Walk in Witness

Matthew 1: 18-25 (NRSV)

It is fitting on this last Sunday in Advent that we focus on Witness. The hot topic has been Duck Dynasty, and Phil Robertson’s witness to his faith and trust in God’s Word. So today we honor his strength and desire to be a witness by putting this “Phil Bobble-head” here on the piano as a good example to follow.

A man in Topeka, Kansas, decided to write a book about churches around the country. He started by flying to San Francisco, and started working east from there. 

Going to a very large Church, he began taking photographs and making notes. He spotted a golden telephone on the vestibule wall and was intrigued with a sign that read "$10,000 a minute." 

Finding the pastor, he asked about the phone and the sign. The pastor answered that this golden phone was a direct line to Heaven and if he pays the price he can talk directly to God. The man thanked the pastor and continued on his way.

He visited churches in Seattle, Texas, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and around the United States. He found more phones, with the same sign , and the same answer from each pastor. Finally, he arrived in Maryland. Upon entering a church near  Clear Spring, Maryland, he saw the usual golden telephone. But THIS time the sign read "Calls: 35 cents." 

Fascinated, he asked to talk to the pastor, "Pastor, I have been in cities all across the country and in each church I have found this golden telephone and have been told it is a direct line to heaven and that I could talk to God. In the other churches the cost was $10,000 a minute but yours says, 35 cents a call. Why?" 

The pastor, smiling, replied, "Son, you're in Clear Spring now...it's a local call."

Friends, everywhere is a local call to God. And everywhere in the world needs people who know God and witness to His glory, and call tell people how close they are to God.

In trying to witness have you ever found yourself in the “darned if you do, darned if you don’t” dilemma? You know the right thing to do but you know doing it is going to be harder than if you don’t do anything?

Many of us find ourselves in this scenario with friends, co-workers, bosses, and neighbors.

We may know something they need or should know, but know that telling them won’t be a pleasant experience.

There are lots of possibilities that fit this category.  I think it’s why the Apostle Paul talks about things we can do and things we don’t do but should. In theology these things fall in to the sins of “omission,” things we don’t do. Contrast “omission” with the sins of  commission,” or things we actually do.

Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way: When his mother had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.

Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly.

But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.”

When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; he took her as his wife, but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a son; and he named him Jesus.

As Christians who trust God, who are obedient to His will, and Love Him, we are called also to witness those character traits to others. In doing so we will have to take positions that will not be popular, will go against prevailing social customs, and maybe won’t make a whole lot of sense to our family and friends.

Joseph was caught up in such a dilemma. He could have walked away and had no further interaction with Mary; social custom gave him that right. Joseph could have disgraced Mary very easily. But because he loved and trusted God, was obedient, Joseph chose to be a witness to God’s grace.

We don’t know a whole lot about Joseph but we know this much: trust, obedience, love, and witness, were important behavioral traits in his life that God found useful.

We frequently forget that being a Christian requires us to be involved and not sit on the sidelines like a spectator wondering “what will happen next” as Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker used to say on their infamous television show. That’s when I knew trouble was ahead for them – when they stopped doing and began to watch. They lost their witness.

We too will be called upon to be that voice from the back of room at times that hold ourselves and others accountable for what’s going on.

A woman was doing her last-minute Christmas shopping at a crowded mall. She was tired of fighting the crowds. She was tired of standing in lines. She was tired of fighting her way down long aisles looking for a gift that had sold out days before.

Her arms were full of bulky packages when an elevator door opened. It was full.

The occupants of the elevator slowly moved closer together to allow a small space for her and her load. As the doors closed, she blurted out, “Whoever is responsible for this whole Christmas thing ought to be arrested, strung up, and shot!”

A few others nodded their heads or grunted in agreement. Then, from somewhere in the back of the elevator, came a single voice that said: “Don’t worry. They already crucified him.”

Some of you are saying “I can’t do that,” or “That’s not me.” As Christians we need to think of ways to witness that are consistent with who we are. Wearing buttons, pins, having car bumper stickers, are just part of it. We have to live it. Joseph did.

After Abraham Lincoln announced the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing the slaves during the Civil War, he was condemned by the London Times as “a sort of moral American pope” destined to be “Lincoln the Last.”

But after Lincoln’s assassination, the paper realized his greatness, saying, “Abraham Lincoln was as little a tyrant as any man who ever lived. He could have been a tyrant if he pleased, but he never uttered so much as an ill-natured speech.”

In the Christian life, there will be times when we must take an unpopular stand — at work, at school, even at church — and stubbornly stick to principle. We will be called all manner of names, but if we’re in God’s will, we will be vindicated, certainly in the next life, but sometimes in this one.

But we need to make sure we are focused on the right witness, the right truth, and the right way to do it.

One day, an old man arrived at the Pearly Gates of Heaven. Saint Paul, who was filling in for St. Peter, asked for the man's name, and the man, who had gotten alzheimers on earth, could not remember his name!

He stood there a while longer, trying hard to remember, but he just couldn't think of it. Finally, Saint Paul started asking questions about the old man's previous life on earth, to help find out who he was. 

First, Saint Paul asked him if he remembered what job he had. "I seem to remember working with wood," the old man said, "I'm pretty sure.. yes, I remember now, I was a carpenter." 

Pleased to be getting somewhere, Saint Paul asked the man another question: "Do you remember if you had any family?" 

The old carpenter stood still and silent in thought for a minute and then finally spoke up. "Yes," he replied, "now I remember that I had a son." 

Saint Paul asked the old man if he remembered anything about his son. The man answered, "Oh yes, I remember that he was an odd son. Some strange glowing figure appeared to me before my son was alive, telling me that I would soon have a son. And I also remember having a little bit of trouble with my son. He would go off on his own for long periods of time without me knowing where he was. Yes, he was one different son." 

Saint Paul stood up from his seat, with his mouth opened, and quickly whispered something to a nearby angel. The angel left for a minute and then came back, escorting Jesus with him. The angel took Jesus to the man. 

Saint Paul asked the old carpenter, "Is this your son?"  The forgetful old man's eyes brightened as he smiled and ran up to Jesus embracing him. "My son!" he said, "It's so good to see you, Pinnochio!"

I know that ending surprised you but sometimes we’re caught off guard by a false witness – something that appears true but isn’t. Satan is the master of things that are almost true.

Friends don’t spend your life being a witness to the wrong son and the wrong things. Walk in the trust, love, obedience to the truth of the witness of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only way to the Father.

It’s what Christmas and Advent are all about. We abide, that is embrace and sink ourselves into the love of God. Amen.

Please go back and read the sermon from:  8/29/13 -- Reality TV and the Bible.

Then read this excerpt from:

http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2013/12/homosexuals_gets_duck_dy-nasty.html

In case you haven't heard, the faith-filled Louisianan (Phil Robertson) wound up in hot water after being asked what was sinful by a GQ interviewer and offering the following answer, as presented by the magazine:

"Start with homosexual behavior and just morph out from there. Bestiality, sleeping around with this woman and that woman and that woman and those men," he says. Then he paraphrases Corinthians: "Don't be deceived. Neither the adulterers, the idolaters, the male prostitutes, the homosexual offenders, the greedy, the drunkards, the slanderers, the swindlers - they won't inherit the kingdom of God."

Can you guess which of the above groups caused what subsequently befell Robertson: suspension from his A&E show?

It wasn't the greedy.

Or the idolaters.

It wasn't bestialists, though there's an effort to legitimize their behavior now, too. 

The swindlers?

Nope -- not the slanderers, either.

Hint: One of the organizations whose complaints got Robertson suspended was GLAAD, and that doesn't stand for Guiding Light Advocates for Adulterers and Drunkards.

Of course, we all know the answer. GLAAD characterized Robertson's comments as vile and "extreme," and now he joins Dr. Laura Schlessinger and others whose careers were hobbled by the Velvet Mafia.

America, it is said, is suffering from intolerance - it is not. It is suffering from tolerance. Tolerance of right and wrong, truth and error, virtue and evil, Christ and chaos. Our country is not nearly so overrun with the bigoted as it is overrun with the broadminded…

This tolerance trap is why Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen wrote in 1931:

"…Tolerance is an attitude of reasoned patience toward evil, and a forbearance that restrains us from showing anger or inflicting punishment. ...Architects are as intolerant about sand as foundations for skyscrapers as doctors are intolerant about germs in their laboratories....

Tolerance does not apply to truth or principles. About these things we must be intolerant, and for this kind of intolerance, so much needed to rouse us from sentimental gush, I make a plea. Intolerance of this kind is the foundation of all stability."

 

 

 

Walk in Love

Matthew 11: 2-11 (NRSV)

I have often heard it said that love makes strong men’s knees weak, and that people in love do foolish things they’d never consider otherwise. How about this story:

At the end of their very first date, a young man takes his favorite girl home. Having had a good time, he decides to try for that important first kiss. With some confidence, he leans with his hand against the wall, smiling, he says to her, "Darling, how 'bout a goodnight kiss?"

Horrified, she replies, "Are you mad? My parents will see us!" "Oh come on! Who's gonna see us at this hour?" "No, please. Can you imagine if we get caught?"
      
"Oh come on, there's nobody around, they're all sleeping!" "No way. It's just too risky!" “Oh, please, please, I like you so much!!" "No, no, and no. I like you too, but I just can't!" "Oh yes you can. Please?" "NO, no. I just can't." "Pleeeeease?..."
      
Out of the blue, the porch light goes on, and the girl's sister shows up in her pajamas, hair disheveled. In a sleepy voice the sister says: "Dad says to go ahead and give him a kiss. Or I can do it. Or if need be, he'll come down himself and do it. But for crying out loud tell him to take his hand off the intercom button!"

Today we are going to talk about love. But we’re really not going to talk about romantic love, rather the real measure of love. Real love is an absolute value:  True love doesn’t have a “happy ending;” true love doesn’t have an ending. God truly loves His creation no matter what.

Some children were asked, “What is love?” One little girl answered, “Love is when your mommy reads you a bedtime story. True love is when she doesn’t skip any pages.” God never, ever, skips pages. His love is the same, today, yesterday, and tomorrow.

That is what Christmas is all about. It’s not political, it’s not oppressive, it’s really not even religious in a way. The gift of Jesus; his birth, life, death, resurrection, ascension, and promise of return is the ultimate manifestation of God’s Love for His creation. It’s a fact, not an opinion, or even a wish. Listen to God’s word:

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples ³and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”

⁴Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. ⁶And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

⁷As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁸What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’

¹¹Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”

In the Old Testament Love is usually represented by 2 words, “‘aheb” or “shakab” and are context sensitive, meaning the context in which they are used conveys what they mean. The Jews generally avoided words that conveyed strong emotions.

In the New Testament there are 4 types of love: divine love, brotherly love, family love and romantic love. The Greeks were more emotional in their writings and coined terms for each type of Love directly.

“Eros,” or romantic love is the type of love displayed between man and woman, husband and wife.

“Storge,” is a term for love in the Bible you may not be familiar with. Even though this Greek word for family love is not specifically found in Scripture, examples of it are seen throughout the Bible. It is best manifest as the natural love a parent has for their child.

“Philia,” is the type of love in the Bible that most Christians practice toward each other. This is most often the type of love commanded by God and Jesus that we are to have for our neighbors.

“Agape,” is the highest of the four types of love in the New Testament. Jesus as the Messiah showed this kind of divine love to his Father and to all humanity.

Grace is the best manifestation of agape love, Godly love, we have. Advent and Christmas are the products of agape love.

Being a Christian is about love, and understanding how to love like God does.

To love like Jesus, we need to understand a simple truth. We cannot live the Christian life on our own.

Sooner or later, in the midst of our frustration, we come to the conclusion that we're doing something wrong. It's not working. Our best efforts just don't cut it. All of us want to love like Jesus, but we always fall short.

We want to be generous, forgiving, and compassionate enough to love people unconditionally. But no matter how hard we try, it just doesn't work. We may love, but we don’t like. Our humanness gets in the way.

Jesus was human too, but he was also God incarnate. He was able to see the people he created in a way that we can't. He personified love. In fact, the Apostle John said, "God is love..." (1 John 4: 16)

Our problem is that, unlike Jesus, you and I are not love. We can love, but we can't do it perfectly. We see others' faults and stubbornness. When we remember the slights they have done to us, a small part of us can't forgive. We refuse to make ourselves as vulnerable as Jesus did because we know we'll get hurt again. We love and at the same time we hold back.

Yet Jesus tells us to love as he did: "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another." (John 13: 34)

How do we do something we're incapable of doing? We turn to Scripture for the answer and it's there we learn the secret of how to love like Jesus.

We don't get very far before we learn the Christian life is impossible. Jesus gave us the key, however: "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God." (Mark 10: 27)

He explained this truth in depth in the 15th chapter of the Gospel of John, with his parable of the vine and branches.

The NIV uses the word "remain," but I like the English Standard  Version  that uses the translation "abide:"

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.

By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. (John 15: 1-10)

Abide means to continue with, continue in, be with, cleave unto, tarry, live with and assimilate into your life. We are to accept and assimilate God’s love into us.

Did you catch that in verse 5? "Apart from me you can do nothing." We can't love like Jesus on our own. In fact, we can't do anything in the Christian life on our own.

We must learn to walk in truth, obedience, and Love in order to abide in Christ’s love and realize God’s Grace.

It sounds a lot easier than it is but abiding means “resting and accepting things as they are, as well.” Abide in the love of Christ. Amen.

Walk in Obedience
Matthew 3: 1-12 NRSV

What do Winnie the Pooh and John the Baptist have in common?  They both have the same middle name and like the same food. (THE, HONEY)

The Bible is a historical narrative filled with captivating people – most of them larger than life and filled with odd bits of information that make us think of them as being too weird to fit into regular society.

Noah, Jonah, Moses, Elijah and Job come to mind quickly. But none are weirder than John the Baptist, especially in dress, diet, and choice of places to live.

John’s mission is unique and he has only one point in every sermon.

Everything you hear about him tells you that’s he’s probably not going to be that one party guest you can’t do without. He would be a troublesome church member.

Through God's direction, John the Baptist challenged people to prepare for the coming of the Messiah by turning away from sin and being baptized as a symbol of repentance.

Although John held no power or influence in the Jewish culture and society, he delivered his message with the force of authority. People could not resist the overpowering truth of his words, as they flocked by the hundreds to hear him and be baptized. And even as he attracted the attention of the crowds, he never lost sight of his mission—to point people to Christ, to the Son of God.

John the Baptist seems to be the type of fellow who would intentionally provoke a confrontation in order to give you his opinion. But if you look you’ll see that most of God’s prophet’s are that way, too!

You see, God requires that His followers, messengers, and prophets be obedient to His word.

Let’s read Matthew 3: 1-12:

In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, `Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.' "

John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them:

 "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.  And do not think you can say to yourselves, `We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

"I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

When I read this passage several weeks ago I immediately remembered the old joke told to me by my Seminary mentor. He was teaching me about how none of us want a troublemaker in the church family who constantly reminds us of our weaknesses and downfalls and speaks the truth we don't want to hear:

A small town had three churches: A Christian Church, a Methodist Church, and a German Reformed Church. One day the three pastors got together and decided it was time to hold revival services. So a week was chosen and it was agreed that each church would hold its own services and the pastors would meet later to compare notes.

After the week the pastors got together over coffee and discussed how it went.

The Christian church pastor said, “We had a wonderful week of services and had 4 new families profess faith, were saved, and joined the church. We’re very happy.”

The Methodist church pastor said, “We too had a wonderful week of services and had 6 new families experience fellowship, profess faith, were saved, and joined the church. We’re very happy as well.”

The Reformed church pastor said, “We too, are happy, we have been renewed in our singular mission and have a clear and revived vision for our future. We also got rid of our 10 biggest troublemakers.”

John the Baptist would scare most church members with his passion of a constant call for repentance and desire to overcome sin. He would be a troublemaker in most churches today.

 

Yet consider this: In Luke 7:28, Jesus declared John the Baptist to be the greatest man to have ever lived: "I tell you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John ..."

You see, John's greatest strength was his focused and faithful commitment to the call of God on his life. Taking the Nazirite vow for life, he personified the term "set apart for God." John become obedient to/for God, and His will

John knew he had been given a specific job to do and he set out with singular obedience to fulfill that mission. He didn't just talk about repentance from sin. He lived with boldness of purpose throughout his uncompromising mission, willing to die a martyr for his stand against sin.

I am convinced that John the Baptist did not set out with the goal of being different from everyone else. Although he was remarkably strange, he wasn't merely aiming at originality. Rather, he targeted all of his efforts toward obedience. Obviously, John hit the mark, as Jesus called him the greatest of men.

What should we learn from John the Baptist?

One: We learn Baptism does not save us; it identifies us as needing God’s Grace..

Second: When we come to realize that God has given us a specific purpose for our lives, we can move forward with confidence, fully trusting the One who called us.

Like John the Baptist, we don't have to fear living with a radical focus on our God-given mission because for God John’s passion is and was what He expects of us.

Can there be any greater joy or fulfillment in this life than to know God's pleasure and reward awaits us in heaven for our obedience?

Just moments after his beheading John the Baptist must have heard his master say, "Well done!"

Let us learn to WALK IN OBEDIENCE to God’s word all the days of our lives. Amen.

“DRESSED UP WITH NO PLACE TO GO”
Luke 20: 27-38

A woman died and ascended into heaven. As she walked to the pearly gates of heaven, she saw St. Peter at the gate. St. Peter asked her what her religious affiliation was. She answered "None.” So St. Peter didn’t know where to put her.

St. Peter took her to the different religions rooms, to let her get a peek and choose.

First he opened the door where the Baptists were. They were all eating and drinking and having a great time! Then St. Peter took her to the Methodists and they were dancing and having a good time! He then took her to the room where the Catholics were. They were just sitting around twiddling their thumbs!

So she turns to St. Peter with a puzzled look. He tells her that the Catholics were all partied out because they could do everything they had wanted to do on earth.

I have a lot of training and experience in the doctrine and policies of the church. I will admit that I am considered somewhat of an “expert” on the Reformed Church doctrines and policies from 1700 to about 1875.

The average person in the pew would be surprised at how much the church has argued the finer points of “how many angels can stand on the edge of a pin,” “are there rocks too big for God to lift,” or even “what God knows and when did He know it?”

Very few of the doctrines and policies of the church are biblical, but rather center on human interpretation of scriptures. Regardless of what you might think there are no actual “user’s guide” or “Bible for Dummies” written by the Holy Spirit!

That’s why the catholic church didn’t let lay people read Bibles or talk theology and why the oral tradition of the Jewish Rabbis became important. It supposedly cut down on false doctrines and ideas. But it actually ended up suppressing biblical truth.

 I feel the biggest issue has always been what the church’s role is in an individual’s salvation. Most church doctrines and traditions fight for and against this notion.

Most of the time various points are often the result of what’s called “cherry-picking,” or taking an obvious meaning of one passage and assuming that it trumps all other references to it.

That’s how we get specialty Bibles like “the feminist’s Bible,” “the Queer Bible,”

among at least 25 others catering to a specific viewpoint. It’s not surprising that successive societies thru history often seek to reinterpret the Bible in lieu of their own truth.

The hottest thing in today’s scholastic circles concerns those people who receive the “mark of the beast.” Two well know Bible scholars and a National Christian group are now claiming you can take this mark and not be rejected by Jesus at the last judgment. The answer to this issue is easily found in Revelation 19 and 20 but the debate rages on.

The debates over doctrine and policy continue primarily because without such

squabbles there would be a lot fewer denominations, religious sects, and churches out there. We also wouldn’t have the history of religious warfare we do.

Most people don’t know that the founder of the Reformed Church, Ulrich Zwingli,

died in battle over religious freedom. He was called a “warrior Monk.”

As I learn more about Biblical things I see things simplify before me. There are the essential things Jesus taught and the rest are fun discussions that pass the time.

Throughout human history church ritual and doctrine have been manipulated to achieve political, personal, and physical power over individuals and communities as if they were items on a buffet.

Listen to our scripture lesson for today from Luke 20: 27-38:

Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to him ²⁸and asked him a question, “Teacher,  Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother.

²⁹Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; ³⁰then the second ³¹and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. ³²Finally the woman also died.

³³In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her.”

³⁴Jesus said to them, “Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; ³⁵but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage.

³⁶Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection.

³⁷And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. ³⁸Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive.”

A priest, a Pentecostal preacher and a rabbi all served as chaplains to the students at a Midwest University. They would get together two or three times a week for coffee and talk shop.

One day, someone made the comment that preaching to people isn't really that hard. A real challenge would be to preach to a bear. One thing led to another, and they decided to do a seven-day experiment. They would all go out into the woods, find a bear and preach to it.

Seven days later, they meet to discuss the experience.

Father O' Flannery, who has his arm in a sling, is on crutches, and has various bandages, goes first. "Wellll," he says, in a fine Irish brouge, "Eywintoot into th' wooods to fynd me a bearr. Oond when Ey fund him Ey began to rread to him from the Baltimorre Catechism. Welll, thet bearr wanted naught to do wi' me und begun to slap me aboot. So I quick grrabbed me holy water and, THE SAINTS BE PRAISED, he became as gentle as a lamb. The bishop is coming oot next wik to give him fierst communion und confierrmation."

Reverend Billy Bob spoke next. He was in a wheelchair, with an arm and both legs in casts, and an IV drip. In his best fire and brimstone oratory he proclaimed, "WELL, brothers, you KNOW that we don't sprinkle...WE DUNK! I went out and I FOUND me a bear. And then I began to read to him from God's HOOOOLY WORD! But that bear wanted nothing to do with me. I SAY NO! He wanted NOTHING to do with me.

So I took HOOOLD of him and we began to rassle. We rassled down one hill, UP another and DOWN another until we come to a crick. So I quick DUNK him and BAPTIZE his hairy soul. An' jus like you sez, he wuz gentle as a lamb. We spent the rest of the week in fellowship, feasting on God's HOOOOLY word."

They both look down at the rabbi, who was lying in a hospital bed. He was in a body cast and traction with IV's and monitors running in and out of him.

The rabbi looks up and says, "Oy! You don't know what tough is until you try to circumcise one of those creatures."

The problem with this story is that every point is made from the reference point of the minister, church, and/or religious group and not the bear and God, who should be the most important part. Our church and faith is here to help others get close to God, not a point of view or religious tradition.

Now that I have your attention let me cut to the meat of this passage with a question: “What is the distinguishing trait of a Unitarian funeral? Answer: The guest of honor is all dressed up with nowhere to go.”

Friends you can water down beliefs and argue ideas down to the point where nothing means anything anymore. It gets to the point that upholding the tradition and/or actions of the ancestors is more important that the meaning behind them.

That’s what happened to the Jewish faith, and it’s the reason why people like Zwingli rejected the catholic church.

Jesus’ answer to the Sadducees got to the heart of the matter. Men can debate all they want but in the end God has the absolute authority over death and eternal life. It is Him who decides and sets the standards.

Regardless if we are living on earth or in heaven God is God. He is God of the living and He will reign forever. It is His rules we follow.

We can’t always assume that human experience helps us know God fully or explains all His actions. Some are mysterious and will only be known when we all get to Heaven. I’m good with that!

Amen.

“THE FIRST SKY BOX”
Luke 19: 1-10 (NRSV)

The dilemma of the 21^st Century: I recently attended a conference at a large hotel.

As I entered the elevator to return to my top floor room another person followed me on. She was dressed in a bikini top and tight jeans, was drinking from a beer bottle, and was carrying the largest cell phone I’ve ever seen. She also had about 8 tattoos (I didn’t count the actual number I could see!)

She said hello to me and casually asked me what I was doing at the hotel. I told her I was there to attend a Christian Conference. She said that was “cool,” and then told me that she and her husband were Christians too, just not the kind that went to church or told others they were.

After she got off the elevator I asked myself how I would feel if I knew my wife was walking around a hotel like this woman was and wondering how it could be compatible with my concept of Christianity.

I am not a prude and I don’t begrudge anybody a beer, and I guess I can even understand the lure of a tattoo or two, but public behavior speaks volumes about who you are. But we are told “the times they are a changing.”

In a recent book, “Already Gone,” Ken Ham and the AIG staff talk about why so many Christian young people are leaving the church after going to college. These are the “good” kids who attend Sunday School and church every Sunday, are active in church youth groups, and show every sign of being solid Christians.

Why are they leaving? Ham found 2 factors that contributed to their leaving. One was that they didn’t have the ability to refute the evolutionary teachings of their college professors and the second was that the stories of the Bible they had been taught in Sunday School were just empty stories with little practical value.

Essentially the findings suggested that the church was failing to teach young people practical faith, or what’s called apologetics, in order to hold their own in an increasingly secular and hostile world.

You may be thinking “great, another dump on the church comment from me.”

But the results are important for us to hear. We need to stop thinking that faith and Christianity can be picked up like we put fluoride on the teeth or like taking a good multi-vitamin, or just because you come from a “good home.”

Parking in a church parking spot does not make your car an instrument of God just as setting in a church pew doesn’t make you a Christian.

You can’t just tell somebody a story and expect them to fully learn and integrate that story into their lives and retrieve the information as needed. Faith and Church is not like getting a “bundled” insurance policy at Geico.

Faith is a walking lifestyle that must be embraced and practiced every day.

God and Jesus must be sought out and interacted with. And you need both head and heart knowledge. Jesus knew this and gives us plenty of examples (Luke 19: 1-10):

He entered Jericho and was passing through it.

²A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich. ³He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. ⁴So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.

⁵When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” ⁶So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him.

⁷All who saw it began to grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.”

⁸Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord, I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.”

⁹Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Son of Man came to seek out and to save the lost.”

The story of Zacchaeus has humor, drama, and suspense. It would make a good television show in our current society about how even the richest people can do good things (as long as they’re not Republican or the evil Tea Party.)

It would probably be about somebody named Bloomburg or Buffet or maybe even Gates. The upshot of the story would be how many millions of dollars the rich man was giving to charity after having some kind of “aha” moment, and switching his political party allegiance, in order to never make oppressive mistakes again.

Zacchaeus’s story tells us about this man who hears of Jesus, comes and checks him out, but is reluctant, because of what he does for a living and his physical limitations, to mix with the crowd who is there listening to Jesus.  So Zacchaeus climbs a tree away from the crowd and sits in what could be considered the first “Sky Box” in history.

The concept of “VIP seating and sky boxes” is not alien to us. If you’ve ever been to a stadium you’ve seen those boxes looming over the playing field. The views from such a spot is amazing and you don’t have to rub elbows with the riffraff of general admission.

The attention grabber of this passage is that it is unusual to think that Jesus would reach out to such an obviously privileged man. Jesus has come to save the poor and lost – not the rich and those already blessed with adequate resources. That’s the heart of the mainstream church’s social gospel.

Yet Jesus does an amazing thing. Jesus sees him, invites Himself over for dinner, and Zacchaeus is so moved by Jesus and His message that he repents of past sins and promises to make restitution and redistribute his wealth if necessary. That’s the progressive church’s interpretation of this story. Zacchaeus would never use another skybox again.

Actually, Zacchaeus sees that Jesus’ call to discipleship requires a change in his actions and values. He needs to use the blessings God has given him more effectively for God’s kingdom.

Jesus sums it all up by declaring that salvation has come to Zacchaeus’ house and to the “Sons of Abraham,” the Jews, where it was intended to be given.

This story is important to us in promising that Jesus will meet us when we seek Him, and that behavior change happens because of our gratitude for that grace.

This grace is given no matter who we are, whatever the contents of our wallets, the company name on our paychecks, or what behaviors we display.

The woman who got on the elevator with me may have been a Christian, but either way that relationship is between her and Jesus. I can only treat her as a Christian  until she proves differently.

She may have had her own “Zacchaeus” moment, after all. Jesus came for the people in the skyboxes and VIP seats, too! Amen.

“Lord,  Have   Mercy!”
Luke 18: 9-14 

“I never come to church anymore," boasted a member of the church when the pastor encountered him at the local mall, "Perhaps you have noticed that, pastor?"  
"Yes, I have noticed that," said the pastor.

"Well, the reason I don't go is because there are so many hypocrites there." "Oh, don't let that keep you away," replied the pastor with a smile. "There's always room for one more.”

A Minister was walking down the street when he came upon a group of boys, all of them between 10 and 12 years of age. The group had surrounded a dog. Concerned that the boys were hurting the dog, he went over and asked "What are you doing with that dog?"

One of the boys replied, "This dog is an old neighborhood stray. We all want him, but only one of us can take him home. So we've decided that whichever one of us can tell the biggest lie will get to keep the dog."
   
Of course, the minister was taken aback. "You boys shouldn't be having a contest telling lies!" he exclaimed. He then launched into a ten minute sermon against lying, beginning, "Don't you boys know it's a sin to lie," and ending with, "Why, when I was your age, I never told a lie."
 
There was dead silence for about a minute. Just as the minister was beginning to think he’d gotten through to them, the smallest boy gave a deep sigh and said, “All right, give him the dog.”

The ultimate hypocrite joke: "My boyfriend is such a cheat and a liar!" Sue shouted. "I’ve been going with the guy for nearly a year now and not once did he mention that he’s married."

 

"Oh, that’s terrible," her friend said. "Yeah, what a hypocrite! I’d probably never have found out. I heard purely by chance when it was mentioned the other day by my husband."

LUKE 18: 9-14: He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt: ¹⁰“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.

¹¹The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. ¹²I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’

¹³But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ ¹⁴I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Webster’s Dictionary defines “hypocrite” this way: first; a person who puts on a false appearance of virtue or religion, and/or second; a person who acts in contradiction to his or her stated beliefs or feelings.

It can be a noun or a verb, you can be a hypocrite or you can act hypocritical. The word we use in scripture comes from the Greek word hypo-kritēs and the Jewish word chaneph (kha-naf). It is used 16 times in scripture, 13 times in the old Testament and 3 times in the New if you are using the NKJV.

We all know what a hypocrite is and would never want to be caught being one, would we? But what if I told you that just as we are all guilty of telling “white lies,” we can’t avoid finding some element of hypocrisy in our lives either.

Hypocrisy seems to have its roots in our desire to be something or someone other than we are, or to pretend to believe or do things we really don’t want to do. Most of the time people pretend to do or say things to get or convince others to do things or in the case of employment to get raises and such.

Politicians and lawyers are well known for supposed hypocritical behavior. Yet why do we constantly elect lawyers that are politicians to office and expect good results?

We know that the Apostle Paul accused Peter of being a hypocrite in Galatians 2: 11-14. Listen to the story:

When Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles.

But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself from the Gentiles because he was afraid of those who belonged to the circumcision group.The other Jews joined him in his hypocrisy, so that by their hypocrisy even Barnabas was led astray.

When I saw that they were not acting in line with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in front of them all, “You are a Jew, yet you live like a Gentile and not like a Jew. How is it, then, that you force Gentiles to follow Jewish customs?

So even the strongest Christian has a little hypocrisy in him.

There are even times we encourage it: Ambrose Pierce once said, “Politeness is the most acceptable hypocrisy.”  Noel Coward wrote “It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit.”

There are times politeness requires we be just a little hypocritical. None of us wants be judged as we are, but rather as we chose to tell others who we are. William F. Buckley once said, “I won't insult your intelligence by suggesting that you really believe what you just said.”

We are even amused by the concept of hypocrisy. Think of  Mr. Whipple in the Charmin commercials. He spends half a minute warning women not to squeeze the Charmin. Then later on, he is seen squeezing the Charmin himself.

If hypocrisy is so natural for humanity why does Jesus make it a big deal? George Bernard Shaw said, “Where there is no religion, hypocrisy becomes good taste.”

Christianity is an ethics based religion that requires an expectation of honesty, trust, and faith that it’s adherent, that’s you, gets from God. And God is perfection. Only through God’s Grace can we be free of hypocrisy.

Yet it remains perhaps the number one stumbling block for the church and Jesus knew this.

You’ve heard the “Challenge:” “Hey, I would never be a Christian. I mean, look at all the hypocrites in the Church!”  

The Answer: “Well, we'd be glad to move over—there's always room for one more. And furthermore, if you ever find the perfect church, please don't join it. You'd spoil it.”

Does that response strike you as a being a bit too smart-alecky? Perhaps so, but before you totally discount it, consider the point that is being made.

Is this not a case of the pot calling the kettle black? Are not four fingers pointing back at you as you point at the Church?

Are you not a bit like the father who once screamed at his teenage son: “Kid, if I've told you once, I've told you a million times—don't exaggerate!”

“You're right. There is far too much hypocrisy in the Church. And there always has been. But it's certainly not being condoned, and we’re earnestly trying to stop.”

We are all sinners and Jesus offers us the same grace His sacrifices have bought.

It is up to us to live up to His Grace. We know it’s hard enough to overcome our natural instincts for hypocritical behavior. We must learn to question and monitor ourselves for any behaviors that may impact our Christian Witness.

At a recent annual meeting of the American Heart Association in Atlanta, three hundred thousand doctors, nurses, and researchers came together to discuss, among other things, the importance a low-fat diet plays in keeping hearts healthy.

Yet during mealtimes, they ate fat-filled fast food, including bacon cheeseburgers and French fries, at a higher rate than people from other conventions. When one cardiologist was asked whether or not his eating high-fat meals set a bad example, he replied, “Not me; I took my name tag off.”

Friends we can’t as Christians, ever take our name-tags off. Amen.