Sermon Central
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God Encounters
Contributed by Wesley Bishop on Jun 14, 2004 (message contributor)
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1. God Encounters: Abraham
Contributed on Jun 14, 2004
This is about God’s call on Abraham.
Intro to “God Encounters” series. We can have our own encounter with God. Abraham is a hero to Christians, Jews and Muslims. He is a giant man on the stage of history. The old saying is “the faith of Abraham.” Read Genesis 12:1-9. God later changed Abram’s name to Abraham. For the sake ...read more
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2. God Encounters: Jacob
Contributed on Jun 20, 2004
This is about Jacob’s wrestling match with God and the significance for us.
Jacob was the grandson of Abe. Give brief background of Jacob’s life. Sneaky, underhanded, trickster, etc. Jacob had tricked his father, Isaac, and his father-in-law, Laban. He was a marked man by Esau. He is older now, and he is headed to meet his brother. Read Genesis 32:22-32. What we ...read more
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3. God Encounters: Moses
Contributed on Jun 28, 2004
This is on Moses’ God encounter.
Don’t you love excuses? Nine GI’s were late for morning roll call. The first arrived at 7 PM. He had a date missed the bus, hired a cab then it broke down. He went to a farmhouse and bought a horse. Ten miles from camp it fell over dead. “I walked the last ten miles.” The CO wasn’t happy but ...read more
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4. God Encounters: Gideon
Contributed on Jul 3, 2004
This is about Gideon’s God encounter.
Have you ever felt inadequate for the task at hand? When I was a kid, a professional carpenter helped us re-roof our house. I took ten swings of the hammer to the nail in, but he only took two. Once my boss asked me to take a look at her care engine. Then there was the time that our kids were ...read more
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5. God Encounters: Isaiah
Contributed on Jul 10, 2004
This is about Isaiah’s God encounter.
What comes to mind when I say, “In the year 2001”? 2001 was a year that changed the way we look at security. The WTC attack rocked our world. It had been 60 years. OKC was domestic. WTC ’93 failed. We were hit at home. Life is not the same. Threat level codes. Air marshals. Dep. of ...read more
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6. God Encounters: Jeremiah
Contributed on Jul 17, 2004
This is about Jeremiah’s God encounter.
Too Young the Hero is a movie about 12 year old Calvin Graham who managed to enlist in the Navy during WWII. Read Jeremiah 1:4-10. Jeremiah was young. How young? We don’t know. The word translated “youth, child, boy” could mean an infant to a young man. I. God’s CALL. We typically think ...read more
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7. God Encounters: Ezekiel (Religious Experience Vs. Religious Action)
Contributed on Jul 24, 2004
This is about Ezekiel’s God encounter. It explores the difference between religious experience and religious action. Religious EXPERIENCE means nothing without ACTION.
Read Ezekiel 1:4-3:15. This is a bizarre vision. Not all God encounters are alike. We see here two things: Religious Experience (ch. 1) and Religious Action (chs. 2 & 3). What is the difference between the two? * Religious Experience is… In chapter 1, we see Ezekiel’s strange religious ...read more
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8. God Encounters: Simeon And Anna
Contributed on Jul 31, 2004
This is about Simeon’s and Anna’s encounter with Jesus in the Temple.
We’ve been looking at God encounters: Abe, Jacob, Moses, Gideon, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel. They pointed to the Messiah (Christ). We turn now to encounters in the NT; encounters with Christ. Outside of the shepherds, this is the first one. Read Luke 2:21-38. Verse 21 was eight days after ...read more
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9. God Encounters: Nathanael
Contributed on Aug 8, 2004
This is about Nathanael’s encounter with Jesus.
Jesus is beginning his ministry. John the Baptist had baptized him. He has just called Andrew and Peter. He had been a carpenter. Read John 1:43-51. I. Proposal. Jesus makes a proposal to Philip: “Follow me.” He was from the same town as Andrew and Peter. It was a simple and direct ...read more
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10. God Encounters: The Samaritan Woman
Contributed on Aug 13, 2004
This is about Jesus and woman at the well.
This is a rich passage. I could spend a couple months preaching from this passage. Give background of animosity between Jews and Samaritans. Women were marginalized. Read John 4:1-42. What does it mean that Jesus had to go through Samaria? Was it divine or geographically necessary? ...read more
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11. God Encounters: Zacchaeus
Contributed on Aug 21, 2004
This is about Zacchaeus’ encounter with Jesus.
Sing “Zacchaeus was a Wee Little Man.” Share recollections of Zach from Sunday school: short, tree, etc. Read Luke 19:1-10. Who was Zacchaeus? What happened to Zacchaeus? Who was Zacchaeus? The only biographical info is right here: “a tax collector and rich.” * He was DESPISED. To say ...read more
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12. God Encounters: The Thief On The Cross
Contributed on Aug 30, 2004
This is about Jesus’ encounter with the criminal next to him.
Read Luke 23:39-43 using Lectio Divina method. Can you see it? Can you visualize the scene? Can you see the blood and the agony? Can you hear the mockers? Experience the moment. There are some things we can take away from this. REVILING the REDEEMER This reflects the words of ...read more
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13. God Encounters: On The Road To Emmaus
Contributed on Sep 7, 2004
This is about Jesus’ walk with the two on the Road to Emmaus.
We don’t always get all the facts right away when something momentous happens. The day of 9/11 was filled with confusion and speculation. More confusing the closer to NYC and WTC. Recap Passion Week: triumphal entry, Last Supper, prayer, arrest, trial, execution, and burial. Now there were ...read more
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14. God Encounters: Paul
Contributed on Sep 13, 2004
This is about Paul’s conversion.
Turning points are those things that happen, where after it life is never the same. Inventions are often turning points. The automobile altered life forever. The PC altered life forever. Cell phones (the electronic leash) altered life forever. It took almost a week for the assassination of A. ...read more