A Lifelong Relationship With God

January 15, 2012 1 Samuel 3:1-20 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Second Sunday after Epiphany Martin Luther King Day Year B A Lifelong Relationship with God Introduction - Start where we left off It is not often in a sermon that I get to start where I left off. There seems to be a natural procession for the year. We started the new year thinking of new beginnings, and then we went on to the meaning of baptism and how that empowers us to walk with God. Today, I want us to think about what it means to continue to walk with God. what does it mean to be called by God, and what are we supposed to do with a call. What does it mean to be called? I remember asking my pastor the question of what does it mean to be called. And as a pastor, many talk with me about what it means to be called. How do you answer God’s call? And I will always remember the lady who asked how did she know that it was really God that was calling her and not the devil trying to trick her. What is it that we are listening to? A Native American and his friend were in downtown New York City, walking near Times Square in Manhattan. It was during the noon lunch hour and the streets were filled with people. Cars were honking their horns, taxicabs were squealing around corners, sirens were wailing, and the sounds of the city were almost deafening. Suddenly, the Native American said, “I hear a cricket.” His friend said, “What? You must be crazy. You couldn’t possibly hear a cricket in all of this noise!” “No, I’m sure of it,” the Native American said. “I heard a cricket.” “That’s crazy,” said the friend. The Native American listened carefully for a moment, and then walked across the street to a big cement planter where some shrubs were growing. He looked into the bushes, beneath the branches, and sure enough, he located a small cricket. His friend was utterly amazed. “That’s incredible,” said his friend. “You must have super-human ears!” “No,” said the Native American. “My ears are no different from yours. It all depends on what you’re listening for.” “But that can’t be!” said the friend. “I could never hear a cricket in this noise.” “Yes, it’s true,” came the reply. “It depends on what you’re listening for. Here, let me show you.” He reached into his pocket, pulled out a few coins, and discreetly dropped them on the sidewalk. And then, with the noise of the crowded street still blaring in their ears, they noticed every head within twenty feet turn and look to see if the money that tinkled on the pavement was theirs. “See what I mean?” asked the Native American. “It all depends on what you’re listening for.” If you’ve tuned in to God, it doesn’t matter what’s going on around you, you can hear Him speak. The difference between God and the devil The voice that we are used to listening to is the voice that speaks to us. God always tells the truth, the devil always lies. If we trust in the words of the bible, then we will never be mistaken about whom it is that speaks to us Questions are not unique to us, been asked and answered in Samuel’s call story The questions that we ask about call are not bad questions. They are not unique to our time; these questions are the important point of our Hebrew scripture lesson – the call of Samuel. Overview of story of Samuel Samuel whose name means the name of God, was a young man left at the temple by his mother. She was barren, and prayed that if she could have a son, she would give him to God. She conceived a son, and left him at the temple to be raised totally in the service of God. Samuel was a young man when he heard someone calling him. He thought it was Eli (man of God), but it was God. Going through the motions We heard the story read to us, so I won’t go into it. But I love the way the message is set up. This story happened in the days when people were not listening to God, and no one seemed to notice God. It goes on the say that Eli, the priest could not see very well. Well it seems that not only could he not see with his eyes, he couldn’t see with his heart either. He let his children get away with anything, without disciplining them. He was a priest who knew what needed to be done, but he didn’t do it with feeling. Eli was a lot like a lot of us – he had stopped believing in what he was doing stopped caring, he was just going through the motions and not living out his call. Today we live in a world where God speaks through everything; god calls all of us to do something. But we don’t always take the time to realize what god is saying. The Priest’s job was to recognize the voice of God Ironically it was the priest who was responsible for speaking to God on behalf of the people. He also had a responsibility to train the younger priest in recognizing the voice of God. he didn’t do a very good job of training his own sons, but he did know enough to tell Samuel that it was not he who called him in the middle of the night, it was God. He trained Samuel to respond to God – Speak, for your servant is listening. Samuel grows up to be one of the most important people in the history of Israel. Not the king, but the kingmaker. The one who changed the course of history, just by listening to God. (first and second chronicles and first and second kings are about the kings – first and second Samuel are about why we have kings. Samuel was not called to leadership, but to listeningship, he was not a leader, but a servant, not great, but humble. Someone told me that a great pastor has to learn to be the guide on the side, not the sage on the stage. Martin Luther King on being called When we think of the greatest intentional servant leader of our time, we think of Martin Luther King. On being called Dr. King says – if a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the host of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper. That is a message for all of us, not just a message for a chosen few. His point is that we are all called to do something. Something in life and something for the kingdom of God. and that no matter what it is; we must do it for the glory of God. I Corinthians has a message that goes along those lines, our text for today ends by saying –for you were bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body. Paul’s view on sin You see, Paul believed that sin was always something outside of ourselves. Something that stood in the way of us being the person God intended us to be. Sin is something that we put into our bodies that is not supposed to be there – what we eat, drink, inhale, who we relate to. So when he is telling the people not to eat the food dedicated to idols, or to have sex with the temple prostitutes, he is telling us to protect the openings of our body. 1 Corinthian 6:17 says – every sin that a person commits is outside of the body. Your body is a temple of the holy spirit within you – be careful what you put into it. Your body does not belong to you, it belongs to God. The only thing we own is our choice In life, the only thing that we really own is our choice. Our choice of who is our master – will it be sin or will it be God. will what I am doing, what I am thinking, what I am saying make me a slave to passion or a servant of God? the good news is that God came to save his people, not his monuments. God knows that we are all sinners in some way. Even Martin Luther King was a sinner Martin Luther King, Jr., A Servant of Christ This weekend is the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. I think, therefore, it is appropriate to look at his life in this regard. In the Union Tribune there was an article about him, which included an interview with Vincent Harding, a professor at the Iliff School of Theology in Denver, a Methodist seminary. Harding said that King's detractors like to point out that he was a human being, that he had faults, human foibles. He was certainly not a saint, Harding points out. He made mistakes in judgment. He put his marriage to the test. He also suffered from human frailties, like anxiety and depression. But Christianity proclaims a God who came to us as we are, accepted us as we are, forgave us and gave us new life, and thus revealed that we do not have to be righteous in order to be loved by God. We don't have to have a pure life in order to follow Jesus. We just have to be faithful. He comes to us as he came to his disciples, and says to us, "Follow me." To "follow me" means, identifying with the poor and the oppressed, loving the sinner, and living sacrificially for others in this world, taking up your cross. That is the sole qualification for everybody to be his disciple - that you will take up your cross. Martin Luther King understood that, I think, probably better than anybody else in our time. Like all historical figures, he will be interpreted from different perspectives. But the way he would want to be interpreted is that he was a "servant of Christ." We are called to be faithful people We too are not called to be perfect, but to always be faithful. Not called to live up to someone else’s call – just be yourself. Life the way God created you, listen to the words of God, trust that there is a reason God is speaking to you. Not something special – birthright of all of us. Being called is having a lifelong relationship with God. it is committed yourself to listen as a servant listens. The Birmingham civil rights 10 commandments I was fascinated to learn that in order to be a part of the Birmingham civil rights rally – you had to sign a pledge to do 10 things daily. You had to basically promise to live as a Christian. “I hereby pledge myself—my person and body—to the nonviolent movement, therefore I will keep the following ten commandments!” 1. MEDITATE daily on the teachings and life of Jesus. 2. REMEMBER always that the nonviolent movement in Birmingham seeks justice and reconciliation—not victory. 3. WALK and TALK in the manner of love, for God is love. 4. PRAY daily to be used by God in order that all men might be free. 5. SACRIFICE personal wishes in order that all men might be free. 6. OBSERVE with both friend and foe the ordinary rules of courtesy. 7. SEEK to perform regular service for others and for the world. 8. REFRAIN from the violence of fist, tongue, or heart. 9. STRIVE to be in good spiritual and bodily health. 10. FOLLOW the directions of the movement and of the captain on a demonstration. Samuel’s three commandments Samuel is an example for all of us to make a commitment to listen as a servant of God. 1 Samuel verse 3 Eli of all people, a sinful man teaches us all how to listen to Gods call. 3 easy steps. Go to a place where you here God speaking, Let God know your are listening, and them do what God says. The place where God speaks to us – the word of God – read your bible, the way in which you communicate with God - to pray, and the way you obey – live according to the word of God Read the bible, pray and live. As simple as that. Let us pray……