Easter Sunday - RWJ/Pottersville UMC - 03/31/13 Sermon - “This is the hinge pin!"

Easter Sunday - 03/31/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “This is the hinge pin!”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Acts 10:34-43

                                             

Gospel Lesson: John 20:1-18

          He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Good morning brothers and sisters! I want to welcome you to this our Easter Sunday morning worship service. This Sunday is the most celebrated and the highest Sunday in our Christian Calendar. While the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas is a major holiday, today is the day that death has been conquered! Today our faith is proven valid! Today Jesus has overcome the world, overcome sin, and overcome all that ensnares humanity.

From a sermon from the late and great Dr. S.M. Lockridge, he said, “The Pharisees couldn’t stand Him, but they found out they couldn’t stop Him. Pilate couldn’t find any fault in Him, and Herod couldn’t kill Him.
Death couldn’t handle Him, and the grave couldn’t hold Him! That’s my King! That’s my King!”

Today then, in National Football League or NFL terms, this is our Super Bowl! Christmas could be considered the season opener, but today is the grand finale of the Christian faith. Today is the day that cements our Christian faith! For without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there is no Christian faith. For without the resurrection, than Jesus was just a man, just a prophet, just a living creature, like the rest of us. So I would submit to you on this morning that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is central and vital to the Christian faith. In fact, “This is the hinge pin!” Much like how a door cannot stay on its hinges without the hinge pins, our Christian faith cannot stay together without the resurrection of Jesus Christ. By his very resurrection then, he proved not only he was who he said he was, but who he still is. That he came to earth, encased himself in the flesh of man, overcame sin, overcame pain, and overcame all other struggles. He even overcame the very grave itself!

For Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, but Lazarus could not raise himself from the dead. For Lazarus was just a man, but Jesus was God on earth! For if Jesus was only a human man then, or only a prophet, how could he then raise himself from the dead. Only God can raise people from the dead. Only God can raise himself from the dead, as Jesus was the living God here on Earth. To speak a little more about the power of Jesus Christ, Dr. S.M. Lockridge said in his same sermon, “He’s the miracle of the age. He’s the only one able to supply all of our needs simultaneously. He supplies strength for the weak. He’s available for the tempted and the tried. He sympathizes and He saves. He guards and He guides. He heals the sick. He cleansed the lepers. He forgives sinners. He discharges debtors. He delivers the captives. He defends the feeble. He blesses the young. He serves the unfortunate. He regards the aged. He rewards the diligent, and He beautifies the meager?” Dr. S.M Lockridge then went to say “Do you know Him?”

He then even went on to say, “I wish I could describe him to you”. I watched a video on YouTube last night that was put together from this sermon, called “That’s my King!” It brought tears to my eyes, as I reflected upon the might, the majesty, and the power of Jesus Christ, our Messiah.

You see brothers and sister today we find ourselves at an empty tomb. As it said in today’s reading from Acts 10, “They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day”. He is risen brothers and sisters! His is risen indeed! “This is the hinge pin”! For if Jesus Christ is truly the messiah, was truly God on earth, was truly the fullness and the totality of everything that he said he was, than only he could conquer death, and only he could rise from the grave! He truly is the Messiah! He truly is everything and all that he said he was! He truly fulfilled all of the prophecies of old!

As many of you know, for the past many weeks, I have been raising the wife of our family friend and retired United Methodist Pastor, Rev. Bob Pinto’s wife Bonnie Pinto up in prayer. Rev. Pinto has had a profound and a strong impact on my faith journey and my path to following God’s call to the pastorate. I remember one time in my young life when I was having some struggles with people who were persecuting me for my faith. Feeling broken about the situation on a Saturday morning, the phone suddenly rang. On the other end of the line was Rev. Pinto. Rev. Pinto said when I answered very plainly, “I have something to tell you”. I then said ok Rev. Pinto, what is it. He then said, “Paul these persecutors are not attacking you, they are attacking Jesus. For you live for Jesus, and because of this, they see this, they do not like him, and they attack him. They are not attacking you, they are attacking Jesus,” he said.

One Easter Sunday morning, we were worshiping in Rev. Pinto’s then appointed church charge, and he said something that blew me away. He said in so many words that Jesus was the fullness of God, that he had conquered the grave, and that he fulfilled all of the prophesies of old. For when he was raised there was no fleshy body of Christ to be found. Then Rev. Pinto said something that I will never forget. He said something that has stuck with me on my hardest days in seminary and in my faith walk. And I would ask you to listen to what I am about to say very closely. Rev. Pinto said on that Easter morning, “If you can find me the bones of Jesus Christ, then I will be worshipping in the Jewish Synagogue next Saturday”. Once again, Rev. Pinto said, “If you can find me the bones of Jesus Christ, then I will be worshipping in the Jewish Synagogue next Saturday”.

While we love, respect, and defend our Jewish brothers and sisters in American and worldwide, what makes us Christian, is that the body of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ is nowhere to be found! For the grave could not hold the king! For as I read in the beginning of today’s service from Luke 24:5, the angels of the Lord said to Mary and the others who came to Jesus’ tomb, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?” For “If you can find me the bones of Jesus Christ, then I will be worshipping in the Jewish Synagogue next Saturday”! “This is the hinge pin” brothers and sisters. This is the big event! This is our super bowl!

So today I declare unto you in full confidence and faith that he is alive, he is well, and he is sitting at the right hand of almighty God! For He is risen! He is risen indeed! As the of the Gospel of John reading from this morning said speaking of one of Jesus’ disciples, “He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrapping lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself.” Jesus then appears to Mary, and tells her, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God. Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her”.

“Why do you seek the living among the dead?” He is risen and alive and well. “This is the hinge pin!” For without the resurrection, we have no faith, but with it, we have a mighty, powerful, and amazing savior named Jesus Christ!

I would like to close this Easter message with a story. This story is called “The Easter Story.” Here is how it goes: “Jeremy was born with a twisted body and a slow mind. At the age of 12 he was still in second grade, seemingly unable to learn. His teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his seat, drool, and make grunting noises. At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy just irritated his teacher. One day, she called his parents and asked them to come in for a consultation. As the Forresters entered the empty classroom, Doris said to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is a five-year gap between his age and that of the other students." “Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue, while her husband spoke. "Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here." Doris sat for a long time after they had left, staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Forresters. After all, their only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach, and Jeremy was a distraction. Furthermore, he would never learn to read and write. Why waste any more time trying?”

“As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. 'Here I am complaining when my problems are nothing compared to that poor family.' she thought. 'Lord, please help me be more patient with Jeremy.' From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy's noises and his blank stares. Then one day, he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him. "I love you, Miss Miller." he exclaimed, loud enough for the whole class to hear. The other students snickered, and Doris' face turned red. She stammered, "Wh-why that's very nice, Jeremy. N-now please take your seat."

“Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large plastic egg. "Now," she said to them, "I want you to take this home and bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you understand?" "Yes, Miss Miller." the children responded, enthusiastically, all except for Jeremy. He listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even make his usual noises. Had he understood what she had said about Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.

“That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop for groceries, iron a blouse, and prepare a vocabulary test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy's parents.”

“The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk. After they completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In the first egg, Doris found a flower. "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of new life." she said. "When plants peek through the ground, we know that spring is here." A small girl in the first row waved her arm. "That's my egg, Miss Miller." she called out. The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes and grows into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that's new life, too." Little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is mine." Next, Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that moss, too, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom, "My daddy helped me," he beamed. Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty. Surely it must be Jeremy's, she thought, and of course, he did not understand her instructions. If only she had not forgotten to phone his parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside and reached for another.”

Suddenly, Jeremy spoke up. "Miss Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?" Flustered, Doris replied, "But Jeremy, your egg is empty." He looked into her eyes and said softly, "Yes, but Jesus' tomb was empty, too." Time stopped. When she could speak again, Doris asked him, "Do you know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh, yes." Jeremy said, "Jesus was killed and put in there. Then His Father raised Him up." The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the schoolyard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted completely away.

Three months later, Jeremy died. Those who paid their respects at the mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket ... all of them empty.

He is risen! He is risen indeed! Do you know him? Do you know what he has done for you, for me, and for everyone? As the song “You are I am” by the band “Mercy Me” says about Jesus Christ, “You're the one who conquers giants. You're the one who calls out kings. You shut the mouths of lions. You tell the dead to breathe. You're the one who walks through fire. You take the orphan's hand. You are the one Messiah. You are I am. You are I am.”

“This is the hinge pin” brothers and sister! For he has risen! He has risen indeed! Praise him with all glory and honor, Amen!

Good Friday - Pottersville UMC - 03/29/13 Sermon - “Forgive them; for they know not what they do!”

Good Friday - 03/29/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “Forgive them; for they know not what they do!”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Psalm 22, Hebrews 10:16-25

                                             

Gospel Lesson: John 18:1-19:42

          Good evening brothers and sisters! What a joy and a pleasure it is to be with you this evening, as we continue on in this our Holy Week. This week in our Christian Calendar that is the most holy of all of the weeks of the year. The week where Jesus first rides in to Jerusalem on a donkey to the shouts of “Hosanna”! “God save us”! The week where he continues his ministry of loving, healing, and forgiving.

          Last night at the RW Johnsburg church we had a “Maundy Thursday” service. The word Maundy comes from the Latin "Mandatum," which means to order, to command, or to mandate. This Mandatum comes to us in the Gospel of John 13:34, which is where we find the institution of the Lord's Supper on the night he was betrayed. In this commanded or mandated Thursday, we celebrated last night Holy Communion, as Maundy Thursday was the first time communion was ever offered by Christ. Also on Maundy Thursday, this was the first time ever that Christ washed the feet of his disciples, and last night we did something similar as we had a washing of the hands ceremony. On Maundy Thursday, Jesus also taught us to share “a sign of peace with one another,” and well as giving his final commandment to us to love each other. For last night, Maundy Thursday, a lot occurred in the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ.

          When we get to the point where we are ready to depart on this night, I ask that we do so in silence, repentance, and reflection. I ask this not in an oppressive, a guilty, or in a shameful way, but rather in a reflective and prayerful way. Upon leaving tonight though, if we could also quietly and loving share signs of peace with one another, as this is the night where we as Christians are all together in being before the cross of the Lord. For if we are really knit together by Jesus Christ, then even in the most somber and the most reflective of days, can we not still extend a sign of peace and love to one another. I personally can think of few other nights where we would benefit more from such signs of peace.

          For this day, this day, is all about extending love to one another. This day, is our Good Friday, our Holy Friday. Yet this is the day that Christ was brutally beaten, mocked, crowned with a crown of thorns, and given a cheap staff and purple robe, as the Roman guards mocked him as being a king. He had already had his feet anointed with the Nard oil from Mary for his burial, but today Jesus is crowned king of life. He will soon however, lay down his crown of thorns, for a crown of glory. We will soon rise from the dead and soon sit at the right hand of almighty God to live and reign forever!

          While Jesus is ready to assume his new kingdom, most do not realize that this kingdom is not of this world. Last night he told his disciples, “you cannot come where I am going”. For Jesus knew that his hour had come. In the flesh of a human man, Jesus as the living God on earth, had worry and was troubled about his soon to be death, yet he knew what he had to do. For if the sins of all of humanity were to be consumed then a sinless and perfect person must die. Only Jesus Christ, the living God, would or could fulfill this expectation. Only he could create the bridge of life, so that we might be able to enter the gates of glory.

          On this Good Friday, everything has also occurred as the Holy Scripture had prophesized it would occur. As Frank Allard read for us tonight from Psalm 22, it said, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?,” the words that Jesus uttered on the cross to make the prophesy of old true. The Psalm concluded by saying, “Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord, and proclaim his deliverance to a people yet unborn saying that he has done it”.

          You see Jesus was not only going to die for just the people of Jerusalem at that time or just the people of the whole world at that time, but for all of us. Jesus already about you and me, and already knows about the children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren that are yet to be born on this earth, but as Psalm 22 said, they are already free. They are already righteous and saved, if they buy call upon the name of the Lord and believe. For Christ consumed it all on this day, on this cross. Sin died, and soon, and soon brothers and sisters, Jesus will conquer the grave. For the grave cannot hold the king! The grave cannot contain the master of the universe.

          On this day though, this Good Friday, we find Jesus Christ, as John the Baptist found him, saying “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”. As Pastor Andy Stanley has said, “He chose the nails,” but I declare this to you brothers and sisters, he did not die in vain. He did not die for nothing. For with one hammer and three nails, I have been set free! You have been set free! For there are many people who are in shackles in prisons today, yet they are free, and there are many people who are running around the world today who are free, yet they are the ones who are shackles! For those who know the Lord and what he has done for us are free, regardless of where they are, and for those who don’t know him, they are the ones in prison and shackled, regardless of where they are. The cross, the Holy Cross of Jesus Christ, sets us free.

          On this day, the Lord of life, the king of kings, the Lamb of God, says “It is finished,” and then he breaths his last. With this final act, as Christ dies, sin has been conquered. Yet to prove that Christ is the Messiah, he will be raised to new life this Sunday, on our Easter Sunday. The sins of the world on this night have been consumed, as if Jesus drank a cup of poison, the poison of our sins. But fear not brothers and sisters, he isn’t finished, he is going to be raised, and further one day, on that “Great gettin up morning” he coming to take us all home.

          What is amazing to me though is that amidst all of this suffering that Christ endured, he is still loving, still healing, and still forgiving. Last night on Maundy Thursday he served the betrayer Judas Iscariot Holy Communion, knowing full well that Judas would betray him. On his cross he said to his mother and his “his beloved apostle” as the scripture says, “Son behold your mother. Mother behold your son”. This “beloved apostle” was now his mother’s keeper. On that cross, he also forgave one of the two men who were being crucified on either side of him. Jesus said to the one repentant man on the cross, “Amen I say to you, today you will be in glory with me”. For even as he was dying in great pain, “Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do”.

          Amidst of all his pain, all of his suffering, he looks after his mother, he forgives a man on a cross, and he prays for his killers. “Forgive them; for they know not what they do”! So often we are just so consumed with the guilt of Christ drying for us on the cross, but maybe we need to look on this night just a little further than that. To see that the Lord of life, the Lord of hosts, was still loving, still healing, and still forgiving to his very last breath, of “It is finished”. How could Jesus Christ in such pain and torment, still be and do all these things, I wonder? “Forgive them; for they know not what they do”.

          The answer is, because he loves you and me so much, he came to die, so that we may live. He didn’t die just for some people either, but for all of us. No matter who we are, or what we are, he died for us. For we all are in this life of faith together, and we are all moving in the boat of faith towards glory together.

          It is often said that at a Christian funeral, that the “flesh grieves, but the soul rejoices”. I think on this day we should have some reflection, some sorrow, and some burden, but he chose to die for us. He wanted to do this for us. I don’t believe the Lord wishes us to be in misery or to punish ourselves on this day. I believe that the Lord asks us hear what he said on the cross, “Forgive them; for they know not what they do!” All the Lord of life then wants of us is our hearts, is our devotion, and our repentance. All of this then, this cross, these nails, his pain, and his blood, just so that we may repent and accept him into our lives. So that we may live, forever! For even if there was no nails on the cross at Calvary, his love would have held him to the tree. He died for our sins; he died because he loves us so very much.

          It is as if there were two men in a hospital, and one man gave up his very heart from his chest, so that the other man who was dying may life and be happy. Jesus gives up his very body, so that we can live and serve him, but not live in misery. For the Lord wants our devotion, our repentance, and he wants us to serve him. He desires that we have joy in him.

          I would like to close this Good Friday worship service with a simple quote about what Good Friday is. This quote is taken from Robert G. Trache. Here is the quote, “Good Friday is the mirror held up by Jesus so that we can see ourselves in all our stark reality, and then it turns us to that cross and to his eyes and we hear these words, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." That'sus! And so we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that if we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves. We see in that cross a love so amazing so divine that it loves us even when we turn away from it, or spurn it, or crucify it. There is no faith in Jesus without understanding that on the cross we see into the heart of God and find it filled with mercy for the sinner whoever he or she may be”. 

So today brothers and sisters, the “flesh mourns, but the soul rejoices”. We mourn the death of our Lord and Savior, but we rejoice, that he said, “It is finished”. “Forgive them, for they know what they do”! Yet soon, very soon, he will be raised to new and certain life. In the name of our Lord, our savior, the messiah, the great I Am, Jesus Christ, Amen and hallelujah!

Maundy Thursday - RWJ UMC 03/28/13 Sermon - “The New Covenant is official!”

Maundy Thursday - 03/28/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “The New Covenant is official!”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19

                                             

Gospel Lesson: John 13:1-17, 31b-35

          Good evening brothers and sisters! What a joy and a pleasure it is to be with you on this Maundy Thursday, during this our Holy Week. The week that is that is the holiest week in our Christian calendar. The week death is defeated and new life is offered to all of humanity. The week were we as people of Christian faith, prepare our hearts and our minds for the death, the burial, and the resurrection of our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

          While tomorrow Jesus will give himself up for us all, to take away the sins of the world, tonight we find ourselves in Jerusalem during the Jewish Passover festival. The Jewish Passover festival was, and still is for our Jewish brothers and sisters, a major Jewish holiday indeed. This is a holiday that was and is often full of food, many Seder dinners, and much prayer and devotion. For the Passover festival, was and is a joyous time.

          While Jesus entered the gates of the city of Jerusalem this past Sunday on our Palm Sunday, as a high and mighty king, he is soon going to become the suffering king. He is soon going to the cross, to die for the sins of the world, to make a new way to almighty God, and to teach us how to live and to how treat one another.

          Tonight however, Jesus and his twelve disciples will sit down for a Seder dinner, in an upper room that Jesus had two of his apostles acquire for the evening. It wasn’t a home that Jesus or any of his followers owned. They were in fact, guests as if they were in a hotel for the night. During this dinner, much like many other dinners that the disciples had with Jesus, there was most likely great conversation, laughter, and a discussion of this new kingdom that Jesus was ushering in.

          Yet amidst all of this, Jesus took some bread, unleavened or flat looking bread in this case, as it was the Passover, and he lifted to almighty God and blessed it. Then he broke it and told the disciples to “take and eat, this is my body broken for you, for the forgiveness of sins”. Likewise, when the supper was over, Jesus raised the cup of wine that he had, which was likely a simple wooden cup, and he lifted this cup to almighty God and blessed it. Jesus then told his disciples that, “this is the blood of the new covenant,” and then told them to “this is my blood shed for you, drink this as often as you gather in remembrance of me”. “In Remembrance of Me,” those words that adorn so many alter tables, in so many churches worldwide.

          The disciples most likely didn’t fully understand the significance of what Jesus was doing during this dinner. Jesus however, knew as he had said, that “his hour was drawing near”. That soon, very soon in fact, he would free the world with one hammer and three nails. He would free me, and free you, with his very flesh and his blood. Jesus in his infinite love even serves Judas Iscariot this first ever “Holy Communion”, this new sacrament, this “New Covenant”. As we all know, Judas Iscariot will then betray the Lord of life, even after Jesus has served him the bread and the wine of life.

          Yet on this night, “The New Covenant is official”! Jesus didn’t just teach us something nice, with this the first Holy Communion, but he gave us literally a new sacrament. A sacrament, being a gift from almighty God which is a way that God fills us with his Holy Spirit. God has given us this sacrament of communion then, to help too give us the fullness of our Christian faith. This is why the sacrament of Baptism for example, is such a big deal in the Christian Church, as well as Jesus gave us this gift through John the Baptist.

In the sacrament of Holy Communion though, Jesus isn’t just saying, eat this bread and drink this cup, just to jog your memory of his love, but he is saying that there is power at the dinner table of the Lord! That the Lord’s Supper, that this bread and this juice is infused in this sacrament with spiritual power. That we are now partaking of something new, something unique, something different, and something that can only be experienced in Holy Communion. This communion, this Eucharist, is the Holy gift of Jesus Christ that he asks us to partake in, not just to remember him, so that we may be filled by him and his spirit. More specifically, Jesus is saying that on this table are the elements that will renew our weary spirits, and grow our fumbling faiths. He is saying, that at the table of the Lord, we can find renewal, spiritual power, peace, mercy, and grace. He is saying that “The New Covenant official!” To “seal this deal,” as it were though, Christ must die for us all, to consume the sins of the world, and then be raised to new life, to make his divinity proven and our faith real.

Jesus then said to his disciples in tonight’s gospel of John reading when “I am gone,” “do this in remembrance of me”. “For I am not far away” he might say, “I am coming back soon,” he might also say. On this night, Jesus has given us this New Covenant, this new sacrament.

          Some of you might have heard me tell the story before of the marriage betrothal ritual that occurred in Jewish culture at this time. In this ritual the young boy’s family, who wished to marry their son, and the young girl’s family, who wished to marry their daughter, would negotiate the potential marriage. When the boy and the girl’s family’s had reached the accord, or the “marital deal,” the young son would then raise a cup of wine up. He would then look lovingly and his betrothed and soon to be bride, and say, “Will you enter into this covenant with me”. If the girl drank of the cup, then she was bonded and tied to the young man for the rest of her life. For they would then be married, and the young man would then go to his father’s house to “prepare a place” for her, just as Jesus Christ prepares a place for us in glory.

While Jesus did all of this at the last supper, he did much more than this. At one point he even removed his outer clothes, except for his undergarments. He then wrapped a towel around his waist. From here he picked up a wash basin and a pitcher of water. He then proceeded to wash the feet of his disciples. This action of feet washing was one that only slaves and servants carried out, but certainly not an action that the Messiah would carry out. “How could the king of kings, the Lord of Lords wash my feet,” the disciples must have thought. I’m sure that after the implementation of the sacrament of Holy Communion the already confused apostles were likely saying, “What is the Lord doing now?” Simon Peter, being the typical Simon Peter, protested Christ washing his feet, and said “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus than said, “You do not know what I am doing, but later you will understand”. Simon Peter, continuing to be Simon Peter said, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head”. Jesus then told Simon Peter, that he had already bathed, and so that he was clean, but that his feet were dirty. You know in the modern day though, most of us don’t walk around with sandals on without any socks, all day. We often don’t get our feet caked with sand, mud, and everything else that is on the ground even day, this day in age. We do however, get our hands get dirty. For this reason, and because some people have discomfort with getting their feet washed, I am going to be performing with the help of Reverend David Schlansker the ritual of hand washing. While Jesus washed feet, we do not consider this a sacrament, but it certainly is an important ritual and some even an ordinance. This ritual teaches us to be humble before one another, and to be servants of all, the way that Jesus was a servant of all.

          So, all in all, this original Maundy Thursday was quite a big night. In one night “The New Covenant was official,” with Christ’s implementation of Holy Communion, and his ritual or ordinance of washing the disciples feet was implemented. Jesus on this night also taught his disciples the ritual of “sharing the sign of peace,” as Christ shared a sign of brotherhood and fellowship with all of his disciples. While we often offer a handshake or a hug while saying “peace be with you” most Sunday’s, we do so because Christ taught his disciples on Maundy Thursday to do this.

          The last thing that Christ then said in the gospel reading for tonight, was his “final commandment”. Jesus said to the disciples, “Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and I said to the Jews so now I say to you, “Where I am going you cannot come”. Jesus than said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love another. Just as I have loved you, you should also love another. By this everyone will know you are my disciples, if you have love for another”.

          So to close this message this evening with a story then, I declare that this Maundy Thursday story is the story. The best, the most powerful, and the most glorious Maundy Thursday story that I could ever tell. The story of Christ’s love and how he shared that love with all of us. So as we continue to prepare our hearts and our minds for the coming death and resurrection of our Lord, let us humble ourselves before him on this night. Let us share “the peace” with one another before we depart from this place, and most importantly let us love one another. For Jesus is coming to not just die for our sins, but to teach us how to love one another. All praise, glory, and honor, to the one in whom John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world”! Amen and praise Jesus!

Palm/Passion Sunday - RWJ/Pottersville UMC 03/24/13 Sermon - “The Suffering King”

Palm Sunday - 03/24/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “The Suffering King”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29 (Palms)

                                             

Gospel Lesson: Luke 19:28-40 (Palms)

          Good morning brothers and sisters! Welcome to the beginning of this sixth and final week of this Lenten Season. I don’t know about you, but to me this Lenten Season has seemed like that it has flown by! Nevertheless, here we are on this Palm or Passion Sunday. The Sunday when Jesus came into Jerusalem riding a donkey as a king, as “The Suffering King”. As he entered, he heard shouts of “Hosanna” or what translates to something like “God save us,” or “Please Save”.

          While Jesus entered the gates of Jerusalem to shouts of Hosanna, and as people put palms and cloaks down before him, soon after he would die for the sins of the world. As I have mentioned throughout this Lenten Season, when John the Baptist first saw Jesus, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!”

          So, Christ comes into Jerusalem on a donkey on this day. The real question though, is why would he do this? Sure he would be praised by the people, but why like this? Why on a donkey? In the scripture reading from this morning from Psalm 118, it said, “Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it”.

          The only person who has ever been on this earth who was truly sinless though, who was truly righteous though, was Jesus Christ. According to this prophecy from this Psalm in the Old Testament then, the Messiah, or the “righteous one” had to enter into Jerusalem. As he entered, the people gave thanks to him. They gave thanks to the Lord. The Psalm from this morning’s reading went on to say “I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation”. On this Palm or Passion Sunday, the people of Jerusalem shouted “Hosanna!” They were saying, “Save us”! They were saying we want to become part of your salvation!

          Yet amidst the great joy of Christ entering Jerusalem, and with all the people looking upon him, or even Christ’s twelve disciples had no idea that Christ would soon die for the sins of the world. As John the Baptist said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”. During all of this excitement then, I have wondered if Jesus had a brief moment grief. That in that moment, if he maybe, if for at least an instant, thought of himself as “The Suffering King”. Sure today he is a mighty and a beloved king, but soon, he will be “The Suffering King”. While he enters Jerusalem as the beloved King and the Messiah in accordance with the Old Testament prophecy, he will soon die for us all. Soon though, the Roman Guards will put that crown of thorns on his head, give him that staff, and that purple robe to mock him. I see this however, as a coronation of the king. The king was crowned, robed, and given a staff. Whether Jesus’ torturers and murders were trying to or not, they were preparing a king for death and burial. Mary in our scripture last week anointed Jesus’ feet with the Nard used to bury a person. Now Jesus enters as a king in accordance with the Old Testament prophecy, and soon our king will have his coronation. Before he goes to die, and then will be raised to new life, conquering sin, conquering death, and conquering fear itself.

          So while we celebrate this Palm or Passion Sunday, as our messiah, our king enters into Jerusalem, he is soon to become “The Suffering King”. But today as the Psalm from this morning says, “Save us, we beseech you, O Lord! O Lord, we beseech you, give us success!” The Psalm from this morning also said, “Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord”. This king, this Messiah comes to proclaim the Lord and HIS kingdom, but he is soon to be “The Suffering King”.

          In the Gospel of Luke reading from this morning, Jesus and the apostles were heading to Jerusalem. When Christ had gotten “near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, “Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden, Untie it and bring it here”. Well, I don’t know about you, but first and foremost I can imagine that these two disciples were amazed that Jesus knew that colt or donkey was there, as it surely was when they arrived! So the colt is brought to Jesus, and cloaks were placed on, Jesus was set on top of it, and he rode into Jerusalem. People spread cloaks on the road before him, as he rode, and people were praising God joyfully. Many people said, “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!” These statements were said by the people, in accordance with the Old Testament prophecy read this morning from Psalm 118 .

          The Pharisees very angered that Jesus challenged there power, their stature, and their authority, said to Jesus, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.” He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.” You see as Christ enters Jerusalem as king, as he is greeted with shouts of Hosanna, and as he is greeted as the Lord and the Messiah, he is soon to be “The Suffering King”. These Pharisees then, just didn’t get it. Christ coming to earth wasn’t just about power, wasn’t just about challenging the social order, it was about teaching us all a new way of being. It was about salvation. For faith in Christ is good if we want to have that basic level of salvation, but if we really want the richness of Christ, the fullness of faith, we need to live in the ways he taught us to live. We need to love our neighbors, we need to greet each other in peace, and we need to seek to make this world in his image. We need to do more than just believe, we need to seek to build the Kingdom of Jesus Christ here on earth. This I believe is the totality of the fullness, of why “The Suffering King” came. Sure the core reason that Christ came to earth was to die for our sins, and accepting Christ is our ticket to heaven, but Jesus I wonder if Jesus was looking at the Pharisees when he rode into Jerusalem, thinking “they just don’t get it”. “There missing the boat”.

          You see many of us go through life and we struggle with our faiths, our lives, and many other things. Did this suffering king come though, just so that we go to heaven? Yes he did, but why stop here? Why not be part of the “Corpus” or the body? Why not live the fullness of Christ’s gospel, so that here on earth we may live the closest that we can to the Kingdom of God? To me then, when I consider our soon to be “Suffering King,” I don’t want to stop at just salvation. It is the same to me as going to Disney World and never leaving your hotel the whole week. Sure your there, but you’re missing the fullness of everything.

          Why should we just stop at accepting Christ? In this Lenten Season we should seek to embody the fullness of our faith, and be all that Jesus has called us to be. We should seek to be salt and light, to be kindness in a world of pain. To be love in a world of hatred. For this “Suffering King” taught us a new way of being and living. Jesus frees us from sin, and then beacons that we go out and transform the world in his name. To make disciples everywhere, and to make our town and the whole world better.

I would like to close today with a story. This story is called “The Stone Cutter”. Here is how it goes: There was once a stone cutter who was dissatisfied with himself and with his position in life.

One day he passed a wealthy merchant’s house. Through the open gateway, he saw many fine possessions and important visitors. “How powerful that merchant must be!” thought the stone cutter. He became very envious and wished that he could be like the merchant.

To his great surprise, he suddenly became the merchant, enjoying more luxuries and power than he had ever imagined, but was then envied and detested by those less wealthy than himself. Soon a high official passed by, carried in a sedan chair, accompanied by attendants and escorted by soldiers beating gongs. Everyone, no matter how wealthy, had to bow lowly before the procession. “How powerful that official is!” he thought. “I wish that I could be a high official!”

Then he became the high official, carried everywhere in his embroidered sedan chair, feared and hated by the people all around. It was a hot summer day, so the official felt very uncomfortable in the sticky sedan chair. He looked up at the sun. It shone proudly in the sky, unaffected by his presence. “How powerful the sun is!” he thought. “I wish that I could be the sun!”

Then he became the sun, shining fiercely down on everyone, scorching the fields, cursed by the farmers and laborers. But a huge black cloud moved between him and the earth, so that his light could no longer shine on everything below. “How powerful that storm cloud is!” he thought. “I wish that I could be a cloud!”

Then he became the cloud, flooding the fields and villages, shouted at by everyone. But soon he found that he was being pushed away by some great force, and realized that it was the wind. “How powerful it is!” he thought. “I wish that I could be the wind!”

Then he became the wind, blowing tiles off the roofs of houses, uprooting trees, feared and hated by all below him. But after a while, he ran up against something that would not move, no matter how forcefully he blew against it – a huge, towering rock. “How powerful that rock is!” he thought. “I wish that I could be a rock!”

Then he became the rock, more powerful than anything else on earth. But as he stood there, he heard the sound of a hammer pounding a chisel into the hard surface, and felt himself being changed. “What could be more powerful than I, the rock?” he thought. He looked down and saw far below him the figure of a stone cutter. The stone cutter, who is the Lord. The one who cut and formed us all.

You see while on this day, while we proudly and boldly proclaim “Hosanna,” will any of this change us? Jesus looked at those scowling Pharisees, and I think that he might have realized “they just don’t get it”. Perhaps they wanted to be the sun, the cloud, or the wind. While Jesus enters on this day as a powerful and mighty king, he will soon become “The Suffering King,” as this week, “Holy Week,” we follow Christ to the cross. So today we may glory in our king, but what about tomorrow? What about next week? What will it take for people to truly believe and to truly live the Gospel of Jesus Christ, for the transformation of the world? Or do we wish to be the sun, the wind, the cloud, the merchant, or the official? Or do we allow the master stone cutter to form and shape us? “Hosanna,” and Amen!

RWJ/Pottersville UMC 03/17/13 Sermon - “How much would you give him?”

Sunday 03/17/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “How much would you give him?”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Philippians 3:4b-14

                                             

Gospel Lesson: John 12:1-8

          Good morning brothers and sisters! Welcome on this morning to this fifth week of the Lenten Season. This season, were Jesus prepares to die for the sins of the world. As John the Baptist said in the Gospel of John 1:29, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This Lamb, this Christ, has come to earth to teach us, to love us, and to show us the pathway of life through him to the Father. That in Jesus Christ dying for us, he would create a way for us to be with almighty God in heaven. Therefore, we are then justified before the Lord, if we believe in Jesus Christ.

       As we continue to walk this pilgrim trail to the cross in this Lenten Season then, we find Jesus in the gospels this week, heavily into his ministry on earth. At this point Christ has been mocked, ridiculed, and condemned, yet some, some believe. Jesus has performed unbelievable miracles, spoke truth to power, and made his presence known. In the Gospel of John reading from this morning though, Mary, Martha and Lazarus’ sister, pours a pound of costly perfume on the feet of Jesus. She then proceeds to wipe his feet using her hair as the instrument to do the wiping. This perfume was called “Nard” or Spikenard and was specially used for anointing dead bodies. Spikenard is a plant from the Valerian family, if you have ever heard of Valerian before. The oil extracted from this plant was costly, and it was seen as very precious. This perfume kept dead bodies smelling fresh and decent, until the body was laid to rest. The amount that Mary used was a lot. In fact, it would have been worth over a year’s pay for the average worker at the time.

          Perhaps this would be the equivalency of you buying someone a new car. Or if you have a really really good job, a really really nice new car! Given all of this, I thought of a good question to ask around this story in the Gospel of John. This story of Mary sacrificing so much for Jesus. This question is, “How much would you give him?” If Jesus came to your house today, “How much would give him?” Would you give him all that you had? Would you give him a lot? Would you give him a little? Would you give him nothing at all?

          In the scripture reading from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Philippians from this morning, the Apostle Paul spoke of his high and wealth status in Jerusalem. The Apostle Paul then said after this though, “Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord”. You see the Apostle Paul, was the Jewish Pharisee named Saul, and he gave up everything to serve Jesus. When he was asked, “How much would you give him,” he said “everything”. The Apostle Paul went on in this morning’s scripture reading to say, “For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith”. You see the Apostle Paul gave up everything for Jesus Christ, even eventually even gave up his very life. The Apostle Paul finished this morning’s scripture reading by saying that he was striving towards, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead”. He then said, “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus”.

          So if Jesus Christ showed up at your house today, “How much would you give him?” In this morning’s gospel reading, we find ourselves in the Gospel of John, just after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus, who once again was the brother of Mary and Martha. Mary and Martha soon after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead in Bethany, put on a lavish dinner for Jesus in Bethany, to honor and show love for the Lord. They prepared the best foods, and the once dead and risen Lazarus was in attendance. Suddenly Mary got out that expensive perfume I told you about earlier. The scripture said, “Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house filled with the fragrance of the perfume”. Judas Iscariot, the one who would betray Jesus though, said “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” Judas said this though, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. In fact, Judas held onto the money for the whole group, in what the gospel called the “common purse”. Give this I am shocked that they ever had any money!

          Judas Iscariot then sounds more like a Bernie Madoff to me, or some other common bank robber. I often think about it humorously, that if when the Apostles were on the sea of Galilee in that violent storm, and were worried that the violent storm was going to drown them, that if Judas yelled in that instant, “Peter throw me the common purse in the front of the boat, just in case!”

          Even though Jesus knew all along though, that Judas Iscariot was going to betray him, he chose him, and let him follow him. For Jesus needed someone to betray him in order to be given over to the authorities to be crucified. Jesus then replied to Judas’ challenge about selling the expensive perfume and said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me”. This shut Judas Iscariot’s mouth quickly, and he did not say anything after this about the subject.

          Jesus in his comments though, knew that soon he was going to be crucified, and since he and he alone knew this, he told Judas Iscariot, that this she was doing this for the day of his burial. I can imagine that the apostles were confused by this. I mean after all, if it appears that someone will live for a long time, than why would they be preparing now for their burial? This just doesn’t make sense. Jesus knew this hour of suffering and death was coming though, and Mary gave likely the most expensive thing she owned, to honor and love the Lord of life. The one who had literally saved her, her sister Martha, and brought her brother Lazarus back to life!

          Given all this, in the Lenten Season, many of us are so focused upon what we can give up. Sometime we give up foods, material things, and etc., but what can we truly give up for Jesus. “How much would you give him?”

I would like to close this message this morning with a story. This story is called “The Gift,” and is by B. Killebrew. Here is how it goes, “Sharon was rich and lived in a large house. Beth was from a poor family and lived in a little house that had thin walls and bare pine floors. Sharon and Beth went to the same school, were in the same class and one day entered the same contest for reading books and writing reports. At the end of the contest, both girls had completed the exact same number of reports and both girls had done reports of very high quality. The contest was declared a tie and the two girls were asked to draw straws—short straw to win.

An ecstatic Beth won the prize, a music box of bright blue plastic. When the music played, a tiny screen showed a series of different pictures as the wheel revolved. Beth placed her prize next to the front door of her small house so if there was ever a fire she would be able to rescue it on her way out.

Sharon was very disturbed that she had not won the drawing. After all, she had written just as many good book reports as Beth. She went home and complained loudly to her parents. The next day her parents came to school and complained loudly.  Before you know it, the contest judges decided to buy another music box for Sharon. 

Sharon was pleased to have gotten her own way, but after playing the music box she was not impressed. She shoved it on a shelf in her closet with many other forgotten toys.

While it was Beth who worried about fire, it was Sharon who suffered that catastrophe. Early that winter, a fire caused by a careless maid destroyed Sharon’s home. The family escaped but all their possessions were destroyed.

When Beth heard about the fire, she was dismayed. At school, it was said that all of Sharon’s many toys had burned except for the pony cart that was in the barn. All her clothes had burned. Many of the little children were not too kind about Sharon’s hardship. One little girl even said, “It serves her right for being so hoity-toity all the time.”

Beth, however, was sad for Sharon. On the way home after school, she thought and thought. She was home only a minute before she rushed back out the door carrying a small bag. She raced to a large brick house—the home of Sharon’s grandmother where Sharon was now staying. When the maid brought Sharon to the parlor where Beth was waiting, Beth opened the bag and pulled out her cherished music box. “I’m sorry about your fire,” she said.  “I want you to have this in place of the one you lost.”

“Thank you,” said Sharon. “I’m sorry I can’t visit now. Grandma is taking me shopping to get new clothes.” A few minutes later, the maid closed the door behind Beth as Sharon raced upstairs to the bedroom she had been given in her grandmother’s home the moment she was born. As she pulled out a warm coat to wear on her shopping trip, she took a moment to shove the music box to the back of a shelf.  “It’s a stupid toy,” she thought.  “No wonder Beth gave it to me.”

Sharon went off shopping with Grandma with no understanding of the great gift she had been given while Beth went home to her little house, watched and guarded all the way by a thousand angels.

          You know, this week I was very much watching television as our brothers and sisters in the Roman Catholic Church prepared for a new head of their church. This Bishop elected took on the name Pope Francis. I remember seeing him this week coming out to greet thousands of people, yet he wore a simple white cassock. He gave up the expensive Mercedes, to be driven in Volkswagen. That is, when he is not walking. After he was elected the head of the Catholic Church, he then went and personally paid his hotel bill, and carried his own luggage to the Volkswagen. When the Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church came in to greet him, instead of sitting on the throne that the Roman Catholic Pope normally sits on, he sat amongst them. He said, “I am just one of your brothers”.  

          This has inspired me this week. For Jesus Christ gave up everything for us. What will give up for him? For if Jesus came to your house on this very day, “How much would give him?” Or maybe the better question is, “Could we ever give him enough?” Amen.

RWJ/Pottersville UMC 03/10/13 Sermon - “Why do we doubt him?”

Sunday 03/10/13 RWJ/Pottersville UMC

Sermon: “Why do we doubt Him?”                                                                                      

Scripture Lesson: Psalm 32                                       

Gospel Lesson: Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

          Good morning brothers and sisters! What a joy it is, as always, to be worshipping with you all here this morning. Welcome once again on this Fourth Sunday of this Lenten Season. This season were we continue to walk ever closer to Calvary where Jesus Christ will give himself up for us all. The place where people could first say on that first Good Friday, “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world”.

          As we continue in this Lenten season, we are challenged to grow in our faiths, to be more sacrificial, and to examine our lives, for ways that we can be more loving, more generous, and more forgiving. For Christ did not come to die for us all, so that we should die, but Christ came so that we may live. Christ came to teach us a new way of being, to renew our spirits, to give us hope, and to offer us life everlasting. In this season of Lent, let us be seeking to be more like Christ. Instead just denying ourselves, let us ask how we can give more, how we can love more, and how we can be closer to God. You see in this Lenten Season, God doesn’t want us to just give up chocolate, but more than that, he wants us to give up our sin. To give up that which separates us from him. He wants our hearts, our devotion, and our very lives.

          You know, I think for many of us though, we have times where we have said, “God seems distant in my life right now”. Meaning there are times where our faiths feel like a dry dessert. There are times when we all feel like we are in the valley, and things are dark and gloomy. Yet for many of us, we have had times when we have indeed been to “the mountain top”. Times where our faith flowed like a mighty river, and we could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in us as a warm and tingly feeling. That feeling of God’s love in the very fiber of our beings, and that warmth of the spirit of God coursing through us. In these moments we have felt so loved, so fulfilled by God! It is in these moments that we truly believe, and that we know without a shadow of a doubt, that God is real and that God is powerful!

          The question though, is if we all have had these mountain top experiences, is “Why do we doubt him?” How come when things don’t go our way sometimes we question his presence, his love, or his desire to save us? Why are there times when we feel distant from God?

          I think we have all had those moments in life, where we say, “What is God doing?” Or we might have said, “I have prayed and prayed, and I don’t think God is listening to me”. For some of us we have suffered tragic and incredible hardships in our lives that have caused us to grow cold in our faith or even be angry with God. Many of us are then told, “Just pray and believe”. In instances such as these, many of us say, “I have tried and tried, and it’s not working”. We say, “Where is God right now?”

          You know brothers and sisters I think that many of us have had trying times of faith. For many of us though, we have come to think of God, I think, as a “spiritual vending machine”. That we go to God with our desires and our wants, and we then enter the right letter and numbers. The metal ring turns, and we collect what we want from God. As if God is some magic genie that we conjure when we want something, and that God is there to just serve our every desire and whim. While God loves us, and seeks to bless us in all things, God does not always reveal himself or show up when we want him to. God is faithful, and always shows up on time and is never late though! God always comes through, never gives us more than we can handle, and is always faithful. God comes through when we really need it. As I heard an old preacher say one in fact, “God always delivers, and his checks don’t bounce”.

          For many of us, we have been at the end of our ropes, and have struggled with our faiths, and then God has shown up and restored us. He proved that he is who he says he is, and that his love and mercy is unending. Given this though, given this, “Why do we doubt him?” When times are tough and God seems distant, we can all remember that moment when we felt God restore us. It is those instances that we knew without a shadow of a doubt that God is loving and powerful. So then “Why do we doubt him?” Consider all the blessings in your lives, all that God has done for you, and all that he will continue to do for you. I ask you then, “Why do you doubt him?” What must he do to prove his power and faithfulness to you? Or we might say, well sure God proved himself last time, but he hasn’t come through yet this time. Perhaps that spiritual bag of chips we got from that “God vending machine” ran out and we are now demanding more. God says, “I know your needs, and trust me to supply them”. “Why do we doubt him?”

Has he not shown us time and time again his great love and providence? Has he not answered prayer after prayer, and proven himself worthy countless times? “Why do we doubt him?” Isaiah 55:11 says, “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.” You see God’s word and God’s promise does not come back void, and God will deliver and he will always be on time. For he is that good.

          In the scripture reading from Psalm 32 from this morning, it talked about how those who are happy, are those “whose transgression is forgiven”. The Psalm concludes by saying, “Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart”. You see God is good brothers and sisters, and his love endures forever. So, “Why do we doubt him?”

          In the gospel reading from this morning, the Pharisees said to the tax collectors and the sinners coming to listen to Jesus right then, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them”. Jesus then, as Jesus did, he responded not with a solid and concrete answer, but with a story, a parable. Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons”. The younger son wished to have his inheritance early, before his father died. Now I don’t know about you all here, but is there any chance that any of your children can have their inheritance from you early? While the young prodigal son left home, he partied, he indulged. He fulfilled his every passion and his every desire. He made many friends and many seemed to love him. Yet one day, the money ran out, and so did the prodigal sons so called new friends. The prodigal son felt empty and lost, and that his father was distant and far away. In needing to live and eat though, the prodigal son decided that he would hire himself out as a field worker. He was hired to feed pigs, animals which Jews still consider unclean. The son was tired, and hungry, and scared. His father seemed distant and perhaps the prodigal son might have even said, “Is my father even there anymore”. “Has my father forgotten about me?”

          Finally in that feeling of brokenness, the prodigal son decided to go home to his father. He said, “I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands”.

          So the prodigal son sets off for home, broken, feeling that his father no longer loved him, that he was distant from his father, that his father didn’t care anymore. His father saw his son coming from a long distance, as he likely saw him far away on the road. Now Jewish men, especially wealthy Jewish men did not run after someone looking foolish. Yet this father ran to his son. Filled with compassion he ran to his son, put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the father said to his slaves, quickly bring a robe, a ring, and sandals for his feet. Then get the fatted calf and kill it, and “let us eat and celebrate”. The prodigal son was confused, and then the father said, “for this son of mine was dead and is alive again, he was lost and is found!”

          The eldest son was then angry that the father gave his younger son this treatment after he squandered his inheritance. The father then said to the eldest son, “Son, are always with me, and all that is mine is yours”.

          Many times brothers and sisters, we are the prodigal son. We think that God has forgotten us, and we have taken and squandered our inheritance. We think that God will not make his presence known and that we are lost and hopeless. We then reach out to God, and God restores us, puts a robe on us, a ring on our finger, and sandals on our feet. He butchers his finest calf, and celebrates our return. So, “Why do we doubt him?” Has he not proved himself over and over? What else must God do so that we may believe?

I would like to close this morning with a story. This story is called the “True Believer in Jesus Wins His Case”. Under the title of this story, it said “This is a true story of something that happened just a few years ago at USC” or the University of Southern California. Here is how it goes: There was a professor of philosophy there who was a deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to spend the entire semester attempting to prove that God couldn't exist. His students were always afraid to argue with him because of his impeccable logic. For twenty years, he had taught this class and no one had ever had the courage to go against him. Sure, some had argued in class at times, but no one had ever really gone against him because of his reputation. 

At the end of every semester on the last day, he would say to his class of 300 students, "If there is anyone here who still believes in Jesus, stand."
In twenty years, no one had ever stood up. They knew what he was going to do next. He would say, "Because anyone who believes in God is a fool. If God existed, he could stop this piece of chalk from hitting the ground and breaking. Such a simple task to prove that He is God, and yet He can't do it." And every year, he would drop the chalk onto the tile floor of the classroom and it would shatter into pieces. 

All of the students would do nothing but stop and stare. Most of the students thought that God couldn't exist. Certainly, a number of Christians had slipped through, but for 20 years, they had been too afraid to stand up.
Well, a few years ago there was a freshman who happened to enroll. He was a Christian, and had heard the stories about his professor. He was required to take the class for his major, and he was afraid. But for three months that semester, he prayed every morning that he would have the courage to stand up no matter what the professor said, or what the class thought. Nothing they said could ever shatter his faith ... he hoped. Finally, the day came. The professor said, " If there is anyone here who still believes in God, stand up!"
The professor and the class of 300 people looked at him, shocked, as he stood up at the back of the classroom. The professor shouted, "You FOOL!!! If God existed, he would keep this piece of chalk from breaking when it hit the ground!" 

He proceeded to drop the chalk, but as he did, it slipped out of his fingers, off his shirt cuff, onto the pleat of his pants, down his leg, and off his shoe. As it hit the ground, it simply rolled away unbroken. The professor's jaw dropped as he stared at the chalk. He looked up at the young man, and then ran out of the lecture hall. The young man who had stood, proceeded to walk to the front of the room and shared his faith in Jesus for the next half hour.

You see brothers and sisters, no matter how far away from God we think we are, no matter how thin our faith is, God delivers and he is always on time. God will make his presence known, even if only through a simple piece of chalk. So I ask on this morning, “Why do we doubt him?” Amen.