Teaching from Pastor Luke
In this installment of “Ask Me Anything,” Pastor Luke had time to address six questions.
Jesus told his disciples to take their peace out into the troubles of the world. That seems like an odd way to find peace, but suppose you do. What comes next? How does it work? Pastor Luke looks at Philippians 4:4–9 in “Boots On the Ground,” part 3 of his 6-part series “Peace.”
Have you ever wanted to get away from the things that made you anxious? – To find someplace to hole up until it all blew over? The disciples must have felt that way after Jesus was crucified. But when he was raised, he told them that’s not how they could find peace. Pastor Luke preaches from John 20:19–29 in “Transmission,” part 2 of his 6-part series “Peace.”
People have been hearing the story of Easter for 2000 years. All four accounts in the New Testament are basically the same. There’s nothing surprising any more about Easter. But that was what Jesus intended. Pastor Luke looks at Matthew 28:1–10 in “No Body At the Tomb.”
All four biographies of Jesus describe the events of Palm Sunday, but none of them explain it. What was going on that day was Jesus bringing peace to Jerusalem. Despite all the frenzy and troubles of Holy Week, what Jesus brought was peace. Pastor Luke teaches from Luke 19:28–42 in “Peace in Heaven,” the first message in a new series “Peace.”
During Lent we pause to consider that we have committed sins, but even more, that we are sinful people – there is some part of us that actually wants to sin. God did not make people that way, but something has gone wrong. Looking at people with physical problems gives us a new way to think about our sinfulness problem. Pastor Luke teaches from Luke 18:35–43 in “Seeing,” the concluding message in his series “Breakup.”
God made humans to enjoy variety, but our desire for novelty can get us into trouble. How can we satisfy that desire without making a mess of things? Pastor Luke preaches from Exodus 16:21–30 in “Outside,” the first message in a new series “Breakup.”
The occasion where Jesus was Transfigured appears several places in the New Testament, but it’s explained in none of them. How can we understand its signicance? We have to do it the same way Jesus’ first disciples did, by comparing it to similar events in the history of God’s people. Pastor Luke looks at Exodus 24:1–2,9–18 in “The Rest of the Way.”
Where can you find security in an uncertain world? A man who thought he knew went to Jesus about this. In their conversation, Jesus showed the man that he was trusting something that couldn’t provide the security he thought it could, and suggested an alternative. Pastor Luke preaches from Luke 18:18–30 in “What You Need Most.”
What kinds of prayers does God listen to? Or, to be more direct, what kind of prayers does God answer? Jesus has some surprising things to say about prayer. Pastor Luke preaches from Luke 18:9–17 in “Self-Promotion.”
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