Sunday, April 21, 2019
I serve a risen Savior
I Serve A Risen Saviour!
John 20.1-20
From the pit of despair to being overjoyed!
You talk about a roller coaster of emotions! Arguing who was going to be the greatest, even the mother of James and John putting in a word for her son’s’ positions in the kingdom, the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday.
Then the arrest in the Garden of Gethsamene, the crucifixion the next morning, hiding for fear of the Jews over the weekend. Then this! He is alive!
It is hard to capture the full gambit of emotions those 11 disciples and the women had that day. Mary went to the Tomb thinking He was dead. She was looking for His dead body. The disciples were in between shock and despair and not knowing what to do.
Out of the tomb He came with grace and majesty, He is alive!!!
Hymn #289 Christ the LORD is Risen Today
1. The Resurrection Is A Fact.
The Tomb in Jerusalem is empty! Jesus is alive!
Q
We take it by faith with a great blessing. Jesus told His Disciples that.
John 20.24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” In other words, “I am not taking your word. I need to see for myself and I need to touch Him.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
What we take by faith, the early followers of Jesus took by seeing, by fact.
Some apologetics have reasoned out the ridiculous proposal by the Jewish Leaders to the Roman Guard.
Matthew 28.11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.
First the disciples were in hiding for fear of the Jews.
There was no way they would even think about being seen, no less risk their lives to perpetuate a fraud.
It was the feast of Passover and unleavened bread. They would never touch a dead body. Peter maintained this until Acts 10.
They were emotionally exhausted.
They would have had to face the Roman Guard with the seal.
Peter denied him three times out of fear. He would not venture out a few hours later.
There is no reasonable way this could have been done.
An empty tomb is there to prove my Savior lives. But that is not all!
Hymn#299 He Lives!
2. The Resurrection Is A Daily Reality.
He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His Own.
We walk in His Spirit, the Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead
Romans 8.11
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, He will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
Power
Eternity
Focus
Walking with Jesus the newness of life and in the power of His resurrection does not exempt us from deep problems in life. Many times these problems are painful beyond description as we join in the sharinga in the fellowship of His suffering.
Paul, the apostle wrote to the Philippians 3.10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of His resurrection and participation in His sufferings, becoming like Him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
Deep problems, complicated life issues, unspeakable pain come to us as we travel on our journey. The best gift we can receive from others is for them to just listen. How I appreciate and love my listening friends!
While I try and be there as a pastor and as a friend to those who need someone, I know I fall short at times.
Jesus is the best listener ever! He is there today.
Because He Lives
Hymn# 292
3. The Resurrection Is Our Future Hope.
Our Blessed Hope.
Titus 2.11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.
Our future and those who have died believing
I Thessalonians 4.13 Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. 15 According to the LORD’s Own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the LORD, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the LORD Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the LORD in the air. And so we will be with the LORD forever.18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Our Longing
II Timothy 4.8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the LORD, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing. NIV
in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing. NASB
Our Welcome into our Eternal Home
II Peter 1.11
and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
New Living Translation
Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Berean Bible
a lavish reception
Contemporary English Version
a glorious welcome
Weymouth
a triumphant admission
Message
Way wide open
When We All Get To Heaven
Hymn# 123
I
John 20.1-20
From the pit of despair to being overjoyed!
You talk about a roller coaster of emotions! Arguing who was going to be the greatest, even the mother of James and John putting in a word for her son’s’ positions in the kingdom, the Triumphal Entry on Palm Sunday.
Then the arrest in the Garden of Gethsamene, the crucifixion the next morning, hiding for fear of the Jews over the weekend. Then this! He is alive!
It is hard to capture the full gambit of emotions those 11 disciples and the women had that day. Mary went to the Tomb thinking He was dead. She was looking for His dead body. The disciples were in between shock and despair and not knowing what to do.
Out of the tomb He came with grace and majesty, He is alive!!!
Hymn #289 Christ the LORD is Risen Today
1. The Resurrection Is A Fact.
The Tomb in Jerusalem is empty! Jesus is alive!
Q
We take it by faith with a great blessing. Jesus told His Disciples that.
John 20.24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in His hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” In other words, “I am not taking your word. I need to see for myself and I need to touch Him.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see My hands. Reach out your hand and put it into My side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”
29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen Me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
What we take by faith, the early followers of Jesus took by seeing, by fact.
Some apologetics have reasoned out the ridiculous proposal by the Jewish Leaders to the Roman Guard.
Matthew 28.11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.
First the disciples were in hiding for fear of the Jews.
There was no way they would even think about being seen, no less risk their lives to perpetuate a fraud.
It was the feast of Passover and unleavened bread. They would never touch a dead body. Peter maintained this until Acts 10.
They were emotionally exhausted.
They would have had to face the Roman Guard with the seal.
Peter denied him three times out of fear. He would not venture out a few hours later.
There is no reasonable way this could have been done.
An empty tomb is there to prove my Savior lives. But that is not all!
Hymn#299 He Lives!
2. The Resurrection Is A Daily Reality.
He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His Own.
We walk in His Spirit, the Spirit that raised Christ Jesus from the dead
Romans 8.11
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, He will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
Power
Eternity
Focus
Walking with Jesus the newness of life and in the power of His resurrection does not exempt us from deep problems in life. Many times these problems are painful beyond description as we join in the sharinga in the fellowship of His suffering.
Paul, the apostle wrote to the Philippians 3.10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of His resurrection and participation in His sufferings, becoming like Him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
Deep problems, complicated life issues, unspeakable pain come to us as we travel on our journey. The best gift we can receive from others is for them to just listen. How I appreciate and love my listening friends!
While I try and be there as a pastor and as a friend to those who need someone, I know I fall short at times.
Jesus is the best listener ever! He is there today.
Because He Lives
Hymn# 292
3. The Resurrection Is Our Future Hope.
Our Blessed Hope.
Titus 2.11 For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people. 12 It teaches us to say “No” to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, 13 while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good.
Our future and those who have died believing
I Thessalonians 4.13 Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. 15 According to the LORD’s Own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the LORD, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the LORD Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the LORD in the air. And so we will be with the LORD forever.18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Our Longing
II Timothy 4.8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the LORD, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing. NIV
in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing. NASB
Our Welcome into our Eternal Home
II Peter 1.11
and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
New Living Translation
Then God will give you a grand entrance into the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Berean Bible
a lavish reception
Contemporary English Version
a glorious welcome
Weymouth
a triumphant admission
Message
Way wide open
When We All Get To Heaven
Hymn# 123
I
Tuesday, April 2, 2019
Is there an advantage and growing up in a Christian home?
Is There An Advantage Growing Up In A Christian Home?
Romans 3.1-26
What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.
Translate that to our setting. Is there an advantage in growing up in a Christian Home?
Much in every way!
1. They have been entrusted with the very Words of God.
Train up a child...
Proverbs 22.6 Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Dedicate
Start him off on the right track
Prayer
Seeing it in action
Dad
Nanny
Mom before we would leave for school.
Mealtimes
My girls as well.
A few months ago we had a sleepover ar Poppa’s. I heard them pray. I remembered praying with their Mom at nighttime, my parents praying with me.
Stealing, lying, cheating things that are abhorrent.
My Dad was a man of integrity in all his business dealings.
Remember a friend got a wrong quote on a vehicle, a nice used vehicle he was buying and went and bragged about it. He even said that the young salesman would probably lose his job for it. He said it smiling. Remember thinking that my Dad would never do that!
When my daughter worked in Nationwide’s Office in Huntington a well dressed pastor came in, with an expensive vehicle he wanted to insure. Problem was his wife had three accidents. My daughter tried to explain to him that as long as they were husband and wife New York State Law was that she had to be included on any auto policy. They went back and forth as he tried to get her to commit insurance fraud. She told me when he left I said, “My Dad would never do that! Not my Dad!”
Entrusted= to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in
To have a moral and religious reference.
The blessing of the Christian Community. Not perfect, but I know I was loved.
People cared about me, they cared about my soul.
Arnie Finch, Sunday School Teacher, Board Member, Catcher on our church softball team.
Inter generational
The right kind of heroes.
Harold Post
Paul mentioned to Timothy “how from infancy you have known the holy writings, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” 2 Timothy 3.15. He remembered what a blessing it was for Timothy to have a family history rich in faith. “I recall your sincere faith that was alive first in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and I am sure is in you” 2 Timothy 1.5.
2. The law makes us conscious of sin. -v.20
If you have been entrusted with the very words of God then you will be constantly aware of wrong doing.
My heart goes out to those who have the entrusted Word of God in their hearts because they know what is right. They may reject it but they know.
3. Pray for the Prodigals!
3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:
“So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
Pray! Pray! Pray!
Pray they will be awakened, that they will return to the LORD.
Pray as we approach Easter they will not just remember the new clothes or chocolates but that the Holy Spirit, The Hound of Heaven, will woo them. Pray that in the night God will speak to their hearts.
Read Luke 15. Ask God for the Prodigals in your life.
Romans 3.1-26
What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? Much in every way! First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.
Translate that to our setting. Is there an advantage in growing up in a Christian Home?
Much in every way!
1. They have been entrusted with the very Words of God.
Train up a child...
Proverbs 22.6 Train up a child in the way he should go,
And when he is old he will not depart from it.
Dedicate
Start him off on the right track
Prayer
Seeing it in action
Dad
Nanny
Mom before we would leave for school.
Mealtimes
My girls as well.
A few months ago we had a sleepover ar Poppa’s. I heard them pray. I remembered praying with their Mom at nighttime, my parents praying with me.
Stealing, lying, cheating things that are abhorrent.
My Dad was a man of integrity in all his business dealings.
Remember a friend got a wrong quote on a vehicle, a nice used vehicle he was buying and went and bragged about it. He even said that the young salesman would probably lose his job for it. He said it smiling. Remember thinking that my Dad would never do that!
When my daughter worked in Nationwide’s Office in Huntington a well dressed pastor came in, with an expensive vehicle he wanted to insure. Problem was his wife had three accidents. My daughter tried to explain to him that as long as they were husband and wife New York State Law was that she had to be included on any auto policy. They went back and forth as he tried to get her to commit insurance fraud. She told me when he left I said, “My Dad would never do that! Not my Dad!”
Entrusted= to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in
To have a moral and religious reference.
The blessing of the Christian Community. Not perfect, but I know I was loved.
People cared about me, they cared about my soul.
Arnie Finch, Sunday School Teacher, Board Member, Catcher on our church softball team.
Inter generational
The right kind of heroes.
Harold Post
Paul mentioned to Timothy “how from infancy you have known the holy writings, which are able to give you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” 2 Timothy 3.15. He remembered what a blessing it was for Timothy to have a family history rich in faith. “I recall your sincere faith that was alive first in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and I am sure is in you” 2 Timothy 1.5.
2. The law makes us conscious of sin. -v.20
If you have been entrusted with the very words of God then you will be constantly aware of wrong doing.
My heart goes out to those who have the entrusted Word of God in their hearts because they know what is right. They may reject it but they know.
3. Pray for the Prodigals!
3 What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? 4 Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:
“So that you may be proved right when you speak and prevail when you judge.”
Pray! Pray! Pray!
Pray they will be awakened, that they will return to the LORD.
Pray as we approach Easter they will not just remember the new clothes or chocolates but that the Holy Spirit, The Hound of Heaven, will woo them. Pray that in the night God will speak to their hearts.
Read Luke 15. Ask God for the Prodigals in your life.
Monday, March 4, 2019
Do not be afraid
Do Not Be Afraid
Acts 27.21-26w
‘Do not be afraid, Paul.’
Fear is a powerful emotion. It can cripple us. It can immoblize us.
It can freeze us in our tracks and make us worry. Fear and worry are cousins. They often come together in our minds. They can cause such confusion! They are merciless!
Paul, the Apostle, had faced three Roman Legal Trials/ Hearings as well as Jewish one. Now he is on his way to appear before Caesar! On his way to Rome. Rome was far away. Getting there was not easy. He would be placed with the centurion on a cargo ship.
On his way they are shipwrecked in a storm. But Paul is given encouragement.
It was a simple word. It was from an angel of God. God was speaking to Paul through His messenger. God speaks to us today through His Word, Jesus Christ and His written Word, the Scriptures and by His Spirit.
Proverbs 10.25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone,
but the righteous stand firm forever. They were blessed to have the prisoner, Paul, the Apostle, on board. They were saved because of Him and God ‘s Kingdom.
Do not be afraid.
1. Do Not Be Afraid of the Present.
Present Sufferings
Paul wrote to the Church at Rome,
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8.18
They are real. We dare not deny them. That always make matters worse.
They are painful. We know that from experience.
They are temporal. For now. In this immediate fixed time. Chronological Time vs. Eternity Timeless
There is the glory that will be revealed in us. View, brightness splendor ... the light of His Glory opening up our eyes, all things revealed. Knowing as we are fully known, all the details and connections.
Present Storms
We go through them if we are following Jesus.
Jesus can calm the storm.
More often He calms us in the storm, brining us through the storm.
He also can bring us around the storm.
We will not drown! Horrible fear if you have ever been held under water.
Matthew 8.27 The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey Him!"
v.25 LORD, save us! We are going to drown!
That was a boat ride they will never forget!
Present Political Scene
Worldwide and here at home... wars
Haiti Trip 2 weeks from tomorrow: postponed! Demonstrations have begun again.
Sad thing is there are some great needs right now! We could help. But we are being prevented from relief work due to violence and danger to our safety and security.
Of course God reigns! 9,600 gallons of water delivered in a drought. Roof going on the church. Another house being built.
Present Danger
When I go to the city I am reminded we are still in a war on terror. Right after 9-11, my daughter Tina, 20 years old, “Dad, this looks like a war zone!”
Driving is dangerous today!
This Day!
2. Do Not Be Afraid of the Future.
He holds the future.
What if....
I know...
David about Saul:
But David thought to himself, "One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul... I Samuel 27.1
I don’t know if I am going to make it...
Mark 4.38 “Teacher, don’t You care if we drown?”
Oh yes He cares!
Does Jesus Care?
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
Too deeply for mirth or song,
As the burdens press, and the cares distress,
And the way grows weary and long?
Chorus:
Oh, yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.
Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight fades into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?
Does Jesus care when I've tried and failed
To resist some temptation strong;
When for my deep grief there is no relief,
Though my tears flow all the night long?
Does Jesus care when I've said "goodbye"
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks—
Is it aught to Him? Does He see?
The day after Jesus died, the morning He rose.
John 20.19. 19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
Jesus came to where they were.
He comes to where we are! He meets us. He gives us His peace!
Notice Paul is talking about his encouragement while he is encouraging the crew and passengers and soldiers.
3. Do Not Be Afraid of Tomorrow.
He holds tomorrow!
Matthew 6.34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Worry= to be anxious, to be troubled with care, to seek to promote one's interests in caring or providing for
God will take care of you! He will supply all your needs.
We are in a constant struggle with the fear of tomorrow. There are many types of struggles we are facing lately in the world. Some affects us personally (criticism, losing our jobs, our homes, the futures of our children, getting old, getting ill, etc.) and others affects the world in general (wars, hungers, weather climate, etc.)
Romans 8.31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
X afraid to not be afraid
Acts 27.21-26w
‘Do not be afraid, Paul.’
Fear is a powerful emotion. It can cripple us. It can immoblize us.
It can freeze us in our tracks and make us worry. Fear and worry are cousins. They often come together in our minds. They can cause such confusion! They are merciless!
Paul, the Apostle, had faced three Roman Legal Trials/ Hearings as well as Jewish one. Now he is on his way to appear before Caesar! On his way to Rome. Rome was far away. Getting there was not easy. He would be placed with the centurion on a cargo ship.
On his way they are shipwrecked in a storm. But Paul is given encouragement.
It was a simple word. It was from an angel of God. God was speaking to Paul through His messenger. God speaks to us today through His Word, Jesus Christ and His written Word, the Scriptures and by His Spirit.
Proverbs 10.25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone,
but the righteous stand firm forever. They were blessed to have the prisoner, Paul, the Apostle, on board. They were saved because of Him and God ‘s Kingdom.
Do not be afraid.
1. Do Not Be Afraid of the Present.
Present Sufferings
Paul wrote to the Church at Rome,
I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8.18
They are real. We dare not deny them. That always make matters worse.
They are painful. We know that from experience.
They are temporal. For now. In this immediate fixed time. Chronological Time vs. Eternity Timeless
There is the glory that will be revealed in us. View, brightness splendor ... the light of His Glory opening up our eyes, all things revealed. Knowing as we are fully known, all the details and connections.
Present Storms
We go through them if we are following Jesus.
Jesus can calm the storm.
More often He calms us in the storm, brining us through the storm.
He also can bring us around the storm.
We will not drown! Horrible fear if you have ever been held under water.
Matthew 8.27 The men were amazed and asked, "What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey Him!"
v.25 LORD, save us! We are going to drown!
That was a boat ride they will never forget!
Present Political Scene
Worldwide and here at home... wars
Haiti Trip 2 weeks from tomorrow: postponed! Demonstrations have begun again.
Sad thing is there are some great needs right now! We could help. But we are being prevented from relief work due to violence and danger to our safety and security.
Of course God reigns! 9,600 gallons of water delivered in a drought. Roof going on the church. Another house being built.
Present Danger
When I go to the city I am reminded we are still in a war on terror. Right after 9-11, my daughter Tina, 20 years old, “Dad, this looks like a war zone!”
Driving is dangerous today!
This Day!
2. Do Not Be Afraid of the Future.
He holds the future.
What if....
I know...
David about Saul:
But David thought to himself, "One of these days I will be destroyed by the hand of Saul... I Samuel 27.1
I don’t know if I am going to make it...
Mark 4.38 “Teacher, don’t You care if we drown?”
Oh yes He cares!
Does Jesus Care?
Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
Too deeply for mirth or song,
As the burdens press, and the cares distress,
And the way grows weary and long?
Chorus:
Oh, yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary, the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.
Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight fades into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?
Does Jesus care when I've tried and failed
To resist some temptation strong;
When for my deep grief there is no relief,
Though my tears flow all the night long?
Does Jesus care when I've said "goodbye"
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks—
Is it aught to Him? Does He see?
The day after Jesus died, the morning He rose.
John 20.19. 19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”
Jesus came to where they were.
He comes to where we are! He meets us. He gives us His peace!
Notice Paul is talking about his encouragement while he is encouraging the crew and passengers and soldiers.
3. Do Not Be Afraid of Tomorrow.
He holds tomorrow!
Matthew 6.34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Worry= to be anxious, to be troubled with care, to seek to promote one's interests in caring or providing for
God will take care of you! He will supply all your needs.
We are in a constant struggle with the fear of tomorrow. There are many types of struggles we are facing lately in the world. Some affects us personally (criticism, losing our jobs, our homes, the futures of our children, getting old, getting ill, etc.) and others affects the world in general (wars, hungers, weather climate, etc.)
Romans 8.31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
X afraid to not be afraid
Sunday, February 17, 2019
Innocent of All Charges
Innocent Of All Charges
Acts 24.25 I found he had done nothing deserving of death, but because he made his appeal to the Emperor I decided to send him to Rome. 26 But I have nothing definite to write to His Majesty about him. Therefore I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that as a result of this investigation I may have something to write.
27 For I think it is unreasonable to send a prisoner on to Rome without specifying the charges against him.”
Romans 8.33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.
Festus had a problem. Paul was in prison.
The Jews had perjuried themselves by false charges against Paul. No way were they going to be dealt with. Many times we see people getting away with breaking the law because they are political assets.
If Paul agreed to return to Jerusalem he would never make it. He would be ambushed, or killed when he got there. God showed him that. Luke reports that the same plan was intact as it was when they brought him from Jerusalem to Caesarea.
Paul appealed to Caesar. A Roman citizen could do that.
The only problem was that there needed to be a document stating the charges to accompany the prisoner who would then stand before the Roman Emperor. There were no basis of any charges because Paul had done nothing wrong. Paul, the Apostle had put the Jewish Ruling Council and especially the Roman Rulers in a quandary.
I am not here this morning to lecture you on the laws of the Roman Empire nor am I here to discuss the legalities of these proceedings under Roman law. My friend, Rudy Migliore, would be more qualified to do that. Nor have I ever been on trial except to testify. A number of times I have been asked to testify in everything from a deposition to adoption cases to US Immigration Court for people seeking religious asylum from persecution. All the proceedings were filled with drama and suspense. These proceedings were conducted by the laws of the land.
There is something very interesting however that stands out in the among the ridiculousness of these trials of Paul. There is truth that emerges. The Truth always is known sooner or later. Let an entity or a person go through the fire. Fire cleanses. Fire refines. Fire purifies. The process is not pleasant to the entity or the person but it does what nothing else can do. And is what God uses it to make us more like Jesus.
Joe Haldenwang ... When you sterilizing a surgical intrument it goes into a steam on a plate wrapped in blue plastic and then deposits of impurities are cleansed out by hot steam. You can sterilize as well them inside and outside by a peroxide process which burn out impurities chemically.
Going through the fire, God is cleansing, making you pure.
Paul was going through trials before the Sanhedrin and the Roman courts of Felix and Festus. But inside he was going through fiery trails which cleanse the soul.
He was innocent of the charges...
1. His life was exemplary.
Blameless
There was nothing in his life that he could be accused of and have it stick.
He wrote about the overseer, or the shepherd of the flock with this same idea.
I Timothy 3.1-7 If anyone wants to provide leadership in the church, good! But there are preconditions: A leader must be blameless, committed to his wife, cool and collected, accessible, and hospitable. He must know what he’s talking about, not be overfond of wine, not pushy but gentle, not thin-skinned, not money-hungry. He must handle his own affairs well, attentive to his own children and having their respect. For if someone is unable to handle his own affairs, how can he take care of God’s church? He must not be a new believer, lest the position go to his head and the Devil trip him up. Outsiders must think well of him, or else the Devil will figure out a way to lure him into his trap.
Faultless How Jesus will present us to the Father.
We should seek to live lives like this, we may be accused but nothing sticks.
We should aim to reflect Jesus in our attitudes and choices.
Our life is an example.
I Timothy 4.12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.
2. His Integrity was Stellar
*In This World
A good reputation with outsiders.
A good man whose life cannot be spoken against
A man of blameless reputation.
A man who is so good that people cannot rightly criticize him.
Above reproach.
If I could change anything in the way we interview candidates for ordination it would be to secure a list of their neighbors and ask the people who live next store to him what kind of a character is this guy?
Then I would ask his family to tell the board.
Then I would ask for a list of all the places he worked and contact them and ask, “Would you hire him back if he asked?”
Then I would ask for references from his bank, wherever he conducts business, his mechanic, his associates, where eats... I would ask the waitresses, “Is he generous when he tips?”
Personal Integrity
Before God
Before people
Free from charges
God’s people sometimes a treated like they are guilty even though they are innocent. Remember Joseph, David, Daniel and Jeremiah not to mention our Lord Jesus Christ.
Their stories.
Paul was experiencing this...
Luke 21.12 “But before all this, they will seize you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison, and you will be brought before kings and governors, and all on account of My Name. 13 And so you will bear testimony to me.
3. His Hope was In Christ.
On Christ the Solid Rock...
His hope was not in organized religion.
His hope was not in the government.
Ronald Reagan said the 9 scariest words ot hear: ”I’m from the government and I am here to help.”
His Hope was in the LORD.
He was seeking the Kingdom of God.
We will be frustrating ourselves if we are not seeking first His Kingdom.
Jesus said that He would build His Church and the gates of hell would not prevail against it.
Seeking His Kingdom first is our part in Him building His Church. Praying, trusting in Him, looking to Him, leaning on Him.
Live in such a way that you would be convicted of being a Christian if you were ever on trial, but you would be free of all other charges. That is the legacy of Jesus and Paul, who wrote, “Follow me as I follow Christ.” I Corinthians 11.1
Sunday, January 27, 2019
What Is Your Assignment?
What Have You Been Assigned To Do?
Acts 22.10 “‘What shall I do, LORD?’ I asked.
“ ‘Get up,’ the LORD said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’
School Assignments
Assignment Pad
Military Assignments
Work Assignments
Workout Assignments on Track and Cross Country
assigned= appointed
Station
Ordain
To put in a certain order
1. We are all ordained to bear fruit. John 15.16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit--fruit that will last--and so that whatever you ask in My Name the Father will give you.
I have appeared to you for this purpose… —Acts 26:16
The vision Paul had on the road to Damascus was not a passing emotional experience, but a vision that had very clear and emphatic directions for him. And Paul stated, “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19). Our Lord said to Paul, in effect, “Your whole life is to be overpowered or subdued by Me; you are to have no end, no aim, and no purpose but Mine.” And the Lord also says to us, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go…” (John 15:16). Oswald Chambers
2. We are all stationed here.
On Long Island
In Metro NY
Revelation 2.13 I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.
Wherever you are on the journey.
Paul’s training and upbringing and citizenship was all part of what he was to do.
3. What Design Does God Have in Mind For You?
Ephesians 2. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Psalm 139.16 6
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
He has wonder filled plans.
He is wonderful.
His Name is Wonderful
Joseph, even when it seemed too late, God...
4. He Leads Us Step By Step
“ ‘Get up,’ the LORD said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’
Paul was not given a message or a doctrine to proclaim. He was brought into a vivid, personal, overpowering relationship with Jesus Christ. Acts 26:16 is tremendously compelling “…to make you a minister and a witness….” There would be nothing there without a personal relationship. Paul was devoted to a Person, not to a cause. He was absolutely Jesus Christ’s. He saw nothing else and he lived for nothing else. “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified”
(1 Corinthians 2:2). Oswald Chambers
5. It is A Wonder Filled Journey!
Edie, can you come up, Albert escort her. Edie’s granddaughter, Alyssa, asking me to offciate her wedding in the fall.
The Credit Union on Thursday. The money for the roof going down
The work in Haiti Burl Ives and the Korean Orphan Choir, Bob Pirece, Korean War, Orphans, Samaritan’s Purse... To Haiti With Love... grew up listening to that choir.
Children who grew up here part of the church.
Psalm 16.6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Surely I have a delightful inheritance.
Those moments when God pulls back the curtain, peels back the sky.
Precious Memories my Dad’s records and mine! The Victrola... not just the sounds but the stories behind them... sharing one with Verlene this past Sunday! We were in a service at the Brentwood Church back in 1970, together. I was 13. Little did we know that 45 years later I would be her pastor... down in Fort Jacques, Stephanie Bauer, Ed’s wife has family! 15 minutes away from Bellevue! We will meet them. Whi knows what God is doing in your life?! If He told you you wouldn’t t believe it! The wisest th8ng you can do today is to trust Him
It is a great journey! The best is yet to come! You say I am old, a few years left... yes! The best is yet to come. My friend Patty, who has been a nurse on our trips to Haiti, Ernie, her husband went to be with the LORD yesterday morning.. He is there, the best... but it is yet to come! Reunion!
Acts 22.10 “‘What shall I do, LORD?’ I asked.
“ ‘Get up,’ the LORD said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’
School Assignments
Assignment Pad
Military Assignments
Work Assignments
Workout Assignments on Track and Cross Country
assigned= appointed
Station
Ordain
To put in a certain order
1. We are all ordained to bear fruit. John 15.16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit--fruit that will last--and so that whatever you ask in My Name the Father will give you.
I have appeared to you for this purpose… —Acts 26:16
The vision Paul had on the road to Damascus was not a passing emotional experience, but a vision that had very clear and emphatic directions for him. And Paul stated, “I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision” (Acts 26:19). Our Lord said to Paul, in effect, “Your whole life is to be overpowered or subdued by Me; you are to have no end, no aim, and no purpose but Mine.” And the Lord also says to us, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go…” (John 15:16). Oswald Chambers
2. We are all stationed here.
On Long Island
In Metro NY
Revelation 2.13 I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.
Wherever you are on the journey.
Paul’s training and upbringing and citizenship was all part of what he was to do.
3. What Design Does God Have in Mind For You?
Ephesians 2. 10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Psalm 139.16 6
Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
He has wonder filled plans.
He is wonderful.
His Name is Wonderful
Joseph, even when it seemed too late, God...
4. He Leads Us Step By Step
“ ‘Get up,’ the LORD said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’
Paul was not given a message or a doctrine to proclaim. He was brought into a vivid, personal, overpowering relationship with Jesus Christ. Acts 26:16 is tremendously compelling “…to make you a minister and a witness….” There would be nothing there without a personal relationship. Paul was devoted to a Person, not to a cause. He was absolutely Jesus Christ’s. He saw nothing else and he lived for nothing else. “For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified”
(1 Corinthians 2:2). Oswald Chambers
5. It is A Wonder Filled Journey!
Edie, can you come up, Albert escort her. Edie’s granddaughter, Alyssa, asking me to offciate her wedding in the fall.
The Credit Union on Thursday. The money for the roof going down
The work in Haiti Burl Ives and the Korean Orphan Choir, Bob Pirece, Korean War, Orphans, Samaritan’s Purse... To Haiti With Love... grew up listening to that choir.
Children who grew up here part of the church.
Psalm 16.6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Surely I have a delightful inheritance.
Those moments when God pulls back the curtain, peels back the sky.
Precious Memories my Dad’s records and mine! The Victrola... not just the sounds but the stories behind them... sharing one with Verlene this past Sunday! We were in a service at the Brentwood Church back in 1970, together. I was 13. Little did we know that 45 years later I would be her pastor... down in Fort Jacques, Stephanie Bauer, Ed’s wife has family! 15 minutes away from Bellevue! We will meet them. Whi knows what God is doing in your life?! If He told you you wouldn’t t believe it! The wisest th8ng you can do today is to trust Him
It is a great journey! The best is yet to come! You say I am old, a few years left... yes! The best is yet to come. My friend Patty, who has been a nurse on our trips to Haiti, Ernie, her husband went to be with the LORD yesterday morning.. He is there, the best... but it is yet to come! Reunion!
Sunday, January 13, 2019
Christian Grief
Christian Grief
Acts 20.36 When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. 37 They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. 38 What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
*We grieve.
Grieved= to cause intense pain
to be in anguish
be tormented
to distress one's self
A consuming grief
There is no other human emotion like grief. Because we were created for eternal life, because God has placed eternity in the hearts of men, death is unnatural to our make up. We embrace life. We love life. When we grieve we feel out of it. We feel like there is this cloud over us. We are quiet inwardly as we try and wrap our minds around what is happening. We do all we can to keep the person’s memory alive. We sleep because we are both exhausted and it is an escape. We wake up and hope we were dreaming. Then we realize we were not. There is a restlessness as well. Our hearts hurt. Our minds reel. We feel down. This is not what we were created for.
Sin brought death. When we receive Christ Jesus we enter into eternal life. Paul describes death as our last enemy. We long to be set free from it and one day we will.
Revelation 21.4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Christians grieve.
*Not like the rest of men who have hope.
There is great difference, vastly difference.
We get down and feel painful emotion.
We cry.
Wept= to mourn, weep, lament, weeping as the sign of pain and grief, to mourn for the dead
Sometimes Christians get depressed.
Some Christians can even get overcome by grief.
We have hope.
I Thessalonians 4.13
expectation of good
in the Christian sense: joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation
This is a message of hope! We are people of hope! Christ’s Return is refered to as Our Blessed Hope.
Our grief may last our whole life but it is only for this life. In the life to come eternal life with no death. No cemeteries in that city!
1. Loss is a part of life, even the Christian Life.
*It is a fact.
We must face it.
This sounds harsh but it laid out here by Paul, the apostle.
He was the same one who, carried along by the Holy Spirit wrote:
I Thessalonians 4.13-18
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the Word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
*It is within the will of God.
Jesus went through it.
Jesus rose from the dead.
We will go through it.
Believers in Jesus will rise again.
*It is not forever... in eternity.
Vinnie Scardingo’s funeral on Friday Evening. Seeing lots of my friends. He is in heaven. His family misses him.
Art said the last thing he said to him was, “See you later.”... then he said, “And I will.”
It will be swallowed up.
II Corinthians 5.4
While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it's not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life.
2. Grief is due to loss.
Grief
deep sorrow, especially that caused by someone's death.
mental suffering and distress caused by losing someone we love.
Grief is a deep emotional response to a great loss.
It feels like a heavy weight in our heart.
Saying our goodbyes.
Praying Our Goodbyes
By Joyce Rupp
3. It is hard to be real.
Grief makes us real.
Pain and sorrow and suffering bring reality to the soul.
Interesting, is it not, what suffering begets?
Love someone and your heart will be broken. Wrap your heart around a puppy or a bird or any pet and eventually your heart will be broken. That is the price of love. It is worth the price. C.S. Lewis
The Velvateen Rabbit.
HERE was once a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he was really splendid. He was fat and bunchy, as a rabbit should be; his coat was spotted brown and white, he had real thread whiskers, and his ears were lined with pink sateen. On Christmas morning, when he sat wedged in the top of the Boy's stocking, with a sprig of holly between his paws, the effect was charming.
There were other things in the stocking, nuts and oranges and a toy engine, and chocolate almonds and a clockwork mouse, but the Rabbit was quite the best of all. For at least two hours the Boy loved him, and then Aunts and Uncles came to dinner, and there was a great rustling of tissue paper and unwrapping of parcels, and in the excitement of looking at all the new presents the Velveteen Rabbit was forgotten.
Christmas Morning
For a long time he lived in the toy cupboard or on the nursery floor, and no one thought very much about him. He was naturally shy, and being only made of velveteen, some of the more expensive toys quite snubbed him. The mechanical toys were very superior, and looked down upon every one else; they were full of modern ideas, and pretended they were real. The model boat, who had lived through two seasons and lost most of his paint, caught the tone from them and never missed an opportunity of referring to his rigging in technical terms. The Rabbit could not claim to be a model of anything, for he didn't know that real rabbits existed; he thought they were all stuffed with sawdust like himself, and he understood that sawdust was quite out-of-date and should never be mentioned in modern circles. Even Timothy, the jointed wooden lion, who was made by the disabled soldiers, and should have had broader views, put on airs and pretended he was connected with Government. Between them all the poor little Rabbit was made to feel himself very insignificant and commonplace, and the only person who was kind to him at all was the Skin Horse.
The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others. He was so old that his brown coat was bald in patches and showed the seams underneath, and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces. He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away, and he knew that they were only toys, and would never turn into anything else. For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.
"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
"I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the Skin Horse only smiled.
The Skin Horse Tells His Story
"The Boy's Uncle made me Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always."
The Rabbit sighed. He thought it would be a long time before this magic called Real happened to him. He longed to become Real, to know what it felt like; and yet the idea of growing shabby and losing his eyes and whiskers was rather sad. He wished that he could become it without these uncomfortable things happening to him.
That cannot happen without those uncomfortable things happening.
Grief and the pain that accompanies it makes us real.
Our pain is our greatest assett. Just look at the stories behind the hymns.
This is why Paul wrote that he wanted to know the fellowship of sharing in the sufferings of Christ.
It hurts.
It cleanses us.
It is a fellowship.
The mechanical toys were very superior, and looked down upon every one else; they were full of modern ideas, and pretended they were real. The model boat, who had lived through two seasons and lost most of his paint, caught the tone from them and never missed an opportunity of referring to his rigging in technical terms.
Our grief and pain makes us humble, meek and lowly. It makes us like Jesus. He showed His Disciples His scars.
It fits us for heaven. It equips us to help others in their journey, Blessed Hope Journey Grief Group. We open our hearts.
Bible Study, Discipleship Group... open our hearts... in those groups we can be honest and transparent. We all need that!
4. Heaven Will Be The Ultimate Reality.
All things will be revealed... the mysteries of life which we can at best guess about now.
We will know even as we are fully known.
Sin and all its consequences and effects will be done away with.
I long for that day.
I have longed for that Day.
Revelation 21.1-4
Christians grieve but not like the rest of men who have no hope. We have a Blessed Hope. One day... and Oh what a day that will be.
Acts 20.36 When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. 37 They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him. 38 What grieved them most was his statement that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to the ship.
*We grieve.
Grieved= to cause intense pain
to be in anguish
be tormented
to distress one's self
A consuming grief
There is no other human emotion like grief. Because we were created for eternal life, because God has placed eternity in the hearts of men, death is unnatural to our make up. We embrace life. We love life. When we grieve we feel out of it. We feel like there is this cloud over us. We are quiet inwardly as we try and wrap our minds around what is happening. We do all we can to keep the person’s memory alive. We sleep because we are both exhausted and it is an escape. We wake up and hope we were dreaming. Then we realize we were not. There is a restlessness as well. Our hearts hurt. Our minds reel. We feel down. This is not what we were created for.
Sin brought death. When we receive Christ Jesus we enter into eternal life. Paul describes death as our last enemy. We long to be set free from it and one day we will.
Revelation 21.4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Christians grieve.
*Not like the rest of men who have hope.
There is great difference, vastly difference.
We get down and feel painful emotion.
We cry.
Wept= to mourn, weep, lament, weeping as the sign of pain and grief, to mourn for the dead
Sometimes Christians get depressed.
Some Christians can even get overcome by grief.
We have hope.
I Thessalonians 4.13
expectation of good
in the Christian sense: joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation
This is a message of hope! We are people of hope! Christ’s Return is refered to as Our Blessed Hope.
Our grief may last our whole life but it is only for this life. In the life to come eternal life with no death. No cemeteries in that city!
1. Loss is a part of life, even the Christian Life.
*It is a fact.
We must face it.
This sounds harsh but it laid out here by Paul, the apostle.
He was the same one who, carried along by the Holy Spirit wrote:
I Thessalonians 4.13-18
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the Word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
*It is within the will of God.
Jesus went through it.
Jesus rose from the dead.
We will go through it.
Believers in Jesus will rise again.
*It is not forever... in eternity.
Vinnie Scardingo’s funeral on Friday Evening. Seeing lots of my friends. He is in heaven. His family misses him.
Art said the last thing he said to him was, “See you later.”... then he said, “And I will.”
It will be swallowed up.
II Corinthians 5.4
While we live in these earthly bodies, we groan and sigh, but it's not that we want to die and get rid of these bodies that clothe us. Rather, we want to put on our new bodies so that these dying bodies will be swallowed up by life.
2. Grief is due to loss.
Grief
deep sorrow, especially that caused by someone's death.
mental suffering and distress caused by losing someone we love.
Grief is a deep emotional response to a great loss.
It feels like a heavy weight in our heart.
Saying our goodbyes.
Praying Our Goodbyes
By Joyce Rupp
3. It is hard to be real.
Grief makes us real.
Pain and sorrow and suffering bring reality to the soul.
Interesting, is it not, what suffering begets?
Love someone and your heart will be broken. Wrap your heart around a puppy or a bird or any pet and eventually your heart will be broken. That is the price of love. It is worth the price. C.S. Lewis
The Velvateen Rabbit.
HERE was once a velveteen rabbit, and in the beginning he was really splendid. He was fat and bunchy, as a rabbit should be; his coat was spotted brown and white, he had real thread whiskers, and his ears were lined with pink sateen. On Christmas morning, when he sat wedged in the top of the Boy's stocking, with a sprig of holly between his paws, the effect was charming.
There were other things in the stocking, nuts and oranges and a toy engine, and chocolate almonds and a clockwork mouse, but the Rabbit was quite the best of all. For at least two hours the Boy loved him, and then Aunts and Uncles came to dinner, and there was a great rustling of tissue paper and unwrapping of parcels, and in the excitement of looking at all the new presents the Velveteen Rabbit was forgotten.
Christmas Morning
For a long time he lived in the toy cupboard or on the nursery floor, and no one thought very much about him. He was naturally shy, and being only made of velveteen, some of the more expensive toys quite snubbed him. The mechanical toys were very superior, and looked down upon every one else; they were full of modern ideas, and pretended they were real. The model boat, who had lived through two seasons and lost most of his paint, caught the tone from them and never missed an opportunity of referring to his rigging in technical terms. The Rabbit could not claim to be a model of anything, for he didn't know that real rabbits existed; he thought they were all stuffed with sawdust like himself, and he understood that sawdust was quite out-of-date and should never be mentioned in modern circles. Even Timothy, the jointed wooden lion, who was made by the disabled soldiers, and should have had broader views, put on airs and pretended he was connected with Government. Between them all the poor little Rabbit was made to feel himself very insignificant and commonplace, and the only person who was kind to him at all was the Skin Horse.
The Skin Horse had lived longer in the nursery than any of the others. He was so old that his brown coat was bald in patches and showed the seams underneath, and most of the hairs in his tail had been pulled out to string bead necklaces. He was wise, for he had seen a long succession of mechanical toys arrive to boast and swagger, and by-and-by break their mainsprings and pass away, and he knew that they were only toys, and would never turn into anything else. For nursery magic is very strange and wonderful, and only those playthings that are old and wise and experienced like the Skin Horse understand all about it.
"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room. "Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
"I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the Skin Horse only smiled.
The Skin Horse Tells His Story
"The Boy's Uncle made me Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always."
The Rabbit sighed. He thought it would be a long time before this magic called Real happened to him. He longed to become Real, to know what it felt like; and yet the idea of growing shabby and losing his eyes and whiskers was rather sad. He wished that he could become it without these uncomfortable things happening to him.
That cannot happen without those uncomfortable things happening.
Grief and the pain that accompanies it makes us real.
Our pain is our greatest assett. Just look at the stories behind the hymns.
This is why Paul wrote that he wanted to know the fellowship of sharing in the sufferings of Christ.
It hurts.
It cleanses us.
It is a fellowship.
The mechanical toys were very superior, and looked down upon every one else; they were full of modern ideas, and pretended they were real. The model boat, who had lived through two seasons and lost most of his paint, caught the tone from them and never missed an opportunity of referring to his rigging in technical terms.
Our grief and pain makes us humble, meek and lowly. It makes us like Jesus. He showed His Disciples His scars.
It fits us for heaven. It equips us to help others in their journey, Blessed Hope Journey Grief Group. We open our hearts.
Bible Study, Discipleship Group... open our hearts... in those groups we can be honest and transparent. We all need that!
4. Heaven Will Be The Ultimate Reality.
All things will be revealed... the mysteries of life which we can at best guess about now.
We will know even as we are fully known.
Sin and all its consequences and effects will be done away with.
I long for that day.
I have longed for that Day.
Revelation 21.1-4
Christians grieve but not like the rest of men who have no hope. We have a Blessed Hope. One day... and Oh what a day that will be.
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