As those of you in worship last Sunday found out, Pastor Kelly took a fall and is having some mobility issues. We wanted to let her know we were all thinking of her and praying for a full recovery. Please join us in praying for her recovery! Here's a few well wishes to make you smile!
The Baptism of Jesus Luke 3:15-18, 21-22 New Revised Standard Version15 As the people were filled with expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Messiah, 16 John answered all of them by saying, “I baptize you with water; but one who is more powerful than I is coming; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. 17 His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his granary; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
21 Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heaven was opened, 22 and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”[e] Christ’s Baptism and Our Own November 14, 2021 Luke 3:15-17, 21-22 The people gathered at the Jordan River with John the Baptist were “filled with great expectation.” They believed that something amazing and good would soon be happening. This week I’ve been thinking about the times in my life when I’ve felt great expectation. You may be able to relate to some of these. In the summer of 1987, I was filled with great expectations because I would soon wed Mark Warner. At my college graduation when I got my Masters’ in Education, I felt excited about finding a rewarding job as a teacher. When I became a mom, tremendous joy filled me, and I had great expectations for my son. At this stage in my life, I think the next big events I feel great expectations about are taking some trips across America, and then retirement. High expectations of good things to come was the mood of the crowd listening to John at the Jordan River. Word had spread that he was a prophet, something they had not had in hundreds of years. Finally, one of God’s servants was proclaiming the best news imaginable: The Messiah, the Savior of the world was coming! John was his forerunner, preparing the way, explaining the need for everyone to repent. And John didn’t mince words, telling them they all fell short in following God’s commandments. The people knew truth when they heard it; their hearts were convicted. They were marked and marred by sin. They needed a Savior. After repenting, people came, one after another, toward the waters where John baptized them. John’s role was to unflinchingly explain what it would mean to be part of the coming Kingdom, to be among those who believed in and followed the Messiah. It would be a costly discipleship. A forever, all-in, radical lifestyle. The New Testament contains a full account of what the Christian life involves: sacrifice will be the norm, and talking about what Jesus means in your life a top priority. Injustices in society would compel people to act. Being ready to serve others would be a reality. Whatever is of great importance to God would be IMPORTANT to them. When the waters of baptism touched the people John baptized, very few likely understood the broad, bold plans God had for their lives. They were focused on the excitement of the water covering them, and others looking on with joy. Each who stood in line for their turn must have felt great “anticipation”. Every farmer and tax collector, every soldier and house servant, along with orphans, prostitutes and merchants. Young, old and all between, people were baptized. One day Jesus arrived on the scene. Eyes turned, heads too. Whispers were heard; the stir caused John to look up and find the source of the excitement. Jesus stood at the end of the line leading into the river. He was there to be baptized. Have you ever been curious or confused by that? I was at one time. I wondered, Why did God’s own “perfect” Son come forward to be baptized? Now I know that Jesus came because He was fully God, but also fully human. He wore flesh, becoming one of us. He was without sin but one day he would hang on a cross taking our sins on himself. Theologians call this “The Great Exchange” – our human sinfulness is exchanged in full for the holiness of our Savior. Here’s another thing I’ve been curious about, and maybe you have too. Have you ever wondered what God’s voice sounds like? We’re told that a voice from Heaven declared “You are my beloved Son, with you I am well pleased.” Was the voice deep, or soft – commanding, or tender? We do know that God was letting the world know of His delight in and love for His Son. God’s affirmation marked the beginning of Christ’s ministry. Those in the crowd that day would never imagine that a little more than 3 years later, another baptism would touch Jesus’ followers. We recognize it as the gift of the Holy Spirit. For some it looked like fire resting over their heads. Can you imagine? This was God’s gift, His own spirit taking up residence in believers. The Holy Spirit is our power source for living, serving and witnessing. John made it clear that he only baptized with water; that was an outward, visible symbol of a person’s inward commitment. But Christ (which means “Anointed One”) anoints, or baptizes His people, with inward, lasting power. In today’s church we still baptize people. As United Methodists we are known for baptizing infants and little ones, while other denominations prefer to wait until kids are able to speak for themselves and have a “believer’s baptism.” We baptize the younger ones because we see that example set in the Bible; we even have historical records from the earliest days of the church. Entire households were baptized! As United Methodists the water used in baptism may be sprinkled or poured over someone’s head, or they may be fully immersed. The quantity or application of water has no power in and of itself. Rather, God teaches us that water is merely an outward “sign” of the invisible work of God in this sacrament. If we baptize a child, we do require that at least one of the parents be a member of the church, because they will need to make promises to raise the child in the teachings of the Christian faith. If the person getting baptized is older, they will be asked to declare they are a follower of Christ, believe in the Old and the New Testaments, and wish to be incorporated into the Church. We call Baptism a sacrament that initiates us into the church. It is the official starting point on a lifelong spiritual journey. That is why baptisms are done during worship, unless there are special circumstances. Those already baptized need to be present so they can also take vows to help nurture the life and faith of the newest among them. It’s an exciting celebration to witness the widening of the circle we call the Body of Christ. Here’s another important United Methodist belief. We do not re-baptize. This is a stance that is once more grounded in Scripture. We affirm that Jesus died once, for all. His forgiveness and saving power are “efficacious”. They “worked”, were “successful or potent”. The job was complete. Salvation is ours! A second insight into why we do not re-baptize is that we recognize that the One whose power is at work in baptism is God. He is the “agent” bringing about our entry into His church and His Kingdom. We ourselves do nothing to make that happen, nor does the water. The day of our Baptism is when God claims, once and for all, “You are my beloved, the One whom I love. I am well pleased with you. You are now part of my Kingdom.” When someone asks a pastor to be re-baptized, it’s usually because that person was too young to remember the celebration, or they now “feel” more ready to personally dedicate their lives to God. Both of these good-intentioned ideas ultimately focus on “self”. Lacking a memory of baptism because you were a baby may disappoint you, but that holy sacrament did take place. It was efficacious - potent and successful! You can talk with others, or look at photos, to “remember” that special day. But God Almighty should NOT be asked to “show up again,” to do what He has already done, because you think it would be awesome to have a memorable adult, “spiritual” experience of baptism. What God did was done once; it endures, and our rightful response should be gratitude and a humble desire to keep going forward on our Christian journey. We can find the next ones who might be brought into church, for their own baptisms, expanding the circle. I want to end now with the words of a much-loved praise song called “Freely, Freely”; it sums up so much of what we’ve heard this morning. Verse 1God forgave my sin in Jesus' name I've been born again in Jesus' name And in Jesus' name I come to you To share His love as He told me to ChorusHe said, “Freely, freely, You have received; Freely, freely, give. Go in My name And because you believe, Others will know that I live” Verse 2All power is given in Jesus' name - In earth and heaven in Jesus' name; And in Jesus' name, I come to you To share His power as He told me to (repeat chorus) Today, our Gospel passage takes us to the time of John the Baptist. John is busy preaching. His goal is for people to repent of their sins, experience God's saving grace and live a holy life. He is proclaiming that the door of repentance is open for all who want to enter in and receive God's grace and mercy. He is busy proclaiming the message of the Kingdom of Heaven and the coming of the Messiah. John is determined to do his best to help people be ready to meet the Messiah - the Savior of the World. This is his goal as God's prophet. He is calling people back to the LORD. He is calling those who have never heard the message of salvation to the LORD. John's message is exclusive. He is calling out to all those who are willing to come and hear the Good News whether they are Jews or Gentiles. However, John is much more than a measly screaming evangelist. John does not seek to create an environment of fear and/or judgment. John is not interested in creating an atmosphere of guilt and remorse and nothing more. John in interested in people experiencing a transformation that not only transforms their lives but the way that they relate to others. John wants them to experience what it means to be a genuine human being reflecting God's Glory and Honor. John wants them to experience what it means to live out a life of holiness in this world. Bible scholar and teacher N. T. Wright shares with us a little insight on this passage. Listen to his words this morning: We see this morning John's message brought great comfort and yet was somewhat distressing. Comfort in the fact that his audience knew that when the Messiah came He would bring about salvation and justice. The Messiah would set all things right. Distressing in the aspect that John says that the Messiah will also use a farmer's fork to separate the wheat from the chaff. The Messiah would then use the fire to burn up all that He deemed unworthy and worthless. That picture of burning up the chaff was not exactly the picture that the ancient Israelites wanted to envision and it is not quite the picture that we want to see when we think of the birth of Jesus or the idea of Jesus being Our Messiah, Savior and LORD. The part about salvation is music to our ears but the aspect of Jesus using a farmer's fork to separate the wheat from the chaff and then consume that which is bad doesn't quite give us the warm fuzzes that we desire this time of year. Jesus as a mere baby laying in the manger makes a great Hallmark picture and movie. Jesus holding a farmer's fork along with a torch on fire is a little daunting. Jesus as Savior is warm and comforting. Jesus as judge can be a little unnerving depending on what His verdict is for our lives. And yet, the Bible tells us that Jesus the Messiah is both - Savior and Judge. One of the great things about John's message ( and the message of the whole Bible) is that it focuses both on evangelism and holiness. John proclaims a genuine repentance that leads to a spiritual fruit bearing life. For John repentance meant much more that to feel remorse about something or to just attend confession with no hope of real change. John believed in a repentance that radically altered one's direction and life. A repentance that led to a changed heart and a changed life. A repentance that would bleed over to our jobs, to our lives in general and to all the people that we connect with on a daily basis. How do we make sure that our lives are like the wheat instead of like the chaff? John gives us some very practical and wonderful advice. Let's look at what John says and by doing so we will understand more clearly how we are to live today as we wait for the Second Coming of Our Messiah, Savior and LORD - Jesus Christ. I. BE A PERSON OF SHARING John doesn't mince very many words in verse 11. He doesn't get into some type of ethical debate. He doesn't try to get into some kind of theological discussion doing his best to spend time on some small detail of the Mosaic Law. SHARE WHAT YOU HAVE WITH OTHERS John says one of the ways we show that we have repented is We share that which we have. If we have two tunics or extra food then we SHARE. but not so simple. the art of sharing is not something that we naturally do as human beings. If you have ever worked around small children you know It doesn't take us very long in life to be able to say the word - "mine" and grab something in our hands and not want to let go. Add your email to get started, plus get updates & offers from SermonCentral. Privacy Policy. We begin to notice how we are tempted to become children all over again saying things like "well, it is mine", "if you wanted one you should have got one" we realize that what John says here is actually radical. I think this is one of the greatest ministries that we can participate as we get older - the ministry of sharing and giving things away. Why hold on to all the stuff that we no longer use or that could be used by others? Why hold on to things until we pass away and our children and friends fight over them after we are gone? Why not begin the ministry a new ministry that is starting all over the world. It is called "Giving while Living" , some are going with a Swedish word - dostadning ( dos - TAD - ning ). It's a hybrid of the words for death and cleaning. And as morbid as it sounds, that’s exactly what death cleaning is: the process of cleaning house before you die, rather than leaving it up to your loved ones to do after you’re gone. I believe that I prefer the term - "GWL over "Dostadning"yet the concept is the same - it is the ministry of sharing what we have with others; especially those in need. It does not mean that we give everything away. After all, John does not say to give both tunics away or all the foodII. BE A PERSON OF INTEGRITY/HONESTY When Luke wanted to talk about integrity/honesty it may seem a little strange that he wrote about tax collectors. Tax collectors and sinners were considered to be equal in the areas of honesty and integrity. Both were seen as liars, cheats and crooks. But then again, who could better display their repentance and holiness than an honest tax collector? The Apostle Matthew was an excellent example of a tax collector that had integrity and honesty. Tax collecting at the time of John the Baptist was complex to say the least. The tax was collected for the government many times by a person who had submitted the best bid for the job. He/she would then hire out additional people to go and collect the taxes from the local citizens. With the addition of middlemen came the potential for extra surcharges to be passed on. So a person would not only have to pay the local tax but at times quite an number of additional surcharges as well. It would be nice if all of those surcharges and extra little taxes were left off but our world is not so different than the one that we find at the time of John and Jesus. At that time (and apparently in our time as well) it was rather easy for tax collectors to fudge with the figures to make sure that they could get more than what the Law actually allowed. Their bosses often looked the other way. The only people that were hurt were the little people who had to pay not only the tax but all of the surcharges as well. Notice that John doesn't say - Quit your job or get another job. He does not tell the tax collectors to get out of the business. Instead, what he does say is be a person of the Kingdom at the job you have right now. If people around you are taking advantage of a particular situation at work and doing their best to get all they can then don't get upset with them or quit. Instead, be a beacon of honesty and integrity. Still make a living but don't get rich at the expense of others. Don't push people out of the way to make more money. Don't see people merely as a means of getting something yourself. Don't abuse people. Don't use people. John wants us to be able to make a living but to do so in a spirit of righteousness and holiness. John wants us to be upright and righteous people who by their behavior shows that they have been transformed by God's Holy Spirit. Add your email to get started, plus get updates & offers from SermonCentral. Privacy Policy. III. BE AN OUTSTANDING WORKER Serving in the military at that time was not a job very many people wanted. The pay was lousy and for the most part the military was hated by the local population. More often than not, if we you saw a soldier you could bet they had been drafted into the military. The soldiers that John was talking to were most likely from King Herod's own troops. Roman soldiers tried their best to stay away from Jewish religious figures and Jewish crowds. At any given moment a crowd could be incited to attack them or to throw things at them which in turn could turn into something ugly really fast and so they avoided such situations. What John is dealing with is people who are working for others whether they would like to or not. John is dealing with people who for the most part probably did not like their jobs or their employers. John is dealing with people who worked very long hours and who barely received enough pay to exist on. That ancient problem appears to be a present day problem as well. According to Gallup Research Studies somewhere around two out of every three ( 67%) employees are either not engaged at work or they are actively disengaged. That is to say they find no real connection to their job and therefore they do the mere minimum or they actively do less than the minimum. They resent their jobs, they gripe to co-workers and they drag down office morale as a result. They become disgruntled and they have a negative vibe around them about the work place. So, what are we to do? How are we to live today? John reminds us this morning that: 1. We are to be People Who Know How and Who Practice the Ministry of Sharing 2. We are to be People of Integrity and Honesty 3. We are to be People who Others see as the very Best of WorkersThat is our Challenge ***What significance does baptism hold for us? Down through the centuries, baptism has symbolized the new life in Christ that comes to all who believe and follow him. Baptism is, first of all, an individual matter. I am committing myself totally, without reservation, to be a follower of Jesus Christ. It’s like the words of a chorus we sometimes sing:I have decided to follow Jesus,No turning back, no turning back. In baptism, I am pledging to learn more about who Jesus was and is, about his way of courage and compassion. I promise to model my own life after his. I do so, knowing that I will falter and fail in my resolve. I know I will need God’s forgiveness and grace. And each time I witness someone else being baptized, I am reminded of my own baptism, my decision to follow Jesus. Baptism is not only an individual decision, it is an individual gift. Baptism is not just something I do; it is something that is done to me. I am given something that I could not achieve on my own…a new life. As the Apostle Paul put it, “So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation; everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). baptism is a way of giving one something he never had before…a sense of himself as a unique, loved child of God. That can never be done in a vague, generic sense. It can’t happen when I’m part of a large or even small group. It can happen only in an intensely intimate, specific, individual way. Baptism is all those things: intimate, specific, and individual. I go into the water by myself, at a particular place and time. I willingly give myself into the minister’s hands for baptism, and thereby signify my willingness to give myself wholly to Christ. Baptism, then, is very much an individual matter. But that’s only part of it, because baptism also is very much a corporate matter. It is an initiation rite into the church, the body of Christ. That’s why when we baptize persons, the congregation is present. It’s why one of the vows at baptism asks for a pledge of loyalty to the church, whole-hearted support of its life and ministry. The church is like a family of sisters and brothers bound to each other in Jesus Christ, not a collection of individuals who happen to have similar opinions about religion. To be baptized is to become part of a community of people who themselves have been baptized into Christ and who are, in a sense, stuck with each other. Just as you don’t get to choose who your flesh and blood brothers and sisters are, you also don’t get to pick who you want to have in the church family. Paul the Apostle said it this way: For indeed we were all brought into one body by baptism, in the one Spirit, whether we are Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and that one Holy Spirit was poured out for all of us to drink (1 Corinthians 12:12-13 NEB). Some time back, I came across an article by Mary Beth Danielson. She was recalling her own baptism in a lake years before. She remembered especially coming out of the water that day and seeing the group gathered there: her parents, grandparents, other family members and friends, all part of the country church she had grown up in. She said that some of those gathered that day have since died, some learned cynicism, some moved away, some left the church. But she says that seeing in her memory the people waiting for her to come out of the water symbolizes the treasure of her baptism. In her own words: …baptism is not a sacrament administered in a closet. It is not a private, holy ceremony passed down from the pious to the pure in heart. It is about belonging to a church. It is about the strengths and failures of the ordinary and extraordinary people who make up that church. It is about being rooted and joined to real people in imperfect but real ways. (Mary Beth Danielson, “Total Immersion,” The Other Side, September/October, 1989, p. 40.) So then, baptism is both an individual and a corporate matter. It is at least one more thing. It is a ministry matter. What do I mean by that? I mean that all persons, as they join the church through baptism, are called to minister to their neighbors in the world through their life and work. Just as in his baptism, Jesus was commissioned by God for his ministry, so in our baptism, we are commissioned for our ministry. At a church I previously served, these words appeared in large letters on the church sign out at the street: “Pastor — Kenneth L. Gibble; Ministers — Every Member.” It was another way of expressing one of the fundamental beliefs of Protestantism, sometimes called “the priesthood of all believers.” That is, in baptism we are ordained into the priesthood. Ministry isn’t just something the paid pastors do; it’s something we all do. We are called to represent Jesus Christ in the world. By our lives, we testify to the love and goodness of God. All this and more is what baptism signifies. you and I, whether we are baptized as youth or as adults, begin with meager understanding. But that’s all right, because baptism is a beginning. The journey begins as we gather at the river. Today the water stands in a baptistry, but it’s a river nonetheless, a river that stretches all the way back to that real river of Jordan. It’s the river of life. It’s the start of our journey with sisters and brothers of faith, a journey that will take us only God knows where. but God will be there with us, utterly dependable and faithful every step of the way. . ***Why does Jesus need the Holy Spirit coming upon him? Is not Jesus the very Son of God, the Second Person of the Trinity, already in perfect communion with the Holy Spirit from eternity? Oh, yes, he is indeed. But remember this is the Son of God now come in the flesh. Jesus is both true God and true man. And so we can say that, according to his human nature, Jesus is anointed with the Holy Spirit at his baptism–which is pretty much what the Apostle Peter says in the Book of Acts: “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.” In his baptism Jesus is anointed with the Holy Spirit to empower him for his ministry, for his office as the Christ. In fact, the word “Christ” means “the Anointed One,” the Messiah. The Holy Spirit here is marking out Jesus as the Christ, empowering him for his office, showing that God’s choice, God’s blessing, God’s favor and power are resting upon him, upon this man Jesus. He is taking up his office as the Christ now, as he’s about to begin his public ministry. That’s what the Spirit’s descent at his baptism is doing and saying. a voice comes from heaven, saying, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” This of course is the voice of God the Father, attesting to his love for his Son and his choice of his Son to carry out the mission on which he sent him. Again, Christ has always been God’s Son from eternity, but now as he sets out on this journey that will take him to the cross, the Father assures Jesus of his love. God was well pleased to send his Son into the world to take on this mission that will win salvation for the world. Recall, even at Jesus’ birth the angel choir sang of God’s good will, his good pleasure, in sending Christ to bring peace on earth. “You are my beloved Son,” the Father tells Jesus. How mysterious, how profound, then, when later the Father will forsake his beloved Son as he is hanging on the cross. It is like–but in an infinitely greater way–it is like when God told Abraham: “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and offer him up as a sacrifice.” And just as Abraham was about to sacrifice his beloved son, the Lord called him back at the last moment and provided a substitute. This was a picture of how God would not spare his own Son, his only Son Jesus, whom he loves. For God so loved the world, loved us, that he gave his one and only Son for us, that we might not perish but instead be saved, through faith in him. Friends, how much God must love us that the one he forsakes on the cross is this same Jesus, to whom he says here at his baptism: “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” Yes, this is God’s own Son who sets out on this journey now, beginning from his baptism. He is Christ the Baptized. But he is also Christ the Baptizer. Remember what John said: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” Christ our Lord baptizes us. What a difference this makes for us! Beloved, in the waters of Holy Baptism, the heavens are opened and the Spirit descends upon you and makes of you a new creation. “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” You are a new creation, meaning you are a new person in Christ. You walk in newness of life, and this is life everlasting. You are united with Christ in his resurrection. God has claimed your body, as well as your soul, and you will be raised, bodily, to eternal life, when Christ comes again and wonderfully restores all of creation. John first replies to the expectations of the people by telling them that someone greater than he is coming. This message is shared by all three synoptic Gospels, but the reply concerning the threshing floor occurs only in Matthew and Luke. The Baptist mentions the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire. Perhaps this is a reference to Pentecost in Acts 2. Perhaps it is a reference to Jesus' powerful life and teachings. The preacher may want to make the point that every baptism in the Lutheran church is a baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is why it is taken so seriously. It is a miracle each time it occurs. The seriousness of baptism is made clear by the metaphor of the threshing floor. It is a discriminating rite. It is not an act that one may undergo lightly, but is linked to salvation in opposition to judgment. The Holy Spirit is not inclusive but excludes all unrighteousness and sin. Baptism is not a mere welcoming rite but a rite that signifies one's separation from evil. Any theology of judgment has fallen on hard times recently in favor of a softer and gentler message of peace and justice. But with justice comes judgment. It cannot be otherwise. To ignore judgment leaves the preacher with no reason for preaching the gospel. It is not a matter of scaring people into heaven. It is a matter of revealing the need for salvation and why Jesus is so important. For preachers to leave out the fire is to let go of the reason for the gospel and thereby cheapen the good news. Luke is careful to sequence his verbs in verse 21. While Jesus was being baptized and praying, the heavens were opened. Praying is very important in Luke's Gospel. It signifies Jesus' deep devotion to God, the Father and also signals important events. The baptism itself signifies Jesus' solidarity with sinners. The descent of the Spirit in bodily form may be a concession to Luke's ancient Gentile readers who would appreciate such a detail after hearing about so many animal omens in their lives. It is clearly not the dove that is important however, but the Spirit's descent upon the "un"-expected one. Jesus' identity is confirmed by this event when the voice from heaven marks him out as not only a man of great worth and note, but as the very offspring of God. Such titles belonged only to men of great renown such as the emperor Tiberius who had the title "Son of the divine Augustus" placed on his coins. For a commoner from Galilee to receive such a title from such a source is beyond credulity. Yet, as in Mark's Gospel, only Jesus hears the voice. It is not for the people's consumption. The reader is privy to the voice, but not the crowds. At this point, all the expectations of the people have been left in doubt, but not for the reader. The baptism is Jesus' inauguration in Luke, but it is not an apocalyptic event such as the people would have preferred. One dove hardly signifies the end. Nor is this Messiah someone who merely exacts vengeance upon the enemies of Israel. He is another kind of figure, approved of quietly by heaven, having the power to divide between good and evil, devoted to sinners and to his Father's will. 8888 Jesus’ baptism takes place in community. It is not a private occurrence. This communal dimension reminds listeners that they when they are baptized, they become part of a new social world. My sense is that a good many people today are moving away from the radical individualism of modernity and are longing for community. A preacher could help folk identify the church as such a body. ****** The imprisonment of John reminds us of what happens to those who tell the truth, or, to those whose words we don’t want to hear. This will certainly be the case for Jesus. Hearing Jesus’ first sermon, the hometown folks want to throw him off a cliff. Jesus will be rejected by his friends, his family, his community before he even does anything. The same will be true for the women who report about the empty tomb. The women go to the disciples, the ones who should believe, who should be open to this news, who should actually know something and they call the women’s words an “idle tale.” This is a PG way of translating leros which appears only once in Scripture. A better translation is crap, garbage -- you get the drift . “I indeed baptize you with water, but he comes who is mightier than I, the latchet of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen” (v. 16b). Jesus is more powerful and of infinitely higher status. John is not worthy to tie his sandals, a task so demeaning that Jewish slaves are exempted from performing it. Today, John might say, “I am not worthy to carry his bags”—or “I am not worthy to carry out his garbage.” 2. “He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit (pneumati hagio) and fire” (v. 16c). John baptizes with water, but Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit (pneumati hagio) and fire. The Greek word, baptizo, has to do with being overwhelmed or immersed. John is not talking here about Jesus performing water baptism, but is instead talking about Jesus overwhelming us—immersing us—in the Holy Spirit and fire. “John baptizes with water—an outward symbol; the Messiah’s Spirit baptism is the reality to which the symbol points” (Wright, 316). We derive our word, “pneumatic,” which we use for air-powered tools, from the Greek word, pneumati. Pneumati can be translated either spirit or wind, and it is very possible that Luke intends the ambiguity—intends us to think both of spirit and wind. • When introducing the story of Pentecost, Luke will speak of all three—wind (pnoes—Acts 2:2), fire (puros—Acts 2:3), and Holy Spirit (pneumatos hagiou—Acts 2:4)—in the space of three short verses. • In the winnowing fork metaphor (v. 17), wind separates chaff from wheat (although Luke does not use the word pneumati in v. 17), and fire destroys the chaff. In this Gospel, Jesus and the disciples several times use fire as a metaphor for judgment (9:54; 12:49; 17:29). Wind and fire are both instruments of judgment, but the purpose is to “preserve what is valuable and (to) destroy what is worthless, just as a farmer does” . They are like the refiner’s fire, which purges dross to purify silver and gold Malachi 3:2). The aim is not destruction, but purification. 3. “whose fan is in his hand, and he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn” (v. 17a). A winnowing fork is somewhat like a pitchfork. It is used to toss grain into the air so that the wind will carry away the lighter chaff and allow the heavier, more valuable grain to fall back to the floor. Winnowing is a way of separating that which is worthless (the chaff) from that which is valuable (the grain). Winnowing thus serves as a metaphor for Jesus separating the faithful from the unfaithful—the saved from the lost—on Judgment Day. “he will thoroughly cleanse his threshing floor, and will gather the wheat into his barn” (v. 17b). A threshing floor is a large, hard-packed surface where oxen pull a heavy sled over sheaves of wheat to pull the chaff away from the grain, preparing it for the winnowing fork. After the grain is collected on the threshing floor, it is gathered into a granary or storage area where it will be protected from the weather. Winnowing separates the useful grain from useless chaff by using a winnowing fork to throw the wheat and chaff into the air when a breeze is blowing. The heavier wheat will be little affected by the breeze, but the lighter chaff will be blown away from the threshing floor. This separation of good (wheat) from bad (chaff) serves as a metaphor for Jesus separating the redeemed from the unredeemed—and gathering the redeemed into their heavenly home. The “unquenchable fire” (v. 17b) serves as a metaphor for the eternal punishment of those who are not redeemed, and thus speaks of the eternal consequences of our choices. Jesus has authority to burn the chaff with unquenchable fire. He is not just a prophet, announcing consequences, but is also a judge, imposing consequences. Isaiah used similar language to describe the fate of people who rebelled against God (Isaiah 66:24—see also Mark 9:48). “Unquenchable fire” brings to mind Gehenna—the Valley of Hinnom—Jerusalem’s garbage dump, where fires burn day and night. While a frightful image, the chaff-burning does not celebrate the sinner’s demise. John called sinners to “bear fruits worthy of repentance” (3:8). Those who do so will be identified as wheat rather than chaff, and will thus be saved. This story thus highlights both salvation and judgment (condemnation), but the purpose is “to save the wheat, not to burn the chaff” (Craddock, Interpretation, 49). ***“in a bodily form as a dove on him” (v. 22b). The Spirit is visible—no figment of anyone’s imagination. The Spirit is not a dove, but is like a dove. There is no mention in the Old Testament of the Holy Spirit descending like a dove. The dove that appeared to Noah as the floodwaters receded (Genesis 8:8) is the best-known Old Testament dove, and perhaps the most helpful to understand the dove-like Spirit at Jesus’ baptism. The Genesis dove was a peaceful symbol—a sign of God’s presence—a promise of salvation. The same is true for the dove-like Spirit at Jesus’ baptism. “and a voice came out of the sky, saying ‘You are my beloved Son. In you I am well pleased'” (v. 22c). Luke doesn’t identify the one who speaks, but the voice from heaven is obviously that of God the Heavenly Father. These are essentially the same words that God will speak at the transfiguration (9:35), except that they are addressed to Jesus at his baptism—but to the disciples at his transfiguration. Verse 22 alludes to two Old Testament verses, “You are my son” (Psalm 2:7) and “my chosen, in whom my soul delights” (Isaiah 42:1). Jesus does not become God’s son at his baptism, but has been God’s son all along (1:35). ***OLD TESTEMENT Talked about it The Prophets of the Old Testament foretold of the coming of the Spirit of God. Ezekiel 36:26-27 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring: Joel 2:28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: The Jews had longed for the day when the Spirit would come. • The prophets had foretold His coming time and again; • The people knew exactly what John was talking about! IT’S POWER I would like to address some questions that people ask… 1. “Do we need the Holy Ghost?” 2. “Can ANYONE have it?” 3. “How do I get it?” Let’s start with the first question, “Do we need the Holy Ghost?” Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. BUT THEN SOMETHING HAPPENED! Acts 2:1-4 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. The promise that the Prophets had foretold was finally fulfilled. • God’s Spirit was being poured out and into the lives of people • They were no longer without power • The Holy Ghost Fire changed them. That same Peter… Powerless Cowardly and Afraid Denied that he knew Jesus now stood up in front of a multitude of people and preached a message of salvation and thousands of souls were saved that same day!!! Baptism: the word "baptism" means to dip, to immerse, to submerge, to place into. John's baptism was with water, but Jesus' baptism was "in the Spirit and fire." 1. John's baptism was both a preparation and a symbol of the spiritual baptism that Jesus was going to bring. John's water baptism meant two things. • First, it symbolized cleansing from all sin. A person was being prepared for the cleansing that Christ would provide. • Second, it symbolized separation or dedication. A person was setting their life apart to God in a renewed spirit of dedication. They were committing themselves to the Christ that John was preaching about. 2. Jesus' spiritual baptism is a double baptism. First, Jesus baptizes the person in the Spirit. He dips, immerses, and places the person in the Spirit, and the Spirit in the person. John 7:38-39 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. Second, Jesus baptizes the person in fire. Fire has several functions that graphically symbolize the work of Christ.• It illuminates o Our spiritual eyes are open • It warms • It melts Those areas of our heart that have become cold and frozen It burns The impurities, chaff, sin and the desire for sin Jesus Christ separates a person from his former life and purifies them within by filling them with the Power and the Fire of His Spirit. So, can anyone have it? How do I get it? Acts 2:38-39 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. 39 For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. Jesus is saying . when He left.. He would send His Spirit in His place. within us. it. does many things: helps us to understand the deep things of God's Word. helps us in our prayers ...... guides us ... teaches us .... and empowers us ... for ministry ... with spiritual,gifts. perhaps the most intriguing thing the Holy Spirit was sent to do ... is implied in Acts 1:8. "But you will receive power ... when the Holy Spirit comes on you; ... and you will be my witnesses Jerusalem, . Judea , Samaria, ... and to the ends ... of the earth." END (Acts 1:8) ****Jesus’ baptism with sinners marked him as the substitute for sinners. By being baptized like a sinner Jesus showed his willingness to become our Savior. 2 Corinthians 5:21 explains the reason for Jesus’ baptism in this way, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” The great exchange where God swaps the holiness of his Son for the sinfulness of our fallen race is pictured at Jesus’ baptism. He was baptized like a sinner to serve as their Savior. “Jesus was baptized too.” That short phrase penned by Luke says so much. At the Jordan River two thousand years ago the Son of God received the same baptism as the prostitutes and tax collectors. The same water that was used to baptize those separated from God because of their sins was used to baptize the one who brought sinners back to God. The baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins that soldiers and farmers, husbands and wives, young and old received was also given to Jesus. And although we are living many years after John did his baptizing we can see ourselves in the crowd that came out to him. Like them we have broken God’s Commandments. friends in Christ, we too stand at the Jordan River with the stream of sinners called humanity. “Jesus was baptized too.” We can’t let that amazing fact pass quickly out of our minds. Jesus was baptized like a sinner to serve as their Savior. He didn’t need baptism. Scripture clearly teaches that Jesus was sinless. No, Jesus was baptized like a sinner to be the substitute for sinners. In fact he was made sin for us. He united himself with us who need baptism to serve as our Savior. What additional blessings did John say Jesus would give through his baptism? he would baptize his believers with the Holy Spirit. would equip the followers of Jesus for service. When Jesus joined himself to sinners in that way he opened the way to provide a baptism for sinners that would give them the HS. ***But what does it exactly mean to show remorse over sin? It doesn’t mean to be sad that others are offended by our sins, or sad that we got caught. That’s regret, not remorse. To show remorse means to change our mind about sin. It means that we no longer view sin as something that is fun and exciting, or something which can’t be helped and isn’t that harmful any way. It means that we see sin for what it is – something that damages our relationship with God and with others. Sin is something that God hates so much that he once destroyed everyone in the world except for eight people with a flood. And sin will move God to destroy the world again – this time with fire. How then should we view our sin? With serious sadness. Therefore when we all join in confessing our sins at the beginning of the service we should not just parrot the words printed out for us in the hymnal or bulletin, but make that confession a sincere confession. As you confess your sins think of how you have brought grief to your heavenly father by your actions, words, and thoughts. Saying that we are sorry for our sin but refusing to rearrange our life to avoid that sin shows that we really haven’t repented and the Apostle John tells us that such a person has no part in Christ. “4 The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him... 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did... No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him” (1 Jn. 2:4, 6, 3:6). The writer to the Hebrews is just as blunt when he wrote, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God” (10:26, 27). John the Baptist put it this way in our text. “The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire” (Jn. 3:8). So far we’ve taken a look at two of the three R’s that prepare us for Christ but if we would stop with remorse and rearranging we would be no better off than the other religions of this world. Every religion tries to get people to feel sorry for the wrong they have done, and encourages them to make the world a better place in which to live. But remorse and rearranging cannot bring us salvation. We can try and try to get rid of sin but we will always fall back into it. Therefore what hope is there for us who want to stand before a God who demands perfection? Even John, whom Jesus called the greatest man (Matt. 11:11), knew that he was unworthy to stand in God’s presence. He wasn’t even worthy to untie the Messiah’s sandals (Lk. 3:16). Two men were talking one evening. One fella said to the other, “You’re real religious, aren’t you? I challenge you to quote that Lord’s Prayer. I bet you (looks into his wallet) $10 you can’t do it.” His buddy said, “You’re gonna lose that bet!” After taking a deep breath and slowly letting it out, he said, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep. And if I die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.”
Shaking his head, the first man said, “You are something else, man.” Then he slapped a $10 bill on the table and muttered, “I didn’t think you could do it. No sir.” Freshly baked bread. A flour-coated loaf, warm from the oven. Does that sound delicious to you? It does to me. Most of us love bread. This morning we’ll be focusing on the second half of the Lord’s prayer, which begins with, “give us today our daily bread.” In last week’s message we heard that the Lord’s Prayer is communal, relational, and it also points beyond us. It acknowledges God’s name and character, and it’s about us wanting God’s will to be done. Finally, it’s wanting what’s happening now in heaven to be our reality here on earth. The first half of the Lord’s Prayer points to us to God: we focus on His power and holiness, and His coming kingdom. Only then do we begin to ask God to meet our needs. Doesn’t this pattern remind you of the Ten Commandments? They begin with our relationship with God in the first 4 commandments; in the next 6 there’s a focus on our lives, how we should treat others. Give us this day our daily bread “Give us this day our daily bread” is the first petition, or request, we may put before God. It is a top priority because we all know we need food to survive. Asking for “bread” is a way to say we need food, sustenance, our vittles! Since this is a model prayer, someone living in Asia might adapt their prayer by saying, “Give us this day our daily rice.” God wants all of us to have what we need - the basics, like food - but also clothing, shelter, and more. Everyone can have enough if the “haves” share with the “have-nots”. We have enough food, water, and other resources to help every man, woman, and child living on the earth. Enough to support people who can’t work because they’re too young, too old, disabled, or diseased. God tells us the solution: Be generous, share with those in need. But also, keep praying with urgency, “Give us this day our daily bread.” Until all have enough, we must pray and share as often as we can. This is one way we help usher in the kingdom of God on earth. Forgive us our trespasses Our Father, who art in heaven… forgive us for our sins. Sin is disobedience, doing what’s wrong in our relationship with God. We feel guilty - we know we cannot hide. If you’ve ever had a dog, you may have seen how they can act when caught doing something bad. They have shredded newspaper, dumped over the garbage can, or otherwise broken a rule. When their owner shows up and is none too happy, the dog begins to cower. The owner may not even say a word, yet the dog backs up, lowers his head and the front of his body to the floor. Their tail may wag, showing us they hope we remember the good times from the past. They do this knowing they’re guilty; there’s no escaping, nor any chance for a do-over. Dogs are at the mercy of their owner. Most owners will sigh, but clean up the mess, knowing it was in the dog’s nature to do what they did. They liked the smell of the leftover chicken in the garbage can in the kitchen, so... Or they felt frisky and wanted to play and found something forbidden to play with. It sure felt fun, until they were caught. I think dogs and their owners offer us a great example of how God relates to us when we sin. God knows we’ll sometimes feel temptation and act on it, even though we know we’ll get in trouble. When caught, we’ll feel regretful and be anxious about what that will mean for us. We really don’t want to stay stuck in that uncomfortable place with the One who loves and takes care of us. So, we look up from our hunched-down posture of shame and wait for the consequences. Does a loving owner send their dog away? One mistake and you’re out of here? Open the back door, push them out and don’t let them in again? That would be pretty heartless, wouldn’t it? And it would reveal a lot about the character of their owner. Wise owners know every dog is going to make mistakes - they can’t be perfect! So they show them grace. They forgive them, keeping them in their home and their heart. The Bible says we’ve all sinned and fallen short in our relationship with God. We’ve given in to temptation. We’re guilty, powerless to excuse or erase the wrongs we did. God sees this, and because of his nature, he forgives us for that wrong and every other wrong, because we’ve asked Him to do that for us. What comes next is the restoration of joy and a right relationship. Like when an owner kneels down and opens their arms, and the dog leaps toward them happy, barking, forgiven. Jesus taught his disciples to say in their daily prayers: “Forgive us for our sins,” because it kept them mindful of the times their thoughts or actions were not holy. It gave them the assurance that God, who is love, forgives the sins of all who confess them. As we forgive those who trespass against us The prayer then asks God to forgive us, “as we forgive others.” How good it is to have God forgive us, fully, restoring the bond of our (vertical) relationship. But Jesus had more to say about forgiveness. Right after he taught the “Lord’s Prayer”, as recorded in Matthew 6, Jesus repeated something, making sure we’d remember it: “If you forgive others when they sin against you, Your Father will forgive you. If you don’t forgive them, your Father will not forgive you.” What? Why does God say such a thing? It can be easy to forgive some people some of the time, but we struggle to forgive others, all the time, for all they’ve done. C.S. Lewis puts this in perspective for us: “To be a Christian means we forgive the inexcusable, because God has forgiven the inexcusable in us.” It takes love that is deep and unconditional to forgive others! The Bible says every Christian must have what’s called a ministry of reconciliation. When we do that, there will be an ever-expanding circle of forgiveness in our world. Forgiving others and being forgiven by God… that alone can keep us busy for the rest of our lives, am I right? And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil The final part of the Lord’s Prayer says, “Lead us not unto temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Satan stands behind all evil. He’s called the father of all lies - the deceiver. In the Old Testament we see him tempt those who walk on “the way of life” to choose “the way of death.” Jesus said, “There is a narrow road and a small gate that leads to life, and a broad road and a wide gate that leads to death.” Knowing all of this, Jesus told his disciples to pray. He knew they’d face difficult temptations. He knew that doing what’s right would not always be easy. There would be people trying to convince them that there’s no harm in something, that everyone is doing it, that they should just do what feels good to them. The standard lies and temptations of Satan are the same old bag of tricks. When we’re on the path of life, righteousness, and wisdom, Satan tries to confuse us, discourage us, frighten, isolate, sadden us. Satan wants us to doubt, feel overwhelmed, and have all hope crushed. The Good News is that Satan and God are not equally matched. Satan was defeated at the cross, and further humiliated on the day of Resurrection. Christ will come again, crushing Satan and his forces. Christ, who delivers us from evil every day, will deliver us from evil - permanently. That makes me want to say one thing: “Maranatha,” which means “Come, Lord, come”. May the word “Maranatha” also be on your lips and in your heart. One day, God’s kingdom and power and glory shall come, and we will dwell with God forever and ever. Amen. If you were one of Jesus’ disciples, alive while he was on earth, you’d have seen miracles. Heard parables. Shared meals and travelled with the Son of God. But there’s one privilege I think we’d all like having if we were in that inner circle. We could ask Jesus questions, our questions, every day. We could ask “why” questions, “when” questions and “how” ones as well.
In today’s Scripture one of the disciples approached Jesus after he’d spent time in prayer. He asked the Lord, “how should we pray - can you teach us? John the Baptizer taught his followers how to pray.” Does it seem to you like the disciples wanted to learn a different or somehow better way to pray? Let me describe the typical, daily prayers of a faithful Jew and you can make up your mind. All men were expected to go to synagogue three times a day to pray at 9:00 am, noon, and 3:00 p.m. They’d stand with both arms extended, palms up, and recite several verses from Deuteronomy 6 called the Shema (meaning “hear”): “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord our God is one...”. This was followed by the synagogue leader helping them recite 18 benedictions that asked God to bless Israel. They were also expected to pray privately and with their families; many of those prayers were also memorized and recited. That’s a lot of ritual praying. Every year of their life, men would communally chant the Shema and 18 blessings, adding up to 1,095 repetitions. Multiply that, and a multitude of other formulaic prayers, by however many years of adult life. Can you see how that amount of repetition could become monotonous or lifeless? When you or I pray a familiar prayer, in unison, week after week, like The Lord’s Prayer, might we admit that sometimes we say the words, but we’re not fully tuned in? We may suddenly find ourselves saying “amen” and realize we don’t know where our mind wandered. Theologian John Stott calls that kind of distracted or rote praying, “all lips, no mind, no heart”. Aren’t there times we’ve all prayed on autopilot? We may say each phrase perfectly, but the deeper meaning and power of the prayer doesn’t reach our soul, as God intends? I suspect that the disciples may have had that sort of struggle. After long years of repeating the same prayers every day, they noticed and were drawn to Jesus’ prayers. He wasn’t all lips, no head, no heart.” His prayers were fresh and genuine. Jesus did agree to teach his closest followers how to pray; he gave them what’s often called a model for praying, which we’ll soon see has 5 distinctive parts. You can find this recorded in Matthew 6. I love that the Lord’s Prayer can also be found in Luke 11, but he had a different audience. He was preaching to a crowd and decided to share with them “the best way to pray”. This morning we’ll consider the first 2 parts of The Lord’s Prayer; it begins with God’s name and character, then God’s Kingdom coming, and finally praying for God’s will to be done. “Pray like this,” said Jesus; start with “Our Father”. He’s showing how them how they should speak warmly to God, because He is like a Father/abba/daddy. This close, relational name of Father reveals that God wants us to turn to him and trust Him. Something else that’s interesting here is the pronoun “our”. Have you ever really noticed or thought about how this model prayer uses plural pronouns, never singular? “Our” and “us” are used, but never “I” or “my”; that reveals that when we pray, we should be in community as often as possible, not alone. That is the well-rooted plan for God’s people, both before and after the arrival of Christ in our world. God’s plan and preference is for His followers to come together for communal prayer. “Our Father who art (is) in heaven”…. Heaven. That word suddenly turns our attention to a glorious, as-yet unseen realm, where God reigns. We who are earth-bound and time-bound can’t imagine that splendid place, but we believe we’ll arrive there “by and by”, as the older hymns say. Where God abides, we too shall abide. Now, I have a cute story to introduce the next part of this prayer. In a Sunday School class some younger kids were working on memorizing The Lord’s Prayer. Toward the end of class, the children were to recite it in unison. One girl’s voice was a bit louder and more confident than the others. She said: “Our Father, who art in heaven, how’d you know my name?” That’s a great question, actually! The mixup stalled things in the classroom - a few kids were laughing and some were whispering the details to others. The young girl who didn’t know what “hallowed” meant is not alone. I’m not sure how old I was before I learned it meant “holy”. Holy is the word that I believe best encompasses every attribute of God. The Psalmist David said God’s name deserves the highest honor: no one is like our God - He is holy. One of the times we speak of God’s holiness is during our traditional Holy Communion service: “Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might.” Saying a word three times means it’s significant, or maybe a better word is “magnified”. God’s holiness is magnified or ever-expanding. I got curious about this so I went looking to see where “holy, holy, holy” could be found in the Bible. I discovered there’s only two places it’s mentioned. The prophet Isaiah described a vision: in it he saw angels in heaven glorifying God saying “holy, holy, HOLY.” And in Revelation, the last book in the Bible, John is also given a vision; he too saw angels praising God, saying, “Holy, holy, HOLY”. Our God is holy. So far we’ve considered “OUR Father, who is in HEAVEN, HOLY be your name.” Next comes: “Thy KINGDOM come, thy WILL be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” First, we’ll think about God’s will being done. E. Stanley Jones, a renowned evangelist, shared a simple, easy-to-remember illustration that can help us stay focused on God’s will, instead of our own. Jones said, “If I throw a boathook from my boat, and it catches hold of the shore, do I take the rope and put it over my shoulder and pull the enormous shore to me, or do I grasp the rope and pull myself to the shore?” When we pray, we “cast” our prayers out to God – but are we secretly hoping we might pull God (with a rope over our shoulder) over to our will? Or when we pray, are we trusting God, and allowing Him to draw our boat closer to his perfect will? If we pray that first way, pulling with all our might so God follows our ideas, we’re being stubborn, not wanting our boat/life to follow God’s way. I bet we’ve all had some defiant, “I want what I want” times. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, we realize it’s so much better if we allow God to guide us toward what He knows is best for us. To fully surrender our will and put our trust in God is not always easy, but when God’s will is done our lives will be blessed. When we pray, let’s remember to surrender our wishes, to release them and instead ask God for His perfect plans, His will to be done here on earth, just as it is always done in heaven. And last, but not least, Jesus said the disciples should pray that the kingdom of God would come, that it would break into the lives of people on earth. That happened when God sent us His son. And that kingdom expanded as Jesus explained to people everywhere he went that there was Good News. If they admitted they were sinners, separated from God, and they were ready to repent, Jesus would forgive them and welcome them into His kingdom. Every person who believes and receives this Good News helps the Kingdom of God grow here on earth! Has anyone here ever listened to Handel’s Messiah? If you have, you likely know the part sung so softly it almost makes you hold your breath in suspense. The choir, in a hushed whisper sings these words: “the kingdom of this world is become”, meaning it is becoming… Then, after a half a breath’s pause the choir explodes with the Good News of Revelation 11:15: “The kingdom of this world is become the Kingdom of the Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.” Right now, at this moment, God is counting on us to help usher in the Kingdom of God on earth. As Christians, we must never forget that is our primary mission. Then, one fine day, you and I will be called by God to join His heavenly Kingdom, where the Lord, Jesus Christ, will reign forever and ever. We’re ending today with that special selection I’ve described from Handel’s Messiah. As we listen, I pray we’ll each experience the quiet longing, the moment of heightened suspense, then the thrilling announcement of triumph, of God’s reign that shall last forever and ever. Amen. |
ZOOM WORSHIP SERVICE
SUNDAY @ 11 AM To join by phone, dial (929) 205-6099 and enter the meeting ID and password below: Meeting ID: 876 1875 9099 Password 333 PrayerGracious Loving Lord, please keep all of your children safe in these trying times. Guide us. Open our ears to hear, our eyes to see, our minds to understand and our hearts to know and be your love to others. We pray this in Jesus' name, Amen. Want to support RLUMC and our missions? Donate Today
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September 2023
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