Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Sidney UMC - Good Friday - 04/02/21 - Sermon - “Why This Day Matters!”

Good Friday 4/02/21 - 6 pm - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title:           “Why This Day Matters!”                              

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 22                                       

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 10:16-25

Gospel Lesson: John 18:1-19:42

          Every year has 365 days. Well actually 365.25 days to account for leap year every four years, but essentially, we all have 365 days a year. Some of these days are more important than other days to us. Days like birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and etc. tend to be the most important days to many of us. I do not know many families that have there whole extended family over on July 10th every year unless that day is important to the family.

          Do not get me wrong, every day is important, but most people have days that feel more important than others. I for example, love July 4th, but I would not say that July 4th in anywhere near the same as Christmas or Easter. If we think about it, while I am talking, we can think about various days each year that are extremely important. I think of days like Thanksgiving, Labor Day, my wedding anniversary, etc. I have never heard anyone say though that the most important day of there year is Good Friday, but this day is significant. This is why my sermon title for tonight is called, “Why Today Matters!” Is Good Friday more important than a random day of the summer where nothing important is going on? Yes, I would say so. We all have days that seem like a regular ordinary day, and days that are massively important. Yet today, Good Friday matters.

          Why does Good Friday matter? Today matters because on this day almost two-thousand years ago, Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, God’s only son, died on a cross for our sins and the sins of the whole world. On this day nearly two-thousand years ago Jesus paved the way for us to be forgiven four our sins and reconciled to God. We are incapable of living on earth without sin, and we are incapable of being like fully like God, and as result, God sent to son to earth to die for us, so that we might be reconciled to him. This was God’s plan to redeem humanity from before time itself.

          After making a covenant with Abraham and others in the Old Testament, and after sending one prophet after another, like Isaiah and Ezekiel, God finally fulfilled his ultimate will on earth through Jesus Christ. On this day, Jesus is arrested, mocked, spit on, whipped, scourged, nailed to cross, and dies an agonizing death. Was God required to this? No, this is what God wanted to do to offer us the way to be reconciled for our sinful and fallen nature. It must break God’s heart to see us, his humanity that continues to be so wicked to each other. It must break God’s heart to see the sin, the pain, the cruelty, and the suffering of this earth.

          Yet in God’s infinite love, mercy, and grace, he sent his only son to earth to take all of our guilt and all of our shame upon himself. On the cross Jesus bore our every mistake, and our every wrongdoing. We do not deserve it, and yet God’s love and grace is so abundant, and God’s desire to be in relationship with us is so abundant that he would send his only son to die for us. Jesus, in being God in the flesh on earth, was the only one who ever walked this earth that was sinless. It is for this reason that Jesus was and is the only one qualified to be an all-sufficient savor. Jesus was and is the only person that ever walked this earth who was eligible to die for our sin. Since we all have sin, how can we die for the sins of others? Only God can do what he did through Jesus Christ. God did not have to do this, but he planned before time to this, so that humanity could be reconciled to him. This is “Why This Day Matters!”.

          As I have mentioned in some recent sermons, recorded human history goes back about 6,000 years, and for that whole time and beyond, humanity has never been able to live right. There have been examples that were much better than others, but never have we as humans been able to live the way that God wants us to live fully. So, do we need a savior? Do we need Jesus? I believe that we do, because are not able to live fully the way God wants us to live and love. As a result, God spoke to Abraham and many others, God spoke through the prophets of old, and ultimately sent his only son to earth do for us that which we cannot do for ourselves.

          This day does not mean that we are awful, but it does mean is that we need the grace of God through Jesus Christ. In repenting and turning from our sin, and in turning to Christ, we are forgiven. All of our guilt, all our shame, all our sin, and everything that we have ever done is gone, and washed clean. Does this change our human nature toward sinning? No, it does not, but everyday that we walk with Christ, follow him, and seek to be more like him, we will continue to be made in Christ’s image. As we draw closer to Christ, we become more like him, and God continues to make us more holy and more righteous. When we are more holy and more righteous, we are more like God, and so we are then less sinful, and God can use us to transform the world.

          Today, when Christ dies, the scripture tells us that veil in the temple in Jerusalem was torn. The veil that separates everyone but the high priest from the most holy place in the temple, the holy of holies, is torn when Christ dies. This means that we are able to fully be reconciled to God. On this day, Jesus died for the sins of the world, past, present, and future. This is “Why Today Matters!”

          Until Jesus’ resurrection on Easter, his death does not official offer us full forgiveness and reconciliation with God, as Easter Sunday proves that Jesus is who he said he was. The great love of God this day was on full display for us, as he gave everything for us. The Apostle Paul says it well of Jesus in Romans 5:8 however, where he says:

“But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8, NRSV). 

Further, today’s events of Christ’s death and crucifixion were also prophesied in the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible scriptures, as well. For example, in our reading for tonight from Psalm 22, we hear once again in 22:1a:

 “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Ps. 22:1a, NSRV).

          According to the gospel of Matthew, Jesus said these prophetic words in 27:46, shortly before he died on his cross.

In our scripture reading for tonight from Hebrews 10:16-25, it says once again in 10:19-22:

“Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water” (Heb. 10:16-25, NRSV).

 

          The Apostle Paul says that we can approach God, and the “Holy of Holies,” only through the broken body and the shed blood of Jesus Christ. This is “Why Today Matters!” This is why every year we read the large Good Friday Gospel of John reading, and we go over all the details of this day. Every year we tell this story, of how God sent his son Jesus Christ to earth to teach us to love, heal, and forgive, and to die for us all, nearly two-thousand years ago.

          Even though for the past six-thousand years of recorded human history that we have not been able to fully live right, we can have hope through Jesus Christ, that every day we can become more like Jesus. We will we make a perfect world? No, I do not think so, but we can certainly make it much better than it is right now. We can turn to Christ, we can love others, we can change Sidney, and God cans used us to change the world, until we go to be with Christ, or he returns in glory. This is “Why Today Matters!” Happy Good Friday friends, for today is a good day for you, for me, and all of humanity. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Maundy/Holy Thursday - 04/01/21 - Sermon - “2,000 Years Later!”

Maundy/Holy Thursday 4/01/21 - 6 pm - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:            “2,000 Years Later!”                          

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 116:1-4, 12-19                                        

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 11:23-26

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

On this night, almost two-thousand years ago, Jews from all over the then Roman Empire were in Jerusalem. These Jews and others from all over the then Roman Empire were in Jerusalem for the Jewish holiday or festival of the Passover. The holiday of the Passover is the one where the Jews in the Book of Exodus celebrate leaving slavery under Pharaoh in Egypt through the Red Sea, and then receiving of the Law of God, including the 10-Commandments.

The Passover holiday traditionally goes on for a week. During the Passover holiday Jews celebrate a Seder dinner. This dinner includes various things such as egg, bitter herbs, lamb, and etc., as explained in the Book of Exodus. The Passover holiday commemorates when death “passed over” the houses of the Jews while in slavery in Egypt, as well. The Jews were instructed to kill a pure, white, spotless lamb, and to smear the blood of that lamb over their doorposts and lintels. The blood of the lamb would save their first-born child, and thus death would “Passover” there first born (Ex. 12:1-14, NRSV).

Further, during Jesus’ life the Passover happened only in Jerusalem, because this is where the great temple of God was. Further, the Jews had been celebrating Passover long before and Jesus and his disciples arrived on this earth. Tonight, we pick up with this Holy Week on this our Maundy or Holy Thursday. On this night we are in the Upper Room with Jesus and his disciples sharing what we still call almost two-thousand years later, “The Last Supper”. This Last Supper is a Jewish Passover Seder. We have every reason to believe that Jesus and his disciples ate the other Passover foods, as well, but we tend to hon in on what Jesus does at this supper with the bread and a cup of wine.

In fact, the Apostle Paul tells us specifically of this night in the Upper Room, this Last Supper. In our reading for tonight from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, it says of the bread and cup:

For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes”                            (1 Cor. 11:23-26, NRSV).

On this night almost two-thousand years ago, Jesus sits with the disciples, his friends, and he tells them that he is the new Passover. The lambs that were slain in Egypt, so that death would Passover there first born, have now all turned into him. He is the new sacrificial lamb, and his body, like the bread, and his blood, like the cup will be broken and poured as an offering for all of humanity. This new covenant or agreement is not like the old covenant or law of Moses, as this covenant is established through the broken body and the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Christ dying on the cross, tomorrow on Good Friday, protects not just the first born for a night, but all of humanity past, present, and future, forever. All we need to do is repent of our sins and turn to Jesus Christ, and eternal death will pass us over.

What Jesus is telling his disciples almost two-thousand years ago on this night, is that the bread and cup represent what will happen to him tomorrow on Good Friday. I do not think at this point that his disciples fully understand this, or fully understand why Jesus took bread and wine and said this to them. Yet they soon will understand this sacrament, this gift of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion. In fact, as my sermon title says, “2,000 Years Later” we will still celebrate Holy Communion or the Lords Supper.

So, as we see once again in our Gospel of John reading for tonight, Jesus is in the Upper Room with his disciples. Yet our Gospel of John reading does not mention the Last Supper, but the other three gospels do. This gospel does talk about how Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, and Jesus still offered him communion.

While our Gospel of John reading once again does not talk about the Last Supper itself, it is implied as the scripture says that Jesus got up from the table. Clearly this table, was the table of the Last Supper. Jesus then washes the feet of his disciples, and Peter wants no part of this initially. Jesus then gives his disciples a new commandment, to love each other. Jesus says that the world will know that we are his disciples by the love that we have for one another.

This day of Holy Week is generally either called Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday. I generally call today Maundy/Holy Thursday. Why do I do this? The term Maundy Thursday connects to the end of the Gospel of John reading for tonight, where Jesus once again gives his disciples a new commandment to love each other.

In fact, in Latin the word “Mandatum,” means commandment or mandate (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maundy_Thursday). In English “Mandatum” translates to Maundy. So “Maundy Thursday,” emphasizes Jesus’ commandment or mandate that we should all love each other, as Jesus modeled for us.

Holy Thursday, however, historically more emphasizes Holy Communion and the washing of the feet. I call today Maundy/Holy Thursday, as I think that this whole night and its events are important. The Last Supper or Holy Communion is important. The washing of the feet and the commandment or the Maundy to love each other is important to.

          On this night, this Last Supper, we receive Holy Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, we receive the example of the washing of the feet, and commandment, mandate, or Maundy, to love each other.

          One of the reasons that we have our Sharing the Peace of Christ portion of our church service after the washing of the feet or hands in this case, is because that’s when Jesus gave us the commandment or the Maundy to love each other. Normally during the sharing of the peace of Christ we can shake hands, hug, etc. Right now, because of the Pandemic all we can do is stand and wave, but we can still love each other.

          So tonight, on this Maundy/Holy Thursday, Jesus and his disciples eat the Passover Seder, Jesus institutes Holy Communion or the Lord’s Supper with the bread and wine. Jesus washes the feet and gives us the Maundy or the commandment to love each other. As my sermon title says, even “2,000 Years Later” will still tell this story, we still partake of Holy Communion, we still do the washing, and we still love each other. Friends, Happy Maundy/Holy Thursday! Amen.

Wednesday, March 24, 2021

Sidney UMC - Palm/Passion Sunday - 03/28/21 - Sermon - “New Life is Entering In!" ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life" Series: Part 6 of 7)

Sunday 03/28/21 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:                  “New Life in Entering In!”

       ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life"- Series: Part 6 of 7)

Old Testament Scripture: Isaiah 50:4-9a                                        

New Testament Scripture: Philippians 2:5-11 

Gospel Lesson: Mark 11:1-11

          For the past five Sundays in this season of Holy Lent I have been preaching a sermon series called, “The Journey to New Hope and New Life”. The season of Lent developing out of the worshipping tradition of the early Christian Church, and it was created to model Jesus’ 40-days and 40-nights of being tempted by Satan in the wilderness. As such this season of Lent developed so that during this season we can give up, give away, pray, be more generous, more loving, and seek to become more like Jesus Christ. We should do this all year, not just during Lent, but this season reminds us of who we are as Christians.

          Some people that have grown up celebrating the season of Lent or have just started celebrating it in more recent years know that it is season of self-reflection, spiritual growth, generosity, compassion, and us becoming less, so that God can become more. This season culminates on Good Friday, which is this Friday April 2nd. On Good Friday we will re-tell the story of Jesus’ arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane, his trial, mocking, torture, and crucifixion on a cross for the sins of the world. Jesus will remain entombed until next Sunday, Easter morning, when he will be raised to new life, and our forgiveness and faith in him will be cemented forever.

          For those of us who have lived through many seasons of Lent, or a few, or maybe this is your first-time observing Lent, I have been saying the past five weeks that this season of Lent 2021 and part of Lent 2020 was vastly different for us all because of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

          In the past five weeks I have talked about the great trials, suffering, isolation, fear, anxiety, anger, and the loss that we have all experienced through this time of pandemic. Like Jesus being tempted by Satan in the wilderness for 40-days and 40-nights, we have been through our time of trial for over a year now. We have suffered and have all been through a lot. I am convinced that we all know someone close to us that has died from this COVID-19 pandemic, or we know of someone who has died from it in general. To date over 550,000 Americans alone have died as result of COVID-19. It has been a trying time indeed. So, trying in fact that our church has shut down for in-person worship and has reopened twice now.

          Yet, millions of people are getting vaccinated every day, and probably some of you have been vaccinated to. Recently New York State has allowed all people 50 years old and over to now get vaccinated for this virus. Likely in the coming weeks that number will drop to 45 or 40 years old. This time of pandemic is coming to an end and our “New Normal” is emerging. As I said a few weeks ago, we need to “Change and Re-Group”. We cannot live in fear forever, but we still want to be safe. We need to start planning to, or actually rejoining this thing we call life. Many of us have missed out on a lot over the past year, but “New Hope and New Life” is coming. An empty tomb on Easter is coming, and like having new life in Christ, we will have a “New Normal” very soon.

          Through this time that some of us were locked away we might have thought that the world was coming to an end. The past two Sundays I have been talking about the need to live out our faith on earth, to love and care for each other, and to know one day we will be in eternity with Jesus. I talked about this eternity last Sunday in fact, but I also encouraged us all to “Not be so heavenly minded that we are useless here on earth”. Preach and live your faith, “Change and Re-Group”, and one day we will be in eternity, but probably not today.

          On this Sunday, the first day of what we call Holy Week, we have Palm or Passion Sunday. Palm Sunday is telling the story of Jesus entering into the holy city of Jerusalem on this the first day of the Jewish Passover. Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, our savior, will enter the holy city this day not on a golden chariot, not with and army, or with pomp and splendor. God in the flesh, the savior of the world, Jesus Christ, who will die for us all on Good Friday, enters into Jerusalem today humble on a donkey, to the shouts of “Hosanna,” which means save us.

Passion Sunday is a tradition of reading the story of much of this whole week’s events around Jesus. We tend to celebrate Palm Sunday in this church though, as we will pick up on Thursday night at 6:00 pm with Maundy/Holy Thursday, and on Good Friday at 6:00 pm with more of this week’s events.

So, on this historic and celebratory day in the life of the church, we celebrate Jesus Christ our savior entering on this the second day of the Jewish Passover holiday. The people greeting Jesus were regular everyday folks like us and saw Palm Trees as Jesus got close to the city. Wanting to have some celebration, they cut palm branches waved them and laid them down on the path that Jesus entered in on, and they also laid down their cloaks or their outer garments. I guess this was their version of the red-carpet entry.

During this time of pandemic, especially when it was at its worst with riots, buildings burning, protests, people getting killed, and all the social upheaval, some people asked me, “Pastor Paul are we getting closer to the day that Jesus is coming back”? None of us know when Jesus will return to make this earth perfect, as Jesus said in Matthew 24:36:

36 But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mt. 24:36, NRSV).

          So only God the Father knows when Christ will return, but during the deep depths of this pandemic I had some people asking me if this was all sings of Christ’s return. Most people that I know that believe in the return of Christ would love it if he returned anytime, but this morning he is present in Jerusalem. This is why my sermon is called “New Life is Entering In”.

          I remember distinctly, in 2014 when there was an upheaval and a revolution in the country of the Ukraine. What happened was, if you remember, some Ukrainians were worried that Russia was going to take over all or part of the Ukraine. The country was split between pro-Russian and pro-Ukrainian factions, and there was a lot of violence, riots, protests, and killing.

As I was writing this sermon, I thought back to watching and reading about this period of time in the Ukraine. I remembered seeing a few times one or more Ukrainian Orthodox Priests walking out in the middle of the two fighting two factions, and often they stopped protesting and fighting immediately when priest or priests came out.

The presence of these Orthodox Priests reminded all the people that were God’s children of what they were doing. In the slide show for this morning, we see two pictures of this period of time in Ukraine. The priest or priests walked out, and the violence could explode at any minute, and it stops. Imagine the presence of one or more people being able to stop violence. What would be like to see someone who was loved and respected, and to see people take a breath and lower their weapons?

During this time of Pandemic, during this time of trial, people asked me, if Jesus was going to come back and set all of this right. This made me think of these scenes from the Ukraine in 2014.

The reason again that my sermon for this morning is called “New Life is Entering In” is I wonder what it was like to see Jesus entering into the city of Jerusalem this day? Jesus entered not just a pastor or a priest, but as God himself. Some of you might be thinking, it would have been good if Jesus entered into this this city or that city during the upheavals that happened during the month of the pandemic, or that it would have been nice if Jesus came back and destroyed COVID-19.

Whatever we felt in the depths of this pandemic, it certainly would have been better if Jesus showed up, in a similar way to the Ukrainian Orthodox Priests in our slides this morning. We also heard the scripture that I read a few minutes ago about Jesus’s return, and we also know that the pandemic is coming to an end to. Perhaps our Ukrainian brothers and sisters looked heavenward in 2014 and shout to God, “Where are you in all of this”! As we no doubt might have done the same during this Pandemic.

The good news friends is this pandemic is coming to a close, and soon Jesus’s life on earth will end, but “New Hope and New Life” are coming. What we are called to, every day, until we enter eternity, or until Christ returns, is share the good news of Christ, love and serve each other, and live our faith out. To be more specific, you do not need to be an ordained United Methodist Pastor or a Ukrainian Orthodox Priest to bring hope, love, light, life to the world. God worked through the Ukrainian Orthodox Priests that we saw in the slideshow pictures for this morning, but they are not God. God will work through us if we let him.

In our reading from this morning once again, we hear in our Isaiah 50:4:

“The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens—wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught” (Isa. 50:4, NRSV).

          We are not Jesus Christ, but we are called every day to live and to love like He loved. When Christ is in us through the power of the Holy Spirit, maybe you could walk out in between two mobs about to kill each other, and God’s presence in you will make them stop, take a breath, and put their weapons down.

Our reading from Philippians 2:5-8 for this morning says once again:

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross                  (Phil. 2:5-8, NRSV).

          May we try to live and love like Jesus, who was God in the flesh, who became like us, and died for us.

          In briefly looking at our gospel of Mark reading for this morning, once again it says:

“11 When they were approaching Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden; untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here immediately.’” They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it.” (Mk. 11:1-6, NRSV) 

          The gospel of Mark lesson then concludes once again saying:

7Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! 10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David!
Hosanna in the highest heaven!” 11 Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve”
(Mk. 11:7-11, NRSV).

          As powerful and as transformative as it must have been to watch Jesus literally live and in person come into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, today we just celebrate the memory of this. Maybe when things were really bad during this pandemic we were asking or even begging Jesus to come into these situations. Until Christ returns though, he will continue to work in us and through us. It is because of this, that Ukrainian Orthodox Priests by the presence of Christ in them can stop violence and fighting.

          We have all suffered through this pandemic, we need to change and re-group as we are coming out of this pandemic. We need to live and love like Christ, as we know one day that we will be with him in glory. Lastly, until Christ physically comes back, do not be shocked if he asks you to be his love and his grace in certain situations. We need to be the church and live our faith, so that a regular person like you or I, because people see Christ in us, can literally cause people to point their guns down, and stop fighting. Amen.

Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Sidney UMC - Fifth Sunday in Lent - 03/21/21 - Sermon - “Eternal Hope!" ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life" Series: Part 5 of 7)

Sunday 03/21/21 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title:                           “Eternal Hope!”

       ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life"- Series: Part 5 of 7)

Old Testament Scripture: Jeremiah 31:31-34                                        

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 5:5-10 

Gospel Lesson: John 12:20-33

          Last Sunday, we were all challenged with the quote, “Don’t be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”. This challenge was for us all to not only think about our Christian faith only in terms of the heaven. Meaning, we have faith and life on earth now, before eternity with Jesus Christ. Last Sunday I talked about how we can preach faith and live faith, as we all have limited time on this earth. We care share Jesus, and also live like Jesus.

           Thus far in this sermon series “The Journey to New Hope and New Life,” I have compared this specific 40-day season of Lent to Jesus’ 40-days and 40-nights in the wilderness. Jesus was tried and tempted, and so have we been through this time of pandemic. Jesus suffered and struggled, as we have. Even though this is true, Jesus’ time in the wilderness came to end, as this Global COVID-19 Pandemic will come to an end, as well.

          As a result, I challenged us all a couple of weeks ago to “Change and Re-Group,” with the idea that this time of pandemic will soon end. Our “new normal” will arrive, and are we ready for it? Are we prepared to rejoin the world?

          To better explain how we can “Change and Re-Group” as we enter our “new normal,” I talked about faith on earth last week. Specifically, that we are not only called to preach Christ, but to live like Christ. We need tell people about the saving grace of Jesus, but we also need to live like he taught us to live. We need to help those who suffer, those who hunger, those who hurt, and those who feel unloved. The Christian faith is sharing faith and living faith.

          Now when we die our earthly deaths, or if Jesus returns before our earthly deaths, then we will be in eternity with Christ. In eternity with Christ there will not be the brokenness or the problems that we have on earth. In heaven we will just worship God forever and will all be part of that great cloud of witnesses.

          Once again, since I talked last week about sharing and living our Christian faith here on earth, this morning I want to talk biblically about heaven. To start this discussion, I want to share with you a story that I tell at virtually all funeral services that I have ever done. I remember when I was quite young, attending a funeral for a man in the community in which I lived. At this funeral, which was over 30-years ago, from what I remember of it, there was a packed church full of people. I bet probably two-hundred or more people, and family was in the front rows of the church. The family was sobbing, crushed, mourning, and beside themselves as this beloved man and community member died suddenly. The much older and wiser minister than me, then looked out among the masses, and then his eyes looked squarely on the family members. The older and wiser minister looked at them with the greatest of love and compassion. He then said this, “It is on days such as this that our flesh grieves, and our soul rejoices”. Once again, the older and wiser minister said, “It is on days such as this that our flesh grieves, and our soul rejoices”.

          At the time I think I was six or seven years old, and I had no idea what that minister meant. Years later, I know exactly what he meant. Last Sunday, I talked about sharing and living our faith in Christ here on earth, but this Sunday, I am talking about the “Eternal Hope” of heaven with Jesus. This is why when we lose someone that we love “Our flesh grieves, and our soul rejoices”. God is with us here on earth, and Jesus saves us here on earth. We are called to share and live the gospel here on earth, but what is heaven like?

          The assumption then, is that what comes after this life on earth for those who love Christ must be great. So great that when someone we love dies, “Our soul rejoices”. Now again, we are not supposed to be “so heavenly minded that we are useless here on earth,” but with this said again, what is heaven going to look like and what is heaven going to be like?

          Before jumping into some of the more biblical ideas, many of us might have ideas of what we think heaven will be like. There have been countless movies that portray heaven. In heaven we are given angels wings, we have golden halos, and we lay on clouds and play harps all. Well maybe, but this is mostly stuff we created. I heard a comedian say once that his idea of heaven is not laying on a cloud all day and playing a harp. In fact, he said that he would be bored of this in about 5-minutes!

          Many of us have heard the story about the Apostle Peter or St. Peter sitting at a desk in front of the pearly gates of heaven. Peter checks people in, or presumably has been given the authority from God to turn people away and let us just say send them to the deep south. So, the Apostle Peter, which our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters believe was the first pope, is rewarded eternally by not actually being in heaven, but just in front of the pearly gates as a check in person, like a government worker would be when immigrants came through Ellis Island in New York City.

          Since I am a sort of smart-aleck, I have asked some of my Roman Catholic friends, “Does St. Peter get a lunch break every day?” Or I have asked, “Does St. Peter get to back through the pearl gates to sleep every night”? I have also asked “does St. Peter get vacation time?” Further, I heard one comedian say if heaven is a gated community, what kind of neighborhood is it in. Is it possible that when we die our earthly deaths, that we suddenly find ourselves in a long line people, with Saint Peter at the front checking us in? I guess, but it is not a strictly biblical idea.

          I have heard so many stories of people dying for a few minutes, and then coming back to life here on earth. I have heard stories of people’s souls leaving their bodies, people going into a “great light” or a tunnel, being reunited with family, feeling great warmth and love, and etc. Some of us have read the book or seen the movie “Heaven is for Real”. So just what does the bible say about heaven?

          In our reading for this morning from the Book of Jeremiah once again, the Prophet Jeremiah talks about God making a “New Covenant” with the house of Israel. The scripture says we will know God, that God will be revealed among us, and that God’s law and love will be written on our hearts. This person, Jesus the Christ, will come to set us free, and we will one day be in eternity in heaven with him forever (Jer. 31:31-34, NRSV).

          In our reading from the Book of Hebrews for this morning, the Apostle Paul tells us once again that Christ was begotten of God, not made, that he suffered like we do on this earth, but that he became the source for eternal salvation for us all (Heb. 5:5-10, NRSV). We hear so much in the Bible about what God has done, what Jesus has done to change us, so that we might share his love and live like him. Yet what will it be like when we are eternally with him?

          An article that I researched about the Bible says this about heaven:

1 Corinthians 2:9-10 says, “The things God has prepared for those who love him” are “revealed to us by his Spirit.” To counter false, unbiblical notions, we need to study and meditate on “words taught by the Spirit” (1 Corinthians 2:13). Our eternal home is a real place (John 14:1-3) where we will reside in real, physical bodies (1 Corinthians 15) and where we will experience everlasting joys, rewards, and treasures (Matthew 5:12Matthew 6:19-20Luke 6:23).”

“God dwells there (Revelation 21:3) and the light of Jesus will permeate every corner of this place (Revelation 22:5). Charles Spurgeon said, “To the lover of Jesus it is very pleasant to observe how the Lord Jesus Christ has always stood foremost in glory from before the foundation of the world, and will do so as long as eternity shall last.”

“We shall see the Lord “face-to-face” (1 Corinthians 13:12). The fact that our all-knowing, all-powerful Creator will dwell with us and we shall know him in an even more intimate way should be sufficient for the true Christian to rest assured that they will be satisfied there, but the Bible gives us many other glimpses of what this place will be like” (christianity.com/wiki/heaven-and-hell/what-is-heaven-like-according-to-the-bible.html).

          This article then goes on to give us for Biblical ideas of what heaven will be like. Here they are:

“1. Eradication of evil. Jesus promised that when he returns, he will send out his angels to “weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil,” and “then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (Matthew 13:41-43). Picture your favorite place on earth. Now imagine that place completely free from any of the unpleasantries that make you feel sad, uncomfortable, or anxious. Perfect righteousness and justice reign supreme. Every shred of evil has been completely eliminated and, instead, will be the opposite of anything that causes displeasure.

In Revelation 21:4, we see that the eternal state will have “no more sickness, crying, or pain.” What is the opposite of these? Perfect health, joy, and pleasure. In God’s presence, there are “pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11, ESV). Lovers of God will find that the pleasures of heaven eclipse their wildest imaginations (1 Corinthians 2:9).”

“2. Perfect friendships. Think of all the Old Testaments saints or Christians down through history that you would like to meet… Abraham, Moses, Hannah, the Apostle Paul, Hudson Taylor, Amy Carmichael, Jim Elliot, Corrie Ten Boom. The Bible says we will be with all of those people but describes them as “just men made perfect” (Hebrews 12:22-23). There will no longer be any hint of pride, insecurity, jealousy, discrimination, or competition — nothing that would hinder the sweetest Christian fellowship.

Think about a time when you felt deep love and respect for fellow believers. Now imagine that love and respect being completely untarnished by any ounce of sin on their part or yours. Imagine that love being multiplied to a perfect degree and encompassing people “from every nation, tribe, people and language” (Revelation 7:9Daniel 7:14) who are perfectly united in the one aim of loving God and seeking his glory alone.”

“3. Learning and growth. While our knowledge will greatly increase in the eternal state (1 Corinthians 13:12), there is no reason to conclude that we will become all-knowing. William G. T. Shedd states, “By this we are not to understand that the creature’s knowledge, in the future state, will be as extensive as that of the Omniscient One; or that it will be as profound and exhaustive as His. The infinitude of things can be known only by the Infinite Mind.” Alcorn comments on Ephesians 2:6-7: “The word show means ‘to reveal.’ The phrase in the coming ages clearly indicates this will be a progressive, ongoing revelation, in which we learn more and more about God’s grace.” 

“4. Meaningful work. Work was part of God’s original plan for humans before the fall (Genesis 2:15). God is always working (John 5:17) and Jesus said his mission was to finish the work of doing the Father’s will (John 4:34) to bring God glory (John 17:4). Reagan Rose writes, “Imagine all of the things you love about work — the satisfaction, the sense of progress, the knowledge that you have brought something that was disordered into a greater state of order — but imagine all of that without the confusion, sweat, or annoyance that is part and parcel of our work now! Now, that’s a job I wouldn’t mind signing up for.” This eternal view of the satisfying aspects of work can impact our perspective on our earthly jobs. Tom Nelson comments, “If our daily work, done for the glory of God and the common good of others, in some way carries over to the new heavens and new earth, then our present work itself is overflowing with immeasurable value and eternal significance” (christianity.com/wiki/heaven-and-hell/what-is-heaven-like-according-to-the-bible.html). 

          Imagine my friends a place such as this? A place free from all suffering, worry, and pain. A place of perfect harmony and love. Do I think that we can build such a place here on earth? No, I do not, but I think that we can make it much better through Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. We are stuck on this earth, sharing and the living Good News of Jesus Christ, but the scriptures tell us that there is eternity with Jesus to come.

          In touching on our gospel lesson once again for this morning, Jesus tells us once again that the time has come for him to tried, mocked, tortured, and crucified. In fact, Jesus says once again in John 12:24-25:

24 Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life(Jn. 12:24-25, NRSV).

          Jesus tells how us how to live and love and how we will be with him for eternal life, as I just gave you a biblical depiction of eternal life. Jesus then tells us more about following him, God the Father speaks, some think it was an angel, and Jesus again talks about the significance of his crucifixion and our faith in him.

          So far in this sermon series, “The Journey to New Hope and New Life,” we have talked about a time of trial and suffering, both in general, and during this pandemic. We have also talked about needing to change and re-group. We have talked about living our faith here on earth, and we have now talked about eternity with Jesus. Next week, on Palm Sunday, we will talk about what it must have been like to see and experience Jesus while he was alive here on earth.

          To close this message about “Eternal Hope,” I want to read the last bit of the article that I just read part of to you about what eternity or heaven will be like. This is what it says:

“Knowing the reality of our eternal state and that many of the things we are doing now will continue, only in a perfected condition, should motivate us to live with purpose and Godly motivations now. Those who love God will continue to love God and want to obey Him.”

“Peter writes, “What kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming….since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him” (2 Peter 3:11-14) (christianity.com/wiki/heaven-and-hell/what-is-heaven-like-according-to-the-bible.html).

          So, we have suffered long and hard through this pandemic, but it is coming to end, we are called live and love as if we are in heaven already. Friends be of good cheer Jesus will son die for us all on Good Friday, be raised to new life on Easter, and one day he will return in glory. One day we will all see our “Eternal Hope” realized in glory with Jesus Christ. Amen.

Wednesday, March 10, 2021

Sidney UMC - Fourth Sunday in Lent/UMCOR Sunday - 03/14/21 - Sermon - “New Hope on Earth is Coming!" ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life" Series: Part 4 of 7)

Sunday 03/14/21 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:                “New Hope on Earth is Coming!”

       ("The Journey to New Hope and New Life"- Series: Part 4 of 7)

Old Testament Scripture: Numbers 21:4-9                                  

New Testament Scripture: Ephesians 2:1-10

Gospel Lesson: John 3:14-21

          I remember a number of years ago, hearing a really good quote told to me from a pastor that I never met. This pastor’s quote was this, “Don’t be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”. Once again, “Don’t be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”

          Well, what does this mean? Does this mean that we should not think about heaven, or eternal life with Jesus ever? No, I do not think that this pastor meant that at all. I think what the pastor meant, is that through Jesus Christ and the blood that he shed on the cross, we are offered eternal life. If we repent of our sins and turn to Christ, we are offered this free gift of eternal life. I think of a hymn in our United Methodist Hymnal called, “When We All Get to Heaven” (UMC Hymnal, 701). In this hymn we hear of the great glories of heaven. Sometimes some of us have heard or have even been told that this life on earth will be hard, but then comes heaven. I want to challenge this a little bit this morning. For we have work to do here on this earth, lest we become too heavenly minded.

          This morning, we are continuing on in our sermon series called “The Journey to New Hope and New Life,” and our fourth installment this morning is called, “New Hope on Earth is Coming!” This morning, I will talk about what we can do in the here and the now to make the world better, and next week I will focus more on eternity in heaven with Jesus Christ. So, this week, living our faith in Christ on earth, and next week being with Christ for eternity. This is why I gave us all the quote, “Don’t be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”.

          So far in this season of Lent, and in this sermon series, I talked about the ways in which we have all suffered and have all been affected by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Last week though, I said that we need to “Change and Re-Group”! Is COVID-19 over yet? No. Do we see the light at the end of the tunnel? Yes! This should cause us to “Change and Re-group,” to re-enter life and the world, or to start planning to do so.

In getting back to the message for this morning called, “New Hope on Earth is Coming,” I want us to think about our lives here on earth. Historically, as Methodists we preach faith and live faith. Remember the quote I gave you at the beginning of this sermon that was, “Don’t be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”. Should we preach Christ crucified and his life saving blood? Absolutely. Yet, what if the person we are sharing the gospel with is hungry, or naked, or cold? Should we not try to address their earthly needs to? Or should we just preach salvation, but then not live the way Jesus clearly taught us to live? Historically, Methodists do both.

Sure, we can talk about loving our neighbors, and teach correctly that salvation is a free gift from God, through Jesus Christ, but what do we do while we are still here on earth still matters. Recorded human history goes back about 6,000 years. During all of this time, kings, queens, civilizations, and empires, have risen and have fallen. Countless wars have been fought, and human sin and carnage has been always present. Given this, I can certainly understand why someone would “be so heavenly minded that you are useless here on earth”. If we live in a fallen and a sinful world, that is broken, then why even try to fix it? Maybe we should just hide away and wait for eternity with Christ? Except, this is not what we are told in scripture. We are told to love, care for, and serve each other. Jesus washed his disciple’s feet, and he then told them and us to love each other?

After 6,000 years of recorded human history, the world is still fallen and still broken. So, what do we do about it? Can we as humans perfect this world? We certainly have had many that have tried. Through the centuries of human history, we have tried various forms of government, economic systems, and types of civilizations. We could easily argue that some are better than others, and yet they all rise, and they all fall. If humanity had the capacity to make a perfect world, then why have we yet to make a perfect world?

I was told by a friend of mine that in the month of February of this year that seven people died in Sidney from drug overdoses. Seven people. That is hard for me to believe, as we are not a major city. Since so many Christians often have sometimes been called “Do Gooders” as we are always just trying to make the world better, should we just be heavenly minded only?

My answer is this quote from the great reformer Martin Luther,

“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree” (https://www.forbes.com/quotes).

An even better quote, in my opinion, is this quote from the founder of the Methodist Movement, John Wesley:

“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can” (https://www.brainyquote.com).

We must continue the mission of the church, and New Hope must come to Earth before we go to heaven or Christ returns, because the world is broken and suffering. Will we fix everything? No. God can use us though to not only preach salvation in Christ, but then live it. If we are going to build a strong church, and a strong community, we must not only prepare people for eternity, but we must also care for them here on earth.

In our scripture reading for this morning, we are given a scripture from the Book of Numbers, and in this scripture, Moses puts a serpent of bronze on a pole. If the Israelite people had been bitten by a poisonous serpent, or afflicted with sin and brokenness, they only needed to gaze upon that pole with the serpent and they would be saved and would live (Num. 21:4-9, NRSV).

Our gospel of John reading then references our scripture from the Book of Numbers saying:

And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life”                         (Jn. 3:14-15, NRSV).

          In the first two versus of our gospel reading once again, we have the comparison of Moses’ serpent in the wilderness to Jesus Christ. Yet, this eternal hope is here and now, and in eternity to come. You see if we are new creations in Christ, he is with us here, and we are with him for eternity when we leave this earth, or if Jesus returns. All who believe in Jesus Christ will one day be with him in eternity, but as long are we are here on earth, we can be part of this new hope on earth.

          As the gospel continues on saying”

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20 For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God”         (Jn. 3:16-21, NRSV).

          So, the mission of the Christ, the Messiah, Jesus, was indeed to save our souls and rebuild our path to God. Yet, while Jesus was earth, he told us how to live and how to treat each other.

          In our reading for this morning from Ephesian 2:1-10, again we hear this same dichotomy of life on earth and in heaven. The scripture says once again in Ephesians 1:4-6:

But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,” (Eph. 1:4-6, NRSV).

 

          So, Jesus saves us if we turn to him, and one day we will be with him in glory. Yet, this is once again how our reading from Ephesians ends in 2:10:

10 For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life” (Eph. 2:10, NRSV).

 

          Works do not save us, faith does. In addition to preaching faith, how do we live our faith in the here and the now? Jesus came to bring “New Hope and New Life,” not just in heaven, but in the here and the now. Will we make this earth perfect? No, not until Jesus returns, but we can still do so much.

          We can feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and we can work to end problems and suffering. We can help those who are addicted and who are struggling. All of this is Christ working through us. When people see our lives, and how we live, they will see Christ in us. This my friends, as the great old reverend said many years ago, this is why we should not be “so heavenly minded that we are useless here on earth”.

          If I preach faith, and if some comes to Christ, I also have a concern for there well-being. I am concerned if they are hungry, or cold, or naked. A robust Christian life and faith is one that unites preaching faith and living faith. As we continue to walk this road with Christ to the cross on Good Friday, may we be living our faith, as we are preaching our faith.

          So, this week follow God’s leading in your life to call, to send, to help, and to do whatever God has called you to do, so that “New Hope” will “Come to Earth”. This “New Hope,” is the hope of Jesus Christ that lives in you. Amen.