Posted by Chris on August 20, 2006 under Sermons
Read Matthew 5:11-20.
Sometimes, I miss the coast. Among the wonderful novelties of coastal living are lighthouses. On my visits to the Oregon Coast I visited three lighthouses and took photos of a fourth that stands on a rock in the bay. I wanted so badly to hop in a boat and make an adventure to the lighthouse.
Lighthouses are adventurous icons after all. They represent rescue and protection from danger. The stories of lighthouses speak of mystery, bravery, and dedication. Lighthouses are also symbols of hope. They are the light that pierces through the stormy darkness.
Although lighthouses seem artistic and majestic, their form follows function. They stand tall and are painted with contrasting colors. They are built on prominent points along a seacoast. The logic to their architecture is this: They are very visible.
Lighthouses are antiquities these days. Some are still in service and guard the rocky shores and keep the beaches shipwreck-free. But mostly, lighthouses are part of tours. Along the Texas Gulf Coast, one of the lighthouses on the tour is the Point Bolivar Lighthouse. When I learned that I lived very near the Point Bolivar light I went to see it. It is the saddest lighthouse I have ever visited. I wonder if it should even be called a lighthouse.
The Point Bolivar light looks like a lighthouse. It stands tall and can be seen from the east side of Galveston on a sunny day. But at night it is not visible because the lighthouse has corroded and it is nothing more than a black column; quite a change from its glory days when it sported red and white stripes. But saddest of all revelations was that the Point Bolivar Lighthouse has no light. It is an empty shell. It is a dead husk. At night, the black pillar is totally invisible.
Recall what Jesus is teaching us: “No one lights a lamp and places it beneath a basket.” “A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” Well, of course. Just as lighthouse is meant to be highly visible, so also a lamp and a city on a hill are visible – one is built on high and the other is placed on a lamp stand to light the house. What good is a lighthouse with no light? What use is a lamp burning beneath the shade of a basket? Even the saying about salt appeals to everyday experience: What good is salt without its saltiness? It might as well be thrown out.
But there’s more to this teaching than how to light a lamp and how to keep salt fresh, right? Just as there is more to the tale of the lighthouse, yes? Well, of course. Jesus is trying to grab the attention of the crowds because he is going to confront some misunderstandings. For example, he doesn’t want anyone to assume that his teaching is somehow an annulment of God’s law. As Christ teaches us today there are other typical misunderstanding that must be confronted. And maybe the best way to hear what Christ is really teaching rather than walk away with household hints from Savior is to acknowledge some of these assumptions:
- Christ did not teach us that we should be salt and light. He said you ARE the salt of the earth and light of the world. If we are his disciples it is our nature to shine. It is our nature to be a preserving and saving influence. It is the property of salt to be salty. It is the property of light to shine. That’s why the Point Bolivar light is so disappointing – A lighthouse isn’t a lighthouse because of its shape and form. A lighthouse isn’t a lighthouse because of a historical marker or someone’s desire to restore it. The nature of a lighthouse is to give light!
- Christ did not teach that we “have the salt and light.” The salt and light are not a commodity or instrument that we use or dispense. We are the salt – NOT salt shakers. We are the light – not lighthouse keepers.
- The salt and light label is for a collective, not just individuals. The “YE” in the KJV is plural. This isn’t just about individual character. This isn’t about your own personal moral accomplishment. It is about US. This little light of OURS, we’re gonna let it shine. Doesn’t rhyme, but it is a little closer to the teaching of Jesus. This becomes important when we understand that we as a community of believers are salt and light FOR the world. We are living out the law and prophets; we are teaching and doing the commandments of Jesus not just for ourselves, but FOR the world. We are striving to be disciples not just for our own sake, but the sake of the world.
- Most importantly, when Jesus describes the salt of the earth and the light of the world, he is not speaking about the gospel. This is too common a misunderstanding. And even if we don’t say it, this assumption runs deeply in our practice. Too often we treat the gospel as if it is a product – a good or service – that we need to sell. So we become vendors of the gospel. The problem with vendors of a product is that they can sell a product, but they don’t have to use it themselves. There is a gap in the relationship between vendor and product that Jesus’ teaching will not allow.
Setting aside the misunderstandings, what is Jesus teaching us?
Jesus is labeling his disciples as salt and light in order to show that the gospel is to be so ingrained in us that we cannot separate it from who we are. Our righteousness has to surpass the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. If we want to be great in the kingdom of heaven we not only teach the commandments of Jesus – we do them!
Our righteousness and good works are not an attempt to win God’s favor so that we will make it to heaven rather than hell. That’s too small a view of what is going on. Recall that Jesus has just put us on notice: The kingdom rule of God is breaking into our world.
Recall, that these words are addressed to the same crowd that heard the Beatitudes. So, the blessed are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Holding this teaching together does away with any thought the “blessed ones” are too good for this world. Those who are blessed by God are not taken out of the world or sheltered in a “Holy Tank” like delicate and expensive exotic fish. This does away with the assumption that the salt of the earth are those who’ve achieved a higher degree of moral life – some sort of advanced Christianity.
After all, Jesus is not speaking about individuals, he is speaking about a people. And this fits in very well with the preaching of the prophets that Jesus upheld. Isaiah 60 would have been a text very familiar to our Lord. God describes his vision for Jerusalem – that the people of God would be the focal point of a great homecoming when all nations see the visible glory of God shining out from Jerusalem …1“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all the nations to see! For the glory of the LORD is shining upon you. 2Darkness as black as night will cover all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the LORD will shine over you. 3All nations will come to your light. Mighty kings will come to see your radiance.”
This is Jesus’ vision for his disciples. We ARE salt for the earth. We are light for the world. Jesus is calling us to be at the forefront of this in-breaking Kingdom of God not simply for our own personal good, but for the good of all creation. Don’t the most important human endeavors have more at stake than personal gain? Why then have we assumed that being a Christian is simply personal. This is about nothing less than saving the world! And our mission is to live out a righteousness much greater than the anxiety-driven rule keeping of the scribes and Pharisees. A righteousness that is so infused with the spirit of God that what we do as a people results in good works that glorify God.
And just in case that presents a stumbling block to our appropriate sense of modesty, be assured that it isn’t us as salesman of the gospel that glorifies God – It is our good works that glorify God in heaven. People aren’t paying attention to us; they are paying attention to what we do.
The first verse I ever memorized was Matthew 5:16 – “Let your light so shine before all people that they will see your good works and glorify your father in heaven.” The first sermon I ever preached at West-Ark was from this teaching of Jesus. It is my hope and vision that this congregation will live out the teaching of Jesus and be the light that is needed right here.
Before we get to the invitation we need to issue the warnings: Did you notice what Jesus declared just before Jesus teaches us that we are salt for the earth and light for the world? He said, “”Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Warning: There are powers at work in our corrupt and fallen world that have invested in the darkness and decay. They aren’t going to be very happy when we set out to make things bright and clean through our good works. Not everyone welcomes the salt or the light. So understand that when people lie about us or misunderstand us simply because we take the teaching of Jesus seriously and want to make a difference – just understand that we are blessed by God even if we are cursed by others.
Warning: The grace of God that is pouring the kingdom into our world doesn’t contradict the need to live out the kingdom life. Jesus makes it clear that if we are not interested in pursuing a righteousness that is greater than the righteousness of the Pharisees and scribes, then we are not entering into the kingdom.
With warnings issued, Christ invites you to follow him, and not just follow the rules. With warnings issued, Christ invites you to overcome the powers and principalities of this dark age and share in the blessings of the kingdom. Christ invites you to join him in his mission to save the world and be a part of his church that is salt for the earth and light for the world.
Posted by Chris on August 13, 2006 under Sermons
Right here in the city of Fort Smith, over 50% of our school children live below the poverty line. At Tilles Elementary, they must feed the children before they can teach them – every day.
Conflict in the Middle East continues. Israel is at war with Hezbollah. There is conflict in Iraq even with Hussein in prison. North Korea and Iran are rattling sabers. The United States has been at war since 9/11 and the interrupted bombing plot this week confirmed that. There are other battles not as high profile. In Uganda young children are conscripted into the Lord’s Resistance Army. Their name sounds holy – their practices are not. Recent attempts at Peace in Sudan’s Darfur region have failed. As a result the fighting has renewed and 50,000 people are displaced – – even aid workers are in harm’s way. Making peace is so difficult in a world devoted to violence. The world is at war – even in places away from the news camera and places that do not seem to be in the interest of the U.S. government. Precious souls are being lost forever because there is no peace.
Against the forces of war and poverty it is so easy to feel powerless. Even if you have a job you can feel powerless. Katrina Gill has a job. She is a nursing aide in a care center and she works long hours monitoring vitals, turning patients for bedsores, and changing adult diapers. But she and her husband, a mechanic, have no health benefits. They pay $640 a month for a family policy. They have racked up $160,000 in debt – medical expenses – because their son Brandyn has cancer. (Michelle Conlin and Aaron Bernstein, Business Week, “Working and Poor,” May 31, 2004 – www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_22/b3885001_mz001.htm.) Katrina is just one example of what it means to be meek and powerless in our age. So many of us labor in a setting of maximum insecurity, where one missed bus, one stalled engine, one sick kid means the difference between keeping a job and getting fired. At any moment, a company pressured to pump profits can slash hours, or layoff workers, or even cut loose jobs. This isn’t a labor vs. management issue. It’s a human issue. Managers and owners are caught up in the faceless and non-personal economic and political forces that make us feel powerless.
Have you ever felt powerless? Have you at least sensed that something about our culture and society just isn’t right? It isn’t right for a credit card company to stick a person who can’t pay bills with a 30% interest rate. If a thug in an alley does that it’s called loan-sharking. If Chase or Citibank does it it’s called “a change in agreement.” Something isn’t right. Joe Francis is the millionaire producer of the Girls Gone Wild soft-porn video series. He claims it is just innocent entertainment. He claims it is protected by the First Amendment. (See Claire Hoffman, “Baby, Give Me a Kiss,” L.A. Times, Aug. 6. 2006 – www.latimes.com/features/printedition/magazine/la-tm-gonewild32aug06,0,1675556,full.story.) How can Francis be protected by our laws when violence against women is increasing in our nation? Something is wrong. You know it if you feel the pangs for righteousness in your gut. You know it if you feel parched waiting for the waters of justice to roll down like a mighty river against the stifling heat of injustice.
It is difficult to forgive the worst offenders of justice let alone forgiving the friend who hurts us. It is difficult to forgive. It is difficult to be merciful – especially when people take advantage of our mercy. That’s why we want to surround ourselves with people we can trust. People who strive to have a purity of heart. But even among the disciples of Jesus we meet those who hurt us. Every time we hear a story about disciples that condemn the suffering rather than help them, we grieve. Every time we hear a story about disciples that exclude rather than invite, it makes us grieve.
And we have enough to be sad about already, don’t we? We have lost loved ones. We have suffered because of sin. We are suffering because of illness. There seems to be no end to the tears, pain, and sorrow.
I confess that I have nothing to say. I am at a loss for words. I cannot even write a sermon to speak to the problems and sorrows of the world as we know it. But I want to lead you to another preacher. I want to begin preaching someone else’s sermon. This preacher spoke to the word as we know it – the world I just described – but he proclaimed that something was going to change. He spoke of a new order of things in which those who experienced the kind of discomfort we just spoke about will instead be happy.
I would like you to follow me over to the hillside where this preacher has just sat down and he begins to speak … [Matthew 5]
3Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
8Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
10Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
What you have just heard is the opening of a sermon from our founder, our Lord, Jesus Christ. In our difficult times, I thought it was fitting that we should hear from Him. In the midst of the trials and hopes we have shared as a church family I thought it was fitting that we should hear from Him.
Sure, you’ve heard this before. But you’ve probably heard these phrases broken up and scattered. Like gems that popped loose from their settings, they still glisten, but you don’t get the full effect. These “beatitudes” are not little nuggets of moral advice. These are not the appetizers before the main course. And Jesus isn’t using “bless” or “blessed” the way Southern culture does. It’s been said that you can say anything mean and nasty about someone in the South as long as you say “Bless their heart.” [He just isn’t very smart, bless his heart. She looks so old – and fat, bless her heart. Get it?]
Jesus is not condescending or patronizing when he says “Blessed are the poor.” Blessed means that “God’s favor is resting on …” So he’s saying, “God’s kingdom is breaking into this world. It’s coming to you, and today you have the favor of God.” What a way to open a sermon!
Taken together, this set of “blessings” is an official notice. A notice – like those ominous looking signs that get posted by our city councils that say – “We’re building a shopping center here. If you don’t like it, you can come tell us.” Christ is putting the world as we know it on notice. He’s saying that things are going to change. And like an official notice, some people welcome it – and some do not.
If you are poor and know that something is wrong with economies that keep people poor, then you welcome the notice because God’s favor rests on you. If you are sad or have ever known sadness, then welcome the notice, God’s favor rests on you. If you have ever felt helpless and powerless against forces too great to describe, then welcome the notice because God’s favor rests on you. If you have felt the anxiety of losing worldly security, then welcome the notice because God’s favor rests on you. If you have ever wanted justice and righteousness so bad you can taste it, then welcome the notice, God’s favor rests on you.
If you have ever forgiven others even though it cost you, then welcome the notice. If you are weary trying to help others live at peace with each other, then welcome the notice. If you have long desired to overcome sin and draw close to God, then welcome the notice because God’s favor rests on you!
These beatitudes are an extending way of saying that the kingdom of God is near. He is saying that the kingdom of God is breaking into the world and setting up shop. The world as we know it is breaking out in blessedness.
But be on notice! There are forces in this world that do not welcome the Kingdom of God. There are those who are invested in keeping the poor just as they are. There are those who are invested in activities that cause some to be sad. There are those who are invested in keeping some people powerless and insecure. There are those who are invested in unrighteous enterprises and unjust practices. There are those who cannot show mercy or they stand to lose. There are even those who are invested in war and conflict. And it is not simply because they have dark sinister hearts, but its because they have made built their house on the foundations of the world as we know it. Christ is putting these on notice as well. Tell them it is time to re-invest! And Christ is saying that if you are one of these who needs to re-invest or even if you are one of these who welcomes that change it won’t always be easy. The forces and powers that like things as they are will insult you, lie about you and persecute you. But even if that happens, God’s favor rests on you!
In the weeks ahead, our founder, our Lord, our teacher is going to show us the path to start living in the world of God’s blessed favor even now – before it comes in all of its glory. This is a notice – an invitation for all of us. Shall we, as a church family, live for the world that’s coming? Shall we strive to be merciful, pure of heart, and make peace? Will we commit today to living out the virtues of the world that is coming?
In baptism and in the Lord’s Supper we witness the kingdom of God breaking into the world as we know it. These are not status quo symbols. They are symbols of new birth and new life. The forces and powers that are invested in a corrupt broken world broke Jesus for preaching this sermon. But God’s favor rests on Him and he lives to preach this sermon again, and again, and again.
Who will live out the teaching of Jesus Christ?
Posted by Chris on August 6, 2006 under Sermons
Sunday morning of last week we asked you to consider what “philanthropy” meant from a Christian perspective. We encouraged each of you to participate in the gracious ministry of giving – it is a ministry that all of us are a part of. Last Sunday evening at our family meeting we spoke of how this church is involved in what God is doing through many good works. And we laid out some of the facts about our participation in the ministry of giving. The good news is that spending is down. The bad news is that our contributions are down from what we need to maintain all of those good works at our current level. These are simply facts. There’s no guilt or shame. This is a generous church family that does strive to participate in the ministry of giving.
And just this week we have seen a difference in the typical contribution. And we have been blessed by God. I want to give thanks for the generosity of this congregation. I think that needs to be acknowledged. I am not saying that “a problem is solved” because there wasn’t really anything broken that needed to be fixed. Whichever side of the ledger our church budget may end up, each of us needs to be encouraged to participate in the gracious ministry of giving. Whether we have a high income a low income we all need to be encouraged to participate in the gracious ministry of giving – because it is about love not money (In Africa, the poorest of the poor place their empty hand in the plate as it is passed to show that they offer themselves).
I will continue to preach and teach what Scripture teaches about giving and the way we are to use our resources. It isn’t a seasonal topic or one that comes up in crisis. What I am concerned with is that in our wealth or poverty we look at our opportunities and our resources in the proper way. We need to overcome the mentality that looks at every opportunity as an “eight months month pay problem.” We need to be inspired to take on the greatest needs with nothing more that a basket of groceries if that’s all we have.
What I am talking about comes from Mark 6 … [Read Text]
This text has giving all through it. There is much giving that takes place before the disciples give the crowd of over 5000 something to eat.
- Give what you have. The disciples look at the problem as an “eight months wages” problem. This causes them to give up. It cannot be done. Nice idea, great sentiment, but feeding this group will not work.
- They could have patronized the boy with the bread and fish. Hey, that’s cute, the little fella is willing to share his groceries – that’s commendable son, of course we wouldn’t ask you for that, but the thought is what counts. (Worse even, they could have told him that he doesn’t matter – this is grownup business.)
- Paul speaks of the Macedonians and their eagerness to give. They could have been patronized – “We are so touched that you want to give to help the poor, but you ought to keep what you have because you certainly need it. (Besides we need a lot more than what you are able to give).” That would have been eight months wages thinking.
- Learn from the conversation of Jesus and the disciples: Jesus says – “You feed them.” And they say, “But that takes more than what we have (eight months wages).” Jesus says, “Well what DO you have?”
- Who is Jesus telling us to feed?
- We do feed people every third Saturday in Hope Park. But we are by no means feeding all the hungry. We just can’t – it would take eight months pay to feed everyone.
- Latinos – There are so many moving to this area. They need to be fed spiritually and they are hungry for community and a place to belong. But it would take eight months pay to do what needs to be done
- People throughout the world do not know the gospel. And the hunger and starvation – physically and literally is staggering. But not even eight months pay would be enough to do what needs to be done.
- Think of all the ways CURE [Compassionate Utilization of REsources] “feeds people.” CURE is able to do so much but what could they do if they had more Resources to Use Compassionately? But we have seen the bill and it would take eight months pay to feed everyone.
- And we have to feed our own! We are not superhuman. We have to be fed also. It would be great to have more volunteers and we definitely need more leaders. And to serve our community we need more personnel, but it would take eight months pay just to get started …
- Even as we feed our own we think of the ones who are hungry for spiritual food and for a place to belong. College students – they need to be fed spiritually. Their numbers are growing. Our youth and children – they are growing and they need to be equipped for the challenges that face them. This is so important but it will take eight months worth pay to do all we need to do.
- And Jesus says to us, “What DO you have?” We need to be careful that we don’t terminate what Jesus calls upon us to do before we ever begin. Paul told the Corinthians to “Give what they could give rather than give what they could not give.” It’s one thing to “count the cost” but it is something else entirely to stick a price tag on something only to make it impossible or unattainable.
The disciples had five loaves of bread and two fish. They assessed their resources. Instead of Jesus saying, well that will feed seven, fourteen if we slice it thin – the mission remains the same. You feed them.
- Give it to Jesus – It would have been a very uninteresting story if the disciples had taken the five loaves and two fish and formed a committee meeting in order to decide the distribution. It would have been uninspiring if they had held a lottery to see who gets the bread and fish. On their own, there is no solution they can come up with that works. So they give it to Jesus.
- Have we really given what we have “to Jesus?” Pay attention to the way we talk about our finances. (Not that anyone needs to be reprimanded, it is just revealing and education when you observe what you say).
- Do we give to Jesus, or to the church? We are the church. So if we give to the church we give back to ourselves. We are self-funding. Where does Christ enter into it?
- Do we give to Jesus or to the works of the church? Again, who is doing the funding? Who supplies the resources for the works of the church.
- Do we give to Jesus or do we help those in need? Nothing wrong with helping those in need, but do we help them with “our money” or have we taken what we have and given it to Jesus?
- We need to pay attention so that the offering doesn’t become the least spiritual and Christ-centered moment in worship. We sing and pray and we have the sense that we are communicating with God. We open ourselves up to the word of God and we know that Scripture is Christ himself – the living word that became flesh. We eat the bread and drink the wine and we know are aware of the presence of Christ. But then there’s the offering. Well, that’s church business. When we have that attitude then offering becomes admission. I heard a wise man once say that the bills and coins and papers we place in the offering plate are just as symbolic as the bread and wine we eat and drink. The papers and coins represent us giving ourselves.
- I want to emphasize that we need to keep the offering Christ-centered. When we give, we give to Jesus. Not even to the church! You see when we give “to the church” we can get rather opinionated about what we give. And if we are giving to the church that would be fine because we are church. So it’s alright to have an opinion about what we give or don’t give because we don’t like what’s being done with it or because we are all for what’s being done with it. But when we give our five loaves and two fish to Jesus – we have given it away. Now Jesus will decide what to do with it. And the good news is that he is able to do immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine.
- Give Thanks. Jesus does not look down on what they have gathered. Jesus looks up to heaven. Notice what Jesus does with the bread and fish. The bread and fish represented “what they had to give.” Jesus could have said, “That’s it? Try harder. Someone is holding out.” He could have scolded the disciples or given them a guilt trip. He could have berated the crowd. But he doesn’t give a guilt trip, he gives thanks. He isn’t even ashamed of what is given, but he lifts it up and says to the Father and says Thank You! (Just being practical, how much sense does that make? You have a hungry crowd of 5000 and you hold up bread and fish that won’t feed more than fifteen? You can just hear Peter saying, “Hey Jesus keep those vittles out of sight or they are going to rush you!”) But Jesus is going to give thanks.
- How might we give thanks? In what ways – even if they seem sort of odd – do we need to give thanks? How do we offer our gifts?
- The poor who had nothing to give placed their hands in the plate as it went by. They gave themselves.
- Jesus gives us what we gave him and lets us give it to others. Remember that he told the disciples to feed the crowd. And that is just what they do. Jesus could have done it himself. But the disciples are the ones who need to do the feeding.
- You see, when Jesus first told them to feed the crowd, they thought that they were the suppliers. That’s where the eight months wages mentality came from.
- But Jesus never told them that they were the suppliers. He told them that they were to feed the crowd. Share, distribute, give! So he gives what God supplies to the disciples. And there is enough for everyone. It isn’t scarce so that everybody only gets a taste. There’s enough to meet the needs of everyone there. In fact, there’s leftovers. Twelve baskets full of leftovers. One for each apostle. Those weren’t set aside at the start. They are the excess. Even the disciples are fed as they are feeding the crowd.
- Doesn’t this put it into perspective? Who is the one that supplies what we need? Who is the one who gives us what we need not only to “meet budget” but also to do more and to have blessings left over to meet the needs of those who give and serve?
Before we rush to the end, think about the alternate ending to this story. What’s the alternative if the disciples had told Jesus, “We just don’t have anything?” What’s the alternative if the child with the bread and fish had hidden what he had? Simple: They would have sent the crowd away to get their food. And not only would they have been hungry – they wouldn’t have followed Jesus. They would still be sheep without a shepherd.
But that’s not the way the story ends. And yet, how much can we really get from it, after all this is a miracle story! How can we base what our church does and its finances on a miracle story? How can I really learn anything about my own finances and the way I use wealth from a miracle story? Simple: The same Jesus that gave thanks for that bread is the same Jesus who is Lord and living in this church at this very moment. We are not sheep without a shepherd.
- Give what you have, give it to Jesus, give thanks, and give what Jesus gives you to others!
Posted by Chris on July 30, 2006 under Sermons
Philanthropy –
What do you think of when you hear the word “philanthropy?” What comes to mind if I mention that someone is a philanthropist? (The connotation of the word)
- Perhaps what comes to mind are good deeds and great gifts. We think of all the good things that have been done because a philanthropist donated money. Andrew Carnegie is the most famous philanthropist. He gave away his fortune so that others might benefit. Recently Warren Buffett made a very large donation to the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.
- Of course what might also come to mind is that philanthropy is what wealthy people and celebrities do with their money. Maybe so they don’t feel guilty – or it gives them good press. And I suppose that celebrities and the wealthy need a big word for giving gifts. After all they write big checks – those really large “Price Is Right” checkbook checks that show up very well in photos. (We can criticize motives, but of course many of us benefit)…
What’s interesting about the word philanthropy is that the idea of money doesn’t even come into the word. The etymology of the word means love for humanity. Why does a philanthropist give? Why give gifts? For a true philanthropist, it is more about love than money …
- Love of humanity
- It is a recognition that we have what we have because of what someone else gave.
- We have the myth of the self-made man, the self-made, strike it rich entrepreneur – but these are myths! They have what they have because someone else left them a gift, a legacy. We are not isolated.
- You have accomplished nothing on your own (We all thank others for our benefits) None of us can claim we have done it all
- And when we appreciate their gift we understand that it is more about love than money.
- And even if someone could claim to be totally self-sufficient …
- We all participate in the grace of God.
- Love of God …
- We need a word that also includes Love for God. Giving and Tithing is also love of God
- 2 Corinthians 8 & 9 – The example of the Macedonians – they loved others and they loved God.
- It was more about love than money.
- (Because in the Macedonians case, they didn’t actually have much – but Paul praised them for their outpouring of love.)
- Examples of Grace-filled Philanthropy exist all around us …
- And these are not just monetary gifts, because IT IS MORE ABOUT LOVE THAN MONEY (Philanthropy)
The purpose of this sermon is to preface all other sermons and teachings about giving:
- Tonight at family meeting we are going to talk about some of the good ministries we’ve started – these are ministries that help the poor, extend the good news, strengthen the young, reach out to neighbors. They all participate in the work that God is doing among us.
- Like Paul told the Corinthian churches, he wants to spare them from sob stories and arm twisting.
- We aren’t asking you to give to a budget. We don’t pay dues to be members of the church body. Budgets are simply spending plans. You will hear from our Business Management Team tonight. They are going to deal you the facts:
- The good news is that Spending is down this year.
- The bad news is that Contributions are also less than what is needed to balance the budget – the spending plan.
- Alright, that’s just a financial issue, but alongside it is a question about what we want to do with our resources. As Paul asked the Corinthians, do we want to finish the good works we started?
- There’s a thousand and one different ways to explain the current financial situation – how we got here, why it is this way.
- We all know what a gallon of gas costs.
- We know what the stock market is doing.
- We don’t know what you and your family are dealing with.
- We want to be helpful if you are in need and we certainly don’t want to place a burden on anyone.
- We could discuss all of this for a long time, but here’s some basic points that should preface every discussion about giving and money …
- Many of you probably didn’t know that our congregation has a financial deficit. The first step in overcoming a problem is just to be aware of it. The BMT will always be available to give you the details – that’s their ministry. There’s no secrets around here. But if no one ever told you – I am telling you now. Now let’s just see what we can do about this.
- (2 Corinthians 8:5) A deficit keeps us from doing everything God might have us do. As long as we are just trying to tread water we cannot swim. The goal is not simply to find ways to save a dime – we need to trust that God provides all the dimes – not just as a church but as families. What does he want us to do with what he gives? Not just the 10%, but the 90% too. To sum up, we need to deal with this issue in creative and faithful ways so that we can move on to the immeasurably more that God can do. So that we can participate in the grace of giving. When we are in a deficit we tend to focus more on the money problem and less on demonstrating love – so let’s get rid of the roadblock. After all it’s more about love than money.
- This congregation is generous. This congregation is more about love than money. When there’s a need, we give. We have raised money for worldwide disasters and for families in need. Every week our people, young and old – our smallest kids – put just a little money in the baskets that Ron and Richard bring around to the classrooms. (About how much do they collect each week?) That “little” effort makes a huge difference because it is more about love than money.
- Everyone should find a way to participate in the gracious ministry of giving. We are always assuming that it takes a few large gifts to make a big difference. I disagree. Paul praises the Macedonians because they gave when it was hard to give. And he encouraged the Corinthians to give what they could – not what they couldn’t. We sometimes give up because we think we cannot give.
- Why does everyone need to be involved? God is involved in all of this and so it isn’t about our capabilities or our limitations. Neither of those are the issue and to view our giving from that perspective isn’t very spiritual. It’s about money more than it is about love.
- We are not going to trade in guilt. Paul refused to make the Corinthians feel guilty. He testified that the Macedonians gave of their own free will. That’s important. They gave at a time when no one at all would expect them to give. Paul knows that if the Corinthians are going to participate in what God’s doing they need to do it eagerly, freely, and cheerfully. I suppose someone could say, “Yeah, but he really laid it on thick with his story about the Macedonians – how could they not feel guilty.” If any of the Corinthians felt guilty or ashamed after Paul’s letter that was their fault not his! Paul doesn’t want shame and guilt to enter into it. That gets in the way of demonstrating love. You cannot show love is you are trying to deal with guilt or shame. Paul wanted the Corinthians to focus on what they could give rather than what they couldn’t give.
- Likewise, the leaders of this church don’t aim to shame you. I won’t do it. And I hope you don’t do it to yourself. If you feel like you have to give out of shame or guilt or pressure then let’s work together on that. Talk to someone who ministers to you about that. Why? Because this is about love more than money.
- Finally, I don’t know if I have said this yet, but giving (Christian philanthropy) is more about love than money. Have I said that yet?
We’ll be talking more about what we can all do to participate in the gracious ministry of giving. Tonight we will discuss it with details and practical examples and not just general concepts. In the near future we will return to this teaching and I hope you now know where I am coming from on this.
But let’s put it all into context … It’s about love more than it is about money and that’s because it all begins with what Christ did for us – he loved humanity. (2 Corinthians 8:9)
Posted by Chris on July 23, 2006 under Sermons
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
He said to me: “It is done. I am the A and the Z, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”
One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” And he carried me away in the Spirit to a mountain great and high, and showed me the Holy City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God. It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. There were three gates on the east, three on the north, three on the south and three on the west. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
The Angel speaking with me had a gold measuring stick to measure the City, its gates, and its wall. The City was laid out in a perfect square. He measured the City with the measuring stick: twelve thousand stadia, its length, width, and height all equal. Using the standard measure, the Angel measured the thickness of its wall: 144 cubits. The wall was jasper, the color of Glory, and the City was pure gold, translucent as glass. The foundations of the City walls were garnished with every precious gem imaginable: the first foundation jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate a single pearl.
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever. The angel said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants the things that must soon take place.”
Not all of Revelation is a vision of what is to come. Much of Revelation describes what is and what has been. But this last vision is truly a preview of what is to come. We might say that this is a vision of heaven, but to be accurate that might be too limiting. John has described heaven already. He described the throne room of God and the drama of the Lamb opening the scrolls. That was his glimpse through the open door to heaven. Heaven, according to John, is where God is at. And this final vision is a vision of a new heaven and a new earth. A new city. A new reality! God is there – and so are the saints. God and us together as he always intended it.
… the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.
Here is the second to last proclamation of the book. It is a vision intended to inspire hope and encouragement. There’s even a brief architectural survey of the new city complete with engineering notes on the type of materials used in construction. But don’t let that grab all your attention. Notice what’s different about this new heaven and new earth age. …
There will be no more death, no more mourning, no more crying, no more pain …
Did you notice that the new reality is described in negative terms? We are even told that there will be no more sea and no more night. Sea and night for the ancients represented fear and terror, also separation and loneliness. Notice then that this inspiring, hopeful, encouraging vision is described by telling us what it is NOT. And as good as that is, when you think about it you realize that we are still in the old order and we do indeed know that THERE IS …
Loneliness, separation, fear, terror, pain, crying, mourning, and death.
Why remind us of that? It seems cruel to remind us of the pain and suffering of the old order. Why remind us that we are afraid, lonely, hurting, crying, sad, and dying – or hurting because of the death of those we love? How is this hope? How is this encouragement? Why am I bringing this up? Isn’t the sermon supposed to lift us up?
I want to bring in a ten dollar word: eschatology. Eschatology is a fancy term for “the end.” Our eschatology is our view of the future. How it all ends. Everyone has some sort of eschatology even if they don’t believe in God. We have a need to know how things will end. We seek closure.
Christians need to know their eschatology. That’s why the Revelation is given: not just to give us a sense of where we’ve been and how we got here, and why bad things are happening, but also to give us a sense of where it’s all going — eschatology!
Unfortunately, our eschatology has not always been what it should to be. We live in a here and now culture that lives for the pleasure of the moment. And when it comes to our spiritual future, Americans are heirs of the revivals of the great frontier that has rooted within us an eschatology that amounts to little more than “turn or burn.”
“Turn or burn” isn’t invalid, it is just so unfortunately incomplete. There’s more to eschatology, the end, than escaping the big trap door that leads to hell. I know it is difficult to challenge this since it is so strong in our culture and our spiritual DNA. Better people than me have preached on this for ages, it’s what we’ve always heard, and I am certainly not denying that there is hell and punishment awaiting the wicked and sinful who will not repent (Revelation says something about that too) … but I just want to point out that God has a bit of an opinion on how things are going to end up and I think we ought to listen to his “two cents.”
You see, just when we think we have reached our limit with the hell on earth that comes in the form of fear, loss, pain, crying, mourning, and death, … right as we begin to question God and ask him why this is happening (and there’s nothing wrong with that). God speaks. It’s only one of two times in Revelation that God himself speaks. [The other time is 1:8 and God gives us his credentials – “I am the A and Z [alpha and omega], the beginning and the end, the one who was, and is, and is to come, I am the Almighty.”] God told us who he is, now he tells us what he is doing …
“I am making everything new!”
Really, you can sum up everything we need to know about eschatology in this single phrase.
How is it hope and encouragement to remind us of the old order? To remind us that there is death, mourning, crying, pain? To remind us that we still live in a world with the darkness of night and the turmoil and separation of the sea?
It is hope when we see that our life now is just a letter in the alphabet. But God who was with us at A is waiting for us at Z. And hasn’t left us along the way, but he is teaching us our alphabet. He is making all things new. He knows that we are afraid, he knows that we are sad, he knows that we mourn, he knows that we hurt, and he knows that we are fragile and we die – but if he has anything to say about it – this will not be the last word!
God will wipe away the tears. God will cast out the darkness with the light. God will raise the dead. God will make everything – all things – new! Those who overcome the old order of things will inherit this new order. He will be our God and we will be his children.
But all of this is the second to the last word in Revelation, because we need one final encouragement to give us the courage and the hope to make it through the old order. “Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy in this book.”
When you know that there’s something new waiting on us we can endure the old. But there’s even more than that – When you know that God is on his way, you can be hopeful and be comforted. When a parent teaches a child to walk they stand ahead of them and beckon. “Come to me! Come to Daddy, Come to Mommy!” But as soon as that child stumbles and gets scared the parent reacts immediately and says, “I’m coming!”
12“Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done. 13I am the A and the Z, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
16“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”
17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
20He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.
21The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen.
Posted by Chris on July 16, 2006 under Sermons
[As the congregation sang “I Will Call Upon the Lord,” children were asked to come up to the stage to “help out” with the sermon.]
Q & A with children …
- Name a hero.
- Why is ________ a hero?
[“I Will Call Upon the Lord” was again sung while the children walked to Children’s Worship.]
Heroes aren’t just for kids. We may not want to admit it, but we need heroes too. We need heroic stories. Why?
Maybe it’s because heroes protect us and save us from evil. They slay dragons. They defeat the evildoers.
Maybe it’s because heroes remind us of what really matters. They are noble. They do the right thing even when it is difficult.
Maybe it’s because heroes make us believe that good does win out over evil; because if evil wins, then none of us win. But when the hero wins we are all saved.
Maybe we need heroic stories because they draw us closer to God. Yes, they do. God is good. God is love. And God is heroic. Our God is on a mission to overcome sin and evil and restore his creation. All of the people we consider “heroes” of the Bible aren’t the main heroes — God is!
When we come together in worship we remember and celebrate a heroic story – the gospel. It is the story of God’s son. He came to save us and he came to show us the way to the Father. But the enemy – the Dragon – was threatened by the son of God and he and his beastly followers killed the hero. Not because they were more powerful, but because our hero, the son of God, allowed it. He died for us.
And sometimes we end the story there: a noble sacrifice. And so we come every Sunday to a memorial for a fallen hero. But the noble and loving sacrifice of Jesus is only half the story. It is an important half, but it is only half. Sometimes when we gather around the table we assume that the focus is on death. Death is there, but that’s not all that’s there. Sometimes when we are baptized we think that it is all about death. Death is there, but that’s not all that’s there. The gospel is good news. It’s a heroic story. Death is swallowed up in victory. Death is taken captive and made to serve the hero, not the enemy.
Christ is not a fallen hero. He is Lord of Lord and King of Kings. And the fact that he still lives and rules with power makes a huge difference for all of us. You see, the story isn’t over yet. You and I are living in it and we are waiting for the final act when the hero who sacrificed himself nobly returns. You get a taste of his heroic return in Revelation 19. [Read Revelation 19:11f]
The beast will be taken down. The dragon will be defeated. The hero will come riding in on his white horse. And while we meditate on this image of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, here’s some heroic thoughts for us …
- Heroes are often known for their “weapons.” It often tells you what sort of hero they are. Luke Skywalker wields a lightsaber. Thor carries a hammer. Indiana Jones has a whip. King Arthur has Excalibur. But that’s just fantasy. Well, Jonas Salk had a vaccine. Thomas Jefferson had a declaration. Abraham Lincoln had a proclamation. Martin Luther King had a dream. They had their weapons, too. The Rider on the White Horse doesn’t have a gun, or a bomb, not even a sword – well not one like most knights. His sword is his word. With his words and with the truth he defeats the enemies of God. Violence isn’t going to win this war. Superior firepower isn’t going to give us any advantage in the real struggles of the world. What will make a difference is the truth. “Faithfulness and Truth” won the battle of the cross. It will win the war also.
- Words can be weapons of mass destruction. They can create pain and suffering. They can be quite violent. But words of truth spoken in love are words that only the enemy should fear. The words of Christ convict and save.
- We do not fight with our own words – rather we trust in the power of the words of Christ. He is faithful and true. He has won the battle with his own right arm. The help of his faithful followers is not needed to win the war. Like a true hero, he saves the day all by himself!
- The world seems to be at the mercy of the Dragon and the Beast every day. There’s a lot of tension in the world. Whenever Israel goes to war there’s always a bit of concern. The fact that the Jews are going to war in the Holy Land seems to magnify the conflict beyond politics and culture and make it religious and spiritual at the same time. It seems very modern but also very “biblical” for some reason. The war in the Holy Land is spiritual. Heaven is paying attention to that war. It’s bad. But it’s just as bad as the injustices and evil embodied in wars and conflicts in other, less “biblical” locations: God view of the world is not limited to the Middle East. He sees the atrocities in Sudan and the conflicts in Indonesia. Even the smaller injustices and fighting that don’t make it on the news. Turmoil in Central America, or open fighting on the streets of our cities.
- All of these stir God to action. His wrath against evil is building up and the Rider on the White Horse is the one who treads the winepress of God’s wrath. As far back as Isaiah, the winepress is a symbol of God’s vengeance against evil. God is patient and merciful, but his justice demands that he do something about the evil and sin that hurts people.
- Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full and the vats overflow- so great is their wickedness!” (Joel 3:13)To understand why God waits, the prophets used the image of the winepress. When the grapes are ripe, they are harvested and crushed. It is not an outburst of anger, but a final solution to evil and injustice.
- Our hero is the one who executes God’s final judgment. He alone treads the winepress of God’s wrath. How often do you have the same feeling that the prophet expressed? The vats of the winepress are overflowing as the wickedness of humanity heaps up. How long until the Lord makes the enemy drink the fermented wine of wickedness?
- This calls for endurance on the part of the saints, but be assured that the day of the Lord is coming. There will be a great banquet on that day. A feast! Are you ready for the banquet? Have you responded to the hero’s invitation to his wedding supper?
Posted by Chris on July 9, 2006 under Sermons
With pride and a heavy hand the Roman Empire had brought peace to the world. It wasn’t freedom or happiness, but simply peace meaning the absence of war. Of course there was no war. Who would dare challenge the power of mighty Rome? Who would dare take on an empire whose supreme ruler was also a supreme being? All around the empire there were reminders of the emperor’s divine authority. Even coins served as propaganda reminding the people of the empire that the Roman emperor was Lord and God. He wielded the thunderbolts of Jupiter and was the son of Isis.
In the city of Ephesus, where the apostle John had shepherded the congregation of Christians, the Emperor Domitian built his temple. His statue, over 20ft tall, was on display in the temple. His priests made sure that the people of Ephesus all came to show reverence to the Emperor. And why not? After all, they had peace through the strength of the Roman Empire. There was no war … or was there?
In his vision, the apostle John tells Christians that there is a war. In fact, there has been a war going on for a long, long time. He doesn’t let them in on his vision in order to terrify them or scare them with scenes of a horrifying future. In fact he reveals to them what has happened so that they might understand what is happening now. They want to know why this bold and arrogant emperor who claims the honor that only God is due is able to continue his assault against the people of God. Why hasn’t God done something? Why is the world like this? John reveals that there was a war in heaven and it spread to earth …
Read Revelation 12 – 13
I am sure that if John had known about football he would have said that “It is the fourth quarter and Satan is behind by 1000 points. He has definitely lost the game but he has decided to hurt as many of his opponents as he can.” And John introduces us to some of Satan’s “team mates.” The unholy trinity of the Dragon and the Two Beasts.
The first Beast is the Dragon’s “man on earth.” This is the ruler who inspires such terror and awe among the people of earth. “Who can stand up to the Beast? Who can fight him?” John’s little flock understood that the Beast was Domitian. Some of the older ones remember the stories of Nero. Domitian was a later-day Nero in their minds. A powerful and oppressive ruler inspires such fear and anxiety in people that they always fear he might return – even from death. There are many in Iraq today who still remain loyal to Saddam Hussein for fear he will regain power.
The second Beast is part of that fear. The second Beast is the spokesman, or prophet, for the first beast. He isn’t just a single person – he stands in for all the agents of the Dragon and Beast who persuade us to worship the power and strength of the first Beast and the Dragon. Through trickery and gossip they promote stories of Domitian and his divine power. They animated the statue in Ephesus to fool people into thinking that it can speak. Why? So that the influence and fear of the Emperor would reach even to the outermost edges of the empire.
Domitian and his cult are long gone and dead. The Dragon has lost, but the clock on the fourth quarter is still ticking. The Dragon is able to recruit other Beasts – and he has. I am not talking about an Anti-christ. (Notice that the term Anti-Christ doesn’t even appear in these chapters in Revelation). I am not even talking about individuals, but the Beast remains among us as a representation of powers. Those powers that fill us with obedience rooted in fear and oppression. The arrogant boasting and posturing of any authority that demands our absolute allegiance. This is the Beast.
And this Beast is always served by another Beast – not just individuals but institutions – that convince us that the Beast is worthy of our worship. That no one should dare take a stand against the Beast. The worship of the Beast is worship of power, strength, might, and superiority. And like the late first century Christians we sometimes don’t see the harm in going along with it all because the Beast can look like a lamb.
John’s vision reveals what is really going on. It exposes the powers of this age and let’s us know that there is a war that started on heaven. He shows us the few, the 144,000, who did not stain themselves by worshipping the Beast and his power. They stood their ground. They died for it. They suffered for it, but their suffering did not last forever. They are with the Lamb. They have won. “Blessed are those who die in the Lord from now on: how blessed to die that way!”
John is opening our eyes to the world as heaven sees it. He encourages us first: “Don’t get duped into fighting the Beast on his own terms.” Those who kill with the sward will be killed by the sword. John says this (13:9) in a near repeat of what Jesus told Peter. We are always in danger of becoming like the enemy or worse than the enemy when we are motivated by fear of the enemy. The church in Ephesus is praised by the risen Christ for taking a stand against the false prophets among them. But in the process they became so paranoid and suspicious in their stance against wickedness that they lost their capacity to love.
John also encourages us not to worship the Beast. It is so tempting to put our faith in the security that power and strength represent. But John says that during the time the Beast is in power the saints of God will need to endure and be patient. Because the faith and security that the powers of the beast offer will never last. Stand your ground, says John. Like the 144,000 – stand your ground. Don’t fight – don’t give back – but don’t give in!
We worship a different kind of power and strength. In our baptism we connect with the blood of the Lamb who did not give back but did not give in. In our baptism we join Christ in his death, burial and resurrection. We place our security in God who has the power to give new life. In the Lord’s Supper we worship sacrifice. The sacrifice of Jesus who did not try to secure his own life but surrendered it for us. When we eat his flesh and drink his blood how can we do anything else than become sacrificial in our love? How can we refuse to follow the Lamb and keep his commandments to love each other – and even our enemies?
But that’s hard isn’t it. And I know that some of us have bowed down before the power of the enemy. It is tempting. But surrender yourself to God. Be washed in the blood of Lamb.
Posted by Chris on July 2, 2006 under Sermons
Call To Worship
In the Revelation, John saw a door in heaven that stands open. A voice invited him to come and witness heaven’s interest in earth. That door remains open even today. God is not closed off to us; rather the way to his throne is open. Though God is praised and worshipped with all the majesty of heaven that John witnessed on the other side of that door, the prayers and worship of believers on earth rise up to heaven like a sweet incense that is pleasing to God. The worship on earth is linked to the worship in heaven.
So, let us take as our call to worship the words that John wrote when he witnessed the worship in heaven. This will be a responsive reading in order to remind us that our worship here coincides with the worship in heaven. If you will follow the reading on the screen as I read, the part that you read will be in gold type. After our reading, we will continue our praises with singing, “All Hail the Power of Jesus Name.” …
Revelation 4 (Leader)
After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it. And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and carnelian. A rainbow, resembling an emerald, encircled the throne. Surrounding the throne were twenty-four other thrones, and seated on them were twenty-four elders. They were dressed in white and had crowns of gold on their heads.
From the throne came flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder. Before the throne, seven lamps were blazing. These are the seven spirits of God.
Also before the throne there was what looked like a sea of glass, clear as crystal. In the center, around the throne, were four living creatures, and they were covered with eyes, in front and in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle. Each of the four living creatures had six wings and was covered with eyes all around, even under his wings. Day and night they never stop saying:
Revelation 4 (Church)
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.”
Revelation 4 (Leader)
Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne and who lives for ever and ever, … the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne, and worship him who lives for ever and ever. They lay their crowns before the throne and say:
Revelation 4 (Church)
“You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
Sermon
Words fall short of describing the full majesty of God enthroned in heaven. John uses what he knows – he uses what we know – to describe the glory of God. He appeals to our imagination. He mentions the brilliance and gleam of gemstones to describe the holiness of God and the justice of God that burns against evil. He also uses the symbol of the rainbow to remind us of God’s mercy.
Other old scriptures are called into service to remind us of God’s power. The thunder and lightning accompanied God when he descended on Mt. Sinai. And so did the pavement of glass.
God is honored in heaven. John uses words to describe 24 elders – men of wisdom and honor – decked out in their authority with thrones and crowns. But they do not sit on their thrones because they are on their knees and they have cast their crowns before the only one who is worthy of honor.
John uses words and appeals to our imagination to describe the awesome creatures that surround the throne. These are the cherubim that the prophets Ezekiel and Isaiah witnessed in their visions of the throne of heaven. Cherubim are not cuddly babies. They are more like God’s special forces among angels. They are God’s agents who extend his almighty rule over all the earth. They cover the four directions of the earth. They are equipped with wings and are full of eyes, so they see everything and they can move quickly. They resemble creatures of earth who are the noblest, the strongest, the wisest, and the swiftest of all creatures. They represent the eternal power and glory of the one who was, and is, and is to come.
And in heaven there is constant worship before God as the cherubim and elders declare his praises – not because they have to, but because God is worthy of it and they can do nothing else in the presence of the holy creator.
This is the setting and now John unfolds the drama … There is a scroll in the hand of the one who sits on the throne. This is his decree, an edict to be carried out. It is the will of God. It has seven official seals on it. Seven – when John uses that number he means that something is complete. There won’t be an eighth. So the decree of God is truly sealed. Only one who is truly worthy can open the decree and put it into action. But who? The 24 elders? No. Perhaps God’s special agents, the cherubim? No.
Can you see why John weeps? There is God in all of his majesty and glory – all of his eternal power. And there is no one worthy of putting his will into action! Who can enact his will on earth as it is in heaven?
The Messiah! The Lion of the Tribe of Judah. There’s our hero. He is the root of David. We have waited so long for our hero king to stride onto the stage of history. And we wait for the Lion to roar … but all we get is a lamb. And a lamb that looks like it has been slain.
We would be disappointed except that the lamb slain is able to take the scroll and open it. He is worthy. And John again appeals to our imagination to inform us that this is no ordinary lamb – it has seven horns and seven eyes. He may be slain, but he has complete strength and authority. Nothing escapes his sight. Doesn’t this remind us of the vision of the Risen Christ – who was dead and yet still lives. Whose eyes shine like fire and who feet are like burnished bronze. He is worthy to enact the will of God and the praise that belongs to God is also due to the lamb that was slain.
What is being said? John presses our spiritual imagination into service to encourage Christians – especially those who may be fearful or disappointed. We might expect a mighty champion who comes like a roaring lion, but instead we get a lamb that looks as if it had been slain. What is being said?
First, the will of God is not carried out through violence. We live in a world that labors under the illusion of redemptive violence. If you strike us, we will strike you – but harder. In fact, we may just do unto you before you do unto us. But didn’t God in the OT allow for an “eye for an eye.” Sure! And that was an attempt to put a limit on violence because God knew how bad we tend to escalate violence. We take a life for an eye. Cain killed his brother because of an argument in worship. The will of God is carried out through sacrificial love.
Second, the one who is worthy to carry out God’s will is not just the strongest guy on the block. Rather, it is the one who is so obedient to God that he will go to his death before forsaking God’s will. Humanity used its greatest power – the power to create death, in an attempt to resist God’s power to save. Why, because we wanted to be God. (It’s the problem that created this whole mess). But God used his great power to create life. To create, to sustain, and to resurrect.
Third, Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, the Root of David – but he is also the Lamb that was Slain. And yet he lives. He does not hurt other, but he takes upon himself the hurt of others. He suffers with those who resist violence and remain obedient to God though it costs them dearly.
The way of violence and force can only make people fear enough not to disobey, but it cannot make people obey to the point that they would lay down their lives in love. The way of violence and force only creates rebels and more violence, but the way of the Lamb, the will of God, redeems us and calls us to live our lives for God. The way of violence and force creates borders and makes enemies of people. But the way of the Lamb, the will of God, is that people from every tribe and nation should become one in his kingdom. People everywhere are united by the blood of the lamb to be priests who serve God. Whoever you are, wherever you are from, the Lamb, Jesus Christ, has purchased your redemption with his blood.
You are invited to join with the chorus in heaven that sings the new song: “To the one seated on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”
Posted by Chris on June 25, 2006 under Sermons
About 20 years after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ the emperor Nero came to power. His rule proceeded a difficult time for many in the empire – especially the followers of Christ. There was conflict in the Middle East as a war broke out between Judean separatists and the Roman Empire. Christians, many of whom were Jews who accepted Jesus as Messiah, found themselves caught in the middle – they cherished the temple and loved their Jewish brethren but they did not want to go to war. Some of the Romans were Christians by this time also. Across the empire, the growing group of Christ-followers was blamed for the problems that arose because of Nero’s incompetence. And though Nero was incompetent and immoral, he was still the emperor. It was a difficult time for Christ’s followers, but the leaders of the church (including Peter and Paul and many of the other apostles and evangelists) led the young church through the trials and encouraged them to wait for the return of Christ.
And Nero died. He committed suicide when the Roman senate had had enough of his excesses. But the war raged on and the trouble in the Middle East and Jerusalem grew worse. Back in Rome there was a period of failed attempts to take over the empire.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem, the leader of the Roman army charged to quell the uprising in Jerusalem was a military leader named Vespasian. When Vespasian heard of Nero’s death he left his son Titus in charge of the campaign in Jerusalem. Vespasian returned to Rome and assumed the throne of the Empire. He restored the faltering empire to a sound footing. He instituted discipline throughout the demoralized military. He cleaned up the government and established well-disciplined leaders at various levels of imperial rule.
Meanwhile in Jerusalem, Titus finally ended the conflict that had threatened unrest across the Middle East. He and his troops invaded the Temple in Jerusalem. They leveled the house of God and stole its treasures. The instigators of the uprising had used the temple mount as a base of operations, now it was gone – along with the spiritual center of Judaism – it was also a demoralizing blow for many Christians.
But under the rule of Vespasian and Titus, there was relative peace and stability. The Christian movement thrived and looked back to the teachings of Jesus and came to understand that the gospel and their faith was not bound to a building in Jerusalem. They spoke of a spiritual temple and a heavenly tabernacle. And still they encouraged one another with the hope of Christ’s return – even though one generation of Christians was passing away and another taking up the leadership in cities like Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodecia. Almost all of the apostles were gone. Peter and Paul had been executed during the reign of Nero.
The relatively stable decade of rule under Vespasian continued when Titus assumed the throne. And this rule was extended another few years until Titus died of illness. And then his brother Domitian took over. Domitian was not as disciplined or confident and his father or brother. He was cruel, calculating, and paranoid. In short time he assumed total authority over the government, taking power away from the Senate. His propensity for cruelty invaded the culture of the empire. He promoted gladiatorial games as sport. He even added female combatants, and soon the gladiatorial combat became even more of a sickening spectacle than it already was. One writer of the period said that Domitian was worse than Nero in his madness and immorality for Domitian’s cruelty was precise and premeditated.
Religious devotion to the emperor of Rome had been in place since Julius Caesar, and Vespasian and Titus didn’t take it very seriously. Titus joked on his deathbed that he was becoming a god. Domitian however insisted that he be worshipped. His egoism, cruelty, and paranoia were a dangerous combination and he would not tolerate even the slightest dissent. He forced subjects throughout the empire to worship him and unlike some of his predecessors who insisted that they be called the First Among Equals, Domitian demanded that his title should be Deus et Dominus – Lord and God. For Christians, this became a very difficult and dark time. The morals of society were collapsing around them. They were persecuted once again and a ruler who insisted that they worship him over their Lord Jesus would exact cruel punishment and execution if they did not bow their knee to his authority. Some within the church suggested it would be acceptable to worship the emperor. From within and without these were difficult times. The leaders who had written Scriptures they cherished were gone. Many wondered when – or if – Jesus Christ was going to come back.
Well, not all the apostles were gone. John was the only one of the twelve still alive. He was a very old man, but greatly respected. Still, Domitian had exiled him on an island called Patmos. Thus he couldn’t communicate easily with the churches he called his little children. He was concerned for the persecuted believers; perhaps he too wondered when Jesus would return.
One Sunday morning, while John was worshipping alone in exile he had a vision. It was a vision of what would happen soon. It was a vision of the future. It was a vision of the church enduring the worst of times and of the glory of God’s rule over the cruel and oppressive rule of every corrupt government. It was a vision of the faithful rewarded. But it was more than just a dream of John, it was a visitation – a revelation – from someone that John knew. The person who presented this vision to him was the true Lord and God – the risen Jesus who was dead but is now alive! [Read Revelation 1:9f]
The one that all Christians were hoping would return had an unprecedented message of hope and encouragement in that age – one that is for all of us in every age. The foundation of revelation’s hope and encouragement to persevere is that it is spoken with the authority of the Risen Christ. He tells John to write what he sees and addresses the vision to the seven churches – which is a way of addressing the entire church since seven is a complete number. And notice how the risen Christ describes himself …
The one who walks among the seven gold lampstands – He is present among the churches. They have worried that Christ is not with them or that he is far off. But he is standing among them all. He is ever-present. And when we gather to worship (thus the symbol of the lampstand) – he is there. He encourages us not to tolerate wickedness, but in our stand against wickedness he urges us not to lose the spirit of love. For if we abandon love, Christ’s presence is no longer with us. The lampstand in his presence will be removed.
The one who is the First and the Last, who died and is alive – Here is the ultimate message of hope for Christians who fear persecution at the hands of others. The battle was won long ago when God raised Christ from the dead. He was the first, but he is also the last. He is not a historical leader – but a living leader. He died, but he is alive. Christ has triumphed over death and we who have been baptized into Christ will share in that triumph. Don’t be afraid when we are threatened, but be faithful.
The one who has a sharp two-edged sword – Christ fights with the only weapon that can never be overcome – the truth. We often try to fight the battles with our own words and weapons, but Christ promises that he will wield the sword on our behalf. When the truth prevails it is Christ who fights against wickedness and immorality. Remain firmly rooted in the truth and trust in Christ rather than our ability to use force and power – otherwise we may become the oppressor and find ourselves on the other side of the sword.
The Son of God, whose eyes are bright like flames of fire, whose feet are like polished bronze – This is the image of the Son of Man. This is the ruler that God appoints to rule over every government on earth. He judges all things and determines what is right and what is wrong. Notice how firm his stance and how sharp his gaze. Nothing escapes his authority. We too must persevere and strive for the same spiritual integrity of Jesus Christ. Those who persevere will share in his rule and enjoy the hope that comes when his authority is established over all creation.
The one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars – Persecution and difficulty can make us weak and weary. We are only human, but the church is empowered by the spirit of God. And it is not a limited resource. We often get tired of “church work” and that is especially true for churches in difficult times. But the risen Christ present among us empowers us with the sevenfold spirit of God. He did so for the Christians in the late 1st century and he will do so for Christians today.
The one who has the key of David – Christ has the power to open doors. No one can shut us out of the promises that are given by God. Only Christ has that sort of authority. Who wouldn’t want honor and influence in this world? But sometimes it can be taken from us as quickly as it is given by the opinion shapers of this world, but Christ promises to give us his honors if we will trust in him and persevere. He has the key and no one can shut doors that he opens.
The one who is the Amen – – the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation – Amen is the last word. The risen Christ is last word. He was there for the creation, and he will have the last word on its future. Why trust in the things of this world? Why worry over losing the things of this world when we can trust and rely on the ruler of this world. Don’t you want to be there not only to say the Amen, but to see him?
There’s one phrase that the risen Christ speaks to the churches in every situation:
“I KNOW”… Christ isn’t ignorant of what goes on in difficult times or in pleasant peace. Whether it is Nero, Vespasian, or Domitian on the throne of the empire, Christ knows what goes one. He is aware of our trials. He is aware of our deeds. He knows us. He knows you. Do you know him? He is making himself known to you. All is revealed.
Posted by Chris on June 18, 2006 under Sermons
[The following is an excerpt from an article on www.wikipedia.com]
The Torah states in Numbers 15:38: “Speak to the children of Israel and you shall say to them that they shall make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments, throughout their generations, and they shall affix a thread of blue (Hebrew: תכלת – tekhelet) on the fringe of each corner.”
Tzitzit are also commanded in Deuteronomy 22:12, which says: “You shall make yourself twisted threads, on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.”Tzitzit are attached today only to Jewish religious garments, such as a tallit gadol (large prayer shawl). This is due in part to the fact that today’s typical garment does not have the required 4 corners, and thus the fringes are not necessary. Traditional Jews wear a tallit katan (small prayer shawl) in order to fulfill this commandment at their own volition (although some consider it a transgression to miss a commandment that one has the ability to fulfill).
Various reasons are given for the commandment. The Torah itself states: “So that you will remember to do the commandments.” In addition, it serves as a reminder of the Exodus from Egypt (Numbers 15:40). The Talmud equates its observance with that of all the mitzvot. Rambam (Comm. Pirkei Avot 2:1) includes it as a major mitzvah along with Brit Milah and Korban Pesah.
The two sets of stands are knotted together twice, and then the “shamash” (a longer strand) is wound around the remaining seven strands a number of times (see below). The two sets are then knotted again twice. This procedure is repeated three times. A commonly formed pattern of windings is 7-8-11-13 (totalling 39 winds – the gematria of the “The LORD is One” Deuteronomy 6:4). Others, especially Sephardim, have 10 and 5 and 6 and 5, a combination that represents directly the spelling of the Tetragrammaton.
The simple things matter when they lead us to the big things …
- Look at Deuteronomy 6. And Joshua 4 – the 12 stones. The children will ask about the simple things and the parents are to recall what it really means. They are to tell the story of what God has done.
- Do you remember what you learned at VBS? The simple things of VBS lead us to the greater things of God. God is at work in a cardboard synagogue or under a shade tree.
- I remember my first VBS – I was the only teen the first night. Ron, Ed, and me. And Ed shared the gospel with me in a way that was inspiring. Until that moment I always thought of baptism as “hell insurance” I thought it was something that I certainly needed to take care of but I didn’t really see how it made much of a difference in my life here and now. So I wanted to take care of the matter privately. Ed gave me another way to look at it: “Don’t miss out on the joy of being a Christian.” A simple thing that pointed to something much greater. Here was an older man who shared his Christian joy with a young man of 13. He gave me a vision for following God rather than describing it as a chore or spiritual tax payments.
