calling

Hot Coals, Dead Fish, and Grace

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Hot Coals, Dead Fish, and Grace

February 09, 2025*

By Pastor John Partridge

Isaiah 6:1-8                Luke 5:1-11                1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Have you ever studied physics? Even basic physics would do to understand what I want to ask, and I’m not sure that even the basics are necessary to get a grip on my next question. In physics, we talk about mass, momentum, velocity, and force. If a mass is moving in one direction, some force must be applied to change its velocity. One force that can be applied is if that mass collides with another mass that is moving in the opposite direction or is not moving at all. But then the age-old question arises, what if an irresistible force collides with an immovable object? Of course, there is nuance to how you can answer this, but the simple answer is that when an irresistible force collides with an immovable object, both are utterly destroyed. If you need a picture in your head, imagine a head-on collision of railroad trains. There are no winners, everyone loses.

So why does this matter?

Well, there is an analogy to this question that we encounter from time to time in scripture, and that is, what happens when an imperfect, flawed, and sinful human being encounters a perfect and holy God? And the answer for most of biblical history is simply… death. The underlying assumption throughout most of scripture is that an imperfect human being would not survive an encounter with God’s perfect holiness. Far from the mutual destruction we would expect in physics from a collision of an irresistible force and an immovable object, in the theological realm, nothing imperfect and sinful survives an encounter with God’s perfect holiness.

And that is exactly the assumption that Isaiah has in mind as we read Isaiah 6:1-8:

6:1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:

“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
    the whole earth is full of his glory.”

4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook, and the temple was filled with smoke.

5 “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”

And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”

Isaiah says that he had a vision in which he was transported to the throne room of the universe, saw God seated on his throne, and heard the worship and the praises of the seraphim. And as he took in this scene, Isaiah knew that he was a dead man. He knew that he was sinful, that he lived in a nation of sinful people, and he knew that, as such, he would not survive a meeting with a just and holy God. But just as Isaiah is expecting to die, the unexpected happens. A seraph, an angel with six wings, flies to Isaiah with a live coal from the altar, touches Isaiah’s mouth with this white-hot live coal, and declares that his guilt has been taken away and his sin has been forgiven. And it is at that moment when God asks, “Whom shall I send?” Having stood in the throne room of God, witnessed God’s holiness, seen the angels in attendance, heard their praises, and received God’s forgiveness, Isaiah answers God’s call by saying, “Here am I, Send me.”

And that, is how Isaiah left behind a life as a priest from a privileged family and became God’s prophet. But then as we move forward seven or eight hundred years, we see a similar reaction on the part of Peter when he meets Jesus after a hard, and unsuccessful night of fishing with his partners. We find that story in Luke 5:1-11 where it says:

5:1 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. 2 He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

5 Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

6 When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10 and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” 11 So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

The story begins with Jesus preaching and, having already become known in the region and having attracted a following of people curious to hear him speak, the crowd begins to press Jesus until he is up against the water. He asks that the fishermen, who are there repairing their nets after a night of fishing, would allow him the use of their boat so that he can preach from just offshore. As a matter of politeness and curiosity, they comply. But, after Jesus has finished preaching, he tells the fishermen, who had already worked all night, to load up their nets, go out into deep water… again, and do it all over again at a time that they were hoping to be going home to a warm meal and a comfortable bed. But again, out of politeness, and out of respect for this new wandering preacher, they do as he asked. (pause) And, despite having caught nothing the previous night, they caught more fish than they had ever caught before. Their nets were breaking, their boats were sinking, and Peter knew that what he was witnessing was not a normal circumstance. Although it wasn’t an angel with a hot coal from the altar of God, Peter knew that he was in the presence of the divine, he knew that Jesus was something more than human, and he fully expected something terrible to happen because he was a sinful man who stood in the presence of God. But much like the experience of Isaiah, Jesus tells Peter not to be afraid and calls the fishermen to leave behind their old lives and follow him.

And finally, we turn to Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth where he remembers the calling that God had put on his life and explains how God has called each one of us as well. As we read 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, we hear this:

15:1 Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.

3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, 8 and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.

9 For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me. 11 Whether, then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.

Paul doesn’t mince words or dance around his point. He says “I want to remind you of the gospel that I preached to you” the one that you heard, accepted, and upon which you have taken a stand. This is the gospel that I was taught by Jesus and by the disciples in Jerusalem and I want you to remember and to hold tightly to the most important thing. Paul then offers a summary that is short, sweet, memorable, and easily memorized. He said that what we must remember is that Christ died just as the prophets said that he would, that he rose from the dead on the third day just as the prophets said that he would, and afterwards he was seen by Peter, the disciples, and more than five hundred others, and then he appeared to his brother James, to all of the apostles, who by definition were all of Jesus’ followers that were not disciples, and then finally he appeared to Paul as he traveled the road to Damascus.

Paul emphasizes that he was an enemy of Jesus and only became a follower of Jesus because of God’s grace. It is because of God’s grace that Paul has become the disciple and evangelist that he is, and it is because of God’s grace that he has done all that he has done. But notice that at the end, Paul changes the personal pronouns in his speech. Where before he was saying “by the grace of God I am what I am” he changes up the pronouns at the end and say, “Whether then, it is I or they, this is what we preach, and this is what you believed.” Suddenly, instead of speaking in the first person, Paul shifts from “I” to “we” and “you.” This is what we preach, and this is what you believed. And so we should not miss the point by thinking that Paul was only reminding the church about his history, but should remember that Paul’s intent, was to remind the people about the importance of the message, and then make it clear that preaching this message is something that all of us do.

Paul said that it is because of God’s grace that he was who he was, and that he had become the man that he had become. But Paul is also saying that:

We are alive because of God’s grace. We are forgiven because of God’s grace. We are called because of God’s grace. We follow, we preach, we share, we witness, we are bold, and we are unafraid because of God’s grace.

Isaiah was forgiven and sent out into the world by means of a white-hot coal from the altar of God.

Peter and his partners were called to follow Jesus by means of a net full of dead fish.

But Paul and all the rest of us are being sent out into the world by means of Jesus sacrificial death, resurrection, and the grace of God.

Like Isaiah, Peter, and Paul, let us answer God’s call upon our lives and tell the world the Good News of Jesus Christ.

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*You have been reading a message presented at Christ United Methodist Church on the date noted at the top of the first page.  Rev. John Partridge is the pastor at Christ UMC in Alliance, Ohio.  Duplication of this message is a part of our Media ministry, if you have received a blessing in this way, we would love to hear from you.  Letters and donations in support of the Media ministry or any of our other projects may be sent to Christ United Methodist Church, 470 East Broadway Street, Alliance, Ohio 44601.  These messages are available to any interested persons regardless of membership.  You may subscribe to these messages, in print or electronic formats, by writing to the address noted, or by contacting us at secretary@CUMCAlliance.org.  These messages can also be found online at https://pastorpartridge.com .  All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.comThe “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

The Intersection of Why and What

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The Intersection of Why and What

February 22, 2024

by John Partridge


Here are two important questions:

  1. Why are we here?
  2. What are we doing about it?

Last fall, we had several strategic planning meetings. One of the things that grew out of those meetings was our new vision statement that you see at the top of our bulletin every week. But another was a conversation about why God has put us here, as Queen Esther would have said, “for such a time as this.” During the strategic planning meeting we asked two important questions. First, “What are the pressing needs of our community?” And second, “What are the strengths of our congregation?” Only when we answer the latter two questions, we will be able to answer the two questions that I asked at the beginning of this letter.

The needs that we listed in our meetings, with the input of many community leaders, were poverty, hunger, housing (including homelessness, blight, and high rents), lack of workforce and lack of jobs, safe places for youth, support for parents, mental health, drugs, and transportation. At the same time, we listed the strengths of our congregation as outreach, music, caring and compassionate congregation, generosity, education, leaders, organizers, our endowment, our connections and contacts, our physical plant/building and our adjoining lots used for both green space and the community garden.

That’s a lot.

But I want to keep these ideas in front of us rather than just allowing them to be an exercise that we once did and promptly forgot. Our community needs us, and our future depends upon us doing something about it.

And so, I’m inviting you all to think and dream about where these two lists intersect. What is the intersection of What we are, and what is needed? What is the intersection of “Why are we here?” and “What do the people around us need us to be and do?”

We really need you to do this.

Often, I ask these sorts of questions in our newsletter, and everyone seems to think that they are rhetorical questions (they are not). And I never get more than one or two answers, if any. But these questions need to be answered and I will be bringing them to our church boards for more discussion as we seek to find a new direction, purpose, and yes, a new strategic plan for our future.

But what might that look like?

From the list above, it could be many things, but here is an example based on something that we already do, and with which we already have some familiarity. Think about housing. Last week the Alliance chapter of Habitat for Humanity accepted applications for this year’s round of construction. Habitat will build or renovate three houses, but they had something like 150 applications. Yikes.  That number is mind blowing, but it gives us a glimpse of insight into the housing needs of our community.

So, what if, instead of raising money for three months, once every other year, for our share of the Apostle build, what if we raised money for twenty-four months? What if, instead of setting our goal at $5,000. We set a goal of $20,000 or even $150,000 (which is the cost of an entire Habitat house)?

What if, as some churches are doing in other states, we used some of our vacant land to build “tiny houses” to help get homeless people in our community under a roof, out of the weather, and help them move toward a better life?

What if our church bought and renovated one of the empty buildings in our city and created a multi-unit, low cost, rent-controlled, safe place, apartment complex?

These are all examples to help you dream. Some of them are big dreams. But honestly, given the resources, generosity, and leadership available in our congregation, I believe that, given enough time, any of them, or all of them, are possible for us to achieve if we decided to do so. But housing is just one of the needs that we listed.

What else might God be calling us to be or to do?

Why are we here?

What are we doing about it?

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Never Again

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Never Again*

November 01, 2020

(All Saints Day)

By Pastor John Partridge

Matthew 5:1-12                     1 John 3:1-3                           Revelation 7:9-17

In J. Rachel Reed’s book, K-9 Korea: The Untold Story of America’s War Dogs in the Korean War, she says,

“Aren’t we as a society better, stronger, when we have these best examples of humanity to rest our hopes on? And aren’t we better when we can look at the failures of humanity and vow, ‘Never again’?”

I think that’s a great question.  Aren’t we better when we look at our failures and vow, “Never again?”

Many of us have done exactly that.  We’ve failed and made some bone-headed decisions, we’ve chosen poorly, we’ve chosen quantity over quality, we’ve worked too much and played too little, we’ve said “yes” when we should have said ‘no” and “no” when we should have said “yes” and a made a host of other regrettable decisions and afterwards many of us learned from our mistakes and promised ourselves, “Never again.”

And, as we celebrate All Saints Day and remember those members, family, and friends that are no longer with us, we also remember, and hold on to, the words “never again” and the deeper meaning that they have to us from our understanding of scripture.  We begin this morning with the words of Jesus, and his sermon of the Beatitudes, found in Matthew 5:1-12.

5:1 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
    for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
    for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Jesus proclaims blessings upon the people who are typically looked down upon, ignored, and pushed aside by the ambitious and the powerful as well as those who are struggling with loss.  And it is in these words that Jesus reminds the entire world that God cares more about peace and purity than power, more about comfort and compassion than cash, and more about mercy and morality than money.  Jesus reminds us that God is proud of you when you do the right thing, even if the world persecutes you and lies about the things you did.  And, while it never seems to difficult to imagine, during this election season it seems easier than ever to understand how the people can manipulate and twist the truth into anything they want it to be.  But as long as you are honoring God, and working toward the goals of God’s kingdom, then God calls you blessed and promises that, while persecution and unpleasantness may come to you on earth, blessing and reward have already been set aside for you in heaven.

John the Apostle puts it this way in 1 John 3:1-3,

3:1 See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. 3 All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

John says that God loves us so much that we will be called the children of God.  God claims us as his own and the world misunderstands us, and our motives, because they do not know him.  But because we live here and have not yet passed over from this life into the next, we cannot yet see what our new life will look like.  But we do know that when Christ appears, or when our lives end and we go to live with him, we will see him as he really is in all his glory.

And in Revelation 7:9-17, John also writes about his vision of heaven and a hint of what we will see there after our time on earth has ended.

9 After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:

“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”

11 All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying:

“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!”

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 I answered, “Sir, you know.”

And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 15 Therefore,

“they are before the throne of God
    and serve him day and night in his temple;
and he who sits on the throne
    will shelter them with his presence.
16 ‘Never again will they hunger;
    never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat down on them,’
    nor any scorching heat.
17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne
    will be their shepherd;
‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’
    ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’

While John speaks specifically about the saints of God who were killed during the great tribulation, we are given a glimpse of heaven and of God’s love and compassion for his children.  What’s more, it is here that we find those words that we’ve said to ourselves.  On earth we’ve learned wisdom by saying “never again” to the bad decisions of the past, but we are unable to do anything about some of the hardest parts of our lives.  In this life we often can’t do anything about pain, suffering and death, but John says that once we begin our new lives God says, “never again.”  Never again will there be hunger or thirst.  Never again will there be scorching heat, or bitter cold.  Never again will there be mourning, crying, pain, sorrow, suffering, or death.

“And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

And so today, as we celebrate All Saints Day, and as we remember those whom we have lost in the past year, as well as all of our friends and loved ones who have been lost to us, we also rejoice in the new life that they have with Jesus Christ.  Because we remain on earth, we also remember our calling to faithfulness, righteousness, mercy, and compassion.  We remember that, as followers of Jesus Christ we must continue his work as we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, speak for the voiceless, care for those who have no one to care for them, and in every other way possible to preach the Gospel, rescue the lost, and be Jesus to the world. 

But, at the same time, while we continue our earthly struggles with frustration, hunger, thirst, pain, persecution, suffering, grief, and death, we look forward to the day when we too can rest from our labor and say…

… “Never again.”

 

 

You can find the video of this worship service here: https://youtu.be/6ge6H8IvMao

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*You have been reading a message presented at Christ United Methodist Church on the date noted at the top of the first page.  Rev. John Partridge is the pastor at Christ UMC in Alliance, Ohio.  Duplication of this message is a part of our Media ministry, if you have received a blessing in this way, we would love to hear from you.  Letters and donations in support of the Media ministry or any of our other projects may be sent to Christ United Methodist Church, 470 East Broadway Street, Alliance, Ohio 44601. These messages are available to any interested persons regardless of membership.  You may subscribe to these messages, in print or electronic formats, by writing to the address noted, or by contacting us at secretary@CUMCAlliance.org.  If you have questions, you can ask them in our discussion forum on Facebook (search for Pastor John Online).  These messages can also be found online at https://pastorpartridge.com/. All Scripture references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.

What to Do While We Wait

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What to Do While We Wait

May 03, 2020*

By Pastor John Partridge

 

Luke 24:44-53                        Acts 1:1-14                                         Ephesians 1:15-23

 

 

As we shelter in place, we are becoming good (or at least better) at waiting.  Some of us have been able to catch up on our reading, organize parts of our home, do spring cleaning, exercise, do crafts, learn new skills, resume an old hobby or take up a new one, start our spring and summer gardening projects, or any number of other things.  Others of us are watching videos, surfing social media sites, and playing video games.  And despite our efforts in all these activities, in addition to our employment and schoolwork, many of us are going a little stir crazy.  While introverts are generally better at being alone, even they are beginning to miss the ability to have a little human interaction from time to time.

 

But what else can, or should, we be doing?

 

Is there a spiritual component to social distancing and quarantine?

 

The answer is “Yes.”  In scripture, and in the history of the church, it was not uncommon for people to spend time apart from others in order to focus on their spiritual life.  When Jesus prepared to begin his ministry, he went out into the desert for forty days, and after Paul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, he went away, out of the public eye, for a year or two to study, learn, and reevaluate his life in light of this experience and new knowledge.  But there was also a moment, that is key to the Easter story, that tell us of a time when all the disciples and the followers of Jesus Christ spent a considerable time waiting.  They waited, of course, after the crucifixion, for the resurrection.  And then they waited for forty days from the resurrection, occasionally meeting Jesus, until Jesus left them and returned to his Father in heaven.  We read a part of that story in Luke 24:44-53 where we hear this:

 

44 He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”

45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

 

50 When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. 51 While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. 52 Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

 

The first part of this reminds us of the promise that Jesus made to the disciples before he left them.  Jesus promised that he would send the disciples what God had promised, but that they must stay in Jerusalem and wait until God’s power came upon them.

 

Jesus promised that God’s gift would come, but in order to receive it, they had to wait.

 

That’s good, but it’s a little brief and not terribly clear so in Acts 1:1-14, Luke expands on that story and writes a clearer, more detailed account of what happened, and there he says…

 

1:1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days, you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

 

12 Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. 13 When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

 

In this retelling, once again we hear Jesus promise that he would send the Holy Spirit but that the disciples would have to wait a few days, in addition to the 43 days they had already waited, before God’s promise would be fulfilled.  And so, the disciples return to Jerusalem, from the Mount of Olives, with great joy and waited.  Between the two accounts we see that they must have spent their time moving between the temple and the house where they were staying and, as they waited, presumably beside the time that they were sleeping and eating, they were almost constantly in prayer.  I would guess that they also spent time remembering the things that Jesus had taught them and speculating on how long they might have to wait, as well as just what Jesus meant by sending the Holy Spirit and what that might mean to them when it happened.

 

But, for the most part, other than this fifteen or twenty people, and those that they encountered at the Temple, they spent their time separated from the rest of the world.  Obviously, this isn’t as isolating as what we are experiencing, but the disciples did as they were told, they followed Jesus’ instructions to wait and, as they did, they spent a significant amount of time in prayer.

 

But we also find some good suggestions of how to spend our time from the Apostle Paul, who again wasn’t exactly practicing social distancing, but who was separated from his friends at the church in Ephesus while he was in prison.  In Ephesians 1:15-23, Paul writes…

 

15 For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all God’s people, 16 I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

 

Paul says that there are several things that he does to occupy his time during this time of forced separation (and imprisonment).  First, he listens to the stories that he hears about his church and his friends, he continually thanks God for their friendship and for their faithfulness and is regularly in prayer for them.  Second, he recommends that his friends take the time to know God better and to build their relationship with him.  And finally, whether it is through prayer, contemplation, or study, to find a reason for hope.  And one of the best reasons for hope is that Jesus rose from the dead, has been given the power and authority over all of creation, and over the church which is the body of Christ.

 

And so finally, as we remember the ascension of Jesus and prepare for Pentecost, we should also remember that there are things that we can do during times when we are separated from others and separated from one another.  Before Jesus left the disciples, he asked them to follow his directions, to wait patiently for the gift that he would send to them.  During that time of waiting, the disciples took the time to listen to what God might have to say to them, to reflect on the things that they had already learned, to pray, and to study with the teachers at the Temple.  While Paul was in prison he listened for news about the church and about his friends, he thanked God for those friends and for the gifts that he had been given, he spent time in prayer, and he encouraged his friends  to take the time to know God better and to build their relationship with him so that they could find a reason for hope.

 

During our time of separation, during this battle with the Coronavirus, let us not only remember and reflect on these lessons but take them to heart and put them into practice.  Let us use this time to grow closer to Jesus, to find a reason for hope, and to share that hope with the people in the community, and in the world around us.

 

Have a great week everybody.

 

 

 

 

You can find the video of this worship service here: https://youtu.be/wT-tEhG9hJM

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*You have been reading a message presented at Christ United Methodist Church on the date noted at the top of the first page.  Rev. John Partridge is the pastor at Christ UMC in Alliance, Ohio.  Duplication of this message is a part of our Media ministry, if you have received a blessing in this way, we would love to hear from you.  Letters and donations in support of the Media ministry or any of our other projects may be sent to Christ United Methodist Church, 470 East Broadway Street, Alliance, Ohio 44601. These messages are available to any interested persons regardless of membership.  You may subscribe to these messages, in print or electronic formats, by writing to the address noted, or by contacting us at secretary@CUMCAlliance.org.  If you have questions, you can ask them in our discussion forum on Facebook (search for Pastor John Online).  These messages can also be found online at https://pastorpartridge.wordpress.com/. All Scripture references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.