Free in Christ (LD 33; Ephesians 5:10)

Billy Joel says, "I would rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints." This is a line in "Only the Good Die Young" that has always intrigued me. This would mean that living for God is a life fully of mourning, sorrow, and pure misery. The Apostle Paul does not command us to weep, but to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. In fact, as a Christian we would say that living for God is the source of our joy. In this sermon we consider what it means to live for God and discerning what pleases him.

Kingdom Entrance (Matthew 21:23-32)

Christ returns to Jerusalem after cleansing the temple and cursing a tree.  He is going to face the leaders of Israel and we can imagine that this is going to be tense.  Christ tells them that it is the prostitutes and the tax collectors who enter into the kingdom of heaven.  Does this mean that in order for us to gain entrance into the temple that we have to be a tax collector or a prostitute?  What is the point of Christ calling this to the leader’s attention?