Sermons – Lakewood Church of Christ

"Thirsty soul: hear the welcome call. ' Tis a fountain open for all."

One thing in our life we can count on is that God will keep His promises. He has kept them in the past, He keeps them today, and He will keep them tomorrow.

When will Jesus come again? For some, too soon. For others, not soon enough. And after 2000 years of waiting… ... is He coming at all? Today is about time.

Our study today is from Luke 19. Zacchaeus was a social pariah who was easy to want to avoid. The story will highlight Jesus going to his house and Zacchaeus' transformation… but the real invitation for us today is that Jesus even noticed him in the first place. Zacchaeus wanted to feel forgiven. Are there people in our world that we encounter everyday who, just like this Tax Collector, want to find what we know in Christ but just need to be noticed? Do you see the Zacchaeus in your world?

Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations. -Psalm 100:2-5 Travis B

Watchman Nee tells a story about a poor rice farmer who had a small rice paddy on the side of a mountain in China. These are his words: “A brother in South China had a rice field in the middle of the hill. In time of drought, he used a waterwheel working by a treadmill to lift water from the irrigation stream into his field. His neighbor had two fields below his, and one night made a breach in the dividing bank and drained off all his water. When the brother repaired the breach and pumped in more water, his neighbor did the same thing again, and this was repeated three or four times. So he consulted his brethren. ‘I have tried to be patient and not to retaliate,’ he said, ‘But is it right?’ After they had prayed together about it, one of them replied, ‘If we only try to do the right thing, surely we are very poor Christians. We have to do something more than what is right.’ The brother was much impressed. Next morning he pumped water for the two fields below, and in the afternoon pumped water for his own field. After that the water stayed in his field. His neighbor was so amazed at his action that he began to inquire the reason and in the course of time, he too became a Christian.” Watchman Nee: Sit, Walk, Stand: The Process of Christian Maturity #Kindlequotes. In our daily walk we sometimes encounter difficulties that seem to defy our ability to deal with them. The answer to that is the power of Christ’s example for us. Today we will explore what it means to have the same attitude as Christ.

Are you going through life like a zombie? Or is the posture of your heart towards serving God's kingdom?

When someone behaves toward us in Spirit-filled ways, we experience something Divine. Today, let’s “keep in step” with the Spirit by reflecting on the impact of its Fruit in our lives, and how we might offer it freely to those around us. Galatians 5:22, 23 The Fruit of the Spirit

We are blessed to be children of the King of Kings! If we can keep our eyes focused on our end goal of going to Heaven, it will make it easier to set goals and deal with our daily lives. It is important to put away earthly desires. The Devil is skilled at creating distractions to allure us into following him. Instead of focusing on earthly things, we can focus on heavenly things and clothe ourselves with righteousness. Fill our lives by serving God. Whatever you do, do it in the name of Jesus!

A little family talk today… This has been a challenging year so far, for our church in general and for each one of us. But take heart! Our brothers and sisters in the first century had similar (and worse) challenges. Yet, their faith and perseverance produced a legacy that we can look to for guidance. Let's get back to some of the basics that encouraged their hearts during tough times.

Throughout history people have lived through changes in their culture. In the US, our culture has changed significantly in the last 100 years, but in the last 10 years it has changed rapidly. As Christians, how can we keep our faith as our culture changes?

In this scene, Mark is remembering a boating trip across the Sea of Galilee. The disciples feared they would drown in a storm that had come up suddenly- as they often do on that body of water. They had lost their focus on Jesus and believed all was lost. They had forgotten His power to give life and strength. But Jesus was there and he had not forgotten them. I struggle with remembering that too. Remembering that Jesus is present. Remembering that He works through community to strengthen me when all seems lost and when I want to give up. Yet he is still there - waiting to help when I ask. We are all still His children and He is still watching over us no matter where we go. As His children, we are given the privilege of being that comforting voice in the midst of the storms of life that we all encounter. He calls us to come to Him and He will give us rest. How does He do that? One way is by putting people in our lives to walk beside us during those storms.

7 years ago the Lakewood Church was rocked by the diagnosis of incurable cancer for the 40 year old mother and wife, Amy Zumwalt. How could this happen? The church prayed for a miracle…fervently! But no miracle came! This morning we will wrestle with the legacy that Amy leaves us, a legacy of putting more of our hope in the promises of God than we do in the life we are living now. In fact Amy will tell us, in her own words, why it is important to find a solid and forever foundation in faith.

"When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them." Acts 2:1-3 (NIV)

The Temple was the most important place for the Jews. After it had been demolished, Zechariah was set with the task to rebuild the temple for the Jewish people. With just a single cornerstone left, it must have been a daunting task when thinking of how to begin the work of rebuilding. But God had a vision and a plan to get His will accomplished. It was just up to Zechariah to follow that plan. What plan and vision does God have for the church at Lakewood? How are we listening for his calling today?