Mary’s Vision: A Life of Joy

Mary’s Vision: A Life of Joy—Micah 5: 2-5; Luke 1: 39-56

The third Sunday of Advent is often considered the Sunday of “joy.” In the middle of a reflective season, there’s a bit of light-hearted reprieve. The candle is pink, and some churches change the decorations from blue to pink to reflect the less serious focus of the Sunday. Sometimes though, it seems we’re not all singing, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year” with the giddy happiness bursting forth from our lives. Many churches have adopted holding a “Blue Christmas” service for the many who struggle with grief and sadness at the holidays. 

Writer and blogger Joe Chambers says, “We are told that Christmas, for Christians, should be the happiest time of the year. Yet according to the National Institute of Health, Christmas is the time of year when people experience a high incidence of depression.” He goes on to note that hospitals, police, and mental health professionals notice a significant uptick in patients around this time of year. And 45% of people say they dread, dread the festive season. What do we do in a season of hope and joy when we don’t feel all that merry and bright? 

Let’s look at the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus. To me, one of the strongest and toughest folks in the Bible is Mary. She was young, inexperienced, not yet married, and called to a truly great task. She had to contend with the doubt, the concern, the fear that her husband might also doubt God, and the inherent difficulties of ancient society. And yet, despite the best recipe for suffering and struggle, her life and her gift was one of joy. 

When Mary visited her cousin Elizabeth, the proof of her calling was made known. Elizabeth and her own developing child recognized the holiness and Spirit of God that was with Mary. The Gospel tells us that when Mary entered both Elizabeth and Elizabeth’s own child were filled with joy. Christmas comes in the darkest, coldest part of the year. Christmas, the commercialized and humanized, can be very hard. But let’s back up a minute and consider Advent. 

Maybe the joy isn’t found in the Santa-presents-insanity producing extravaganza every year. Maybe joy is found in the waiting for something holy. The actual birth of Jesus was difficult and tumultuous (to say the least) for Mary. But in this waiting and expectation, she found joy. As Elizabeth says to Mary, “You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what [the Lord] said.” Mary’s blessing and joy wasn’t in seeing the result, it was in the believing and the waiting for God’s good news to happen. 

We hear this joy echoed in Mary’s song: “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!” In her potentially difficult situation, appearing as an unwed mother in ancient days, Mary’s spirit rejoices in God. The whole of Advent is a time where we reflect and wait. We talked some about the struggle of waiting two weeks ago. But waiting is still about so much more than just feeling stuck. For Mary and Elizabeth, waiting was about promise and good news. 

Elizabeth’s prophetic words to Mary say this: “You are blessed because you believed the Lord would do what [the Lord] said.” Mary trusted in the promise. She could have shaken off the vision of the angel as a dream or mere foolishness on her own part. But she didn’t. She heard, she received, and she believed. Advent is about promise. Several years ago, my cousin asked me to perform her wedding. It was a about 3 hours away on the coast of South Carolina. I did the research and discovered it would be no problem at all to get there after church. 

What I didn’t expect was spring break traffic on I-95 adding a whole extra hour to the trip. I kept calling to check in saying, “I promise I’ll be there. I promise.” As the time wore on, I began to worry I’d let her down. But suddenly the traffic broke and I could exit and get to the location. It was down a long dirt road. My uncle, many years later, talks about the giant dust cloud created by a Subaru doing 60 miles per hour down a dirt road. I was late, but I made it. I had promised. 

God has promised us a way to find grace in a troubled world. For us, that comes in believing in Jesus, then following in the way in which he lived and taught. The tradeoff is living in this close relationship to the One who created us, loves us, and sustains us throughout this life and promises us joy and hope in the hereafter. When God promises, you can take it to the bank. 

But that’s also good news for us. Mary’s song lists all the great works of God then and to come. God has done great things for her. God shows mercy. God scattered the proud and haughty ones. God brought down princes from the thrones to exalt the humble and lowly. God has filled the hungry with good things and sent away the rich. God has been merciful. Mary’s song is filled with joy at the good things God has done. It’s good news to a hurting world then and now. 

The Micah lesson also talks about a return from exile and suffering and finding joy again in life from living in peace. Maybe that’s one of the best pieces of good news is finding a sense of peace again. The people of Israel found joy in looking forward to this time of redemption and hope—to this time when there would be grace for them instead of continued patterns of connection, disobedience, and struggle. Joy and good news are always forward looking. 

I could probably give you a whole laundry list of things in my life recently that are joy-stealing from life: I hit a deer going to the conference and totaled the state car while feeling like the villain from Bambi; I had to spend almost $600 at the vet for gastro issues on the cat; Exhaustion from work; Feeling like I’m not festive enough; Anxiety, oh the anxiety; and so on… I think we could all compile our own list of troubles. It’s like the teens in the 1980s said, “It’s life, man.” 

But in the midst of our misery lists, there’s still good news awaiting us. There are folks all around who love us. There is the promise that faith will continue to work through the struggles of life. God never leaves us. And Advent reminds us that in waiting, we will see the glory of God making all things new and fulfilling every promised we have believed in here on earth. 

Some days that feels a bit theoretical and hard to grab ahold of. But I turn back to the words of “Once in Royal David’s City,” “And our eyes at last shall see him, through his own redeeming love; for that child so dear and gentle is our Lord in heaven above, and he leads his children on to the place where he is gone.” Those words were written 176 years ago. These same promises and this same good news have sustained humankind for centuries upon centuries. In times of trial and distress, people have clung to the hope that God’s promise to be with us until the end is, in fact, true. 

This year, it may be true that our “bah humbug” outweighs our “holly jolly.” And it’s understandable. Almost half of the folks in a poll said they dreaded Christmas. But if you and I find ourselves in that category, let’s back up a bit and spend some time with Advent. God has promised us a Savior who would bring love, relationship, and joy into our lives. We can continue, as many have done for centuries, to look forward to that promise of Christ and the good news of God’s presence and love with us. And then like Mary, perhaps we too can say, “How my soul praises the Lord[, and how] my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!” 

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1628028671255934/

"Not Your Normal Christmas Gift”

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/4638385319719155

Best Way to Wait

Best Way to Wait—Psa. 80: 1-3, 17-19; Mark 13: 24-37

A good friend tells me of a story from when he was in Middle School. He called his mom one after noon and asked where she was. She had an old-school cell phone in one hand and a bunch of bags from her trip to Wal-Mart in the other. She pointedly said, “I just got home from Wal-Mart. Don’t ask for anything that wasn’t on the list. What do you want?” “Mom…” he replied, and you could hear the eye roll in his voice. “What?” she replied, with even more annoyance in her voice. “Mom, I went with you. I’m still here,” he said. After shouting a few choice words, she jumped back in the car and drove 22 minutes back to Wal-Mart where she had left him waiting in the electronics section while she shopped. 

One of the hardest things in life is to wait. Whether it’s a line at the grocery, an oil change, food, or for God to speak to us, waiting is hard. A friend of mine has a bumper sticker that says, “My cup runneth over and my patience weareth thin.” We all live a little bit like that. But many times, life and faith call on us to wait for God to do the next thing in life. Our scriptures for today tell us ways we can wait with purpose. 

The first is to wait with resolve. The Psalm says, “Show us your mighty power. Come to rescue us!” Verse 19 calls on God to turn us back to God and for God’s face to shine down upon us to save us. Resolve is defined as having strong determination. For us that determination is knowing that God shine grace upon and save us in our time of trial. The whole of this Psalm is a calling for God to hear us in the time of trial, to rescue and save us from the suffering that sometimes comes home to dwell with us. 

And the sign for us that God will do this is the very season we are in—Advent. Every year we spend this time reflecting on how God sent a savior in the form of Jesus. His work was to reconcile all of humanity to the God we were separated from because we lust after worldly power instead of engaging in our relationship to God. But we also use this time to look forward to Christ’s return. Part of that waiting is the resolve to make the best of our time here on earth. I think sometimes churches can get so focused on Christ coming back that they forget the span of time we have here to make a difference. 

Jesus didn’t sit on a chair and wait three years for the cross to come. He went out and taught, healed, showed loved, upended wrong and oppressive ways of living in faith. There was a resolve to his ministry before the end came. And that determination and resolve went right to the cross where he offered comfort to his mother and grace to a thief. 

And that resolve in our waiting for Christ should lead us to wait with a mission or sense of purpose in this world. In the Gospel, Jesus tells of a man who went on a long trip and left his servants in charge. He gave them each careful instructions and a task to do. Then he says to “keep watch.” One of my favorite Christmas movies is The Bishop’s Wife. In it, a bishop prays for help building a cathedral. An angel, played by Carey Grant, responds to his prayer. But in the end, it is not the cathedral that is important, it’s the spiritual guidance of the bishop and his family (and congregation) who seem to have lost the way and forgotten what was most important in faith. 

That movie reminds us that there is a purpose in life. The bishop thought it was to build a grand cathedral, but in the end, it is charity which prevails. We are called to wait with mission, and like each of those servants in the Gospel lesson, the owner of the house has left us tasks until the day the owner returns. It’s easy to grow weary. Life is often hard, and Jesus seems to be taking his sweet time. I often like to say that since Jesus isn’t here right now, it’s our mission to represent Jesus to others. Jesus came to reconcile us so that we might live as Jesus’s ambassadors in this world. 

A friend of mine got in some trouble during his second year of college. He was a music major, and he was required to take a year off school. It was a long, hard year of waiting. It was a year in which he could have sat down, given up, and done nothing, just simply counting down the days until he returned. But instead, he made his practice, his self-growth, his rebuilding of himself as a mission. He practiced his music daily. He got a job and saved money. He got rid of the friends who led him into bad habits, and he made quite the powerful return to school eventually becoming quite successful. 

Waiting is not a game of sitting. Waiting is a time of opportunity to grow in our relationship and expand our mission from God. We can wait mindlessly, or we can wait missionally. If we wait missionally, we will find a sense of hope in those waiting periods because they are done with purpose, and not just counting the minutes of pain and drudgery. 

And that brings us to the last way we are to wait. We must wait with anticipation. In Mark, Jesus tells a story of a fig tree. When you see the leaves sprouting and the buds on the branches, you know summer is near. Likewise, Jesus says, after anguish, and after the signs, everyone will see the Son of Man returning. His message is clear, we should be anticipating this time. The trees and living things give us clear signs of when summer is coming. 

If you are tired of the cold and dark of winter, those buds and sprouting leaves can be a very hopeful sign. The same is true in life. We must wait with anticipation, which for us is hope. Every war, every natural disaster, every trial and tribulation are not going to be some miraculous signs. But it is an opportunity for us to look for hope in the darkness. Waiting can be an anxious and difficult place. If you have a small child and have to wait for any period of time, you will likely encounter crying and a rambunctious child. Adults don’t really fare better. 

All of these things today, the ways to wait, each one of them points to hope. In resolve, in mission, in anticipation, we turn ourselves and call the world to look towards hope—for a better practice of faith, for a better tomorrow, for a world that better reflects the love and grace of Jesus. My friend was stuck in Wal-Mart waiting for his mom. He waited with resolve—every sample game would be played. He waited with mission—at least three new games were ready for selection, and he waited with anticipation—his mom would feel so bad for leaving him, she’d buy his silence with those three games. All of those pointed to hope for him. 

A friend of mine was meeting me for dinner the other day. He got caught in traffic. His sister had showed up unexpectedly. And he’s just naturally kind of late to everything. But this time, he was running almost an hour late. And to say I waited patiently would be a complete lie. But the moment I got a “5 min away” text, all of that anxiety flooded away to be replaced by hope. I wouldn’t get an “Oops. Dinner for one.” 

Where are the places we find ourselves struggling to wait for God in our lives? Does our resolve falter? Have we struggled with finding a purpose or mission? Is our anticipation gone, and our candle burned out? Advent is a time to build and repair these struggles and broken places. The miracle of Christmas is about a Savior who came to live, “God and sinner reconciled.” I pray that as we journey to the manger, to see the hope of all humankind, we can find that same blessed, reassuring hope as we work and wait in this life. 

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/8732674723487930/

I Am Grateful

“I Am Grateful”—Psalm 100; Philippians 1: 3-11

My mother sent me a picture of snow on the ground back in Kentucky the other day. [SLIDE 2] I’m not sure what she expected, but my reply of “Eww, gross,” was apparently not it. I don’t like the cold; it’s a cause to complain. The other day a package I needed was delivered very late, and I complained bitterly to the FedEx about it. My car needed new tires, and it took almost 4 hours to get the done. They weren’t the ones I had expected. I complained. Years ago, at a friends get together for Thanksgiving, I was asked to pray with green bean casserole sitting in front of me. [SLIDE 3] I wanted to say, “Lord, bless this puke-looking stuff in a casserole dish to the nourishment of our bodies.” And you know what? I realized that I complain a lot. 

A pastor-friend of mine realized the same thing. [SLIDE 4] She said, “I know in my heart that I am blessed beyond measure, but boy do my brain and mouth complain about everything.” This is a month where we pause for a moment to be thankful. And in a few days, we will spend an entire day called “Thanksgiving” hopefully taking stock of our blessings in the midst of eating. How often, though, do we spend our time complaining instead of taking stock of the things we have in life to be thankful for? 

The very opening line of our Epistle from Paul says, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God. Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy.” Paul’s greeting to the Philippians is warm, loving, and reminding them of how joyful their relationship with Paul truly is. The overarching theme of this letter is Paul’s joy. But Paul had every reason to be a complainer. He was imprisoned at this point with no hope of escape. As Morna Hooker says in her commentary on Philippians, this is not a perfect community of faith, but they have a long and happy relationship with Paul and bring him great joy. 

Paul writes to them one of the most memorable phrases in Christianity, “And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.” I think that is where some of our struggle with complaining comes in. Learning something new, or growing, takes time, trial and error, mistakes which teach us new ways of doing things. [SLIDE 5] Think of it in terms of learning to drive. When you began, it seemed kind of easy—press the pedal and go, and all the while try not to steer into a tree. But then came a three-point turn, parallel parking, and for anyone above the millennial generation with the knowledge for this…a standard gear shift with a clutch pedal. The way you learn is by making enough mistakes to do better. 

Likewise, in faith, God began a good work in us—a work of hope, love, and gratefulness that would be infectious throughout an often-cruel world. But for that to be continued and built upon, we must sometimes fall short, struggle, and complain about it all. That way we learn to lean on God and grow. A pastor I’m friends with says that she has stopped complaining about mistakes and problems in life. She now calls it being “grateful for the growing pains.” 

A friend of mine bought her retirement home in Florida a few years ago. They split their time between Atlanta and the Florida beach. They had planned to retire full time to the beach soon. A few months ago, Hurricane Helene left 7 feet of storm surge in their home. It was a total loss. And yet, through faith, she found a sense of gratefulness. [SLIDE 6] They were unharmed. They still have a home, and God’s grace and mercy was still with them all through life. There’s a contemporary Christian song that says, “And though my heart is torn, I will praise you in this storm.” Being grateful in all things is a difficult but powerful and rewarding place for us to grow and find ourselves in life. 

Our Psalm for today is one of the most well known in the Bible. It’s often quoted to be kind to those whose singing voices aren’t exactly pitch perfect. I remember hearing that growing up, “Well, the Bible says, ‘Make a joyful noise…’” I think we call that a back-handed compliment. We are told in verse 4 to “Enter into [God’s] gates with thanksgiving; go into [God’s] courts with praise.” The reason we are able to approach with thankfulness and gratefulness is found in verse 5: “For the Lord is good. [God’s] unfailing love continues forever, and [God’s] faithfulness continues to each generation.” 

One of the reasons I think we complain so much in life is because whatever present trouble is before us tends to overwhelm us like a blanket tied around our head and face. [SLIDE 8] We can’t see. We feel as though we can’t escape. The present trouble is right there in front of us covering us up from everything else in life. That’s why the words of one of our hymns is so important, “Count your blessings, name them one by one; count your many blessings, see what God has done.” My spiritual director, who keeps me focused back to God when my brain goes to 100,000 different things, told me some good advice. 

When life becomes overwhelming, and you face a problem, trial, or sadness you can’t seem to overcome, check first to see if you need medical help. If not, sit down and make a list with two columns. [SLIDE 9] In one column, list every single trial, problem, difficulty, and struggle you are facing in life. In the other column, list every way God has blessed you in the past 5 years. And don’t hold back on that list…don’t be stingy with God…give credit for all God has done. Then, count your blessings, and see what God has done. From time to time, when I’m irritated and frustrated, I still do this. Every single time, I’m amazed at all the blessings God has given me. And after reading that list a couple of times, the blessings absolutely overwhelm the troubles. 

But let’s say life is really, really bad, and the blessings come few and far between. There’s one final one to put on the list—everlasting hope in God’s love for us. And I pray that one blessing, God’s never-ending love in this life, in death, and in life after death, tips the scales to know that we are OR will be blessed beyond measure by the God we serve. Remember that the Lord is good. God’s unfailing love goes on forever for us. And God’s faithfulness continues from generation to generation without pause or end. 

Paul wraps up this part of his epistle to Philippi with a beautiful challenge to them, “I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding…[and] may you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation.” That is, in fact, the good work God has begun in us and will continue to do through us: that our love will overflow more and more, and that we will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. The God who loves us never stops working in and through us. 

I remember a story a pastor once told in a sermon while I was visiting. She said that, when they were in middle school, they had an 8th grade dance. Being the late 90s or early 2000s, someone brought glitter to the dance for her and her small group of friends. [SLIDE 10] Two hours later all 200 kids at the dance and most of the chaperones were covered in glitter that seemed to keep multiplying and never able to be washed off. When we live in God’s love and count our blessings it is much the same. [SLIDE 11] That love and hope spread to everyone, and we realize just how many blessings we truly have—it’s like the glitter—we realize at some point we are covered with them. And for that we can say, “I am grateful.” 

Worship Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/2275682592816216/

Jesus Gets Scary

Jesus Gets Scary

Psalm 16; Mark 13: 1-8

City Methodist Church [SLIDE 2] was opened in Gary, Indiana, in 1926. The construction cost was $800,000, today around $14,400,000. [SLIDE 3] It boasted a 3,000-seat capacity Sanctuary and adjoining buildings which included a 1,000 seat theater, corporate offices, a gym, Sunday School, a dining hall, and soon to be a bowling alley. [SLIDE 4] It was the crowning jewel of a growing Midwestern town, and put on incredible plays, services, and became a hub of all things Gary, Indiana. Today, it stands as a desolate ruin. [SLIDE 5] In fact, the church lasted only about 49 years, closing its doors for good in 1975. [SLIDE 6] Now it stands as a testimony to a very beautiful failure in a city that has declined into near ghost-town status. 

In many ways the images are hauntingly beautiful. There’s a strong emphasis on the haunting part, because we sometimes look at these abandoned churches as all too prophetic of the direction of faith. But they are also a reminder that when we build on our own pride and self-righteousness, we are sure to fail because God has been forgotten. 

In our Gospel lesson, the disciples have a conversation with Jesus where they compliment the beauty of the Temple. They refer to the Temple structure as “magnificent buildings” with “impressive stones” in the walls. [SLIDE 7] The problem is that this was Herod’s Temple, built by Herod the Great. That would be the same King Herod who had the male children of Bethlehem murdered after the visit of the Magi. The Temple he built was not a testimony to God, but to the brutality of his reign and the godless pride that reigned in his soul. But he used his alleged ties or conversion to Judaism to lure people into believing his authority. 

Jesus will have none of it. He tells the disciples, awed by the beauty of this building, that it will be destroyed and every stone torn down. And indeed, years later, that very thing happens. The truth is you cannot build something new or rebuild in a better way unless what’s there is already torn down. A friend of mine lives in East Cobb, and in the mid 2010s, developers and wealthy folks went on a rampage tearing down the old 1950s ranch style homes in the area to build these giant mansions. [SLIDE 8] Every cul-de-sac had a whole set of new estates where formerly plain, older, and maybe somewhat run-down houses used to be. 

But this is not just Jesus making a scary prediction, it’s also a reminder to us as followers of Jesus. It is easy for us to find points of pride that make faith harder for us. If we don’t tear down the Herod’s Temples in our own lives, then we cannot make room for what God is building in us and doing through us. If we are not willing to let God break down the walls, the hold-out places, the angry places, the hurt places, the years of trauma places…if all those Temples to Herod do not get torn down in our lives, we won’t have room for God. 

Jesus talks openly to the disciples about all the scary and bad things happening and things to come. He tells them of people who will come promising to be a messiah, a savior to all the people around. And to a deceived people convinced they need saving from anything but God, any snake oil will satisfy. [SLIDE 9] That is especially true when times are difficult. Living in a time of wars, threats of wars, nations rattling the sabers of battle, earthquakes, famines, and all manner of scary things, can make people distrust God and look for a human to help them. Jesus says not to panic and not to be deceived. There is but one loving God for us, Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. 

The promise Jesus gives is that out of every bad and fearful place of life, something good can be built or birthed. From the carnage of violence and war, we can learn the vital importance of peace. From destruction and natural disasters, we can learn the importance of neighbors, love, and helping one another. And in this day and age we need it. 

In the politically charged climate we live in, I’ve seen friends call it quits. I’ve seen families distance and no longer desire to see each other. We have built Herod’s Temple and called it politics. But out of our brokenness, we can still find love and grace. We can still live the peace and hope that Jesus teaches. Faith has to rise above this, indeed above everything. No matter how angry and upset we may feel, or the world may seem, as Christians, we follow a Jesus who went to the cross for all the world. Jesus suffered and gave life and hope to the closest disciples as well as the Pharisees who shouted, “Crucify him!” But to be Christ followers, we must understand that very point of who Christ is. 

The Psalm makes the point very clearly. Verse 4 says, “Troubles multiply for those who chase after other gods.” But for those who remain faithful, verse 11 says, “You [O God] will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.” We have to tear down the idols, the temples to Herod, and the broken places we continue to cling to in our lives. Or we shall surely fail. 

I did a little deeper research on what took down City Methodist from a congregation of more than 1,500 to barely 100 in only 49 years. [SLIDE 10] In no surprise it was politics, racial issues, and money…struggles that never seem to go away. The minister who had the church built believed in integration and interfaith ministries, and the congregation grew very tired and dissatisfied with that. Some of the church wanted more involvement in the civic-minded work, others did not. But the biggest toll on the church was a changing demographic. The congregation was mostly middle to upper middle-class white, and when the city fell apart in the 1960s and 1970s, the congregation was simply gone. 

Growing up, I used to hear a lot of sermons on how evil forces “in the world” would wage war against Christians, and we would have to fight or suffer and die. It was a very fear-inducing, fight-driven type of faith. But as I have gotten older and seen churches close and end their ministry, I have learned something. Maybe we all have learned it. Very few churches fail because of a hostile attack from without. Usually, they are torn apart from within. 

That is why Jesus offers the hope of building and creating something new. We talk about it in terms of being born again—born anew. Here after all the dark and scary predictions, Jesus tells the disciples, “But this is only the first of the birth pains, with more to come.” It wasn’t a prophecy stopping right at the bitter end. It was a reminder that before God can build something new and beautiful in our churches, our communities, and our lives, we must tear down the old, decaying things within, and clear the path for Jesus’s work. 

So where in our lives do we find the clutter? Where have we built Herod’s Temple testifying to those things we hold onto and won’t let go? Rev. Tullian Tchividjian, the grandson of Billy Graham, preached a sermon series years ago entitled, “Jesus, plus nothing, still equals everything.” [SLIDE 11] But the opposite is true as well. Everything minus Jesus equals nothing. City Methodist was a beautiful crown jewel of Gary, Indiana. But it was little more than a beautiful failure because it was built for pride and not for worship. 

Remember that when Jesus’s predictions and teachings get scary and worrisome in the Gospels, it is not just to instill fear. Jesus talks about the troubles of the present to remind us of the hope that is eternal. If we feel things being broken down around us, life is changing too fast to keep up, or like we’re just a bit overwhelmed with things, remember this: Jesus was a carpenter, and he’s not done building in our lives. So then, may the way be cleared for God, the master architect, to build and create anew in us. 

Worship Service Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1471934513483457

Good Endings

Good Endings—Ruth 3: 1-5; 4: 13-17; Mark 12: 38-44

I have always loved to read. And up until high school, I always enjoyed getting to a well-resolved, comforting, stress-free, happily ever after ending in the books I read. However, first day of Freshman English, we started Romeo and Juliet. It was hard enough to understand what was actually being said, but then the ending came. They die. It’s sad, and it’s miserable. That was followed by Henrik Ibsen plays and John Steinbeck both of whom write stories of suffering. The next year we did an entire unit on writings from the Holocaust. And then they wonder why teenagers are sullen and depressed? But I learned an important lesson. There is a difference between a good ending and a happily ever after ending.

Many would call the story of Ruth a “happily ever after” story. In the end, she finds some form of love, marriage, and a whole family in Boaz. We often read this as a lovely second-chance love story. Unfortunately, it’s not. As a woman, Ruth was the property of her husband. Marriage in that day was not a fairy tale, but a bartered agreement. A woman was sold into marriage by her father. And what was worse for Ruth is that her first husband died. Widows the lowest of any class in Biblical days. They couldn’t own property, trade, engage in legitimate work, or anything like that unless they had children. They basically had to live off the begging and generosity of those who would help just enough to keep them out of starvation.

The interim between Ruth’s widowing and meeting Boaz would have been filled with stress, fear, and cruelty. There are fears that the men working the fields may abuse her as she gathers the scraps. She and Naomi would have endured the scorn of everyone in town and the pity. The only way out for someone like Ruth was to find a male relative of her husband and marry him to redeem herself. And this wasn’t even redeeming the person. It was the land attached to the family that was the basis of the redemption. Boaz, in Ruth 4, first asks the family redeemer if he will redeem the land. Ruth is the afterthought. In order to get the land, he has to marry her. The man refuses, leaving her only option as Boaz. And lest you think these policies didn’t filter down the centuries, may I remind you that it was only in 1974 that woman could open a bank account without her husband’s permission.

Ruth did not have a happily ever after ending. She had to fight and struggle until a man was willing to redeem her through her dead husband’s birthright. She got a good ending. Boaz was a kind man, cared for her, and she had a child which legitimized her in the eyes of the law and protected her rights. But a good ending is not always a happily ever after ending.

In our Gospel lesson we learn the secret to good endings. Jesus teaches then he provides a real-life illustration. He warns that people should be wary of the teachers of religious law. They would have been savvy, wealthy, and powerful in that society. They love to dress up in fancy clothes, parade around, have people greet them as kings and saviors. Jesus points out their fake piety in public with their long prayers and visible religious actions. But behind that façade of righteousness, Jesus says they always bring bad endings. They cheat the widow and the poor. Their goodness is fake, and their truth is cheating and exploitation.

To show this, Jesus points to the collection box at the Temple. There were often two types of offerings: the required offerings that were an obligation, and the free will offerings where people could give out of their generosity. Likely, this box would have been the free will offering. There were many rich people who came through and gave much money. But this one widow only gave two coins. Now, most people would believe that it was fantastic and amazing to give large amounts and donations like the rich people who came through before the widow. But Jesus singles out her faith and her giving.

The rich people who came through and donated gave a drop in the bucket. She gave everything she had. She paid her legal debts and obligations to the Temple, and then she gave everything else she had to offer. Jesus doesn’t like people who fake their faith for personal gain, and Jesus doesn’t like people who hold on to their riches and hold back from God. He says so very clearly, “Because of this, they will be more severely punished.”

Hypocrisy, greed, and faking faith for one’s own benefit are an abomination in Jesus’s sight, and he calls them out as evil over, and over, and over again in the Gospels. They and those who support them will face severe consequences from Jesus who valued the woman giving all for the good of others in the free will offering than those who simply made a show with a tiny portion of their immense wealth. Sometimes Jesus made people uncomfortable, and I would say a few of his words still do that today. But we must remember that even where Jesus’s teaching is most uncomfortable, we still claim him as Savior, Lord, and King, and we should order and conduct our lives accordingly.

So, what does that mean for us? We are called to be the woman with the two small coins. If we are unwilling to sacrifice, then we can’t follow Jesus. The rich man couldn’t give up his wealth and power to follow. Nicodemus struggled to give up his position in the religious authority to truly follow. King Agrippa was almost persuaded, but he couldn’t give up what he had. Faith is a call to be willing to sacrifice. Riches, power, and prestige may give you a happily ever after in this life, but you won’t get a good ending.

The Christ we follow came down from the majesty and glory of Heaven. Lived in poverty and cruelty on this earth, and was killed, wrongfully, by self-righteous religious leaders with the tacit permission of Rome. It’s not a good philosophy. It’s not a self-help book. It’s not something we do because of social acceptability in the southern United States. We follow because God is God, the creator of all, the redeemer of humankind, and the guide and guardian of our walk on earth.

We can say we believe, we can sing, we can pray, we can listen to passably decent sermon once in a while, but if we don’t actually make the effort to follow Jesus, we have failed. That hymn, “Almost Persuaded” as old and passe as it might be in our day and age still reminds us this: “Almost persuaded, harvest is past. Almost persuaded, doom comes at last. Almost cannot avail. Almost is but to fail. Sad, sad the bitter wail—almost, but lost.”

I used to think that the only way to end a book was a happily ever after. Everything needed to turn out perfectly just the way I wanted it to. But that’s not the case because I have learned I’m not in control. God is the author and finisher of faith. And together we have to trust that just as God gave a good ending to Ruth and Naomi, we have all received a good ending through the grace of Christ. Life does not spare us hardships and difficulties. But life is made sweeter knowing that it is lived with a God who loves us. So even if your happily ever after looks a little skewed, remember that God is not done writing your story, and God will always make a good ending.

Worship Video: https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/2060586197729142/

All things New

All Things New

Isaiah 25: 6-9; Revelation 21: 1-5

I had a debate the other day. You see, I love fall. [SLIDE 7] It’s one of my favorite times of the year with pumpkin, the beautiful leaves, cool mornings, Thanksgiving…all these wonderful, comforting things. A friend of mine, though, called it horrible. She said it was the most atrocious season of any year because everything is dying. Those beautiful colors are not some inspiration for a Thomas Kincade painting. They’re the leaves losing life, falling off and dying. She added that she hates the cold. It’s painful and chilling. You can’t swim in the fall and winter. And to top it off, she prefers not to eat pumpkin if she can help it. 

That is, perhaps, a common theme for folks. We tend to prefer one season over another and have personal, experience-based reasons for our choice. It is much the same with human life. We glorify and worship the abilities, beauty, and fun of youth, and we live in sheer terror of what it means to grow old and eventually die. I want you to understand something about being God’s faithful though. This process isn’t a start to finish. You do not put a period at the end of one’s life, for God has written a semicolon and a whole new paragraph to follow. God is the author and finisher of life…not just our earthly life, but our eternal life as well. 

We read in Isaiah a prophecy of God’s goodness. It’s a good place to start. God will remove the cloud of gloom, the shadow of death hanging over the earth. God will swallow up death forever. Tears will be wiped away, and people will know that the God they trusted in and relied on will have saved them. The people of Israel often got a lot of prophecies of doom and punishment. They often strayed from God, and a prophet came to call them back to rights. But every single prophet also offered a word of hope for the people for their future. The punishment, the struggle, the broken relationship was never the final word for God’s people. The prophet always had words of hope to come. 

In Revelation that same word of hope is echoed centuries later. God will bring a new heaven and a new earth. [SLIDE 8] God will make all things new. The writer of Revelation lived in a time of great oppression. Whereas in Jesus’s day, he was persecuted by the religious powers, by the point of Revelation Rome was ramping up its worst persecutions of the church. Revelation focuses the readers away from the world of difficulty and to the God’s realm of hope and peace…the coming kingdom, not the struggles of now. 

Indeed, the words of the gospel are words of hope echoing through eternity not just today and tomorrow. Too often we look at death as the end, but Jesus taught us to consider it a beginning. And as a reminder, the beautiful fall colors, the barren trees of winter, all eventually come back around again in the spring. The dying leaves are never gone for good. Something new and amazing happens. Other reminders are all around this world we live in. [SLIDE 9] A caterpillar wraps itself up and disappears entombed in a cocoon. But in just a short time, a gorgeous butterfly emerges from what appears to be death. Our God is a God of life and hope. 

I can understand that fear though. Death is an unknown. It’s something you only experience once, and you don’t really get a preview of it. An older comedian I follow said, “People tell me to act my age. I don’t know what that means. I’ve never been this age before…we’re learning together sweetheart.” When we face the unknown, it gives rise to fear within. I remember a long-time member of this church, Barbara Wright, and I were talking one day as she was getting near the end of this life. She died more than a decade ago, so many of you don’t know what a character she was. I remember she said, “I’m not afraid of death. It’s the dying part I’m not too keen on.” 

That makes sense. We’re told in God’s Word there is no sting in death and no victory for the grave. Fear is pretty normal and not always controllable, but we have to take our fears and remember that God has designed a plan of hope for us. John writes those words of hope for us: “[God] will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” And the one sitting on the throne said, ‘Look, I am making everything new!’” That’s both a prophecy and a promise—God will wipe the tears from our eyes. God will end death, sorrow, crying, and pain—permanently and forever. 

All of our songs talk about that promise of God making all things new for us. [SLIDE 10] “In our end is our beginning, in our time, infinity, in our doubt, there is believing; in our life, eternity. In our death, a resurrection, at the last, a victory.” We hear it again in the closing hymn, “Gather with the saints at the river that flows from the throne of God.” And we hear it in Andrae Crouch’s famous anthem, “No more crying there, we are going to see the King; no more dying there, we are going to see the king.” It’s a promise we can rely on that death is not an end, but a beginning. 

And so today, we gather to light candles in memory of our beloved saints here at First Christian Church. Every year we honor their memory, their work, and we take the time to give thanks then honor them by learning from the faith they lived and experienced. Joanne Ogilvie was one of the sweetest, most loving humans you can find. And even in her late 80s, she loaded as many women from Magnolia Manor as she could fit in her Nissan Sentra and brought them to church. 

Carolyn Symons was a solid friend whom you could count on to love you and help you. She always had her sweet dog Lola in tow, and a warmer, friendlier pair could not be found. And John Carroll was a man of incredible faith, who brought this church back from the brink of closure and brought me into the ministry. Each of these people have left an indelible, unforgettable mark on the people they intersected with and the lives they touched. They have earned their reward. That doesn’t make our grief any less real or any less painful that they are no longer here. 

Hold fast to those promises of hope. God will soon be with God’s people. God will wipe every tear from our eyes. God will make it so there is no more death, sorry, pain, or crying. Behold, God makes all things new. It is easy to let the pain that we feel in the here and now convince us that God’s truth and promises are not real. Do not let present circumstances rob you of your hope. God, we are told, gives us strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. And nothing, no one, and not a single painful moment, day, or season is ever, EVER, going to rob us of that promise God has made to us. 

[SLIDE 11] I like the fall season. Some may say it’s hard because the leaves are dying. Some may not like it because things are getting colder, and winter can be barren and difficult. But to me, there’s a sense of beauty in the fall season. Even in their dying and falling off, the leaves burst forth with glorious colors, radiant images of a long and amazing spring and summer. And somewhere, just waiting behind the limbs of the tree is a whole new life of leaves, soon-coming. [SLIDE 12] And so it is with our lives. Death is not the final word. For even in death we hear the refrain of God’s hope: “My Lord, what a morning!” 

Worship Service video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1292803551879958/

All Creation Signs ! Series

Created for Healing—Jeremiah 31: 7-9; Mark 10: 46-52

Vampires. Bet you didn’t that would be the start to a sermon, did you? In traditional tales and lure, they are frightful creatures. In the romanticized Hollywood portrayal, they are less undead and evil and mostly handsome and alluring to those in the movies. The basic gist of the evil creature, though, is that it sucks the life out of you by draining your blood. A good friend of mine used to say that you didn’t need to worry about vampires as they’re not real, but she’s met quite a few spiritual vampires which should be utterly terrifying in life. 

In today’s Gospel, we encounter Bartimaeus, a blind beggar on the roadside. When he hears that Jesus is close to him, he begins shouting and hollering, “raising a ruckus,” as we say in the South. He calls on Jesus to have mercy on him… “Son of David, have mercy on me.” His words were not condemning, angry, irritated, nor anything like that. He was a man used to begging. He could have asked for enough money, for something to make life easy. He could have shouted, “Jesus, Son of David, fix my sight!” But instead, he simply asks Jesus for mercy. 

And the response to him was swift and severe. The people yelled at him to be quiet. They attempted to silence him, shut him down, and stop his attempt to get to Jesus. He wanted new life and healing. They wanted him to go away and be quiet. I think it is safe to call the crowd a group of spiritual vampires. They wanted to suck the life and hope right out of Bartimaeus. There are people and situations like that in our own lives. Sometimes it is folks at work, situations in our social lives, differing circumstances in the world, our own minds, or even someone very close who becomes the very one who tells us to be quiet and disrupts our ability to find Jesus. I have found too many people in my own life that I had to let go because they tried to steal the life and hope right out of me just like a vampire takes the life of every single victim. 

Both of the readings for today, though, talk of hope and restoration. Jeremiah is known as the weeping prophet, and frankly, there is not much about the book that is uplifting. But here we see a prophecy of restoration and healing for Israel. Jeremiah’s words say, “I will not forget the blind and lame, mothers, and women in labor.” Too often we focus our attention on the rich ruler we read about a few weeks ago. We look to strength, might, wealth, and influence. But here we see Jesus take special time and attention to those who are particularly vulnerable. Bartimaeus. He was a beggar, unclean most likely, and disregarded by society…told to be quiet. But that’s who Jesus made a point of calling Bartimaeus to him and healing him. 

Look at how strong Bartimaeus’s faith is. The crowd yelled at him. He couldn’t see where Jesus was. He didn’t know if Jesus would even entertain him. But when he makes his way to Jesus, yelling, begging, calling for mercy, Jesus says to him—“Go for your faith has healed you.” Jesus didn’t do a dramatic multi-step process of rubbing clay in his eyes, or anything else like other healing miracles. The man had sufficient faith for God to restore his sight. The vampiric crowd tried to steal that from him, but his faith held firm. He had faith beyond their yelling and cruelty. He had faith that if he only got to Jesus, all would be well. Jesus recognized his faith, and Jesus met his needs. 

To his credit, Bartimaeus had a strong response to his encounter with Jesus. The rich man went away sad and couldn’t follow Jesus. Bartimaeus, we read, threw aside his coat, ran to Jesus, then followed him down the road. He was willing to follow Jesus not even knowing as much as the rich man did because Bartimaeus knew Jesus could give him all he needed. Sometimes we live like the rich man. We don’t recognize how much we need Jesus because we find comfort and fulfillment in worldly things. That’s why Jesus said it’s so hard for a rich person to enter the kingdom. There’s too much stuff to enjoy in the way from them to Jesus. Bartimaeus was a beggar. Jesus gave him everything he could ever want. It wasn’t riches, houses, gold, a happy life. Bartimaeus was still dirt poor and a beggar when the story is done. What Jesus gave him was hope. 

Speaking of vampires, in case you didn’t know we have an election coming up soon. I hadn’t realized this as I missed the 20 texts a day, 200 emails, never ending ads on television, and the 5 million mailers that have junked up the mailbox. There’s a bit of a rock and hard place on this. I absolutely hate to mention anything about such events in a sermon, yet if I don’t address it, it would be like missing a moose in the middle of Cherry Street downtown. I was asked once, “How should I vote?” and my rather snide answer was, “With a voting machine.” 

It’s not my business nor the church’s business to tell you who to vote for…both because that’s not the job of the church, and there is a law that forbids for churches being tax exempt. What I can tell you, though, is Jesus gave Bartimaeus his sight, and I believe God still speaks and gives us vision even now today. My role, and the role of the church, is to help you know more and more about God’s word and the context in which it was said as well as helping you to know Jesus more. 

For Bartimaeus, when he tried to come to Jesus, the crowd held him back. The same happens today as well. The harder we seek Jesus, the more we get pushed back by illnesses, life struggles, negativity bombarding us all around, fighting and bickering, and all the like. If you want my best advice and encouragement, sit and read the Gospel of Luke, then conduct yourself accordingly. And most importantly, too many people are losing their minds over this. God is still God. God’s love for God’s people will not change. Whatever difficulties elections may bring, you are never separated from God’s love, for that is eternal and unchanging. Tens of thousands of kings, queens, presidents, and leaders have come and gone. But God’s love and God’s grace have never been lost. 

One of my favorite scary movies is the old Bella Lugosi’s Count Dracula movie. In light of modern films, it’s a bit dated and hokey, but it still stands the test of time. Renfield, the one who listens to the vampire and allows himself to be controlled in the movie is driven to absolute insanity. His willingness to let the vampire ruin his life ends up being his ultimate demise. Van Helsing, who resists the vampire, ends up being the hero. 

In our Gospel, if Bartimaeus had listened to the crowd of vampires, he would have sat back down, never met Jesus, continued being blind, and likely have died miserably. Physically, Jesus gave Bartimaeus his sight back. But the reality is Jesus gave him hope. Think on that verse of our closing hymn, “What have I to dread, what have I to fear leaning on the everlasting arms?” Jesus gave Bartimaeus his sight and his hope. And in return he followed Jesus. 

If you are worried about what will happen November 5, that’s fine. I think sometimes it’s quite normal to have a healthy concern. But never forget how Jesus worked in this world for healing, for mercy, and for hope. Bartimaeus called out to Jesus—“Have mercy on me!” Not only was Jesus merciful in granting Bartimaeus’s request, Jesus also gave him healing and hope. None of that could be taken away from Bartimaeus. And when you are leaning on Jesus in the good times, the bad, and the times of worry, no one can take that mercy and hope from you either. 

Jesus—mercy, healing, our role. 

Worship Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/426544840482642/

All Creation Sings! Series

Created for Service—Isaiah 53: 4-6; Mark 10: 35-45

I saw a funny cartoon the other day that said, “Cooking together is NOT romantic, now GET OUT of my kitchen.” It remined me of the sight to behold that was Sunday dinner at my Granny’s house growing up. There would be anywhere from 10-12 people all crammed into my grandparents’ small kitchen and dining room. Granny did the cooking, and you had better stay out of her way. As soon as we got home from church, the food was ready to come out onto the table. I never knew how she managed such. But the duties were always shared—my aunts would help do the dishes and clean up. The men would go out and check the garden or wash the cars in the family, whatever needed done at the time. The work, the living, and the tasks at hand were shared. Everyone had a role to do. 

In our Gospel for today, James and John come to Jesus asking for a favor. They have, thankfully, accepted the idea of who Jesus is and believe in his holiness. But now that they understand, they want to sit in a place of glory next to him. But Jesus tells them that to have a place of glory and honor, they must first endure suffering and struggle. Jesus hints at the suffering he must soon endure calling it a “bitter cup” and a “baptism of suffering.” 

The Isaiah lesson hints at what this baptism of suffering and bitterness would be. Jesus carried our own struggles on his shoulders. Jesus endured physical suffering at the hands the religious authorities. The story of Jesus is a story of someone who came to serve—and that service was willingly enduring suffering and pain on our behalf, so we wouldn’t have to eternally pay for what we had done wrong in this life. 

So, when the two disciples ask to share in Jesus’ honor and glory, he tells them they must also share in the suffering. And they did. James was martyred, and John was tortured and exiled. But the bigger problem is the bickering that their request created amongst the disciples. They become indignant that James and John should ask such a privilege. Jesus teaches them an important lesson about power and service. 

Ancient empires and powers used to make a big exhibition of their power and authority. It was common to have the Romans parade through the streets. It was a display of power and oppression to the conquered Jewish people. But even within the halls of the Temple, they found themselves experiencing power and authority being lorded over them. The religious leaders were often just as oppressive as the Roman conquerors. 

But Jesus offered a different way—that last shall be first and the first shall be last. The greatest in the Kingdom of God is the one who is a servant. Jesus came for service and sacrifice. Jesus didn’t come to get rich, to gain silver and gold, to create a vast army and kingdom. No, Jesus didn’t come for any of that. He came to love, to heal, and to serve in suffering for humankind. His literal words are this: “Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be the servant of everyone else. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

In God’s kingdom, everyone has a role to do. If Jesus himself is not exempt from service, neither are we. As pastor of this church, it’s my role to look after you, be a spiritual presence, and teacher for you to the best of my abilities. As elders, some of you all are tasked with guiding the faith and life of the church and members. As deacons some of you are called to serve in administration, keeping up with the day to day needs of the church. And in a small church, that’s about half the folks. But those who haven’t yet been called to an office, your church needs you to give, love, visit, share. Faith is miraculous in that we all come and play a role in this sometimes messy, but always beautiful gathering of God’s people. 

I think many of our leaders today could learn a lot about what it means to be a servant. It is a rather cynical picture. The social leaders have morphed from Hollywood to a bunch of wild Instagram and TikTok influencers. Our politicians should wear advertisements, so we know who has bought and paid for them. It seems like everyone who seeks a leadership position craves the power and authority and perks instead of the call to service. 

As much as I’d like to stand and complain about politics from the pulpit, I have to confess the same struggles have infiltrated our churches. Taylor Swift donated $5 million to the hurricane relief efforts following the damage of Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Dolly Parton has donated $2 million and helped raise a total of $9 million to help those victims of the hurricanes. Now, how much did Rev. Joel Osteen, who allegedly makes more than $50 million per year, How much did Rev. Kenneth Copeland donate? How much did Rev. Jesse Duplantis, who asked for donations of $50 million for a private jet, donate? How much did any of these alleged faith leaders making millions upon millions of dollars give? I researched for almost an hour and could find nothing. Once in 2021, one of their ministries gave $100,000 to buy generators for Hurricane Ida victims. 

Faith does not work unless each one of us is willing to participate. Faith leaders cannot follow a Christ who went willingly to a cross to suffer and die and sacrifice while hoarding millions of dollars. Each one of us has a role to play, a calling from God within the church and within our communities. Sometimes Jesus taught in synagogues. But most of the time, Jesus taught in the streets, the hills, and even in the midst of the sea. He healed wherever he went. He served far beyond the bounds of the place of worship. He brought faith to the people where they were and as they needed from him. And he did not oppress people like Rome and the religious leaders of his day. As the Rev. Benjamin Cremer says, “Beware of any Christian movement that acts as though the world is full of enemies to be destroyed rather than full of neighbors to be loved.” 

As Jesus said in this Gospel, “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and give his life [for the many]. And Jesus did not shy away from or ignore the reality of suffering. He was honest about his suffering. He was honest with James and John that life in this world would not be easy whether or not you follow Jesus. Instead, he turned their attention towards the knowledge that we are saved from suffering and pain having the last word in life. 

In an election cycle, you may hear a lot of promises about policies and politicians saving us from trouble. Make no mistake, you’re choosing a human leader. The only one who truly and completely saves us in this life and beyond is Jesus. And in his kingdom, we all have a role to do. On Sundays my family would gather for dinner after church. One cooked, some set the table, others did the dishes, others tended the garden and other chores later on. In the family of God, we all have an important role to play. 

So may we celebrate the good work we can do. In a community and society that needs to see and experience the grace and love of Christ, may we be enthusiastic about the role we have been called to do. For when we work in service to those who need us, we are living exactly like Jesus, who sacrificed and served for every single one of us. 

Worship Video https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/1903993886792394/

All Creation Sings! Series

Created to Follow Jesus—Psa.90: 12-17; Mark 10: 17-31

During law school, a professor said to us, “Money doesn’t buy happiness.” My good friend, who was not rich, but also didn’t have to eat ramen with frozen vegetables to get by, replied, “Money can’t buy happiness, but it’s a lot better to cry in a new Mercedes Benz than in a broken-down Geo Metro.” Today’s Gospel lesson shows us a man given a choice between what he has and what Jesus can offer, if he’s willing to give up with earthly goods to follow Jesus. There are three lessons for us from this scripture: first, following Jesus can be difficult; second, we must be willing to give up what we have and not hold back; and finally, there is a great return on the investment of following Jesus. 

So, first we see in the Gospel that following Jesus can be difficult. A man came to Jesus asking how to inherit eternal life—the same as Jesus was describing in his teachings. Jesus advises him to follow the Ten Commandments, living justly and ethically throughout his life. The man tells Jesus that he has done this since he was very young. He has kept the commandments and lived well. He wanted to be a part of Jesus’s work, but there was one thing holding him back. He couldn’t give up his power and wealth in this world to invest in God’s kingdom. 

He leaves sad when he is told that he has to give up his earthly treasure and influence to follow Jesus. Then Jesus says another one of his challenging, difficult teachings: “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!” He follows this up by saying that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God. A little context is needed to know why this is so shocking. In Jesus’s day, it was believed that wealth and power meant you were closer to God. The more you had, the higher your status would be…minus the tax collectors and cheats. If you were born with money or rightfully earned it, this gave you power and prestige in social and religious circles. It gave a person influence in the community. 

To ask the man to give up his goods and influence would have robbed him of everything he had built and worked for on this earth. It was a sacrifice he was not ready for and did not expect to have to make. He assumed his wealth and power would be of great use to Jesus. But Jesus was looking for followers not wealthy investors. Jesus called on him to give up his point of pride and follow Jesus instead. It’s much like our current climate. We live in a world that is saturated with demand for pleasure and instant gratification. Jesus’s call is to sacrifice this sense of comfort and pleasure to seek the Kingdom of God. Following Jesus is difficult because Jesus often asks us to sacrifice, to assume some inconvenience, or to give of ourselves in some way. In our society, that can be hard. 

But secondly, what Jesus is asking is for his willingness to give up and not hold back. Too often the focus on this parable is the single fact that the man was rich. Many attribute the wrongdoing here to the man having wealth. That’s not the case. It is not a sin to have money. The Bible says that the LOVE of money is the root of evil. When it came time for the man to choose whether Jesus or his wealth and power were more important, he chose the latter. 

The problem for him was more about the divided mind he lived with. As much as he wanted to follow Jesus, to be a disciple, he was never going to choose Jesus over his wealth and influence. This kind of status brings obligations, social necessities, expectations which can often conflict with the Kingdom of God. And it was apparent that this man, who loved Jesus, and who was loved by Jesus, would not be able to choose the right thing. That’s why in the preceding scripture, Jesus tells them to have the faith of a child. A child has nothing, lives simply, and only relies on what blessings are given. There’s nothing we really bring to influence God. We simply trust and choose to follow. 

Two examples mentioned in the commentaries were St. Francis and Mother Theresa. Both of them sacrificed everything they had to follow the call to serve the Kingdom of God. Just as Peter said to Jesus, “We’ve given up everything to follow you,” we must be willing to devote ourselves to following Jesus instead of holding on to everything. You may have tremendous blessings in life, but you have to remember you follow the gift-giver and not the blessing itself. 

Having good things is not sinful. But hoarding up money, desiring (or even lusting) for power and influence, worshipping and clinging to all the worldly things you can get your hands on…how does that mirror Jesus? It’s not a question of what you have. It’s a question of the heart. How can someone who’s first and only love is great, pleasure, and worldly satisfaction understand “blessed are the poor,” from Luke’s Gospel? We must be willing to choose the Kingdom of God and give up what things we have in this world. 

Lastly, the promise is a great return on this investment in God’s kingdom. After Peter has noted that they have given up everything to follow Jesus, he hears Jesus’s reply that for every sacrifice, they will receive a hundred times over the blessings. There will be persecution, but the blessings here or eternal will be worth the sacrifice. The Psalm uses the words, “Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.” Whatever we give up for the Kingdom of God, the love of God is worth it. 

The work of the kingdom is powerful because in the world we are taught to run from evil, to avoid suffering, to get away from things that are uncomfortable, painful, or difficult. But the follower of Christ marches straight into the middle of the struggle to try and help. Our calling is to bring faith AND hope to this world. We do that by following Jesus. Jesus never shied away from the struggles of life—he healed, loved, offered grace and mercy. Our calling is to be like Jesus, as hard as that may be sometimes. 

Not every endeavor is a success. Many years ago, when I was relatively new here, a member came to me and asked me to help her grandchild. He was a good kid who wrestled with addiction issues. At the time we talked, he was finishing up a stint in jail for testing positive for whatever was his drug of choice. I began writing letters to him and corresponding till he was released. We worked here at the church to give him things to do, keep him occupied, and find an outpatient support group for him to join. It seemed like his life was getting back on track. No more drugs, no more bad behaviors, no more gang affiliation. 

But one night he was in his female friend’s car. And the police tried to pull him over. Old habits kicked in and he sped away. He ended up crashing while speeding and succumbing to his injuries. It would have been easy to focus on what he did wrong, his short, wayward life, or any of the sins he had committed. They were most certainly numerous. And the other preacher at the funeral had a field day bringing up those wrongs. However, I had letters. I had letters where he wrote, “It’s a lot I want to know, and I’m truly trying to turn my life over to God. It’s not the life I want to live. I just want the proper guidance in my life with the Lord and the people I’m around.” Or where he wrote this, “Pastor Will, I’m so very determined to do everything in my power to live up to God’s calling in my life.”

He may have lost his life. We may not have been able to save him from all the troubles he lived with, but I know this day he loved God and followed Jesus even if he didn’t get it right. His heart and soul sought Christ, his mind simply kept letting him down. Following Jesus is a hard task. It calls us to make a choice between all that we have in this world and the Kingdom of God. We may not get it right all the time, but at the end of the day the question that measures our life is this: whom do we choose to follow? Amen.

Worship Video 

https://www.facebook.com/fccmacon/videos/851998143764958/