Sunday, August 9, 2026
Saturday, August 8, 2026
“COUNTING EVERY BLESSING: God crowns you with love and compassion.” - 8-9-26
“COUNTING EVERY BLESSING: God crowns you with love and compassion.” - 8-9-26
INTRODUCTION
Blessings
God forgives all our sins.
God heals all our diseases.
God redeems your life from the pit.
“Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Psalms 103:1-6 NIV
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.”
Psalms 103:1-6 NIV
I. GOD CROWNS YOU
A. Crown - to encompass or adorn or decorate
B. Application and enjoyment
C. Abundance
D. Honor and honorable
E. Preservation and protection
As if the crown were woven out of love and compassion (attributes of God)
Proverbs 3:3-4 NIV
“Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.”
Proverbs 3:3-4 NIV
Sacrificial love has transforming power. Genuine love is volitional rather than emotional. The person who truly loves does so because of a decision to love. This person has made a commitment to be loving whether or not the loving feeling is present. It if is, so much the better; but if it isn't, the commitment to love, the will to love, still stands and is still exercised. Conversely, it is not only possible but necessary for a loving person to avoid acting on feelings of love. I may meet a woman who strongly attracts me, whom I feel like loving, but because it would be destructive to my marriage to have an affair, I will say vocally or in the silence of my heart, "I feel like loving you, but I am not going to." My feelings of love may be unbounded, but my capacity to be loving is limited. I therefore must choose the person on whom to focus my capacity to love, toward whom to direct my will to love. True love is not a feeling by which we are overwhelmed. It is a committed, thoughtful decision.
Dr. M. Scott Peck
II. GOD CROWNS YOU WITH LOVE
John 13:34-35 NIV
““A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.””
John 13:34-35 NIV
The Greek word agape (love) seems to have been virtually a Christian invention -- a new word for a new thing (apart from about twenty occurrences in the Greek version of the Old Testament, it is almost non-existent before the New Testament). Agape draws its meaning directly from the revelation of God in Christ. It is not a form of natural affection, however, intense, but a supernatural fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22). It is a matter of will rather than feeling (for Christians must love even those they dislike -- Matt. 5:44-48). It is the basic element in Christ-likeness.
James Packer, Your Father Loves You, Harold Shaw Publishers, 1986
There is not much difference lexically between agapaO and phileO. Both involve a voluntary (I've decided to love you) and involuntary (I can't help but love you) response. One point: there is no command to love in scripture that ever uses phileO.
Source Unknown
A. Loving kindness, favor, mercy
B. An attribute of God
C. A gift and a tool
Love ever gives.
Forgives, outlives,
And ever stands
With open hands.
And while it lives,
It gives,
For this is love's perogative--
To give, and give, and give.
Oxenham
III. GOD CROWNS YOU WITH COMPASSION
Colossians 3:12-14 NIV
“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
“Whoever loves much, does much.”
Thomas a' Kempis.
A. Compassion, tender mercies, the womb
B. An attribute of God
C. Deep feelings (racham in Hebrew like splognos in Greek)
D. A gift and a burden
A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death.
"But I don't ask for justice," the mother explained. "I plead for mercy."
"But your son does not deserve mercy," Napoleon replied.
"Sir," the woman cried, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask for."
"Well, then," the emperor said, "I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's son.
Luis Palau, Experiencing God's Forgiveness, Multnomah Press, 1984
CONCLUSION
If we discovered that we had five minutes left to say all we wanted to say, every telephone booth would be occupied by people calling other people to stammer that they love them. Why wait until the last five minutes?
C. Morley, in Homemade, July, 1990
God crowns you. God crowns you with love. God crowns you with compassion.
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.
Sunday, August 2, 2026
Saturday, August 1, 2026
“COUNTING EVERY BLESSING: God redeems your life from the pit.” - 8-2-26
“COUNTING EVERY BLESSING: God redeems your life from the pit.” - 8-2-26
INTRODUCTION
Blessings
God forgives all our sins.
God heals all our diseases.
Psalms 103:1-6 NIV
“Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits— who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion, who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.”
Psalms 103:1-6 NIV
I. GOD REDEEMS
During COVID-19 redeeming pop cans became quite the chore. Stores had limited hours, limited number of people allowed to redeem cans, etc. Redemption was not easy.
A. A price was paid.
A story told by Paul Lee Tan illustrates the meaning of redemption. He said that when A.J. Gordon was pastor of a church in Boston, he met a young boy in front of the sanctuary carrying a rusty cage in which several birds fluttered nervously. Gordon inquired, "Son, where did you get those birds?" The boy replied, "I trapped them out in the field." "What are you going to do with them?" "I'm going to play with them, and then I guess I'll just feed them to an old cat we have at home." When Gordon offered to buy them, the lad exclaimed, "Mister, you don't want them, they're just little old wild birds and can't sing very well." Gordon replied, "I'll give you $2 for the cage and the birds." "Okay, it's a deal, but you're making a bad bargain." The exchange was made and the boy went away whistling, happy with his shiny coins. Gordon walked around to the back of the church property, opened the door of the small wire coop, and let the struggling creatures soar into the blue. The next Sunday he took the empty cage into the pulpit and used it to illustrate his sermon about Christ's coming to seek and to save the lost -- paying for them with His own precious blood. "That boy told me the birds were not songsters," said Gordon, "but when I released them and they winged their way heavenward, it seemed to me they were singing, 'Redeemed, redeemed, redeemed!"
B. An exchange was made.
C. God paid the price.
1 Corinthians 7:23a NIV
“You were bought at a price;”
1 Corinthians 7:23a NIV
1 Peter 1:18-19 NIV
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.”
1 Peter 1:18-19 NIV
Galatians 3:13 NIV
“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.””
Galatians 3:13 NIV
1 John 2:2 NIV
“He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
1 John 2:2 NIV
1 Timothy 2:5-6 NIV
“For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time.”
1 Timothy 2:5-6 NIV
Ephesians 1:7 NIV
“In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace”
Ephesians 1:7 NIV
II. GOD REDEEMS YOUR LIFE
"Redemption is a word implying helplessness. The picture of redemption is of one held captive by forces that cannot be overcome. Only a third party can intervene to rescue. Redemption never comes by our own efforts. Spiritually, redemption cannot happen without a Redeemer. This word is precious because it reminds followers of Jesus that relationship with Him has been purchased at great cost."
Anonymous, Sermon Central, April 12, 2007.
Titus 2:11-14 NIV
“For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”
Titus 2:11-14 NIV
A. Physical life, not just our soul.
B. This is the total redemption of your personal self.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV
C. God paid the price.
III. GOD REDEEMS YOUR LIFE FROM THE PIT
Romans 6:23 NIV
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 6:23 NIV
A. The pit (Hebrew-literal pit, destruction, death, etc.)
B. Our lives were destined for destruction.
C. God paid the price.
Galatians 3:14 NIV
“He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.”
Galatians 3:14 NIV
Tom carried his new boat to the edge of the river. He carefully placed it in the water and slowly let out the string. How smoothly the boat sailed! Tom sat in the warm sunshine, admiring the little boat that he had built. Suddenly a strong current caught the boat. Tom tried to pull it back to shore, but the string broke. The little boat raced downstream.
Tom ran along the sandy shore as fast as he could. But his little boat soon slipped out of sight. All afternoon he searched for the boat. Finally, when it was too dark to look any longer, Tom sadly went home.
A few days later, on the way home from school, Tom spotted a boat just like his in a store window. When he got closer, he could see -- sure enough -- it was his!
Tom hurried to the store manager: "Sir, that's my boat in your window! I made it!"
"Sorry, son, but someone else brought it in this morning. If you want it, you'll have to buy it for one dollar."
Tom ran home and counted all his money. Exactly one dollar! When he reached the store, he rushed to the counter. "Here's the money for my boat." As he left the store, Tom hugged his boat and said, "Now you're twice mine. First, I made you and now I bought you."
Good News Publishers, Westchester, IL.
Titus 2:14 NIV
“who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”
Titus 2:14 NIV
CONCLUSION
Psalms 107:2 NIV
“Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their story— those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,”
Psalms 107:2 NIV
God redeems. God redeems your life. God redeems your life from the pit.
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.
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