Deliver a SermonREL E Military Ministry 2 642 (Homiletics)

Conditions: Given the requirement to conduct a sermon, you will receive training and guidance in the form of instruction, examples of sermons presented, practical exercise on the development of an LDS preaching model, and instruction generated by class discussion.

Standards: Conduct a sermon (topical, textual, expository, narrative, or elements of both) that stresses a message to a military audience (Generally Christian) that will meet the needs of those whom you will be ministering to. Supporting task: Deliver sermon at HBLL media room for evaluation.

Performance Measures Results1. Prepare and deliver a sermon of not more than 15 minutes. The Sermon to be

preached will be according to learning suite.

The sermon will stress the importance of God’s word which will determine the main message. Prepare your manuscript and have it ready to present to instructors/evaluators. When planning your sermon, consider the pluralistic make-up (simulated) of the attendees—that is to say, a collective Christian service in a military chapel. Dress for sermon (casual)

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2. Manuscript should be finished and turned in at the time of sermon presentation. P F

3. Deliver the sermon. The sermon should begin with an introduction which creates an interest in the topic selected. The sermon’s form will follow those developed by Long and Craddock, or other sources e.g., narrative, expository, textual, topical or a combination of the two. Its style should be self-evident, and the main points of the sermon should follow smooth transitions through the course of the manuscript and the presented oral sermon.

Illustrations used to include parables, stories or metaphors should be well chosen and appropriate for the sermon.

The main points of the sermon should be developed, and the scriptures used should be faithful to the topic and text.

The application should be scriptural/biblical and in a military context. It should be relevant to a Christ centered audience.

Conclusions to include summaries should be developed to bring the sermon to a proper ending.

Elements of delivery will be the same as those used in class (see sermon evaluation form).

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Performance Measures Results

4. Return media room to its original condition. P F

ReferencesRequired Related MaterialsClass Instruction Craddock, PreachingHandouts Craddock, On the Craft of Preaching

Resources on Preaching from Ministry: International Journal for Pastors

Sermon Examples Long, The Witness of PreachingSermon Evaluation Form Segler/Bradley, Christian WorshipSermon Background and History O.C. Edwards, A History of PreachingSermon Examples 2 Examples

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“Come unto me”

Vance P. TheodoreHigh Council Sunday: 109th Ward YSA 8th Stake

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Good morning… Introduction

What does it mean to “come unto me.” We have all heard this theme. We can

resonate with it. We realize that Christ is speaking, and in a sense He is speaking to

us. He give the carillon call to come unto Him.

Matthew 11:28-29 King James Version (KJV)

28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

“Come unto me”

The invitation to come unto Christ is captured in the first three words of the

scripture, “Come unto me,” James Talmage in his book Jesus the Christ

commented that this invitation “is one of the grandest outpouring of spiritual

emotions known to man.”1 Here the Savior is setting the scene for his request for

the “great invitation” found in Matthew Chapter 11. We find Jesus in part of this

scriptural narrative scolding the communities of Chorazin and Bethsaida2 (Matthew

11:20-24 KJV) where they saw so many miracles and still they did not repent. He

continues that if these miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon, those within the

communities would have repented long ago in sack cloth and ashes. Then turning

to the people, He again urges them to accept Him. He understands their hearts. He

1 James E. Talmage, Jesus The Christ (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Book Company, 1977), 258.2 Jesus performed his ministry of healing and preaching in a small geographical area on the western shores and lower northern hills around the sea of Galilee. In this area were the cities of Chorazin and Bethsaida. See Joseph L. Gardner, ed., Atlas of the Bible (New York: Reader’s Digest Association, 1971), 179.

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realizes that many suffer under the burden or yoke of living the law of Moses.3

However, the “law” was not given to the people to be a yoke or a burden. It was

given to be a delight and protection against evil as described in Psalm 119:35

(KJV) “Make me go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight,” in

verse 95 (KJV) “O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day.” However,

at the time of Christ, the law, for many, had become burdensome couched in

ecclesiastical restrictions, rituals, and formalities. Christ was offering them

freedom, though not from obedience from the commandments, but from their

burdens.

He does the same thing for us today. This request, the great invitation was to

“Come unto Him.” Bertel Thorvaldsen (pronunciation-Beartul Torvalsen), a

Danish sculptor, I believe, captures the significance of these three words (Come

unto me) in his sculpture the Christus located in the Church of Our Lady in

Copenhagen, Denmark. A copy of the sculpture can be seen at Temple Square’s

North Visitors’ Center in the rotunda.4 It’s an impressive work of art which depicts

the Savior with extended arms reaching out in a gesture of comfort and invitation.

During the summer, I was in the visitor’s center walking up the promenade

of the rotunda to visit the Christus. Families and individuals were sitting in front of

the Christus listening to scriptures which depicted Christ’s ministry. I noticed the

3 The Interpreter’s Bible, vol vii. (New York: Abingdon Press, 1951), 389.4 Roy A. Prete, ed., The Mormons: An Illustrative History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (New York: Merrell Publisher Limited, 2013), 15.

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sister missionaries representing different countries answering questions about the

doctrines of Christ to the visitors that were present that day. After the presentation,

families and individuals were gathered around the statue taking pictures. Children

were reaching up and touching the toes of the statue because Christ was standing

on a pedestal. I observed that where their small fingers touched the toes of the

statue of Christ, the color of the marble was beginning to turn dark. I chuckled to

myself—children wanting to connect with the Savior, with Christ. They were

feeling his love. They understood what the Christus represents—“Come unto me.”

Come is a word that invites: Come here, Come in, Come walk with me,

Come now let us reason together (Isaiah 1:18 KJV), Come follow me (Mathew

4:19 NIV). Its call is to invite individuals from whatever circumstance they may be

in, to come to the gift-giver—Jesus Christ.

A few years ago, during the gulf war in Iraq, I had the privilege and honor to

serve a group of soldiers who were the first to go over the berm into Iraq. On the

night before movement into Iraq, I was praying and talking with the soldiers before

the battle. After passing one of the fighting Bradley vehicles, I heard a soldier

whisper, very softly, the invitation “Come here.”

I could see that he was nervous. A young soldier, the age of many of you

sitting here today. He wanted to ask me a question. He wanted to know if I had a

Bible. I assured him that I did and gave it to him. He then asked if I had one of

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those Bibles that had a metal plate in the cover. I told him that I did not, and that I

thought they were only used in WWII. He then wanted to know if I had a cross. I

responded that I did. He asked for one. I gave it to him and put it around his neck.

He then asked if I had a Rosary. I said I did. I gave it to him, and he put that

around his neck. He then wanted to know if I had a Star of David. I said I did not,

but I did not believe that he was Jewish. He replied that he was not, but said that

he was just trying to play it safe. So with a Bible in his battle jacket over his heart

and crosses around his neck, I prepared to leave. The soldier said his thanks and I

continued on with my journey visiting soldiers in his section. I knew why he

wanted the religious symbols. He was nervous and wanted some symbol of

assurance from God that he would be all right.

This soldier never came to religious services but would sit on the outskirts of

the worship service listening. We talked but he did not seem interested in religion.

However, when the conflict was over and the dust had settled and the dogs of war

were quiet, it was that soldier who now came to worship. I believe that he had a

change of heart.5 That the light of Christ was calling unto him. He was like one of

the ten lepers who received the gift, and then realizing the miracle came to thank

the giver, Christ, unlike the other nine lepers healed who left and rejoiced in their

healing, and in this case their life, but forgot to thank Christ. (Luke 17:11-19 KJV)

How many of us forget to thank the gift-giver. (Psalm 107:1 KJV).5 Personal recollection by Chaplain Vance Theodore in the first Gulf War Iraq, 1991.

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The second part of the invitation of Christ, given to the people of that time,

identifies those who labor and who do the work of the law but are heavy laden with

the burdens that the scribes put on them.6 I guess we could reinterpret or give one

interpretation of this to mean, in our time, to you who labor and do the toil of

homework in your classes at Brigham Young University. Many of you are heavy

laden with the burdens that your professors put on you. However, I believe that all

of us have felt heavy laden at one time or another.

We might say that: it is life or just a natural part of living.

We all feel, at times, fear, loneliness, anxiety, and sadness. In listening to

those sharing their testimonies last week the theme seemed to be about adversity—

whether it was home sickness, anxiety, or being overwhelmed. Many, at times, can

feel uneasy or out of their comfort zones. I have been impressed about all of you

who I have had the privilege of meeting What great students you are. Many of you

were on top of your game at home. But, here you are one of the many, over 30,000

students. I bet there are time when you could fee; lost or forgotten.

Again, the invitation from Christ is for our times. Those three words are as

significant today as they were 2,000 years ago:

Come unto me those who feel lonely, who are heartbroken and grieve.

6 This is just one interpretation as described in The Interpreter’s Bible, vol vii. (New York: Abingdon Press, 1951), 389.

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Come unto me those who feel sadness from relationship break-ups, poor

grades, and homesickness.

Come unto me those who are well liked and have friends but inside are

scared and even in a group of friends feel alone.

Come unto me those who are flirting with unrighteousness.

Come unto me those who have questions about their faith, their testimonies

or even if I exist.

Come unto me those who are conflicted about serving me, feel confused

about life’s decisions or what career I should pursue or whom I will marry

Come unto me those who feel that they do not belong.

Brothers and Sisters this list is as varied and complex as you want to make

it. Perhaps another question we could ask is: “Who can help fulfill these words of

Come unto me?

Last week in our meeting with the Stake Presidency, President Mathew

Richardson asked that we have super vision, that is, to be able to see needs in the

wards and strive to meet them. He also commented on our ability to administer or

to add ministry to our callings7. One individual who has super vision and adds

ministry and has the keys for the 109th ward is Bishop Anderson. He also has two

very capable counselors.

7 Meeting notes from YSA 8th Stake Priesthood Executive Meeting November 6, 2016.

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Elder Holland commented in a talk at the priesthood session of conference

about priesthood legacy said,

Believe it or not we, too, were young once, though I know that strains the

very limits of your imagination. Equally unfathomable is the fact that your

parents were once young also, and so were your bishops and your quorum

advisers. But as the years have gone by we have learned many lessons

beyond those of youth—

He continues:

When you are young not all of life’s questions and difficulties have arisen

yet, but they will arise, and unfortunately, for your generation, they will

arise at a younger and younger age. The gospel of Jesus Christ marks the

only sure and safe path. So older men, seasoned men—men passing on to

you the legacy of history—continue to call out to youth.8

I believe his comments if said to a general LDS audience would also include

all the leadership of the Primary, Young Women’s and Relief Society.

Nevertheless, I would encourage all of you here today to seek out counsel

from your priesthood and other leaders while you are here at Brigham Young

University. They have been called to serve to add ministry to our ward and are

representatives of our Lord and Savior here on the earth. They will be able to help

you on your journey as you walk His safe path.8 Jeffery R. Holland, “Our Priesthood Legacy,” Ensign, April 1995,

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A few weeks ago, I was immensely impressed by the spirit of service by the

young single adults of the 8th stake at our annual blood drive. They were donating

the gift of life that will be used throughout the nation for those in need of blood.

Most were a little nervous, some expressed this nervousness by screaming,

laughing and one even fainted, but all had the spirit of the scripture found in

Mosiah 2:17, that is…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only

in the service of your God.

This type of service is eloquently expressed in a poem that I like by Annie

Johnson Flint,

Christ has not hands but our hands to do His work today.He has no feet but our feet to lead men in his way.He has no tongue but our tongues to tell men how he died.He has no help but our help to lead men to His side.What if our hands are busy with other work than His?What if our feet are walking where sin’s allurement is?What if our tongues are speaking of things his lips would spurn?

How can we hope to help Him or hasten His return?

(Christ Has no Hands but Our Hands – Annie Johnson Flints 1862-1932)9i

I believe how we can help Him is by receiving those three words gratefully

and with enthusiasm in our lives—the great invitation to all of us to “Come unto

Him, and the reward of our labors our struggles our challenges and our joy is that

“He will give us rest,” or in His own words “I will give your rest.”

9 Annie Johnson, “Christ Has no Hands but our Hands,” accessed November 9, 2016, https://soundfaith.com/sermons/3920-christ-has-no-hands-but-our-hands-to-do-his-work-today.

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Elder Scott said this concerning the Redeemer,

The Redeemer will safely lead you over the most difficult obstacles of life.

His laws are absolutely secure anchors of protection that dispel fear and

assure success in an otherwise dangerous world. Such a life will certainly

provide you peace and happiness. True, enduring happiness, with the

accompanying strength, courage, and capacity to overcome the greatest

difficulties, will come as you center your life in Jesus Christ.10

In Alma 7:11, it says “And he shall go forth suffering pains and the

afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled

which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.”

The great invitation today is a “call” to all people. His request gives us hope

in a world that can sometimes be trying and challenging. It is my prayer that these

three words “Come unto me” will continue to inspire you and that they will

provide you “rest” here in your time at Brigham Young University, in your

experience as a member of the 109th ward, and throughout your mortal journey

here on earth is my humble prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Proving Your WorthMosiah 17:7-12Stephan Taeger

10 Richard R. Scott, “The Atonement Can Secure Your Peace and Happiness,” Ensign, November 2006.

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One of our boys was once asked to give a talk in Primary, but shortly before standing at the miniature podium he told my wife that he didn’t want to.

“Why not?” Kirsten asked. “Because I don’t want all the people to look at me.” We all know that feeling; it’s not new for humans to be afraid of public speaking.

However, this incident helped me realize that even at a young age people start worrying what others think. I don’t believe this started unusually early for this child. It’s just sort of a brute fact that humans care deeply how others view them.

What happens when there is knock on the front door and a mother notices papers on the living room floor, toys in the hallway, and plates on the end table? She explodes in a cleaning rampage, telling the kids to help her “clean up this mess!” It doesn’t matter that it’s the UPS man; she can’t let another human see her house dirty!

Or, imagine a seventeen year old boy driving down the road when a song he likes begins to play on the radio. He starts bobbing his head, singing, and using the steering wheel as a drum set. When he pulls up to the stop light, he quickly turns his head only to notice someone watching him. The boy stops singing and looks straight ahead. He can’t be seen singing!

Or, imagine the 22 year old returned missionary doing her hair before going to class. Hairspray, mirrors, combs - she feels like she is making her hair worse the longer she works on it! Forty-five minutes later she finally leaves the apartment. Throughout the day she can’t quite enjoy herself because she thinks she looks like Chewbacca.

Sometimes, trying to look impressive can actually lead us to make less than intelligent decisions. In the Book of Mormon, King Noah told Abinadi that he had “found an accusation against [him]” because Abinadi “said that God himself should come down among the children of men.” Despite Noah’s threatening, Abinadi replied, “I say unto you, I will not recall the words which I have spoken unto you concerning this people...And if ye slay me ye will shed innocent blood, and this shall also stand as a testimony against you at the last day.” Surprisingly, this warning actually began to shake King Noah. The next verse says: “King Noah was about to release him, for he feared his word; for he feared that the judgments of God would come upon him.” When I was speaking at an Especially For Youth (EFY) once, I asked the students to turn to a partner and tell them what they would say to King Noah at this moment. After letting the students discuss for a short time and then hearing some answers, a girl in the front row raised her hand and said, “I would ask King Noah if he would make this decision if no one was watching.”

Unfortunately, we know the answer to that question because “the priests lifted up their voices against [Abinadi], and began to accuse him, saying: He has reviled the king.” The text then says, “The king was stirred up in anger against him, and he delivered him up that he might be slain.” King Noah felt so much pressure from his priests that he stopped caring what would happen at Judgment day.

It’s like the group of friends who decide to watch a movie on a Friday night. Someone chooses a movie that’s PG-13, so they consider it technically appropriate. About 15 minutes into the film, everyone else in the room can tell that the movie is offensive to the Holy Ghost. No one else wants to watch it, but nobody says anything because they don’t want to come across as self-righteous.

Once when I was a “Pa” and my wife was a “Ma” during a Stake Pioneer Trek, one of the youth asked us a question. She said, “how do you do what’s right, without coming across like you’re better than other people?” In response to her question, I could have said, “You shouldn’t worry what people think.” That is good advice, but I’m not sure how helpful it would have been.

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I think she deserves something a little more thoughtful. She is essentially asking how we can get over our need for approval and simply choose righteousness.

Maybe what we need is a better positive self-image. Think about it, if we thought of ourselves more highly, then we wouldn’t worry how others perceive us. We could wake up every morning, look in the mirror, and recite all the reasons why we are amazing. Then, we could put little yellow sticky notes around the house that say things like, “you are awesome” and “you are incredible.” Then we would finally have enough self-confidence to do what’s right and not worry what others think.

The only problem with this strategy is that it won’t work. In fact, telling ourselves that we are OK has the opposite effect than what we intend. C. Terry Warner said, “In contemporary counseling circles one of the fads is helping people gain a ‘positive self-image.’ Since a bad self-image is obviously unhealthy, a good one must be desirable—so it is assumed. … What is unnerving about the current fad is that, inevitably, preoccupation with a positive self-image creates the basis for doubting the validity of that image.” In other words, if I have to tell myself something over and over again, I also raise the possibility that it is not true. Elder Neal A. Maxwell put it simply, “Those who are puffed up need constantly to be reinflated.”

Well, if inflating myself won’t help me get over my need for approval, perhaps what I need to do is deflate myself. “O how great is the nothingness of the children of men; yea, even they are less than the dust of the earth. For behold, the dust of the earth moveth hither and thither, to the dividing asunder, at the command of our great and everlasting God.” In order to feel better, I could misinterpret these verses by focusing on my weaknesses, excessively remembering my past, and telling myself that no one really likes me. Will that work? Imagine sending a card to a friend who is struggling. The card is written in cursive and has pretty flowers on the front. Your friend opens the card and it says, “You are a pile of disobedient dust.” I don’t think that will help.

If beating ourselves up won’t work, perhaps the way we can get over our need for approval is to serve. If we serve others, maybe we will finally stop worrying about ourselves so much. That would definitely help. But, how should we make sense of service that’s designed to benefit ourselves?

And it came to pass that a man was feeling bad about himself, so on the way home from work he decided to buy his wife some flowers. After arriving home, the man gave his wife the flowers. She smiled and said, “Thank you sweetie!”

The man replied, “I was having a bad day so I decided to buy you flowers. Now that I have bought you flowers, I feel much better. I have found that when I serve I am happier.” Even service can be soaked in selfishness.

How can we really get over this constant need for affirmation and approval? This need seems to affect many aspects of our lives. No matter how hard we try, we find ourselves wanting to look good to those around us. What are we not seeing?

And it came to pass that there was an auction in a small town. The first item for sale was a shiny brown horse.

“Ten Dollars!”“Twenty dollars!” “Going once. Going twice. Sold!” said the auctioneer. “Wow, that was a low price,”

whispered the auctioneer to his assistant. The next item for sale was a broom. “One Hundred Dollars!”“Two Hundred Dollars!”

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“Sold, to the man in the blue shirt,” said the auctioneer. “This town is strange.” The auction continued in this manner throughout the afternoon. At the end of the day, the last item presented for sale was Mr. Martin’s farm.

“Fifty Dollars!” “Sixty Dollars!”The highest bid was seventy four dollars and eighty two cents. “Don’t these people know

how much this stuff is worth?” said the exasperated auctioneer.“The items they bought were exactly the right price” the assistant replied.“No they weren’t!”“They were exactly the right price,” repeated the assistant. “Something is worth what

someone is willing to pay for it.”Our whole life, the world will put us on trial. Some way or another, we will constantly

feel pressure to prove ourselves. We can’t just be told over and over again that we have worth. We must see and experience that truth deep down in the basement of our souls. We can’t just know in the abstract; we need a concrete illustration of our worth. We need to know what it would look like if someone paid for us. Then we would see.

“They spit in his face, and buffeted him; and others smote him with the palms of their hands, Saying, Prophesy unto us, thou Christ, Who is he that smote thee?” (Matt 26:67-68)

“Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, Let him be crucified.” (Matt 27:22)

“And when they had plaited a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews! And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.” (Matt 27:29-30)

“And they crucified him” (Matt 27:35)

In the last book of the chronicles of Narnia, after wickedness was destroyed, Lucy and some of her companions find a group of dwarves who were previously chained up and blindfolded. The chains and blindfolds had disappeared by this point, but the dwarves still sat in a circle with their eyes closed and their heads to the side trying their best to listen to what was happening around them. Since the dwarves still thought they were in a dark stable, Lucy attempted to get them to open their eyes. She put some wild violets in front of one of the dwarf’s nose but he thought it was stable litter. Suddenly, Aslan appeared in a flash and Lucy said, “could you - will you - do something for these poor Dwarfs?” Aslan replied, “I will show you both what I can, and what I cannot do.” Aslan growled in their faces and even put a wonderful meal in front of them, but the Dwarves still refused to open their eyes. “You see… they will not let us help them… their prison is only in their minds, yet they are in that prison; and so afraid of being taken in that they cannot be taken out.”

The chains and blindfolds of constantly trying to prove ourselves are an illusion. Our worth is not on trial; it was established 2,000 years ago when the Son of God “bought [us] with a price” (1 Cor 6:20). There is nothing we have done or ever will do that can change the fact that God loved us so much that He sent His Son to redeem us from sin and death. We don’t have to work harder to prove ourselves to any person on this planet; we just need to open our eyes to what the Savior has already done.

The person who understands this does not feel the need to constantly drop compliments about themselves. The person who lets this sink in, doesn’t mind if they get credit when they

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clean up the kitchen. The people who get this are not afraid to invite their neighbors to church. When an old friend from high school sees them in Wal-Mart, these people don’t get offended when their friend says, “wow, you have a lot of kids!” When their children misbehave in public, they don’t feel the need to prove that they are “tough” parents. Instead, they treat their children with kindness and respect, even when they have to be firm. Unlike King Noah, they are free to stand up for righteousness.

Paul said, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword… For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:35, 38-39).

“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).

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Sermon Evaluation Form

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