Luke 4:14-21
Spring is nearly here. It’s less than two months away. The snow will be gone. The roads will be clear, But not yet. It’s still January.
How are you all with anxiety? You know when you have some big thing coming
up, or some issue that persists and there is that nervous energy that starts
off in the background of your being then for some of us, it becomes ever more
consuming. How do you deal with that
energy? It was this time of year; two
years ago now that I found out that I was coming here to St. Paul. My family and I moved into the parsonage in
June of that year. That’s 4 and a half
months of living between worlds, knowing that I would be leaving but not gone
yet. I had some idea of what was ahead
but I didn't know for sure. The day that
the moving truck arrived was a very happy day.
Not because I was happy to be leaving but I was happy the wait was
over.
I never want surgery but if I have to have it I would rather
get it over sooner than later. I always
volunteered to go first for a class presentation because I hated public
speaking and leaving it chance when I would get called for my turn was just too
much. If I have to deliver bad news I just
do it. The truth is what it is and the
sooner we can get to it the sooner healing can begin.
That energy isn't all bad though. Sometimes we need that energy to get a
necessary job done. When I played
football, that pre-game energy helped me perform at my peak during the
game. I had a Junior Varsity coach in
the 10th grade that didn't understand that. When we had away games he would make us go
silent 10 minutes before we arrived at the field where we were supposed to
play. He calls it “quiet intensity.” Well what it actually did was relax us; it
took away that heightened energy. We lost every game that year. Sometimes we need that boost of energy to
propel us into action. We may need a
little discomfort to live into the lives that God truly intends for us.
I love this scripture.
Jesus is bold. He is unafraid. He
is who he is. Judge him; love him; the choice is yours! That won’t change him!
Scripture is how we know about Jesus. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit we
are guided into greater and deeper knowledge of God that goes beyond the
printed word.
To truly know Jesus we have to experience the presence of
Jesus. The promise of our faith is that when we gather together in the name of
Jesus Christ, his presence is among us. We are the body of Christ on earth when
we gather in his name. We are
human. We are flawed. But in the midst of all that Christ is
present and we can come to know him in these gatherings.
Yes I am saying you need to come to church! Jesus did it. He set the example. He went to the synagogue ‘as was his custom’. Why was he going? He is the incarnate one, The Anointed
One. He is the son of God. We already know that he talks to the heavenly
father not in crowded places but in lonely places like mountaintops and
wildernesses. But it was Jesus custom.
That means he did it regularly. Even though
he already knew everything he went. (So what’s your excuse)? In this particular scripture Jesus went to the
synagogue. The attendant gave Jesus the scroll,
it was the prophet Isaiah. He opened it
to the portion I read earlier, read it, sat down and gave his teaching. “Today this has been fulfilled in your
presence.” Jesus is the word made flesh.
The Old Testament and New Testament are shadows of Jesus’ being. The scriptures are recording of god’s action
in the lives of particular people. Jesus
is God. We read scriptures to know about
God. To get closer to god through understanding how God operates. Jesus went to the synagogue that day and read
the scriptures. He wasn't defining his
ministry by the scriptures, he was merely pointing out that the scriptures are
defined by him!
He is the only one that can say that (although we are guilty
of trying to say that). We like to take
the scriptures and define them in the light of our own experience. But we are not God. We are not the Messiah. His starting point is himself because he is
God. He is the messiah. Our starting
point has to be the scripture. When we
take ourselves as the starting point then twist and shape the word of god to
justify our sin. But God isn’t
interested in justifying our sin he is interested in justifying the sinner. God
is interested in making us to be in accord with Him.
When we make the scripture as our common starting point we,
open the scriptures together as a community, God’s truth is revealed. It’s not
just me as your pastor; it isn't Bob, Den, Bob, Ray, or Forest that had the
truth. It is every one of us in this sanctuary.
We approach the scriptures together.
We interpret as a community what God is saying to us today. You may not agree with me. I may not agree with you and there’s gonna be
a bunch of people who don’t fully agree with either one of us but together,
when we are in conversation when we engage the scriptures honestly and openly the Holy Spirit will work through each one of
us, then the truth of God will emerge. Where two or more are gathered in his
name he is there among them. It’s the community
where truth is found. As individuals only see dimly as in a dark glass.
It may not seem like it now but spring is nearly here. Track season will start. The runners will get the command to take
their mark. The race, the thing that
they have been preparing for will begin.
Friends we will be going through a process of discernment as a church in
the coming months. Seeds that were
planted month ago will start to sprout. And
whether or not they eventually bear fruit will have a lot to do with the
nurture that we provide. Tomorrow the
conceptual building committee will meet with the architect to see what the
dream of an improved facility looks like on paper. The Vital Church Initiative Team continues to
be trained and inspired about the possibilities of the future of this
congregation. This spring some
significant changes will be suggested by an outside consultant to improve what
we are already doing. All this change
can cause anxiety because we may have an idea about what the future holds but
we are just not sure. These things are
our race. This is our big game. We need to be in prayer. We need to search the scriptures. We need to be in communion with God and each other
so that his will is revealed. Changes if they are coming will happen in
their own season. Our task is to prepare
for whatever God may have for us.
On Kinney Down
Alex and I visited Michigan State University on Saturday. Yes, it's a little early for college selection. He is only a sophomore. But our trips are more than just choosing a college they are about anxiety reduction...mine. Alex is our firs-born. He has been in my life for 16+ years, and the thought of him leaving home breaks my heart. I fell in love with him the moment I saw him the day he was born. The day will come, probably sometime in August of 2015 when he will leave for whatever college he chooses. I pray that both he and I can celebrate that day of transition with gladness in our hearts. We will soon be making trips to Ann Arbor, Kalamazoo, perhaps even Houghten MI. I am confident that what ever Alex chooses to do with the first chapter of his adult life it will do it well.
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