Tawa Baptist

Marriage

Scripture: Genesis 24:28-61

Title: Marriage – Part 1

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose
  • Marriage is an act of hesed, providing security
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Today we continue our series on the life & faith of Abraham

–         Last week we heard about God’s fingerprints and how the Lord led Abraham’s servant to Rebekah at a well

–         This morning Abraham’s servant arranges Isaac & Rebekah’s marriage with Rebekah’s family

–         From Genesis chapter 24, verses 28-61, in the NIV we read…

The young woman ran and told her mother’s household about these things. Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the man at the spring. As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring.

 “Come, you who are blessed by the Lord,” he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.” So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet. Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.”

“Then tell us,” Laban said. So he said, “I am Abraham’s servant. The Lord has blessed my master abundantly, and he has become wealthy. He has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, male and female servants, and camels and donkeys. My master’s wife Sarah has borne him a son in her old age, and he has given him everything he owns.

And my master made me swear an oath, and said, ‘You must not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites, in whose land I live, but go to my father’s family and to my own clan, and get a wife for my son.’ “Then I asked my master, ‘What if the woman will not come back with me?’

“He replied, ‘The Lord, before whom I have walked faithfully, will send his angel with you and make your journey a success, so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family. You will be released from my oath if, when you go to my clan, they refuse to give her to you—then you will be released from my oath.’

“When I came to the spring today, I said, ‘Lord, God of my master Abraham, if you will, please grant success to the journey on which I have come. See, I am standing beside this spring. If a young woman comes out to draw water and I say to her, “Please let me drink a little water from your jar,” and if she says to me, “Drink, and I’ll draw water for your camels too,” let her be the one the Lord has chosen for my master’s son.’

“Before I finished praying in my heart, Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder. She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ “She quickly lowered her jar from her shoulder and said, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too.’ So I drank, and she watered the camels also. “I asked her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’

“She said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel son of Nahor, whom Milkah bore to him.’

“Then I put the ring in her nose and the bracelets on her arms, and I bowed down and worshiped the Lord. I praised the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who had led me on the right road to get the granddaughter of my master’s brother for his son.

 Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.” Laban and Bethuel answered, “This is from the Lord; we can say nothing to you one way or the other. Here is Rebekah; take her and go, and let her become the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has directed.”

When Abraham’s servant heard what they said, he bowed down to the ground before the Lord. Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewellery and articles of clothing and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts to her brother and to her mother. Then he and the men who were with him ate and drank and spent the night there.

When they got up the next morning, he said, “Send me on my way to my master.” But her brother and her mother replied, “Let the young woman remain with us ten days or so; then you may go.”

But he said to them, “Do not detain me, now that the Lord has granted success to my journey. Send me on my way so I may go to my master.”

Then they said, “Let’s call the young woman and ask her about it.” So they called Rebekah and asked her, “Will you go with this man?”

“I will go,” she said. So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men.

And they blessed Rebekah and said to her,

“Our sister, may you increase to thousands upon thousands;
may your offspring possess the cities of their enemies.”

Then Rebekah and her attendants got ready and mounted the camels and went back with the man. So the servant took Rebekah and left.

 May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this Scripture for us

 

In many ways this morning’s Bible reading probably seems strange to us

–         The way people went about arranging a marriage in the ancient near east was quite different to the way we go about marriage in the west today

–         I’ve talked about the cultural differences between the ancient world and the modern west on other occasions & don’t want to repeat that now

–         If you are interested in the cultural stuff then you can read the sermon notes from the 8th July on the church website later

 

This morning our message focuses on the subject of marriage

–         This isn’t just a message for those who are married though – it has relevance for everyone, whether you are in a relationship or not

–         Today’s reading from Genesis 24 doesn’t tell us everything about marriage but it does touch on at least two very important aspects:

o   Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose

o   And marriage is an act of hesed, providing security

–         First let’s consider marriage as an act of God

 

Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose:

When we hear that phrase, ‘an act of God’ we tend to think of some sort of catastrophe or disaster – something going wrong outside of our control

–         For example, an earthquake or a storm is deemed an act of God

–         Acts of God aren’t just negative things though – justice, peace, healing & freedom can also be acts of God

–         In a general sense marriage is an act of God – it is his idea, his initiative, one of his positive, creative actions for our wellbeing

–         Unlike an earthquake or a storm though, which we can’t control, marriage is an act of God that we do get a say in

Those who have been following this series on Abraham will be aware of the repetition in this morning’s reading

–         When Abraham’s servant is shown hospitality by Rebekah’s family he refuses to eat until he has stated the reason for his visit

–         He tells the whole story from the beginning of chapter 24 – how Abraham sent him to find a wife for Isaac and how God answered his prayer with Rebekah

–         The main point of this retelling of events is to make it clear that God specifically wants Rebekah to marry Isaac

–         Isaac & Rebekah’s marriage is God’s initiative – it is an act of God

This is not to say that every marriage is especially arranged by God – many people get married without reference to God

–         Nor is it to say there is only one right person for you to marry in the whole world – there are any number of people that you could be compatible with and some that you will never be compatible with

–         But in Isaac & Rebekah’s case God was involved with the details

Rebekah’s brother (Laban) and her father (Bethuel) both agree that God is in this and since God is so clearly at work to join Rebekah & Isaac’s lives together, how can they object?

The fact that God is arranging Isaac & Rebekah’s marriage doesn’t mean that Rebekah has no choice in the matter

–         God gives each of us free will and he respects the choices we make

–         In verse 58 we read how Rebekah was asked, ‘Will you go with this man?’ and Rebekah said, ‘I will’

–         Interestingly, it is only after Rebekah has given her consent that she receives a blessing

–         God’s purpose is often pleasing to us, it is generally a good fit with who we are – happily Rebekah was in harmony with God’s will and prepared to marry Isaac

Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose

–         The point I’m making here is that marriage isn’t just for the wellbeing of the couple – marriage actually serves a larger purpose in God’s plan

–         God’s purpose for Isaac & Rebekah was to keep the faith, to establish the nation of Israel and to carry God’s promises to the next generation

–         Isaac & Rebekah were part of God’s legacy for blessing the world through Christ

To those who might be looking for a partner in marriage I would say, involve God in the decision – look for his fingerprints and think about his purpose

–         Christian marriage isn’t just a commitment to mutual happiness, it’s also a commitment to each other’s usefulness in God’s kingdom

 

If you were here last Sunday you may remember the story I told about Caleb; the guy on the train who was in the right place at the right time with the right kind of presence to stop 3 drunk guys harassing a woman in her 20’s

–         A fingerprints of God moment

Caleb never actually spoke to the woman that night on the train – he didn’t know anything about her and thought he would never see her again

–         Over 2 months went past during which time Caleb had got on with the regular routines of his life – work, church, Bible study, friends

–         This was a new routine for Caleb as he hadn’t been a Christian for long

One Sunday, while in church, he thought he saw the young woman from the train sitting a few rows in front of him but he couldn’t be sure from behind – and besides what were the chances of that happening

–         It was a bit difficult to concentrate on the sermon after that

When the service had finished Caleb just sat in his pew feeling awkward

–         Probably it wasn’t her – memory can be such an unreliable thing

–         But if it was then what should he do?

–         Christian culture was still quite strange to Caleb and he wasn’t always sure what was appropriate

He was just thinking, ‘I should probably leave before she sees me’, when an elderly woman, Mrs Green, walked up and said, ‘Ah, Caleb, come and meet my grand-daughter

–         At first Caleb was relieved to be in conversation with someone safe

–         But then, to Caleb’s absolute horror, Mrs Green led him straight to the young woman from the train

–         It was definitely her – she recognised him instantly and started to blush, then quickly recovered by introducing herself as Jen

–         Caleb was too stunned to remember to introduce himself – she was even more beautiful up close and she smelled lovely

–         Fortunately Mrs Green, who was as sharp as a tack, came to his rescue and said, ‘This is Caleb. Caleb is the young man I was telling you about who came round and changed my light bulb the other week.’

–         Jen smiled, paused a moment as if remembering that night, and then said, ‘It seems you are quite the Good Samaritan’.

–         Caleb laughed nervously, unsure whether that made him weird or not

–         Jen seemed to read his face like a book and immediately put him at ease

–         ‘I’m pleased to meet you Caleb. I wanted to say thank you for what you did that night. I was really scared and you went out of your way to make me safe.’

–         ‘It was nothing really’, Caleb replied.

–         ‘Well it meant something to me’, said Jen

–         It had actually meant something to him too

–         Jen’s honesty touched Caleb’s heart and for the first time in his life he experienced emotional intimacy

 

Mrs Green could sense the connection between the two and wisely invited Caleb to join her and Jen for lunch, and Caleb accepted

–         A year later Jen & Caleb were married and four years after that they went to Carey College to train for ministry. Now they are pastoring a church

–         Each wedding anniversary they take a ride on a train and tell their kids the story of how God (and Jen’s grandma) arranged their marriage

 

Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose

–         At its best marriage is also an act of hesed, providing security

 

Marriage is an act of hesed, providing security:

In verse 49, after having told his story, Abraham’s servant says to Rebekah’s family, Now if you will show kindness and faithfulness to my master, tell me; and if not, tell me, so I may know which way to turn.”

 

The word translated as ‘kindness’ there is hesed in the original Hebrew

–         It’s one of those Hebrew words that needs more than one English word to capture it’s meaning

–         Sometimes it is translated as kindness, other times as mercy or steadfast love or loyalty. Hesed is often used in connection with God’s covenant

Hesed isn’t a trifling thing – hesed is an act of real importance, it’s a big deal

–         With hesed the inferior partner depends on the kindness of the superior to meet a desperate need.

–         In this case Abraham’s servant is putting himself in the position of the inferior partner by asking Rebekah’s family to show kindness, loyalty or hesed to Abraham, by giving their permission for Rebekah to marry Isaac

The point is, marriage is an act of hesed

–         God intended marriage to be characterised by kindness, mercy, steadfast love and loyalty

–         The hesed of marriage isn’t a one off thing though – it’s an on-going commitment that provides security for the whole family

We note the concern for Rebekah’s welfare & security in the speech that Abraham’s servant gives…

–         In verse 35 the servant says that his master Abraham is wealthy, with the implication that Rebekah will be looked after financially

–         Then in verse 36 the servant says that Isaac was born when Sarah was very old, implying that Isaac is still young and so Rebekah will be marrying someone close to her age

–         Also in verse 36 the servant says that Isaac will inherit everything – again implying that Rebekah will be secure financially

–         In verse 37 the servant goes on to say that Abraham won’t let Isaac marry any of the local Canaanite girls – so Rebekah’s family know that Rebekah will be the only wife, she won’t have to compete with other women

–         In all these ways Abraham’s servant is reassuring Rebekah and her family that marrying Isaac is a good deal – it will mean security for her

We might think this emphasis on wealth & prospects is a bit mercenary – where’s the romance in talking about money? But in that culture practical concerns were more important than romance

–         If you were a father (or a brother) then you needed to know that your daughter (or sister) would be taken care of

 

Often at the beginning of a romantic relationship there is a kind of blindness – when we see the other person through rose tinted glasses and we kind of ignore or overlook their bad points

–         Not only that but common sense sometimes goes out the window and we have this false sense of security

–         ‘All I need is the air that I breathe to love you’, as the song goes

–         Well, air is a good start but you also need an income and a roof over your head and a community of people around you to lend you support

–         The practical stuff matters and you need to get that sorted, through good honest conversation, before you get married – that’s partly what pre-marriage counselling is about

 

Conclusion:

Marriage is an act of God, serving His purpose

–         And (Godly) marriage is an act of hesed, providing security

In many ways marriage has lost its meaning in our society today

–         Most people these days don’t think of marriage as something that God is involved in – theirs is a cord of two strands, not three

–         A lot of marriages are characterised by violence, unfaithfulness and insecurity, rather than the security created by kindness, steadfast love and loyalty that God intends

 

At its best marriage points to our relationship with Christ

–         Marriage is meant to be a living parable or a picture of the kind of the union (or relationship) Jesus wants to have with people

–         A relationship that serves a greater purpose beyond itself – God’s purpose

–         A relationship characterised by security born of hesed

When marriage is dishonoured or abused people lose the vision of what a relationship with God (through Christ) could be like

–         By the same token, when marriage is honoured and functions as God intended, people catch a glimpse of the mystery of union with Jesus

 

In a few moments we are going to share communion together

–         Communion is a sacred ritual in which Christians remember & celebrate the mystery of our union with God through Christ

–         The musicians will come now and lead us in song as we prepare our hearts

 

Questions for discussion or reflection

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    What is your experience of marriage?

–         E.g. this could be the model/example you inherited from your parents’ marriage, or it might be your own experience of being married, or divorced, or widowed, or single, etc.

–         How has your experience shaped your understanding of, and attitude to, marriage?

3.)    What is the main point of the servant’s retelling of the events of chapter 24?

–         In what sense is marriage (generally) an act of God?

–         In what sense is Isaac & Rebekah’s marriage specifically an act of God?

–         If you are married, how is God involved in your marriage?

4.)    What larger purpose does marriage serve beyond the happiness of the couple?

5.)    What do we mean when we say: marriage is an act of hesed, providing security?

6.)     If you are contemplating marriage, what could you do to sort out the practicalities before you get married?

–         What might some of those practicalities be?

–         Or, if you are already married, what you would suggest an engaged couple talk about before the wedding day? (What advice would you give your kids?)

7.)    Take some time this week to reflect on how the mystery of marriage (at its best) points to the mystery of union with Christ

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/29-jul-2018-marriage

Tawa Baptist

Abraham’s Identity

Scripture: Genesis 24:1-9

Title: Abraham’s Identity 

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Two worlds
  • Identity
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Someone once said,

–         “We don’t know who discovered water but we know it wasn’t a fish.”

–         The point being that a fish is born into water and lives in water all its life, so it doesn’t realise the context it is in, unless it is taken out of the water.

–         We, like the fish, are often unaware of the cultural & historical context we are born into as well.

–         It is like we are blind to our own society unless we leave it to experience another context or spend time with people from another culture

 

Today we continue our series on the life & faith of Abraham

–         Last week we heard how Abraham responded when Sarah died

–         Abraham was in touch with his soul – he wept over Sarah and purchased land as an act of hope in the face of death

–         This morning we pick up the story from the beginning of Genesis 24 – page 25 near the front of your pew Bibles

–         In this scene Abraham asks his most trusted servant to find a wife for Isaac. In listening to this story we become aware that Abraham’s cultural water was very different from our own

–         From Genesis chapter 24, verses 1-9, we read…

Abraham was now very old, and the Lord had blessed him in everything he did. 2 He said to his oldest servant, who was in charge of all that he had, “Place your hand between my thighs and make a vow. 3 I want you to make a vow in the name of the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the people here in Canaan. 4 You must go back to the country where I was born and get a wife for my son Isaac from among my relatives.”

5 But the servant asked, “What if the young woman will not leave home to come with me to this land? Shall I send your son back to the land you came from?”

6 Abraham answered, “Make sure that you don’t send my son back there! 7 The Lord, the God of heaven, brought me from the home of my father and from the land of my relatives, and he solemnly promised me that he would give this land to my descendants. He will send his angel before you, so that you can get a wife there for my son. 8 If the young woman is not willing to come with you, you will be free from this promise. But you must not under any circumstances take my son back there.” 9 So the servant put his hand between the thighs of Abraham, his master, and made a vow to do what Abraham had asked.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this reading for us

 

Different worlds:

I have here a piece of wood and an axe. Wood has a grain to it

–         If I try to cut this wood against the grain like this – it’s really hard work

–         [Try cutting across the grain]

–         But if I cut the wood with the grain – it’s a lot easier [Cut with the grain]

This morning’s Scripture reading is one of those passages that goes against the grain for most of us – it just seems so at odds with the values of our society and so we may struggle with it

For example, we are a relatively egalitarian society – we value equality and personal freedom (we don’t like people telling us what to do)

–         So the idea of Abraham telling his servant to choose a wife for Isaac (arranged marriage basically), is repugnant to us

Likewise, our culture is a bit lite on commitment, so the idea of Abraham binding his servant with an oath by placing his hand under his thigh (whatever that means) is really strange to us

What’s more we like to think we are inclusive and not racist or sexist or prejudice or anything else-ist – so the idea of Abraham saying, under no circumstances is my son to marry one of those Canaanite girls, is shocking to us

What we need to remember is that the Ancient Near East, the world in which Abraham lived, had a very different set of values to the world we live in

On the wall here I have a table contrasting some of the differences between the modern western world and the ancient near eastern world [1]

Modern West Ancient Near East
Equality is valued Hierarchy is valued
Assert one’s own rights Submit personal rights to the group
Strong on personal identity Strong on group identity
Primary responsibility

to develop self

 Primary responsibility

to develop group
Think of self as separate Think of self as connected
Status is achieved Status is ascribed

So, for example, while we might value equality, Abraham’s world valued hierarchy

–         Kiwi culture is quite hard on its leaders, whereas people in the ancient near east were more respectful of their elders and leaders

–         We might think that asserting our own personal rights is a good thing

–         But to people in the Ancient Near East submitting your personal rights to the group was a far better thing

–         For them submission to hierarchy provided a framework for order

–         Whereas equality and insisting on your own rights was a recipe for chaos

 

We (in the modern west) have a strong sense of personal identity, whereas people in the ancient near east had a strong sense of family and tribal identity

–         In the modern west we tend to think our primary responsibility is to ourselves and developing our own individual potential

–         But in the ancient near east the primary obligation was to others and to the development of the group

–         Isaac & Rebekah would have been more inclined to accept the marriage that was arranged for them because they knew it wasn’t about them

–         It was about what was best for the group

 

People with a modern western world view tend to think of themselves as separate from the world around them and from other people

–         Whereas people with a more ancient world view tend to think of themselves as organically connected to the physical world and to others

–         In this respect at least, Maori culture is a lot closer to the culture of the ancient near east than Pakeha culture is

–         When Maori formally introduce themselves they often say the tribe they come from, what their river & mountain is and who their ancestors are

–         That’s because they think of themselves as connected to the world around them – they see themselves as part of a group not just as an individual

 

In our modern western world, status is achieved or earned by what you do

–         But in the ancient world status was ascribed or given

–         Abraham didn’t do anything to earn or achieve God’s promise & blessing – it was simply given to him by the Lord

–         Likewise we are made in the image of God – that’s not a status we achieve by trying really hard to be good

–         That’s a status ascribed to us by God and ultimately fulfilled by Christ

A lot of us struggle with issues of identity & self-worth don’t we

–         We might not feel good enough somehow

–         Or we might feel like we must achieve something in order to prove who we are. No – you don’t.

–         You are valuable because God says so, not because of what you achieve

–         You are beautiful because God made you – not because you have rock hard abs or an hour glass body shape or whatever

Now in comparing & contrasting these two worlds I’m not saying that one is better than the other – both worlds have their pros & cons

–         The point is, Abraham lived in a completely different world from the one we live in – the cultural water (context) he swam in was different to ours

–         We need to be careful to avoid the arrogance of imposing our modern western values on Abraham

–         Ultimately, Jesus is Lord of both worlds and he comes to transform our world into God’s kingdom on earth

 

Okay, so we’ve seen how Abraham’s culture was different to ours

–         I’d like to focus now on one of the key themes in this passage: Identity

Identity:

Identity is about who we are – it’s about our being

–         Those who are in tune with their soul have a strong sense of identity

–         They know who they are and have accepted who they are

–         And consequently, they make decisions in line with their identity

Let’s take some time to understand the modern western concept of identity and consider how this might (or might not) fit with Abraham…

Identity Moratorium

–         Actively exploring options but not yet committed

 Identity Achievement

–         Have explored the options and are now committed
Identity Diffusion

–         Not exploring the options and not committed

 Identity Foreclosure

–         Have committed without exploring the options

A developmental psychologist by the name of James Marcia, came up with a theory about identity in the 1980’s

–         Marcia identified what he called four ‘statuses’ of identity

Identity Diffusion, in the red box, describes the status of an individual who doesn’t have a strong sense of identity and isn’t really exploring their options – they sort of float without being committed to anything much

–         For example, they might be unsure what they want to do for a job and not at all motivated to explore career options

–         Or they might be undecided on what they believe about God and in fact quite uninterested in seeking him – neither hot nor cold

 

Identity Foreclosure, in the grey box, describes those who have committed to a certain identity without having explored the options

–         For example, their father was a baker so when they left school they became a baker too without trying anything else

–         Or perhaps they came to church from a young age and just accepted their parents’ beliefs without question

–         There’s nothing wrong with this if you enjoy being a baker and the beliefs you’ve inherited are sound

–         But it can become a problem if the identity you commit yourself to is in conflict with your soul

–         If you are wired up to be a pastor but you spend your life selling shoes, because that’s all you know, then life will be pretty miserable for you

 

Moratorium is just another word for ‘postponement’, so Identity Moratorium, in the green box, describes those who haven’t committed to a particular identity or occupation or set of beliefs yet, but they are actively exploring their options

–         For example, they may not have settled on a career but are trying different jobs to see what fits best for them – the gap year concept

–         Or maybe they grew up going to church but have gone off the rails a bit

–         This rebellious stage doesn’t necessarily represent their settled commitment, it is just a stage

 

Identity Achievement, in the orange box, describes the status of those who have made a firm identity commitment after exploring their options   

–         For example, they may have settled on a career in medicine after having worked in the hospitality & construction industries

–         Or perhaps they grew up not going to church but have decided to follow Jesus, like C.S. Lewis who became a Christian after being an atheist

 

We’re not stuck in one status (or in one box) our whole life

–         We are able to move around the boxes

–         For example, someone may start from a place of identity foreclosure, move to identity moratorium and end up in identity achievement

–         Maybe they become a motor mechanic because their dad was a mechanic. They do that for 10 years, then realise it isn’t for them, so they explore other career options before eventually finding their fit as an accountant

 

One thing we observe about NZ society today is that we are relatively strong on exploration but not so strong on commitment

–         And what we get with that is a more fluid society

–         People are more inclined to change their identity, almost on a whim

–         It’s like we have a wardrobe of identities we choose from

–         Again there are plusses and minuses with this

–         Fluid is adaptable, water can find a way where other firmer substances can’t, but it’s difficult to build a foundation on water

So can we apply Marcia’s identity theory to Abraham?

–         Well, there is some truth in Marcia’s theory – to a certain extent it does reflect the way we think & behave in the modern west

–         But it’s not the gospel and I don’t think it’s a model we can impose on Abraham’s culture

–         Marcia’s theory is humanistic – it doesn’t take God into account

–         It assumes that human beings achieve their own identity by the choices they make – that we define ourselves in other words

–         But the Jewish / Christian belief is that we don’t define ourselves

–         God is our creator and he defines us – he gives us our identity

–         Our identity is not forced on us by God – we still get to make choices

–         We can accept God’s definition of who we are or we can reject it

Faith Identity

–         After God’s call

–         Defined by God’s promise

 

 Fulfilled Identity

–         Isaac

–         Israel

–         Jesus
Finite Identity

–         Before God’s call

–         Unpromising future

 

 Fake Identity

–         Deceiving others

–         Defined by a lie

 

On the wall here we have another set of identity statuses which fit better for Abraham

–         Finite Identity, in the red box, describes Abraham’s unpromising future before God called him.

–         Without God, Abraham’s identity would have been limited & unfulfilled

–         He would have lived & died and been forgotten – we wouldn’t know who he was

But as a result of God’s call, Abraham moved from the red to the green, from a Finite Identity to a Faith Identity

–         God gave Abraham a new identity by calling him out of his home in Mesopotamia and literally giving him a new name

–         After God’s call Abraham’s life was defined by God’s promises

–         Sarah may have been barren but her barrenness did not define them

–         God’s promise to make Sarah & Abraham the parents of a great nation is what defined them

–         God didn’t fulfil those promises straight away – for much of Abraham’s life God’s promises remained just that, promises

–         Abraham’s task was to live his life in anticipation of God’s promise

Throughout this series we have heard how God tested Abraham’s faith in a whole variety of ways

–         Sometimes Abraham passed the test and other times he switched into the grey box of Fake Identity

–         For example, Abraham deceived Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and then sometime later he misled Abimelech the king of the Philistines

–         In those situations Abraham pretended to be something he wasn’t

–         He allowed himself to be defined by a lie, rather than God’s promise

In the end God fulfilled Abraham’s identity

–         Abraham didn’t achieve his identity through some journey of self-discovery – no.

–         God fulfilled Abraham’s identity initially through the miraculous birth of Isaac and then later through the nation of Israel

–         Ultimately though God fulfilled Abraham’s identity through Jesus Christ who was descended from Abraham

 

Returning to Genesis 24 – Abraham is very clear about Isaac remaining in the land of Canaan and not marrying any of the Canaanite girls because he wants to stay true to God’s promise

–         God’s promise requires Abraham to make an ethnic distinction

–         “At this early stage, intermarriage with the people of the land would risk assimilation into those people & thus jeopardise the covenant promises” [2]

–         Or said another way, if Isaac were to marry one of the locals the special  identity of God’s chosen people would be lost

–         Isaac marrying a Canaanite girl would be like choosing a fake identity

–         Abraham’s decision, therefore, is in line with his identity as the father of God’s chosen people

It is very important for us to make decisions in line with who we are

–         If we don’t, if we do things that go against the grain of our soul and against God’s purpose, then this creates tremendous stress within us

 

The movie Hacksaw Ridge tells the true story of Private Desmond Doss, the first conscientious objector to be awarded the medal of honour

–         During World War 2 Doss volunteered as a medic in the US Army

–         As a devout Seventh Day Adventist, Desmond Doss refused to carry a firearm – he was a strict pacifist

–         Desmond didn’t believe in killing – to him that would have been like assuming a fake identity, it would have gone against the grain of his soul

–         Despite getting a terrible time in boot camp Desmond stayed true to who he was and eventually saved 75 soldiers during the battle of Okinawa

Like Desmond Doss, Abraham had a strong sense of identity – not just personal identity but group identity

–         The decision to find a wife for Isaac from among his extended family, and not among the Canaanites, was in line with God’s purpose

–         Abraham wanted his descendants to stay true to the identity God had promised them.

 

Conclusion:

Identity is a hot topic in our world today

–         Our modern western society and our media culture seem to create a pressure around identity issues, and that pressure is felt most strongly by many of our young people

Are you male or female?

–         Are you liberal or conservative?

–         Are you in a relationship or are you single?

–         Are you gay or straight?

–         Are you Maori or European, Asian or African?

–         Are you environmentally ethical or a petrol head?

–         Are you a vegetarian or a meat eater?

–         Are you Gen X or a Millennial?

–         As if any of those man-made categories matter in the light of eternity

 

We are not God – it is not in our power to define ourselves

–         We are not defined by what we look like or how clever we are

–         We are not defined by our parents or our past

–         We are not defined by our achievements or our mistakes

–         We are not defined by our reputation or what others think of us

–         We are not defined by our job or what we own

–         We are not defined by our fears or our feelings

–         We are defined by God, our creator, we are made in his image

God calls us out of a finite identity into a faith identity

–         He calls us to put our trust in Jesus

–         Jesus embodies the promises of God

–         Jesus shows us what God’s image looks like

–         It is through Jesus that God fulfils his purpose and our identity

In his letter to the Galatians, Paul writes…

–         You are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptised into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. [3]

We need to live in tune with our soul – we need to discover who we are in Christ and live in a way that is consistent with that identity, as Abraham did

 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    What aspects of Genesis 24:1-9 go against the grain of our modern western culture?

3.)    Compare & contrast some of the main differences between the modern western world and the ancient near east

–         In what ways might some non-western cultures today be quite close to Abraham’s ancient near eastern culture?

4.)    Discuss / reflect on James Marcia’s four identity statuses

–         Does Marcia’s theory fit with your experience? In what way?

–         How does Marcia’s theory fall short of Christian belief?

5.)    Discuss / reflect on Abraham’s four identity statuses

–         How did God give Abraham & Sarah a new identity?

6.)    Why did Abraham insist that Isaac not marry a Canaanite girl?

7.)    What is our God given identity?

–         How does God fulfil our identity?

8.)    Take some time this week to meditate on Galatians 3:26-29

 

[1] Refer John Walton’s NIVAC on Genesis, pages 25-26

[2] John Walton, NIVAC Genesis, page 529

[3] Galatians 3:26-29

Tawa Baptist

With God

Scripture: Genesis 21:22-34

Title: With God

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • God is with Abraham
  • Dispute resolution – grace & truth
  • The everlasting God
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

When I was a boy my Dad was digging in our vegetable garden at home and he unearthed a Maori adze – a greenstone axe head

–         It was a very special find – quite unexpected

–         After that, I went digging too for hidden treasure, but alas I found nothing

–         It’s funny isn’t it – we could easily go to a museum, to look at an adze, but that is never as cool as finding one yourself in your own back yard

Today we pick up our sermon series on the life & faith of Abraham

–         This has been a rather interrupted series for various reasons but that’s okay – we are getting there

–         Abraham’s journey of faith can be described as two steps forward, one step back, with some sideways steps thrown in for good measure

–         Both this week’s story and next week’s represent forward steps

–         Today’s instalment focuses on Genesis 21, verses 22-34, where Abimelech, the king of the Philistines, makes a treaty with Abraham

–         At first glance this story seems a bit vanilla, a bit ordinary, just a backyard vegetable garden, nothing interesting here

–         I don’t want to talk it up too much but as I dug beneath the surface of this passage I found a couple of hidden treasures. From the NIV we read…

22 At that time Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces said to Abraham, “God is with you in everything you do. 23 Now swear to me here before God that you will not deal falsely with me or my children or my descendants. Show to me and the country where you now reside as a foreigner the same kindness I have shown to you.” 24 Abraham said, “I swear it.”

25 Then Abraham complained to Abimelek about a well of water that Abimelek’s servants had seized.  But Abimelek said, “I don’t know who has done this. You did not tell me, and I heard about it only today.”

So Abraham brought sheep and cattle and gave them to Abimelek, and the two men made a treaty. Abraham set apart seven ewe lambs from the flock, and Abimelek asked Abraham, “What is the meaning of these seven ewe lambs you have set apart by themselves?”

He replied, “Accept these seven lambs from my hand as a witness that I dug this well.” So that place was called Beersheba, because the two men swore an oath there.

After the treaty had been made at Beersheba, Abimelek and Phicol the commander of his forces returned to the land of the Philistines. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba, and there he called on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God. And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.

 May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this Scripture for us

Three things happen in this little vignette:

  • – Abimelech approaches Abraham to make a treaty with him
  • – Abraham accepts this treaty and in the process settles a dispute
  • – And thirdly, Abraham worships the Lord, the Everlasting God.

 

God is with Abraham:

It is easier to chop wood with the grain

  • – Toast tastes better with butter
  • – We see things with the lights on
  • – Conversation goes smoother with food
  • – Perspective returns with rest
  • – Love grows with trust
  • – Grief fades with time
  • – Memory forms with repetition
  • – Truth finds a way in with grace
  • – Paint sticks with sanding
  • – Peace is sustained with justice
  • – Life finds meaning with God

With – it’s a versatile word and its one of those hidden treasures I was alluding to earlier

 

In verse 22 Abimelech and his general, Phicol, come to Abraham to make a peace treaty with him

  • – If you think about it, this is quite remarkable really
  • – Normally, with peace treaties, the party in the weaker position approaches the one in the stronger position
  • – Outwardly Abimelech appears to be in a stronger position than Abraham
  • – Abraham is a wandering shepherd – he doesn’t have a fortress or an army like Abimelech does and so we wouldn’t ordinarily expect Abimelech to approach Abraham, cap in hand, yet that’s what happens.
  • – Why then does Abimelech feel the need to do this?

Well, Abimelech gives his reason in verse 22 when he says to Abraham…

  • – “God is with you in everything you do”
  • – What does it mean that God is with Abraham

To be with someone is to be alongside them

  • – Not above them, forcing them to do things against their will
  • – And not below them, to be used like a human tool
  • – But beside them, freely acting in their interests and for their well being
  • – God is with Abraham, as a friend, standing in solidarity with him,

I’ve come up with a little acronym which outlines some of the characteristics we would expect to find when we are in a relationship with someone

  • – W is for wellbeing, I is for intimacy, T is for trust and H is for help

You know someone is with you when they are committed to your wellbeing

  • – When they share themselves intimately with you
  • – When they trust you
  • – And when they provide you with help
  • – Likewise you know you are truly with someone when you are committed to their wellbeing, even if there is nothing in it for you
  • – When you are able to be emotionally intimate with them,
  • – When you trust them deeply
  • – And when you are ready to help them should they need it

God’s ideal for marriage is that husband & wife be truly with one another

  • – Marriage is a commitment to mutual wellbeing, intimacy, trust and help

 

God was with Abraham and he wants to be with us

  • – One of the names of Jesus is Immanuel – which means ‘God with us’
  • – Jesus is, God with us
  • – In John 14 Jesus says to his disciples: I will ask the Father and he will send you another Counsellor to be with you forever
  • – The Counsellor Jesus is talking about here is the Holy Spirit or the Paraclete – that is, one who comes alongside to be with us

 

Returning to Genesis, how does Abimelech know that God is with Abraham?           

Some people might argue that Abraham’s wealth is evidence that God is with him – but I don’t think that’s it

  • – Yes, some people like Abraham do become wealthy because God blesses them, in that way, but wealth in itself is no indicator that God is with you
  • – People can become rich for a whole lot of reasons including being ruthless or working hard and making sacrifices or simply being in the right place at the right time
  • – By the same token, poverty or loss is no indicator of God’s absence
  • – The Scriptures tell us that God is near to the poor, the widow, the orphan, the refugee, and the broken hearted – they hold a special place in his heart

So the question remains: how then did Abimelech know that God was with Abraham?

  • – You may remember, in Genesis 20, how Abraham deceived Abimelech by saying that Sarah was his sister, all the while leaving out the part about her being his wife
  • – Abimelech unwittingly took Sarah into his harem but before he slept with her the Lord confronted Abimelech in a dream and told him to return Sarah to her husband, Abraham
  • – When he had done this Abraham prayed for Abimelech and the Lord healed Abimelech, his wife and the women in his household, so they could have children
  • – So that was one obvious sign, to Abimelech, that God was with Abraham

After this, Sarah became pregnant to Abraham and gave birth to Isaac

  • – Sarah was 90 years old when that happened
  • – Given that Sarah had gone past the age of menopause this was a miracle comparable to that of resurrection
  • – Sarah’s pregnancy at 90 and Isaac’s birth were another clear sign, to Abimelech, that God was with Abraham in a life-giving way

Consequently Abimelech makes a treaty with Abraham in order to align himself with Abraham’s God who holds the power of life & death

  • – Abimelech is looking for some insurance – a hedge against spiritual risk
  • – He doesn’t want to get on the wrong side of Abraham or his God
  • – Abimelech wants Abraham to deal honestly with him and to treat him with kindness

The Hebrew word translated as kindness here is hesed

–         We don’t really have one single word in English for hesed

–         It is a Jewish term which is sometimes translated as kindness, sometimes as mercy and other times as steadfast love or loyal (covenant) love

–         Hesed isn’t just an abstract concept though – it is an action, something tangible that one does for someone else’s well-being

Katherine Sakenfeld, who did her PhD on this subject, outlines the three main criteria of hesed… [1]

–         Firstly, the action is essential to the survival or the basic wellbeing of the recipient – so it’s not something you do to entertain a whim or a fancy

–         Secondly, the needed action is one that only the person doing the hesed is in a position to provide – given the circumstances no one else can do it

–         And thirdly, hesed takes place in the context of an existing relationship

 

Abimelech wants Abraham to make a solemn commitment to always treat him and his descendants with hesed – and Abraham quickly agrees

–         It appears Abimelech’s treaty provided Abraham with the opportunity to sort out a problem – a dispute over watering rights

–         And Abraham’s creative solution to this dispute un-earths another hidden treasure

 

Dispute resolution – grace & truth

Abraham had dug a well of water and Abimelech’s servants had seized it

–         Water wells were vitally important in that part of the world

–         Rain fall was seasonal – it wasn’t all year round – so wells were essential to the survival of people and animals alike

 

Abimelech wanted peace with Abraham but without justice there can be no peace – peace is sustained with justice

–         Therefore Abraham sought justice over the well

–         What’s interesting here is the way Abraham resolves this dispute – with truth and grace

–         Abraham doesn’t sweep the issue under the carpet – he doesn’t fudge the truth or pretend there is no problem

–         Rather he addresses the issue by speaking the truth

 

I imagine this was an awkward moment, especially for Abimelech

–         The Philistine king has just given a speech about how he has treated Abraham with ‘kindness’ or hesed and now he is learning that in actual fact his servants have done nothing of the sort

–         The servants have embarrassed Abimelech and the king is quick to plead ignorance, as he had done when God confronted him about Sarah

 

What happens next is quite unexpected – like finding a hidden treasure in a vegetable garden

–         Normally the one who has been wronged – in this case Abraham – would be owed some compensation

–         When Abimelech returned Sarah to Abraham he gave Abraham 1000 pieces of silver by way of vindicating Sarah and compensating her

–         But in this situation Abraham doesn’t seek compensation for himself

–         He does the opposite – he compensates Abimelech by giving him 7 sheep

–         Abimelech is confused by this act of grace – he asks what does this mean

–         And Abraham explains that by accepting these sheep you are acknowledging the well is mine

Truth and grace you see

–         By taking Abraham’s well Abimelech’s servants had done an injustice to Abraham and brought shame on their master

–         To save face Abimelech might feel it necessary to punish his servants

–         But Abraham comes to the rescue of the men who seized his well by providing compensation on their behalf

–         In this way Abraham has preserved Abimelech’s honour and shielded the servants from punishment

–         Touched by Abraham’s act of grace, Abimelech and his servants will now stay away from Abraham’s well

Abraham’s act of grace toward his enemies is at the same time an act of hesed

 

Let me tell you a story…

–         Once there was a police officer who worked in a small town

–         This police officer had a son called Ned

–         Ned tended to get picked on at school because it was a small town and everyone knew who his Dad was

–         Ned responded to the treatment he got by becoming a bit of a rebel – he felt a strong urge to prove to everyone that he wasn’t like his dad

One day, to show how tough he was and how little he cared for the rules Ned stole an orange Mark 2, Ford Escort – and took it for a joy ride. He was 16 and still on his restricted.

The Escort was in mint condition – it was owned by a retired guy called Jim

–         Jim had plenty of time on his hands and had lovingly restored the car, partly because he liked that sort of thing but also because the car used to belong to his late wife and so he felt a sentimental attachment to it

–         It didn’t take much for Jim to figure out who had stolen his car – a neighbour saw Ned driving away in it

–         Jim didn’t react in the heat of the moment – he gave it a few days and thought about what he would do

–         On the one hand he didn’t want to ruin the boy’s life with a criminal record or a bad reputation but on the other hand there still needed to be some kind of consequence

–         Without justice there is no peace, for the victim or the perpetrator

In the end Jim called the policeman and asked him to come over to his house

–         Jim explained the situation, how Ned had been seen stealing his car four days ago

–         What Jim wanted was restoration – both for himself and Ned

–         If Ned was willing to admit what he had done and return the car, Jim would drop the matter

–         He just wanted his car back and for Ned to unburden his conscience

The policeman went home and confronted his son about it

–         Sure enough Ned knew where the Escort was, abandoned not far out of town in an old quarry

–         The car had a few more k’s on the clock and it needed a clean but apart from that it was okay

When Ned and his father returned the Escort to Jim they found him working on an old Cortina in his garage

–         Shame faced and embarrassed Ned made his apology and asked if there was anything he could do to make it up to Jim

–         Jim listened and said, ‘Yes, since you seem to like driving so much I bought this old Cortina for you. You can help me restore it.’

Ned was deeply touched by Jim’s act of grace and for the next six months they worked on the car together, after school and in the weekends

–         Ned stayed out of trouble and learned some skills at the same time

–         With a project to keep his mind occupied he didn’t worry so much about what others thought of him

–         In more than one way Jim put Ned on a life-giving path

 

It’s amazing what an act of hesed can do – the power of grace & truth, you see

 

Okay, so far we’ve heard how God was with Abraham

–         We’ve also heard how Abraham resolved a dispute in a creative way – with an act of hesed and in a spirit of truth & grace

–         Our passage this morning concludes with Abraham worshipping the Everlasting God

 

The Everlasting God:

At our church forum last November we had a time of prayer

  • – Just prior to that meeting one of our church members shared a vision they had seen of a giant cactus growing in this auditorium
  • – We are not entirely sure what the meaning of the vision is but we discussed it at the meeting and one of the things that came out was the resilience of the cactus plant
  • – Cacti have a number of good qualities including the ability to survive in very arid and desolate environments

 

In Genesis 21, verse 33, we read that Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and there he called upon the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God

Tamarisk trees have a deep-ranging root system which searches out water and enables the tree to survive in very dry conditions

  • – The fruit is a capsule with numerous seeds
  • – There are many varieties of tamarisk – some can grow as tall as 18 metres
  • – Tamarisks are valued for their ability to withstand drought and salty soil [2]
  • – They are a hardy tree often planted for shelter or feed
  • – The tamarisk is similar to a cactus plant in that it is resilient in harsh environments but it is perhaps even more versatile in that it provides a good wind break in the desert and its leaves can be eaten by livestock

 

Elsewhere in Genesis Abraham is noted as building an altar and calling on the name of the Lord – here he plants a tree and calls on the name of the Lord

  • – In this context planting a tree is like building an altar – it serves as a living memorial to the Everlasting God
  • – It’s a way saying: God is in this place, even a desolate dry place like Beersheba

Abraham probably chose to plant a tamarisk because it suited the environment but I can’t help noticing how Abraham is a bit like the tamarisk tree

  • – Through years of waiting in barrenness God has grown Abraham & Sarah’s faith strong & deep, like the root system of a tamarisk tree
  • – Abraham, who is now over a 100 years old, has moved from place to place in obedience to God’s call and he has shown resilience, prospering in even the harshest of environments
  • – Perhaps too the tamarisk tree is a parable for the nation of Israel
  • – Through Abraham, God was making a nation that would be resilient and life-giving – a source of shelter and sustenance to those who find themselves in the wilderness

 

Conclusion:

Sometimes our journey of faith can take us to barren, desolate, dry places

  • – Abraham’s story is similar to our story – it reminds us that God can still be found in the places we least expect

 

Let us pray…

  • – Everlasting God, resilient God, life-giving, hesed making God. God of grace & truth, justice & peace – be with us we ask
  • – May we be aware of your loving commitment to our well-being, in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in
  • – Help us to discover you in unexpected places
  • – Fill us with your Spirit of grace & truth that we may settle our disputes and reconcile our differences in ways that are creative & life-giving
  • – May we be open to receive the help you provide, and ready to pass on your help where there is a need
  • – May we grow in our intimacy & trust with you and each other
  • – Through Jesus we pray, Amen.

 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    What does it mean that God was with Abraham?

–         How might we know that God is with us?

–         How is Jesus present with us today?

3.)    What is hesed? (E.g. what sorts of words begin to describe hesed, what three conditions need to be met for an act of hesed?)

–         Can you think of a time in your own life when you have been the recipient of hesed? What happened?

–         Is there someone you can do hesed for?

4.)    How did Abraham handle the dispute over the well?

–         What was unusual / creative about Abraham’s approach?

5.)    What is the significance of Abraham planting a tamarisk tree?

6.)    Discuss / reflect on the acronym W.I.T.H. (Well-being, Intimacy, Trust, Help)

–         Who do you need to be with this week, this month, this year?

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/10-june-2018-with-god

[1] Katherine Doob-Sakenfeld, Ruth, page 24

[2] https://www.britannica.com/plant/tamarisk

Tawa Baptist

Healing

Scripture: Matthew 11:28-30

Title: Healing

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Hope vs. condemnation
  • Energy vs. exhaustion
  • Appreciation vs. entitlement
  • Lament vs. denial
  • Inter-dependence vs. independence
  • Nurture vs. neglect
  • Giving vs. greed
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

It’s been a difficult week for many in our congregation

–         I had originally planned to preach about the Trinity but it didn’t seem to fit for the week we’ve had – so this morning we are going to draw from the well of Jesus’ wisdom in caring for the soul

In Matthew 11, Jesus says…

–         Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Jesus was a carpenter by trade and as a carpenter he made wooden yokes to go across the shoulders of oxen

–         The purpose of a yoke is to make it easier to carry something

–         A yoke for a team of oxen wasn’t a one size fits all, it was custom made to fit the individual animals

–         The ‘yoke’ Jesus speaks of is his wisdom or his teaching

–         When we take on the yoke of Jesus’ wisdom we find that it fits who we are and makes the burdens we carry in this life a bit easier to bear

–         Jesus’ wisdom brings healing, well-being and growth to our soul

 

A few weeks ago now, as Robyn & I were walking around Lake Taupo, I gave some thought to some future sermon series ideas and came up with this acronym:

–         HEALING.

–         Each letter represents a word which, when put into practice, is life giving to the human soul…

–         Hope, Energy, Appreciation, Lament, Inter-dependence, Nurture & Giving – these are all strategies for well-being

–         They help us to carry our burdens without rubbing our backs raw

–         At some point I would like to take seven weeks to explore these words and their application, through a sermon series – but for today I will simply introduce the concepts to help us in taking care of our soul

–         First let’s consider hope

Hope:

Hope is the ability to imagine a good future

–         If life is good in the present then we tend not to think too much about the future

–         But when life is difficult we find the strength to get through that difficulty by imagining something good coming our way in the future

–         Without hope, without the thought that something better awaits us on the horizon, our burdens seem impossible to bear

The Christian hope, the picture of the future we hold in our minds, is heaven

–         Heaven goes by a number of different names including eternal life and the Kingdom of God

–         The best thing about heaven is God’s presence

–         In the book of Revelation chapter 7 we find these verses of hope…

He who sits on the throne will protect them with his presence. Never again will they hunger or thirst; neither sun nor any scorching heat will burn them, because the Lamb [that is: Jesus], who is in the centre of the throne, will be their shepherd and he will guide them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

Revelation was written for Christians in the first Century who were suffering persecution – they got through it by placing their hope in Jesus, by imagining a future in the presence of God

–         In the same way we get through the difficulties we face in this life by believing that one day (through Jesus) we will abide in God’s presence forever

Sometimes we understand what something is by its opposite

–         Condemnation is one of the opposites of hope

–         To feel condemned is to feel like there is nothing good for us in the future

–         Jesus (the Son of God) did not come to condemn us – he came to redeem creation, to save the world

–         There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus

Sometimes we lose our hope – we lose our ability to see a good future and we might feel condemned

–         It’s like the clouds of depression hang low & thick so we can’t see the sun’s rays of hope and everything is grey & gloomy

–         But just because you can’t see the sun behind the clouds doesn’t mean the sun isn’t there

–         Hold on – the clouds will pass and the sun will become visible again

–         Jesus does not promise a life without clouds but he does offer us certain hope of a future enjoying abundant life in God’s presence, when we put our trust in him

 

Energy:

‘E’ stands for Energy

–         The opposite of energy is exhaustion

We have different types of energy – physical energy, emotional energy, mental energy, sexual energy, spiritual energy and so on

–         Two things that help to sustain and support our energy levels are rhythm and balance

–         It’s like riding a bike – to keep the bike upright and moving forward you need to maintain the rhythm of your pedalling and your balance

To put it in more practical terms, we get energy from maintaining regular sleep patterns, eating a healthy balanced diet, as well as taking the right amount of exercise and rest

Our primary source of energy though is the Spirit of God [1]

–         The Holy Spirit is often compared to the wind

–         In fact, the Greek word for spirit (which is pneuma) is the same word used for wind, just as the Hebrew word for spirit (which is ruach) also doubles for wind

Like the wind, the Spirit of God is a powerful energy, untameable and free

–         We can try and do things under our own steam (by rowing or paddling the ship of our soul against the tide of circumstance) but it is far better to trim our sails to catch the wind of God’s Spirit and be carried along by the energy of God

 

Sometimes though we hit the doldrums, where there is no wind

–         We might trim our sails by reading the Bible, spending time in prayer and seeking to listen to God but nothing seems to happen and we sort of drift spiritually

–         We can’t control the Spirit any more than we can tell the wind what to do

–         When we find ourselves in the doldrums we simply have to wait for God

–         Keep up our daily & weekly devotional rhythms & rituals until the wind of God’s Spirit visits us again

 

Appreciation:

‘A’ is for appreciation

–         Appreciation is a word that carries more than one meaning

–         It can mean gratitude or thankfulness but it can also mean enjoying what is in front of you, not rushing past but stopping to smell the roses

A sense of entitlement is poison to appreciation

–         If we think we’re entitled to something because we’ve worked hard & we deserve it then we will lose the simple joy of appreciating what we have

–         The key to appreciation is remembering that life is a gift from God

–         Not a duty to be performed or a goal to be achieved, but a gift to be enjoyed

 

In Luke chapter 10 we find two sisters, Mary & Martha

–         Mary sits still at the feet of Jesus, simply listening and appreciating him

–         While Martha runs around in a flurry of busy-ness and self-righteous contempt for her sister

–         Martha feels her service for the Lord entitles her to tell Jesus what to do:

–         “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to come and help me.” But Jesus says to her…

–         “Martha, Martha. You are worried and troubled over so many things, but just one is needed. Mary has chosen the right thing and it will not be taken from her.”

 

Mary paused to appreciate the Lord – to enjoy the presence of God (in the form of Jesus) who was in front of her. We need to do the same

–         One thing I often do at the end of the day is think of the things that went well in the day: things I appreciated, situations that were redeemed, anything really that had the finger prints of God on it

–         And then I thank God for those things before going to sleep

 

‘H’ is for hope, ‘E’ is for energy, ‘A’ is for appreciation and…

Lament:

‘L’ is for lament

–         Lament is an old word that we don’t hear very often, which is a great shame because it is a practice that is needed more than ever today

Lament is a way of expressing the sad, bitter, angry & painful truth of what we are feeling inside

–         The opposite of lament is denial – pretending everything is okay with us when it isn’t

The psalms are full of laments – people grieving with raw honesty, pouring out their rage, their sadness, their doubt before God

–         Apparently God is big enough to handle it

We might practice lament in a number of ways – perhaps through music & song, maybe by writing a poem or painting a picture or simply with our tears

–         Lament takes a stink feeling, a sucky feeling, and does something creative with it

At the end of Matthew 23 Jesus laments over Jerusalem saying…

–         “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing. See, your house is left to you desolate.”

Jesus could see the coming destruction of the city with the unnecessary suffering of its people – and the waste of life, the futility, grieved him

–         It didn’t have to be this way – it’s not what God wanted

–         God’s instinct is to gather and protect his people but on this occasion, as on so many other occasions, God didn’t get what he wanted

There’s been a lot to grieve about this past week

–         Give your grief to God – tell him honestly & respectfully how you feel

–         Ask him to do something creative with it

 

Inter-dependence:

In the movie Guardians of the Galaxy there is a character called ‘Groot’.

–         Groot is a tree in the shape of a human

–         All through the movie Groot says only one thing: “I am Groot”

–         It doesn’t matter what the question is or what the topic of conversation he always says: “I am Groot”

–         Until the end of the film when he lays his life down to save his friends and says: “We are Groot

‘I’ is for inter-dependence, in contrast to independence

–         Inter-dependence is about being connected to one another in a good way

–         It’s about depending or relying on one another

–         Inter-dependent relationships function on trust

–         In contrast independence is about being isolated or alone

–         Independence is often the result of mistrust

 

Healing, wholeness, growth – these things don’t happen in isolation, they happen in community

–         If you injure your finger the doctors don’t seek to heal the finger by separating it from the hand – no, they keep the finger attached

 

Our body is an inter-dependent unity. As the apostle Paul says…

  •  25 And so there is no division in the body, but all its different parts have the same concern for one another. 26 If one part of the body suffers, all the other parts suffer with it; if one part is praised, all the other parts share its happiness. 27 All of you are Christ’s body, and each one is a part of it.

 

The death this past week has affected a lot of people and that’s because we are all connected

–         Whether we like it or not, what happens to one part of the body affects the rest – and that’s true whether you were close to the one who died or not

If you are hurting, don’t do your grieving alone – talk with someone

–         There will be people available to pray with you here, by the water cooler, after the service or you can catch up with Daryl or me

–         It has been really good to see the way many people in the church have come together to lend support to each other – especially the youth & young adults. There is healing in community

‘H’ is for hope, ‘E’ is for energy, ‘A’ is for appreciation, ‘L’ is for lament,

‘I’ is for inter-dependence, and…

 Nurture:

‘N’ is for nurture, as opposed to neglect

–         Nurture is about taking care of someone or something

–         One of the primary images we are given of Jesus is that of a shepherd

–         A shepherd takes care of his sheep

It’s interesting how Jesus restores Peter

–         After Peter had denied him three times, Jesus tells Peter to feed my sheep

–         Jesus heals Peter by giving him some people to nurture and take care of

–         The wisdom of Jesus seems to be that healing, well-being and growth of our soul doesn’t happen by self-analysis alone – it happens as we look outside ourselves to the nurture and care of others

Sometimes when we are hurting or in pain we can become quite self-absorbed and our perspective gets smaller & smaller until we find ourselves locked in self-destructive thought patterns – the temptation in grief is to self-pity

–         Nurturing others, looking to the well-being of others, actually enlarges our perspective and frees our mind, lifting our thought patterns out of the rut we sometimes get ourselves into

–         Self-pity leads us to neglect our soul. Nurture, of others, saves us from self-pity

Giving:

Related to this idea of nurture is our final letter: ‘G’ for giving

–         Jesus said: It is better to give than receive

–         By giving I don’t think Jesus just meant giving money

–         I think he meant giving in the broader sense of that word – being generous in our attitude toward others, giving time to listen, giving people the benefit of the doubt, forgiving others, giving ourselves

The thing is we can only give what we have received – we can’t give what we don’t have, so giving implies receiving, not earning or taking, but receiving as a gift. God offers us life as a gift, both to enjoy and to share with others

The classic illustration for the benefits of giving is the Dead Sea

–         While the Dead Sea receives water from the Jordan River, it doesn’t have an outlet and consequently the salt & mineral deposits increase to such an extent that nothing can survive in the water there

–         It is similar with our soul – when we don’t give, our soul becomes constipated or bunged up with bitterness

Jesus encouraged generosity, not to make us feel guilty about not meeting some impossible ideal, but in order to set us free from the constipation of greed

 

Conclusion:

There is a lot more we could say about each of these things (and at some point in the future we might explore them further) but that’s enough for now

–         As you process the events of the past week (whether it’s been a good week for you or torrid), which one of these words or areas of well-being do you think you need to focus on, both for your own healing & growth, as well as that of those around you?

 

Let us pray…

Father God, you are just and merciful. You understand us completely because you made us. You are the ground of our being.

Jesus, Son of God, you are our brother and our hope. Because of you we have friendship with God and a future to look forward to.

Holy Spirit, you are the source of our energy, the wind in our sails, the warmth in our heart, the one who connects us to Jesus.

God you are our home – we come from you and we return to you. In you we can be ourselves. We pray for those in NZ and in the world at large who have nowhere to live. Provide each one with affordable accommodation and a caring community to belong to.

God of the easy yoke we pray for those who are weary and heavy laden. Help each of us to take care of the soul you have given us. Save us from the constipation of greed. Keep us from that self-pity which leads to neglect of the soul. Help us to express our grief in creative & satisfying lament. Give us eyes to appreciate the good news all around us. Strengthen our trust in one another that we would do the ups & downs of life together, in an inter-dependent way. When we find ourselves in the doldrums help us to keep our balance and maintain healthy rhythms, while we wait for the wind of your Spirit. And when our mood is overcast and we lose sight of hope, hold on to us and remind us that the clouds of depression will pass. Restore us as we care for and nurture your lambs. Give us wisdom to live generously & well, in Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

 

Questions for discussion or reflection

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    Jesus’ metaphor of the easy yoke can be understood in a variety of ways – how do you understand it?

3.)    Where is your hope placed? (What is your picture of the future?)

4.)    How are your energy levels at the moment? Are you rowing against the tide or catching the wind of God’s Spirit?

–         What can we do when we find ourselves in the doldrums?

5.)    What form of lament works best for you? (E.g. music, writing, painting, crying, something else creative?)

6.)    What has God given you to share with others?

7.)    Which of the 7 areas (words) of well-being, mentioned in the sermon, do you need to focus on for the welfare of your soul (and for others)?

8.)    At the end of each day this week, think of three things in the day you appreciated and give thanks to God for them.

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/27-may-2018-healing

 

 

[1] Note to self for future sermon: use the story of an exhausted Elijah being feed by an angel, rested and carried by the Spirit (God restores Elijah’s physical & spiritual energy)

Tawa Baptist

Pentecost

Read Acts 2

Why did Jesus send the Holy Spirit?

–         Well, very simply, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to connect us to himself

–         The Holy Spirit makes Jesus’ presence & power close & real

 

I need a volunteer – [choose someone]

–         Okay, can you sit here near the front

–         Put this blind fold on so you can’t see me

–         I’m going to put a small weight in your hand and I want you to hold on to it – don’t let go

–         You may feel a slight tugging but you need to hold onto your end

–         I’m going to walk away from you now and I want you to sit where you are and just hold on – [I walk back to the pulpit]

 

Even though you can’t see me and even though I’m not close enough for you to reach out and touch, we are still connected

–         And you know we’re connected because when I tug at my end of the line you can feel me – like I’m close & real

–         It’s a bit like that with the Holy Spirit – the Holy Spirit connects us to Jesus sort of like this fishing line connects you and I

–         Even though Jesus is in heaven and we can’t see him – we still feel a connection with Jesus through the Holy Spirit

–         In fact, sometimes if we feel a slight tugging in our heart it might be Jesus getting our attention through the line of his Spirit and tugging us in the direction he wants us to go

 

Well done, you can take your blind fold off now – here’s something for being such a good sport – [give a reward]

 

In Acts 2, Peter knew Jesus was with him because the Holy Spirit was in him

–         Not only that but Peter was able to tell others about Jesus because the Holy Spirit gave him power to speak – and power (in Peter’s situation) meant the ability, the words & the courage to speak

–         The Holy Spirit worked through Peter to make Jesus’ presence & power close & real to other people so they would believe in Jesus and become connected to Jesus themselves

 

In some ways, not in every way, but in some ways the Holy Spirit is a little bit like electricity in your home

–         Imagine your soul is like a house and the Spirit of God is like electricity – although we can’t see the electricity we know we are connected when the lights come on, the oven heats up & the water in the shower is warm

–         It’s similar with Jesus – although we can’t see Jesus we know Jesus is close & real because the Holy Spirit connects us

–         It’s like the Holy Spirit turns the lights on inside our mind so we understand who Jesus is – that he is God’s Son and our Saviour, that he is risen from the dead as our Lord & our friend

–         It’s like the Holy Spirit warms up the water in our soul so we know our sins are forgiven and God accepts us – and when we know we are forgiven and loved by God we are able to forgive & love others

 

Now I need to say that fishing line and electricity are not adequate for describing the Holy Spirit – there is more to the Spirit than that

–         The point is, the Holy Spirit connects people to Jesus with warmth & energy – he makes Jesus close & real

 

Given that the Holy Spirit connects us to Jesus it is reasonable to ask, how do we receive the Holy Spirit?

–         Well, receiving the Holy Spirit doesn’t happen in the same way as having electricity connected to your house – you can’t just pay for someone to come and hook you up

 

In John chapter 3 Jesus compares the Holy Spirit to the wind. Jesus says,

–         The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.

–         Part of the message here is: the Holy Spirit cannot be manipulated or controlled. The Holy Spirit initiates the connection between us and Jesus

 

Although we can’t tell the Holy Spirit what to do (any more than we can tell the wind what to do) we can ask God for his Spirit and be ready to receive it

–         We know that God wants us to have a connection with Jesus – so if we ask God in good faith, trusting Jesus, it’s just a matter of time before the wind blows on us

–         The thing is, God’s Spirit doesn’t always turn up in the way or at the time we might be expecting.

–         We might expect the Holy Spirit to initiate something while we’re singing or praying in church – and he might – but he is just as likely to turn up while we are at school or work or home or on the train talking to someone

The other thing we need to remember is that the Holy Spirit isn’t all about us

–         He isn’t there just to make us feel good or powerful

–         The Holy Spirit is primarily about Jesus and that means sometimes he will involve us in connecting others with Jesus, like he involved Peter

–         So we need to be ready to respond to the Holy Spirit when he wants to use us to make Jesus’ presence & power close & real for someone else

–         The Holy Spirit is not interested in attracting attention to us or himself

–         He would rather turn people’s attention to Jesus

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/20-may-2018-pentecost

Tawa Baptist

God is faithful

Scripture: Genesis 21:1-21

Title: God is faithful

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • God’s faithfulness to Sarah & Abraham
  • God’s faithfulness to Hagar & Ishmael
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

On the wall here is a picture of the newly elected Prime Minister of Malaysia, Mahathir Mohamad

–         At the age of 92 he is the oldest elected Prime Minister of all time

–         He looks in pretty good nick for 92 I reckon

–         This morning we continue our series on Abraham & Sarah, picking up their story from Genesis 21

–         By this stage Abraham is 100 years old and Sarah is 90

It has been about 25 years since Abraham left Haran in obedience to God’s call

–         More than once during that time God promised to make Abraham the father of a great nation

–         Because Sarah was unable to have children they did, on one occasion, take matters into their own hands and Abraham had a son (Ishmael) through Sarah’s maidservant, Hagar

–         But God made it clear that the son who would inherit God’s promises would come from Sarah

–         From Genesis chapter 21, verse 1 (in the NIV) we read…

Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. 2 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. 3 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.

4 When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

6 Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7 And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

8 The child grew and was weaned, and on the day Isaac was weaned Abraham held a great feast. 9 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian had borne to Abraham was mocking, 10 and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.”

11 The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. 12 But God said to him, “Do not be so distressed about the boy and your maidservant. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned. 13 I will make the son of the maidservant into a nation also, because he is your offspring.”

14 Early the next morning Abraham took some food and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar. He set them on her shoulders and then sent her off with the boy. She went on her way and wandered in the Desert of Beersheba.

15 When the water in the skin was gone, she put the boy under one of the bushes. 16 Then she went off and sat down about a bowshot away, for she thought, “I cannot watch the boy die.” And as she sat there, she began to sob.

17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”

19 Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water. So she went and filled the skin with water and gave the boy a drink.

20 God was with the boy as he grew up. He lived in the desert and became an archer. 21 While he was living in the Desert of Paran, his mother got a wife for him from Egypt.

 

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this Scripture for us

 

On the face of it Genesis 21 tells the story of two mothers in very different circumstances

–         We don’t have to scratch too far beneath the surface though to see God’s faithfulness at work

–         God is faithful in keeping his promise to Sarah & Abraham

–         And he is faithful in taking care of Hagar & Ishmael

God’s faithfulness to Sarah & Abraham:

On the wall here is the picture of a Cabbage Tree – an iconic sight on the NZ landscape. Some facts about Cabbage trees… [1]

–         The trunk of the cabbage tree is so fire-resistant that early European settlers used it to make chimneys for their huts.

–         Conveniently, too, the leaves made fine kindling.

–         Cabbage trees have a strong root system which gives the tree stability and helps stop soil erosion on steep slopes and along river banks.

–         Māori used cabbage trees for food and medicine. The root, stem and top are all edible, a good source of starch and sugar, while the leaves can be made into tea to cure diarrhoea and dysentery

–         Cabbage trees generally live for a long time – there’s one in Golden Bay that is thought to be between 400 – 500 years old.

 

We have a cabbage tree along the boundary of our section

–         Just over a year ago I cut the trunk off about a metre from the ground because it was becoming a problem to my neighbour

–         Given I had pruned it so hard I thought it would die – but it didn’t

 

The root system is so strong it regenerated new leaves straight out of the trunk where I had cut it off.

–         This is a picture of the regrowth. The tree has resurrection properties

 

In some ways Sarah & Abraham remind me of the humble NZ cabbage tree

–         I don’t know if they had a cure for diarrhoea but they were hardy souls

–         They had longevity, a strong root system and a God given ability to regenerate when they had been cut off at the stump

 

At the age of 90, and after a lifetime of disappointment, Sarah becomes a mother for the first time

–         This is nothing short of a miracle of God

–         Although Sarah & Abraham were probably in pretty good condition for their age Sarah had been through menopause and shouldn’t have been able to conceive – yet God, in faithfulness to his promises, made it possible for her to give birth to a son

–         The miracle of Isaac’s birth is on a par with the virgin birth of Jesus and the miracle of his resurrection

 

The message here at the beginning of Genesis 21 is that God is faithful – he keeps his promises, and when promises are kept trust is strengthened

 

You may be wondering why God made Sarah & Abraham wait so long

–         Why wait until Sarah’s biological clock had stopped ticking?

–         That’s sort of like cutting her off at the trunk

–         Why not just give them a child when they were young and could handle the sleepless nights?

–         Well, I think God may have been developing their root system

–         The longer we have to wait for God the deeper the roots of our faith grow

–         If God fulfilled is promises to us too quickly the roots of our faith wouldn’t have the time they need to develop properly

–         When the roots of our faith grow deep the tree of our life (that is, our relationship with God) is stronger and more stable – better able to handle the pruning’s of life

 

Genesis 21 gives three reactions to Isaac’s birth

–         Praise, obedience and scorn

 

In verse 6 Sarah responds in joyful praise saying…

–         “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” 7 …Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

 

Isaac’s name means ‘laughter’

–         A year earlier Sarah had laughed in disbelief when God predicted she would give birth to a son

–         Now, a year on, she laughs in gratitude and praise at the miracle God has performed – no one would’ve thought she would become a mother at 90

–         Notice how Sarah refers to herself nursing ‘children’ – not just a child

–         Isaac was Sarah’s first and only child – why then does she refer to herself as the mother of children (plural)?

–         Well, since God fulfilled his promise to Sarah her eyes have been opened, in faith, to see a nation being born through Isaac

 

Sarah responds in joyful praise and Abraham responds in obedience

–         Abraham named his son Isaac and circumcised him at 8 days old as God commanded him

–         Circumcision, we remember, is the sign of God’s covenant with Abraham – obedience follows faith

 

Sarah’s praise & Abraham’s obedience are fitting and appropriate but Ishmael, Isaac’s older half-brother, mocks Isaac (he treats him with scorn)

–         Ishmael (who incidentally isn’t named at all in this passage) laughs at Isaac but not in a good way

–         To give you some context Isaac is about 2 or 3 years old at this stage and Ishmael is about 16 or 17 – so it’s not a good look for Ishmael

 

When Sarah sees this she tells Abraham to send Hagar and Ishmael packing

–         This may seem like an over-reaction on Sarah’s part but we need to remember that 16 or 17 years earlier Hagar had treated Sarah with similar contempt when Hagar had a son and Sarah couldn’t

–         So this touches on an old wound for Sarah and old wounds are often the most sensitive

–         It seems to Sarah that Ishmael is following in his mother, Hagar’s, footsteps – Sarah doesn’t want her son bullied

 

This puts Abraham in a difficult position – he is the meat in the sandwich between two people he loves – between Ishmael and Sarah

–         Whatever choice he makes he loses

 

But God tells Abraham to listen to Sarah because Isaac is the one to inherit the covenant

–         God, in his grace, makes it easier for Abraham by reassuring him that he will take care of Ishmael

 

Sending Hagar & Ishmael away like this might seem a bit harsh to us (through our super sensitive, over anxious, 21st Century lens) but we need to look at God’s action practically & theologically

 

Practically, it’s not really going to work for Hagar & Ishmael to stay – it’s already problematic and (as Sarah can see) it’s only going to get worse

 

Theologically, by separating Isaac & Ishmael God is performing an act of creation

–         You remember in Genesis 1 God created by separating things: light from darkness, earth from sky, land from water

–         Separating Isaac & Ishmael was necessary for the creation of Israel

 

The other theological point not to be missed here is that God is asking Abraham to trust him – God is testing Abraham’s faith

–         In a sense God is asking Abraham to sacrifice Ishmael

–         Later in Genesis 22 God will ask Abraham to sacrifice Isaac

–         Will the roots of Abraham’s faith run deep enough to obey God?

–         On this occasion Abraham passes the test – first thing the next morning he sends Hagar & their teenage son, Ishmael, away with some food & water

 

God’s faithfulness to Hagar & Ishmael:

In 1980 the pop band Abba released a song called “The winner takes it all”

–         It’s one of their sad songs

–         Bjorn wrote it after separating from his wife and fellow band member, Agnetha

–         It’s about a divorce where one person doesn’t want to separate and clings desperately to the marriage

–         Bjorn said: “I had this image of a man walking through an empty house with all the furniture removed for the last time as the symbol of divorce and just describing what I see.”

–         The winner takes it all, the loser has to fall…

–         To the one who doesn’t want the marriage to end it feels like they are the loser and the other partner (the winner) takes it all

–         It is a feeling of powerlessness, of hopelessness

–         Having said that, Bjorn insisted the song wasn’t about him & Agnetha, it was more of a fictional imagining

–         In reality there are no winners in divorce

 

Hagar wasn’t officially married to Abraham but she may as well have been – she couldn’t marry anyone else and yet was forced to separate from him

–         We don’t know if she loved him but we can be pretty sure that, as a single woman at that time in history, she was vulnerable on her own, without a husband to protect her or a welfare system to provide for her

–         I imagine, that to Hagar, it must have felt like Sarah was the winner who took it all and she was the loser who took the fall

 

Now at this point we may feel some sympathy for Hagar & Ishmael

–         While they weren’t perfect they do seem to get a raw deal

–         It’s not like Abraham was paying child support or maintenance – he just sent her off with food & water to last a couple of days (good bye & good luck)

 

We might also be looking at God sideways because he seems to condone Hagar & Ishmael being sent away

–         Well, I don’t think we can blame God for this situation

–         Through the history of their relationship together Sarah & Abraham, along with Hagar & Ishmael have all made some poor choices which have resulted in a less than ideal situation for everyone

–         God is now in the position of having to work with the choices other people have made – God is having to make the best of a bad situation

 

Interestingly, God does not come to Hagar & Ishmael’s rescue immediately

–         God waits until both the boy and his mother are at the end of their rope and crying out in despair. What was it Jesus said?

–         Blessed are the poor in Spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven

–         Hagar & Ishmael are poor in spirit and they know it

–         I think God waits for us come to the end of our own resources, before stepping in to help, so that we will learn the vital lesson that our life depends on him – that we can’t save ourselves  

–         You see it’s an awareness of our need that brings us to God

 

17 God heard the boy crying, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What is the matter, Hagar? Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there. 18 Lift the boy up and take him by the hand, for I will make him into a great nation.”

 

This is the second time the angel of the Lord has called to Hagar – the first time was in Genesis 16

–         Hagar is a foreigner, an outsider and a servant – she is literally down & out, but God is attentive to her and to Ishmael

–         More than simply being attentive though, God is faithful and provides

 

The angel of the Lord says five things to Hagar…

 

What’s the matter Hagar?

–         God knows Hagar’s name and calls her by name

–         In the ancient world, to know someone’s name was to know their character, to know what they are like on the inside.

–         God knows your name too – he gets you, he understands

 

Do not be afraid

–         Do not let your thoughts run wild. Do not anticipate the worst. Be calm

 

God has heard the boy as he lies there

–         In other words, God is listening. He understands your situation and your concerns for your son – you both have his attention

 

Lift up the boy and take him by the hand

–         God gives Hagar something to do – he basically says, ‘You’ve got an important role to play in your son’s life. Don’t abandon your son. Your job is to lift your child up’

–         I love that. Whether you are a single parent or parenting with someone else, your job is to lift your children up and take them by the hand

 

‘Lift your child up’ could mean speaking words that build them up, that encourage them, words that help them to see a perspective beyond the little piece of dirt they are sitting on at this present moment

–         ‘Lift your child up’ might also mean helping them practically with things until they get the hang of it themselves, setting them up to succeed

 

‘Take them by the hand’ means leading them gently in the way they should go.

–         We shouldn’t drive our kids with threats or pressure

–         Take them by the hand. Walk with them.

–         We don’t need to be hovering over them all the time, but it is helpful to listen and be present when they need us

 

…for I will make him into a great nation.

–         In saying this God is giving Hagar hope – the future is bright

–         From our perspective in history we see the fulfilment of this – the Arab nations claim descent from Ishmael

 

God then opens Hagar’s eyes to see the next step (that was always there) – a well from which she can draw water

–         Interesting that God doesn’t give a detailed plan in advance

–         He doesn’t spell out to Hagar how she and Ishmael will go from utter despair to being a great nation – God simply shows her the next little step

–         Refill your water skin and give your son a drink

 

Conclusion:

Genesis 21 tells the story of two mothers in very different circumstances.

–         In this respect it reflects our experience too…

For some (like Sarah) mothers’ day is a happy time of laughter and family gathering.

–         If you find yourself in Sarah’s position then you need be free to praise God and to celebrate, without feeling bad about that

–         There is no sin in showing gratitude

 

For others (like Hagar) mothers’ day only highlights what is lost or perhaps never was.

–         If you find yourself in Hagar’s position, a solo parent, feeling alone and overwhelmed by your problems, in a place of dryness and utter despair

–         God knows you by name – he understands

–         Don’t try and solve everything at once, just take little steps

–         First cry out to God – he is big enough to handle your heartbreak

–         Then open your eyes – look around

–         Find the well (the source of refreshment) God has provided – it might be right in front of you

–         Drink your fill, refresh your child, lift up those in your care.

 

And then there are those (like Abraham) who feel torn and in an impossible situation – the meat in the sandwich, perhaps caring deeply for two parents who no longer care for each other

–         If you are a daughter or a son and you find yourself in that situation then I want to say to you, ‘Unlike Abraham, you don’t have to choose’

–         It doesn’t always have to be either / or, it can be both / and

–         What transpires between your parents is their problem to solve, not yours

–         You need to be free to love, honour & forgive both your mum & your dad

 

We are so accustomed to thinking of God as a Father because that is the way the Bible usually presents God to us

–         But the Bible does at times shine a light on the motherly nature of God

–         In Isaiah 49, verse 15 we read:

–         “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you.”

–         In this verse God is saying to his people in exile, I love you like a mother (to the moon and back)

–         Whatever feelings mothers’ day touches for you, God is faithful, even more faithful than your mother.

 

Questions for discussion & reflection

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    In what ways was God faithful to Sarah & Abraham?

–          In what ways has God been faithful to you over the years?

3.)    Discuss the three reactions to Isaac’s birth (i.e. praise, obedience & scorn/mocking)

–         How can we respond to God’s faithfulness to us?

4.)    Why do you think God agrees with Sarah in telling Abraham to send Hagar & Ishmael away? (e.g. theological & practical reasons)

5.)    In what ways is God faithful to Hagar & Ishmael?

6.)    What does it mean to ‘lift up your child and take them by the hand’?

(Think of some practical examples)

7.)     What feelings does mothers’ day touch for you?

–         Who do you identify with most in this story and why?

8.)    Take some time this week to reflect on Isaiah 49:15 and the motherly aspects of God’s character

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/13-may-2018-god-is-faithful

[1] https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-plants/cabbage-tree-ti-kouka/

Tawa Baptist

Jesus’ Trial – Good Friday

Readings & Reflections on Jesus’ Trial from Luke 22:66-23:25

Good Friday is about the suffering & death of Jesus

–         It is the day Jesus’ suffering comes to a head

–         Jesus’ suffering was undeserved and yet he accepted it with humility & grace

 

Following Jesus’ agony and arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane he was taken away for a series of trials

–         After a night in the courtyard of the high priest, where he was mocked & beaten by the temple guards, Jesus was brought before the Jewish elders

–         We pick up the story from Luke chapter 22, verse 66

 

66 When day came, the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law met together, and Jesus was brought before the Council. 67 “Tell us,” they said, “are you the Messiah?”

He answered, “If I tell you, you will not believe me; 68 and if I ask you a question, you will not answer. 69 But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right side of Almighty God.”

70 They all said, “Are you, then, the Son of God?”

He answered them, “You say that I am.”

71 And they said, “We don’t need any witnesses! We ourselves have heard what he said!”

 

Luke’s account places an emphasis on Jesus’ innocence

–         Despite all the miracles Jesus has performed and despite all the reasoning Jesus has provided, the Jewish Council refuse to believe that Jesus is God’s Messiah, their King

–         They have already made up their mind to kill Jesus and are simply gathering ammunition to use against him

 

Jesus knows this but he doesn’t deny his true identity to save himself

–         To the contrary he takes it a few steps further and essentially says he is a lot closer to the Almighty in heaven than they realise – at God’s right side no less

–         Jesus has intentionally played into their hands – he is embracing the suffering of the cross in obedience to God the Father

 

The Jewish Council can’t believe their luck, they think they have all the ammunition they need for a conviction of blasphemy

–         Blasphemy is when someone says or does something which shows contempt or disrespect for God – it was a really big deal to ancient Jews

–         Of course it’s only blasphemy if it’s not true & Jesus has spoken the truth

–         The irony is, the Jewish Council are the ones who are guilty of blasphemy – they have insulted God by rejecting His Son

 

The Jewish Council don’t have freedom to kill Jesus on their own terms, they have to get permission from Pilate, the Roman governor

–         Blasphemy is not a crime under Roman law but sedition is

–         If they can convince Pilate that Jesus is a rival king stirring up trouble then Pilate might agree to execute Jesus

–         But Pilate isn’t buying it – after questioning Jesus he concludes…

–         “I find no reason to condemn this man”

–         In Pilate’s estimation Jesus is innocent – but the Jewish Council insisted even more strongly so, to avoid responsibility, Pilate sent Jesus to Herod.

8 Herod was very pleased when he saw Jesus, because he had heard about him and had been wanting to see him for a long time. He was hoping to see Jesus perform some miracle. 9 So Herod asked Jesus many questions, but Jesus made no answer.

10 The chief priests and the teachers of the Law stepped forward and made strong accusations against Jesus. 11 Herod and his soldiers made fun of Jesus and treated him with contempt; then they put a fine robe on him and sent him back to Pilate.

 

Herod wanted to be entertained by Jesus

  • – He wanted Jesus to perform some miracle, like a party trick, but Jesus does not respond – in fact Jesus remains completely silent
  • – In the end Herod makes his own fun by dressing Jesus up in royal robes and mocking him
  • – Clearly Herod does not believe Jesus is a threat
  • – As far as Herod is concerned the Jewish Council’s charges of sedition are a joke and Jesus is innocent

 

Pilate is different to Herod – Pilate is more professional, more respectful. Pilate has a conscience. From verse 13 read…

13 Pilate called together the chief priests, the leaders, and the people, 14 and said to them, “You brought this man to me and said that he was misleading the people. Now, I have examined him here in your presence, and I have not found him guilty of any of the crimes you accuse him of. 15 Nor did Herod find him guilty, for he sent him back to us. There is nothing this man has done to deserve death. 16 So I will have him whipped and let him go.”

18 The whole crowd cried out, “Kill him! Set Barabbas free for us!” (19 Barabbas had been put in prison for a riot that had taken place in the city, and for murder.)

20 Pilate wanted to set Jesus free, so he appealed to the crowd again. 21 But they shouted back, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

22 Pilate said to them the third time, “But what crime has he committed? I cannot find anything he has done to deserve death! I will have him whipped and set him free.”

23 But they kept on shouting at the top of their voices that Jesus should be crucified, and finally their shouting succeeded. 24 So Pilate passed the sentence on Jesus that they were asking for.

 

Clearly Jesus was innocent – consequently Pilate did his best to see justice was done by releasing Jesus, but he failed (despite multiple attempts)

  • – Although Jesus could have defended himself he didn’t – Jesus chose instead to embrace the cross in obedience to God

The Jewish Council treated Jesus with open hostility

  • – Herod didn’t take Jesus seriously
  • – And Pilate tried to save Jesus
  • – But Jesus accepted his suffering with humility & grace

 

Let us pray…

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, when taken away you did not resist

When mocked and falsely accused you remained silent

When questioned as to your identity you responded with truth

When condemned you did not justify yourself

When we face injustice grant us wisdom to know when to speak and when to be silent

And when we collude with injustice grant us the conscience to repent

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God have mercy on us. Amen.

 

Questions for discussion or reflection

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    What does Luke emphasise in his account of Jesus’ trial?

–         How does Luke do this?

3.)    What temptations do you think Jesus may have faced during his trial(s) on Good Friday?

4.)    Jesus did not deny his true identity to save himself. Why do you think Jesus gave the Jewish Council the ammunition they needed to condemn him?

5.)    What is blasphemy?

–         How did the Jewish Council (and Herod) unwittingly commit blasphemy?

–         What are some of the ways that blasphemy might express itself today?

6.)    Why do you think Jesus had nothing to say to Herod?

–         When is it right for us to speak up and when is it right to remain silent?

7.)    Jesus embraced the suffering of the cross because it was God’s will for him. How might we know when suffering is God’s will for us and when it isn’t?

8.)   The Jewish Council treated Jesus with open hostility, Herod didn’t take Jesus seriously and Pilate tried to save Jesus. None of these are ideal responses to Jesus. Can you think of some other better responses?

 

Tawa Baptist

A New Generation

Scripture: Luke 9:1-10

Title: A New Generation

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • Jesus creates a new generation
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

Over the past couple of weeks we have been working through a sermon series for the Tranzsend Self Denial campaign called Made New

–         Jesus came to make all things new and that newness begins with the initiative of the Holy Spirit

–         Last week we heard how Jesus gives us a new perspective

–         Today we conclude the Self Denial series by looking at how Jesus creates a new generation  

Please turn with me to Luke chapter 9, verse 1 – page 89 toward the back of your pew Bibles

–         In today’s reading we hear how Jesus empowers the new generation of his disciples to heal the sick and preach the gospel

–         From Luke 9, verses 1-10 we read…

Jesus called the twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases. 2 Then he sent them out to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick, 3 after saying to them, “Take nothing with you for the trip: no walking stick, no beggar’s bag, no food, no money, not even an extra shirt. 4 Wherever you are welcomed, stay in the same house until you leave that town; 5 wherever people don’t welcome you, leave that town and shake the dust off your feet as a warning to them.” 6 The disciples left and traveled through all the villages, preaching the Good News and healing people everywhere.

7 When Herod, the ruler of Galilee, heard about all the things that were happening, he was very confused, because some people were saying that John the Baptist had come back to life. 8 Others were saying that Elijah had appeared, and still others that one of the prophets of long ago had come back to life. 9 Herod said, “I had John’s head cut off; but who is this man I hear these things about?” And he kept trying to see Jesus.

10 The apostles came back and told Jesus everything they had done. He took them with him, and they went off by themselves to a town named Bethsaida.

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this reading for us

Jesus creates a new generation:

We are talking this morning about how Jesus creates a new generation, but what do we mean by the word generation

–         Well, as a verb (a doing word) generation means producing something or bringing something into being

–         As in generating power or producing a crop or getting a project underway

 

But as a noun (a naming word) generation refers to a group or cohort of people born about the same time

–         As in generation X or baby boomers or millennials

 

We see both senses of this word generation in our reading from Luke 9 this morning

–         By empowering the disciples and sending them out to heal & preach Jesus is generating something new, he is creating a new movement

–         Also the disciples represent a new generation of God’s people

–         Just as there were twelve tribes of Israel, so too there are twelve disciples representing a new generation of leadership

 

Jesus does a number of things to create this new generation

–         Firstly he calls the disciples – inviting them to leave their old lives and follow him, learn from him, become his apprentices

–         We read how Jesus called his first disciples in Luke 5

 

Then, once Jesus has called the new generation, he shows them what to do by his own example – Jesus gives the disciples a model of how to do ministry

–         When we think of education we might think of sitting in a class room but the disciples learned by being with Jesus 24-7

–         Prior to Luke 9 the disciples have been following Jesus around everywhere, looking & listening, soaking up his way of doing things

–         I call this the tea bag approach to learning – Jesus’ example is like a tea bag and the disciples are like the water

–         As the disciples spend time with Jesus his way of doing things is infused into them, like tea is infused into water

–         This kind of learning happens without us necessarily being aware of it

–         The next generation (the children in our midst) are having our example infused into them, so we need to be careful of the model we provide

 

In Luke 9 Jesus takes the next step in creating this new generation of leadership

–         At this point the disciples have a clear picture in their mind of what preaching & healing the Jesus’ way looks like but they haven’t actually done it themselves

–         They know it in their head but they don’t yet know it in their hands

 

Last Tuesday night 14 of us gathered in the church lounge to learn how to operate the defibrillator

–         Amy from the Wellington Free Ambulance explained some procedures to us and then demonstrated on a manikin what to do if someone has a cardiac arrest (if their heart stops)

–         After showing us by her example, Amy then got each of us to practice on a manikin as well

–         It’s one thing to watch someone demonstrate a certain technique

–         It’s quite another to actually do 100 chest compressions a minute for over 2 minutes – watching and doing are quite different

 

Having shown his disciples what to do Jesus then gives them the opportunity to have a go themselves

–         But before sending them out Jesus first sets them up to succeed by giving them power & authority over demons & disease

–         No point in taking a knife to a gun fight – I imagine Jesus wants his disciples to have some wins, to get some runs on the board, because that will help generate confidence

 

Power & authority aren’t exactly the same thing although they often go together

–         Power is the ability to do something while authority is the permission or license to do it

–         I might have the power to drive a bus because I have the key but I don’t have authority to drive unless I have a license

–         I might have the power to cut down a tree because I have a chainsaw but I don’t have authority to cut it down unless it’s on my property

–         Jesus deputises his disciples with both the ability to drive out demons & heal disease as well as the license to do it

 

Demons are a manifestation of spiritual evil (the minions of Satan if you like) and disease is a manifestation of physical evil

–         What we observe here is that Jesus has jurisdiction over both the spiritual realm and the physical realm – there is nothing beyond Jesus’ reach

 

We also observe that Jesus shares his power & authority with those he trusts

–         Jesus doesn’t do it all himself, he uses a team approach

–         At the defibrillator training the other night Amy underlined the importance of using a team approach

–         You don’t try to do everything yourself – you get someone to ring 111 while you do chest compressions and you line up one or two others to help you do the chest compressions like a tag team

–         Later in Luke’s gospel we read how Jesus sends out the 72 in pairs

–         By using a team approach Jesus creates a new culture of cooperation & partnership, in contrast to the old culture of competition & one-up-man-ship – the new generation has a new culture

 

Another thing we notice is that Jesus gives the new generation a new focus and a new purpose

–         The old generation had been focused on things like politics and money and military might, because those things enable one to control people

–         But Jesus doesn’t give his disciples power & authority to control people

–         Rather he gives them power & authority to drive out demons & disease

–         Therefore Jesus’ focus, and the focus of the new generation, is to set people free from the forces of evil – both physical & spiritual

 

Most people have no difficulty understanding what is meant by physical disease – science has provided helpful insights into physical illness

–         Unfortunately we don’t understand as much about spiritual dis-ease

–         Demons are beyond the reach of science – in fact a lot people today would want to deny the existence of spiritual forces

–         However, just because we can’t look at it under a microscope doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist

 

When I was about 15 I was asked to sit in on an exorcism and provide prayer support (because you don’t do an exorcism on your own).

–         I was a relatively new Christian at that stage

–         The woman was having the exorcism because she had been a witch, part of a coven and all that goes with that

–         Witchcraft is the opposite of setting people free – witchcraft is about controlling or manipulating people

–         The sad reality is that when we seek to control or manipulate others we open the door to forces of evil that end up controlling us

–         At first this woman appeared quite normal – you wouldn’t know she was any different from anyone else

–         But as we started praying her behaviour changed – strange stuff happened to her, stuff she wasn’t in control of, stuff I can’t explain

 

I went away from that experience realising that demons are real – there are forces at work which we don’t understand and often aren’t even aware of

–         But we do not need to be afraid – Jesus has defeated Satan

–         If we have trusted our lives to Christ, if we have placed ourselves under his Lordship, then we are under his protection

 

We talked a couple of weeks ago about the human spirit being like a cup and the Spirit of God being like communion wine or fresh clean water

–         If the cup of our human spirit was designed to hold the water or wine of God’s Holy Spirit then we could say that demons (or evil spirits) are like dirty water or poison in the cup of our human spirit

–         To caste out a demon then is to clean out the cup of our spirit – to remove the dirty water, extract the poison, sort of like vomiting removes a stomach bug

–         Science can find cures for many physical diseases but only Jesus has the cure for what ails us spiritually

 

Now in talking about the spiritual realm and the physical realm, demons & disease, I don’t mean to imply a false dichotomy

–         While the spiritual & the physical are different by definition, they are not separate or mutually exclusive

–         There is some kind of inter-relationship between the spirit and the body

–         I’m not going to say much more about that relationship because I’m not sure I really understand it – for me it is in the realm of mystery

 

The other thing I want to say is that medical science doesn’t stand in opposition to Jesus, nor in isolation from him

–         Historically speaking science owes its existence to Jesus and the church

–         As I see it medical research to cure disease can be as much a part of God’s work of healing as the laying on of hands in prayer

–         Jesus takes a team approach – he often uses both doctors and our prayers to heal people

 

Take cataract operations for example

–         If left untreated cataracts can make a person go blind

–         They didn’t have cataract operations in Jesus’ day (that we know of) so Jesus simply healed by saying a word

–         Later in history God gave us the knowledge we needed to safely remove cataracts and restore people’s sight – that’s the sort of thing we would expect to happen under the reign of God.

–         These days thousands of cataract operations are performed every year, so it doesn’t seem miraculous to us anymore – it seems routine & mundane

–         We still pray for someone when they have a cataract operation though because we are depending on God, not just the surgeon

–         We acknowledge that healing comes from God and God is free to heal however he wants, whether that’s through science & doctors or in some other way – nothing is beyond Jesus’ reach

 

We also acknowledge that God is free not to heal

–         So if we pray with sincerity and in good faith for God to heal and nothing happens, it is no reflection on us or our prayers

–         It just means God has said ‘no’ on this occasion

–         God said ‘no’ to Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus prayed to avoid suffering

–         God had a far bigger purpose in mind – the redemption of creation

 

In Luke 9, Jesus empowers his disciples to heal disease and exorcise demons because it served the immediate purpose of setting people free, as well as the bigger purpose of showing people that the Kingdom of God was near and had in fact arrived in the person of Jesus

 

I think it was C.S. Lewis who said, ‘Miracles are for beginners’

–         When we are just starting out, when we don’t yet know Jesus, miracles can serve the purpose of making us aware that Jesus is the real deal, he’s not fake or an imposter – miracles can ignite faith, get it started

–         But once we accept Jesus by faith the miracles are no longer necessary – just as sign posts are no longer necessary once you have reached your destination, or matches are no longer necessary once you have lit the fire

–         Yes, miracles are nice to have and God still does miracles today, even if we might take them for granted, but they are not the main thing

–         Jesus is the main thing, the Kingdom of God is the main thing

–         God doesn’t want us to rely on miracles, he wants us to rely on Christ

 

So if Jesus and the Kingdom of God are the main thing what does it mean then to preach the Kingdom of God, as the disciples are instructed in verse 2?

 

Well, the Kingdom of God refers to the reign of God, as in the government of God. The kingdom of God is what life is like when God is in charge

–      When God is in charge we have justice & mercy, we have truth & grace, we have healing & deliverance, we have peace & joy, we have freedom – not freedom to do what we want, but freedom to do God’s will, freedom with righteousness and we have abundant life

 

In verses 7-9 of Luke 9 we read about Herod, the ruler of Galilee

–         The reign of Herod stands in stark contrast to the reign of God

–         Under Herod, righteous men like John the Baptist were beheaded

–         Herod would later involve himself in the plot to kill Jesus

–         But under God’s reign there is justice so that Jesus (& those who belong to him) are resurrected to eternal life while Herod reaps what he has sown

–         In Acts 12, verse 3 we read how an angel of the Lord struck Herod down and he was eaten by worms

 

The disciples were sent to preach the Kingdom of God – to tell people that God’s reign was beginning – and that was good news for those who were oppressed by evil

 

One of the things we notice here is that Jesus sent his disciples throughout the villages of Galilee

–         Villages indicates smaller settlements, as opposed to the more populated cities – we might imagine villages to be the sorts of places most people pass through on their way to somewhere else

–         And the region of Galilee was considered a bit inferior, at least by those in Judea & Jerusalem

–         The poor in the villages of Galilee are visited by Jesus and his disciples, while Herod the ruler misses out

–         So this is a case of the last being first and the first being last

–         On this occasion Jesus sent his disciples to the least on the margins, before sending them to the greatest at the centre

 

Last Thursday Sarah Harris, a lecturer from Carey College, came to Wellington to speak to a group of Baptist pastors, and over lunch she told us a true story

–         A couple of years ago Sarah arranged a trip to Israel and on this trip there was a woman who was hearing impaired, practically deaf

–         The woman wasn’t sure about going, she was anxious about whether she would fit in – being deaf you tend to miss out on a lot of the conversation

–         Anyway one day on the trip they paused at a certain holy place for a while before moving on

–         Later that evening the woman said to Sarah, wasn’t that beautiful music we heard earlier today (presumably the woman had some hearing)

–         And Sarah replied, what do you mean? There was no music.

–         Yes there was – it was like nothing I had ever heard before

–         Sarah said again, we didn’t hear any music

–         Then the woman said, so you’re saying that I was the only one in the group who heard music and yet I’m deaf?

–         At that moment they both realised God had done something quite special just for her. She was deeply touched and her anxiety was relieved

 

God didn’t permanently heal the woman’s deafness, she was still hearing impaired, but he did let her hear a small sample of his Kingdom

–         It was like God was saying to her, my Kingdom is coming and this is what it sounds like

–         I expect no one appreciates the sound of heaven more than someone who is deaf

–         The disciples’ short term mission trip was giving people a taste, a glimpse, of the reign of God (this is what’s like when God is in charge)

 

One of the striking things in Luke 9 is the paradox of power & vulnerability

–         On the one hand the disciples are given incredible power, to cast out demons and cure disease, but at the same time Jesus says to them,

–         “Take nothing with you for the journey: no stick, no beggar’s bag, no food, no money, not even an extra shirt. Wherever you are welcomed, stay in the same house until you leave that town; wherever people don’t welcome you, leave that town and shake the dust off your feet as a warning to them.”

 

Jesus has called his disciples

–         He has given them an example to follow,

–         And he’s given them power & authority to do the job – to set people free

–         Now he gives the new generation wise advice specific to this situation

 

By telling the disciples to travel light Jesus is saying, go in weakness, make yourselves vulnerable

–         To be vulnerable is to be exposed to the possibility of harm – to be in need of protection, care or support. The disciples went without a staff to protect themselves and with no money to pay for lodgings or food. They were are the mercy of strangers. They were vulnerable.

Vulnerability protects against the corrupting influence of power

–         They say, “Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely”

–         But when we find ourselves in a position of needing others’ help we are less inclined to abuse our power or misuse it for selfish ends

–         Yes, the disciples have power to deliver and heal but the people to whom they come also have power – power to welcome & provide, or not

–         The disciples go to help people in need, having needs of their own

–         This sort of power with vulnerability fosters interdependence (or reliance on each other) and interdependence has a way of distributing power

 

It’s like Jesus is saying:

–         Don’t abuse the power I’m giving you by shopping around for the best accommodation in town, honour your host by staying in the first home that welcomes you

–         Don’t abuse your power by retaliating against those who reject you – don’t make a big fuss, just quietly dust your feet off as a warning against them and leave judgement in God’s hands

 

Jesus is the very picture of vulnerability both at Christmas and at Easter

–         Born in a stable to poor parents during a time of violence

–         Becoming a refugee to escape the sword of Herod

–         Growing up under Roman occupation

–         Coming from Nazareth where it was presumed nothing good was found

–         Being misunderstood by those he came to save

–         Then being nailed to a cross, naked & bleeding, for all the world to see

–         The vulnerability of Christ has the power to open the human heart

 

It should be noted that Jesus’ advice to travel light was for a particular short term mission situation and doesn’t necessarily apply for all time

–         Later in Luke chapter 22, Jesus says to his disciples…

–         When I sent you without purse bag or sandals, did you lack anything?

–         “Nothing” they answered

–         He said to them, “But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don’t have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one…”

–         Travelling light is not always the right approach – different situations call for different strategies

 

In verse 10 we read how Jesus cares for his disciples by taking them away by themselves to debrief and refresh – a sort of spiritual retreat I suppose

–         Jesus is teaching the disciples to care for themselves

–         Alongside self-denial we also need self-care

–         We can’t be on the job all the time, we need to have a break every now & then so we don’t burn out

–         The new generation is not a disposable object to be thrashed & thrown away – Jesus wants his disciples to go the distance

 

Conclusion:

This morning we have heard how Jesus went about creating a new generation to lead God’s people

–         This new generation of disciples wasn’t just a carbon copy of the old one

–         The new generation has a new culture, a new approach and a new purpose

–         The culture is one of team work and cooperation

–         The approach involves power with vulnerability

–         And the purpose is setting people free to enter God’s kingdom

 

Questions for discussion or reflection

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    What do we mean by the word generation?

3.)    How does Jesus go about creating a new generation to lead God’s people?

4.)    What example are we setting for the next generation?

5.)    Jesus gave his disciples power & authority to drive out all demons and to cure disease

–         What do we observe from this? (What does this tell us?)

6.)    Why do you think Jesus told his disciples to take nothing with them (to travel light) on their journey?

7.)    Has God ever showed you a glimpse of his Kingdom? What happened?

8.)    In what ways is Jesus’ new generation different?

–         (Think culture, approach & purpose)

9.)    How is the balance in your life between self-denial & self-care?

–         What strategies do you have for looking after yourself?

10.)       Take some time this week to reflect on the vulnerability of Christ

 

https://soundcloud.com/tawabaptist/18-march-2018-a-new-generation

 

Tawa Baptist

God’s Justice

Scripture: Genesis 18:16-33

Title: God’s Justice

Structure:

  • Introduction
  • God’s friend
  • God’s justice
  • Conclusion

Introduction:

This morning we continue our series on Abraham by focusing on Genesis chapter 18, verses 16-33

  • – Last week we heard how Abraham provided hospitality to the Lord and two of his angels – Abraham was fully present to the Lord
  • – This week God engages his friend Abraham in a conversation about justice. From Genesis 18, verse 16 we read…

When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.

For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.”

Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.”

The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”

The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?” “If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.”

Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?”

He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”

Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?” He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”

Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?”

He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”

Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?”

He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.”

When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.

 

May the Spirit of Jesus illuminate this Scripture for us

 

It’s interesting that the writer of Genesis chose to explore the idea of God’s justice within the context of a conversation with God’s friend, Abraham

 

God’s Friend:

This weekend we’ve been looking after a dog

–         They say a dog is man’s best friend and it is generally true

–         In many ways dogs embody the essential elements of friendship

–         Once a dog gets to know you they like being with you, they give you affection and they remain loyal to you

 

According to the Collins Concise Dictionary a friend ‘is a person known well to another and regarded with liking, affection and loyalty’ [1]

–         This definition tells us there are 4 elements to friendship

–         Knowing, liking, affection and loyalty

–         You really need all four elements for it to be true friendship

 

The kind of knowing that is in view here is not just knowing facts about the other person but the deep knowing that comes with sharing life together

–         Knowing someone intimately, understanding how they think, experiencing both good times and bad with them

–         But simply knowing someone well, isn’t enough for friendship – you also need to like that person

 

Liking is about enjoying or appreciating the other person, spending time with them because you want to, not because you have to

–         We don’t always understand why we like someone, we just do

 

Affection has to do with feelings and it comes from the value we place on that person

–         If we really care about someone we will be affected by what’s happening for them

–         If they are happy it will cheer us up & if they are hurting it will trouble us

 

Loyalty is about what we do – it’s our actions that reveal our true loyalty

–         A friend sticks by you through thick & thin

–         A friend has your back in a fight, they align themselves with your cause

–         Unless of course you are off track and then they will speak the truth to you and get (gently) get you back on track

 

So a true friend (not just the Facebook kind) is someone who knows you well

–         Someone who likes being with you

–         Someone who is affected by you so they feel stuff you’re going through

–         And someone who is loyal – they are there for you when it counts

 

By that definition most of us wouldn’t have a lot of friends but that’s okay because you only need one or two

 

Our reading today begins with Abraham walking along with the Lord God and two angels, in the form of men

–         Abraham doesn’t have to do this but he apparently wants to

–         He likes being with God and wants to spend time with him

 

As they are walking along enjoying each other’s company God says (as if thinking aloud), “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?”

–         (After all friends confide in each other)

–         Then the Lord goes on to say of Abraham, “For I have chosen him…”

 

This is a paraphrase – the original Hebrew actually says, “I have known him…” meaning ‘I have made him my friend’ [2] or ‘I have chosen him to be my friend’

–         The Lord is saying here that Abraham is his friend – he knows Abraham well (or intimately) from years of experience with him and it’s because they are friends that God lets Abraham know what he’s planning

 

In John 15 Jesus talks about friendship in a similar way with his disciples…

–         I no longer call you servants because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. This is my command: Love one another.

 

Friends know each other and trust each other enough to share what they know

 

The story is told of a wealthy businessman who was driven to Wall Street every morning in a shiny black limousine by a chauffer

–         The chauffer was an intelligent man – he loved to read and had in fact taken the job as a driver so that he would have more time to read

–         There was a sound proof window inside the car to give the passengers privacy from the driver but this particular businessman always left the window down – he knew his driver from way back and he liked him

–         In this way the chauffer could hear his master’s business – what his boss was buying and selling on the stock exchange

–         Although he didn’t have a great deal of money to start with he used what he had to buy what his boss was buying

–         And when he heard his boss selling shares, he sold them too

–         Over time the chauffer became a millionaire all because his boss treated him like a friend and not an employee

 

Returning to Genesis 18, the Lord says…

–         “I have known him (or chosen him to be my friend) so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just…”

–         That sounds like loyalty to me

–         When we do what is right & just then we align ourselves with God’s cause, we prove ourselves his loyal friends

 

Righteousness & justice are closely related but they are not exactly the same thing

–         A righteous person lives in a way that promotes the life or well-being of everyone in the community

–         While a just person restores broken community, especially by punishing the oppressor and delivering the oppressed [3]

–         Righteousness is an on-going pattern or rhythm of living

–         Whereas justice is more of a singular action to right a wrong

 

Righteousness is like eating healthy & not smoking to reduce the risk of heart disease

–         Justice is like bypass surgery on the heart

 

Righteousness is not drinking and driving

–         Justice is taking the keys and license away from a drunk driver

 

Righteousness is buying fair trade goods

–         Justice is locking up slave traders

 

Righteousness is recycling and being careful with water use

–         Justice is killing opossums and fining water polluters

 

God’s true friends are loyal to him

–         God knows us (as friends) by whether we do what is right & just

–         We are God’s friends if we love one another

 

Abraham was God’s friend and as God’s friend he shared God’s concern for righteousness and justice

–         Just as God was affected by injustice, so too Abraham was affected

 

God’s Justice:

There is something in us as human beings that needs justice

–         I suspect it is the residue or imprint of God’s image in us

–         Injustice creates a hunger that must be satisfied

–         There are so many crime & murder mystery TV shows

–         I think we watch these not because we like violence but because we like to see justice done – the resolution satisfies something in our soul

 

From verse 20 we read…

–         Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.” The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord.

 

We notice at least three aspects of God’s justice in this verse

–         Firstly, when something is wrong God takes action to fix it

–         God doesn’t ignore the outcry of those who are suffering – he has compassion and cares enough to do something about it

–         Secondly, God goes down to see the situation for himself, first hand

–         God’s justice is evidence based – he doesn’t act on gossip or hearsay

–         Thirdly, God sends two objective witnesses (angels) to verify the facts

 

These verses don’t specify the nature of the sin of Sodom & Gomorrah

–         They simply say that the outcry against them was great and their sin grievous

–         This probably means they oppressed others and were guilty of a host of injustices – their sin wasn’t just one thing

–         The prophet Ezekiel confirms this view when he writes…

 

This was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy. They were haughty and did abominable things before me; therefore I removed them when I saw it.

 

It appears the people of Sodom and Gomorrah were violent consumerists

–         They were rich at the expense of others, not for the benefit of others

–         They took what they wanted when they wanted, without regard to God or the well-being of the community – the opposite of righteousness

 

After the two men (or angels) had left to check out the situation in Sodom, Abraham stands before the Lord, or (as the original text reads) the Lord stands before Abraham

–         ­Abraham is God’s friend and God wants to talk about this decision with his friend, because that’s what friends do

 

Now at this point God hasn’t actually talked about destroying Sodom & Gomorrah – he’s told Abraham that he’s heard bad things and is going to check it out for himself

 

Abraham is the one who raises the possibility of destruction saying…

  • – “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? … Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike…

 

This little dialogue continues to explore the nature of God’s justice

  • – Abraham is probing God to understand God’s justice better
  • – One of Abraham’s concerns is, will the righteous be treated the same way as the wicked? Will the righteous be collateral damage?
  • – And God’s answer is ‘no’
  • – The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”

 

While we were on holiday a few weeks ago we went for a walk through the Mamaku Forest near Rotorua – beautiful native bush

  • – What we noticed on our walk were these little devices for killing rats and possums and other pests and predators
  • – The really cool thing about these devices is that they target the culprits without doing harm to the innocent
  • – There is no collateral damage with these, unlike poisons which can end up killing the good with the bad
  • – God’s justice is like this trap – it only targets the guilty

 

Abraham’s questioning of God is also trying to discover whether there is room for mercy & redemption in God’s justice?

  • – Can the fate of the wicked be determined by the behaviour of the righteous?
  • – Would God spare the city for a time to see if a righteous minority could turn things around?
  • – And God’s answer is ‘Yes, there is room for mercy & redemption’

 

The rest of the chapter has Abraham pursuing the question of how small the minority of righteous people can be before God would destroy the city

  • – 45? 30? 20? 10?
  • – “This is an important issue for Abraham to explore because his family is to be that righteous minority among the nations” [4]
  • – And God answers, ‘For the sake of 10 I will not destroy it’
  • – God’s justice is very merciful indeed

 

As we shall see in the coming weeks not even 10 righteous people could be found, but God in his grace remembered his friend Abraham and rescued Lot.

 

Conclusion:

This morning we heard about God’s friendship with Abraham and we’ve explored some of the dimensions of God’s justice

The destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah serves as a paradigm for God’s justice

  • – The Lord does not ignore injustice – he is affected by the cries of the oppressed and has compassion on them
  • – God investigates the situation himself and ensures at least two objective witnesses to establish the facts
  • – He doesn’t act unilaterally or in isolation – the Lord involves his faithful ones (like Abraham) in making his judgement
  • – God’s justice differentiates between the righteous and the wicked – the fate of the righteous is not determined by the wicked
  • – To the contrary, God in his grace allows time for the righteous minority to have a redeeming effect on the world around them

 

Jesus said to disciples, ‘You are the salt of the earth’ – meaning (among other things) you are the redeeming minority if you do what is right & just.

 

Questions for discussion or reflection:

1.)    What stands out for you in reading this Scripture and/or in listening to the sermon?

2.)    Why do you think the writer of Genesis chose to explore the idea of God’s justice within the context of a conversation with God’s friend, Abraham?

3.)    Discuss the four elements of friendship: knowing, liking, affection & loyalty

–         What other elements might we find in true friendship?

4.)    What proves our loyalty to (or friendship with) Jesus? (Hint, read John 15:12-17)

5.)    What is the difference between righteousness and justice?

6.)    What was the sin of Sodom & Gomorrah?

7.)    Discuss the different facets of God’s justice as revealed in Abraham’s conversation with the Lord. (See the conclusion for a summary of these facets)

8.)    Take some time this week to consider what it means to be a redeeming minority

 

[1] Collins Concise English Dictionary, page 509

[2] Derek Kidner, Genesis, page 132

[3] Bruce Waltke, Genesis, page 269

[4] John Walton, NIVAC Genesis, page 483.

Tawa Baptist

Something old, something new…

Christmas Day Message – 25th December 2017

There is an old rhyme often quoted in reference to a bride on her wedding day

–         The tradition is to give the bride…

–         Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue

Something old represents continuity with the past

–         Something new speaks of change and making a fresh start

–         Something borrowed represents the joy or energy we borrow from hope

–         And something blue stands for purity, love, and fidelity

This saying: Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, seems to sum up the Christmas story

 

Now when we talk about something old we mean something valuable that lasts, something with history, like a family heirloom

–         For example, a bride on her wedding day may receive a piece of jewellery from her mother which has been handed down through the generations

–         To receive something old is to be trusted with something priceless

–         It is not old in the sense of being broken down or obsolete

–         It’s old in the sense of being original and resilient

Something old is seen in the opening verses of John’s gospel, where John writes: In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.

Jesus is the Word of God

–         He has always been with God even before time existed

–         So Jesus, the Word of God, is very old indeed

–         But not old in a broken down or out of date kind of way

–         Old in the best sense of that word

–         Jesus is the original word of God, he has history from the beginning

–         He is timeless, classic, tried & true – his oldness speaks of his resilience and priceless value

John’s gospel was written in Greek and the Greeks have at least two ways of expressing the term Word

–         Rhema (as in Radio Rhema) which refers to the spoken word

–         And Logos (from which we get the term logic) which refers to the unspoken word, the thought in one’s mind before it is spoken

John uses the term Logos to describe Jesus

–         Jesus is the logic of God – the inner word of God

–         Or to put it another way, Jesus shows us how God thinks – with grace & truth

 

As well as being something old, Jesus also brings something new   

–         In fact, Jesus came to make all things new

Most of you would have received something new for Christmas

–         Perhaps a new cell phone or a bicycle or a new dress or a pair of socks, which is fine, we need to replace stuff like that from time to time

–         But those kinds of new commodities soon wear out, they lose their shine, become obsolete and have to be replaced by something else new

–         The kind of newness that Jesus brings is a lasting newness – it’s not a newness that loses its gloss or has to be replaced again next Christmas

John 1, verse 4 reads…

–         In him was life and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not overcome it.

Light and life go together

–         Light is the foundation of life – light sustains life, it keeps things alive

–         John is saying that Jesus is the source of life & light – Jesus has the power to sustain eternal life

–         So the newness Jesus brings does not wear out or become obsolete

If light & life go together then it follows that darkness relates to death

–         There is a shadow side to Christmas and the shadow is cast by death

–         For some reason (at this time of year) we are often more aware of what we don’t have

–         We feel more sharply the loss of those we love who have died and so Christmas is tinged with sadness

–         The light of Jesus’ life is stronger than the darkness of death

–         The newness that Jesus brings is a lasting newness, it won’t die

–         When God’s kingdom is realised in its fullness there will be no more tears, no more sorrow, no more death

 

Something old, something new, something borrowed…

–         The something borrowed, for a bride, is happiness or joy

–         Joy is an energy, a power, a force which comes from hope

–         Hope is like the wind – you can’t own the wind but you can borrow its energy

Or to use another analogy, hope is like a wave on the ocean – you can’t own a wave but you can borrow its energy to ride the wave, like a surfer

–         Joy is that positive energy borrowed from the wave of hope

–         We can’t own hope but we can ride it

–         Newlyweds borrow joy & happiness from their hope for the future, riding that hope like a surfer rides a wave

Like any powerful force hope can be dangerous

–         If we get hope wrong – if we misplace our hope (put all our hope in the wrong things) then it can crush us and leave us in the pit of despair

In Luke chapter 2 an angel appears to some shepherds as they watch their flocks by night. The angel says to the shepherds…

–         Do not be afraid. [Don’t be anxious.] I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. 

Jesus embodies the hope of salvation for all people and the shepherds rode the wave of that hope – they couldn’t contain their joy, spreading the good news that the Saviour of the world was born

There is so much anxiety and depression in our society today

–         Most of us don’t really want stuff for Christmas

–         We just want to be free of worry – to be happy, to enjoy life

–         We want to know that our kids are going to be okay

–         We want to know that our parents are going to be okay

–         We want to know that we are going to be okay

–         What we really want are those things that can’t be bought with money, things like peace & joy

–         In Jesus we find a hope that can be relied on – and from that hope we borrow the positive energy of joy to carry us through

 

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue

–         Blue stands for purity, love and fidelity

–         Fidelity is a word that means faithfulness or loyalty

–         You give a bride something blue as a symbol of the pure and faithful love between a husband & wife

 

The Christmas story is a story of purity, love and fidelity

–         Mary, the mother of Jesus was the picture of purity – she was a virgin and she conceived Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit

–         Joseph, the fiancé of Mary (and a step father to Jesus) was the picture of fidelity – when he discovered that Mary was pregnant he decided to break off the engagement quietly so as not to embarrass her

–         But when an angel appeared to him in a dream explaining the situation he stuck by Mary and married her, such was his loyal love for Mary & God

 

Mary & Joseph bring something blue – a pure and faithful love

–         The quality of Mary & Joseph’s relationship points to the faithfulness & purity of God’s love for us in Christ

 

Christmas is a time to celebrate the gift of God’s Son, Jesus

–         With the gift of Jesus comes something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue

 

Let us pray

–         I will pray the words in the plain type and I invite you to respond with the words in bold italics…

Jesus, you are the logic of God, older than time itself. You are the most worthy, the most valuable, the most priceless gift of all…

–         Help us to receive and honour you

Jesus, you came to make all things new. In you is the light of life, more powerful than the darkness of death…

–         Fill us with the life of your Spirit

Jesus, you are our hope of salvation. Forgive us for the times when we misplace our hope. Save us from anxiety and despair…

–         Carry us in your peace & joy 

Jesus, you embody the love of God, faithful & pure. You are committed to the well-being of all creation with a goodness beyond compare…

–          Make us loyal to you Jesus. Amen.