Resolute!

Have you ever thought about how the car that you drive reflects your personality?
This is an interesting passage for the week after Christmas. In it we find Jesus telling his disciples that he has to go to Jerusalem to suffer, die and rise again on the third day. Jesus clearly tells them what he intends to do. But Peter tries to deter Jesus.
Jesus, however, knew his life giving purpose was to be fulfilled in the cross. If only we knew and committed to our purpose with that kind of determination.

The Lamb of God

In this last sermon in the Advent series "Eye-Witness news" our reporter in the field gets an interview with the shepherds. He does his best to explain why Jesus was born in Bethlehem and why his birth was announced to the shepherds. This sermon is down to earth, easy to understand, and presented in the context of an evening news broadcast.

I pray God blesses your Christmas season.

Bed of Hay

This Christmas sermon takes a look at this traditional passage in a unique way. The sermon is written in a T.V. Eye witness news formate. It delves into the contextual reality of what the city of Bethlehem and giving birth in a stable might have been like in the first century as an unwed pregnant teen.
It is not to be missed however that the reporter on location recognizes that something hugely significant is taking place and he believes that the long awaited messiah has arrived and been placed in a manger full of hay.

God's Correspondent

This sermon kicks off the Advent Season with hope and a challenge. Today we encounter Mary in a new way. We begin to see her through the judgmental and accusing eyes of her own community.
Can you imagine what it meant to say yes to something that would mean everyone would treat you like an outcast? Mary did. She had her whole life in front of her and she gave it up to serve God. Can we have the courage of a 14 year old girl?

Spirit Gifts

Everyone has gifts. But not all gifts are the same. This sermon is a look at the giftedness of God's people. It forces us to realize that not every person is gifted to do ministry the same way. In fact, it is our diversity that makes us able to do so much ministry in so many ways. Instead of criticizing the gifts of others and the way they use them, we should celebrate those differences and empower people to use their gifts fully.

L/Earned Gifts

This sermon is without a doubt a very hard to hear and direct sermon on stewardship. It says it as it is and I am sure could be offensive to many. It is preached with a clear understanding that stealing is a sin, and so is stealing the Tithe from God.
I begin the message with a disclaimer, so if you if you find yourself uncomfortable talking about money, or the fact that we are called to tithe, you might as well find another sermon that will make you feel good.
For those of you who do take time to listen, I hope it will challenge you and bless you. I hope that God will open the windows of heaven with an abundance of blessing for you.

Emergency Brake

This is the final sermon in the Hitchhiker series. Today we encounter an arrogant, stubborn, and dense Prophet. Jonah determined that the city of Nineveh should be destroyed and he was confounded when God decided to grant them mercy. Actually he was angry that God didn't give them what they deserved.

Jonah needed to learn an important lesson about God's forgiveness. Jonah needed to be reminded that God was in charge.

We need to learn the same thing. That even though someone really hurt us and we want to see God bring the wrath down on them, that we are not called to judge, but to forgive, just as He has forgiven us!

If there is someone who you still hold animosity against, make today your day to forgive them.

Switching Drivers

This is the third week in the Hitchhiker series and in it we encounter the evil city of Nineveh for the first time. By their behavior they were running away from God just like Jonah. But, when God told them to repent, they did.

This message acknowledges that every person is sinful, and begs the question, will we respond like Jonah who ran and hid, or will we immediately repent and turn to God for forgiveness.

In the same venue as the other hitchhiker sermons, the analogy is related to driving a car the wrong direction. Today it is realizing that sometimes our lives are spinning out of control. This message closes with a song by Carrie Underwood - Jesus take the Wheel.

The closing challenge is to surrender control of those areas in our life that are spinning out of control.

Lost

This sermon is #2 in the Hitchhiker Series. This week we look at chapter two of Jonah when the prophet prays from the depths of "Sheol".

In this message we learn that God never abandons us. God is there to hold us fast in the most difficult of situations. Not only that, but we also learn that God "controls", or "designates" such seasons in our life as times for us to grow, and for us to learn to trust in God.

Silent Stranger

This sermon series takes a look at the life of Jonah, the run-away prophet. Are we trying to run the opposite direction that God wants us to go in life? Are we living in fear of some of the obstacles in front of us? How can we learn to face those situations with faith rather than fear.

Harry Emerson Fosdick said it very well, "Fear imprisons, faith liberates; fear paralyzes, faith empowers; fear disheartens, faith encourages; fear sickens, faith heals; fear makes useless, faith makes serviceable - and, most of all, fear puts hopelessness at the heart of life, while faith rejoices in its God."

Extravagant Generosity

This is the last of the Bearing Fruit Series. Extravagant Generosity is one of the key components of healthy and vital congregations. Generosity is a form of giving of one's self to others for a cause. Part of our responsibility is to be able to give ourselves; (prayers, presence, gifts, service, witness) in effort to fulfill the mission statement of the church.
As a church our mission statement can be summarized as "Geneseo is committed to reach out, receive, relate, nurture, and send out faithful disciples."
The real question of this sermon is, "Are we committed to this mission statement? And how is God calling us to be a more committed Christian?"

Risk-TakingMission and Service

This is the fourth sermon in the Bearing Fruit Series. It's focus is as the Title says it. Again much of this sermon is resourced from the "Five Practices Leader and Media Manual" by Robert Schnase.
This sermon specifically targets the way churches enact charity or "Risk-Taking Mission and service." The first is a way we make ourselves feel good that we are doing something. The second is vital to a healthy church community and is what Christ expects from his followers.

Intentional Faith Development

This sermon takes a serious look at out understanding and commitment to growing our faith. Faith is more than just believing in an invisible God. Faith gives us purpose and empowers us to understand why God created us. While this sermon focuses on faith development it reverberates with a feeling of purpose. By growing in faith we find our God given purpose.

In all honesty we must admit that there is not such thing as a graduation certificate in faith. Even with a Masters or Doctorate in religion we can never know and understand everything about God.
With that understanding we can look at our faith as a set of stairs leading toward a closer relationship with God. Each step is different, longer, higher, shorter, wider. Sometimes it is difficult and sometimes it comes easy. The whole key to growing in faith is just to keep on climbing, never be content with where we are.

Passionate Worship

This is the second sermon in the "Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations" series.
The challenge of encountering God in Passionate Worship is one of the most difficult concepts a congregation can face. We don't know what it would feel like to come face to face with the living God. (Maybe it would cause us all to come to worship with a different attitude)
So how do we change the way we approach worship?
Can we learn that it is not about what we get out of worship, but what we bring to worship that is really important? Can we come with an attitude of anticipation and excitement rather than a mindset of criticism?
Let's worship God.

Radical Hospitality

This sermon is written in conjunction with the sermon series and congregational study written by Bishop Robert Schanse, The Five Practices of Fruitful congregations.

It takes a serious look at how we offer hospitality in comparison with the Biblical mandate to extend the Radical love and grace of God with limitless and out of our comfort zone hospitality. With all that God has done for us, we should be seriously asking ourselves what more can we do to offer God's Radical Hospitality to others?

The Rainbow

This sermon begins with the rainbow; the covenant that God made with Noah and all creation. From there we look briefly the way God extends his covenant to humanity throughout history.
In this message we come to understand that God is a covenant God and we are a covenant people.

But what does it mean to be in a covenant relationship with someone?
What kind of covenants have we already entered into? What are the benefits and expectations?
This sermon helps us to take an honest look at our relationship with God.

Puzzled

This sermon is a rather unique and interactive sermon designed to promote unity in the body of Christ. It helps members of the church to recognize that they are a part of the family and that the family is still missing members. It is a sermon that focuses on community and outreach. We used a picture of the church during this sermon and had members of the congregation take a piece (3" piece) and write a thought about the church on it. Then by length of time that they had been a part of the community (not focused on membership) we began putting it together. The best part was to let them see that the puzzle was still missing pieces when we were all done.

Armed and Dangerous

This sermon draws the lines of connection between the spiritual world and our our daily lives. Each of us face days when trials overwhelm us. Each of us encounter trouble in relationships or situations. What is it that is really coming against us, and how can we have the strength to overcome those difficult times? How well dressed are we for the Spiritual battle that we face in this world on a daily basis?

Paroled

In this final sermon of the Prison Break series we find David convicted of his sin, experiencing the consequence, and humbly repenting. His behavior leads to healing and reconciliation with God.
This is a challenging passage for today's world because most people believe that reconciliation is a joke; it is not possible. When faced with a conflict of perspectives or tension of disagreement, most people would rather walk away and avoid the situation. But that is not what the Bible teaches us.
Reconciliation is possible, and in fact it is the core of our Christian faith. That is what the Cross is all about. Christ died to to reconcile us with God. Now we must do the same with the world.

Convicted

This is the third sermon in the Jail Break Series. In it we are looking at The incident of David and Bathsheba. This passage takes place right after Uriah had been killed and David takes Bathsheba for his wife. We encounter the prophet Nathan who at the direction of God confronts King David for his sin.
The two main points that we draw out of this passage for discussion are: 1. Our natural tendency is to hide our sin. 2. We all need someone in our life to confront us and hold us accountable for our actions before God.
This has been a fun series that I have amplified by preaching in prison clothes and with a large set of jail bars hanging in front of the cross. It has provoked a lot of conversation and thought. Last week will be the final sermon in the series and the bars will come down. Amen.

Cover Up

This sermon follows David through his indiscretion and attempted cover up of his sin with Bathsheba. I take a moment to compare our modern day lives with David's and help people recognize our own tendency toward making everything look rosy on the outside while still wearing a prison suit of guilt underneath.
Finally I hope to point out that covering up our sin is not a good choice. It is better to confess, repent, and seek forgiveness, both from the persons involved, and from God.

The Wall

This sermon takes a look at the symbolic barrier of sin in our lives as we attempt to justify or deny our actions as being grievous to God. The text of course is of King David and his moment of indiscretion with Bathsheba.
Next week we will dig into the cover up that David attempted as a way to hide his guilt.

The question we must all ask ourselves is: what is the barrier in our own life that is keeping God at a distance? Can we confess that sin and surrender it over to God?

Selective Hearing - the sermon that did not get preached

Well this sermon was anything other than what I expected. I organize and plan a six month preaching calendar and this is the fifth month into what I planned in January. The sermon that I wrote fit very much with what I was thinking from this text in January however when it came to Sunday morning I knew that I would be unable to preach it. There are just times when the congregation has to hear the Holy Spirit doing the preaching and not the pastor. (which sometimes feels like a lecture and one sided rebuke) Whether I was right or wrong in not preaching this sermon I will never know. But after reading the text on Sunday I asked the congregation to share what they heard the passage saying to them. The good news is they basically preached the same sermon that I had written, but it was not me saying it. It was the congregation allowing the Holy Spirit to speak through them.
I know this is a bit unconventional, but I also knew that because of the difficulty and poignancy of James that my words could have been misinterpreted. (That fine line between a pastor illuminating the text and standing in front of it I think)
Anyway, I did not record the pseudo sermon but I did decide to post the PDF of what I had prepared. If you would like you can read it and comment.

Anarchy in the Temple

This Sermon compares our Christian lives to a light house. It forces us to think about the total opposite nature of Black and White, sin and righteousness. We talk about how our world is struggling and becoming more foggy every day, and we all react to that fog of society in different ways. Both Paul and Jesus indicate that we are to be the light of the world even in the midst of a "crooked and depraved generation." How do we do that? What does it look like? How can we honestly inspect our lives and look for ways to improve the way that we are being the Temple of the Holy Spirit? Join us for this fun message and I pray that God will inspire you through the words that you hear.

The Day of Salvation

This sermon is an exciting venture as we compare our Christian lives to the Titanic. We like our luxury liner, but find out the only way to make it to the other port is to abandon our life and get on the life boat called "faith in Christ." This analogy is powerful and exciting as I draw in the responsibility of fathers to their children like unto Paul's sacrificial giving of himself to the early church.

Thriving

This message completes the thrive series. In it I ask the challenging question, "If attending church would leave us with a permanent flame sticking out of our head and an uncontrollable urge to speak with everyone about Jesus, would we still be here?"
This is the kind of faith that God wants to give us through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. It is time for us to displace fear of talking about religion with a zeal for Christ that looks like a drunken fervor. We need to abandon our religious reservations and stand up for Jesus like we have a flame burning on the top of our head.

Grasping for Straws

In this sermon we look at the roots of faith that hold us firm in the face of life's challenges. Specifically I address graduates and challenge them to remain grounded in their faith. The analogy of the plant continues in this message to look at our spiritual health and ability to produce the harvest of faith. I pray we all take a moment to look at the foundation of faith in our own life. Does it need a little tending?

Top Ten

This is the third sermon in the Thrive series. Today we learn about the importance of herbicide and killing the weeds in our life that can grow up and kill us spiritually. We also learn about the "Round Up Ready" seed that is meant to that is genetically altered to accept the herbicide. That seed is like the word God has put in our hearts. God promises us in Jeremiah and later in Hebrews reminds us that He has put his word in our heart. In essence we are created to live according to God's law and it is intended to be like a herbicide that will kill all the weeds of sin in our life. I hope you enjoy the analogy and are able to apply it to your life.

Loves that Lives

This second sermon in the series looks at the need for a newly planted seed to be watered. Water is what nurtures the seed to germinate, grow and produce fruit. Without water the seed would die.
The same is true for our spiritual lives. Not only are we called to grow and bear fruit, but we are also called to water the lives of those around us with the love of God so that they can grow up in the faith.
As we look as this sermon on Mothers day it is appropriate to compare the love of a mother and the way it helps a child grow and mature, with the love of God that we experience in those around us.
Let us go forth and share the living water of Christ with the world.

Good Soil

This sermon is the first in the Thrive Series. We begin by looking honestly at the soil of our heart and recognizing our need to be a soft fertile soil in order for the word of God to bring forth the fruit that God desires for us. The seed itself does not change, but the condition of our hearts must change.
Then finally we must accept the challenge to participate in preparing the soil (hearts) of our community. The harvest is bountiful.

What to do?

In this message we encounter Jesus as he reassures the disciples that he is risen. They were wondering what they were supposed to do now that Jesus had been crucified. I believe Jesus gave them the answer and that it is the same answer he would give us today. "Be a Witness."

Confessions of a Doubter

Doubt is an implicit lack of hope or faith. Doubt runs many lives and drowns us in absolute despair. Thomas doubted Jesus and found that his doubt turned into seeds of new faith.
This last week there were a lot of people who initially doubted Susan Boyle, and in the same way their doubt turned into amazement. There is nothing wrong with doubt itself unless we allow it to become our deathbed of despair. Instead our goal is to make it our hope for the future and the seeds of new faith in our life.

Only One Conclusion to Make

This Easter message focuses on the original ending of the Gospel of Mark. Why did Mark end his message of hope without seeing a risen Christ? What was his intent and who was he writing to? Does his message still apply to us?
The last sentence ends with the women being afraid and not telling anyone. Are we those women; afraid to tell others about the good news?

Toy King

In this message Marlys Mitchell shares with us the story of Jesus Kingship. We remember as we think of the crown of thorns that Jesus paid a great price to be the king. But do we understand the value of his sacrifice. Do with receive him as a toy that we play around with when it is convenient, or do we trust him as the king of all eternity?
Thank you Marlys for sharing this wonderful and clear message of truth and hope so that I could attend the "Multiplying the Missional Movement" seminar with a group of leaders who are helping develope our second service.

Even the Shirt off His Back

This sermon is the fourth in the Lenten Banner series as we dig into the events that surround the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Today we look at the contrast between the soldiers casting lots and playing games what was happening behind their backs on the cross.
Have you ever asked yourself the question: "Am I playing games with my life while Jesus is trying to work redemption in my heart?"

This is the real underlying question that we attempt to answer in this message. I look forward to your thoughts.

Guilty!

This message is a powerful sermon that created a powerful response. The altar of our United Methodist Church was full of people and not an eye was dry.
As Christians is it time to stop playing games, time to stop holding on to our sin, time to repent and ask forgiveness. Do you realize that your sin is what nailed Jesus to the cross. We judged Jesus guilty, and by our sins he was crucified. As you listen may the Holy Spirit turn your heart again to God. Amen.

I Know Him Not

In this second sermon of the Lenten Banner Series we take a look at Peter's denial.
There is something universally true about fact that we have all denied Christ and walked away from his love. (Isa 53:6) And we probably all face the fear that we have sinned too horribly to be forgiven.
Guilt has a sticky quality. It is like super glue and almost impossible to get it off of you. On occasion we even convince ourselves that God cannot forgive us.
But that is not true. When we look at the rooster it reminds us of our sin, our guilt like Peter's. But if we remember, Christ was headed to the cross at the same time as Peter was Denying him. His guilt was removed at the same time that that Peter created it.
The same is true for us. Christ has washed our sin and guilt away no matter what you have done.
Today if you still have some guilt or a barrier in a relationship, it is time to forgive just as Christ forgave you.

A Servant People

This sermon is presented as a dramatic monologue from John the Disciples perspective. It identifies Christ's primary role of servant and the conceptual challenge that is for so many people. Furthermore it presses us all to understand that all Christians are called to be a servant people.

Jesus' Investment Strategy

In this final sermon in the series, "America in Crisis," we look at the difficult economic situation and the horrifying reality of trying to invest in somethings to unstable. I use this as a backboard upon which to discuss how God invested in humanity through his son Jesus Christ. In all honesty with our history of failure and spiritual bankruptcy, humanity is a very poor investment choice. However God did just that and secured our eternal future for us.
The real challenge in this message is for us to accept his buy out offer, and then share the only legal "insider trading info there is... the word of God with a friend so they can make the best investment of their life. This sermon will make you think and challenge to to reallocate your life.

The Economy of Grace

In this third sermon in the series, "America in Crisis" we look at the difference between the worlds economy and God's economy. While the difficulties of the world and our economy barrage us, we are reminded that God's grace provides a different kind of economy for Christians to live in. It is an economy that gives us hope and stability in a tumultuous time.
As such we believe that God has provided a stimulus package for us that is life changing. It is called grace.

The Religious Bailout

In our current economic situation this message connects the dots to help us understand that we are in an even greater spiritual crisis. The good news is that God has paid a great price to provide a bailout package that will cover all the cost of sin.
The central message in this sermon is that we need to take advantage of God's offer in Jesus Christ.
Although this message is presented in a fun parody on recent government press conferences, it is very serious in the need of all people to claim their personal and spiritual bailout package from God. If you have never made Jesus your personal lord and savior, at the end of the message there is a short prayer that you can pray that will begin your personal faith journey in accepting the great measure of God's love and grace for yourself.

The Economic Equation

This is the first sermon in my series on the crisis situation of our American economy. In it I speak bluntly about facts and statistics while pointing us toward the bifurcation and difference of our worldly economy and our heavenly economy.
What was Jesus really trying to say in this parable of the dishonest steward. Did he really mean for us to buy friends with our money, or did he mean something altogether different. I dare you to listen to this challenging word. Then I hope you will take time to share your response.

Infinite Opportunities

In this final sermon using Toy Story, we find that great opportunities come in the greater diversity of community. As Christians our responsibility is to find new ways to open our doors and welcome people into a vital relationship of faith with Jesus Christ. That requires us to try new things, add new service, and use different gifts of people. This is a very honest message as Geneseo begins the dreaming and planning process of adding a new service.

Infinite Love

This sermon continues our study into understanding how God calls us to be his people, his church, and his community of faith. It challenges us in our understanding of "reaching out" with Gods love. It reminds us to love the stranger and treat them as if they were one of us.

The message has a special appearance from Buzz and Woody (Video clip) and reminds us that our first reaction to the stranger is not always what it should be. We need to step back and remind ourselves to love others as God loves us.

Beyond Doubt

This is a creative message shared by two of the main characters in the movie Toy Story. Woody and Buzz meet for the first time and discuss change, faith, doubt, and whether or not Buzz can fly. The summary is that no one can fly if they never try. So as Christians we are called, like Peter in Matthew 14, to step out of the boat, out of our comfort zone, and follow Christ.
Change and growth can be scary, but they can also promise the greatest form of spiritual growth and gratification.

Beyond Fear

This sermon introduces us to our January series on vision. In it I talk about the fear of change and fear of the unknown. I lay out the specifics of vision for Geneseo as a congregation for the year 2009.

Proverbs 29:18 says, "Where there is no vision the people perish." I believe we are called to be a people of vision. I believe God has given us a mission to fulfill in our community. As a people of God we must stretch ourselves to find new ways to impart the good news of the gospel to everyone around us. In 2009 let us boldly embrace that mission and step out in faith into uncharted areas in our community.

I hope you take time to listen & I encourage your discussion on this topic.

In Christ, Pastor Ferguson