Sermon for July 23, 2006

The Secret Plan

Ephesians 2:1-22

In the 1920s, Harvey Penick bought a red spiral notebook and began jotting down observations about golf. He never showed the book to anyone until 1991, when he shared it with a local writer and asked if he thought it was worth publishing. The man read it and told him yes. The next day , Simon & Schuster agreed to an advance of $90,000. When the writer shared the news with Penick, the old man seemed troubled. With all his medical bills, he said, there was no way he could advance Simon & Schuster that much money. The writer had to explain that Penick would be the one to receive the $90,000. His first golf book, Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book, sold more than a million copies. His second book, And if You Play Golf, You’re My Friend, sold nearly three quarters of a million copies.

When people think about God’s love, they often have the same reaction as Penick did. We ask, “What must I do?” It’s a good question. What do we have to do to gain God’s special favor in our lives? What must we do to get God’s attention in times of need? What must we do to know for sure that we have eternal life with God?

The people in the Church in Ephesus must have struggled with similar questions. Let’s try to get into the culture of Paul’s audience. Ephesus was a seaport trade city with a population of about 300,000. It was a center of Greco-Roman culture. It was home to the Temple of Artemis, which was ranked as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The people in this city worshiped Greek gods and adhered to Greek culture. Early Christians like Paul traveled to Ephesus as missionaries and established churches. And because of their ministry, some Ephesian citizens turned from their gods put their faith in the resurrected Jesus Christ. This caused some problems. There were some Jewish Christians who demanded that these new converts must follow a certain set of rules in order to achieve favor with God. They required Gentile Christians to follow the Jewish law: Eat certain foods, wear certain clothes, be circumcised, then you will be a true Christian. There are some churches today who still act this way. They say, “Don’t swear, don’t dance, don’t drink, don’t smoke, don’t lie and cheat, don’t wear immodest clothing, don’t drink coffee, don’t pierce your ears, women grow your hair long, and then you will be a real Christian.” Sounds silly, doesn’t it? Paul always had a problem with this kind of thinking. Even though he was a Jew, Paul realized that Jesus met people where they were, in the life-situations they were in. He knew that God’s love was showered upon all people through Christ, and it didn’t depend on who their parents were, what they looked like, how they dressed, what they ate, or where they were born.

I think that most of us have experienced this feeling that we must meet certain arbitrary standards to attain God’s love and feel good about ourselves. When we tell ourselves that we have to meet certain standards to please God and others, then we begin to live a rule-dominated life. Maybe you know someone like this. Perhaps you have experienced it yourself. Individuals caught in this trap continually focus their attention on their performance and their ability to follow a schedule. They become rigid perfectionists.

For example, I used to make daily lists of everything I needed to do to feel like my day was a success. I was always a little tense because I wanted to use every moment to effectively reach, my goals. When I couldn’t check off the entire list, I got angry. I struggled with wanting to do more, but sometimes my best didn’t seem like enough. My solution was to try harder, to make even better use of my time, to be even more regimented and to make more self-imposed rules. But my focus was misdirected. The focus of our life as Christians should be on Christ, not on a bunch of strict rules.

This is just my personal example of something I think many struggle with: the false belief that we must meet certain standards in order to please God and feel good about ourselves. Other people hold themselves to different ‘laws’. For example:

Some people are caught under the law of church attendance. They say to themselves, “If I attend every worship service, and work diligently in the church, then God will be pleased with me.”

Some are caught in the law of morality: “If I can just behave well enough I will be acceptable to God.”

Some people are captive to the law of perfectionism: “If only I can keep my house spotless, my family looking good, and my social life in order – if only I can keep tight charge over every area of my life, then God will smile upon me and I will be happy.”

The same theme rings true in each situation. We are trying to earn something by our own good works. We begin to think that our happiness, freedom, and salvation depend solely upon what we can do to make our lives better.

When we live our lives trying to earn God’s favor, we live with a constant fear of failure hanging over our heads. We yearn for rescue from the stifling situations of life, but never find freedom. As long as we live our lives according to our lists of self-imposed rules, we will not experience the salvation that has been offered to us in Jesus Christ. If we base our salvation on our ability to meet a set of standards, failure looms as our constant enemy.

Thankfully, God has a solution. God gives us the promise of a secure future totally apart from our ability to perform. The life death and resurrection of Christ places is in right standing before God. As Paul puts it, “God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it”

Here’s what happened. God knows that no matter what we do, no matter how hard we try, we can’t clean ourselves up and make ourselves right before him. So God said, “If you put your faith in my Son, I will make you righteous; that is, I will put you in a right relationship with me.” It’s not because of anything you do. It’s not because you look good. It’s not because you are sorry for past mistakes. God’s love is a free gift to you. Because of what Jesus did for us, we are pleasing to God in spite of our failures. When God looks at believers, God sees Christ in us. The point of God’s grace is this: we can never achieve perfection here on earth. We can never reach God by our own striving. Even our best efforts at self-righteousness are nothing to God. But, God loves us so much that he sent the Son to wipe away our sins and give us good standing before God.

This is God’s secret plan that has been in effect since the beginning of time. We are saved by grace through faith, not by works. No more basing our worth on what we do and don’t do. No more divisions in the church based on who people are or where they come from. God has made us one by offering salvation to each and every person in the exact same way–by putting our faith in Christ, receiving God’s forgiveness, and accepting the free gift of his love.

The following essay was actually written by a student applying for admission to NYU in response to the question, “Are there any personal accomplishments or significant experiences you have had that helped define you as a person.” The author was accepted and is reportedly now attending college at NYU. The student wrote:

I am a dynamic figure, often seen scaling walls and crushing ice. I have been known to remodel train stations on my lunch breaks, making them more efficient in the area of heat retention. I translate ethnic slurs for Cuban refugees. I write award-winning operas. I manage time efficiently. Occasionally, I tread water for three days in a row. I woo women with my sensuous and godlike trombone playing. I can pilot bicycles up severe inclines with unflagging speed, and I cook 30-minute brownies in 20 minutes. I am an expert in stucco, a veteran in love, and an outlaw in Peru. Using only a hoe and a large glass of water, I once single -handedly defended a small village in the Amazon basin from a horde of ferocious army ants. I play a bluegrass cello. I was scouted by the Mets. I am the subject of numerous documentaries. When I’m bored, I build large suspension bridges in my yard. I enjoy urban hang gliding. On Wednesdays, after school, I repair electrical appliances free of charge. I am an abstract artist, a concrete analyst, and a ruthless bookie. Critics world wide swoon over my original line of corduroy evening wear. I don’t perspire. My deft floral arrangements have earned me fame in international botany circles. Children trust me. I once read Paradise Lost, Moby Dick, and David Copperfield in one day and still had time to refurbish an entire dining room that evening, I have performed several covert operations for the CIA. I sleep once a week; when I do sleep, I sleep in a chair. When on vacation in Canada, I successfully negotiated with a group of terrorists who had seized a small bakery. The laws of physics do not apply to me. I balance, I weave, I dodge, and my bills are all paid. I participate in full contact origami. Years ago I discovered the meaning of life, but forgot to write it down. I have performed open heart surgery and I have met with Elvis, But I have not yet gone to college.

This young man went to great lengths to convince the admissions department at NYU that he was good enough for their school. Are you among the many people who think you’re going to have to convince God that you’re good enough to get into heaven? Are you pushing yourself to accomplish as much as possible during your lifetime in order to prove to God that you’re worthy of eternal life?

God doesn’t pay attention to our resumes. Only one thing matters: Do you know Jesus Christ? You don’t have to worry about making yourself look good–Jesus has already done it for you. Paul says it best: we are God’s masterpiece. Do you understand that? Imagine God painting a picture. God concentrates on the canvas. Finally he steps back and gazes upon what he created. It’s a phenomenal work of art. To look at its beauty would take your breathe away. And it’s a picture of Christ living in you. You are God’s work of art. God loves you. God wants you. You are God’s masterpiece, and God won’t stop cherishing you. Have you come to a place in your walk with the Lord where you know you are deeply loved, fully pleasing, totally forgiven, accepted, and complete in Christ? If not, stop doing things to earn God’s love. You already have it. Just receive it, and live the new reality of God’s love, fully shown to us through Jesus Christ.

Sermon for July 9, 2006

Lovers or Liars?
1 John 4:11-21

An interesting lawsuit was been brought before the courts in New Mexico this past Summer. The family of Ben Martinez, who recently died at the age of 80, is suing Fr. Scott Mansfield and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santa Fe. The lawsuit claims that during the funeral for Mr. Martinez, Fr. Mansfield called him a been a lukewarm Catholic who had been living in sin and going to hell. Clearly, loudly and without hesitation, the priest allegedly said that the Lord vomited people like Ben out of his mouth to hell. The lawsuit also says Mansfield, while walking to the gravesite after the funeral, swore and said that he didn't care what the people of the town thought, that he had put the Martinez family in their place. The claim lists psychological pain, physical afflictions, anxiety, depression and humiliation allegedly suffered by Martinez’s family in the months after the funeral.

Although the case raises issues about freedom of religion and freedom of speech, I think there is a bigger question at stake in the Martinez case. It seems the family and the priest are at odds over the definition of a Christian. I’ve had people tell me that I’m not a good Christian. So let’s all ask ourselves this question today. What is a Christian?

Is a Christian the same as a churchgoer? Is a Christian someone who is a good person with strong moral fiber? Is a Christian someone who believes and confesses the right creeds, or a person who believes all of the correct things? Is a Christian someone who acts just like you do? Is a Christian a conservative Republican or a passionate liberal? Sometimes we hear that a real Christian is someone who makes a decision to accept Jesus – someone who is filled with joy and never has one’s faith shaken. Others say a real Christian is faithful to one’s denomination, as if Congregationalists are the only people who are not hell bound. What IS a Christian?

Go to an Internet search engine, type in the words “true Christian”, and check out all the results. You won’t believe how many kooks are out there claiming to have the exact formula to test whether or not you are a real Christian. One site claims that a true Christian:

Does NOT worship on Sunday
Does NOT believe the doctrine of the Trinity
Is certain that he does NOT have an immortal soul
Is aware that Christmas is not Christ’s birthday and Easter is the ancient fertility goddess
Knows he will NOT ascend to heaven upon his death and most of all
Believes Christ will return soon as the King of Kings.

Another site that is more traditional claims that a true Christian will:

Desire to obey God and study the Bible. Real Christians will increasingly understand the Bible, admit they sin, sin less and less, love others, not love the world and have the fruits of the Spirit

The Athiest Foundation of Australia has a test to be able to spot a true Christian. They say that a true Christian is one who literally follows the words of Christ. So, true Christians will be able to:

Handle snakes, drink poison, and walk over scorpions. They must hate their families and also be hated by their families.True Christians Are Perfect. They can move mountains, and wither figs.

The site goes on to say

There are many different types of Christians, many sects and denominations. In their pride and arrogance they all claim to be true believers. But it is important to make sure that we have the real thing because Jesus said that there would be many fakers.
In [many Bible passages] Jesus tells us about false prophets, false Christians. When dealing with Christians ask them if they are 'true' Christians. If the answer is 'yes' then chuck them a [poisenous snake] and stick a few scorpions in their shoes

What these sites all have in common is that Christianity is defined by following a certain set of rules. First they pick and choose Scripture passages that they think are the most important. Once you fulfill a long list of unreasonable requirements, and you can know that you are (or someone else is) a Christian.

You might be surprised to find out that the word “Christian” appears only three times in the NT. And all references indicate that the word “Christian” was a term of ridicule, a slur placed upon Christ’s followers by their critics. For example:
We find the term in Acts 17:28 on the lips of King Agrippa, an unbelieving magistrate who asks Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?
It is also found in 1 Peter 4:16: “However, if you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear the name.” Peter indicates that early believers in Christ suffered a great deal of persecution as Christians. In fact, for Peter, being a Christian and suffering are always linked together.
The third text that uses the word Christian appears in Acts 11:27 where we read that the disciples were first called Christians at Antioch. Notice how the disciples don’t get a choice in the matter. They were called Christians by others–it was a term applied to them.

So, we learn that a Christian is a disciple, a follower of Christ, one who clings to the gospel. But, a Christian is one who is prepared to suffer for the sake of Christ, if necessary.

Let me say right here, this all makes me very uncomfortable – for two reasons:
1. I don’t like to suffer.
2. Suffering has nothing to do with the definition of a Christian that I was raised with. I was taught that a Christian is a person who tries his best to follow Jesus -- a good person who goes to church, and fellowships with other Christians.

But the use of the word “Christian” in the NT doesn’t say anything about doing things, nor does it mention being good. No, being Christian has to do with following the unpopular path of suffering and humiliation, all the while professing Jesus Christ as Lord of your life. I gotta’ tell you, this definition is not going to win friends. Church growth experts do not tell us that suffering and sacrifice bring in masses of new church members. We are told to build churches, add programs, use upbeat music, and provide off-street parking. But early Christians didn’t do any of that stuff, nor did they define their identity by it. They identified with the suffering Christ. Associating with Christians meant you were voluntarily allowing yourself to be a target of ridicule and persecution.

Why would anyone do this? Why would anyone willingly align him or herself with a message of meekness, and suffering? We can sum it up in one word: LOVE.

A Christian is defined by love. A Christian is a person who is in touch with the love of God, freely given to us through Christ. In his letters, John reminds us that God is already made known to us. “God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.” John goes on. “This is real love. It is not that we loved God, but that he loved us . . .” (4:7-10). It’s not what you do or say or believe that makes God love you. God just loves you. God has singled you out for grace. God revals God’s self as the God for others – God the loving Giver.

But love like this calls for action. Such complete love calls us to align ourselves with God’s way of doing things. God, the loving Giver, asks us to love in return. I think this is the bare essence of being Christian. A Christian loves because he or she knows the love of God. John is not talking about love as an ideal , either. A real Christian puts love in action. It is not enough for us to say, ‘I love God,’ and then throw your garbage in your neighbor’s lawn. John says that you are a liar if you say you love God and you don't love your neighbor. How can you love God whom you do not see, if you do not love your neighbor whom you do see, whom you touch, with whom you live? It is also important for us to realize that true love hurts. This is where the suffering part comes in. I must be willing to give whatever it takes not to harm other people and, in fact, to do good to them. It requires that I be willing to give until it hurts. Otherwise, there is no true love in me if I bring injustice, instead of peace, to those around me.

A man was about to commit suicide by jumping from a high bridge, when a second man ran up to him shouting, ““Stop! Stop! Don’t do it!”
“But I have nothing to live for,” said the first man.
“Maybe I can help you,” said the second man. “Are you religious?”
“Yes, I am,” said the first man.
“Me too!” said the second man. “Are you a Christian, Jewish, or Muslem?”
“I’m Christian,” said the first man.
“Me too!” said the second man. “Are you Protestant or Catholic?”
“I’m a Protestant,” said the first man.
“Me too!” said the second man. “Charismatic, Reformed, or Baptist?”
“Reformed,” said the first man.
“Me too!” said the second man. “Presbyterian, or Congregationalist?”
“Congregationalist” said the first man.
“Me too!” said the second man excitedly. “UCC, 3-C, 4-C, or Independent”
“UCC” said the first man.
“UCC Then die, infidel heretic!”” And the second man pushed the first man off the bridge.

To categorize and stereotype each other is to hurt each other. When we spend our energy looking for what makes us different, instead of recognizing that God loves us all, we ignore God’s command to love each other as we have been loved by God. I find it interesting that the early church did not call one another “Christians”. They called one another brother and sister. A real Christian is not only a follower of Christ, but a spiritual brother or sister to others. A real Christian is one who strives to be like Jesus and embraces the Jesus in others. A real Christian is one who loves Jesus and also loves the Jesus in others – even if the person is different – even if the other person disgusts us, or hates us – even if the other person is an enemy. A real Christian is a loving-Giver, just as God has lovingly given to us. If we say we love God, and don’t love others, we are liars. Are you a lover or a liar?

Sermon for July 2, 2006

Come to Me

Song of Songs 2:8-13; Matthew 11:25-30

Tennessee Williams tells a story about Jacob Brodzky, a shy Russian Jew whose father owned a bookstore. The older Brodzky wanted his son to go to college. Jacob, on the other hand, desired nothing but to marry Lila, his childhood sweetheart -- a French girl as breezy, vital, and ambitious as he was quiet and retiring. A couple of months after Jacob went to college, his father fell ill and died. Jacob returned home, buried his father, and married his love. Then the couple moved into the apartment above the bookstore, and Jacob took it over. The life of books fit him perfectly, but it cramped her. She wanted more adventure. She eventually met a talent agent who praised her beautiful singing voice and enticed her to tour Europe with a vaudeville company. Jacob was devastated. At their parting, he reached into his pocket and handed her the key to the front door of the bookstore.

“You had better keep this,” he told her. “You will want it some day. Your love is not so much less than mine that you can get away from it. You will come back sometime, and I will be waiting.” She kissed him and left. To escape the pain he felt, Jacob withdrew deep into his bookstore and took to reading as someone else might take to drink. He spoke little, did little, and most times sat at the large desk near the rear of the shop, immersed in his books while he waited for his love to return.

Nearly 15 years after they parted she did return. But when Jacob rose from the reading desk he did not recognize the love of his life. “Do you want a book?” he asked. Lila was startled, but she gained possession of herself and replied, “I want a book, but I’ve forgotten the name of it.” Then she told him a story of childhood sweethearts. A story of a newly married couple who lived in an apartment above a bookstore. A story of a young, ambitious wife who left to seek a career, who enjoyed great success but could never relinquish the key her husband gave her when they parted. She told him the story she thought would bring him to himself. But Jacob’s face showed no recognition. Gradually she realized that he had lost touch with his heart’s desire, that he no longer knew the purpose of his waiting and grieving, that now all he remembered was the waiting and grieving itself. She cried out, “You remember it; you must remember it -- the story of Lila and Jacob?” After a long, bewildered pause, he said, “There is something familiar about the story, I think I have read it somewhere. It comes to me that it is something by Tolstoi.” Dropping the key, she fled the shop. Jacob returned to his desk, to his reading, unaware that the love he waited for had come and gone.

Tennessee Williams’s story reminds me how easy it is to miss love when it comes. Either something so distracts us or we have so completely lost who we are and what we care about that we cannot recognize our heart’s desire.

I want you to think about the person sitting to your right and your left. Think about the person who is sitting in front of you and behind you. Think about your family and your friends. Now think about the handful of people whom drive you crazy. I’m going to tell you something about them – each and every one of those people, you and me included, aches to be loved. In a world that seems plagued by an epidemic of emotional pain, it’s not surprising that we are a culture infatuated with love. Most people will go to great extremes to feel loved. Romantic fantasies . . . casual one-night-stands . . . we’ll spend billions of dollars on how-to-books, pills, make-up, and seductive clothes. But none of these seem to secure the kind of love that will fill the empty, lonely spot inside that waits for someone – anyone – to accept and passionately love the real me.

I’ve met people who live their lives believing that there is no one there for them. They think, “Nobody understands me. Nobody cares about my pain. No one cares if I live of die.” Even in marriages, it’s easy to feel that one’s spouse no longer understands. I read a story about a couple named Mark and Beth. When they were young, they fell in love. Their eyes sparkled and their steps were light. They felt that unique, special attraction for each other. They got married, believing that they would forever supply each other with a permanent sense of self-worth. But, as time went on, Mark expected Beth to always be as loving and accepting and forgiving as she was when they were dating. Beth expected the same from Mark. They began to feel disillusioned, even betrayed by one another. As the years passed, affirmation was replaced by sarcasm and ridicule. They each expected unconditional love and acceptance from the other, and each failure to do so was another brick in the wall between them. Mark and Beth recently celebrated their 10^th wedding anniversary. Although they shared ten years together, they experienced very little real love. Unfortunately, not even marriage guarantees that our need to be loved will be fulfilled.

So here we sit today, frustrated lovers, wanting to be understood but feeling alone. We want to love and be loved, but we feel incompetent, inadequate and insecure. Some of us try to compensate. Some will tell themselves. “If I can only do something to make myself more likeable or desirable . . . if only I can be successful . . . if only I can make myself more beautiful . . . if only I try harder or put more effort in . . . THEN all my problems will be solved.”

The truth is hard to accept. We will never be loved by doing more. We will not be loved if we stumble upon the correct formula of things to say, do and wear. Here’s the truth: you are already loved. Someone already who knows you and understands you. Someone already sees you– shortcomings and insecurities included – and still loves you. You are loved by God. God’s just nuts about you. God pursues you and calls out to you and God will do anything it takes to draw you into a love relationship. All God asks is for us to trust that real love can be life-changing and real. God wants us to throw off the bonds of insecurity and hear words of love: “Arise my beautiful one and come with me. See! Winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on earth, the season for singing has come. Arise, come my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.”

Like our human relationships, we think we have to do something to earn or deserve God’s love. Many people feel useless or worthless is we are not busy doing something. But God has already given his love to you as a gift. You don’t pay someone back for a gift. You just receive it – otherwise it’s not a gift anymore. There is no work of effort involved. God is passionately, intimately, breathlessly, fiercely, undeniable in love with you. God knows you. God understands you. God loves you and God wants you to arise and allow yourself to receive that love.

Here lies the beauty of the Gospel. You don’t need to carry around heavy burdens of doubt, or self-contempt-or inadequacy. Jesus says drop them and take the burden of love upon your shoulders insead. I think God says, “I have come to you. I sent my son in human likeness so that I may fully know you and you may fully know me. Now make good choices. Seek the highest love. Come to me and I will give you rest for your souls.” I believe right now Jesus looks at you and sees your pain. He knows the weight of your family problems. He knows what it’s like when you feel no good. Jesus understands loneliness and feeling like nobody really cares about or understands you. He experienced it all himself. And through that Jesus says, “Just leave it behind for a while. All your striving to find love and acceptance is just a distraction. They are detours which lead you farther away from God’s love.” Jesus says, “I’ll carry all those burdens and distractions for you. That’s how much I love you. Arise my beautiful one, come with me . . .”

In his book Mortal Lessons physician Richard Selzer describes a scene in a hospital room after he had performed surgery on a young woman’s face:

I stand by the bed where the young woman lies -- her face, postoperative -- her mouth twisted in palsy -- clownish. A tiny twig of the facial nerve, one of the muscles of her mouth, has been severed. She will be that way from now on. I had followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh, I promise you that. Nevertheless, to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had cut this little nerve. Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed, and together they seem to be in a world all their own in the evening lamplight -- isolated from me -- private. Who are they? I ask myself -- he and this wry mouth I have made, who gaze at and touch each other so generously. The young woman speaks. “Will my mouth always be like this?” she asks. “Yes,” I say, “it will. It is because the nerve was cut.” “She nods and is silent. But the young man smiles. “I like it,” he says. “It’s kind of cute.” All at once I know who he is. I understand, and I lower my gaze. One is not bold in an encounter with the divine. Unmindful, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth, and I am so close I can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate to hers -- to show her that their kiss still works.

Regardless of the scars you bear from the ravages of life, no matter how you feel about yourself at any given time, God loves you. God kissed us by giving us Jesus – by allowing his body to be twisted on a cross to show us that God’s love still works. No matter what, you are beautiful to God and he will never stop loving you.

God will never force a relationship on you that you don’t want. But I think we want it. I encourage you to find a space where you can be alone with God. I want you to sit quietly and allow the Holy Spirit to confirm this message to you. Allow God to speak his love to you in inward stillness. Come to God saying, “O God, lover of my soul, I am yours. I belong to you and you love me as I am.” And as you listen, may the kiss of the Spirit touch you as you hear the voice of a God who is totally in love with you: Arise my beautiful one and come with me. See! Winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on earth, the season for singing has come. Arise, come my darling, my beautiful one, come with me.

Sermon for June 18, 2006

How Far Will You Go?
2 Corinthians 4; 1 Samuel 17

When I think about our graduates, I think about the lessons they teach us about facing unknown challenges and moving on to the next stage of the journey. Aren’t we all journeying, discovering our potential, and learning how to face the monumental daily challenges of life? Aren’t we all still learning about God’s faithfulness to us in the midst of undefeatable circumstances? As we listen for the Word of God, let us pray.

Have you met Goliath? Goliath is that great big giant of an obstacle that seems unbeatable, and impossible to defeat. Goliath is that one huge problem that you think just might be your undoing -- a difficulty so great that it has you are close to running away.

Have you met Goliath? Perhaps you have met him in the past. Or maybe Goliath is troubling you even now. Sooner or later all of us have to face a giant. Maybe you are facing one today. Maybe it is a giant tumor in your body that threatens your life, or a giant wound that remains in a broken heart. Maybe it’s a giant amount of work that stands between you and your dreams, or a giant injustice you have to confront. We can’t live the life of God without facing evil giants in our society. Crime and violence are evil plagues on our society. So are religious legalism, racism, and materialism. The question is how do you respond? Are you going to give up on the call to live as a person of faith and let Goliath take over? Or can you take a stand? 1 Samuel 17 contains all the clues we need to confront and overcome Goliath. There is power in this Bible story when we listen to it play out on the backdrop of our imagination. Let’s set the scene.

Even though the land of Israel was “Promised,” it did not come easy. (Most promised lands are that way - we have to work and struggle for them.) Ever since the day Joshua took over the leadership of Israel from Moses, the people fought to occupy the land. In today’s reading, the Philistines are the enemies du joir. The Philistines are Israel’s coastal neighbors, and they have a secret weapon to finally defeat Israel -- a nine foot nine giant named Goliath. This fearsome creature taunts the Israelites daily. Israel’s armies twitch with fear. There isn’t a soldier in the camp who wants to take on Goliath. Fear eats away the courage of every last man. Each day Goliath looks bigger and the soldiers of Saul feel smaller.

On one particular day, Goliath shouts insults to the soldiers of Israel, challenging them to a fight. We pick up the story in 1 Samuel 17:8-11. Remember the wrestler Andre the Giant? When I imagine Goliath, that’s what he sounds like in my mind. Goliath says,

“Do you need a whole army to settle this? Choose someone to fight for you, and I will represent the Philistines. We will settle this dispute in single combat! If your man is able to kill me, then we will be your slaves. But if I kill him, you will be our slaves! I defy the armies of Israel! Send me a man who will fight with me!”

When Saul the king of Israel hears this, he is terrified and deeply shaken. But, an adolescent shepherd boy named David asks “Who is this Philistine anyway, that he is allowed to defy the armies of the living God?” King Saul sends for David. David tells Saul.

"Don't worry about a thing," "I'll go fight this Philistine!" "

Don't be ridiculous!" Saul replies. "There is no way you can go against this Philistine. You are only a boy, and he has been in the army since he was a boy!"

But David persists. "I have been taking care of my father's sheep. When a lion or a bear comes to steal a lamb from the flock, I go after it with a club and take the lamb from its mouth. If the animal turns on me, I catch it by the jaw and club it to death. I have done this to both lions and bears, and I'll do it to this pagan Philistine, too, for he has defied the armies of the living God! The LORD who saved me from the claws of the lion and the bear will save me from this Philistine!"

Saul finally consents. "All right, go ahead," he says. "And may the LORD be with you!"

Then Saul gives David his own royal armor--a bronze helmet and a coat of mail. David tries it on, and takes a step or two to see what it feels like. He had never worn such things before. "I can't go in these," he protests. "I'm not used to them." So he takes off the amour. Dressed casually, David picks up five smooth stones from a stream and puts them in his shepherd's bag. Ready for war, David marches to the field of battle and faces Goliath. He shouts:

"You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the LORD Almighty--the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the LORD will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head . . . and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! And everyone will know that the LORD does not need weapons to rescue his people. It is his battle, not ours. The LORD will give you to us!" David slings on of his five smooth stones, striking Goliath on the forehead and killing him.

Goliath is going to stand before you in life. And not just once. Just when you topple on giant, another will come to taunt you. When we come to those times of confrontation with Goliath, our first line of defense is to stop trusting in other people’s strategies for toppling giants. Like David, we look around us and identify five smooth stones to help us -- five small but powerful resources can make all the difference.

What are your five smooth stones? What resources has God given you to fight Goliaths? I’ll tell you mine with one reservation. I don’t want you to copy my resources. Yours may be different. I just want to give you an example of the tools God has given me to fight giants.

1. My family

2. My creativity

3. My call

4. My bedrock beliefs

5. My Faith

A PBS program on the Library of Congress some time ago revealed something very interesting about one of our former Presidents. In it, Dr. Daniel Boorstin, the Librarian of Congress, brought out a little blue box from a small closet that once held the library's rarities. The label on the box read: CONTENTS OF THE PRESIDENT'S POCKETS ON THE NIGHT OF APRIL 14, 1865. April 14, 1865, was the night Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. In the show, Boorstin removed the items in the small container and display them on camera. There were five things in the box: A handkerchief, embroidered "A. Lincoln," a country boy's pen knife, a spectacles case repaired with string, a purse containing a $5 bill in Confederate money(!), and some old and worn newspaper clippings "The clippings," said Boorstin, "were concerned with the great deeds of Abraham Lincoln. And one of them actually reports a speech by John Bright which says that Abraham Lincoln is "one of the greatest men of all times." Today that's common knowledge, it wasn't common knowledge then. In fact, Lincoln had more than a few critics during that time. He received an overwhelming amount of discouragement. So this makes it all the more telling that he would carry around with him a few clippings of a few people who just happened to believe that Lincoln was not a failure. Here are Lincoln’s five smooth stones. A few clippings in his pocket to remind him of who he was and what he could do.

God does not leave us to face challenges without something to help us. That’s why the apostle Paul write in 2 Corinthians: “We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed and broken. We are perplexed, but we don't give up and quit. We are hunted down, but God never abandons us. We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going. . . That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are quite small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a great glory that will last forever! So we don't look at the troubles we can see right now; rather, we look forward to what we have not yet seen. For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.”

Giants will always stand in the way of success and happiness. Thank God we don’t have to just stand there and cower in fear. Just look around you, and pick up those five smooth stones that will help you defeat Goliath.

Sermon for Sunday, May 28, 2006

The Making of Church: Conversion

Acts 16:16-34

Jimmy and Dave found a sinkhole that seemed to appear out of nowhere. They found the hole on the path they traveled to go to Mr. Earl’s pond where they would fish for perch. Their first instinct was to look in the hole and see just how deep it really was. It was too deep and dark for them to see anything, but if they yelled loudly hey would hear an echo. However, after hollering in a hole for a few minutes, the fun level soon dropped dramatically and the two boys now turned their attention to checking the depth of the hole by dropping things into the darkness. It was a very scientific process. They would drop a rock into the hole and count the seconds until they heard the rock hit the bottom. There was only one problem. The hole was so deep they could not hear the rock hit the bottom. Their fun now turned into work as they dropped huge boulders, tree stumps, and whatever they could find into the sinkhole. They were now desperate to find a bottom to the hole. As they looked for larger items to push into the sinkhole, Jimmy found a railroad tie in the undergrowth near the path. The two summer-tanned boys, with all their might, dragged and pushed the railroad tie to the hole and slowly let it fall into the darkness. As they waited for the sure sound of a crash to the bottom, they were amazed at the sudden appearance of a white goat running from the undergrowth where they found the railroad tie. The goat ran right past the startled boys and dove immediately into the darkness of the sinkhole. In total shock Jimmy and Dave moved slowly to the edge of the hole and looked in. All they saw was settling dust and they heard absolutely nothing. Mr. Earl suddenly came up the path. He approached the now pale boys, he asked them if they’d seen a goat along the way. “Funny you should ask,” said Dave with his eyes as large as china saucers. “We just saw a goat and it did the strangest thing!” “Yeah,” answered Jimmy and pointing to the hole in the path, “A goat just ran out of those woods over there and jumped in this hole for no apparent reason, less than a minute ago.” Seeming somewhat confused Mr. Earl smiled at the boys and said, “Well, that must not have been my goat. You see, my goat was tied with a long rope to a railroad tie.”

This supposedly true story was gleaned from the September 2000 issue of the Tennessee Farm Bureau. While its funny, it also points out how dangerous sink holes can be. If we’re honest, we all have sinkholes in our lives. We give them labels, though -- depression, anger, weariness, grief and brokenness. And, whether you are a person caught in the throes of depression or a goat tied to a railroad tie, sinkholes are prisons that can be easy to fall into, mighty difficult to climb out of.

We’ve been reading in the book of Acts to learn how we can make the church a place that speaks a message of transformation in the midst of today’s cultural chaos. When I look around me, I see stuck in the sinkholes of life. If the church wants to be an agent of transformation, then we need to be serious about saying to an unbelieving world, “I know someone who can help–a rescuer. He won’t remove the pain, or the consequences of your actions, but he will show you the way to safety.”

In our Scripture reading we will hear about four men traveling into Europe to preach this very message. A few weeks ago we talked about the calling of Saul. We mentioned that Saul was renamed Paul and became the Apostle to the Gentiles. Paul knew that God called him to Europe, so he grabbed his friends Silas, Timothy, and Luke and set out to the city of Philippi in modern-day Greece. Proud Roman citizens lived in Philippi. The culture of Philippi was entrenched in Roman religion and civic pride. You were accepted as long as you acted like a Roman, and worshiped like a Roman. So you can imagine that Paul and his friends would meet some opposition as they preach the gospel.

In Philippi Paul meets men and women who are in danger. One would think that Paul and his friends were in the greatest danger, after being whipped, tried, and jailed. But by the end of the story, we learn that it’s not Paul who faces the greatest danger, but some of the citizens of Philippi. Paul knows that they face sure death in their own personal prisons.

The first person we meet is the slave girl. Our English translations say that she had a “spirit” in her, but the Greek text actually says that she had “the spirit of the Python.” Roman religion believed that the python was sacred to Apollo, and that he often spoke through it. The slave girl seems to be possessed by a spirit that was associated with Apollo. She would tell fortunes by slipping into a trance, and speaking in the name of Apollo. When Paul came into town the slave girl followed him around, manifesting this manic behavior, proclaiming that Paul and his friends were servants of the Most High God. It is as if she was saying, “Don’t listen to these men. They’re trying to challenge what you believe and turn you from your traditional ways.” Paul eventually gets tired of this opposition, and commands the evil spirit to come out of the women in the name of Jesus Christ. The spirit departs, bringing freedom from the prison of oppression. Here’s a women who’s been enslaved her whole life in the hell of spirit possession and slavery. Instead of serving Apollo, the one who oppressed her, she becomes the servant of the one who set her free -- Jesus Christ.

My suspicion is that there are people here who are trapped in the prison of oppression. Maybe one day they dabbled in something that felt pleasant or profitable, but years later it became a sinkhole. They struggle with their demons on a daily basis. Some people are trapped by hate. They become caged by inescapable hostility. Some people are imprisoned by unforgiveness. Every time they see a certain person, they seethe with indignation and remember all the past hurts. Unforgiveness can be a prison in which people wallow until they self destruct. Some people struggle with addictions and can find no escape. Alcohol, or extra-marital sex, or gambling might have seemed like fun at first, but unbridled they develop into patterns of behavior which produce guilt, failure, and self-hatred. Or how about insecurity– that prison where a person’s inner-voices relentlessly say, “You’re not good enough, you’re not smart enough. You’re not successful enough.” All of these areas of oppression have something in common. They alienate people from the most high God.

If you are trapped in the sinkhole of personal oppression, then there is good news for you today. Jesus Christ has come to rescue you from the pain of oppression and give you true, ever-lasting freedom.

Getting back to Paul’s story, it turns out that there were people in Philippi who were more interested in profit than in freedom. The masters of the slave girl made money from her oppression. Now that she’s spirituality free, their easy income is gone. The owners have Paul and his friends severely beaten and locked in a jail. They are placed in the inmost and most secure part of the prison, the prisoner’s legs are locked in wooden stocks. There’s no sleep for the missionaries that night, thanks to their pain and uncomfortable position. But in the midst of their suffering they sing praises to God. During the night, an earthquake jolts the prison and sets all of the captives free. The jailer is jarred from his sleep. He sees the open doors of the jail, and assumes the prisoners have escaped.

A Roman guard would never leave his post, even under attack, because he knew the punishment was execution. Here’s a man who is rightfully afraid. He lifts his sword to his chest as if he’s so consumed with fear that he doesn’t know what else to do. At this point, it’s not Paul and Silas who are the prisoners. The real prisoner is the guard, and his prison is fear. The voice of Paul restores the soldier to a semblance of rationality. Humbled by the events -- Paul’s praise to God, the earthquake, the supernatural freeing of the prisoners-the guard asks, “What do I need to do to be saved?”

There are some people here this morning who are trapped in the prison of fear. Fear is irrational. Anxieties can begin to disintegrate us, and cause us to lose our heads. Fear makes us do dumb things. What are the fears in life that keep you from following God? Are you scared that you might look foolish? Are you afraid of what others might think if you get serious about your faith? Are you afraid that God can’t take care of you like he promised? Are you scared because you might have to leave old friends or habits behind, or that it might cost too much to follow Christ? If you are afraid, then I have good news for you today. Jesus Christ has come to set us free from the prisons of fear.

Maybe you are here today and you are tired. Tired of trying to make life better by relying on your own strength– tired of seeing loved one’s suffering – tired of wanting more out of life but never seeming to be able to get unstuck. Maybe, like the Roman jailer, you are running on empty and you are asking, “What do I need to do to be saved?” The answer is the same today as it was back then: you don’t need to do anything. Just be. Be still and know that God is trying to get your attention. Be still and know that God is not asking you to do more to make yourself acceptable – God just wants you to experience the fact that you are fully accepted and loved with no strings attached. God doesn’t love you because of what you do. The first step out of our prisons is not taken by us. God has already taken the first step towards us. God says, “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you wil1 be saved.” Paul didn’t suggest counseling to the Roman Guard. He didn’t give a lecture on theology, or confront him on his godless way of life. He simply offered him Jesus.

The church is made strong in the midst of today culture of unbelief when it’s filled with people who have dedicated their lives to Jesus Christ. Our families, and friends, and communities can be transformed when we step out of these church doors as dedicated followers who have put their full trust in Jesus Christ as the one who has the power to free us, and set us on a path of wholeness.

Sermon for Sunday, May 21, 2006

The Making of a Church III: Inclusiveness

Acts 11:1-18

Real men will eat anything, right. I remember attending a game dinner many years ago. It must have been a bad year for venison, because the real men ate fowl and skewered pieces of marinated raccoon meat. Yes, I tried it. No, I didn’t have seconds. What the most disgusting meat you’ve ever eaten? The thought of it turns your stomach? The Apostle Peter might be able to tell you his nightmare meal.

In the Book of Acts, chapter 10 God showed Peter a vision of a backwoods banquet coming down out of heaven. There’s some snake and a bunch of reptiles. God says, “Go on, Peter, have a bite.” I don’t know if anyone here has ever eaten snake before. Some people say it tastes like chicken. In case you’re interested, I scoured the Internet for snake recipes. Here’s my favorite - -a recipe for East Texas Fried Rattlesnake Dinner that contains all four food groups.

1. Bake a chocolate cake (this is the 1st food group).
2. Fry two pounds of bacon in a cast iron skillet. Leave ½ pound on the drainboard to munch on while you’re cooking, and put the rest in the fridge.
3. Go outside and find a big rattlesnake. Kill the snake. Nail its head to a tree.
4. Go in the house, skin and boil six large potatoes. (Potatoes are the second food group)
5. Go back outside and cut the snake down the middle being careful not to ruin the rattles. Cut the skin away from the head. Pull down hard and steady. Lay the skin in the sun to dry and instruct the dog to leave the snakeskin alone.
6. Slice the snake meat into half-inch thick patties. Pour a lot of flour onto two plates, and scramble three eggs in a bowl. Put black pepper and some cayenne pepper into the plates. When you think you have enough pepper, add some more. After all, you’re about to eat a rattlesnake. Dip the meat into the plates of flour and then gently lay the battered meat into the hot grease. If done correctly you’ll not get burned. If done wrong, you’ll learn.
7. Leave the meat in the grease until it’s brown on the bottom, then turn it over.
8. Meanwhile, fork-test the potatoes. If they’re done, drain off the water, add a stick of butter (3rd food group) and some milk.
9. Put two cans of peas in a big bowl with a half stick of butter. Put the bowl in the microwave and nuke them.
10. Leaving the fire low, slowly sprinkle the left over flour into the left over grease and scratch it around until the flour is cooked. Slowly add whole milk, while squishing out the lumps. Don’t add too much milk. The final consistency resembles grayish-brown wallpaper paste. This process takes some practice, but eventually you will scratch through the lumps and have the fourth food group: gravy.
11. Take the peas out of the microwave and the bread out of the oven. Put everything on the table. Call everybody to eat.
12. Feed them fried rattlesnake while you eat mashed potatoes, gravy, peas and chocolate cake.

The outdoorsmen of the world tell us that snakes, racoons, possum, squirrels -- all that stuff is tasty when it’s prepared correctly. Apparently, Peter was disgusted by it all. Maybe Peter just didn’t have a good recipe.

In the first century, the great question was one of boundaries. Where would the lines be drawn that would determine who should hear the gospel and who would not. Believers assumed that God’s recipe for a good church was limited to those who followed the commandments and rituals of Judaism. The first church members called themselves Jews. They worshiped like Jews. They did not associate with anyone who was not Jewish. It was against Jewish law to be in contact with Gentiles and their traditions. The early Christians kept kosher homes and obeyed the Jewish laws. The law said that no Jew was allowed to eat things like pigs, or reptiles, or shellfish, or certain species of birds. You can imagine how Peter’s horror when he sees these unclean animals in a vision. God tells him to eat the forbidden animals. Then God sends Peter to the home of Cornelius – not only an unclean Gentile, but a Roman army officer.

Peter visits Cornelius and tells him the story of Jesus. The Holy Spirit immediately fills Cornelius. He and his entire household convert to Christianity. This blows the minds of the good Jewish followers of Christ. It is unbelievable to them that God’s love would actually reach out to unclean and idolatrous gentiles. The other Apostles hear about this and call Peter to task. God reminds his followers that the boundaries of the kingdom reach farther than they ever dreamed. I think we need a reminder of who the church is, and what we are called to do.

Since we were kids, someone told us that God loves everyone. This doesn’t mean that God just loves those who are popular, or good looking, or the ones who have it all together. It also means that God loves those whom the world labels as ugly or incompetent. The membership rolls of the early church sound more like roll call at a detention camp. The church converted people who were seen as low-lifes – religious zealots, the poor and oppressed, helpless charity cases, and foreigners. The church is not a special club for people who have it all together. The church is for rejects. The church is a place for people with real pain to hear words of healing and hope. This place exists because all of us have been unfaithful, unworthy, undesirable and unsure, but because of Christ we have never been unloved.

An inclusive vision of the church means that we restlessly commit ourselves to preaching and teaching the message of God’s love. We don’t do it because we think we are better than others. We do not speak about Jesus to swell our membership roles. We tell others about God’s love because we love them and we’re are convinced that humanity is doomed without God’s loving touch. The message that people both inside and outside this church need to hear again is that God loves you and every person with equal passion and devotion People will never hear this life-saving message if we don’t tell them, and we can’t tell them if they are not welcome among us.

People are not welcome if we judge them according to our misperceptions. Dodie Gadient, a veteran schoolteacher decided to travel across America and see the sights she taught about. Traveling alone in a truck with camper in tow, she launched out. One afternoon rounding a curve on I-5 near Sacramento in rush-hour traffic, a water pump blew on her truck. Despite the traffic jam she caused, no one seemed interested in helping. Leaning up against the trailer, she prayed, 'Please God, send me an angel . . . preferably one with mechanical experience.' Within four minutes, a Harley drove up, ridden by an massive man sporting long, black hair, a beard and tattooed arms. With an incredible air of confidence, he jumped off and. Without even glancing at Dodie, he went to work on the truck. Within a few minutes, he flagged down a larger truck, attached a tow chain to the frame of the disabled Chevy, and whisked the truck and trailer onto a side street, where he worked on the water pump.The schoolteacher was too dumbfounded to talk. Especially when she read the paralyzing words on the back of his leather jacket: 'Hell's Angels -- California'. Dodie finally found the courage to say, 'Thanks so much,' and carry on a brief conversation. Noticing her surprise at the whole ordeal, he looked her straight in the eye and mumbled, 'Don't judge a book by its cover. You may not know who you're talking to.' With that, he smiled, closed the hood of the truck, and straddled his Harley. With a wave, he was gone as fast as he had appeared.”

Given half a chance, people often crawl out of the boxes into which we've relegated them. Don’t let judgments and assumptions guide you. God’s love belongs to everyone, and everyone belongs in the church. Whether the advice comes from your grandmother or a Hell’s Angel, it’s still true: Don't judge a book by its cover. You may not know who you're talking to.

God wants us not only to tell, but also to show his love. By themselves, words can be meaningless until they are backed by action. For instance, what does a visitor see when he or she attends worship here? Do we look bored and fidgety, or do we actively worship our Savior? If we look like we can’t wait to get out of here, then our actions might show that we are here just out of mere obligation. If we act like we love God and enjoy being with each other, we confirm that our faith has actually had an impact on our lives. Our neighbors, our families, our children, and even complete strangers are watching you, and they want to know if all this talk about Jesus and church really makes a difference in your life. The church can become an inclusive community when we back up our words with integrity-filled actions.

In 1999 a little church in Decatur called Oakhurst Baptist Church was ejected by the Georgia Baptist Convention for a variety of issues having to do with Biblical interpretation and inclusiveness. In the 1960's this congregation took a stand against segregation and had lost two-thirds of its members. In the 1980's the church opened its doors to the homeless, who have been welcomed and have worshiped there ever since. In fact, the pastor tells about the time when he and his young son were visiting another church facility and his son asked, “Dad, where do the homeless live here?” He assumed that you could not have a church without a place for your homeless friends. One day, when the congregation was in the news, a developmentally disabled church member saw a TV camera and hurried over to offer to be on television. The reporter extended his microphone and asked, “Tell me, what do you like about this church?” John grinned and answered, “They love everybody here.”

I’ve been to similar churches. I think of one church in that regularly opens to all. On any given Sunday, this church has business professionals, college professors, group-home residents, and homeless people all worshiping together, praying for one another and celebrating each other’s lives. Another I know sends out its “worship wagon.” The Worship Wagon goes to the homes of elderly people and others who can’t get to church. They are driven to the worship service and returned home afterwards. Churches like these realize that we are not fully the body of Christ until everyone is included.

Don’t you want to be part of a church that changes the lives of others by modeling love and devotion? Who will invite others in and show them the love of Jesus? Who will seek out those who are different from us, those who are disabled, or lonely, or hurting, or socially different? Who will show them that someone cares, that we loves them, that we believe in them because God cares, loves and believes in them?

Do we want to see the church to have an impact on the culture around us? Do we want to see people’s lives touched by God? If so, it means being committed to living God’s vision of an inclusive church. It means being personally responsible for telling all people about God’s love, and showing them love in action, even if it stretches our comfort zones, and even if it challenges our faith.

Sermon for Sunday, May 14, 2006

The Making of a Church: Calling

Acts 9:1-20

Pastor Jack J Stahl has decided that the best way to take God to the people is via the medium of Tom Jones records. He is available to conduct funerals, exorcisms and weddings - you just can't choose your own music. Stahl says, “Since I was six years old, I have used the angelic voice of Tom Jones to get in touch with the Holy Spirit. To me, his voice is spiritual, soulful and supernatural. So when God called me into the ministry in 1990 it only made sense to incorporate Tom Jones into it. Simply stated, it works for me. With the help of 'The God of Voice' Tom Jones, miracles happen and people are healed.” With the help of Tome Jones, Pastor Stahl can banish the devil or your foot fungus. An interviewer asked Stahl How he performs exorcisms using Tom Jones' music. Stahl says, “I usually lay my hands on the person's head or wherever they need a healing. I ask the person to agree with me in asking for the miracle from God. I briefly explain that I need to have the angelic voice of Tom Jones playing to enable me to get in touch with the Holy Spirit. I then start the Tom Jones song, scream at the Devil, often curse at him and cast him back to the bowels of Hell. I am baptised in the spirit and speak in tongues. You have to understand that the Devil is a bully and when you stand up to him he runs like the coward he is.” Why does Stlahl think that demons respond to the Welsh heartthrob? He says, “The Devil hates anything that is of God . . .just because something is different does not make it wrong. God calls different people into different ministries. I am simply answering my calling.” (http://www.bizarremag.com/real_people.php?id=1596#)

If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a hundred times. People want to know what God calls them to do. When we feel lost or aimless, we will often make our lives busy and frantic. In the hurried pace of trying to do more and more to make ourselves better, how often do we stop, sit still, and listen (and make sure that what we are hearing is God and not Tom Jones).

Today we look at story that deals with hearing and responding to the voice of Jesus. Before we read the Scripture, allow me to set the scene. Last week we read about the boldness of the Apostles who preached the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Their preaching reaches many new converts. There aren’t enough Apostles to oversee this new religious community. They choose seven men who are known to be full of the Spirit to help. One of the men is named Stephen. He is full of God’s power, and performs miraculous signs among the people. His faith in Jesus enrages religious leaders. The leaders bring Stephen to court and accuse him of blasphemy. At trial Stephen reverses the accusations. He calls the Sanhedrin the blasphemers. The accusers become infuriated. They cover their ears and, and yelling at the top of their voices, they rush at Stephen, drag him out of the city and kill him.

Stephen becomes the first Christian martyr. Persecution breaks out against the church. One of the persecutors is a Pharisee named Saul. Saul travels from house to house, dragging men and women to prison in an attempt to destroy the group who called “The sect of the Nazarene”, or “the Way.”

Later, Saul will become known as Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles and the most influential thinker and preacher in all of Christianity. He started out as the ringleader in a campaign of violence. After hearing the voice of Jesus, he becomes a follower. I refer to this episode as the calling of Paul. Some say that this story represents Paul’s conversion to Christianity. The term ‘conversion’ may lead us to believe that Paul changed his religion: the Jew became a Christian. But, the NT is clear that Paul remained a Jew who fulfilled his calling as an Apostle to the Gentiles. This is not a conversion from one religion to another, but a call to a specific mission.

The term “call” can be confusing. I have heard people say to me, “I don’t think I’ve ever heard God’s call.” Having a call simply refers to knowing God’s specific purpose and plan for your life.

Saul listened to the voice of Jesus. He stands in contrast to the members of the High Court who close their ears to the preaching of the gospel. While traveling the 150 mile stretch to Damascus to the north the heavens open up and strike Saul with a blinding light. A heavenly voice speaks to him and no one else seems to hear it. Just moments before Saul was so sure of himself. Now, in this desolate area, God speaks, and God is Jesus.

One step in knowing God’s call or purpose in your life is to listen the voice of Jesus. The voice of Jesus calls us to stop living contrary to God’s will. The voice calls us to turn our lives around and seek the things of God. I realize that to some this may all sound strange. How exactly are we supposed to listen to this voice? After all, it sounds foolish for me to wait for cosmic voices. People who hear voices usually get “sent away for a while.” How many of us really expect God to speak to us from the clouds and give instant direction to our lives? I’ll admit, I’ve never audibly heard the voice of God, and I’ve never had an experience like Saul’s, but I am learning how to identify the thoughts and feelings that I experience when God is trying to get my attention.

For me, hearing God involves a process. I knew I was supposed to be a minister from the time I was 12 years old. Friends would say, “What do you want to be when you grow up.” Some would say sports star. Some would say president. I wanted to be a minister. If you knew me back then, I would not have struck you as a spiritual child. Like today, I was a loud-mouthed free spirit. Somehow, as a sixth-grader, I sensed God’s call into ministry.

By the time I graduated college, I changed my mind and decided to be a High School English teacher. I knew I was supposed to enter the ministry, but I wanted options. The thought of being a minister terrified me – especially the part about getting up in front of people and preaching week after week. After sharing my struggles, some loving friends sat down with me and helped me to listen and clarify what God was trying to tell me. When I couldn’t ignore God’s consistent voice any longer, I turned...and I listened. God spoke to me though the voice of others, and started me on a process that helped me decide my future.

Sometimes people ask how Chris and I knew we were supposed to come to Trumbull. It was not a single momentous experience where we heard God’s voice saying “Go Ye to Trumbull and preach My Word.” The call was a process. We prayed, and talked, and read, and prayed some more, and shared our struggles with others, and talked some more, and prayed some more, until we felt we had a firm grasp on what God wanted us to do. At the same time, the search at this church committee prayed, and interviewed, and prayed, and discerned the church’s future, and prayed some more, and involved the congregation. We heard God through the process.

Have you ever had to make a decision like that -- something that affects the outcome of your entire life? In our noisy world of competing voices, how does God speak?

1. God is heard in the Bible. When we take time to read and reflect on

Scripture, we can hear God’s voice and learn God’s will.

2. God’s voice can be heard in confessions and creeds of the church.

3. God’s voice can be heard in liturgy and music. We come to church to worship, and sense God’s presence through our acts of praise. Don’t be surprised if God nudges you by something you sing, or something you see in a stained glass window, or the words of a prayer.

4. God’s voice can be heard through trusted friends, and Spirit-filled members of the community of faith. Such voices give guidance and direction when we are confused about God’s will.

5. God can be heard through the Holy Spirit working directly in your heart and mind. But don’t go over board. Once I was in a church where people heard words of from God. Worshipers would stand and share these prophecies. One of “the regulars” once stood and said, with crunched eyes and folded hands, “there is someone here who has a deathly fear of alligators. God wants to heal you today.” We were in Danvers, MA. There were no alligators within a thousand miles. I would think God might say, “If you’re afraid of alligators, don’t go fishing in Florida swamps.” Direct words from God need to be tested against scripture and the church’s leadership.

Maybe God is trying to get your attention on the Damascus Road of your life. Have you ever come to a place where you can no longer resist the sound of that urgent, persistent voice that asks you to do something new for Jesus Christ? God’s voice still speaks today. God may not speak to you with blinding lights and booming noises. He may begin to speak slowly, and gently, and tenaciously. He calls us to seek, to trust, and to follow. If you have never heard that voice, or if you’ve just been ignoring it as you turn your head away to listen to other messages, I encourage you to silently listen to the voice of Christ which says, “Come, follow me, and believe. God is doing something new, and I want you to be a part.”

Listening is not enough however. We need to be obedient to the voice of God. It’s one thing to listen. It’s quite another to trust God and yourself enough to do follow through. In a vision God told Saul to go to Damascus and meet Ananias in order to see again. Can you imagine how frightened Saul must have been? He’s struck blind and he has to face the very people he set out to destroy. In another vision, God tells Ananias to heal Saul. Can you imagine how frightened Ananias might have been? God tells Ananias to heal the man who wants to kill him. Ananias, the persecuted one, becomes the healer. God humbles Saul, the persecutor, and calls him to return to the Pharisees and preach the message the Good News.

Sometimes the voice of Christ asks us to do difficult things. Jesus calls us to leave our comfort zones to follow. He calls us to stop behaviors that conflict with God’s desires for us. Jesus calls us to do the impossible, things like loving our enemies and loving God more than we love our comfort. I don’t know about you, but for me such demands frighten me. They put me in a place where I can’t trust my own accomplishments or experiences anymore. Obedience means yielding all of our actions to the demands of God’s kingdom.

We are called to obey God’s will at home, loving and serving our children and or our spouses in a way that brings honor to Christ.

We are called to obey God’s will at work and school, taking a stand for what we believe to be true, even when it makes us disliked or unpopular.

We are called to obey God’s will for our personal lives, living with honesty and integrity even when no one else is watching.

We are called to obey God’s will around friends, not caving into peer pressure, and not giving anyone else a reason to blame Christians for being hypocrites.

We are called to obey God’s will as a church, finding ways to invite everyone to be a part of what God is doing.

We are called to obey God’s will around strangers, knowing that our lives may be the only Bible they ever read.

How do we make the church strong in the midst of today’s culture? We seek God’s calling in our lives. We listen, and we obey. And we allow God to use us to transform the world around us.