2011 07 17 Weeds or Worthy?

Weeds or Worthy? 

Isaiah 44:6-8, Psalm 86:11-17, Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43 

When our family arrived here a little over 2 years ago, one of the things that caught our attention were the flowerbeds planted around the parsonage and in the backyard.  Each year, a vast collection of beautiful flowers grows all around our home.  But there is a problem.  Jen and I are not particularly good with growing flowers.  OK, we’re pretty bad with them altogether. 

The first couple of years we’ve bought hanging baskets for the front porch, but usually at some point during the summer, we forget to water them for a few days, and they turn to toast.  On the other hand, we were given a pair of cacti, and we wound up watering them too much.  The garden behind the garage has now grown over with grass and clover, and due to the recent lack of rain, even the grass is pretty much brown and crunchy.  Next Sunday is our wedding anniversary.  So, here is a bit of advice….don’t buy us any plants.

Now, I can give all sorts of reasons why we don’t do very well with plants.  Some of those will be legitimate, and others will sound like excuses…because they probably are.  However, some people just seem have a green thumb, and some do not.  Much of what these people know, I think comes from experience.  To my wife’s credit, this year she planted a flowerbed by the front porch, put down mulch, and has watered it quite faithfully this summer.

In the meantime, I still do not know much about wildflowers.  I see things grow and begin to blossom with little yellow or purple flowers.  I assume that these are flowers and they are supposed to be in our flowerbeds.  But it is only when someone more knowledgeable than myself tells me that this is a weed and needs to be pulled.

In the flowerbed facing the driveway, there is a weed.  At first I did not recognize it was a weed because of all the flowers around it.  Now, with the drought, the flowers are wilting badly, and this weed is growing like…well…a weed.  The problem is this weed is so large that it is pulling water from the flowers that I want to grow.  But we know that most weeds have some ridiculously deep roots.  If pull it up, I’m likely to pull up the perennials as well.

Last week, we heard a parable from Jesus in Matthew 13.  It was the story of a farmer who scattered his seed.  Depending on the type of soil on which it fell, the seed might die or grow and be faithful.  Jesus later explained that the seed was the message of God’s kingdom, and the soils were the hearts of those who hear it.  Some people will hear the message of God and reject it.  Some will hear of Jesus and believe in him, but they will walk away from their faith in times of trouble.  Some will hear the good news of Jesus Christ and accept him, but worldly worries or chasing after money will make these people fruitless.  Their faith will not lead to others knowing Christ.  The last group Jesus mentioned is of those who hear this message, come to faith, and grow in it.  Their faith will lead to others knowing Jesus as well.  We are encouraged…even commanded to be fruitful Christians.

Later on in the same chapter of Matthew, Jesus continued to speak in parables. Matthew 13:24b "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.  When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.”  Although this man planted good seed, his enemy was trying to harm him.  Perhaps the weeds would make the wheat less fruitful…less useful.  Maybe these weeds might wipe out the entire crop of wheat. 

But what to do?  Should the farmer and his servants pull the weeds?  No.  There was no sense spending all this time pulling the weeds.  This would likely destroy the crop, and for all their work, the farmer would end up carrying out the destructive work the enemy intended in the first place.  So in verse 30, the farmer gives this advice to his servants. “Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.'"

Just like the parable of the four soils last week, Jesus took time to later explain to his disciples what this new parable meant. 37 He answered, "The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, 39 and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.

This time in the parable, its not the soil the gets the attention, but the seed.  Jesus, the Son of Man, has given the message of forgiveness, life, and fruitfulness to mankind.  Those who accept his message are the good seed planted on the earth.  Just as the wheat is expected to bear grain, the good seed is to grow and bear fruit.  But the devil doesn’t want any part of this.  Last week, we mentioned the seed that fell on thorny soil.  When it grew, it never yielded any fruit.  It was useless.

Although people in the world, and even many people within the church  do not like to hear it.  There is evil in the world attempting to defeat the work of God on earth, and overthrow the kingdom of heaven.  Even Jesus calls him “diabolos”…the devil.  I read.  I listen.  And people anymore do not want to believe that there is a devil or anything evil. The black and white of Christian faith has been replaced by a society with infinite shades of gray.

If I talk to someone about something being wrong or right, I am considered judgmental…even when the Bible is clear on these things.  Even with Christians, if I say that we should not watch a certain show, or that their kids should not be doing a certain thing, I am now looked at as being intolerant.  They’ll tell me that there is no right or wrong, and that things aren’t black and white.  But I don’t give advice to be judgmental, and I don’t take a stand on issues because I want to be hard-headed.  I want people to know God.  I want people to be filled with God.

It’s like this parable.  There are going to be two crops.  The wheat and the weeds.  The farmer will have the weeds harvested bundled and burned and the wheat harvested and kept.  Why?  The wheat is useful.  It is the wheat that feeds us.  Farmers grow crops to feed us or to feed the animals that feed us.  But can’t we eat the weeds too?  I guess you can make a dandelion salad, but the thing about weeds is that they usually don’t taste very good and they have little or no nutritional value. If they did, farmers would grow them as feed.

I know that Ag Sciences have made great developments over the last century or so.  With science, we can combine two different species to make new hybrid plants, but Jesus tells us that in his kingdom there are no hybrids.  There is no part wheat and part weeds.  It is one or the other. 

40 "As the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil. 42 They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

I know that this is not a popular message.  No one wants to hear about the possibility of hell.  Our friends, our neighbors, our loved ones…everybody gets into heaven, right?  That seems to be the popular opinion nowadays, even among some pastors and theologians.  I read a comment someone made about their grandfather looking down on them from heaven, playing the slot machines and winning every time. Really?  Is this heaven?  And anyone who has ever done one good thing gets to go there?  Throughout the Gospel, Jesus tells us of a righteousness that does not come from ourselves.   It does not come from fulfilling our own desires, but submitting to God’s call to holiness.

Jesus tells us that there is a hell, a fiery furnace of pain and suffering.  People will go there.  People we know and love.  Although this message may not be popular, it is reality. We all want to create this hybrid life of wheat and weeds.  We want to be good people, but we can do pretty much whatever we like…and we all get to heaven in the end. 

Like I said earlier, I believe that the Church in North America is losing its influence and power in our society today because we want to look like wheat, but we live like weeds.  We want to look like heaven at Church, but live like hell at home.  We might tell people that we are the Church, but we don’t look any different or act any different than the rest of the world.  We are called to Godly living, but we just want to live the high life.  It’s hypocrisy.

Take every step possible to attain righteousness.  We must be willing to reject the things and influences of this world.  Parents, pay attention to the things your children are involved in.  Do they draw your kids closer to God, or farther from him?  All of us need to take a good hard look at our lives and the things that influence us.  If anything causes you to stumble, get rid of it.  If anything causes you to lose sight of God, push it aside.  If we are moving away from God, stop, turn around, and head the right direction. If anything should hinder your growth in God, it is not from him, but the devil. 

Matthew10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Don’t let your life be filled with weeds, but let your heart be filled with the love of God.  Let him make your life anew, that you may stand in the end. Matthew 13:43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

2011 07 10 Your Name Is Mud

Your Name Is Mud

Isaiah 55:10-13, Psalm 65:(1-8), 9-13, Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23

Looking at this morning’s lesson from Jesus on the parable of the soils, let’s say that I did a little digging…so to speak.  I think that dirt has gotten a bad rap.  Dirt has a pretty low reputation in our society.  Look at how we use the word dirt in our figures of speech.  If you don’t have much money, someone might you‘re as poor as dirt.  If you have a bad reputation in your hometown, you might be considered a dirty dog.  As we become more advanced in age, we might be called as old as dirt.  If someone is spreading rumors about our private affairs, they might be dishing the dirt or airing our dirty laundry out in public.  Eventually, if enough rumors get out about us, they might tell you that your name is mud.

Your home is thought of as messy if it has dirty dishes or dirty windows, and you were a bad parent if your kids had dirty faces or dirty clothes,   And for some strange reason our mothers and grandmothers would be most upset if we had a car accident while wearing dirty underwear. 

We don’t like dirt, and we don’t like things that are dirty.  Dirty is bad, and sometimes this is the case as with dirty pictures, dirty movies, dirty words, and dirty minds.  Those are some dirty things that we could seriously live without.  But I still think that most of the time, the term dirt is either overused or simply misunderstood.  Seeing as how Jen and I are potty-training Ben, and probably will be for months and maybe even years to come…when we say that Ben has dirty drawers or soiled pants.  Let me tell you this…it isn’t dirt we keep finding in there.

Now if I have offended anyone’s sensibilities in introducing my message this morning, I do apologize.  For something as simple, honest, and hard-working as dirt, it is tough to have any meaningful discussion about the topic without feeling …well, dirty. And this is a shame, especially considering that we are all little more than dirt ourselves.. 

Genesis 2:7 the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. In Genesis 3:19 one of the conditions placed on Adam was this: “By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return."  This same sentiment is reflected in Ecclesiastes 3:20, “All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all will return.”

We’re dirt.  We have come from dirt, and even with the finest funeral and embalming service available, someday our bodies will be dirt once more.  In the meantime, we need dirt.  From it comes our food.  Adam was given the command to work the ground and harvest what it produces in order to live.  Generation after generation would cultivate plant, tend, harvest and thresh. 

It was great to see combines out gathering wheat this past week, and although the machinery is far more sophisticated than it was in biblical times, these processes remain much the same.  This is how Jesus would communicate to the people.

In Matthew 13, crowds gathered around Jesus.  People from all over the countryside sought him out.  But the crowds became too large, too numerous to manage.  They wanted him to touch and heal them.  They wanted his attention.  They wanted his time.  But the time had come for Jesus to teach.  He was unable o do this with people crowding and pushing toward him.   So he got into a small boat and pushed away from shore.  Without the crushing crowds on top of him, he began to teach the people

"A farmer went out to sow his seed.”  From the parable, we know that this farmer scattered the seed, and it fell indifferent places, on different types of soil.   The first one mentioned was the path.  Because the ground was pressed and hard-packed, the seed stayed on top, and the birds came and ate it.  The second soil was shallow and rocky.  Because the soil was shallow, it had no problem popping right up.  Yet also because of the shallowness, the soil did not have much moisture.  The rocks kept the plants from putting down deep roots. When the sun came out, the plants died.

The third soil was full of thorns.  The seeds made it to the ground and began to grow.  But the thorns also grew.  Competing with the thorns for water and nutrients, the thorns won out.  The good plants were choked out and died.  Finally, the seed also made it to good soil.  It grew.  It bore fruit.  Some produced a crop sixty times what was sown and others one-hundred times what was sown.  Matthew 13:9 “He who has ears, let him hear."

The disciples asked Jesus why he taught in parables.  He revealed to them that most of the people in the Hebrew faith had lost their ability to hear what God had been teaching them.  They heard the words of the Law, but no longer understood what they said.  They saw the deeds of prophets, but could not understand what God was showing them.  The people had closed their eyes and ears to God.  Because of this, Jesus spoke in parables.  The disciples would come to understand, but the people would remain in blindness until the time would come for Jesus to be fully revealed.

So Jesus explained the parables to the disciples. The seed scattered along the path is the message of the kingdom of heaven shared with the spiritually blind.  Because they do not understand the good news of Jesus, it is stolen from their hearts by Satan.  They remain in their darkness and ignorance of God.  The seed scattered on the rocky soil are those who hear of Jesus and accept him joyfully.  But they are shallow like the soil.  Their hearts and minds are on their own desires, not God’s.  Faith does not take up root and the person is as much of a lost soul than ever.

The thorny soil is the hearts of those who hear Jesus’ message and believe.  However, their concerns of life and their worries about wealth overtake and overcome their faith.  For these people, their faith is choked by fear and made impotent by worldliness.  What is interesting is that the plant lives, but produces no fruit.  These are people who know God enough to be kept alive, but do not know him well enough to be useful to the kingdom.  The good soil is the hearts of those who hear, believe, and despite whatever fears, worries, or circumstances present themselves.  These persons live their faith to its fullest. Because of this, others are affected.  Because of this, seeds are being planted in the hearts of others.  Plants are bearing new fruits in that disciples are now producing  other disciples.

Four kinds of soil.  Four kinds of dirt.  Can anyone tell me what kind of soils might be the best?  Of these four choices, the path, rocky, thorny, and good, which is the kind of soil that God wants us to be?  Any guesses?  The good soil.  What kind?  THE GOOD SOIL.

In this parable, what makes the good soil so good?  We know that it produced 30, 60 and 100 fold crops, but why?  Good soil is cultivated soil.  Good soil has been plowed and disked, prepared to receive the seed.  When I look around most fields in the late winter/early spring, there is all kinds of old plants, last year’s stalks, and garbage growth.  And after the winter, that ground is probably as hard as a rock.  You could go throw handfuls of seed out there, but you’re not going have any crops.

Faith must be cultivated.  If you are a Christian…if you are a believer in Jesus Christ, two things happened before you ever came to faith.  1. The Holy Spirit was working on you, calling you to faith.  2. Someone demonstrated what faith is like.  Someone showed you what it is like to be a Christian, and I can only hope that they proved to be a good example.  Faith was cultivated in you.  You heart was being prepared to receive faith before you could ever perceive it.  That is the work of God through the Holy Spirit, and the witness of God through the heart, hands, and words of a living, practicing believer of Christ.  Faith must be cultivated, and hearts must be open to receive the good news.  If people are not coming to Christ, it is probably because 1.  They are fighting against the Holy Spirit, or 2. They don’t see or hear people openly practicing their faith.  They don’t “see” any good reasons to become a Christian.

Faith must be cultivated, but it must also be tended.  Fields are fertilized before and after planting.  Asking around, I have learned that there are different types of fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides used not only to make the fields fertile, but also to get rid of the weeds that choke the plants.  No farmer plants his or her fields and is happy with stunted empty stalks.  The crops need to be fruitful.  There needs to be a grain.  There needs to be a fruit coming as a result.  There needs to be a seed for the next crop as well. 

Christians MUST BE fruitful.  So often, Christians are just happy being fruit.  We are happy that someone sowed and shared faith in our lives.  We are the fruits of their faith, but then we just want to take it easy.  Our faith must be tended.  Weekly worship.  Daily prayers and devotions.  These keep us strong.  They keep our ears open and our eyes upon God.  When troubles come, we may get singed, but we still yield a crop.  When the worries of this world, when fears about wealth threaten us, we may choke up a little, but our thirst for righteousness instead of worldliness keeps us fruitful.  

We need to be fruitful.  We need to be the good soil.  We need to be yielding a crop of sixty and one-hundred times what we are right now.  As a Church, fruitfulness should cause our barns to be overflowing.  Our worship services and our Sunday schools, and our Bible Studies should be full to the point where we are starting another.  Our lives should be so full of fruitfulness that we are planting new churches every few years.

Is this happening?  In reality…no.  Not here.  Around the world, in Africa, South America, Asia, the church is exploding with new growth.  Why?  Because their fields are open to the word of the Lord. 

Isaiah 55:10-11 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Although the Lord is moving in mighty ways around the world, I don’t think that he has given up on us yet.  But we need to get moving.  We need to get going.  We need to put our faith affairs in order.  We need to help cultivate the hearts of others.  Cultivate faith in others by being faithful yourself.

We need people to step forward.  We need two kinds:

1.         People with hearts open to learn.

2.         People with hearts open to lead.  We are blessed to have so many in Sunday school, but everyone should be in a class.  We have a nice-sized Bible study, but everyone should be there.  We need more.  We need more times and opportunities where we can gather together to enrich the soils of our souls.  

We need teachers.  We need leaders to expand our current ministries and to start new ones, opening up new mission fields here in our community. If we’re going to turn pressed dirt into fertile soil, we’re going to need some tools.  We don’t need another stick in the mud.  We need people to step forward who are willing to shape and be shaped.

It is time to give dirt a good name.  We need to be people of the good soil.  Deeply rooted in our faith and willing to cultivate and enrich the lives of others in the hame of Jesus Christ and through the power of the Holy Spirit.  Who here is with me?  I WANT TO BE THE GOOD SOIL.  I WANT TO HELP OTHERS BECOME THE GOOD SOIL. Who here is with me?

2011 07 03 The Freedom That Enslaves

The Freedom That Enslaves

Psalm 145:8-14, Romans 7:15-25a, Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Tomorrow we celebrate Independence Day.  Throughout this weekend, we will remember the adoption of the Declaration of Independence with various celebrations, gatherings, parades, and fireworks displays (both public and private).  I think it is important that we do not remember Independence Day as an end, but as the beginning of our nation’s journey toward freedom from British rule.

That journey led our nation through the years of the revolutionary war, and eventually with the creation and ratification of our Constitution in 1789.  It took almost 13 years and the lives of thousands of men and women to finally accomplish what the writers of that declaration had intended.  A new nation had been created, forged out of the blood, sweat, and determination of God-fearing people.

In war and in peace, in times of plenty and in times of want, our nation has always had its liberties upon which to stand.  Generations of Americans would fight and often die to insure that these freedoms remain secure.  The God-given rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness have remained a cornerstone of American citizenship to this very day.

I believe that America was founded as a Christian nation, and although many people died in its creation, it is God to whom we ought to be most thankful on Independence Day.  We are a free nation, made up of free people.  But in the name of freedom, what have we, as a nation, accomplished? We have numerous rights, but over the years, what have we done with them?  With the blessing of freedom comes great responsibility.  Not just to protect it, but to use our freedom wisely. 

In the last 235 years, we have seen many changes to our rights and laws enacted for our protection.  I understand how many people are concerned over the loss of our rights in the hands of the courts in our legislature.  However, it is usually when we forfeit our own rights that we get into the most trouble.  On cable, one of my favorite shows is called “World’s Dumbest”.  It is usually, World’s Dumbest Criminals, World’s Dumbest Partiers, or World’s Dumbest Drivers.  Judging by the title of the show if you haven’t seen it, you can probably imagine that we are dealing with people who are putting themselves into some really bad positions and everything is on film. 

I remember one episode, where a man with a gun attempted to rob a gun shop.  Unfortunately for him, the owner and all the employees were armed.  The robber quickly gave up his robbery attempt.  In other episodes there are usually people driving at high speed past police cars, and others pulled over for various ridiculous or obvious traffic violations. 

I am not a lawyer, but one thing I have learned watching this show.  If an officer tells you that you have the right to remain silent…you’re probably best off taking his or her advice.

My concern with our current society is that we usually abuse our freedom.  We have the right to do just about anything.  We can go where we want, when we want to do whatever we want with whomever we want.  Just as long as we don’t break the law, no one is hurt…or at least as long as no one catches us.  Anymore, to most people, that is freedom.  Because we are human and because we are fallen and sinful, we will push those boundaries as far as they will go.  Most of the time…we know better.  Most of the time, we know what is right or what is wrong, and we still choose to do what is wrong. After all, it is our right.

I believe that American freedom has opened the door to sin.  Freedom has become license to sin.  We were once a nation founded by God that encouraged the freedom of religion.  Now, because of the separation of church and state, we are a secular nation that has embraced freedom from religion.  Our freedom has become an enforced form of slavery.  What?  Our nation’s freedom has encouraged the one thing that enslaves us: sin.

Inside and outside of the church, attitudes have changed toward behaviors that we were once considered sinful or wrong.  Alcohol and tobacco, sex outside of marriage, homosexuality, these are but a few things that are gaining acceptance or have already gained acceptance in our society…and in our churches as well.  Our rights have guaranteed that we can do these things, and “by God, I’m gonna do what I want!”  The freedoms established by our forefathers, allowing us to gather in worship of God, to live lives of Christian faith, to follow God and serve him only…have been replaced by the freedom to worship myself, celebrate my interests, and live out all my desires. As a nation, we have become enslaved by our own freedoms

But I know that God is still speaking to us.  He has never been silent, nor has he grown deaf to our prayers.  Sin is real, and it is always destructive.  Eventually, it breaks our hearts, ruins our relationships, and leaves us with a murderous emptiness.  God is calling out to us, seeking us, desiring to fill the emptiness that lies within us all. But what if we change?  Or more like, what if we are trying to change? 

The question that we really need to ask ourselves is this: How do we overcome sin? In Romans 7 today, Paul talked about what it means to struggle with sin.  Even when we want to do good, our hearts might be in the right place, but our bodies and our minds continually fight against us an lead us to sin.

Romans 7:21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God's law; 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?

It may be easy for those of us in the Church to look down on the unchurched…to view them with sinners.  But remember, Paul was an apostle…writing this letter to the Church at Rome..  Paul’s message was from one Christian struggling with sin to a Church struggling with sin.  Before we can help the hearts of a secular world escape from sin, we had better make sure that our own hearts have made that trip already.  If the people of the Church condemn sin, but do not flee from it themselves, then the Church is of no value to the world.  If God is calling people out of the bondage of sin, the Church must not be a people of bound feet and tied hands.  The Church must be a place and a people of freedom…a people of true freedom.

John Wesley spoke of the heart of a Christian, when he said that, “sin remains, but does not reign.”  This is what Paul was speaking about in the last part of the passage in Romans 7:25 Thanks be to God-- through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's law, but in the sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.

How did Paul do it?  How did Paul overcome sin?  How did Paul master his sin, and become able to follow God will all his heart?  Paul didn’t.  Paul couldn’t.  It was only through Christ that Paul could overcome the burden of sin.  It is the same for you and me.

The world today has traded Christianity for a generic spirituality.  Everyone is a spiritual person nowadays, free to believe whatever they choose.  That is their right.  They don’t like Christianity because they don’t like the idea of sin.  They don’t like the Church because they see its “laws” as too much of a burden. If I ignore my sins long enough, maybe they will go away.  In the meantime, I get to keep my freedom to do whatever. 

In Matthew 11, Jesus spoke about the world’s judgment of his kingdom.  When John the Baptist came, he was denounced as being demon-possessed.  When Jesus came he was denounced as a glutton and a drunkard and a friend of tax-collectors.  When it comes to the world, the world will judge Christianity with whatever view they see fit. However, Jesus did not come to the world to be a burden.  Jesus did not come to be an unjust tyrant.  Jesus came to bring rest and healing to lost souls.  He came to bring truth to those who had believed the wisdom of fools. He came to break the bonds of sin of those enslaved by their own liberties. 

27 "All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

We must always be weary of sin.  Sin is real, and it is present.  Sin is always looking to make a comeback.  Sin is always ready to overthrow our hearts and overcome our minds…even as Christians.  The world is watching.  Our faith calls us to freedom, and as such, we must make sure that our freedom calls us back to our faith. We must live to be servants of Christ, and as Christ’s slaves, we are freer than any person enslaved by sin.

2011 06 19 The Perfect Dad

The Perfect Dad

Genesis 22:1-14, Psalm 44:1-3, 5-8, Hebrews 12:1-13

Fathers come in all shapes and sizes.  They come in every race, nationality, and color.  They live in big cities and small towns. They work all sorts of jobs and play all sorts of roles in the family.  Sometimes they are stern disciplinarians and at others they might be thoughtful listeners.  Some are quiet, and others…not so much.

I guess that’s the comparison I notice most between my father-in-law and my dad.  Jen’s father likes to kind of stay in the background. If he has something to say, he’ll say it.  However, if others are leading a conversation, he may stay quiet. That’s not my dad.  My dad is a talker…through and through.  Memorial Day they came for a quick visit.  For most people, a quick visit might mean 10-15 minutes.  You say hello, say a few words, take time for a something to drink, say your goodbyes, and away you go.  A quick visit for my Dad is probably about 3 or 4 hours.  At Memorial Day, I think Dad had Kenny Lynch’s ear for hours on end.  But no matter…it was good to see them and especially Dad. 

A couple of years ago, we got news that no one likes to hear.  Dad had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.  It was in the early stages, but the word cancer still draws fear into the hearts of most people, mine included.  He underwent a new procedure involving cryogenics…freezing.  He had no chemotherapy…no radiation.  After a few treatments, his PSA (Prostate Specific Antigen) was practically zero, and his cancer was considered to be in remission. 

Over a year ago, his PSA went up unexpectedly. The cancer was back.  But again, because of early diagnosis, he received radiation treatments to clear up the few small spots present. His dad lived to be a fairly active 94, and the long running joke between us is that he will live long enough to make my life miserable.  His cancer from time to time has made me start to doubt that prediction.

My Dad and I are obviously close.  We weren’t always, but I have really frown to appreciate and love my dad..  A lot of times, I think that we take our dads for granted.  I know I did.  We just kind of assume that they will always be there for us.  As kids, we have very little idea just how great…are the sacrifices that most of them have made for us.  As dads, they have all faced some tough decisions and made choices that have affected their kids for years to come.

Abraham was just such a father.  He and his wife Sarah had hoped and prayed to have children but were barren into their old age.  The Lord had made a promise to Abraham and Sarah that they would have children, and that their offspring would be a numerous as the stars in the sky. But as time passed, they grew older and still there was no child.  So Sarah gave one of her servants (Hagar) to Abraham so that she might have a son for him.  Hagar bore Abraham a son, Ishmael.  However, this was not the son that the Lord had intended. 

About 12-13 years later, when Abraham was 100 years old, Sarah gave birth to a son, Isaac.  Isaac was their dream come true…the fulfillment of God’s promise to the two of them.  Oh, the joy they must have felt at his birth.  But remember, being a dad requires sacrifices and some tough decisions to be made. 

^{Genesis 22:1} Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. ² Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about."

I know that this seems like an unbelievable request from God. He promised Abraham a son that would carry on his lineage forever, then he asked Abraham to kill the son that he had provided.  I cannot imagine what all went through the mind of Abraham, but it says in ³ Early the next morning Abraham got up and saddled his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about.

The next morning…not the next week, the next month, or the next year…not when he had had enough time to think about it…but the next morning, he saddled up the donkey and headed off to a place only God knew. He took his son, Isaac, whom he loved greatly, and brought him to Mount Moriah.  Abraham built an altar, arranged wood on it and bound up Isaac with rope.  Abraham was ready to slay his son as the Lord had commanded. ¹¹ But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. ¹² "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."

There are men out there who work two and three jobs, to give their children the newest of gadgets to play with, the nicest of homes to grow up in, and the best educations to advance their careers.  For the past two or three generations, society told us that we have to work hard, and by the sweat of our brows, we will make a life for our children that is better than the one we had.  But being a good dad has nothing to do with the possessions, homes, and schooling.  Being a good dad has everything to do with the fear of God…with a father being obedient first and foremost to God. 

I’m sorry, but that really is all that matters.  The rest is just the icing on the cake, and unfortunately when you give your kids too much icing, they’ll eventually become sick.  Children cannot be raised by television.  Kids today do not need the newest iPads or cell phones.  They will certainly ask us for these things…but kids…OUR kids do not need more presents.  They need their dads to be more present.  Dads can’t just sit in a room drinking beer and watching football and tell the world that they are great dads because they are around.  Kids today do not need good dads, they need great dads.  Our children today need men mature in the faith…men who love, fear, and obey the Lord. 

Back on October 4, 1997, there was a Promise Keeper event called Stand in the Gap.  It was held on the National Mall in Washington DC.  I was one of eight men from my home church to go.  My dad was one of the others.  The mall was packed with men shoulder to shoulder, as far as they eye could see.  There were giant screens placed all over, and we were probably more than a half a mile from the actual stage.  There were speakers like Max Lucado, Joseph Stowell, Tony Evans, Bill McCartney, and many others.  At one point, one of the preachers asked if God can see us all here today, do you think that he would want to give us a big high five for how we have gathered?  He said no.  Men can gather for any reason. God didn’t want for men just to gather.  God wanted us to bow down…to lie down before him in repentance for our sins.  WOW.  So over a million men, laid down, faces down on the ground praying for forgiveness.  Without giving it a moment’s notice, I hit the ground, it was not until we had finished praying that I realized that my dad was there on the ground as well, praying and crying.  I will never forget that day. 

My dad is good talker and a good mechanic.  He has been a hard worker and has provided for our family in good times and bad.   He has been a good husband to my mom since 1958, and has served the church for many, many years.  However, the efforts of any person are of little value, if they do not know the Lord.  The hard work and determination of a father your willingness to make the tough decisions and the necessary sacrifices is of no use, if you do not fear and obey God.  In being a dad, God might ask you to give up all you ever wanted…but if you are obedient to him first…he will give you more you could ever imagine. 

Originally, I had wanted to share with you what I thought were the attributes of the Perfect Dad.  But to be honest with you, there are not any here on earth.  The perfect dad is our father in heaven.  He is calling us to faith and disciplines us, not so that we might like him…but that we might BE like him. 

¹⁰ Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. Hebrews 12:11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Not only is today Father’s Day, but it is also Trinity Sunday.  We celebrate the Father Son, and Holy Spirit. And God, the Father has given us the example of his son, Jesus Christ, to follow in faith, and he has empowered us to live and act in that same faith through his Holy Spirit.  Through disciplining our hearts, our minds, and our lives, God wants to make us holy dads….dads who stand apart from the rest of the world…dads willing to do and say the right thing, even when it hurts.  Through us, God hopes to share his holiness with our families…and the world.  May we be faithful examples to our children, and may we be faithful examples of holy fear and the love of God to those around us. May our Father in heaven may be glorified by our lives.

I give thanks for my dad who has shown me so much.  We give thanks for our fathers, but we pray for everyone…the father and the fatherless…the child and the childless…that God’s love and grace be upon us this morning…and always.

2011 06 12 Only By The Spirit

2011 06 12 Only By The Spirit

Acts 2:1-21, Psalm 104:24-34, 35b, 1 Corinthians 12:3b-13

Have you ever just known?  That might sound like a loaded question, but I am asking you if you have ever faced a tremendous issue in your life and the answer seemed to come out of nowhere?  I can look back and see a lot of times in my life, good and bad, where that has happened to me.

I remember my freshman year at Ohio State. My best friend had talked me into going there, but by spring quarter he had dropped all his classes and returned home.  I was sharing a room with two other guys, who didn’t really like me all that much.  I felt very much alone.  We lived on the 23^rd floor of Morrill Tower.  I can’t remember what, if anything had happened, but one evening I wanted to throw a chair out my window, and follow it to the ground.  But I couldn’t.  Something just kept nagging at me.  I wasn’t a praying man, a Christian, or even a remotely religious person at that time, but I can see now, that God was at hand.  That wasn’t the first or only time that God saved my life.

About seven years later, my life was a disaster.  I was in a nowhere job, living a nowhere lifestyle.  My health, finances, and everything was going…nowhere, fast.  I have shared much of my testimony with you before, but in my mind, God performed a miracle in my life.  As a result, I wanted to see if there was still anything left in this Church thing I had known as a child.  Going back to Church for the first time in 12-13 years, God as working on me again.  God was making me aware of my sins, and how they were killing me…literally and figuratively.  On the third Sunday back in church, I was drawn.  It was almost like a dream.  When the pastor opened up the altar for any who wanted to pray, it was ME going forward.  Like I said, in my mind God had already performed a miracle.  Now, he wanted to perform one in my heart.  I gave my sins, my heart, and my life to Jesus Christ.

My life took off…good things.  Fast forward again, about two and a half years…I had already been a youth and children’s pastor for fifteen months, and had now been on the campus of Asbury Seminary for about two months.  I was at a jewelry store in Nicholasville, KY.  My first day at Asbury, I met some gal from Illinois named Jennifer Tucker.  We really liked each other.  In fact, we were in love.  One Sunday night, I left her house thinking, I want to marry her.  The next day, I went to look for a ring.  After finding the ring I wanted to buy, I realized something.  Had I talked to God about this?  If I buy the ring, I’m going to ask her to marry me.  If she says yes, we will get married. BUT…is this what I am supposed to do? I can’t just get married and THEN ask God to bless what I have decided.  I need to know…is this what HE wants for my life and hers?

I asked the lady at the counter if I could have a few minutes to go outside and pray. She attended a local Methodist church and knew about us Asbury students.  But as I knelt and prayed outside in the parking lot, there was no bolt of lightning, no parting of the skies, no voice calling from heaven.  There was a peace…a peace like no other.  Without a word, I know that God had let me know that this was what he wanted for me…for her…for us.  When I asked Jen to marry me a week and a half later, it did not even occur to me that she could say no.  That’s how great God’s peace was in that decision. (By the way…she said yes on the spot.)

Now what is the one thing that ties these three events together?  What is the common factor in these three stories? Pentecost.  Some of you might be scratching your heads at this, but my answer is the same: Pentecost.  Throughout the Old Testament, we see times and events where God’s Spirit was poured upon certain people, and in this spirit, they carried out God’s commandments.  But in the New Testament, we have Pentecost.

Acts 2:1 When the day of Pentecost came, they (the disciples) were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

The Holy Spirit came upon the disciples.  They began to speak in all the languages of the people at that time. The people gathered heard the wonders of God spoken in the native tongues. 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?" 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine."

Peter stood up. With courage and with power never before seen in Peter, he began to tell the crowds the  prophecies foretold by the prophet Joel. 17 "'In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.

At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to earth.  Not only did the Spirit come to the disciples as they preached, but it came to all people.  It is through the Holy Spirit that God’s grace is made known to us. As Methodists, we believe in the power of the Holy Spirit because it is through the Holy Spirit that God seeks us out, speaks to us, and changes our lives.  Perhaps you remember from your confirmation and membership classes or even from sermons, John Wesley had names for the types of grace that the Spirit makes known to us.  Prevenient grace is the grace of God.  The Holy Spirit working in us before we even know him.  When I decided in college not to take a 23 story swan dive…that was prevenient grace. God was calling to me before I had ever called to him.  Justifying grace is when we realize that our sins are more than we can bear, and we give them to Jesus.  Our sins are forgiven, and our lives are made anew.  The slate has been wiped clean. We are in a right relationship with God.  When I went forward to the altar at church years ago, the Holy Spirit gave me a new start through God’s justifying grace.  Sanctifying grace is the Holy Spirit working in us, to make us more like Jesus.  Although Jesus wasn’t married, it was the Holy Spirit calling me to be married.  Sanctifying grace is us becoming more obedient and more loving…over time

It is Pentecost that has changed my life and the life of every person on earth. The grace, power, and salvation of the Lord is not made available to just a few, but to all men, women, and children.   That is why Pentecost is so important…especially to me.  God saved my life.  He gave me a new life.  He joined my life with another…all by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Now, I think that some people have a skewed idea of the Holy Spirit.  They feel like we can do whatever we like, then ask God to bless our mistakes and sins afterward.  The Holy Spirit is not The Force…we cannot make it obey commands.  (AD LIB?)  We cannot make the Holy Spirit obey our commands and our desires. Nor will it give blessing to our sins.  Quite the contrary. It is the Holy Spirit though which God lives in us in order that we might truly live.

Because many of us were raised to be strong and independent, we feel like we don’t need anyone or anything   We think we make it on our own, but we cannot.  Each of us needs God, but we don’t need him on a far off throne.  We need God here and now, and that is what the Holy Spirit is for us. 

Only by the Spirit can we…

1.    Pray.  In the Old Testament, the only people who could speak to God were the priests and prophets.  Through the Holy Spirit, we have a conduit to God.  We can speak to him, even when we don’t know what to say. That is the Holy Spirit.  When our hearts are too broken for words, the Spirit conveys our prayers to the Father.But not only does the Spirit allow us to talk to God, but we can also hear his replies.  Not everyone listens to him.  Look throughout the Old and New Testaments, or even look at people you know.  There are plenty of examples of where God is talking, but no one is listening.  The lights are on, but nobody’s home.  When we listen for God’s voice, the Holy Spirit will bring the message.  When you pray, make sure you’re listening as much as you talk.

2.    Read the scriptures. Reading the Bible without the Holy Spirit is like having a GPS without a power cord. You have it.  You can see it.  It’s there.  But you can’t make any sense of it, and it is not of much use to you. This is why cynics and skeptics can never figure out what the Bible says.  They’re too busy telling the Bible what it means, not the other way around.  When we open our hearts to the Spirit, the words ring a new each time with a fresh message and new poer for the reader. PRAY FOR THE HOLY SPIRIT to guide your reading of the Bible.

3.    Know God.  We cannot even perceive even the merest hint of God’s existence without the Spirit.  Our hearts and minds are so fouled up, so fallen.  We cannot believe in what we do not know, and we cannot know what we do not believe. This is where the prevenient grace of God is made known through the Spirit. We cannot know God without God’s help.  The Holy Spirit is God, and its task is making God known.

4.    Stay in line with his will.  We can’t.  The power of this world is too strong to fend off. Temptation is real and powerful, and to think that I am strong enough on my own…is to put a big old target on your back.  The devil will come for a visit the moment we think we don’t need the Holy Spirit.  God has a plan for each of us, and while it won’t always be easy, it will be good.  We need the Holy Spirit to help us stay on the path that God has for us.

5.    Move forward…the power to move.  The power to act.  1 Cor. 12:4 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.

You have a gift.  You have God-given abilities that God wants you to share in his service. Teaching, wisdom, prayer, faith, healing, speaking…you name it.  God wants you to use your abilities.  You need the Holy Spirit to make it happen.  You need the Spirit to activate, empower, and encourage you in whatever ministry he calls you to.  And he is calling us all to serve.

Phil. 2:12 tells us  to “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. 14 Do everything without complaining or arguing, 15 so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe

We are all called from darkness to shine like stars, but we need the Holy Spirit to set us ablaze, to give fuel to the fire, and to fan the flames.  Come, Holy Spirit, come.