Holy Hope

November 7, 2022November 6, 2022 Matt EricksonLeave a comment

This past weekend at Eastbrook, I continued our series on 1 Thessalonians entitled “Hope Rising: 1 Thessalonians for Today.” This third week of the series I preached from 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12 on how the sacred fire of holy hope shapes the way we live our everyday lives.

You can find the message outline and video below. You can access the entire series here. Join us for weekend worship in-person or remotely via Eastbrook at Home.

“It is God’s will that you should be sanctified” (1 Thessalonians 4:3a)

Living with Holy Hope – Aiming to Please God (1 Thessalonians 4:1-2)

Paul’s overriding concern is that the Thessalonians live to please God (4:1a)

That they do so more and more (4:1b)

To this end Paul offers practical instruction (4:2f)

Living with Holy Hope in Our Bodies and Sexuality (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8)

God’s will and holy hope (4:3a)

The embodied life of holy hope (4:3b-6a)

The seriousness of relinquishing holy hope in the body and sexuality (4:6b-8)

Living with Holy Hope in Relationships and Daily Living (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12)

Mutual love reflects our hope in Christ (4:9-10)

A quiet life and adequate work reflects our hope in Christ (4:11-12)

Dig Deeper

This week dig deeper in one or more of the following ways:

Memorize 1 Thessalonians 4:3 or 4:9
Take time this week to prayerfully reflect on and read through 1 Thessalonians 4:1-12. What does God draw out for you from this passage? Where is God bringing you joy? Where is God highlighting areas of pain or sin? Respond to God in prayer or journaling.
Dig deeper into the nature of our bodies and sexuality by watching or listening to our series “Love – Sex – Body: Toward a Biblical Theology of Embodied Sexuality”

Preaching on Sexuality: A Theological Framework

February 13, 2020February 13, 2020 Matt EricksonLeave a comment

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Last week I had the privilege of joining Matt Woodley of Preaching Today to talk about “Preaching on Sexuality: A Theological Framework” as part of the Monday Morning Preacher podcast. We talked about the the challenges and opportunities of preaching on sexuality, gender, love, and the body. A good deal of the conversation is a reflection of a series from this past November at Eastbrook Church, “Love – Sex – Body: Toward a Theology of Embodied Sexuality.” Another resource that you could look at is the bibliography for that series here.

How do we give a theological framework for thinking about specific sexual issues? Matt Woodley talks to Matt Erickson, Senior Pastor at Eastbrook Church about his experience with preaching on sexuality. His church took the concept of the four chapter gospel: creation (the original goodness of sexuality), fall (how sin, evil and brokenness impact our love), redemption (Jesus redeeming work is significant for love, and our life in our bodies) and restoration (points to the new heaven and the new earth). He challenged people to think about how their love, conception of the body, and sexuality fit together in that big story of God. As a result, the church can then engage with issues like adultery, pornography, homosexuality, gender dysphoria etc…

Check out what was referenced on the podcast:

A sermon series entitled “Love-Sex-Body” preached by Matt Erickson at Eastbrook Church in Milwaukee, WI in 2019.

Pope John Paul II’s teachings Man and Woman He Created Them: A Theology of the Body. Pauline Books and Media, 2006.

Christopher West’s CD set An Introduction to the Theology of the Body: Discovering the Master Plan for Your Life.

Glynn Harrison’s book A Better Story: God, Sex and Human Flourishing. Inter-Varsity Press, 2016.

Tara M. Owens’ book Embracing the Body: Finding God in Our Flesh and Bone. Intervarsity Press , 2015.

Matt Woodley serves as the Editor for PreachingToday.com and the Pastor of Compassion Ministries at Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, Illinois. He is also the author of God With Us: The Gospel of Matthew (IVP).

Restoration and Embodied Sexuality

November 25, 2019November 25, 2019 Matt EricksonLeave a comment

This past weekend at Eastbrook, I concluded our series, “Love-Sex-Body: Toward a Biblical Theology of Embodied Sexuality,” focusing on the fourth chapter of God’s Good Story: the Restoration of all things.

I spent a lot of attention in this message on Paul’s words in 1 Corinthians 15, which draw together Adam and fallen human bodies (ch. 2 – the Fall), Christ and His resurrection body (ch. 3 – Redemption), and the hope of future resurrection bodies for all those who belong to Christ (ch. 4 – Restoration). I connected that with the calling of the church to be a community marked by resurrection hope, living in holiness and love, touching upon Romans 8 and 1 Corinthians 6. The conclusion of the message directed attention to the ultimate consummation of Christ and His bride, the church, with the new heavens and new earth described in Revelation 21.

You can watch my message from this past weekend and follow along with the message outline below. You can also engage with the entire series here or download the Eastbrook mobile app for even more opportunities to connect.

Redemption and Embodied Sexuality

November 18, 2019November 17, 2019 Matt Erickson2 Comments

I continued our series, “Love-Sex-Body: Toward a Biblical Theology of Embodied Sexuality,” this past weekend at at Eastbrook Church by turning to the third chapter of God’s Good Story: Redemption in Jesus Christ.

This message builds off of previous messages on Creation and the Fall, looking at Christ’s redeeming work as outlined in Romans 5. I take some time to reflect on the significance of Jesus’ incarnation for redemption from John 1 and 1 John 4. I then examine the reality of Christ’s bodily redemption in relation to our bodies, sexuality, and love with reference to various passages of Scripture, including John 8 & 9, Romans 6, 1 Corinthians 6 & 13.

Fall and Embodied Sexuality

November 11, 2019November 10, 2019 Matt EricksonLeave a comment

I continued our series, “Love-Sex-Body: Toward a Biblical Theology of Embodied Sexuality,” this past weekend at at Eastbrook Church by turning to the second chapter of God’s Good Story: the Fall from grace.

This message draws primarily from Genesis 3 and Romans 1, with a smattering of other verses throughout. This is, in my opinion, perhaps the most challenging of all the messages in this series for a few reasons. First, it addresses how sin leaves us with disordered love, sexuality, and bodies in very different ways. Second, it can in some ways be the most painful and apparently hopeless weeks of the series, leaving us in the Fall without the grace of redemption. However, I still believe that taking in this part of the series is vital for our healing. Like a good surgeon gives us an honest diagnosis, God provides a clear appraisal of our fallenness in Scripture. Recognizing it and believing it are the first steps toward healing.