Reflections of a Renaissance Geek

And You Thought Listening Was Hard!

2011-03-20T22:41:00.000-04:00

This is the most recent sermon while covering for our pastor at Exley UMC in Wilson, NY. It was delivered on March 20, 2011.

The reading was John 3:1-18 and Genesis 12:1-4a.

Two weeks I ago talked about Transfiguration Sunday and the voice of God saying, “Listen to Him.” I talked about how difficult it was to listen to what Jesus tells us to do. It’s difficult to do those things because they’re not easy. This morning we hear of the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, in John chapter 3, starting with verses 1 through 8.

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

In this passage, Jesus talks about being “born again.” This is a phrase that is thrown about a lot in Christian circles, many using it as an adjective phrase, “I’m a born again Christian.” This strikes me as a case of using a phrase because it sounds good. It’s true, too.... but every Christian, by definition, must be born again.

When I first read the passage I took the “be born again” to be baptism. In reading on, though, it’s much more than that. Baptism is indeed the overall theme of the passage, when Jesus makes reference to being, “born of water.” That isn’t where the sentence ends though, he goes onto say, “and the Spirit.”

When we are born, we receive physical life. When we are born again, or to use John Wesley’s terms, when we have a “new birth” in the Spirit, we receive life in the Spirit. The apostle Paul wrote about this spiritual birth. He said, "Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” It is indeed a radical change, and one that can be hard for a person to accept and acknowledge.

Being born again is so much more than baptism. For many in this church, baptism happened as an infant. Because of my own background, I can’t speak to those who are baptised as children, but it is my understanding that they generally go through a confirmation of their faith with the guidance of a pastor that is designed to. For those of us who weren’t baptised as an infant, baptism was a choice made, “an outward expression of an inward decision.”

Making the decision, either during a confirmation class or elsewhere, is not an easy thing. It means so much to say those words, to understand them, to embrace them, and to let go. That’s really what we have to do - to let go of our self and hand it over to Jesus. To say those words, that prayer, admitting that we are sinners, asking for forgiveness, repenting of them and acknowledging that selfless act that Jesus did, to ask for the help to leave the old self behind and become a new creature. That is a monumental thing to do.

It was something that Nicodemus could not do, he even asked, “How can this be?” Jesus answers him:

“You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.

Jesus tells Nicodemus point blank where he stands when it comes to the Kingdom of God, and it’s not on the best of places. For this pharisee, Jesus was telling him to make a leap of faith. He was saying, “you think you know all the answers? Here’s what you really have to do.” That something was almost as hard as what God told Abram to do in Genesis 12:

The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

“I will make you into a great nation,
   and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
   and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
   and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
   will be blessed through you.”

Leaving his father’s household, his place of comfort, his place of strength, his place in the world, was no easy concept. The text doesn’t provide any kind of time-line but I can almost imagine the arguments that flared up in that family compound when the subject was brought up. Eventually Abram went, took his family and became Abraham, father of the Hebrew and and Arab peoples.

Both passages today have a destination and a mission. God’s directive to Abram led to the founding of nations on earth that exalt God. Jesus’s directive to be born again leads us to the Kingdom of God. Most of the Jews of His time weren’t ready for that kind of change. They thought that the Messiah was coming to free them from the bondage of Rome, not the bondage of their own sins.

What we constantly struggle with as Christians is … being Christian. As I said last week, “listening to Jesus is not easy. He tells us to do things, things that are uncomfortable like reaching out to the poor and needy. He tells us to do things that are unpopular, like standing up for our faith and His teachings. Things that do more than push us out of our comfort zone, like talking about His love to people don’t know. He tells us to do things that might put us in danger, like going out on mission trips to share His love.”

Before we have to face any of those problems, before it becomes a hardship for any one of us, we have to do something.

We’re not Christian just because we come to a church. Anyone can walk through those doors and sit in these pews. Doing that means someone is willing to listen, sometimes looking for answers but at the least desiring to hear a comforting word. We’re not Christian just because we do good deeds. Anyone can volunteer at a food line, work at a shelter or help clean up and rebuild from a disaster. Doing that means that someone has compassion and a desire to help others.

We are Christian because we made an inward decision. We had to be born again. We had to say that prayer and either confirm our infant baptism or be baptised as an adult. Making the decision, being baptised, making the inward change, being born again is required. That above all else is clear.

Then, we have to listen more. We come to church to be a part of a community of people that have made that decision too. As a congregation, part of our calling is to help each other, to support and, where needed, correct. We are also supposed to reach out to our community, providing whatever we can to help those around us, to share the love of God and the Gospel through our words and our deeds.

Listening is hard. Doing is even harder, but that’s what Jesus tells us to do. We just have to remember, when things seem impossible, the words of Paul in his letter to the Phillipians, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

Listen

2011-03-20T22:38:00.000-04:00

This sermon was delivered at Exley United Methodist Church in Wilson, Ny on March 6, 2011.

There is a radio commercial that many of you will remember. “When E. F. Hutton speaks, people listen.” This morning we have to think about the question, when God talks, do we listen? It’s a serious question, and one that we always hope the answer for is a resounding, “yes!”

Today is Transfiguration Sunday, the last Sunday before Lent. We celebrate this now precisely as a reminder that the one who leads us through the coming season of penitence and preparation is preparing us to participate in such glory with him both now and at his second coming. Hear the recounting of these events from Matthew:

After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

While he was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”

When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified. 7 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
The Transfiguration is moment when the disciples get a glimpse of what the Kingdom of Heaven will be like. Jesus, changed, speaks with two important of the past. Moses, the giver of the Law, and Elijah, a mighty prophet of God. This is enough to encourage Peter to suggest building a monument to the event. Then, even more amazingly, God spoke directly to the group and said, “Listen to Him.”

I want to go back to my question. Do Christians truly listen to God all the time? Looking at the world today, I think the answer would be an underwhelming, “kinda.” While He doesn’t come out and boom from the sky, God still speaks to us. The problem is, we mere humans are flesh. We have made it too easy to postpone God’s Will about as much as we put off writing our own.

Today we put our attention on work and play and don’t work on listening to God. Even worse, with technology, our attention is easily overwhelmed. A term you hear is, “information overload.” That used to be a wheelbarrow full of books, now it’s something that can be had by simply paying attention to a screen. Actually, we don’t even need a screen to flood our brain with information. All we have to do is turn on a radio. We hear all kinds of things every day, flooded with news, music and opinions.

Our brain actually tunes out some sounds that we hear often. During a meeting with a client I remarked on a noise that I kept hearing. One of the other people said it was a certain device that always made that noise and then realized that she had not heard it until I said something about it.

Listening in Church can be especially difficult. As my daughter said, “those sermons can go on and on and on.” When I told her I was preaching, it didn’t seem to change anything.

Something I’ve learned is that one way to make sure people hear you is to touch them while you’re talking to them. Sarah has had to remind me of this working with CJ. Even then, it’s difficult to remember to do it. Even though I heard what she said, breaking through the routine is a challenge.

That’s what God is doing here. Rather than talking through a prophet, God puts out His hand and speaks. He tells us to listen.

He tells us to listen to His Son.

But listening to Jesus is not easy. He tells us to do things, things that are uncomfortable like reaching out to the poor and needy. He tells us to do things that are unpopular, like standing up for our faith and His teachings. Things that do more than push us out of our comfort zone, like talking about His love to people don’t know. He tells us to do things that might put us in danger, like going out on mission trips to share His love.

Jesus didn’t tell us to do these things because He thought we’d like them. He told us to do them because it’s what we’re supposed to do. We’re supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves. We are supposed to care for widows and orphans. We are supposed to give of our whole selves.

But like children, we push those things aside and let ourselves be overwhelmed with the rest of the world. Sometimes we plug in the headphones of the modern world and do our best to tune out God’s voice. Other times we try to talk over God, doing our best to put our ideas and our thoughts over what He has directed us to do.

I have to say this: it doesn’t work.

We can try our hardest to block out God. He’s going to get through to us, one way or another. See, God has something that we have very little of, and that’s patience. He keeps on talking, working through those around us and in events of our lives to bring us to Him and to where He wants us to be. It’s a constant process, sometimes painful, sometimes confusing, but it’s His will.

As Christians we are supposed to be followers of Christ, led by His word and His hand. As we enter the season of Lent, we need to push aside those things that we try to hide from God behind. It’s time to listen.

Rules

2011-03-20T22:27:00.000-04:00

I am working on catching up posts with sermons that I've given in the past couple of months. Our pastor has been out for a while and I've been covering the pulpit along with a fellow lay speaker.

This sermon was originally delivered on February 13, 2011 at Exley United Methodist Church in Wilson, Ny.

The reading, referenced in the sermon, is Deuteronomy 30:15-20 and Matthew 5:21-22

In a bit of illustration and irony, Sarah (my wife) gave the children's moment and our son decided to act up during it. I had to carry him to the nursery until she was done.

One of the biggest understatements that I can make this morning is, “parenting isn’t easy.” Humans are equipped with a parental instinct that other of God’s creatures simply don’t have. We care for our young, teaching them, working with them and caring for them. At the same time, we have been gifted with the concept of patience. Parental care goes well beyond the legal age of adulthood, as well. Actually, some parents have had harder times with their children after they left the house!

While our children are under our direct guidance and care, we set rules for them. These can be simple rules, “don’t hit your sister,” manners, “chew with your mouth closed,” and in some cases safety warnings, “don’t put that in your mouth!” As children grow, more rules have to be applied. It is in implementing these rules that patience is tried, pulled, pushed and stretched all the time. Still, we as parents regroup, try to get an accurate read on the situation and, as needed, punish.

Modern thought says that how we parent is based in large part on how we were parented ourselves. While this may be true, I would also suggest that since we are formed in God’s own image, we inherited His parenting methods. Even more, the Bible full of parenting advice and instructions. While modern day parents can take classes, hold group talks or even join online discussion boards, historically it was the extended family that helped new parents mold their children. These days, most families are spread across hundreds or thousands of miles, with a phone call or an email to get advice or give news.

God Himself had a group of people, His chosen people, that he had to remind about the rules. These reminders came through the leaders and the Prophets. This morning’s Old Testament reading is an example of one such reminder from God though the voice of Moses. Hear the word of the Lord from Deuteronomy 30:15-20

30:15 See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity.

30:16 If you obey the commandments of the LORD your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the LORD your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees, and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess.

30:17 But if your heart turns away and you do not hear, but are led astray to bow down to other gods and serve them,

30:18 I declare to you today that you shall perish; you shall not live long in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.

30:19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live,

30:20 loving the LORD your God, obeying him, and holding fast to him; for that means life to you and length of days, so that you may live in the land that the LORD swore to give to your ancestors, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

The word of God - Thanks be to God!

You can hear in Moses’s words God’s parenting method. There is a distinct right and wrong way, and Moses does not try to sugar coat the consequences. God has handed out, “the rules,” in the form of the Law, and Moses was almost pleading with them, trying to convince the Israelites that they had to follow those rules. The core of those rules sits with the Commandments and there were additional “mosaic laws” that covered a wide range of topics, from dietary to sanitary to community to worship. The People of God had to adhere to these laws for fear of isolation from both the community and God.

The amazing thing about God’s grace is that it is endless! The Old Testament tells the history of the People of God and throughout the text, they try His patience time and time again. He makes use of their enemies to remind them of His law. Then He sends Prophets to speak His word to the people, calling them back to His love and His law. In most cases this worked.

And then God sent His Son. The people of Jerusalem had been searching for a Messiah and God provided one. Through the House of David to a young couple, God sent true salvation. He came as a child, as a miracle. He came to teach about God’s meanings behind His law.

During one conversation in Matthew, Jesus is asked by the Pharisees, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

The message of Jesus shows God’s grace for all man, not just the Jews. Certainly He was a Jew himself but he was not a Pharisee and not a Scribe. When we hear Him expand on the law, he is speaking to fellow Jews and therefore expanding on the Law that is part of their heritage. Hear the words of our Saviour taken from Matthew chapter 5:

5:21 "You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, 'You shall not murder'; and 'whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.'

5:22 But I say to you that if you are angry with a brother or sister, you will be liable to judgment;

Jesus goes on to give a number of explanations of the Law, covering items such as wrath, lust and oaths. These readings do not contradict each other, rather they complement each other. Think back to the items pointed out. Jesus was applying the concept of Love to the Commandments, making them more detailed. Ask yourself, how can you be angry with someone and love them as yourself?

How do these rules translate to today, though? In a world filled with a variety of morals or the lack thereof, what is the application of the Law to our Christian community? As gentiles, we are not required to hold to the mosaic laws, rather we must follow the Commandments with an eye to what Jesus says is the most important.

As parents, we are told to train our children in God’s ways. As I said earlier, parenting today is not what it was for earlier generations. We don’t always have the grandparents or great-grandparents around to help. As Christians, though, we have a larger extended family in our church family. The United Methodist text for both dedication and infant baptism include this question, “Will you nurture one another in the Christian faith and life and include these persons now before you in your care?”

During a recent workshop I led, one of the questions was, “what is the mission of any church?” The answer is in Jesus’s words: “Now go and make disciples of all the nations.” This is a mission that happens outside our doors and in, whether we try to do anything or not. We have to remind ourselves that we are, in effect, bibles - not just for our neighbors and friends, but also for our children.

This is not easy for me to say as a parent - because where neighbors and friends see us occasionally, our children see us all the time. That is why we have to be good parents and good children as well. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of prayer to raise a child. God sent His Son to show how much He loved us, and reading the Old Testament you can see how His people pushed their boundaries. We have to raise our children and teach them the best we can, even when we’re ready to pull our hair out.

It’s the law!

Have Fun With the Message!

2010-04-13T08:32:00.000-04:00

This past Sunday I was asked to handle the service at my home church, Exley United Methodist. Being the Sunday after Easter I knew that attendance might be relatively low so I planned out a service based on the concept of "Bright Sunday" or "Holy Humor Sunday." In this post I have put the bulletin and sermon together to give an idea of what the congregation experienced in the order that they did.

I've also made notes and comments - these are going to be marked in parenthesis.

Holy Humor Sunday

aka Bright Sunday

April 11, 2010

Prelude

Call To Worship - Lift Your Voice in Praise

657 This Is the Day

147 All Things Bright and Beautiful

Old Testament Reading - Soul Food

2 Samuel 6:12-23

Offertory - That bill in the bulletin - put it in the plate or put in some of your own.

(There was play money stapled in to the bulletin.)

Offertory Joke

A 50 dollar bill, a 20 dollar bill, and a one dollar bill meet up at the shredder at the end of their lives.

The 50 says, "I've seen the whole world during my lifetime. Why, I've been on cruises in Caribbean, safaris in Africa, and vacations in Europe."

The 20 says, "Well, I've not done quite as well, but I have been to Atlantic City, Disneyland, hundreds of malls and Starbucks."

They both turn to the one dollar bill and ask, "How about you?"

The one, not wanting to be outdone, says, "I've seen the whole country as well. I've been from church to church to church..."

They were quiet for a minute and then the 50 asked, "What's a church?"

Leaning on Jesus – Quartet (yes, we did lean)

Responsive Doxology (Praise)

L: Praise the Lord who reigns above!

P: Praise the Holy God of love, let all His greatness show!

L: Praise Him for His noble deeds!

P: Praise Him for His matchless power!

ALL: Him from whom all good proceeds, let earth and heaven adore!

( I actually forgot about the children's moment at first - the congregation corrected me. While it wasn't planned, it fit with the "mixed up" feeling of the order of service.)

Children's Moment - Hey, Get the Kids In Here!

Children's Message -- Betty Wiltse, our organist, shared a story from when she was first at our church and let her foot hit the pedals on the organ during the time of prayer. When she went to the pastor to apologize he laughed and said, "If I can't keep 'em awake, you can!"

Prayers of the People

A time for silent prayer and meditation

Prayers of the people

A Different Interpretation of Matthew 6:9-13

Our Father in Heaven, let your holy name be known, let your kingdom come, and your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today the bread that we need, and forgive us our wrongs, and OK, we'll forgive those who have done wrong to us too. Do not lead us into trial, but save us from evil. For we want for you alone rule in our hearts; you have power to transform, and in the light of your smile is your glory. Amen.

Response:

641 Fill my Cup, Lord (Led by Quartet)

Hearing the Word – Listen with your ears and your hearts.

Prayer

Sermon: Have Fun With the Message!

Rejoice! We are Easter People, living with the faith and knowledge that not only do we serve a risen savior, but that He has purchased our salvation with his cleansing blood!

Last week we celebrated the mystery of the resurrection. This is not just a time of reflection and remembrance. It is also a time of gladness and joy! We see the joy in John 20:19-20 -

So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side the disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

After the hate and scorn that the disciples and other followers had seen in Jerusalem, they had every right to be afraid! The Jewish establishment had convinced the Romans to crucify Christ. Now they hid, knowing that His body was not in the tomb. Then suddenly He was there. He had risen from the dead and was standing among them. Surprise!

I don't think the translation, "The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord," does justice for their state of mind. The King James simply says, "They were glad." The best phrase would be "overcome with joy." Think back to last week when Sarah read the part of Mary Magdalene - she was barely able to control her emotions. It’s my opinion that this would be a better way to describe what the disciples felt in that room.

We Christians have just celebrated our two most important holidays - Christmas and Easter. This is a time of great rejoicing! Why is it, then, that so many forget this time of joy so quickly? Today I have some observations that I wanted to share from watching Christians over the years, not specifically here at Exley. As a youth I visited many different churches across many denominations. Here are some of the over-reaching stereotypes that I encountered:

The easiest group to pick on, because they're generally not here, are those people who forgot church entirely ... until the next Advent season. They’re on the 2 – 12 plan, coming to church two times a year seems to be enough for them.

One Easter Sunday when I was in the Navy, I was visiting a church and as we were leaving the sanctuary, the preacher said to the man in front of me, "You need to join the Army of the Lord!" The man replied that he was already in the Army of the Lord. When the pastor asked him, "Then why don't I see you except at Christmas and Easter," the man glanced around and said, "I'm in the secret service."

Then we have the people that, while they're here in the flesh, have their head in another dimension. We should lose their attention... right... about... now.

(I had three men in the congregation that had agreed to help me with this. When I said "now" they all started snoring... very loudly)

And yes, there have been times where I have fallen in to that category. I'm not proud to admit that and if I worked hard enough could probably come up with something of a passable excuse. Sometimes people aren't sleeping; they're just not really paying attention to their surroundings.

A great illustration of this group can be made when the Pastor of a church said, "Next week I plan to preach about lying. To help you understand my sermon, I want you all to read Mark 17." The following Sunday, as he prepared to deliver his sermon, the minister asked for a show of hands. He wanted to know how many had read Mark 17. Every hand went up.

The minister simply smiled and said, “Mark only has sixteen chapters.”

Then there is the a group of Christians that, even with the faith and knowledge of a risen Savior and the promise of eternal salvation look like members of the First Church of the Frozen Chosen!

I don't even think sucking lemons gives a person that severe, pained look that this group tends to adopt. It's like someone performed a funny-bone-otomy and gave them a perpetual case of gas in the process. In most cases, they have grown up with a concept that Church is a place to be serious. (in a deeper voice with a completely stone face) "We are Easter people, Rejoice!". I haven’t done much research but I’m sure they draw some of their guidelines from verses like James 4:9:

Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom.

The problem is that some people look at only specific parts of the Bible without reading the book as a whole.

You have to be careful of that, otherwise you end up like the man who decided he was going to pick one verse at random to follow for the day and came up with Matthew 27:5 which says, "Judas went and hanged himself."

Since he wasn’t sure how this verse applied to himself, he flipped to another passage and the Bible fell open to Luke 10:37: "Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise." The man was quite upset and he did not know how he could ever obey that, so he decided to turn to one more place. Again he opened the Bible at random and to his horror his finger fell upon John 13:27: "Then said Jesus unto him, that thou doest, do quickly."

(pause for about a 10 count)

How's everyone doing? Still wondering what's up with the changes in the bulletin order? Let's see, (flip through the bulletin) we've got everything here but... wait... I forgot the time of greeting!

Actually I did it on purpose. I want to have a time of greeting now - but we're going to do it a bit differently. Last week I told everyone that I wanted you to bring a frown, a smile and a joke. Well, as you greet each other, I want each of you to exchange smiles, frowns and jokes. One person try to frown while the other smiles. If you don't have a joke, that's okay.

(This was quite an interesting time. The congregation seemed to enjoy the difference as well as the break in the middle of the sermon. This was also the point in time where the choir came up into the choir loft for the anthem.)

How did that go? A bit different, wasn’t it? How did it feel to have to frown as you greeted someone? How did it feel when the other person was frowning when they shook your hand? We have to remember that feeling and know that sometime's we don't have our best smiley-face on and that’s something we all need to work on.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying we all have to be in "Happy Happy, joy joy" land... just that as Christians we need to work on showing joy our every-day lives too. There is an old axiom that goes, “You may be the only Bible someone ever reads.”

Rejoicing in the Lord is not an easy thing for any of us, and I’m no exception. Ask my family, grumpy is a fairly common description of me.

We do have to remember that it’s something we’re supposed to do! It's not easy, and I'll be the first to tell you that. There are all these different things that happen that make rejoicing seem like more of a chore than a cheer.

The alarm goes off at 5am.
You're running late and the car needs to defrost.
It's your day to take care of dinner and you're running late.
That important phone call doesn't come through.
... because someone else is on the phone.

That’s when it’s hard to rejoice but we're supposed to, during those times as well as the good times. Again, I'm not saying we need to be bouncing off the walls happy but it's difficult to rejoice if you're sleeping or practicing to be Ben Stein's understudy. (In Ben Stein voice) This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. Wow.

Why have I spent so much time talking about the various stereotypes associated with Christians? It boils down to this – we all know that God will use each of His people as He sees fit, right? The problem comes in with the obvious question, how can He use someone that's never here?

I personally had to wake up and start paying attention. Suddenly He's got me off doing things I never would have thought! What does it take to listen to His voice? Is it prayer, song, meditating on His word? Yes, it's that and more.

Do we have to break the stereotype we're in? A-yup. That's a tough thing to do, too. It’s also something that each of us has to go to the Lord and ask for help with. He will help shatter whatever mask or shell we wear as long as we open up enough to give it to Him. You may grumble about the first steps. You can bet that you’re going to need to read your Bible more, take up a daily devotional and possibly participate in things at church more often.

See, there's more that we have to do as Christians. We did not read the entire passage in John 20, though. As we read through the 23rd verse -

So Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained."

And when you couple this with Matthew 28:18-20

And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."

Now the reason for our rejoicing makes more and more sense. It's very difficult to be a witness for Christ when we keep our joy under lock and key. We are Easter people! Rejoice, for He is with us always, to the very end of the age! This is the Good News of Jesus Christ!

Regardless of how much we rejoice, how many jokes we tell and comics we read that is nothing to laugh at.

Let’s pray.

Almost Closing Hymn - Is it Coffee Time Yet?

251 Go, Tell it on the Mountain

(After the hymn I started to go to the choir loft to sing the anthem. Again, the congregation had to remind me that we had the announcements. I guess I managed to mix myself up as well!)

Announcements - 'Cause there's going to be some!

Anthem / Commission - Let the Choir Sing!

Go Out in Joy – Exley Choir

What are y'all sitting 'round here for? It’s coffee time!

The History of Bright Sunday

With origins in the 2nd century, Bright Sunday, or Holy Humor Sunday is celebrated on the Sunday after Easter.

"For centuries in Eastern Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant countries, the week following Easter Sunday, including "Bright Sunday" (the Sunday after Easter), was observed by the faithful as "days of joy and laughter" with parties and picnics to celebrate Jesus' resurrection.

Churchgoers and pastors played practical jokes on each other, drenched each other with water, told jokes, sang, and danced.

The custom of Easter Monday and Bright Sunday celebrations were rooted in the musings of early church theologians (like Augustine, Gregory of Nyssa, and John Chrysostom) that God played a practical joke on the devil by raising Jesus from the dead. Easter was "God's supreme joke played on death." "Risus paschalis - the Easter laugh," the early theologians called it.

The Problem of Politics

2009-08-06T22:31:00.002-04:00

I just have to share an email that I wrote regarding politics in general - we were talking about the whole "report a friend" message that is coming out of the White House and some one asked about the viral emails that are generally more fiction than fact. Here's my reply:

> Is that tactic OK?

Here's the problem with politics - there are those who think it's about people, those who think it's about power, those who think it's all a game and those who pay absolutely no attention. Sadly, while the first of those is *supposed* to be true, the elected officials tend to act like it's the second, the media plays it like it's the third and the majority of the population fall into the last category.

Is the tactic of throwing out bogus stories and sending them via blog posts or emails "OK"? I'll answer with an in-definitive maybe.

Here's why:

If I get an email like the one about Pelosi (which, BTW, I don't recall seeing until tonight) I process the message, check the validity of the contents and decide if it's worth including as content in my show.

80% of it is outright crap
5% of them are worst-case projections of what "could happen" if a particular law or amendment is passed
5% of them are scare-tactics that are too tinfoil-hattish not to see right off the bat
10% of them are actually valid statements

Here's the thing - if every person that falls into that last category I listed before were to actually check out the validity of even the 20% that LOOK feasable, they would be forced out of their bling-infested American Idol/Survivor/Desperate Housewives vicarious lives and understand what's going on around them. Imagine what our political world would be like if 80% of the eligible public voted.

> Disputes on actual legislation are AWESOME. _THAT_ is what we SHOULD be
> doing. And the more light we bring into the actual legislative process, the
> better I personally believe the legislation will be.

There's a statement that I make on my show - most Americans have forgotten how their country runs. For example, the President can boast all he wants about providing funding but unless spending legislation passes the Congress, he's full of hot air. Also, the President can not enter into either a treaty or state of war with
another country without Congressional approval.

The game of Politics is, truly, the best game of plate balancing you've ever seen. On the one hand, a politician must keep the plates that are the constituents happy. This is done mainly by speeches and some trivial legislation. Another plate represents the lobby powers, still strong as ever, that keeps spinning by more legislation, some of it less than trivial. Yet another plate is the political party, in which most of the funding and all of the cross-support happens. With this plate, politicians can help each other out by spinning the plates of their friends. There are more plates but I think you get the picture.

Sadly, most Americans don't get that game. Even those that follow politics don't realize just how much of a balancing game it is. Even though I am a conservative, I understand the need to remain civil when it comes to debates and exchanges... that's part of the reason that when things on this list break down to name-calling I'll either start making jokes, try to bring the conversation back to more civil ground
or just walk away.

As I've said in the past, it's not worth making my lisiopril work harder.

Listen

2009-08-02T11:03:00.003-04:00

This morning at Exley UMC I delivered a sermon titled, "Listen." The bulletin for the service is included at the end of the sermon - it differs a bit from our normal format.

When God created man, he gave us five primary senses - sight, touch, smell, taste and hearing. These work together and let us interact with the world and each other. When one of the senses is missing or inhibited, the others become amplified to compensate.

Sometimes, people develop the ability to selectively turn off a particular sense. I’ve been accused, and even admitted to having, something called selective hearing. It appears that my children have developed that trait as well, especially when it’s time to clean the house or do something else they don’t want to.

The story is told of Franklin Roosevelt, who often endured long receiving lines at the White House. He complained that no one really paid any attention to what was said. One day, during a reception, he decided to try an experiment. To each person who passed down the line and shook his hand, he murmured, "I murdered my grandmother this morning." The guests responded with phrases like, "Marvelous! Keep up the good work. We are proud of you. God bless you, sir." It was not till the end of the line, while greeting the ambassador from Bolivia, that his words were actually heard. Nonplussed, the ambassador leaned over and whispered, "I'm sure she had it coming."

God has also given us the ability to communicate with Him, in prayer and listening to Him. This is a transcendent sense that makes use of our primary senses but also uses our spiritual connection with the Father. It is sad to say that we have also developed the same ability to disconnect those two senses as well.

We speak to God through prayer... we have asked God for many things this morning and many things more before the sun sets. We are told, "pray without ceasing" in first Thessalonians. The sad truth is that few of us, myself included, live up to this directive. We become too busy to pray, too wrapped up in the now and, sadly, too unwilling to let go.

Even when we do pray about things, we rarely take time to listen for a response. It may be because we are afraid of what God will respond with to our prayer. When we pray we have a desired outcome, one that is wholly ours and wholly human. God's answers don't always fall in line with what we want, because His ways are not our ways. One of the most difficult prayers to say and truly mean is, "thy will be done."

This is nothing new - this is why we have hymns like, "Have Thine Own Way" and "Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us." The struggle to submit ourselves to God's will is one that has been going on since the beginning of time and will be going on until Jesus comes again! That's why we sit in our churches, why we read the Bible and, ultimately why we pray!

When we do sit in our churches and read what's been printed in the hymnal or in the bulletin, how many times do we really think about what we're saying to God? This morning's service has been filled with songs of praise and prayer. The readings from the Bible, especially the Psalms, were chosen to be words that we could follow. Do we really pay attention to the words in these things or are we just going through those "church motions?"

Now, I'm not suggesting that any of us are falling asleep in the pew (raises hand) or worrying about fashion faux pas or lunch or even the latest gossip during the sermon. What I'm suggesting is that we are what we are, human. Each and every one of us has a different story, a different situation and a different set of issues. All of that aside, God has brought us here together today so that we can worship Him, praise Him and do so together as a body of believers.

As I said before, we also have a problem listening to Him. That's the other thing that he brings us together for. God speaks to people in many different ways. In the reading from First Kings, God's voice was in the gentle breeze, after the fire and earthquake and raging wind. In Ezekiel 43, we hear the recounting of a vision where he, "saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters." Matthew, in telling about the Transfiguration of the Lord, said that God spoke from a bright cloud.

The wonderful thing is that we have a loving God that is willing to talk directly to us, not just as a nation through a prophet! Putting ourselves at the ready to listen for Him is a different matter entirely.

The physical act of listening, in which the presence of a sound means that someone is trying to talk to us, is easy. Even when the person trying to speak to us is in another room, we will hear at least their voice and strain to understand their words. Sometimes listening for and to God is something like that. We might feel His push in one direction or another and strain to grab at His meaning. At other times, though, listening to God is a lot more difficult.

See, God doesn't always use the same methods to speak to us. Our God is in all things and is all places, so His vehicle of communication can be literally anything. He can use someone's voice, the words to a song, a scene in a movie or TV show... he can even use our own voice! Many times in my own life, God has used my own voice to talk to me. I know it sounds odd but in times when I've needed guidance from Him, my prayers will contain the answers to themselves.

Best of all, God talks to us constantly through His Word. On more than one occasion I have heard the suggestion, "pray with your Bible open." This means to take God's word with you into that quiet place that you pray in and when you think that you are done, look to His word for the answers. They are there, in printed form in every language with more translations that I have fingers and toes to count! All we have to do is open it prayerfully and ask Him to show us where to turn.

And the good news is that He loves us and will show us where to go. Sure, we might not like His answer but he’ll show us sure enough! He loved us enough that He sent His son to come and teach us to pray and then put Himself on the cross to pay for our sins. Now we have to trust Him enough, lay our burdens, fears, worries and tears at His cross and listen for His voice.

Today's bulletin:
We Gather Together to Listen for God, He who Speaks to us in Many Ways

Gathering of God's People
Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
Time of Greeting

Call To Worship
Psalm Reading: Psalm 47:1-4

"Praise To The Lord, the Almighty" 139 vs 1, 5

Psalm Reading: Psalm 47:5-9

Hymn of Confession/Assurance of Pardon
"God of Grace and God of Glory" 577 1, 3, 4

Psalm Reading: Psalm 145:14-21

Hymn of Praise
"Leaning on the Everlasting Arms" 133

Old Testament Reading: Deu 11:18-21

Hymn: "Tell Me The Stories of Jesus" 277

Children's Moment

Time of Prayer

Response 1 Kings 19:11-13

Offering to God, our Tithe and Offering
Offertory "Fairest Lord Jesus" - Elizabeth Humphrey
Doxology
Prayer of Dedication

Hearing the Word
Gospel Reading: Mark 4:9-12
Sermon - Listen

Closing Hymn
"O Jesus, I Have Promised" 396

Taking the Light & Word to the World
Commission & Blessing

New Toy

2009-07-17T10:02:00.001-04:00

I found something that might actually help me make better use of the blog - an offline entry tool that I can actually use! It's called Petrus Blogger, it's a Java based tool that interfaces with a few different platforms.

I'm preaching again on August 2 so I know that I'll at least have a sermon coming then. There's also been some other "things" percolating around that I need to get written down. They're not all on the same subject and I've been bouncing on different items so much that it might take some time to get them written down. I'll post them here when I do though.

Being the Family of Jesus

2009-04-19T15:20:00.002-04:00

I gave this sermon this morning at the Quaker Road UMC in Barker, NY. It was quite a treat to preach there!

Today's Gospel reading comes from the book of Luke, chapter 24 verses 44 through 48:

He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms."
Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.

Thanks be to God for His Word

It's been a wonderful weekend, hasn't it? God has given us warmer temperatures and little to no rain for the last few days. I'm sure a lot of you spent the weekend doing the same thing I did.

Spring. Cleaning.

It wasn’t as horrible a thing as I make that sound. In fact, we got a lot done. In our home, this is a task that is done as a family and for our family. As we cleaned I could not help but think about how God used our actions to help others. See, part of our cleaning includes getting rid of those things that we no longer use or need. Typically we'll put this stuff "to the street."

Now understand, I grew up in Texas. When you put something out for the trash, the only people that picked it up were the trash men. Western New York has this wonderful concept of curbside shopping. Simply put, if you see something on someone's curb that you need or have a use for, you pick it up. I have been amazed at what we've found in this open air market! I'm also amazed at how quickly things we put out disappear. This system of truly free trade has also made its way onto the Internet with the concept of "Free-cycling" and works great in communities throughout the nation.

Last week we celebrated Easter. We have seen the Passion of the Messiah, heard the story of the betrayal, the trial, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. This week we are called to live as the Easter people. As followers of Christ, we are the family of Jesus, brothers and sisters in His flesh. This is because, as Paul says in Galatians, "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise." (Galatians 3:26-28)

In the weeks following Easter we also hear about the appearances of Jesus to the apostles, such as is recounted in today's Gospel reading. In all four gospels, Christ returns to his followers for a time, giving them additional training and encouragement and then sending them out with the command to preach the Good News of repentance and forgiveness of sins in Jesus.

This is not, however, the only thing that his followers were tasked with doing. During his ministry, Jesus also made it clear that his followers were to care for each other and for those who could not care for themselves.

For a time, the early followers in Jerusalem lived out literally the concepts of communal property and support, as illustrated in Acts 4:32-37.

"All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need."

Sounds a little utopian, doesn't it? While this communal living model survived for a while, when the persecutions that Jesus warned the disciples of in Matthew 10 came, it came to an end.

Even though the concept of communal living is foreign to most of us today, Christians are still called on to help each other and the community at large. We do this through a number of different actions, be it by putting things out to the curb, donating them to a Christian thrift shop or giving them to the local church to sell at a bazaar. During these tough economic times, it is only by the generosity of Christian homes that some people are able to furnish homes and clothe themselves.

We also help others indirectly when we pass the offering plate. The United Methodist Church supports missions around the globe and a portion of your tithe is passed on to support these programs. This shared giving is the closest thing that we have to the concept of laying needed money at the feet of the apostles. Like the apostles, the conference distributes this money as God directs them, providing for missions and caring for those who need it.

However, do not mistake our giving and sharing as our only duty in this family. While it is true that we were called on to care for each other as well as widows and orphans, we were also called to do so much more. See, not only are we brothers and sisters in Christ, as Paul says in his letter to the Hebrews:
Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers.
We are brothers and sisters of Christ as well!

What else, then, are we supposed to do in this relationship? Paul gives wise words when he says, "encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you make be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness." We are to support one another spiritually and emotionally as well. This can be done in any number of ways, be it through Sunday school classes, specific groups or special programs. Sometimes, the support we give each other happens outside the walls of the church.

The important thing to keep in mind is that it is not just one person or one group that is charged with doing things. It is all of us. As the song goes, "I am the church, you are the church, we are the church together."

In any church this can be difficult. There are people that are always willing to do something when approached with a request. You can also find a group of people that will do as little as possible. At times God will give someone a push to start something new. Whatever the case may be, as brothers and sisters of Christ we have to recognize the fact that outreach and support are integral to the Christian mission, not just Sunday morning services and Vacation Bible School.

We are also are charged with spreading the Good News of the resurrection and the saving grace of Jesus Christ. Each one of us is given gifts by God for this task. While some may not be comfortable with the concept of direct witnessing, we all have to be aware that we carry His name wherever we go. We are living examples of Christ’s love on earth and as such we should try to treat others with His grace. Whether we are rich or poor, healthy or sick, young or old, we are all walking witnesses.

That is what Jesus said to the apostles, we are witness to His fulfilling of the scriptures. We are His brothers and sisters and as such we are to fulfill his requests. We do this through our giving, our witness and our love. As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. Thanks be to God for His love and the gift of His Son, who binds us as family and calls us His own!

Will you pray with me?
Father God we thank You for Your Eternal love and the saving grace of Your Son. As He said, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him." Thank you for making your home within our hearts and lives. Guide our words and our deeds so that we may be examples of Christian love. Help us to reflect Your love and let your Son’s light show through in our daily lives. In the name of our redeemer we pray, Amen!

Shedding Tears

2009-04-13T09:01:00.003-04:00

It's been a really busy few weeks so between everything I have not had a chance to update this blog. I've posted a few episodes over at the East Coast Conservative Podcast.

When the recent truck bomb exploded in Mosul, Iraq I cringed. One of my friends is there, on the front lines in Mosul. Little did I know how right I was to say a prayer for him. The blast hit the truck that, until a few days ago, he drove. I have been hosting a blog for him and have been amazed at the pictures he's posted there.

Until today, I never thought of them as a historical archive, however I have to link to two photos entries:

http://www.sorgeblog.com/1/2009/03/blog-has-been-slow.cfm?showPhotos=2

http://www.sorgeblog.com/1/2009/04/I-hurt-I-cry-I-feel.cfm?showPhotos=3

Bruce, man, our prayers are with you and the families of your crew.

Last Week's Misery

2009-04-01T09:02:00.003-04:00

this post really should have a subtitle: "Why Regression Testing Saves Hair Follicles"

I work for a company that is in the "PEO" industry (short for Professional Employment Organization). Without making too much of a sales pitch, we are an outsourced HR firm with services including HR consulting, payroll, benefits management and compliance assistance. If you're interested in learning more about our business, leave me a comment.

The software we use to handle about 90% of the business logic is a modified version of Microsoft Dynamics GP. Thanks to the Obama administration's ~~spending bill~~ stimulus package there are a number of items that had to be changed in the software as quickly as possible.

To implement these, the software provider (not Microsoft, the company that distributes the modified version) released a patch. Long story made short, they didn't completely test it and made some design changes under the hood that are still affecting performance. I got to deal with all of these alone, as the day after we applied the patch, my boss went on a week-long vacation to Aruba.

I just have to keep telling myself that he needed it! I was hoping that he would bring back a bottle of rogaine for me though - I know I lost some follicles dealing with things last week!

Sermons Have Been Posted

2009-03-13T21:59:00.001-04:00

Well, I've got all of the sermons that I've written posted, most of them transferred from SermonPractice.org easy enough but they still had to be moved by hand.

I posted them according to their original post date, so you'll need to look in the archives to find them. I hope they are well received!

What's this thing?!?

2009-03-13T16:22:00.001-04:00

Gee, here's a big surprise! I did not even remember creating this blog after my accident and yet I nailed what would happen on the head when I included this in my first post:

"So what am I going to put here? I'm not entirely sure. Maybe I'll use it as a rant point about all the nesw and issues I see.... maybe I'll have to fight to remember to post. We'll have to see!"

Well, I didn't even fight - I completely forgot! Between the time that I created the first blog entry here and this one, 6 years have passed! In that time I've created and dropped a few other entities (hey, at least I'm consistent in my inconsistency) and now have a podcast that has been running for over a year. You can find the most recent posts in the side-bar or you can visit the site at http://www.eastcoastconservative.com (no points if you guess what the subject is).

I updated the title and subtitle of the blog here as well. My ankle has healed (for those that come here late, the title used to be "Oh My Aching Ankle") and only twinges when the weather changes. I've decided to reclaim this blog and start updating it again since my other sites (ithinkitsnifty.com and sermonpractice.org) are no longer running. I'll re-post some stuff from ITIN and SP as well, mainly the things I think are worth keeping.

For now, time to go home and enjoy the weekend! Happy Friday!

Standing Anger on It's Ear

2009-03-08T21:57:00.002-04:00

I gave this sermon earlier this month. It was a very difficult sermon to prepare because God taught me so much in writing it!

Before I begin with the sermon, let me just say that God is most definitely with us! The reading that Marissa read was not actually the one that I had put down (she read John 2:9-13 instead of 1 John 2:9-13a). That reading speaks to today’s message as well as the one from 1 John. Hear now the New Testament reading.

(Reading: 1 John 2:9-13a)

During this Lenten season we are taking the time to examine those things that draw us away from God. We are looking at those nasty things called the “Seven Deadly Sins”. Last week we reviewed those sins and you can see how they cover the cross, obscuring our view of Jesus. Some of them are negative emotions that each and every one of us to feel. So how do they become sin?

One of the reasons that these sins are deadly is because of their base presence in humanity. It is natural for a person to get angry over a situation. It’s hard to contain the pride of an accomplishment. Sometimes it’s really hard to push away from the dinner table, and then there are the times when we don’t want to get out of bed. There are even times when we look at that new car our friend has and want our own new car.

These normal actions and reactions start off as harmless things. They seem innocuous to us, a part of our humanity. Anger is one of those emotions and it’s one that can be difficult to deal with.

Anger is an emotional response to a perceived wrong. It is considered healthy to get angry but unhealthy to stay that way. Unfortunately for us, humanity has a history of not being able to “let it go.” Anger is the starting point for many sins and crimes: hatred, murder, bigotry, assault and wrath. God’s word is full of warnings against anger and stories of righteous and sinful anger. The Bible also shows how God can use anger to humble even a mighty king.

This is the case God sends Nathan to King David’s door after he had Uriah the Hittite killed and took his wife as his bride. The tale Nathan told David angered him so much that he said, “As surely as the Lord lives, the man who did this deserves to die!” (2 Samuel 12:5) Nathan then replied, “you are that man!”

The Bible also records many different accounts of God’s anger. The Israelites didn’t wander in the desert for 40 years just because they didn’t bother to look at a map! They were punished because of their disobedience to God. Numbers 14:18 reads, “The Lord is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished.”

We are also given many warnings against holding on to anger. Listen to the wisdom in the Word of God. Psalm 37:8 – Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret – it leads only to evil. For evil men will be cut off, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. Proverbs 29:11 – A fool gives vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. Ecclesiastes 7:9 – Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. Ephesians 4:26-27 - "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold. James 1:19,20 - My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

Yes, sometimes we do get angry for the right reasons. That's when we see injustice, hurt, despair and loss and work to correct it. Unfortunately, we can also get angry for the wrong reasons. We get angry because we don't get what we want. We get angry when someone else gets what we wanted. In both cases, the same action will free us from sin – give it to God. In the case of injustice, pray for justice … or pray that God use you to be the tool He uses to correct it. If you see loss, pray for what is needed. When our anger is unrighteous, we need to pray for forgiveness and help in understanding the situation.

This is not an easy thing to do in today’s society. Hatred is considered the norm in some situations. Watching TV and movies, one can’t help but see that today’s society accepts our anger and fuels it.

Some times we forget that we do not think like God thinks. We don’t know what His plan is. As with the story of David and Nathan, sometimes our anger is being used to teach us something. As with the story of Balaam and his talking donkey… one that I could not help but hear Eddie Murphy’s voice as the donkey as I read.

God sent an angel to block Balaam’s path because Balaam did not listen to God before he left. God opened the donkey’s eyes and let it see the angel. Three times the donkey saw the angel and moved to miss him, in one case hurting Ballam’s leg. Three times Balaam beat the donkey in anger. Finally God opened the donkey’s mouth and she said, “What have I ever done to you?! Haven’t I always taken you the right way?” Then God opened Balaam’s eyes and let him see the angel. Only then did Balaam realize what God was doing.

Sure, the anger of man is sometimes justified. When someone is willing to address a wrong, there must be something that triggers a response. That trigger is typically anger of some level. It is what some have referred to as the "fire in the belly." The important thing to remember with fire is that if you don't control it you will get burned. When we pen up too much anger we fall into that sin that keeps us from Christ.

Jesus shows and example of righteous anger, just days before he was betrayed. When he discovered the corrupt money changers doing business inside the temple he drove them out, John says with a whip of cords. To these he said, “Is it not written that my house will be called a house of prayer for all nations? You have made it a den of robbers!”

Yet in the Garden of Gethsemane we see anger and God's temperance. At the time of his betrayal there is an amazing scene of anger. On recognizing the betrayal of Jesus, Peter pulls his sword and strikes out, cutting off the ear of the servant of the high priest. In response, Jesus reaches out, picks up the ear and puts it back on, healing the servant's ear. This is a miracle that shows both the healing power of God and the unconditional love of Jesus. This miracle seems lost in the chaos of the Passion but it bears great significance.

Anger is something that collects up in a person like water in a kettle. The first thing that makes us angry puts some water in and turns on the heat. Then every other thing that makes us angry adds more water and more heat. Different people have different boiling points but after a while the only thing that you can have is steam. I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase, “a short fuse.”

When trapped, the only place for pressure to go is out and around. Normally the release of pressure comes out with explosive force. When our anger reaches that point, the anger and rage we release ends up hurting others, typically those we love. We end up taking our anger out on wives, husbands, children and friends.

All of this happens because we did not let God take care of something. All this because we thought we could handle something on our own and failed miserably. Sometimes our outbursts are aimed at ourselves rather than others. Regardless of where the screams are directed, they typically don’t actually do anything to relieve the strain. Worse, they can set examples for young children of what is acceptable and what is not.

But how do we control our anger? What can we do here and now to reduce the pressure?

We put it on the cross. Jesus died for our sins. He came for you and for me to take our anger, our frustration and our anguish and forgive our sins. Only in Christ can our sins be forgiven and our pressures reduced. Whether your anger is righteous or you only think it is, give it to Jesus. Ask Him to use you, not your anger, to right the wrong you see. Most importantly, you have to let it go. A fire can reignite if the embers are not scattered around. That is something most people, myself included, have a hard time doing.

And if you think Jesus doesn’t want it, let us not forget the words He said on the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” At that moment He died for us. At that moment he carried all of our sins to the grave. He left them there on the third day. All we have to do is open our hearts to Him, put our anger on the cross and He will wash us clean. Thanks be to God for the blood of the Lamb who was slain!

All Saints Sunday

2008-11-02T21:53:00.000-05:00

This was a sermon that did not make it on to SermonPractice.org, however I found it in going through my history. It was an odd Sunday because while I delivered the sermon, my pastor was there for communion.
Our New Testament Reading comes from 1 John Chapter 3 and 1 Thessalonians 4.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.

Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

As Pastor Barb has mentioned over the last few weeks, today marks the celebration of All Saints' Day. This is a day when we can make a point to remember the children of God who have gone before us.

The word saint may bring varied pictures to your mind. You may picture someone with a halo over his head, someone who sacrifices her life to help the poor, or someone who was thrown to the lion as a martyr. Thankfully, the New Testament definition of a saint is a bit simpler.

The apostle Paul uses it to refer to groups of believers in different cities, writing to the saints in Ephesus and to the saints in Christ Jesus at Philippi. He does not use the term to refer to marked-out individuals that have achieved a certain standard of holiness. To verify this, you need only read about the problems he confronts in his first letter to the Corinthians, which he addresses to the saints in Christ Jesus and then he rebukes these saints for being mere infants caught up in worldliness a few chapters later.

By this definition, all who are in the faith qualify as saints. In the church today, we tend to look to those who have influenced our Christian walk in this light. This might be a family member, a Sunday school teacher, a church friend or even someone you met once in your life. God can use anyone to deliver His Word.

Let’s not, however, confuse the purpose of today with some kind of strange worship. Today we thank God for sending these people into our lives and into the lives of others. We know that their names are written in His book. We know that they will be among the multitude that praises Him in Revelation 7. This isn’t some kind of ancestor worship as is a part of the teachings of Confucius. Rather, today is a day for recognizing those who God used to touch our lives.
For me, my grandmother was my saint. The last time I wore this suit, it was to celebrate her life and talk about how she shared her testimony with others. As I prepared for this sermon, I couldn’t help but flip to the front of my bible and look at her handwriting, because she got me most of the Bibles that I have today. She taught me the importance of study and the need for salvation.

At her memorial service, each of the grandchildren got up and thanked her for three things. They were all very touching things but I can say that they were only a small portion of what she did in our lives. After we spoke, her pastor of over 40 years got up and said, “If any of you out there ever wonder if it’s worth it, there’s proof that it is!”

So what does one do to be a saint? As I mentioned before, all who are in the faith are saints. That means the first thing you have to be sure of is your salvation. You have to take that step and accept Christ as your Lord. You have to turn yourself over to His will completely. Paul makes that clear in the first verse in First Thessalonians, where he says, “Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.”

A few weeks ago, the choir sang a song that would have fit very well for today’s service. It included the line, “May all who come behind us find us faithful.” This line speaks to the fact that we are supposed to be examples for others in our own lives. We need to have that fire of our own devotions that fills the calling that all Christians have. We are supposed to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ, to share His love with others and to grow ourselves in our worship.
You don’t have to be a preacher to fill this call! You don’t even have to say a word. Christians give their greatest witness through their lives and their actions. Children learn from the actions of their parents. That is why the Proverb says, “Train a child in the way of the Lord, and even when old, they will not stray.” When we are walking around, we may be the only bible someone sees. Some are called by God to reach further, to do more and to help others, but have no doubt that God puts each of us where He wants us. As I said before, God can use anyone to deliver His Word.

It is interesting to note that when John sees the multitude in Revelation, he knows exactly who they are. For most of the rest, he needs help understanding the situation… not so for the multitude. He is even able to identify them to someone else. These people that have passed on will find themselves faithful and sit at the throne of God. While we pray for the return of Jesus, we should also be ready to join that multitude. As the hymn says, “when we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that would be!”

Today, along with thanking God for those saints submitted by you, we are going to celebrate Communion. I would ask that you pay special attention to the words we say and use, as they have changed very little over the decades. We take the bread and wine in the same way and for the same reasons that those who have come before us did.

Keeping in Step With the Spirit

2008-08-03T21:46:00.000-04:00

Keeping in Step With the Spirit

Originally Posted On : August 3, 2008 12:53 PM

Our New Testament reading is Galatians 5:24-25.

Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

For the last 4 weeks we have been discussing the fruits of the spirit as listed in Galatians 5:22 and 23. We have heard about Love, the base fruit and what Jesus calls the greatest of the commandments. We have heard about the other fruits. Joy, which is love triumphing; Peace, which is love resting; Patience is love under the great trials of life; kindness is love under the little trials of life; Goodness is love going forth in action; Faithfulness is love receiving its own. Today we discuss what may seem the two most difficult fruits to taste. Meekness, or gentleness in some translations, is love controlling the passions of the mind. Self-control, also translated as temperance, is love controlling the passions of the body.

In verse 25, Paul utters the phrase, "let us keep in step with the spirit." This is an interesting concept, especially for me. I’ve marched in a lot of parades and when I was in the Navy was even responsible for calling cadence when I was in school. It was an amazing thing to see a line of 100 or more sailors more or less marching, in step and on beat. I don’t think some understand the importance of staying in step though.

When you have a rank of people, that is a group that is formed into a block or line, you want them all to move efficiently. Even more so, you want them to put as little worry into where they are going so they can focus on what they are going to do. This might be playing a musical instrument or it may be getting ready to go into battle. Either way, they should not have to worry about the simple act of walking.

When someone it out of step in a formation, it can be anything from annoying to disastrous. A formation that is truly marching with "precision" won’t stop or turn unless they are told to. If someone is out of step, they will not respond to commands correctly. This may well run the risk of injuring themselves and others if things are tightly spaced. Imagine what would happen if the person in front of me was off in a movement. For those that don’t know, I’m a tuba player. That could be very painful!

The Church has the command of spreading Christ’s love to all. We exist as an organization that helps our fellow Christian handle their problems. There are educational programs and outreach opportunities that our members participate in. In all these things, as Paul says, we should be in step with the Spirit. We have to be open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit when it comes to what we say and do in the name of Jesus. If one of our members falls out of step, we are to correct them gently and help them taste that fruit of the spirit again.

That is one of the reasons that Paul lists both meekness and temperance as fruits of the Spirit. As Christians, we must be humble in our service of the Lord. We cannot boast or brag about what we have done in or for the church. Rather, we take or actions and know that God will reward them. Nobody else need know.

The Bible gives several examples of meekness Jesus himself taught in Luke 6:27-31, that we are to turn the other cheek. "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you.

James speaks of it in his letter, chapter 1 verses 19 through 21. In Peter’s first letter, we get an eyewitness account of how Jesus emulated meekness himself in 1 Peter 2:23-24.

When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.

Peter’s words ring loud in our ears. As an example of how we should live, Jesus gave no retaliation. He suffered and made no threats. Here he was, sinless, Holy, the anointed one, taken to trial. He was beaten for our transgressions and yet he did not even look up with contempt. No where in the Bible do we find Jesus use the phrase, "do you know who I am?" Why not? As James pointed out, "man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." In fact, the words of our Savior on the cross were, "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."

If meekness is love controlling the desires of our mind, temperance is love controlling the desires of our body. The word that Paul uses does not mean self denial, but it does mean tempering the needs of the body with the desires of the Spirit of God. Paul gives another example of self control in Romans 6:12-13:

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness.

The worry expressed here is that we, as sinners, will let our bodies get in the way of our spiritual well being. The kind of sin that Paul refers to here is just what it sounds like. Of the acts of the sinful nature that are listed back in Galatians 5, five of the fourteen are what some people like to refer to as "sins of the flesh." They are actions that place the importance of a physical act in a negative light. The actions put the flesh of self before the Spirit of God. That’s a bad place to be.

Both of these fruits of the spirit are designed to keep us from sin. Sin like what Paul lists just before the fruits of the Spirit starting in verse 19. They are the forces that seem to be under assault by modern society. Meekness is now scorned and self control seems to be laughed at. They run counter to the "if it feels good, do it," mentality some have and even further counter to the modern attitude that tries to assert the will of man over the will of God.

The problem is that the world does not want people to be self controlled! We live in an age where media of all types screams out, "go ahead, it’s okay to do it!" and "nobody’s going to know… and if they do, hey, it’s your right!" Today there are movements that celebrate what Paul directly defines as sinful in verses 19, 20 and 21. You see them on TV, not in the news as a statistical failure but rather in the prime time slots. No longer are things that were considered taboo hidden behind closed doors. They are flaunted on TV sets around the country. Unfortunately for the proponents of such sinful nature, God speaks directly against this time and time again in His Word.

Staying in step, or walking together, as a different translation put it, is also a way to fight the temptations of the world and of Satan. If you are concentrating on the Spirit and focusing on the good fruit that you are given, it is harder for you to be tempted by evil. The longer you work to keep in step with the spirit, the less you have to work at it, too. Those of us that march know how easy it is to fall into step with another member of our group, even if there are only two or three people.

It’s not easy to stay in step with the Spirit. There are temptations around every corner, conversation and TV screen. The Good News is that in Jesus our sinful nature has been crucified! We have been washed clean. As Peter says in his first letter, "For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls." Jesus is our Shepherd, and he displayed all of the fruits of the spirit in such a way as we can only try to emulate. He paid that price on the cross to wash us clean, and He knows that all those who call on His name come to him with issues with their gifts of the Spirit.

As we prepare to take communion this morning, we need to that God that we have salvation in His son. It is because of His sacrifice that we can proclaim the mystery of faith. It is only in His love for us that we are forgiven. Though for us to proclaim that forgiveness, we must first confess our sins to Him and ask him to come into our lives as Lord. We must lay our lives and our sins at the foot of the cross and pray.

Finding Joy in the Good News

2008-06-15T21:44:00.002-04:00

Finding Joy in the Good News

Originally Posted On : June 15, 2008 11:40 AM

This sermon was delivered to Exley United Methodist Church on June 15, 2008.

We know the words of Paul to the Philippians, "Rejoice in the Lord Always and again I say Rejoice!"

God wants us to be Joy filled! Throughout the Bible we see passages instructing us to make a joyful noise to the Lord, rejoice with the saints, be glad in His presence. With the Resurrection of Jesus we can take great joy in the new covenant that is offered to us from God. Jesus taught in parable the stories of how much Heaven rejoices when one accepts Him as savior. Once we do, God watches over us. We are supposed to rejoice in all these things and share our joy with others.

Peter doesn't mince words when it comes to joy. In his first letter to persecuted Christians, he opens with these words:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy became our father again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an incorruptible and undefiled inheritance that doesn't fade away, reserved in Heaven for you, who by the power of God are guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Wherein you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been put to grief in various trials, that the proof of your faith, which is more precious than gold that perishes even though it is tested by fire, may be found to result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ-- whom not having known you love; in whom, though now you don't see him, yet believing, you rejoice greatly with joy unspeakable and full of glory-- receiving the result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

What Great News! Peter's introduction shows the worth of our Joy to God. Joy is literally priceless according to Peter. The word that Peter uses for “more precious” holds the connotation of an family heirloom. It is not something that is to be sold for any value and is something that is given to us by our Father.

Peter's opening continues - Concerning this salvation, the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching for who or what kind of time the Spirit of Christ, which was in them, pointed to, when he predicted the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that would follow them. To them it was revealed, that not to themselves, but to you, they ministered these things, which now have been announced to you through those who preached the Good News to you by the Holy Spirit sent out from heaven; which things angels desire to look into. 1 Peter 1:3-12

This can only make sense, though. As Christians, when we accept Jesus as our Lord, savior and messiah we become children of God. The act of letting Jesus in to our heart changes us. When we open our heart to him, he brings an overflowing cup of grace and mercy, and he expects our joy at that.

We can also be assured that because we are God's, we are protected by Him. I don't need to cite passage after passage of how God cares for His people. The sacrifice that Jesus made provided for all a new covenant that lets all come to the Father. The Call that Jesus gave to all of us is that we are to spread His story, the Gospel, to others and share our joy with them.

In the second chapter of Acts, we see Peter and the other Apostles talking to the crowd and we see an example of how the acceptance of Christ changes lives.

Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"

Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. "For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself."

And with many other words he solemnly testified and kept on exhorting them, saying, "Be saved from this perverse generation!" So then, those who had received his word were baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. Acts 2:37-44

God uses our joy as a part of His witness! The numbers that were added to the church may have caught a fleeting glance or heard rumors about Jesus, but they had not been brought to a point where His message would have touched their lives. The apostles, in their Joy and in their fulfillment of Jesus' commission were sharing the Good News with the people. They taught of God's love and God used them to show his power and majesty.

We're supposed to do the same thing today. When we walk outside these doors we're supposed to show the world how the People of God are supposed to be. All the time. Do we? I certainly don't! We all have bad days, weeks or even months. Because we are flesh we will always tend to do things that are easy. It's the tough things that we avoid. Living a joyful lifestyle is a hard thing to do in today's world.

We let the events of secular society affect our joy, being bombarded with bad news. The economy, criminal acts, unsafe food and unpredictable weather have filled the headlines lately. Young adults in school, whether college or before, are subject to an entertainment industry that focuses entirely on the carnal and openly mocks anything that is moral. I'm sure that if I asked, someone could tell me the names of the twins that Angelina Jolie is expecting and all of the details of money spent. Proponents of sin and immorality are all around us, using movies, TV shows, music and magazines to convince us that their actions are acceptable.

Secular society beats at our senses on a daily basis. We're not supposed to be joyous, we're supposed to be cynical. We're not supposed to share the Gospel with others, we're supposed to accept their "lifestyles." We're not supposed to discipline our children, we're supposed to have a conversation with them. We're not supposed to find joy in the Lord, we're supposed to find happiness with money and purchases.

Joy is so much more than happiness! Happiness is a fleeting thing, a moving target that can never be completely "hit." The joy of the Lord endures forever. Even our most expensive purchases will fall to nothing in the end. It's hard for us to show that joy sometimes. In his letter, Peter acknowledges those trials, those times in our lives when the last thing we want to do is rejoice in what good we have in our lives, those times when the last thing that we want to have is joy.

Think about the passage I read from Peter's letter – "In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith ... may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

We go through trials. We're not joyful. We let the world get to us. But here's the Good News – God is ready for us to come back to Him! Think of the parable of the Prodigal Son that Jesus told in Luke 15. I won't read it since most know it by heart. The younger of two sons wants to go off and enjoy the world. He gets his inheritance from his father and blows it on worldly things. Then life hits him square between the eyes and he's stuck slopping pigs. He comes back to beg his father for a place with the servants. That's not what his father does, though, is it?

"But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him and kissed him." Luke 15: 20

The story goes on, but the illustration is made. We are the son in that story. God is the father. When we turn to Him and away from our pride, He welcomes us back with open arms. As the father in the story says at the end, "we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found!"

This is what we should rejoice in! Acceptance of Jesus brings us salvation, but what is salvation without joy?

I want to try a little test. We all know the words to "Joy, Joy, Joy" right? (sing) "I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart."I want to try two things. First, I want to try singing it with a completely straight face. Try to frown as you sing the song.

(do that)

Now then, let's sing it how it's meant to be sung – with a smile on our face.

(do that)

Feels better, doesn't it? We can't be joyful and negative at the same time. As Jesus said, one cannot serve two masters. Negative emotions can take over a person's life, pushing out all others.

So we know that we're supposed to be joyful. The question is, do we know when to be joyful?

We should rejoice at God's creation. The Hymn of Promise talks about seeds and cocoons and seasons but the proof of God's hand is all around us. Even in the pollen that makes people like me sneeze is something to be joyful about. God made us a wonderful world to live on!

We should rejoice in our own blessings. Even with an economy that is going the wrong way Americans still enjoy privilege beyond the understanding of people in some other countries. If you have a job, rejoice! If you have food in your refrigerator, rejoice! If you have medical insurance or are in good health, rejoice! If you have a roof over your head, rejoice! If you have running water, rejoice! If you have food to eat and a stove to cook on, rejoice! Many things considered essential in our lives are luxury to others. Thank God for what He gives us.

We should rejoice in our trials. As hard as that is to accept, think again on Peter's words. Our trials can be used to test our faith, even by fire. These trials, “may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” They help us to realize the great inheritance, the gift of everlasting life, that God grants us through Jesus.

We should rejoice when another comes to accept Jesus as Lord. More than that, we should rejoice when God gives us the opportunity to share His word with others. The commission did not end with the Apostles. God still wants to increase our numbers, and He wants to do that through us. We are a living witness for Christ, and the world takes its cues from how we act and live.

Showing our joy in public is probably the most difficult thing for Christians to do today. As I mentioned earlier, being spiritual rather than secular is not an easy thing. We have to fight against what society says is “okay” and stand up for what God tells us to do. Sometimes that fight even has to be brought into the church itself.

What's great about rejoicing in God is that He will tell us how to! All we have to do is open our hearts to Him. Joy doesn't always show the same way on every face. God calls us all to serve and many of us do so in different ways. He calls on us to bring him honor and glory and praise and we do that in our own different ways as well. Why should rejoicing be any different? Not everyone sings. Not everyone teaches. Not everyone cooks. We each have a place where God wants us to be to help others. What we must remember is that we are all witnesses, missionaries in our own way. Our joy, our compassion and our love is a reflection of Jesus to the world that does not know Him.

There is a slight change to the bulletin – God decided on a different closing hymn for us today. Instead of 251 we will be singing number 585 – This Little Light of Mine. It is a song that gives good example for what we are supposed to do with the joy that God gives us. We are supposed to let it shine! Our joy is more of a witness of God's love and the Good News of Jesus Christ than any reading or speech given.

The Coming of Christ... More than a Baby in a Cradle

2007-12-08T21:41:00.002-05:00

The Coming of Christ... More than a Baby in a Cradle

Originally Posted On : December 8, 2007 11:58 AM

It's been some time since I've posted anything on this site... I've had a lot of irons in different fires. Things are actually calming down so I'm going to try and pick things up here (and on my other blog sites).

This sermon is the first that I've written solely for the purpose of posting here. It is a practice in itself because I wanted to have something to post within 24 hours of starting - and I managed to do it.

Readings: Romans 15:4-13, Isiah 11:1-4

Readings in-line: 1 Kings 2:4, 1 Kings 8:1-11, 2 Chronicles 7:1-3, 1 Kings 9:2-9, Matthew 1:1-17, Isiah 11:4-5

In Romans chapter 15, Paul gives us a profound truth: "Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope." The chapter continues on, explaining why Gentiles, to whom Paul was a missionary for Christ, were free to worship God through Jesus Christ. He gives two examples of how the Messiah would give Gentiles the ability to, "Glorify God for his mercy."

In the reading we hear the words of the prophet Isiah, "There shall be a root of Jesse, and he that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in him shall the Gentiles trust." This prophecy is one that we repeat many times throughout the Christmas season - Jesse was the father of King David. Joseph was born of the House and Line of David. Jesus was born into the house of David because of his earthly father, Joseph. This tie fulfills the words that Isiah spoke... and they fulfill a promise that God made to David as well!

But why was it the rod of Jesse? As I mentioned just a moment ago, Isiah made the prophecy that the line would come from David. It turns out that God had made a promise to David as well. The House of David is also the line of Solomon. This is the wise king that built the Temple in Jerusalem. When David made Solomon king, he urged Solomon to remain faithful. Read along with me in 1 Kings chapter 2, verses 1 through 4:

"As David's time to die drew near, he charged Solomon his son, saying, "I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong, therefore, and show yourself a man. "Keep the charge of the LORD your God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to what is written in the Law of Moses, that you may succeed in all that you do and wherever you turn, so that the LORD may carry out His promise which He spoke concerning me, saying, 'If your sons are careful of their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.' "

So we see a promise from God that David, "would have a man on the throne of Israel." God keeps his promises! Jesus is a man of the House of David and is promised to sit on the throne of the New Jerusalem when He returns! He sits now at the right hand of God, and I can't think of a more complete way for God to keep his promise to David. God has woven the promise made to David, an old testament covenant together with Christ's covenant of eternal life and fulfilled both!

But back to David and Solomon for a moment, because we're not done with today's history lesson folks! Now this next reading is a compilation between Chronicles and Kings. It tells the story of Solomon's dedication of the temple that he built and the account of God's presence and promise. 1 Kings 8:3-9, 2 Chronicles 7:1-3 and 1 Kings 9:2-9 tell this story

When all the elders of Israel arrived, the priests picked up the Ark. The priests and Levites brought up the Ark of the Lord along with the special tent and all the sacred items that had been in it. There, before the Ark, King Solomon and the entire community of Israel sacrificed so many sheep, goats, and cattle that no one could keep count!

Then the priests carried the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant into the inner sanctuary of the Temple—the Most Holy Place—and placed it beneath the wings of the cherubim. The cherubim spread their wings over the Ark, forming a canopy over the Ark and its carrying poles. These poles were so long that their ends could be seen from the Temple’s main room—the Holy Place—but not from the outside. They are still there to this day. Nothing was in the Ark except the two stone tablets that Moses had placed in it at Mount Sinai, where the Lord made a covenant with the people of Israel when they left the land of Egypt.

When Solomon finished praying, a bolt of lightning out of heaven struck the Whole-Burnt-Offering and sacrifices and the Glory of God filled The Temple. The Glory was so dense that the priests couldn't get in—God so filled The Temple that there was no room for the priests! When all Israel saw the fire fall from heaven and the Glory of God fill The Temple, they fell on their knees, bowed their heads, and worshiped, thanking God: Yes! God is good! His love never quits!

Then the Lord appeared to Solomon a second time, as he had done before at Gibeon. 3 The Lord said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your petition. I have set this Temple apart to be holy—this place you have built where my name will be honored forever. I will always watch over it, for it is dear to my heart.

“As for you, if you will follow me with integrity and godliness, as David your father did, obeying all my commands, decrees, and regulations, then I will establish the throne of your dynasty over Israel forever. For I made this promise to your father, David: ‘One of your descendants will always sit on the throne of Israel.’

“But if you or your descendants abandon me and disobey the commands and decrees I have given you, and if you serve and worship other gods, then I will uproot Israel from this land that I have given them. I will reject this Temple that I have made holy to honor my name. I will make Israel an object of mockery and ridicule among the nations. And though this Temple is impressive now, all who pass by will be appalled and will shake their heads in amazement. They will ask, ‘Why did the Lord do such terrible things to this land and to this Temple?’ “And the answer will be, ‘Because his people abandoned the Lord their God, who brought their ancestors out of Egypt, and they worshiped other gods instead and bowed down to them. That is why the Lord has brought all these disasters on them.’”

That last promise is where mankind always seems to have problems - "If you keep my laws..." The amazing thing is that while the nation of Israel kept breaking their end of the promise, God kept his side! Let's come back to the accounting of the birth of Christ and remember both Isiah's prophecy as well as God's promise to David. Matthew gives the genealogy of Jesus:

The family tree of Jesus Christ, David's son, Abraham's son: Abraham had Isaac, Isaac had Jacob, Jacob had Judah and his brothers, Judah had Perez and Zerah (the mother was Tamar), Perez had Hezron, Hezron had Aram, Aram had Amminadab, Amminadab had Nahshon, Nahshon had Salmon, Salmon had Boaz (his mother was Rahab), Boaz had Obed (Ruth was the mother), Obed had Jesse, Jesse had David, and David became king. David had Solomon (Uriah's wife was the mother), Solomon had Rehoboam, Rehoboam had Abijah, Abijah had Asa, Asa had Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat had Joram, Joram had Uzziah, Uzziah had Jotham, Jotham had Ahaz, Ahaz had Hezekiah, Hezekiah had Manasseh, Manasseh had Amon, Amon had Josiah, Josiah had Jehoiachin and his brothers, and then the people were taken into the Babylonian exile. When the Babylonian exile ended, Jeconiah had Shealtiel, Shealtiel had Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel had Abiud, Abiud had Eliakim, Eliakim had Azor, Azor had Zadok, Zadok had Achim, Achim had Eliud, Eliud had Eleazar, Eleazar had Matthan, Matthan had Jacob, Jacob had Joseph, Mary's husband, the Mary who gave birth to Jesus, the Jesus who was called Christ.

We see by this history that God has kept both promises in one action! How glorious is our God! However, there is more promised in Isiah:

But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.

As the followers of Christ, we carry forth His message - the breath of his lips is the message of His salvation. This message has resonated across the world since he gave the great commission and has taken down and built up empires. Isiah's passage also speaks of the second coming of the Christ. In the Revelation of John see the account of Jesus leading the army of the righteousness against evil and unbelief.

We celebrate Christmas, the birth of our Christ and King, a ruler from the House of David. This baby that we celebrate in the manger is going to come back one day and sit on the throne of the New Jerusalem... just as God promised to David. Until He comes we are called to pray and spread His message so that all may know His glory and love. The modern world can't stop us. Aethists can't stop us. Those who would marginalize salvation or the pain of Sheol can't stop us.

There are those that say, "there's no such thing as Eternal Hell. It's been mistranslated from 'an age' or aeon." I don't care if it's 5 minutes, I don't want to be out of the sight of God! Even more than that, I don't want others to be there either! We've got to teach salvation! We can't change the heart of anyone but we can be the voice that God uses. To do that, we have to be strong in our convictions and strong in our history. We have to stand up on Christmas time and shout, "That baby's just the beginning of our salvation!"

What is Faith?

2007-08-12T21:32:00.000-04:00

What is Faith?

Originally Posted On : August 12, 2007 7:35 AM

Lectionary Reading: Hebrews 11:1-3

This sermon was delivered at Exley United Methodist Church on August 12, 2007. Like my previous entry, I'm including the entire service bulletin as I wrote it too.

I heard a story of a family that was driving through Pennsylvania Dutch country, mother and her seven year-old son. When they passed an Amish horse and buggy, the boy's curiosity was stirred. He asked, "Mommy, why do they use horses instead of cars?" His mother explained that the Amish don't believe in cars. After a few minutes the boy, saying things that little boys are apt to, asked, "but can't they see them?"

Children believe what they see and what they are taught. We carry that belief into our adult lives, and through our belief God builds our faith. Faith is a conviction of the truth. It is knowing that what we believe is unequivocally true. Faith is powerful, a strong moving force in our lives. For us, Christians, our faith is a conviction that God is real and that he loves us. It is the steadfast conviction that Jesus is the Christ, our Messiah and our Savior.

This story brings to mind a Bible story that we know well... that of the Doubting Thomas. Found in the book of John we see a disciple of Christ who refuses to believe until he sees Jesus with his own eyes and puts his hand into the Christ's wounded side. When Jesus appears to him and has him touch his hands and side, Thomas cries out, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus then says, "Because you have seen me you believe. Blessed are those who have not yet seen and still believe."

We are the people that he is talking abut in this verse! We are those who have not seen and yet believe. Our faith is based on our being led and touched by God to believe. We have heard the stories of how God has been with His people in the Old Testament. We have heard the stories from the New Testament about the miracles of Christ, about the mystery of faith and the good news of salvation. While we have seen the proof of God's love and the power of the Holy Spirit in our daily lives, we have not touched the wounded side. While we have seen the movement of Christ in our daily lives, we have never witnessed the bush that burns but is not consumed. We have faith.

The letter to the Hebrews was written to encourage early Jewish Christians at a time when they were being persecuted. Chapter 11 reads like a laundry list of stories that those Christians questioning the love of God as well as the Jews persecuting them would recall by name. Truly, they name stories that most of us can recall by name. We learn the stores of faith, written throughout the Bible. Think about that, we learn the same stories that the author of Hebrews lists, Old Testament to New Testament. These stories talk about the promise of faith throughout the generations, they talk about gaining the favor of God and of living to serve and please God. These are the stories that all Christians hear, those that shape how we see God and Jesus.

It starts off in Genesis, where we see reference to Cain and Abel, to Enoch and to Noah, where we hear can find the story of the Ark. In Genesis chapter 6 we see God reaching out to Noah, saying, "The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth." God gave Noah specific dimensions of a boat to build, animals to bring, food to prepare and Noah did so because of his faith. He did so in the face of what his friends and neighbors said of him, their jokes and teasing. The tale shows that God kept his promise and sent so much rain that it wiped the face of the earth clean, leaving only Noah and his cargo living.

The author of Hebrews works to touch the heart and the heritage of the Jewish Christian, focusing on Abram. As we heard Trisha read earlier from Genesis chapter 15, God promises Abram that he will have a proper heir. This promise was made to a man who was in his 80's, yet God's promise was, "Look up at the heavens and count the stars.... so shall your offspring be." Abram is the man that God renamed Abraham, which means the father of many nations. He is the considered the father of the Jewish nation. Along with Abram we hear the story of his wife, Sarai, who God renamed Sarah. She laughed at God when he said she was going to have a son because she was in her 90’s, yet her faith was strong and she became the mother of Isaac.

Continuing with the stories the author goes down through the centuries of Jewish history, pointing out name after name, event after event. He mentions Isaac, Jacob, Gideon, Samson, David and Samuel. He covers the history of the life of Jesus and even talks about the perils of the early Christians. The purpose of reminding the reader of these stories is culminated in verse 39 when the author says, "and all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised, because God has provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect."

The covenant that was made to Abraham and through Moses is replaced with the covenant of the Messiah by Jesus. Those that went before had faith in God and knew God would protect and shield them. Their gift is to be counted among the first when the resurrection comes. As Christians we have added stories of faith to those that Mary and Joseph would have shared with Jesus as a child. We include stories of miracles, of healing, of power and of prayer that shook Rome and changed the world! Our children hear the stories of the flood as well as Pentecost. One mention of the road to Damascus brings songs to mind for some of our Sunday school teachers.

Christians of today believe in the words of a book that has been handed down from generation to generation. We have faith in a God that loves us and watches over us… a God that sent his only son to be our eternal sacrifice, washing away the sins of those who would believe in him. We have faith in these things and we believe in them. We teach these stories to our children. This next week is our Vacation Bible School and we will be teaching them the stories that we learned and that we believe in. Our teachers and their helpers will be sharing these stories in lessons, skits, crafts and even play, opening up the Word of God as well as their own hearts to their students, some of whom have never heard the good news of the love of God.

We hear all of these stories and never forget that the main characters in these stories had to have faith and believe that God was going to take care of them. We begin to believe by looking at the faith of others and seeing what God did in their lives, but that is only the start. That is the point at which we are learning, understanding what God can do in our lives and hopefully opening ourselves before Him and saying, “not my will, Lord, but Thine.”

We are human, and being only human, we have to have something to bolster our faith, and this is something that we see, going back to the book of Hebrews and the other letters to the early churches. These examples are given for us, in some cases to teach us what to do and in other cases to show us how much we have. We have a rich inheritance that comes from God and flows through the heroes of faith mentioned in the stories that we learn. We also have a responsibility because of the many blessings we have received from God. Not only have we been left with a history and a heritage but we have also been left with a mission. That mission is to share the message of the love of Christ with those around us.

And to do that, we can use these stories. We can use the same stories that have helped us build our faith over the years to expose others to the good news of salvation in Christ. We can add our own stories to those and tell others how God has touched our lives. We live our lives by the examples given in the Bible and by the standards set there, showing others that the decay of the modern day does not have to rule every man's morals. When we do that, when we show others the love and grace using stories, testimony and example, we then simply have to allow God to do the rest. It is His power that moves hearts, that drags others to His throne and it is His will that calls them out into accounting. We have faith that this will happen. As a parent I have faith that what Sarah and I teach our children about God will stay with them the rest of their lives. I also have faith that God will work in them so they will be called to Him. This is the only thing we can do to accomplish our mission - share the stories of God and let Him do the rest, for no man comes to the Lord except by faith. That, though, is where the greatest story of all comes in to play. That is the story of Christ's dying love, his sinless sacrifice and his pure love for man - that he has opened up the gateway to salvation and those who call on His name will be saved.

(*hold up bible*) These are the stories of faith, given by God to you, the people of faith, and the people said, "Thanks be to God."

What is Prayer

2007-07-29T21:28:00.001-04:00

What is Prayer

Originally Posted on : July 29, 2007 11:25 AM

Lectionary Reading: Luke 11:1-15

This sermon was delivered at Exley United Methodist Church on July 29, 2007. I have included the entire service including bulletin as I wrote it up as well The bulletin follows the sermon in this posting.

On Father's Day of we were led in the Lord's Prayer by our kindergarten Sunday School class. Words cannot express the pride and joy that I felt as Elizabeth stood there with her classmates and recited that prayer. Knowing and reciting the prayer taught to the disciples of Jesus in the gospels of Matthew and Luke is a tradition that stretches back to the foundation of our faith. It is something that ties all Christians together, regardless of what language we say it in.

Before I start talking on the Lord's Prayer in particular, I want to speak about prayer as a whole. Prayer is first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis chapter 4, verse 26 which ends with, "... then began men to call upon the name of the LORD."

To pray is to address God with adoration, confession, supplication and thanksgiving. It is a time when we freely bring our praise as well as our burdens before God and ask for relief. Every book in the Bible talks and teaches us about some aspect of prayer, Genesis to Maps. A library could be filled with the contemporary books written about prayer, it’s forms and effects. They all come to the same conclusion - a solid part of our faith is based on the fact that we worship a God that listens to and answers our prayers.

What is so special about the Lord's Prayer? Why is it the "gold standard" when it comes to Christian prayer? Why can it be heard in the halls of any Christian church regardless of denomination or location? In truth, it is the epitome of 'calling out upon the name of the Lord.' Additionally, it is a prayer that is taught specifically by Christ to his disciples with the words, "When you pray, say this..." Now something that has to be pointed out about the Bible is that there are two versions of this prayer - one in Matthew and the one I read from Luke. The version that is recited is the one from Matthew, which originated during the Sermon on the Mount. In either case they seem to have been translated from the same prayer, which indicates that Jesus taught this prayer not once but twice!

How important it is for us to pay heed when our savior repeats himself!

Luke's version also makes a legal distinction about prayer. In verse 1 we see the Disciples of Christ asking to be taught what to pray... the same way John the Baptist's disciples had been taught. At this time in history we have both Jesus and John teaching against the hypocrisy and corruption of the religious system. However, where Jesus was in the world teaching with authority that compassion, love, forgiveness and kindness was required of his followers, John's disciples are portrayed as legalistic Jews. The disciples of Jesus were looking to their master for a rule and what he gave them was a prayer they had already heard him teach on the mountainside!

Something else that is different between the Matthew and Luke passages is that in Matthew he uses the phrase, "in this manner." This is important, the Greek word translated here is “how to” and it is translated here as, “In this manner” but it does not say, “repeat after me.” So this prayer can be defined as a roadmap for how we pray. Christians repeat it, as we will out, of reverence for Christ along with other prayers that we say.

The placement of the lesson in the Sermon on the Mount is also at an interesting point, because Jesus has just finished telling us that we should pray privately and personally to God, hiding ourselves from public when we do. He tells us that we should not be like those who make a big show of prayer, calling them hypocrites. Next he gives us a public prayer to make? What’s going on here? Well, as it happens there are actually different kinds of prayer that can be made. The prayer that Jesus was referring to was a method that the Jews of that time taught, saying, “Whoever is long in prayer is heard by God.” The Jews had become so disconnected from God that they felt rambling off a prayer that started with, “Blessed, praised and glorified, exalted and honored, magnified and lauded be the name of the Holy One!” For us that is one prayer of praise! For them that was just the first sentence. These were men that prayed for public recognition rather than faith. We know that Jesus himself prayed both publicly and privately. In Matthew 11: 25 and 26 we hear him pray:

"I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. “

Also, before raising Lazarus from the dead, he prays publicly in John 11:41 and 42, saying

“Father, thank you for hearing me. You always hear me, but I said it out loud for the sake of all these people standing here, so that they will believe you sent me.”

Yet with these public prayers we also know that Jesus prayed privately. Even the first verse in today’s lesson makes that known. “One day Jesus was praying in a certain place.” He was having his “alone time” with God, and by the text his disciples knew well enough to leave him alone.

He gives examples of both public and private prayer, showing that there are times when groups can pray together, sharing their joy and worship of the Lord with each other. There are also times when we need a quiet time of communion with God, personal and direct. His exhortations against flamboyant prayers are aimed at those who made a habit of “airing their clean laundry.” They were men that wanted the whole world to know that they were good people, that they loved God and that they followed his commandments. That way if ever they slipped, nobody could speak ill of their character, because the made a big show of giving alms and praying.

As a congregation we pray. We’ve done it several times this morning; yet even when we share our joys and concerns with each other, there are things that we keep close to our heart that we only truly want to share with God.

That’s an important point while we’re talking about prayer… it is a time for us to share with God. Jesus says that we should pray in a quiet, solitary place where we can, “pray to our Father in private.” He also gives us the good news that, “our Father, who sees everything, will reward us.”

God answers prayers! This is the good news and the joy we know and trust in… but we also have to be careful. God basically has three answers for our prayers, “Yes, no or not now.” Sometimes we ask for things that fall under the “our will” category instead of “thy will.” We can pray for a winning lottery ticket, a new car, a better job or even a good score on a test… but if it’s not God’s will, He’s not going to answer with a yes.

We must have faith in God and know that He is going to give us our daily bread. We have to trust that He is not going to deliver us into evil. Most importantly we know that He forgives our sins because of the sacrifice of his only Son.

What is amazing is that any personal prayer we have is covered in general by an element of the Lord’s Prayer. It includes acknowledgment, praise, worship, submission, supplication and confession. Knowing and reciting it give us a mental example of how to pray but it does not have to drive what words we say. It is an example of love from Jesus to show us how to properly pray rather than a law that forces rote recitation with no personal variance.

In closing, I know that there are those in this church that can give witness to the fact that God answers prayers. This is the Good News of the Bible: that God not only cares about us but that he listens for us. Psalm 91 says, “He will call upon me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.” God promises to deliver us so long as we call upon him in prayers made in public or private.

Now as followers of Christ and knowing that God hears and answers our prayers, let us say the prayer taught to his disciples:

[LORDS PRAYER]

Finding Christ in Christmas

2006-12-27T21:14:00.001-05:00

Finding Christ in Christmas

Originally Posted On : December 27, 2006 5:48 AM

There are a few things that God has put on my heart to share... This was not supposed to be a sermon but it turned into something of one.

Let me start off by wishing everyone a Merry and Holy Christmas! This has been a wonderful Advent season... albeit a warm one for Western New York... there still isn't any arctic air in the forecast and it's the end of December! I hope that the Lord has blessed you and your family as richly as He has blessed ours, both in material as well as spiritual gifts.

While we are enjoying the gifts that we have received, we cannot forget the gifts that we are giving as well. This year was a wonderful experience with my daughter, teaching her the fact that Christmas is not just about what she got to open but also watching people open what she picked out. I actually took her shopping for gifts, the trick is that we made out a list of people and went to the Dollar Tree (every item is $1) and she picked out gifts. It was a gift to me to see her walking through the store thinking about what each person would want.

I heard someone say recently, "Christmas is for the children," and that is not a statement that I can completely agree with. Maybe the commercialized gift-giving holiday that Christmas has become is more geared for children but the holy day of Christmas is for all Christians to celebrate! This is the time that we observe the birth of our Lord and Savior, it should be a time of great cheer for all who call him Master.

Truth be told, this year Christmas meant more to me than any I can remember. It wasn't the physical gifts that "did it for me" either. Those were very nice, selected and given with love but still physical (or virtual in a couple of cases) things. No, the reason I can say that this is the best Christmas I have had in many years is because this year I don't feel the normal "Christmas Blues" that hit me.

I've been saying, "Christ is the reason for the season" for many years now and yet, this year I truly began to see the truth of that statement. His perfect love came down at Christmas and it hit me square in the chest this year that without it we would be nothing more than lost souls trapped in a fearing world. Without the gift of the Father we would never know the salvation given freely us by the Son. Without the virgin birth we would never know the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Without the crucifixion we would never know salvation.

In watching the Advent services, singing in my church's cantata and helping my daughter experience the joys of giving as well as receiving, I have been reminded of the perfect gift that is given to us. I am reminded of the miraculous birth of Jesus as promised in the scriptures and told once again from Isaiah 9:6, "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Yet while I am truly glad for the season, this Christmas has shown me that sometimes people can truly forget the meaning of the holiday as well. For some, the forgetting is because of too little thought or thought placed in the wrong area... too much time spent on worrying bout money for gifts or time for festivities. Others have put too much thought into the holiday and the legalities of "when Christmas is." Those who grumble about the "facts" about the season or time of the birth of our savior. There are those, too, who simply don't fully understand the holiday. They get wrapped up in the mechanics of exchanging gifts but don't understand the true meaning behind them. Finally there are those who want to be politically correct and generalize things down to a "Holiday Season."

We do have to remind ourselves that "Christ is the beginning of Christmas." The truth is that he was born to wash away our sins and during this season we celebrate that birth. His perfect love is what has saved us. Truth be told though, just because we honor his birth, we cannot put down his Commission. Advent is not just a time for us to wait for the coming of our Lord, it is also the time for us to show others the need for accepting Him as our King. It is He who saves us and He who amazes us with his grace. We should be spreading His love to all those around us, showing them the best Christmas gift they can ever call their own - perfect salvation, born of a virgin and crucified to wash away our sin.

One of the newest additions to our Christmas routine this year was a Birthday cake for Jesus. No candles... I didn't want to set off the fire alarms. But decorated for a baby and a King. On it written in red (frosting) were the simple words, "Happy Birthday, Jesus!"

Family Values

2006-10-08T21:10:00.001-04:00

Family Values

Originally Posted on : October 8, 2006 1:06 PM

We live in a world today where what we call "Christian Morals" have been given a bad name. One of every two marriages ends in divorce. Children are entering into sexual relations at younger ages and as a direct result we see more and younger unwed mothers or teenage families. Our entertainment encourages violence, sexual activity, drug use and self importance. When these issues are addressed from the Church, intellectual elitists scoff and say that Christians are trying to repress natural intellectual progression. Either that or they take it up as a political issue saying that, "the Christians are pushing their standards on us again!"

Going back to the Gospel lesson in Mark Chapter 10, we see one of those particular values. Throughout the Bible, Jesus has a way of telling us that he is a family man. The Church is referred to as his bride. We call each other brothers and sisters in Christ. Today's passage in Mark is no different. We encounter our Lord being questioned by the Pharisees about the Law. Jerusalem of Christ's day was very "legalistic", where the laws handed down by Moses had come to rule the people more than God's commandments. Jesus was being asked about the particular law about divorce.

The ending of a marriage has always been a tender subject. It is my belief that the Church should put more time and effort into the beginning of marriages to work to reduce the amount of time spent cleaning up the messy ends. When a couple marries, it is a life-changing event for both families. The Bible cites in several different places that for a man and woman to separate in divorce is adultery and whoever enters into marriage with a divorced person is committing adultery as well.

The prophet Malachi writes in Malachi 2:16, "God hates divorce." Jesus, in Mark's accounting, mirrors this stance. He tells the Pharisees that Moses gave the law of the Get because, "your hearts were hardened." He then repeats the verse so often associated with marriage, "what God has joined together let no man put asunder." Jesus shares Malachi's view when it comes to divorce, at least to the disciples gathered with him on that day.

Let's face it folks, America today is a very secular culture. The heroes our kids watch are not much older than them and have their personal lives and private affairs flayed open for all to see. Look at the magazine racks in most places and you will see them filled with magazines about the lives of the "stars". Athletes have been raised to the level of hero as well simply for the act of being able to throw, catch, shoot and score. Never mind the fact that those that get the most ink have the lowest morals. Modern media will always give more emphasis on the bad, the crooked, the odd or the immoral and that is what many see as our culture. Our politicians are no better with money and sex scandals being "leaked" all the time.

We as Christians are charged by our Lord to be different, aren't we? We are supposed to be pillars of the community and above reproach. Let me tell you honestly, if you think that any of us are perfect then you're fooling yourself. In his letters, Paul constantly pushes the early churches to strive for perfection. They can strive for it but will never attain it because as the poet writes in Ecclesiastes, "There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins."

Additionally, we are taught by our Lord that love is to be the greatest command. Husband and wife are ordered in the Bible to work together in their marriages in love and harmony. Today's couples do not always know about or follow those commands. Bring in the fact that many married couples today receive little if any true marriage counseling and you have a recipe for disaster. Society today holds that a single parent is all that is needed to raise a child, typically the mother. As a result we have children that have no clue what it means to be father or husband. Couples do not realize that a successful marriage takes work.

Indeed, there are times when divorce is the only answer. When a spouse is abusive, belligerent or amoral and refuses to work to strengthen the marriage, divorce is the one way for the other spouse to retreat from potential problems. In most cases there is counseling available but if it fails then the marriage is in danger. Abuse, adultery and abandonment are three major actions where divorce may be the only answer.

Now I must be very specific here to say that Jesus is speaking of Jewish law. One of the most amazing things about Jesus is that he was born under the Law but was also born to become the Law. Now we know from other readings in the bible the following things:

We, as mortals, commit sins either knowingly or unknowingly.
Our sins are forgiven through the shed blood of Christ our Savior.

Now I am not going to stand here and tell you that because of the secular world that we live in its okay to go and sin and come back and confess every Sunday. That was not the purpose of our Savior when he went up to Golgotha. Instead, we as Christians must know that our sins are forgiven. We are encouraged throughout the Bible to repent of our sins and receive salvation:

The prophet Isaiah in chapter 44 verse 22 speaks God's word, saying "I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you."
Again in chapter 55 verse 7, "Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon."
In first John chapter 1 verse 9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness."

Christ is our redeemer! Jesus is telling those who cling to the Law that their interpretation of it is wrong, what he omits from this particular passage is the fact that if they repent of their sins they will be forgiven! He leaves this out for the shock value of the message he is giving at that minute to sink in.

However, the forgiven cannot be forgotten. We as Christians are called to minister each other, to love one another and to put faith in the Lord. Christians who have gone through a divorce are to be ministers and ministered to, not expelled or shunned. As with all who have an experience that must be learned from they have a unique perspective on marriage and divorce. Additionally, just because a Christian has gone through a divorce that does not mean that they are not fit for marriage. It does mean that they should consider their actions with much more care and understanding before entering into that life-changing contract.

The Church also has a much stronger role to play than most currently have done in marriage. As I said at the beginning of the message, I believe that the church has a much larger role to play in marriage preparation and counseling. If it were up to me, prospective couples should receive both group and individual counseling from another couple, especially those who have come from a broken home. In working to make sure a marriage is based on good, solid footing the Church also works to prevent another divorce.

In closing let me point out that divorce can occur for any number of reasons in today's age, just as they could in Jesus' time. I come from a home broken three times. My example of a good marriage comes from both sets of grandparents. On my mother's side my grandparents were married for 37 before my grandfather suffered a heart attack. My father's parents celebrated more than 55 years together before death separated them. Together they led a ministry for couples in which they taught things like, "its okay to be angry, it's not okay to let that anger destroy your marriage."

The passage in Mark we hear that Christ sees all divorce as sin. We have to hear the rest of his ministry to understand that it is a sin that is forgiven by salvation. It is in Christ's name that we are forgiven from all our sins, not just a few. Christ is our salvation! Amen.

Religion Without Faith is Worthless

2006-08-03T21:08:00.001-04:00

Religion Without Faith is Worthless

On August 3, 2006 I had the joy of team-leading the service at Exley. Bob MacFarland (sorry if I misspelled it, Bob) and I ran the service and we had an interesting approach to the sermon.

The lectionary reading for that service came from Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 and James 1:17-27. For the sermon we broke it up into three parts, with me beginning the sermon and passing it on to Bob for an skit with an introduction and finally back to myself for the closing. It ran smoothly and was very well received by the congregation.

Please join in prayer with me. Father, God of All, I pray that you might use this time that we are joined together as members of your family in Christ to help us hear Your word. Let your Voice speak through or over mine and let us see your love in this gathering. In your Son’s holy and heavenly name I pray, Amen.

In today’s gospel lesson, Mark gives us an eyewitness account of a meal that Jesus was having with his followers. It wasn’t the contents or location of the meal that were important. There wasn’t anyone special in the audience. The important thing about this particular meal was that the followers of Jesus were not following Mosaic Law and Jesus was eating with them.

If you look at verse 3 and 4, Mark explains for us the Jewish "purity law" that was being broken. These laws go back to the days of Moses and can be found in the book of Leviticus starting in chapter 10. As a teacher in his age, Jesus was bound by these laws as were the Pharisees and scribes.

However in today’s Gospel lesson Jesus shows that he obviously has a different read on the Law. He is worried about the clean and unclean without a doubt but it’s not people’s hands and feet that he’s worried about. Hearts and actions are what Jesus demands to be clean. In verse 15 he says, "There is nothing outside the man which, going into him, is able to make him unclean: but the things which come out of the man are those which make the man unclean." Then he goes on to say, "... nothing that enters a man from outside can make him unclean because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated..."

This verse in addition with the vision sent to Peter in Acts chapter 10 allows Christians to eat foods that Jews consider unclean. These are foods like pork and rabbit... or for those with an expensive taste eel and escargot. Jesus calls on us for more than lip service and ritual. We are to keep ourselves clean, but the cleanliness we are to strive for requires much more than a ceremonial bath or hand-washing ritual. We are to live a clean life and set a good example of what Christianity is to non-Christians around us... those some refer to as the "great unwashed". New Christians are the best at showing this example, taking to the task of the Great Commission of Christ to go and make disciples with the fervor and energy of a child. Even those who are not out on the streets and fields are witnessing to those around them by their actions.

What about our actions, then? What can we do? Humans are creatures of action as well as thought and we need something to do in this instance. In Jordan’s reading, James gives us a couple of actions, "look after orphans and widows..." We are given direction to take care of others with the skills, abilities and resources we have. This is a common theme throughout the New Testament for a reason. James also explains how we are to act, being "quick to listen and slow to anger." In short, exercise our Christian Virtues in our daily lives.

At this point Bob took over the service and introduced a skit. The skit includes Mr. Williams and three employees who find his day planner. They find the words "Eternal Perspective" written on every day and think that he is terminally ill. He tells them that he has it written there to remind himself that each day is to be lived keeping Christ in mind and looking towards an Eternal goal. After the skit I continue with my sermon:

Mr. Williams seems to have drawn a part of his inspiration from today’s passage in the book of James. We are told in verse 22, "do not merely listen to the Word, do what it says." We are to be doers. In Mark we heard Christ telling us to be clean in heart and in James we see examples of what to do. Verse 21 tells us, "get rid of everything that is dirty and sinful. Get rid of the evil that is all around us." We are then told to, "Humbly accept the word planted in us, which can save us."

Did you see how Mr. Williams worked the lessons of James into his heart? His intent to maintain an eternal perspective was not because he believes that his actions will get him into heaven. His actions are his witness, his worship his examples. All of his employees tell him this in different ways, each of them being exposed to a "good Christian man" who’s life models one who is slow to anger and quick to listen. We must take note of the fact that he did not get upset when he found that his day planner had been read. He was quick to forgive the assumed offense as well, taking the moment as an opportunity to show Christ’s love in his life rather than anger at having his privacy invaded.

And yet in closing let us not forget the other part of the passage in James. Words and actions are nothing if there is no belief behind them. Our actions do not grant us salvation, our acceptance of Christ as our savior does. It is the only thing that will grant us salvation and we must remember that. However, in accepting Christ we must accept his word. His word demands action, patience, and love. It demands cleanliness of the heart, laying all of our sins at the feet of Jesus no matter what we wear or where our lives have taken us in the past. We are all sinners, saved by grace and it is by grace that we are given the gifts to be transformed into the doers of the word.

We Are One in the Spirit

2006-07-30T21:02:00.001-04:00

We Are One in the Spirit

This sermon is one I gave at my local church a Exley United Methodist Church in Wilson, Ny. The service was on July 30, 2006. The reading for this service includes:

Psalms 51:1-12
Ephesians 4:1-16

Greeting Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth. Say among the nations: 'The LORD reigns!’ Sermon

In today’s scripture the church at Ephesus is reminded of three major points. The first half of the reading talks about the concept that Christians have, "one Lord, one Faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all." No matter where we come from, how we speak or what we do for a living, a Christian is a Christian.

Next, Paul reinforces the concepts of gifts of the Spirit, reminding us that "it was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets." We are all given different gifts and different roles with which to use our gifts.

Finally Paul ties the concept of unity in Christ and learning what our spiritual task is and how to use it together with the end result of maturing as Christians. He follows the natural progression that, "we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is Christ."

We are one in the spirit! We belong to the Family of Christ and call him Brother. We are children of God! We belong to the Family of Christ and call him Father. Every Christian can make these statements truthfully. They were important facts to early followers of "The Way" because of their persecution. In 2004 over 75% of people surveyed in the US declared Christianity as their religion but that has not always been the case. Christians were persecuted and killed for their beliefs early on.

Today’s service has been an exercise in examples. The greeting I spoke at the beginning at the service is Anglican, the opening prayer attributed to a Church of Christ, the prayer of confession and assurance of pardon based on a Mennonite prayer, the congregational opening was Hebrew and once again translated to "A Prayer to God from the Congregation" and the prayer of dedication translated from an African Christian prayer. While not a true ecumenical service, I chose these to illustrate Paul’s text when we say that we are "one in the Spirit". Of the more than 33,000 different Christian denominations around the world, all of them will read the book of Ephesians at some time or another. All of them will be told, "we are one in the Spirit." All of them work to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ to their neighbors, family and friend.

I am reminded of a very special service I was invited to attend a few years ago. A friend of mine had come to know the Lord as an adult and was being baptized in a Lutheran church. As a verbal confirmation of his faith he recited the Apostle’s Creed but instead of reciting it from the hymnal or a cue card he had been challenged to memorize it and understand the breadth and depth of what he was saying. He was asked by the pastor what he believed and had to answer the questions individually, alone and before the people that would become his new family. This is a far cry different from my own profession of faith, where was introduced to the congregation by the pastor and acknowledged Jesus as my Lord and Savior with a simple statement and a public baptism.

I grew up split between two different churches... Two different concepts of belief to be honest! My mother and her entire family save one uncle is Irish Catholic. I’ll spare those jokes for another time. My father’s side of the family is Southern Baptist. Again, we’ll leave the jokes out of it for now. The one message that really stuck with me growing up is that we as Christians are loved by God. As a teenager and young adult I went to a wide variety of churches and found that at the soul of each church was that same message:

We are all Christians and loved by God. In Ephesians, Paul is telling us that same truth. Over 33,000 different groups of people world wide may try to paint their own alterations on the fabric of Christianity and each makes a distinct mark.

It is interesting to see the slight and vast differences between different denominations. The differences range from interpretations of Biblical scripture to the levels of adherence to Mosaic (or Jewish) law. We are taught in the Bible that we are equals in Christ’s eye in a number of different places. The passage today even includes the fact that we as Christians should work, "until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God." The differences we see in today’s Church can be attributed to tradition and sedition. They are the work of men trying to understand God but they all teach the Good News of Christ’s salvation. The New Testament letters provide guidelines for how we should act as Christians and serve as examples for others who are not Christian. Just as we are challenged to witness to others it is crucial that we remember that our biggest witness is in how we act to and around others.

As Christians we are challenged both from the past and the present to call out to others and show them the Good News of Jesus Christ. We are challenged and called to use the gifts of the spirit that we are given to help and support each other. At Exley we are further challenged by the United Methodist conference to adhere to a statement that reads, "Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors." This modern creed mirrors what we see in today’s scripture reading: we are one in the spirit.

As Paul mentions, we must continue to grow as Christians. With the Methodist statements ringing in our ears it is easy to see where our hearts are needed for those in pain. We are able to share our joy of salvation with others in a way that invites them to come into our doors and see that we do care. God’s direction to us is to share his message with all who will listen, regardless of their state of dress. The challenge to our congregation is not to drag people in by their bootstraps, rather to open an invitation for the Lord and let Him do the dragging. We are simply the tools that God uses to show His love and His will to the world.

In closing we should remember that whatever we do as Christians we must not forget our unity and we must not forget our mission. As members of the Family of God we as Methodists open our doors to neighbors whether they are Christian or simply curious about our beliefs. We open our minds and hearts and share that good news of salvation and we show our love and compassion for those who are hurting or hungry. We share a table of food with neighbor and stranger alike, working to become one body and one church. I am personally blessed by the open arms that have welcomed me to Exley and am truly grateful for the love that is shared around this entire congregation. Having been to churches of many different denominations I can honestly tell you that you have not missed the message of unity.

We cannot stop there though; that is the call of the Great Commission. Through our unity we share, in sharing we witness, in witnessing we draw closer to God.

The Gory Details

2003-03-01T10:29:00.001-05:00

The Gory Details
(Disclaimer: This is neither a legal statement of case nor is it a complete and accurate representation of the sequence of events that happened on February 24, 2003.)

The disclaimer is there in case something legal happens in the future. I haven't been given all the specifics of the operation, I haven't seen the x-rays, I haven't gotten a really good first-hand account from the doc. Most of what I have to go by is what I got from my wife and mother-in-law. with tidbits from nurses and the doc. Some details might not be quite there. However, it sounds pretty right to me.

On Monday I wa at work at my new job as a Hardware Tech for the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission. It was kinda slow and I decided to take a look at some low priority tickets, one for a dead hard drive and a second for a dead CD Rom. The first stop was on the second floor of the building that houses the "Tech Shop"... a workspace on the Canadian side of the Wirlpool bridge. I stopped in the tech shop first to check email and forward my extension to my cellphone. Then I went to walk around the front of the building to go to the Maintenance shop where the trouble call was. In order to get there you have to walk outside and go to a door at the front of the building. Just as I rounded the corner of the building I hit a patch of black ice and fell. The first thing that I heard were 6 or 8 loud pops. I looked down and saw my foot and realized that there was no way I could ever get my toes to point out that way!

The first thing I thought was, "this is going to hurt in a minute". The second thing I thought was, "I need to get moving now, I don't know if anyone saw me." So I managed to pull myself up to my knees and finally up on my good foot and tried to put a little weight on the bad one... not a good idea. I managed to hop and crawl the 20 feet or so to the door where I needed to be at and then pounded on the door. The guy came downstairs and i said," I just fell and I think I broke my ankle" or something to that affect. He asked me what I wanted him to do and I said to call Vic... my manager's direct superior. I don't know how but 5 people from Maintenance showed up. They carried me into a van and slid me in. The comments I heard were, "man that looks bad", "I smell a lawsuit" and "watch out for the ice."

I have to say right now that the guys at Rainbow and Whirlpool maintenance (you know who you are) are my heroes ;) Thanks, guys.

I aslo have to state for the record that I absolutely despise the roads in Niagara Falls, Ny. The van ride to Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center was, without a doubt, one of the most painfull experiences I have ever had. It felt like we were driving on the surface of the moon!

We made it to the hospital and they took me into the ER. Once the doc took one look at it he said to admit me. Once I had shoes, socks and everything off a lady came in with an ice-pack for my foot. She had a few problems figuring it out, but I finally figured out why. She was a psych, helping out in the ER. They started the process and I got the first set of x-rays. The lab tech said it looked like I had dislocated the foot and shattered the ankle. I went back into the ER to wait some more and the Dr had them wire me up with an IV and finally some painkillers came rushing in. Good thing, too, because the Dr then used a device similar to a chineese finger tap to manually put my foot back in the right position.

Don't ever let anyone tell you that morphine blocks all pain. It doesn't. The process of "repositioning" hurt... a LOT!

After the chineese finger trap torture I was allowed to red and they put a temporary plaster cast on my leg and ankle to keep me from moving it around. Finally my wife and mother-in-law showed up.I was told that I was waiting to schedule a surgery time and to get a clean room. They couldn't give me any more painkillers until they had me sign some consent forms. I didn't care, I was hurting and teh gas-passer was nowhere to be found. Finally after what seemed like an eternity they had me sign some more consent forms and gave me more painkillers.

From there, everything turned into a blur. I remember getting moved into my room and being taken off to surgery at 8:00 that night. I got out of surgery and remember waking up in my room at something like 2:00am. From what I understand the surgery took 4 hours and I have two permenant plates and something like 9 pins. I heard that I had 5 or 7 actual broken bones and there was something said about "crumbling" but I have no idea what that would have been about.

The drive home nailed down the fact that I despise Niagara Falls roads... now I'm home though and life is starting to go on! I'll have the cast for 12 weeksand can look forwared to 6 weeks of physical therapy after that!. Oh yay!

2003-03-01T07:09:00.000-05:00

Well I guess there's no better time that the present to start up a new weblog. The reason for the title is simple, I slipped on black ice on Monday, February 24th while I was at work and broke my ankle (I'll go into gory details later). Now I'm going to be home for some time. Workman's comp is covering my pay, or at least a portion of it. They covered all of my medical expenses including the week in the hospital, the operation. They'll also cover all my Dr. visits and the physical therapy I have to go to afterwards.

Lying on your back for a week in a hospital makes you think about things. One of the biggest things that I realized was, "what's the big rush?" I realized that I'm always hurrying around spouting off things that I don't always know to be the gospel truth. That's one thing I've definitely got to work on. Also I realized that I have been working at becoming the typical middle-aged man, surrounding myself with things and achievements rather than people and experiences. Those are two things I hipe to work out during my downtime.

So what am I going to put here? I'm not entirely sure. Maybe I'll use it as a rant point about all the nesw and issues I see.... maybe I'll have to fight to remember to post. We'll have to see!