Hope Holds us Up.
When you see no hope in front of youthere is still a hope that you can grasp.  This is the story of the Apostle John and his Gospel account.
After all that John had been through, the loss, suffering the dark circumstance, he still pointed us to a hope. That Hope is found in John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word.  That hope came to earth in John 1:14 – The word became flesh.
In the darkest situation John pointed to Christ in a manger and declared “In Him was life.”
In every situation we can do the same.

Hope 4 the Holidays 3 – Hope Holds us Up from Redemption Church on Vimeo.
 
Hope 4 the Holidays – Hope holds us up
Sermon notes by Pastor Chris Fluitt
Redemption Church Plano Tx
Hope Bumper
Today is December 18th 2016. It is hard to believe this year is almost over. I know this time of the year is very busy. I thank you for taking time to worship with us today.  We have worshipped together. We are about to receive the word together. And before we leave today we will talk to God together.
My name is Chris Fluitt and I am the lead pastor here at Redemption Church. I am excited to be preaching the 3rd week of our Hope 4 the Holidays series.
Next Sunday is Christmas day (December 25th) and we will be meeting right here to worship at our normal time of 3pm. We will have a special time of communion and worship. Please come and bring your family and friends.
Week 1 – Hope shows up
Week 2 – Hope speaks up
Today I want to tell you that H3 1Hope holds us up
When you see no hope in front of you, in your current situation, after all the loss you may be dealing, THERE IS A HOPE THAT WILL HOLD YOU UP.
Let’s look at our scripture memory verse for this month.
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.(NIV)
John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.(NIV)
 
The gospel of John is different from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
H3 2Matthew, Mark, & Luke are Synoptic
If you have been around Church you have probably heard that term dropped into a sermon. Redemption Church is a church built for to welcome people who have not been around church and perhaps have never heard the term synoptic.
Matthew, Mark, & Luke are Synoptic Gospels because they include many of the same stories, often in a similar sequence and in similar wording.
When you read the gospels of Matthew, Mark, & Luke you notice the same stories and layout. Matthew & Luke both include a genealogy of Jesus. The three accounts have similar chronology in the order of sermons, parables, and miracles…
And then there is John.
John is just different.  He is no more or less inspired by the Spirit, but John is just different.

* The stories he focuses on are different.
* John focuses on Jesus’ early ministry in Galilee. The others don’t mention this time.
* John tells us about Jesus visiting Jerusalem before the Passion week. The other Gospels only mention Jesus traveling to Jerusalem in connection to the cross.
* Only John tells us about the raising of Lazarus from the dead.
* John spends an extended time telling of Jesus’ farewell to His disciples.
* John doesn’t spend time on the sermon on the mount or the Lord’s prayer.
* There are no parables in the book of John. (There are a growing number of scholars, who also find parables in the Gospel of John, such as the little stories of the