Sunday
06/21/15 Freeville/Homer Ave UMC’s
Sermon Title: “Silence! Be
Still!”
Old Testament
Lesson: Psalm 9:9-20
New Testament
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13
Gospel Lesson:
Mark 4:35-41
Brothers and sisters, friends, welcome on this Fourth
Sunday after Pentecost. Pentecost, that day so long ago that the Holy Spirit
moved like a mighty fire, like a mighty wind, and filled the disciples and the early
Christians. On this day, the disciples had the power and the courage, to go
forth preaching the gospel, and building the kingdom of God.
Today is also Father’s Day, as this day we honor all of those
men who have taken up the arduous task of being a father. Whether you have
raised, are raising, or have helped raise others children, many men take on the
role of a father. Some fathers might not have their own children, but many men
are the father to someone or something. Today is a day that we honor the hard work,
the dedication, and the love of fathers, and of men that take on fatherly
roles.
With that said, today I want to talk about learning from
good fathers. Now some of us can say that we have or had good fathers. Some of
us can unfortunately also say that we have or had fathers that haven’t been the
best fathers. Some of us can say that an uncle, the man who lived next door,
and etc., might have been good male role models, or father figures.
It is true that we all don’t or didn’t have good earthly
fathers. I am fortunate and blessed to not only have a good father, but also to
have a good step-father. I have also had many other male role models in my life
that have served as fatherly figures.
So if you had or have a good father, then great. Today we
honor these men. If you don’t or didn’t have a good father, I would encourage
you to think of the men that are or were in your life that acted like a father
should. I want you to think about these men on this day, and if they are still
alive on this earth, I am going to ask that you try to let them know this day, how
much you love them. That you are thankful that they were and are there for you.
That they loved you, or still do. That they cared for you, or still do.
You
see, it takes a guy to make a child, but it takes a man to be a father, a
grand-father, and etc. Today, we honor those fathers, grand-fathers, great
grandfathers, uncles, next store neighbors, and etc. that took on the mantle of
fathering us.
Yet as great as many of the fathers and the other men in
our lives were, or still are, did we not sometimes argue with them at least a
little? Did we not sometimes disagree with them, at least a little?
While Jesus Christ tells his disciples, his early
followers, and us today, that He is the Son of God, He also says, that He is
our friend and our brother. Yet the interesting thing to me is this, while
Jesus Christ came from God, and was God in the flesh, what do we know about the
fathers of the twelve disciples that Jesus chose? What do we know about the
fathers of the other early Christians? Do we know if the Apostle Peter had a
great father? Do we know if Philip, or Matthew had great fathers?
Sure we might know the names of some of the disciple’s fathers,
and the names of some of the early Christians fathers, but do we know if they
were good fathers? I wonder, that even though Jesus was the Son of God, that even
though he was not the person of God the Father, I wonder if any of his
followers ever looked at him as having fatherly wisdom? For if Jesus was from
God, and was the second person of God in the flesh, then he was of God the
Father. If he was and is of God the Father, then Jesus could have been seen in
a fatherly way by some of his followers.
Now Melissa and I don’t have any children of our own yet,
but this I still know, sometimes kids just don’t listen. I know that you have
never yourself experienced this with your children or other kids though. I am sure
every child you have ever been a father or mother figure to, has always
listened to everything you said. I am sure that these children never got
stressed out and or questioned what you were saying. I am sure they never got worried
if they could really trust you. Except, probably all of these things have
happened to, in some way or another.
Today in the gospel, I think of Jesus as being a father
figure of sorts, to apostles that seemed to not trust their friend and their brother.
I mean after all, had Jesus up to this point, ever forsaken them? Had He up to
this point, ever done anything that would lead his disciples to think he was lying,
a fake, or not authentic?
I mean, if Jesus Christ came in the fullness of grace and
truth, and if the disciples and the early Christians saw this grace and truth,
then why did they not fully trust and follow Christ until they received the
Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost? Why did the Apostle Peter deny Him three
times? Why did the Apostle Thomas doubt His resurrection? Why do we have doubts
and frustrations?
The
answer is, because we are human. We are sinners and are broken vessels. To be
human is to be flawed and broken, and desperately in need of saving and
restorative grace.
Sometimes though, it would seem that as much as fathers and
father figures love their own or other people’s children, that there children
sometimes make poor choices. That sometimes, no matter what fathers say, the children
just don’t listen. It seems that Jesus’ experience with his disciples and early
followers, was not all that dissimilar.
For today, the apostles, not one of them, not two of them,
but all them, question Jesus’ loyalty, love, and desire to protect them. How
many fathers or father figures here this morning have ever had your children
claim that you don’t love them? How many fathers or father figures here this
morning have ever had their children lose loyalty to you? Or think that you
didn’t have their best interests in mind? I can imagine that this hurts, when
this happens.
This happens this morning in a story about Jesus and his disciples
from the Gospel of Mark chapter 4:35-41. When this gospel reading begins, it
talks about how it had just become evening, and Jesus and his disciples were
near the Sea of Galilee. At this time, “Jesus said to them, “Let’s cross over
to the other side of the lake.” They left the crowd and took him in the boat
just as he was. Other boats follow along” (Mark 4:35b-36, CEB).
Well so far you might be thinking, “Well so what, I have
taken kids out on a boat ride before.” Anybody here ever get stuck in a storm when
on boat ride though?
Well, in Mark 4:37, it says that “Gale-force winds arose,
and waves crashed against the boat so that the boat was swamped” (Mark 4:37,
CEB). Now I want you to listen carefully to this next verse. It says, “But
Jesus was in the rear of the boat, sleeping on a pillow. They woke him up and
said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re drowning?” (Mark 4:38, CEB).
Now how many fathers or father figures here this morning,
have ever, like Jesus, been “sleeping on a pillow,” and your children woke you
up as if the earth itself was coming to end (Mark 4:38b, CEB). Not only this,
the fact that they woke you up, could have indicated that there trust in you
was not so great.
So let me get this straight then, the disciples and Jesus
Christ are sailing across the Sea of Galilee, and the winds are crashing all
around them, and the boat is filling with water. Yet Jesus, is “sleeping on a
pillow” (Mark 4:38b, CEB). Now I am not an expert, but if Jesus was that
concerned about the “Gale-forced winds” hitting the boat and filling it, would
he likely, I don’t know, not be “sleeping on a pillow” (Mark 4:37a, 38b, CEB)?
How many fathers or father figures here this morning, were
woke up like this by your children, and then after, you said, “That was it?” “That
is why you woke me up?”
The Gospel of Mark then says, that Jesus stood up from his
pillow, “and gave orders to the wind, and he said to the lake, “Silence! Be
still!” (Mark 4:39b, CEB). The gospel says, “The wind settled down and there
was a great calm. Jesus asked them, “Why are you frightened? Don’t you have
faith yet?” (Mark 4:40, CEB).
How many times have we not had faith in our fathers or
father figures? How many times have we doubted there love. How many times have
they had to say to us, “Silence! Be still!” (Mark 4:39b, CEB)? How many of us
didn’t always listen to our fathers or father figures?
Further, we know that our fathers or father figures weren’t
or aren’t perfect, but for many us, we know or knew that they loved us. Many of
us can say that their own fathers did their best. That they tried there
hardest.
From the Psalm 9 reading from this morning, it says, “The
LORD is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in time of trouble” (Psalm
9:9, NRSV). How many of us at one point in our own lives, thought that our
fathers, father figures, or grand fathers were super heroes? That they were
strongholds and invincible?
In the Apostle Paul’s second Epistle or letter to the church
in Corinth, or 2 Corinthians, he said, “Since we work together with him, we are
also begging you to not received the grace of God in vain” (2 Cor. 6:1, CEB).
How many of us have taken our fathers, grandfathers, or father figures for
granted? How many of us at time have received there grace and love in vain?
The Apostle Paul then talks about what the early Christians
endured in the way of persecution for their faith. He writes, “We did this with
our great endurance through problems, disasters, and stressful situations. We
went through beatings, imprisonments, and riots. We experienced hard work,
sleepless nights, and hunger. We displayed purity, knowledge, patience, and
generosity” (2 Cor. 6:4b-6a, CEB). How many of fathers, grandfathers, or father
figures went through or showed us this kind of love and devotion? What did they
or still do endure for us? What did they give or still give for us?
When they needed to be stern with us and say, “Silence! Be
still!,” did we listen, or did we just do what we wanted to do (Mark 4:39b,
CEB)?
Today then isn’t just about honoring good fathers,
grandfathers, great grandfathers, and good father figures. Even more than this,
it is about us saying thank you. Thank you for your efforts, for your patience,
and for all you have and continue to do for us, even when we don’t listen. Even
when you say “Silence! Be still!,” and
we say, “whatever” (Mark 4:39b, CEB).
I want to share a story with you about fathers, and father
figures. This story is called, “Derek Redmond Finished at the Olympics,” and I
don’t have a direct source for this story. Here is how it goes: “It was the
summer Olympics of 1992. It was the quarter finals of the 400 meter sprint.
British athlete Derek Redmond was one of the favorites for the gold medal. A
lifetime of training had brought him to this moment. The starter’s gun fired
and the athletes burst out of the blocks.”
“Halfway
through the race Derek Redmond was leading. Then disaster struck. His hamstring
went and he collapsed on the track. The agony on his tear streaked face was
both physical and mental. It was a crushing blow.”
“Medical
attendants ran to assist him. Derek waved them away. He came to race and he was
going to finish. He got to his feet and started hobbling down the track.”
“The
crowd was mesmerized. Officials didn’t know what to do. And then an older man
ran onto the track. He brushed off officials who tried to stop him. He ran up
beside Derek and placed his arms around him. The man was Derek Redmond’s
father, Jim. “You don’t have to do this son” Jim said. “Yes I do” Derek
replied. “Then we’ll finish this race together” came the response from Derek’s
father. Arm in arm, with agony on Derek’s face, tears on his father’s, Derek
and Jim continued down the track. Derek buried his face in his father’s
shoulder. His father’s strong shoulders carried his son physically and
emotionally. Jim waved away officials who tried to stop them.
“Finally,
accompanied by a now roaring crowd, standing on their feet and applauding,
Derek Redmond crossed the line. It became the defining moment of the Barcelona
Olympics.”
Some
of us did not have the luxury of growing up with good fathers, but I hope that
we all had some men in our lives back then, and even now, that are worthy in
our eyes of being seen as a good father figure. This pure love, the love that
flows from God, is the love that a great father, grandfather, great grandfather,
or a father figure gives. This is why we have Father’s Day. This is why we say
thank you for giving to the Lord, even though sometimes when you say, “Silence!
Be still!,” we just don’t listen (Mark 4:39b, CEB).
~
“Thank You” By, Ray Botlz ~
Oh,
and by the way, the ending of today’s Gospel of Mark lesson. Once Jesus calmed
the storm, the gospel says, “Overcome with awe, they said to each other, “Who
then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!” (Mark 4:41, CEB). They
remembered who Christ was, they trusted Him, at least for a little while. Let
us all then, take time on this day, and always, to thank and remember those
great men, those super heroes from our own lives. Let us say “Thank you for
giving to the Lord. I am so glad that you gave.” Amen.
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