practical theology

January 15, 2024

5 Marks of a Disciple: Daily Devotion

2 Peter 1.3-9

Being transformed to live and love like Jesus is the ultimate goal of the Christian life. The good news is, we’ve been equipped with everything we need to pursue this life…the Scriptures and the Spirit. Peter even gives us some hand and footholds, a list of virtues from faith to love.

I know we all want to finish well…we want our lives to have an impact for the kingdom. And that’s going to take some intentionality. Diligence. But spending time in God’s Word…your daily devotion…this is something you can do, and something you must do. It’s hard work to finish well, but it’s worth it.

There is no such thing as pause or neutral in life. We are either growing or not, progressing or regressing. We can train our bodies…we can go to the gym, we can eat right, etc., and we will see progress. We will get stronger, faster, more agile. But if you skipped going to the gym for a time, or didn’t run or ride your bike , you find out pretty quickly how easy it is to lose ground. The same is true intellectually. If we stop learning, our brains begin to shrink. Emotionally, if we withdraw from people, we lose the ability to relate. It’s true in every area of life…if we don’t use it, we lose it. So how do we miss it spiritually? It should be obvious that if we are not growing spiritually then we are shrinking. We are moving backward. We are losing whatever ground we may at one time have gained.

What if that’s you? Maybe you started out well, or maybe not so well, and now you’re wondering what to do. Peter would say, “I know you’ve messed up. I know you’ve failed Jesus. Welcome to the club, so did I…” but the good news is, you can still finish well. How? Get back to the basics…back on Torah Road. Begin today to pursue godliness…to spend time in the Bible getting to know God, not just getting to know about Him, but really knowing Him and doing what He says. Start with a simple Bible reading plan. Read, listen to, think about, meditate on, marinate in God’s Word. Dwell in it, and let it richly dwell in you. And as you do that, the Spirit will begin to take the Word and use it to transform you to more and more live and love like Jesus. That’s my prayer for us in 2024.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our January series: 5 Marks of a Disciple. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X or Threads: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

January 8, 2024

5 Marks of a Disciple: Prayer

Matthew 6.5-15

Prayer is something we have talked about before. Has it been woven into the fabric of your daily routine yet? Time spent with just you and your Father? If not, today’s a great day to get started.

If you are new to prayer, having a plan is helpful. It’s going to take some intentionality to get started because as much as we may want prayer to just happen, unless we are intentional about setting aside time to pray it doesn’t and it won’t. So plan it into your schedule…maybe in the car on your commute to work. Maybe before your feet hit the floor in the morning or after your head hits the pillow at night. Maybe on your lunch break or over your first cup of coffee. You could even do it while you’re in line at the store or working out at the gym. Maybe all those times. But get in the habit of praying. (Brother Lawerence’s The Practice of the Presence of God)

A couple of resources that will help you in your prayer journey…the Central prayer calendar and The AV School Prayer Project. Jared has put together a prayer calendar for the month of January where you can pray for each of our ministries every week. It’s a great way to not only practice the individual aspect of discipleship, but also the corporate. It’s an easy, yet super important opportunity for you to be involved in every one of our ministries here at Central.

The AV School Prayer Project kicked off this past fall. Lots to say about this one, but let me narrow it down to this. Prayer is important and desperately needed. There is a spiritual battle that is being waged for the hearts and minds of our students. And we have the opportunity to step into the fray and do battle with the spiritual forces of darkness in the heavenly places.

You can find out more about both opportunities on our website or the Central app.

May you have an ever deepening experience of contentment, joy and confidence in your everyday life with God when you spend time with Him in prayer in 2024.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our January series: 5 Marks of a Disciple. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X or Threads: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

December 25, 2023

He Shall Be Called…Jesus

John 1.1-18

In these opening verses, John presents Jesus as more than a Man…He was with God and He was God. But not only does John present Jesus as more than a Man…He is also a Man. The Word became flesh. He didn’t give up His God-ness to become a Man, but somehow clothed His divinity in humanity.

John wants us to know Jesus…fully God because only God can forgive sins. Fully Man because only a Man could die for sin. The perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name…if you have not yet trusted in Jesus, tonight would be a great time to do that.

It’s as simple as admitting that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Believing that Jesus came to save you from your sin. He lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death on your behalf, and was raised the third day, so that you might have forgiveness of sins and eternal life with Him.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Advent series: He Shall Be Called. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

December 18, 2023

Prince of Peace (Peace)

Isaiah 40.1-11

“The peace the world offers is a peace of avoidance, a peace of denial, a temporary, fragile peace…” It reminds me of what Hezekiah said when Isaiah revealed that the Babylonians would come and ransack Jerusalem… “The word of the LORD which you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “For there will be peace and truth in my days.”

The peace of Hezekiah is too often the only peace we know…fleeting, empty, selfish. We get so distracted by trying to maintain our own peace now. If I can make it through the holidays, If I can make it to payday, I can retire when…, if I can get my kids through college, if I can keep my spouse happy. A peace like Hezekiah’s – “at least I’ll know peace”. The only problem is, maintaining peace is hard work. If you find yourself always trying to keep the peace, know that you don’t have it. True peace is not something you can manufacture.

But the peace that the coming Davidic King would bring is as everlasting/eternal as the word of the LORD, never fading, never failing. Isaiah paints a landscape where all war has ended. Peace has been established.  And that is true, our peace has come. Our peace is here – here and now, in this moment, today. And our peace is coming, advancing every moment, we are anticipating our coming King. And again, to be clear, Jesus is the Davidic King who came to bring that peace. It is the peace of the kingdom…peace with God and peace with our neighbor.

Paul describes it this way…“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. 3And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; 4and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; 5and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. 6 For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. 8But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. 10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation” (Romans 5.1-11)

Where is your peace today? As I read these verses from Isaiah 40, the prophet seems to offer comfort by reminding the people  who they were. They were God’s – the LORD’s…The LORD God’s…Zion…Jerusalem. When people under Babylonian captivity, in the distant future, would read these words, they would recall whose they were. The present realities of suffering could not be ignored, but neither could the fact that they were God’s chosen people…they were His. I think that is our comfort. That is our peace. We are His. He chose us, died for us, lives in and through us. I pray that you may know His peace today by understanding the depths of His love for you.

It starts by trusting in Jesus. You can do that today. It’s as simple as admitting that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Believing that Jesus came to save you from your sin. He lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death on your behalf, and was raised the third day, so that you might have forgiveness of sins and eternal life…that you might know true peace.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Advent series: He Shall Be Called. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

December 11, 2023

Eternal Father (Love)

1 John 3.1-3

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3.16). “For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5.6-8).

Eternal Father the kind of love that Jesus would have for us…the love of a Father…the love of the Father. A love that would save us from our sins. That’s how God has shown His unconditional, never-ending love for us…by saving us. By sending Jesus to die for us. The greatest sacrifice of all to demonstrate the greatest love of all. This is what God has done.

God is fulfilling His promise of a King…a King to rescue us. A King to save us. God keeps His word. We can trust Him to keep His promises still today. Promises of the forgiveness of sins and a new heart, His Spirit dwelling within us, His presence with us, everlasting life and an eternal kingdom. This is what God will do.

For some of you, Love this Christmas starts with realizing God’s love for you. Faith comes before obedience. God has gone to the greatest links to prove His love for us by sending His Son Jesus to die for our sins. He lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death on our behalf, and was raised the third day, so that by believing in Him we could have forgiveness of sins and eternal life, becoming a son or daughter of the King. [Trust]

For others of you, Love this Christmas starts with loving God more. Purifying ourselves just as He is pure. Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments” (John 14.15). Obedience is active love. It’s the way we show our love for God and for others. If we believe that not only is God all-powerful and all-knowing, but that He also loves us in a way that only He can and that He desires our good, then we are fools when we refuse to obey…to do what He calls us to do. The good news…we don’t have to forge ahead on our own. The Spirit is the One who transforms us to live and love like Jesus…He’s the One who gives us the ability to do what God says to do. [Trust and obey]

For the rest, Love this Christmas looks like loving others the same way God loves us. Being just like our heavenly Father. Loving others in active and practical ways. The Christian life is not a solo journey…it’s a group adventure. It’s something we do together. And it’s one of the best ways we express love.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Advent series: He Shall Be Called. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

December 4, 2023

Mighty God (Hope)

Isaiah 9.2-7

Isaiah pictures a time of good news for a group of people who desperately needed it. They were under oppression by the enemy. They were defeated. They were without hope. They knew no peace. But God hadn’t forgotten them. Light was coming. God Himself would rend the veil of time and space and come down to the earth He had created in the Person of Jesus. He would rescue them. He would save them from sin and death by sacrificing Himself in their place. He would die that they might live. He would provide the way back to Father God. He would establish a kingdom where they could live and reign with Him forever. Where they would know true and lasting peace. This was their hope.

There are lots of things we “hope” for in this life….some good and some not so good. As I thought about my own life, I realized how often I set my hope on people or events that only disappoint…they can’t carry the weight of my hope. Not their fault. They weren’t designed for that.

How about you? Where is your hope this Christmas? Who are you hoping in? Is your hope big enough to carry you through the storms of life, the disappointments and frustrations, the trials and the suffering that come from living on planet earth? Is your confidence in people or things that are destined to disappoint? Hope placed in anyone or anything other than Jesus will disappoint…it will fail. Why? Because hope based anywhere but in Him is based on things that are fleeting and subject to decay…where thieves break in and steal or moth and rust destroys…

You see, the hope that the Bible talks about is so much more than a feeling. It’s not wishful thinking. The hope that the Bible talks about is a confident expectation. It’s a sure thing. How can it be so sure? Because it’s based in God Himself. He will bring it about. And that’s why only a hope in Jesus is a living hope…living because He is alive and gives life to those who trust in Him…a life that starts today and continues forever. So while we mourn the disappointments in life, we can also choose to worship God in the knowledge that He will never disappoint us. That’s why we never need despair.

If you have not yet trusted in Jesus, make today the day. It’s as simple as admitting that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Believing that Jesus came to save you from your sin. He lived a perfect life, died a sacrificial death on your behalf, and was raised the third day, so that you might have forgiveness of sins and eternal life…that you might have a secure and certain hope.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Advent series: He Shall Be Called. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

November 13, 2023

The Greater High Priest

Hebrews 5.1-10

Jesus is greater. He’s greater as the Son of God. He’s greater as the Son of David. He’s the greater Prophet…Priest…and King. Jesus is greater.

Jesus learned obedience through suffering. Not that He was disobedient, but that suffering was necessary for Him to be the perfect sacrifice. Not only sinless. But One who could relate to our suffering. And the One who obediently suffered on our behalf calls us to obediently follow Him. Not under the heavy yoke of endless rules, but in the easy yoke of a life-giving relationship.

That’s why today is always important. Whatever yesterday looked like. Whatever my failures…or successes. I have today. And today if you hear His voice… If you haven’t been walking in obedience to your Savior, then today you can. Today you can get back on Torah Road.

If you haven’t yet trusted in Jesus, today can be the day for that as well. It’s as simple as recognizing that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Believing that Jesus is the Savior that God promised. He lived a perfect life. He died a sacrificial death on your behalf and was raised the third day conquering both sin and death, so that by faith in Jesus you can have forgiveness of sins and eternal life. You too will have the righteousness that comes from God through faith in Jesus.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Hebrews series. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

November 6, 2023

Sabbath Rest: Part 2

Hebrews 4.8-16

There is a Sabbath rest for the people of God, but we will only experience that rest when we walk by faith. We only experience that rest as we learn to trust God yet more and more in the moments of our life…as we seek His help in our time of need.

As believers, we are all called to rest, but we don’t all experience it. And I love this quote from DL Moody that Jared shared with me that relates to this. “There are three kinds of faith in Jesus Christ: struggling faith, which is like a man floundering and fearful in stormy, deep water; clinging faith, which is like a man hanging on to the side of a boat; and resting faith, which finds a man inside the boat-strong and secure enough to reach out his hand to help someone else.

Notice that each man had faith. Each knew that the boat was his only hope. But only one had a resting faith. Only one had discovered he could actually be in the boat-where all he had to do was rest. And that rest produces an obedience to reach out to help. 

This is the kind of faith God wants us to have-a faith that trusts Him totally. But sometimes we discover its reality only after we have endured a struggling or clinging faith that we come to a resting faith. Sometimes we only realize we can get in the boat when the storm rages, and we call out to God with new faith. Then our Savior graciously extends His hand and says, ‘Come to Me…and I will give you rest’ (Matthews 11.28).”

My prayer for each of us is that we discover for ourselves that resting faith.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Hebrews series. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

October 30, 2023

Sabbath Rest: Part 1

Hebrews 4.1-7

Living a life of rest is what every believer is called to but not what every believer experiences. Because living a life of rest requires us to walk by faith in obedience to what God calls us to do.

How do we know what God calls us to do? Of course that’s found in His Word…in the Bible. And it’s as we spend time in His Word…daily spending time with Him in His Word, reading, meditating, praying, absorbing, allowing His Word also to spend time in us, dwelling richly within us…that we learn who it is that God calls us to be and what it is that God calls us to do, that the Spirit transforms us by the renewing of our minds so that we know that God’s will and His ways are good and acceptable and perfect. Then we hear and obey, trusting Him all along the way…all the way down Torah Road.

We first enter His rest when we trust in Jesus. When we start our journey down Torah Road. If you would like to do that today, it’s as simple as recognizing that you are a sinner in need of a Savior. Believing that Jesus is the Savior that God promised. He lived a perfect life. He died a sacrificial death on your behalf and was raised the third day conquering both sin and death, so that by faith in Jesus you can have forgiveness of sins and eternal life. You too will have the righteousness that comes from God through faith in Jesus. And you can experience His rest today.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Hebrews series. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.

October 23, 2023

The Peril of Unbelief

Hebrews 3.12-19

We must take care that there not be found among anyone of us an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God…a heart that’s been hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. That’s why it’s so important that we walk down Torah Road together. The Christian life was never intended to be a solo journey. It’s a group adventure.

The folks coming out of Egypt were believers when they left…the people believed in the LORD. The Passover was the sign of their faith. So, given that these folks were believers when they left Egypt, and we’re only a few years down the road from that, what happened? Could that happen to these Jewish believers who were reading Paul’s letter? More importantly at this point…could it happen to us?

The answer is…yes. But…if we do this thing together, that’s so much less likely. I can’t see my blind spots. Kind of why they’re called blind spots. But you can. And I can see yours. And so we can help each other. Keep pointing each other back to Torah Road. Keep pointing each other back to Jesus. That’s my prayer for each and every one of us. That we all have that group of folks who will do that for us. So if you are not in a small group, get into one.

pro rege

This post is based on a sermon from our Hebrews series. Download the podcast at: Central Christian Church Main Service, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter: @ccclancaster. You can also download our Central Christian app in the iTunes App Store.