Go Forth Boldly

Genesis 15: 1-12, 17-18
Philippians 3: 17-4:1

Sometimes we have read certain bible stories so often that they lose their potency. We think we know everything there is to know about the passage and so we skip over it with impatient eyes and our thoughts moving toward the next scripture. As a pastor who hopes to be in this profession for another 35 years, I know there will be scriptures I preach on over and over again. What new things can I bring to such a well known passage? I am learning that there is always something new, there is always something more there that none of us have ever noticed before and it takes a heart willing to see and hear it.

The text in Genesis is about how the journey toward Christianity began. One that has an old couple who are tired and slightly bitter at what God has not given them despite their faithful following of his Word. God appears to Abram in a vision and tells him, “Do not fear, I am your shield and your very great reward.” and this is where I found something I never noticed before. Abram has the audacity to question God! His bitterness does not let awe and fear control his tongue.

Instead, he turns to God and says, “Sovereign Lord, what is it you think you can give me since you have never answered the one prayer that I desired most to be fulfilled – that of having an heir?”

My grandmother has told me the older she gets the more inclined she is to say whatever comes through her mind. She states her opinion boldly and without fear because when she was young she let fear stop her from stating the truth too often. Perhaps Abram felt the same way. He had nothing left to lose since he was an old man without an heir to pass along what he had worked so hard for during his long life.

Many of us have been taught that we should not question God. That God is good and benevolent and all powerful and all knowing so whatever happens in our life is surely part of his plan. Do not question what God has set into motion! However, Abram’s response to God’s, “do not fear” seems to question such thinking. He wanted answers and now that God was finally talking to him; he was going to get those answers!

God does not smite Abram for his audacity to question God’s promises and plans. Instead, he takes him outside and tells him to look up and then makes a promise that probably left Abram breathless. “Look up and count the stars - if you can – and that is how many your offspring shall be.”

Abram believes this promise God has made and still, he questions him again. He says, “How will I know this will truly happen?” Abram is a bold man. His boldness should inspire us to be equally bold in our faith. Abram’s questions are a reminder to us that we all need reassurances. We all need God to reiterate his promises and help us to believe in what seems impossible.

Abram reminds us that to question God is not disloyal or an act of disbelief.

Questions give God a chance to reassure us. Moments of doubt bring to us a deeper faith. No one goes through life without experiencing both questions and doubts. When we give voice to these things we open up the communication between God and us. We give the Holy Spirit a chance to calm our spirit and we give Jesus a chance to bridge the gap that exists between our Father in Heaven and us.

I find it interesting that right after Abram has a chance to speak to God and get a promise of what he wants most in his life – an heir – that Abram falls asleep and a heavy darkness falls over him. Abram had done everything that the Lord had asked him to and yet there was a darkness that followed him. The way the lectionary works, we skipped over several verses where it mentions that God speaks to Abram during this deep sleep and tells him things that he may not have wanted to hear because it would affect his descendants, but even in the midst of darkness, God speaks to Abram.

What can we learn from such a thing? No matter how good of a person you are there will be doubts that linger in your heart about the promises Jesus has offered you. There will be days when you want to throw up your hands and give in to all the temptations and sins that exist in the world. There will be days when your heart is heavy in your chest and your mind is plagued with doubts. Still, in those moments, God is speaking to your heart and mind.

Abram stuck to what the Lord had said, believed despite the darkness that was within him as well as the doubts that filled his mind to overflowing. And because Abram worked through his doubts and found a deeper faith in God, that is when God made a covenant with Abram that began the journey to salvation for the entire world.

What can God do with us if we are willing to walk through the darkness and come out the other side? What will God give to us if we are willing to experience those forty days of wilderness and accept there is more to life than we can touch, taste, smell, and know? What may we learn if we’re willing to question what we never have before? What will God promise that will leave us as breathless as Abram?

Be brave. Be bold. God reminds us today that there is nothing to fear if we are true to our hearts and His Spirit.

Amen.

Tempted by the Good Things

Deut 26: 1-11
Luke 4:1-13

Temptation exists everywhere we turn. There is not a day that goes by that we are not tempted by something or someone. Sometimes it is the same temptation offered to us over and over again, and sometimes we are tempted by many different things. Inside each of us we have a selfish person that wants to do whatever we want whenever we want. Inside each of us is the Spirit of God that whispers of things more grand than what we temporarily desire. Having both inside of ourselves creates confusion and confliction.

We are essentially good people. We want to help others and be good examples to our children, grandchildren, friends, and community. We desire to follow Christ in all ways and to make a positive difference in the world. It’s one of the reasons we come to church and join the various activities the community offers us. However, there is a kernel of sin that exists in each of us as well. There is a darkness that if we do not keep a tight rein on it, will become a tree of temptations that make being a good person very hard.

Not too long ago, I asked the Confirmation class what makes our God different from every other god that has been worshipped throughout time. One of them said Jesus. Another said and Jesus is God. I asked them why that mattered and they responded, “Because Jesus is God and Jesus is human, he understands how we feel and understands how God feels.” I won’t lie; I got shivers down my spine when I heard that. They understand what is so important about our Christian faith. Jesus is not just the Son of God who has saved us from our sins by offering himself on a cross. Jesus is the Great Mediator. Jesus is the one that understands both sides, the human and the divine, and he helps each side to see what the other is trying to tell them.

What an amazing gift God has given to us. In Luke, Jesus is baptized by John and then immediately goes into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He is not tempted to do bad things; he is tempted to do good things. Have you ever noticed that before? The devil knows that Jesus is a good person and so he cannot tempt him by asking him to do mean things or extremely selfish acts. No, the way that the devil tries to get his hold on Jesus is by tempting him with the very things that Jesus wants most for the world. It is the WAY they would be done that is wrong; it is not the end result that is the sin. It is the means.

Jesus is in the wilderness for forty days without food or water. The devil comes to him at one of his weakest moment as a human being and says, “Since you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” Jesus has unspeakable power; he could turn that stone into bread. The unspoken message the devil is trying to get through to Jesus is that if he does this now, then all the stones that litter Israel could be turned into bread to feed the hungry. Jesus has the power to end famine right here and now. “Tap into the power of God and right this wrong that exists; prove you are God’s Son to the world.” whispers the devil.

The second temptation is the devil reminding Jesus of the awful regimes that are in power across the world - the dictators and the fascists that commit horrific atrocities and keep the people from true freedom. The devil tells Jesus that he has the power to give Jesus every kingdom in the world so that he can be their benevolent ruler. Jesus can make happen what he has come to earth to do; to bring peace and justice to the world, and to show everyone God’s love. “Take the easy way, you can avoid the pain and suffering; you can avoid that painful death on the cross if only you do it my way and bow down to me now. Say the word, and the world is yours.” whispers the devil.

The third temptation goes to the very heart of Jesus’ fears as a human, and ours as well. Jesus knows what he is about to sacrifice for the world to bring about God’s plan to save us all. He is offering up everything he has and trusting God with every iota of his being. However, there are always little doubts that creep in. Will God fulfill his promises? ALL of his promises made to Jesus? Will this all be for nothing or will God stand beside him the whole way through this terrible journey? “Throw yourself from the temple and watch the angels come to your aid so that not even your foot will strike a stone.” Will God protect him? Will God stay with him? Will he fall to the ground, broken and dying or will the angels lift him high for all to see that he is truly the Christ? “Test God, make sure God tells you the truth. You are about to sacrifice everything for Him, make sure God is willing to fulfill what He has promised.” whispers the devil.

As you can see, the devil is wily. He knows his audience. He knows that he cannot get Jesus with offering him money and power, but instead, he must look at what Jesus desires most to do – to fulfill God’s plans for the world and to help humanity become one with God. Our temptations are often like this. There is the poor young man who grew up with barely enough food to eat and only hand me down rags to wear. When he is an adult with his own family, he struggles against the temptation to cheat on his taxes and to skim money out of the till so that his children will have a better life than he did. There is the woman who was abused as a child and so as an adult she refuses to love anyone and make a commitment of any sort, often hurting the ones that care about her most. There is the man who feels like his life is out of control at home, and so he turns to his work and volunteer activities to find comfort and stability. He wants to help others and make sense of what has happened to him, but gets so caught up in avoiding what has hurt him that he alienates the very people he’s trying to help.

Your deepest wants and desires, even though they are rooted in good intentions, are often the breeding ground for sin and temptation. Yes, we can all be tempted to eat an extra piece of cake for dessert or to say a cuss word when we’re angry. However, the place where we truly get off track and lose sight of God is often when we allow our best and most noble intentions to be corrupted by the way we try to make them happen.

Jesus wanted everything the devil was tempting him with. He wanted them desperately. But Jesus knew that how we go about things is just as important as achieving them. The only way he could see that what the devil offered was not the right way was because he was filled with the Holy Spirit. The only way for us to make sure we achieve our dreams and desires in the right way is to do it according to God’s will. The only way to know God’s will is to let go of what we think is so important and instead begin praying for God to show us what is really vital to our life.

Jesus fed the hungry throughout his ministry. Jesus healed the sick and maimed and even raised the dead. Jesus changed the governments and kingdoms of the world forever through his death and resurrection. Christianity swept through the early world and the disciples followed Jesus’ example and constantly preached justice and peace as he had done while on earth. Jesus had all of his doubts removed as he continued to follow God’s will and never once did God leave him. He went to the cross, confident in God’s love in the face of the world’s hatred, and triumphed over the devil and all those who had tried to treat him as a mere man instead of God’s Son.

God knows what you desire most. God knows your darkest fears. We cannot hide from the One who created us and breathed life into us. Trust that God has a plan. Trust that even as dark and painful as life can get that this is not the end for you and those you love. There is more to life than pain. There is more to life than these temptations the devil would offer us. Focus on Christ and let your pride, ego, and wants fade away. What Jesus knew and what you will discover too is that when we let go of what we desire most, that is when God steps in to help us. God will not force you to do it Jesus’ way. You have to choose Jesus, and through your choice your temptations will no longer hold any power over you.

Amen.  

Our Calling

Jeremiah 1: 4-10
Luke 4: 21-30

The two texts we read today are about a person’s calling. For Jeremiah, he could not believe that the Lord was calling him to be a prophet and for Jesus, he always knew he had a special destiny to fulfill. Today’s Christians are no different than these two men. We all have a calling by God to fulfill, and some of us have always known what it was while others have trouble believing God would consider them to do anything.

What is a calling by God? How do we recognize when God is speaking to us? How can we answer the call and still have free will? These three questions have been asked by millions of Christians over the years and we each struggle with the answers. The truth is that the answers are not the same for all of us just as each of us may be called by God, but we are not all called for the same purpose.

Jeremiah is what we could call an every person’s prophet. Jeremiah did not think himself worthy. He had real fears and anxiety. Throughout the book of Jeremiah he resists God’s call upon his life and even resents what God has asked of him. That is why we consider Jeremiah an every person’s prophet. We all have experienced doubts and fears, resistance to what we know God wants us to do in our lives because it is hard or overwhelming or we plain just don’t want to do it.

A calling isn’t always as grand and big of a job as what Jeremiah and Jesus were called to do. I am not standing here telling you that every single one of you need to become pastors or lay leaders or evangelists. God calls us to use our strengths and even our weaknesses to witness. That is what a calling is about. We can witness to God’s kindness for the world through the kindness you show a stranger on the street when they drop their suitcase and papers spill everywhere.

We can witness to God’s dedication to the world by making sure to show up to meetings on time and volunteering for tasks that others will not do. We can witness to God’s compassion when you take a moment to visit a sick friend, call a loved one, or when you spend time helping someone on your day off when you’d rather be drinking a beer and watching the Super Bowl game. We witness to God’s love when you help at the local food pantry, attend civic meetings, help out at church functions, visit shut-ins, and go on mission trips that in no way benefit you personally, but instead help others.

All of those things are part of our calling as Christians. Each of us has gifts that we can use to make the world a better place. Sometimes it takes a lot of discerning to figure out where we are best able to help others. Maybe you are the patriarch or matriarch of your family and your calling is to keep that family together despite the family spats and feuds. Maybe your calling is that at work you are the peacekeeper. You are the one that everyone comes to when there is a problem because you think clearly in times of crisis. Maybe your calling is in your ability to make people laugh even when they are on the verge of tears. Maybe your calling is to help your spouse raise responsible children and grandchildren.

Maybe your calling is in the way you weave words and so God has called you to share the stories of faith that are all around us. Maybe your calling is that you can talk anyone into anything, and God has asked you to use that gift to get people to volunteer in various projects. Not everyone is called to be a preacher or evangelist or missionary. Not all of us are called to travel the world, instead most of us are called to stay right here in our little area and make a difference.

And you do make a difference.

In Jeremiah’s case, he was called to be a prophet and to speak out against all the evils committed by his countrymen and women. They were ignoring God’s laws and desecrating the temples with idol worship. Jeremiah was told by God to do some radical things that probably had many calling him a fool, and as much as Jeremiah secretly agreed with all of them, he still did them. Jeremiah may have felt that God should not ask him to do anything because he was far from the perfect prophet, but God knew that had nothing to do with it.

Throughout the Bible, God picks the most unlikely people. He picks an elderly couple like Sarah and Abraham to give birth to a nation of people. He picks a swindler and a liar like Jacob to help carry on the task of creating Israel. He picks a man like Noah who is a drunkard to build an ark to save the whole world. He picks the youngest and weakest boy like David to become the greatest king Israel will ever know. He picks a prostitute named Rahab to help hide Joshua and make it possible for a small group of men to defeat a whole army. Jesus hangs out with prostitutes, lepers, and tax collectors who were all reviled in that time. And yet, each of these unlikely and unsuitable people has a hand in bringing about God’s vision for the world.

Look around this room. Look inside yourself. It is very easy to talk ourselves out of being important. It is very easy to come up with excuses about why we cannot change the world. It is very easy to forget that God does not care about our inadequacies because God knows what each of us is capable of with Jesus by our side. We love to throw around the words, “With God all things are possible”, but we forget the true power in such faith and belief. With God, you can make a difference. With God, you can help change the world or your small portion of it. With God, it does not matter how sinful you were or are, all that matters is your willingness to listen and follow where Jesus is leading you.

Calls from God are scary. Tell someone that God spoke to you and everyone will think you’re crazy. However, not all calls are a voice clearly saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you.. I appointed you a prophet to the nations”. Sometimes it is a thought that we cannot get rid of that seems a little bit crazy and irrational. We try to ignore the thought but it seems to be there again and again.

The owls that bring Harry Potter invitations to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry are like a call from God. Harry’s less than kind foster parents try as best they can, to destroy the invitations. They even try escaping to a remote cabin on an island. Finally the umpteenth letter arrives personally delivered by an angry giant of a man named Hagrid. God’s call was like this for Jeremiah – it was relentless and inevitable. Here is the secret – we do not choose God, God chooses us.

God has chosen you. You are here for a purpose and if you’re not sure what that is then you need to listen a little harder. God is the voice that does not go away. God is the one that keeps talking and banging His fist against the door of our will until we let down the barriers and accept Him inside. You may be right that you’re not trained for this or you’re not good at working with people or you have no influence in the world, and no one ever listens to you when you speak. Maybe that’s all true. And God won’t lie to you about your qualifications, but always you will be told, “Do not be afraid for I am with you.”

That’s what we need - God by our side in our attempts to do good works. God does not tell us it will be a cakewalk or a party, God merely tells us that we should not cower in fear because Jesus has our back. No matter how far we go from the call of God, no matter how many reasonable excuses we may offer, God is there watching out for us and even giving us the words to say.

No one knows you’re a Christian. Most of us do not wear signs that proclaim it or even a cross that might tell another we believe in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Our faith is shown by what we do and what we say. Our call to God is to speak the truth and do good things in our daily life. We are asked to respect every human being, while resisting evil, and bringing about justice to an unjust world. Our calling will never be easy if it is God’s true purpose for us. But your life will never be more satisfying than when you do God’s work and answer Jesus’ call to you.

Amen.