Pop Culture Christ

Sermon: Chosen From The Beginning

Joel A Moroney — Sun, 05 May 2013 02:00:55 +0000

At St Luke’s, we’re going through a sermon series called “What Has Happened To Me?” based on 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15.

“Chosen From The Beginning” uses Ephesians 1:3-12 as a jumping off point.

Preached at St Luke’s Liverpool on Sunday the 5th of May 2013.

Download: 20130505_joel_moroney_chosen_from_the_beginning.mp3

DJESUS UNCHAINED

Joel A Moroney — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 01:46:48 +0000

I was wanting to write something up about this, but in case I ran out of time (which happens all too frequently) here it is.

Keen to hear your thought on it.

Sermon: Loved By God

Joel A Moroney — Sun, 28 Apr 2013 02:00:44 +0000

At St Luke’s, we’ve just started a sermon series called “What Has Happened To Me?” based on 2 Thessalonians 2:13-15.

The series kicked of with “Loved By God”, taking a closer look at 1 John 4:7-19

Preached at St Luke’s Liverpool on Sunday the 28th of April 2013.

Download: 20130428_joel_moroney_loved_by_god.mp3

Promises

Joel A Moroney — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 02:00:12 +0000

When someone makes you a promise, there’s a sense of uncertainty that follows. When they use the word “promise”, are they guaranteeing that it will happen just as they said? Or are they just using the word “promise” to lull you into a false sense of security, with no intention of actually having to follow through?
I try to be a man who honours my promises. But with a memory like mine, it can difficult. If its not in my calendar or on my To Do list, the chances of me keeping my promise are reduced significantly. And some times I make promises that I have every intention of keeping, but afterwards it turns out situations outside of my control mean I can’t keep that promise.
However, when Jesus makes a promise, he always keeps it. Because he is without sin, he never makes a promise he can’t keep. And because he is fully God, he is able to use his power to make sure nothing gets in the way of him fulfilling his promises.
When Jesus promises that he’ll rise from the dead (Mark 8:31), he keeps it. When he promises that he’ll send the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8), he keeps it. So when he promises a place in heaven for everyone who believes in him (John 14:2 – “In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you.”), we know he’s going to keep that promise.
Jesus – the one who makes promises you can rely on.

Weird Things Christians Do: Say Creeds

Joel A Moroney — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 00:56:37 +0000

I can’t think of any other time in my day to day life that I stand up with a whole bunch of other people and read out loud a large slab of text. Not since primary school anyway. But when the guy leading the service at church tells us it’s time to say the creed, that’s what happens. Why do we do that? Every other time we stand up together at least there’s music playing for some Christian Karaoke.

The creeds were written by Christians in the early days of Christianity. The point was to get the core message of Christianity into one statement. If you said you agreed with what the creed said, then you were agreeing with the main message of the Christian faith. Say two Christians were having a conversation:
Christian 1: “Do you believe everything in the Nicene Creed?”
Christian 2: “Yes. Do you?”
Christian 1: “Yes I do! Awesome!”
And then they’d give each other a Christian high-five. (Disclaimer: there may not have been any high-fives involved. But there should have been.)

When we stand up at church and say the Apostle’s Creed or the Nicene Creed, what we’re doing is boldly proclaiming that we believe in the core message of the Christian faith. That we’re part of a long tradition, stretching back hundreds of years, of Christians who have stood up for their faith and said these words. Beginning with “I believe”.

Sermon: John 11:55-12:36

Joel A Moroney — Sun, 03 Mar 2013 02:00:31 +0000

The King Must Die – John 11:55-12:36.

Sermon preached at St Luke’s Liverpool on the 3rd of March, 2013.

Download: 20130303_joel_moroney_the_king_must_die.mp3

Sermon: John 11:1-54

Joel A Moroney — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 02:00:05 +0000

Life From Death – John 11:1-54

Preached at St Luke’s Liverpool on the 24th of February, 2013.

Note: Watch video first

Download: joel_moroney_life_from_death.mp3

Weird Things Christians Do: Listen To Sermons

Joel A Moroney — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 04:35:34 +0000

It’s not much of a secret that I have a short attention span. I’m easily distracted. It doesn’t take much for me to momentarily lose my place and… hey look at that bird! He’s funny looking!

… sorry about that.

I’m sure I’m not alone in our fast-paced world. Generally speaking, we like things to happen immediately, if not sooner. We get frustrated if the traffic lights take too long to turn green. We prefer headlines over long news articles. If a movie is longer than 90 minutes, it better have some big explosions to keep us from fidgeting in our seats.

Which is why I sometimes think it strange that when Christians meet together, they sit down and listen to someone talk for a solid length of time. With attention spans (allegedly) getting shorter, why do we all gather in a room on a Sunday and listen to a sermon together?

It’s because the Bible is so important to us. It’s not just some book. The Bible is God speaking directly to his people. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” God has given us the Bible so that we can know who he is and what he has done for us. The Bible shows us how we can live lives that bring honour and glory to him. When someone gets up the front of church on a Sunday and opens up the Bible with us, that’s God, through the Holy Spirit, talking to us. It’s a time for us to pay attention to what’s being said. And we do it, because hearing God speak to us is one of the great privileges of being a Christian, a privilege that we should guard jealously.

That’s why we have a sermon every week at St Luke’s. We’re not going to replace that time with quiet meditation discussion groups, or interpretive dance. No, that time is set aside for a clear proclamation of what God has to say in the Bible. And if I can (only just) sit through a movie, then surely I can put the same amount of effort into listening to my God speak to me.

Trying Something New

Joel A Moroney — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 05:15:27 +0000

I didn’t mean for it to happen. I thought I’d just check it out once. Take a quick look, strike it off my “Things I’ve Never Done” list, and walk away. I never thought I’d become one of them. I never planned on this becoming part of who I was.

About six months ago I became a Tokusatsu fan.

What’s Tokusatsu? Think live action Japanese superhero TV shows. Guys in spandex fighting guys in rubber suits as the grass behind them explodes. I got my first taste of Tokusatsu back in the 90s with Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, an Americanised version of the Japanese show Kyoryu Sentai Zyuranger. But it wasn’t until last year I got a taste for the Japanese originals. And once I got that taste I couldn’t stop. Decades worth of shows that were weird and wonderful. It would take me years to work through the Super Sentai series alone. At this stage I’ve completed three series (Choujin Sentai Jetman, Kamen Rider Agito, and Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger) and currently making my way through five others.

As I’ve started watching these shows, I’ve been drawn into the fandom. I’ve looked for places where I can find other people who love this stuff as much as me. I’ve listened to podcasts, followed people on Tumblr, read message boards, and studied Wikipedia articles. I want to know everything about my new love. I want to understand this culture and way of thinking that is so different to what I previously knew. In the process I’ve learnt new words, met new people, and gained a new outlook on the world. I’m experiencing a new culture.

This is not first time this has happened to me. There was the time I read my first comic book. Or put on my Judo gear for the first time. Or went to my first Scout meeting. Times where I’ve experienced a new culture. But the most significant time was when I first met Jesus.

I thought I knew the culture. I thought I knew what Christianity was. And I didn’t want anything to do with it. But that moment, that one moment when I got a glimpse of what was going on, when I met someone who really knew Jesus and loved him, everything changed. I got my first real glimpse of Christianity and I wanted in. I began to study what they believed. Got to know people who were real and passionate Christians. I began to understand their culture. And my eyes were open.

If you’re not a Christian, check it out. Go to a place where the Bible is taught and there a people who love Jesus and each other. And find out what they believe and why they believe it. Find out first hand if it’s something for you.

If you are a Christian, don’t keep it to yourself. If you think Jesus is awesome, tell other people. Give them a glimpse of the faith you have. Be prepared to give an answer for the hope you have (1 Peter 3:15). You never know when someone’s just waiting to be hooked. I never wanted to be a Christian. But here I am 15 years later and I don’t regret a moment. Go and share the joy you have in Christ.

The Impossible (2012)

Joel A Moroney — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 20:50:52 +0000

The Impossible

Rated M

Starring Naomi Watts, Ewan McGregor

Boxing Day, 2004. A massive tsunami swept through South Asia, leaving devastation in its path It’s one of those big events. The kind that you remember exactly where you were when it happened. For me, I was sitting in my cousin’s living room. We sat and watched the news in silence as the chaos unfolded. Hundreds of thousands dead. Even more injured and left homeless. To say it was a traumatic event for many is an understatement.

There are many stories that can be told from the Boxing Day Tsunami. The Impossible is the true story of separation and reunion of the Alvarez family, caught unawares by the tsunami as they holiday at their Thai resort. The story of this family is an emotional roller coaster. If you’re after that kind of movie, there’s a lot to like in The Impossible. However, just below the surface, there is something troubling going on. Something that is unintentional by the film makers but says something quite troubling about us as a movie going public.

For me, the best part of the movie was the tsunami hitting. When the water hits, you can’t help but be in awe at its power. I used to wonder why people didn’t just run away. When the wave begins roaring through the resort in The Impossible, you begin to understand how powerful this event was. How helpless the people were in its wake. And as Naomi Watts struggles to keep her head above water, as she tries to stay near her son, you can empathise with her. I could feel her terror. The initial disaster is a great piece of cinema.

The rest of the movie will be a mixed bag for most. For me, I found some scenes stretched out too long and the use of the soundtrack overly manipulative. These might not be issues for you. But despite this, I did find the movie genuinely emotional. I wanted the family to be reunited. I just wish it was edited differently.

The big problem for me however, was a subtle hint of racism that permeated every inch of this film. It begins with the casting. The family at the heart of this story are Spanish. Yet for the movie they are whitewashed, replaced by two white people who now come from England. You could be forgiven for thinking that the Thai people were not adversely affected by the tsunami, as the only people injured in the disaster, the only ones who are suffering, are privileged white people. The Thai are just there to silently help the white people and patch them back up. Why is this the story being told? It’s because if you made the movie about a Thai family’s story of survival, it would be a box office disaster. It seems we’re only sympathetic when people have white skin. And that’s a sad comment on our society.

The Boxing Day Tsunami was a great disaster. Many were left struggling to understand how it could happen. If God existed, how could he allow this to occur? The answer isn’t easy. We don’t like to think of how sin has got a stranglehold on this world. But it has. It is a real and powerful presence in this world. We have disasters because of sin. Sin has infected this world, it’s no longer the good creation that God made. Just like we are waiting for Jesus to deal with sin once and for all, so is creation. “And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfilment-to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.” (Eph 1:9-10) We don’t know when that day is, but when it does arrive, events like tsunamis will be a thing of the past.

The Impossible is a good movie – in parts. There are some scenes I’d watch again. But I’d fast forward through most of it. If you like having your heart strings tugged, The Impossible could be your kind of movie. If you do see the movie, take the time to think of the people of Thailand who felt the full pain and suffering of this event. Because The Impossible isn’t going to do it for you.