As we work toward becoming a fully realized Christian church, which we call an Acts 16:5 church. we seek God;s guidance to those goals that God may have in mind for our congregation as we seek to become one with a dynamic vision. Dr. Stan Ott, our adviser for our presbytery, stresses developing discipleship, a missional focus, and an insight about friendliness and hospitality that is critical. Ott makes a distinction between friendliness and hospitality: "friendship is warm, sociable and pleasant" while hospitality invites people into our lives in meaningful ways. Hospitality is the key to keeping new attendees and making them a part of the congregation.
Ott urges us to look at making worship responsive to many needs and explore the importance of small-group ministry. Ott also advocates shared ministry between the pastor, the leaders, and the members of the congregation.
Ott offers seven signs of a vital congregation and six principles for going about the practice of vital ministry. Ott is practical and inspiring, hopeful, and confident that God is at work in every congregation. Ott urges us to use scriptural references that support the ongoing message he preaches to us about mission, vision, and God's presence in the church.
The practices of discipleship Ott lists are the "Seven Habits of the Burning Heart." These are spiritual practices that support and sustain the growth of disciples. Ott's habits are concerned with relationships, both with God and with others; well-being--spiritual, physical, and emotional; stewardship; and ministry and work. He reminds us that these tools of discipleship are the work of God's Spirit among us that forms Christ within us.
Ott recognizes that the church is in a time of transition today but reminds us that this is not a new state, that the church is always in some state of transition. Ott offers a very positive definition of transition. He writes, "But I want to offer a new definition of the transitional congregation--a church in transition to a positive, future-embracing vision that says, 'We have not yet experienced this congregation's greatest ministry. Let us bless what God has done among us and add the ministry we believe will touch another circle of people'"
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Friday, October 22, 2010
Heaven is Our True Home -- What a Day of Rejoicing That Will Be!
Heaven in our destination when we believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior!In John 14 Jesus tells us He is going to prepare a place for us in His Father's abode, where there are many mansions. In John 14:6 He tells us how to get there -- THROUGH HIM!
The Bible is the most beautiful book ever written. It tells us some things about heaven and all are awe-inspiring. What a day of rejoicing that will be!
The Bible does not say a lot about heaven. Reinhold Niebuhr once said, "The Bible tells us very little about the temperature of hell, or the furniture of heaven."
But it tells us enough to get us excited. In John 14 Jesus says He is going to prepare a place for us. And LET ME EMPHASIZE THIS FACT -- In John 14:6 He tells us how to get there -- through HIM! There is no way that human language can capture the majesty and the grandeur of heaven.
The Bible does tell us though, everything you and I need to know. We can see great insight into the very heart and the essence of what heaven is really all about. Turn with me to Paul's letter to the Philippians, the third chapter; and let's take a look this morning at verses 17-21. This is the Word of God. Paul writes to those early Christians in Philippi:
Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their God is their physical being, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on early things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
There is a story about the two guys who were dying to know if there would be baseball in heaven. They made a pact with each other. The first one to die, he would try to come back and communicate to the other person whether or not there was baseball in heaven. Well, one of them dies; and sure enough the remaining friend one night hears a familiar voice, "Jim! It's Fred! I've come back to tell you whether or not there is baseball in heaven. I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news, there is baseball in heaven. The bad news, you are the starting pitcher tomorrow night."
What is heaven like? Probably a better place to begin is to ask ourselves the question, "Will we be ready for what heaven is like?" In the third chapter of Philippians, Paul has spent a lot of time talking with those early Christians about what eternal life in Christ is like. In verses 17-19 of our text, he hones in on the fact that the reality of heaven ought to impact the way you and I live in the world as Christians. In fact, he urges those early Philippian Christians to model their lives after him, and after other Christians who are living godly lives.
Then he warns the Philippians, 'Don't model your life after some Christians inside the church, who call themselves Christians,' but who in reality Paul says, 'are enemies of the cross.' These are men and women within the church but they are enemies of the cross; not because they deny the existence of heaven; but because they have been perpetrating a myth. The myth that there are other ways to heaven other than through the cross of Jesus Christ.
Friends, let us be clear here this morning. There is no other way to heaven than through Jesus Christ and his once and for all sufficient, perfect, sacrificial death on the cross. Not Ron Scates, not the Presbyterian Church, but Jesus says, 'I am the way. I am the road. No one comes to the Father, but by me.'
But there in that Philippian church, and in the church right here, there are those Christians who in reality are masquerading as Christians, who are enemies of the cross. 'Oh, there are all kinds of ways other than Christ to get to heaven.'
Paul says, their destiny is not heaven but destruction. Their god is their gut. And Paul says they have fallen into what we might call the Jerry Springer Syndrome: They glory in their shame.
If there is a just criticism of some Christians that they are so heavenly-minded that they are not earthly good, then just the opposite is true for these folks. Their minds are totally focused on this world. They have forgotten, or they have lost that transcendent vision of a godly, Christ-centered life.
Now remember that Paul is writing to Christians here. He is not saying that the way you and I live determines whether we merit heaven. No, not at all. You and I are saved solely, totally by grace alone, through faith in Christ. But what I think Paul is saying here when he urges them to model their lives after him and after other godly Christians, is that the way you and I live our lives here on earth, has an impact on us as we make the transition into heaven.
Think about it. If you are going to spend eternity with a God that you do not passionately love right now; if you are going to spend eternity subject to a God who in this life, you continually refuse to surrender all of your life to; then at best heaven is going to be somewhat of a wearisome place, if not a miserable place. Our lives lived here on earth are to be lived in preparation for life in heaven. We are to seek out men and women of integrity, and authenticity, and compassion, and courage, and faithfulness; and then pattern our lives after them. Seeking to live in ways here and now that glorify God through eternity. So ask yourself a question. Who or what is your life modeled on?
Let's get back to the original question. What is heaven? In verses 20 and 21 of our text, Paul gives us some great insights into what heaven is really all about. In verse 20, the first thing he tells us, he reminds us to check our spiritual passports as Christians. He says, 'Our citizenship, is not in this world. Our true citizenship is in heaven.' This earth is not our real home.
If you are a Christian, ask yourself this, 'Am I a pioneer, or am I a homesteader?' A pioneer is never settled. They are always moving on. They know that wherever they are is not their home. They are always heading toward a final destination. They are just passing through. But so many Christians have, in relationship to this world, become homesteaders. They have circled the wagons. They have sunk down roots. They invest themselves so much in this world, that they have almost totally forgotten where their true home is.
Where is your true home? It is not here. If you are a Christian, you are at best a resident alien. You are a sojourner. You and I need to remember that this world is not all there is.
In September when Anne and I are in Scotland, I don't think we are going to be confused about Scotland being our home. At every turn we are going to be reminded that we are tourists. We are just passing through. We are just resident aliens there, and we will only be there for a short time.
Let me confess, I like this world. I am in no rush to get to heaven. I need to be reminded that I am a resident alien. I am a sojourner. I am just passing through. This is not my home.
Max Lucado tells a story about flying home to San Antonio one evening and as the wheels of the plane hit the runway, he said all through the plane you could hear the unfastening of seatbelts. As the voice came over the intercom saying, 'Please remain seated with your seatbelt fastened until the plane comes to a complete stop,' he said, no one was paying attention. People were already out of their seats, opening the overhead compartments, getting their stuff out. Why? Because they were home. Their final destination was not that plane. They wanted to get off of that plane, and get out, and get home with those they love. He said he didn't see any of the stewardesses having to struggle to pull people out of their seats, with people going, 'Wait a minute. I want to stay on the plane for a few more hours. The food is really good. These seats are so comfy, I want to stay.' No. They were home. They wanted to get off of that plane.
Why then, as Christians, are we so clutching when it comes to this world? This is not our true home. By the way, if you are a Christian when you die, where do you go? You don't go to heaven. When Jesus died He didn't even go to heaven. He went to hell. He went to hell to close the gates of hell for all who place their trust in him. But if you are a believer, when you die you don't go to heaven either. Where do you go?
Paul says that Christ one day will return, and take you and me home to heaven to be with him. If you don't remember anything else about this sermon, remember this. This is the most important thing about heaven: that you and I will be with Christ.
Join me as we pray:
Father we thank you that as we pass through this world as sojourners you are our companion, you are our pioneer and perfecter of our faith. We follow hopefully in your footsteps. Lord, give us a healthy appreciation of the beauty and wonder of this world. May we pour ourselves out, living for you; binding up the wounds of those who are hurting, ministering to the poor. But also may we be so fueled by the reality that this is not the last word. This is not our true home. We are here to do what we can. But our destiny is eternal life with you. Through Jesus Christ our Lord and him alone. Amen.
The Bible is the most beautiful book ever written. It tells us some things about heaven and all are awe-inspiring. What a day of rejoicing that will be!
The Bible does not say a lot about heaven. Reinhold Niebuhr once said, "The Bible tells us very little about the temperature of hell, or the furniture of heaven."
But it tells us enough to get us excited. In John 14 Jesus says He is going to prepare a place for us. And LET ME EMPHASIZE THIS FACT -- In John 14:6 He tells us how to get there -- through HIM! There is no way that human language can capture the majesty and the grandeur of heaven.
The Bible does tell us though, everything you and I need to know. We can see great insight into the very heart and the essence of what heaven is really all about. Turn with me to Paul's letter to the Philippians, the third chapter; and let's take a look this morning at verses 17-21. This is the Word of God. Paul writes to those early Christians in Philippi:
Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their God is their physical being, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on early things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.
There is a story about the two guys who were dying to know if there would be baseball in heaven. They made a pact with each other. The first one to die, he would try to come back and communicate to the other person whether or not there was baseball in heaven. Well, one of them dies; and sure enough the remaining friend one night hears a familiar voice, "Jim! It's Fred! I've come back to tell you whether or not there is baseball in heaven. I have some good news and some bad news for you. The good news, there is baseball in heaven. The bad news, you are the starting pitcher tomorrow night."
What is heaven like? Probably a better place to begin is to ask ourselves the question, "Will we be ready for what heaven is like?" In the third chapter of Philippians, Paul has spent a lot of time talking with those early Christians about what eternal life in Christ is like. In verses 17-19 of our text, he hones in on the fact that the reality of heaven ought to impact the way you and I live in the world as Christians. In fact, he urges those early Philippian Christians to model their lives after him, and after other Christians who are living godly lives.
Then he warns the Philippians, 'Don't model your life after some Christians inside the church, who call themselves Christians,' but who in reality Paul says, 'are enemies of the cross.' These are men and women within the church but they are enemies of the cross; not because they deny the existence of heaven; but because they have been perpetrating a myth. The myth that there are other ways to heaven other than through the cross of Jesus Christ.
Friends, let us be clear here this morning. There is no other way to heaven than through Jesus Christ and his once and for all sufficient, perfect, sacrificial death on the cross. Not Ron Scates, not the Presbyterian Church, but Jesus says, 'I am the way. I am the road. No one comes to the Father, but by me.'
But there in that Philippian church, and in the church right here, there are those Christians who in reality are masquerading as Christians, who are enemies of the cross. 'Oh, there are all kinds of ways other than Christ to get to heaven.'
Paul says, their destiny is not heaven but destruction. Their god is their gut. And Paul says they have fallen into what we might call the Jerry Springer Syndrome: They glory in their shame.
If there is a just criticism of some Christians that they are so heavenly-minded that they are not earthly good, then just the opposite is true for these folks. Their minds are totally focused on this world. They have forgotten, or they have lost that transcendent vision of a godly, Christ-centered life.
Now remember that Paul is writing to Christians here. He is not saying that the way you and I live determines whether we merit heaven. No, not at all. You and I are saved solely, totally by grace alone, through faith in Christ. But what I think Paul is saying here when he urges them to model their lives after him and after other godly Christians, is that the way you and I live our lives here on earth, has an impact on us as we make the transition into heaven.
Think about it. If you are going to spend eternity with a God that you do not passionately love right now; if you are going to spend eternity subject to a God who in this life, you continually refuse to surrender all of your life to; then at best heaven is going to be somewhat of a wearisome place, if not a miserable place. Our lives lived here on earth are to be lived in preparation for life in heaven. We are to seek out men and women of integrity, and authenticity, and compassion, and courage, and faithfulness; and then pattern our lives after them. Seeking to live in ways here and now that glorify God through eternity. So ask yourself a question. Who or what is your life modeled on?
Let's get back to the original question. What is heaven? In verses 20 and 21 of our text, Paul gives us some great insights into what heaven is really all about. In verse 20, the first thing he tells us, he reminds us to check our spiritual passports as Christians. He says, 'Our citizenship, is not in this world. Our true citizenship is in heaven.' This earth is not our real home.
If you are a Christian, ask yourself this, 'Am I a pioneer, or am I a homesteader?' A pioneer is never settled. They are always moving on. They know that wherever they are is not their home. They are always heading toward a final destination. They are just passing through. But so many Christians have, in relationship to this world, become homesteaders. They have circled the wagons. They have sunk down roots. They invest themselves so much in this world, that they have almost totally forgotten where their true home is.
Where is your true home? It is not here. If you are a Christian, you are at best a resident alien. You are a sojourner. You and I need to remember that this world is not all there is.
In September when Anne and I are in Scotland, I don't think we are going to be confused about Scotland being our home. At every turn we are going to be reminded that we are tourists. We are just passing through. We are just resident aliens there, and we will only be there for a short time.
Let me confess, I like this world. I am in no rush to get to heaven. I need to be reminded that I am a resident alien. I am a sojourner. I am just passing through. This is not my home.
Max Lucado tells a story about flying home to San Antonio one evening and as the wheels of the plane hit the runway, he said all through the plane you could hear the unfastening of seatbelts. As the voice came over the intercom saying, 'Please remain seated with your seatbelt fastened until the plane comes to a complete stop,' he said, no one was paying attention. People were already out of their seats, opening the overhead compartments, getting their stuff out. Why? Because they were home. Their final destination was not that plane. They wanted to get off of that plane, and get out, and get home with those they love. He said he didn't see any of the stewardesses having to struggle to pull people out of their seats, with people going, 'Wait a minute. I want to stay on the plane for a few more hours. The food is really good. These seats are so comfy, I want to stay.' No. They were home. They wanted to get off of that plane.
Why then, as Christians, are we so clutching when it comes to this world? This is not our true home. By the way, if you are a Christian when you die, where do you go? You don't go to heaven. When Jesus died He didn't even go to heaven. He went to hell. He went to hell to close the gates of hell for all who place their trust in him. But if you are a believer, when you die you don't go to heaven either. Where do you go?
Paul says that Christ one day will return, and take you and me home to heaven to be with him. If you don't remember anything else about this sermon, remember this. This is the most important thing about heaven: that you and I will be with Christ.
Join me as we pray:
Father we thank you that as we pass through this world as sojourners you are our companion, you are our pioneer and perfecter of our faith. We follow hopefully in your footsteps. Lord, give us a healthy appreciation of the beauty and wonder of this world. May we pour ourselves out, living for you; binding up the wounds of those who are hurting, ministering to the poor. But also may we be so fueled by the reality that this is not the last word. This is not our true home. We are here to do what we can. But our destiny is eternal life with you. Through Jesus Christ our Lord and him alone. Amen.
Monday, October 11, 2010
There is a Heaven and There is a Hell -- Hell is a Spiritual Reality
Hell is a spiritual reality that can be countered only by the Cross of Christ.
Introduction
• Read Matthew 13:47-51 47"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51"Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked. "Yes," they replied.
• Jesus uses a commercial fishing illustration to teach about the afterlife: (1) there will be judgment for everyone, (2) people will be separated into two groups, and (3) the saved will be destined for heaven and the unsaved for hell.
• Jesus speaks often of hell, and other biblical writers do, too.
• In Scripture, justice demands a hell.
WHY IS HELL NECESSARY?
A. Its necessary for the devil, who it was created for in the first place-Matthew 25:41.
B. Its necessary for those who do not trust Jesus to pay for their sin-Romans 6:23 and II • Thessalonians 1:5-9.
Hell involves emotional anguish.
• Hell is like gehenna, the smoldering trash dump outside Jerusalem, and in hell, people will be consciously aware that they have been deemed trash--worthless, irredeemable, fit for no good purpose.
• Hell involves gnashing of teeth-
•
• Hell is described as fire, flames, furnace-a pain so intense that in the parable in Luke 16, a man begs for a few drops of water.
•
• Preachers of the past thought it was a terrible place to go. An example comes from the great speaker Gharles Spurgeon…
“There is a real fire in hell, as truly as you have a real body, a fire exactly like that which we have on this earth except this: it will not consume you though it will torture you. You have seen asbestos lying amid coals but not consumed. So your body will be prepared by God in such a way that it will burn forever yet without being consumed, with your nerves laid raw by searing flame yet never desensitized for all its raging fury. And with the acrid smoke of the sulfuric fumes searing your lungs and choking your breath you will cry out for the mercy of death, but it shall never, never, no, never come
•
Even Billy Graham is uncertain about the literal nature of hell being on fire.
In Time Magazine on November 15, 1993, he said, “I think that hell essentially is separation from God forever. And that is the worst hell that I can think of. But I think people have a hard time believing God is going to allow people to burn
in literal fire forever.”
A few years before that Billy Graham said in his book, “A Biblical Stand for Evangelists”,1983, pp 45-47….. “When it comes to a literal fire, I don’t preach it because I’m not sure about it.”
•
Introduction
• Read Matthew 13:47-51 47"Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. 48When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. 49This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous 50and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
51"Have you understood all these things?" Jesus asked. "Yes," they replied.
• Jesus uses a commercial fishing illustration to teach about the afterlife: (1) there will be judgment for everyone, (2) people will be separated into two groups, and (3) the saved will be destined for heaven and the unsaved for hell.
• Jesus speaks often of hell, and other biblical writers do, too.
• In Scripture, justice demands a hell.
WHY IS HELL NECESSARY?
A. Its necessary for the devil, who it was created for in the first place-Matthew 25:41.
B. Its necessary for those who do not trust Jesus to pay for their sin-Romans 6:23 and II • Thessalonians 1:5-9.
Hell involves emotional anguish.
• Hell is like gehenna, the smoldering trash dump outside Jerusalem, and in hell, people will be consciously aware that they have been deemed trash--worthless, irredeemable, fit for no good purpose.
• Hell involves gnashing of teeth-
•
• Hell is described as fire, flames, furnace-a pain so intense that in the parable in Luke 16, a man begs for a few drops of water.
•
• Preachers of the past thought it was a terrible place to go. An example comes from the great speaker Gharles Spurgeon…
“There is a real fire in hell, as truly as you have a real body, a fire exactly like that which we have on this earth except this: it will not consume you though it will torture you. You have seen asbestos lying amid coals but not consumed. So your body will be prepared by God in such a way that it will burn forever yet without being consumed, with your nerves laid raw by searing flame yet never desensitized for all its raging fury. And with the acrid smoke of the sulfuric fumes searing your lungs and choking your breath you will cry out for the mercy of death, but it shall never, never, no, never come
•
Even Billy Graham is uncertain about the literal nature of hell being on fire.
In Time Magazine on November 15, 1993, he said, “I think that hell essentially is separation from God forever. And that is the worst hell that I can think of. But I think people have a hard time believing God is going to allow people to burn
in literal fire forever.”
A few years before that Billy Graham said in his book, “A Biblical Stand for Evangelists”,1983, pp 45-47….. “When it comes to a literal fire, I don’t preach it because I’m not sure about it.”
•
Tuesday, October 05, 2010
Be Thou My Vision: Having the Eyes of Christ -- Open My Eyes So That I Might Have "People Eyes"
The Acts 16:5 concept of looking at people as Jesus would see them, with eyes for people and their hearts. We catch His vision for helping and loving and nurturing people. We see people through the eyes of Christ, as people with needs to be met – physical, spiritual, emotional, social, relational – and look for ways to meet those needs in the mission of Jesus Christ in our time and place.
To see people the way Jesus saw them is to look beyond failure to another chance.
In a world in which it’s “three strikes and you’re out,” to see people the way Jesus sawthem is to believe in redemption, really believe in it, not just as a religious idea but as a fact of real life. To see people the way Jesus saw is to put hope back into the equation. Jesus saw people differently. And we, as new creations in Christ, are called to see people the way he saw them.
Jesus would have us look beyond the obvious and the superficial. He would have
us look deeper into the soul and spirit.
What do you see? What do you see when you see an autistic child? What do you
see when you see a homeless man selling newspapers at the intersection? What do you see when you see a poor person in the line at a food pantry? What do you see when you see a black man or Mexican man or an Arabian man? What do you see when you see a senile senior adult, once proud and accomplished but now reduced to repeating over and over, hundreds of times every day,“Please help me. Won’t somebody help me”? What do you see?
Or, more importantly, through whose eyes do you see? Do you see through the
eyes of a society in which worth is based on what one can produce or generate, and
therefore one in which there is no place for the non-productive – senile senior adults, the mentally ill, the unemployed, the poor? Do you see through the eyes of a selfish, greedy society in which hedonism, the belief that the satisfaction of one’s physical and material desires is the highest good, has become so much a part of our lifestyle that we scarcely notice it any more. Do you see through eyes that align with social Darwinism, (the survival of the strongest, the richest, the financially fittest), rather than Christ's law of love?
Or do you see through the eyes of Christ and the eyes a Christian society in which we have a sense of responsibility for one another, for people we don’t even know but who share something important with us, namely that we are all humans,that we are all people with Christ in common. Are you caught up in the radical individualism, or do you follow the teachings of the radical Savior Jesus Christ? Do you see through the eyes of the world or through the eyes of Christ?
The fundamental challenge for us as followers of Jesus Christ is to recognize that
if we do nothing, if we float along through life, we will see through the eyes of the world. To see through the eyes of Christ requires a conscious decision on our part, a choice.
That decision must be followed by a lifetime of being alert to the ways the world has of shaping our vision and a lifetime of perpetual learning what it means to see through the eyes of Christ.
May God call us to that decision today and every day so that the prayer of the
hymn writers might be our prayer:
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart...give me the vision you have for my heart!
Open my eyes that I may see,glimpses of truth thou hast for me. Lord, give us eyes to see the way Jesus saw. In his name, Amen.
To see people the way Jesus saw them is to look beyond failure to another chance.
In a world in which it’s “three strikes and you’re out,” to see people the way Jesus sawthem is to believe in redemption, really believe in it, not just as a religious idea but as a fact of real life. To see people the way Jesus saw is to put hope back into the equation. Jesus saw people differently. And we, as new creations in Christ, are called to see people the way he saw them.
Jesus would have us look beyond the obvious and the superficial. He would have
us look deeper into the soul and spirit.
What do you see? What do you see when you see an autistic child? What do you
see when you see a homeless man selling newspapers at the intersection? What do you see when you see a poor person in the line at a food pantry? What do you see when you see a black man or Mexican man or an Arabian man? What do you see when you see a senile senior adult, once proud and accomplished but now reduced to repeating over and over, hundreds of times every day,“Please help me. Won’t somebody help me”? What do you see?
Or, more importantly, through whose eyes do you see? Do you see through the
eyes of a society in which worth is based on what one can produce or generate, and
therefore one in which there is no place for the non-productive – senile senior adults, the mentally ill, the unemployed, the poor? Do you see through the eyes of a selfish, greedy society in which hedonism, the belief that the satisfaction of one’s physical and material desires is the highest good, has become so much a part of our lifestyle that we scarcely notice it any more. Do you see through eyes that align with social Darwinism, (the survival of the strongest, the richest, the financially fittest), rather than Christ's law of love?
Or do you see through the eyes of Christ and the eyes a Christian society in which we have a sense of responsibility for one another, for people we don’t even know but who share something important with us, namely that we are all humans,that we are all people with Christ in common. Are you caught up in the radical individualism, or do you follow the teachings of the radical Savior Jesus Christ? Do you see through the eyes of the world or through the eyes of Christ?
The fundamental challenge for us as followers of Jesus Christ is to recognize that
if we do nothing, if we float along through life, we will see through the eyes of the world. To see through the eyes of Christ requires a conscious decision on our part, a choice.
That decision must be followed by a lifetime of being alert to the ways the world has of shaping our vision and a lifetime of perpetual learning what it means to see through the eyes of Christ.
May God call us to that decision today and every day so that the prayer of the
hymn writers might be our prayer:
Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart...give me the vision you have for my heart!
Open my eyes that I may see,glimpses of truth thou hast for me. Lord, give us eyes to see the way Jesus saw. In his name, Amen.
Monday, October 04, 2010
Jesus Calls on Us to Help the "Least of These" Part Two
There are people going hungry in Africa and Asia but also right down the street. There are people who cannot heat their homes this winter and people who don’t even have a home. We will go eat lunch today but there will people who haven’t eaten since Friday. This is the last parable Jesus tells his disciples. These are the last words he conveys to them as a group. He looks at them and says that these people are our family and we need to be taking care of them.
We cannot forget that but we in order to do that we need to stop the judgment. We have a huge tendency to look at people in need around us, the least of these in our community, and pass judgment on them. We constantly pass judgment but Christ tells us to stop and have compassion.
Brothers and sisters, we all are sinners and the majority of us are lucky enough to escape paying for those sins for the rest of our lives. Instead of seeing the just the sin, we need to learn how to see the person, the child of God, as Jesus did. Instead of imparting judgment to impart compassion. In the parable, Jesus the king is the judge. We do not need to do that. He is quite capable of judgment. He calls on us to do the compassion part with the least of these, for Him in His Name.
When we start with compassion then we start to take care of those people’s needs. When we start with compassion we start to have a heart that looks like the King we serve.
Mother Teresa once said: “When I die and I meet Jesus I can see him upset that I judged too much but I cannot envision him telling me he is angry because I had too much compassion.”
.So what does all this mean for us as members of Burt Presbyterian Church? Well, one of our core values is acceptance of others and hospitality ot others in the name of Jseus Christ. That’s why we’re an Acts 16”5 congregation – because we as a congregation feel
that we should be a welcoming place to everybody regardless of race, color, economic status, letting Jesus tear down the barriers between us.
But it means more than that. It means that each one of us should take that core value of acceptance and love and try to live that value in our daily lives. It means that when we go out into the world, we don’t look at the world as a world of “us” and “them,” but that we look at the world as composed of children of God, and potential church members with us, either here or in other churches. And we respect other religions, too, because we with for them to respect us and to live in peace with us. The Bible calls on us to live in peace if we possibly can.
The church cannot preach acts of loving kindness to the hungry, the thirsty, the imprisoned and the naked unless it is composed of congregations of people who live out those acts of loving kindness in their everyday lives.
Those acts of kindness don’t just happen here at the church building on Sunday morning.
Those acts of kindness need to happen in our everyday lives, in our everyday encounters, when you entertain a stranger, when you refrain from thoughts of hate or ridicule, and stay away from those who say and do such things,, when you stand up for the rights of the poor, the down and out, those who are struggling to survive.
Judgment day is coming – and we must be people of the cross. And, God knows that a people of the cross are so much needed in our world in where fear of terror seems to be ruling. However, fear not, and see that there is much Good News in today's text. A final judgment is coming, and may it come soon. For Christ's judgment will cast out fear, and war, and terror, and poverty, and inhumanity.
And because that day is surely coming, we can continue to live our lives with hope. Having children and baptizing them into the mission of Christ, sharing with them the stories and the life of faith, so they might tell others that there is indeed a leader who is worthy to give our true allegiance to. And we may face death with hope, knowing that it is Jesus Christ who will complete the work of the Church and the mission of the Kingdom of God, and that one day, in the twinkling of an eye, we will be raised imperishable, to share in a new Heaven and a New Earth.
For we have faith in the one with the nail pierced hands and feet who walks among those who suffer, pouring out a promise made in his blood, loving all who come to Him regardless of their background – and one day we believe that all of the creation will be set free from slavery to fear and death.
Believe in Jesus the Christ, our Judge and our Hope!
AMEN! AMEN!
We cannot forget that but we in order to do that we need to stop the judgment. We have a huge tendency to look at people in need around us, the least of these in our community, and pass judgment on them. We constantly pass judgment but Christ tells us to stop and have compassion.
Brothers and sisters, we all are sinners and the majority of us are lucky enough to escape paying for those sins for the rest of our lives. Instead of seeing the just the sin, we need to learn how to see the person, the child of God, as Jesus did. Instead of imparting judgment to impart compassion. In the parable, Jesus the king is the judge. We do not need to do that. He is quite capable of judgment. He calls on us to do the compassion part with the least of these, for Him in His Name.
When we start with compassion then we start to take care of those people’s needs. When we start with compassion we start to have a heart that looks like the King we serve.
Mother Teresa once said: “When I die and I meet Jesus I can see him upset that I judged too much but I cannot envision him telling me he is angry because I had too much compassion.”
.So what does all this mean for us as members of Burt Presbyterian Church? Well, one of our core values is acceptance of others and hospitality ot others in the name of Jseus Christ. That’s why we’re an Acts 16”5 congregation – because we as a congregation feel
that we should be a welcoming place to everybody regardless of race, color, economic status, letting Jesus tear down the barriers between us.
But it means more than that. It means that each one of us should take that core value of acceptance and love and try to live that value in our daily lives. It means that when we go out into the world, we don’t look at the world as a world of “us” and “them,” but that we look at the world as composed of children of God, and potential church members with us, either here or in other churches. And we respect other religions, too, because we with for them to respect us and to live in peace with us. The Bible calls on us to live in peace if we possibly can.
The church cannot preach acts of loving kindness to the hungry, the thirsty, the imprisoned and the naked unless it is composed of congregations of people who live out those acts of loving kindness in their everyday lives.
Those acts of kindness don’t just happen here at the church building on Sunday morning.
Those acts of kindness need to happen in our everyday lives, in our everyday encounters, when you entertain a stranger, when you refrain from thoughts of hate or ridicule, and stay away from those who say and do such things,, when you stand up for the rights of the poor, the down and out, those who are struggling to survive.
Judgment day is coming – and we must be people of the cross. And, God knows that a people of the cross are so much needed in our world in where fear of terror seems to be ruling. However, fear not, and see that there is much Good News in today's text. A final judgment is coming, and may it come soon. For Christ's judgment will cast out fear, and war, and terror, and poverty, and inhumanity.
And because that day is surely coming, we can continue to live our lives with hope. Having children and baptizing them into the mission of Christ, sharing with them the stories and the life of faith, so they might tell others that there is indeed a leader who is worthy to give our true allegiance to. And we may face death with hope, knowing that it is Jesus Christ who will complete the work of the Church and the mission of the Kingdom of God, and that one day, in the twinkling of an eye, we will be raised imperishable, to share in a new Heaven and a New Earth.
For we have faith in the one with the nail pierced hands and feet who walks among those who suffer, pouring out a promise made in his blood, loving all who come to Him regardless of their background – and one day we believe that all of the creation will be set free from slavery to fear and death.
Believe in Jesus the Christ, our Judge and our Hope!
AMEN! AMEN!
Jesus calls on Us to Reach and Help the "Least of These" Part One
Today is World Communion Sunday, and it reminds us of missions and the communion we have with Christians around the world – many of whom do not look like us or even live in cultures like ours. Our Scripture lesson today reminds us that all of us, all over the world, are linked by a love for Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, which the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper is all about!
The Scripture reminds us who is the one in charge, and it reminds us there is a coming Judgment Day. We are ruled by a generous, forgiving, loving, and grace filled king. That king is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He is righteous and holy and we are not. And He is the mighty judge on the coming Judgment Day. And in this powerful parable He again tells us what he values most of all, after our allegiance – how we live in the way we treat others. Remember the great commands He gives to love others as yourself and to love one another. Well, he is always consistent – and He tells this parable to drive the truth home to us.
This parable starts on judgment but it then flows into compassion. The compassion comes when we learn what the sheep did to inherit the kingdom. Let’s be clear again, there is nothing we can do to earn our way to heaven but if you remember last week we need to live into our gift as well. In the parable of the talents,
Jesus reminds the disciples that they will receive a tremendous gift, the gift of salvation. We are told that we need to share that gift with others and it will come back to us with a 100% return. We can’t do anything to earn salvation but we do need to do something once we have. To live a life with Christ means you have to go where Christ is and that is what the rest of the parable is about.
Each Sunday, when we gather here, we celebrate the resurrection. Each Sunday is a break to be still and enjoy the presence of God, remembering the resurrection. We call it the Lord’s Day for that reason. We, as Christians, believe that Christ is all around us. We just need to have the eyes to see him. “I heard a story at the General Assembly from a missionary to the inner city of Detroit -- one morning when the volunteers who would feed the hungry gathered early to get things ready for the long line of homeless folk that stood outside waiting. Someone asked one of the workers to pray and she prayed, “Jesus, help me to see your face when you come through the line.”
When we look at the people around us we need to be on the lookout for Jesus. When he is talking to the sheep he tells them that they were the ones who had compassion on the least of these around us. The hungry, they gave food. They thirsty, they gave them something to drink. The sick, they took care of. The naked, they clothed. The stranger, they welcomed them in. The prisoners, they visited. They took care of the members of our family, the other children of God.
A professor from Utah State University has reduced the world’s population proportionately from 6 billion to 100 people. If the entire world’s population was 100 people then:
57 would be Asian
21 would be Europeans
14 would be North and South Americans
8 would be Africans
70 would be non-white
50% of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of the 6 US citizens.
70 would be unable to read
50 would be malnourished
80 would live in substandard housing
Only 1 would have a college education
We have to constantly remind ourselves that the world is a lot bigger than what is in front of our eyes each day. There is life outside Burt and Kossuth County and Iowa and even outside the United States and our television channels.
The Scripture reminds us who is the one in charge, and it reminds us there is a coming Judgment Day. We are ruled by a generous, forgiving, loving, and grace filled king. That king is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. He is righteous and holy and we are not. And He is the mighty judge on the coming Judgment Day. And in this powerful parable He again tells us what he values most of all, after our allegiance – how we live in the way we treat others. Remember the great commands He gives to love others as yourself and to love one another. Well, he is always consistent – and He tells this parable to drive the truth home to us.
This parable starts on judgment but it then flows into compassion. The compassion comes when we learn what the sheep did to inherit the kingdom. Let’s be clear again, there is nothing we can do to earn our way to heaven but if you remember last week we need to live into our gift as well. In the parable of the talents,
Jesus reminds the disciples that they will receive a tremendous gift, the gift of salvation. We are told that we need to share that gift with others and it will come back to us with a 100% return. We can’t do anything to earn salvation but we do need to do something once we have. To live a life with Christ means you have to go where Christ is and that is what the rest of the parable is about.
Each Sunday, when we gather here, we celebrate the resurrection. Each Sunday is a break to be still and enjoy the presence of God, remembering the resurrection. We call it the Lord’s Day for that reason. We, as Christians, believe that Christ is all around us. We just need to have the eyes to see him. “I heard a story at the General Assembly from a missionary to the inner city of Detroit -- one morning when the volunteers who would feed the hungry gathered early to get things ready for the long line of homeless folk that stood outside waiting. Someone asked one of the workers to pray and she prayed, “Jesus, help me to see your face when you come through the line.”
When we look at the people around us we need to be on the lookout for Jesus. When he is talking to the sheep he tells them that they were the ones who had compassion on the least of these around us. The hungry, they gave food. They thirsty, they gave them something to drink. The sick, they took care of. The naked, they clothed. The stranger, they welcomed them in. The prisoners, they visited. They took care of the members of our family, the other children of God.
A professor from Utah State University has reduced the world’s population proportionately from 6 billion to 100 people. If the entire world’s population was 100 people then:
57 would be Asian
21 would be Europeans
14 would be North and South Americans
8 would be Africans
70 would be non-white
50% of the world’s wealth rests in the hands of the 6 US citizens.
70 would be unable to read
50 would be malnourished
80 would live in substandard housing
Only 1 would have a college education
We have to constantly remind ourselves that the world is a lot bigger than what is in front of our eyes each day. There is life outside Burt and Kossuth County and Iowa and even outside the United States and our television channels.
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