Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. Matthew 20:28 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23

Twenty years ago, my wife and I bought a new home. Well, I guess to be more accurate, I should say that for the last twenty years, my wife and I have been buying a home. The bank that loaned us the money actually owned the house, they just let us live in it while we finished paying for it! Well, I have something to show you this morning. You may not think it is all that wonderful, but to me it sure is! This is the loan agreement that my wife and I signed when we bought our house. Last month, the bank returned these papers to me. Look what it says right here! It is stamped with a big red stamp that says, "Paid In Full." That means that my home now really belongs to me. It has been paid for in full.

Did you know that I have another home? I have a home in heaven just waiting for me to move in. It has also been paid for in full, but not by me. I could never pay for it myself. It was paid for by Jesus. When Jesus was on the cross, the last words that he said were, "It is finished!" What did he mean? Did he mean his suffering was finished? Did he mean his life was finished? What was Jesus talking about? Let me tell you what I think he meant.

The Bible says that "the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus, our Lord." I think that what Jesus meant when he said, "It is finished" was that the price for my sin had been "Paid In Full" by his death on the cross. It was as if Jesus was taking a big rubber stamp and stamping my life "Paid In Full!" Jesus has paid the price for your sins too. All you have to do is to accept his gift and then your home in heaven will also be "Paid In Full!"

Jesus, thank you for coming to give your life as payment in full for my sin. I gratefully accept your gift of eternal life in my home in heaven. Amen.

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.'   Matthew 15:18  [NIV®]

(In very dramatic fashion, begin by washing and drying your hands.  Then take out the banana, peel it, and take a bite before beginning your sermon.)

Do you ever forget to wash your hands before eating?  Oh, I think that we all forget occasionally.  I am sure that it is a good thing to wash your hands before eating, but, according to Jesus, there are some other things that are far more important.

The religious leaders during the time Jesus lived were very concerned about cleanliness.  They had many religious laws and traditions which they followed to make sure that nothing unclean went into their mouth.  One day some of these religious leaders asked Jesus why his disciples were not keeping their tradition of washing their hands before they ate.  (I guess Jesus' disciples sometimes forgot like you and I do.)  Jesus answered these religious leaders by telling them that what comes out of your mouth is more important than what you put into it. He said that the words that come out of your mouth come from your heart and those words show whether you are clean or unclean.

I am sure that you have heard the children's rhyme that says, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me."  That sounds nice, but it just isn't true.  Words can hurt.  We can all remember a time when we have been hurt by someone's mean and hateful words.  God hears every word we say and he knows every thought we have in our heart.  It is very important for us to be careful about the things we think and say, because hateful words come from an unclean heart.

Dear Jesus, let the words that come from my mouth and the thoughts that I have in my heart be clean and pure -- and pleasing to you.  Amen.

Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.  Matthew 5:16

The Bible tells us that we should let our light shine so that people will see our good works and praise our heavenly Father.  I'm sure all of you know the song, "This Little Light of Mine."  I'm going to light this candle and I ask you to join me in singing that song.

1.  "This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine!"  
2.  "Hide it under a bushel?  No, I'm gonna let it shine."
3.  "Won't let Satan (blow) it out, I'm gonna let it shine."
(As you sing the last verse, blow the candle out each time the song says, "blow."  Then raise the candle and move it in a circular motion until it re-lights.)

Hey!  I couldn't blow out this candle!  I tried, but it just kept shining.  Does Satan ever blow your light out?  If you make up your mind to let your light shine for Jesus, there is no way that Satan can blow it out because the Bible says, "Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world."  Jesus is your light.  Lift him up high because Jesus said, "If I be lifted up, I will draw all men to me."

Dear Lord, thank you for sending Jesus to be the Light of the World.  May we lift him up and let his light shine through us.   Amen.

IMPORTANT NOTE:  I have used this sermon a couple of times with great success, but it is always a good idea to be prepared in case something goes wrong.  What if the candle does not re-ignite?  This happened to me once.  I simply said, "Hey, wait a minute!  The song says, "Won't let Satan blow it out, but my light has been blown out! Does Satan ever blow your light out?"  I then went on with the rest of the sermon as planned.  No one ever knew that I wasn't supposed to be able to blow out the candle.  If you can't find the "never out" candles, you could use the sermon this way using  a regular candle.

Hey, I'm only 3855 behind DW today.

I only have to pass Tibby, Ambassador4Christ, Symphony, sincereheart, and Brother Love and they haven't been here in a long time.

That's a switch

Not really ......  now this is a switch:

[CONGRATULATIONS]

By the way  CONGRATULATIONS  you are on a mission, my Brother.  

Thank you.

hey what planet did you put my trophy on?

Venus??

[Look out, everyone for Pastor Roger!]

Sister, still think you can catch me?

That would take a lot of doing.

Why do you say that, Pastor Roger?

  oh no  you don't!!!! this is my thread
 

Why the zipped mouth.

I'll never tell.

And why not?  

I offically rename this thread! Look out, everyone for Pastor Roger!

AHHHHH!!!!! (running around putting ashes on my head) You killed my thread, you kidnapped it, AHHHHH!!!!
NOT FAIR    HOW c. c c ould  you d d d do this to me Wah WAA WAA
(Heaving sobs, tears blinding me, falling on my face, crying inconsolably) I trusted you WAA WAA WAA

Wait a minute I'm trying to give you more to say by posting here.

Hmmmmmm ....... just like a woman to take the fun out of things by crying.  

Now, now Pastor, you can't talk about women like that you know..
I mean there are a lot of things to be said about men too, for instance, they can't live with out a tv remote. that was just 1 example there are a lot more....

The TV remote is stuck in my wifes hand not mine. With me it is the computer keyboard.

 

you should another CU award for me the one who tries the hardest.
The faster I go the behinder I get.

Trophy for trying the hardest.

[Look out, everyone for Pastor Roger!]

Sister, still think you can catch me?

That would take a lot of doing.

Why do you say that, Pastor Roger?

  oh no  you don't!!!! this is my thread
 

Why the zipped mouth.

I'll never tell.

And why not?  

I offically rename this thread! Look out, everyone for Pastor Roger!

AHHHHH!!!!! (running around putting ashes on my head) You killed my thread, you kidnapped it, AHHHHH!!!!
NOT FAIR    HOW c. c c ould  you d d d do this to me Wah WAA WAA
(Heaving sobs, tears blinding me, falling on my face, crying inconsolably) I trusted you WAA WAA WAA

Wait a minute I'm trying to give you more to say by posting here.

Hmmmmmm ....... just like a woman to take the fun out of things by crying.  

[ZERO]

ZERO

[ONE]

ONE

[TWO]

TWO

So Pastor, are you thinking of renaming my thread?  HUH?
This is my thread mine mine mine I tell you???

Nope don't want your thread. There is no honor in taking what is not yours.

(Drum roll) and another countdown starts ......... 3 more posts to pass 2nd Timothy ................