Guerrilla Christianity

Sermon #442 Those who experienced the resurrection first-hand (the apostles, and the many eyewitnesses to Jesus' resurrection as reported by Paul) had a certain boldness to their evangelism.  After all, they had seen the resurrected Jesus in the flesh.  We who have received their eyewitness accounts can also experience this boldness when it comes to conviction of sin.  While the Spirit within us convicts us of sin when we give into temptation, God's Spirit never condemns us - that condemnation was poured out on Jesus at the cross in our place.  So we have boldness before God because our hearts do not condemn us.  This is what John teaches us in his letter today. 1 John 3:16-24 Recorded at Hudson UMC on April 25, 2021 (Originally published on May 4, 2021) Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

April 21, 2024 First Lesson: Acts 4:5-12 Psalter: Psalm 23 Epistle Lesson: 1 John 3:16-24 Gospel Lesson: John 10:11-18 Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. S.D.G.

Sermon #439 As Christians we have a temptation to say that we ought not to mourn in times of sadness.  Yet there is much biblical evidence that mourning is a proper response to sad events, such as the death of a loved one.  The disciples, who heard Jesus' teaching about his own death and resurrection, still mourned when he was killed on the cross.  But their mourning was turned to joy when they encountered the risen Christ.  What we see in today's teaching from Easter Sunday 2021 is that Christ turns our mourning to joy when he speaks our name. John 20:1-18 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on April 4, 2021 (Originally published on April 8, 2021) Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

Sermon #601 We're beginning a new series for the season of Easter based in the first general epistle of John.  The purpose of John's letter was to dispute the twin heresies of Docetism and Gnosticism that was rising in the First Century church.  Using statements that contrast dark and light, righteousness and sin, John systematically presents a case that shows that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all (1:5).  He also addresses the Gnostic assertion that some secret knowledge is required for salvation, saying that all that is necessary is repentance and faith.  He assures his readers that when we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive our sin and to cleanse us from all iniquity (1:8).  All this is made manifest in the work and person of Jesus Christ, the personification of God's love to the world.  And the word that we use to describe this perfect love is the Greek word Agape.  This will be the focus of our series and it is the message that we receive this day. 1 John 1:1-2:2 Reco

Sermon #441 What is hope?  The worldly definition is that hope is a desire for something as yet unfulfilled.  The Christian definition of hope is inextricably tied to the promises of God, that he has fulfilled those promises in the past and will fulfill them again in the future.  That is our hope, and it was the hope of the early disciples who continued to proclaim the resurrection of Jesus because they had seen it with their own eyes.  Their hope was in the past fulfillment of Jesus' words, that he must be betrayed, killed, and raised to life again on the third day.  When that promise was fulfilled, their faith was solidified in the hope that his promise to prepare a place for us would likewise be realized. 1 John 3:1-7 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on April 18, 2021 (Originally published April 23, 2021) Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

April 14, 2024 First Lesson: Acts 3:12-19 Psalter: Psalm 4 Epistle Lesson: 1 John 3:1-7 Gospel Lesson: Luke 24:36b-48 Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. S.D.G.

Sermon #438 Easter Sunday is the day when we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, and so it seems fitting to focus on the resurrection of Jesus throughout the Easter Season.  The resurrection is what gives our faith validity.  Without the resurrection, Jesus was merely a good teacher (although how good could he be, since he claimed to be the Son of God?).  The resurrection is the receipt for the debt that Jesus paid for us on the cross.  It puts the final stamp of approval on his ministry, and proves to the world who he is - the second person of the Trinity and seated at the right hand of God the Father.  Jesus' death and resurrection is the good news, and as Paul tells us in his letter to the church in Corinth, we can believe in the resurrection because there were so many eyewitnesses.  Ours is indeed a faith based in evidence. 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Recorded at Hudson UMC Cemetery on April 4, 2021 (Originally published on April 6, 2021) View episode on YouTube S.D.G.

Sermon #600 Why were Jesus' followers so willing to die for the truth of the resurrection?  Why was the Christian Sabbath shifted from the seventh day to the first day of the week?  Why did Paul insist that believing in the resurrection was of utmost importance?  On this Easter Sunday (2024) we take a look at a letter that Paul wrote to the church in Corinth in 54 AD, and he stresses that the knowledge of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the good news of the gospel, and by it we who are believers are being saved.  It's not some throwaway doctrine that is unnecessary on this side of the Enlightenment, when many religious leaders are embarassed by the miracles of Jesus.  The resurrection is THE paramount miracle of Jesus, that he died and rose again according to the scriptures, and in fact everything we believe about Jesus Christ depends on the truth of the resurrection. 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on March 31, 2024 Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

Each year on Good Friday, the churches of the Ministerium of Penns Grove, Carneys Point, and Pedricktown hold a joint worship service from Noon until 3 PM. The Seven Last Words of Christ on the Cross are presented, with worship music and sermon messages for each word. Each year for the last six years I have participated in this service, and each year I have preached on a different word. This year (2020) was to be my seventh year, but because of the Coronavirus, the service was cancelled. And so, because I had already written the sermon, I recorded it... But I also decided to compile all seven of the messages into one podcast for Good Friday. And so, in the order below, we present to you the Seven Last Words of Christ from the Cross. 1. “Father, forgive them…” Sermon #387 Luke 23:34 April 10, 2020 – Ebenezer UMC 2. “Today, you will be with me in Paradise.” Luke 23:43 “The Tale of the Thief” Sermon #51 April 18, 2014 – St. Paul’s UMC 3. “Behold your son…Behold your mother” John 19:26-27 “The Heart of the Maste

View Full Service on YouTube Tenebrae is a Latin word that means "Darkness." The Tenebrae service is a reading of the Passion account from John's Gospel, broken down into 16 readings, and after each of the first fourteen readings a candle is extinguished until the entire sanctuary is clothed in darkness. This represents the light of Christ being extinguised on the cross, and it also represents the three hours of darkness that the people experienced as He hung on the cross. After the 15th reading, a loud noise is made, symbolizing the earthquake that occurred at the death of Jesus. It is a somber and solemn service of contemplation. We have attempted to recreate the service in its entirety here, and hope that you will be blessed in its re-enactment. Entrance - Gathering The Call to Worship: God is light, in whom there is no darkness at all. Jesus Christ is the light of the world. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and we loved darkness rather than light. Hymn: Alas! and Did My Sa

March 27, 2024 Old Testament: Isaiah 40:4-9a Psalter: Psalm 70 Epistle Lesson: Hebrews 12:1-3 Gospel Lesson: John 13:21-32 Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. S.D.G.

Sermon #598 When we look at the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, we find a story that we know very well.  After all, we celebrate Palm Sunday every year; ever since we were kids in Sunday School we learned about how Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and the people threw their cloaks and palm branches at his feet, crying "Hosanna!"  But it's that word, Hosanna, which always confused me as a child.  I thought it was a cry of praise for Jesus the conquering king.  But it is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words "yosa 'ana" which means "Save now, we beseech you!"  The people were crying out to be saved, and Jesus came to do just that... But not how the people expected.   Psalm 118 Recorded at Hudson UMC on March 24, 2024 Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

March 26, 2024 Old Testament: Isaiah 49:1-7 Psalter: Psalm 71:1-14 Epistle Lesson: 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 Gospel Lesson: John 12:20-36 Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. S.D.G.

March 25, 2024 Old Testament: Isaiah 42:1-9 Psalter: Psalm 36:5-11 Epistle Lesson: Hebrews 9:11-15 Gospel Lesson: John 12:1-11 Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. S.D.G.

Sermon #437 Like so many other stories in the Bible, the account of the triumphal entry into Jerusalem is so familiar to us that we might just gloss over it's deeper meaning.  What we see in these eleven brief verses in Mark's gospel is that Jesus is who he says he is - the very Son of God, God of very God, and complete and utter master over time and space.  And what we might deem as human failure after such a great victory, God considered to be the ultimate victory over sin and death.  This Palm Sunday I pray that you will hear these words anew and learn from God's Spirit as we celebrate God's coming kingdom. Mark 11:1-11 Recorded at Hudson UMC on March 28, 2021 (Originally published March 31, 2021) View on YouTube S.D.G.

March 24, 2024   Liturgy of the Palms:   Gospel Lesson: Mark 11:1-11   Psalter: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29   Liturgy of the Passion:   Old Testament: Isaiah 50:4-9a   Psalter: Psalm 31:9-16   Epistle Lesson: Philippians 2:5-11   Gospel Lesson: Mark 14:1-15:47   Scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.   S.D.G.

Sermon #105 Jesus' ministry began with the Jews, God's chosen people whom he came to save.  But in today's text we see a group of non-Jews seeking to find Jesus, and to see what all the comotion is about.  Like the Greeks, we need to see Jesus revealed to us, not just as a great teacher, not just as a worker of miracles, but as the very Son of God who came to the world He created, to save it from sin and death.  So grab your Bible, turn it to John chapter 12, and prepare your heart and mind as we declare, We wish to see Jesus. John 12:20-33 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on March 22, 2015 (Originally published May 11, 2015) S.D.G.  

Sermon #597 People often say it is impossible to know if there is a God, and if there is one, it is impossible to know anything about Him.  Two weeks ago we looked at the difference between General Revelation - the existence of God revealed in creation - and Special Revelation - God's specific attributes revealed in the inspired word of God, the Bible.  This week we dive deeper into how we can know God by reading His word.  God's word reveals to us as much about ourselves as it does about Him, and if we truly love God we will desire to know Him more, and we can know Him more by reading about Him in the Bible.  The question and challenge for us today is, how much time are you spending in God's word, and what is keeping you from reading the Bible, when it is God's revelation to us about Himself? Psalm 119:9-16 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on March 17, 2024 Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

Sermon #596 What is your testimony?  The stories we tell others, particularly to non-believers, about how we were saved by God's grace are powerful in that they are undisputable.  They are OUR stories, and we lived them.  In today's reading in Psalms, we encounter four stories of how God rescued the people of Israel when they humbled themselves and repented, calling out to Him.  We see how our salvation is not dependent upon our faith in God, but that our faith in God stems from the grace we receive from him (as per Ephesians 2:8-9).  And so we find our stories in these four testimonies, and we learn how we can likewise share our stories with others - that we were brought low by sin, that we cried out to God, and He delivered us, and now we praise Him in every aspect of our lives. Psalm 107 Recorded at Ebenezer UMC on March 10, 2024 Watch on YouTube S.D.G.

Sermon #435 There is an odd story in the book of Numbers that involves venomous snakes biting the people (sent as a judgment by God for their disobedience).  Instead of removing the snakes, God instructs Moses to put a bronze serpent on a pole so that anyone who is bitten by a venomous snake can look at it and live.  Jesus tells us in John chapter 3 that the bronze serpent is a type of the cross, meaning that God was pointing to Jesus on the cross in that moment.  So what can we learn about the cross from that story?  We will be looking at that and more in today's message in our Lenten series, Journey to the Cross. John 3:14-21 (Numbers 21:4-9) Recorded at Hudson UMC on March 14, 2021 (Originally published on March 15, 2021) Watch on YouTube S.D.G.