Living in Peace

 

Living In Peace

1 John 4.1-6

I had originally intended to deliver this message on September 11th as we remembered those events of that terrible day. My original thought was to tie in some idea of how world religions tolerate each other and how sometimes things are not always tolerable. Living in peace with one another is a tricky piece of life that cannot be easily done without some careful patience and consideration of other people's points of view. Lets wade into the water.

Jesus Is Real

Some people take baby steps. I like to just jump right in. There really shouldn't be an reason for us in a Christina church to take it easy with the subject of Jesus, like we need to edge our way into the water and let ourselves warm up to the subject matter. Jesus is Real! There. We've said it. And, we mean it. there is no getting around the fact that God sent his one and only son into this world. God so loved the world that Jesus came in the form of a tiny baby and grew up here in order to show everyone the way to follow and learn about who God is. John and the apostles dealt with it first and the problem still exists to this day. There will be those who cannot grasp or comprehend that God has revealed himself in this way. There will be those who preach some other message or teach some other understanding about God. It is a pretty plain cut and simple approach. John makes it clear that if we are speaking with someone and they cannot accept the truth about Jesus, then the spirit of God is not in them. If they can hear and understand what we are saying about Christ, then they know who he is and the spirit of God is upon them. We've talked about the antichrist before. The prevail context here still suggests that John is not referring to a specific person but more intentionally speaks about a spirit. There will be a certain influence over people that will not allow them to accept the message of who Christ is. Here is where our work is the hardest. We need to help other people see that forgiveness and mercy and salvation is something they can only find in Christ. Getting their spiritual eyes to see that, however, is more than a challenge. 

Back Through History

Just in case we have in mind that this is some new thing we are dealing with, let us take a moment to research what the scriptures have to say about that. Did the people listen why Jesus was there preaching and teaching? No, they did not. Why do you think he wound up crucified and a cross? Jesus presented himself as God. His mere presence put him in opposition to man's rule over himself. Governmentally, Caesar and Rome thought they were in power. Religiously, the Jews loved their interpretation of scripture and control over the people more than a relationship with God. Socially, the people didn't know who to follow and wound up shouting for Christ to be crucified. One aspect off living in peace is how we handle that aspect of life on a personal level. Knowing that the world around us won't listen can cause us to feel anxious or angry or sad. We could lash out and make our lives and the lives of those around us a harsh place to exist. Or, we can accept it. 

I am taken back to the Old Testament as I stop to think about that. Isaiah 6 is a place I have come to many times. But, maybe we miss the underlying story here. We see the prophet come to the Temple. He has a vision. He actually sees God. There are angels flying around. Isaiah considers himself unworthy to be there. His lips are touched with a hot coal, signifying that his words and presence before God are accepted. It is an energizing moment. I am invigorated as I read it. We want to think that we have the power to accomplish anything with God on our side. Lets take a look at it.

What is really interesting to me is what exactly God tells Isaiah to go and tell the people.

He doesn't send him with a message that will somehow bring success to all of the matter. Sometime back I was exploring other options denominationally and wondered if I should change church groups. I approached one of sister groups in The Wesleyan Church, a smaller denomination that also roots themselves in the history and teachings of John Wesley. There main office is up in Dublin and I went up there to have a discussion with them about crossing over. The one thing that didn't settle well with me was there outlook on success. Their District Superintendent was rather frank and straightforward about it as well. he explained that success was what they were concerned about. If you aren't having success numerically in your church growth them something was wrong. I just couldn't get that mindset to settle in my soul. Are we in this for the success of it? Is that how we gauge whether what we are doing is the right thing to do? 

God is straightforward with Isaiah. God already knows that the people aren't going to listen. As he tells Isaiah to just out and tell them exactly that. 

Even though God knows many will not listen, he still sends people to speak with them. He could just give up and leave it all behind. But, he doesn't he continues to work with us. He hopes our hearts will listen and be enlightened. God gives us all he has in the form of his Son. And, he wants us to be like Him. 

Living in Peace (When Peace Isn't Possible)

How can we live in peace when it looks like there is no peace to find?

Our brothers and sisters in the faith find this reality everyday in some parts of the world. Depending on the news source, you might see someone with a gun to the head as a person of a different religion seeks to take a life in the name of their God. I have seen a whole line up in a news report. People giving their live for their faith in Jesus Christ at the hands of terrorists. How do we live in peace when a world such this one cannot let us be the people of God we want to be?

We take for granted the freedoms we have here in this country. The United States of America, for the most part, has been a peaceful place to reside. When our own people are not getting upset with each other or some political issue and then taking to the street to burn their own towns to the ground, it can be peaceful. The real question to ask or ponder is - how can we live in peace when people don't want to do so? All we can do is accept the fact that some people will not listen. If they do harm to us, we endure the out lash for the sake of Christ. This is the cross we bear. We accept the fact that they will not hear. We allow them to have eyes that cannot see. We want them to see and hear, but many time they simply will not. That has to be OK. Let God handle them. Leave them in God's hands. 

And be at peace.

More Lovers, More Haters

 

More Lovers, More Haters

1 John 3.11-24

As we have previously covered, the Bible likes to repeat itself. Sometimes that repetition comes very soon after just hearing something about the very matter it is repeating. John just spoke about the subjects of love and hatred in the previous chapter. That was a couple of weeks ago for us. Now, he returns to those subjects having elaborated on other points of interest. Sometimes its worth taking another look at a subject after having added to the discourse. Lets see what John is talking about as we delve into more love and more hate. 

The Message Is Still The Same

When Solomon uttered words like "there is nothing new under the sun" he meant it. Every word of it. When people come along and claim they have something new to present about God, I shudder. I also tend to still have that look that a teenager pulls out when their father is trying to explain something to them and they really don't want to listen. You probably know exactly what I'm talking about. (I've seen that face plenty on Sunday morning.) Maybe you have done it yourself. But, unlike the unruly teenager, we as Christians should be encouraged and invigorated by the subject of God's Love. And, yet, I can still recall hearing the teenage cry from answering the question "What did you learn in Sunday School today?" To which comes the words of drudgery, "God", "Love", or "Jesus!" (You have to say them with that teenager spat of boredom and misery at having to learn something. No, there is nothing new to learn about God. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever, says the writer of Hebrews. And, love is no new subject we need to learn about. But, if it is something you have not taken the time to learn about, then it might seem new to you, personally. John was present when Jesus gave his famous presentation on Love that we read from John 13. The moment would have stood out to all of them because of how it was presented. Maybe all of them about the table had grown up remembering the Passover. Taking of the elements around the meal that night. Maybe some of them had been to a meal where their feet had been washed by some peasant or servant. However, the subjects that were presented that evening were words that sunk in and dug in. Jesus is clear and emphatic about his death and resurrection. He has repeated himself many times over those three and a half years. Now, it is post Pentecost and all they saw and heard has become very real for them. How are the to love people in a world that did that to their Savior and Lord? Spikes through his hands and feet. Bleeding in front of a live audience. Giving his all so that others might know forgiveness. We are still living in a world that demands its own way and wants its our pleasures to be satisfied. Regardless of the love and forgiveness that is being extended to it. We are are encouraged to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, putting our own necks on the line to share in a historical line of making disciples. Maybe we'll figure it out before He comes back. 

Motive Matters

John raises an interesting question as we roll through this section. In an effort to clearly show the differences between what love and hate actually are, he uses the example of Cain and what happened with his brother Abel. He doesn't just state what Cain did and point tot it to say that what he did was wrong. He actually asks the question, "And, why did he do it?" You might be sitting there asking yourself, "What does that matter?" He murdered his brother and that's what he did wrong. What further examination is needed? Well, it is needed and here we see why. What if our lives were treated like a court case? Have you been to or watched a court case unfold? One of the most important aspects of any case is answer the why of motive. If we can't define or understand the motive behind the why a person does what they did/do, then it's rather hard to pin the crime on that person. If we can't prove motive or intent, then it becomes rather tough to actually say that person did what they did. Maybe somebody else did it. Actually, when it comes to our own personal judgement day and we stand in front of the Lord, the same questions will be asked. The whys, the whats, the hows, the whens. Any good preacher should be familiar with this process. We call it exegesis. It's how we examine the scripture and break it down to see what's there before we try to expound upon it. Especially because we come from a Wesleyan background, we have learned to ask a lot of questions. We put the whys and hows front and center and attempt to answer those questions as we try to figure out what we are going to say in front of a group of people on a Sunday morning. It is an important part of the process if we want to know what God has to say. 

There is a reason for repeating the subject matter as John enters this section. Previously, he was speaking about love and the world and knowing the difference between the two. Now, he is truly speaking to believers in the faith. the Greek word here for brothers and sisters is adelphoi - which brings in both men and women as a part of the subject matter. We have a time with this even in our modern world. In the time these scriptures were being written, the idea of a woman standing to speak and have something to teach would not have been looked upon favorably. Paul really gets to the meat of the matter in his letter to the Corinthians trying to show them the letter of the law on the subject. You might recall him stating that women should be silent or not speak. Bringing in the entire family of God, all believers, men and women, is just the door John needs to lead his readers into an area where there might be some hatred to deal with in the faith community. Even if we take Paul literally and follow his suggestion about how women are to act or be in a worship service, does that mean we treat them literally like pieces of trash? You all had a dandy of preacher and teacher here for sixteen years in the person of Rebeka Maples. I could throw it back to her and dozen others who have stood the test of being someone how can share the biblical message clearly and plainly. Did not the prophet Joel say that the Spirit would be poured out on both men and women, brothers and sisters, in the faith? That "your sons and daughters" would prophecy? maybe we give those females a chance to share what is on their hearts and minds and see if they have what it takes to present Jesus Christ in all his glory. 

Greater

If you haven't seen this football movie about a boy from Arkansas, you really need to find it and give it a watch. Brandon Burlsworth is a young boy who grows up with an alcoholic father and not much of an affinity for sports. His mom basically lets him sit in front of the TV most days eating whatever sugar coated cereal he wants and whatever snacks he wants her to bring to him. As he enters into the high school life, he finds his way into the world of football which turns his world upside down. The kid who just sat in front of the TV all day is fading away and young man who is willing to work for what he wants is starting to emerge. Its a strange faith movie that present that subject in plain ways while not diverging from the starkness of the world we live in. Brandon seems to be confronted by the idea that he is never good enough. And, he strives to be greater. John would confront that idea in all of his readers who might just be struggling with the notion that they themselves are not good enough. Sometimes our own hearts condemn us. Maybe we have a hard time forgiving our own shortcomings. Maybe guilt and shame ride our shoulders like a monkey on our back or a heavy load slung over our body. John would reassure his audience that God's love is greater. 

What can you do this coming week to hang on to the name of Jesus? There are a million ways the world, the devil and our own doubts attack us and try to get us to give up on the name and person of Jesus Christ. Battle back! We are on the front lines. Here is the battle ground. Don't lie down and give up. Don't shrink away from the fight. Rise up! Believe in the name of Jesus. Not just believe that he exists. James would say that the devil believes that God exists. And, he trembles. We are encourged to believe and trust and stand up in confidence. We can approach God and be in his presence. 

Live in Love today and be the people God wants you to be.