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Rejoicing In the Savior’s Birth – Matthew 1:18-25 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 16, 2007 AM Each of the four Gospels begins differently in looking at the birth of Jesus. Matthew begins with Jesus’ family tree. Mark begins with a brief introduction followed by an account of John the Baptist’s ministry. Luke begins with the details of the Christmas story, focusing on Gabriel’s appearance to Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, and to Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus. John’s Gospel starts with a more theological introduction about the Word becoming flesh (John 1:14). Both Matthew and Luke included genealogies of Jesus, but Luke did not include a genealogy until after the record of Jesus’ baptism (Luke 3:23-38). While each is different view of Jesus’ birth, they all give us a fuller picture of the actual event. People in our day and age look at the birth of Jesus differently also, but for different reasons than the gospel writers. Some think it is just a nice story that is rela...

Taking Seriously God’s Message – Jonah 2:10-3:10 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 9, 2007 AM Imagine you are leaving your motel room late one afternoon. You’re hungry and are meeting friends for supper. You notice a small child swimming in the motel pool. The child begins to yell for help, and you realize that the child is drowning. What would you do? If you know how to swim, you might jump into the water and try to save the child. You might extend a pole or some other object to the child who is struggling. In any case, you would do all you could to help. Emergency situations, such as a child drowning, usually evoke action. How many of us as Christians, however, feel a sense of urgency to help those who are sinking in sin? The Bible clearly teaches that God judges sin, but many in our society ignore this teaching. Some Christians believe it to a point but doubt that God will truly condemn unrepentant sinners for eternity. Other Christians believe it absolutely but still feel no sense of ur...

Taking Seriously God’s Message – Jonah 2:10-3:10 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 9, 2007 AM Imagine you are leaving your motel room late one afternoon. You’re hungry and are meeting friends for supper. You notice a small child swimming in the motel pool. The child begins to yell for help, and you realize that the child is drowning. What would you do? If you know how to swim, you might jump into the water and try to save the child. You might extend a pole or some other object to the child who is struggling. In any case, you would do all you could to help. Emergency situations, such as a child drowning, usually evoke action. How many of us as Christians, however, feel a sense of urgency to help those who are sinking in sin? The Bible clearly teaches that God judges sin, but many in our society ignore this teaching. Some Christians believe it to a point but doubt that God will truly condemn unrepentant sinners for eternity. Other Christians believe it absolutely but still feel no sense of ur...

Responding to God’s Call – Jonah 1:1-3; 4-12, 17; 2:1-2 By Pastor Lee Hemen December 2, 2007 AM Have you ever received a sign from God? Has God ever directly given you a message about what He wants you to do? A few years ago billboards in some cities had humorous yet serious messages from God. People often smiled at the idea of God communicating with us through ordinary road signs. Some people today, even some who believe that God exists, reject as absurd the idea that God wants to communicate with human beings, but we will discover that He indeed does! Christians, in fact, know that God is real and that He communicates with us today. He speaks to us primarily through His written Word, the Bible. We also communicate with Him through prayer, a sermon, or during a quiet time alone with Him. Christians believe that God wants all people to know Him personally and that God wants to communicate through believers the good news about the salvation He has provided in Jesus Christ. Some b...