Peter Sees

February 12, 2019 by Kevin Johnson

It’s really important when we read about people from the Bible that we remember their humanity. If you’ve been around church for a while, or you’ve ever watched the history channel, you’ve heard about Peter. He seems to be the most well known disciple of Jesus Christ. Most people remember him walking on water. But Peter was a real person. He was sixteen once. When he was young, he had a first job. He had hopes and dreams of what his life might be like one day. He had a best friend. He even fell in love! But there was a day, a real day, where there was a moment that he met a man who was introduced to him as Jesus. And there was a sort of magnetism about this Jesus. Peter didn’t really know why, but he wanted to hang out with Him.

Mary, His Mother

December 17, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

Do you ever find yourself checking out of a situation? You’re sitting there, not really paying attention– and then realizing that you’ve missed something?

Personally, I don’t do well watching movies more than once. I love movies, but the second time around for me just isn’t the same. I find myself zoning out. I think the reason that I really love movies is because I don’t know what’s going to happen – one of my favorite things to do is walk into a movie without ever watching the trailer. I love not knowing anything and just going along for the ride. But it’s different when I know the ending.

Sometimes we can feel this way about Christmas.

Grace and Truth

December 05, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

The story of the days of Jesus are chronicled in four different books of the Bible – we call them the “Gospels.” These four books are eyewitness accounts of who Jesus was and what He did. They are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Most of them begin in a similar way. Matthew, Mark, and Luke all start with an explanation of their purpose. Matthew starts with a genealogy of the family of Jesus. Mark starts his Gospel by saying, “This is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” Mark was a simple, obvious guy. I like him for that. Luke starts out his story by explaining how he interviewed different people and wrote out their details.

John is different.

The Narrow Road

October 02, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

We’ve all heard it before. The simple sentence that makes any class wake up and instantly pay attention. “This will be on the exam.”

There are moments in every class when you know it’s a good time to pay attention.

This morning we’re going to look at a passage where things really get real. In college, I took a computer simulation class, and early in the class the professor told us about the semester-long project that we would be doing in his class. He said that he was going to split us up into groups and the group that did the best would get an A, the second group would get a B and so-on. That was a moment where everyone really perked up! Suddenly, everyone was listening at that point! My group ended up with a B, but we got robbed. That’s beside the point.

In Matthew 7, Jesus is talking to a crowd of people and He says something that I think would perk them up. Jesus begins to talk about what it really looks like to follow Him in Matthew 7:13-14.

You're Out

August 14, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

Three strikes and you're out. That's the rule. I was really bad at baseball, so I learned that rule well. Sometimes that's how we think life works, except that we give ourselves fewer chances. We think one wrong choice can be so bad that it sidelines us for life.

The Apostle Peter was a guy who lived with Jesus. He got to see everything firsthand. He saw Jesus preach, teach, and heal people with his own eyes. Peter became convinced that Jesus really was the Messiah - the Savior of God's people sent from God Himself. Peter saw so much in his time with Jesus that he was convinced there was no where else for him to go – in his mind, he was sticking with Jesus forever.

But things took a turn. Jesus started talking a lot more about His death, and Peter started getting nervous.

The Words of Jesus

July 25, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

Are there any parts of Scripture that you remember, but you couldn't find on your own? Sometimes there are illustrations or stories that we remember, but we don't know who said them. You may remember the warning to build your house on the rock instead of the sand. Do you know who said that and why?

It's the ending to one of Jesus' most famous sermons. Here's what He said in Matthew 7:24-27.

Beware

June 19, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

"Beware" is not a word that it's easy to think about Jesus saying all that much. However, it does seem like a word that we should pay attention to. In Matthew 6, Jesus warns us about living for Him for the wrong reasons. Look at Matthew 6:1-4:

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others.”

Essentially, Jesus is warning us to not miss the point of living for Him. I think it’s easy for us to start doing things for Jesus for people because of the way that WE look at people. How do you evaluate the faith of other people? How do you spot the good Christians and the bad ones? How do you evaluate a "super Christian?"

This Little Light of Mine

June 05, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

Do you remember the song, "This Little Light of Mine?"

This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine
This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine
Let it shine, Let it shine, Let it shine!

It's a simple song that is packed with meaning.

Jesus talked about us shining like lights in Matthew 5:13-16.

Our Eyes

May 03, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

There are a lot of places where Scripture talks about our eyes. They're very important. Jesus even talked about our eyeballs in the Sermon on the Mount. In this passage He tells us that our lives follow our eyes. What we look at is ultimately the direction of our hearts.

In Matthew 6:22-23, Jesus asks us to think about where we're focusing.

Heart and Hands

May 01, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

There is a story in the New Testament that I think is really funny. It's funny to me because when we read it, we all aspire to be one particular character, but I think most of us are someone else. This is a story that we love to apply spiritually, but we don't often think about what it would have been like to be there.

This story is about two ladies named Mary and Martha.

It's Not About What We Do

March 08, 2018 by Kevin Johnson

Jesus told a story in Luke 15 about two brothers. The brothers had a wealthy father who was going to leave them a big inheritance. At the beginning of the story, the younger brother does the unthinkable.

He essentially tells his father that he wishes he was dead.