Nobleton Community Church

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date June 8, 2025
Text Colossians 1:1-14
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

When we use Xs and Os there are three things they are used for. The first and probably the oldest is: for the game tick tack toe, where you have to put Xs or Os in a line. If both of you pay attention, it will usually end in a tie depending on who goes first. The second way that I use them and still do when I am coaching, is to diagram a play. It is used in both football and basketball. The more recent use is using the old way of closing a letter to show love, in text messages and e-mails. One of our granddaughters puts these at the end of her thank you notes to us.

Although hugs and kisses have become a standard part of e-mail and text messages,

WE HAVE DELETED THE CENTRALITY OF LOVE

IN THE LIFE OF THE CHURCH

In Paul and Timothy’s letter to the Christians in Colossae, they show “love” to them even though they don’t actually use Xs and Os. This church in the first century, was in a town in Asia Minor. Paul says in verse 4: “ We thank God for you, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints.” They rejoiced that their mutual friend Epaphras “has made know to us your love in the Spirit” (verses 7-8). Love for all the saints. Love in the Spirit. A letter of love.

If Paul and Timothy were writing today, you might see a farewell using Xs and Os. Although we used to add below our signatures a few Xs and Os, it was usually for someone very close to us. But today, one never knows for sure. In recent years it is used so much, even in professional communication that it seems it has taken on a life of its own.

Paul, Timothy and the Colossians were probably better equipped to handle these public displays of affection than we are. According to his letters:

Paul is not afraid of the words “love” and “beloved,” using them over 130 times. He speaks of God’s love, the love of Christ, the love of the Spirit, beloved fellow servants. God’s beloved Son, and the need both to love one another and be united in love. Paul emphasizes love a lot except in one specific case. He warns his colleague Timothy that “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil” (I Timothy 6:10). Xs and Os, like it or not, is here to stay.

So in a world of hugs and kisses, what does it mean for us to have love “for all the saints” In what ways can we express “love in the Spirit.” And live as disciples of God’s “beloved Son?” Love is an essential quality of life in the church, and we need to understand it and practice it. Christian love is more than a hug and a kiss at the end of an e-mail, or text message, or even when we say hello and good-bye and hug each other.

We can begin with a redefinition. The use of X as a symbol for affection goes back at least the year 1763, when the Oxford English dictionary first defined X as “kiss.” But let’s go back even farther, to the Greek alphabet that was used in the New Testament. There, we find the letter chi, which looks like an X and is the first letter of the Greek word Chrstos.

We are who God says we are.

In the letter to the Colossians, love is never allowed to drift very far from faith in Jesus Christ. Paul and Timothy say, “we always thank God…for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints.” (verses 3-4)

The Colossians are showing faith in Jesus, the one who lived a life of love and then lovingly offered himself as a perfect sacrifice to bring forgiveness and new life. They have seen a perfectly clear picture of love in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and are now trusting him to lead them as they attempt to love one another.

X does not point to a romantic kind of love. It is a mark of sacrificial love—one that feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, heals the sick, welcomes strangers, and even lays down one’s life for a friend. When the Colossians put their faith in Jesus Christ, they begin to love one another with this Christlike love—Jesus asked Peter three times; “Do you love me?” (John 21: 15-17) The first two times–he said feed my lambs, then take care of my sheep, and he used a different word for LOVE—Agape love—which is a self-sacrificing true love. Then the last one he used the word -Philio which is a brotherly love, close friendship or affectionate attachment, and said feed my sheep. This word is kind of like he is asking Peter; “ are you even my friend.”

That is why Paul and Timothy say that they are thankful for “the love that you have for all the saints” (verse 4). The saints in Colossae are not perfect people—they are as flawed as any of us—but they have been made holy by the powerful love of God in Christ. They don’t have to be declared a saint by the church. They are recognized as saints, because they knew and loved the Lord Jesus Christ. They are able to love one another because Jesus first loved them. The same for us. We are saints because we have been forgiven, loved and freed by our gracious Lord.

A group of Christian leaders was asked by The Christian Century magazine (September 5, 2012) to define the good news of Jesus in seven words or fewer. That’s right: Condense the Christian gospel into a handful of words. One of them, a Lutheran pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber, answered this question by saying. “We are who God says we are.” My seven words would be: “We are forgiven sinners saved by grace.”

That’s good news. “In the incarnation, life, death, and resurrection of Christ we see that God is so for us and with us that we can no longer be defined according to death,” Weber explains. “We are who God says we are: the forgiven, broken and blessed children of God, the ones to whom God draws near.

X marks the spot where we are who God says we are. The problem is that:

The transformation from a sinner that needs forgiveness, to a person who is reconciled to God is not automatic with no response on our part.

A few years ago Jeannene and I attended a Lutheran Church with her brother and sister-in-law before she died. It is a Missouri Synod church which is known as the evangelical branch of the Lutheran Church. It was so, in the preaching of the Word. The gospel was clear and only the Word of God was used. And yet in that church and in many other denominations where God’s word is believed and preached, not everyone “gets it.” I have thought about that a lot and I have shared with you many times some things about that. Too often people think like our sister-in-law did , when her daughter Linda came home one day from attending another evangelical church, and told her that she had received Christ into her heart and life, her mother responded with; “but you have always been a Christian Linda.” Seriously? We are born a Christian, or at least after our infant baptism? No—You see what was missing for Linda, was the realization of a time in her life when she confessed her sins, asked for forgiveness, and for Jesus Christ to come into her life.

There needs to be a time when we personally receive Him. Not just say things in church about Him.

The Colossians are also becoming known for their “love in the Spirit” (vs.8) Here, love is singled out as an important fruit of the Holy spirit, and we know from First Corinthians that Paul considers it to be the foundation of the spiritual gifts—-“now these three remain, faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is “love” (13:13)

We should never underestimate the power of Christ-shaped love. “Love your neighbor as yourself” Jesus tells us quoting what we read in Leviticus 19:18.

The importance of loving our neighbors is; “Loving mainly ourselves—which is the definition of the high consumer society we inhabit. But when we are just looking out for ourselves it means creating a world that stinks, where selfishness is our way of life, while so much of the world lives in poverty, both physically and spiritually. Jesus tells us;” it only works when we’re in it together.” When we realize that we are our brother’s keeper. When we realize that we have a calling to take the Good News of the Gospel to the whole world. A wholistic approach that doesn’t ignore the physical needs of people too.

The world only works when you love your neighbor as yourself. When you, as is said to the Colossians, “lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work” (vs. 10). That means fruitful productive living that benefits ourselves and our neighbors, as well as the planet entrusted to our care.

Paul and Timothy go on to remind the Colossians that God “has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (vs 13-14). If there was any doubt about the raw power of God’s love, this line should eliminate it.

Far from being a set of Os and Xs, hugs and kisses, God’s love creates an entirely new reality for those who become disciples of his Son. Through our faith in Christ, we are now rescued from the power of darkness, transferred into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son, redeemed from death and offered forgiveness of our sins. That’s the power of X—That’s the power of CHRIST, the world-changing power of the love of God.

So don’t forget that:

X means that you are who God says you are; A forgiven, broken and blessed child of God, saved by grace

. X means that you want to love your neighbor as yourself, knowing that our world works best when we are in it together with him.

X means that you are moving a little closer to the kingdom of God’s beloved Son, and that you want your loved ones to join you there. X and O is a nice message of hugs and kisses. But a single X (CHRIST) is what love is all about.

The first mention in literature of XXX for kisses at the bottom of a letter was in 1901, according to the Oxford English Dictionary. The X itself is very old. The custom goes back to the early Christian era, when a cross mark or X was the same as a sworn oath. Even as little as a hundred and fifty years ago, not many people could read or write. The X at the bottom of a document took the place of a signature. They would kiss the X as a crucifix or Bible was kissed to emphasize the importance of the mark, it was this practice that led to the X representing a kiss. O is an American thing and represents the arms wrapping around someone with a hug.

The late Tony Campolo ( a pastor, professor and speaker from PA) tells about growing up in his neighborhood. One friend was Jewish. He comments on how wonderful Jewish mothers are. They believe their children are geniuses. If their child gets a bad grade they conclude that the teacher just can’t relate to a genius. Campolo says in his good Italian family when he left home for school mom always asked, “Tony, do you have your lunch?” In his friend’s family as he was leaving home his mom always asked, “Sydney, do you have your books?” It was a difference in perspective. The one was looking at a lifetime of learning the other was looking at lunchtime.

We need to be more like Jewish mothers in our relationship to each other. We need to see the genius, the beauty, the potential in those around us. We need to remember that each person is created in the image of God. Each one has been made for a particular purpose. Learning to love means learning to spotlight potential and strengths rather than problems. Love demands we learn to build up, rather than tear down. As we relate to people we must see them as God sees them. As God loves them, and communicate that love, and what the Lord wants to do in their life if they will just let Him.

The Bible doesn’t spend too much time explaining how to love or how to be kind. We are asked to love God, to love our neighbors, to be kind one to another. There’s something hard-wired in us that is able to translate intuitively just what that means, when we have Christ in our lives, and have been filled by the Holy spirit. It is His Spirit that will let us know, and guide us.

Paul says that God has transferred the Christian into His Kingdom from the place in which they used to live.

A transference from darkness to light—

From slavery to freedom —-

From condemnation to forgiveness——-

From the power of Satin to the power of God

Scroll down past Sermon for more info

Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date June 1, 2025
Text Hebrews 9:10-28
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

In our text this morning in chapter 9 verse 12 of Hebrews we see clearly that: It is not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, that he entered once and for all into the Holy Place, because he had secured for“ us an eternal redemption. Then in verses 20 and 22, we see that “this is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you to keep…

in fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.” You might ask; ‘why is that?” In Leviticus 17:14 we read that;

“THE LIFE OF ANY CREATURE IS ITS BLOOD.

To drink blood, was a pagan practice, to gain the characteristics of the slain animal’s strength or speed, etc. Israel was to be separated to discourage pagan practices. God’s people were to rely on him, not on ingested blood for strength.

Jesus’ power enters into us, not by the drinking of blood (the cup –the wine). He enters into us by his Holy Spirit. That’s why we believe that Communion is symbolic, not the actual blood and body of Christ.

In the Old Testament, to preserve that symbolism of the sacrifice, it symbolized the life of the animal, as well as life itself.

To protect: many deadly diseases are transmitted by the blood.

He asks us to identify with him completely. He wants us to take his life into us, and he wants to participate in our lives.

This imagery comes from the Day of Atonement rituals described in Leviticus 16. Redemption refers to the process of paying the price or ransom to free a slave.

THROUGH HIS OWN DEATH, CHRIST FREED US FROM THE SLAVERY OF SIN FOREVER, Even though you know Christ, you may believe that you have to work hard to make yourself good enough for God. This is what all false religions teach. It is a doctrine of works. But rules and rituals have never cleansed people’s hearts. By Jesus’ blood alone we have our consciences cleansed. We are freed from death’s sting and can live to serve God. We are freed from sin’s power. We sing about these truths, usually just before Easter when we celebrate the resurrection of Christ or sometimes before or during communion services. But if you are carrying a load of guilt because you are finding that you can’t be good enough to take away your sin, you need Jesus to take it away.

The sin of the world, as John said)– and take our place and die for us. This is the basic meaning of the New Covenant, that Jesus brought, that we should have access to God.. To put it another way, we should have fellowship with God. The writer of Hebrews is talking about even those who were under the Old Covenant, now can come “boldly” before the throne of God., (that is, with confidence, we can come directly to God.) The veil (the curtain) that was a barrier to the Holy of Holies, where only the priests could go and offer sacrifices, has been torn in two. (Matthew 27:37).

In John 19:30 we read; “Jesus said, “IT IS FINISHED” and with that, he bowed his head and gave up his Spirit.” Until this time, a complicated system of sacrifices had atoned for sins. Sin separated the people from God, and only through the sacrifice of an animal, a substitute, could they be forgiven and become clean before God. But people continually sin, so frequent sacrifices were required. Jesus however, became the final and ultimate sacrifice for sin. The word finished used in John 19:30 in Greek is a commercial term. Tetelios, meaning “paid in full.” Jesus came to finish God’s work of salvation, to pay the full penalty for our sins. With his death, the complex sacrificial system ended because Jesus took all sin upon himself. Now we can freely have the forgiveness provided by God through the sacrifice of Jesus. We can say, as the Gather song goes; “It is finished, the battle is over. It is finished and Jesus is Lord.”

The writer of Hebrews states that the first covenant was primarily about rules and regulations for worship, but wasn’t effective in cleansing one’s conscience from sin. He says in verse…10 For that, the old system dealt only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies — physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established. The old system was about ceremonial purity. When one broke a dietary law or ceremonial law, the old system could offer ceremonial cleansing. The new system, he explains, is about spiritual purity. It deals with the real problem of the human race: the sin that separates us from God and from one another. The ancient tabernacle, he explains, is designed to illustrate that free access is impossible under the old system. But under the new covenant, he explains, free access is possible, and it belongs to every believer in Jesus Christ. He goes on to state that we have access to God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. His death pays the price for our sins and opens the door to our relationship with God.

THE QUESTION OF SACRIFICE

Let’s address an obstacle that many find in this text: the talk of sacrifice.

The Old Testament system of animal sacrifices wasn’t the perfect system, because it was based on a limited and incomplete concept of the nature of God. But it did point the way to the perfect system; it gave the ancient people of God an understanding of what was to come.

If you were to say that the idea that killing an animal could somehow cleanse you of your sins is completely wrong, the writer of Hebrews would agree with you. He says…It is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. (Hebrews 10:4)He says something similar to this in chapter nine verse 9

“For the gifts and sacrifices that the priests offer are not able to cleanse the consciences of the people who bring them. For that old system deals only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies — physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established.”

When we first came to Florida 18 years ago, Wesley Chapel hardly had any subdivisions. Route 54 had lots of road construction and cones along the roads. These temporary roads were, at best, ineffective. They consisted of one lane with barriers on both sides, (much like the Brooksville-Spring Hill section of Route 50 (Cortez Blvd.) that goes past Wall-Mart.used to be. . They were constantly congested, and took a long to travel. We’ve all had to deal with this kind of road construction, but it was temporary. It was just in place until a more perfect system could be established. Today, however, if you were to come to Wesley Chapel Route 54 east of 75 is a divided highway, The difference with this illustration though is that Wesley Chapel, and now San Antonio is constantly changing, and there are housing developments and commercial buildings everywhere. This illustrates, to a limited extent, what we see in the first covenant. It acknowledges the fact that there exists a chasm between humankind and God, that our actions — sinful and self-serving as they are — separate us from him. And it hints at the idea that God will provide a way for this chasm to be crossed, for this debt to be paid. God’s New Covenant does not change. Man’s old way, is constantly changing, hopefully for better traffic patterns, but they are constantly trying to make it better. Much like man trying to do good works to save themselves and make life better.

THE PROBLEM OF MORAL DEBT

The writer of Hebrews says…

Verse 13 Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity. Just think how much more the blood of Christ will purify our consciences from sinful deeds so that we can worship the living God. For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins. Let’s stop right there for a moment.

Why should God require a sacrifice for sins? Why can’t he just wave them off and forgive us of his own volition? Why does he need the blood of his Son to forgive me?” Many people ask this question. So, why did God require the death of his Son to forgive our sins? He did it because we needed it, not because he needed it. He did it because it was the only way for us to understand the significance of sin and the extent of his mercy.

WE HAVE A DEBT TO PAY

Let’s say you get a credit card offer in the mail with a ten-thousand-dollar limit. You’re already approved and good to go. Being the good American that you are, you are willing to do your share in stimulating the economy by immediately going out and purchasing $10,000 worth of goods and services. This is what a lot of people, (especially students) have done. When the bill comes in, you have three ways of dealing with it. The first and most obvious is to write a check and put yourself at zero balance. It’s a happy ending for all involved. But let’s say you don’t have the money to pay the bill, not even the minimum payment. Then what can you do? You can completely ignore the bill and refuse to pay it. If that happens, eventually the credit card company will write it off as a bad debt and they’ll put a negative mark on your credit report so that (theoretically) you can’t obtain further credit. This way, you’re not really paying the debt, the books don’t really balance, and even though you’re punished for it (with a bad credit score) the debt remains outstanding.

The third option is to have someone pay it for you. There are phone calls where if you have $10,000 or more debt, they will negotiate it down for you “You’ve incurred a debt you cannot pay, so they will pay it for you. And you don’t have to pay it back, because you can’t. In this scenario, the debt is paid and you’re free to continue your life.

The one option that doesn’t exist, especially in our world in which credits must always equal debits, is for the credit card company to say, “You can’t pay? No problem. Let’s pretend like it never happened. We’ll give a zero balance and reactivate your card and you can go out and do it again.”

I would venture to say that even if this were to happen — if your bad spending habits were just waved off and ignored — you wouldn’t become better at managing money, you’d become worse. You wouldn’t be able to grasp that your bad spending habits create hardship on others, or that your bad habits would ultimately lead to economic destruction.

Somehow, someway, a debt must be accounted for. As I said, this is only an illustration, but maybe it can give you insight into the human condition and our relationship with God. Sin is not just breaking an arbitrary rule that God established — such as: it’s wrong to wear white after Labor Day. (except maybe in Florida it’s okay)- or women shouldn’t wear pantsuits or slacks— to think that our sins are just our business, and they don’t hurt anyone else. That’s not true. The things that God defines as sin are actions and attitudes that only serve to widen the gap that exists between him and you.

Sin also widens the gap between you and the people you love. Sin is selfish, destructive behavior. It is ugly and it causes pain. The reality is that you and me and the rest of the world are sinners. We’ve hurt the people we love. We’ve stood in defiance of God. We’ve said on more than one occasion, “I don’t care what’s best for anyone else, I don’t care what is the right thing to do, I will do exactly what I want to do.”

Some may say that more often than others, but all of us have certainly said it, at least by our actions. When we know we should be generous, we’re sometimes selfish. When we know we should be patient, we’re sometimes irritable. When we know we should speak words of love and encouragement, we sometimes speak words of anger and resentment. When we know the right thing to do, we sometimes do the wrong thing.

We do this with one another and we do it with God. And the gap between us grows wider and wider.

We cannot fool ourselves into thinking that this gap doesn’t exist. And God cannot, or will not, pretend it doesn’t exist either.

If he were to dismiss our sins with a wave of his hand, he would be saying, in effect, “The damage that you have caused with your selfish and sinful behavior isn’t really that bad. The people you hurt with your selfish and sinful behavior really weren’t that hurt. Let’s just pretend that when you take advantage of someone financially, you’re not robbing them of what is rightfully theirs. Let’s pretend that when you treat someone like a sexual object you’re not destroying their dignity. Let’s pretend that when you explode in anger at your wife or children you’re not sabotaging their self-esteem. Let’s pretend when you engage in gossip to ruin someone’s reputation, that you’re not crippling their future. Let’s pretend that none of this stuff really matters.”

No, a thousand times NO! that’s not what God says, because he knows the damage that sin can cause. We need to understand it, too. It can’t be dismissed and ignored.

When we confront our sin and become honest with ourselves about what we have done and why we have done it, we realize that we’ve done damage that can’t be undone, that we owe a debt we cannot pay.

If, at this point, you’re inclined to say, “But I’m not really such a bad person,” I would say that you’re not yet being fully honest with yourself about your actions and your attitudes and the consequences they yield.

But when we do become aware of our sins, we realize, “I can never make this right on my own.” We need a sacrifice. We need to know that the debt has been paid, and that it won’t always be hanging over us.

Isaiah says…All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all. (Isaiah 53:6) Hebrews 13 says…For by the power of the eternal Spirit, Christ offered himself to God as a perfect sacrifice for our sins.

It’s as if God is saying: “The damage caused by your sins is something you can never undo, but it’s something I will undo. The debt won’t go unpaid. Instead, it will be paid in full by someone who loves you very much. Any pain or punishment that you rightfully deserve, he will bear. He will be pierced for your transgressions and crushed for your iniquities, and by his wounds, you will be healed. This is because I love you, and I don’t want there to be anything — not even your worst sins — to stand between us.”

1. Once and for all, Jesus Christ paid the price for your sins
2. He did this so that you could be free to experience the fullness of God.

3.. You never have to fear God’s judgment.

RETURN—REFLECT– RENEW

ARE THE ROAD TO REVIVAL

Scroll down past Sermon for more info

Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date May 25, 2025
Text Nehemiah 9:1-3; 30-31
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

This is Memorial Day weekend. What is Memorial Day for? What exactly are we supposed to be remembering? What are we “memorializing?” Originally the day was called Decoration Day, and people were to remember the soldiers that died in war. They decorated the graves of family members who lost their lives in war, dying for their country. Statistics for the Revolutionary War and the Civil War are hard to come by for various reasons, vut the first major war that most Americans remember is the First World War where 4,734,000 men served and 116,516 died—in World War II 16 million served and 407, 000 died—the Korean War 5,720,000 served and 36,568 died—the Vietnam War 8,744,000 served and 58,000 died—int eh Gulf War there were 378 deaths and in the War in Iraq approximately 4,419 died from 2003-2011. In Afghanistan, there were 2,420, and about 159 soldiers from Britain and other countries that participated in the coalition. This doesn’t count the thousands of Iraquis soldiers which have been estimated at about 40-50,000 and the thousands of civilians.

Memorial Day is to honor American soldiers who have been killed in combat. Since 9/11 and perhaps before, we have included those who have lost their lives in service to their fellowman, like our police officers, and firemen (First Responders) since Congress made the holiday officially the last Monday of May (instead of the traditional 30th ) in order to ensure a 3 day weekend, much of the importance of this day has fallen away. There are very few communities that still have Memorial Day Parades honoring our fallen veterans of war. It is just a holiday to go boating or swimming if the weather is nice, to have picnics and family gatherings, all of which are good things to do, but the meaning too often is forgotten.

In our text, the Israelites have more or less finished celebrating, and it has been called to their attention, that they are to remember some things. They are not told specifically to remember those who died in their struggle to rebuild the wall, in fact, we don’t have any mention of anybody being killed, despite the threats from their enemies. They are more specifically to remember the things that God has done in the past for them. After their seven-day celebration, they are again assembled together (verse 18 of chapter 8).

THEY ARE REPENTING AND RETURNING TO GOD

As we begin to look at chapter 9, we see that they are fasting, and putting sackcloth and dust or ashes on their heads which was a sign of repentance. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers. This kind of confession is necessary in order to see revival. There are some principles of revival seen here that are applicable to the church today.

We need to distinguish revival from evangelism. In the past, some of you perhaps remember the church in general has referred to “Revival Meetings” and they were “evangelistic meetings.” The idea was to have an evangelist come in for a week (or sometimes two) and we were to bring unsaved people to the meetings. This rarely happened, but there were always some young people who had never given their lives to the Lord who got saved. Some of you trace your salvation experience to this kind of meeting. It is true that when Christians, are revived by the Spirit of God, they should witness with power, evangelism takes place, and people are brought into the Kingdom of God. But just to make sure we see the difference between revival and evangelism, let’s say that Evangelism is winning the unsaved, Revival has to do with the Christian. Evangelism is the permanent duty of the church; revival is a gracious outpouring of the Spirit of God.

It is possible to have some success in evangelism without ever having revival, but if revival breaks out in the church, this will lead to a mighty blessing in evangelism inevitably. The problem is that the church prays for revival, and pleads with God to send revival, but we are not willing to do anything for it to happen.

There are three principles of revival that I want to mention this morning, and we need to ask ourselves if we are willing to have them applied to our own lives and to our hurch.

THE FIRST IS : A RETURN TO BROKENHEARTEDNESS

Look at verse 2, which we have already mentioned. The people are confronted with their sin. They are so saddened by what is read to them, of how their ancestors continually turned their back on god, that they are ready to repent, to turn their lives around, and make sure that they don’t fall into the same pattern of crying out to God for forgiveness, and then falling right back into sin, or flat out refusing like in verse 17, “they refused to listen and failed to REMEMBER the miracles you performed among them.”

God will never plant the seed of His life upon the soil of a hard, unbroken spirit. He will only plant that see where the conviction of His Spirit has brought brokenness, where the soil has been watered with the tears of repentance as well as the tears of joy.

When His Holy Spirit brings brokenness, there is:

A RECOGNITION OF OUR SINFULNESS.

THERE IS A CONFESSION OF SIN, THAT IS;

AGREEING WITH GOD ABOUT OUR SIN.

Days of great joy in the Lord are always accompanied by days of great humiliation in ourselves. How often the discovery of something new in the loveliness of the Lord Jesus has brought with it the discovery of some new corruption in our own hearts.

Christian people have too often relegated experience like that to the early days of conversion. Oh, for that tenderness of heart that was ours when first we knew the Lord! How easily possible it is, in the pressure of life and business and Christian activity, for the grace of repentance to be just a memory! Oh, that god would give to us a renewal of brokenness to His will, and brokenness in our fellowship with others, in which there is a yieldedness to Him and to other Christians so that God can truly bless us!

We need to ask ourselves, some self-examination questions. This is not comfortable, and it is not easy, this recognition of sin. Alan Redpath, (the former pastor of Moody Church in Chicago, preached a sermon about this, and here is his list of questions to ask ourselves. I have changed the wording on some of them, to make them more relevant for us today.

WHAT ABOUT MY RELATIONSHIP WITH PEOPLE?

· Am I consciously or unconsciously crating the impression that I am a better person than I really am?

· Is there the least suspicion of hypocrisy in my life?

· Am I honest in all my words and acts?

· Do I exaggerate?

· Am I reliable?

Now I know as I go through this list, that the first thing that will go through your mind is: How it applies to someone else you know! Let’s not do that! Think about yourself. Can any of these apply to YOU at any time.?—Let’s continue—-

· Can I be trusted? (do others feel I can’t be trusted—why? )

· Do I confidentially pass on what was told to me in confidence? (I’m just giving this to you as a prayer request.)

· Do I grumble and complain in the church, about what others do or don’t do?

· Am I jealous, impure, irritable, touchy, distrustful?

· Am I self-conscious, (afraid to talk to people). self-pitying, (I have it worse than most people) self-justifying? (making excuses for things I do, or don’t do.)

· Am I proud? Do I thank God I am not like other people? (Just like the Pharisee)

· Is there anyone I fear, or dislike, or criticize, or resent? If so, what am I doing about it?

WHAT ABOUT MY DEVOTION TO GOD?

· Does the Bible live in me? Or do I just have a lot of knowledge stored up in my brain, about the Bible?

· Do I give it time to speak to me?

· Do I go to bed in time and do I get up in time?

· Am I enjoying my prayer life today? Or is it just something I do out of duty, if at all.

· When there is a problem in my life so I pray about it, or do I use my tongue and talk about it?

· Am I disobeying do in anything, or not doing something about which my conscience is very uneasy?

· When did I last speak to someone else with the object of tying to win them to Christ/

· Am I a slave to books, cards, movies, TV, video games, music, food, dress, friends, work, or even family? (Not that any of these things are wrong, but the key is BALANCE. )

· How do I spend my spare time?

Without a doubt, there is something in this list that will convict every one of us here this morning. These are very heart-searching questions. Have you thought about recognizing sinfulness lately? Or is that something that you think is only for the unsaved to do? That they are the ones that have to get themselves straightened out with the Lord? This is the price of revival. Every one of us must want to get ourselves “straightened out” with the Lord.

If you want revival, let me remind you, that God only plants the seed of His life in a soil which has been broken up by repentance, and a willingness to turn from sin. The Israelites recognized (in verse 33) that their ancestors had sinned. We read in their prayer, that “in all that has happened to us, you (that is God) have been just, you have acted faithfully, WHILE WE DID WRONG. (— we have done “wickedly” the K.J.V. says)

Agreeing with God is saying: “Lord you are right—I have done wrong.:” This is hard enough to say to another person, whether it is our spouse, or someone in the church, or in our family, let alone to God. But that is what has to happen if we want forgiveness, if we are really willing to repent, to not continue doing what we are doing, or going in the same direction spiritually that we are going.

The second principle of revival In this chapter is:

REFLECTION UPON GOD’S GOODNESS

Practically the whole chapter is devoted to the prayer that the people offered. Some of you have been like the Israelites. You have cried out to God, prayed, and have been forgiven, but then have fallen right back into sin. Prayed again and fell back, and the cycle has been unbroken for many years. You have experienced an up-and-down Christian life, ever since you first prayed to receive Christ into your life.

What an utterance of praise there is here, and what a confession of sin and failure! There is praise for what God is, for His covenant with them through Abraham for His deliverance from Egyptian bondage, for His tender guidance all during their history, In spite of all that—– there had been repeated sin and failure. And again and again, that failure was matched by a new outpouring of the grace of God.

In spite of all His goodness, note in verse 16: But they, our forefathers, became arrogant and stiff-necked, (that means stubborn, obstinate, and Webster’s book of synonyms even says; pig-headed or bull-headed) and they did not obey your commands. Again I want to mention: THEY REFUSED TO LISTEN AND FAILED TO REMEMBER THE MIRACLES you performed among them: But you are a forgiving God, gracious and compassionate, slow to anger! And abounding in love. Therefore you did not desert them…you did not abandon them…you gave your …Spirit to instruct them.

Have you remembered to REFLECT ON GOD’S GOODNESS.

THE FINALLY THE THIRD PRINCIPLE IS:

THE RENEWAL OF OUR OBEDIENCE

The Israelites in verse 38 made a binding agreement —a covenant—in writing. The obedience of God’s people touched every part of their lives;

Their home life, Their social life, and Their church life.

      The Israelites always misunderstood this separation between friendship with the pagan world and with God. They were to develop relationships with their pagan neighbors to reveal to them the One True God, but they were not to marry those who didn’t acknowledge Yahweh. In New Testament terms, they were not to be “unequally yoked together” this means in marriage, but also in business partnerships. How many businesses have gone bankrupt because this principle was violated.

It affects church life. At the end of chapter 10 verse 39 we read: “We will not How can we have revival? Charles Finney, (that great revivalist preacher) said: “revival comes by the right use of clearly defined means.”

God’s clearly defined means are just these things:

Our BROKENESS neglect the house of our God.”

Nehemiah has emphasized faithfulness in corporate worship. They were all to be present when the word was read and they stood in prayer to God.

(a tenderness of heart) which leads to

REPENTANCE. , A RECOGNITION OF SIN , in which God’s Holy Spirit

can plant a seed that will grow.

A REFLECTION ON GOD’S GOODNESS (a taking of time for meditation A and RENEWAL OF OUR OBEDIENCE (that puts revival into action.)

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date May 18, 2025
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

Scroll down past Sermon for more info

Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date May 11, 2025
Text II Timothy 1:1-5
Pastor Paul Lehmann

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A teacher gave her class of second graders a lesson on the magnet and what it does. The next day in a written test, she included this question: My full name has six letters. The first one is M. I pick up things. What am I? When the test papers were turned in, the teacher was astonished to find that almost 50% of the students answered the question with the word MOTHER (instead of magnet). The key of course was the clue; “I pick-up things”

Mother’s do pick things up a lot, but they do far more than that. Mother’s sometimes do so much of that kind of thing that it gets to them. A woman telephoned a friend and asked how she was feeling. “Terrible,” she replied over the phone. “My head’s splitting and my back and legs are killing me. The house is a mess, and the kids are driving me crazy.” Very sympathetically the caller said, “Listen, go and lie down, I’ll come over right away and cook lunch for you, clean up the house, and take care of the children while you get some rest. By the way, how is Sean? The complaining housewife gasped. “Sean? Who is Sean?” Oh no exclaimed the first woman, “I must have dialed the wrong number.” There was a long pause. Then—-“Are you still coming over?” The harried mother asked hopefully. Things are pretty bad when one is willing to have a total stranger come and help out.

In spite of the fact that mothers always do so much, they don’t get compensated financially for what they are worth. But like those MasterCard advertisements that we used to see; there are many “priceless” aspects to the job; the hug that comes at just the right time, the crust cut off the sandwich just the right way, the reassuring laugh that reminds us not to take ourselves too seriously, and the countless other little things that our mothers did for us. Even though it was a long time ago, and the fact that for most of us, our mothers are no longer living—we still remember and can appreciate.

A number of U.S. presidents honored their mothers. George Washington said: “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual, and physical education I received from her.”

Andrew Jackson said: “There never was a woman like her. She was gentle as a dove and brave as a lioness. The memory of my mother and her teachings were, after all, the only capital I had to start life with, and on that capital, I have made my way.”

Abraham Lincoln said; “ I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.” (He is speaking of his stepmother, not his birth mother.”)

Finally, Woodrow Wilson said; “ She was one of the most remarkable persons I have ever known…I seem to feel still the touch of her hand, and the sweet steadying influence of her wonderful character. I thank God to have had such a mother.”

Most of us, could say some kind words like these about our mother too. But perhaps not everyone had a mother like the one that I mentioned. But even when a mother isn’t everything she should be, her instinct is to at least protect her children, even if she isn’t a Christian.

Mothers usually, stand up for their children. Maybe your mother was like that. She kind of fought for you. Mothers will go to bat so to speak for their children. Mothers that have faith in their children, (even when they were messing up big time), see their child’s potential and they want them to blossom. There is something ingrained in motherhood that won’t permit mothers to give up on their children. Granted, I believe there are exceptions when mothers have done harm to their children, just because of that, –they didn’t have confidence in their children. But I believe that no matter how bad a mother, is, or how much she might not set the right example, deep down all mothers want what’s best for their children.

Even the biological mothers of the five children that our daughter Karen adopted, wanted what was best for her children. When there are addictions and terrible situations for children, the best thing for the children is to have them taken away. Karen tells her children that they should thank the Lord for the mother who brought them into this world. That was their” caterpillar stage”. Then they were in the cocoon stage when they were with their foster mothers. But now they are in their “butterfly stage”, and are in their forever family, and she is their mother. God will become both father and mother to those who are neglected by earthly parents. (He sets the lonely in families.)

In our text II Tim. 1:1-5 this morning we see that Paul is reminding Timothy of the wonderful heritage he has. He reminds him of the faith that he has, and the spiritual gifts he received.This sincere faith that he has, first lived in his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice. If your mother was a Christian mother like Eunice, and if you had a Christian grandmother like Lois, you also received a lot of prayer. Perhaps you mothers here this morning, prayed a lot for your children, or at least for children close to you. Maybe it was foster children; Maybe nieces or nephews, or your siblings. Prayers for salvation, and prayers that they would follow the Lord’s will. Prayer for protection. My own mother was like that. She prayed that I would accept Jesus Christ as my savior, and I did at a young age. She prayed that I would be used of the Lord and follow His will. I recently found out from my sister that she prayed that I would be a pastor or missionary. Apparently, because of her health she and my dad couldn’t go to Africa as missionaries. At a Missions conference when I was about 5 years old, a missionary pointed to me and said; “there’s your missionary.” When I did follow the call of the Lord to be a missionary, she prayed for my protection. The first time I was aware of this was the summer when I was 18, and coming home from a softball game, and almost got hit by a train, because my 1950 Mercury that had a habit of getting stuck in 2nd gear stalled on the tracks, but I got it started and managed to move off the tracks, just as the freight train went by inches from my back bumper. When I got home that night, my mother said; “are you alright?” I said; “Yeah sure, why?” She said that she had gone to bed, but woke up, and:

The Lord said to her; — PRAY FOR PAUL” –but she didn’t know why. It was the exact time that I was crossing the train tracks. Then again, after I had been in Africa about 7 years, I almost drowned tying to save a young man who had come out with a team to help us in ministry. It was at that exact time (with the time difference), that once again she was awakened by the Lord, and told;—PRAY FOR PAUL.

Mothers who have FAITH, pray for their children and TRUST GOD. There are mothers like that mentioned throughout the Bible. In the Old Testament, we remember that :

The mother of Moses spared the great leader and deliverer’s life.

Hanna, the mother of Samuel dedicated him to the Lord before his birth, and then gave him up to the Lord’s service when he was a small child. This is what missionaries used to have to do. In a sense, my mother was very happy to “give me up” so to speak in order for me to go to the mission field. This was four years at a time that she didn’t get to see us or her grandchildren. (Today it is so much better). Missionaries are able to communicate by skype and those at home can see and hear those 6,000 or 12,000 miles away on a computer screen without a problem.”

We have an interesting demonstration of faith of a mother in

2 Kings 4:8-37. Elisha the prophet went to Shunem one day, and a rich woman invited him for a meal. After that, every time he went there he would have his meals in her home. So one day she says to her husband, I am sure that this man that comes to our home is a holy man. She recognizes him as a prophet. She wanted to build a small room on the roof of the house, so that he could come and stay whenever he wants to. Her husband wisely listens to her, and agrees. So one day when Elisha returned there with his servant Gehazi, he had him call the lady. When she came he asked her what he could do for her, to return her kindness. Did she want him to approach the king or the army commander and put in a good word for her. She refused and said she had all that she needed here among her own people. But Elisha didn’t give up, he asked his servant Gahazi what he thought, and he said; “well she has no son, and her husband is an old man. So Elisha prophesies to the Shunammite woman that she will have a son, and she does. Some years later when the boy is older he goes out to the harvest fields one morning to join his father who was working there. Suddenly he cries out, “my head, my head hurts.” A worker carries the boy back to the house to his mother. She held him in her lap until noon and then he dies. She carries him up to the “prophet’s room”, put him on the bed and left. She had a donkey saddled for her and a servant went with her to find the Prophet Elisha. He went as fast as she could to Mt. Carmel where she found Elisha. He saw that she was distressed, and she said to him; “sir, I didn’t ask you for a son. Didn’t I tell you not to get my hopes up? Elisha sent Gahazi back to the house, The woman, the boys mother, makes a pledge to “the living Lord” and tells Elisha that she will not leave him, so the two of them start back to find the boy dead. Elisha went to the room, closed the door and prayed to the Lord. Then he lay stretched out over the boy, and the boy’s body started to get warm. Elisha got up, walked around the room and then went back and again stretched himself over the boy. The boy sneezed seven times and then opened his eyes. Elisha called Gehazi and told him to call the boy’s mother. When she came in he said to her, “Here’s your son.” She fell at Elisha’s feet, then she took her son and left.

This account is full of a mother’s distress, but also of faith in the Lord, and the Lord’s servant the Prophet Elisha. She may have been skeptical about the possibility of her having a son, but when she sees God answer, she puts her full trust in the Lord and His servant Elisha. She doesn’t even tell her husband that the boy has died. She goes right to the Prophet in her distress, because he is her contact with the Lord. HER FAITH IS GREAT EVEN IN THE MIDST OF DISTRESS. She doesn’t have faith in Gahazi going back to the house to see the boy, but won’t leave Elisha, until he goes back himself. Then her faith is honored.

Women of great faith, both Jew and Gentile are honored in the Bible. We see the importance of faith and trusting whole heartedly in God, not just by men of faith, but really especially by women. Jesus first appeared to women after his resurrection, and they believed before the men. Perhaps the greatest attribute a mother can have is her faith in the Lord, to do what He says he will do, and then to have faith in her children, to obey and accomplish what God wants them to do. The good thing about this, is that no matter how old a mother is she can still pray for her children to give their lives to the Lord, and receive Jesus Christ into their lives, even when it is evident they aren’t following Him now. Remember that the Lord hears your distress and will bring restoration, if we fully trust Him, and put our faith only in Him. We don’t even have to have a lot of faith. Jesus said if we just have a little faith, the size of a mustard seed, we can move mountains. Whether that means a literal mountain is unlikely, but even that is possible. God could send an earthquake and destroy a mountain for us if it was in his plan to accomplish something for us. But more than likely he will remove the things that rise up in our lives that seem like a mountain. He will cause women to be pregnant when it seems they can’t have children. Or he will provide children who need a mother through adoption.

He will heal when a child is sick, and I believe he will even raise a child from the dead. Perhaps not in the dramatic way that happened with the Shunammite woman’s son, but it has happened. The important thing is to learn from women in the Bible who had faith even when they didn’t have the Bible as we have, and the long historical context of God’s faithfulness. He loves all of us, but I believe He especially loves to honor the faith of women. We too honor the faith of our mothers, without which, probably many of us wouldn’t be here today

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date May 4, 2025
Text Text: I John 2: 12-17
Pastor Paul Lehmann

When John addresses the church in this letter, he uses the term, “God’s children. He describes them as “little children” –that is born-
again ones,” which are new Christians. They are the ones whose sins
have been forgiven, so they all have the privilege of fellowship in the
family, irrespective of growth or maturity. In verses 13 and 14, those
who develop spiritually and enjoy the full privilege of fellowship are
described in these verses from the most mature to the babies. The
mature, that is “fathers,” are characterized by a seasoned knowledge
of Christ (verse 14)—“him that is from the beginning” (mentioned in
John 1:1, also). This experiential knowledge results from intimate
fellowship with the Father and the Son. The “young men,” those
growing in maturity, are commended because they emphatically
overcome the wicked one (Satan), the outcome of being strong
spiritually and of having “the word of God abiding in them.” The
immature, “little children” that are infants in the faith” are spiritually
undeveloped and are to be distinguished from the “dear sons” of
verse 12. Although some are immature, all believers are in the family
of God and know Him as Father and Christ as the Forgiver of their
sins. The need is for all to grow up and enter the full privileges of
fellowship.

This is the result of preaching the gospel. This is the essential
message of the gospel. In Luke 24:47, they were sent out to preach
repentance and forgiveness of sins.
To be forgiven is to be at peace with God, at home with God, in
fellowship and friendship with God, and that is precisely the gift that
Jesus brought to men. John uses the phrase “through (or on account
of) His name.” (verse 12) Forgiveness comes through the name of
Christ Jesus. Acts 4:12 –“Salvation is found in no one else, for there
is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be
saved.” When the Jews used this phrase, “the name,” it stood for the
whole character and nature of a person, not simply the name by

2

which a person is called. This use is very common in the book of
Psalms (9:10). They who know your name will put their trust in you.
Those who know God’s nature, God’s character, who He is, and what
He is in so far as it has been revealed to men, will be ready and
eager to put their trust in Him because they know what He is like (Ps.
20:7). Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will trust (or
remember) the name of the Lord. Some people put their trust in
earthly help; (for us, like the government, ) but we will trust God
because we know His name, His nature, His love, and His mercy
So then, John means that we are assured of forgiveness because we
know the nature and the character of Jesus Christ. We know that
Jesus is the express image of God, that in Him we see God. We see
in Jesus’ sacrificial love and patient mercy; therefore we know that
God is like that; and therefore, we can be sure that there is
forgiveness for us.
Then there is the gift of increasing knowledge of God.
To know God was not merely to know Him as the philosopher knows
Him, it was to know Him as we would know a close friend and a friend
knows us. In Hebrew “to know” meant intimacy. (In old English it
means this also.) John doesn’t mean here, that the Christian will just
learn more and more knowledge about Christ, but that they will
become more intimate with God as a friend, and become more and
more like Him.
There was a false teaching at this time called “Gnosticism.”
It’s name came from the Greek word for knowledge, (gnosis.) The
Gnostics believed that knowledge was the way to salvation. For this
reason, Gnosticism was condemned as false and heretical by several
writers of the New Testament. The Gnostics accepted the Greek idea
of a radical dualism between God (spirit) and the world (which was
matter.) According to their worldview, the created order was evil,
inferior, and opposed to the good. God may have created the first
order, but each successive order was the work of antigods, archons,
or a demiurge (a subordinate deity).

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The Gnostics also taught that every human being is composed of
body, soul, and spirit. Since the body and the soul are part of
people’s earthly existence, they are evil. Enclosed in the soul,
however, is the spirit, the only divine part of this triad. This “spirit” is
asleep and ignorant; it needs to be awakened and liberated by
KNOWLEDGE, so the inner person can be released from the earthly
dungeon and return to the realm of light where the soul becomes
reunited with God. As the soul ascends, however, it needs to
penetrate the cosmic spheres that separate it from its heavenly
destiny. This, too, is accomplished by the knowledge they taught.
One must understand certain formulas that are revealed only to the
initiated.
Ethical behavior among the Gnostics varied considerably. Some
sought to separate themselves from all evil matter in order to avoid
contamination.
Paul might have had these people in mind when he wrote to
Timothy in Tim. 4:1-5. “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some
will abandon their faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught
by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose
consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people
to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God
created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and
who know the truth. For everything God created is good, and nothing
is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is
consecrated by the word of God and prayer.”
For some Gnostics, since they had received divine “knowledge” and
were supposed “truly informed”, they reasoned that it didn’t matter
how they lived. This of course is a huge misunderstanding of the
gospel.

Since we have been forgiven, and we have the possibility of
knowing the truth from God’s Word, led by His Spirit;
We have the gift of victorious strength,
A strength that comes from the Holy Spirit and allows us, or
helps us to live holy lives.

4

But there is also a peril that we are warned of: In verse 15 this
warning is couched in a two-fold command:
“DO NOT LOVE THE WORLD.” (the kosmos), the world system
under which Satan has organized fallen mankind upon his God-
opposing principles of pride, selfishness and ambition. We see this in
Matthew 4: 8 and 9, where Satan takes Jesus to a high mountain and
showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this
I will give you,” he said, “If you will bow down and worship me.” Jesus
said to him, “Away from me, (K.J.V.- get behind me Satan!) For it is
written: “Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.”
Also Eph. 2:1 and 2; “ As for you, you were dead in your
transgressions and sins, In which you used to live when you followed
the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the
spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient.” Then in
chapter 6 verse 12; “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of
this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly
realms.” “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day
of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground….
In I John 4:4 John says; “You dear children”—there he says it again;
are from God and have overcome them (the false prophets and
teachers mentioned in the first 3 verses)—because the one who is in
you is greater than the one who is in the world.
In I John 5:3, John says that the love of God is to obey His
commands, “And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone
born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has
overcome the world, even our faith.
The second command given in the last part of the sentence is:
“…OR ANYTHING IN THE WORLD.”
Such as it’s wealth, pleasure or honors. It is useless to claim we do
not love the world yet love what it offers. Why would we have such a
warning? Does this mean that there isn’t anything good in the world?
You say Pastor Paul, I thought God created everything, and when He
was finished He said; “It is GOOD.” This is true, and we just read that
also in I Timothy, but don’t forget what happened after that. Adam

5

and Eve disobeyed and sin entered into the world, and into their lives,
and what was good became distorted. When Satan was put out of
heaven he was given the liberty to control the kingdom of the air.
(Luke 10:18) When Jesus received the 72 disciples that he sent out
to minister, and they were so happy and said “even the demons
submitted to us in your name.” Then Jesus said; “ I saw Satan fall like
lighting from heaven.” This is what Isaiah is talking about in Isaiah
14:12; “ How you have fallen from heaven, o morning star, son of the
dawn You have been cast down to the earth…you said in your
heart…I will make myself like the Most High.” Jesus went on to tell
the disciples; “ I have given you authority to trample on snakes and
scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will
harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but
rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
We read in Eph. 2: one and two, that also Satan is at work in the
spirits of those who are disobedient.
Augustine wrote in his commentary about this passage:
“Loving the created world is not wrong as longas our loving God is
not diminished. To love the world and fail to love God would be like a
bride, who, being given a ring by her bridegroom, loves the ring more
than the groom who gave it. Of course, she should love what the
groom gave her, but to love the ring and despise him who gave it is to
reject the very meaning of the ring as a token of his love. Likewise,
men who love creation and not the creator are rejecting the whole
meaning of creation. We ought to appreciate the creation and love
the creator because of it.”
So what’s the reason for the warning?
First: The love for the world excludes love for God.
Verse 15 goes on to say; “If anyone loves the world, the love of the
Father is not in him.” Now there is much beauty in the world that God
created. I just love to look at large bodies of water, mountains, hills,
streams, valleys and gorges etc. But what we are talking about here
is not the physical creation of the world, but man’s system of living, a
society that has gotten more and more away from God in the last 50-
75 years, and some today would like to remove any influence of Him
from society.

6

So contrary is the evil world to all that God is, both cannot be loved at
the same time. “The world” embraces “the lust of the flesh,” the keen
desire of the unregenerate man centered upon self and opposed to
God. In Romans 7:18, the apostle Paul says; “I know that nothing
good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to
do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the
good I want to do; no the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on
doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it,
but it is sin living in me that does it. …What a wretched man I am!
Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—-
through Jesus Christ our Lord!
“The lust of the eyes” is the strong appetites which master our body,
soul and spirit through the eye gate. The “ride of life,” is the vain
display of godless living. Thus the evil world is completely at variance
with our indefinitely holy God.
Secondly: The world is fleeting and isn’t permanent.
It is even now passing by, in a state of transition a parade and it will
soon be gone, as well as “its lusts.” By contrast, the doer of God’s will
is destined for permanence. We see this in verse 17 –“but he who
continually does God’s will remains forever,” even as God abides
forever, for he is linked eternally with God in Christ and in present
unbroken fellowship.
No matter who they are, their sins have been forgiven; no matter who
they are, they know Him who is from the beginning; no matter who
they are, they have the strength which can face and over come the
Evil One. The best defense of the Christian against sin is to
remember who and what we are, and what God has done for us in
Jesus Christ.
Bill and Gloria Gaither have written a tremendous song that declares
who we are:

“ If you could go with me, back to where I started from,
then I know you would see, a miracle of love that took
me in its sweet embrace, and made me what I am today,
just an old sinner saved by grace.”

7

“How could I boast of anything I’ve ever seen or done?
How could I dare to claim as mine the victories God has
won? Where would I be had God not brought me gently
to this place? I’m here to say I’m nothing but a sinner
saved by grace. I’m just a sinner saved by grace, When
I stood condemned to death He took my place, Now I
live and breathe in freedom with each breath of life I
take, Loved and forgiven, Back with the living, I’m just a
sinner saved by grace.
The song poses the question; “how could I boast of
anything I’ve seen or done?”
We can’t! That is the pride of life, that John is
talking about, when we somehow think that we
can be good enough to inherit eternal life. It is
only Jesus that is good enough to take our sins
upon Him.

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date April 27, 2025
Text: John 20:19-31; James 1:5-8 (N.I.V.)
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

In March of 2014, there was a news story from Spain, about a 47-story apartment building that only had elevators for 20 stories, and no elevator shafts or elevators to take people to the remaining top floors. There were 269 luxury apartments but only 120 of them were rented because people were probably doubting the structure of the building and they were blaming the architect for not considering elevators for the top part of the building. This was all debunked just a week or two after the story came out as lies, and a reporter rode one of the 12 elevators and posted pictures. Nevertheless, the building hasn’t been able to be fully rented, or condos sold; not because of elevators, but maybe because the price of a one-bedroom apartment was 358,000 Euros. That is $406, 962.00 U.S. dollars. They rented for $4,000 per month. People may still have had trouble with the lies that were told against the Spanish architect.

We all know how doubts can creep into our thinking when we choose to believe a lie.

What if a lie affects our faith?

The story of Thomas is one of the more famous ones in all of the gospels because it speaks to a deep human condition. In the face of confusion, conflicting evidence, and a world that requires empirical evidence before making a decision, DOUBT seems to be the norm for many people. Sometimes that doubt can be useful. But other times, doubt can lead to atrophy and emptiness, especially when it causes us to neglect the hope of faith in the risen Christ.

In verse 19 of our text, we find the other disciples (minus Thomas) cowering in a house “for fear of the Jews”. Tomans is the one who often gets branded as the doubter, but we must remember that the other disciples were equally guilty of doubt after they heard Mary Magdalene’s announcement; “I have seen the Lord!” (verse 18). Otherwise, they wouldn’t have all been huddled together with the doors shut. It’s not until the risen Jesus actually shows up that they believe and understand. Thomas isn’t any different than his colleagues. It’s just that he’s behind in assessing the situation.

Doubt permeates the whole situation after Jesus’ crucifixion and the discovery of the empty tomb. They have heard about the lies that the Roman soldiers were told to spread. They knew that they hadn’t stolen the body, but when people’s opinions are based on lies, it takes longer for the truth to come out, and even then:

WE MUST BE WILLING TO KNOW THE TRUTH AND ACCEPT THE TRUTH

It is doubt that leads the disciples to temporarily not believe that Jesus had risen from the dead. When it comes to spiritual belief, it is only human to ask why to God, or to ask Him if something is true. That’s why the gift of spiritual discernment is so important.

BUT WE MUST NEVER REMAIN IN THAT POSITION PERMANENTLY.

It must only be a temporary position. We must allow the reality of a resurrected Christ to live within us. Then and only then can our DOUBT move to FAITH

The text points to three key things that the disciples forgot to include in trying to have faith. If we don’t remember them ourselves it will lead to spiritual bankruptcy and uselessness.

THE FIRST ONE IS:

THE PEACE OF CHRIST.

Four times in the text Jesus says, “Peace be with you.” On one level, this is a conventional greeting—a basic Jewish community greeting. But the repeated mention of it here is a a reminder of something that Jesus had said to his disciples earlier. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid” John 14:27. The peace that “the world gives: is a piece that seeks to alleviate fear by relying on the security of wealth, the protection of armies or the isolation of a locked door. But there’s really no peace in these things, at least only temporarily. The peace that Jesus offers however, is an eternal peace made possible by his resurrection from the dead.

Jesus knew that the disciples would be under constant scrutiny and danger—-that there would always be someone lurking on the other side of the door threatening those who follow Jesus and his peace. But the peace of Jesus is grounded in the fact of his resurrection. As the risen Christ stands before them, with his nail-scarred hands, feet, and the wound on his side, he demonstrates to them the fact that death will not have the last word with them. “Because I live, you will also live.” He had told them earlier. (vs. 14-19).

When we forget the peace of Christ, we tend to become gripped by fear and doubt, and our sense of hope seems to be unachievable. We need to remember that Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection have made a new future possible—a future that’s ready for us to move into right now through faith in him. We don’t have to live in fear because we have a savior who has guaranteed our future through an empty tomb.

THE SECOND KEY ELEMENT WE NEED TO REMEMBER IS:

THE ONGOING

PRESENCE OF CHRIST

Jesus “breathed” on the disciples and gave them the Holy Spirit, the very presence of Christ in their lives (vs 22). When John spoke in this way, he was thinking back to the old story of the creation of man. There the writer, Moses says in Genesis 2:7: “The Lord god formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” This was the same picture Ezekiel saw in Ezekiel 37:9, when he saw the valley of dead, dry bones, and when he heard God say to the wind; “come from the four winds, O breadth, and breathe into these slain, that they may live.” Then in verse 8 when he did that, we read,”…breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—-a vast army.” When Jesus breathed on them in John 20:21 and said; “receive the Holy Spirit,” this wasn’t just a precursor of Pentecost. It was the moment that the disciples became “BORN AGAIN” by the Spirit of God.

This coming of the Holy Spirit was when they became new creations. It was the wakening of life from the dead. When they obeyed the Lord and entered the upper room 40 days later at Pentecost and waited for the Holy Spirit to come upon them they received POWER TO WITNESS and carry out the task that God gave them, of taking the gospel to the world. It is this great task that is given to us. It is the privilege of the Church to convey the message and the announcement and the fact of god’s forgiveness to men.

The Spirit would also give them the power to do “even greater things” than Jesus had done (14:12) and provide the comfort, advocacy, and peace that enabled them to carry out God’s mission to the world.

When doubt and fear creep into our lives, we must rely on the witness of the Spirit to remind us that our lives matter and have purpose in Christ. It’s the Spirit that enables us to be people who forgive sins, who speak boldly, and who demonstrate the character of Christ (verse 23). The Holy Spirit provides us with the internal check of the presence of Jesus, which reminds us that our lives will never be useless when he is working within them. But also :

THE THIRD ELEMENT THAT DOUBTERS LIKE THOMAS (AND US) NEED TO REMEMBER IS :

OUR FAITH ISN’T JUST AN IDEA, A CONCEPT, OR A PRINCIPLE—

INSTEAD:

OUR FAITH IS IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST.

And our faith isn’t in a dead, Suffering Savior, but a LIVING RESURRECTED ONE

Jesus shows up in person a week later, when Thomas is present, and invites the doubtful disciple to touch his wounds. It’s a touch that’s only possible if Jesus is more than a concept, but a person who was “in the flesh” like us, who suffered as we suffer; who was tempted like we are tempted; who dwelt among us and gave his life for us (1:14) Thomas finally believed because he saw Jesus—not just on that day, but on all the days he had spent following Jesus around Judea. He knew what kind of man Jesus was, that he was worthy of Thomas’ trust and faith, and that he never backed down from a promise even when he was nailed to a cross. Now, with the risen Christ standing in front of him in the flesh, Thomas’ faith went from doubtful hope to a person he would never forget.

Thomas’ confession in the person of Christ, “My Lord and my God” is one that provides a foundation for our own faith (vs. 28). It’s a faith that doesn’t subscribe to the old adage,” Seeing is believing,” but rather Jesus’ brand of faith that reminds us that “believing is SEEING:. He told Thomas

“You have believed because you have seen me, but blessed are those who have not seen me but have believed.”

God has come to us in Jesus Christ, who continues his mission through doubters and misfits like Thomas and us. Faith is a willingness to follow him, even when we’re not sure where it will lead us.

Faith is a willingness to believe and not doubt because we know the One who holds us and the world in his hand.

Our doubt can be fixed by remembering that:

Jesus offers us:

His peace, His presence, and His person.

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date April 20, 2025
Text: Philippians 3:7-11
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

The world has seen throughout history, many accomplishments because someone has been “committed.” Sometimes it is an individual, sometimes it is a team, or a community, and sometimes a group of believers. This certainly has been true in areas of the world, where the church is being persecuted.

In 1917 when the Russian revolution took place, Lenin, was committed, and Communism became the political system of what was the Soviet Union for 72 years. During that time its effectiveness was because of Lenin’s exaltation of his comrades to total commitment. Total acceptance of the cause; Total dedication to the cause; Total discipline in the cause; and Total action for the cause.

In the 1970s it embraced a third of the world. That’s what total commitment can do. But by the 1980s it began to crumble, and by 1989 communism was pretty well finished as a world-wide influence. Even in China, Cuba and North Korea, where Communism lingers, there have been huge changes, and there is a strong underground church. Only North Korea seems to have a regime that boldly kills Christians wherever they are detected. China does it too, but more secretly. Islamic countries now are the ones that readily kill Christians.

So, commitment brings success to a cause to some degree, or for a certain length of time, but we must be committed to the truth, in order for lasting change. We must be committed to the right things, if they are to last. Jesus said in John 14:6 –“I am the way, the TRUTH and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” True commitment will mean not only turning to something good, but more importantly JESUS who is TRUTH. — but from something that is destructive,–SIN. Just as Paul commended the Thessalonians in I Thess. 1:9 for turning “TO GOD, from Idols to serve the living and true God.”

For a disciple of Jesus Christ, commitment means turning from serving self to serving others, for Jesus said the one who would be first must be the servant of all. It means turning from pride to humility. When the 70 returned after being sent out by the Lord, when even the demons submitted to them, Jesus told them; “do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.” (Luke 10:20)

We cannot glory in the works that God himself does in us, and through us. We like Paul, must not boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Gal. 6:14). You might think; yes, we glory only in the cross, so what’s all this about RESURRECTION POWER. Is the resurrection really that important? Some people think that we can be perfectly good Christians without believing in the resurrection. However, if we look at I Corinthians 15:13-26, we see that the resurrection has to be real, or we have no gospel. No Good News. We would be still in our sins, and Jesus would have just been a good man that was unjustly put to death, but he wouldn’t have been able to die for us and bring forgiveness for sin, unless he rose again and had victory over sin, and Satan, and death and the grave.

In I Corinthians 15:54, quoting Isaiah 25:8 we read; “Death has been swallowed up in victory, Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” This is a passage showing what had to be accomplished through Jesus Christ.

We might ask the question, “why should we be committed to Jesus, and believe in the resurrection? Because it is the only way to be reconciled with God. It is through Him that he equips us for present and future suffering. But the main reason is found in our text; Philippians 3:verses 10, 11—where Paul talks about obtaining righteousness through faith in Christ. He goes on to say; “…I want to know Christ and the

POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

The resurrection means; Jesus has the POWER he claimed to have.

Many have a strong Christian heritage. As good as that is, as a blessing from God to come from that background, I have good news for those of you who do not have that kind of heritage. None of that can save us, and we see in verse 8 of Philippians 3, that Paul says all of that religious background is like rubbish, or garbage. It means nothing for our salvation.

We can appreciate any Christian upbringing we have, but we have to personally accept Jesus ourselves. When a person becomes a Christian, God takes away the bad, (by forgiving us our sins) but he also transforms us, reconciles us to God, and gives us Eternal Life.

There were five “Mission Aviation Fellowship” (M.A.F) missionaries, who lost their lives, taking the gospel to an Indian tribe in Ecuador, which was known at the time (1956) as the Auca Indians. This word in the Quechua language means, “naked savage.” The correct name of the tribe, and how it is known today is the Waodani. At the time the missionaries were killed, they were an isolated tribe known for their violence. That’s why no one wanted to take the gospel to them. One of the missionaries, Jim Elliot knew that this “lost” tribe needed to hear the gospel. He once said; “He is no fool to give what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

This is Paul’s experience: He lost his “religion” and his reputation, but he gained far more than he lost. When he became a Christian, it was not the end for him, but the beginning. His experience when he committed himself to the resurrected Christ was personal and powerful.

This power enables believers to live a new life. Through this power, he is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine! This is Paul’s estimate of the Resurrection POWER OF CHRIST and what it can do in your life and mine.

This POWER NEEDS TO BE UNVAILED. There is sort of a FOG over it and many don’t see it.

It’s kind of like what happened after the battle of Waterloo in 1815 when the news came to England. You remember the story. Arthur Wellesley, the Duke of Wellington, fought the last battle against Napoleon in Belgium. There were no telegrams in those days, but everyone knew that “Wellington” was facing Napoleon in a great battle, which the outcome would declare the future of England. A sailing ship “semaphored” (signaled with flags) news to the signalman on top of Winchester Cathedral. As the message was being received, the words were: WELLINTON DEFEATED—– Just at that instant a fog settled in, making it impossible for anyone to see any more signals from the tower. The news went across England and there was great discouragement and gloom all over the countryside. No more hope, no more liberty, no more England. After two or three hours the fog lifted, and the signal came again, “WELLINGTON DEFEATED THE ENEMY” Then all England of course rejoiced.

There was that day, when in the eyes of the world they put the body of the Lord Jesus Christ in the tomb. The disciples, along with a lot of people said, ”everything is ended, all is lost,–there is no justice, sin and Satan has conquered”—(Satan himself thought he had won). But then three days later—“the fog lifted” Jesus Christ rose from the dead. The truth has come down ever since and Jesus defeated the enemy! He defeated sin, Satan, death and the grave

We now have the HOPE OF ETERNAL LIFE because of the RESURRECTION.

We now have the POWER that began with the RESSURRECTION. Because of the HOLY SPIRIT that He promised would come upon the disciples, they would receive POWER and they would be WITNESSES to what Jesus did, and the Gospel would be preached in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and all over the world.

There is power in the resurrection. Our future is secure;

We have eternal life because our sins are forgiven.

We can have the power to overcome our problems,

and we can be free from the bondage of sin.

Don’t be up and down in your spiritual walk—

obtain the victory that is yours through the power of the resurrection.

Paul gave up everything— his position of authority in Judaism, family, friendship and freedom—in order to know this power obtainable because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We too, have access to this knowledge and power. But we may have to make sacrifices to experience and enjoy it fully. What are you willing to give up in order to know Christ better? We too often want to “hang onto stuff” that we think we need. Things that may or may not be keeping us from the Lord or time spent with him. A crowded schedule, or plans of our own, that take up our time. Not that there is anything wrong with what we are doing, and the time it takes to do it, but if we don’t compensate for that by giving equal time to the Lord, then we must rethink, and recommit to our service for him.

When we become one with Christ by trusting in him, we experience the POWER that raised him from the dead

. Along with this power we have AUTHORITY

. We have power and authority over the attacks of the enemy.

We have power and authority over sickness and ill health. As our will becomes aligned with God’s will, and we obey him, then our faith increases, and we begin to understand just how much power we have because of Jesus who lives within us.

If you are not sure he lives within you, what are you waiting for? Before you can walk in newness of life, you must ask him to forgive your sins and “die” to your sins, since he took all of your sin upon himself on the cross.
Turn your life around (that’s what repent means), and put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ alone to save you.

Just as the Resurrection gives us Christ’s power to live for him, his Crucifixion marks the death of our old sinful self-nature. We can’t know the victory of the Resurrection without personally applying the Crucifixion. You may believe he died for the sins of the world, but you must also believe he died for just you. Receive him into your life this morning. Experience his power in your life so that you can walk in victory, and be assured of Eternal life, when he finally calls you home.

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date April 20, 2025

Easter Sunrise Service
Text Luke 24: 1-16
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

Many skeptics will find it appropriate to put the resurrection into the category of the many ‘hoaxes” that we find on the internet. Fake news, if you will. Well, the reason the doubters keep trying to disprove the resurrection is, that if they acknowledge that Jesus not only died for our sins but rose again, they are forced to recognize the truth that we must either accept or reject Jesus Christ as Savior. They find it troubling that so many people still believe in the resurrection.

A lot of different people in Jerusalem were troubled by the resurrection of Jesus. The Roman government was troubled because the events of the last few days were very unusual and they didn’t know what was going to happen

Matthew 27:51-52 tells us that the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

The earth shook and the rocks split.

The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. They came out of their tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection, they went into Jerusalem and appeared to many people.

The Jews were troubled because they were still under the domination of Rome.

The ones who thought Jesus was going to lead a revolution were troubled because yet another so-called Messiah had failed them.

The ones who followed him, like His disciples, were troubled because they were left without His teaching, and they didn’t seem to remember what he said about his death and resurrection. They didn’t believe Mary when she told them he was alive. The Jewish leaders were troubled when the guards go back to their superiors and when they exclaimed what happened, they were paid money and were told –In Matt. 28:13-15 that they were to say, his disciples came during the night and stole him away while were asleep. If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble. So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day, more than 2,000 years later. The two disciples (who were not of the 11 disciples), didn’t even know for sure that he had risen from the dead, until “their eyes were opened and they admitted that “their hearts burned within them” when he opened the scriptures to them.

We’re here today to celebrate what some would say — incorrectly — is the greatest hoax of all. From the very beginning, the authorities tried to dismiss the resurrection story as nothing more than a fabrication, but it’s a story that wouldn’t go away..

Our faith is founded on one specific historical event. Not a myth or a legend, but a specific event that took place in the first century that changed forever the meaning of everything that matters.

We believe that on this day almost 2000 years ago, an itinerant backwoods preacher named Jesus rose from the dead. Three days before he had died a violent death on a Roman cross. His lifeless body was placed in a tomb, sealed with a stone, guarded by a Roman centurion.

And then, on Sunday morning, the Spirit of God entered the sepulcher where he lay, and breathed life into his nostrils, and his heart began to pound and his blood began to flow and his eyes opened wide and he stood to his feet, fully alive. This was not a symbolic resurrection, as in: “As long as we remember him, isn’t he, in a sense, always with us?”

Neither was it a spiritual resurrection, as in: “After death all souls move to a higher plane of existence and that’s where Jesus is today.”

No, it was a physical, bodily resurrection. He had been as dead as dead can be, and now he was — is — alive forevermore, with the life of God flowing through him. And when news of his resurrection spread throughout Jerusalem and the surrounding towns and villages, the political authorities and religious leaders had only one thing to say about it.

Fake News. April Fools. A giant hoax. It never happened.

But in the days following, hundreds of people saw him in the flesh, fully alive, and they knew it was true.

THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE DISCIPLES

There are many compelling reasons to believe in the reality of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. They have been detailed in books like Who Moved the Stone, The Case for Christ, by Lee Strobel “More than a Carpenter, and Evidence That Demands a Verdict.

The most compelling reason to believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ can be seen in the disciples themselves.

When Jesus was arrested, they all scattered — all but John. They all feared they might be next in line, that their fate might be the same as his. The Apostle Peter denied that he ever knew him — not once, but three times.

Their response after his arrest was as cowardly as it could have been — but considering the circumstances, you really can’t blame them.

Jesus’ disciples ran in fear after his arrest, and after his death they remained in hiding. I’m sure they were trying to figure out: What next? What can we do? Will this thing blow over? Will we ever be safe? Can we go back to Galilee? Can we assume new identities? I’m sure they considered all the options. And then they began to hear the news, first from Mary, and then from some of the others. Jesus is alive. Could it really be? This is too good to be true! Dare we believe it?

Peter wanted to see for himself, so he got up and ran to the tomb. When he arrived he saw the strips of linen — the burial shroud — lying empty on the stone slab. And the Bible tells us that he walked away wondering to himself what had happened. [Luke 24:12] He really wanted to believe; it was just too good to be true.

But in the coming days they saw Jesus face-to-face. They talked to him. Walked with him. Ate with him. Thomas touched him, because he wanted to be sure that his eyes weren’t playing tricks on him.

In the coming weeks Jesus appeared to his followers again and again, to as many as 500 people, proving to them that he is who he claimed to be: The Son of God, God in the flesh, the chosen Messiah, the Prince of Peace, the King of Kings, the Lord and Lords. And he alone has power over death and the grave.

What happened next is that these disciples experienced a radical transformation. They went from being a pack of scaredy-cats to being a tribe of roaring lions. They went from hiding under the cover of darkness in a secret room to boldly proclaiming the name of Jesus in the public square.

What could possibly have triggered such a transformation? A one-on-one real life encounter with the risen Christ.

They had seen him beaten beyond recognition. And they watched — from a distance — as he died. They knew he was dead. And then they saw him alive again. And it gave them a boldness that they had never had before.

The authorities said that it was a hoax. Fake news. That his disciples had stolen his body and hidden it in order to perpetuate this fantastic lie.

That might have been a plausible theory — had his disciples been able to leverage the resurrection myth into fame and fortune for themselves. But that’s not what happened. They didn’t achieve fame and fortune at all. In fact, almost all of them paid the ultimate price for the message they proclaimed: they paid with their lives.

• Andrew was crucified in Western Greece in 69 A.D.
• James was killed with a sword by Herod Agrippa.
• Philip was imprisoned in Egypt, then crucified in 54 A.D.
• Bartholomew was skinned alive and beheaded in India.
• The one known as James the Less was, at the age of 94, beaten to death with a club.
• Simon the Zealot was crucified in England in 74 A.D.
• Simon Peter — the denier — died in Rome during the reign of Nero. Tradition says that he requested to be crucified upside down because he did not consider himself worthy to die in the same manner as his master.

Why were these men who had once been completely paralyzed by fear suddenly willing to pay the ultimate price?

It wasn’t for a lie that they made up, you can be sure. It wasn’t for a hoax.

It was because they had experienced a one-on-one real-life encounter with the risen Christ. They saw it with their own eyes: a man who had been dead was alive again.

Very few people would be foolish enough to give their lives in exchange for a lie. But when you have encountered a resurrection up close and personal — as the disciples did — it changes you.

Charles Colson, head of a wonderful Prison Ministry today, and who once was involved in the Nixon Watergate scandal, says that when he is asked about the resurrection, he simply points out the number of people that were eyewitnesses to it. But when he is asked, “How do you know they were telling the truth? He answers to that from an unlikely source: WATERGATE. John Dean turned state evidence after only two weeks. That’s all the longer the cover-up could last. The lie could be held together only two weeks! Then everybody else around the president “jumped ship” in order to save themselves. All they were facing was embarrassment, and maybe prison. Nobody’s life was at stake.

But the disciples were facing not just embarrassment or political disgrace, but beatings, stoning, and execution. Every single one of the disciples insisted, to their dying breaths, that they had physically seen Jesus bodily raised form the dead Don’t you think that one of those apostles would have cracked before being beheaded stoned, or crucified? That one of them would have made a deal with the authorities? None did. Men will give their lives for something they believe to be true; they will never give their lives for something they know to be false or a lie. This is still going on today in so many countries, where Christians are persecuted and imprisoned for their faith, or killed. This is the reality of what the Rison Christ does to change and impower a person. He brings deliverance, strength and power to face anything. Because they KNOW that they have ETERNAL LIFE.

There is a lot of convincing proof that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. If you have doubts about it, a sermon like this probably isn’t enough; I encourage you, then, to dig a little deeper and discover for yourself the consensus among scholars.

For me, the most convincing proof has always been the radical transformation of the disciples that took place in the days following the resurrection and continues to change lives today. The results are:

A PERSONAL ENCOUNTER WITH THE RISEN CHRIST, PEACE WITH GOD, ASSURANCE OF ETERNAL LIFE, A BRAND NEW START EVERY DAY, YOU WILL NEVER BE LEFT ALONE, AND HE WILL GIVE YOU STRENGTH TO FACE ANYTHING.

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Nobleton Community Church
29084 Sentinel Street PO Box 224
Nobleton, Florida 34661

Rev. Paul V. Lehmann, Pastor
813-389-8683
Nobletoncommunitychurch.org
info@nobletoncommunitychurch.org

OUR VISION IS:
To experience SPIRIT-FILLED WORSHIP AND PRAYER
To be involved in EVANGELISM, DISCIPLINING AND TRAINING PEOPLE
To use our SPIRITUAL GIFTS
To SERVE AND REACH PEOPLE FOR CHRIST, BOTH
“ACROSS THE STREET AND ACROSS THE WORLD”

Nobleton Community Church
Date April 13, 2025
Text Text: John 12:9-19; Luke 19:26-44
Pastor Paul Lehmann

Listen to live audio here

Palm Sunday

An illustration of what took place on that day when Jesus entered Jerusalem, was when the Allied forces marched down the Champs Elise Boulevard in Paris, after World War II, and the surrender of the Nazi German Army. The French people were very enthusiastic in celebrating what the English and U.S.A. soldiers had accomplished. However, just as Woodrow Wilson’s popularity waned after World War I, which lasted only about a year after the war, the French soon forgot the help they received. In recent years there is definitely a love-hate relationship with the U.S. They love our music and films, but don’t like our assurance which they mistake for arrogance. One reason for this is the obnoxious behavior of some Americans who are very rude to French people when they don’t speak English.

Also after the Coalition forces marched into Bagdad, the people celebrated and praised the American troops, but it didn’t take long for outside terrorist forces, mostly from Syria and Iran to turn many people against the U.S.

Jesus’ followers were happy believers. They wholeheartedly accepted Him as their king. They demonstrated their enthusiasm by crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the King of Israel! They waved palm branches and put their coats down in the road. They were probably called “fanatics” by curious onlookers.

The fact of the matter is, God wants enthusiasm. He has always favored people who enthusiastically praise Him. There are many examples of this in

the Bible. The Psalms are full of exclamation marks.

Psalm 47 shows this enthusiasm. “Clap your hands…shout to God with cries of joy. How awesome is the Lord Most High!”

There is a Praise chorus which says; “Shout to the Lord all the earth let us sing. Power and majesty, praise to the King. Mountains bow down, and the seas will roar—At the sound of your name. I sing for joy at the work of your hands Forever I’ll love you, forever I’ll stand. Nothing compares to the promise I have in You.

The prophets were enthusiastic. Isaiah says in chapter 40 verses 6-10; “A voice says, ‘Cry out…go up on a high mountain…lift up your voice with a SHOUT, lift it up, do not be afraid–see, the Sovereign Lord comes with power, and his arm rules for him.

Jeremiah is enthusiastic, even when he is warning against the judgment of God. Then in chapter 31 he gives the assurance that; “the Lord…will build you up again, and you will be rebuilt, O virgin Israel. Again, you will take up your tambourines and go out to dance with the joyful. Again, you will plant vineyards on the hills of Samaria, the farmers will plant them and enjoy their fruit. There will be a day when watchmen cry out on the hills of Ephraim, Come, let us go up to Zion, to the Lord our God. This is what the Lord says; Sing with joy for Jacob; SHOUT for the foremost of the nations, make your praises heard, and say; ‘O Lord, save your people, the remnant of Israel.’”

In Acts 2:43-47, the early church was; “filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. The beggar at the temple gate after he was healed, (Acts 3:8); “went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.

In II Cor. 5:13, Paul says; “If we are out of our mind, it is for the sake of God, if we are in our right mind it is for you.” (verse 14). “Christ’s love compels us.”

God is actually critical of those who have lost their enthusiasm. In Rev. 3:15-16 he says; “I know your works (deeds); that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm, neither hot or cold, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. God prefers that we are “hot” or “enthusiastic”. His second choice because it is honest, is (antagonistic). It isn’t an option to be in the middle of these two extremes when it come to our attitude towards Christ, and ministry for the Lord.

The Christian has many reasons to be enthusiastic.

He can be enthusiastic about the past. What was evil is forgiven and what was good is not lost. We can be enthusiastic about the present. We are members of the world’s greatest team and involved in the world’s greatest cause. We are strengthened by the world’s greatest power, and led by the world’s greatest leader. Our Lord Jesus Christ who is the King of Kings.

We can be enthusiastic about the future too.

We have the promise of eternal life. The final chapters of Revelation are the most enthusiastic words ever written. (Rev. 19:1). After this (the prediction of the fall of Babylon), I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting: Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God. In chapter 22:12-13 the Lord says; “Behold I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. Verse 17; “the Spirit and the bride say come. Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.”

It is important to keep our enthusiasm for Christ alive. Some who shouted “Hosanna” may have shouted “crucify him!” five days later. Some today may not Join in with the crowd shouting crucify him, but they have lost their enthusiasm for Christ, because a vocal minority, like the Pharisees, are putting Him down.

Most who make a profession of faith do so enthusiastically. Years ago when Billy Graham held his first Crusade in England, they had a lot of “Bobbies” (as they called their policemen) surrounding the soccer field where he preached. When Billy gave the invitation people from all over the stadium began to move down towards the field where the platform was set up. The police began to club people with their “Billy clubs,” because they thought they were starting to riot. So, don’t let anyone tell you that Billy Graham made it easy to accept Christ.

But people frequently are very enthusiastic when they first make a commitment to Christ. They want to know more about the Bible. They are anxious to tell other people about the Lord. Christians who have been Christians for a long time, sometimes get upset with all the enthusiasm they show. The new Christians look around and see how others are—with their dead pan looks, and lack of enthusiasm for the Lord, and sometimes get intimidated. One time a so-called mature Christian said about a new Christian; “don’t worry—give him a few months and he’ll get normal” –How sad.

However, there are others who have kept and increased their enthusiasm. They are still faithful, active, bubbling over with enthusiasm for their new- found faith because they are encouraged by, rather than discouraged by their fellow Christians. They attract others to the faith by their spirit, and they light up a room when they walk into it, because of their sweet spirit. Many have conquered discouragements and crises and have come out very strong in their faith.

So, we see that God wants enthusiasm, but the question is; how to keep enthusiasm for Christ alive.

Begin with a genuine conversion experience. “You must be born again.”

Some who joined in shouting “Hosanna!” may have had no real commitment; they were only caught up in the excitement of the day. Some religious experiences today are superficial. Some people have experienced peer pressure or parental pressure to be a Christian and also a pastor may have wanted the young person to follow a catechism or confirmation class. Or perhaps just the emotional excitement of an evangelistic meeting. There are those who rebound from a bad experience with a cult, or they have been addicted to drugs or alcohol and have come to the end of themselves, but their hearts haven’t been changed.

WHAT ARE SOME THINGS THAT WE MUST DO TO ENSURE THAT WE REMAIN FAITHFUL?

We must be determined to keep enthusiasm alive. Much of our attitude is within our control. Enthusiasm takes genuine effort and self-discipline.

We must keep close contact with Christ. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. I am the vine, you are the branches, Jesus said. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. Prayer, Bible study, and worship are valuable points of contact.

We must open our lives to the Holy Spirit. Enthusiasm comes from two Greek words; –en (meaning “full of” and, theos, (meaning “full of God.”) The Holy Spirit is God as He lives within us. Every Christian believer has the Holy Spirit. In Acts 2:38 we read, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the Forgiveness of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”

Each of us has great potential for enthusiasm. We are to give the Spirit full freedom in our lives. He wants to “control” us. This is where a lot of Christians fall short. They don’t want to be controlled by the Holy Spirit. They Eph. 5:18; “Do not get drunk with wine but be filled with the Spirit. “Now why would fear that will make them too “religious.” The apostle Paul tells us in he use that as an illustration? I can’t speak from experience, but, it is my understanding that when a person is drunk, you are out of control and the alcohol- the wine takes over. What Paul is saying, don’t give this control over to wine, (or in our case today any alcoholic drink), but give it over to the Holy Spirit. Let Him control you. Open every aspect of your life to His presence, His power, and His control.

We must also channel enthusiasm into an avenue of service.

“Emotionalism” seeks to be and end in itself. True emotion seeks to express itself in some concrete way and leads to action.

Today we join the crowds in Jerusalem, SHOUTING “Hosanna!” A month from now, a year from now, a decade from now, and eternity from now may you still have that enthusiasm for Christ the King.

― C.S. Lewis said in Mere Christianity

“I am trying here to prevent anyone from saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept his claim to be God. That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg — or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.”