REV. KEN'S SERMONS
A YEAR OF GOOD NEWS
“The Spirit of the Lord is on me,
because he has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim
freedom for the prisoners
and recovery of sight for the blind,
to release the oppressed,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Luke 4:18-19
January 2012
These are the words of Jesus, in his first recorded sermon, given in his hometown of Nazareth.  They were remarkably encouraging words for his hometown crowd, because everybody loves good news, right?  What poor person wouldn’t want to hear some good news for a change? What prisoner wouldn’t want to be set free?  What blind person wouldn’t want to see again?  What oppressed person wouldn’t want to be released?
 
And yet at the end of Jesus’ sermon, the religious people became so mad at his plans for implementing those words that they rose up against him and led him to the closest hill in order to throw him off and kill him.  An interesting reaction, wouldn’t you say?

Why did they react this way?  Because Jesus said that others needed to be part of the family, the circled needed to be widened, and people whom the “religious folks” didn’t want to associate with were now going to be a central priority for Jesus’ kingdom. 

Who are the poor, the prisoners, the blind, and the oppressed in our community?  They are certainly ourselves … in need of getting out of our boxes, of seeing more clearly the reality of the life transforming power of Christ, of being free of our preconceptions, and of seeing more definitively God’s plan for us.  But it most certainly includes people who know virtually nothing of Christ. 

That’s our calling this year as members, friends, and associates of Panorama Presbyterian Church … to search for answers to the questions of how do we reach out to those who don’t know Jesus?   How can we minister to the needs of those across the street from us?  What does it mean to offer a cup of cold water to those who are thirsty in our community?  How can we “position ourselves” so that more people experience the kingdom of God that Jesus is expanding on the corners of Roscoe Blvd, Hazeltine, Wakefield and Community Streets? 
 
I encourage you to come each Sunday this month, as we look into the message of the Bible with greater clarity, and see how we are called to “proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
                                          Pastor Ken
"A Simple Word" - Jan. 8, 2012
"A Bold Word: Courage" - Jan. 15, 2012
"A Misunderstood Word: Obey" - Jan. 29, 2012
AVAILABILITY … IT’S WHAT GOD WANTS
By the Rev. Ken Gardner, Interim Pastor
February 2012
“After Saul gave personal approval to Stephen’s death, a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Godly men buried Stephen and mourned deeply for him. But Saul began to destroy the church. Going from house to house, he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.” – Acts 8:1-4

The first paragraph of the eighth chapter of Acts above is a turning point in the history of a church.  Years have gone by since the church got its start at Pentecost with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  The proclamation of the gospel has been centered in Jerusalem, and they have set up “home” there. I put “home” in quotation marks because the first church is feeling comfortable there.  Years earlier the day of Pentecost saw hundreds if not thousands of people transformed and going back to their home countries to share to good news of Jesus.  But now Jerusalem has gotten “comfortable”, “familiar”, and a nice place to “stay”. 

But now God has a plan to change that, to bring about another “scattering” of the church in other places, so that more people are exposed to the good news of Jesus.   So the first period of church history closes with the story of how Stephen was killed by an angry and enraged group of people who could not tolerate the truth, which he spoke and so stoned him to death outside the city walls. The men who stoned him laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

The Holy Spirit indicates to us that out of the death of Stephen came at last the preaching of the Apostle Paul, once Saul of Tarsus. The religious leaders of the day silenced a voice that was upsetting a city, but, without realizing it, they were awakening a voice that would upset an empire. Saul, persecutor of the church was soon to become Paul, the most vocal proponent of the church.  What a miracle that was!  What an amazing twist of events!  That is the way God works. Throughout the book of Acts we see how God uses opposition to advance His cause. God uses difficulties to bring glory to Himself.  God allows seemingly insurmountable obstacles in the lives of His people and church to show that He is more powerful than those obstacles. 

What obstacles are you facing today?  What challenges seem to stand in the way of the mission of the church?  Are you experiencing any trouble or heartache? Is the church?  Of course you are!  Of course the church is!  What are we to do? They just may be God’s subtle way of moving us, of pressuring us into a new experience, into a new understanding of His truth and of His equipping you for life, and giving you a new opportunity to put it to work.

Being available to a new work of God through His church is really an issue of the heart, your heart and the church’s heart, aligning with the heart of God. In the weeks leading up to Easter this year, we will study chapters 8 – 12 in the book of Acts to see that God wants us to be available to the Holy Spirit, to God, to your enemy, to your friends, to the public, to strangers, to believers, and to surprises.  It will be a great time!  Come join your church family and be available to God’s work through you, the church. 

"A Neglected Word: The Word" - Feb. 5, 2012
"A Resisted Word: Forgive" - Feb. 12, 2012
"Available: To the Holy Spirit" - Feb. 19, 2012