseph would bring them face to face with the sin they had committed against him. Joseph set up a test which would give his brothers the chance to demonstrate that they were now willing to come clean and be transformed into the people God intended to use for his saving purposes.

When Pharaoh had a couple of disturbing dreams, Joseph was summoned to explain to him the divine message. Disaster was on the way, and someone wise and discerning would be needed to make a plan for survival. When Pharaoh promoted Joseph into leadership, not only did Joseph himself finally receive vindication, but the entire world would also be given hope for surviving the looming disaster.

It is easy to lose faith when troubles abound. Yet Joseph continues to demonstrate faithfulness to God and hope in him even in the deep pit. He knows that power belongs to God, and so do plans and dream interpretations. In a rare instance, he defends himself and proclaims his innocence. But he has not forgotten his dreams, and he receives assurance as he sees his interpretations of dreams come to fruition. But once more, hope of freedom is deferred.

Although Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt, his chosen status had not been forfeited. God was with Joseph and would ensure that God's plans for Joseph would succeed. But there would be yet another test that Joseph would need to pass first in order for the blessing of God to flourish through his life.

Judah succeeded in getting rid of his brother, Joseph, by convincing his other brothers to sell Joseph into slavery. But Judah's next plot failed when he broke his promise to his twice-widowed daughter-in-law, Tamar, and she tricked him to get from him the justice she sought. In the providence of God, the wickedness of sinful humanity is not only repaid justly; it also offers redemption to those same wicked sinners whose sins have been found out.

Christians know that the story of Jesus ends with his death and resurrection. But how that story fits into the larger biblical story—even Jesus's disciples had difficulty understanding how it all went together. The burden of the New Testament is to explore this puzzle, giving followers of Jesus the inspiration they need to spread the good news of Jesus to all the world.

Jesus of Nazareth's life was cut short when he was executed by Roman crucifixion. But the Christian faith is built on the claim that the cross of Jesus, far from being a tragic defeat, was a momentous victory. To see this victory of Christ on the cross, we need to see it as the climax to the entire biblical story.

When Jesus began his public ministry, he proclaimed the arrival of the kingdom of God. What then would he say about who could be a citizen of the kingdom? By exposing the heart conditions that contradict kingdom values, Jesus shows that it is impossible to find the life of the kingdom apart from a devoted discipleship to him and his way.

God's plan to save his creation is carried out through a covenant he makes with his chosen people.

The biblical story begins by describing the creation of the world as the formation of a temple in which God would dwell in the midst of his creation. He entered into a covenant with human beings, made in his image, giving them dominion over his kingdom on earth. But when Adam broke the covenant, the effect on all creation was catastrophic. Still, God remained true to the covenant, promising salvation to the world he had made for his glory.

When Jacob left home, he encountered God at Bethel. Now, as he returns home, God urges him to return there and to set up a place for worship. Having arrived at Bethel under divine protection, Jacob is assured of his place in the patriarchal blessing. This assurance sustained him the rest of his life, a life that would continue to be a struggle as his children became responsible for carrying the promise of God forward into the next generation.

After returning home to Canaan, Jacob and his family suffer a great tragedy when his daughter, Dinah, is raped by a young Canaanite man. How they respond to this tragedy takes the story to an even darker level. How will the family of God be a blessing to the world when they are justifiably outraged by the sinfulness of the world around them?

As Jacob returns home, he must face the terrifying prospect of a confrontation with his brother, Esau. Jacob hopes that he can appease his brother with his gifts. But on the eve of the brothers' encounter, Jacob finds himself in a far greater struggle. He emerges with his life, but now walks with a limp, and carries with him a new name which will offer not just to himself but to the whole world the forgiveness, reconciliation, and peace that is desperately needed.

After 20 years of trouble and success, now comes the call of God for Jacob to return to Canaan. Many similarities are apparent between this return and the call to Abraham; between this flight and the exodus from Egypt. The passage focuses on God keeping his part of the covenant, Jacob's faith in God, and Laban's foolishness. God shows himself faithful once more.

Jacob arrives in Haran confident of God's presence with him. The next two decades of his life are spent in this foreign land, and they are anything but easy. Jacob is tricked and cheated by his uncle. Although Jacob starts a family, there is plenty of turmoil within his family, too. Still, God does not abandon him, and only because of the faithful presence of God with Jacob does Jacob receive everything that God had promised to him.

Rebekah and Jacob devised a scheme to trick Isaac into giving his deathbed blessing to Jacob rather than to Esau. The scheme succeeds, and Esau is furious, requiring Jacob to flee for his life. As Jacob is running away from Esau he unexpectedly encounters God for himself and is amazed at just how close God has been to him all along.

As Abraham's heir, Isaac is entrusted with the same promises that God had given to his father. But he, too, struggled to believe that God would bring those promises to pass. When he succumbed to the same fears his father had, his life brought conflict and tension to the world. But when he sowed seeds of peace, God made plenty of room for him to flourish and for those around him to enjoy the blessing of God as well.

Prayer may be a felt instinct, but it must be learned and taught. The Lord's prayer is a model prayer that teaches us how to pray with a view of who he is, what his purposes are, how his kingdom is manifested, and we can corporately together adopt a life of prayer for God's holiness and our sanctification.

The Genesis story moves on from Abraham to the life of his grandson, Jacob. It is Jacob who will become the ancestor of the family that God will choose to bring salvation to the world. This choice will result in a great struggle, a struggle realized even while Jacob was yet in his mother's womb, as the nations of the world refuse to submit to God's choice without a fight.

Ponderings on the Prodigal

At Jesus's dedication, Joseph and Mary met two individuals who had been waiting their whole lives for this encounter. Simeon and Anna both recognize Jesus as the one who is bringing Israel's long story to its promised end. But in spite of the hopes Jesus inspires, the reality is that those who believe in him will need to persevere in their faith through many challenges that Jesus will generate for them in the world.

When the shepherds came to see the newborn Jesus, their report of what they had been told about the child caused Mary to ponder the meaning of what was happening. Twelve years later, Jesus's words to her after they found him in the temple had the same effect. Because of Mary's reflections on her young son's life, she was the first to truly comprehend the message of Christmas.

In the second half of Mary's Song of Praise, she sings about the power of God unleashed on the world with the birth of her son, Jesus. In Jesus, God is subverting the oppressive powers of darkness as he establishes his kingdom in fulfillment of his covenant with his people. The kingdom of God is the inheritance of Christians today who are committed to live under its reality even as the kingdoms of men are passing away.

We are blessing Mary when we are pondering the mercy of God that Christmas represents.

The first person to hear about Jesus was his mother, Mary. The angelic announcement of her miraculous pregnancy came with the call for her to not just hear this news but also to believe it. Without Mary's positive response, the story of salvation could not have reached its climactic moment.

The final scene in the life of Abraham is the story of how a wife was found for his son, Isaac. In his final words, Abraham reiterates his faith in the divine promise that had inspired the entirety of his life. As Abraham passes from the scene, the next generation takes their place in the great story of salvation, a further testimony to the faithfulness of God to bring every one of his promises to fulfillment.

When God made his covenant with us, he swore an oath by his own self that he would guarantee it. His promise does not perish when people do. And here we see that Sarah's death in fact leads to the firstfruit of inheriting the land, albeit through the purchase of a burial place.

Now that Abraham has seen God begin to fulfill his great promise to him, God puts Abraham's faith to the ultimate test. Will Abraham go on believing that God can do even greater things or will he find himself tempted to settle for less? On the other side of this test of his faith, Abraham's relationship with God deepens, and God's promise to Abraham does as well.

God's great promise to Abraham now begins to take shape with the birth of his son, Isaac. But the joy of the moment is tempered by the danger represented by his other son, Ishmael. Abraham would have to go on believing that the God who had entered into covenant with him would somehow bring resolution to the ongoing conflict between hope and despair.

For a second time, Abraham, in fear for his life, identifies Sarah as his sister rather than his wife. And for a second time, his deception puts everyone in jeopardy. Salvation comes only because of God's intervention, and the dangerous nature of Abraham's prophetic calling becomes clearer than ever.

The account of the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah warns of the judgment of God against all human wickedness. But in its context within the Abrahamic narratives, it also brings the Christian into the challenge of discerning what is just, of needing to learn the way of God more accurately. The reason for this is clear: God intends to bring his righteousness into the world through his people.

God's promise to bless Abram and also the world through Abram would be fulfilled through a very specific son of Abram and Sarai who had not yet been born. At his advanced age, it all seemed so impossible to Abram, but God gave him a sign to remind him of what he had been promised. Though believing the promise continued to be a challenge, Abram accepted the covenantal sign and continued to hope in the fulfillment of what it signified.

After living for a decade in the promised land, Abram's wife became impatient with God and his promises to them. The resulting story is a tale of violence and oppression inflicted against a vulnerable Egyptian slave woman. But God intervenes to demonstrate that he will not let any injustice prevail against his mighty promises of freedom and redemption.

Yahweh gave Abram great promises that he now guarantees with a covenant. Abram, having played a kingly role in Genesis 14, now is seen playing prophetic and priestly roles in Genesis 15. Yet the only perfect king, prophet, and priest is Yahweh himself who commits to keeping both sides of the covenant. Such a commitment all but guarantees the mystery of his own death in order to keep the covenant with his people.

The life of faith cannot be separated from the realities of life. Here we find Abram, our exemplar of faith, engaging in international affairs and bringing justice and rescue to the needy and the oppressed. He receives a blessing from the mysterious king of Salem, but refuses to be compromised by the sinister king of Sodom. Abram demonstrates the impact that the family of faith can have on the real-life issues that threaten the world today.

Leaving Egypt, Abram returns not only to the land promised to him, but specifically to the place where he had previously worshiped God. He fares much better in the subsequent challenge, succeeding in diffusing a conflict within his own family and restoring peace to all of them. Here we see how, as our exemplar of faith, Abram leads us back to the worship of God and to the power that such worship provides us to offer peace to our world.

God's promise to Abraham in Genesis 12 marks the beginning of the grand story of salvation found in the Bible. The gospel claims that Jesus brings this story to its completion. To believe the gospel, we must exercise the same kind of faith as Abraham, daring to believe that God will do what he has promised.

Telling the Christian story requires us to be truthful to what the story is all about. The story clearly centers on Jesus, but many Christians seem to be confused about how Jesus is at the center of the biblical story. The prophet Isaiah promised that when the story of scripture reached its climax, there would be a beauty to it that would capture the hearts and imaginations of all those who heard it.

The Christian mission to the world is based upon the victory that God has already won for the world in Jesus. As we live on Christ's mission together, we experience the joys of his kingdom and are formed into true disciples of Jesus. What God does through Jesus's disciples is then a clear sign of the salvation that is found only in Jesus.

The community of faith is the church of God, devoted to doctrine and communion, committed to teaching and fellowship, and known by its love for one another. A credible gospel community cares for one another in ways radically different than the world's, showing union in the Spirit, worshiping in unison, confessing sin, caring for one another, praising joyfully, revealing to outsiders the grace of God that leads them to salvation.

The gospel of Jesus is the most consequential news that has ever been heard. When one believes it, they get a new perspective that colors everything they see from that moment on. Convinced of God's steadfast love in the cross of Christ, embracing this good news makes one a member and messenger of the hope of a new creation.