New Harvest Church

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 23:41:29 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, July 18, 2010

A newly married man asked his wife, “Would you have married me if my father hadn’t left me a fortune?” “Honey,” the woman replies sweetly, “I would have married you no matter who left you a fortune.” Money is a tricky topic. Maybe it is because some people have talked about money in a way that makes us feel uncomfortable.

The two main subjects that Jesus speaks about are the kingdom of God and money. So it is hard to avoid the subject when you are looking at Matthew 18-23 for your summer series and there’s a story about money. It is found in Matthew 19:16-30. The title is, “The Rich Young Man.”

I have been studying this story from Jesus during the week and everywhere I turn to get some insights from commentaries or biblical scholars, the subject always points back to money and possessions. I was comfortable speaking about salvation and works. The rich man tried to do enough good things so that he would get into heaven. But he did say, “What do I still lack?” Then Jesus told him he should release all of his possessions and give money to the poor. Why did Jesus have to say that? He could have said, “You can never be good enough and you must surrender to me in faith and I will lead you to eternal life.” But Jesus pointed out that a very huge obstacle to people really feeling a need for Jesus is our dependence on money. It is how we view our status. The most valuable people are the ones who have lots of “stuff.”

It’s dangerous to suggest that money will be a part of the teaching this Sunday. We don’t want to look at stuff that might expose us. But if you are eager to be in connection with Christ and want to learn more about his heartbeat for treasures now verses treasures in heaven, you will run to church this Sunday. Maybe by then I will have this teaching sorted out a little better. In the meantime, the call of God is ringing out for you to worship him, be together with others and learn from his Word.

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 23:38:49 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, July 11, 2010

New Harvest at the Fair

Sermon Podcast: “The Decision That Changed Everything”

admin — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 20:24:33 +0000

Pastor Steve Entz

Sunday, July 4, 2010

Sermon Podcast: “Being the Church: Speak the Truth in Love”

admin — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 18:18:57 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, June 27, 2010

THE BIBLE IN 50 WORDS

God made
Adam bit
Noah arked
Abraham split
Joseph ruled
Jacob fooled
Bush talked
Moses balked
Pharaoh plagued
People walked
Sea divided
Tablets guided
Promise landed
Saul freaked
David peeked
Prophets warned
Jesus born
God walked
Love talked
Anger crucified
Hope died
Love rose
Spirit flamed
Word spread
God remained.
–From Nancy Foley, via email.

I would add two more words to this inspiring list to close: “Church Began.” The author, Matthew, helps us learn about something that God had in his mind from the very beginning. It is the gathering of his redeemed people in what the Bible calls the church. The word used in the Gospel of Matthew is an anticipation of what would be the community of believers that would become God’s vehicle in the world as the message of Jesus Christ is proclaimed. The promise that Matthew gives is that not even the gates of Hades will be able to overcome it. (Matthew 16:18) The church is especially important to our Lord because the church is described as “the bride of Christ.” You can see how important that is. So for this summer I want to focus on the church and the importance of the church. The key to the church, according to Matthew, is community life. In Matthew 18:15-20 we will learn about something very important to community life . . . loving confrontation.

Sermon Podcast: “Being the Church: Marriage Matters”

admin — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 23:20:42 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, June 20, 2010

I read this story in a magazine and it relates to fatherhood. Obviously we are going to celebrate Father’s Day this coming Sunday at New Harvest. My emphasis in the message will be about the significance of marriage. This story is somewhat humorous . . . I think.

A father passed by his son’s bedroom, astonished to see the bed was nicely made, and everything was picked up. Then, he saw an envelope, propped up prominently on the pillow. It was addressed, “Dad.” With the worst premonition, he opened the envelope and read the letter, with trembling hands. “Dear Dad, It is with great regret and sorrow that I am writing you. I had to elope with my new girlfriend because I wanted to avoid a scene with Mom and you. I have been finding real passion with Stacy, and she is so nice, but I knew you would not approve of her because of all her piercings, tatoos, her tight motorcycle clothes and because she is much older than I am. But it is not only the passion, Dad. She is pregnant. Stacy said that we will be very happy. She owns a trailer in the woods and has a stack of firewood for the whole winter. We share a dream of having many more children.”

“Stacy has opened my eyes to the fact that marijuana doesn’t really hurt anyone. We will be growing it for ourselves and trading it with the other people in the commune for all the cocaine and ecstasy we want. In the meantime, we will pray that science will find the cure for AIDS, so Stacy can get better. She sure deserves it. Don’t worry, Dad, I am fifteen and I know how to take care of myself. Someday I am sure we will be back to visit so that you can get to know your many grandchildren. Love your son, John”

“P.S. Dad, the above story is not true. I am over at Tommy’s house. I just wanted to remind you that there are worse things in life than the school report card that is on my desk. I love you. Call when it is safe to come home.”

Sermon Podcast: “Are You Grounded?”

admin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 17:10:07 +0000

Pastor Chad Harvey

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Sermon Podcast: “The Ultimate Fear”

admin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 19:30:30 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Here’s a verse to think about, “He counts the number of stars. He gives names to every one of them. Great is our God. His understanding is infinite.” (Psalm 147:7 NABS) Consider the power and greatness of God as he created the universe. Just think of the solar system . . . at the speed of light, 186,000 miles a second, sunlight takes 8 minutes to reach the Earth. That same light takes five more hours to reach the farthest planet in our solar system, Pluto (which in not even considered a planet anymore). After leaving our solar system, that sunlight must travel for four years and four months to reach the next star in the universe. That is the distance of 40,000,000,000,000 (trillion) kilometers (mere shooting distance in the universe).

The sun resides in the Milky Way galaxy, which is shaped like a flying saucer, flat with a bulge in the center. Our sun is roughly ¾ of the way to the edge of the galaxy. To get a feel for that distance, if our solar system were one inch across, the distance to the center of the Milky Way galaxy would be 379 miles. Our galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars. Yet the Milky Way is but one of roughly one trillion galaxies in the universe says astronomer Allan Sandage, “Galaxies are to astronomy what atoms are to physics.”

There are 20 galaxies in what is called our local group. The next sort of grouping universe is called a super cluster of galaxies. Within our super cluster, the nearest cluster of galaxies, called Virgo, is 50 million light years away. (A light year is the distance light travels in one year. To get a feel for the distance of one light year, if you drove your car at 75mph, it would take you 8.9 million years to travel one light year.) Astronomers estimate that the distance across the universe is roughly 4 billion light years and that there are roughly 100 billion trillion stars. It’s no wonder that the Bible refers to God as Almighty. I wonder if your God is big enough. Is he big enough to be trusted? Is there any reason to fear with a God that big? The Bible says, “If God is for us who can be against us?” These ideas will get you thinking as we anticipate being together on Sunday and sharing the final message in our series entitled, “Fear . . . Less.”

Sermon Podcast: “Why Do We Seek God?”

admin — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 17:15:04 +0000

Craig Kuhn, Elder

Sunday, May 30, 2010

Sermon Podcast: “Scared to Death”

admin — Thu, 27 May 2010 20:40:56 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, May 23, 2010

As many of you know, we are in a series on fear and praying that our fears melt away because of a growing confidence in God’s faithfulness. I have been experiencing that for myself and I hope you have too. If we took a survey of your greatest fears, I wonder if yours would be the same as those found on the top ten list I read: fear of flying, fear of public speaking, fear of dark, fear of intimacy, fear of death, fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of spiders, fear of the dentist, fear of close spaces. In the series I have not addressed every one of these specifically, but this Sunday I will. Our subject is found in this top ten list and is defined by Aristotle as, “The end of everything.” Or like the French philosopher, Francois Rabelais, on his deathbed said this final sentence: “I am going to the great Perhaps.” Or as the question that Job asked in Job 14:14, “If a man dies, will he live again?” We read about Solomon’s wisdom in our reading schedule, and he said this in a very wise way: “There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die . . .” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 & 2)

If you choose not to fly, you don’t have to fly. If you avoid public speaking, you can choose to do so. You can run from mice and spiders. You can even avoid the dentist, which is not a good idea of course. But you can’t run from this one. It’s a 100% certainty. So how do we face this fear? What do we need to know to gain the confidence and courage of anticipation, rather than dread? Well, I hope you will join me this Sunday as we look into God’s Word for the answers.

Sermon Podcast: “The Matter Meter”

admin — Fri, 21 May 2010 16:55:53 +0000

Pastor Barry Braun

Sunday, May 16, 2010

I’d like to begin with a story located in Max Lucado’s book of fear, found on page 31:

Noble Doss dropped the ball. One ball. One pass. One mistake. In 1941, he let one fall. And it’s haunted him ever since. “I cost us a national championship,” he says.

The University of Texas football team was ranked number one in the nation. Hoping for an undefeated season and a berth in the Rose Bowl, they played conference rival Baylor University. With a 7-0 lead in the third quarter, the Longhorn quarterback launched a deep pass to a wide-open Doss.

“The only thing I had between me and the goal,” he recalls, “was twenty yards of grass.”

The throw was on target. Longhorn fans rose to their feet. The sure-handed Doss spotted the ball and reached out, but it slipped through.

Baylor rallied and tied the score with seconds to play. Texas lost their top ranking and, consequently, their chance at the Rose Bowl.

“I think about that play every day,” Doss admits.

Not that he lacks other memories. Happily married for more than six decades. A father. Grandfather. He served in the navy during World War II. He appeared on the cover of Life magazine with his Texas teammates. He intercepted seventeen passes during his collegiate career, a university record. He won two NFL titles with the Philadelphia Eagles. The Texas High School Football Hall of Fame and the Longhorn Hall of Honor include his name.

Most fans remember the plays Doss made and the passes he caught. Doss remembers the one he missed. Once, upon meeting a new Longhorn head coach, Doss told him about the bobbled ball. It had been fifty years since the game, but he wept as he spoke.

They say that we need to receive five compliments to one criticism. I suppose that idea applies to this haunting memory in the life of Noble Doss. I bet you can relate. I bet it wouldn’t take you long to recall mistakes, failures and sins that have taken place in your life. We have a way of remembering our failures, dwelling on the critical comments of others and thinking of ourselves as less than versus more than. We barely ever feel like we measure up. In fact, it is one of our deepest fears . . . “I don’t matter.” “I should have done better.” “I am insignificant.” If you relate to what I have just written, you won’t want to miss this Sunday’s teaching entitled, “The Matter Meter.”