Sermon outline

Text: Matthew 17: 1-9

Title: Forgiveness and Judgment

Introduction

An old Japanese story about three general: Doyotomi Hideyoshi, Togugaya Ideyas, and Oda Nobunaga. Three generals who lived at the same time period in Japanese history had totally different personality and leadership style. If a soldier come to one of them and say, "General a bird does not cry (or sing), each general will respond differently.

Doyotomi Hideyoshi will say," kill." Togugaya Ideyas will say, "Make it cry." Oda Nobunaga will say, "Leave it alone."

Transitional sentence

God uses different personalities of the prophets to accomplish His purposes.

Moses and Elijah have very different personalities, but God uses their personalities for His work.

Text

Moses and Elijah appeared to Jesus a short time before His sufferings and they were talking about Jesus' departure.

It seems as Moses and Elijah are encouraging Jesus to complete the covenant through His atonement.

Why Moses and Elijah?

First, Moses started the covenant and Elijah restored that same covenant.

Now Jesus is about to complete that covenant through His crucifixion and

Resurrection.

Second, Moses and Elijah both experienced the threat to death. Therefore, they can

understand how Jesus feels right before His death.

How they encouraged?

Moses might preach on forgiveness on the basis of his own experiences with the people.

Elijah might preach on judgment on the basis of his own experiences with the people.

Application and conclusion

God comforts and take care of emotion and feelings of His people.

Are you under some sorts of persecution?

Do you feel tremendous threat of your life?

Is there an unavoidable suffering right in front of you and your families?

Are you surrounded by your enemies innocently?

Trust God who knows where you are?

God who sent Moses and Elijah to comfort Jesus comforts you, too?

Think about forgiveness! Forgiveness is the way Jesus chose.

Think about Judgment! Judgment is what Jesus trusted.