Seeing as God Sees

March 30, 2014 John 9:1-41 4th Sunday of Lent Seeing as God Sees Humor: It's The Blind Man Mrs. Smith was stark-naked and just about to step into the shower when the doorbell rang. She hollered, "Who is it?" He shouted back, "It's the blind man." She figured it was safe, so she opened the door. He looked at her in shock and asked, "Where do you want me to hang these blinds, lady?" Ann Landers, The Washington Post, October 13, 1998. It is funny, how much we reveal about ourselves when we think that no one is looking. Today we will talk about what it means to be blind and what it means to see. But we won’t be talking about the blinds on the windows, but neither will we talk about the blinds on our eyes, we will talk about the blinds in our mind and more importantly in our soul. The lesson for us to today is to learn to see things as God sees them, and not so much as we see them. Christlike Sight Anybody here have selective hearing or seeing? Sure, we all do. Every second, our brain is bombarded with sensory data from all five senses. You just sat down, but already your brain has probably stopped consciously focusing on the feel of the seat. You're probably not thinking about the temperature of the room, although you probably did at one point this morning. There are all kinds of sounds that you're not focusing on right now - the faint hum of lights, somebody shifting beside you. Our brains would go crazy if they had to process every piece of data that our bodies sensed. We think we're seeing everything, but we're all being selective all the time. Today, you've probably noticed who's not here, who's sitting in a different spot, who's sitting with whom. You may have wondered what it means that so-and-so is sitting with that person. Years ago, before I dated my wife, I brought a date to a function that my wife also attended. She could tell you exactly what my date was wearing. I don't have a clue. I never did, not even that night. It's the same with cars. You get interested in a car, and all of a sudden you notice them everywhere. They were there before, but you never noticed them. The part of the brain that filters all this information is called the Reticular Activating System. It's continually at work, even though we never think about it. Today's story is about your spiritual Reticular Activating System. The goal for all of us, if we're followers of Jesus Christ, is to see the same things that he sees. We want to notice what's important to him. Darryl Dash, Spiritual Eyesight Grandma was blind but could still see My grandmother, my father’s mother was blind the last 7 or years of her life. But you know there is a difference between someone who is blind from birth, and someone who has lived a seeing life and who went blind later. The brain still processes information that it got from the world of sight. When I went to visit my grandmother, I was surprised that there were pictures of me all over her wall. Why would someone we cannot see have pictures on the wall. And she had not physically seen my brother in years, and she could still tell that he was going bald. How was she able to see the things that really mattered to her. She said that Jesus had come to her in a dream and told her that she may be blind, but she could still see. Seeing is not just about our eyes, it is about our minds, and as Jesus is concerned, it is about what we see with our souls. And each of our souls see different things. Humor: Having To Wait Three persons arrived at the Pearly Gates at the same time. St. Peter came but said he had some pressing business and would they please wait? He was gone a long time, but finally he came back and called one of the new arrivals in and asked if she had minded waiting. "No," she said, "I've looked forward to this for so long. I love God and I can't wait to meet Jesus. I don't mind at all." St. Peter then said, "Well, I have one more question. How do you spell 'God'?" She said, "Capital-G-o-d." St. Peter said, "Go right on in." He went outside and met another new arrival, told him to come on inside, and said, "Did you mind waiting?" The man said, "Oh, no. I have been a Christian for fifty years, and I'll spend eternity here. I didn't mind at all." So St. Peter said, "Just one more thing. How do you spell 'God'?" He said, "G-o-d. No, I mean capital-G." St. Peter said that was good and sent him into heaven. St. Peter went back out and invited the third person in and asked her if she had minded waiting. "As a matter of fact, I did," she replied. "I've had to stand in line all my life - at the supermarket, when I went to school, when I registered my children for school, when I went to the movies - everywhere - and I resent having to wait in line for heaven now!" St. Peter said, "Well, that's all right for you to feel that way. It won't be held against you, but there is just one more question. How do you spell 'Czechoslovakia'?" Tie in: The relationship between this joke and the text is the element of irritation that we often feel towards complainers. Those who rarely see the good in circumstances and events. The Pharisees were not able to enjoy the blinds man's new found sight. The church is full of these individuals that we must bare. The lesson there for us is that we need to see God in the midst of all things. I think that pain and suffering is the price we pay for being alive. Being alive means living with original sin and the mighty power of Jesus’ death on the cross. When we understand that, our question will change to, What do we do with our suffering and pain? Our pain and suffering must become meaningful. It must not become pointless and empty suffering? How can we turn all the painful experiences of our lives into personal growth within our selves and within our relationship with God? We may never understand the why or be able to control the forces that cause our suffering. But one thing is for sure. We can have a lot to say about what the suffering does to us. We can determine what sort of people we become because of it. Pain makes some people bitter and envious. It makes others sensitive and compassionate. It is the end result, not the cause, of pain that makes some experiences of pain meaningful and others empty and destructive. It is left up to us and our relationship with our God. (http://www.gurus.com/dougdeb/Courses/bestsellers/Kushner/BTmain.htm Modified by sermon author.) During the season of lent, we have been learning our lessons from the book of John. And each Sunday in lent the scripture gets longer and longer, until palm Sunday. In each of these stories, John is describing to us who Jesus is. In this story he is called a man, a prophet, and the son of God. This is the only story in the bible, where Jesus has a chance to heal a man blind from birth. In each of John’s lessons, there is pain and suffering that Jesus heals. In each of John’s miracle stories, the illness is an opportunity for jesus to demonstrate the glory of God. In the other gospels, Jesus heals to show his compassion for others. But for John, the miracle points to God. For John it is in our affliction, our sorrow, our pain, our disappointment, our loss where we can either see suffering, or we can see God. Have you ever noticed that whenever something bad happens to us, that the first thing that we ask is why is this happening to us. Why me Lord, what did I do to deserve this? And how does knowing why it happened help us deal with the situation. Why is a useless question But you should also notice in this lesson, that whenever someone asks Jesus why – he never answers. The people ask who sinned? Him or his parents. What difference does it make. 1. Notice first that Jesus does not answer the first question: Why was this man born blind? 2. Notice second that he answers this question: What good can this tragedy produce? What can I do to get better, what can I do to give glory to God? What can I do to move forward from here. What can I do to allow Jesus to heal me and make me whole. Those are all questions that Jesus was willing to deal with. We have to learn to see the situation as God sees the situation. God does not cause bad things to happen to us so that we can see God. But we have to accept that as long as we are on this side of glory, pain and suffering will come, it is a part of life. Beyond Darkness "People are prepared for everything except for the fact that beyond the darkness of their blindness there is a great light. They are prepared to go on breaking their backs plowing the same old field until the cows come home without seeing, until they stub their toes on it, that there is a treasure buried in that field rich enough to buy Texas. They are prepared for a God who strikes hard bargains but not for a God who gives as much for an hour’s work as for a day’s. They are prepared for a mustard-seed kingdom of God no bigger than the eye of a newt but not for the great banyan it becomes with birds in its branches singing Mozart. They are prepared for the potluck supper at First Presbyterian but not for the marriage supper of the Lamb." Fredrick Buechner Jesus came into the world to help us to see with our eyes, our minds, our souls, that God is bigger than our pain and suffering. Jesus came into the world to take us beyond our present situation. Let us glorify God in all that we see! Amen. Children’s Sermon….. General Hospital by King Duncan Passage: John 9:1-12 • Lectionary: Lent 4 Item 1 of 38 | Back to Results Object: A piece of wax, a piece of clay, and a bottle of water. Boys and girls,I have here a piece of wax, a piece of clay, and a bottle of water. Suppose I were to build a fire here in the front of the chancel and were to put the wax on that fire, what would happen to it? That's right. It would melt. Suppose I put this clay on the fire. Do you know what would happen to it? That's right. The clay would harden. Isn't that interesting--one would melt and the other would get harder? Suppose I put this bottle of water in a pot and put it over the fire, what would happen? That's right, it would start to boil and soon it would disappear as steam. Now let's think about that for a moment. Suppose somebody hurts you. How would you react? Some of you might cry. Some of you might get very angry. Some of you would never speak to that person again. Others will have forgotten it within an hour. The same hurt, but like the wax, the clay and the water, we would each react differently. A wise man once said that it is not what happens to us on the outside that matters, but what we have on the inside. That's true. If we have the right stuff on the inside, we will react to life's hurts in the right way. What we want to have on the inside is the Spirit of Jesus--to have him live in our hearts. Then when disappointment comes, or hurt, he can help us react in a way that's best for us and for others. Wax or clay or water can't help how it reacts. But we can help how we react. Jesus can help us react the way we should. I WAS BLIND, BUT NOW I CAN SEE There were two boys who grew up together. They were close friends as children, but as they entered their teen years their paths began to diverge, and they ended up in very different places. Ernie was always in trouble. He began by shoplifting small things from stores and worked his way up to stealing cars. Next it was armed robbery. Finally, on one of his stealing sprees he killed a man. He was arrested, convicted and sentenced to death. Mike took a different track. He turned away from the rebellious tendencies of his friend and continued through school. He worked his way through college, graduated and became a successful businessman. However, Mike had much difficulty with his physical health. His eyes in particular were weak. As he grew older, his eyesight deteriorated until he was legally blind. One day, Mike heard the news about his old friend Ernie. He felt a terrific sense of compassion and sorrow for what had happened to his childhood friend, and he reached out to him. After writing letters to renew their old relationship, he went to visit Ernie in prison. They had a very touching and emotional reunion there, speaking by phone across the security window at the penitentiary. In spite of years of hard-hearted living, something in Ernie warmed as he talked with the man with whom he had played as a boy so many years before. An idea began to grow in Ernie’s mind, as well. Ernie was about to die; his friend Mike was sightless. Was it possible that Ernie could do something worthwhile in his death? Could he give his eyes so that his old friend could see? It turned out to be medically possible, and that’s exactly what happened. Ernie was executed for his crime, but through surgery his good eyes were used to restore Mike’s vision. God does a similar thing for us. We who were blind have been given God’s eyes so that we can see. We need to be thankful that God has opened our eyes and given us the ability to see. (From a sermon by Derrick Tuper, "The Eyes Have It" 1/26/2009)

Journey to Temptation, Journey to Salvation

March 9, 2014 Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 Matthew 4:1-11 The Journey of Temptation, the Journey of Salvation 1st Sunday of Lent Year A The nature of the snake Iron Eyes Cody Iron Eyes Cody is a Native American actor who once did a TV spot for the Keep America Beautiful campaign. He was an Indian drifting alone in a canoe. As he saw how our waters are being polluted, a single tear rolled down his cheek, telling the whole story. This powerful public service commercial still shows up on TV screens after 17 (now 29) years. In 1988 Cody repeated an old Indian legend in Guideposts magazine. Here it is: Many years ago, Indian youths would go away in solitude to prepare for manhood. One such youth hiked into a beautiful valley, green with trees, bright with flowers. There he fasted. But on the third day, as he looked up at the surrounding mountains, he noticed one tall rugged peak, capped with dazzling snow. I will test myself against that mountain, he thought. He put on his buffalo-hide shirt, threw his blanket over his shoulders and set off to climb the peak. When he reached the top he stood on the rim of the world. He could see forever, and his heart swelled with pride. Then he heard a rustle at his feet, and looking down, he saw a snake. Before he could move, the snake spoke. "I am about to die," said the snake. "It is too cold for me up here and I am freezing. There is no food and I am starving. Put me under your shirt and take me down to the valley." "No," said the youth. "I am forewarned. I know your kind. You are a rattlesnake. If I pick you up, you will bite, and your bite will kill me." "Not so," said the snake. "I will treat you differently. If you do this for me, you will be special. I will not harm you." The youth resisted awhile, but this was a very persuasive snake with beautiful markings. At last the youth tucked it under his shirt and carried it down to the valley. There he laid it gently on the grass, when suddenly the snake coiled, rattled, and leapt, biting him on the leg. "But you promised..." cried the youth. "You knew what I was when you picked me up." said the snake as it slithered away. Bits and Pieces, June, 1990, p. 5-7. This story reminds me of the story in the news recently of the pastor who handled rattle snakes, he was bit and he died. When asked if he wanted to go to the hospital to get treatment, he said no, he would let God handle it. Well God already handled it. He created rattle snakes to attack when threatened and he created the posion on rattle snakes to kill human beings. We have to honor the laws of God’s nature. So it was a forgone conclusion that he was going to die. But I start out this morning talking about snakes – because Genesis starts our talking about snakes. Genesis says that the snake is the most cunning of all of the other animals. Why is the snake crafty? Now Genesis says that the word of God is so powerful that it can create something out of nothing. Genesis is full of God’s powerful acts. God formed, breaths, makes, takes, plants, commands On the other hand the snake doesn’t really do anything in the story. As a matter of fact, his words are not powerful at all. The snake didn’t really say anything creative. He just took what God had already said and repeated it in a crafty way. Today’s topic is temptation. And if you notice temptation is not a violation of your will. When you are tempted, you are not being forced to do anything against your will. Temptation is that crafty voice that speaks to you in a way to get you to change your will. Temptation gets you to change from doing the right thing to doing the wrong thing. You make your own choice. So the snake was not smart or intelligent, because he didn’t introduce anything new, he just took what was already there and changed it. This is the first Sunday of Lent – this is our journey from sin to salvation. The first step on that journey is temptation. How do we interpret temptation? Now we tend to interpret temptation as an invitation to sin. But the bible says that it is more than that. Let us go back to the story of Abraham. The bible says that God tempted Abraham to kill his son. Would God really encourage Abraham to kill his son? Or would God test the character of Abraham by putting him in a situation where he had to make a choice. I think that God puts us all in situations, where we discover who we really are and what we are really made of. I don’t think that any of us start out really good. But when we are put in situations where we make the right choices, we find that we can really trust ourselves, we understand what we will do and what we will not do. When given the choice to kill or not kill his son. Abraham chose not to kill his son, but to trust God. And he went on the become the father of our faith, because of his journey with God. As a matter of fact, this is probably the example that Jesus was thinking of when he went into the wilderness to journey with God. Matthew 4 is meant to be an example for us in dealing with temptation. This time it is not a snake but the devil himself. Temptation is a life test, it is not our choice to be a good person or a bad person. Scripture says that the holy spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, where he fasted for 40 days. And after the fast he was famished, he was hungry. He needed something to eat, but how did he fulfill that hunger? We tend to think that the best way to avoid temptation is to avoid being hungry. But Jesus was hungry. The bible does not say whether he was hungry for food or for something else. He may have been hungry for a deeper relationship with God. My point is that is is okay to be hungry. As a matter of fact in Genesis 2, when God created adam scripture says that God blew breath into him and made him a nephesh chayah. A nephesh is a clay man made human by having breath. And chayah means desiring. Adam became a desiring being – a man with needs. In other words he became fully alive. Hunger is not just about a physical hunger, but is it spiritual and emotional. Jesus was hungry, and it is human nature to be hungry for all sorts of things. The lesson is in how you fill that hunger. You have a choice to fill it with something good or something bad. Usually when you fill it with the rights things you are satisfied, when you fill it with the wrong things you continue to be hungry. Now the story tells of 3 temptations or test that Jesus faced. This year I am not going to focus on them individually. I think that the biggest temptation that faces us all is the need to be in control. To be the boss of our lives. To fulfill our will and not God’s will. There is an ancient story about the time God was confronted by a man who argued, “It’s easy for you God. You tell us we must do this and we can’t do that. What do you know of the struggles of people like me? You are God. It is easy for you.” But God argues, insisting that being God was no picnic either. “You only have to look after your own little self,” said God. “But I have to look after the entire world and that is not easy. In fact, just to show you, Ill change places with you for 24 hours. You’ll see then. So God gave the man one day to see what a hard job is was to rule the world. Twenty four house later, God returned and said, “You see? It wasn’t as easy as you thought”. Then God prepared to be God once more. But the man wouldn’t give God back his power. He found that he liked playing God. Since that time, man has played God. That is why the world is as it is today, so the legend goes. Jesus is an example, because in each test that he faced, he had an opportunity to not just do the right thing, but to be the person God called him to be. He was the son of God. He had integrity to live out his calling. Not only did he know who he was – but we also got to witness his character for ourselves. His temptation was a test. A chance for him to fulfill his true hunger. Jesus does not have to serve 2 masters. He trusted God, so God can trust him. He remained faithful to who we was called to be in the midst of a test. God didn’t ambush him, God examined his character. The key to Jesus being faithful, is that he knew his scripture. Every response that he gave the devil is a verse in the bible. Psalm 32:10-11 says that the bridge between temptation and obedience is hope and trust. Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about. Be glad in the LORD, and rejoice, ye righteous: Jesus was able to overcome the temptations of the devil just by being the person, God had called him to be in the first place. Sermon Closer Harry Emerson Fosdick was one of the greatest American preachers of this century. He described his preaching as counseling on a large scale. Few people knew that as a young seminary student he reached the breaking point after working one summer in a New York Bowery mission. He went home and was overcome by deep depression. One day he stood in the bathroom with a straight razor to his throat. He thought about taking his own life. And then -- and then he heard his father in the other room calling his name, "Harry! Harry!" It called him back. He never forgot it. It was like the voice of God calling him. So I want to remind you today that in those times when you are in the wilderness, trying to find your way through, and when temptation comes and offers you the wrong answer, the wrong choice -- the wrong use of power, the way to popularity, the wrong kind of partnership -- then you remember that God has called your name: "This is my beloved son, my beloved daughter, in whom I am well pleased." And, you remember that because God has called your name He will see you through. Thomas A. Pilgrim, The Man From Galilee, CSS Publishing Company. Amen Those Tempting Crayons by Wesley T. Runk Passage: Matthew 4:1-11 • Lectionary: Lent 1 Item 6 of 13 | Back to Results Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the Devil. Objects: Some crayons and/or scissors. Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. Today we are going to talk about a word that I am sure all of you have heard many times but you may not be sure what it means. The word is "tempted" or "temptation." How many of you have heard that word used before? (Let them answer.) How many of you know what it means? (Let them answer.) Those are very close answers. Let me see if I can help explain it a little better. I brought with me some crayons and some scissors. How many of you have crayons at home? Almost all of you. What do you do with crayons? (Let them answer.) That's right, you color pictures. Sometimes we use them in coloring books and sometimes we use them just on a piece of paper. That is the right place to use them. No problem and no temptation. But have you ever used them anywhere else, or thought about using them somewhere else? Have you ever colored a wall in your house, or thought about coloring the wall, or maybe a table or your bed? If you thought about it, and you wanted to do it, then you were tempted. You could almost hear a little voice that said, "Go ahead and color the table, or go ahead and color the wall. It's all right, no one will ever know." That is temptation. Of course, if you color it, then the temptation is over. You have done something wrong. But if you just think about it and you want to do it, and you think it might be all right, then you are being tempted. Jesus was tempted. Did you know that Jesus was tempted? He was. The Bible tells us how the Devil tried to get him to follow him rather than the Father in heaven. Jesus knew it was wrong but he listened to the Devil tell him how he would make him wonderful, and how he would give him land and all the food he could eat. Jesus listened to the Devil and he was tempted. How many of you knew that Jesus listened to the Devil, or as the Bible calls him Satan? (Let them answer.) That's a true story. Jesus was high in a mountain and the Devil came and tried to get Jesus to follow him just like that little voice tries to get you to color the table. But Jesus did not give up. He was tempted, but he told the Devil to get away for he was not going to do anything that was a sin against God. After three times of the Devil offering Jesus everything he had, the Devil left Jesus and went away. We must often do the same thing. There are things that we know are wrong, but they sound wonderful. That is temptation and we must be strong and put it away. Temptation is strong, but God is even stronger. If you listen to both voices, you will do it God's way. THE ONE-HANDED CLOCK, Wesley T. Runk, C.S.S. Publishing Company, 1989, 1-55673-141-8 Back to Results | Item 6 of 13 Sword of the Spirit Out flashed the sword of the Spirit: our Lord will fight with no other weapon. He could have spoken new revelations, but he chose to say, “It is written.” There is a power in the Word of God which even the devil cannot deny. Spurgeon, C.H., Spurgeon's Commentary on Matthew, Matthew 4:4 Power: The Easy Substitute What makes the temptation of power so seemingly irresistible? Maybe it is that power offers an easy substitute for the hard task of love. It seems easier to be God than to love God, easier to control people than to love people, easier to own life than to love life. Jesus asks, Do you love me? We ask, Can we sit at your right hand and your left hand in your Kingdom? (Mt. 20:21). ... We have been tempted to replace love with power. Henri Nouwen in Mornings with Henri J.M. Nouwen, quoted in Christianity Today, February 8, 1999, 72. The Tempter Turns Our Strengths Against Us One night a well-known and highly respected preacher was working on his sermon for the following Sunday. His little son came in and asked his daddy to come tuck him in. The father told him to get into bed and he would come in a few minutes to give him a goodnight kiss and tuck him in. But then, he became engrossed in his preparation, and much later, he remembered the promise. He went into his son’s bed room only to discover that the little fellow was already asleep. That story is heart-breaking because it has a familiar ring to it. His passion to be a good preacher - a good thing - had tempted him that night to be a bad father. Do you see what happened? The tempter even turns our strengths against us if we are not careful. James McCormick, Selected Sermons, www.Sermons.com A LITTLE MORE An interesting article appeared in the Wall Street Journal. It was an interview of six top executives, all of them making six-figure salaries. That means that they made somewhere between $100,000 and $1 million a year. Now you are probably thinking , “If I made even $100,000 a year, I’d be in great shape. No worries, and no problems.” But in the interview each was asked, “What is your greatest fear?” Each answered pretty much the same, using different words. Their greatest fear was that they would not have enough. When they were asked, “How much is enough?” they always answered, “a little more.” SOURCE: Pastor Steve Dow in "The Parable of the Sower" on www.sermoncentral.com That is our basic temptation, to be in control like God is on control.

Christ is the foundation of faith

February 23, 2014 1 Corinthians 3:10-11,16-23 (Matthew 5:38-48) Seventh Sunday After Epiphany Year A Christ is the Foundation of Faith The three little pigs Once upon a time there were 3 little pigs- they were siblings, they grew up together in the same house. They were very different personalities, yet their mother taught them the same values, the same lessons. One day their mother sat them down and told them all that it was time for them to go out into the world, to build their own homes and to seek their fortune. The mother told them that she had taught them well and that each of them had a mission – a purpose to fulfill their life, but it all began with building a house and building a life. The message of 1 Corinthians 3 Now we have all heard the story of the three little pigs. But we may not have realized that it had an important message for us as Christians. It is also a good story to talk about Paul’s message in chapter 3 of First Corinthians. This is the second half of Paul’s message from last week. Last week Paul talked about planting a field and trusting God to give the increase. He uses the metaphor of a field. This week Paul uses the metaphor of building a house. But his point – is about how our attitudes, and our behaviors can God has build up in the world. When we are united as one, when we support one another, when we work together, we are building up God’s kingdom. When we are divided, when we don’t support one another, and when we choose to do our own thing, then we are destroying all God has worked to build up. The little pigs get a mission Getting back to our story – and the first little pig – the first little pig went out into the world. He couldn’t wait to fulfill his mission and to get his life started. He was pretty proud of himself when he found a nice shady place right on the beach to build a house. He built a nice little house of straw. By the end of the day he was done with this mission stuff, he was relaxing in a hammock, sipping on ice tea. He had to pat himself on the back for a job well done. He worked hard, and no one helped him. Paul would say that is part of the problem. Being proud of ourselves for what we have done. And in our pride, we start to brag about our abilities. And we forget, that it is really not about us and what we were able to do. It is God who does through us and not us ourselves. When we brag on ourselves, we brag on nothing. If we are going to brag, we should brag about what God can do. Bragging and giving ourselves credit is one of the biggest threats of the church. Because it separates us from others, it disconnects what we have done from what other have done. When we are proud of ourselves and our supposed accomplishments – then we are really saying that we don’t trust in God. We have to rely on ourselves, because God has no power. Bragging on ourselves is a problem Paul wants us to know that we are everything, we can do anything, we are God’s gift to mankind. But not because of our spirit, but because of the spirit of Christ. Paul says that we are everything – because Christ is everything, because the spirit of God is in Christ. When we can give Christ the credit for what we have done – then we can take all of the credit for the work. What would have happen if the first little pig would have thanked God instead of thanking himself. We will never know, because in the midst of his boasting about fulfilling his mission – his house blew away and he had to start all over again. Second Pig builds a house of sticks The second little pig was excited to start her mission. She found a nice clearing in the woods and she built her house of sticks. She was proud of herself because she was wise. She had went to house building school and she had the knowledge to build a house of sticks. It took her a whole week to build her house. When she was done – she didn’t thank God – she thanked her wisdom. Our wisdom is God’s foolishness Paul has continually said that the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God. No matter who much we study, we never understand the mysteries of God. Wisdom is a wonderful thing. But we shouldn’t put our trust in wisdom. We should put our trust in God. Our wisdom should not separate us from others. It should be used for the good of all, not for our own good. It took the second little pig a week to build her house and it took a week for it to fall down. You are God’s temple Paul says that you are the temple of God and the spirit of God dwells in you. But Paul is not talking about you individually – but to the whole church. You is plural and it means all of us. the spirit does not dwell in one of us as individuals – but in each of us. when god gives us knowledge, it is for the good of us all, not just for one person. The mission is not about one of us, it about all of us. and it takes all of us to fulfill it. We all have a part, but not the whole. A builder is responsible and accountable You see Paul uses this metaphor of the builder to introduce an element of responsibility and accountability on the builder. Last week we learned that in planting a field, we plant and God gives the increase. But when build a house – if it is not built right- you can blame the builder. Pig #1 and Pig#2 each had a choice in how they fulfilled their mission. They chose the place to build, they chose what materials to build that house. When the house fell down they had no one to blame but themselves. Their mother gave them the mission. And they each interpreted it for themselves. Not realizing that mission is never about us as individuals,it is always about us as a people, as a body, as the church. A mission is not something that we can accomplish on our own, we need one another. We have to work together. We have to work together responsibly. Divisions destroy the mission of God Paul says If anyone destroys God’s temple God will destroy that person. For God’s temple is holy and you are that temple. How do you destroy God’s temple – by destroying unity. Conflict and strife can flare up at anytime for any reason. There is always conflict in our relationships. Sometimes conflict itself is not a bad thing. It is in how we use it. How we respond to it. A few years back I read the book "Firestorms." The author Susek warned about the danger, the destruction and the damage that firestorms can do to a church, an organization or even a family unit. He shared true to life horror stories of Christians acting like raging firestorms and leaving a path of destruction in churches, in communities, in families and in individual lives. He shared the tragic stories to warn us Christians, leaders, and pastors how to prevent firestorms in our relationship’s, he stressed how to put fires out quickly in relationships, and even how to rebuild relationships after a firestorm. Paul’s concern is that there is nothing in the world more destructive in a church then our personal opinions of ourselves and others. When we start to think that we are God’s gift to the church, there are problems. When we start to think that we have special knowledge that will save us, and not others – then the whole church suffers. Paul introduces this concept of building – to hold us accountable. The bible says in many places that there is a special place in hell for leaders who mislead. We will be held accountable for our actions. What we do should always be for the good of Christ and not for ourselves. I want to remind us that we are all builders, thus we are all leaders. All of our actions count in the body of Christ. Paul says let no one boast about human leaders – all belong to you (you being the church) and you belong to Christ and Christ belongs to God. Once again – we are charged to do the work and God gives the blessing. Nothing that we do to build the kingdom is about us, it is about God. The three lessons of this text are to be responsible and accountable as leaders, that building the kingdom of God takes all of us, and that we should have confidence in God in all things. When we brag about ourselves – we are saying that we have no confidence in what God has done for us. Now we come to the story of the third little pig. Who went out on his mission and who built his house of brick. We all know from the story that the houses of the two other pigs didn’t just fall down – they were blown down by he big bad wolf. He huffed and he puffed and he blew their houses down. But when he came to the house of the third little pig – he huffed and he puffed and nothing happened. Build a house on a firm foundation But here’s the thing that made his house different from the other two. It wasn’t just the building material. The third little pig had taken the time to build a firm foundation for his house. And that my friends is the moral of this sermon. In order to build a spiritual house that will stand against the temptations of the devil – we have to build a firm foundation. Paul says that the foundation of our spiritual house is Christ. Let us look at 1 Corinthians 3:10-11 again. According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master building, I laid a foundation, and someone else builds on, for no one can lay any foundation other than the one that had been laid. That foundation is Jesus Christ! Paul’s mission was to travel from church to church laying foundations, so that others could have the power and knowledge to build a firm house. He calls himself a master builder. It is only when we have a firm foundation that we can start to build a firm house. What is the foundation of your house? What is the foundation of this church? How are we being called to build upon it. The foundation of any church is Christ. Within the next weeks, as we embark on praying about our gifts and our commitment to the church- we have the chance to build upon that foundation. We have been given the tools to go out into the world and to fulfill God’s mission. Let this not be about our will, but God will. Let us pray for strength. Amen. Childrens Sermon… Be A Good Building Block by Wesley T. Runk Passage: 1 Corinthians 3:1-23 • Lectionary: Epiphany 7 Item 1 of 5 | Back to Results Theme: Do you not know that you are God's temple. Object: A pile of bricks Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. How is everyone today? (Let them respond.) I'll bet you are wondering why I have this pile of bricks here! When I read Paul's letter for today, it made me think of brick and stone and all the things we do with them. What are bricks used for? (Let them answer.) Good. We use bricks to build all sorts of things, don't we? Fireplaces, houses, all kind of buildings, like libraries and banks and churches. Do you think that bricks are good things to use for a building, boys and girls? (Let them answer.) That's right. They are usually very strong. A house or building made with bricks would probably last a long time. Do you remember the old story about the three little pigs? (Let them respond.) Each one of them decided to build a house. Do you remember what the first pig used to build his house? (Let them answer.) That's right. One of them used straw. What happened to that pig's house? (Let them answer.) The wolf came and blew it all down. The second pig built his house with sticks. What happened to his house? (Let them answer.) That's right. The wolf came and huffed and puffed and the house fell apart! But the third little pig was smart. What did he use to build his house? (Let them answer.) Right! He used bricks, just like these. (Point to bricks.) And his house turned out to be safe and strong. Today we will hear Paul say that you and I are like the bricks that make up "God's building," the church. In fact, he says we are God's church! That means that we have to be very strong and sturdy parts of the building, don't we boys and girls? (Let them respond.) We can't be like straw that will blow away when the winds blow, or like sand that will crumble when a storm comes. We have to be like one of these bricks. How can we be good bricks in this church, boys and girls? (Let them answer.) That's right -- by coming to our worship service, listening very hard to God's word and to the sermon. We should also pay good attention to our Sunday school teachers and to our parents. Then we will be good, strong bricks for God's church. Will you try to do that, boys and girls? (Let them respond.) Good. God bless you. Amen. ___________________________________________________________________________ George W. Truett, a well-known Texas preacher, was invited to dinner in the home of a very wealthy oilman. After the meal, the host led him to a place where they could get a good view of the surrounding area. Pointing to the oil wells and punctuating the landscape, he boasted, "Twenty-five years ago I had nothing. Now, as far as you can see, it’s all mine." Looking in the opposite direction at his sprawling fields of grain, he said, "That’s all mine." Turning east toward huge herds of cattle, he bragged, "They’re all mine." Then pointing to the west and a beautiful forest, he exclaimed, "That too is all mine." He paused, expecting Dr. Truett to compliment him on his great success. Truett, however, placing one hand on the man’s shoulder and pointing heavenward with the other, simply said, "How much do you have in that direction?" (Farewell Ave. Christian Church) Practice What You Admire Once upon a time a prince was born physically deformed. He was known as the hunchback prince. His physical posture troubled him, because he knew a prince should stand tall and straight. One day he commissioned a sculptor to make a statue of him, not as he was but as he wanted to be. When the statue was completed, the prince had it placed in his private garden. Every day thereafter, he would stand before his statue and try to pull back his shoulders and stand tall. After some years, his physique matched the statue! It is obvious, is it not, that the principle involved in this story is that what we admire, adore, greatly respect, and worship, we eventually become. John Brokhoff, Old Truths for New Times, CSS Publishing Company Billy Graham tells the story about a little child the was playing with a very valuable vase. He put his hand into it and could not withdraw it. His father too, tried his best to get it out, to no avail. They were thinking of breaking the vase when the father said, “Now my son, make one more try. Open your hand and hold your fingers out straight as you see me doing, and then pull.” To their astonishment the little fellow said, “O no, dad, I couldn’t put my fingers out like that because if I did I would drop my dime.” Smile, if you will but thousands of us are like that little boy, so busy holding on to the world’s worthless dimes that we cannot accept liberation. Drop the trifles in your life. Surrender! Let go, and let God have His way in your life. FIRESTORMS I was at Boy Scout Camp when I discovered the terrible damage a fire storm could do to my life. It was a lazy afternoon very hot and dry. John and I were sent back to camp to start dinner for the guys. When I got back to camp, I discovered that the camp fire looked as if it had gone out. So I decided to rebuild the fire to get it ready for our meal. So I gathered firewood and placed it on the coals and tried to get it to burn. It would not start, so I decided to pour some kerosene on the wood, figuring it would help get the fire started sooner so that John and I could start dinner sooner for the troop. So I poured the kerosene on the wood, and all of a sudden the fire ignited. It then traveled up the liquid and into the can I was holding in my hand. Within seconds, the can exploded in my hand, sending burning kerosene streaming in every direction. Most of the burning fuel landed on my lower right leg, and it burst into flames. It was so surreal. I looked down as the heat started piercing through to my leg, and I began screaming. I was 12 years old, and my leg was burning out of control. I screamed for help and threw myself to the ground. I began to roll and roll, and the more I rolled the more the ground burst into flames around me. I rolled into a tent, and it caught on fire. I was screaming because of the pain and crying out for help. I started thinking, "This is it. I am going to burn to death," and right at that moment another Boy Scout came to my rescue. John had a blanket in his hand, and he grabbed me and wrapped it around my leg to put out the fire. Once he put out my leg, he then proceeded to put out the tent and the burning ground around us. I laid there in shock and disbelief with horrible pain throbbing up my leg. John held me and asked me to hang in there, because he was going to get me help. He ran like the wind for about a mile to the first aid head quarters in the park. I laid there all alone on the ground thinking, "Why did I do that!" Then the thought crept in: "Is this it?" It seemed as if I laid there forever starring up into the blue sky. The Park Rangers came and the troop leaders came as fast as they could. As they pulled the blanket off of my leg, part of my jeans and burnt flesh came off with it. They cut my jeans off immediately and started cleaning out my badly burned leg. I screamed in pain. I heard one man get sick and throw up and another say, "Oh my Lord!" I was burned from my ankle to just above the knee. I still remember the awful smell of burnt flesh rising off my leg. All I could do was moan and cry because of the excruciating pain inflicted from this fire. All I could do was keep asking questions, "What happened? Where did the fire come from? Why did this happen to me?" I was stunned by how quickly I had caught on fire. It took the troop leaders 4 hours before they finally got me to a hospital. It was a horrible 4-hour trip from the mountains to the hospital. As I rode in a truck, I just moaned as my driver, a Boy Scout leader, just encouraged me to hang in there. I remember he turned his air conditioning onto the floor section so that cold air could blow onto my leg. My flesh was hanging off, and I was wishing for a miracle as I looked at my deformed leg. I thought this could not be my leg. When we arrived at the hospital the doctors started to work on my leg immediately. They cleaned it up and put salve on it then wrapped with burn wrap. My mom showed up at the hospital in tears asking, "What happened?" The doctors informed my mom that I had second and third degree burns on the lower half of my leg. I remember the doctor telling her the importance of making sure that my leg did not become infected. So daily she would clean my leg off. I would not look at my leg – my mom said it looked horrible, almost like hamburger. But eventually I did heal. I often think about that day. It is etched into my memory forever. It was the painful day because I became a victim of a fire storm. I learned a few lessons that day that I will never forget: "Do not dump Kerosene on hot coals!" The biggest lesson I learned that day was not to be careless with a fire. I discovered the hard way that fire is hot and it burns very quickly and it does maximum damage in short amount of time. The firestorm I experienced lasted for minutes but caused major damage to my leg and it took months to heal. I still have scars on my lower leg from that fire storm. It reminds me as I look at that scar the danger of fire storms and how painful they can be. Firestorms happen in this world every day--firestorms in relationships flare up doing maximum damage in a short period of time. A situation or word is misunderstood and the fire ignites scorching and burning up everything in sight. Dr. Robert said, "No church is more than twenty-four hours away from a major conflict breaking out. In less than a year, it can destroy years of hard work and growth" (Firestorms, page 12). He spoke about the danger and the ferocity of firestorms. He warned us that once a firestorm ignites it causes damage quickly to the surrounding terrain and races off to burn up whatever is in its path. They move fast and quickly across the landscape burning everything up in sight. They are dangerous and destructive. They have even been known to be brief but so intense that they cause maximum loss in a short period of time. So we need to learn how to become fire fighters if we want to preserve our family relationships, our friendship relationships, our church relationships, our community relationships and our individual relationships. Firestorms come in many forms and can ignite in any type of a life situation. (From a sermon by Michael McCartney, Experience the Spirit in Conflict, 4/7/2011)

The Growing is up to God

1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (Matthew 5:21-37) Sixth Sunday After Epiphany February 16, 2014 Year A The Growing is up to God Digging a hole, but no planting A fellow stopped at a gas station and, after filling the tank on his car, he paid the bill and bought a soft drink. He stood by his car to drink his cola and he watched a couple of men working along the roadside. One man would dig a hole two or three feet deep and then move on. The other man came along behind and filled in the hole. While one was digging a new hole, the other was about 25 feet behind filling in the old. The men worked right past the fellow with the soft drink and went on down the road. "I can’t stand this," said the man tossing the can in a trash container and heading down the road toward the men. “Hold on,” he said to the men. "Can you tell me what’s going on here with this digging?" "Well, we work for the government, " one of the men said. "But one of you is digging a hole and the other fills it up. You’re not accomplishing anything. Aren’t you wasting the People’s money?" "You don’t understand, mister," one of the men said, leaning on his shovel and wiping his brow. "Normally there’s three of us--me, Sam and Jesse. ”I dig the hole, Sam sticks in the tree and Jesse here puts the dirt back. Now, just because Sam’s sick, that don’t mean that Jesse and I can’t work." When it comes to the church of Jesus Christ, sometimes people do not think very much, either. People attend church, but they don’t get what church is all about, or they are blinded by assumptions. They just dig holes instead of planting trees. I think that is how a lot of us go to church. We go through all of the motions of being a Christian, but every Sunday that we come to church, we expect to go out the same way that we came. Nothing changes. We Have to grow We don’t realize that things are always changing. Everything that we do as Christians is intended to change us. Everything that we do is intended to help us to grow spiritually. Everything that we do should bring us closer to God, make us a better person, help us to have a better understanding of our purpose, and give us more power to do it. Explanation of Corinthians I have decided that we will hang out in the First book of Corinthians for a few weeks. Because Paul’s whole message is to encourage us to grow, and to constantly examine what it means to be a Christian. Now remember, last week Paul told us that there were two types of people in the world. There are spiritual people who are attuned to God, and there are physical people who think that this is all that there is. He encouraged us to strive to be spiritual persons. Flesh vs Spirit In chapter 3 this week Paul goes a little more in depth. In all of the teachings of Paul, he is obsessed with distinguishing life in the flesh and life in the spirit. We are all flesh – that what it means to be a human being. As long as we are alive, we are flesh. Jesus was flesh – that was the point that God put on flesh and showed us what it means to live a holy life. But Paul accuses the Corinthians of being obsessed with the fleshly life. But when Paul talks about life in the flesh – he doesn’t just mean life as a human. He means life as a human with no relationship with God. Who would you be and what would you be doing if you did not have a relationship with God. Living in the flesh while still in the spirit We may be very different people, doing very different things. It would be okay for us to hate people, to be resentful, to be destructive, to be disrespectful, to steal, to run red lights, to do whatever we wanted as long as there were no consequences to our actions. Paul expects that from others, but not from Christians. Even though we may have started with that fleshly nature, we should be growing and maturing in order to do different. Paul’s concern is that the same behavior that he would expect in the streets is present in the church. We separate ourselves, we disagree with one another, we have unresolved resentment, jealousy, an unwillingness to help one another, we learn all there is to know about God, and we still live in the flesh. All that is a sign of life in the flesh. Human nature – with no relationship with God. Are there Methodist in heaven? The story is told that John Wesley, a founder of Methodism, changed his view about church division after a dream in which he was first transported to the gates of Hell. He asked, “Are there any Presbyterians here?” “Yes,” was the reply. “Any Roman Catholics?” “Yes.” “Any Congregationalists?” “Yes.” He hesitated, then said, “Not any Methodists, I hope!” To his dismay the answer was “Yes.” Suddenly in his dream he stood at the gate of Heaven. Once again he asked, “Are there any Presbyterians here?” “No,” was the reply. “Any Roman Catholics?” “No.” “Any Congregationalists?” “No.” Then he asked the question which most interested him: “Are there any Methodists here?” He was shocked to receive the same stern reply, “No!” “Well then,” he asked in surprise, “please tell me who IS in Heaven?” “CHRISTIANS!” was the jubilant answer. From that dream Wesley determined that unity was essential to the church’s success in her mission. What are we to think of division? Some today agree with Wesley: division is one of our greatest sins. We must unify at any cost. Others believe any effort toward unity necessarily involves compromise; therefore we must avoid it. Jesus prayed for unity; yet he preached that we must leave even father and mother for his sake and the go I heard Hans Kung, a catholic scholar tell it like this. At the end of the world, someone asked God, if the Baptist get it right and make it to heaven, or the Catholics, or the Pentecostals. And God said no, because in the end there will be no Baptist, no Catholics, no Pentecostals, No Methodist. End the in – none of them will exist, because in the end all that there is is God – and those who made a point to get right with God. In order to get right with God, we have to grow, we have to learn more, we have to do more, we have to commit more. We have spend less time trying to judge the journey of others, and concentrate on our own walk with God. And reach out to help others on their positive journey. 1 Corinthians chapter 3 is one of my favorite verses. I used these verses are the guiding verses for my campus ministry at UIC. Paul says “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. I want to repeat that – I planted, Apollos watered but God gave the growth. The king james version of the bible says God gave the increase. We do all of the work, God gives the blessing. Without God’s blessing our work is in vain. We can plant trees, we can take care of them, but we cant make them grow. When we are obsessed with who gets credit for our work – we are living in the flesh. When we give God the credit – we are living in the spirit. We are excited about what we did – we are living in the flesh. When we are excited about what God has done, we are living in the Spirit. It is God’s ministry, not ours. But here is the good news for us. Paul planted, Apollos watered, God gave the increase. Paul, Apollos, God. The work of man is put on equal footing with the work of God. God needs Paul and Apollos and God needs you and me to do God’s work. If we do God’s work, we don’t need to be acknowledged, God will acknowledge us. what we don’t get from others, we get from God. Paul says “For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.” It is okay for us to work, to be faithful, to give with all of our heart – God gives the rest. We are to be planters, and to water the crop. That is good news to a declining church, a church who wonders if the next generation will take over, who struggles with who is going to join our church. None of that is our issue. God works harder than any of us. God has a bigger stake in the future than we do, God will be here much longer than any of us. All that we have to do is plant and water and let God do God’s work. 1854 Tam’s Partnership With God Young Stanley Tam had failed in his silver reclamation business—even though he had tithed since its beginning! “Why God?” he prayed as he drove homeward with numb disappointment. Then an inner voice from the Lord seemed to say, “You don’t need to fail; turn your business over to Me and let Me run it. Remember the promise. “My God shall supply. …” “ Finally, Tam replied: “Take it God and if you’ll make it succeed, I’ll honor you in every way I can.” He returned home and the business grew. Many months later, after he had married, he wrestled with his conscience once more and told his wife, “I feel God would have us take a bigger step of faith than tithing and make Him a senior partner in the business—50% of the stock belong to Him.” States Smelting and Refining Corp. of Lima, Ohio, was reorganized that way. Soon a new corporation, United States Plastic, was added to God’s partnership. Growth was so phenomenal that the IRS audited their books for 10 consecutive years. Dividends from God’s 51% were put into the Stanita Foundation which helps overseas missionaries mainly. As the business passed the multimillion dollar mark, God’s share was upped to 60% annually. Then one day the ultimate happened. Stan and Juanita Tam turned over the ownership of the entire business to God. They became just salaried employees. Since then, a new plant quadrupled its original size sprung up and the business continued to prosper. What would happen if we became employees of the church and not owners. What would happen if we stop worrying about giving our lives to God and realize that God has given his life to us? God has given us an awful lot of power and control. God has put a lot of trust into each one of us- to plant, to water, and to trust God for the increase. Let us pray……Amen. Children’s time Volunteers by Shirley Jennings Passage: 1 Corinthians 3:1-23 • Lectionary: Epiphany 6 Item 5 of 8 | Back to Results Children can help at church. Props: Bulletins. Volunteers at church are important people. They sing in the choir. They teach Sunday school. When someone needs a ride to church, a volunteer picks up that person. Is a volunteer paid a lot of money? Right: a volunteer isn't paid any money. A volunteer is someone who does things to help other people and doesn't expect to receive any money for helping. Are you ever a volunteer here at church? What are some ways that you can be a volunteer here on Sunday morning? What are these in my hand? (Let them answer.) We can hand out bulletins before church begins. We can pick up bulletins left in the pews when church is over. We can help wipe up punch spilled on the floor during the coffee/punch time after church. We can help a younger child get a drink at the water fountain. We can open the church door so a younger child can come in. I want to tell you a little rhyme about being a volunteer. Every Sunday morning I will try to be A helpful volunteer. Just watch me and you'll see. Now please listen while I say it by myself once more. Then we'll all say it together. God's Love Is For You, Shirley Jennings, CSS Publishing Co., Inc., 1984, 0-89536-689-4

Valentine's Day Hope Talk

Valentines Hope Talk 1 Corinthians 13 Tomorrow is Valentine’s Day – Valentine’s Day has come a long way. Today it is one of the most money making days for retailers, so you know you are going to here a lot about it. The powers that be, want people to buy candy and cards. But it is interesting that the media talks a lot about love, but unfortunately they don’t offer any instructions on what love really is, or how to truly love others. As a child one of my favorite parts of valentines day – were the valentines. I would love buying my little box of valentines and to decide which ones to give to classmates. This is not an original with me. I heard it in a sermon over twenty years ago given by Bro. Paul Holderfield. Johnny was not a very popular boy at school, in fact you might say he wasn’t liked at all. It was not anything in particular, well you know the type (maybe even been one of these yourself). Johnny loved Valentines Day and every year looked forward to it. He would start early and make his list, look for special valentines for each schoolmate on his list. But, it sems that all of this effort went astray because he never received a valentine from anyone at school. Another valentines day rolled around and he had his special cards ready to go that day. Off he went to school protecting his cards so they would be spotless upon his arrival at school. As he boarded the bus and was out of sight of his mother, tears filled her eyes and soon were cascading off her cheeks. Oh, how she dreaded his coming in that evening, knowing he probably would not get a single card in return. She prayed diligently for him all day and soon the bus rounded the curve and came to a stop in front of their house. Johnny came out of the bus and she heard him say as he came up the path, "not a one". Her heart broke. then again she heard him say, "not a single one." She didn’t know what she was going to say to him. as he approached her his expression changed to a great big smile and he shouted these words, "not a one, I didn’t forget a valentine for a single one." Love is not about what we receive, but what we give Of course as parents, we give a lot. We give a lot and don’t expect anything in return. A lot of times we end up giving all that we have inside for our kids. And we don’t get a lot in return, we don’t get any acknowledgement for what we have done. And sometimes giving ourselves can leave us feeling empty, and sad. And it is days like valentines Day and all of this talk about love that can remind us of our emptiness. That’s just it, we have to change our perspective, and we have to take some time to think about what love is. Love is not a commodity that we can go to the store and buy and sell. It is also not a feeling that we give and expect to receive. Love is who we are as a person. The bible says a lot about love. The message of the bible is that God is love. The spirit of love is essential to who we are and essential to life. Someone said that they gave a valentine card which said _ I love you more than Kanye – loves Kanye. The message of the bible is that God loves you more than than. Or if the word God makes you uncomfortable – think of it as the spirit of life – is the spirit of love. And the message of life is that sometimes we have to get in touch with just how much we are loved. Sometimes we have to not spend so much time looking out – but we have to take the time to look in. We have to look at our capacity to give, not what we get from others. The most famous verses of love are in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 1 Corinthians 13 New International Version (NIV) 13 If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecyand can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge,and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies,they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. Footnotes: a. 1 Corinthians 13:1 Or languages b. 1 Corinthians 13:3 Some manuscripts body to the flames The good news is that the spirit of life has done all of that for us, in order to help us to be love for others. We have to be careful to give out of our fullness in our spirit and not out of what we lack. We have to give out of what we have in our spirit, and not out of what we are hoping for. LOVE IN THE DRIVEWAY One young boy said, "Love is when his daddy reads me a bedtime story. True love is when he doesn’t skip any pages." I remember when my son Shawn was in high school. Several times he parked his truck in the middle of the driveway. That got my dander up, because I could not get in or out of the garage. One time I happened to come out of the door just as he had parked there and was climbing out of his truck. I gave him the old ’what for’ father-son lecture. Then I ordered him to move his truck out on the street. I was fuming, and as I turned to walk into the house, he followed me instead of moving his truck. I turned to continue my tirade, but he quickly asked me where the end of the lecture went. I asked him what he was talking about, and he reminded me that the end of the lecture was when I said, "I love you, Son, so let’s try to correct this, okay?" That was the end of my anger, and the end of his blocking the driveway. This was also a sign of the love shared between a father and a son. (From a sermon by Bruce Ball, "AND THE GREATEST OF THESE IS LOVE" 2/15/2009) Love is not how we feel about a person, it is about who we are. Love is who we choose to be in a situation. But more importantly – love is not just our thoughts – love is our actions – what we actually do. So this Valentine’s Day – let us be the love we are looking for. Let us pray……. WHAT'S GOD GOT TO DO WITH IT? If you “Google” the word love, and you have to be very careful doing this, you will find all sorts of websites,120,000,000 to be exact. Here are some examples that you will find: I love Dogs.com I love Cats.com (Although this one is a plea to spay or neuter) I love Cheese. Com I love Lucy.com We love the Iraqi Information Minister.com True Romance Dating Service.com Love Test.com Matchmaker.com The Love Calculator.com On this site you type in your name and your mates name and it gives you the odds of your relationship lasting. Alana and I got 41%) The interesting aspect is that on all these sites, love is seen as almost an entirely human endeavor. [Love from a Kid’s Point of View, Citation: "What Is Love—From a Kid’s Point of View," LightSinger, (accessed 3-14-02)] What is love, from a kid’s point of view? "When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn’t bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That’s love." "When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth." "Love is when someone hurts you, and you get so mad, but you don’t yell at them because you know it would hurt their feelings." "Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is okay." "Love is what’s in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen." "Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well." "Love is when Mommy sees Daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford." "Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day." "You really shouldn’t say ’I love you’ unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget."

The Spirit of Christ

“The Spirit of Christ” 1 Corinthians 2:1-16 Matthew 5:13-20 Year A Fifth Sunday after Epiphany February 9, 2014 What is the meaning of truth? I have been dealing with the question for a few weeks. How do we come to know the truth? What is the ultimate truth? and where can I find the real truth. I bet you know where I am going with this. God is the one true truth. and the one way to find the truth is to read the bible. Truth: The Most Powerful Idea Marilyn vos Savant, the brilliant woman who reportedly has the highest I.Q. ever recorded, writes a syndicated column in which she answers tricky questions from people who want the benefit of her intelligence. Someone wrote to ask what she thought is the most powerful idea. Marilyn vos Savant replied that "truth" was the most powerful idea she knew of, because it is not affected by how we relate to it. Whether or not we know it, or whether or not we agree with it, doesn't matter, because truth is still true. Ms. vos Savant is right on target. Truth is powerful. You and I believe that truth is from God. What is the Gospel the Good News anyway? I believe it can be summed up in three verses: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1); "God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16), and "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself" (Luke 10:27). You and I may believe this thing and that about Scripture and about life in general, but these three statements are incontrovertible! They are true. They don't need to be defended; they only need to be lived. There are people in our society who spend too much of their energy and time defending God as if God needed it. Adapted from Max Anders, God The Good News Never Conflicts with Truth The esteemed space scientist Dr. Werner von Braun received many cards and letters over the years from people who believe that space exploration is against the Creator's wishes. "Scripture mail," NASA calls it. These correspondents warned the scientist to cease this dangerous godless folly. "One lady wrote that God doesn't want man to leave Earth and she was willing to bet me $10 that we wouldn't make it," said Episcopalian von Braun. "I answered that, as far as I knew, the Bible said nothing about space flight but it was clearly against gambling." Why are some people so threatened by scientific discoveries? Don't they know that truth is from God wherever it may be found? The notable church father Justin Martyr settled the matter once and for all when he wrote, "Whatever has been uttered aright by any [person] in any place belongs to us Christians." Christian faith does not need defenders, for it is never in conflict with truth. Adapted from Bob Ward, The Light Stuff Today I want to deal with the lesson of 1 Corinthians. Paul has come to Corinth in order to correct the teachings of other preachers. Paul’s message in both books of Corinthians and in everything that he teaches is our salvation is in the cross of Christ. And since Christ died for our sins, we don’t have to spend a lot of time trying to comprehend what that means. But we do have to believe it. Paul’s point is that who we are as Christians, should be based on what Christ has done for us. It is time for us to give up our own reasoning to get through life, but to trust the reasoning of Christ in everything that we do. But today, I wanted to talk about Corinthians, because Paul wants us to understand that you put on the mind of Christ, you have the thoughts of Christ – not through anything that you do but through the spirit of Christ. We have been reading Corinthans for a few weeks now, and if you have noticed Paul speaks a lot about the spirit. The spirit that gives us the mind of Christ. We have to be conscious of the spirit, the holy spirit and what it is teaches us. People who know too much Interestingly enough – the problem that Paul was trying to address in Corinth – was not the people who were ignorant and needed to be taught. He was talking about the people who were too smart for their own good. They couldn’t listen to what the spirit was trying to teach them – because they had their own wisdom. They had read all of the books, they knew all of the techniques, and yet they knew nothing about the spirit. And without the spirit, they knew nothing. Going against the spirit I went to do some evaluation of a teacher of kindergarten kids—at the teacher’s request. For the fifty minutes I was there this teacher tried to lecture. Finally, the bell rang, and she cranked out the memory verse. Afterwards she sighed, “Boy, I got over the lesson.” When she came to see me, I said to her, “Did it ever occur to you that you’re really competing against the Holy Spirit?” “I certainly don’t intend to do that.” “But did it ever occur to you that God made this child with an attention span of about four to five minutes? And all the time you kept saying to the child, “keep quiet,” “sit still” and God kept saying, “Wiggle.” And what did he do? He listened to God every time.” About 85% of the discipline problems in school, in church, in home come because we do not understand the pupil with whom we are working. —Howard Hendricks Two types of people – spiritual and worldy Greeks believed that there are two types of people in the world – there are people who only see things at face value, everything in life is what it is, and there are those who have to ability to see beyond outward appearances and who can see the spirit, and who have a sensitivity to the spiritual world. An Empty shell I remember when I saw a program showing how they used to film Gunsmoke, one of my favorite TV shows as a kid. I learned that Dodge City was really just a place in the middle of nowhere not even close to the real one. There was no Longbranch Saloon, no stores or jail, it was all front with nothing behind it — a facade, a wooden structure that only made it look like a city on television. If you looked through the door you would only see more of the prairie. Kittie, Doc Adams, Chester, Festus and Marshal Dillon were sitting on a set somewhere, not the Longbranch where you thought they were. The Gunsmoke set is like many people. They only have a front with nothing behind it. They are all facade. That is why they cannot afford to be transparent — people would see right through them. But an important part of the Christian life is the development of something behind the facade. It is the growth of character, and a spiritual life that supports who we are. Only when we really come to Christ and have a relationship with God do we begin to have substance. We are not just keeping up appearances, we are developing a quality of character. Being a Christian means being real. We never know enough There are two type of people in the world, those who are spiritual and those who only see things at face value. And if we have been in the church for a little while, we have heard all of the biblical stories, we have heard all of the sermons – it is easy for us to think that if there are two type of people – then we must the right kind of people right? The people that Paul wants us to be right? If we are here then we must be spiritual. And I think I want to challenge that belief. If we spend too much time in church, then we start to think that we know everything that there is to know about Christ. A group of Christians gathered in a church auditorium for an evening Bible Study. Some were talking while waiting for the study to begin. One man began to share with the leader about a church breakfast he’d attended. A well known Bible scholar had been invited to speak at the breakfast. During the course of his remarks the scholar stated that he had recently gained new insight into a verse of Scripture that had puzzled him for years. “When I heard this,” the man said to the Bible Study leader, “I thought to myself, ‘If this scholar who has written commentaries and books and who has studied the Bible for years is just now understanding a verse of Scripture, how can I, an ordinary church member, understand the truth?”’ “You know,” replied the leader, “rather than being discouraged by the scholar’s remarks, I’m encouraged. It just goes to show that understanding God’s truth doesn’t depend on our intellectual ability or number of theological degrees earned. Rather, God’s truth is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit. My message for the day however, is that the more we learn – it is important to realize the less that we know when it comes to the spirit. We never stop learning about God. And no matter how much we have studied, we still need to know more. Because the spirit is alive and always moving us forward. If we hear something one thing about Christ, when we hear it again, it teaches us something new. If we have read the bible once, then we need to read it again. If we gave one sermon, then we need to give another. Whereever you may be in your knowledge of God – commit to go forward – to know more, to serve more, to be challenged more. I think that sometimes we are just like those building facades for a movie scene. We may have the foundation, but we never bother to fill in the rest. – Paul is challenging us not to be satisfied with the basics, but to go further, go deeper into the mind of Christ. As a matter of fact, I don’t think it is about there being either spiritual or worldly, but that we have to have both. There has to be combination. We have to study to show ourselves approved, and we have to trust the working of the spirit. The spirit is alive and well. And if we have the knowledge, the spirit will help us to use it. Paul says that there are two types of people, but there are two types of learning – there is kerygma and didache. Those are good seminary words, but to break it down, didache means bible study – we need to know what the bible actually says. Kerygma – is spiritual learning – what is God really trying to teach us in our lives with these stories? There is no substitute for studying the word of God. but we have to realize that if we have never studied – then there is no opening for the spirit to teach us the true meaning of the words for our lives, and for our spiritual journey. We will never truly understand resurrection and how God bought Jesus back to life. All of the study in the world will not explain that mystery. But if we know the basic facts, and leave the door open – we come to believe in the power of Christ and what he can continue to do for our lives. Paul says – those who are unspiritual do not receive the gifts of God’s spirit, for they are foolishness to them and they are unable to understand them because they only come from the spirit. Changing the World It was during the early days of television. A workman was placing television transmitters at the very top of the Empire State building in New York City. Seeing him at work up there, so far off the ground, a reporter thought this would make a fascinating human interest story. So, when the workman had completed his task and had returned to the ground, the reporter approached him and asked, “Aren’t you frightened to work under conditions like that that? Isn’t it dangerous to work so high off the ground?” The workman replied, “Yes sir, it is dangerous.” Then he added, “But then, how many people can say that they have changed the skyline of a city like New York!” God offers us the privilege of changing the skyline not of a city, but of the world. We can help make this world healthier, more humane, more harmonious, and more blessed. God made a good world. Now He wants us to help Him make it good again. We can do that. By God’s grace, we really can do that. If we can, surely we must. James McCormick, Selected Sermons, www.Sermons.com We change to world, by changing ourselves. By understanding the spirit and not so much how it fits into the world – but how we fit into what it is already doing. The spirit is alive and well – the spirit is moving in the world as we speak. Let us move along with it. – Paul’s last word to us in this passage is But we have the mind of Christ – we have all that we need! Let us pray….. ________________________ __________________________________ Lesson: But we speak God's wisdom, secret and hidden, which God decreed before the ages for our glory. Object: A box full of play money (or real money) Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. I'll bet you can't guess what I have in this box! (Let them try.) No, it's even better than all of that. Here, let me show you. (Take lid off of box and show them the money.) That is really a lot of money, isn't it, boys and girls? (Let them respond.) What could we do with this much money? (Let them answer.) Yes, we could take wonderful vacations, buy new clothes and toys and other good things. We could really have a good time, couldn't we? What would you think if I were to give all of this money away? (Let them respond.) Some people might think I was a little bit crazy or dumb if I gave all my money away. Well, one day a very rich young man came to see Jesus. He probably had even more money than this. Anyway, he asked Jesus what he had to do to get to heaven. Jesus told him to keep the commandments. But the young man said that he had already been keeping the commandments for a long time. So Jesus told him that he should give all of his money away to the poor and come, follow him. Would that have been a hard thing to do, boys and girls? (Let them answer.) I guess the young man thought it was too hard to do because he went away very sad. But there are many Christians who have given away all of their money and other good things just so they could follow Jesus. The Apostles and other disciples did that. Many people probably thought that they were pretty dumb for giving up their homes and other belongings, but sometimes that is what it means to be a Christian. Paul tells us today that Christians don't always seem too smart (wise) to other people because they do strange things like sharing their money with the poor, loving their enemies, and staying close to Jesus. But Paul says that real Christians are the smart people because they are following God's word. They are living the way God has asked them to live. So, boys and girls, if your friends ever think you are a little stupid for coming to church or for being nice to people who need your help, just remember what Paul tells us today. You are being a smart Christian. You are being wise -- just like God. God bless you all. Amen. British poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge once had a discussion with a man who firmly believed that children should not be given formal religious instruction, but should be free to choose their own religious faith when they reached maturity. Coleridge did not disagree, but later invited the man into his somewhat neglected garden. "Do you call this a garden?" the visitor exclaimed. "There are nothing but weeds here!" "Well, you see," Coleridge replied, "I did not wish to infringe upon the liberty of the garden in any way. I was just giving the garden a chance to express itself." Daily Walk, March 28, 1992

The Promises of Jesus

February 2, 2014 4th Sunday of Epiphany 1 Corinthians 1:18-31 Matthew 5:1-12 The Promises of Jesus Fill in the blanks When I'm teaching a class, and want to get a discussion going, I often begin with something that's called a sentence stem. I start a sentence and let the participants complete it. This morning, if I were to ask you to complete this sentence, what would you say? "Happy are those who...." What would you use to complete the thought? Happy are those who have lots of money and can go anywhere, do anything, have anything they want? Happy are those who are successful and well acclaimed in their businesses or professions? Happy are those who are healthy, or those who have good marriages, or who have perfect children? What is happiness? The reality is that is happiness in the world’s eyes. Today we are going to talk about happiness in the eyes of God. We are going to look at the text of Jesus’ sermon on the mount. Jesus has gathered his disciples, and in Matthew he takes this opportunity to teach them. A rabbi teaches while sitting down. Scripture says that Jesus went up on the mountain and taught. We cant tell whether he was talking to just the twelve, or if he was talking before a large crowd. But we do know that he was teaching the secrets to a happy life. Jesus came preaching that he might defeat all ignorance, he came teaching that he might defeat all misunderstandings. He came healing that he might defeat all pain. We, too, must proclaim our certainties; we, too, must be ready to explain our faith; we, too, must turn the ideal into action and into deeds. The Sermon on the Mount Now scholars don’t believe actually this was one sermon. It is much too dense. Scholars believe that this was Matthew’s way of summarizing all of the teachings of Jesus. Jesus Christ also once set down eight principles for the measure of a person. His standards stand in stark contrast to the aforementioned. There would appear to be a wide gulf between the popular image of the successful person and what God sees as the successful person. Jesus encourages us to be humble, to hunger for righteousness, to be merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, to endure suffering, to be encouraged when we are down and to give ourselves permission to mourn our losses. If we were to look at each of the beautitudes, each deserve a sermon within themselves. But today I want to talk about happiness. Funny things about that word happiness. The first syllable - hap means to achieve something by luck or by chance. We are happy according to our lot in life, we hang tend to hang our happiness on things that are external, and most of the time are beyond our control. We get attached to them by chance, and it is by chance that we keep them, and it is by chance that they make us happy – and yet we continue to seek this thing called happiness. If you are not happy without it, you wont be happy with it In the movie, Cool Runnings, John Candy played a former American gold medallist who became coach to the Jamaican bobsled team. As the story evolves, the coach's dark history comes out. After his gold medal performance, his competitors discover that he broke the rules by weighting the U.S. sled. By doing so, he brought ppiidisgrace to himself and to his team. One of the Jamaican bobsledders didn't understand why someone who'd already won a medal would cheat, so he asked Candy to explain. The coach said, "I had to win, but I learned something. If you are not happy without a gold medal, you won't be happy with it."2 Markarios Interestingly – Matthew does not use the word happy – he used that word blessed. Personally, I think that the word blessed, is just as misunderstood – but that is a sermon within itself. The word that is used in Matthew is actually – markarios – which literally means the happiness of the Gods. And the point is that the happiness of the world is not the happiness of God. Happiness of the world is based on external things which we have no control over. So the happiness of the Gods must be the joy that we have inside – right? Well actually that is wrong. The happiness of the Gods is not about what you have in your heart. It is about how your heart reacts to God. Jesus is trying to help us to understand that the only true way to be happy is to have a relationship with God. We all go through life, we all have feelings, the things that happen in life affect us all. But do we respond to those things according to how we feel, or according to the word of God? It is not what we want in life, it is what God wants. You can only be happy in your relationship with God The whole point of the sermon on the mount is Jesus is teaching us what it means to believe in the promises of God. What makes you a Christian is how you use these principles – hunger, mercy, peace, humility – in your life. Life is not easy for any of us. We all feel anger, hurt, pain, suffering and struggles. But when we experience those things how do you respond? Do you respond to pain with revenge or mercy? With hatred or peace? With righteousness or with what others deserve? When you respond to life with revenge, anger, and hatred – do you really find happiness – or more pain? Jesus wants us to know that blessed are those who follow the ways of God – even in a difficult situation. Upside down glasses In the 1800’s there was a scientist who invented upside down glasses. When he put them on, everything in the world was upside down. For awhile, whenever he put them on, he was disoriented. But after 5 days, he adjusted and the world made perfect sense upside down. The mind has a way of doing that for us. Of making us comfortable in upside down situations. No one has ever been able to recreate his experiment. The good news is that there was another man who was able to turn our perspective of the world upside down. Jesus reversed the values of the world – he said blessed are those who the world considers unblessed – the poor, the vulnerable, the powerless. It all boils down to the power of mercy. Look at your life, where would you be without the God’s mercy in your life? God’s mercy covers all sins. The message for us is that in an upside down, topsy turvy world we all have a choice. We can seek our happiness in the world or in God. Said the wealthy woman to the disabled young man at the door, sure I will buy your magazine to help you through college. Possibly by education you’ll overcome your condition, although I’m sure it colors everything that you do. Yes maam it does, but I get to choose the color. (Gary Carver). No matter what it is that colors your life – God lets you choose the color. You can chooses to blessed. Let us pray….. Object: An ad in the daily newspaper that offers a reward for return of a pet. Good morning, boys and girls. How many of you have ever received a reward for doing something? (Let them answer.) Was it for something good or was it for doing something bad? (Let them answer.) It was for doing something good. That's interesting. When you do something especially good you receive a reward. You don't get a reward for just doing good, but when it is special, you may get a reward. I have with me this morning a bit of our town's newspaper that talks about a reward for finding a pet. Someone lost their pet and they called the newspaper to have them put this note in that said this, "Reward: Lost dog. German Shepherd, answers to name of Pal, grey and black color. Please call 229-1787." Someone lost a very nice dog and they want their pet back and are willing to give a reward to anyone who finds him and calls them about the dog. If you found the dog and called them, they would give you a reward. It might be money or something else nice that you would really like. People give rewards for helping them or for doing things that they need to have done. I hope that someone finds Pal and calls them at the number in the paper. Jesus talked about rewards also. One day he was preaching to a lot of people, and he told them what it was like to be a Christian and follow him. It wasn't easy. As a matter of fact, he warned the people that to follow him would be very difficult, but he said it was worth it. Jesus told them to follow his teachings and the reward would be given to them in heaven. That meant that it had to be good. The same thing is true for us today. We are also asked to follow Jesus and to do the things that he wants us to do. It may not be easy. It will probably be hard, but it is worth it. Our reward is also in heaven and is part of the promise that Jesus made to us. I know that Jesus will keep his promise and give us our reward, because he has kept all of his other promises. I believe that someone who lost his dog will give me the reward if I find him. If I believe that people will keep promises and give rewards, then I know that God will do the same and even better. The next time that you hear about a reward, I want you to think about the time you heard that Jesus also gives rewards; only the reward that we are going to get is a reward when we live in heaven. Amen. THE LOVE ME NOT Dostoevsky tells the story of a woman who found herself in hell and felt she did not belong there. She could not bear the suffering and cried out in agony for the mercy of God. God listened and was moved with pity and so He said to her: "If you can remember one good deed that you did in your lifetime, I will help you." Wracking her brain, she remembered that once she had given an onion to a starving neighbor. So, God produced the onion complete with stem. The woman grabbed the onion, and God began to pull her up and out of hell. But others, damned with her, began to grab hold of the woman's skirts to be lifted out, too. The stem of the onion held and would have saved them all but the woman began to kick and scream for them to let go. Thrashing about trying to dislodge her friends was too much for the onion and the stem snapped, plunging them all back into the depths of hell. That woman wanted to be saved... she just didn't care whether anybody else was or not. And that was because she was a selfish, self-centered... "Love me not". (From a sermon by Jeff Strite, Love Me Nots, 2/21/2011) Happiness Dr. Viktor Frankl, author of the book "Man's Search for Meaning," was imprisoned by the Nazis in WWII because he was a Jew. His wife, his children, and his parents were all killed in the holocaust. The Gestapo made him strip. He stood there totally naked. As they cut away his wedding band, Viktor said to himself, "You can take my wife, you can take away my children, you can strip me of my clothes and my freedom, but there is one thing no person can ever take away from me -- and that is my freedom to choose how I will react to what happens to me!" Even under the most difficult of circumstances, happiness is a choice which transforms our tragedies into triumph. James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited, Tyndale, 1988, p. 278. Getting Under Someone’s Skin In the original Aramaic which Jesus spoke, the word "merciful" means literally "to get under someone's skin." It means to wear his skin, as it were; to see life from his perspective, to stand in his shoes. It means more than sympathy; it means active empathy or merciful understanding. Let me illustrate. A prominent minister was holding a weekend seminar at Lake Junaluska, North Carolina, several years ago. He kept noticing a man in the front row nodding sleepily. This aggravated the speaker. Preachers don't like for folks to go to sleep on them. We don't have that problem here since we armed the ushers with those 36-foot extendable fishing rods so they can tap any nodding worshipper on the head. The speaker at Junaluska though to himself: Wonder why the man didn't stay home if he couldn't stay awake? During the lunch break, a woman approached the speaker and said, "Sir, let me apologize for my husband's drowsiness. He is undergoing chemotherapy. The doctors have given him a medication to control the side-effects, but it makes him very sleepy. I tried to persuade him to stay home today, but he said, "I must go as long as I'm able. I never know when I will no longer be able to gather with God's people." Suddenly that speaker's attitude toward the drowsy man was transformed. Why? The wife had enabled him to get under the skin of her husband and really understand him. That is the quality of mercy. Bill Bouknight, Collected Sermons, www.Sermons.com THE DEVIL'S BEATITUDES 1. Blessed are those who are too tired, too busy, too distracted to spend even an hour once a week with their fellow Christians – they are my best workers. 2. Blessed are those Christians who wait to be asked and expect to be thanked -- I can use them. 3. Blessed are the touchy who stop going to church –for they are my missionaries. 4. Blessed are the trouble makers – for they shall be called my children. 5. Blessed are the complainers –for their complaints are music to my ears. 6. Blessed are those who keep a list of the preachers mistakes -- for they get nothing out of his sermons. 7. Blessed is the church member who expects to be invited to his own church – for he is a part of the problem instead of the solution. 8. Blessed are those who gossip -- for they shall cause strife and divisions that please me. 9. Blessed are those who are easily offended -- for they will soon get angry and quit. 10. Blessed are those who do not give an offering to carry on God’s work – for in stealing from God you steal for me. 11. Blessed is he who professes to love God but hates his brother and sister -- for he shall be with me forever. 12. Blessed are you who, when you hear this, think the preacher is talking about someone other than you– for I’ve got you right where I want you. Jesus came preaching that he might defeat all ignorance, he came teaching that he might defeat all misunderstandings. He came healing that he might defeat all pain. We, too, must proclaim our certainties; we, too, must be ready to explain our faith; we, too, must turn the ideal into action and into deeds.

Follow Jesus

January 26, 2014 Psalm 27:1, 4-9 Matthew 4:12-23 “Follow Jesus” Third Sunday of Epiphany Year A Tools of the Trade I think that we all have them – for me it is pens. I have collections of pens all over the place at home and at church. As a writer, I never want to be caught anywhere without a pen. For me they are the tools of the trade. For a carpenter it might be tools, for a crafter it might be yarn, for a teacher it might be books. Tools of the trade are more than just tools, the represent our identity, our sense of being. You never lend your tools to other people – they have to get their own, you keep them in a place where you can get to them when you need them, and you never get rid of them, no matter what you hold onto them. For Peter, Andrew, James and John their tools of the trade would have been their nets. As a fisherman, a net was something that you held onto for dear life – because it was your life. But one day a strange man walks by and makes an even stranger request – follow me – and just like that, they give up their nets, their identity, their family and everything else. The bible never says if Jesus knew them ahead of time, it never tells us what it going on in their lives at the time, it doesn’t even tell us if Jesus had to say anything else to convince them. But it does tell us that they did walk away from their lives and follow Jesus to become fishers of men. Jesus tools of the trade were his relationships- his connections to the hearts of people. The message of Matthew is to help us to understand that the Kingdom of God is at hand. Jesus is trying to help us to see the kingdom and to see clearly that God is in our midst. What is so important that these men would just walk away from their lives? The promises of God – light, salvation, a stronghold. They had a chance to become disciples to the most distinguished teacher of all of the world – the Son of God. But at that moment none of that was obvious to them – they were just following the voice of God. Rob Bell is a pastor from Michigan. In one of his sermons, he talks about what it takes to become a disciple of a dinstinguished disciple. You were expected to start studying the bible at age six, and work at remembering it my heart. Only the best and brightest students were invited by a rabbi to study. There were very few who made the cut. These men were adults who had gotten into their family trade. So they weren’t the best of the best – and yet Jesus saw something in them that would make then disciples- they were willing to follow when asked, just because they were asked. In John 15:16 jesus explains 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last— We can be grateful that Jesus is still choosing disciples – he chose you and me so that we can bear fruit. He wants us to be fishers of men – to develop relationships, to show love, to spread the world – that the kingdom of God is at hand – and God is still looking for people to come and follow him. Modern Disciples as fishers of men I think that sometime we have lost sight of what it means to follow Jesus. We follow ourselves, but we don’t invite others to follow. We are not fishers of men. I think that what we don’t realize is that Christ is not asking us as disciples to do anything that he did not do himself. We focus on the story of how the disciples dropped everything. But we don’t realize that Jesus did the same before. He was born in Nazareth, his family trade was carpentry. And he left all of that behind and moved to Capernaum in order to be by the sea – what did he know about fishing? Only what God taught him. Giving up today for tomorrow I often wonder, how many of us as modern disciples are willing to give up who we are today in order to become who we need to be tomorrow. We are too busy holding onto who we are today for dear life, to even listen to what God is telling us about the future. Over the weekend, I have been thinking about how I keep holding onto a lot of activities, and tools, and my understanding of life. When I have been doing one thing for awhile, and this year I am not asked to repeat that activitiy. I feel like a failure. But if I keep holding on the old activities, there is no space to get new activities. If I am holding on to the past for dear life, then how is the future ever going to seep through? Repent! A Whole New World Is Headed Straight at You! "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near!" That is what Jesus says (plagiarizing his cousin John) in Matthew 4:17. In his wonderful commentary on Matthew, Frederick Dale Bruner paraphrases this, "Move, because here comes the whole new world of God!" The verb translated as "is near" is the same word Jesus uses later in Matthew when he sees Judas in Gethsemane and says, "Here comes my betrayer." So when Jesus says in verse 17 that the kingdom of heaven "is near," he means it's coming straight at you! If you're crossing a street and see a garbage truck barreling down on you, you may well say, "Hey, look out!" (or words to that effect). Jesus' words have that same urgency. "Look out! Move! A whole new world is headed straight at you!" As Bruner says, every word that comes from Jesus is nuclear. These words are urgent and the implications of this kingdom's approach are immediate. If someone yells "Watch out!" when you're crossing a street but then you just stand there, something is going to happen to you and it's probably not going to be good. Jesus' point is the same: you can't hear him tell you that the kingdom is approaching and then just stand there like a statue with your hands in your pockets. You need to repent, literally to turn around, so that you're ready to embrace this kingdom, so that you can hop onto the kingdom instead of getting crushed by it as it rolls right over you. Scott E. Hoezee, Comments and Observations The kingdom of God is near. They say that Psalm 27 is David’s prayer while he was trying to escape the wrath of Saul. His prayer was that God would be with him all of the time. Verse 1 says the Lord is my light and my salvation. If I have God them whom shall I fear. Verse 4 says that I will ask to live in the house of the Lord forever. – the house of the lord is not in heaven – but here in earth. They say that this is a psalm for a funeral – but it is a psalm for life. Life in the house of the lord is living in Christ, with Christ, for Christ, under the protection of Christ. As long as we have Christ, what do we have to fear? LUTHER ON FEAR Martin Luther made this interesting observation in his Table Talk: "God and the devil take opposite tactics in regard to fear. The Lord first allows us to become afraid, that he might relieve our fears and comfort us. The devil, on the other hand, first makes us feel secure in our pride and sins, that we might later be overwhelmed with fear and despair." Source: From a sermon by Anthony Zibolski, "Overcoming fear and anxiety" 2/20/2009 As disciples we have to tell others that the kingdom of God is at hand. Turning Toward the Light A little boy named Bobby entered his first science fair in second grade. Because his Mom has a green thumb, they decided to experiment with the growth of plants. He took two small green plants and placed one on a sunny windowsill and the other in a cardboard box. After a couple of weeks, Bobby checked on the two plants. The one on the windowsill had grown a couple of inches and had vibrant green leaves. The one in the box had actually grown a bit, but it had lost all of its green color, becoming almost white and its leaves drooping. Thinking that the plant might die, Bobby cut a hole in one side of the box, like this, and set the box, with the plant inside, by the windowsill … with the hole facing toward the incoming light. Well you know what happened … but Bobby was so excited by this discovery! Yes, over the course of a few weeks, the plant began to grow out through the hole! And, a couple of weeks later, it turned to grow up toward the light and even blossomed! The plant that had been in gloomy darkness … and was all but dead … had seen a great light, it turned toward that light and blossomed! Well, Matthew wrote … after the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus Christ … and therefore with the full realization of who this man of God was … he wrote that the Light had certainly dawned on the people by the sea, the kingdom of heaven had definitely come near; it had dawned and come near in the person of Jesus Christ … in the personified love and power of God that makes people … different … alive! Robert K. Schneider, Follow the Maker. Adapted by Brett Blair,www.Sermons.com If you have truly seen the light – how hard is it to help others to see the light for themselves. We have to provide a space for others to see that life is so much better in the light of Christ. Commentary Jesus lived three years with his disciples. They went everywhere together and did everything together. They ate, slept, and breathed the life of Jesus and yet it was difficult for them to make the transition in their minds from a Messiah who would be a mighty King of Jews to a Messiah that would die for the sins of mankind. But Jesus never wavered in his mission. Throughout his entire ministry among the people and his training of the disciples he held in his heart this hope: That Peter along with the rest of his disciples would lose their earthly ambitions and become feeders of sheep--fishers of men. The very first words of Jesus when he and Peter met at the waters was, "Follow me, and I will make you a fisher of men." His very last words to Peter, again down at the waters of the Sea of Galilee, and after his resurrection, were, "Feed my sheep, Follow me." Brett Blair, www.Sermons.com Peter understood the invitation to salvation in his life and in others – what about you? Let us pray….Amen. Fishers Of Men by Mark A. Hultquist Passage: Matthew 4:18-22 • Lectionary: Epiphany 3 Item 1 of 21 | Back to Results Text: Matthew 4:18-20 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him. Materials: A stick with a string and fishing hook attached and a regular fishing pole and tackle box filled with supplies. Message: Do any of you want to go fishing? When I was growing up my dad would take me fishing in two different places. The first was a lake where my uncle had a cabin. We would fish on Saturday mornings and catch little sunfish and other kinds of fish, all very small. But in the summers we would go deep sea fishing in the ocean and then we would catch the bigger fish - haddock and cod and sometimes even sharks! One of the things you learn very quickly when you go fishing is that you have to use different kinds of equipment, depending on the type of fish you want to catch. If I wanted to go fishing today and all I had was this stick with a string and hook on the end, do you think I would be very successful? I might do okay in a small pond trying to catch those sunfish, but that is about the best I could do. So if I wanted to go after the big ones, what would I have to do? Right! I would need a better fishing pole, and the right kind of lures to attract the fish. With all the right equipment I would have a much better chance! One day when Jesus was walking along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers who were fishermen, Peter and Andrew. He said to them, "I will make you fishers of men!" Jesus meant he would teach them to tell people about how great God is and how His love can change their lives! They followed Jesus for three years to learn how to do that. The Bible also says that you and I are called to be fishers of people. That means we also need to learn how to tell others about God. In order to do that we need to be growing in our faith. If the most we can say about God is that He exists, we will not catch many fish. However, if we spend time learning about God, and growing in our faith so that people see Jesus in our lives, then we are like this kind of fisherman who is ready for whatever might come along. We will be prepared to answer people's questions about God and to reach them where they are, so they can come to know Christ. God wants to make us into that kind of fishers of men! FROM A MUSTARD SEED, Mark A. Hultquist, CSS Publishing Company, 1996, 0-7880-0847-1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow Me There was a field covered with freshly fallen snow. A father and a son enter the field. As they walk across the field, you notice that the father pays no particular attention to where he is going, but his son, on the other hand, follows directly behind, making a special effort to step in his father’s footprints. After the two have crossed the field, you notice that there is only one set of tracks visible in the field, although two had walked across it. The Christian life is that way. In our daily walk we ought to be following Christ's example. Whether in times of suffering, sorrow or need, whether in times of health, joy, or abundance--if someone were to observe the snow-covered fields of your life, would there be one set of tracks, those of Christ? Or would there be two sets, one belonging to Christ and the other distinctly yours? Michael Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1993, p.53. Adapted _______________________ A Moment of Decision In his commentary William Barclay notes the significance of Jesus' move from Nazareth to Capernaum. He says, “There was a kind of symbolic finality in that move. In that moment Jesus left his home never again to return to live in it. It is as if he shut the door that lay behind him before he opened the door that stood in front of him. It was the clean cut between the old and the new. One chapter was ended and another had begun. Into life there come these moments of decision. It is always better to meet them with an even surgical cut than to vacillate undecided between two courses of action.” William Barclay Recently, I was listening to a teacher by the name of Rob Bell and he spoke on the selecting process that Rabbis would use to choose their disciples. At the Age of 6, children would begin to learn the Torah, this training was called Bat cipher, from 8 to 10 they would have the torah by heart, memorized, (Gen – Deu) by the end of bat-cipher, most kids would go and learn their family trade, but the best of the best would advance to the next level, the ones with the most natural ability would then memorize (Gen to Mal), after this the best of the best of the best would then apply to a rabbi to become his disciple. A disciple does not just want to know what his Rabbi knows, but he wants to be like his rabbi, and do what his rabbi does. Different rabbis had different sets of interpretations, which were called a Rabbis’ yoke. So you would then apply to the rabbi, the rabbi would grill you, the rabbi wanted to know if this kid can do what I can do, can he spread my yoke, but after the rabbi grills you, he might say you love god and knows the torah, but he is not good, then he would say go learn your family business, but if the rabbi thought this kid has what it takes, he is the best of the best of the best, the rabbi would then say come follow me, you would then leave your family, friends and your synagogue and village and you would devote your entire life to being like your rabbi, learning to do what your rabbi does, this is what it means to be a disciple. All this has huge implications to Jesus. In the gospels, we see Jesus calling Peter and Andrew to come and follow him. If they are fishermen then they are not following another rabbi. That means that they are not the best of the best. The Bible says, they dropped their nets and followed after Jesus. Of course they would have done that because in those days rabbis were the most honored and respected people. Picture this, Jesus, a Rabbi, is walking along the beach and says come and follow me. What He is really saying, you can do what I can do, you can be like me, then the story continues, with the men fishing with their fathers That means they are learning there families business and that means they did not make the cut, they were not considered the best of the best to any other rabbis. But Jesus tells them that He chooses them and they did not choose Him (john 15). A rabbi chooses his disciples on the basis that they have the potential to be like him. God believes in us, you know. The question is what about Jesus’ faith in us, He must have faith in us because he tells us to go and make more disciples, what if He actually believes that we can be like Him and live like Him. Jesus has faith that you can follow him and be like him, he believes it and that is what the foundation of our calling should be based on. May you believe in God and may you come to see that God believes in you. That is, why He chose you! A. Dr. Karl Menninger, a world-famous psychiatrist, was answering questions after giving a lecture on mental health when one person asked, “What would you advice someone to do if he felt a nervous breakdown coming on?” Most people expected the doctor to say, “Consult a psychiatrist.” Instead he said, “Lock up your house, go across the railroad tracks, find someone in need, and do something to help that person.” B. this psychiatrist knows that those who serve others have less mental and psychological problems. The best way to bring on a heart attach or a mental, emotional breakdown is to think about yourself all the time.