04/30_Signposts Along the Way

Signposts Along the Way

Luke 24:13-34

                                                    

Going "old school" today, but first...

Ø       Road signs...

• A lot of funny ones in the world... and on Google
• But some are easily missed...

Ø       The disciples on the road missed a few things...

• Jesus walking with them; the necessity of the crucifixion
• Are we any differe-nt?

Ø       “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures."  - Jesus of Nazareth, 30AD

• We're not the 1st generation to struggle with what was written!
• We have come up with new and ingenious reasons to ignore it.
  
  

Ignoring the Signs

Ø       The Inevitable March of Progress?

• More of the world explained (and explained away)
• Science has provided us a MUCH better quality of life
• The promise of a new secular age...
• ...which had theologians trying to "insulate" the gospel:

¨       "Not 'fact' but still 'true'"

¨       The "Social Gospel" as a "gospel" for this world only

• ...which in fact has NOT happened:

¨       more people un-churched, but not all that more atheists

¨       most are "spiritual," or superstitious

¨       In March 2016, a temple dedicated to the Norse god Odin & other gods opened in Denmark. Nine Roosters were sacrificed and consumed as a part of the ritual.

¨       After a popular campaign, European Union officials agreed to add the leprechauns as a protected species in the area of the Carlingford mountains.  (263 left)

• "When people stop believing in God, they don't believe in nothing— they believe in anything." ~ G. K. Chesterton
• Two world wars, multiple genocides, the threat of nuclear war...
• Scientific progress has shown us how to do many things; it has nothing to say about whether doing them is good...

Ø       But WE certainly aren't like that, right?

• A little fill-in-the-blank...
• For God so loved the world that _________________
• In the beginning was the _____________________
• And you will see the Son of Man coming __________
• If your eye offends you ____________
• The just shall live _____________
• Yea though I walk through _______________
• For everything there is a season, and _______________
• Go to Pharaoh and say to him, 'Thus says the LORD, the God of the Hebrews, ________  _______  ____
• ..choose you this day whom you will serve... but as for me and my house, _______________________
• And some other things...
• First 5 books?The 4 gospel writers?
• Who wrote most of the NT letters?
• What makes James and Jude so special of the NT writers?
• Where to look for a coat of many colors?
• Who was safe in the lions' den? In the fiery furnace? Did they know each other?

Ø       First order VBS stuff?

• Any teacher should tell you, to perform higher level thinking, you have to have some content.
• How much time have you spent with God's word not just over the past week, but over your life?
• If you were taken to North Korea, could you tell your kids and grandkids the stories of Jesus?
  
  

Following the Directions

Ø       And in the meantime...

• Jesus invites us to walk with Him and talk with Him, in a concrete way that will challenge our presuppositions, and change our thoughts and desires...
• Every story was given for a reason
• Yes, they are "stories."Yes, they really, factually, happened.  But these were recorded intentionally by the authors, and the Author guiding them.

Ø       What is the point of this story?

• Jesus is with us! Even when the times are tough.
• Jesus will teach us through our engagement with God's word! That learning experience will challenge us, but also comfort us.
• We will experience His presence as we fellowship with one another, especially in the "breaking of bread" (communion).
• And that is how we receive strength for the journey!

Ø       Finally, lets end with some "signs"

• Jeremiah 29:11; Matthew 11:28-29; Isaiah 40:29-31
• Romans 8:37-39; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Revelation 3:5