Sermon Reflection::Matthew 18:21-35

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On Sunday Pastor David taught out of Matthew 18:21-35 - the parable of the unforgiving servant. Listen Online.
The parable taught us how unimaginable our debt of sin is to the Lord and how it is absolutely impossible for us to repay it back. Read Matt 18:21-35.

Through this text I was convicted of some past events that still affect me today and that I may still be carrying. I was reminded of the enormous debt of sin that is impossible to pay off and that I deserve to be in jail for the wages that I cannot earn or repay back to the King. But in His grace and mercy He has released me of that debt through Christ, as did the king to the servant in the first part of the parable. What also convicted me in my life was the second part of the parable and how the forgiven servant treated his fellow servant and his debt, and how the fellow servant pled for patience and the forgiven servant didn’t show the same mercy as the king had shown him. This really hit home when I thought about the people that have hurt me or angered me and how I still have this bitterness towards them even though it’s been a long while. Through Christ I’ve been relieved of this enormous debt and in light of this truth I should be forgiving of others. Pastor David said, “Forgiven people are forgiving people.”

With this message my response is to pray and plead with the Lord to give me a forgiving heart, to reconcile relationships that should be reconciled, and to release me from any bitterness or anger that I may still have.

--Steven Nguyen - C3 Student

Sermon Reflection::Matt18:10-14

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This week David added onto our series in Matthew 18:10-14 about the church. He reminded us that in verses 1-9 Jesus addressed his disciples’ hearts and ours as fellow believers. We as believers were created to be in perfect harmony with God, but this was broken. Since the fall our flesh has sought to steal the praise and glory that only God deserves. This attitude can be understood with your answer to the following question: What is God like? You would be surprised at how much this answer governs your life. Continuing into verses 10-14, Jesus shares the parable of the lost sheep. The shepherd is charged with one-hundred sheep, and one goes astray. This parable is perfect for our pastoral leaders in our church who are charged with His flock.  

God has blessed our church with leaders who love to glorify and enjoy life in Him. They have been charged with teaching God’s truth and guiding His flock whether through celebration, sorrows, and at times discipline. As little children, as Christians we are to imitate Christ and in this case we are to reach out our hands and go to fellow believers who have gone astray.  

I used to not value church membership. I went from the mentality of ‘God and I are fine, I don’t need to go,’ to the polar opposite by attending any and every Bible study possible from every church in town. Both mentalities have the same heart problem: I was picking and choosing what commandments to obey from God, I wouldn’t commit to a body (Heb 10:25, Rom 12:4-5). As an active member of a church you live day to day life with one another, not just Sundays. During this daily life others can hold one another accountable and grow spiritually while seeking to glorify the Father.  

If this was your first time to visit C3 I encourage you to walk with us. If not us, with a body that teaches the truth. Just remember the following about God’s character: 1. God cares for His children. 2. God seeks us when we stray. 3. God rejoices when we come back to Him. 4. God exercises His care for His children through His children.  

-- Rachel Evans - a C3 sheep

Sermon Reflections::Matt18:5-9

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The Lord taught me multiple things through the preached Word this weekend. The sermon was the second in a series about the institution of the church and what Jesus has to say about what it should look like. David summed up last week's sermon in a statement similar to this: "The church should be marked by a childlike humility that communally puts the world on notice that Jesus Christ is supremely valuable." This weeks might read: "The church should be marked by honoring Christ in humbly receiving one another, on the basis of the gospel!"  

It's been only in the last year and a half of my life that I have embraced the "communal living" aspect of the church that we're called to as Christians. Father continues to reinforce the doctrine of the church that I denied for most of my life, by having it come up time and time again in my study of the Word as well as in the preaching at C3. God is showing me that He is a God of community, and we are called to love each other in a way that brings attention to the gospel we are saved by as we hold that gospel supremely valuable in our lives, TOGETHER.  

My response for the sermons these past two weeks has to be one of childlike humility in which I forget anything the world will try to bring to my attention that could result in me treating my brother or sister in a way that doesn't reflect my attention upon the gospel. I must ask the Lord to humble me and have me submit to communal living the way we are called to. I must stand alongside my brothers and sisters, never denying another brother or sister that same fellowship, and further, reaching our hands out to them that they may be transformed and made new by the power of Christ-centered community. 

 -- Joshua Miller - C3 Student

Sermon Reflections::Matt17:16-20

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This past Sunday, Pastor David continued in Matthew 17:16-20. Here, the disciples are given the opportunity to perform a miracle while Jesus is away praying and the disciples come up short, finding themselves unable to heal this father's epileptic child. Last week we talked through the idea of works without faith and how worthless they are in such a state as the disciples were. This week, jumping off from that topic, Pastor David preached over what kind of faith it is that is described in verse 20 as "faith like a grain of mustard seed" which can allow you to say to a mountain "'move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."

In our sermon reflection Sunday night, we were given the question from Pastor David's sermon: What kind of faith is it that moves a mountain? As we discussed this, we found links to some other very interesting passages in the Bible. For instance, after agreeing that (in this context) doing the impossible (like moving a mountain) is solely within the realm of believers, we wondered whether the father of the young child believed. In looking at the parallel passage to this one in Mark 9, we found the father exclaiming "I believe, help my unbelief!" The father seems to have a genuine faith which is still working itself out within him. This idea of deliverance through genuine faith is echoed in the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3:17-18. These three faithful servants of God boldly proclaim that God will save them from the fiery furnace but that whether they are saved or not, God is still God and he can do as He wills. This connection really blew my mind, especially in the context of Pastor David's sermon. He explained that when Jesus said "nothing will be impossible," he meant that nothing which serves your created purpose will be impossible. That created purpose is to do God's will and glorify Him. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego had a genuine faith that God's will would be done regardless of whether they were saved from a fiery death or not. That is the faith that moves mountains.

When talking more about the impossible via Romans 8:28-29, we recognized that, honestly, all things are impossible for us as fallen humans, especially our salvation. Though we are saved initially from death through belief in Christ, we are going through progressive salvation in that we are daily being saved from our sinful nature by being molded into the image of Christ. So how is it that we are being conformed into the image of Christ when we are in circumstances from which we are not being saved? How is that sanctifying? Well, just as Christ cried tears of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane for God to take his cup from him if it be God's will and God did not, we must see that in our circumstances, God's will is still working and that His glory is still supreme over all our plans. When we look at it this way, we see that God is saving us and gaining glory for His name IN our circumstances, whether it be through deliverance or enduring through our hardships. Also, we see that Jesus' example, as always, shines through as a wonderful example for what we are to do in our own lives. We are to be about the same business as Jesus was, namely, God's will and His glory. That begs this question: Do I have genuine faith in the sovereign will of God? Am I allowing myself to be molded into the image of Christ daily through radical submission to God's will? Am I praising God daily through every situation, good or bad? Or even more challenging, am I relying upon God and His will through every situation, big and important AND mundane and small?

--Sermon Reflection Small Group (Sun pm @ Peron's)

Student Sermon Reflections::1Tim 1:1-2

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K evin taught about the reproducibility of discipleship. He said that just as Paul discipled Timothy, and Timothy then discipled others, Kevin is to disciple J.T. who is then to disciple others. When we think rightly about God, our authority to disciple is authenticated in Jesus' name. He said the DNA of discipleship is Jesus, and that it is easy to fall into idolatry by placing value on anything other than that which should rightly be placed on Jesus. In quoting A.W. Tozer, he said that we have lost the ability to imagine how great God is. Therefore, it is easier to imagine that other things are as great as He and thus to fall into idolatry.

In the light of this sermon, I am challenged to see if I am placing undue value on anyone or anything. To do so is idolatry. Are the hours I spend in front of the T.V. an indication of a heart that has lost the ability to realize how big God is? Do I mistakenly think that time spent with Him can't measure up to some hokey T.V. show or even an excellent movie? Can I truly view myself as an idolater, or do I think so highly of myself that I don't think that is even possible. Open my eyes Lord that I may see You in Your glory. The things of the world will grow strangely dim…

--David Canzoneri - C3 Deacon

Student Sermon Reflections::1Thess 5:16-18

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This week Ron reminded the body of our need for prayer as a substitute for the want for self-sufficency. We studied 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, pulling it into three parts as an application to prayer. First we unpacked the phrase, “Rejoice always,” learning that it is better understood as “Rejoice always in the Lord.” This does not mean Christians are incessantly happy, but incessantly hopeful, since God is always working out things for the good of His chosen people, even in the sufferings. Next we studied the command to “pray without ceasing.” This does not necessarily mean that we are constantly on our knees, but it is a mind-set we live out, always looking upwards. Two things this does for us: it protects us from temptation (Mark 14:38), and it keeps us alert (Eph. 6:18). Finally, we focused on “giv[ing] thanks in all circumstances.” When considering the almighty God and His wonderful works, all that is left is gratitude.

This is a wonderful model for prayer after one has considered traditional models such as the Lord’s prayer. Related to it, Christians can keep in mind the APTAT guide for Christian living put together by Pastor John Piper of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN. Praying is our communication with God. It’s part of our sanctification, and it glorifies the Trinity in our faith. It is an often overlooked hinge in Christian living that should consciously be addressed, “without ceasing.”

--Chris Ramos - C3 Student

Student Sermon Reflections::1 Peter 5:1-5

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Speaking from the perspective of an average collegiate, the roles of church positions such as eldership, are shrouded in misinformation and cultural biases. Kevin taught on the doctrine of eldership, focusing primarily on 1 Peter 5:1-11 and accompanying scriptures. He began by defining first what eldership is not. Eldership in the Bible is not a rogue dictatorship, does not consist of a lone ranger activity and is not the elite special forces of the church. In contrast to these things, eldership absolutely consists of shared leadership, gentleness, humility and an overall attitude that is to be an exact comparison to that of a shepherd. Eldership is not to be taken lightly, as the qualification can be seen in scriptures such as 1 Timothy 3:17 and the weight of the position can be seen in scriptures such as Hebrews 13:17.

All in all, Kevin defines the genetics and purpose of the eldership in what is equally to be defined as the role of any and all followers of Jesus, and that is to simply BE LIKE JESUS. John 13:14 is evidence of this as Christ provides an example to be followed. Although imperfect, elders should be aspiring toward and likewise posses the characteristics that are found in Christ and shepherd the congregation with these attributes until the Chief Shepherd, who is Jesus, returns.

So how does this apply? Just as an elder's responsibility is wrapped up in shepherding the flock, I, as a member of the body, should responsively strive to be "shepherd-able". This involves being open, accountable and obedient to the elders, not with a motivation founded upon impressing them, but rather respecting them as leaders guiding me toward the ultimate desire of my heart and their's which is growth in a relationship with Jesus Christ - the source and perfecter of our faith.

--Austin Lambert - C3 Student