Sermons by Pastor Matt Erickson (Page 16)
Joseph
Looking at the birth of Jesus through the eyes and experience of Joseph. Matthew 1:18-25 SERMON OUTLINE “An angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’” (Matthew 1:20) Joseph the Upright (Matthew 1:18-19) righteous – “faithful to the law” merciful Joseph the Dreamer (Matthew 1:20-23) dreams of Joseph (1:20-21; 2:13;…
Men of Faith and the Exile
A word about the genealogy of Jesus and why it is important. This week will give attention to three man in Jesus’ line—Abraham, David, and Josiah—with some discussion of the exile. Matthew 1:1-17, esp. 1:2, 6, 11-12 SERMON OUTLINE “This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham” (Matthew 1:1) The Genealogy of Jesus Matthew’s structure: 3 groupings of 14 generation Differences between Matthew and Luke Matthew’s goal in the genealogy: to show…
Arriving One: The Final Destination of the Church
This final week will talk about the glorious unity of the church at the end of human history that does not diminish the visible uniqueness of “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language.” How does this vision shape our unity now and encourage us toward unity then? SERMON OUTLINE “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and…
Praying One: Learning to Pray for Unity from Jesus’ Prayer
The night before He went to the Cross, Jesus prayed that His followers “may be one as we are one” (John 17:11). If Jesus prayed for this, we can guarantee that it will not be accomplished apart from prayer. We will look at Jesus’ high priestly prayer in John 17 to learn how prayer is vital for unity. John 17:1-26 SERMON OUTLINE “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their…
Becoming One: the developing unity of the church as the community of Christ
We are one because of Jesus, but we are becoming one through Jesus. In Philippians Paul calls a community in tension, where divisions exist, toward unity by using their advantage to serve one another and move toward unity of mind and heart. This week will explore doctrinal and identity unity, equality of status and standing in Christ, and diversity of gifting and personality in the church. Ephesians 4:1-6; Philippians 2:1-11; 4:1-3; 1 Corinthians 11:18-19; 12 SERMON OUTLINE “In your relationships…
Made One: the positional unity of the church in Jesus Christ
The Gospel of Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:1-10) leads to the fundamental unity of the church as one new humanity (Ephesians 2:11-20). We are one because of Jesus. This is woven into the doctrinal realities of our faith (Ephesians 4:1-6) and the lived experience of the church as the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12). Ephesians 2:11-20; 4:1-6; 1 Corinthians 12 SERMON OUTLINE “His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and…
God is One: Monotheism and the Triune God
This message will explore the unity of God as Trinity, which is at the heart of our faith and any understanding of unity. Subthemes will include the distinctive persons of the Trinity, how this fits within the overall oneness of God, how God’s three-in-one existence is found in Scripture, and what this means for any discussion of unity. SERMON OUTLINE “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” (Deuteronomy 6:4) God is One (Exodus 20:2-3; Deuteronomy 6:4-5)…
Faith-Full Public Engagement
What does our faith mean in relation to the wide variety of publicly debated concerns in our society, like abortion, marriage, healthcare, economic models, and more? We will begin to construct a biblical framework for thoughtful Christian engagement with these various concerns. We also plan to consider what it means to live together and converse with one another as God’s people, even when we may not see everything from the same perspective as we engage in the public sphere. SERMON OUTLINE…
The Kingdom of God and the Kingdoms of this World
When Jesus proclaimed that “the kingdom of God has come near” (Mark 1:15), He declared the radical in-breaking of God’s rule and reign. Based on exploration of the nature of the kingdom of God, we now explore how God’s kingdom relates to the kingdoms of this world? We will explore some basic approaches to “Christ and Culture” over the history of the church. We will also consider what it means that Jesus is King in relation to our earthly citizenship.…
The Holy Spirit in Us: Living in the Kingdom of God
The basic declaration of faith for the Christian is “Jesus is Lord” (Romans 10:9). This flies in the face of the declaration that “Caesar is Lord” at the heart of the Roman Empire during the time of the New Testament. What did it mean to live in God’s kingdom then and what does it mean now? We will look at Philippians as a kingdom citizenship guide and also explore guidance from Colossians on seeing the Church as a replacement of…
Jesus is Lord: Tracing the Kingdom of God in the New Testament
Jesus the Messiah and the kingdom of God/heaven. We will explore Jesus’ description of the kingdom, the nature of the gospel, kingdom parables, kingdom ethics, as well as conflict between Jesus and other kingdoms. We will touch on living in the “now” and “not yet” of the kingdom, with attention to the fullness of the kingdom in the New Testament as described in Hebrews and Revelation. Mark 1:15; Matthew 4:23; 9:35; 5-7; John 18:33-36; Hebrews 11:10, 13, 14; Revelation 7:9-10;…
God is King: Tracing the Kingdom of God through the Old Testament
The fundamental reality of Scripture is that God is king of the world. We will trace the theme of the kingdom of God throughout the Old Testament, with examples from Adam and Eve, Samuel and the judges, King Saul and King David, the prophets and exile, Daniel’s apocalyptic, and Messianic expectations. Genesis 1-2; 1 Samuel 8:1-9; Psalm 24; Daniel 2:29-49; 7:1-28 SERMON OUTLINE “Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty.” (Psalm 24:8) God is King over…