<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD><TITLE></TITLE>
<META content=text/html;charset=UTF-8 http-equiv=Content-Type>
<STYLE type=text/css>BODY {
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; FONT-SIZE: 11px
}
A {
FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #ff6600; FONT-SIZE: 11px; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
A:visited {
COLOR: #666666
}
A:hover {
TEXT-DECORATION: underline
}
P {
FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #666666; FONT-SIZE: 11px; FONT-WEIGHT: normal; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
H1 {
FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #666666; FONT-SIZE: 14px; FONT-WEIGHT: bold; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
H2 {
FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #666666; FONT-SIZE: 13px; FONT-WEIGHT: bold; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
H3 {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-STYLE: normal; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #666666; FONT-SIZE: 12px; FONT-WEIGHT: bold; TEXT-DECORATION: none; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
H4 {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; FONT-STYLE: normal; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #666666; FONT-SIZE: 11px; FONT-WEIGHT: bold; TEXT-DECORATION: none; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
HR {
WIDTH: 100%; HEIGHT: 1px; COLOR: #ff9900; size: 1px
}
.forwardform {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
.forwardinput {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
.forwardsubmit {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
DIV.emailfooter {
FONT-FAMILY: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; FONT-SIZE: 11px
}
DIV.emailfooter A {
FONT-STYLE: normal; FONT-FAMILY: verdana, sans-serif; COLOR: #ff6600; FONT-SIZE: 11px; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
</STYLE>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.18904"></HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Sermons for Mother’s Day:</SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"> John 14:23-29 – “<STRONG>Love
and Obey</STRONG>” </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"> Romans 16 – “<STRONG>Mother’s
Day</STRONG>”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">John 14 the sermon titled “Love and Obey" </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><FONT size=4
face="Times New Roman"></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Welcome on this Mother’s Day. Someone has made a list of
nine things a Mother would never say. See if your Mom would ever say these
things:</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">1. “How on earth can you see the TV sitting so far
back?” Anybody?</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">2. “Yeah, I used to skip school a lot,
too.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">3. “Just leave all the lights on . . . it makes the
house look more cheery.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">4. “Let me smell that shirt--Yeah, it’s good for another
week.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">5. “Go ahead and keep that stray dog, honey. I’ll be
glad to feed and walk him every day.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">6. “Well, if Timmy’s mom says it’s OK, that’s good
enough for me.” </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">7. “The curfew is just a general time to shoot for. It’s
not like I’m running a prison around here.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">8. “I don’t have a tissue with me . . . just use your
sleeve.”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">9. “Don’t bother wearing a jacket--the wind-chill is
bound to improve.” </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Well, someone has to make sure we all survive childhood.
And usually that task falls to Mom.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">I can’t imagine a better lesson for Mother’s Day than
one that begins like this: “If anyone loves me, he will obey . . .” That is what
Christ says to us in our text for the day. Jesus said to his disciples, “If
anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will
come to him and make our home with him . . .” </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Obedience is important to our spiritual lives. However,
obedience is also an important part of helping a family run
smoothly.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">A professor was giving a lecture on company slogans and
was asking his students if they were familiar with them. “Joe,” he asked,
“which company has the slogan ‘Fly the Friendly Skies’?” Joe answered with the
correct airline. “Brenda, can you tell me which company has the slogan
‘Don’t Leave Home Without It’?” Brenda answered quickly with the correct credit
card company. “Now John, tell me which company bears the slogan ‘Just Do
It’?” “That’s easy,” John answered, “It’s my Mom.” The shoe company surely
stole their motto from someone’s Mom: ‘Just Do It’?” Why? “BECAUSE I SAID
SO!”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone loves me, he
will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make
our home with him . . .”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">There is an undeniable link between love and obedience.
We can threaten a child to be obedient. We can punish an act of willful
defiance. But the only way that our children will internalize the values we want
for them will be if they know they are connected to us by a bond of love that
cannot be broken. So it is in our relationship with God…</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">The rest of this sermon following the outline above can
be obtained by joining </SPAN><A href="http://www.sermons.com/"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">www.Sermons.com</SPAN></A><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">______________________ </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Romans 16 the sermon titled "Mother’s Day" </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Sermon Opener - Mother's Day – Romans
16</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">I must candidly confess that when I was in seminary the
16th chapter of Paul's letter to the Romans didn’t do much for me. It struck me
as being boring nothing more than a long presentation of people’s names, most of
whom I could not pronounce; I usually skimmed over that part so I could get to
what I considered to be the real Gospel. Over the years I have greatly changed
my attitude about this particular chapter and I have discovered that there is
much more to it than I had first imagined. For example, it is interesting to
note that of the twenty-six people who Paul singles out for his personal
greeting, six were women. Now that strikes me as being rather interesting, since
Paul has frequently gotten a bum rap for being a male chauvinist. I think it
also shows us the tremendous influence that women had in the early church. In
the male oriented first century Palestine, it is tellin g that Paul could not
describe the church without mentioning the significant role of
women.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Verse 13 of chapter 16 is particularly interesting and
it is one that scholars have struggled with over the centuries. Paul writes:
"Give my greetings to Rufus, chosen in the Lord, and his mother and mine." Now
this statement could be taken two ways. It could mean that Paul had two distinct
women in mind--the mother of Rufus and his own personal mother. Or, he could be
saying: "I salute Rufus and his mother, who is like a mother to me." If that is
what he meant, and most Biblical scholars agree that that is indeed what he
meant, then it raises some interesting speculation. When and where did Paul meet
Rufus’ mother? Did she nurse him through some serious illness?
</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Did she receive him into her home for an extended stay
during his missionary journeys? How did this woman and Paul form such a close
bond that he refers to her fondly as being like his mother? Mark tells us that
Simon of Cyrene, the man who carried Jesus cross, had two sons: Alexander and
Rufus. Was this the same Rufus to whom Paul was speaking? If that is true, his
mother would be Simon of Syrene’s wife. No one knows for sure who this
remarkable woman was who served as a mother figure for the great Paul. But it
really makes no difference, because what he writes makes an excellent
springboard for a Mother’s Day sermon.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Some people ridicule Mother’s Day as a lot of
sentimental drivel. They say that it is nothing more than the creation of the
greeting card companies and the florists. And, to be perfectly candid, there are
many ministers who shun this day because, they say, it is not a religious
holiday. Furthermore, they preach from the lectionary, which has an assigned
scriptural reading each week, and therefore mother’s day is left
out.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Well, of course, we must admit that there is sentiment
to this day, but what is wrong with that? Seems to me that a little bit of
sentiment is healthy. True enough, there are some women in the Bible, such
as Jezebel and the vindictive Herodias, who had John the Baptist beheaded, who
tarnish the institution of motherhood. There are women today who abandon, abuse,
and corrupt their children and who create a poor model, but I like to think that
these are the exceptions. Most mothers do the right thing and deserve
recognition. So this morning I would like to join Paul and salute all of the
mothers who are with us.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">1. First, mothers should be saluted for their tenacious
love.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">2. Secondly, mothers should be saluted for the
tremendous impact they have.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">3. Third, mothers should be saluted because where they
are, that is where home is.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">___________________________</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">If They Are Going to Get You…</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Author, speaker and sports enthusiast Pat Williams, in
his book A Lifetime of Success, give one of the best examples I know of a
mother’s love.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">He tells of attending a very special Atlanta Braves’
baseball home opener on April 8, 1974. It was a night game against the Dodgers
and it was a complete sellout. Williams looked around to see that, seated
immediately behind him was singer Pearl Bailey. Up at the plate: the immortal
Henry Aaron. On the line: Babe Ruth’s record of 714 career home runs. Aaron had
tied the record and tonight he was aiming to break it.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Understand that this was nearly 40 years ago. An
African‑American player was about to topple the great Babe Ruth--and a lot of
people in the country didn’t like it. Aaron got a lot of mail that year--more
than 930,000 letters in all, far more than any other person in the country. Most
were fan letters--but about 100,000 of them were hate letters, some containing
death threats. </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Williams says he was on the edge of his seat when
Dodgers pitcher Al Downing hurled the ball toward the plate. Aaron swung and
connected. The crack of his bat echoed through the stands. The ball was gone.
Home run. Babe Ruth’s record was shattered. The ballpark went nuts.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">“As Aaron rounded second base,” says Williams, “a couple
of teenagers--both white--jumped over the retaining wall and ran onto the field,
chasing Aaron. For a moment, no one knew what they had in mind, but then it
became clear: they were celebrating and cheering Aaron on. As Aaron crossed the
plate, the dugout emptied as the Braves streamed onto the field to surround him,
cheering and whooping it up. But amid all those ballplayers around Aaron was a
short, sixty-eight‑year‑old black woman. She latched onto Aaron and wouldn’t let
go of him.</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">“Henry Aaron turned and said to her, ‘Mom! What are you
doing here?’</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">“‘Baby,’ said the mother of the new home‑run king, ‘if
they’re gonna get you,’ (thinking of the death threats Aaron had received)
‘they’ve gotta get me first!’” </SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="LINE-HEIGHT: normal; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"> </DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">That is love only a mother could have
for her child. “If they’re gonna get you, they’ve gotta get me
first!”</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Pat Williams, A Lifetime of Success,
(Grand Rapids. MI: Fleming H. Revell, 2000), pp. 109-110, adapted by King
Duncan</SPAN></DIV>
<DIV style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN
style="LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">___________________</SPAN></DIV></BODY></HTML>