drstevej
23rd December 2007, 04:21 PM
The BR Paper did an article on one of my sermons. The writer came by and said he was doing an article on what churches were preaching at Christmas. I talked with him for a while and gave a link to our website. He listened to my sermon and basically summarized it in his article (http://www.2theadvocate.com/features/12757967.html). He included the gospel portion.
Pretty cool.
drstevej
Sermons cover meaning of ‘Jesus’
By TERRY ROBINSON
Published: Dec 22, 2007 - Page: 1E
Mary and Joseph didn’t have to come up with a name for their first child.
God took care of that for them.
“There was no gridlock over the name for Mary and Joseph, because when God sent his son, he sent him with a name already picked out,” said Steve Johnson, one of the pastors at the Chapel on the Campus at LSU.
In separate visits to Mary and Joseph, an angel told the couple that they would have a son and his name would be called Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 1 and Luke 1.
“God confirmed that his choice for the name was certain, and that choice was Jesus. The name was an act of sovereign choice by God,” Johnson said. “It was deliberately selected and dramatically communicated to both Mary and Joseph. The selection of that name was not a parental option, but was obedience to divine instruction.”
Johnson’s message “He Was Named Jesus” on Dec. 9 at the church, 3355 Dalrymple Drive, was part of a sermon series titled
“Jesus, the Name Above all Names.” The series started in mid-November and has been delivered by several teaching pastors at the church’s two locations: The Chapel on the Campus and The Chapel in the Oaks, 9611 Siegen Lane.
The series concludes this weekend with the Rev. Kevin McKee offering “His Kingdom Come” and “His Rule.”
Johnson talked about the difficulty he and his wife had deciding on a name for their first child years ago.
“Sometimes, that can be quite an ordeal,” he said. “We were just immersed in the process, and every name that she liked I could find a reason to cross it off the list, and the reverse was true.”
Out of desperation, Johnson said, the couple decided to invite their church group to be part of a baby-naming contest.
“We had hundreds of names submitted and some of them were fairly ingenious,” Johnson said, adding that two suggestions were Howard Johnson and Johnson Ann Johnson.
“The whole process was quite a challenge, but what a blessing,” he said.
In biblical times, Johnson said the selection of a name was significant because it described something about a person’s character.
Jesus’ name in Greek was the Hebrew equivalent of Joshua and meant Jehovah salvation or deliverance, Johnson said.
“The reason he was named Jesus was a reminder that he was God’s deliverer,” he said. “He was sent to be a deliverer, not generically, but specifically from the penalty and the oppression and the weight of sin.”
His name also meant Immanuel, which is “God with us,” Johnson said.
“God took on human flesh and literally dwelt among us,” Johnson said. “He was indeed truly God in our midst, God with us.”
There’s life in the name of Jesus, Johnson said.
Pretty cool.
drstevej
Sermons cover meaning of ‘Jesus’
By TERRY ROBINSON
Published: Dec 22, 2007 - Page: 1E
Mary and Joseph didn’t have to come up with a name for their first child.
God took care of that for them.
“There was no gridlock over the name for Mary and Joseph, because when God sent his son, he sent him with a name already picked out,” said Steve Johnson, one of the pastors at the Chapel on the Campus at LSU.
In separate visits to Mary and Joseph, an angel told the couple that they would have a son and his name would be called Jesus, as recorded in Matthew 1 and Luke 1.
“God confirmed that his choice for the name was certain, and that choice was Jesus. The name was an act of sovereign choice by God,” Johnson said. “It was deliberately selected and dramatically communicated to both Mary and Joseph. The selection of that name was not a parental option, but was obedience to divine instruction.”
Johnson’s message “He Was Named Jesus” on Dec. 9 at the church, 3355 Dalrymple Drive, was part of a sermon series titled
“Jesus, the Name Above all Names.” The series started in mid-November and has been delivered by several teaching pastors at the church’s two locations: The Chapel on the Campus and The Chapel in the Oaks, 9611 Siegen Lane.
The series concludes this weekend with the Rev. Kevin McKee offering “His Kingdom Come” and “His Rule.”
Johnson talked about the difficulty he and his wife had deciding on a name for their first child years ago.
“Sometimes, that can be quite an ordeal,” he said. “We were just immersed in the process, and every name that she liked I could find a reason to cross it off the list, and the reverse was true.”
Out of desperation, Johnson said, the couple decided to invite their church group to be part of a baby-naming contest.
“We had hundreds of names submitted and some of them were fairly ingenious,” Johnson said, adding that two suggestions were Howard Johnson and Johnson Ann Johnson.
“The whole process was quite a challenge, but what a blessing,” he said.
In biblical times, Johnson said the selection of a name was significant because it described something about a person’s character.
Jesus’ name in Greek was the Hebrew equivalent of Joshua and meant Jehovah salvation or deliverance, Johnson said.
“The reason he was named Jesus was a reminder that he was God’s deliverer,” he said. “He was sent to be a deliverer, not generically, but specifically from the penalty and the oppression and the weight of sin.”
His name also meant Immanuel, which is “God with us,” Johnson said.
“God took on human flesh and literally dwelt among us,” Johnson said. “He was indeed truly God in our midst, God with us.”
There’s life in the name of Jesus, Johnson said.