Sunday
05/22/22 - Sidney UMC
Sermon Title: “Keep My Word!”
Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 67
New Testament Scripture: Revelation 21:10, 22-27, 22:1-5
Gospel Lesson: John 14:23-29
So, I can vividly think of times in my
life when I was told what I could and could not do. When I was in school, my
teachers would say no talking in class, without raising your hand and being called
on. Of course, no students ever violated this! We were told to not pass notes
or to sleep in class, and we never did these either! We were told to do our
homework and to be on time to class. I think you are getting the idea at this
point.
How often do we not want to do what we
are supposed to do? How often have we consciously known that what we were about
to do was wrong, but we did it anyway? Anyone here ever drive excessively fast
because you were running late? You were asking God in those moments to not let
you get pulled over, as you knew driving 85 Miles Per Hour was not good. How
many of us have ever lied to a spouse or a member of your family? How many of
us have done something else not good and gotten away with it?
I think if we are honest, we all break
the rules sometimes, and sometimes we do it over and over. The allure of sin
sometimes is powerful. Sometimes we know full well that what we are doing or
about to do is wrong, and yet we do it anyway. When we come to Jesus, repent of
our sins, and put our trust in him, we still face the realities of this world
every day.
The Apostle Paul wrote about his struggle
to do what God, what Jesus commanded him to do, but still struggling with his
own sin. In fact, in his letter to the Romans, or the Book of Romans, the Apostle
Paul says in 7:15-20:
15 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. 17 But in fact it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that the good does not dwell within me, that is, in my flesh. For the desire to do the good lies close at hand, but not the ability. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it but sin that dwells within me (Rom. 7:15-20, NRSV).
So, what the Apostle Paul is telling
the church and Rome and us, is that it is not always easy to do the right thing.
Sometimes we do not want to, or sometimes we just sin anyway. In coming to Christ,
in becoming a Christian, in being saved, we are forgiven of our sins and brokenness
and offered eternal life through Jesus Christ. Yet, we are still people that have
sin within us. All of us do. For the rest of our earthly lives, we are called to
walk with Christ and each other, as we continue to become more like Jesus. As we
walk with Christ and with each other over the course of our earthly lives, the
hope is that we become less sinful and increasingly more like Jesus. While
heaven, eternity with Christ is a free gift, while being for forgiven in Christ
is offered freely, becoming like Christ is the process of a lifetime. Salvation,
forgiveness, eternal life are offered to us all, but to become a mature
Christian, to become more like Christ, well this is Sanctification. As we grow
in our lives and in our faith, the hope is that we become holier and holier. In
the scripture that I just read from the Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans in
7:15-20, the Apostle Paul is not doubting his salvation. The Apostle Paul is
not doubting that he will spend eternity with Jesus. The Apostle Paul is
admitting though that even though that he has been forgiven, even though he
will spend eternity with Jesus, and has salvation in Jesus, that he is still
struggling with sin and brokenness.
One of the biggest problems in
Christianity then, especially evangelical Christianity, the branch of
Christianity that I grew up in, is that some Christians seem to think that salvation
means you are now perfect. Being forgiven, being offered salvation, and
spending eternity with Christ, does not necessarily mean that we will never
struggle or suffer ever again. It is possible that God could make us fully like
Christ in an instant, but for most of us it is a lifelong process. A lifelong process
of meeting Christ and then trying to live and love like Christ.
I really think that one of the reasons
that people leave the church and sometimes even abandon their faith, is feeling
like that they just cannot be a good Christian. Being forgiven and being offered
eternal life in Christ, is offered to us all, but we will all continue to
struggle sometimes. There is no perfect Christian or perfect person, but we do
serve a perfect God, and a perfect Jesus. After we come to faith, we still live
on this earth, we still experience the pain and the brokenness of this earth.
Does this make us bad Christians? No, it makes us human.
I have discussed a few times in church
the idea of living and loving like Jesus and comparing our faith to an Olympic high
jump bar. The bar is high, and Jesus has set the bar high. The bar should be
and needs to be high though. You might ask though, “But Pastor Paul how can I
ever get over that bar?” Many of us feel like this sometimes. Maybe we feel
like that we will never truly be the Christian that we should be. Friends, as
the founder the Methodist Movement John Wesley said, “We are going on to
perfection.” We are become more like Christ, as we pursue Christ. This pursuit,
this spiritual growth is lived out individually, in our churches, in our small
groups, at work, with our families, in reading the Bible, in praying, and in drawing
closer to Christ.
I say all of this, because this
morning in our gospel of John reading, Jesus tells us “Keep My Word.” Jesus
tells us to keep and obey everything he has said and told us. Yet, the Apostle
Paul tells us in the Book of Romans, that sometimes he failed to follow and
obey some of these words and teachings. Jesus tells this morning to “Keep My Word,”
but sometimes we fall short. When we do, we ask Jesus for forgiveness, we get
up and clean ourselves off, and we keep moving forward.
Faith in Christ, being a Christian, is
not just about salvation and going to heaven one day, it is also about bringing
heaven to earth, until Christ returns to perfect earth. We are called to live and
grow, as we fall and stumble, until we go to be with Christ, or until Christ returns
in victory to restore us and the earth. So, if we ever fail or struggle to keep
Christ’s words and teachings, then we are not alone. That high jump bar of
being completely made completely into the image of Christ can seem high and out
of reach. Keep walking, keep reaching, for Jesus is with us, as we rise and as
we fall.
In our reading for this morning from Psalm
67, we are reminded, once again, in 67:1-2:
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, Selah 2 that your way may be known upon earth, your saving power among all nations (Ps. 67:1-2, NRSV).
Knowing
God, knowing Christ, feeling God’s love and blessings, and sharing it on the
earth among all nations. We will fall short at times though, and we will fail
at times. Yet, we are pursuing Christ, and becoming increasingly like Christ.
That high jump bars is getting a little closer and closer. As we go on, we can
sense God’s love and grace in our lives more, and this helps us to be better
equipped to share the saving power of Christ on the earth, to all nations.
In
looking at our reading for this morning from the Book Revelation once again, we
are towards the end of the twenty-two-chapter book, and we hear about the eternal
reign of Christ. We heard about this in last week’s Book of Revelation reading,
but now hear even more about the coming kingdom of Christ.
Starting
in Revelation 21:10 the Apostle John writes:
10 And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God (Rev. 21:10, NRSV).
The
Apostle John is being given this part of the revelation of Christ’s eternal
kingdom. Imagine no war, no pain, no suffering. The Book of Revelation tells us
of this coming kingdom of Jesus Christ, and in eternity this is what it will be
like.
As
Jesus is compared to the Passover Lamb in the Old Testament we hear, continuing
on in Revelation 21:22-27:
22 I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. 25 Its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 People will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations. 27 But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life (Rev. 21:22-27, NRSV).
In
this eternity with Christ, there is no church or temple, as Christ is the
church or the temple. There is no sun or moon, and God is the light. The lamp
of God is Jesus Christ. The people of the earth will live in harmony, will
praise God, and there will never be darkness. Nothing unclean will enter the
city, and sin and harm will cease, and the people of Christ will live in love
and harmony forever.
Lastly,
our Book of Revelation reading for this morning says in Revelation 22:1-5
again:
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month, and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. 3 Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; 4 they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever (Rev. 22:1-5, NRSV).
Another
scene of eternal beauty, peace, abundance, light, love, and life. Yet, Jesus
this morning tells his disciples and us, that we are to love Jesus and keep his
word. We all continue to stumble and fall at times, but we can be forgiven and keep
“moving on to perfection.”
Throughout
history various leaders have tried several types of economic systems and
systems of government to achieve a perfect society or world similar to one laid
out in out Book of Revelation reading for this morning. I think that we can
make the world much better than it is now, but only when Christ returns will it
be truly perfected. Why is there still so much hurt, pain, suffering, war, and
struggle in the world? I truly think that a lot of it happens because of us.
Again, it is not that we are evil, but sometimes some people can do evil
things. If we continue to try to live and love like Jesus Christ though, then
we will continue to get closer and closer to that Olympic High Jump bar of
being like Jesus Christ.
In
this way, we continue to strive, grow, learn, love, and move towards holiness
and righteousness. Or we walk away and are consumed by darkness. The gospel of
Jesus Christ is the hope of the world, and it is indeed a very high, high jump
bar. What is the alternative though? Souls will be saved, lives will be
changed, and we will continue to walk in love and light. In doing this Sidney and
the world will change for the better.
In
looking at our gospel of John reading more closely, it says starting in John
14:23 once again:
23 Jesus answered him, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words, and the word that you hear is not mine but is from the Father who sent me. 25 “I have said these things to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur you may believe (Jn. 14:23-29, NRSV).
Is this gospel lesson, Jesus tells his
disciples that he will soon ascend into heaven, and Jesus also tells us that
Holy Spirit or the Advocate will show up soon to reveal even more to us, as we will
celebrate the Holy Spirit moving through the disciples on Pentecost Sunday.
Jesus once again this morning, tells
us to keep his word and his teachings. Like the Apostle Paul admitted in Romans
7:15-20, he fell short of that sometimes. We all do to, but remember meeting
Christ can happen in moment, but becoming like Christ is the process of a
lifetime. Do not be discouraged, as we all seek to be like Jesus, as Jesus
said, “Keep My Word!” Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment