Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon – Luke 18:9-14 – Called to Humility
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Churches
October 24, 2010
We have seen over the last few weeks how God calls us in many different ways: a call to discipleship and it costs, a call to repentance resulting in joy, a call to faith with a lifelong commitment to prayer, worship and Bible study, a call to service with the requirement that we love our neighbors, a call to thanksgiving which motivates us to cross barriers, and a call to prayer which transforms us into a people who hunger and thirst for justice. And today we look at our call to humility and the blessing of forgiveness that we receive as a result. But first lets pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Luke 18:9-14 9He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: 10"Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.' 13But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!' 14I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."
For those of us who have been coming to church for a long time we don't have a very high opinion of those Pharisees. Sunday School teachers and preachers often look at this parable and tell us not to make the mistakes of the Pharisees. The Pharisees, you see, believed that they would be saved by good works. And we all know that good works will never get us into heaven. We are saved solely by the grace of God which we obtain through our faith in Jesus Christ. So, we are taught, to be like the tax collector and depend only on God's mercy to get to heaven. This is solid reformed theology, but it would sound a little strange to a first century audience. Let me explain.
Suppose you were looking for a new home, and you wanted to live in a nice community. You would want a Pharisee for a neighbor. The lawn of a Pharisee's house would be cut and the bushes trimmed. There would be no loud music coming from the windows and their dog would not bark all night. Pharisees always try to obey the rules of the community so they are easy to get along with, model neighbors, except sometimes when they complain that others fail to live up to community expectations. You would want a Pharisee as a doctor or dentist because they would always try to make a good diagnosis of your problem and perform the right treatment. You want a Pharisee as a lawyer or judge because they would pay attention to detail and always try to do what is right.
You would want to avoid the tax collector as a neighbor. Tax collectors have loud parties
all night long, their front yard is covered with weeds, old cars are parked driveway. Beware of the tax collector financial deal, it might be a Bernie Madoff ponzi scheme or you might be investing in Nigerian gold mines that do not exist. I remember joining a church one time with a tax collector. He and his wife seemed nice enough, but they had joined the church in order to meet people and get them involved in a wine importing scam. They sold shares in a company that supposedly was importing wine from Italy, but there was no company, no wine, no profits, and this couple had joined the church just to swindle others. When all of this came to light the couple disappeared.
So the Pharisees are the nice people in the world. We want them for our friends and invite them to church. Pharisees are us. But we condemn those tax collectors and want to stay as far away from them as we can.
But Jesus knows something about the Pharisees, something they would prefer to keep hidden. You see, the Pharisees are really no better than the tax collectors. They are just more adept at keeping their sins hidden. Their lives were filled with white lies and the innocent mistakes: the little fling one night at a business conference nobody at home knows about, the cash deal that was never reported on a tax return, the addiction to prescription medicines that is carefully hidden from friends and family. A Pharisee wears a mask of holiness but underneath is really no better than a tax collector. Both the Pharisee and the tax collector have fallen short of God's expectations.
But according to our story today there is one big difference between the Pharisee and the tax collector. The Pharisee tries to hide behind his mask when approaching God in prayer while the tax collector comes to God honestly with no mask to hide behind. Humility is when you approach God with your mask removed.
This is what worship is all about. We wear our masks all week pretending that we are good people, but on Sunday morning we come to church and leave our masks at the door. For one hour each week we are honest with God. We bow our heads in confession and truthfully admit to God who we really are. When we humble ourselves before God in this way, Jesus' promise is that we will be exalted, spiritually lifted up, into the presence of God. That why we experience such joy in worship, because our hearts are lifted up into the presence of Jesus Christ.
Should we fast twice a week? That's a good start. Should we give 10% of our income to the
church? That's good too. Should we avoid lust and crooked business deals? Of course! But will any of these things bring us closer to God and lift us up into God's presence? Not really. What God wants is your honesty and your confession because no matter what you try to do, it is never good enough. You are called to approach God in humility.
Of course I hear your objections to all this. Aren't there bad and good people in the world? Shouldn't bad people try to be better if they want to go to heaven? Yes. Doesn't the Holy Spirit do something to help us clean up our own act? Well, yes. But even if we are candidates for sainthood if we parade our righteousness around criticizing others for not being holy enough, then we are no better than the Pharisee who disparaged the tax collector for being a sinner. This is a case of the pot calling the kettle black.
We are all sinners. We are all condemned to sin. It’s part of our fallen character. Even if we try really hard to be holy, we can’t get there. You go half way today. Then you go half the remainder tomorrow. You go half of what is left every day after that. And you still cannot get all the way to where you have to go. Your only hope is that God will take you all the way to the finish line.
This is what God’s grace is all about. We are unable to live holy lives. So we either hide behind a mask and pretend that we are ok, or we take off the mask, admit our failures, and ask God for forgiveness. The promise of scripture is that if we do take off the mask and confess God will respond with the free act of forgiveness.
I recently heard a delightful story about our need to rely on God's grace. (adapted from Erickson http://www.natpresch.org/sermon.php?d=2004-08-15%200000 )
God and Satan were locked up in a scoreless baseball game. It was the bottom of the ninth, and God's team was coming up to bat. Christian was in the stands, and he was worried that the game would go on forever, with neither side scoring the winning run. Faith stepped up to the plate, and Christian cheered, because if anyone could handle Satan's wicked curve ball it would be Faith. Sure enough, Faith led off with a solid single to right field. Then Hope singled to center and there were runners on first and second. Love followed with a single to shallow left, and the bases were loaded. Finally Grace strode to the plate to face a very angry Satan. The count quickly went to 3 and 2 and Christian was biting his nails. Did Grace have the right stuff? Satan reared back and threw the hardest fast ball he could muster. Grace promptly hit it out of the ballpark for a grand slam, and God's team won. After the game God asked Christian what he thought of his lineup. Christian admitted that he had a lot of confidence in Faith, Hope, and Love, but he wasn't sure about Grace. And God replied, "Faith, Hope, and Love have a lot on the ball to be sure, but it takes Grace to bring everybody home."
So when we pray do we hide behind masks hoping that God won’t notice who we really are? Or do we remove your masks and stand before the Lord admitting the reality of who we are and what we have done? The promise of scripture is that God loves us so much that God will forgive us if we remove our masks and admit the reality of our lives. This is God's grace.
Father in heaven, we come to you today as sinners. We have removed our masks. We acknowledge that we are no better than anyone else. Here we are, warts and all. Forgive us and let us return to your loving arms.
By the grace of God you are forgiven. Amen.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Sermon – Luke 18:1-8 – Called to Prayer
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 18:1-8 – Called to Prayer
October 17, 2010
Today we continue with our look at God’s calling. God calls us to discipleship with its great cost on our lives. God calls us to repentance with the promise of great joy. God calls us to service with the command to love our neighbors. God calls us to faith with a lifelong commitment to spiritual disciplines. God calls us to thanksgiving and directs us out of the church crossing barriers to bring the good news to people unlike ourselves. And today we will see that God calls us to prayer that will shape our hearts so that we begin to work for justice. But before we get to this call, please pray with me.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Then he told a parable to them concerning their need to pray all the time and not become discouraged saying: “In a particular city there was a judge who did not revere God or respect people. Also in that city was a widow who came to him saying, ‘Give me justice from my adversary.’
He refused for a while and after this he said to himself, ‘even though I do not fear God or respect people, because this woman troubles me, I will grant her justice so that she might not be coming continually to torment me.’”
And the lord said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Would not God grant justice to his chosen, the ones crying out day and night, and wait patiently on account of them? I say to you that he will not grant justice quickly.” Luke 18:1-8 (my translation)
Today I am going to preach two sermons on this text. I am not talking about the two sermons usually preach at Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek churches. Rather I am going to preach two sermons at each church for a total of four sermons today. You will only hear two of them unless you attend both churches. And I can assure you that these will be half length so that we will not be here all day. So here we go with sermon one..
Our scripture today is about God’s call to justice. We live in a world of grinding poverty where many people live in squalid condition on less than a dollar a day. We live in a country where nearly 10% of us are unemployed and record numbers depend on food stamps. According to the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board economic prospects look bleak because business spending has slowed, there is uneven improvement in consumer spending, the housing market remains depressed, and job growth is not expected to be strong enough to impact the unemployment rate. People are crying out for justice continually day and night.
Our scripture today features a widow. Widows in ancient times were the poorest of the poor. They had no job prospects and no family for support. God required that the government of the day support the widows by mandating that their husband’s family care for them. But when the husband’s family refused to take care of her, her only recourse was to go to a judge demanding justice. The judge had been commanded by God to order the husband’s family to do their duty. But he refused the command and ignored God. God was patient and called on the widow to press her case over and over again.
Injustice also prompted the prophet Jeremiah to speak these words as written in the book of Lamentations.
Lamentations 3:1-17 NIV Lamentations 3:1 I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. 2 He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness rather than light; 3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long. 4 He has made my skin and my flesh grow old and has broken my bones. 5 He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship. 6 He has made me dwell in darkness like those long dead. 7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape; he has weighed me down with chains. 8 Even when I call out or cry for help, he shuts out my prayer. 9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone; he has made my paths crooked. 10 Like a bear lying in wait, like a lion in hiding, 11 he dragged me from the path and mangled me and left me without help. 12 He drew his bow and made me the target for his arrows. 13 He pierced my heart with arrows from his quiver. 14 I became the laughingstock of all my people; they mock me in song all day long. 15 He has filled me with bitter herbs and sated me with gall. 16 He has broken my teeth with gravel; he has trampled me in the dust. 17 I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.
In an era of economic downturn we, who have been blessed by God, are called to keep our eyes open for any injustice and, like the widow, make our demands for justice continually day and night. If we see someone being unfairly treated, if we hear about someone being taken advantage of, if we find someone who has fallen through the cracks, then we are called to respond to injustice by demanding justice. Jeremiah asked this question, “to deprive a man of justice would not the Lord see such things?” (Lamentation 3:36). Of course God’s see injustice in the world and like the widow in our story today we are called to demand justice continually until justice is fully realized.
Lord Jesus, we see injustice in our world today. People are treated unfairly. Help us to see injustice as it occurs and to demand justice continually until your justice reigns on earth. Amen.
So that was my first sermon for you today on God’s call for justice on earth. Now let’s turn to my second sermon, this one on God’s call to prayer. Once again let’s hear the scripture passage for the gospel of Luke.
Then he told a parable to them concerning their need to pray all the time and not become discouraged saying: “In a particular city there was a judge who did not revere God or respect people. Also in that city was a widow who came to him saying, ‘Give me justice from my adversary.’
He refused for a while and after this he said to himself, ‘even though I do not fear God or respect people, because this woman troubles me, I will grant her justice so that she might not be coming continually to torment me.’”
And the lord said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Would not God grant justice to his chosen, the ones crying out day and night, and wait patiently on account of them? I say to you that he will not grant justice quickly.” Luke 18:1-8 (my translation)
Our scripture today is about prayer. We see a widow praying for justice, but her prayer seems to have to effect. All of us have prayed for things to happen. Maybe a loved one is sick. Maybe you are looking for a job or a spouse or children. You pray over and over again and nothing happens. And you begin to think that God must be sleeping or on vacation or something. You pray and pray and pray and God’s seem to never respond. Jesus is telling us today to keep praying every day, morning and night. Be persistent. Don’t stop. God wants us to keep praying and will respond in God’s time. We have to be patient and continually pray trusting that one day God will act.
The widow in our story today prayed for justice, day and night, every day and every night until one day the judge finally responded to God’s call for justice and acted on her behalf. Rest assured in your prayers that God loves you and hears you when you pray. God wants to keep on praying continually and be patient, as God is patient, until the world is ready to God to act.
Over the last few weeks I have met several people with loved ones suffering from chronic diseases. These people have been praying for years. Day and night they pray for healing. They pray for wisdom for their doctors. In their prayers they hope that one day God will act. But now they have to be patient and keep praying.
That’s God’s call to us. Keep praying morning and night. Pray over and over again. Keep praying the same thing every day if you have to. God never tires of what you have to say. And be filled with the hope that one day God will act in God’s way.
Father in heaven, hear our prayers. Sustain us as we pray day after day. Fill us with the assurance that you hear our prayers. And fill us with the persistence we need to keep on praying. Amen.
This morning you have heard two sermons on this parable from Jesus. One focused on our need to search out and defeat resistance to justice with persistent action. The other focused on our need to patiently and continually pray, assured the God will respond. Of course we need both of these. We have to pray continually before we can see injustice in the world. And God uses our efforts to end injustice to respond to our prayers. So these go together: praying day and night and working to bring God’s justice to the world.
This then is the mission of the church. We are called to pray unceasingly. Pray every day confident the God hears and one day will respond. As we pray our hearts will change. We will begin to see injustice in the world, and we will find ourselves motivated to end that injustice. As you work for God’s justice on earth you will find the need to pray even more. So prayer and justice go together.
Father in heaven, help us to keep praying. Open our eyes, ears and heart to recognize injustice when we see. Help us to respond to that injustice. And equip us in prayer. In Jesus’ name who prayed continually and work to end injustice. Amen.
Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 18:1-8 – Called to Prayer
October 17, 2010
Today we continue with our look at God’s calling. God calls us to discipleship with its great cost on our lives. God calls us to repentance with the promise of great joy. God calls us to service with the command to love our neighbors. God calls us to faith with a lifelong commitment to spiritual disciplines. God calls us to thanksgiving and directs us out of the church crossing barriers to bring the good news to people unlike ourselves. And today we will see that God calls us to prayer that will shape our hearts so that we begin to work for justice. But before we get to this call, please pray with me.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Then he told a parable to them concerning their need to pray all the time and not become discouraged saying: “In a particular city there was a judge who did not revere God or respect people. Also in that city was a widow who came to him saying, ‘Give me justice from my adversary.’
He refused for a while and after this he said to himself, ‘even though I do not fear God or respect people, because this woman troubles me, I will grant her justice so that she might not be coming continually to torment me.’”
And the lord said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Would not God grant justice to his chosen, the ones crying out day and night, and wait patiently on account of them? I say to you that he will not grant justice quickly.” Luke 18:1-8 (my translation)
Today I am going to preach two sermons on this text. I am not talking about the two sermons usually preach at Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek churches. Rather I am going to preach two sermons at each church for a total of four sermons today. You will only hear two of them unless you attend both churches. And I can assure you that these will be half length so that we will not be here all day. So here we go with sermon one..
Our scripture today is about God’s call to justice. We live in a world of grinding poverty where many people live in squalid condition on less than a dollar a day. We live in a country where nearly 10% of us are unemployed and record numbers depend on food stamps. According to the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board economic prospects look bleak because business spending has slowed, there is uneven improvement in consumer spending, the housing market remains depressed, and job growth is not expected to be strong enough to impact the unemployment rate. People are crying out for justice continually day and night.
Our scripture today features a widow. Widows in ancient times were the poorest of the poor. They had no job prospects and no family for support. God required that the government of the day support the widows by mandating that their husband’s family care for them. But when the husband’s family refused to take care of her, her only recourse was to go to a judge demanding justice. The judge had been commanded by God to order the husband’s family to do their duty. But he refused the command and ignored God. God was patient and called on the widow to press her case over and over again.
Injustice also prompted the prophet Jeremiah to speak these words as written in the book of Lamentations.
Lamentations 3:1-17 NIV Lamentations 3:1 I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. 2 He has driven me away and made me walk in darkness rather than light; 3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me again and again, all day long. 4 He has made my skin and my flesh grow old and has broken my bones. 5 He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship. 6 He has made me dwell in darkness like those long dead. 7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape; he has weighed me down with chains. 8 Even when I call out or cry for help, he shuts out my prayer. 9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone; he has made my paths crooked. 10 Like a bear lying in wait, like a lion in hiding, 11 he dragged me from the path and mangled me and left me without help. 12 He drew his bow and made me the target for his arrows. 13 He pierced my heart with arrows from his quiver. 14 I became the laughingstock of all my people; they mock me in song all day long. 15 He has filled me with bitter herbs and sated me with gall. 16 He has broken my teeth with gravel; he has trampled me in the dust. 17 I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is.
In an era of economic downturn we, who have been blessed by God, are called to keep our eyes open for any injustice and, like the widow, make our demands for justice continually day and night. If we see someone being unfairly treated, if we hear about someone being taken advantage of, if we find someone who has fallen through the cracks, then we are called to respond to injustice by demanding justice. Jeremiah asked this question, “to deprive a man of justice would not the Lord see such things?” (Lamentation 3:36). Of course God’s see injustice in the world and like the widow in our story today we are called to demand justice continually until justice is fully realized.
Lord Jesus, we see injustice in our world today. People are treated unfairly. Help us to see injustice as it occurs and to demand justice continually until your justice reigns on earth. Amen.
So that was my first sermon for you today on God’s call for justice on earth. Now let’s turn to my second sermon, this one on God’s call to prayer. Once again let’s hear the scripture passage for the gospel of Luke.
Then he told a parable to them concerning their need to pray all the time and not become discouraged saying: “In a particular city there was a judge who did not revere God or respect people. Also in that city was a widow who came to him saying, ‘Give me justice from my adversary.’
He refused for a while and after this he said to himself, ‘even though I do not fear God or respect people, because this woman troubles me, I will grant her justice so that she might not be coming continually to torment me.’”
And the lord said, “Listen to what the evil judge says. Would not God grant justice to his chosen, the ones crying out day and night, and wait patiently on account of them? I say to you that he will not grant justice quickly.” Luke 18:1-8 (my translation)
Our scripture today is about prayer. We see a widow praying for justice, but her prayer seems to have to effect. All of us have prayed for things to happen. Maybe a loved one is sick. Maybe you are looking for a job or a spouse or children. You pray over and over again and nothing happens. And you begin to think that God must be sleeping or on vacation or something. You pray and pray and pray and God’s seem to never respond. Jesus is telling us today to keep praying every day, morning and night. Be persistent. Don’t stop. God wants us to keep praying and will respond in God’s time. We have to be patient and continually pray trusting that one day God will act.
The widow in our story today prayed for justice, day and night, every day and every night until one day the judge finally responded to God’s call for justice and acted on her behalf. Rest assured in your prayers that God loves you and hears you when you pray. God wants to keep on praying continually and be patient, as God is patient, until the world is ready to God to act.
Over the last few weeks I have met several people with loved ones suffering from chronic diseases. These people have been praying for years. Day and night they pray for healing. They pray for wisdom for their doctors. In their prayers they hope that one day God will act. But now they have to be patient and keep praying.
That’s God’s call to us. Keep praying morning and night. Pray over and over again. Keep praying the same thing every day if you have to. God never tires of what you have to say. And be filled with the hope that one day God will act in God’s way.
Father in heaven, hear our prayers. Sustain us as we pray day after day. Fill us with the assurance that you hear our prayers. And fill us with the persistence we need to keep on praying. Amen.
This morning you have heard two sermons on this parable from Jesus. One focused on our need to search out and defeat resistance to justice with persistent action. The other focused on our need to patiently and continually pray, assured the God will respond. Of course we need both of these. We have to pray continually before we can see injustice in the world. And God uses our efforts to end injustice to respond to our prayers. So these go together: praying day and night and working to bring God’s justice to the world.
This then is the mission of the church. We are called to pray unceasingly. Pray every day confident the God hears and one day will respond. As we pray our hearts will change. We will begin to see injustice in the world, and we will find ourselves motivated to end that injustice. As you work for God’s justice on earth you will find the need to pray even more. So prayer and justice go together.
Father in heaven, help us to keep praying. Open our eyes, ears and heart to recognize injustice when we see. Help us to respond to that injustice. And equip us in prayer. In Jesus’ name who prayed continually and work to end injustice. Amen.
Friday, October 15, 2010
Sermon – Luke 17:11-19 – Called to Thanksgiving
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 17:11-19 – Called to Thanksgiving
October 10, 2010
As we have seen on these past few Sundays there are many different ways that God calls us and many different responses are required from us. Our call to discipleship comes with great costs. Our call to repentance results in great joy. Our call to serve others is rooted in the command to love our neighbors. And our call to faith requires a lifelong commitment to spiritual disciplines as we grow in the image of Christ. Today we look at our call to be thankful and to praise God and how this causes us to cross barriers. But first, let’s pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Luke 17:11-19 11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" 14 When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him-- and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" 19 Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."
We have all heard this story before. Sunday school teachers love to tell it to children. They point out that ten people were healed by Jesus, but only one returned to thank him. The teachers tell the children to be like the one who returned to Jesus. And they give the children a principle to live by: Always give thanks whenever someone does something for you. And this is very good advice. Always have those thank you cards ready and remember to write them for those gifts and meals you receive from others.
But if we look closely at this parable it becomes a little troubling. After all, didn’t the nine do exactly what Jesus told them to do? Remember what Jesus said, “Go present yourselves to the priests.” Nine lepers did exactly what they were told to do. And one disobeyed Jesus. So why are we admiring the one who was disobeying Jesus? And why does Jesus seem to commend him for his disobedience while being critical of the others who obeyed his command? Like much of what Jesus said we have to dig a little deeper to see what he is trying to say to us.
The narrator of this passage, Luke, tells us that Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. Jesus had begun this journey all the way back in Luke chapter nine. And we know from Luke chapter nineteen that his route to Jerusalem passed through Jericho. So he and his disciples were traveling down the Jordan River to Jericho and then took the Roman road from Jericho to Jerusalem. This is the normal root for Jews traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem who wish to avoid Samaria. So how could it be, as our passage says today, that Jesus was on the border of Galilee and Samaria? The answer is that Luke is not giving us a geography lesson. He is doing something else. The border between Galilee and Samaria is not just a matter of territory. It is also a religious and cultural barrier. And this was the border the Jesus was crossing.
Ten years ago I travelled to the Holy Land on a mission and pilgrimage with my church. The Jerusalem office of World Vision International took us into Gaza. At the border we were stopped by the Israeli army and told to get out of the bus. Our passports were taken away. We walked a few yards to an ancient bus that was waiting to take us into Gaza. Off in the distance I saw Palestinians making the mile and a half walk from the buses in Gaza that had brought them to the border to the buses that would take them to work in Israel. I saw gigantic differences between the Palestinians and the Israelis. They were separated by physical, economic, cultural and religious barriers at this border.
So let’s look at the cultural and religious barriers that separated the Samaritans and Jews in the first century. Samaria was the sight of an ancient city built in the ninth century before Christ by Omri, King of Israel. It served as the capital of the northern kingdom until it was destroyed by the Assyrians in the eighth century. From that time on it was occupied by various ethnic and religious groups. In the third century BC, Alexander the Great conquered the area and a new community was established. This community became know as Samaritans. Their religion was similar to Judaism but their Bible consisted of only the Torah, the first five books of our Old Testament. They rejected all the wisdom and prophetic literature that we have in the Old Testament. Culturally, they adopted many of the customs of the Greeks. Because of these religious and cultural differences there were conflicts between the Jews and the Samaritans. A major conflict occurred in the second century BC when the Greek ruler ordered that all temples begin worshiping Zeus. The Samaritan temple, on Mt. Gerazim, was dedicated to Zeus. This outraged the Jews and in the war that followed a Jewish general destroyed the Samaritan temple. So centuries of hated and mistrust had passed resulting in a great division between the Jews and the Samaritans. And Jesus stood at the boundary between these two peoples.
There is another boundary in our story today. This boundary was setup between the Jewish community and those with contagious skin diseases which the Bible lumps together under the term leprosy. Just outside of a village, ten people with skin diseases stood at a distance from Jesus. They had been quarantined to protect the community from contracting their disease. The Book of Leviticus has clear instructions about diagnosing skin infections and what must be done to limit the spread of infections. It says,
Leviticus 13:45-46 45 "The person with such an infectious disease must wear torn clothes, let his hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of his face and cry out, 'Unclean! Unclean!' 46 As long as he has the infection he remains unclean. He must live alone; he must live outside the camp.
All ten of the people with skin infections obeyed these instructions and cried out to Jesus for healing. The lepers hoped for healing from Jesus. Probably they heard about the healing he had done in Galilee and wanted it for themselves. So they approached Jesus and asked to be healed.
Those who were Jewish knew the story of the General Naaman of Aram whom the prophet Elisha had healed from leprosy because it was in the Hebrew Bible. Those who were Samaritans had no knowledge of this story because the Book of Kings was not in their Bible. The Jews therefore knew that healing was possible from a prophet like Jesus. But the Samaritans could only hope for something extraordinary to occur. We are told that Jesus did heal all ten of the lepers. Nine of them, presumably Jewish, did exactly what both Jesus and the Book of Leviticus told them to do. They went straight to a priest who would examine them for any sign of the infection and if none was found would reintroduce them into society. But one of lepers was so overwhelmed with gratitude he went to Jesus to praise God. This act revealed the leper’s belief that Jesus had healed him with God’s help. We don’t why this leper did not go with the others to be checked out by a priest as the others had done. Maybe he thought that Jesus was his priest. And so Jesus crossed a boundary. A Jewish rabbi became the priest for a Samaritan, and a healed Samaritan became a faithful follower of Jesus Christ with praise and gratitude in his heart for all the blessings he had received from God.
The Samaritan was thankful for the healing he had received from Jesus and for the effect that transformation would have on his life. He was thankful for being restored to what God had created him to be. In his gratitude he glorified God and this demonstrated his faith in Jesus Christ. This is the model for us to follow. We, who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, should be thankful for the blessings God has given us. We, who have been sanctified by the Holy Spirit, should be thankful for our transformation into disciples of Jesus Christ. And we, who have the saving faith in Jesus Christ, should be thankful for the assurance we have of eternal life.
After their encounter Jesus told the Samaritan to go on his way. There must have been a strong desire to just hang around Jesus. Maybe the Samaritan wanted to be a disciple. Maybe he was afraid to go off alone. But Jesus told him that he had received the best gift of all. Yes, being healed was an important gift. But the bigger gift was the gift of faith, which Jesus said was what really healed him. So the former leper, a Samaritan, went on his way confident, healed and thankful for all that God had done for him and filled with faith in Jesus Christ which will sustain him whatever happens for the rest of his life.
This offer has been made to us too. We have been filled with faith in Jesus which sustains us in this life and assures of eternal life. It would be tempting to just hang around church all the time. But just like the leper we are sent on our way to our own lives, with all the problems and possibilities lives have. And we will be sustained and assured as we live those lives by our faith in Jesus Christ. So God calls us to be thankful by blessing us richly with the gift of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
The singer Kelly Clarkson has a song called “Thankful”. Here us part of what it says:
I’m thankful for the blessings and the lessons that I’ve learned with you by my side.
I’m thankful so thankful for the love that you keep bringing in my life
I’m thankful for the moment when I’m down you always know how to make me smile.
I'm thankful for the moments & the joy that your bringing to my life.
For the lessons that I’ve learned
For the trouble I’ve known
For the heartache & pain that you’ve thrown my way
When I didn’t think I could go on
But you made me feel strong. With you I am never alone
Thankful so thankful
Three thousand years before Ms Clarkson another singer sang these words.
Psalm 30:1-12 I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. 2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. 3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. 4 Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name. 5 For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. 6 When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken." 7 O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. 8 To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: 9 "What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? 10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help." 11 You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, 12 that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever. Amen.
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 17:11-19 – Called to Thanksgiving
October 10, 2010
As we have seen on these past few Sundays there are many different ways that God calls us and many different responses are required from us. Our call to discipleship comes with great costs. Our call to repentance results in great joy. Our call to serve others is rooted in the command to love our neighbors. And our call to faith requires a lifelong commitment to spiritual disciplines as we grow in the image of Christ. Today we look at our call to be thankful and to praise God and how this causes us to cross barriers. But first, let’s pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Luke 17:11-19 11 Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 13 and called out in a loud voice, "Jesus, Master, have pity on us!" 14 When he saw them, he said, "Go, show yourselves to the priests." And as they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. 16 He threw himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him-- and he was a Samaritan. 17 Jesus asked, "Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? 18 Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?" 19 Then he said to him, "Rise and go; your faith has made you well."
We have all heard this story before. Sunday school teachers love to tell it to children. They point out that ten people were healed by Jesus, but only one returned to thank him. The teachers tell the children to be like the one who returned to Jesus. And they give the children a principle to live by: Always give thanks whenever someone does something for you. And this is very good advice. Always have those thank you cards ready and remember to write them for those gifts and meals you receive from others.
But if we look closely at this parable it becomes a little troubling. After all, didn’t the nine do exactly what Jesus told them to do? Remember what Jesus said, “Go present yourselves to the priests.” Nine lepers did exactly what they were told to do. And one disobeyed Jesus. So why are we admiring the one who was disobeying Jesus? And why does Jesus seem to commend him for his disobedience while being critical of the others who obeyed his command? Like much of what Jesus said we have to dig a little deeper to see what he is trying to say to us.
The narrator of this passage, Luke, tells us that Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. Jesus had begun this journey all the way back in Luke chapter nine. And we know from Luke chapter nineteen that his route to Jerusalem passed through Jericho. So he and his disciples were traveling down the Jordan River to Jericho and then took the Roman road from Jericho to Jerusalem. This is the normal root for Jews traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem who wish to avoid Samaria. So how could it be, as our passage says today, that Jesus was on the border of Galilee and Samaria? The answer is that Luke is not giving us a geography lesson. He is doing something else. The border between Galilee and Samaria is not just a matter of territory. It is also a religious and cultural barrier. And this was the border the Jesus was crossing.
Ten years ago I travelled to the Holy Land on a mission and pilgrimage with my church. The Jerusalem office of World Vision International took us into Gaza. At the border we were stopped by the Israeli army and told to get out of the bus. Our passports were taken away. We walked a few yards to an ancient bus that was waiting to take us into Gaza. Off in the distance I saw Palestinians making the mile and a half walk from the buses in Gaza that had brought them to the border to the buses that would take them to work in Israel. I saw gigantic differences between the Palestinians and the Israelis. They were separated by physical, economic, cultural and religious barriers at this border.
So let’s look at the cultural and religious barriers that separated the Samaritans and Jews in the first century. Samaria was the sight of an ancient city built in the ninth century before Christ by Omri, King of Israel. It served as the capital of the northern kingdom until it was destroyed by the Assyrians in the eighth century. From that time on it was occupied by various ethnic and religious groups. In the third century BC, Alexander the Great conquered the area and a new community was established. This community became know as Samaritans. Their religion was similar to Judaism but their Bible consisted of only the Torah, the first five books of our Old Testament. They rejected all the wisdom and prophetic literature that we have in the Old Testament. Culturally, they adopted many of the customs of the Greeks. Because of these religious and cultural differences there were conflicts between the Jews and the Samaritans. A major conflict occurred in the second century BC when the Greek ruler ordered that all temples begin worshiping Zeus. The Samaritan temple, on Mt. Gerazim, was dedicated to Zeus. This outraged the Jews and in the war that followed a Jewish general destroyed the Samaritan temple. So centuries of hated and mistrust had passed resulting in a great division between the Jews and the Samaritans. And Jesus stood at the boundary between these two peoples.
There is another boundary in our story today. This boundary was setup between the Jewish community and those with contagious skin diseases which the Bible lumps together under the term leprosy. Just outside of a village, ten people with skin diseases stood at a distance from Jesus. They had been quarantined to protect the community from contracting their disease. The Book of Leviticus has clear instructions about diagnosing skin infections and what must be done to limit the spread of infections. It says,
Leviticus 13:45-46 45 "The person with such an infectious disease must wear torn clothes, let his hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of his face and cry out, 'Unclean! Unclean!' 46 As long as he has the infection he remains unclean. He must live alone; he must live outside the camp.
All ten of the people with skin infections obeyed these instructions and cried out to Jesus for healing. The lepers hoped for healing from Jesus. Probably they heard about the healing he had done in Galilee and wanted it for themselves. So they approached Jesus and asked to be healed.
Those who were Jewish knew the story of the General Naaman of Aram whom the prophet Elisha had healed from leprosy because it was in the Hebrew Bible. Those who were Samaritans had no knowledge of this story because the Book of Kings was not in their Bible. The Jews therefore knew that healing was possible from a prophet like Jesus. But the Samaritans could only hope for something extraordinary to occur. We are told that Jesus did heal all ten of the lepers. Nine of them, presumably Jewish, did exactly what both Jesus and the Book of Leviticus told them to do. They went straight to a priest who would examine them for any sign of the infection and if none was found would reintroduce them into society. But one of lepers was so overwhelmed with gratitude he went to Jesus to praise God. This act revealed the leper’s belief that Jesus had healed him with God’s help. We don’t why this leper did not go with the others to be checked out by a priest as the others had done. Maybe he thought that Jesus was his priest. And so Jesus crossed a boundary. A Jewish rabbi became the priest for a Samaritan, and a healed Samaritan became a faithful follower of Jesus Christ with praise and gratitude in his heart for all the blessings he had received from God.
The Samaritan was thankful for the healing he had received from Jesus and for the effect that transformation would have on his life. He was thankful for being restored to what God had created him to be. In his gratitude he glorified God and this demonstrated his faith in Jesus Christ. This is the model for us to follow. We, who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, should be thankful for the blessings God has given us. We, who have been sanctified by the Holy Spirit, should be thankful for our transformation into disciples of Jesus Christ. And we, who have the saving faith in Jesus Christ, should be thankful for the assurance we have of eternal life.
After their encounter Jesus told the Samaritan to go on his way. There must have been a strong desire to just hang around Jesus. Maybe the Samaritan wanted to be a disciple. Maybe he was afraid to go off alone. But Jesus told him that he had received the best gift of all. Yes, being healed was an important gift. But the bigger gift was the gift of faith, which Jesus said was what really healed him. So the former leper, a Samaritan, went on his way confident, healed and thankful for all that God had done for him and filled with faith in Jesus Christ which will sustain him whatever happens for the rest of his life.
This offer has been made to us too. We have been filled with faith in Jesus which sustains us in this life and assures of eternal life. It would be tempting to just hang around church all the time. But just like the leper we are sent on our way to our own lives, with all the problems and possibilities lives have. And we will be sustained and assured as we live those lives by our faith in Jesus Christ. So God calls us to be thankful by blessing us richly with the gift of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.
The singer Kelly Clarkson has a song called “Thankful”. Here us part of what it says:
I’m thankful for the blessings and the lessons that I’ve learned with you by my side.
I’m thankful so thankful for the love that you keep bringing in my life
I’m thankful for the moment when I’m down you always know how to make me smile.
I'm thankful for the moments & the joy that your bringing to my life.
For the lessons that I’ve learned
For the trouble I’ve known
For the heartache & pain that you’ve thrown my way
When I didn’t think I could go on
But you made me feel strong. With you I am never alone
Thankful so thankful
Three thousand years before Ms Clarkson another singer sang these words.
Psalm 30:1-12 I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me. 2 O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me. 3 O LORD, you brought me up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit. 4 Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name. 5 For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. 6 When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken." 7 O LORD, when you favored me, you made my mountain stand firm; but when you hid your face, I was dismayed. 8 To you, O LORD, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: 9 "What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit? Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness? 10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me; O LORD, be my help." 11 You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, 12 that my heart may sing to you and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever. Amen.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Sermon – Luke 17:5-10 – Called to Faith
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 17:5-10 – Called to Faith
World Communion Sunday
October 3, 2010
I am continuing this morning with my series of sermons on our calls from God. We are called to discipleship and its costs. We are called to repentance and can expect great joy in heaven and on earth when we respond to that call. And we are called to service with special concern for our neighbors in need. Today we will look at God's call to faith which is even now growing within us. But first please pray with me.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Luke 17:5-10 5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" 6 He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you. 7 "Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? 8 Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? 9 Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"
A Mustard Seed Faith
The disciples of Jesus Christ were aware of God's call to faith. They hungered for even greater faith than they already had. Jesus told them that they had just a beginner's faith. They had just begun to have a faith that would grow for an entire lifetime. Their faith had to be nurtured and so Jesus, their teacher, taught to them ways to increase their faith.
In our old testament reading from Psalm 137 the Jewish exiles in Babylon longed for greater faith to sustain them until they could go home to Jerusalem. Their faith had been shattered with the destruction of Jerusalem and King Solomon’s temple. But now their faith was growing again. And that faith would sustain them in their years of exile.
According to Jesus, faith is like a small seed, a mustard seed, which grows over a lifetime provided that it is properly nurtured with regular worship, prayer, Sabbath keeping, Bible study and other spiritual practices. And as faith grows in us we are shape into the image of Jesus Christ, just as we were created to be.
Several years ago a couple of researchers interviewed 3000 American teenagers to see what they believe. These teenagers, from many different religious traditions, reported that they had faith in God. But their faith has just begun to take root. They had mustard seed faith which must be nurtured for the fullness of faith to develop in their lives. Let's start by taking a look at the mustard seed faith held by American teenagers today.
The researchers put together a mustard seed creed which summarizes what American teenagers believe today. This creed is as follows (http://www.scribd.com/doc/7699752/Moralistic-Therapudic-Deism-by-Christian-Smith)
1. A God exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.
2. God wants people to be good, fair and nice to each other, as taught in the Bible and most world religions.
3. The central goal in life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.
4. God does not need to be particularity involved in one's life except when he is needed to resolve a problem.
5. Good people go to heaven when they die.
My guess is that many if not most of the people in churches today believe this and that it accurately reflects the faith that most Christians have today. But this faith pales when compare to the mature faith that grows in our hearts as we spend lifetimes in relationship with Jesus Christ. The authors of the study summarized their findings and described the basic faith of American teenagers as Moralistic, Therapeutic, Deism. I think that Jesus would have called this a mustard seed faith.
A mustard seed faith is “moralistic”. It teaches us to be good people and obey God's law. This is a good place to start. It is a good thing to do what God wants us to do. One teenager said, “I believe in, well, my whole religion is where you try to be good, and if you are not good you try to be better, that's all.” If American teenagers believe that obeying the 10 commandments is a good thing to do then churches in America have done a great job. But we must remember that this is just a mustard seed faith. Teenagers need much more faith to sustain them throughout their lives. Their mustard seed faith needs to grow.
As our faith grows we begin to realize that God's law does more than just help us to be nice people and lead good lives. God's law begins to convict us of our own sin. We begin to realize that no matter how good we try to be we still fall short of what God wants. And this causes us to fall on our knees, confess our sins, and ask for forgiveness which only Jesus Christ can give us. So our faith grows into repentance as we turn from sin and turn to Christ by whose grace we are forgiven.
But the growth of our faith does not stop there. It continues to grow into our call to service and to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves. We are transformed by this growing faith into people who love the poor just a Jesus did. So our mustard seed faith which teaches us to be good people grows into mature faith that causes us to turn to Jesus and be transformed into loving people.
A mustard seed faith is also “therapeutic” in that it makes us feel good. We come to church to feel better. We look for church to be a sanctuary from the problems of the world. We are bombarded with financial problems, job insecurity, health issues, and concern for our parents. And we come to church to feel better by getting away from all of that for an hour or so each week. We love praying and singing because it gets our mind off the things that trouble us. And we hope that through prayer and worship the Holy Spirit will remove our concerns and solve our problems. All of this makes church a wonderful place to be. A teenage girl said, “God is like someone who is always there for you. I don't know it's just that God is God. He's just like someone who is always there to help whatever it is you're going through. When I became a Christian, I was just praying and it always made me feel better.”
But sometimes our troubles are so great that when we bring them with us into church our faith cannot make us happy unless it has grown into greater maturity.
As we grow older we begin to realize that we experience intense emotions. A loved one dies. Your doctor orders a test for cancer. You hear that another 10% cut in staffing has been ordered by your employer. You come to church and yet you still grieve, you are still afraid. You need a growing faith where you realize that God is there with you no matter what happens. The cross is so important here. It reminds us that God has already experienced our pain and our grief with his own son's death and therefore can empathize with our pain and our grief.
So we have seen that as our faith grows we grow from trying to be good people, into repentant sinners and disciples of Jesus Christ. And even though we usually feel good coming to church a maturing faith helps us to be comforted even when the world seem upside down. And these are very good reasons to nurture our mustard seed faith with worship, prayer and Bible study so that it will grow into mature faith.
Finally, let’s look at what the study authors were saying when they called the faith of our teenagers as a form of “deism”. With a mustard seed faith we believe in a creator God. And we believe that when we really need God, God will be there. But ordinarily, God is resting in heaven and not active in the world. This is deism. It is as if the world was like a clock which God made, set and wound up. It continues to run without God's involvement or interest. But when the clock runs down and stops then God intervenes by rewinding it. For a deist, with a mustard seed faith, this is what the world is like. God created the world and got it going, but God has little to do day to day unless problems pop up. A fourteen year old boy said, “I believe that there is a God, so sometimes when I am in trouble or in danger, then I'll start thinking about that.” Deist can essentially ignore God until trouble happens and then they turn to their long forgotten God for help.
But as we nurture our mustard seed faith we become aware of God's activity in the world around us. We begin to acknowledge that God is the source of all of our blessings. We realize that God provides the rain and the sunshine and the soil and the seed that provides us with an abundance of food. We experience God's presence in worship and prayer. And so we begin to see God at work in the world around us. But our growing faith does not stop here. We not only see God at work in the world around but we begin to experience a Trinitarian God. We experience God as a Father who loves us, as a Son who redeems us and as a Holy Spirit who comforts us. A mature faith ties us to our triune God bound with cords of love.
So we begin with a mustard seed faith. We believe that God calls us to be good people. We believe that God will make us happy. And we believe that God will leave us alone until we really need him. But as we grow in faith we are convicted of our own sin and turn to God in repentance. We begin to follow Christ and share in his concern for the poor. And we begin to see God continually at work in the world around us and loving us every moment.
We have been given a mustard seed faith. We are called to nurture this seed so that it grows into a mature faith. The church is like a mustard seed faith farm. And we are mustard seed faith farmers. We need to plant our mustard seed faith with worship on Sunday mornings. We need to water the mustard seed faith every morning with our Sunrise Prayer Service. We need to fertilize this mustard seed faith with our Bible Studies on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights. We need to weed our mustard seed faith with our small groups for men, women and youth. We need to created new mustard seed faith plants in our children and grandchildren. And we need to harvest our mature mustard seed faith at our memorial services.
Lord Jesus, we thank you for the faith you have given us. We ask that you help us to nurture that faith so that it will sustain throughout this life and prepare us for the life ahead. Amen.
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – Luke 17:5-10 – Called to Faith
World Communion Sunday
October 3, 2010
I am continuing this morning with my series of sermons on our calls from God. We are called to discipleship and its costs. We are called to repentance and can expect great joy in heaven and on earth when we respond to that call. And we are called to service with special concern for our neighbors in need. Today we will look at God's call to faith which is even now growing within us. But first please pray with me.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen. (Calvin)
Luke 17:5-10 5 The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" 6 He replied, "If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it will obey you. 7 "Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? 8 Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? 9 Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? 10 So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'"
A Mustard Seed Faith
The disciples of Jesus Christ were aware of God's call to faith. They hungered for even greater faith than they already had. Jesus told them that they had just a beginner's faith. They had just begun to have a faith that would grow for an entire lifetime. Their faith had to be nurtured and so Jesus, their teacher, taught to them ways to increase their faith.
In our old testament reading from Psalm 137 the Jewish exiles in Babylon longed for greater faith to sustain them until they could go home to Jerusalem. Their faith had been shattered with the destruction of Jerusalem and King Solomon’s temple. But now their faith was growing again. And that faith would sustain them in their years of exile.
According to Jesus, faith is like a small seed, a mustard seed, which grows over a lifetime provided that it is properly nurtured with regular worship, prayer, Sabbath keeping, Bible study and other spiritual practices. And as faith grows in us we are shape into the image of Jesus Christ, just as we were created to be.
Several years ago a couple of researchers interviewed 3000 American teenagers to see what they believe. These teenagers, from many different religious traditions, reported that they had faith in God. But their faith has just begun to take root. They had mustard seed faith which must be nurtured for the fullness of faith to develop in their lives. Let's start by taking a look at the mustard seed faith held by American teenagers today.
The researchers put together a mustard seed creed which summarizes what American teenagers believe today. This creed is as follows (http://www.scribd.com/doc/7699752/Moralistic-Therapudic-Deism-by-Christian-Smith)
1. A God exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.
2. God wants people to be good, fair and nice to each other, as taught in the Bible and most world religions.
3. The central goal in life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.
4. God does not need to be particularity involved in one's life except when he is needed to resolve a problem.
5. Good people go to heaven when they die.
My guess is that many if not most of the people in churches today believe this and that it accurately reflects the faith that most Christians have today. But this faith pales when compare to the mature faith that grows in our hearts as we spend lifetimes in relationship with Jesus Christ. The authors of the study summarized their findings and described the basic faith of American teenagers as Moralistic, Therapeutic, Deism. I think that Jesus would have called this a mustard seed faith.
A mustard seed faith is “moralistic”. It teaches us to be good people and obey God's law. This is a good place to start. It is a good thing to do what God wants us to do. One teenager said, “I believe in, well, my whole religion is where you try to be good, and if you are not good you try to be better, that's all.” If American teenagers believe that obeying the 10 commandments is a good thing to do then churches in America have done a great job. But we must remember that this is just a mustard seed faith. Teenagers need much more faith to sustain them throughout their lives. Their mustard seed faith needs to grow.
As our faith grows we begin to realize that God's law does more than just help us to be nice people and lead good lives. God's law begins to convict us of our own sin. We begin to realize that no matter how good we try to be we still fall short of what God wants. And this causes us to fall on our knees, confess our sins, and ask for forgiveness which only Jesus Christ can give us. So our faith grows into repentance as we turn from sin and turn to Christ by whose grace we are forgiven.
But the growth of our faith does not stop there. It continues to grow into our call to service and to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves. We are transformed by this growing faith into people who love the poor just a Jesus did. So our mustard seed faith which teaches us to be good people grows into mature faith that causes us to turn to Jesus and be transformed into loving people.
A mustard seed faith is also “therapeutic” in that it makes us feel good. We come to church to feel better. We look for church to be a sanctuary from the problems of the world. We are bombarded with financial problems, job insecurity, health issues, and concern for our parents. And we come to church to feel better by getting away from all of that for an hour or so each week. We love praying and singing because it gets our mind off the things that trouble us. And we hope that through prayer and worship the Holy Spirit will remove our concerns and solve our problems. All of this makes church a wonderful place to be. A teenage girl said, “God is like someone who is always there for you. I don't know it's just that God is God. He's just like someone who is always there to help whatever it is you're going through. When I became a Christian, I was just praying and it always made me feel better.”
But sometimes our troubles are so great that when we bring them with us into church our faith cannot make us happy unless it has grown into greater maturity.
As we grow older we begin to realize that we experience intense emotions. A loved one dies. Your doctor orders a test for cancer. You hear that another 10% cut in staffing has been ordered by your employer. You come to church and yet you still grieve, you are still afraid. You need a growing faith where you realize that God is there with you no matter what happens. The cross is so important here. It reminds us that God has already experienced our pain and our grief with his own son's death and therefore can empathize with our pain and our grief.
So we have seen that as our faith grows we grow from trying to be good people, into repentant sinners and disciples of Jesus Christ. And even though we usually feel good coming to church a maturing faith helps us to be comforted even when the world seem upside down. And these are very good reasons to nurture our mustard seed faith with worship, prayer and Bible study so that it will grow into mature faith.
Finally, let’s look at what the study authors were saying when they called the faith of our teenagers as a form of “deism”. With a mustard seed faith we believe in a creator God. And we believe that when we really need God, God will be there. But ordinarily, God is resting in heaven and not active in the world. This is deism. It is as if the world was like a clock which God made, set and wound up. It continues to run without God's involvement or interest. But when the clock runs down and stops then God intervenes by rewinding it. For a deist, with a mustard seed faith, this is what the world is like. God created the world and got it going, but God has little to do day to day unless problems pop up. A fourteen year old boy said, “I believe that there is a God, so sometimes when I am in trouble or in danger, then I'll start thinking about that.” Deist can essentially ignore God until trouble happens and then they turn to their long forgotten God for help.
But as we nurture our mustard seed faith we become aware of God's activity in the world around us. We begin to acknowledge that God is the source of all of our blessings. We realize that God provides the rain and the sunshine and the soil and the seed that provides us with an abundance of food. We experience God's presence in worship and prayer. And so we begin to see God at work in the world around us. But our growing faith does not stop here. We not only see God at work in the world around but we begin to experience a Trinitarian God. We experience God as a Father who loves us, as a Son who redeems us and as a Holy Spirit who comforts us. A mature faith ties us to our triune God bound with cords of love.
So we begin with a mustard seed faith. We believe that God calls us to be good people. We believe that God will make us happy. And we believe that God will leave us alone until we really need him. But as we grow in faith we are convicted of our own sin and turn to God in repentance. We begin to follow Christ and share in his concern for the poor. And we begin to see God continually at work in the world around us and loving us every moment.
We have been given a mustard seed faith. We are called to nurture this seed so that it grows into a mature faith. The church is like a mustard seed faith farm. And we are mustard seed faith farmers. We need to plant our mustard seed faith with worship on Sunday mornings. We need to water the mustard seed faith every morning with our Sunrise Prayer Service. We need to fertilize this mustard seed faith with our Bible Studies on Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights. We need to weed our mustard seed faith with our small groups for men, women and youth. We need to created new mustard seed faith plants in our children and grandchildren. And we need to harvest our mature mustard seed faith at our memorial services.
Lord Jesus, we thank you for the faith you have given us. We ask that you help us to nurture that faith so that it will sustain throughout this life and prepare us for the life ahead. Amen.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Sermon – Called To Serve The Poor – Luke 16:19-31
Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek Presbyterian Church
Sermon – Called To Serve The Poor – Luke 16:19-31
September 26, 2010
This morning we are continuing to consider our call from God. As we have seen God calls us in many ways and calls us to do many things. Our call to discipleship comes with great cost which we are willing to bear to be followers of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Our call to repentance comes with the added benefit that when we turn from sin and turn to Christ there is great rejoicing in heaven and on earth. And our call to service is coupled with the command to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. As you can see from this God’s call to us always requires a response from us. And so God calls, and we respond and grow in Christ image. Let us pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)
Luke 16:20-31 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' 25 "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' 27 "He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 29 "Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' 30 "'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' 31 "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'"
Before we begin looking at this passage from Luke we need to talk about the context. Previous to this parable Jesus and the Pharisees were arguing about money. This parable is part of Jesus’ response to that discussion. So Jesus is not talking about what happens to us after we die. His words, here, are about the proper use of money. The details about heaven and hell are part of a story Jesus tells about the proper use of money. Jesus does talk about what happens when we die elsewhere in the New Testament, but not in Luke 16.
The story Jesus has told is an old folktale. It assures that desperately poor, the widows, the orphans, and those with chronic diseases that their suffering will last only for this lifetime and will go away in the next. My mother had severe rheumatoid arthritis her entire adult life. And I am comforted by a story like this that my mother is enjoying heaven free from that horrible disease.
But Jesus, as usual, goes beyond the simple folktale and says something quite profound. God, the creator the world, loves each one of us so much that when we suffer God knows our name. In the story I just read for you the rich man is nameless, a symbol of all who love themselves more than they love their neighbor. But the one suffering with open sores and hunger is known by God by his name, Lazarus.
So today I am going to do something a little different. I am going to give you some names of real people whom you can pray for this week by name.
Hannis is smart and talented. He came from Iceland a decade ago to break into the entertainment industry in Hollywood. In Iceland he worked in the post office by day and played in a band at night. While performing in nightclubs he began drinking alcohol too much. When Hannis came to America he found that it was very difficult to find a job as a musician. So he enrolled in the graduate music program at Cal. State LA and lived off of savings and student loans. He moved in with his girlfriend and had a son. After graduation he went with diploma and resume in hand to find a job in the entertainment industry, but none could be found. He treated his wounded pride with alcohol. His girl friend threw him out and he was living first is a small rented room and then in his truck when the money ran out.
I met Hannis when he came to my church for a meal on Sunday nights. He was in AA and had been off alcohol for some time. He was actively looking for a job, any job. But Job hunting is difficult when your clothes are dirty and you haven’t had a shower for a week. Hannis was living on $200 a month general relief and some food stamps.
Eventually he got a job, a restock clerk at a retail store for minimum wage. Then two things happened to him. First the State of California terminated his $200 general relief and all he had left was the part time minimum wage. And second, one day while working his car, which was filled with his stuff, was towed away when the police thought that it had been abandoned. Hannis started drinking and came to church drunk. I gave him some food in the parking lot because I did not allow someone under the influence of drugs or alcohol into the church buildings. The next day Hannis was found passed out on a sidewalk a Good Samaritan called 911 and had him taken to County General Hospital. Hannis called me two days later for a ride.
I picked Hannis up at hospital and drove him to the impoundment lot where the LA Police had towed his car. The cost for the towing was $380; the rent for each day on the lot was $60 per day. Hannis owed over $600 for a car that was probably worth $100. He picked up some stuff from the car and I took him to the homeless shelter in South LA. The homeless shelter had 150 cots setup is a large room. Men lined up outside until 4:30 when then could enter the shelter and claim a bed for the night. I lost track of Hannis after that, but he is still with me in my prayers.
Now let me tell you about Mark. Mark and his wife, Cathy, sat on a cement wall in front of the Nazarene Church next to my apartment building. I saw them every day as I walked to the church. And I always stopped to talk. My apartment manager was upset because they slept in the doorway of that church, right next to our building. She was trying to get them to leave.
Mark had been a roofer until he hurt his back. He started abusing prescription pain killers and alcohol. His health was deteriorating. One day as I was passing by the church I saw Mark lying on the ground and he called for me to come over. Mark said that he was very sick and needed to go to the hospital. I used my cell phone and called 911. The paramedics came and I was surprised that they new Mark by name. They told me that they get a call about once a week from Mark or someone he knows. And once a week they take Mark to the emergency room where he is cleaned up and given a room until he is sober. That asked me to not call 911 for Mark unless I was sure that something really was wrong.
A few weeks later I heard that something was really wrong. Mark was in intensive care fighting for his live. Years of abusing alcohol and prescription pain killers had taken its toll. I visited him in the hospital as he was preparing to leave against doctor’s orders. Another couple of week passed and I received a call from his friend Judy asking me to come to the sidewalk across the street. Mark had died in his sleep. So I comforted his widow Cathy, let her call Mark’s brother who had not heard from him for a decade, and offered to do Mark’s memorial service.
A few days later Mark’s brother called me with a concern. He loved his brother and was afraid for his soul because Mark did not go to church and did not know God. I told him that God loves the poor and that this love of God for Mark would comfort his widow. And it was God’s love that I talked about at that memorial service. Cathy and Judy are still in my prayers.
So, you have heard about Hannis and Mark, two imperfect people living very hard lives on the streets of LA. Now let me tell you about Dirk.
Dirk was a friend of Mark and Cathy and lived in a friend’s van a few blocks away. He tried his best not to look homeless. Dirk had owned a security company that installed alarm systems. But he lost everything when a court issued a judgment against him for unpaid child support. He lost his business license and the money in his bank account was taken. Dirk lost his home, and the police impounded his truck. Social Security denied him disability. Any wages he might earn would be garnished to pay the judgment. So Dirk was down to nothing except $200 per month from California and food stamps.
Dirk wanted to remain as “normal” as possible so he starting attending my church and
became a much appreciated volunteer. One day he asked me about joining the church. I asked him to attend a new member’s class. At the conclusion of the class Dirk told me that he wanted to join the church. Since he had never been baptized I scheduled a service of baptism for one of our Sunday evening worship services. That night I printed out special bulletins, filled the baptismal font, and put on the black robe. What happened next shocked me. The sanctuary was full. Every homeless person in the community, men and women, had come to my church that evening. They all wanted to see a baptism of one of their own. And that night I baptized Dirk in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The homeless community was convinced that God really loved them and was ready to welcome them into the church. And my Sunday evening ministry became a church for the homeless in Northeast Los Angeles.
In our story today, Jesus was talking with the Pharisees about money. He wanted them to know that God loves the poor, the sick, the homeless, and that they were called to serve the needs of the neighbors. Jesus made the issue of chronic disease and poverty a personal one by giving it a name of a real person. I am here today to tell you that God loves the poor and that we are called to serve their needs. And now you have the names of real people to pray about. So please put Hannis, Cathy and Dirk in your prayers. Amen.
Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek Presbyterian Church
Sermon – Called To Serve The Poor – Luke 16:19-31
September 26, 2010
This morning we are continuing to consider our call from God. As we have seen God calls us in many ways and calls us to do many things. Our call to discipleship comes with great cost which we are willing to bear to be followers of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Our call to repentance comes with the added benefit that when we turn from sin and turn to Christ there is great rejoicing in heaven and on earth. And our call to service is coupled with the command to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. As you can see from this God’s call to us always requires a response from us. And so God calls, and we respond and grow in Christ image. Let us pray.
Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)
Luke 16:20-31 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' 25 "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.' 27 "He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.' 29 "Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.' 30 "'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.' 31 "He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.'"
Before we begin looking at this passage from Luke we need to talk about the context. Previous to this parable Jesus and the Pharisees were arguing about money. This parable is part of Jesus’ response to that discussion. So Jesus is not talking about what happens to us after we die. His words, here, are about the proper use of money. The details about heaven and hell are part of a story Jesus tells about the proper use of money. Jesus does talk about what happens when we die elsewhere in the New Testament, but not in Luke 16.
The story Jesus has told is an old folktale. It assures that desperately poor, the widows, the orphans, and those with chronic diseases that their suffering will last only for this lifetime and will go away in the next. My mother had severe rheumatoid arthritis her entire adult life. And I am comforted by a story like this that my mother is enjoying heaven free from that horrible disease.
But Jesus, as usual, goes beyond the simple folktale and says something quite profound. God, the creator the world, loves each one of us so much that when we suffer God knows our name. In the story I just read for you the rich man is nameless, a symbol of all who love themselves more than they love their neighbor. But the one suffering with open sores and hunger is known by God by his name, Lazarus.
So today I am going to do something a little different. I am going to give you some names of real people whom you can pray for this week by name.
Hannis is smart and talented. He came from Iceland a decade ago to break into the entertainment industry in Hollywood. In Iceland he worked in the post office by day and played in a band at night. While performing in nightclubs he began drinking alcohol too much. When Hannis came to America he found that it was very difficult to find a job as a musician. So he enrolled in the graduate music program at Cal. State LA and lived off of savings and student loans. He moved in with his girlfriend and had a son. After graduation he went with diploma and resume in hand to find a job in the entertainment industry, but none could be found. He treated his wounded pride with alcohol. His girl friend threw him out and he was living first is a small rented room and then in his truck when the money ran out.
I met Hannis when he came to my church for a meal on Sunday nights. He was in AA and had been off alcohol for some time. He was actively looking for a job, any job. But Job hunting is difficult when your clothes are dirty and you haven’t had a shower for a week. Hannis was living on $200 a month general relief and some food stamps.
Eventually he got a job, a restock clerk at a retail store for minimum wage. Then two things happened to him. First the State of California terminated his $200 general relief and all he had left was the part time minimum wage. And second, one day while working his car, which was filled with his stuff, was towed away when the police thought that it had been abandoned. Hannis started drinking and came to church drunk. I gave him some food in the parking lot because I did not allow someone under the influence of drugs or alcohol into the church buildings. The next day Hannis was found passed out on a sidewalk a Good Samaritan called 911 and had him taken to County General Hospital. Hannis called me two days later for a ride.
I picked Hannis up at hospital and drove him to the impoundment lot where the LA Police had towed his car. The cost for the towing was $380; the rent for each day on the lot was $60 per day. Hannis owed over $600 for a car that was probably worth $100. He picked up some stuff from the car and I took him to the homeless shelter in South LA. The homeless shelter had 150 cots setup is a large room. Men lined up outside until 4:30 when then could enter the shelter and claim a bed for the night. I lost track of Hannis after that, but he is still with me in my prayers.
Now let me tell you about Mark. Mark and his wife, Cathy, sat on a cement wall in front of the Nazarene Church next to my apartment building. I saw them every day as I walked to the church. And I always stopped to talk. My apartment manager was upset because they slept in the doorway of that church, right next to our building. She was trying to get them to leave.
Mark had been a roofer until he hurt his back. He started abusing prescription pain killers and alcohol. His health was deteriorating. One day as I was passing by the church I saw Mark lying on the ground and he called for me to come over. Mark said that he was very sick and needed to go to the hospital. I used my cell phone and called 911. The paramedics came and I was surprised that they new Mark by name. They told me that they get a call about once a week from Mark or someone he knows. And once a week they take Mark to the emergency room where he is cleaned up and given a room until he is sober. That asked me to not call 911 for Mark unless I was sure that something really was wrong.
A few weeks later I heard that something was really wrong. Mark was in intensive care fighting for his live. Years of abusing alcohol and prescription pain killers had taken its toll. I visited him in the hospital as he was preparing to leave against doctor’s orders. Another couple of week passed and I received a call from his friend Judy asking me to come to the sidewalk across the street. Mark had died in his sleep. So I comforted his widow Cathy, let her call Mark’s brother who had not heard from him for a decade, and offered to do Mark’s memorial service.
A few days later Mark’s brother called me with a concern. He loved his brother and was afraid for his soul because Mark did not go to church and did not know God. I told him that God loves the poor and that this love of God for Mark would comfort his widow. And it was God’s love that I talked about at that memorial service. Cathy and Judy are still in my prayers.
So, you have heard about Hannis and Mark, two imperfect people living very hard lives on the streets of LA. Now let me tell you about Dirk.
Dirk was a friend of Mark and Cathy and lived in a friend’s van a few blocks away. He tried his best not to look homeless. Dirk had owned a security company that installed alarm systems. But he lost everything when a court issued a judgment against him for unpaid child support. He lost his business license and the money in his bank account was taken. Dirk lost his home, and the police impounded his truck. Social Security denied him disability. Any wages he might earn would be garnished to pay the judgment. So Dirk was down to nothing except $200 per month from California and food stamps.
Dirk wanted to remain as “normal” as possible so he starting attending my church and
became a much appreciated volunteer. One day he asked me about joining the church. I asked him to attend a new member’s class. At the conclusion of the class Dirk told me that he wanted to join the church. Since he had never been baptized I scheduled a service of baptism for one of our Sunday evening worship services. That night I printed out special bulletins, filled the baptismal font, and put on the black robe. What happened next shocked me. The sanctuary was full. Every homeless person in the community, men and women, had come to my church that evening. They all wanted to see a baptism of one of their own. And that night I baptized Dirk in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The homeless community was convinced that God really loved them and was ready to welcome them into the church. And my Sunday evening ministry became a church for the homeless in Northeast Los Angeles.
In our story today, Jesus was talking with the Pharisees about money. He wanted them to know that God loves the poor, the sick, the homeless, and that they were called to serve the needs of the neighbors. Jesus made the issue of chronic disease and poverty a personal one by giving it a name of a real person. I am here today to tell you that God loves the poor and that we are called to serve their needs. And now you have the names of real people to pray about. So please put Hannis, Cathy and Dirk in your prayers. Amen.
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