​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes (Sunday, February 21, 2021)
Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor
 
“Four Prayer Requests!” #4
Micah 7:18-20; Ephesians 3:14-19
 
We come this morning to the conclusion of our four-week sermon series titled, “Four Prayer Requests!”   To refresh your memory, a few weeks back, we started looking at one of the most inspiring prayers of the Bible.  It’s Paul’s prayer for his fellow Ephesian Christians found in Ephesians chapter 3.  This is our fourth week working our way through this prayer and this morning we get to wrap up this study as we look at Paul’s fourth request for the believers in Ephesus.  In Ephesians 3:17-18, Paul said, “I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.”
 
Grasping the vastness and completeness of the love of Christ, knowing the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, is the object of the last part of Paul’s prayer.  I don’t know how often we pray for deep spiritual understanding.  Paul doesn’t just pray that we might “get it.”  He prays that we might grasp the full scope of God’s love -- width, length, height, and depth. 
 
Today is the First Sunday in Lent and I think pondering the love of God in Christ is very appropriate.  As I pointed out in our Ash Wednesday Service this week, Lent is known as a season of deep reflection; a time to ponder the basic and the most fundamental questions of life.  So I invite you this morning to ponder with me the love of Christ; that love that led Him to offer His life at Golgotha.  Two short observations for this morning; the first has to do with Christ’s love being the bedrock of our faith and the second will consider the dynamics of grasping the love of Christ.
 
First: The Bedrock Reality of our Faith
Often times I hear people say that our main problem today is that we don’t love God enough.  I get it and I agree that we don’t love God enough.  But I truly believe that our biggest and more serious problem is that we don’t know how much God loves us.  His love is primary, our love is responsive.  God’s love for us is the starting point; our love is just a response to His.  Any spiritual formation, any spiritual awakening, begins with grasping God’s love.
 
Our lives are to be lived out of a deep awareness of how much we are loved by God.  When we reflect on God’s love for us, we know that God doesn’t give us just enough to survive on, but He pours it out lavishly.  Paul prayed for the believers in Ephesus to grasp that love because when we fail to grasp it, our lives will not be rooted in love but in fear or guilt or shame or insecurity.
 
No wonder that in his short letter, Jude commanded the Church to always remember God’s love for them.  He said in Jude 21, “Keep yourselves in the love of God.”  Don’t lose sight of it.  Remain within the protective sphere of God’s never-ending love, Jude would say to us today.  The bedrock reality of our lives of faith is that God loves us, and that Jesus is the evidence of this love.  All else follows from this.  Being loved is the rich soil from which all our fruitfulness and fulfilment grows.  Gpd’s love is the bedrock reality of our faith.
 
Second: Comprehending Christ’s Love Must Happen in Community
Our culture fosters a personal and individualized spirituality without the trappings of community and the church.  The power to comprehend and to grasp the love of Christ happens in community.  In other words, you cannot know the length, width, height and depth of the love of Christ apart from the church.  “Together” is a key word in Paul’s prayer here.  “I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge.” 
 
Faith is a journey that is not meant to be traveled alone.  We travel this journey of faith with others.  We are protected and encouraged when we travel together.  This pandemic has taught us that we need each other.  We need others to rejoice with us when we rejoice and to cry with us when we are broken.  Many people ask today if the Church will ever be the same Church after the pandemic is over?  Will people come back to the pews after being away for so long?  It will for sure be a challenge that we need to deal with, but Paul reminds us today that having the power to grasp Christ’s love is something that happens “together with all the Lord’s holy people.”  English theologian John Stott (1921-2011) once said, “It needs the whole people of God to understand the whole love of God.”
 
Friends, I encourage you this Lent to ponder Christ’s love. It is “wide” because it stretches more than we can ever imagine.  It is “long” because it encompasses the length of our days, before and all beyond.  It is “high” because it reaches to the highest heavens.  It is “deep” because it extends to the deepest pit.  His love never fails.  Paul said that Christ’s love surpasses knowledge.  We explore it now, but we will not fully understand the width, length, height, and depth until we see Jesus face to face in heaven.
 
Friends, we are free in God’s love.  We are sheltered in God’s love.  We belong in His love.  We are redeemed in His love.  We are forgiven in His love.  We are people of purpose in His love.  Our provision is in His love.  Our past is overcome in His love.  Our present makes sense in His love.  Our future is certain in His love.  “Who is like you?” asked the Prophet Micah in 7:18. There is no one like our loving God.  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes (Sunday, February 14, 2021)
Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor
 
“The Transfiguration of our Lord!”
Matthew 17:1-9
 
Over the years, I have come to appreciate Church liturgical seasons and their theological and Biblical emphases.  I love the liturgical cycle and the different taste of each season.  This being said, you may know that today is “Transfiguration Sunday.”  Transfiguration Sunday concludes the Epiphany season of the Church’s Year.  In the Epiphany season, the Church gets to focus on the manifestation and the revelation of Christ to the entire world.  Jesus of Nazareth is God appearing in a human form. 
 
So in Epiphany, stories like the Magi’s story and the baptism of Jesus with its affirmation of the identity and mission of Christ are important Epiphany stories.  Epiphany reveals to us that Jesus of Nazareth is God’s most precious gift to humanity and that His love transcends all boundaries.  It includes Jews and Gentiles; it welcomes religious and non-religious folk.  Transfiguration Sunday concludes the season of Epiphany.  Today is Epiphany’s most glorious proof.
 
In today’s Scripture passage from Matthew 17:1-9, Jesus took Peter, James and John and led them up a high mountain.  On the top of the mountain, Jesus was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.  Suddenly there appeared Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.  Matthew doesn’t mention, but Luke says they spoke of Jesus’ exodus – His death and resurrection. 
 
There are so many ways to look at and to understand the transfiguration of our Lord.  One way to look at it as a disclosure of the divinity of Christ.  During His earthly life, from His conception by the Holy Spirit until His death, Jesus was always God and man, but He didn’t always fully disclose and make use of His Divine power.  On the Mount of Transfiguration, like nowhere else, Jesus lets Peter, James and John and us see that this man is what we confess of Him in the creed: “God of God, light of light, very God of very God, begotten, not made.” 
 
But I would like to look at the transfiguration of Christ and approach it from a different angel this morning.  I would like to define the transfiguration and then, explain what it means to us today.
 
First: What is Transfiguration?
The gospel writers used the Greek word “metamorphosis” to describe what happens to Jesus on the mountaintop with Peter, James and John.  “Metamorphosis,” is one of the words most of us are probably familiar with from high school biology.  In high school biology, that word was used to describe how an organism undergoes a transformation into a new shape.  The classic example of this is how a caterpillar forms a cocoon and becomes a butterfly. 
 
Jesus’ metamorphosis, His transformation and transfiguration, is pretty cool!  His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became dazzling white, like the clothing of angels.  And of course, there is the voice from heaven that bears witness to who Jesus really is.  It was quite a metamorphosis!  The disciples had never seen anything like this with Jesus before.  And probably, they didn’t ever again.  But it clearly made an impression on those disciples.  So, if this is what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration, what does it mean to us today?
 
Second: What Does Transfiguration Mean to us Today?
What is the point of Christ’s transfiguration?  Of course, we cannot dismiss the importance of the heavenly voice and the presence of Moses and Elijah as Jesus made His last journey to Jerusalem.  But I truly believe that Jesus needed neither the show nor the voice.  Jesus knows whose he is. 
 
The real point of this story is not the transfiguration, metamorphosis, of Jesus.  Instead, it’s about the transformation of the disciples into new people – people who follow Jesus and can be witnesses to the living presence of Jesus in their lives. 
 
That transformation, that metamorphosis, doesn’t take place in an instant.  It happens gradually through the journey of following Jesus.  It includes mountaintop experiences as well as valley experiences.  In the ups and downs of life, we get to know the presence of our faithful Lord.  In our strengthens and weaknesses, in our victories and our defeats, we get to feel the loving kindness of our Lord.
 
Beginning with that vision on the mountain, Peter, James, John and the other disciples began a journey with Jesus to Jerusalem, to the cross and the empty tomb.  And that journey was transformative. 
 
I like how our liturgical calendar places the story of Christ’s transfiguration the Sunday before Lent begins.  Lent is often described as a journey to Easter.  And for us too, this journey is supposed to be a time of special focus in following Jesus so that through our journey with Jesus, we can be changed and transformed.
 
Like those first disciples, Jesus loves us and calls us just as we are.  But Jesus doesn’t want to leave us this way.  Instead, he seeks to transform us – to call us to metamorphosis – so that we can live more fully as children of God.  It’s a transformation of our hearts, visions, and attitudes. 
 
So, friends, as we prepare to enter the journey of Lent together, watch for the ways in which Jesus is working in your life to call you to metamorphosis, to transformation.  Be open to the possibility that God is using new experiences in the journey of your life, even the ones that scare you, to call you to transformation.  In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.
 

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                          
Sermon Notes (Sunday, February 7, 2021)
Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor
 
“Lessons from the Pandemic!”
Psalm 42:1-5
 
We have entered the eleventh month of what feels like a pandemic that will not end.  I am sure that many of us are tired of it and long for life to be “normal” again, whatever normal is.  The pandemic has disrupted every aspect of our lives including family, work, education, social gatherings, church, community, government, sports, friendships, etc.
 
It's been a time of high levels of stress and emotional exhaustion.  Viktor Frankl (1905-1997) was an Austrian Philosopher and a Holocaust survivor who famously said, “Everything can be taken away from you except one thing – your ability to decide how to respond to any given circumstance or situation.”  What life lessons can we learn from this ongoing pandemic?  I have been thinking about what lessons I personally have learned and I would like to share a few of them with you today.

First: Life is Fragile and Unpredictable
As much as we plan and try to control every aspect of our lives, life remains unpredictable and uncertain.  We simply don’t know what tomorrow has in store.  Therefore, we must do two things.  (1) We must do our very best to live in the present, taking one day at a time.  (2) We must have a strong faith in a God who is bigger than our problems and who is reliable and faithful.  “On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand,” wrote British Baptist Minister Edward Mote in 1834.  It was true back then as much as it is today.  The pandemic reminds us of how fragile and unpredictable life is, but at the same time it reminds us of a God who is always faithful to His promises.

Second: The Importance of the Communal Aspect of our Worship
The communal aspect of our life together is important.  Worshiping God entails intimacy with Him. It also establishes communion among fellow believers.  This is especially evident in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper when the believers come from the east and west and sit around God’s table.  No wonder that the Bible calls the Church the “Body” of Christ.  The Apostles Creed captured this as the early Church Fathers affirmed the “Communion of Saints.”
 
May we never forget this great truth.  May you never forget that you belong to a body; you’re a member of the Body of Christ.  Hear these words from Hebrews 10:25 “not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”  And this takes me to my third and last lesson I would like to share with you today.

Third: Digital Worship Has its Limits
Since the beginning of the pandemic, technology has been a blessing in so many different ways.  Through technology, we have been virtually gathering and connecting with each other.  We have been using Zoom to meet for our weekly Bible Study as well as the weekly gathering for our Sunday School.  Needless to say, through utilizing available technology and social media, we have increased our digital outreach and virtual presence.
 
Virtual gatherings have proven fruitful to a certain extent, they nevertheless fall well short of achieving full and active participation envisioned by God when he called us to be part of the Body of Christ.  This seems self-evident to most of us by now.  Sitting in front of a screen is not the same as being physically present in the midst of the gathering of believers.
 
The pandemic has reminded us that we need people.  We need the physical presence of each other.  We need to look people in the eye.  We need to hear their voices.  We need to see their smile without a face covering.  I think I knew this, but now I know it more than ever.  
 
Psalm 42 is a lament psalm written by the sons of Korah who formerly were able to freely worship God with the Lord's people. But something has changed and now they find themselves removed from the religious life that they formerly enjoyed.  And they miss it greatly.  Listen to these words from Psalm 42:1-4, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.  When can I go and meet with God?  My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, “Where is your God?”  These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go to the house of God under the protection of the Mighty One with shouts of joy and praise among the festive throng.”
 
So hold on, my friends.  This too shall come to pass.  Let’s take this time to deepen our sense of community; develop an appreciation for the gift of each other; and above all, comprehend the greatness of our God who will release our feet from the snare.  And when you miss it so much, remember these words from Psalm 42:5 “Why, my soul, are you downcast?  Why so disturbed within me?  Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.”
 
Let’s look forward to that day when we can be with each other without the fear of getting or passing the virus.  Let’s look forward to that day when we as the Body of Christ can sing God’s praises together.  Let’s reach out to each other.  Let’s keep checking on each other.  Let’s continue praying for each other.  And all God’s people said, “amen.”

​First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street
Blackwood, NJ 08012                                                                              
Sermon Notes (Sunday, January 31, 2021)
Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor
 
 “Four Prayer Requests!” #3
Jeremiah 3:1-3; Ephesians 3:14-21
 
One day the famous British preacher Charles H. Spurgeon (1834-1892) was walking through the English countryside with a friend.  As they strolled along, the evangelist noticed a barn with a weathervane on its roof.  At the top of the vane were these words: GOD IS LOVE.  Spurgeon remarked to his friend that he thought this was a rather inappropriate place for such a message.  “Weathervanes are changeable,” he said, “but God’s love is constant.”  “I don’t agree with you about those words, Charles,” replied his friend.  “I think you misunderstood the meaning.  That sign is indicating a truth: Regardless of which way the wind blows, God is love.”
 
“Regardless of which way the wind blows, God is love.”  This is today’s message in a nutshell.  As you know, we have been looking at the prayer of Paul for his fellow Christians in the city of Ephesus.  As I have already pointed out, in the midst of deep theological discussions, Paul paused a couple times to lift his friends in prayer.  In doing so, Paul wanted to remind us that we should find time to pray and to commune with our Heavenly Father in the busyness of life.
 
Paul’s prayer consists of four requests.  First: he prayed for inner strength to believers through God’s Spirit.  Second: he prayed so that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith.  Third: he prayed that we would be rooted and grounded in love.   Fourth: he prayed for the believers’ hearts to grasp the greatness of Christ’s love.  The last couple Sundays we had the chance to look at the first two requests of Paul’s prayer and today we will be looking at the third request.  Today Paul prays for the believers in Ephesus to be “rooted and established in love” Ephesians 3:17.   The New Living Translation puts today’s prayer request this way: “I pray that your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong.” 
 
Two things can be highlighted in Paul’s prayer request today.  Remember, he prayed for the believers in Ephesus to be rooted and established in love.  So, first, we will look at the perfect soil we, as believers, should plant ourselves in.  Second, we will look at the importance of making good roots.
 
First: The Perfect Soil
Soil is important.  Different plants need different types of soil.  A sed won’t reach its potential unless it’s planted in the right soil.  It is interesting to note that in Ephesians 3:17, Paul says that the soil we are to be planted in is God’s love.  Paul uses the Greek word “Agape ἀγάπῃ” – this God’s unconditional love.  I think it’s revolutionary to come to believe that “Regardless of which way the wind blows, God is love.”  Everything begins with God’s love.  It’s transforming to know that whether I am healthy or sick, have much or have little, our sailing is smooth or rough, God is love.  It is refreshing to know that whether you’re a saint or a sinner, you can plant yourself in God’s love.  God loves us unconditionally.  There is affirmation in love.  There is joy in love.  There is peace in love.  There is no fear in love.
 
Paul would say to the believers in Ephesus and to us, never forget that God loves you unconditionally.  Soak yourself in this truth.  Meditate on it.  Fill your and mind with it.  Immerse yourself in it.  It’s extremely important to plant yourself in the soil of God’s love.  “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you,” said the Prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 31:3.  Because of God’s everlasting and agape love, we can hold onto His faithfulness.
 
Second: The Importance of Making Deep Roots
Roots are important.  The life or death of any plant or tree depends on the health of their root system.  If you have a strong and healthy root system, you will have a good plant.  And the opposite is also true.  No wonder that Paul prayed for Christ’s followers to be rooted and grounded in God’s love. 
 
Two major functions of any root system: stability and nourishment.  As a tree or plant grows, it sends out roots that will both anchor it to the ground, and provide water and nourishment for the rest of the plant.  Being rooted and established is necessary for long term health.
 
Like plants, Christians need stability to withstand the winds and the storms (trials) of life.   We must all be established in the soil of God’s agape.  This will enable us to stand upright.  Roots do a lot more than give the plant stability.  They bring food and water to the plant.  Like plants, Christians need spiritual nourishment.  We get this from God’s love and from Christ living in us.  Roots also store water and nutrients for times of need.  When droughts come, plants have a certain amount of a reserve of water and nutrients that are stored in the roots.  This sustains the plant for a while.  Same thing, when spiritual droughts come, our roots in Christ sustain us for some time.
 
Friends, the question we need to wrestle with today is an important one.  Am I rooted and grounded in the love God?  When we plant ourselves in the soil of God’s love, we stay anchored in the soil of truth, refusing the lies of the enemy and the compromise of our culture.  When we plant ourselves in the soil of God’s love, we remain firmly stable, well-fed and filled with a reserve of spiritual strength for times of stress and storms.  May it be so, my friends.  Amen.