Entries Tagged 'Sermons (Joleen)' ↓

Colossians 1.1-14

Bible Basics
Paul, the author
Wrote 13 letters (epistles) etters to the churches. The churches were located in different cities and the letters take their name from the people of that city. This letter is to the city of Colossae, and the people of that city are know as Colossians. The letter is ddressed to “church” or “saints”.

Usually there is some problem to be addressed in these letters.

Letter form: greets the church in the beginning; ends with greetings to or from specific people
Today we deal with the greeting and introduction to the letter.

Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ …
Acts 9 Damascus Road experience: called apostle because of his face-to-face encounter with Jesus Christ. Paul had a specific call to the Gentiles, rather than the Jewish peoples.

Paul does not know these people; he has never met them. So he is establishing his authority by explaining who he is, by his title “apostle.” He has authority to teach; to deal pastorally with the congregation.

Grace and peace to you …
is a common greeting. Thick with meaning.
Grace: central concept of Christ’s work of salvation as gift (free and unearned) as opposed to any idea of work or merit. Indicates deep prayerful concern (element of intercession). Paul desires that the Colossians apprehend more fully the grace of God in which they already stand.
Peace: Shalom. Sense of general well-being, the source and giver of such peace is God alone. Includes everything given by God in all areas of life. Peace as wholeness, in particular in reference to relationships. Paul prays that they may comprehend more fully the nature of that relationship of peace which God has established with them.

Looking Back: Thanksgiving
Working Together
Timothy is mentioned and v.1 states, “we give thanks” – indicating Paul is not alone in ministry. Epaphras is mentioned as "fellow slave" and "faithful minister on our behalf". There is a teamwork that exists in the work of Christ. None of us is lone rangers. We work as a team at a local church level. I work as a team with fellow pastors. It is important that I develop relationships with my colleagues – that we grow together, that we are accountable to each other, that we encourage one another, and learn from one another. That has to happen here in the local church, from church to church in our charge and through the local ministerium. Our District Superintendent emphasizes the importance of pastors getting out of our own little box, and going to seminars outside our District and even outside our denomination – to broaden our horizon, to learn from others.

Epaphras
Epaphras is the one from whom the Colossians learned the Gospel. “Fellow-slave” is a title of honor. (Tri-city area of Hierapolis, Laodicea, and Colossae) Epaphras is lifted up as a good teacher. One who knows the Gospel and is linked with apostolic authority – from a direct source of the Gospel, even to Jesus himself, through Paul. This is important because there has been some false teaching that has crept in. And that is what Paul is going to address. And he emphasizes that they know the truth: “the message of truth”, “the gospel”, they have “heard and understood the grace of God in truth.”

Prayer of Thanks to God
Paul, Timothy and Epaphras are giving thanks for the faith, hope, and love that the Colossians have. That they know this message of truth. That they are bearing fruit and growing: good deeds, numerical growth, spiritual character. From the first day you heard it you have taken hold and have been growing. And he gives the Spirit the credit for this. They are doing acts of love that only can be credited to the Spirit of God at work in them. This message is being heard and bearing fruit around the world, and you are a part of this, a very vital part of this.

Looking Back
Looking back to who brought them to do the Gospel and to the good works, the fruit and the growth that has been and is among them.

• From whom did you first learn of Christ and his love for you? Remember and give thanks to God.

Looking Forward
Prayer of Petition (Intercession) for the Colossians:
~Know God’s will
Fill – abundant
Wisdom and understanding as gifts of God.
Live worthily: actions
Please God not self.

~Power to perform
Rely on God, not self.
The only way we have the power to live our lives in accordance to God’s word and to bring forth fruit in our lives (godly character and good deeds) is through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 1.18-23

• What’s the next faithful step? Discern and pray for power to accomplish God’s will.

Psalm 13

A Personal Story of Disorientation
I want to share a little of my story this morning. While at seminary, my local  church affirmed my call and the leaders of the church in a formal setting affirmed my call. They would ask me different questions regarding ministry. One of their questions regarded marriage and ministry. And I chuckled on the inside at this question, at that time I was single and Randy and I had just seen each other for the second time (I won’t say it was a second date, because I refused to call our first luncheon meeting a date!) But at this second meeting, I had already broached the subject to check out his views of women in ministry, because if he wasn’t fully acceptant of the idea there was no need for us to have a third meeting. God was first in my life and I wouldn’t let anyone come before Him.

It was difficult for us (for me) to find a ministry position in our church. There were few women ministers in our church. God finally opened a door for us to co-pastor a small struggling church just outside of Erie. We, fresh out of seminiary, went there confident that God was going to turn the situation around. But God didn’t. There were just a handful of members with a building debt. We were there about 11/2 years and they decided to close the church.

We were at a point of disorientation:
~We were personally financially in debt.
~We felt God was moving us from our denomination to another.
~Randy and I moved in with my mother. My mother got married while we were there.
~We were in a whirlwind. Our young married lives, our ministry turned upside down.

We visited many different churches. We visited with denominational leaders. We read up on denomination after denomination. We went to speak at different churches. We talked about planting a church in Omaha. We considered a church in the bayous of Louisiana. After about a 11/2 years we were appointed on a weekly basis to the Royer UMC outside of Williamsburg, by Tom Irvin. He appointed us before we ever officially committed to the UMC. It was that fall that we joined the church. We wanted to be sure that was were God was leading us. (If we would have been more familiar with UMC polity, we may not have waited because UMC policy makes sure that your sure and that they’re sure and everybody’s sure. And I say that because we had to wait two years after becoming members to begin the ordination process with the UMC.)

Now there is one thing that kept Randy and I going in the midst of this upheaval in our lives: we were sure of our call. We were sure that God wanted us in local church pastoral ministry. We were sure in our hearts and we had that confirmed time and time again by the body of Christ, by our pastors and church leaders.

That is one instance; one example of the type of disorientation we can experience in life. When things just don’t come together easily. The pieces just don’t fit. And we are left to grapple with them. Sometimes we wonder what God is up to. Sometimes when we don’t feel like God is giving us any direction, we try to figure things out ourselves. Sometimes we feel like there is an enemy triumphing in our lives.

Psalm 13: A Psalm of Disorientation
Psalms of Disorientation follow a typical form which is divided into two major parts, plea and praise. Psalm 13 follows this form closely.

Plea
3 Complaints
God
Self
Enemy

And these are three complaints that the Psalmist makes (in relation to God, self, and enemy). He the psalmist is very abrupt and pointed. He doesn’t take time to mellow his words. He doesn’t take time to reason. His words are from the gut (gut feelings).

He first accuses God of not looking at him; not seeing him; his face is turned from him. (OT if God sees, God takes action.) In this kind of psalm is common for the psalmist to fix the blame on God – you’re not doing what you are supposed to do God. You’re not taking care of me like you said you would. We covenanted together, and you’re not holding up your end of this relationship.

He then says he wrestles with his own thoughts. There is sorrow, pain, anguish, he’s confused and miserable – every day!

And he has some enemy that remains unnamed, that is triumphing over him.

3 Petitions
Look
Answer
Give light

There is no way of coping unless God acts.

These complaints are grounded in a relationship with God-a relationship that can withstand such honesty. A relationship that existed before this moment.

Verses 1-2 the psalmist pent up rage is released. And the rage is released toward one person, God. God is the only one being addressed.

This psalm teaches us it is okay to tell God how we feel. He can handle our emotions. He already knows how we feel. In the telling there is release. It is in the telling, that God can begin the healing.

3 Motivations
I will die
Enemy will say, “I have overcome.”
Foes will rejoice. – The psalmist is God’s partner, so if the partner is overcome; if foes rejoice over the partner, they do so to God.

Sometimes the motivation is bargaining. (if you do this I’ll do that.)

WAIT
The grand pause. The psalmist waits. We wait. There is no place to go. We wait for God’s response.

Praise
Assurance of being heard

3 Statements of Trust
I trust
My heart rejoices
I will sing (vow of payment)

3 References to God
your unfailing love
your salvation
to the Lord

During the waiting there is a change that takes place and we don’t know what caused that change. When the psalmist speaks, he is a different person. He is on his way to a new orientation. Remember we said that orientation is when we have our bearings straight. Things are as they are meant to be. They are stable. The psalmist is on his way to a new orientation, because he will have been changed by this experience. Because it is in these dark times of waiting that somehow we are changed. Our trust is deepened. Our relationship with God grows. Our praise becomes rooted in that ongoing relationship.

These closing scriptures are mixed in verb tense, for the psalmist is not yet out of this dark place. But he has the assurance that God will bring him out. He promises to sing in the future, because “God has been good to me.” He has been faithful in the past; so I believe he will be faithful to me in the present; therefore, I will sing in the future.

Conclusion
We don’t know how long it took the Psalmist to progress through these steps. Many of us may be at different places along this psalm. We may be at the point of weariness, where we need to cry out to God for help. We may be in a place of waiting. We may be in the midst of trouble, standing confident, knowing that God is going to act in our situation. Wherever you are today, pray to God, make your requests known to God. And if you are in need of prayer, if you find yourself crying out "How long?" come for prayer today, so that the body may help carry you through this difficult time.

Psalm 19

Getting Real
Our young people today long for authenticity. If you are around them much you hear them voice, they want things to be real. When I pastored in Williamsburg, we began a time-release program for high school students and it was named, “Get Real.” It was a time for real life people to share how they lived out a real commitment to Christ in the real world.

I would categorize the Psalms as real. They are written by real people in real-life situations and the writers do not mince words-they tell it like it is. Another word I would use to describe the Psalms is raw or uncut. No one went back over the Psalms and said “Oh, this is not appropriate for conversation with God” or “This is not suitable for the Bible.” It’s in there. First passed by oral tradition and now in our printed text. It is God’s Word.

We are going to look at five different Psalms over the next five weeks. These Psalms are representative of the three major categories that Walter Brueggemann has identified in his study of the Psalms. These categories are Orientation, Disorientation, and New Orientation. These categories are pretty much what they sound like. In brief, Orientation is when one is oriented, stable, sure of one’s faith. Disorientation is when our equilibrium is off; things don’t go the way we think they should go. And a New Orientation follows times of Disorientation. We again become sure of things.

There are different types of Orientation Psalms: Songs of Creation, Songs of Torah (Torah is the first five books of the OT), Wisdom Psalms, Songs of Retribution, and Occasions of Well-being. We will look at one Psalm of Orientation and I chose Psalm 19, because it is a combination: verses 1-6 are a Song of Creation and verses 7-11 (or 14) are a Song of Torah.

Being an Orientation Psalm, throughout this Psalm there is an expression of confidence; faith issues are settled. God is reliable and trustworthy. The community has decided to trust this God. As in the sermon title, everything is well-ordered. There is no threat, no trouble, no surprises. Everything is as God intended.

Creation
This is first demonstrated in creation. Think of Genesis 1, when God created the world: he created and it was good; the next day, he created and it was good. After creation, everything was just as God intended. Everything was perfect and in harmony. The psalmist sees creation as still perfect. Creation is so wondrous that even though it cannot speak, it’s mere existence and beauty proclaims the glory of its Creator. And the psalmist sees reliability demonstrated in nature, specifically in the sun. Everyday the sun bursts forth, as if it was hidden in a tent overnight. The sun comes forth in the morning and it runs its course, from one end of the heavens, it makes its circuit to the other.

This is a certainty. We can be sure that each day the sun will appear. Each morning it will become daylight. Each evening it will become night and that means it will become dark; the sun will disappear for a number of hours, but only to return when it is the next day. Day in and day out, we can be sure that this will happen.

Torah
The next thing that brings certainty is Torah, God’s Word. Six different words are used for God’s Word in this Psalm: law, statutes, precepts, commands, fear, and ordinances. And in every sense God’s Word is good. Six different adjectives describe God’s Word: perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure, sure. And each has a role in our lives:
Reviving the soul (life)
Making wise the simple
Giving joy to the heart
Giving light to the eyes
Enduring forever
Altogether righteous

The last, ‘altogether righteous’ sums up all the rest. And the psalmist adds weight by likening its worth and desirability to fine gold and sweet honey – treasures for which humans strive. None is more precious than Torah, God’s Word.

Macro to micro
Two of the first theological terms I learned in seminary were General revelation and Special revelation. Creation is general revelation. It is the glory of God revealed in the universe. But Torah, the Word of God, draws close. It is special revelation. Even the word for God is different in the Hebrew: verse 2 uses a general word and verses 7-9 & 14 use the word Yahweh, translated Lord in the NIV. God as Lord is a more intimate name. It reveals God as the covenantal God (the God who is in relationship with his people), the God of redemption (the God who is active in the lives of his people; the God who saves).

The Psalmist Response: Prayer of Forgiveness
After looking at the vastness of creation, Torah says that there is place for humankind amidst this great universal scheme of things.

The last three verses are the psalmist response. As God draws near and is revealed as Lord, the God who saves, the psalmist response is a prayer of forgiveness.

Verse 12: Only God can discern our errors. “Forgive my hidden faults” – the faults or sins that we do and we are not even aware of. These God is aware of. And the psalmist asks forgiveness for those things he is not even aware.

Verse 13: Moves to the sins he is aware of, willful sins. This is doing things that he knows he should not do. He prays, “may they not rule over me.”

Verse 14: Goes on to ask God to allow not only the words spoken, but things unspoken, his thoughts, be pleasing in the sight of God.

The Heat of the Sun/Torah
One closing story, to tie the two parts of this Psalm together. At the first of Summer, really in the Spring, when it first warms up. The air may still be cool, but the sun comes out, shining brightly. I love to be out in the sun and just feel the heat of the sun. It’s like my body just soaks it up; like somehow it penetrates my whole being. It’s like it blankets my entire body. And it feels wonderful. That’s one of my favorite things to experience at the first of summer.

Now, the sun hasn’t felt that pleasant to me in the past weeks, when we have had upper 80s temperatures with a heat index in the 100s. Precautionary statements are put out warning people of heat stroke. Telling us to drink lots of liquids and do our more active activities in the early or late part of the day. And this psalmist would have known the sun of the desert.

Compare this with Torah, the Word of God. The Word of God is a beautiful gift, given to us to reveal God, given to us to show us God’s will, to guide us to what is right. But God’s Word penetrates the soul. God’s Word can reveal our hidden sins. It is a "double-edge sword." As extreme heat can purify silver, so the Word of God will purify our lives.

As we prepare for Communion, a regular part of our Communion liturgy is the Confession and Pardon. This is according to Paul’s instructions in 1 Corinthians 11.27-32, specifically verse 28 reads:

"A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup."

We will pause for an extended time following the general prayer of confession, so that you may silently pray a more specific prayer of confession. You may include in that prayer words from the final three verses of Psalm 19.

John 8.31-39

"If you were Abraham’s children," said Jesus, "then you would do the things Abraham did.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness." Thus states the Declaration of Independence.

This is fourth of July weekend – the time we gather to celebrate everything American, especially the freedoms we enjoy. Tomorrow our nation will be 229 years old.

The Selfishness of Human Hearts (Dennis and Barbara Rainey, "Moments Together for Couples")  Alexander Fraser Tytler lived at the end of the eighteenth century, but his book The Decline and Fall of the Athenian Republic sends a chilling warning today. Tytler found that ancient democracies waned under the selfishness of human hearts. He wrote: "The average age of the world’s greatest civilizations has been 200 years. These nations have progressed through the following sequence:

• From bondage to spiritual faith;
• from spiritual faith to great courage;
• from courage to liberty;
• From liberty to abundance;
• from abundance to selfishness;
• from selfishness to complacency;
• from complacency to apathy;
• from apathy to dependency;
• from dependency back to bondage.

Maybe this could be said of the Church and therefore of our individual Christian lives as well.

It certainly is true of the Jews to which Jesus is speaking in John 8. In chapters 7 and 8 Jesus is revealing more and more of who he is. Some accept and some reject. There is no middle road. Jesus makes sure of that.

The words I read to you from John 8 Jesus is speaking to “the Jews who had believed him.” Jesus calls their bluff. Jesus tests them to see how much they really believe. And John 8 closes with “they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.” With believers like that, who needs enemies?

Let’s look closer at the story. Why are they not believers? Because they are not free. This passage is about freedom-true freedom. And these Jews do not possess that kind of freedom. They claim to be free, they say they (Abraham’s descendents) have never been slaves of anyone. But Jesus is not speaking of national freedom, he is speaking of inner freedom, a freedom of the heart. Spiritual freedom is freedom from sin.

Jesus goes on to say that they do not possess this freedom because they do not do the things that Abraham did-they are not doing godly things.

"Help us see that our liberty is not the right to do as we please, but the opportunity to please to do what is right." (Peter Marshall, Before the U.S. Senate)

This passage opens “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”

"No man in this world attains to freedom from any slavery except by entrance into some higher servitude."  (Phillips Brooks, 1835-1893)

The Bible is filled with paradoxes: God is strong and mighty and yet mild and gentle. We have to die to find life.

George Matheson hymn: “Make me a captive, then I shall be free.”

The word captivating has captive as its root. We speak of something captivating someone’s attention. I remember as a teenager, I’d be captivated by a tv program and my mom would come in and talk to me and I’d never hear her. I was focused on one thing.

~What captivates you today?
~What holds your attention?
~At what or whom do you sit at the feet of?
~What do you make your rule of life?

“If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

One of the world’s uses of the word freedom is the phrase “Free to be me.” In Genesis when God created humankind, he says, “Let us make people in our image …” We were created in the image of God, but when sin entered into the world that image was marred, distorted by sin. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came so that we might once again be restored to the image of God. In believing, in following, in learning to walk in the ways of God, I find the real me! You find the real you! Jesus is the one who sets me “free to be me.”

In a moment we will share in the Lord’s Supper together. Let us remember together the price that Jesus paid for our freedom. Let us with thankful hearts meet him at this table. Let us come and leave at the altar all that binds us, all the things of the world that grab our attention, all that keeps us from embracing wholeness, and let us go forth in the freedom of Jesus Christ, free to be all that God created us to be.

"Be holy, because I am holy" (1 Peter 1.16)

Holiness.  What do think of when you hear the word "holiness"?

Women in dresses, conservatively dressed, little or no jewelry?  List no’s: no movie theatres; no dancing, etc.

Last week we talked about “Boundaries.” God places boundaries that are “good and pleasant,” so that we prosper, so that we can be content, so that we can live a full life. But we have to trust his boundaries.

Several weeks ago, on Pentecost Sunday, we talked about the symbol of fire as the Holy Spirit looked like fire and came to rest on those gathered together. We talked about that fire being a fiery zeal leading them to be bold witnesses of the Gospel and for the Lord and a consuming fire that refines or burns away those things the impurities of our lives or those things that stand between us and God.

Holiness is too often misunderstood as a list that someone sometime drew  up and some churches enforce. If you are Christian you are going to look a particular way. Mostly this comes from an interpretation of “be not conformed to the world” (Romans 12.2).

Conservative Amish and Mennonite sects live by that rule. Clothing has always been a big part of that. Recently there was an article in the Huntingdon Daily News regarding a website that sold “plain clothes.” Website for Amish!!!

Holiness is far more than this and it boils down to one verse; one/two command: Read Luke 10.25-27.

Holiness is loving God and loving neighbor. Holiness is loving God with all of our being. Seeking to love God more than anything or anyone.

Read Matthew 19.16-22. This story always makes my heart sad. I always wonder how could anyone  turn and walk away from God and here is God in human flesh, and this young man just turns and walks away. The price of following Christ was just too much. This young man knew God’s Word. He probably like all good Jewish boys sat under a Rabbi and studied the laws and commands of Scriptures. He had all the right answers. But it wasn’t about giving the right intellectual answer; it  was about his heart.

This young man yearned for something more. There was something missing in his life. He sought Jesus out; he approached Jesus. He’s keeping the commands, but says, “What do I still lack?”

“We who see ourselves as lacking are the most hopeful of people.” (Jim and Molly Davis Scott)

Perfect. If you want to be holy. If you want to go to the next step with me, this is what you need to do. Holiness is about growing. Holiness is about becoming more and more in the image of Christ. It’s about having the heart of God. Loving the things that God loves.

The young man decides he’d rather live with that empty feeling in his life than become more like Christ. He wasn’t willing to take the next step of transformation.

Holiness is not about law. It’s not about a manmade list of things we must do or must not do. It is a matter of the heart. It is God guiding each of us in our walk, knowing where each of us is and guiding us according to where we are.

“God doesn’t care where we are; as long as we are on the journey.”

God is involved. It is both God and us that walk this road. None of us are able to make the right decisions, none are willing to pay the cost of discipleship, without God empowering us to do so.

Matthew 19.25-26

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen." (2 Peter 3.18)

2 Thessalonians 2.14; Romans 5.5; Matthew 10.39; 16.25

“When you’re through changing, you’re through.” (Bruce Barton)

"The Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth" (John 15.13)

As you have seen and heard God’s Word, go forth as witnesses of Jesus Christ, living lives that proclaim his presence in you. Being filled with the Holy Spirit, go forth with the Spirit’s blessing. Amen.

Psalm 16

Don’t Eat the Forbidden Fruit (by Rev. Morgan Murray)
Whenever your kids are out of control, you can take comfort from the thought that even God’s omnipotence didn’t extend to God’s kids. After creating  heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve. And the first thing he said was:

"Don’t."

"Don’t what?" Adam replied

"Don’t eat the forbidden fruit." God said.

"Forbidden fruit? We got forbidden fruit? Hey Eve! We got forbidden fruit!"

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

"DON’T EAT THAT FRUIT!" Said God.

"Why?"

"Because I am your Father and I said so!" said God, wondering why he hadn’t stopped after making elephants.

A few minutes later God saw his kids having an apple break and was  angry.

Didn’t I tell you not to the fruit?" the First Parent asked.

"Uh huh," Adam replied.

"Then why did you?"

"I dunno," Eve answered.

"She started it!" Adam said.

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did NOT!"

Having had it with the two of them, God’s punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own. Thus, the pattern was set and it has never been changed. Sound a bit familiar?

We expect our children to obey, because we are looking out for their  best interest. But then we turn around to our loving Heavenly Parent and act the same way as our kids. We wrestle with God. We question God and his wisdom. We question his loving care for us. We question the God who has chosen us; who has adopted us and grafted us into his family. We question the God who gave his only Son to die on a cross for us. We question the God who created us and knows us better than ourselves. We question the God all-knowing, all-powerful, always present.

But this is the God who gave us free will that we might choose to obey, choose to follow, and choose to love him.

Teach your children
Ephesians 6.1-4; Proverbs 22.6; Proverbs 23.13-14

As you teach your children, you give them more and more freedom. It is your goal to raise them to one day be independent.

Trust God
At the same time God teaches us more and more and so that we can trust him more and more and depend on him more and more.

One of my favorite passages is Psalm 16.6: "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places." That’s a reassuring passage to me. It tells me God is watching over me.  That he has a hedge of protection around me. That he is guiding me.

Families with small children who live near a road sometimes put a fence up: to protect their children; so that when they don’t know any better they don’t wander out onto the street. As children get a little older they may figure out how to open the gate. And they test the boundaries.

And we do the same with God. Sometimes we bump into God’s boundaries and we think, I’m older now. I know a little more now. I think these boundary lines need moved out a little bit. Or we need to test the boundaries to see if God really does know what is best.

Adam and Eve were given boundaries, “Don’t eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” They began to wonder, “But why?” “I wonder what it tastes like?” And Satan comes and after questioning Adam and Eve, says, “Surely you will not die.”

None of us likes to feel “boxed in.” But sometimes, we feel God’s boundaries and we feel boxed in. We see other people doing other things and we wonder, “Why can’t I do that?” “It doesn’t seem to be hurting them.”

God’s Boundaries

Sabbath Boundaries
Even a lot of people who are not Christians are good at taking a day of rest. Putter around the house. Have brunch guests over. Spend time with the family. And this is Father’s Day today, so what about the priority of family?

Read Matthew 10.37-39. This is a more specific paraphrase of the first commandment. “Have no other god’s before me.” Put nothing before me, not even family.

God’s boundaries help us prioritize. Love God and he will teach you to  love one another. Discover God’s love and you will discover how to truly love your family.

The charge of Ephesians 6.4 4 is, "Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." Caution: Love of God is not equated to church work. If you live at the church and are consumed with the work of the church, your family can suffer. God first; family second; then the work of the church. A good guideline is one hour of worship, one hour of ministry, one hour of Bible Study each week.

“Work smarter; not harder.” Invisible line, the harder you work the less effective your work is.

Financial Boundaries
"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." (Matthew 6.24)

This is another specific example of the first commandment. “Have no other god’s before me.”  Are you going to trust God’s boundaries? Or rely on self? Are you going to give to God what is his?

Malachi 3.8-11

Another family application: Where do you balance family and work? Is providing financially for your family the same as spending time with them? Does financial provision equate with love? Where are the boundaries?

Sexual Boundaries
One message from the Song of Solomon: "never awaken love before it is ready." Sex is a gift of God to a man and woman who covenant together in marriage. The world, however, shows us a different picture. Our young people are pressured by other voices.

Statitistics indicate that those who live together are twice as likely to get divorced after they do marry. Studies show that the more premarital sex you have, the less likely you’ll be happy in your future marriage and the more likely that you or your spouse will cheat after you’re wed. Married couples are less likely to have a satisfactory sex life if they live together first. Married couples reported being the most physically pleased and emotionally satisfied. Physical and emotional satisfaction started to decline when people had more than one sex partner.

TV/movies do not show the consequences: teenage pregnancy, 1.2 million children born each year without fathers (disadvantage socially, financially, emotionally, behaviorally, academically, and even
physically), 1 out of 7 high school students graduate with STD, AIDS.

1 Corinthians 6.16-19

Will we trust God? Will we trust his boundaries? That they are for our good.

Test them and see if you can say, "The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places" (Psalm 16.6).

Acts 1.1-5

I’ve never heard anyone say, "Oh goodie, we get to wait in line at
Wal-Mart!" or "Oh look, there’s road construction signs ahead. I wonder
if we’ll get to wait!"
Waiting is probably one of our least favorite things to do. It’s a
waste of time. We want to be doing something. We want to at least make
it look like we are making something happen.
We would rather travel 20 miles out of our way, than wait 20 minutes in
a line of traffic. At least we would be doing something.

But Jesus tells the disciples to wait.
I wonder if after Jesus appeared to them many times and he convincingly
proved that he was alive, if they were excited to tell others he was
alive? But Jesus said wait. Don’t go yet. Don’t leave yet.

Acts 2 talks of the Spirit coming into the “whole house where they were
sitting.” I’ve always imagined the disciples still hid away, in a room
together. Still fearful. Still avoiding the people of Jerusalem. Maybe
even gathered in the room where they had shared the Last Supper with
Jesus.
However, "house" was a common term for the temple. It could have been a
room in the temple area.

The Feast of Pentecost was an Old Testament Jewish worship gathering.
Disciples did not neglect worship in the temple following Jesus’ death.
Jesus continued to worship in the temple, there was no reason to
believe the disciples did not. The epistles reveal house churches where
Christians worshiped and studied together about the things of Christ
and the Holy Spirit, but this does not mean they did not meet to
worship in the temples. We do not know when they discontinued this
practiced.

John Wesley did not break off from the church to form the UMC. He was a
part of the Church of England and wished to remain a part of the Church
of England. He wished to bring renewal to the Church. Members of the
Holy Clubs at Oxford fasted until 3:00 pm on Wednesdays and Fridays,
received holy communion once each week, studied and discussed the Greek
New Testament and the classics each evening in a member’s room, and the
next year visited prisoners and the sick, they systematically brought
their lives under strict review.

These meetings continued as Methodist Societies and they continued to
study the Scriptures and review one another’s walk, holding one another
accountable. Those involved with these societies were to meet with the
societies during the week and then worship at the Church of England on
Sundays.

Today we worship on Sunday. Do you know why the Seventh Day Adventists
are called what they are? When do they worship? Saturday.
What is the Jewish Sabbath? Saturday.
The early church continued to worship in the temple on Saturday,
gathering together in their house churches as follower of Christ, the
next day, on Sunday.
Another reason, I now believe the disciples were not hid away in a
private room somewhere is that when the Holy Spirit descended upon them
and they began to speak in other languages. There were people there to
hear them speaking.

Acts 2.5-13

Waiting
When I think of waiting I think of doing nothing, like sitting in a
line of traffic. Although, I prepare ahead for times like those any
more. I have teaching tapes, book on tape, praise & worship tapes.
I can pray.
I believe that the disciples waited in a similar fashion. I cannot
believe that in their excitement of everything that happened, all that
they had seen and witnessed, that they were not awestruck at God’s
activity and continually worshiped.

After all, Acts 2 goes on to say that after the coming of the Holy
Spirit, "Every day they continued to meet together in the temple
courts."

Acts 16.6-10

"… those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God" (Romans 8.14).

Go forth waiting and being led by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

We’re talking about the Holy Spirit. Two weeks ago (Pentecost Sunday) we looked at Acts 2, and specifically, the symbol of fire.

Luke 24.13-35

We want to continue to look at the work of the Holy Spirit in the life
of the Church, and will do so today by also taking a look at the John
Wesley. May 24, 1738 (anniversary date, last Tuesday) marked a pivotal
point in the life of John Wesley.

Excerpt from Wesley’s May 24, 1738, Journal Entry

In the evening, I went very unwillingly to a society in
Aldersgate Street, where one was reading Luther’s Preface to the
Epistle to the Romans. About a quarter before nine, while he was
describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in
Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ,
Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given me that he had
taken away my sins, even mine, and saved me from the law of sin and
death.

Wesley had spent years in spiritual inquiry. He participated in the
Holy Club at Oxford, fasted until 3pm Wednesdays and Fridays,
celebrated holy communion at least once each week, studied and
discussed the Greek New Testament and the classics each evening in a
member’s room, and the next year visited prisoners and the sick, they
systematically brought their lives under strict review.

“Methodists”
He and Charles went to Georgia as Missionaries where they failed
miserably. Boat ride back in the storm, while fearful, he observed the
peace of the Moravians. Became acquainted with Peter Bohler and they
continued a relationship where they shared in deep theological
conversation.

1. A personal salvation experience — "I felt my heart strangely warmed."

2. Saving faith through Jesus Christ — "I felt I did trust in Christ,
Christ alone for salvation." Not in works, not in doing good, not in
earning God’s acceptance.

3. Assurance of salvation — "and an assurance was given me that he had taken away my sins."

Wesley’s immediate response to his "heart-warming experience" was
intercession. "I began to pray with all my might for those who had
despitefully used me and persecuted me."

Wesley also testified. "I then testified openly to all there what I now first felt in my heart."

Luke, after Emmaus the disciples immediately returned to Jerusalem to
tell the others what had happened and how they had recognized Jesus. At
Pentecost, in Acts 2, the first response was to tell others of Christ,
of the new life he offers us through his life, death, and resurrection.

Wesley also battled spiritual doubt. "But it was not long before the
enemy suggested, ‘This cannot be faith, for where is thy joy?’ Then was
I taught that ‘peace and victory over sin are essential to faith in
the Captain of our salvation…"

The active work and presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is evident in the fruit of our lives.

We cannot live by feelings/emotions. The presence of the Holy Spirit is
more than feelings. The senses (sight, hearing, touching, smelling,
tasting) are important, but God is greater than our human senses. There
is a sixth sense, a spiritual sense.

Discernment. Assurance. Relationships: Love: don’t feel in-love, are
you in love? If don’t feel God’s presence, does that mean he is not
with us? Remember, God said, "Never will I leave you; never will I
forsake you" (Deuteronomy  31:6).

Steven Curtis Chapman asks some great questions in a song, which are good for us today …

 
• What about the change?

 

• What about the difference?

 

• What about a life that’s showing I’m undergoing the change?

Acts 2.1-4

This
is the story of Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit in all of his
fullness. The Spirit is present throughout the Bible (Old and New
Testaments). Recently we looked at Ezekiel and the dry bones, as well
as John 20 where Jesus, after the resurrection, breathes on the
disciples, saying “Receive the Holy Spirit.”

And yet, before he ascends into heaven, Jesus tells the disciples,
"Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised,
which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with
water,  but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy
Spirit." (Acts 1.4b-5)

The Holy Spirit comes, filling the whole place where they were, and
filling each believer. There was no room left for doubt that the Spirit
had come. They heard the sound of a violent wind. They saw fire coming
down and  separating and resting upon each of their heads. And
they began speaking in a language that was not their own, that they had
never spoken before.

Fire
Most the time we think of fire, we think of
destruction. Buildings burn, vehicles catch fire after an accident, the
forest fires that are common in the west during drought consume acres
of woodland. Fire has the ability to destroy anything in its path.

We have some firefighters among us and they could comment on the
power of fire more readily than I. They have felt the intensity of the
blaze. They have fought back the flames, trying to save what they can
of a building. And some have witnessed how a small brush fire can
quickly get out of hand.

Most vivid in my mind is the fire that destroyed the Fawn Grove UMC,
a church in our conference. A brick building, the photos I viewed
online revealed only a part of the structure intact – it was totally
gutted. And even in the middle of winter, the pictures showed fireman
with icicles hanging from their clothes and headgear.

Why would the God choose such an ominous image for the coming of Holy Spirit?
Actually, fire is a common image throughout the Bible. God appeared to Moses in a burning bush – the
bush
was on fire, but was not consumed, it did not burn up.  When God
freed Israel from Egypt he led them with a cloud by day and by  a
pillar of fire by night.  When Elijah led the contest between God
and Baal, Baal did not come down and burn up the sacrifice. But when it
was Elijah’s turn, he had the trenches dug around where the altar was
and barrels of water were brought to fill the trenches and cover the
altar and the sacrifice. And God came in fire, licking up every drop of
water and consuming the sacrifice.

In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit is represented by fire, coming and
resting upon the people of God.  We still use fire each time we
gather to worship. We light the candles on the altar to represent God’s
presence with us. Let’s talk a little more about the coming of the HS
and the image of fire.

Fired up (Fiery zeal)
There is a fiery zeal that comes
over the disciples. They  transform from being frightened and
hidden away to a life of preaching Christ crucified and resurrected; a
life of ministry to the sick, the demon possessed and the poor through
healing, delivering, serving. Sounds just like the ministry of Christ,
doesn’t it?

"I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I
have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I
am going to the Father." (John 14.12)

And Jesus goes on to speaking of the coming Holy Spirit …

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1.8).

This zeal is not just an emotion. It is the power of the Holy Spirit
at work in the lives of believers. It is the Holy Spirit speaking
through them, ministering through, using them. This zeal is the
empowerment of the Holy Spirit.

Consuming Fire

Malachi 3.2-4

The
refiner’s fire was used to purify metal and refine it by melting it and
allowing the dross, which floated to the top, to be scooped off.

Hebrews 12.29 (quoting Deuteronomy) says that “God is a consuming fire.”

The fire of God consumes the impurities of our life, the things that
stand between us and God, that block our relationship with God, that
inhibit our relationship, our witness, our worship.

The Spirit is called “Holy”. The scriptures call God a holy God.
Holy is what we are not. Holy what God and God alone is. And yet holy
is what he is making us.

Too many times we gage our holiness by worldly standards. We look
at our lives and say, “I’m not doing too bad.” I go to church. I give
an offering when I’m there. I even give to charities at Christmastime.
Or we say I’m a lot nicer than that person. I give more time to the
church than that person. Or whatever.

God says look at me. Look at my holiness. And we pale in comparison.
When we truly look into the holiness of God, we must like Isaiah cry,
“Woe to me! I am ruined. I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a
people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord
almighty.”

“Refiner Me” (Jennifer Knapp)
Lord, come with your fire,
Burn my desires. Refine me.
Lord, my will has deceived me
Please come and free me
Come rescue this child for a long to be reconciled to you.

When
we see God’s holiness, we cannot help but see our shortcomings, the
impurities in our lives, where we have failed God, where we were called
to do more, give more, surrender more.

And yet God in his mercy, as with Isaiah, comes with a live coal
(there’s that fire again). A red hot coal. A fiery coal. You know it’s
hot because he seraph picks it up with tongs from the altar and touches
Isaiah’s mouth and he touches your mouth and he touches my mouth and
God says, “Your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

And like Isaiah, we too, respond, “Here am I. Send me!”

Have you received? See Acts 19.1-6.
Do
you want the power of Holy Spirit in your life?  Do you want to be
empowered for ministry and see God do more through you than what you
can do in your own strength? Do you want to be on fire for God,
consumed by God?

The story of Hagar is found in Genesis 16 and 21.

Genesis 21.9-21

We have much history together. One would imagine such great people of God would have been good to live with and work for, but it was not the perfect family. And the Bible does not let any secrets untold. Let me tell you a bit of my story; maybe you can learn something from it.

We started on a very long journey. God had appeared to Abraham and said that we were to go toward Canaan; that God was going to give this land to Abraham’s descendents. Abraham did not yet have any children, but God promised him descendents as many as the stars in the sky. Years passed and Abraham and Sarah did not have any children. In time, with Sarah’s age, she suggested that Abraham take me as his concubine and they could have a family through me. This was the social custom of the day. I was not a wife to Abraham. He did not love me, like he did Sarah. We really did not know one another or talk together. My only function was to birth him a son. Today you may say that I was chosen to act as a surrogate.

When I became pregnant it was glorious. I now had something my mistress had longed for desperately. And pride grew in my heart. Now society would look upon me more highly than Sarah. I would not be seen as just a slave wife. Sarah was worthless – she could not give Abraham a son – but I did. I belittled Sarah and she must have complained to Abraham and she began to mistreat me, even abused me … so I ran away.

But an angel of the Lord appeared to me! And he told me to return and to submit to Sarah. And the angel also promised that my descendents would be too numerous to count, just like was told to Abraham! The angel knew I would have a son and told me what to name him, Ishmael, which means God hears. Everytime I called my son or spoke of my son, I would remember that God hears. I would remember that the God of Abraham heard my cries, the cries of an Egyptian, and that he cared enough for me to speak to me, and appear to me.

I was by a well of drinking water when God appeared to me and I named that well so that I and my family and everyone might remember what God did for me. I named it Beer Lahai Roi which means well of the Living One who sees me; for God is the one who sees me and now I had seen the One who sees me. This is the place God made himself known to me.

So I returned and when Abraham was 86 years old, I bore him a son and we named him Ishmael, God hears.

I watched as Ishmael grew so fast. His first tooth. His first step. Soon he was running and playing, embracing life. He was such a joy to me. I couldn’t believe when it was his 13th birthday!

It was then that God once again appeared to Abraham and reminded him of his promise of a son. Abraham was 99 years old then God said that Abraham and Sarah would still have a son! And they did. I could hardly believe my eyes. Sarah, one year younger than Abraham, was way beyond the age of having children. But just as God has said, they had a son and named him Isaac. Kind of a strange name for a child; it means laughter. But I am told it is because both Abraham and Sarah both laughed when God said that were to still have a child in their old age. I guess age doesn’t matter in God’s book.

The ill feelings between Sarah and I and Ishmael grew more and more intense. I told my son Ishmael the story of God’s appearing to me when I was pregnant with him. I knew God was with us. But I guess we were both threatened by the presence of Isaac. I remembered the angel of God saying that Ishmael and his brothers would not get along.

The day that Isaac was weaned Sarah told Abraham to get rid of Ishmael and me. Sarah did not want to share any of Isaac’s inheritance with Ishmael. I felt so used. I believe Sarah saw the mistake she had made.

She never believed that Abraham and she could have a child, even though God promised them. In some ways Sarah was playing God, manipulating circumstances and people to make what God had said happen. But now that Sarah had a son of her own, they had no use for my son. The angel had
told me that everyone would be against my son. It seems everything that the angel of God had told me and told Abraham was coming to pass.

Abraham came to me sorrowful. He loved Ishmael. Ishmael was his son. But he wasn’t Sarah’s son. He wasn’t the son God had promised Abraham and Sarah. And Abraham loved Sarah. He never loved me that way. I was just a slave girl and I even with Abraham’s son, I was still just a slave girl. And so we were sent away.

Abraham saw that we had some food and water as we set off into the desert. But the desert had nothing to offer. Our supplies quickly ran out. I knew we were sent off to our death! We became desperate. When the water was gone, I placed Ishmael under the shade of a bush. And I walked off into the distance and sat down and just bawled. I could not bear watch my son die!

But then, it happened again; an angel of God appeared. He told me not to be afraid that God had heard my boy crying. He told me to lift up my son and take him by the hand and then he made an even bigger promise than before. He said that Ishmael would become a great nation! That was the
same promise God had told Abraham. I didn’t understand these promises. But I did as I was told and as I lifted Ishmael up, amazingly, right there before my eyes I saw a well of water. I gave Ishmael a drink and he was strengthened. God once again heard and saw our condition and provided for us.

I felt like a nobody. Ishmael and I were unwanted by the world, but God wanted us. Our own family rejected us, but God chose us. When we were all alone – we were not alone. When we thrown away, we were tossed right into the arms of a loving, compassionate God. God was more present with us then than any human being could have been. He appeared to us, he spoke to us, he guided us, he provided everything we needed to survive. We would have perished if it were not for God.

And from that day forward, God was always with us. Ishmael thrived in the desert. He grew healthy and strong and he became a master archer. He would proudly bring in meat for us to cook and eat. And he was able to protect us. We were never for want in that desert place. The desert became a place of solace; a place rich with the presence of God; it became a place of belonging. We were surely tossed into the arms of God.

Benediction
Go forth, knowing that the God who hears you and sees you, goes before you, behind you and beside you. As life tosses you about, be tossed into the arms of God who leads you, sometimes gently pushes you, and who is a loving companion on the journey. Amen.