Sunday 09/30/12 RWJ/Pottersville UMC
Sermon: “What are our stumbling blocks?”
(Growing in
faith series, Part 5 of 6)
Scripture Lesson: Psalm 124
Gospel Lesson: Mark 9:38-50
Good morning
brothers and sisters! I greet you in the name our risen Lord and savior Jesus
Christ! I hope and pray that you have all had a blessed week and I am happy to
be worshipping with you here this morning!
This
morning I am continuing on with my six part series called the “Growing in faith
series.” In the first week of this series, I talked about “Walking our faith
vs. Talking our faith,” and fulfilling the mission of the Christian Church
changing the world for Jesus Christ. The following week I gave a message called
“Faith without works is dead,” and in this message, I talked about how doing good
works for God is a means of God’s love and grace that we express to the world. In
week three of this series I gave a sermon called “Would you deny Him?” In this
message I talked about denying Jesus Christ. At times we all deny Jesus Christ,
but He calls us to serve Him and all people. Last week I gave a message called “Who
is the greatest amongst us?” In this message I talked about what are world
would look like if we saw all people as equal spiritually. That we are all
children of God, and that we all need the grace of God.
This
week however, as part five of this series, I want to talk about our stumbling
blocks. In fact, the title today’s sermon is called, “What are our stumbling
blocks?” Or to say it differently, what are those things that keep us from
being all God wants us to be? What are our vices, our sins, or the struggles
that trip us up? In the Psalm reading this morning, the Psalmist or writer of
the Psalm said, “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side,” and then
continued on with how Israel was saved and protected by God. How many times has
the Lord been on our side? How many times have we said, “Clearly God was with
me during that?”
Yet
we still struggle, and yet we have stumbling blocks. We all have our crosses to
carry in this world. Why some struggle with alcohol addition, why some struggle
with gambling, while some commit adultery, and while some steal as there vices
we may never fully know. The reality though is that we all have our stumbling
blocks. In fact, I want you during this sermon to think about your individual
stumbling blocks. What are they? Further, how can we remove these stumbling
blocks or these strongholds? Also why do we have the stumbling blocks we do?
Are our stumbling blocks worse than others? Why do we have the stumbling blocks
we have, when it seems like no one else does?
I
believe sometimes that God gives us stumbling blocks to test our faith, but
sometimes these stumbling blocks come from the devil. The Apostle Paul in scripture
for example had that famous “thorn in his side,” even though no one knows
exactly what that thorn was. So, some stumbling blocks I think come from God to
grow and test our faith, but some come from the devil. When Jesus was in the
desert the devil tempted him. The devil said “turn these stones into bread.”
The devil said, “I will give all the kingdoms of earth if you will but bow
before me.” The devil went on to tempt our Lord in many other ways as well.
Jesus did not stumble though. Jesus did not succumb to temptation. I would
encourage you that when you struggle with the stumbling blocks that you have
that are not from God, that you do not tackle the devil on your own. In fact, I
would tell you to not even engage Satan, as we cannot beat him. But Jesus can!
When you feel Satan tempting you with one of the stumbling blocks he has given
you, this is what I want you to tell him, “He rebuked you!” “In the dessert Satan,
Jesus Christ rebuked you!” The devil has no authority over you, because He
rebuked him. Remind the devil of this the next time he tells you that aren’t
good enough, that you aren’t smart enough, that he tries to convince you that
you are weak, or not able. You tell that devil “depart from this place,” “for
He rebuked you.”
In
the Gospel of Mark reading this morning, Jesus said do whatever you need to do
to avoid your stumbling blocks. Do what is necessary to fully serve the Lord,
and to tell Satan, “He rebuked you!” Sometimes though, telling Satan that “He
rebuked you” isn’t enough. This is why in the coming weeks I am going to be
discussing and attempting to implement small covenant groups in this church. These
small covenant groups will be groups where you and some of the members of this
church get together weekly or periodically, whether for dinner, or coffee, or whether
you do this every Sunday after church at lunch with each other. In these small
covenant groups we have the opportunity to have a bible study, to pray, and to
talk with one another about our struggles, to encourage one another. You see we
all struggle, and we need to be in covenant groups with each other to grow and
stay connected more fully to the Lord. I am as of right now projecting on
starting a small covenant group the 4th Saturday of every month in
the church parsonage in Johnsburg. More details to come in the next couple
weeks about this. I think these small groups will not only help us to keep our
stumbling blocks in check, but they will help us grow together as a family, and
they will help our church grow.
I
have a vision for this church, and when I was in Ohio this past week, I heard
the Lord whisper in my ear “I am not done with these communities.” I envision a
church where we have small groups that meet with regularity, where we monthly
dish to pass dinners that I have already started, where we have times to come
together as family, like the movie nights I have implemented. I have already
seen new people come into this church, and I have a vision brothers and sisters
that we keep growing! In the next couple of months, I am going to be looking
into Sunday school curriculums and the possibility of having at this church,
yes I said this church, Sunday school again. Some of you might be saying, “Well
pastor, that all sounds well and good, but can we really accomplish this?” I
would ask those people, do you trust Him? Do you really trust Him? Did he not
rebuke the devil? Why can’t we grow? Why can’t we have a Sunday school? Why can’t
we have small groups? Why can’t we have dish to pass dinners and movie nights?
Why can’t this church grow by 20 or by 30 people? Why not?
Sometimes,
I think this is the devil whispering in our ears, “your church can’t grow, and
it will die eventually.” I say to that devil, “He rebuked you!” I remember
hearing a Billy Graham quote about the Lutheran and the Methodist Church some
time ago. Billy Graham remarked that the Lutheran Church and that the United
Methodist Church are “sleeping giants.” “What if,” he said, “they awoke?” For He
rebuked him.
As
we consider our own sins, our own stumbling blocks, and our own struggles, I
would encourage you to repent to the Lord, and repent to each other. Ask
almighty God for forgiveness for what you have done and ask Him for the strength
to turn from those sins, and really on your brothers and sisters in the Lord
for strength to grow and overcome your stumbling blocks.
In
closing this morning, I have a short story that I feel illustrates our sins and
our stumbling blocks. Here is the story. A reporter went to hell and heaven to
see what they were like to report back to the world. In hell there was a
massive banquet table, and yes not in heaven, but in hell. This banquet table
went on as far as the eye could see. On this banquet table there was every good
food you can imagine. Think of the best Thanksgiving spread that you have ever
seen and multiply this by ten. The food on this table would be like nothing you
had ever seen. Yet the people at this banquet table in hell were starving. They
had not eaten in weeks, or months, or even years. There punishment for their evil
and wicked ways was to starve and yet not die, but yet at the same time see all
of the food. It was interesting though that the reporter noted that the devil
gave each person at the banquet table a long spoon to eat with. Yet each spoon
was too long to pick up food and then reach back to put it in their mouths.
Some of the people tried to choke up on the spoon, but the devil would always
stop them when they tried. So the only way the devil would let them eat was
with this long spoon, yet it could not reach their mouths. These people were
angry, and were all focused on their own hunger.
To
the reporters surprise though when he went up to heaven, there was the same
exact banquet table, with the same exact food. Interesting that the devil had all
of this in hell and that God did exactly the same thing. Just like the devil,
God gave the people long spoons to eat with, and the same rules applied to the
saints at this banquet table, as it did to those damned at the banquet table in
hell. It was interesting though, that in heaven all the people at the banquet
were well feed, and happy. How could this be though the reporter asked God? How
could the exact same circumstances be in place in heaven as in hell, yet those
in hell were starving? God looked at the reporter and smiled. Then God simply
said, “Look at them, what do you see?” As the reporter looked, he noticed that
one saint got a spoonful of food and reached it across the table to feed someone
else. In fact, everyone at this banquet table did this. God then smiled and
looked at the reporter and said, “You see My saints are well feed, because they
feed each other.” In hell it didn’t and wouldn’t have ever even crossed the
mind of the damned to feed each other.
You
see, we need to feed each other brothers and sisters, or we will starve. We
need to tackle our stumbling blocks not only before God, but before each other.
So this week think about what your stumbling blocks are, go to God with them,
and go to each other with them. As I continue to develop our small covenant
groups, I ask you to consider what we could do for the Lord if our stumbling
blocks were removed. May we love each other in the name of Jesus Christ this
week. Amen and halleluiah.
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