Be honest: Does it really feel like Jesus’ yoke is “easy” and His burden “light” (Matthew 11:28-30)?

Some of the time, it feels quite the opposite. Even if there is plenty of hope and grace, God’s plan of salvation is fraught with temptations, and difficulties. It makes it hard for us to really “be excited” about living a life filled with so many challenges.

And yet, 1 John 5:3 says that true obedience is when following His commandments are “not burdensome.” How are we supposed to do that? How do we get to a point where His commandments are not only “not burdensome,” but a delight for us to perform?

Answer: Full and total commitment to His Word.

Jonah is known by his encounter with the with fish, but despite that part of the story, he’s a surprisingly relatable character. Not only is his application of grace similar, but also how he kicks back against any kind of obedience that is uncomfortable.

The last chapter of 2 Timothy also serves as the last class in this series. One major theme of this section is the emotion that Paul pours into the people that have supported him through the years…as well as those who have turned their back on him.

Through it all, Paul keeps his faith fixated on Jesus and His Word.

Persecution is a very real issue for christians everywhere, but those who preach in tough areas have it especially rough. Since Paul had lived through just about every persecution you can think of, he advised Timothy to get ready to face the same issues.

Philip and Nathanael is a perfect example of simple, practical evangelism. He simply told Nathanael about the Christ, and when Nathanael offered a snarky comment back, Philip asked Nathanael to see for himself.

Sometimes, we make evangelism more difficult than it should be. The model that’s outlined in Scripture is straightforward, and based on telling as many people the good news about Jesus as humanly possible.

That’s ultimately what evangelism is about — telling everyone the good news about Jesus.

Church benevolence is an ongoing issue, and Paul warns Timothy of giving away church funds to the point that it “burdens” the church. In doing so, he lays out a set of guidelines that should help them know when to give church money.

Notice how it begins and ends with Christians.

When Abraham watched the angels descend into Sodom, what went through his mind? What would those next 24 hours be like?

Truthfully, spending 24 hours in Sodom is pretty similar to spending 24 hours in pretty much any other major city that has ever existed through time. But rather than just accept the depravity around it, are we going to “stand in the gap” and do something about it? Or will we just go along for the ride as our civilization decays more and more?

Elders are important, so the qualifications that decide those men must be taken seriously.

But is it possible that we’ve missed the forest for the trees? While each individual guideline must be measured up against the men that are being considered for eldership, we make the mistake sometimes of missing what type of man Paul really wanted to serve as an elder.

It’s good for us to ask questions of our faith, but the biggest one by far is the one that explains our very presence on this earth — why are we here?

The Bible gives us several answers for this (Gen. 1:26; Col. 1:16; Rev. 4:11), but those answers wouldn’t suffice for a non-Christian.

Instead, what this sermon does is try and provide a framework for answering that question. To do that, we need three things: a foundation, contentment, and a purpose. If we find those, we find the answer.

Would you consider yourself lazy?

Of course not. What a silly (and possibly offensive question). We pride ourselves on being go-getters, do-gooders, efficient-yet-not-annoying hard workers that are ready to change the world!

And then, there’s the sloth. Solomon has a lot to say about him — he’s referenced nearly 14 times in Proverbs alone.

It should surprise no one that the sloth’s approach to life is just a little bit different than God’s.