Joseph – chris cribari blog

Photo Cred: (1) | Updated: 10/12/2024

Sermon Prep

Now that it’s almost 2025, looking back at the beginning of 2023 is really interesting. It was the first full calendar year of marriage for my wife and I. We had our own place and finally had a flow to our daily routine as a couple, yet that wasn’t without its hiccups. Below is how this month was for us when I journaled the day of this sermon:

“I’m not good at change. Whether bad or good, change is always incredibly difficult for me. The last two weeks have been hard for Glory and I. With the new job… I’ve had to make drastic adjustments to my schedule. Now I wake up at 4:50am and drive 30min to Nik’s gym and then to work, along with the hour to commute home. It’s a long day that ends at 6pm where I’m finally home to relax for a few hours. It’s brutal some days, but in the long run the discipline is good for me.”

What I failed to mention was that I kept working once I got home combing through medical textbooks I bought to learn my new job. Glory was doing her own job hunt trying to find something new to do too. She was emotionally ready to move-on from her family’s nonprofit, but in retrospect not really since she still works there as of this writing. I think she felt more-so guilty that all of our finances were on me now and wanted to contribute more too.

Between the events of my last sermon and this one, we had lots of other changes happen in life as well. My younger brother, Corban, moved back to Colorado from Tennessee. Glory’s sister ended a years-long relationship with her then boyfriend. Our church’s truck was totaled, which made set-up and tear-down that much more difficult in the middle of winter. Lastly, a young man who was homeless and attended our church died of hypothermia sleeping outside on a cold night in December. The changing of seasons it seems had an effect on not just us, but the community we lived with at large.

It’s in light of these changes and the expectations for what 2023 would be, that I shared this message. I must say, the contrast between my confidence in teaching through Ecclesiastes versus Luke was night-and-day. This series was much more up my alley given it was a character study on Jesus and there’s always something to be found when studying our Lord’s life. With that backdrop, here’s my notes:

Sermon Notes

Opening Line

Becoming an uncle.
- How it changed me and my family.

Intro

Luke begins his gospel account with 2 key moments: announcement and arrival.
These 2 themes run throughout Luke.
- Luke 1 = Announcing the king
- Luke 2 = Arrival of the king

Transition To Main Point

The king’s arrival both exceeded expectations and extinguished them.

Main Point

1) Announcement
- Modern messiahs (i.e. Herod the Great, Judah the Hammer, etc.) have had a lot of expectations put on them, but they can never meet them as just men.
  - The same was true of Jesus’ time.
  - There were many previous messiahs, but none of them saved the world.
- John the Baptist’s role was to announce King Jesus to the world.
  - He’s like the hype man of Jesus.
  - He set the stage for the savior.
  - Final old covenant and Old Testament prophet.
    - Story-wise, his death is a turning point.

2) Arrival
- Bethlehem was brutal.
  - Roman rule set up crosses of resistance.
    - Horse thieves, murders; revolutionaries.
  - As Jesus’ family arrived to get registered, they would’ve seen these crosses.
- As a boy, Jesus acted in command and with an awareness of who he was.
  - This put tension between his family.
  - Joseph’s absence in Luke theories:
    - 1) Died when Jesus was young.
    - 2) Emotionally absent.
    - 3) Omitted by Joseph’s request.

Why It Matters

Jesus exceeded and extinguished expectations.
- Exceeded = Grace, wisdom, love, and healing.
- Extinguished = Not rich or warrior king.
Not the king they wanted, but needed.
- Back then, the Hebrews wanted a lord.
- Today we want a savior, but not a lord.
  - Jesus will always be lord and savior.

Final Thoughts

As one of the first messages within the study on Luke, I’m quite proud of the delivery here. The same can be said of the messages I shared in this timeframe for this series. I just had an assurance in knowing this material and learning as I taught that was different then Ecclesiastes where I was speaking on things I didn’t truly know yet. With that, Godspeed and Jesus bless.

Footnotes

Reunion Church

Photo Cred: (1) | Updated: 1-20-2021

There are a lot of parallels made about Trump. Even more so within the American Christian community. From Cyrus the Great (2) to Nebuchadnezzar (3), some Christians associated with the current conservative political movement or the Republican party have made such comparisons. I’ve even read of a few people making the bold statement that Trump is just like King David because they’re both flawed leaders that God is using for divine means to an end (4).

I’m not here to talk about those obviously wrong parallels. I think of all the comparisons that could be made, Trump is most like King Saul. Let’s see why that’s more likely the case from a character perspective.

But before I do that, let’s clarify something. Comparing anyone to any figure in the Bible is just an exercise in identifying who someone is like, not who they are in reality. For instance, I could make the case that I’m a parallel to Joseph in Genesis. We are known for our analytical intellect, God speaks to us in dreams, and we both have autism (5).

With that said, it’s just a comparison to aid in our understanding and not a pinpoint accurate psychological look into who someone truly is in real life. This is a common and normal exercise, so now I’m simply applying it to President Trump. With all of that said, who was King Saul?

Who Was King Saul?

*Saul under the Influence of the Evil Spirit* by William Wetmore Story | 1865

For the sake of time, I’ll paraphrase Saul’s story. In other words, this is the highlight reel and doesn’t cover everything we know about the guy. Here’s the gist of what happened.

At this point in history, Israel was ruled by way of a kritarchy which is a nation run by judges. After years of mixed results and finally with the failure of the prophet Samuel’s own two sons, the people of Israel demanded a new form of leadership like the neighboring nations. They wanted to be ruled by a king.

So Samuel went to God in prayer and asked what to do for the Israelites. Here in 1 Samuel 8:7, we have God’s response: “Listen to the voice of the people in regard to all that they say to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected me from being king over them.”

Like God had instructed, Samuel informs the people of Israel on how things are going to change under this new leadership style. He will take their children and use them for his own means to fulfill economic, political, and even war purposes. He will take the best of everything in the land for those most loyal to him and enslave the people under his rule. Lastly, when the people realize they have made a mistake God will not save them from the collateral consequences of their collective choice.

As time went on, Saul quickly went from a promising first king to a tyrant that threw out all of the traditions of his own people for personal gain. He made promises before God and others, but broke them with little remorse. He cast out anyone that questioned or threatened his power. He even hunted the man God chose to replace him which was David and his own son Jonathan who chose to obey God, rather than his unruly father.

History now knows that Saul was the king of compromise. Saul was a people-pleaser, but God was never pleased with him. David did become king of Israel and gave God the glory, yet Saul was always wondering who would give glory to him.

In the end, Saul had no faith in God and his lies only led to loss. Our response to conflict reveals our character and Saul will forever be known as a coward. The promising king was now just a man whose promises meant nothing.

Who Is President Trump?

Now look at the Trump presidency and how it ended. The parallels speak for themselves. It began with a lot of promise for some people. He claimed to end abortion, build a wall, and fix the economy so that everyone would benefit. Whatever you think of those issues for yourself or any other issues for that matter, there are people who saw this outcome as extremely positive in 2016.

Actually, even a few as life-changing on par with the reactions that the Black American community had for Obama during the election of 2008. Like usual, both figures failed to deliver and live up to the hype. Although, for Trump his term ended with the shameful storming of the US capitol by his most ardent fans in a sad attempt to overturn the election. They took the bait of a lie that led to the death of 5 imagers of God, which is horrific for all involved.

Like an incel on OnlyFans, some Christians have crawled in lust to worship Trump and it’s shameful. Your ignorance doesn’t prove his innocence. In fact, it’s the opposite. It’s the blind eye of the Church that has built up the ego of a man who craves the adoration of all. Several of those who voted for him were so focused on winning for once that they never considered what would honestly happen if he had won the presidency. Well, now we know.

Now can I criticize a public figure like Trump and be consistent as a Christian? Absolutely. Do I need to remove the plank in my eye before telling someone else to remove the speck in their eye? Of course. As I like to tell people, I’m a shit-show of a human being and need God to save me on-the-daily because I’m the worst. In humility, I admit I’m a failure and sin more often than anyone will ever know.

God gives grace to the humble and I’m glad he does because that’s all we can give him. We must approach God in humility and faith, if we want to be in his good graces. The problem is that Trump lacks the spine to be humble before God and his faith is a farce.

His actions have spoken for him in that regard. He doesn’t fear God because he’s too afraid of the god that is his own graven image. That’s disgusting and it’s even more so when we consider that some of us supported such crass behavior in our leadership that claimed to follow Jesus.

We as Christians should be the first to publicly oppose a political leader in sin and the last to publicly support anyone in politics. Our gaze should be fixed on the Kingdom of God, not our own kingdom that was never a nation under God. Participate in the present and that includes politics, but remember to remain focused on the future for that is where we will find rest under the sovereignty of Jesus as king. With that, Godspeed and Jesus bless.

Footnotes

www.pbs.org
https://www.vox.com/identities/2018/3/5/16796892/trump-cyrus-christian-right-bible-cbn-evangelical-propaganda
https://communalnews.com/king-nebuchadnezzar-and-president-donald-trump/
http://www.sfltimes.com/opinion/looking-to-the-bible-to-justify-allegiance-to-a-flawed-leader
For more on this theory see Samuel J. Levine’s book, Was Yosef on the Spectrum?

Tag: Joseph

Luke: Exceeding Expectations | 1-29-2023

Trump Is King Saul