Faith in the time of Coronavirus

Matthew 16: 13-20 August 23, 2020 Faith in the time of CoronaVirus Year A 11th Sunday After Pentecost Prelude Welcome L: Welcome! It is good to have you here this day. P: Thank you. We come seeking healing and peace for our spirits. L: God is with us, giving that wondrous healing love to each one. P: Blessed be God who watches over us. L: Come, let us praise God with thankful hearts. P: Lord, we come to you in gratitude for all you do for us. AMEN. Opening Prayer Opening Prayer (Romans 12) Loving God, call us together as your people; transform us with your love. Transform our hearts, that we may love generously. Transform our eyes, that we may see your grace. Transform our hands, that we may serve others. Transform our spirits, that we may be the body of Christ, gathered to worship and sent out to serve. Amen. Stewardship Moment Authority What did Jesus mean by "the keys of the kingdom?" The day in which Jesus spoke there were religious teachers known as scribes. These scribes were the teachers of the bible. The scribe wore around his waist a belt and on that belt hung some keys which were symbolic of the knowledge of that scribe. Jesus said, “I am going to give you keys that will unlock heaven and will lock up the powers of hell and bind the devil and loose the power of God." What are those keys that Jesus gave to Simon Peter and what are those keys he has given to you. The keys of the kingdom are the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. Adrian Rogers, Sermon on Matthew 16:13 Invitation to the Offering (Romans 12) God has blessed us with an abundance of gifts. We are called to offer all that we are to God—our bodies, our spirits, our minds, our time, and our money. As the body of Christ, we are called to be in ministry with others. With true generosity, let us give of ourselves this morning. Offering Prayer (Romans 12) Generous God, you have given us many gifts and drawn us together into Christ’s body, the church. You have blessed us with generous and cheerful spirits. May the gifts of our money, time, and talents support the ministry of your church. Amen. Scripture Matthew 16:13-20 Common English Bible Peter’s declaration about Jesus 13 Now when Jesus came to the area of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Human One[a] is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.” 15 He said, “And what about you? Who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Then Jesus replied, “Happy are you, Simon son of Jonah, because no human has shown this to you. Rather my Father who is in heaven has shown you. 18 I tell you that you are Peter.[b] And I’ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won’t be able to stand against it. 19 I’ll give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Anything you fasten on earth will be fastened in heaven. Anything you loosen on earth will be loosened in heaven.” 20 Then he ordered the disciples not to tell anybody that he was the Christ. Sermon Since we cannot meet inside, my tai chi class has been meeting along the river every week. Some of the participants have been asking about the church lately. This week one of the participants came up to me after class to ask if our church was worshipping inside yet. He said that his church was still meeting online. And even though he has been watching every Sunday, he like many people said that he misses worshipping outside. He said that without the contact within the church, he has really gotten out of shape spiritually. I would imagine that there are a lot of people who feel the same way. It has gotten easy to just watch service on the television, without getting dressed. I have to admit, it was really fun when we were just worshipping online to come to church in my blue jeans, without having to get dressed up. And I am getting used to being totally done with worship by 10:30 on Sunday and to have the whole rest of the day free. Faith in the time of the coronavirus has been more than a notion. Not only are we getting out of the habit of going to church, but we are getting out of the habit of being the church. And I don’t know what to tell you. I don’t have a solution to make this situation more spiritual. It is what it is, we cannot change the circumstances. What I do know is that the feeling of being spiritual is inside of each one of us, it is really not inside of a building or a community unless we put it there. Each of us has to look for the spiritual feeling in our hearts and souls. Scripture – the Word of God is one of the keys to help us to navigate life and to find our spirituality in the midst of difficult times. In today’s lesson, we are continuing to follow Jesus in the book of Jesus. He is working to make sure that the disciples and us have the keys to being faithful. Jesus is still trying to get away from the crowds, so that he can talk to God. He knows what he has to do, but he is intentionally taking to long way to get to Jerusalem. So now, he is in Ceasura Phillipi - a region about 20 miles north of the sea of Gallilee. This is a non-Jewish province, so he is pretty safe here. (as he thinks) This is sort of a graduation for the disciples, when Jesus has taught them all that he knows. He asks the disciples some important questions. And if we are trying to find our faith in tough times we have to find the answers to those same questions. We have to ask ourselves those questions, not just not, on a regular basis. Jesus asks his disciples what the grapevine is saying about him. Who do people say that I am. The disciples have all heard all fo the stories, some say that world is about to end and Jesus is Elijah, some say that troubling times are coming and he is Jeremiah coming to rescue them. Jesus then asks them and us who do you say I am. That is the key question to our faith – Who is Jesus to you? How important is Jesus to you? Is Sunday you day to worship Jesus or your day to rest and get ready for the coming week? Each of us has to answer that question for ourselves. For me, Jesus is my motivation for getting up every morning. Jesus is my Lord and Savior. One Word: Jesus William J. Bausch tells a story that says it as well as it can be said. The story says that God created the heavens and earth and everything in them. He created them by His words. God said, "Let there be light," and there was light. This happened with everything. God was proud of His work. He was especially proud of the man and woman which He made. But the devil was jealous and angry. One day when God was enjoying the man and woman, the devil slithered up to God and asked him why he liked those strange human creatures so much. When God opened His mouth to speak, the devil craftily put a bond upon God's tongue. God could not speak, not even oneI word! Since God's creative power was in His words, the sly old devil had bound God's power. The devil laughed at God and then proceeded to corrupt man and the woman. Aeons went by, and the devil came back to scoff at the silent God and mock Him. God responded to this by holding up one finger. "One?" asked the devil. "Are you telling me that you want to say just one word?" God nodded. The devil, thought, "I suppose that even God could not do much with just one word." So the devil removed the bond from God's tongue. Then God spoke His one word in a quiet whisper. He spoke it for the man and the woman. It was a word that gathered up all the forgiveness, love, and creativity God had stored up in His heart during His long silence. His one word was "Jesus." And that is the word that changed everything. King Duncan, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com I heard another interesting question on the radio. A radio announcer asked that material was the gates of heaven made of. I had to look it up- the book of Revelations says that the gates of heaven is made of pearl. We have heard a lot of stories about the pearly gates of heaven. Usually in these stories Peter is standing in the waiting room of heaven with the keys to heaven. In order to get into heaven people have to be interviewed and judged by St. Peter. That image comes from the bible story, where Peter answers the question and says Jesus is the messiah. And Jesus gives him the keys to heaven and calls Peter the rock of the church. Peter was eventually crucified in Rome. He was hung on an upside down cross because he refused to be killed the same way his Lord and Savior was killed. Today, Peter’s grave in located in a subbasement of the Vatican. It is a crypt that is closed off to everyone except the Pope. The crypt is directly under the main altar of the sanctuary. Peter is literally the foundation of the church. In Matthew’s stories, In the catholic understanding of the story – Peter is the rock. In the protestant understanding, Peter’s confession that Jesus is the messiah is the rock of the church. In either understanding, Peter represents us all. We all have to make that confession for ourselves. This is the first time in Matthew that someone says that Jesus is the messiah, the anointed one. The one who brings a little bit of heaven to the people here on earth. When Peter holds the keys to heaven – he is given the power to do the same for others. But each of us have that same set of keys. Just as Peter has the power to bind and to loose, so do we. We have the power to choose service and beautiful behavior over greed, mercy over vengeance, trust over distrust, vitality over just sitting around, being poetic over bullying. We have to make that choice every day. We have the power to bind and to loose just in how we choose to live out love in every situation. It just depend on who Jesus is to you. Because of Jesus Mother Teresa was asked by a young man why she always talked about this Jesus stuff. He said he was going to work among the poor like her, do the good works of charity, but without the Jesus baggage. Mother Teresa responded something like, "Go and work 20 years or a lifetime among the poorest of the poor. Then come back and tell me how you did it. I know that the only way I have been able to do it is because of Jesus." Her faith, her understanding of Jesus gave her the ability to be a doer, a doer not just for a week or a season or a year, but for a lifetime. Neal R. Sadler, Faith in Expected Places Who Do People Say You Are? I have a friend who’s principal of an elementary school in North Texas.One day there was a minor altercation on the playground – a second-grader pushed one of his classmates off the slide, and, while she wasn’t hurt, it could’ve been dangerous. The teacher sent for the principal. She talked with the children in the hallway outside their classroom. She got their story and then explained the seriousness of playground safety and how important it was to be nice to each other. When she finished, the little boy apologized, and that was that. A couple of days later, she happened to see the little girl with her mother in the checkout line at the grocery store. She smiled and they waved discreetly to each other. She got into the adjacent checkout line, but was in earshot of the little girl. She overheard the mother ask her daughter, “Who was that lady who just waved to you?” The little girl said, “She’s works at our school.” “What does she do?” the mother asked. The little girl said, “She helps people apologize.” My friend told me later, “It helped me to think much more clearly about what I do in my work, beyond titles and status, to what actions I take that make it meaningful.” A band director friend told me about going back to a community where he’d once taught. He said it was fun getting reacquainted with band parents and friends he hadn’t seen for years. He said he was standing on the sidewalk downtown when a young man came up and asked, “Do you remember me?” He didn’t have a clue, but then, he’d taught a lot of students, and they had long-since grown up. He said, “You’re going to have to help me out here.” The young man told him his name and said, “You’re the one who introduced me to the world of music, and I just wanted to say thank you.” Who do people say YOU are? Philip W. McLarty, The Unspoken Question A Pastoral Prayer Dear Lord Jesus Christ, today we echo Peter in proclaiming you as the son of the living God. All glory is yours Jesus Christ, for you are the Holy One, you are the Christ. Thank you Lord Jesus for placing us in the Church, your body, and giving it the power to stand against the gates of Hell. Send the Holy Spirit to guide us, especially in our church life, so your body grows and becomes stronger. Lord, help us persevere in the face of temptation and keep us from the talons of the evil one. Lord like Peter, we have denied you at times, especially those times when we have sinned. Forgive us Lord Jesus, help us with our repentance and lead us back to you and your friends, our fellow Christians. Keep us on the righteous path and cleanse our hearts and make them a worthy throne room for you. In the name of the Father and of His Son Jesus Christ and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. James Kiefer Amen. Prayer Morning Prayer Lord, we hear the wonderful words from Matthew’s gospel in which Simon Peter acknowledges Jesus as the Christ, the son of the living God. He is given the name Peter, the rock upon whom the church will be built. We would like to be the kind of “rock” that Jesus could count on – to be strong in the face of adversity; brave when danger is present; compassionate when sorrow and strife prevail. You have called us to be your church and we ask for your transforming love that we might be better witnesses for you. Today we name in our hearts before you people that we love who are dealing with sorrow and illnesses; people who feel abandoned and alone; people who are entering schools and colleges, military service, the workforce. We also name those people and situations filled with joy and hope; a new home, the birth of a child, celebrations of special occasions, and often just a beautiful day. Hear the cries of our hearts to you, O God. Heal and transform lives. For we ask these things in Jesus’ Name. AMEN. Moment of Reflection Rock of Ages UMH 361 Announcements There are no major announcements. Things are pretty much going the same as they were last week. You can expect your newsletter by the end of next week. Prayers for all of our teachers, students and workers who are returning to school this week. God be with you all, we say a special prayer of safety for all. We pray that this will be a productive school year. If you know of anyone who needs school supplies – call the Nazarene Church, they will be happy to supply them. The scripture for next week is Romans 12:9-21 Benediction Benediction (Exodus 1–2, Psalm 127) Resist the powers that use people. Hear the cries of the weak. Dare to work for justice. Know that God—Source, Word, and Spirit— is your help, will keep you safe, and will bring you new life. You are blessed by God and sent to serve. Children’s Sermon Object: A set of keys. Good morning, boys and girls. Last week we had a ticket as our object. This week we have a set of keys. You may remember that last week in talking about tickets, we said that a ticket can get you into a movie or an amusement park or somewhere else, but tickets can also keep you out if you don't have one. Now what do keys do? That's right, they let people get into locked doors. In our Scripture lesson today Jesus gives to Simon Peter the keys of the Kingdom. Jesus was starting the Christian church and he was starting with Simon Peter. Jesus was giving Peter and his whole church the keys to the Kingdom of God. Now there are several ways of looking at this. We might imagine the Kingdom of God as Heaven that beautiful place where people go when they die. You may have seen pictures in cartoons of St. Peter standing there with his keys letting people into heaven. That's one way of looking at it. But there are others. I believe that the church of Jesus Christ has the key to being happy right here in this world. I believe the church has the key to understanding what life is about. I believe we have the key to what God is like. These are keys (hold up the keys), that only the church of Jesus Christ has. People come here to learn about God. They come here to meet people who know how to truly love them. They come here to put their lives back together again. We have the keys. The church has the keys. In fact, we believe that Jesus Christ is the key to life and love and truth in this world and in heaven. Christianglobe Networks, Inc., Dyanmic Preaching Sermons Third Quarter 2008, by King Duncan Additional Illustrations Our Greatest Need If our greatest need had been information, God would have sent us an educator; If our greatest need had been technology, God would have sent us a scientist; If our greatest need had been money, God would have sent us an economist; If our greatest need had been pleasure, God would have sent us an entertainer; But our greatest need was forgiveness, so God sent us a Savior. Traditional, www.SermonIllustrations.com I Didn’t Know His Name One of my favorite stories about Helen Keller concerns her introduction to the Christian message. When Helen learned to communicate, Anne Sullvan decided it was time for her to hear about Jesus Christ. Being a Bostonian, she summoned the most renowned clergyman of his day, Phillips Brooks. Brooks came, and with Sullivan interpreting, he talked to Helen Keller about Christ. Soon a smile lighted Helen's face and she beckoned for a chance to respond. Through her teacher she said, "Mr. Brooks, I have always known about God, but until now I didn't know His name." Helen Keller was more fortunate than most people in her spiritual sensitivity. She knew God's nature but not His name. Most people without Christ know His name but not His nature. Jesus is the revelation of the nature of God. King Duncan, Collected Sermons Hearing the Voice of God How would you react if you really heard the voice of God? Once there was a man who had the habit of going to a barn every evening, taking off his hat, and saying, "Howdy God, I am here." Then he would begin to preach to an empty barn. Some pranksters plotted to pull a trick on him. They hid in the barn, and when he said, "Howdy God, I am here", with a deep voice they answered, "Howdy, Jim, I am here." Well, Jim dropped his hat and took off, and never again was he seen at the barn. When we confront the holiness of Jesus as Peter did, we will have a sense of awe and unworthiness before the purity and perfection of Christ. Peter fell on his knees and said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man." Haven't we in the church lost something of this unworthiness in the presence of the holy Christ? It is not uncommon to hear no confession of sins in a worship service. If you come to the pure Jesus, why do you not instinctively say, "God, be merciful to me, a sinner"? John R. Brokhoff, Jesus ... Who?, CSS Publishing Co., Inc. Personal Understanding of Jesus' Identity Who do you say that I am? I would suggest to you this morning that that is the most urgent, the most relevant, the most theological question that confronts us today. Where ever we turn in life we are faced with the implications of this question. Throughout the ages various individuals have attempted to answer that question posed by Jesus. Ernest Renan, a French writer, answered it by saying that Jesus was a sentimental idealist. Bruce Barton, an American businessman, said that who Jesus was the greatest salesman who ever lived. William Hirsch, a Jewish writer, responded that Jesus conformed to the clinical picture of paranoia. A musical drama was performed some years ago that answered this question by saying that Jesus was a Superstar. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German theologian, referred to Jesus as the "man for others." The Gospel writers also attempted in their own fashion to answer this most fundamental question. They bestowed upon him numerous titles and claims: Son of God, Son of man, Divine physician, king, prophet, bridegroom, light of the world, the door, the vine, high priest, the firstborn of creation, the bright and morning star, and Alpha and Omega. All of these were attempts to answer this question posed by Jesus. But these are attempts made by others. Jesus is more concerned what your answer is than what their answer is. Martin Luther, another German theologian, wrote: "I care not whether he be Christ, but that he be Christ for you." Peter responded: Thou art the Christ the Son of the living God. Brett Blair, www.Sermons.com. Why Didn't You Tell Us This Before? A couple of years ago Rev. Martin Copenhaver, of Wellesley Congregational Church, preached on this same passage. He had been to a pastor's seminar where Michael Greene from Britain, a scholar of the history of evangelism, had challenged a group of pastors with "When is the last time you told your congregation what Jesus means to YOU?" Later Pastor Copenhaver wrote in his study "As a pastor I talk a good deal about Jesus, but do I say what Jesus means to me?" He decided he would try to do just that. In his sermon he said, "As a pastor in the UCC our forebears in the faith worried that they might be taken for heretics. Today we UCC people seem to be more worried about being taken for fundamentalists" So in personal, devotional terms Pastor Copenhaver tried to tell his people what Jesus Christ meant to him. Evidently the sermon was quite a personal testimony. After the service Pastor Copenhaver noticed a dear lady whom he respected as one of the 'saints in Zion'-- she came past to shake his hand, and could not speak. So she went around and came past again, to give herself time to compose herself. When she finally came the second time she simply said, "Why didn't you tell us this before?" Copenhaver wrote: "I did not know how to respond. Now her question, along with Michael Greene's, continues to haunt me." Russell F. Metcalfe, Jr., The Question of Questions The Greatest Building When you think of great building projects, what typically comes to mind? We might think of great buildings that were built centuries ago that still stand today. The Kremlin was built 500 years and was an architectural marvel of its day. The Great Wall of China as we know it today was built in the 15th and 16th centuries and is over 4,000 miles long. The main construction of the Taj Mahal took 20,000 workers 11 years to build and the whole project spanned 22 years. Sometimes these projects took several decades to complete. Herod’s temple, the one destroyed in 70 A. D. , took over 80 years to build. Construction on St. Peter’s Basilica began in 1506 and was not completed until 109 years later in 1615. But as spectacular as any of these are in the eyes of man, there is one building project that far eclipses all of them. Its design is so spectacular that it couldn’t be drawn by even the best architects. It has been under construction not for decades or centuries, but for millennia, and it still is not finished. Its size is not mere acres or square miles, but encompasses all parts of the earth. What is more amazing is that this building has no steel, bricks, concrete, or windows. Its construction is with very unique, precious stones called "living stones." Unlike all of these other projects, this building will not fade with time. In fact, it will endure forever. What is this greatest of buildings? It is the church, God’s master project. Chris Bayack, Christ Will Build His Church True Greatness Napoleon knew that great as his military power was, it was eclipsed by a greater albeit different power. Hear his words: "I know man and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love: and at this hour millions of people would die for him." Napoleon Bonaparte True Greatness Napoleon knew that great as his military power was, it was eclipsed by a greater albeit different power. Hear his words: "I know man and I tell you that Jesus Christ is no mere man. Between him and every other person in the world there is no possible term of comparison. Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I founded empires. But on what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ founded his empire upon love: and at this hour millions of people would die for him." Napoleon Bonaparte What Doors to Unlock In our I.D.-electronic-cryptic-cyber-coded age, keys are not only physical things that plague our pockets and puncture our purses. Many keys are mental, hauled about in the mainframe of our minds. "Hey, what's the key code to open the garage or raise the gate or log onto the computer or access the ATM or retrieve the messages or unlock our memories?" I wonder if Peter ever thought about returning the keys to Jesus, tossing them back to the Fisher King and saying, "Thanks, but no thanks." On the one hand, the vote of confidence must have been nice. Everybody loves to get a promotion, to feel that affirming slap on the back, to pocket the key to the executive washroom, to get the strong handshake and have a superior say, "OK, you're in charge now." Everybody loves it until they are in charge and they can't figure out which key goes to what door and everybody needs them to open every door right now or to lock every door right away. No one cares that the keys aren't labeled and there are a thousand of them to sort through. You've got the keys. You're in charge. Act like it! I can't tell you how Peter felt that day when Jesus promised him the keys or how he felt a few days or weeks later, because I'm not Peter. Not only am I not Peter, I'm a Presbyterian. So, I'm not standing in line hoping to be handed the pontifical keys to the entire church of Rome one day. In fact, as a Protestant Christian I happen to believe that I've already been given the keys and that's a major part of my problem. To the extent that you and I are key holders to the church of the risen Christ and provide some sort of access to the glorious realm of God, we've got a key problem and a much more serious one than how to haul all of them around. As keepers of the keys, we've got to figure out what do with them, what doors to open, what windows to unlock. That's the whole point, isn't it? Gary Charles, Keys This House for You Once there was a rich man who wanted to do something good for someone in his community. He spent a few days just traveling around his neighborhood and the general vicinity. During his travels, he noticed the poor living conditions of a certain carpenter who lived nearby. So the rich man went to the carpenter and hired him to build a house. "Now this isn't just any old house you'll be building," the rich man said to the carpenter. "I want you to build this house for a very special person. I want you to use only the finest building materials, hire the best workmen you can find, and spare no expense. I'm going to be out of town for a couple of months, and I would like to see the house finished when I return." The carpenter saw this as a great opportunity to make some extra money. He skimped on building materials, hired winos that hung out at the local bus station to help with the work, paying them as little as he could. He covered their mistakes with paint and plaster and cut corners at every opportunity. When the rich man returned from his trip, the carpenter brought him the keys to the house and said, "I followed your instructions and built the house just as you told me to." "I'm glad you did," the rich man said. Then he handed the keys back to carpenter saying, "The special person I wanted the house for is you. It's yours! You and your family can have it as my gift to you, and I'm sure you want to move in right away!" Perhaps one of the most difficult factors of Christian living is that we never know how or where or when God will act. We don't know exactly how God might help us, regardless of the time we spend in prayer. The God we worship and serve is a God who constantly surprises us. And this inability to predict God's movements can be very frustrating sometimes. Johnny Dean, The Pop Quiz This passage teaches that our discovery of Jesus Christ must be a personal discovery. Jesus’ question is: “You—what do you think of me?” One thing is clear. To call anyone a rock was the greatest of compliments; and no Jew who knew his Old Testament could ever use the phrase without his thoughts turning to God, who alone was the true rock of his defence and salvation. What then did Jesus mean when in this passage he used the word rock? To that question at least four answers have been given. (c) All these New Testament pictures and usages go back to a picture in Isaiah (Isaiah 22:22). Isaiah describes Eliakim, who will have the key of the house of David on his shoulder, and who alone will open and shut. Now the duty of Eliakim was to be the faithful steward of the house. It is the steward who carries the keys of the house, who in the morning opens the door, and in the evening shuts it, and through whom visitors gain access to the royal presence. So then what Jesus is saying to Peter is that in the days to come, he will be the steward of the Kingdom. And in the case of Peter the whole idea is that of opening, not shutting, the door of the Kingdom. “Don’t tell anyone.” This wouldn’t necessarily be a great evangelism technique. Or would it? What if we followed the model of the gospel of Matthew, and didn’t go around proclaiming “Jesus is the Messiah.” But instead offered the signs of Jesus - the kindness, mercy, healing, forgiveness, abundance, justice, just come. Instead of approaching someone with Jesus first, you approach someone with Jesus’ way first. Instead of the hard sell, act now response; we go with the slow roll, build relationships, and go deeper.