Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 19, 2009
Then there are the thorns which Jesus says are the wealth and cares of the world. Providing for your family, working, spending, the economy, getting more stuff, getting the stuff paid for and so on are all part of the tension of living in this world while being a proper steward of our blessings.
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 19, 2009
based on 2 ratings
| 3,227 views
SOIL AND SPIRITUAL SEASONS
Jesus says these people resemble the soil next to the path which in Palestine could look like decent soil but only an inch deep. Because the soil has settled there maybe blown by the wind or pushed there by the run off from the rain, it can be very fertile.
People are
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 12, 2009
ONE WAY TO WIN: BET IT ALL
God has the answers that we need. I often see people not trusting in God and truly seeking His face. Worshiping with others and seeking out the answers that we are looking for is often done superficially. We show up once or twice and wonder why "church" doesn't seem to
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on May 4, 2009
Often people want to be mighty oaks. They want to be seen as strong and tall and be looked up to. We want the attention. We want to be admired. Except we don’t want to take the time to grow strong, deep roots. Jesus says that he want to make it as clear as possible. God is doing a great and new
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 28, 2009
WELCOME HOME!
Have you seen the show, “Extreme Home Makeover.” A powerful example of helping people and answering the question, “Who is your neighbor?” At the end of the show, Ty always closes with two words. It is the same two words
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 28, 2009
HOW'S MY DRIVING?
A lot of trucks have a sticker on the back that says, "How’s my driving? Call xxx-xxxx to report." This is supposed to make the driver accountable. In Ireland, most people drive very, very courteously. They have roundabouts instead of lights (they do have some lights) where
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 28, 2009
GRACE IS FOR EVERYONE: 3:10 TO YUMA
One of the main themes that we find in a lot (although not all) of Jesus’ parables is God’s grace. Specifically, they often point towards God’s limitless grace. That was a central part of last week’s parable: Grace demands our response.
I want to start with a
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 21, 2009
Speaking of abuse… have you seen those energy drinks that are out there. This may not always hold true but it seems to me that these often are marketed to promote the potential abuse of caffeine. Caffeine isn’t that bad, you may say. It isn’t like a narcotic. But I wonder if we abuse something less
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 21, 2009
Now Simon has a point. This woman although not specifically pointed out as a prostitute very likely was one. She was kissing Jesus’ feet at the dinner table, no less. Ritual purity especially with meals was a huge issue for Pharisees. Her hair was down, which could indicate a woman of questionable
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 21, 2009
based on 1 rating
| 1,623 views
So often, it seems like people and even churches want grace without responsibility. With forgiveness comes a responsibility to be forgiving. Our response comes through the ability to confess our love to Jesus and confess our shortcomings, our flaws, and our sins. It is the response to grace that
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 13, 2009
Down at the Upper Room, sometimes there are guys down there that are simply repulsive. Most aren’t that bad. But there are a few. I remember Danny. He has passed on. But Danny was quite a case. He stank. He peed himself and the urine odor was enough to make you wretch. This is not an exaggeration.
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 13, 2009
OBJECT LESSON: NEW SOCKS
One of the things that our church does is that we give out new socks to some of the homeless men and women. You walk around and sleep here and there, and even if you take care of yourself and shower, your socks get dirty. When you’ve been wearing probably the same clothes
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 13, 2009
OBJECT LESSON: THE MOP HEAD
I have here a mop head that I recently replaced at the Upper Room. This has been used to mop urine. I know, because I mopped up when this guy urinated all over himself, the couch he was sitting on, and the floor while he was asleep. It has mopped up the filth that was
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
I want to share one more time from our trip. On the ship, we had an inside cabin. There were two long hallways running the length of the ship that had access to cabins on either side. The cabins along one side all were on the outside and therefore had windows. The cabins on the other side were
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
UN-CHRISTLIKE CHRISTIANS
A couple of months ago, there was a story on CNN of a Christian school basketball team that beat another team (another Christian school, I think) by the score of 100 to 0. It was a slaughter. The coach of the winning team, even though it was clear that the other team was
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
Grapevine Faith’s football team was scheduled to play the Gainesville State School. Gainesville was 0-8 and only scored two touchdowns all year. Gainesville was a state school. Many of the kids had been convicted on drugs and assault and robbery. The families of many of them had disowned them. They
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
I read a story of a pastor whose son began to drift away from God in high school. The son started to hang out with the wrong crowd changing his actions and attitude. The parents, of course, were broken-hearted. They were embarrassed. But they didn’t hide this. They cried out to God with God’s
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
There was a man traveling through a certain area out west and he ran out of gas. As the economy was bad, he was really struggling. He didn’t have any money and was trying to get home to his wife and kids after interviewing for a job. So he looked in the phone book and called a sister church. The
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Contributed by Mark Eberly on Apr 6, 2009
based on 1 rating
| 2,744 views
THE CHURCH: WE NEED ONE ANOTHER
A pastor received a call from a chronic alcoholic. He just couldn't seem to stay sober. He had tried several other churches, but they didn't seem to have anything to help him. Finally he called this pastor whose church had a reputation for not giving up on people.
...read more
Tags:
Denomination:
Church Of God
Sermon Central