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The Transformation of Easter; The Change to Our Attitude
The Transformation of Easter
The Change to Our Attitude
1 John 3:16-24
† IHS †
As you look towards standing before God, may you know the grace and mercy of our Father, and the Lord Jesus, which will give you bold confidence and the greatest of joy!
An Amazing Sight
Our epistle today describes an amazing moment in your life.
You are there, in the fullness of God’s glory. There among the cherubim, the seraphim, the 24 elders that surround God on His throne. The joy is immense, the sound of the people singing God’s praises so incredible, so far beyond anything you have ever pictured or thought.
It is what we’ve waited a lifetime for, and as you catch God’s eye, you see a twinkle, and a smile, and you are absolutely confident that this is where you belong.
It is an amazing feeling, to know that you belong there, in the very presence, in the glory of God. A feeling that you feel as at home there, as in your own living room. A feeling that you are completely peaceful here in the presence of the Lord.
What an amazing moment, an amazing eternity, to be standing before God in all of His glory, and to be, using the words of John, boldly confident, without a hesitation because of guilt, or shame. Hearing the praises of all the host of heaven, as they praise God for His holiness, for His sacredness, for His setting Himself, apart for us.
Amazing!
I can’t even imagine the feeling, the view, the joy…
The closest I can come… well…we will get to that a little later.
Uhm – am I compassionate enough!
I want to look at verse 16 and 17 for a few moments.
16 We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?
I have to admit this one challenges me, even as the passage from Acts about everyone having everything in common did a few weeks ago.
I want to justify; I want to be the one who determines what it means to “be in need.”
I want to determine what it means to have “enough money”. You know, I think Bill Gates has enough, and maybe those pro athletes. The rest of us? Not so much.
As we hear those words, I can’t help but think of the pleas that come from organizations that want to feed the children in the inner city, or in poor countries around the world. Or the guy who was at the 91 and Bellflower Blvd exit, with his hand out for money.
Can I ignore them, and still know the love of God? Is it in me?
Can we really look at our lives, in view of John’s call to “give up out lives for our brothers and sisters” and have confidence to stand before God?
Do we have the compassion – literally are our stomachs upset when we see someone in need? Or do we just look away, or look down on those who have need?
How can we find the confidence we need to stand before God when John’s epistle is questioning us this bluntly?
Will we be in those that Jesus judges to be sheep, who visited the imprisoned, who fed the hungry, given drink to the thirsty, clothed the naked, and in doing so, cared for Him? Or will we be the goats, the stubborn one’s who held on to their stuff, and not cared?
How will we stand before God?
How many of us can say we are that compassionate towards those who are in need?
As a pastor, I think my answer will surprise you.
Where we find this compassion; the change He’s wrought in us.
A moment ago, I mentioned the companion passage to our epistle reading, which talked about the sheep and the goats.
Most of you might recall that the goats didn’t realize when they missed the opportunity to care for Jesus. They asked him, “when didn’t we visit, feed, clothe, and care for you Jesus?” And He said, “when you didn’t do it to the least of those in need, you didn’t do it to me.”
What most overlook is that the sheep didn’t know when they did visit, feed, sustain, clothe and care for Jesus. They were as surprised as those who didn’t, but their care was evident to Jesus.
As I look out into this congregation, I see more and more, the people who are caring for those who are in need. The people who have helped pre-school parents with scholarships, the people who respond to Al’s pleas for benevolence, both big and small. One person has helped care for those kids as well, by paying for new carpets and flooring. We hold each other up in prayer, and we respond to needs as they come. I hear of people visiting, and sharing, hugging each other.
That is why passing the peace comes where it does in the service, because when we realize the love of Christ seen here – at the altar, we see the need of it in each other’s lives and respond by sharing it with others. Any other place in the liturgy, and it is pretty much a greeting. But as we see the Body and Blood here for us… it changes us; it causes a level of compassion that is otherwise overlooked. That compassion and love is amazing and brings comfort and peace.
Truly you can see in this place the love of Christ, if you know where and when to look.
You see, that is the transformation that occurs when we know that He is risen (response He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia) ) and therefore ( we are risen indeed!) God changes us, we learn to care for each other, for our brothers and sisters in Christ. It is a transformation He is doing, to all who believe are baptized. Some may seem slower than others, but if we can’t even judge ourselves, our judgment of others fails as well. Each of us has time, talents and treasures that differ, but the compassion of Christ is there in all of us. It comes out more and more as we experience the love of Christ.
Like when we take and eat and take His body, and take and drink His blood, given and shed for us.
It is here, at the altar, experiencing His love and mercy, His presence and glory, that we are transformed, that we are changed, that we find God compassionate toward us, freeing us from sin and the fear of death, freeing us from the power of satan, freeing us to love Christ. Freeing us from the guilt and shame, which would distract us from Jesus.
This is the work of Christ in you, the work that began in your baptism, that comes to His completion, that day when you stand before Him with bold confidence, assured, not of your own compassion, but of His.
it is that work, driven by His compassion, that will cause you to be bold and confident in His presence, and which brings you His peace, that peace the world cannot give, in which you are compassionately guarded, your heart and mind, for you dwell in Christ Jesus. AMEN.
A Tough Question….. Will We Answer it? Do We Hate Sin?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. James 1:14-15 (NLT)
20 But that isn’t what you learned about Christ. 21 Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, 22 throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. 23 Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. Ephesians 4:20-24 (NLT)
1002 To save mankind, Lord, you died on the Cross. And yet for one mortal sin you condemn a man to a hapless eternity of suffering. How much sin must offend you, and how much I ought to hate it!
For maybe 20 years, there has been a platitude circling around Christianity. It goes like this, “we should hate the sin, but love the sinner.”
It isn’t scriptural, in that it doesn’t come from the word of God. We accept it because it seems logical, and it gets us out of sticky situations.
I don’t think we hate sin anymore. I think we tolerate it, welcome it, choose it, and count on God to take pity on us.
If we’ve been brought up in the church, we know what the Bible says about sin. We know that what it earns death and destruction. Sin separates us from all that is good; it separates us from God and His love.
It deserves our hatred. It is something we should fear, as it seduces and enslaves people. It does such a thorough job, burying us deeper and deeper beneath its weight. We excuse it, we claim that not sinning is an inconvenience, that living as God teaches isn’t possible anymore. Theologians dismiss it with the very phrase that provides the title of my blog – that we are simply justified sinners, and that is all we will ever be in this life.
I think that we’ve come to a point where we don’t hate our sin anymore. The sins of Isis, the sins of “those” people, the sins committed against us, yes, we still hate that sin.
Do we hate our sin? Do we hate the sins of our friends? Do we hate the sins of our children? Do we fear the grip that sin can have over people, and the damage it can do to their lives? Do we see it wrecking the relationships around us?
If we did, how glorious would the cross be? How central to our lives would our baptism be? what a celebration the Lord’s Supper would be, and the relief we would know as we heard the words, “you’re sins are forgiven!”
He broke the power of sin; he crushed it. He saved us from it. He brings healing to our hearts and peace to weary souls.
During this Lent, we pause and take the time to not only love the sinner, but fear for them, and struggle to see them freed. We look to Christ, setting that sin, that desire, that temptation aside… knowing He endured the cross so that we could be free. Fr that to Him was His joy, to see us freed, cleansed and made holy.
Do we hate sin? We need to…..
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 3534-3535). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Do We Desire God’s Presence? Do we Desire Eternity?
Devotional/Discussion Thought of the Day :
4 I have asked the LORD for one thing; one thing only do I want: to live in the LORD’S house all my life, to marvel there at his goodness, and to ask for his guidance. Psalm 27:4 (TEV)
11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)
857 Someone we know well told us sincerely, in confidence, that he had never been bored, for he had never been on his own, without our Friend. It was late in the evening, and there was a great silence… You felt very intently the presence of God… And, in the knowledge of that reality, what peace! (1)
Each morning that I find myself in my office, I start the day with the morning liturgy from “Celtic Daily Prayer”. Each morning I do so, after remembering my baptism while making the sign of the cross, the very next thing is Psalm 27:4. I read the words and often ask myself a question.
Do I really want only that – to live in His house all my life, for all eternity?
Let me confess, I struggle with that, as I imagine you do.
And if I struggle with living with Him here, in this time and place; I also struggle with seeing that which Solomon mentioned, that God has planted eternity in my heart. For often my heart and mind are not centered there. Some things I desire may be good and beneficial, like seeing people given the gift of faith, and the promises that come from Baptism and receiving the Body and Blood of Christ. I desire the church to grow, to find reconciliation where it is so needed. But anxiety over making that happen.
Is my first desire God’s presence, to be where He abides?
There are times it is, and I can think back over the years and long for those times again. The quiet sanctuaries of my youth, the incredible retreats I’ve been on, the baptisms, the putting into people’s hands the body and blood of Christ. The holding someone’s hand while they passed away, just silently praying. Praying again with my son, when he fit in the niche of my arm, praying that God would bless him, and through him many people. They are my treasured times, they are the best moments of my life.
Yes I do desire this, and I cannot but help look forward to eternity, because of promises like this:
9 However, as the scripture says, “What no one ever saw or heard, what no one ever thought could happen, is the very thing God prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 (TEV)
The times are precious, when I can sit and meditate on this, when I contemplate my baptism, or the Eucharist, or receiving the incredible news that my sins are absolved.
It is then I realize the peace the Josemaria’s friend new, the silence, the presence of God. That which we do desire the most, if we take a moment to realize it.
Be still, my friends, and know there is a God, and you are His…..
It is worth every micro-second. For there eternity, the eternity planted in our hearts is revealed.
For eternity is yours already. He is with you…
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3511-3515). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Waiting to See God’s Glory in Them… Can’t it Come Sooner?
Devotional and Discussion Thought of the day:
23 “At that time I earnestly prayed, 24 ‘Sovereign LORD, I know that you have shown me only the beginning of the great and wonderful things you are going to do. There is no god in heaven or on earth who can do the mighty things that you have done! 25 Let me cross the Jordan River, LORD, and see the fertile land on the other side, the beautiful hill country and the Lebanon Mountains.’ Deuteronomy 3:23-25 (TEV)
783 It is good that your soul should be eaten up by that impatience. But don’t be in a hurry. God wants you to prepare yourself seriously, taking all the months or years necessary, and is counting on your decision to do so. With good reason did that king say: “Time and I against any two.” (1)
I tend to think of the future a lot, In my management courses, I was identified as a catalyst, the idea man, to some extent a visionary. (btw Never confuse such people with great managers/administrators! ) I love to consider the potential in people and try to help that come to fruition. This is especially true when it comes to deacons, vicars and young pastors, anyone involved in ministry.
This doesn’t always work out the way it should, sometimes because of a failure to buy into a vision they’ve developed, sometimes simply because it takes time, sometimes because the vision has to be defined more closely, or the original vision was only the first step.
As I read Moses words to God, I felt the desire in them, God can we see your glory now? Can we see Your people realize the fullness of Your plan for their lives? Can we see them mature? Can we just skip through the times in the wilderness, the times where we rebel, the times where we can’t see you, where we doubt? I want to see your glory revealed in their lives, and I want to see it soon! After all – this is what you called them for, isn’t it? When will we see the wonderful things we know You are capable of, as you do them through Your people?
As St. Josemaria talks – the impatience can be good, but not if it forces us to hurry. Preparation is necessary, sometimes it takes years for God to form them, (sometimes that is because He is using us to do it!) Sometimes it is because the relationship and the trust they need in God needs to develop to the point they can do what God has called and prepared them to do – the amazing works talked of in Ephesians 2:10 and 4;12-14. They’ll get there, maybe we will see them there, or maybe like Moses, or Paul, we can only guide them most of the way, then others ( Joshua, Timothy, Titus) will take them the rest of the way.
We don’t know, but God is their shepherd, we just help for a time, a time He has determined.
And we have to realize, the ultimate glory, the perfect promise land is not just them mature in their trust, in their love, in their devotion to God. The ultimate glory is when they are, with us revealed in Christ’s 2nd coming.
1 You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God. 2 Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory! Colossians 3:1-4 (TEV)
May we long to see them there, complete, whole, healed, and may our desire to see them in God’s glory spur on our ministry to them, in the time we have! For this is what we work for, according to Paul,
28 So we preach Christ to everyone. With all possible wisdom we warn and teach them in order to bring each one into God’s presence as a mature individual in union with Christ. 29 To get this done I toil and struggle, using the mighty strength which Christ supplies and which is at work in me. Colossians 1:28-29 (TEV)
Lord Have Mercy!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3251-3254). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Which Do We Look Forward To More: Prayer or Pancakes?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
6 “I will also bless the foreigners who commit themselves to the LORD, who serve him and love his name, who worship him and do not desecrate the Sabbath day of rest, and who hold fast to my covenant. 7 I will bring them to my holy mountain of Jerusalem and will fill them with joy in my house of prayer. I will accept their burnt offerings and sacrifices, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations. Isaiah 56:6-7 (NLT)
464 Look at the set of senseless reasons the enemy gives you for abandoning your prayer. “I have no time”—when you are continually wasting it. “This is not for me.” “My heart is dry… “ Prayer is not a question of what you say or feel, but of love. And you love when you try hard to say something to the Lord, even though you might not actually say anything. (1)
It was just a comment by a friend this morning, that came back to mind as I was doing my devotions. Basically, the comment on FB was something to the extent of, “I am so looking forward to pancakes this morning” (there was something about gluten-free there… but that seems like an oxymoron) The comment took me back to my youth, to the breakfasts at Downeast Coffee Shop in Salem with my dad (you know the kind of place with the grill opposite the counter where you sat?), the breakfasts with my gramps at the racetrack.
Heck – even though I liked sleep a lot in those days… we would be up before dawn if it meant a good breakfast, incredibly anticipating the bacon, eggs, pancakes, and the fun of going out with grampy or dad.
Which got me thinking – do we desire to have time with out heavenly father like that? Are we willing to get up earlier, to spend time with Him, Do we long for our time of prayer? The way Isaiah describes is, how could we not? Those of us who were outsiders, are now accepted. The sacrifice of Christ for us is accepted. We are made part of God’s family, and He longs to spend time with us. Conversing, feasting, laughing, enjoying each other! That is what prayer is, even in Church. As Josemaria Escriva pronounced, this is not about whether you have just the right words, or have the correct mental attitude. It is about the love, the relationship, the time together.
I can’t remember the topics my dad and I discussed at the coffee shop. But I can picture us there on the stools, me spinning around, him just enjoying his coffee. My brother Stephen enjoying a horrid mixture of half coffee half cream. I can remember the booth at the racetrack. The conversation there was always about the Red Sox, about whether Yaz was better than Williams, about the being the year of the World Series… I remember us together, I see it still as if I was still 10.
That’s the nature of prayer, the time knowing not only are we in God’s presence, but that we have His attention, His love. Some of the things we say are probably quiet silly in other people’s eyes. The problems we bring to Him, the burdens that are lifted… the fun, the joy, the communion.
This is prayer, so act like a 10 year old kid talking to his dad over pancakes…. and as often as you get a chance, partake of the Bread of Heaven with Him as well!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 2047-2051). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
The Lord’s Supper, and Spiritual Apathy
Devotional Thought of the Day:
28 That is why you should examine yourself before eating the bread and drinking the cup. 29 For if you eat the bread or drink the cup without honoring the body of Christ, you are eating and drinking God’s judgment upon yourself. 30 That is why many of you are weak and sick and some have even died. 1 Corinthians 11:28-30 (NLT)
“These words, I have said, are not preached to wood or stone but to you and me; otherwise Christ might just as well have kept quiet and not instituted a sacrament. Ponder, then, and include yourself personally in the “you” so that he may not speak to you in vain.
In this sacrament he offers us all the treasure he brought from heaven for us, to which he most graciously invites us in other places, as when he says in Matt. 11:28, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy-laden, and I will refresh you.
”Surely it is a sin and a shame that, when he tenderly and faithfully summons and exhorts us to our highest and greatest good, we act so distantly toward it, neglecting it so long that we grow quite cold and callous and lose all desire and love for it.”
It’s my twenty-fifth anniversary today. As I was thinking about that, and about my sermon this week, the quote from Luther’s Large Catechism above kept coming back to mind. Let me explain why.
Twenty-five years is a pretty decent period of time. We’ve faced unemployment, major health issues (2 years in I had a massive cardiac arrest due to a genetic problem). We’ve faced adjusting to having a child after seventeen years of just us. An incredibly brilliant son, but who has some challenges as well. We have survived, we have endured. Like our parents, who also have endured much. There is a challenge to this though, and that is frequent interaction with each other. Reminding each other of our love for each other. Being passionate and perhaps even more… compassionate towards each other.
It is all to easy to stop working, to just assume the other will be there. To become apathetic in our relationship, to just get by. But the problem is that when our hearts look for that which is needed. The support, the encouragement, the interaction. The rest that comes when a couple’s home is their place of rest, their place of being nurtured, their place of being able to drop everything.
Are Kay and I perfect at this? No. ( I am involved in this after all! 🙂 ) But we do well… and have endured by God’s grace.
So what has this to do with communion?
Well, it is a primary contact point – a refuge, a place of peace and restoration in our walk with God. It is a treasure, that too often we get apathetic about, not realizing what it is… God calling us to gather around His table, and feeding us in way that is incredible. The family of God getting together, celebrating the forgiveness of sins and mercy of God and His love for us all. Clearly seen when we realize that piece of bread – yes it is His body, that little cup of wine, His precious blood – give for you and I.
As Luther says – those words aren’t for rocks and stones – Jesus spoke these words for you and I!
There are two ways I see us growing, as the church at large, callous and cold to it.
The first is when we think that it is somehow less necessary than the sermon, and therefore we celebrate it far less often. Or we cut it out of our masses or worship services because of time or convenience. (even heard one church that wanted to cut it out because of the cost of bread and wine..!) What message are we saying when we do such a thing? Are we reducing our belief that it is effective, that it is not profitable for our spiritual renewal?
The other way is when we just look at the celebration mechanically, as a duty, not as a joyous celebration of love. When we realize that God wants us there, that His greatest desire is to fellowship with His people – and that is why we gather. That we look at it with anticipation, recognizing what God is doing in this precious time. The more we consider that, the more hungry we get for it, the more it takes on a meaning that is precious – the more we desire it.
In both cases – in determining that we don’t need to celebrate it often, and simply it being a duty and not a celebration – we lead people into apathy, we lead them away from realizing the grace and love revealed to them in Christ. Paul says such is the reason for our spiritual apathy, and even spiritual death. Luther concurs with scripture, calling such an attitude a sin. It’s something we need to think about today, as the church in America has fallen asleep… and in some places is beginning to revive, breaking its fast from the blessings of God, and growing in desire of them.
This is a precious time with God, some of the most valuable and nourishing time we have in our week. It is a treasure, a necessity, a blessing beyond our able to understand, but easily one we can appreciate.
it’s a homecoming, a feast, a celebration, a time that should inspire us to worship, a time where we can know God’s promises are true in Christ.
So come, blessed children of the Father, to a feast prepared for you……
[i] Tappert, T. G. (Ed.). (1959). The Book of Concord the confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. (p. 454). Philadelphia: Mühlenberg Press.LARGE CATECHISM – Sacrament of the Altar
Do We Desire Christ’s Presence in our Lives? Does it Show?
Devotional Comment of the Day:
1 One night as I lay in bed, I yearned for my lover. I yearned for him, but he did not come. 2 So I said to myself, “I will get up and roam the city, searching in all its streets and squares. I will search for the one I love.” So I searched everywhere but did not find him. 3 The watchmen stopped me as they made their rounds, and I asked, “Have you seen the one I love?” 4 Then scarcely had I left them when I found my love! I caught and held him tightly. Song of Songs 3:1-4 (NLT)
“1030 My God, when will I love you for yourself? Although when we think about it, Lord, to desire an everlasting reward is to desire you, for you give yourself as our reward.
1031 Taste and see that the Lord is good, the Psalmist says. Spiritual conquest, which is Love, has to be—in big things and small—a desire for the Infinite, for eternity”.(1)
If you gather ten average men together, they will talk about the desires they have for their baseball or football teams. They will do so with great energy, with a competitive fever, and with an incredible level of enthusiasm. You will have great trouble changing the subject. A similar group of men will wax eloquent about their cars, and the experience driving them, or the cars they dream of driving. ( My preference – just one of two cars from 1970-71 – the Triumph Spitfire or Datsun 240z)
But change the subject and ask them to talk about the passion and admiration they have for their wives, how thye adore them and value them, and they clam up. ABout the only thing they will discuss with less emotion is their faith.
And that is a problem.
A serious problem.
There are even books out there advising pastors to not talk about God and our relationship with Him, for it will drive men away. Tenderness, compassion, caring, deep love, these are words that we are told we cannot continue to use, for men will turn off their minds, and stop listening to the sermon, or the lesson. Talk about the logic of Christianity, the proofs of it, heavy theology fine. Create systems and programs and methods for growing the church? Fine. Desire for Christ’s presence? Nope. Christ’s passion and compassion for people? Never! Spend an hour weeping and praying over the brokenness of our communities, begging God to show us how to intervene? You have to be kidding.
It is it any wonder that we’ve ripped the heart out of the church, that we our passion for the lost, the hurting, the broken has all but dried up? That our church’s have developed into houses of reason, that the “approved music” by denominations is complex and majestic and too dang hard for the average person to sing and praise their God with? We’ve taught people that they can’t trust their emotions, forgetting that in Christ, those emotions have been cleansed, that in baptism the heart of stone has been replaced by a heart of flesh. Desire for God is dismissed, too pietistic, too emotional, and those things don’t belong in church, we are told.
Is it any wonder our churches are dying?
The above quote in red is from the Song of Solomon, and ancient commentators thought of it as an appropriate description of the emotinal bond between Christ and His Beloved, the people that are gathered as the church. The desire there described would blow past any limitations in order to see, to be with, to know (not just “biblically”) the Beloved. And the beloved responds in a similar manner. Desire, longing, and emptiness when the presence of the loved one isn’t there. Other theologians have said it can’t be, and I wonder if it is less because of the physically intimate talk, or because of the transparent desire for the presence of God.
St Josemaria didn’t hesitate in describing such love, neither writers like C.S. Lewis (read Till We Have Faces) and Gene Edwards or George McDonald, philosophers like Pascal, pastors like Luther and Wesley. Songs like Amazing Grace and It is Well and A Mighty Fortress in their completeness describe this desire, this longing, this adoration of God, and of His desire to make His presence clear in our lives, as He does throughout all of scripture!
“I will be your God, and you will be My people! (Leviticus 6:12 and many more places!)
God desires a relationship with us, He desires to pour out His love upon us, that is what salvation is all about. A God passionate for His people. A God who would do more than move heaven and earth for His people, a God who would prove out His love by sacrificing His Son.
Yeah – that’s intimidating, but also so incredible, so overwhelming,
And it is a treasure that we can share, for as we come to know His desire for us, we realize it is a desire for the world, and for our family, neighbors and friends.
HIs desire for us, even before we cry, “Lord have mercy”, is an answer to that cry…
May we respond to His desire for us, with a growing desire to spend our lives in His presence, and exhausting ourselves in that which pleases Him.
AMEN
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 3643-3647). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
For Their Sake, We Cannot Keep Quiet! Isaiah 62:1-5
† In Jesus Name †
May you realize that because of the mercy of God the Father, and His love for you demonstrated in Christ Jesus, that you will never be forsaken, for the Lord delights in you!
If you were to ask me which book in the Old Testament, and perhaps even the entire Bible, which is my favorite book – it is the one from which our Old Testament passage tonight was read from.
In Isaiah, we see, completely revealed, the heart that God has for His people. The love, the plan by which He would restore them from their brokenness, the joy that he would have, in bringing them back together, from every place, from every ethnic group on the face of the planet.
Such is the passage we have before us tonight, the incredible promise that Isaiah cannot be quiet about – that He must proclaim. He cannot rest or stay still – he must tell someone!
Not because He has to – not because He was called and commanded to by God – that just gives him the responsibility to share God’s love, to proclaim His word. No the reason He cannot keep still, the reason He cannot keep quiet is found there in verse 1.
For their sake, I will not keep silent! For their sake I will not be quiet!
For the sake of the people whom God would save, for the sake of the people upon whom God, the creator of all, would call by a new name – by His name… for their sake, Isaiah, and all the prophets, the apostles and evangelists and pastors and teachers – for their sake – even you and I, we cannot keep silent.
What we have to say makes that much of a difference in their lives.
THE DEACONS
I would like to explain this, with a quick illustration of some incredible guys that I get to serve, as I train them in ministry. They are in training to become deacons, normal guys from a variety of backgrounds. A teacher, a small town businessman, an engineer, a pool cleaner, a homeless, another guy with an MBA who troubleshoots peoples computer systems, a collection agent, a clothing manufacturing supervisor, an artist, and a printer. They study so they can work aside pastors
Most of them have been in church all their lives – from 30-74 years. They entered the program to be trained because they love God. As they study, as we work together, they all keep saying that they love God, but they never full realized how much that God adored them. The more they learn, the more they want to learn, and the more they find themselves not being able to shut up about God’s love.
Drive’s their wives a little crazy at times – but they too – learn and fall deeper and deeper in love with God.
I could talk about where they’ve come from for hours – each has had a life full of challenges, times where they’ve wanted to give up, times where they didn’t know hope, times where their lives were on the line….Ted and Rocky, Terry and Bob, Bill, Mike, Don, Eddie, Mark, and Chuck and so many more.
It is for their sake – and yes yours, that I cannot keep silent about God’s grace. I pray, that because you will come to know His love more clearly, more fully, that you too will be able to name those for whom you cannot keep silent, because you know God’s love for them, because you know His love for you!
What we see: Forsaken and Desolate
One of the guys, presently a student in the program, is such an example. He and his wife have hung in their – being faithful in attending church and in doing things. They knew the basic of the faith, the basics that we confess in the creed.
But their lives have been full of challenges. They’ve endured the death of one daughter, their other daughter’s life has been a major challenge as well. They have taken care of a mother who lived 70 miles away while she was dying painfully. The church at that time didn’t give them the support they needed. He has suffered with diabetes for 50 years, and the doctor’s cant seem to make up their mind if he has parkinsons, alzheimers, dementia or some other disease/disorder that no one has got a name for yet.
With all these challenges, and more besides, one would understand if they felt forsaken by God, if they thought their lives were desolate. If they thought that God has decided not to answer their prayers, that for some reason they weren’t good enough. They simply plow through, and faithfully take care of their responsibilities – so where is God’s power in their lives?
I sometimes wonder why they don’t have the same doubt, the same feelings I would – and my situation is not near what they’ve endured…
I don’t know about you – but when I hear Isaiah’s description of the people of God, saying that no longer will we be termed forsaken, no longer will our lives be desolate, I can think of certain times in my life, where I have felt that way – exactly. Where it would seem that even in a place like Los Angeles, surrounded by 20 million people – I am completely alone, and while there is hope and joy for others, there isn’t any for me.
I am broken.
Broken by my sin, the times where I’ve failed to love God enough to recognize His wisdom and love that underwrites the way He has designed and encouraged us to live.
Broken by my own sin, when I place my desires ahead of the needs of people around me. Where my own entertainment and enjoyment I look towards, rather than seeing my brother’s and sister’s needs.
Broken by others sins, as the entire world it seems, is full of people who put their own lives, and desires and goals ahead of any relationship with me, and step on me to achieve them.
Forsaken? Desolate? Yeah – I know those feelings.
What is Real
Knowing those feelings – and knowing that the men I serve have them – that hey – even you may have them- that is why we cannot be silent about God’s reality – and how it shatters those feelings of forsakenness and desolation.
Isaiah talks of how people will see our righteousness, that we have been cleansed in baptism from all sin and brokenness, that we are being healed of all that life has done to us. Isaiah talks of how it will shine like the most powerful of lights – our salvation will appear like a burning torch/lighting.
That is what is real – that our lives will be the crown – the proof of God being God, of Jesus being Lord of all – for only such could take us, and make us whole and alive and joyful.
For God has given us a new name, He has called us by His name – marked us as His.
My friend – the student who at 74 – with a memory that fails him – except when he is talking about God – realizes this. He had an epiphany, the lights came on, when he stood and held my Bible and bulletin open – as I baptized Rachel and Kay, two students of the school. It continues – each time he goes to church and to class to become a deacon. He soaks up the material like a sponge – and then shares it with people he knows.
He understands what it means to live as one that has been united to Christ in baptism – that has been joined to Christ’s death and resurrection, who because of the promises that are applied with the water – that life has been transformed.
This man understands, perhaps better than any I know – including all the pastors verse four and five of Isaiah – and the love of God for His people – which includes Chuck.
The Marriage of God!
Isaiah describes the love of God in a very incredible way. He describes it, as the New Testament does, in terms of a wedding, in terms of a marriage. In terms that shatter the illusion that we are alone and desolate – for we have been united with Christ.
That God’s love for us is that which a man should have for his wife, as he marries her. That God is willing to honor and cherish and protect us for all the days of His eternal life.
Isaiah describes God finding delight in us, He finds joy – incredible joy in making us His people, in calling us by His name. In uniting us to Jesus in baptism – that we would be His – His clean and spotless Bride.
Some 800 years after Isaiah, Paul would take up this idea in Ephesians 5:
Ephesians 5:25 (Phillips NT) 2. Christ gave himself to make (his people) her holy, having cleansed her through the baptism of his Word – to make her an altogether glorious Church in his eyes. She is to be free from spots, wrinkles or any other disfigurement – a Church holy and perfect.
28 Men ought to give their wives the love they naturally have for their own bodies. The love a man gives his wife is the extending of his love for himself to enfold her. Nobody ever hates or neglects his own body; he feeds and looks after it. And that is what Christ does for his body, the Church. And we are all members of that body, we are his flesh and blood! ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’. The marriage relationship is doubtless a great mystery, but I am speaking of something deeper still – the marriage of Christ and his Church.
That is what my friend gets – it’s burrowed so deep to his core – through the pains and sorrows, through the medical challenges, through the grief. Seeing the joy as he comes into the room – whether the church sanctuary, or my office, or into class – ready to learn more of God’s love for him, and for those around him. Hearing him tell how he told the doctor of Christ’s love, or the “old guy” across the street who fell and couldn’t get up…
How can I not want to teach him more about God’s love – knowing that he will cherish it and it will transform him and those he knows. That it will give him hope and peace as he basks un Christ’s love, like a bride and bridegroom completely unaware of anyone else’s presence as they are married, as they become one.
Not just about the deacons – its about you
I used my student, my church member’s my friends story for a reason.
He can’t keep silent about God, and having him in my life has helped me not keep silent – watching God work in his life, assured me that God is working in mine. Seeing the peace- that peace of God which he dwells in so comfortably….
I know I can let God deal with my fears, my anxieties, my sin and brokenness. That God delights in me….
And if God can do that in my life….. if God desires to do that – as scripture teaches…
The same is what He desires for you – to delight in you – to call you by His name – to make you His people….
I cannot keep silent about that… for the joy is beyond anything you can imagine, as is the peace…
You need to know that the peace of God, which goes beyond all understanding – will guard your hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus. AMEN!
His Plan His Desire take II
His Plan, His Desire, His People, “in Christ”!
Ephesians 1:3-14
† In Jesus Name †
May our lives bless our Father in Heaven, as it is revealed to us that He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing! AMEN!
Too personal? Yeah… so what
It is one of those things that is hard to explain, but every time I preach on this epistle passage, I overlook the obvious connection I have to it. Perhaps it is because it is too personal, to talk about what it means to be adopted, or I find a way to gloss over it. Make the connection, and move on.
The emotional overload that comes, when discussing the challenges that face an adopted kid are immense – there are incredible joys, and yet incredible questions, In my case, having met my birth mom 6 years ago this week – there is knowing the incredible love of two mothers, both of whom were intimately involved in making me, you pastor. I am truly blessed, but even more so when I realize how different, more incredible God’s adoption of all us is…
Preaching on God adopting us is somewhat challenging then, as describing God making us His children opens levels of stuff I am not used to letting people see. So, I usually don’t. I come up with other ways to explain it, but a quick online comment of my high school coach made me change this sermon this morning….
But it is important to grasp the intimacy, the intentionality in God’s choice, in God wanting to make us His children, and in paying the price to process it – the price of Christ’s blood. For if we understand God’s choice,
So be aware, this sermon may be a little rougher than usual, as I re-wrote the sermon this morning, knowing I had to bring it up this way….
For we need to grasp what it means for God to choose us, to bring us into the Family that is the Trinity, to grasp this incredible blessing
Chose us in Him
On April 1st, 1965, when Thomas and Marie Parker went to Catholic Charities in Lawrence, Massachusetts, they weren’t sure what they were getting themselves into. They had been waiting to adopt a girl, but they had been called a few days before. The couple originally slated to get me had panicked, or maybe had a vision, and bailed on the process. Some have said that April 1st date was very appropriate…
My folks came and got me, adopted me as their own, and would eventually get the daughter a few years later. I used to joke with my friends that while their parents were stuck with them, mine chose me. But they didn’t choose me, they chose to adopt, if they had only known what they were getting themselves into…
God’s a bit different. He knows all about us, every moment of our lives… and chooses to adopt us. Paul tells us that the Father has “chose us in him before the foundation of the world.”
It is in choosing us, that we find every spiritual blessing coming upon us, it is there that that we realize that we aren’t just after thoughts in God’s plan, but indeed the focus of His will, and His desire. From before the foundation of the earth, He has chosen mankind to have a special relationship with Him, and demonstrated that choice by placing us in Christ.
There, we find out what He has chosen us for, to be His children, adopted because of Jesus Christ, for it is in Christ that we are found to be holy and blameless, set apart for something special, with nothing able to mar or change that choice. To share in the life and love of God, in what sounds amazing – to become part of that relationship that exists between the Father and the Son and the Spirit. To share in such a relationship, as one of my friends has described it in a song – to join in the Trinity’s dance.
This indeed Paul tells us is no accident, it was a choice made from before the foundation of the world. It is the very purpose of His will – or as another translation explains it – it is the plan to achieve God’s greatest desire. Peter phrases it this way,
3:9 The Lord is not being slow in carrying out his promises, as some people think he is; rather is he being patient with you, wanting nobody to be lost and everybody to be brought to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9 (NJB)
The Lord’s choice, to choose you in Him, in Christ…knowing everything about you…
Riches of His gift, lavished upon us
When my parents adopted me, there was little idea of the costs, financial, emotional, the nights sitting with me in the hospital over the years, the shock of finding out I have Marfans and the complications it brings.. the challenges they faced because of the odd person I am, but they didn’t know the cost. That is where God the Father adopting us is so radically different. He did know the cost… the cost of adopting us, of making us holy and blameless was very high. Paul writes in verse 7.
7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, 8 which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight
In Christ’s death, we have been paid for, our lives purchased at the price of His sacrifice on the cross. He did this that because of the great grace, the gift which he lavishes upon us, why? Even more incredibly, Hebrews tells us it was for joy that Christ embraced that payment – as He, loving each of us, embraced that cross.
Paul calls this the making known of the mystery of His will, this incredible grace lavished upon us, as God picks us up in our brokenness, and instead of throwing us away, carefully repairs and heals us, bringing us into Himself, that we might be one with Him. Imagine everything perfect, in His presence, a place where doors don’t creak and neither do our bodies, where our relationships are finally the way they should be, including our relationship with our Father, where we finally let God be God, and we rejoice in knowing we are His children, His people, His chosen people.
This is our lot for all eternity, that which God has planned for us! It is the life God has given to us, this great mystery of why He would choose us to be His children, that even as He makes this true now, we struggle to realize it, for we struggle to realize we are in Christ, we are in the Beloved son of God, and therefore share in the Father’s love.
How we got there?
We are the children of the king – waiting for that moment when we reach full maturity, when we share in His kingdom. It is true now, and yet like a child waiting to reach the age of inheritance, we struggle with it. Indeed, we need to be reminded of it often, and how and when this incredible thing happened.
Paul explains it in verse 13
13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
It’s the same story throughout scripture – the way we become His children, according to His plan is when we hear the truth – the truth of His love for us, that is this gospel, this good news.
It is the message of His love that causes us to trust in Him, to believe in Him, to realize that our very lives are in His hands, and that this is a good thing!
That when we were baptized, God marked us, He sealed us as His children, the sign of the cross is what we were marked with, that even as we share in Christ’ death, we too share in His resurrection, for we live in Him.
That has been His plan all along, a plan we have only begun to realize. We are still children, waiting for our inheritance to become ours. Waiting to reach the maturity of Christ, when we visibly know we are in His kingdom.
Until that day, we have a guarantee, a down payment if you will. Something incredibly wonderful, something beyond our comprehension! The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, what Peter describes as the gift of God’s Spirit, which Paul will also describe as our being the temple – the living place of the Spirit of God, the one called the Comforter, the Lord and Giver of life…
Here, in us, even as we dwell in Him….even as we are, right now, His children. His heirs, as we live in the Beloved. Chosen by Him, chosen to be in Him, adopted as His. With all the knowledge of who we are, what we’ve done…..
He made us His.
So knowing this we can rejoice as Paul does and declare, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places… for we live in Christ. AMEN?
