Marina Christian Fellowship
Sunday 10 AM - December 15th, 2019
Sunday Worship Service
Locations & Times
Marina Christian Fellowship
12606 Culver Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90066, USA
Sunday 10:00 AM
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Series: Be the Remedy
Title: The Remedy for Despair
Text: Matthew 11:2-11
Despair = The complete loss or absence of hope.
From Isaiah 35:1-10
“They shall SEE the glory of the Lord….”
“The the EYES OF THE BLIND SHALL BE OPENED….”
From Psalm 146:5-10
“The Lord OPENS THE EYES OF THE BLIND….”
“The Lord WATCHES over the strangers….”
From James 5:7-10
“SEE the judge is standing at the doors!”
From Matthew 11:2-11
“and SEE the BLIND RECEIVE THEIR SIGHT….”
“What did you go into the wilderness to LOOK at?”
“LOOK…”
“What did you go to SEE?”
“SEE, I am sending my messenger ahead of you….”
When we are told to look, we are given a heads up that we could easily miss something. We are being told that what we need to see is often hidden in plain sight. We we need to focus on is often hidden by what we are currently seeing.
Jesus has begun his public ministry. John the Baptist ticked off Herod’s wife and got himself arrested.
John the Baptist saw his current circumstances and total uncertainty about his future circumstances. When our current circumstances are not great, and our future circumstances are a big question mark, it is easy to be tempted to despair.
Jesus, are you really the one? Are you the one who can save me, or should I look somewhere else?
"Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" Matthew 11:3 (NRSV)
Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. Matthew 11:4-5 (NRSV)
The Messiah is not here to conquer the powerful but to uplift the powerless. If you want to find the Messiah, you will not find Him having an armed battle for a palace or throne. You will find him outside serving those who are not being served by those who sit on thrones. At another time, Jesus even said…
“For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 (RSV)
Jesus, why don’t I see you? Where are you?
I’m here. You just need to know where to look.
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. Matthew 11:7-8 (NRSV)
“He teases the crowds into thinking harder about who John was - and who, therefore, Jesus himself must be. John wasn’t like the royalty they knew. He was nothing like Herod (whose emblem, on his coins, was a reed waving in the wind). He wasn’t dressed in the sort of fine clothes that rich and famous people, especially royalty, would wear. John was different: he was a prophet. Not just any old prophet, either, but the prophet that previous prophets had spoken about: he was the one destined to get the path ready for God’s Messiah to walk along when he arrived.”
– NT Wright, Matthew for Everyone, Part One
If you are looking for a Messiah that is just a stronger version of Herod, you are not going to find him. That Messiah is no Messiah. Such a person would just bring greater destruction and not salvation.
"Go and tell John what you hear and see….”
Rejoice Sunday
Joy is the remedy for despair. How do we find joy? We simply have to look in the right places for Jesus. When we see people bringing healing and restoration in the midst of the darkness, we find hope once again. And once we find hope, it leads us to joy.
Joy can be hard to sustain because we are often afraid to rejoice. We think if we rejoice and get our hopes up, we will be disappointed. So instead, we stick with worse case scenarios and look for the evidence that such scenarios will play out. Therefore, we lose our hope and we lose our joy.
True joy is not dependent on our circumstances. It is dependent on our perspective. It is dependent on keeping our eyes on Jesus. And where will we find Jesus? We always find Jesus in the midst of despair bringing restoration.
Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Romans 5:1-5 (NRSV)
So don’t expect to find Jesus so much in prosperity and power. If that is where you are looking, you will be disappointed. Instead look for Jesus in the conditions that easily can tempt you to despair. He is there in the ones quietly bringing comfort, restoration, hope, and joy.
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:15 (NRSV)
If we want people to see Jesus, we have to make Him visible through our lives. We do that simply by being present to reality and to the reality of others.
Title: The Remedy for Despair
Text: Matthew 11:2-11
Despair = The complete loss or absence of hope.
From Isaiah 35:1-10
“They shall SEE the glory of the Lord….”
“The the EYES OF THE BLIND SHALL BE OPENED….”
From Psalm 146:5-10
“The Lord OPENS THE EYES OF THE BLIND….”
“The Lord WATCHES over the strangers….”
From James 5:7-10
“SEE the judge is standing at the doors!”
From Matthew 11:2-11
“and SEE the BLIND RECEIVE THEIR SIGHT….”
“What did you go into the wilderness to LOOK at?”
“LOOK…”
“What did you go to SEE?”
“SEE, I am sending my messenger ahead of you….”
When we are told to look, we are given a heads up that we could easily miss something. We are being told that what we need to see is often hidden in plain sight. We we need to focus on is often hidden by what we are currently seeing.
Jesus has begun his public ministry. John the Baptist ticked off Herod’s wife and got himself arrested.
John the Baptist saw his current circumstances and total uncertainty about his future circumstances. When our current circumstances are not great, and our future circumstances are a big question mark, it is easy to be tempted to despair.
Jesus, are you really the one? Are you the one who can save me, or should I look somewhere else?
"Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?" Matthew 11:3 (NRSV)
Jesus answered them, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. Matthew 11:4-5 (NRSV)
The Messiah is not here to conquer the powerful but to uplift the powerless. If you want to find the Messiah, you will not find Him having an armed battle for a palace or throne. You will find him outside serving those who are not being served by those who sit on thrones. At another time, Jesus even said…
“For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 (RSV)
Jesus, why don’t I see you? Where are you?
I’m here. You just need to know where to look.
7 As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: "What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. Matthew 11:7-8 (NRSV)
“He teases the crowds into thinking harder about who John was - and who, therefore, Jesus himself must be. John wasn’t like the royalty they knew. He was nothing like Herod (whose emblem, on his coins, was a reed waving in the wind). He wasn’t dressed in the sort of fine clothes that rich and famous people, especially royalty, would wear. John was different: he was a prophet. Not just any old prophet, either, but the prophet that previous prophets had spoken about: he was the one destined to get the path ready for God’s Messiah to walk along when he arrived.”
– NT Wright, Matthew for Everyone, Part One
If you are looking for a Messiah that is just a stronger version of Herod, you are not going to find him. That Messiah is no Messiah. Such a person would just bring greater destruction and not salvation.
"Go and tell John what you hear and see….”
Rejoice Sunday
Joy is the remedy for despair. How do we find joy? We simply have to look in the right places for Jesus. When we see people bringing healing and restoration in the midst of the darkness, we find hope once again. And once we find hope, it leads us to joy.
Joy can be hard to sustain because we are often afraid to rejoice. We think if we rejoice and get our hopes up, we will be disappointed. So instead, we stick with worse case scenarios and look for the evidence that such scenarios will play out. Therefore, we lose our hope and we lose our joy.
True joy is not dependent on our circumstances. It is dependent on our perspective. It is dependent on keeping our eyes on Jesus. And where will we find Jesus? We always find Jesus in the midst of despair bringing restoration.
Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Romans 5:1-5 (NRSV)
So don’t expect to find Jesus so much in prosperity and power. If that is where you are looking, you will be disappointed. Instead look for Jesus in the conditions that easily can tempt you to despair. He is there in the ones quietly bringing comfort, restoration, hope, and joy.
15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:15 (NRSV)
If we want people to see Jesus, we have to make Him visible through our lives. We do that simply by being present to reality and to the reality of others.
Spotify Playlist of Today's Songs
Click the link below to check out the playlist!
https://open.spotify.com/user/bfenwick/playlist/2xbaXtnYlo5dJhr7eaCKUG?si=AIBFbwtsSXCTDRh3lw6vDwSongs from Today's Service:
Joy by VaShawn Mitchell
Great Are You Lord by All Sons and Daughters
Mary's Song by Tommy Walker
O Come O Come Emmanuel (Traditional)
Remedy by David Crowder
Joy by VaShawn Mitchell
Great Are You Lord by All Sons and Daughters
Mary's Song by Tommy Walker
O Come O Come Emmanuel (Traditional)
Remedy by David Crowder
Your Giving Makes a Difference!
MCF “happens” because of your giving! Your generous financial partnership is vital and greatly appreciated! You can give at the following link below or by texting MCF to 77977.
https://pushpay.com/g/marinachristian?src=hppUpcoming Events
12/19/19 - S.P.Y. Dinner Service 3-4:30 PM<br>12/22/19 - Youth Group in Youth Room 9-11:15 AM<br>12/22/19 - Be the Remedy Sermon Series: The Remedy for Fear<br>12/24/19 - Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at 6 PM<br>12/29/19 - No Youth Group<br>12/29/19 - Sunday Worship Service at 10 AM<br>1/8/20 - MCF Midweek: Emotionally Healthy Spirituality (Open to Grace Trek Alumni)