Pastor Scott's Musings

  What’s in Your Heart? (Luke 6:36-49) [Slide] Do your remember the Capital One commercials with the tagline, “What’s in Yor Wallet?” I always liked the one with the pirates. A wife comes home from shopping and says, “I found a lot of good deals!” The husband replies, “I hope you didn’t put all that on the credit card. Those interest rates are gonna get us!” Pirates appear wielding swords and knives. As they approach the couple, the wife says, “Don’t worry. I used our new Capital One Card.” The pirates freeze and all of them groan with disappointment. Then the pirate captain yells, “To the neighbors!” The cannon balls fly and mayhem ensues because I guess the neighbors didn’t use the right credit card. If today’s message was a commercial for Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain at the end of Luke 6, the tagline might be, “What’s in Your Heart?” [Title Slide] Last week we learned about loving our enemies. Jesus continues by teaching us to not judge others. It seems Luke has collected a s...

  [Title Slide] Love Your Enemies (Luke 6:27-36)   Last Sunday we looked at the introduction to Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6.   There is a large crowd of disciples and a great number of people from all over who came to hear Jesus and to be healed. Jesus opened his sermon with a series of blessing and woes.   There are benefits for those who come into the kingdom. Those who move from the influence of the world and under the influence of the Lordship of Jesus Christ will be blessed with plenty, happiness, and reward in the coming kingdom of God. Those who choose to remain under the world’s influence, following the ways of the world rather than the way of Christ, will find themselves wanting, unhappy, and empty. Jesus is promising rewards that surpass what the world can give, soul-deep satisfaction, abiding joy, and honor before God as His faithful. These blessings come from above and last forever. Those who put their faith in earthly things will never...

  [Title Slide] The Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6:12-26)   So far in our journey through the gospel of Luke, we have seen a lot of activity from heaven and through the work of the Holy Spirit. The priest Zechariah has a vision of the angel Gabriel next to the altar of incense in the temple. He didn’t believe the angel that he and his wife were to have a son. They were old and his wife had never been able to get pregnant. The angel struck the old priest mute because of his unbelief. Zechariah was unable to speak until his son was born. The angel Gabriel visited Mary and announced that she would bear the Son of God and she would name him Jesus, acknowledging that Jesus is the promised messiah come to Israel at last. Mary believed. She visited her cousin Elizabeth and the baby John leapt in her womb at the sound of Mary’s greeting! Then both Elizabeth and Mary filled with the Holy Spirit broke out in praise to God for what was happening!   On the night Jesus was born...