First of Many Lasts

I walked back into my office last night after our Lenten service and it hit me out of the blue that I had just led my last Lenten service here in Sumner.  This coming Sunday, I will confirm the last group of students here.  And so it will go for the next three months.  I counted the Sunday’s before we move and because I’m going to be gone the first couple of Sunday’s in June, I’ll only be preaching here 10 or 11 more times (depending on the exact moving date). 

After nearly nine years of trying to proclaim God’s Word to the people of Sumner, it comes down to 10 or 11 sermons.  There’s so much more that I want to say.  Though I’ve preached more that 400 messages here, I feel like I’ve just scratched the surface of the depth of the scriptures.  While I can’t begin to summarize all of these, there are a few things I hope I've been able to teach the people of my congregation.

First and foremost, that God loves them and there’s nothing they can do about it.  No matter what they do or don’t do, God will neither love them more or less.  It’s called grace.

That they were created to fulfill God’s purposes, chief among is to worship God through Christ in ways which connect them with the Holy Spirit.

That being a disciple of Jesus Christ requires radical, counter-cultural living.

That God already has given each one the spiritual gifts, talents and abilities needed to become the person He desires.

That no matter how bad things get, no matter what the circumstances are, there is always hope.  Just as God came to the aid of His people in the past, so God can come to His people's aid today.

That it is only through Jesus, crucified and dead, risen and glorified, that anyone can receive eternal life and have a relationship with God the Father.

That giving people permission to pursue their passions and the call of God in their lives without having to jump through a bunch of hoops is absolutely essential for the success of the church.

I’m sure there are others that I could list here, but in the end it’s not about anything that I might have said or done.  It’s all for the glory of God and the furtherance of His Kingdom.