Defining Moments on the Road to Jerusalem - Palm Sunday Meditation from Luke 19:28-40

Here are the notes from my Palm Sunday sermon this morning. Praying it will be a blessing to many.


 

Defining Moments on the Road to Jerusalem - Luke 19:28-40 from Terry Dorsett

The Walking Dead - An Easter Sermon

I had cancer surgery a few weeks ago. By God's grace I am recovering well. I was blessed to preach my first sermon since my surgery yesterday morning for Resurrection Day. Below are the notes from the sermon, which was preached at Faith Fellowship, a church that meets on the campus of the University of Hartford.

Introduction:

•          For years my mother told me our family had this condition called Lynch Syndrome. It is an inherited genetic mutation that makes us more prone to certain kinds of cancer. For years I ignored her, after all, I felt fine. Clearly I did not have cancer.  But finally I went to get tested, assuming everything would come out fine.

•          I remember sitting in the doctor’s office while he was explaining my test results. After he used the word “cancer” half a dozen times, it finally dawned on me what he was saying. I had cancer. It was a life changing moment.

Terry's Colon Cancer

•          The odd thing about cancer is that it starts small. Most people do not even realize it is inside of them. People with early stage cancer just keep living their lives, going to work, loving their families and do not even realize that they are the Walking Dead. But the cancer keeps growing until it eventually causes problems. That is when most people realize it. It is often too late.

•          Thankfully, in my case, my mother and a genetic counselor and the U Conn Colon Cancer Prevention Clinic kept pestering me until I got myself checked out. I really did not like all these people putting their nose in my personal business. And I really did not like all the invasive tests that had to be done to confirm that I had cancer.

•          The surgery to remove my cancer was rough and though I am doing well, I am still limited by certain aspects of my recovery. But I am now CANCER FREE!!!! I am no longer the Walking Dead. I am more fully alive than I have ever been.

What Does All of that Have to Do with Easter?

•          All of us have a deadly cancer growing inside of us. Perhaps not a physical cancer like I had, but a spiritual cancer called sin. It starts small and at first it does not seem to have a negative impact on how we live.

•          Family members, Sunday School teachers, pastors, and friends warn us about it and tell us to deal with it before it gets out of hand. But we typically ignore them because it seems like life is going just fine. We may even be offended that these people put their nose into our personal business. After all who are they to judge us or our behavior?

•          Our sin slowly grows until it begins to cause problems in our lives. That is when we realize we are the Walking Dead.

James 1:14-15 - ¹⁴ But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.¹⁵ Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

•          Each of us desires different things in life. Some of them are good, but some of them are bad.

•          What starts as a bed desire grows into sin. Sin, left unchecked, will eventually destroy us.

•          Sin brings death to relationships. Sin brings death to our hopes and dreams. Sin sometimes brings physical death.

•          But there is a solution to this sin sickness.

1 Timothy 1:15 - This saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.

•          Jesus came to save sinners. He came to make the Walking Dead fully alive and full of joy.

•          Jesus accomplished this through two aspects of the Easter story.

1 Peter 2:22, 24 - He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. ²⁴ He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. 

•          The first part of the Easter story is Jesus dying on the cross.

•          Jesus was sinless, therefore He was pure enough to offer Himself as a sacrifice for us.

•          On the cross all our sins were placed on Jesus. His wounds have the power to heal us of the cancer of sin that is inside us.

•          How do we know He is really powerful enough to cover all our sins?

•          The first part of the Easter story is Jesus dying on the cross. The second part of the Easter story is the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. If Jesus can conquer death then He can conquer anything, even our most despicable sins.

Mark 16:1-7 - When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. ² And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. ³ And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” ⁴ And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. ⁵ And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. ⁶ And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. ⁷ But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.”

Verse 1 - When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so they could go and anoint Him.

•          In those days they did not have modern embalming methods. The way they prepared a body for burial was to put spices in the cloth that they wrapped the body with.

•          The Jewish faith required them to rest on the Sabbath, so they were not able to care for Jesus’ body until the next day.

Verse 3 - They were saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb for us?”

Terry coming out of Jesus' tomb outside Jerusalem

•          On the way to the tomb to care for Jesus’ body, the ladies discussed how they would move the stone that was across the entrance to the tomb.

•          This stone would have been large enough to cover the entrance way, which would have been about waist high for an adult. It would have been fitted into a slot in the ground that sloped down, making it hard to move.

•          It would have taken quite a force of strong men to open the tomb. There is no way these three ladies were going to be able to do it themselves.

•          The women realized that the stone was a problem to be solved, but they walked by faith toward the tomb anyway.

•          Every one of us has some “stone” we have to overcome in order to believe.

•          But if we do not start toward Jesus, believing that somehow that stone is movable, then we will never find Him.

•          We must stop looking for excuses for not believing, and start trusting God to help us find a way to overcome our doubts.

Verse 4 - Looking up, they observed that the stone—which was very large—had been rolled away.

•          As the ladies neared the tomb, they looked up and saw that stone was already rolled away.

•          If we start toward Jesus, even while we still have questions and doubts, we will find that our stumbling blocks have somehow become stepping stones toward the Savior.

Verse 5 - When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; they were amazed and alarmed.

•          The ladies entered the tomb and saw an angel. The other Gospels tell us there were actually two angels there, but they saw this one first and they were both amazed and alarmed.

•          God often sends us numerous messages to get our attention, but we finally see one and start listening. When we first begin to sense God at work in our lives, we may be both amazed and alarmed. We are amazed because we cannot imagine that we are important enough to God that He actually wanted to do something big for us.

•          We are alarmed because we wonder what God might require of us and what will happen.

Verse 6 - "Don't be alarmed," he told them. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has been resurrected! He is not here! See the place where they put Him.

Terry and Kay inside the actual empty tomb

•          The angel told the ladies not to be alarmed because Jesus was alive and everything was going to be alright.

•          Jesus displayed the ultimate power in the universe when He conquered death. Jesus is no longer in the tomb.

•          Some people say that is narrow minded and arrogant for Christianity to claim to be the only way to God. But Jesus is the only founder of a world religion whose tomb is empty!

•          Though other great religious teachers may have done good deeds and helped others, only Jesus conquered sin and death. Other founders of world religions did their thing, good as it may have been, and then died. Jesus did His thing, died and came back to life!

•          If Jesus has the power to conquer death, he has the power to conquer anything.

Verse 7 - But go, tell His disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see Him there just as He told you.'

•          The angel told the ladies to go and tell the disciples, and Peter, that Jesus was alive.

•          Likewise, we have an obligation to tell the Walking Dead around us that Jesus is alive and that He can make them alive as well.

•          Why would the angel specifically mention Peter?

•          Peter had failed Jesus by denying he knew Jesus, just when Jesus needed him most. The angel wanted the ladies to specifically tell Peter that Jesus was alive so that Peter would realize there was hope for him to correct what he had done wrong.

•          Sometimes we feel like we have let God down so much that we can never make things right with Him. We think our sin cancer is too great for God to fix. But Jesus wants us to know that His power to conquer death also gives Him the power to conquer our sin, no matter how great it is. None of us are so far gone that the One who conquered death cannot transform us from the Walking Dead into the fully alive! We are only hopeless if we refuse to respond to Jesus’s calling to salvation. We are only hopeless if we are determined to remain part of the Walking Dead.

•          If we have not yet made a commitment to Christ, TODAY would be a great day to place our faith in Him.

Dear Lord,

I know I have sinned many times in my life. I realize that sin will one day destroy me. I believe that You died for my sins and rose again to conquer sin in my life. I ask You to forgive me of my sins. I commit to serve You for the rest of my life to the best of my ability. In Your name I pray, Amen.

Conclusion:

•                  The power of the Easter story is that if we will commit ourselves to Jesus, He will change us from the Walking Dead into the fully alive.

•                  The power of the Easter story compels us to share this important truth with those around us so they too can be transformed from the Walking Dead into the fully alive. This is especially important for those who think they are too far gone for Jesus to change.

Good Friday Meditation About Skull Hill

Today is Good Friday. As we contemplate what this day means to us, let us meditate on the sacrifice Christ made for us. Take a few minutes to read Luke 23:26-43. Once you have read the passage, spend some time focsued on the verses below and what they mean to us.

Verse 33 - When they arrived at the place called The Skull, they crucified Him there, along with the criminals, one on the right and one on the left.
• This verse troubled archaeologists for centuries because the “traditional” site on which the Roman Catholic Church has built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre does not have a “place of the Skull” as described in the Bible.
• Many people longed to know for sure where the place called The Skull was.
• In 1842 a German Theologian named Otto Thenius first proposed the idea that an outcropping of rock outside the city, which is now known as "Skull Hill," was right beside the actual site of the crucifixion.
• This upset the “traditionalists” a lot.
• But the site was outside the city, looked like a skull and seemed to better fit the biblical description of the place where the crucifixion took place.
• However, few people took Otto Thenius seriously because his ideas went against the “tradition” of the established church.
• Otto Thenius’s idea lay seemingly dormant until the British General Charles Gordon began to publish similar ideas in 1882.
• General Gordon was so well respected in British Society, that people began to take the idea seriously.
• In 1893 the Garden Tomb Association was established in London by some lay people.
• In 1894 they purchased as much of the property around The Skull as possible.
• Kay and I visited the spot in January 2011.
• Here are two pictures of Skull Hill, just outside Jerusalem:

Verse 34 - Then Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing."
• Even as Jesus was terribly tortured, mocked unmercifully, and hung on a cross, He begged His Father to forgive the sins of those doing it.
• If forgiveness was that important to Jesus, how important should it be to us?
• Perhaps this Resurrection Season might be time to let go of old grudges and experience the peace that forgiveness brings.

Verse 39 - Then one of the criminals hanging there began to yell insults at Him: “Aren't You the Messiah? Save Yourself and us!”
• Jesus was hung between two common criminals.
• Though the Romans may have meant this as an insult to the “King of the Jews,” somehow, I think Jesus took it as a complement.
• Jesus liked to spend time with “common” people, why not also die with them?

Verse 40 - But the other answered, rebuking him: "Don't you even fear God, since you are undergoing the same punishment?
• Though one criminal mocked Jesus, the other knew who Jesus was.
• Though it was almost too late, this man realized who Jesus was.
• We often stereotype “messed up” people, thinking they could not possibly understand who Jesus was. But they often can.

Verse 41 - We are punished justly, because we're getting back what we deserve for the things we did, but this man has done nothing wrong.”
• This criminal realized that he deserved his punishment.
• How often do we justify our sin and claim that we do not deserve its natural consequences?
• We could learn a lesson from this criminal!!!
• He also realized that Jesus was innocent.
• That was a deep theological statement.

Verse 42 - Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when You come into Your kingdom!”
• The criminal cried out to Jesus for help.
• The criminal asked the Lord to remember him when Jesus got to heaven.
• Some might argue that the criminal did say the “right words” or pray the “sinner’s prayer correctly.”

Verse 43 - And He said to him, “I assure you: Today you will be with Me in paradise.”
• But Jesus assured the criminal that he would be with Jesus in heaven that very day.
• The devil would like us to doubt our salvation by telling us we did not do it right.
• All that is required for salvation is to acknowledge our sin, turn from it and cast all our hope on Jesus.
• If we did that in our hearts, we did it right regardless of what words we used.

Conclusion:
• Traditions can be wrong, but the Bible is always right.
• Jesus modeled forgiveness, we must also practice forgiveness.
• Even “messed up” people can come to Jesus.
• Salvation is having a heart that totally trusts in Christ alone instead of trusting in human rituals, traditions or religious activity.
• Do we have salvation? Are we sharing it with others?

Sermon from Matthew 16 - Upon This Rock

I preached this past Sunday at Bethlehem Baptist Fellowship, Bethlehem, CT. Here is a video of the sermon. It is in four parts.

Part One: Part Three: Part Four:

We Gotta Get Our Feet Wet

A sermon developed by Dr. Terry W. Dorsett based on Joshua 3.

Introduction:
•        Forty years earlier Moses had led the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt.
•        For forty years they had wandered in the wilderness because of their lack of faith that God could take them all the way into the Promised Land.
•        Many of us have spent many years wandering in a spiritual wilderness.
•        Somewhere along the way we became Christians but we have yet to experience the promises of God.

Verse 1 - Joshua started early the next morning and left Acacia Grove with all the Israelites. They went as far as the Jordan and stayed there before crossing.

•        Joshua started out early in the morning.
•        God often interacted with His people early in the morning.
•        It was early in the morning that Abraham took Isaac to Mount Moriah to test his faith.
•        It was early in the morning that Moses stood before Pharaoh and told him to let the people go.
•        It was early in the morning that David battled Goliath.
•        It was early in the morning when the women went to the tomb and found Jesus already resurrected.
•        Therefore, it makes sense that it was early in the morning when God told Joshua to take the people into the promised land.
•        Though we can spend time with God at any point in the day, if we fail to do it early in the morning, most of us get so busy that we never get around to it the rest of the day.
•        They journeyed for several miles before making camp.
•        Though this may seem like a short distance, remember that Joshua was leading a very large group of people.
•        When we try to lead a larger group, everyone has an opinion or an idea and they all want to go in different directions.
•        We need effective leaders but being a leader is not easy.
•        In fact, leadership is in great demand and short supply.
•        God has also asked men to be leaders in their families.
•        Sadly, many men have failed to do that and families are struggling as a result. Pray for men to step up and lead their families.
•        Every company or organization needs capable leadership.
•        When good leadership is present, people can go far.
•        When bad leadership is present, people become paralyzed and unable to move.
•        We should all endeavor to be good leaders in whatever circles of influence we are in. 

Verses 2-3 - After three days the officers went through the camp and commanded the people: When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God carried by the Levitical priests, you must break camp and follow it.

•        When we see God at work, we must be willing to break camp and follow.
•        We tend to get comfortable with the way things are and do not like it when God tells us to break camp.
•        God does not always do things the way we think He should and He seldom leaves us in our comfort zone for very long.
•        But whatever God does is always the best way things should be done so we should learn to follow Him where ever He leads.

Verse 4 - But keep a distance of about 1,000 yards between yourselves and the ark. Don't go near it, so that you can see the way to go, for you haven't traveled this way before.

•        As Joshua led the people, he told them to keep a certain distance from the Ark.
•        Joshua was not suggesting that they needed to keep a distance between themselves and God. Verse 9 tells us they needed to get as close to God as possible.
•        Joshua simply wanted the people to be able to see the Ark at all times so they would not lose perspective on what God was doing.
•        Too many of us have lost sight of God in our journey through life and we need to regain our perspective.
•        Sometimes we get so busy that we lose sight of God in our lives and taking a step back helps us regain our perspective.
•        If we are too busy to think, we need to step back and eliminate something.
•        If we are too busy to pray, we need to step back and eliminate something.
•        If we are too busy to worship, we need to step back and eliminate something.
•        We must make sure we do not eliminate the very thing we need most, time with God!
•        Joshua reminded the people that though they had not traveled this way before, God would guide them if they stayed focused.
•        Life is full of surprises and we often do not know what lies ahead.
•        This can be scary, but God will guide us.

Verse 5 - Joshua told the people, "Consecrate yourselves, because the LORD will do wonders among you tomorrow."

•        If we want God’s guidance, we must consecrate ourselves.
•        Consecrate comes from the Hebrew word kaw-dash and it means to prepare, dedicate, make holy, or be separate.
•        How often have we really prepared ourselves to hear from the Lord?
•        How dedicated to God are we?
•        What aspects of our lives have we made holy?
•        Have we done anything to set ourselves apart for the Lord?
•        These are challenging questions for each of us.
•        Too many of us are so busy trying to fit into this broken messed up world that we have failed to grasp what God is trying to do.
•        If we want to see God do wonders, we should stop trying to imitate a messed up world and start acting more like Christ.
•        We will not see the wonders of God unless we set ourselves apart for God.
•        If we are living unholy lives, do we really think God will bless us?
•        We must be willing to live right before a holy God if we expect Him to do wonders in our lives.

Verse 6 - Then he said to the priests, "Take the ark of the covenant and go on ahead of the people." So they carried the ark of the covenant and went ahead . . .

•        Joshua told the priests to carry the Ark out in front so everyone could see it.
•        The ark itself was not spiritual.
•        The ark was just a physical symbol of God’s Presence.
•        We often need such symbols to help us visualize the Presence of God in our lives.
•        That is why we wear crosses, or display them in our homes.
•        That is why we observe communion.
•        That is why we light candles.
•        That is why we publicly baptize people.
•        That is why we anoint people with oil.
•        That is why most churches prefer to have a specific building in which to worship.
•        None of these things are spiritual in themselves, they are powerful symbols that help us focus more clearly on the Lord.
•        God was about to show the Israelites another powerful symbol that would seal in their minds His power and provision.

Verse 8 - Command the priests carrying the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the waters, stand in the Jordan.

•        To understand this verse, we must remember biblical history from Exodus.
•        When the Israelites left Egypt, God parted the Red Sea so they could go across.
•        Forty years later the Jordan River stood in the way of the people finally being able to enter the Promised Land and God was going to part it so they could cross over.
•        God was trying to show a new generation that He was still in charge and had the same power that He had in previous generations.
•        Parting the Jordan became a symbol of God’s power that they would remember for generations.
•        What stands in our way keeping us from experiencing God’s blessings and promises?
•        Did we get hurt by someone? Time to let it go!
•        Have we refused to obey God regarding baptism or church involvement? Time to jump in with both feet!
•        Have we willfully ignored something God clearly told us to do? Time to start obeying!
•        Whatever we have let come between us and experiencing all that God wants for us, we need to let it go so we can cross over the Jordan and enter the Promised Land!

Verse 15 - Now the Jordan overflows its banks throughout the harvest season.

•        The river God asked them to cross was at flood stage!
•        It took a lot of faith for them to trust God and step out into the water.
•        It seemed like what God was asking them to do was crazy, but they could not enter the Promised Land without moving forward.
•        We all experience our floods from time to time.
•        But when the river is overflowing its banks the most is exactly when God is calling us to experience His power the greatest!

Verses 15-16 - . . . But as soon as the priests carrying the ark reached the Jordan, their feet touched the water at its edge and the water flowing downstream stood still.

•        As soon as the priests took that first step into the water, God did His part.
•        But nothing was going to happen until they first stepped out into the water and got their feet wet.
•        This must have been a hard thing to trust God for and even harder to actually do.
•        But it was the way God worked then and it is the way God still works today.
•        We must be willing to get our feet wet if we want to see the power of God displayed in our lives.
•        We must be willing to step out into the water and do our part while trusting God to do His.
•        Too often we want God to do everything for us and while He clearly has the power to do everything, most often He waits for us to do our part.
•        Our God is a miracle working God but we have to get our feet wet and step out in faith and trust the Lord if we want to see those miracles.

Verse 17 - The priests carrying the ark of the LORD's covenant stood firmly on dry ground . . .

•        The leaders of God’s people, carrying the symbol of God’s Presence among them, stood firmly in the midst of the flood believing God would make a way for them to cross into the Promised Land.
•        Too many of us do not stand firmly in our faith.
•        We start, and then stop, our spiritual journey.
•        We move one step forward and two steps backward.
•        It is time to stand firm in our faith and watch God do His work in our lives.
•        The Israelites had seen God provide for them in the desert, so they knew God had great power. But they needed this “experience” in the Jordan to help burn into their minds the need to stand firm for God.
•        We often need an experience of some type in order to seal some decision we are trying to make for God. God often gives us some type of experience to let us know He is there and we should be grateful when He does.

Conclusion:

We may not know exactly what God will do in our lives or how He will help us overcome whatever challenge we are facing, but it is time to get our feet wet and step out and trust Him.