6-30-24 Kenwood Church of Christ Live Stream

FAMILY FIRST: Our only hope 6-30-24

FAMILY FIRST: Our only hope 6-30-24

 

INTRODUCTION

 

I am grateful.

 

Family first.  Let me go back to the beginning of this sermon series.

 

“Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”

           1 Timothy 5:8 NIV

 

In 1987, I was blessed to work as an intern at Northside Christian Church.  I learned a lot from the minister, Robin Hart, who is preaching his final sermon next Sunday as he is retiring.  It did not take long for me to find out what was the strength of that congregation.  It was the predominance of strong families

 

Strong families.  The Hanjes, Anderson, Derhammers, Simmons, Stones, Blackmores, Riters, etc.

 

I.  STRONG FAMILIES ARE CHRISTIAN FAMILIES

 

           A.  The idea of a strong family is a fundamental found in the Old Testament.

 

“Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.”

           Psalm 127:1a NIV

 

       B.  Strong families have a strong sense of what God requires.

 

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 NIV

 

       C.  Strong families follow Jesus’ example.

 

“Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?”

           Luke 9:23-25 NIV

 

Be strong!

We are not here to play, to dream, to drift.

We have hard work to do and loads to lift.

Shun not the struggle,

face it: ’tis God’s gift.

Be strong!

Say not the days are evil. Who’s to blame?

And fold the hands and acquiesce, O shame!

Stand up, speak out

and bravely, in God’s name.

Be strong!

It matters not how deep entrenched the wrong,

How hard the battle goes, the day is long:

Faint not, fight on!

Tommorrow comes the song.

-- Maltbie D. Babcock

 

II.  STRONG FAMILIES ARE SERVANTS

 

A woman was interviewing a prospective servant and asked, “Can you serve company?”

The applicant replied “Yes, mum, both ways.”

The woman looked puzzled and asked, “What do you mean, both ways?”

“So they’ll come again, or stay away.”

 

       A.  Strong families serve.

 

“But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.””

           Joshua 24:15 NIV

 

       B.  Strong families are stewards of God ‘s gifts.

 

“Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”

           1 Peter 4:10-11 NIV

 

Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love.” Whatever our gifts are and whatever God has enabled us to do, we have a responsibility as believers to use those gifts for the building up of his Kingdom.

 

       C.  Strong families lead by example.

 

“I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”

           John 13:15 NIV

 

Albert Schweitzer said: “I do not know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know, the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”

 

III.  STRONG FAMILIES ARE NOT PERFECT

 

Leo Tolstoy opened his novel, Anna Karenina with this line:

"Happy families," he said, "are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way."

 

           A.  The bar has been set high.

 

“Wives, submit yourselves to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives and do not be harsh with them. Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord. Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged.”

     Colossians 3:18-21 NIV

 

           B.  The balance is tenuous at best.

 

“Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.”

       Matthew 12:25 NIV

 

"The logical beginning point of any family relationship is a covenant commitment, which has unconditional love at its core. Out of the security provided by this covenant, love develops grace. In this atmosphere of grace, family members have the freedom to empower each other. Empowering leads to the possibility of intimacy."

           Jack and Judith Balswick

 

           C.  The tools are at our disposal.

 

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

     Colossians 3:12-14 NIV

 

           D.  The world is watching our example.

 

“How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!”

           Psalm 133:1 NIV

 

CONCLUSION

 

Strong families are Christian families.  Strong families are servants.  Strong families are not perfect.

 

INVITATION

 

It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word.  You may want to follow Jesus.  You may want to proclaim your faith.  You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things).  Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church.  If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now.  If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.  

S.U.M. It Up! 6-26-24

    

6-23-24 Kenwood Church of Christ Live Stream

FAMILY FIRST: A better world 6-23-24

FAMILY FIRST: A better world 6-23-24

 

INTRODUCTION

 

Do not save your loving speeches For your friends till they are dead. Do not write them on their tombstones.  Speak them rather now instead.

           Anna Cummins

 

“And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.”

           1 John 4:21 NIV

 

My family used to get together almost exclusively at the holidays.  I loved the holidays.

 

On the TV show, Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?, they took a poll of 8 to 12 year olds and asked them, "What do you most enjoy about the holidays?" A) Decorating the house B) Spending time with family and relatives C) Receiving presents. What do you think most of the children said? Answer: B.

 

David Dykes quote:

 

“I read a recent article about how people in Japan are so busy that older people can now rent a family. Here’s the quote: "In Japan, you can rent a family. Elderly Japanese who are isolated from their children by the frantic pace of modern life can rent a 'family' for lunch and a few hours. Just call Nippon Kokasei Honbu and ask for a son, daughter, grandchild, whatever relative you want, and that type will show up at your door and greet you as if they haven't seen you in years. Of course the service isn't cheap: three hours with your family cost $1,130, plus transportation.

 

Satsuki Ohiwa founded the business in 1990 when, as a businesswoman, she was too busy to visit her mother. Company staff visited her instead, and Ohiwa deemed it a success. Ohiwa's observation of her customers is not surprising. She said, 'What is common about our clients is that they are thirsty for human love.'

 

I wonder when someone is the U.S. will start offering that! But you can save yourself the cost of renting someone who acts like they love you. You can be a part of a local church family.”

           David Dykes, Are You a Part of God’s Forever Family? 8/16/2012.

 

Let us pray.

 

I.  LOVING OUR FAMILY

 

Marriage advice - To keep your marriage brimming, With love in the loving cup, Whenever youre wrong, admit it; Whenever you’re right, shut up.

 

“Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen.”

           1 John 4:20 NIV

 

A little girl stayed for dinner at the home of her friend. The vegetable was buttered broccoli, and the mother asked if she liked it. The child replied very politely, "Oh, yes, I love it." But when the bowl of broccoli was passed, she declined to take any. The hostess said, "I thought you said you loved broccoli." The girl replied sweetly, "Oh, yes, ma’am, I do, but not enough to eat it!"

 

       A.  Loving God = Loving your brother and sister

           B.  Not loving brother and sister = not loving God

           C.  Love is action.

 

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”

           1 Peter 4:8-11 NIV

 

A woman got a divorce and lost her family. She sank into a deep depression, and was in desperate need. The people in her church only shook their heads and pointed their fingers at her failure, so she left and began frequenting a bar. One day the preacher came and asked why she had done this. She replied, “The people at the bar smile when they see me.”

 

II.  FORGIVING OUR FAMILY

 

“Forgiveness is surrendering my right to hurt you for hurting me. Forgiveness does not pretend there was no offense; it does not dismiss wrongdoing. It does not say, "Oh, that's all right; forget it." True forgiveness is realistic.

 

Lewis Smedes gave a great definition: "Forgiving is going to a person either in your fantasies or in reality and saying, 'I don't understand. I'll never understand. It wasn't OK and it isn't OK, but I forgive you.'"

 

Forgiving doesn't make a person a doormat. Forgiving isn't the same as tolerance. Forgivers don't have to be fools. Forgiving is healing yourself of something that happened to you that you cannot tolerate, but you forgive it as the only way to heal the wound that it left you with.

 

You forgive somebody, and you begin to dance instead of wallow. You begin to walk with God. You set a prisoner free, and you discover the prisoner you set free was you.”

           Bobby Scobey, Sermon Central, Dec. 31, 2008.

 

“Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”

     Colossians 3:13-14 NIV

 

A.  Endure/tolerate present action

      B.  Forgive past action

           C.  Love is forgiveness.

 

I once invited a guest lecturer to speak to a counseling class I was teaching and ask him to specifically discuss the topic forgiveness. He told a powerful story from his own life that day to illustrate his point that we should forgive.

 

His brother had many struggles, and one day there was a conflict that arose and someone shot and killed my friend’s brother. The whole family was sad of course and grieved very much about this sudden and unfortunate loss. Our guest that day said he struggled initially forgiving the man that killed his brother. After awhile though, God helped him process the tragedy and forgive the murderer.

 

This was the neat part. For years, my friend had a prayer list with his brother’s name on it, and he prayed for him often. After his death, he eventually got to the point where he erased his brother’s name and inserted the murderer's name in his brother's place on the prayer list, and now he prays for him often.

 

This, ladies and gentlemen, is forgiveness.

           Dr. Mark Eckhart          

 

III.  CARRYING OUR FAMILY

 

“We share in this family!” - the Lackie family motto

 

         A.  Carry one another’s burdens

 

“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”

       Galatians 6:2 NIV

 

         B.  Carry your own weight

 

“If anyone thinks they are something when they are not, they deceive themselves. Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else, for each one should carry their own load.”

       Galatians 6:3-5 NIV

 

Phortion - personal load

 

           C.  Love is looking out for one another.

 

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.”

           Luke 6:27-35 NIV

 

Fred Douglas Shepard was born on September 11, 1855 in Ellenburg, New York in Clinton County. His father died while he was very young and his mother spent most of her adult life as an invalid. It was probably through this that Fred became associated with illness and caring for the sick. Fred lived with family in Madrid. It was there in a revival meeting in a Baptist church that he accepted Christ as Savior and threw himself completely into the Christian life. At the age of 22 he studied medicine and at 27 married a young lady who was also a doctor. They felt a calling and turned their faces towards the east … Eastern Turkey to be exact.

 

The Shepards spent the remaining days of their lives in Eastern Turkey. He started a school of medicine and 221 men graduated from there to aid in the terrible disease and suffering throughout the country. His records show that by 1914 he had seen 6000 patients in his clinic, called on others in over 2000 homes, and had only 800 paying patients.

 

Shepard’s service was so significant that he received decorations from the Red Cross and President Taft in 1909 and from the Sultan of Turkey in 1911. The Sultan said, “The decoration bestowed upon you is nothing compared with your most admiring sympathy shown to the suffering humanity.”

In 1908 the largest Protestant church in Turkey held a silver anniversary of Fred Shepard’s ministry there. It was filled with Moslems, Catholics, Gregorians, and Jews as well as Protestants. For two hours these folks stood and talked about what Dr. Shepard had done for them. While reflecting over his ministry he said that the celebration was really not about him but about one even greater; God and His love. “Because I have understood a little about that love, I try to let others know about it. This is my purpose in life. I did not come to this country to make money or a reputation. I came to bear witness that God is love. If by my work I have been able to show you him, I have had my reward and I thank him.”

 

This 5’ 4" husky farm lad from Madrid brought relief to an entire country in an era when disease ran rampant.

 

Fred Shepard understood a little of what it means to love.

           Ken Pell, "Welcome to the Neighborhood! Loving Your Neighbor as Yourself" 7/27/08.

 

CONCLUSION

 

Loving our family.  Forgiving our family.  Carrying our family.  

 

INVITATION

 

It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word.  You may want to follow Jesus.  You may want to proclaim your faith.  You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things).  Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church.  If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now.  If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.  

S.U.M. It Up! 6-19-24

    

6-16-24 Kenwood Church of Christ Live Stream

FAMILY FIRST: Honor Your Father and Mother 6-16-24

FAMILY FIRST: Honor Your Father and Mother 6-16-24

 

INTRODUCTION

 

FATHER'S DAY VS. MOTHER'S DAY

 

One little boy's definition of Father's Day went like this: "Well, it's just like Mother's Day, only you don't spend so much."

 

Well, we fathers can concede that. Someone said, "A father is someone who carries pictures where his money used to be." And the phone company tells us that calls on Father's Day are not as high in number as calls on Mother's Day, and most of them are collect.

 

A month ago I had the privilege of speaking at my dad’s celebration of life.  I was not the only one who spoke that day.  Others would talk about the “good man” that my dad was.  On that occasion I used a passage of Scripture as my text that I had never considered for a celebration of life.  I used one for the Ten Commandments.  This is one of the first Bible verses I remember memorizing.

 

“Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”

           Exodus 20:12 NIV

 

I believe there is something in us--a law written on our hearts--that says, "Honor your father and mother." That’s how it’s stated in the Bible, but you’ll find it in all of the world’s religions. The ancient Chinese Analects advise, "surely proper behaviour to parent and elder brothers is the [tree] trunk of goodness."

 

We must consciously attempt, first of all, to find the good in our fathers, no matter how badly they seemed to have fathered us. To put a spin on Marc Antony’s cry: "We have not come to bury our fathers under the dirt of our accusations; we’ve come to praise them for what we have discovered in them, and for what they have given us." What our fathers did right is every bit as important as what they did wrong.

 

If, as C.S. Lewis wrote, "fatherhood must be at the core of the universe," then disrespect for a father means engaging in some very dangerous vandalism. That is true culturally, but also personally. Gordon Dalbey writes, "We had better teach our sons mercy. A man who curses his father...curses his own manhood."

Ken Canfield, PH. D. The Heart of a Father. Chicago: Northfield Publishing, 1996, p. 30.

 

The word honor has many important concepts contained within it.

 

Let us pray.

 

I.  HONOR

 

“You know the commandments: ‘You shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.’”

           Luke 18:20 NIV

 

“Cursed is anyone who dishonors their father or mother.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”

Deuteronomy 27:16 NIV

 

       1.  Inward

   2.  Outward

 

“This one guy seemed to be very concerned about pleasing his dad. The story goes like this…

One day a young boy was driving a load of hay to the market. He came around a corner too fast and his trailer load of hay tipped over. The young man stopped the tractor, jumped out and began to frantically try to reload the hay. A neighboring farmer who had witnessed the event came over and told the young man to slow down. The boy answered, “My Dad wouldn’t like it.” The neighbor said, just leave it, take a break, relax a bit. The young man said, “My Dad wouldn’t like it.” The neighbor invited him in for lunch and told him it would not take too long and afterwards he would help this boy reload the grain onto his trailer. The boy finally agreed and went into the house for lunch.

 

The lunch was wonderful and was exactly what he needed. When the farmer and the boy went out of the house, the farmer asked why the boy kept saying that his dad would not like it.

 

The boy replied, ‘Well, my father is under the trailer!’”

           Loyd C. Taylor, Sermon Central, May 27, 2024.

 

A promise

 

“. . . so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”

           Exodus 20:12b NIV

 

II.  OBEY

 

“Frankly, when I was a little guy I had my own ideas about that business of honoring parents so my days would be long upon the earth; I thought it meant that, if I didn’t honor them, Dad would kill me!”

           Russell Brownworth

 

“Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.””

       Ephesians 6:1-3 NIV

 

          1.  Carry out a command or instruction

     2.  Behave 

 

“Nearly thirty years ago, I was a middle school teacher in Kenya. One day I took 20 students, and I told them: "I will do my best to teach you and train you. If you obey me, you will be the best students of this school." They were excited.

 

In a short time, I realized that only some of them were willing to keep up with my training. Some of them said, "It’s too difficult." Some said, "We have more important things to do." Some of them said, "You see other students are having more fun than we do." When they graduated, 2 of them were the best students of the school. Only 2 out of 20.”

           Dr. Nicholas M. Muteti, Sermon Central, June 15, 2011.

 

III.  REVERE

 

"Reverence is the very first element of religion; it cannot but be felt by every one who has right views of the divine greatness and holiness, and of his own character in the sight of God."

           Charles Simmons

 

“For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’”

        Matthew 15:4 NIV

 

“Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.”

           Exodus 21:17 NIV

 

“Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death. Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head.”

         Leviticus 20:9 NIV

 

“If someone curses their father or mother, their lamp will be snuffed out in pitch darkness.”

         Proverbs 20:20 NIV

 

     1.  Respect

2.  Admiration

 

CONCLUSION

 

Victor Frankl was a survivor of the holocaust. His famous book is called "Man's Search for Meaning."

 

“The reader may ask me why I did not try to escape what was in store for me after Hitler had occupied Austria. Let me answer the question by recalling the following story.

 

Shortly before the United States entered WWII, I received an invitation to come to the American consulate in Vienna to pick up my immigration Visa.

 

My old parents were overjoyed because they’re expected that I would soon be allowed to leave Austria. I suddenly hesitated, however. The question beset me: Could I really afford to leave my parents alone to face their fate, to be sent, sooner or later, into a concentration camp, or even to a so-called extermination camp?

 

Where did my responsibility lie?

 

Should I foster my brainchild, logotherapy, by emigrating to fertile soil where I could write my books? Or should I concentrate on my duties as a real child, the child of my parents, who had to do whatever he could to protect them?

 

I pondered the problem this way and that but could not arrive at a solution; this was the type of dilemma that had made one wish for a “hint from heaven,” as the phrase goes.

 

It was then that I noticed a piece of marble lying on the table at home. When I asked my father about it, he explained that he had found it on the site where the National Socialists have burned down the largest Viennese synagogue. He had taken the piece home because it was a part of the tablets on which the 10 commandments were inscribed.

 

One gilded Hebrew letter was engraved on the piece; my father explained that this letter stood for one of the 10 commandments.

 

Eagerly I asked, “which one is it?”

 

He answered, “Honor thy father and thy mother that thy days may be long upon the land.”

At that moment I decided to stay with my father and my mother upon the land and to let the American Visa lapse.”

           Viktor Frankl, “Man’s Search For Meaning”, pp. xv-xvi.

 

Honor your father and mother.  Honor.  Obey.  Revere.

 

INVITATION

 

It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word.  You may want to follow Jesus.  You may want to proclaim your faith.  You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things).  Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church.  If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now.  If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.