15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
5 May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had,6 so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.(Romans 15:4-6)
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Dear Friends,
As I was reading the scripture from our devotional guide today, I thought how important it was to our understanding of Christmas. In Romans 15:4-6, Paul says that every scripture that has been written was given to us to teach us that through the endurance taught by scripture, and the encouragement that we find there, we might find hope. Those are, honestly, not the words that we expected. We expect to hear that our hope comes from our faith in Jesus Christ, or from a future home in heaven, or from our confidence in an all-powerful, all-knowing God. But Paul teaches us that the entire purpose of the Old Testament (and we can include the New Testament as well) was to teach us that hope comes from the endurance that we witness in the people of the Bible and the encouragement that we find as we begin to understand it.
But why? How do we find hope in the stories of endurance that we find in scripture?
It’s simple when you think about it. I have often said that one thing that becomes obvious as we read history and scripture, is that human beings haven’t changed much. For as much as we pride ourselves on our enlightenment, knowledge, education, and technology, the things that motivate human beings, and the way that they behave, haven’t changed much, we are just as motivated by love, lust, money, greed, power, and pleasure as we were three thousand years ago. As much as we like to think that humanity has changed, it seems more like we’ve repainted the cover of the book and left the contents unchanged.
And that’s why we are encouraged by the endurance of the people that we find in the ancient writings of scripture. When we read the stories, we find people who are just like us. Sure, they lived in an entirely different culture but the desire for love and for children, the need for parents to provide for, and to protect their families, and many of the other emotion driven stories all resonate with us. It isn’t difficult at all for us to put ourselves in the place of the heroes and heroines that we find there. They seem familiar because in many ways they look just like us.
And that’s when we notice that the heroes of the Bible didn’t have perfect lives. Their entire world often was set against them. They weren’t perfect people. They had flaws. They struggled. They had everything they had taken away from them. And they waited, sometimes for times that must have seemed like forever.
And still they endured.
The greatest desire of Abraham and Sarah was to have children. And they waited for almost one hundred years to get one. Jacob fell in love with Leah and agreed to work for seven years to pay off her bride price. But he was tricked by his uncle and ended up working for fourteen years instead. David was anointed as the king of Israel when he was fifteen years old but didn’t actually become king until he was thirty. And much of that time, he was a fugitive that lived in the wastes of the desert as King Saul, and his entire army hunted him so that they could take his life. Over and over again we see the great heroes and heroines of scripture struggle, stumble, fall, wait, and endure.
And as we see their imperfections, their struggles, their endurance, and their faith, we are encouraged because we see that our struggles and failures aren’t new or unique. God’s people have been where we are before. They have felt what we feel. They have passed through the same trials in their lives that we face in our own.
And yet they endured.
Even in the Christmas story, the lives of Elizabeth, Zechariah, Mary, Joseph, and even Jesus, were far from perfect. They were poor, they were powerless, they struggled, and they endured. As Paul said, as we read these stories, we are encouraged by the endurance of the people that look just like us. And as we encouraged by their endurance…
…we find hope.
May we find hope, together, as we welcome the birth of the Prince of Peace this Christmas.
Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:17-23 Luke 12:13-21 Colossians 3:1-11
When children have siblings, it seems like one of the first ten words that they learn is the word “Mine!” It reminds me of the scene from Finding Nemo, when the seagulls think that they have found food, and all of them are mobbing the beach shouting, “Mine! Mine! Mine!” And, I think for many of us, part of the humor in that scene of the movie is found in how much the seagulls remind us of children or, if we’re honest, some of the adults that we know. But it is exactly that mindset that we see on display, discussed, and critiqued in today’s scriptures. The first among these was written by King Solomon, one of history’s wealthiest kings, a man who had everything that money and power could bring, and yet, found that wealth wasn’t everything that we might imagine it to be. We begin by reading from Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:17-23
1:1 The words of the Teacher, son of David, king in Jerusalem:
2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
2:17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge, and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22 What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? 23 All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.
Solomon says that he gave himself to the study of wisdom, and what wisdom was taught under many nations of the world, and what he found was that the life of humanity was burdensome and difficult. Despite all that he had seen, and all his wealth, women, power, and other things available to him, he could not find any meaning in his life and began to hate everything that he had and everything for which he had worked. After all his study and all his labor, he knew that in the end he would die and leave it all behind to someone who didn’t understand what he had done and who had not done any work to get it. And so, Solomon finds that study, work, labor, wealth, power, pleasure, and even weariness, grief, and pain were all meaningless.
To be fair, these words are not the end of Solomon’s writings and ultimately Solomon’s opinion is not as dark and pessimistic as this passage might suggest. But clearly, Solomon felt that wealth and power were not the answer to finding a life of meaning, purpose, or happiness. And Jesus echoes this line of thinking as we read the story of Luke 12:13-21, where we hear a man who is unhappy with the way that his father has chosen to distribute his inheritance.
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
However much this man’s father had left him in his inheritance, he clearly thought that it wasn’t enough and that his brother ought to share some of what he had gotten. But Jesus warns that it isn’t money or possessions that make life worth living. Greed, and the constant lust for more, isn’t the thing that makes life better. And to add emphasis to that idea, Jesus tells a parable about a man who was already wealthy, but when faced with a bumper crop, decided to build bigger barns rather than share his bounty with others, because, in his mind, “All this is for me!” You can almost hear the seagulls crying, “Mine! Mine! Mine!” But before he could even make the deposit on the construction of his new barns, his life was forfeited and, as Solomon had noted, all his money was passed on to someone else.
And Jesus said the moral of the story that we should remember, is that wealth that isn’t shared abundantly with God can all be taken away. Now, I am certain that Jesus isn’t saying that being rich toward God means that we must give the lions share of our wealth to the church, but rather that we must use what God has given us to do the work of God on earth. Rather than crying out for what is mine, mine, mine, we are to share what we have with the church, with the poor, the hungry, the naked, the abused, the disadvantaged, and anyone else who might not have the things that we have been given.
We find a bit more guidance along this line of thinking in Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae as we read Colossians 3:1-11 where he says:
3:1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways; in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Paul tell us that because we have been raised to a new life in Jesus Christ, we should find purpose in doing the work of God and of God’s kingdom rather than in the things in which our culture finds value, such as wealth, power, pleasure, and the accumulation of possessions and other earthly pleasures. Instead, we should set aside, or “put to death’ our earthly nature that craves sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed because all these things are forms of idolatry. Paul says that those are the things that we used to do before we chose to follow Jesus, and, as they say in the infomercials on television, “but that’s not all” because now that we follow Jesus, we must also rid ourselves of anger, rage, malice, slander, filthy language, and lying to one another. As the body of Christ, we put aside all things that divide us and see one another as equal in value before God because Jesus is everything to us, and lives inside of all of us who believe.
I hope that you see the connections between these scriptures, but just to be sure, let’s connect the dots. Solomon had everything that anyone could possibly ask for, and more. He was fabulously wealthy, had hundreds of wives, consorts, and concubines, and ruled over what was one of the most powerful kingdoms of its time. He could have had, and did have, anything that he could ask for. And yet, despite all his wealth and power, Solomon grieved at the meaningless of life because his mortality meant that everything that he had would pass to someone else when he died. Jesus reinforces this same idea saying that we should avoid any and all kinds of greed because we will not find meaning or purpose in life by pursuing wealth, power, pleasure, or possessions. Instead, Jesus says, we will find purpose when we share what we have with God and use our wealth and possessions for the mission and vision of the kingdom of God.
But Paul expands on what it means to avoid greed and live for God, saying that because we have chosen to follow Jesus, have died with him, and have been raised to a new life, then we must turn our hearts toward God and find meaning and purpose by doing the things of God and pursuing the advancement of God’s kingdom. But to do that, Paul says, we must not live the way that our culture teaches us to live. Greed isn’t the only thing that we are called to leave behind with our old life but also sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language, as well as greed. In total, in exchange for a life that is filled with meaning and purpose, God calls us to live differently than the people around us so that they can catch a glimpse of a world in which there is no Jew or Gentile, slave or free, cultured or barbarian, citizen or foreigner, black or white, or any other division, but instead a world where all are equal, all contribute, all participate, and where everyone belongs.
My friends, that is a world that is worth fighting for, worth working towards, and worth making every effort to model and show to the people around us.
For anyone who has taken the Bridges Out of Poverty class, or who has done any reading about poverty, or the disparities of wealth, one of the things that we discover, is that people from different socio-economic classes simply think differently and operate throughout their lives with a different set of assumptions. These disparities are not new to our generation or even new to modernity, but have existed throughout recorded history, and since the beginning of what we might think of as wealth and power. We often see these differences as we read the stories of history, and we see them in scripture as well as in writings from the period such as the books of Josephus and other first century writers.
Our first scripture for today is found in 2 Kings 5:1-14, much earlier than the first century, somewhere between 500 to 600 years before the birth of Jesus. There, we hear the story of how Naaman, a wealthy and powerful leader of the nation of Aram, a major military and economic power, contracts an incurable disease and travels to Israel in search of healing at the hands of the prophet of Israel’s God. But, even before Naaman and the prophet Elisha can meet, we witness the confusion caused by the assumptions made from his position of wealth and power.
5:1 Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the Lord had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy.
2 Now bands of raiders from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. 3 She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
4 Naaman went to his master and told him what the girl from Israel had said. 5 “By all means, go,” the king of Aram replied. “I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman left, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold and ten sets of clothing. 6 The letter that he took to the king of Israel read: “With this letter I am sending my servant Naaman to you so that you may cure him of his leprosy.”
7 As soon as the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his robes and said, “Am I God? Can I kill and bring back to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy? See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!”
8 When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: “Why have you torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored, and you will be cleansed.”
11 But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So, he turned and went off in a rage.
13 Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” 14 So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.
I want to remind you that Naaman is the second most powerful person in one of the most powerful, wealthy, and influential nations in the entire region. He is a person of great power, intellect, wealth, and influence. He is so important, that when he is discovered to have an incurable disease that would normally cause him to be cast out of society and become an unclean pariah, the king of Aram helps him to hide his disease and sends him to Israel, along with 75 pounds of silver (roughly $325,000 US), 1,860 ounces of gold (about $6.2 million), and ten complete sets of clothing, which we will assume are the finest silks or embroidered outfits that would be worn by the king or others in the halls of power in Aram. Historically, we know that some of those sorts of outfits would take a skilled artisan a year, or several years, to make and so, each was worth several years salary of a skilled laborer and thus both rare and highly prized.
Additionally, the king of Aram sends along a letter of introduction to the king of Israel but, this is where the assumptions become apparent. First, it is assumed by the wealthy and powerful that miracles from the prophet of God can be bought. Second, it is assumed that the agent that can command such a miracle is the king of Israel. Despite the power of Naaman and Aram’s king, they do not, in any way, understand how the God of Israel works. Despite being told, by an Israeli servant that they must meet the prophet in Samaria, Naaman travels instead to the capitol of Israel, which would have been in Samaria, and not to Jerusalem, which was capitol of Judah. But even so, the King of Aram says nothing about meeting the prophet of God in Israel and the underlying assumption, as it is understood by both the reader of scripture and by Joram, the king of Israel, is that Israel’s king would be able to order Naaman’s healing in exchange for the payment that had been sent.
Even when that assumption is corrected, still Naaman travels to see Elisha with his entire entourage of horses and chariots assuming that he would need to impress the prophet with his wealth and power. Further, he gets angry when he doesn’t even get to meet Elisha face-to-face and finds that what is required of him is not something difficult, expensive, or otherwise impressive. Instead, what God demands of Naaman is not wealth, power, or influence, but instead is simply obedience and humility.
We see this same upheaval of our own assumptions about wealth and power in Luke 10:1-11, 16-20, where we find Jesus sending out seventy-two of his followers to preach the message of the gospel.
10:1 After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.
5 “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house.’ 6 If someone who promotes peace is there, your peace will rest on them; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay there, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.
8 “When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is offered to you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 10 But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town we wipe from our feet as a warning to you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.
16 “Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me.”
17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
18 He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
As he sent out seventy itinerant missionaries to the villages and communities ahead of him, Jesus’ instructions are to leave behind everything that might possibly be of assistance to them so that whatever work they did, whatever results that they had, would belong to God and only to God. Further, by requiring these disciples to travel without a change of clothes, or a warm jacket, or money, or water, or even shoes, Jesus forces them to rely upon God for the things that they needed, not only to accomplish the mission and ministry to which they had been sent, but for their very survival.
In addition, Jesus instructs them to stay in one place and eat only what is offered there rather than moving from house to house so that they can get a more generous meal every day. Rather than trying to live better, their goal was to be humble and trust in God’s provision.
As citizens of one of the wealthiest and most powerful nations that has ever existed, even the average among us is influenced by the culture in which we live. And as such, as we are immersed in it, we absorb the assumptions and attitudes that are common to wealth and power. When the king of Aram sent Naaman to be healed, he assumed that the miraculous would be governed by the wealthy and powerful of Israel. Both the king and Naaman assumed that miracles could be bought for the right price. And not only did Naaman assume that he could impress the Elisha, the prophet of God, by his display of strength, his ego was wounded and he was angry that by refusing to meet face-to-face, Elisha did not treat him with the deference that he felt that he deserved, and he was confused that accomplishing Elisha’s instructions would not require wealth, power, strength, or great intellect.
As Jesus sent out his disciple-missionaries into the communities ahead of him, he forced his followers to set aside their own assumptions and the things upon which they were often dependent. They took nothing with them upon which they could rely. No money, no extra clothing, no food, no water, and no weapons. They took only faithfulness, trust, obedience, and the humility to rest in God’s ability to enable, empower, and accomplish their mission.
Two thousand years later, scripture speaks to us just as it did to the citizens of Israel and the great empires of Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Rome and message remains just as clear as it has throughout the ages. When we seek to do the work of the church and the kingdom of God, the things that we need to accomplish the mission set before us is not more money, more power, more influence, more strength, more talent, more equipment, more people, or more of anything else. Those are the assumptions of the wealthy and the powerful. Instead, we must set aside the assumptions of our culture and rely instead upon obedience, faithfulness, trust, and the humility to fully rely upon God.
The recipe is easy.
As Naaman and the disciples of Jesus discovered, it can sometimes be a struggle for us to get past our assumptions long enough to do the things that God asks. But when we do, we can witness the miraculous power of our God as work.
May we, as the followers of Jesus Christ, and as the church, have the humility to trust.
If you watched television, read newspapers or magazines, or even saw any roadside billboards between 1987 to 1996, you will remember the successful advertising campaign used by American Express. Everywhere you went, you were confronted with the message, “Membership has its privileges.” It was successful at high levels because it was a message that stuck in people’s heads, built brand awareness, drew new customers to their products, and became such a part of our culture that despite the end of the advertising campaign by American Express in 1996, the phrase is still widely remembered in the public consciousness, and is being used by other companies and organizations almost thirty years later.
The message that American Express wanted to communicate was that possessing their card conveyed advantages that their competitors’ cards did not. Amex card holders could get preferred travel arrangements, access to exclusive lounges, free travel insurance, global emergency services, free checked bags, concierge service, and all sorts of other things. For many people, the benefits given to Amex card holders may not be especially valuable but, if you are a frequent flyer or regular international business traveler, some of those rewards are worth having. But, what many of us have learned is that, aside from credit cards, there are advantages to belonging and having membership in any number of groups and organizations. If you want to be involved in eradicating global disease and contributing to local causes, groups like the Rotary Club, Lions Club, and Kiwanis can provide a place to do that while, at the same time, also providing a place to meet other people in your area and network with other businesses and community leaders.
But all of us have realized by now that there is a deeper kind of belonging. We made jokes when we were in our twenties and thirties that you can know who your friends are by watching who shows up to help you load the moving truck, or, who shows up when you build a deck, or paint your house, or who sits with you as you mourn the loss of a parent or child, or takes care of your cat when you are unexpectedly hospitalized, or shows up at your door with food when you return home. When we start to list the people in our lives who do those things, our list starts to get incredibly short. But it is that list of people, often family, and sometimes our closest friends, among whom we feel as if we truly belong. And it is this sense of belonging that we should keep in our minds as we read our scriptures for today because you will see it, hear it, or feel it in each of them. We begin this morning by reading from John 10:22-30 where we hear Jesus tell the people who had gathered around him one of the benefits of following him and belonging to God.
22 Then came the Festival of Dedicationat Jerusalem. It was winter, 23 and Jesus was in the temple courts walking in Solomon’s Colonnade. 24 The Jews who were there gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
25 Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”
This passage begins with people in the temple courts asking Jesus to tell them plainly whether he was or was not the Messiah promised by the prophets, and Jesus’ answer was that he had already done so, but they had chosen not to believe him. Jesus continues by saying that to anyone that was paying attention, the things that he had done were a testimony to who he was. The people who did believe in him saw clearly what he was doing and what he was, and because they did, they also listened to what he was teaching. Jesus points out that whatever he does, and has done, he gives the credit to God and not to himself, and this action also indicates who he is regarding his being, or not being, the Messiah.
But again, the people who do not follow Jesus do not recognize this evidence even when it stares them in the face. Just as each sheep knows the voice of their shepherd and can find him or her in a group of shepherds, those who follow Jesus know him, listen for his voice, and can pick him out of a crowd both literally and figuratively. This is often what we are doing when we ask, “What would Jesus do?” or when we question one another, or ourselves, and ask, was that action, or that decision, something that represents Jesus. Likewise, when we see and hear religious or political leaders who claim to be representatives of Jesus but who do and say things that are clearly not things that Jesus would do, then the sheep that follow Jesus can know that this is not someone that we should be following. But, this is also why it is so vitally important that we study, and know, scripture for ourselves so that we can know what Jesus looks and sounds like when we hear others who claim to speak for him.
It is at this point that Jesus offers one of our reasons for belonging. Jesus says that the sheep who follow him, who do more than offer him lip service and really follow him, listen for, and hear his voice, are given eternal life. Moreover, Jesus himself will guard them so that no one else can take them away and they can never lose their membership in God’s family so that they will always belong. But we should notice that Jesus goes a step further because he not only says that “no one will snatch them out of my hand,” he amplifies that statement by saying that anyone who follows him has been given to him by God and that “no one can snatch them” out of God’s hand because “I and the Father are one.” This clearly is a claim to being the Messiah, to being sent from God, to being a part of God, and that if you follow Jesus that you automatically belong to God. We see from Jesus’ own words that there is no separation between following Jesus and belonging to him and belonging to God’s family. These two are one and the same.
But belonging to Jesus is more than eternal life and a home in the sky, by and by. Belonging to Jesus also offers us gifts, graces, a mission, and a purpose during our mortal lives here on earth and some of those gifts can exceed our expectations and imagination. We witness this as the people of Joppa reach out to Peter and ask for his help while he is traveling in the city of Lydda in Acts 9:36-43:
36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. 37 About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38 Lydda was near Joppa; so, when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”
39 Peter went with them, and when he arrived, he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying, and showing him the robes and other clothing, that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.
40 Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. 41 He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. 42 This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. 43 Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.
There are many things that can be said about this passage, but for today I just want to focus on what Peter has just done. Tabitha’s friends did not seek out Peter because she was sick. It was too late because Tabitha was dead. I’m not certain what the widows of Joppa hoped that Peter would do, but I suspect that they may not have expected Tabitha to be raised from the dead. Given what they knew of Jesus, resurrection was certainly a possibility, but they also knew that Peter was not Jesus. Perhaps they hoped that he would mourn with them, or be an encouragement to them, or to pray that God would raise up another woman like Tabitha to become the kind of leader that she had been, but I doubt that they were certain of what Peter would do, or what he would be capable of doing.
But Peter does the most powerful, most extreme thing that they could have imagined. He prays, and then commands Tabitha to get up, and she does. Remember that Tabitha has, at this point, been dead for at least the better part of the day, and possibly more. She had already been stripped, washed, redressed, and taken upstairs in preparation for her mourners and her funeral. But while Jesus had walked with the disciples, taught them, given them the power to heal, cast out demons, and had even given them the gift of the Holy Spirit, this goes a step further. By raising Tabitha from the dead, Peter is demonstrating that he has, and by extension the disciples and all of Jesus’ followers (including us), have been given the same power as we had previously witnessed only in the person of Jesus Christ. When we choose to follow Jesus, when we put our trust in him and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, we are given the power to heal the sick, cast out demons, and even to raise the dead.
We are reminded that when Peter gives his speech at Pentecost in Acts 10:37-38, he explains to the crowd that Jesus’ power to perform miracles was power that was given to him by the Holy Spirit because he says:
37 You know what has happened throughout the province of Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached—38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
And then after his resurrection, Jesus gave the gift of the spirit to his disciples in John 20:21-22 when “Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” And of course, we remember the story of God pouring out his spirit on the followers of Jesus on the day of Pentecost, after which they spoke in foreign languages and preached to a crowd that had gathered from all over the known world.
Taken together, we are reminded that following Jesus has never been a spectator sport where we look over the fence or down at the playing field to watch our heroes play the game and do the work of God’s kingdom. Instead, following Jesus requires our active participation down on the field where God shares with us the same gifts that he gave to Jesus and the disciples so that we can continue the work that Jesus began. Because we have been baptized and given the gift of the Holy Spirit, we share with Jesus the power to transform lives, heal the sick, and even to raise the dead.
We aren’t just outsiders looking in, we belong to God’s family.
Membership has its privileges……and its responsibilities.
Jeremiah 17:5-10 Luke 6:17-26 1 Corinthians 15:12-20
How many of you, at one time or another, have watched some of the television preachers or televangelists? Most of us have. Although the names have changed over the years, televised church services, and sometimes even just pre-recorded Sunday school lessons, remain a staple of national programming. The problem is that what motivates television stations to air a particular church, or a particular pastor isn’t whether their message is theologically sound or morally edifying, their motivation is based almost entirely on popularity and the ability to sell commercials or, in some cases, to be paid by the churches themselves in such a way that the television station makes money.
And so, as many of you may have noticed, the messages that air on television are often flawed theologically. In particular, many television preachers promote what is referred to as prosperity theology, which is, simply put, if you are prosperous, God must have blessed you, or put another way, if you are genuinely faithful, then God will make you rich. And just in case you haven’t heard me mention this a dozen time before, that message cannot be found in the Bible and is entirely contrary to much of what the Bible actually teaches.
We begin this morning by reading a message from Jeremiah, in which God’s prophet pronounces what might just be one of the most anti-political, and anti-cultural messages of all time. Here, Jeremiah speaks out against anyone who believes that their king, president, political party, or military might will make their lives better, happier, or more prosperous. Worse, Jeremiah declares that anyone who believes those things will be cursed by God. The good news is Jeremiah also teaches us what we need to do if we genuinely want to be blessed by God. We begin this morning by hearing the words of Jeremiah 17:5-10 as Jeremiah declares to the people:
5 This is what the Lord says:
“Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who draws strength from mere flesh and whose heart turns away from the Lord. 6 That person will be like a bush in the wastelands; they will not see prosperity when it comes. They will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.
7 “But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. 8 They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”
9 The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?
10 “I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward each person according to their conduct, according to what their deeds deserve.”
Jeremiah declares that anyone who trusts that the actions of human beings, such as governments or people in positions of power, will make their lives better, or who looks to those people for emotional strength, will be cursed and not blessed because, in most cases, putting our trust in humans is a path toward losing our trust in God. When we do that, God says, we become starved like a bush in the wasteland that never sees prosperity even when it comes to everyone else. However, blessing comes to the people who put their trust and confidence in God. When we do that, we live as if we were a tree planted by a river so that we gain strength and courage even in times of heat and drought.
In the end, God says that what matters is your heart condition. If you trust God, that is what matters. God isn’t going to judge us by which human being we followed but at whether we behaved the way that God has taught us to behave. Moreover, God’s blessing doesn’t come to us because we said the right words, or because we believed the right sorts of cultural things, but because we lived the kind of life that God taught us to live and did the things that God has taught us to do.
And, as much as people sometimes try to dismiss the Old Testament, this is much the same message that Jesus preaches in his sermon in Luke 6:17-26that we now refer to as the beatitudes, where it says:
17 He went down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of his disciples was there and a great number of people from all over Judea, from Jerusalem, and from the coastal region around Tyre and Sidon, 18 who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. Those troubled by impure spirits were cured, 19 and the people all tried to touch him, because power was coming from him and healing them all.
20 Looking at his disciples, he said:
“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. 21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. 22 Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man.
23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.
24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. 25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. 26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.
If we look at this well-known message of Jesus with the words of Jeremiah in mind, we can understand the first section about blessings almost as one long, run-on sentence that says that if any of these things that sound bad happen to you because of your faith and trust in Jesus, or because you are doing the things that Jesus taught us to do, then God will bless you. Your blessing might not happen here on earth, but God will give you a reward in heaven. Jesus points out that all these sorts of mistreatment are exactly the sorts of things that happened to the prophets of the Old Testament.
And then, in the second half of the reading, Jesus lists a bunch of things that sound like they would be good things, things that Israel’s culture, and our culture, normally think of as blessings. But these things, wealth, prosperity, comfort, abundant food, laughter, and the admiration of others,Jesus says are warning signs that you are in trouble with God. Why? Because, once again, if we examine Jesus’ words in light of what we read in Jeremiah, it’s because our trust has been misplaced, and we have come to trust humans instead of God. Like Jeremiah, Jesus warns us all that the comforts and temptations of wealth, prosperity, happiness, and the admiration of others can distract us from our faith and obedience to God while the situations that we think of as misfortune, such as poverty, hunger, sadness, and the hostility of others are precisely those things that often shift our focus towards God and compel us to trust God for the things that we need.
And finally, in his letter to the church in Corinth, Paul adds one more thing upon which our faith pivots. Jeremiah preached that we needed to put our trust in God and to live and act the way that God has taught us. Jesus preached that those things that draw us toward God, even if we often think of them as undesirable, are good simply because those misfortunes will become the source of heavenly blessings when God examines our faith. And to these important things, Paul writes to the church in Corinth and adds this pivotal belief in 1 Corinthians 15:12-20:
12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. 15 More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
20 But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
Paul says that our entire faith, as the followers of Jesus Christ, hinges on the central belief that Jesus died and rose from the dead. Although there have been those throughout the centuries that have taught that Jesus did not physically die, or that rising from the dead is impossible, Paul says that our entire faith hinges on this one point. Because if Jesus only swooned, or passed out, and didn’t really die, then our entire faith falls apart. If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, then we believe in nothing because Jesus was a mortal human being the same as us and has no power to rescue us from sin and death. Jesus’ death and resurrection is a core doctrine and belief of our faith and so, that faith must be combined with our faith and trust in God, and our rejection of those things, like wealth, prosperity, comfort, abundant food, laughter, the admiration of others, and the influence and power of politicians, and persons of power that would tempt us to trust in anything other than God.
Prosperity theology and far too many television preachers teach that if you are prosperous, God must have blessed you, or that if you are genuinely faithful, then God will make you rich.
But what the truth of scripture teaches, is that the people who are blessed, trust in God and have confidence in God. But those who put their trust in other human beings, and anything else that distracts us from God will be cursed like a bush in the wastelands and will not see prosperity even when it comes to everyone else.
May we always keep Jesus Christ in the center of our lives and trust only in him.
Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23 Luke 12:13-21 Colossians 3:1-11
What is your “why”?
At some point, most of us discover that our lives need a “why,” we need a purpose, we need something that gives our lives meaning. For some people it’s writing, or painting, or other kinds of creative endeavors. For others it’s building things or helping people. But if we don’t find something that gives our lives meaning, it can cause us to struggle emotionally, spiritually, and even physically. A life without meaning is a lot like planning a trip without having a destination, we wander from place to place, from one interesting thing, one shiny object to another, without knowing where we are going or why we are going there. It might be fun, it might be interesting, and it can consume the waking hours of our lives, but before long, we begin to wonder why we’re doing it.
When I was an engineer, I really liked my work. I liked the challenge, I (mostly) liked the people, I liked designing and building things, and it brought a great sense of accomplishment when I could go out on the loading dock and see us shipping out a machine that had once only existed in our imaginations and then only on paper but now was built, operational, and on its way to its installation. But at some point, in large part after 9-11, I began to ask myself if that was enough. We had built this great machine, but it was replacing another great machine that another engineer had imagined and built, thirty years earlier. And I didn’t have any trouble imagining that in another thirty years, everything that we had done, everything that we were so impressed with and proud of, would likewise be torn out, cut up, and sent to the scrap yard.
This place of reflection and self-doubt where we question the purpose of our lives is not unique to us in the twenty-first century and it is not unique to those of us in the post-renaissance or post-modern eras who have sought to be “self-actualized.” This human struggle to find meaning and purpose is at least as old as recorded history. In Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14; 2:18-23 we read the words of King Solomon, the richest, most influential, and most powerful king that ever lived. And in these words, we hear Solomon thinking about his “why.” What is his purpose? What is it that gives this man of wealth, power, and influence a life of meaning? Solomon says:
2 “Meaningless! Meaningless!” says the Teacher. “Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.”
12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I applied my mind to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under the heavens. What a heavy burden God has laid on mankind! 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.
18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me.19 And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge, and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune. 22 What do people get for all the toil and anxious striving with which they labor under the sun? 23 All their days their work is grief and pain; even at night their minds do not rest. This too is meaningless.
Solomon had it all. He had hundreds of wives who were some of the best looking, most intelligent, and fun to be with people that his kingdom had to offer, he had more money than he could spend, he led an economy and a military that influenced much of the known world, he had servants and subjects who could do almost anything that he asked, and by most definitions he had it all. And yet, he begins the book of Ecclesiastes by saying that everything is meaningless.
He studied academics, he learned wisdom, and found no meaning in it. He had seen foreign countries, met dignitaries from around the world, and accumulated more of life’s experiences than anyone living, and found no more meaning than chasing the wind. He worked to accumulate possessions, wealth, and power but knowing that one day all of it would be left to someone who hadn’t worked for it, found those things to be meaningless also.
So, if we don’t find meaning in the pursuit of wisdom and academic knowledge, or in sex and pleasure of all kinds, or in money, power, possessions, experiences, or influence, then what is it that can give our lives meaning and purpose?
This is the same question, and the same problem, that Jesus highlights in Luke 12:13-21 when someone asks him to help them settle a family dispute over their father’s estate.
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
14 Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” 15 Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”
Jesus listens to this request and then makes two statements. First that he is not the judge appointed to make such a ruling, nor does he desire to be, and second, that such a request is rooted in basic human greed. Jesus also warns that all kinds of human greed afflict us, and the accumulation of possessions and money is not how we are to build a meaningful life. Next, Jesus tells the crowd a parable about a wealthy man whose only focus was on becoming wealthier. But, just as Solomon pointed out, all that accumulated wealth would soon be left to someone else. The point of Jesus’ story is this conclusion: “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” Jesus says that it is hopeless to build a life on the selfish accumulation of things if we are not rich toward God. It is hopeless to accumulate wealth or possessions, power or influence, wisdom or knowledge, sex, pleasure, or experiences, or anything else if God is not an integral part of our “why.”
But what is it then upon which we should build a life? What will give our lives meaning and purpose? And as we consider those questions, we find that this is exactly what Paul is considering in Colossians 3:1-11 as he expands on the teaching that we saw in the story of Jesus in Luke 12. Paul says:
3:1 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is yourlife, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires, and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
Paul says that now, since you have put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, have chosen to follow him, and he has raised us from death to life with him, then it matters what you do with your life. Aim is important. Where you point your life is important. The meaning and the purpose of your life is important. And to aim your life in the right direction, Paul says, we must point our hearts and minds on things above and not on earthly things like sexual immorality, impurity, evil desires, and greed. If we are to follow Jesus, then God calls us to get rid of things like anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language, and to stop lying to one another so that we begin to increasingly resemble God and not our old self.
In the kingdom of God, there are none of the divisions that turn humanity against itself. There is no longer a difference between Gentiles and Jews, between those who are circumcised and those who are not, between slaves and free peoples, or between the sophisticated, cultured, and civilized people of the developed world and those who are referred to as uncivilized barbarians from less developed nations. Those differences are all erased because Jesus Christ is everything that we have, and we can find Jesus Christ in every person that we meet.
Finding a life of meaning and purpose is all about focus. If we focus our lives on ourselves, our needs, wants, desires, and aim ourselves at selfishly fulfilling them, we won’t ever feel as if we have a fulfilling, meaningful life of purpose. Instead of focusing on today or tomorrow, we must shift our focus to eternity. Instead of putting ourselves in the center of the bullseye, we must put Jesus in the center and focus on the needs of others and not on self.
Solomon begins the book of Ecclesiastes in a place of hopelessness as he mourns the meaningless of life, but as we read the rest of the book, he repeatedly encourages his readers to enjoy life and to be content with what they have. And he concludes by reminding everyone to keep God in the center of their lives, to “fear God and keep his commandments” because in the end, “God will bring every good deed into judgement, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Solomon wasn’t dumb. He knew that selfishness emptied life of meaning and purpose. It is only when we keep God in the center of our lives, and focus on the needs of others, that we can point our lives at a place of meaning and purpose.
Before we can discover our “why” we must first remember that Jesus Christ is everything that we have.
Our search for a life of meaning and purpose must begin by remembering that that we can find Jesus in every person that we meet.
If you want to find your “why,” you must start with Jesus.
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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 references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.
Today we begin the final week of our preparations for Easter. We remember the time that, as the church, we refer to as “Holy Week.” This is that time of remembrance that begins with the joy of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem that we remember today as Palm Sunday but continues with Jesus’ prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, his arrest, illegal trial, crucifixion, death, burial, and his resurrection on Easter morning. I hope that you will join us, not just for the bookends of Palm Sunday and Easter, but for the entire journey through Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil on Saturday, and then, after we have walked through that season of frustration, anger, despair, and darkness, to arrive together and celebrate the joy of Easter morning.
But this morning, we remember the story of Jesus’ arrival in Jerusalem for the celebration of the Passover as recorded in Luke 19:28-40.
28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, saying to them, 30“Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”
32 Those who were sent ahead, went, and found it just as he had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?”
34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.”
35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
37 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:
38 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”
40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”
For such a short passage, there is a lot going on. First, Jesus knew what the disciples would find when they went into the village ahead of them. He knew that they would find a colt that had been tied out, he knew that it was such a green colt that it had never been ridden, and although this last one is hardly surprising, Jesus also knew that the owner of the colt would want to know why they were taking it. Just as Jesus had seen Nathaniel sitting under a fig tree before Philip called him to follow Jesus in John 1:48, Jesus knew what the disciples would find when they went into the village. But what is even more surprising, and to my skeptical and sometimes a little cynical mind, even more miraculous, was that the owner of the colt allowed the disciples to borrow it. Think about that for a minute. We take it for granted because it was Jesus, because we are reading the Bible, and because we’ve heard the story dozens of times.
But seriously? The disciples meet a random stranger, whose horse or donkey has only recently had a baby. That baby hasn’t been ridden, it wasn’t old enough to take to the trainer, or to start working at its training, two total strangers off the street start untying it, and the only explanation they offer is that their boss needs it. Seriously? If you owned a new car, that the dealer just delivered to your house on a flatbed trailer, and you hadn’t even had time to drive it yet, how likely are you to loan it to a total stranger? Think about that. If your dog had puppies and they had barely started eating solid food, what the chances that you’d let a stranger “borrow” one? This wasn’t just a baby, horses and donkeys were valuable and they typically only have one baby every 12 to 18 months. So, as I think about this story, and think about what we all know about human nature, I think that although there might be more to the story than Luke chose to tell us, I also think that this might just be one of the greatest miracles in the Easter story next to the resurrection itself.
In any case, the owner allows the disciples to borrow the colt, they bring it to Jesus, throw their outer garments over it’s back, and Jesus rides it. And that, if you know anything about horses, may also be a significant miracle. Ask your friends who know horses, what’s likely to happen if you just jump on the back of a horse that’s never been ridden. The odds are good that, outside of that rider being Jesus, that such a story isn’t going to end well.
And as Jesus came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives toward the gates of the city of Jerusalem, the crowd that was with Jesus began to praise God, in loud voices, for all the miracles that they had seen. They pulled palm branches from the trees and laid them in the road in front of Jesus, and if Palm branches weren’t handy, they laid down their own shirts so that even the animal upon which Jesus rode would, symbolically, not get its feet dirty. And more than that, they began to shout an historic welcome found in scripture, notably in Psalm 118, that the people of Israel had used as kings entered the city of Jerusalem. They shouted, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” and they said, “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
And the Pharisees who saw what they were doing, and who heard what they were shouting were displeased. They recognized that the disciples were offering Jesus a king’s welcome. They understood that these symbols were used, and were reserved for, the recognition of kings. And they knew that not far away, inside of the city, sharing a wall with the temple itself, was the Fortress Antonia and a detachment of Roman soldiers. They knew that those soldiers were there to keep the peace, they knew that the only king that could ever be accepted was Caesar, and they knew that blood had been spilled the last time someone claimed to be the king of Israel. The arrival of Jesus, and his disciples’ cries proclaiming him to be king, was threatening to upset the status quo. And the people who had the most to lose from a change in the status quo were the Pharisees.
They insist that Jesus tell his disciples to stop before too many people hear, or at least before the wrong people, the powerful people, the people with swords, could hear them. But Jesus stares them down and declares that if the disciples keep quiet, the stones along the sides of the road would cry out instead.
And so, the actions of the disciples, and Jesus’ refusal to stop them, combined with all the previous interactions that Jesus had with the Pharisees, had reached a climax. The Pharisees could no longer look the other way, there was no longer any doubt, they absolutely knew that Jesus was going to upset the status quo. If Jesus lived, more people were going to follow him. And if those people were going to label Jesus as a king, it was going to stir up the worst kind of trouble. The deal that the Pharisees and the other leaders of Israel had made with Rome was that they could remain in power if they helped Rome to rule over Israel and if they helped them to keep the peace. If the disciples proclaimed that Jesus was a king, then this contract would be broken, and the Romans would blame the Pharisees. It was their necks, their jobs, their careers, their lives, that were on the line. It was no longer an intellectual argument. In this moment, the Pharisees had to choose between themselves, and Jesus. And they knew what had to happen.
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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 references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.
What do you think of when I say the word… extravagant?
We buy things that we need, but how nice those things are often depends upon how much money we have available to spend on things that don’t matter. We might need a watch, but we could buy a cheap one at the dollar store that will keep time, or we can buy a decent Timex that will last longer. But when we have a little more disposable income, we might consider buying an Apple watch or a Garmin sport watch that not only keeps time but counts our steps, calories, tracks our heartrate, and a bunch of other things. And there are some people who have enough money that they can wear a year’s salary, or even the value of a house, on their wrist with wildly expensive watches made of gold and platinum. But do you know what those expensive watches say at three o’clock in the afternoon? They say that it’s three o’clock. The difference between a Timex and a Rolex isn’t that the time is different, or that expensive watches somehow give their wearers twenty-five hours in a day instead of the usual twenty-four, the difference is in their level of extravagance.
We could say that a house with four bedrooms is better than a house with one bedroom if you have a larger family. But at some point, as homes grow larger and pass three thousand square feet, four thousand, five thousand square feet, and even larger, at some point we’ve crossed a line from utilitarian and into extravagance.
And so, if I were to ask you what comes to mind when I say the words “religious extravagance,” I wouldn’t blame you a bit if you began to think about the mansions that we’ve seen on television that belong to a variety televangelists and other religious leaders who have capitalized, in one way or another, on their position, power, or notoriety. But is religious extravagance about 25,000 square foot mansions, Rolls Royce automobiles, and private jets?
As we consider that question, let’s begin by remembering what God said through his prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 43:16-21.
16 This is what the Lord says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 18 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. 20 The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, 21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.
As I read that passage, I divided it into four sections that each said something different. The first, asks God’s people to remember what God is capable of doing and all the amazing, awesome, powerful, and even impossible things that God has done. The second, simply says that while we should remember what God has done, we should not live in the past or get stuck there. The third, says that as we keep the first two things in mind, the big news is that God is doing something new. Now, God is doing the impossible. He is making a road through the impassable wilderness and bringing free flowing water to the desert. The fourth thing explains why God does everything that God does. The reason that God does extravagant miracles, achieves the impossible, blesses his people, feeds them, and cares for them, is not just so that they will give thanks, but so that they will tell the world about his greatness.
But in John 12:1-8 we see an entirely different sort of extravagance as the time of Jesus’s crucifixion draws near.
12:1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary took about a pintof pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.
7 “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
For perspective, let’s consider the value of what Mary did for Jesus. It’s one thing to say that she anointed Jesus with perfume that cost a year’s wages, but it’s another thing entirely to put that into language that is personally meaningful to our wallets. Thinking about a year’s wages in a vague sort of way sounds like it might be a lot, but we feel a punch in the gut when we put that into numbers that we understand. And a number that most of us can understand is the median income. The “median” is the annual income at which half of all wage earners made more, and half made less. And in the United States, the median income in 2021 was $79,900. So, when we say that Mary poured $80,000 on the ground, we feel that it a different way than saying that it was worth about a year’s wages. John uses this as an opportunity to criticize Judas for being a thief, but it’s hard not to think, as Judas suggested, about how much food, clothing, rental assistance, bus passes, or other things that we could buy for the poor with $80,000. Mary’s gift was not just costly, it was extravagant. But Jesus understands and explains to everyone present that there was a limited time that anyone could give such a gift, and while God’s intent was that this gift should have been for Jesus’ burial, Mary chose to give her gift to Jesus while he was still alive rather than after he was dead.
And in Philippians 3:4b-14, the Apostle Paul frames the discussion about extravagance differently. Rather than reminding everyone about the extravagant gifts that God has given to us, or about the extravagant gift that Mary gave to Jesus, Paul explains how his life changed because of his reaction and response to God’s extravagance. Paul says:
If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless.
7 But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. 8 What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith inChrist—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. 10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.
Paul begins by reminding his readers that for all the worldly reasons that people can have confidence, trust, and even arrogance, Paul has all of them… in abundance. Paul had money, possessions, accomplishments, power, authority and more. He was born into the right kind of prestigious family, he mixed with the right kinds of prestigious people, he followed all of the church’s rules in a very public way in the sect of the Pharisees, and even among the Pharisees, he was outstanding in his passion, zeal, and herculean efforts as a defender of the faith and a warrior for the church as he persecuted those who followed Jesus, and he did all these things so well that no one could find fault with his theology or practice. Paul was beyond a rising star in the leadership of the church and was on track to be among those in the very highest levels of the Jewish church and the leadership of Israel.
But Paul after he met Jesus, he threw it all away.
Because he chose to follow Jesus, Paul lost his position in Jewish leadership, was cast out of the Pharisees, excommunicated, banned from the Temple, and we suspect that he may have even been disowned by his family. Paul says that he has now given up anything that he once considered to be valuable because the value of knowing Jesus was worth more than anything that he had before. In fact, what Paul received when he put his faith in Jesus was so extravagantly valuable that in comparison, everything that he had before was worth no more than garbage to him.
The value of what Paul received from God through faith in Jesus Christ is so valuable, that even after he has given up everything that he had, Paul still looks forward to the future and presses onward so that he can become whatever God called him to be, and to do whatever God called him to do. Paul freely admits that Gods work in him, and through him, is not yet finished, but he continues to do the work of Jesus Christ, and to press on so that he can earn the reward that God has prepared for him.
Isaiah said that our mission it to show the world how amazing, wonderful, and awesome God is, and not spend our time and money showing people how awesome we are. The goal is to get the people around us to give thanks to God and give praise to him, not to give thanks and give praise to us. Mary shows her gratitude to Jesus by giving him the most extravagant gift that she can imagine. It is a gift that is her life savings and represents her pension and her rainy-day fund all wrapped up in one package. Paul says that God’s gift to us, the gift of his own son, Jesus Christ, is such an extravagant gift, that nothing that we have, and nothing that we can do, can ever begin to show God how grateful we are. Instead, Paul’s response was to give up all that he had and spend his entire life giving of himself to do the work of God’s kingdom.
My friends, religious extravagance isn’t about churches that seat tens of thousands, or 25,000 square foot mansions, Rolls Royce automobiles, and private jets. Those sorts of things point people in exactly the opposite direction that God wants us pointing. Religious extravagance is demonstrating to the world that what God has given to us in Jesus Christ is so valuable that we will give, or do, anything to show God our gratitude and to do the work of the kingdom of God so that, as God said through Isaiah, the world would proclaim God’s praise.
When the followers of Jesus Christ are extravagant, every part of that extravagance should point to God so that the world sees the wonders of our amazing God… and not us.
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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 references are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.
There are several well-known phrases that we’ve probably all heard.
We’ve all heard that “money can’t buy happiness” and we’ve probably all heard the Beatles sing “Can’t Buy Me Love” in which Paul McCartney sings: “I don’t care too much for money, Money can’t buy me love.”
Let’s be honest, money is powerful and can do many things, but there are things that all the money and power in the world can’t change. And that idea is an integral part of what today’s scriptures have to say. We begin in Job 23:1-9, 16-17, as Job complains that as he is suffering with the loss of his family and his fortune, he cannot seem to find God.
23:1 Then Job answered:
2 “Today also my complaint is bitter; his hand is heavy despite my groaning. 3 Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his dwelling! 4 I would lay my case before him, and fill my mouth with arguments. 5 I would learn what he would answer me, and understand what he would say to me. 6 Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power? No; but he would give heed to me. 7 There an upright person could reason with him, and I should be acquitted forever by my judge.
8 “If I go forward, he is not there; or backward, I cannot perceive him; 9 on the left he hides, and I cannot behold him; I turn to the right, but I cannot see him.
16 God has made my heart faint; the Almighty has terrified me; 17 If only I could vanish in darkness, and thick darkness would cover my face!
If we listen, Job’s words hold some interesting contradictions. Job insists that he wants to find God, to give voice to his arguments about his innocence and insist upon hearing God’s answers. But, at the same time, he understands that while he expects that God would listen, he knows that God is not likely to engage in an argument and he hopes that God would acquit him of any guilt. We also hear Job insist that he has been searching everywhere and wants to find God, but at the same time finds the idea of meeting God a terrifying prospect that makes him wish that he could be invisible and disappear into the darkness. Job essentially says that he can’t find God but he’s afraid that he will.
Job knew that he was a faithful man who had once had money, power, and the blessings of God. But he also knew that his money, power, and faith, amounted to nothing in comparison to an all-powerful creator God. Job understood that no matter how much he demanded his day in court there was nothing that he could do to sway God’s opinion.
We often forget that. We forget how powerless we really are and how powerful God is. In our modern era of spaceflight and computers, a time when we have bent creation to our will by moving mountains and stopping the flow of rivers, we are persuaded to think too much of ourselves. We have lost Job’s fear of the power of God and have come to believe in a domesticated God that bends to our will. To be fair, we aren’t the first to have done so. In Mark 10:17-31, Jesus meets a man of wealth, and probably some power, who has become so accustomed to getting what he wants that he has become arrogant and blind to his own shortcomings.
17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 18 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. 19 You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” 20 He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” 21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” 22 When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
23 Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” 24 And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it isto enter the kingdom of God! 25 It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” 26 They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” 27 Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
28 Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” 29 Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, 30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. 31 But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
It might be reasonable for you to wonder why I said that this man was blind to his own shortcomings. And, in answer, I would point to how Jesus answered his question about eternal life. Jesus begins to recite the ten commandments, from the middle. He skips past the parts about honoring God, lists almost all the rest, and then deliberately skips one. Remember that this is exactly the sort of thing that people memorized in the synagogue in preparation for adulthood, so we can be reasonably certain that everyone listening was silently reciting the ten commandments to themselves as Jesus recited them. But rather than taking note of the commandment that Jesus skipped, the man arrogantly declares that he has kept all the commandments since he was a youth. But the commandment that Jesus skipped is the one that the man stumbled over. Do not covet. Don’t covet your neighbor’s wife, and don’t covet your neighbor’s stuff. And to make that point even sharper, Jesus tells the man that to find eternal life, to prove that he didn’t covet money, he would need to give away his wealth.
The disciples, I think, got Jesus’ point because they are terrified by his answer. Jesus is teaching that it is easy for money to tempt us away from God. Money has a way of making us want… more money. The disciples knew that while it was easy to say that we didn’t steal or kill, everyone wants more money. If Jesus is going to use that as a measuring stick to get into heaven, then no one can get in. Peter protests by saying that even though he likes money, and may even covet the money of others, he has demonstrated his love for Jesus by leaving behind his family, friends, and his job to follow him. And Jesus agrees. This was the point he was trying to make. But Peter had the humility to see and acknowledge that he fell short of God’s standard.
The disciples realized that they could of great wealth and great power do not. They are deceived by the illusion of control that is brought by wealth and power and they become arrogant and blind to their own shortcomings. That is why Jesus says that many who are first will be last and the last will be first. The people who have everything, and who get to be first in line for everything, will have deceived themselves into believing that they are right with God, but the people who have little, and who are often last in line, are aware of their faults and their need for God.
The writer of Hebrews describes God’s judgement this way in Hebrews 4:12-16:
12 Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 13 And before him no creature is hidden, but all are naked and laid bare to the eyes of the one to whom we must render an account.
14 Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Peter and the other disciples were terrified when they realized that the desire for money and power, something that almost all of us want at least a little of, was a sin that could keep us out of the kingdom of God. God is the righteous judge.
Because our faith is in Jesus Christ, and because he was tested and lived his entire life without sin, we rest in knowing that he is our high priest. Jesus stands between us and God, and between us and judgement. Because of Jesus, we approach the throne of God, not with fear and the terror of judgement, but with boldness and confidence in the grace of Jesus. We know that through Jesus Christ we will find mercy and grace in the place of judgement.
Sir Paul was right. Money can’t buy me love.
Money can’t buy happiness.
It can’t buy peace, cheat death, find God, calm fear, buy forgiveness humility, repentance, righteousness, or admission to heaven. God will not be domesticated. All the money and power in the world won’t do us any good on the day of judgement and many people will discover that they put their trust and faith in the wrong places.
We will all render an accounting of our lives. Not only for our actions but also for the intentions of our hearts. Perfection is the standard of God and not one of us is perfect. The only thing that will save us on the day of judgement, is the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ.
Job searched for God but was terrified of what he would find when he met him.
But we look forward to meeting Jesus with humility and boldness… because in him, and in him only, do we find…
Click here if you would like to subscribe to Pastor John’s weekly messages.
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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.
1 Kings 8:1, 6, 10-11, 22-30, 41-43 John 6:56-69Ephesians 6:10-20
How old, is old?
When we think of antiques, or national monuments, or other things built by human hands, how long do we expect things to last?
We live in an era when we’re surprised if anything lasts for more than ten or twenty years, and we’re impressed by old farmhouses and barns (and churches) that have lasted for more than a century. But as I was thinking about a few other well-known monuments around the world, I started looking up some dates and I put them in sort of a chronological order. The Eiffel Tower was built between 1887 and 1889 for the 1889 Paris World’s Fair was supposed to be temporary and dismantled afterwards. Most of the Great Wall of China was built between 1300-1600 AD, though parts are much older. Heidelberg Castle was built in 1214, Windsor Castle in 1000, British Parliament has existed, in various forms, since 1295, and England as a nation from 959. Hadrian’s Wall was constructed across northern England during the Roman era as protection from the Picts, and about the same time, the world saw the construction of Masada, the Colosseum in Rome, and so many other Roman artifacts. The
Western Wall, also known as the “Wailing Wall,” in Jerusalem also dates to the time of Jesus and some of the foundations found on the Temple mount can be dated to David and Solomon in 1000 BC. The Great Pyramid of Giza is over a thousand years older and was built around 2500 BC, and Stonehenge is older still because we calculate that it was constructed over time between 3000 and 2000 BC.
But do you know what they all have in common?
They weren’t easy.
You don’t just slap together a few boards and some sheet metal and expect it to last for a hundred, or even for a thousand years. When you intend for things to last, the construction of those things takes thought, planning, preparation, hard work, and sweat.
And you know what else those things have in common?
They all stand witness to the world that endurance isn’t easy. Every one of those monuments from the youngest to the oldest has witnessed the struggle and upheaval of human society, and have endured countless thunderstorms, lightning bolts, fires, floods, earthquakes, sandstorms, crawling vines, insects, and everything else that mother nature could throw at them. They stand as witnesses that life is hard and not everyone, or everything, is prepared to endure for the long haul.
And it was the long haul that David and Solomon were thinking about when they planned and built the first Temple in Jerusalem. But what they were building was more than just a building. We rejoin the story in
1 Kings 8:1, 6, 10-11, 22-30, 41-43.
8:1Then King Solomon summoned into his presence at Jerusalem the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes and the chiefs of the Israelite families, to bring up the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Zion, the City of David.
6 The priests then brought the ark of the Lord’s covenant to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, and put it beneath the wings of the cherubim.
10 When the priests withdrew from the Holy Place, the cloud filled the temple of the Lord. 11 And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple.
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven 23 and said:
“Lord, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. 24 You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today.
25 “Now Lord, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’ 26 And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true.
27 “But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! 28 Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, Lord my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. 29 May your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. 30 Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive.
41 “As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name—42 for they will hear of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, 43 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name.
God promised David that there would never fail to be a successor on the throne of Israel if his descendants would continue to walk faithfully with God. God was building the foundations of a building, but also the foundations of a nation, and a faith that was intended to reach every tribe, every nation, and every people on the face of the earth. And in the Gospels, we find God fulfilling his promises to David, and revealing his greatest outreach to the people of the world… but it wasn’t always easy, and not everyone was willing to put in the effort that it required. In John 6:56-69, Jesus says…
56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.” 59 He said this while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”
66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve.
68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
Just as God had promised, Jesus was the descendant of David who would walk faithfully with God, and would sit on the throne of David, of Israel, and of God forever. But not everyone could bring themselves to believe. Following Jesus was going to be hard. Following Jesus was not going to make anyone rich, or powerful, or popular. And when they saw that, many of Jesus’ followers bailed. They quit rather than committing themselves to the hard work of really following and shaping their lives after Jesus. But there were a few who saw who Jesus was, and they knew that there was no other way.
But even for those who stood by Jesus, their lives didn’t magically become easy and without pain or trouble. All but one of the disciples of Jesus, all but John, would be executed or murdered while they were doing the work of Jesus and sharing the message of the Gospel. And even though John died of old age, he too had been tortured, imprisoned, and died in exile on the island of Patmos. Paul’s life wasn’t any easier. Although he wasn’t one of the original twelve, Paul dedicated his life to following Jesus and to sharing the stories of the Gospel message, and he was also, repeatedly, tortured, chased out of town, imprisoned, and ultimately was also executed for his faith. But during one of his times of imprisonment, Paul this advice to the church and to anyone who would answer the call to follow Jesus in Ephesians 6:10-20:
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.
I want to pull out a few key phrases that I think are important to the context of what we’ve been talking about this morning. First, “Be strong” but not just trying to be strong by relying upon our own strength, “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.” Second, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood…” tells us that it is not the people around us with whom we fight, but we fight against principalities (governments), against powers (kings and other government officials), and against unjust systems that are subverted by evil. Third, that we must arm ourselves with all the protection that God offers so that we can stand firm, stand our ground, and live without retreating from the enemy. Fourth, never stop praying. And finally, note that Paul says that he is “an ambassador in chains.” He is writing to the church from prison, and he begins by reminding them that even though they may not be in prison at that moment, that life, for all of us, is going to be a struggle. When we read scripture, we remember that we shouldn’t be surprised when life is hard, we should be surprised when life isn’thard. Some of Jesus’ own followers quit because, while they loved the good news, they didn’t want to hear the bad news. They didn’t want to do the hard work that comes with following Jesus but that has been God’s message all along. The Kingdom of God has its foundations deep in the Old Testament. God is building his kingdom, and he is building our lives, to last forever.
But endurance is never easy.
If we are going to follow, we must be willing to do the planning, preparation, hard work, and sweat. We will need to rely upon God’s strength working through us. We will need to fight against governments, against officials, and against systems that are corrupted and subverted by evil. We must arm ourselves with all the protections that God offers so that we can stand without retreat. We must never forget to pray for one another and for all of God’s people.
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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.
Pastor Partridge 