I Want to See

Over the last year, we’ve heard how the promise of eternal life changes our perspective on problems, allowing us to see problems with an eternal, godly perspective instead of an urgent, human perspective. And we saw how, with our permission, God puts us into a training program to help us learn to live godly, holy lives. Then we saw how God’s model of the servant leader drives us to help other people rather than look upon others as our servants. We saw how understanding our relationship to God keeps us from becoming arrogant, and how prayer keeps us humble. We talked about how God requires and helps us keep our integrity, and we found out that following Jesus is far more important than following rules.

And today? Today we go back in time to a particular day, long, long ago. You are sitting around, listening to a middle-aged man tell a story. The man came to your town a while back and he tells stories. Today, he is telling the story of a specific day, a day in the springtime of the year 34 AD, a day when he was a young man caught up in an exciting time, a time of passion, a time of change. You can see his eyes flash as so many older men do when telling a story about their younger days, and you know that his story is true, because you know this man and his stories are always true. He’s in the middle of the story when you come up and hear him speaking. He’s talking about a day when he was on a journey, on a pilgrimage. He had already talked about events on the journey, but now he spoke about a town, an old, old town. He talked to us about how him and his friends had been staying in an ancient town called Jericho….

“…And so we left Jericho. Such an old city, Jericho. Jericho was the city at the base of the mountain that led up to Bethany and then over to Jerusalem. Jericho, just north of the Dead Sea near where the Jordan River flows into that body of killing salt water after plunging a thousand feet down from the Sea of Galilee over a distance of a hundred miles. They say it might be the oldest city in the world. It certainly was a city full of history – the place where Joshua, the great leader of ancient Israel had marched the great army of Israel around the city seven times, the city walls had fallen, and the army had ransacked the place – all but the home of Rahab the prostitute. Joshua had protected a prostitute because she worshipped God and helped Israel.

We were following a Joshua – Y’shua of Nazareth, the man the Romans called Jesus. He also took care of prostitutes and he took care of beggars and he was nice to collaborators and those men who collected the taxes for the Romans – he even had recruited one of them to join our group, Levi, the one the Romans called Matthew. There must have been a hundred people in our group walking along with the Rabbi Jesus.

Jericho is a beautiful place. There is a large spring there where water comes pouring out of the ground – they say that’s why the town was founded there thousands of years before King David. It’s a place with good water, wonderful fertile ground that comes from the dirt when the Jordan river overflows, and a long history. Too bad the Herod’s have their summer palace there, though I can understand why. If I were a king, it’s the sort of place I’d build a summer palace.

The road was busy. Everybody was headed toward Jerusalem for the Passover. Everyone from Galilee takes the road down in the valley to Jericho and then up, up, up the steep cliff road to Bethany and then Jerusalem, because if you try a more direct way, you have to meet with Samaritans. And you know that Samaritans are evil people. They claim to be descendants of Jacob, but don’t worship in Jerusalem.

As I said, the road was busy. The air was pleasant and the sunshine was bright. Families had their luggage on their donkeys or were riding on an oxcart. I’ll tell you, the dust was flying and the smell was something else. You put more than ten thousand people on the road for a week without a bath and that is some smell. Plus, you have all their animals and what they leave on the road.

But just as we left Jericho, the magical thing happened. Just as we were starting to walk uphill, the beautiful thing began. Just as the road began to get tough, the people of God came together and the most beautiful song poured out of them, the first of the Songs of Ascents that we sang as we ascended from that hot valley up, up, up on the way to the Temple of God, where God’s glory can be found, where life and hope are found on this earth.

The hill was steep and hard to climb, and so we sang the 120th Psalm:

I call on the Lord in my distress,
and he answers me.
2 Save me, O Lord, from lying lips
and from deceitful tongues.

3 What will he do to you,
and what more besides, O deceitful tongue?
4 He will punish you with a warrior’s sharp arrows,
with burning coals of the broom tree.

5 Woe to me that I dwell in Meshech,
that I live among the tents of Kedar!
6 Too long have I lived
among those who hate peace.
7 I am a man of peace;
but when I speak, they are for war.

Meshech – the lands of far Assyria where the Romans fought the Parthians and Kedar, the tents of the desert people, always at war. Oh, yes, O Lord! I was glad I lived in fair Galilee, a land of beautiful olive trees and grapevines, a well-watered land with the beautiful lake of fresh water and the safety that comes from living in a secure country. But I could feel arrows and burning coals beginning in my thighs as I climbed that long hill.

Yes, the 120th Psalm they sang and there was a pause. A wonderful pleasant breeze blew up from the valley, moving around the sparse vegetation as though an invisible Being were walking past us, letting us know that God was indeed with us, as God’s breath filled the people and moved the new leaves on the trees back and forth as they danced to God’s gentle music. It was clear to all of us in the company that the Lord was with us, for Jesus had taught us to see God through the things His Father does in this world. We later learned that this breeze had been God’s breath, God’s Holy Spirit in action around us.

Then, all the people began to sing the 121th Psalm:

I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?

2 My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.


And at that moment we heard the shout:

“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

It was a blind beggar sitting beside the road. He’d heard that Jesus was passing by and he had shouted just as the song was being so beautifully sung.

We told him to be still, we wanted to listen to the song and he was interrupting, but he kept yelling “Son of David, have mercy on me!” over and over again. We were trying to worship God, the singing was beautiful, the view was wonderful, we were enjoying ourselves thinking about the wonderful sights and sounds and smells of the temple to come, with the roasting lambs and the glittering golden decorations and the incense and the sounds of the chofar – the ram’s horn blowing. We were trying to worship on the road, getting in the festival mood, when that irritating, constant, note of discord came blaring at us.

“Son of David, have mercy on me!” He kept shouting.

I looked at him. He was dirty – much dirtier than those of us on the road. I doubt if he’d bathed in months. His clothes were rags. He had a simple pottery bowl and not much else. His eyes rolled around as the eyes of the blind do, dull and lifeless. It made you wonder about the soul inside that dirty, stinking body.

Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

Jesus had heard the blind man’s cry. Jesus stopped at the blind man’s cry. Jesus, leader of thousands of people, had paid attention to this man because the man called out to Him.

We all stopped with Him. When Jesus stopped, we all stopped. The song stopped, too. The road noise stopped. The adults stopped talking and the kids were quiet. The animals were even silent.

So James and I walked over and called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. I had to lead him – man, he stank!- but he walked straight and tall, not caring that he was being watched by dozens and hundreds of people. We all watched to see what would happen.

Here was a poor, stinking, blind beggar – and the greatest Rabbi of his time, face to face. But the beggar wasn’t the least bit concerned, he didn’t bow down, he wasn’t scared at all. Yet he had called Jesus “Son of David”. He knew that Jesus was of the royal line. It was as if the blind man – we found out later his name was Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus. It was as if blind Bartimaeus knew the character of Jesus, as if he knew that Jesus loved all men and women, as if he knew already that this Rabbi, this leader, this royal prince of the house of David was different and cared for all people – not just the wealthy, or the fit, or the lovely or the powerful or the well-educated. Bartimaeus approached Jesus as a beloved child would approach a friendly, loving parent.

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” - “Rabbi, I want to see.”

Bartimaeus simply stated his need before Jesus. Nothing fancy, no wonderful speech. A simple statement. “Rabbi, I want to see.”

It reminded me of when Job had called out that he wanted to see God and argue his case before Him. This man wanted to see – and I don’t think he wanted to see the crowd or the animals or the road.

I think he wanted to see the Son of David that was standing before him:

· he wanted to see the One who had performed so many miracles,

· he wanted to see the One who had healed the paralyzed,

· he wanted to see the One who had walked on water,

· he wanted to see the One who had turned water into wine,

· he wanted to see the One who had healed sick men and women,

· he wanted to see the One who had driven out demons,

· he wanted to see the One that would be high priest.

· He wanted to see the One that he KNEW could heal his eyes.

· He wanted to see the Messiah of Israel, the Savior of all humans, the One that would inherit the throne of David!

· He wanted to see GOD walking on this earth!

52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Not “my power”. Not “my wisdom”. Not even “my Father”. But “Your faith has healed you.”

Immediately, poor, dirty, stinking, blind Bartimaeus received his sight and followed Jesus along the road, walking up the steep road that leads to Jerusalem and the difficult things that would happen there, just as we followed Jesus up that road – just as you follow him up that road. Bartimaeus, his eyes now glistening with joyful tears now was one of us, walking along beside me, looking back and forth, smiling as brightly as the sun. And as we walked along, the breeze and the pilgrim’s song began again…

I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?

2 My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

But as bright-eyed Bartimaeus walked along with me, he was singing a different song, a song that poured from his heart. It was a very happy song – the man was smiling and looking all around, looking down over the edge of the cliff at Jericho far below. He was looking at the beautiful blue sky, he was looking at the pretty girls – but most of all he was looking at Jesus. Bartimaeus was singing, but he wasn’t singing one of the pilgrim songs, and so I moved over closer to him to hear what he kept singing in that crowd of people heading toward God’s house.

He was singing a part of the book of Job…what Job had said to God at the end of the book after God arrived in the whirlwind and spoke to Job, after Job had been tormented by Satan and Job’s four friends…Job responded to God:

4“You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak;
I will question you,
and you shall answer me.’

5 My ears had heard of you
but now my eyes have seen you.

So many people I know have heard of Jesus, yet they have never tried to get close enough to see Jesus. They stay in the back of the crowd. Most people don’t even ask – they just walk along, many of them even claiming to follow Him, but they don’t even ask to see Jesus, to see Him made real to them, to ask for Him to come into their presence. They just assume that He is too busy or important or high-and-mighty to come to them. And so they just listen to what other people say about Jesus and never talk with Him in person, even though – as I’d seen over and over again – He really is a wonderfully pleasant person to talk to, and He doesn’t care who you are. If you want to meet Him, He will meet you. And just like Job, God’s power flows through your life and does the most good AFTER you have come to face-to-face with God.

So many times I’d seen Jesus come to people who had nothing – no farm, no home, no money, no possessions, no love – yet they had faith in Him. And it always seemed that the faith they had in Jesus gave them everything they needed. That faith led them to do great things, even though they were nobodies.

And I? I wondered how that blind man had such faith. Would YOU ever have such faith to believe in a Man you had never even seen? And that day I wondered - would I ever have such faith? Would I ever be able to believe without seeing first.

About that time, James came over to me and said, “Thomas, isn’t it a beautiful and grand day?”

And I suppose it was.

…

And so today, in this place, I’d like you to consider: Do you keep your distance from Jesus? Are you content to know from others that He is around, hearing what others say about Jesus, listening to their stories of Him, hearing about Him pass by in the distance - or do you want to be close to Him, walking beside Him, talking with Him directly, seeing Him?

Like blind Bartimaeus, to get close to Jesus, to speak with Him, and to see Him means that you need to take action. When Jesus passed by Bartimaeus, he did not contentedly sit in his seat and listen to others tell Him that his King was passing him by. Bartimaeus called to Jesus and then He walked to Jesus. And then Bartimaeus simply stated his need. He had faith that Jesus and the Holy Spirit would do what was right.

And so, when the wind blows the grass, remember that it is God’s breath in action. When everything goes right for you one day, remember that it is Jesus and the Holy Spirit clearing the way for you. When that nagging voice in the back of your mind says, “Stop, don’t do it!” and because you listened, you avoid something bad, it is the Living Spirit of the Living God speaking to you, walking beside you, touching you ever so gently. We see the invisible Creator by God’s actions in this world. And to see His Son, we look at the actions of His body, the people of the church.

And so, while we sing this song, I’m asking you – Do you want to speak to Jesus? Do you want to see Jesus? Do you want to become close to Jesus? If you are listening on the radio or on Facebook Live, perhaps you should pray where you are now, but also drive to our next service at 10:30 am.

If you are here in person, get up out of your seat, walk down to the altar rail, and pray to Him. You don’t have to kneel – Bartimaeus stood in front of Jesus. And I realize that you can pray in your seat, but there is something about taking a step forward to the altar rail which tells Jesus that you are serious and no longer content to just hear about Jesus, but that you now want to meet Jesus. So, even if you have attended this church for 50 years, even if you were saved and baptized 40 years ago, even if you show up every Sunday – today you should take the action to show Jesus that you are serious about Him and that He is worth a walk forward. Come to the altar rail and pray to Him. Get close and look to Him to See

Take this time to pray for your twelve people you are leading to Christ. Take this time to pray for them to come to know Christ and His love for us. Take this time to pray for God to save their souls.

Let us sing:

454 Open My Eyes, That I May See

Great Servants

There is an image that the world has of the way Christians are to be. If you ask the world about Christians, depending upon their background, you will find that the people of the world have one of two opinions about Christians.

One group of people believe that all Christians are nasty, hypocritical people who complain and judge other people’s sins while having their own set of sins. Christians are the people who want to stop other people from having fun. And this mindset is promoted by certain classic books and teachings, such as “The Scarlet Letter”, stories about the Puritans of early Massachusetts, as well as more modern movies and television shows, such as the movie “Footloose” where a preacher has convinced a town that dancing is evil, or newer television series like The Handmaid’s Tale where pastors are the instruments of oppression. Saundra and I have noticed that in almost any British mystery that has a Christian character, the Christian will be discovered to be the criminal at the end – or at least psychotic. It’s even more certain than guessing that the butler did it. One might think that there are people today in the movie and TV industry who have a vendetta against Christians.

But, thankfully, there are other people in the world around us who think that Christians are ordinary people who try their best to extra nice to other people, who are the people who arrive at your door with trays of lasagna and ham when you’re sick, who drive older people to doctor’s appointments, who freely build wheelchair ramps on the homes of elderly people who can’t climb steps. To these people in the world, they understand that Christians have flaws, but, unlike most people around us, the Christians are trying to improve and don’t stand defiantly shaking their fists at their neighbors.

And then, there is what the Christian people of the world believe.

Those who are new to Christianity are often prone to believe that the original twelve disciples were particularly holy men who were so much better than average that it was natural that Jesus would call them to “follow Him”. But, a realistic look at these men reminds us that until called, Levi was a corrupt tax collector, Nathaniel doubted that anyone good could come from Nazareth (the home town of Jesus), Simon was a Zealot – part of a group of men who wanted the Romans to leave Israel and were willing to stab the Romans in back alleys to do so. Thomas would not believe the other disciples when they told Him they’d seen Jesus alive after His crucifixion. And, of course, Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus to His enemies, while the blessed Apostle Peter denied even knowing Jesus three times in public.

So, no, the original disciples were not especially saintly men. In fact, they were pretty average.

But they were trying to become better. They were committed to following Jesus and His teachings. And they learned from watching Him and listening to Him, from eating with Him and walking with Him. And so they improved.

But they had a long way to go and it took them years to become holy. Just like us today.

In this story written down by the Apostle Mark in today’s reading from Mark Chapter Ten, James and John come to Jesus. Mark reminds us that they were the sons of Zebedee, a net fisherman from the Lake of Galilee. They had grown up helping on the fishing boat, but they had also received a solid training in the Hebrew Bible – and John, in particular, wrote very well in the Greek of the time. Jesus gave them the nickname, “the sons of Thunder”, perhaps because they were loud or angry.

Anyway, this particular day, they were walking from the River Jordan toward Jerusalem. James and John come to Jesus. “Teacher,” they said, “we want you to do for us whatever we ask.”

36 “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.

37 They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.”

They were, in effect, asking to be seated in the two best places in the throne room beside Jesus. They wanted the power and the prestige that goes with those seats. In effect, they wanted to be the prime ministers of the King. Jesus did not get angry, nor did He shut them down, but you can almost see Jesus shaking his head sadly as two of His favorite students were asking to be promoted over the others.

38 “You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said. “Can you drink the cup I drink or be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with?”

For Jesus knew that this would be a cup of death and a baptism of blood. But the two brothers didn’t understand.

39 “We can,” they answered.

Jesus said to them, “You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, 

Jesus could foresee the future, and knew that the two brothers would be executed one day. He continued,

40 but to sit at my right or left is not for me to grant. These places belong to those for whom they have been prepared.”

Beside Jesus, there will be two others in places of honor. But who will they be? Will they be Moses and Elijah? Or will they be David and Solomon. Or perhaps the two witness of Revelation? This is one of those things in the Bible we won’t know until we are with Christ.

But this discussion was not a discussion between just the three J’s – Jesus, James, and John. The other ten disciples were listening in and they were getting hot at the arrogance of James and John.

41 When the ten heard about this, they became indignant with James and John. 42 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

And so the idea of leadership was changed forever.

We all have certain models of leadership which we learn at early ages. There is the leadership of Mom and Dad, who must be obeyed or we are picked up off the ground and placed where we should be. We have no choice in the matter – Mom and Dad are so much bigger than we are, that we must do what they say.

Then, there is the elementary school teacher, who TELLS us what to do. And we must do what she says, or we will suffer consequences. Once again, her leadership is based mainly on a physical superiority to us – what choice do we have? Our parents may have a choice whether or not we have this teacher in leadership over us, but we do not have that choice.

If we go into the armed services, we continue with this leadership model. The drill instructor at basic training has a simple model of leadership – do what he wants done NOW or face the consequences. And so many people, particularly men, have grown up with a command and control type of leadership model. And this continues into the business world, because so many men have learned this type of leadership, and many of them become supervisors and managers.

We learn from our parents, our teachers, our drill instructors, our supervisors – that you either are the leader or you follow the commands of the leader. If the leader needs a soda or a cup of coffee, the leader asks for it and someone gets it for the leader. All the people in the organization serve the leader – at least, that is what it seems like. And in ancient times it wasn’t much different, except the punishments for not serving the leader were much harsher.

Climbing the organization meant more people who would serve you, your orders were obeyed by more people, your wants and needs coming before the needs of more and more people. In the Roman Empire, a man was noticed for good soldiering and put in charge of a hundred men. He then used that group of a hundred men to get him put in charge of a 5000-man legion. then, they might serve him when he chose to fight to become Emperor, and if he won the battles and the war, then the entire Empire would serve him with luxuries, fine food and slaves until the next would-be Emperor had him assassinated. But the man at the top lived like a guest at a five-star hotel while he was at the top.

But then came Jesus, and he flipped the organizational chart upside down. Jesus puts the newest, weakest Christian at the top and the increasingly mature Christians at the bottom, with Jesus Himself holding up the entire structure. “whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. “

And this idea began to filter down, as more and more Christians moved into positions of leadership in the world. The man who served his people was able to get more productive work out of his team than the man who insisted the team serve him.

George Washington was known for his Christian leadership style. There is a classic painting, “Prayer at Valley Forge”. The General is not painted sitting high on his horse – no, the painting shows George Washington, head bowed, hat off beside him, hands clasped in prayer, taking a knee in the snow, his horse standing unmounted beside him. The entire painting shows humility. It was about this time that Washington was pleading with the Continental Congress, not for great weapons, but for pay for his soldiers, for food for them, for fresh food, for blankets, and other things to ensure that they could survive the winter without sickness. There was no battle coming up that he was praying for – except the battle against the cold and hunger. Washington’s prayer was the service of a great Christian leader for his soldiers. It was what one man could do for another. 

Because of the Christian influence on our leaders, in World War II, the greatest of American soldiers, rather than lead the invasion of Europe from England, General of the Army George C Marshall stayed in America to organize the material and organization support for the soldiers. He served the soldiers and generals rather than commanded them.

Today, we learn leadership from the coach, who has a different style of leadership than the elementary school teacher and the drill instructor. The coach teaches us how to become great ourselves, both individually and as a team. The good coach isn’t telling us every step of the play, but is teaching us to think on the run, not ordering us to work out, but showing us how to work out, not treating us like marching soldiers or servants – but serving us by helping us become greater than the coach is. And this would not be possible without the change of what leadership is that Jesus gave His disciples in this one, short teaching.

Today, there is a tremendous dispute about what the purpose of the modern church is. One group believes the purpose of the church is to march and enact positive change in the world through protests, through political action, even through revolution, through the exercise of political power. I have seen these people on both sides of the political spectrum, from the far left to the far right, and I have concluded that most of the leaders of this idea simply want the position and power to push people around. For them, the church is simply a political power base.

Another group believes that the purpose of the church is to take care of the poor in society through a series of missions – soup kitchens, clothing closets, rent assistance, literacy campaigns, and treatment programs. I have met many of these people, and find that while many of these people are genuinely concerned about the people they are serving, many more of these leaders are more concerned about the numbers than they are the people, for they will organize their material giveaways carefully, yet rarely talk with the people they serve, and then speak of them as “them”, as though the people they serve are a different species, not really people at all. These leaders are uncomfortable when the people they give goods and services to return to church services.

Still another group believes that the purpose of the church is lead people to a declaration of belief in Jesus, possibly to baptism. And once again, many people in leadership of these groups often behave as though they are putting notches on their belts, one for each soul saved – and then after the declaration of faith, after the baptism, little is done to help the New Christian move to a higher level. For they now attend church, the pews are a bit fuller, and the weekly collection is a bit stronger, but the baby Christians stay baby Christians.

But another group, myself among them, believes that the purpose of the church is to make disciples and followers of Jesus, who will then lead other people to become disciples and follower of Jesus, and thus the world will be changed and people will find a better life in this world and then eternal life in the next. Belief and baptism are an important part of this, taking care of struggling people is an important strategy in this, ensuring reasonable laws is also important, but we must keep the “main thing” the main thing. We are to go to all types of people, baptize them, and teach them everything Jesus has commanded – including this very idea that they are then to go to all types of people, baptizing them, and teach the next generation everything that Jesus has commanded. The cycle goes on and on because the task of the church is the creation, the development, and the nurture of disciples. It is through an ever increasing number of disciples that ministry is accomplished in the world.

Notice that there are three aspects to this discipling process.

First, we each go into the world, speaking to all types of people about the love of God the Father and Jesus, who is God the Son and gave His life in our place. We help people to rethink their attitude toward God, turning from a belief that God is out to “Get Them” and turning toward a belief that God wants a good, loving relationship with each of us, like Jesus, God the Father wants to serve us, to help us succeed, to put us on a path which will lead us to having wonderful, beautiful souls.

After a person turns to Jesus, accepting that God loves them, then we are to lead the person to baptism, where each person is cleansed of sin, a first step toward obeying God instead of fighting God. Baptism is the first step taken in faith which will lead to a new disciple, the creation of a new disciple out of a person who is in rebellion to God.

And then, it is up to us to develop this new disciple. Many ideas and behaviors must be taught – ideas like turning the other cheek, forgiving others, understanding that Jesus’ death and resurrection affects each of us in a deep way, learning to give grace to others just as grace has been given to us, the meaning of Holy Communion, the need to be trustworthy, as well as the humble pride that belongs to a child of God, a pride that we belong to God’s family yet a humbleness that knows that this is not of our doing, but God’s and so we are no better than our criminal neighbor for it has been God’s decision that has put us where we are and God’s choice that keeps our neighbor in prison. We must be taught that all people, including ourselves have sinned and fallen short of the glory that is God’s, but that because of Christ, we can share in that Glory because of God’s generosity, and so we must develop our own generosity toward others. And so, the disciple is developed.

And then, the disciple must be nurtured and begin to help discover and develop other disciples, becoming an apostle who proclaims the Gospel, a teacher who develops other disciples, and a mature Christian disciple who leads in the church and in the world.

You have known these people. Many have transferred to the Church of Heaven in the past few years. And so, it is time for new leaders.

I realize that for many of us, it seems that the problems of the world are overwhelming. COVID, drug addictions, politics, wars, rising prices, cultural changes frighten us. We often feel overwhelmed, so pastor, why should we take on a new role in our lives, the role of being Christian leaders? Perhaps you don’t even feel like you’ve learned the basics of Christianity – you feel overwhelmed with the world around you today and the problems of life.

Being overwhelmed by problems is a spiritual problem in itself. It is the result of a deadly sin - no, it is rarely the sin of sloth, because the slothful rarely feel overwhelmed. Very few truly lazy people feel overwhelmed, because people don’t come to the lazy with problems to be solved – other people know if we are lazy – or not. There’s even an old saying, “If you need something done, find a busy man who will take on the project.” For the lazy, slothful man is never busy – but the busy man knows how to accomplish much.

No, being overwhelmed by problems is a spiritual problem, but it is not the problem of sloth, of laziness. Instead, it is the sin of pride. "I" must be involved in all of these events/actions/problems. "I" must fix all these problems. "I" am in charge. "I" can't handle it all!. Only "I" can do it the right way. And so the prideful feel overwhelmed because everything depends on the “I”. We have so much to do!

Yet, the reality is that we each have limited abilities and time. God has placed each of us Christians on the earth in a particular place and time to accomplish a particular set of tasks. As the newest Christian, we have been sent to be a leader in the world. Remember that we are to be “salt of the earth”? Remember that Jesus said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. ⁴³ Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.”

As a Christian we are to serve others. We are to lead by this great, wonderful example of serving others, loving others without condition, usually without pay, without power, without glory. But this is the way to greatness in Jesus’ Kingdom. To serve others and serve them well.

And the greatest service we can each do for others is to help them become disciples of Jesus, for each disciple of Jesus gains eternal life, which is better than having a turkey at Thanksgiving, a ham at Christmas, a new car, or even a jazzed up 4-wheel drive pickup. We lead them to Christ through our service. That is what it means to be a leader in this world, a Christian leader. And Christ would love to see each one of us pick up that cross and lead our own procession of disciples that we have created, developed, and nurtured because we listened to the Holy Spirit and followed the Word of God.

But suddenly, do you feel overwhelmed again? Don’t let the sin of pride overcome us, keeping us from following Christ because we don’t think we can do it all. For we don’t have to do it all – we let the Holy Spirit accomplish the hard work, and we focus on the priorities of Christ.

Our focus as a Christian leader must be to set priorities - keeping the "main thing" the "main thing". And in ministry, the creation, the development and the nurture of disciples is the "main thing". And how do we develop people? By giving them responsibility for solving problems, (including the development of people!).

I once knew a wise manager when I worked in industry. When someone complained about how another department was messing up, or a product or service was messed up, it seems like within a month or so, the complainer found themselves appointed in charge of the problem department, product, or service. Many problems were solved in that way - including the problem of complainers...Let others solve the problems - and if they "fail", they will learn and develop as Christian leaders. And that is what Jesus wants. He wants each of us to fail enough that we will become successful Christian leaders with an entire train of disciples learning from each of us.

So, a year ago I asked you to write down a list of a dozen names and begin praying for them regularly, people who needed to be introduced to Christ. Once a week or a month, you were asked to speak with them about something you about Jesus or God or Holy Spirit. How’s it going? Have you been faithful to these people? If so, keep it up. If not, begin again and see how things go this year.

Amen!

Purpose and Commitment

There was a man I once knew. We’ll call him Bob. Bob had grown up in a family that had very little – but they owned their own home, their own land, their own tools. His father had been honest with our hero – there was no money available for college, although his father would never stop Bob from going to college if he could earn the money himself. So Bob learned to work hard – his exercise consisted of handling the cattle on the farm, digging the garden with a shovel, a rake, and a hoe, lifting bales of hay into the barn. He didn’t play football because his mother was concerned he’d get injured, but he became the pitcher for his high school baseball team.

Bob made a commitment when he was young to always work long and hard, to play by the rules, to be honest and trustworthy, to stick to his plans, his jobs, his studies. He made a commitment to be loyal to his purpose, which was to earn a good living, a good home, a good name, and financial security.

He worked as a carpenter’s helper and a roofer’s helper during high school, carrying those heavy squares of asphalt shingles up the ladder to the roof, cutting 2x4’s to length and handing them to the carpenter, working hard and long hours in the summer, cutting firewood and delivering that firewood to neighbors on fall evenings while his friends practiced football or marched in the band. He gave extraordinary attention to his studies, saved his money, and so he was able to attend college, studying engineering.

At college, he refereed intramural games. Volleyball and basketball, mainly, he called outs and fouls while the fraternities competed – all to earn 50 cents a game. In addition to his regular classes, he joined the ROTC program. He typed his own papers because he couldn’t afford to pay a typist.

When summer came, he returned to work, surveying for construction projects, more roofing, more carpentry work, more long, hot, difficult hours, working construction at a chemical plant, carrying two 80 lb bags of cement on his shoulders as he walked up five stories to the work area. He did this for the summer, went back to college that fall, he’d paid his own way in a time before all the grants and loans and scholarships, but the second summer the jobs weren’t available, so he couldn’t go back for the third year.

He met a girl, got married, and managed to just barely support the two of them that fall and winter. He made a lifelong commitment to her and kept it, because that was part of what it meant to be a “good man”.

Then, Uncle Sam called him and so Bob went into the army.

A couple days into Basic training, though, the sergeant asked if anyone had any ROTC experience. Bob stepped forward and found himself as the assistant drill sergeant in all but pay and rank. As anyone who has taught has learned, Bob learned more leading those men than he would have learned being taught by the drill instructor.

After Basic training, with his background, Bob was moved to an engineering battalion, and, because he could type, he became the company clerk which was easy duty until the night they were put on alert and he wore his fingerprints smooth typing orders for every man in the company. But then, just as they were heading to the airfield, the alert was cancelled and he never left the States.

After his service, he returned to his hometown, started his construction work, and then his wife found him a job with a new chemical plant. He soon bought some land and built a house. He worked there as an operator, moved up to shift foreman, then moved to maintenance foreman, then became a superintendent. On the side, he bought a dilapidated home each fall and remodeled them over the winter, selling in the spring at a nice profit. And so he paid off his house early, and continued with similar projects.

To everybody who knew him, Bob was an honorable man. He was hard-working, had no noticeable vices, was honest and followed through on his promises. If anything, he cheated himself by pricing the homes he remodeled too low – they always sold in about a month. He was generous to people who needed help, paying high wages to high school boys whom he’d hire for projects that needed muscle like digging ditches and wheelbarrowing concrete. When he acquired some rental property, he kept the rents stable and reasonable for years and years. His home was neat, modern, and well-kept. The same with his vehicles – they always looked nice. Bob always dressed appropriately – neat and clean, suits on formal occasions, nice blue jeans on Saturday morning trips to the hardware store.

But Bob would not go to church.

You see, Bob had many church-going friends who were always talking about men and women who had serious problems needing to go to church. Men who drank too much, women who went from man to man, people who were lazy – these were the people Bob’s friends were always saying needed to be in church. And Bob didn’t have these sorts of problems. His standing in the community was high – he had heard the Ten Commandments as a child, he had followed them, no one had anything against him and he was secure that he was a good man. In fact, when people talked about him in the community, it was said that Bob was a good man. In Bob’s mind, he didn’t need to go to church. His actions and interactions with other people were beyond reproach.  

He believed in God. But Bob never mentioned Jesus. And so Bob lived his life, happy, content, increasingly popular in the community. Clearly God had blessed Bob because of his strong morals, ethics, and hard work.  More than anyone else in town, Bob was a good man – and so Bob wasn’t the least bit worried as he grew older. God would take care of Bob and welcome Bob into heaven.

One day, as Jesus was walking along, a man ran up to him, fell on his knees, and said “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

This man was wealthy. He had a good home, a good family, a good name just as Bob did. But this man had something even more – he had the humility to understand that he might not have eternal life. Unlike Bob, this man who was on his knees was asking the question of the wisest man he’d heard of. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Jesus took issue with part of the question.

¹⁸ “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone. 

This was the something neither Bob nor this man on his knees never realized. For they both thought of themselves as “good” and so this man called Jesus “Good teacher”. Both Bob and the man thought that “goodness” was something where men and women compared themselves to one another. But Jesus pointed out that the standard of “goodness” was God’s goodness. Every one else falls short of the goodness and glory of God.

We often think that being good, being righteous, is something on a scale of 1 to 10, and we might be a 9.5 while our neighbor is a 4.7. But Jesus effectively tells us that while we might be a 9.5 on the scale of man’s goodness, God’s goodness is 1000. We may be very good compared to other men and women, but God is comparing us to God’s goodness and we fall very, very short of God’s goodness. Jesus even implies that perhaps even Jesus doesn’t measure up – but that’s a deep discussion for another time. Suffice it to say, that Jesus severely challenged the man on his knees about what the standard of goodness was – it wasn’t just to be applied to a man with no apparent moral or ethical failures. God alone is good, according to Jesus.

Jesus continued talking to the man on his knees:

¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.’”

²⁰ “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

The man was very honest. He did not say, “I have always kept these.” He said, “these I have kept since I was a boy.” This is honesty. We have all broken commandments as children. Almost everyone has broken commandments as adults. This man on his knees before Jesus honestly stated that he had broken the commandments as a boy, but he had then pulled his life together and become a man who tried his best to follow the commandments – and succeeded.

²¹ Jesus looked at him and loved him. 

As a pastor, I can tell you that the man on his knees is extraordinarily rare, for most people will confess adult sins and there are others who will falsely claim to have always followed the commandments, but this man, on his knees before Jesus, stated the truth – “all these I have kept since I was a boy.” The imperfection of youth is acknowledged. The striving for moral and ethical perfection is also stated.

And so, ²¹ Jesus looked at him and loved him. The man, you see, was humble even in his striving for perfection, for he had presented himself on his knees in front of Jesus.

“One thing you lack,” Jesus said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

Just like Bob, this man who was on his knees, was convinced that he was on the way to the good life. And he probably was – he had his security, he had his social standing, everyone liked him, he was following the rules that society had put down, he could dress well, he had a nice home, no one could lay a charge against him.

But, you know, there is a commandment in Deuteronomy 5 which says:

6 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 7 “You shall have no other gods before me.

In Bob’s case – and in the case of the man who was on his knees before Jesus – they had both put something in front of God. They had chosen to assume that a good life, a good name, a good home, living a moral and ethical life were proof that God and them had a bargain, an agreement, an understanding.

But they both chose to put their good lives ahead of following God. Jesus told the man on his knees before Jesus, the man whom Jesus loved for his honesty, for his commitment to being good, for his love of all things right – Jesus told him to sell everything he had, give it to the poor, and then to follow Jesus. Jesus even said that if he sold his wealth and gave it to the poor that the man would have treasure in heaven. But that wasn’t good enough for the man on his knees in front of Jesus.

²² At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Bob never even asked the question. So many people today never ask the question, for they feel that their wealth and social standing is sufficient evidence of goodness. They have listened to the subtle message of the last hundred years in America that says, “Work hard, be ethical, be moral, and God will bless you. And if you are blessed by God, that is proof you have done the right things.”

But the actual fact is just that you have played by the rules of America if you have a nice home, if you have a nice vehicle, if you are respected by your neighbors.

Jesus, the Son of God, says that to achieve eternal life the man on his knees must get rid of his wealth, his distractions and  “follow me”.

Is it surprising that becoming a success in America is mainly focused upon the accumulation of wealth and status? Almost every commercial speaks subtly or blatantly about how buying this particular car will show the world that you have succeeded, either by attracting a beautiful woman or a handsome man, by allowing you to take your finely dressed wife to a high end restaurant – or take your lively children to a great camping location. Phone commercials show us how to make videos that will lift our worldly status – even drink and pizza commercials make us the heroes of our family or our friend’s circle. Lowe’s and Home Depot show us how to turn our homes into Roman villas, while medicine commercials subtly tell us that the proper American life has us running marathons at age 85.

But Jesus says, “One thing you lack,” Jesus said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

And that is very difficult for the Bobs of the world who have become successful in the eyes of their neighbors, their families, their self. I know. I was a Bob. Saundra and I had a nice home in Lowell, a nice Internet business, a growing standing in the Marietta community – but Jesus said to sell everything and follow Him.

Why did we do this?

Because there comes a time when we realized that the purpose of gathering wealth cost too much. If your home, your wealth is your security, you must have more and more security, for the market is always going up and down, sales are always going up and down, the business climate is always changing, and there is a constant tug of war between money for the business and money for the home and the stuff. There is a constant tug of war between time spent on the business and time spent on family. There is a constant question of “what is really important?”

And so, we began first by trying to follow Jesus as an add-on to our business. We began trying to operate the business and the household and adding Jesus-stuff to the mix. But eventually, we saw that the only way to follow Jesus is to follow Jesus and let everything else go. It is impossible to just add following Jesus to our lives. We have to follow Him, or stay behind.

So I became a part-time pastor, went to seminary, taught full-time as a teacher and part-time as an adjunct professor for three years, then became a full-time pastor in Clarksburg while Saundra became a part-time, then a full-time pastor. We sold the house and closed down the Internet business.

And along the way we found eternal purpose for our lives. For we found that we cannot just ADD Christianity or DO Christianity, but we must completely follow Jesus. And eternal purpose comes when we commit to following Jesus.

Bob had a purpose for his life when he was young. His purpose was to acquire a good house, a good name which was respected in the community, wealth for security.

I’m sorry to say, but as we look toward our future life, there is no amount of wealth that can do more than buy a few years of life. Steve Jobs, the billionaire owner of Apple Computer found that out when he was diagnosed with liver and pancreatic cancer. Despite spending over 10 million dollars on new and experimental treatments, Jobs died ten years ago.

All good houses decay and eventually fall or must be remodeled. Good names fade over time as people forget who you are. Over time you stop being “Bob”, and become “Jim’s father” or “Sarah’s grandfather”. And then you die and fade away.

But when we decide to truly follow Jesus, when we make that strong commitment to walk away from the wealth of this life and instead follow Jesus, we find purpose. For Jesus always give us eternal purpose.

If I speak to you, your children, or your grandchildren, with the help of the Holy Spirit, I can make an eternal, positive difference in lives, even possibly in the long-term condition of souls.

It is possible for you, also, to find an eternal purpose with Christ. With commitment, you, too, can affect people eternally. But not if you remain like Bob, more committed to your home, your wealth, your good name than to following Jesus.

²³ Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

²⁴ The disciples were amazed at his words.

They were amazed because most people thought that wealth was proof that a person was right with God. Most people, like today, thought that poverty was proof that God was upset with a person. Even today, we mostly mistakenly believe that the Bobs of this world are blessed by God.

But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to 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 The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

The disciples, like most people, were still focused upon earthly wealth.

²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

²⁸ Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”

Peter always felt that he needed to state the obvious, as if Jesus didn’t know these things.

²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel ³⁰ will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. ³¹ But many who are first will be last, and the last first.”

Jesus said that following Him has great rewards – a hundred times as much, even in this present age – “along with persecutions” – plus eternal life. But, Jesus said, “many who are first will be last, and the last first”.

In Jesus’ Kingdom, there is a re-ordering of priorities. Many – not all – but many of those who are looked upon as successful…leaders…wealthy – will be at the back of the pack, and many who are seen as losers – will find that they are actually the winners.

So what about you? Are you a Bob, dedicated to being a good man, working long and hard to earn a good living, a good home, a good name, a good life? Many people are today.

Or have you recognized that no one is good except God, and have you chosen to follow Jesus, even if it means the loss of your home, your good name, your wealth and security, because following Jesus means eternal life and purpose for you and for others you lead to Christ.

Or are you like the man on his knees in front of Jesus, unable to give up the good things of this life in order to follow Jesus into eternal life.

The choice is simple – and yet very difficult. The stuff of the good life – or eternal life because you decided to make your life’s purpose and committed to following Jesus. Wealth or eternal life? It’s your decision to make.

Amen!

Response Hymn  - Tis so Sweet to Trust in Jesus 

Commitment – I will Follow 

Super-Angelic Power

October is here, the leaves are falling, and we are beginning to look toward the holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas. The world around us is still mired in the days of football, decorating with a combination of fall pumpkins, cornstalks, and other harvest symbols – and skeletons, black cats, witches, and other symbols of Halloween are appearing across our land.

It never ceases to amaze me that so many people are fascinated with evil supernatural creatures, such as zombies, witches, werewolves, vampires and the like – but fewer are fascinated with truly good creatures and beings, such as angels and Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Many of these same people will say they don’t believe in a supernatural God – yet, they believe in the supernatural ability of black cats to control the Universe, don’t they? It’s such a contradiction to believe only in evil supernatural and not believe in the good supernatural.

Yet, there are also those who are fascinated with angels too much, if the shelves of Christian and secular stores are any indicator. Yet those ceramic and glass creations of men and women which claim to be angels and are placed in locations of honor and even worship by some can rightly be seen to have become idols. I have know those who collect these figures and pay them homage once a week, carefully dusting them and admiring them, lifting them and gently replacing them in that place of honor every week.

It is interesting. We look at the beauty and the power of angels and do not understand the beauty of a mature, believing, baptized Christian. We don’t understand that we can access far more power through the Holy Spirit than any angel has. And yet many people almost fall to worship angels, created creatures of God, while ignoring Jesus and the Holy Spirit, who are far more beautiful and powerful.

Yet angels are biblical. However, unlike the beautiful women with wings who adorn bookshelves and curio cabinets around this land, unlike the baby-faced infants who fly on greeting cards, the overwhelming majority of angels we find in scripture are huge, terrifying, well-built men with powerful voices and legs of brass or bronze. Some fly – but wings are reserved for the seraphim – six-winged creatures who fly in the throne room of God.

Daniel encountered an angel, which he describes in Chapter Ten of his book:

4 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the great river, the Tigris, 5 I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. 6 His body was like topaz, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude.

Terrifying? Yes!

In almost every account where an angel appears to a man or woman, that man or woman hits the ground, face down, frightened so much their knees buckled. The first words of an angel are almost always “Fear not!” as they work to help our earthly hero calm down. It’s like the first time you’re driving along and a state trooper turns on his lights and siren while driving one car length behind you.

Daniel describes his angelic encounter:

7 I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision; those who were with me did not see it, but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. 8 So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. 9 Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground.

10 A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees. 11 He said, “Daniel, you who are highly esteemed, consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.

No, those little angel figurines we find in Hallmark shops and bookstores are not very accurate.

Another thing. When someone passes on, when someone dies, at funerals, there seems to always be someone who says something like, “God needed another angel.”, particularly if the person who has died is young. This saying promotes two incorrect teachings. First, that God “took” the person.

Lets understand something. God does not “take” people. God established a world and our ancestors broke it by their disobedience. Part of the breakage is that people die. And we can’t blame just Adam and Eve completely, because we have each disobeyed God at some point in our lives. We have each sinned, and thus needed to turn back to God, apologize, and ask to be forgiven. We have each needed to turn to Jesus, choose to follow Him, and receive the Holy Spirit and a repaired heart through belief, repentance, and baptism.

But the world remains broken and therefore people die. God doesn’t “take” people. People die. So far, all people – even Jesus – have died. For Jesus, though, He came back from the dead. Only a handful of people have been raised from the dead other than Jesus – Lazarus, Dorcas, a centurion’s daughter, a widow’s son. Yet all of us who follow Jesus will be raised again at the general resurrection when Christ returns. That is when the world will be repaired – and we Christians will live again.

So don’t blame God by saying “God needed another angel”.

The second incorrect teaching is the idea that when we die, we turn into angels. Hollywood and children’s books have developed this detailed idea that when we die, we go directly to Heaven and then need to do good works to get our angel wings. We fly amongst the clouds. Remember Clarence, the angel from “It’s a Wonderful Life”, a man who had been dead for over a hundred years and was trying to get his wings? It makes for a nice story, but it is far from biblical. Ditto all the TV shows about angels who are sent to help ordinary people so they can become full angels.

No, the reality is found most developed in today’s reading from the Letter to the Hebrews, a letter in the New Testament. We don’t know who wrote this letter, but various ancient authorities point to Barnabas or Apollos, both of whom are mentioned as excellent teachers in the Book of Acts. Hebrews is a letter written to persuade Jews of the divinity of Jesus.

1 In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

So, first of all, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is much superior to the angels. After many verses which we have skipped which supports this, the writer of Hebrews moves onto humans, speaking of God’s actions.

2:5 It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking. 6 But there is a place where someone has testified:

“What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    a son of man that you care for him?
7 You made them a little lower than the angels;
    you crowned them with glory and honor
8     and put everything under their feet.”

In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them.

In other words, God created people just a little bit lower than the angels, but also put everything to be subject to humans. We are destined to rule over the earth.

But the writer continues: Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them. (meaning people).  9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.

Yes, when Jesus was sent to earth as a baby, He was not as powerful as the angels. But now, because He went to the cross by His own decision, He is now crowned with glory and honor. It was through this death that Jesus brought people to glory, for Jesus was not just the Son of God, but Jesus was also the Son of Man, 100% God and 100% man. His death meant something great because He died as a man for all men and women and so as men and women who choose to follow Jesus, we share in his glory. And He was able to die and be resurrected because He was God on earth. The writer continues:

¹⁰ In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. ¹¹ Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters. ¹² He says,

“I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters;
    in the assembly I will sing your praises.”

We are the brothers and sisters. God is the one who is praised.

We are brothers and sisters of Jesus, lifted by Jesus’ sacrifice above the angels, with all the earth subject to us.

If the Queen of England adopts you, don’t you become a prince or princess, above the servants of the household? God’s Son has declared you to be His brother or sister, part of His family, according to God the Father’s plan. The Apostle Paul supports this in his letter to the Ephesians, Chapter One: 3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ,

We have been adopted into the Royal Family of God. The angels are the household servants of that Family. When we were immature, just as young children in a noble household, we took our orders from the household servants, who protected us and guided us. But as mature, baptized believers, we have been raised above the household servants. We do not die and become angels. When we die, we take our place in the Royal Family, a much better position, for we have access directly to Father God and to our elder Brother Jesus.

Of course, it should be remembered that some angels, those who chose to follow Satan, were cast out and have fallen. They are not powerless – we need the help of Jesus to withstand them. But always remember that we who believe and are baptized are of the Royal Family.

But what does this mean for us? How does this affect us in our day-to-day lives?

And, of course, that means that we have certain responsibilities. We must represent God the Father and Jesus the Son upon the earth, especially to those who have not yet been adopted. We must not be found in compromising positions, we must not act as the rest of the world acts. We have certain obligations to represent our Father well, just as it is one thing to be a random young man who is partying in Vegas – but it is totally different if anyone there knows you and recognizes you as the son of Prince Charles of England. We must represent our Father well. We have been given the power of the Holy Spirit, which is super-angelic power – to change the world for good.

And there are indeed certain benefits to being a member of the Universe’s Royal Family. Most important about belonging to an excellent and large family is the fact that we have no excuse for being lonely. Ever. Jesus and Father are ready for our call, our prayer. Other members of the family – those in this room, for instance – are ready for our phone call, our visit, our text.

So why should we ever be lonely? Let me take a few minutes to discuss this common complaint – a complaint which has become more common over the last couple of years because of COVID.

There are a couple of types of loneliness. The first type is the absence of people around us. God made humans to live in groups – families, clans, tribes, villages. We lived for thousands of years out in the open, following herds. The most dangerous time for people was when they were alone, for that was the time the lion, the bear, the wolves would attack. And so, being alone is disturbing – and being in a group of people feels somewhat comforting for most people.

Of course, the size of the group that makes us comfortable varies widely. I have a friend from another church who has trouble sitting in the sanctuary – too many people – but prefers to sit in the narthex, the lobby where he can listen but not have too many people too close. On the other hand, I have friends from China who grew up in cities with 24 million people, and never felt comfortable in Marietta except during the crush of Sternwheeler weekend.

COVID has increased this absence of people type of loneliness, because many people had solved the loneliness problem, they thought, by “going out”. The “going out” was to restaurants, to stores for shopping, to bars, to places to dance, to group meetings, to church events. So many people just liked the feel and the noise of other people nearby, for our families have grown up for generations around other people. But COVID restrictions told us to stay away from gatherings of people. So in this church, we have kept gathering with precautions, safely, and used technology to keep bringing people together even through the worst lockdowns. Facebook, emails, newsletters, even three old technologies – letters and phone calls and visits. Just one evening this week near bedtime, I got a text from a parent asking on behalf of her child a deep theological question. I answered it within 15 minutes. These connections keep people from being lonely, for we are reminded that we have not been forgotten.

The second type of loneliness is sometimes described as “lonely in a crowd”. It is the loneliness that happens when there are people around us, but no friends are around us. Many young people encounter this at college; it hits other people during  a night out, sitting alone or with a couple of acquaintances at a restaurant or bar, shopping in a department store. Although there are plenty of people around, there is no one who we feel understands us. The bar is filled with shallow people tonight, there is no one with us who takes time to know us deeply, the shopping seems pointless, the people in the club only seem concerned with the passion of the club. After all, why go to a photography club if you are bored with photography?

In fact, loneliness may largely explain why men and women have often turned to church when the “lonely in a crowd” idea has struck them in college, as older parent’s children leave the nest, as people retire and are no longer around their co-workers where they were employed, when people move to a new town. The twice-weekly church services replace the children, hometown friends, and the friends from work with new, supportive friends, older and younger.

Young singles can find future spouses at church who have a common philosophy, which helps to make lasting, life-long relationships. Older people from the church can act as mentors, guides, role-models, and friends who can partially replace parents for these young people.

Older people love to meet younger families at church because their own children and grandchildren have moved to other states. And young families can find men and women who can act as substitute grandparents, sources of wisdom, babysitters, helpers, role models who can show how to turn a 5-10 year marriage into a 50 year marriage. Young families can find other families their own age to become life-long friends.

When we moved back from Atlanta 20 years ago and settled outside Marietta, we visited a couple of churches. The first church had several families with children our children’s age – but something wasn’t right, so we visited a second church. There, we found a family who had begun attending the church just a couple of weeks earlier. Their children’s ages filled the gaps between our children’s ages – we became close friends – and we had the couple over to dinner a couple weeks ago, still friends after almost 20 years.

And so, the church – which is the local part of the Royal Family of the Universe – the church family offers people who will understand us and love us, for our Father and elder Brother has taught us to love others, particularly members of the Royal Family. It is part of our Super-Angelic power.

One more thing about loneliness. Every once in a while, I run into someone who says something like, “I feel I’ve fallen through the cracks! No one has called me in ages.” Or “No one contacted me when I was sick.”

Now move your feet back under the pew. I don’t want to step on them too harshly. If you are a person who feels like you’ve fallen through the cracks, I want you to ask yourself honestly – how long have you been hiding in the cracks? How long have you gone without reaching out to others? For Jesus and His apostles all encourage each of us to reach out to other people in the church and in the community, to spread our Holy Spirit salt to the world. If you are overlooked, it is probably because you haven’t reached out much yourself. Phone calls work both ways, after all. Introduce yourself at church to someone new each week, either in person or by phone, and you’ll never go lonely.

In the same way, I’ve found that the people who complain the loudest about not being contacted are often those people who don’t let the church know when they are sick or go to the hospital. If I don’t know, I can’t go! And, of course, COVID has meant the hospitals and nursing homes have been particularly difficult about allowing visitors. Let us know, though, if you are sick – or have someone in your family let us know. Don’t assume we automatically know.

And this leads me to our final point. Donna is beginning to update our directory. Please, everyone, fill out a sheet with your name, address, landline and cell phones, and current emails. Don’t assume we have the right information – take an update sheet and put everything down, printing carefully, especially on the emails. And that will go a long, long way toward keeping you in touch with the other members of God’s Royal Family, the people here at Cedar Grove United Methodist Church.

Amen!

4 Response Hymn  - I Come with Joy 617

5 God Be with Youtill we Meet Again 672