In the mission statement of our church, we have identified “Growth in Christ” as one of our desired tasks or goals. In order to grow in Christ, you need to see progress in such areas as generosity, the development of a giving life style. Are you growing in Christ?
We also grow in Christ as we worship and pray regularly, He who is the Creator of the Universe, the giver of every good and perfect gift has made it very clear that worship is a commandment.
Furthermore, we grow in Christ as we read the Holy Bible, learning of his dealings with his people in time past.
As we begin a new year I want to encourage you to join with me in reading the scriptures for this is our book. Perhaps you will find it helpful to visit a bookstore and purchase a new translation. I am reading just now in addition to the RSV, a translation called the NIV or New International Version just because I believe it might help stimulate new interest and fresh insights. I grew up reading and studying the RSV—Revised Standard Version, which was the predecessor of our pew Bibles, NRSV. All of these are translationed into English by committees of Biblical scholars.
If you want to grow in Christ this year, you will be intentional about giving, worship, and studying the Bible. Perhaps there are other areas of growth and challenge for you.
I will tell you what I will do and suggest that you join me. We have what is called “The lectionary which means a selection of scriptures for each week of the year.” The selections come from the Psalms, Old Testament, Epistles, and the Gospel. Four scripture references. We will print in the calendar each week the scripture references and those can become a guide to your reading. You might read a short selection in say the Epistles of Romans one week and find yourself wanting to know more and reading the entire letter.
This list will come to your home every week in The Methodist Witness (mailed newsletter) and will be in the calendar in the Sunday bulletin.
Maybe you have a better way of getting into the Word, and if you do then great! Certainly, a Disciple Bible Study is a better way, but whatever. Here is a method for reading and studying God’s Word and Methodists love methods.
In a retreat last week, I resolved to read the scriptures looking for God’s promises. For years, I have thought to myself as I would read or hear the scriptures being read, that there were some wonderful promises in the Bible and that it would be a neat project to isolate them and to think about them.
For example, “He who believes in me, shall never die, but shall have eternal life.”
“Ask and you will receive.”
“Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that it is yours and it will be so.”
So, this year as I am reading the lectionary scriptures each week, searching for God’s Word, I will be looking for God’s promises in Holy Scripture and will be sharing with you each Sunday some of my findings. Now I will not be a slave to this for at times each week, other things will need to be voiced from this pulpit but what I will be searching for in my readings and study, week after week, will be some of God’s Unique Promises to his people. Honestly, we need to hear God’s Word.
Why don’t we start today. I found “the promise” in Isaiah 42:1-9 in verse 6 God says: “I will take hold of your hand”.
Perhaps the reason this captured my attention was because in one of the many stories which have now been reported concerning the victims of the Tsunami in Southeast Asia, perhaps the one which ripped my heart was the statement of a mother describing the loss of a six year old daughter, said: “I was holding her hand as the water rushed over us and I lost my grip and she was gone.”
Frankly, it would be easy to wonder to yourself when you consider the Hurricanes which have ripped through our state and our community, the floods and ice and snow storms which have washed away the soil and homes in the West, and the Tsunamis which have claimed the lives of 150,000 or more persons in Southeast Asia, it would be easy to assume that maybe God has lost his grip.
Where is God’s protective spirit watching over the least and the last of society? The poor people of the world didn’t ask to be born and didn’t chose to live in vulnerable land areas, but there they are, or were anyway. Why did God not take hold of their hands and lead them to higher ground?
Some have suggested that God sends destruction as a judgment against sin and that’s the reason for all of these disasters. Don’t you believe it.
Sure it is true that “what goes around, comes around.” It is true that if you violate the moral principals of the universe or the commandments of God, then you will be judged harshly. If you violate the spirit of Jesus which is the way God clearly has taught us that is how he wants us to live, then there will be a price to pay. If you sin you will reap the whirlwind”!
But really a six year old who loses the grip of their mother’s hand in the middle of a stormy sea? God did this? Not on your life. You see, “Bad things happen to good people.”
The truth is, there are earthly powers beyond our control—global warming producing whirlwinds in tornadic and hurricane forces, the shift of the plates of the planet beneath the waters which cover the earth stir the waters and flood the islands. Many things just happen, accidents, disease, malformations of nature and human life. We are born and we die, sometimes at untimely moments.
But this vulnerable nature of the human condition being recognized and acknowledged, even so, hear the promise of God recorded by the Prophet Isaiah: “I will take hold of your hand.” Biblical Scholars tell us that in chapters 40-55, there is a distinctive shift in the biblical material and it is referred to as II Isaiah and it comes from the Babylonian Captivity period of history, around the 6th century BC. The nation of Babylonia had captured and destroyed Jerusalem and the children of Israel had lost the grip of their mother’s hand.
And Isaiah affirms that Even when we lose the grip of a human touch, there will be the extension of the firm grip of a divine hand.
Jesus was to reaffirm this great truth when he said of the coming of the Holy Spirit: “I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you.” We need to hear this. We need not be afraid, God will come to us.
In the rather fascinating movie Dr. Zhivago which is the story of destruction brought by the Communist Revolution to Russia and the very complicated life and loves of the Zhivago family. There is in the final chapter of the story a conversation with a Russian General, the brother of Dr. Zhivago, with a young factory worker, who was the assumed illegitimate daughter of the Doctor and his lover. The girl recalls the last time she saw her father saying: “We were running down the street and the soldiers were firing their rifles and he was holding my hand, but we became separated and I never saw him again.” And the General said, “This was not your father, for he would never have lost his grip of your hand.” Although, being human sometimes we do lose the human grip, the Heavenly father, will never lose his hold of our hand…In the cold, lonely closing moments of life when we reach out into the dark emptiness of space and time, we will discover the warm embrace of a divine hand, holding and lifting us.
This wonderful promise is affirmed in the poetry of John Greenleaf Whittier who wrote in 1885:
“I know not what the future hath, of marvel or surprise;
Assured alone that life and death God’s mercy underlies.
And if my heart and flesh are weak, To bear an untried pain,
The bruised reed he will not break, But strengthen and sustain.
And thou, O Lord, by whom are seen Thy creatures as they be,
Forgive me if too close I lean, My human heart on thee.
And so beside the silent sea I wait the muffled oar,
No harm from him can come to me On ocean or on shore.
I know not where his island lift Their fronded palms in air,
I only know I cannot drift beyond his love and care.
One of the many wonderful promises of God in Holy Scripture is that God will hear our prayers.
In Psalm 40 we read the affirmation of this great truth: “He inclined his ear to me, he heard my prayer, and he lifted me up out of the horrible pit out of the miry clay, he sat my feet upon a rock and directed my steps and put a new song on my lips.”
Here is affirmed that in God, there is Deliverance or Rescue.
Did you hear about the young man found in the Indian Ocean floating on a rubber raft after 14 days from the tsunami. Here was a young man who knows the delivering mercies of God.
And did you see pictures of the 6 month old child that was dug out of a house after two days under the mudslide in California.
In Jesus’ Baptism, John called him “The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” Although this is foreign to our understanding, please know that in Jesus’ time sacrifices were presented in the Temple in Jerusalem to free the people of their sin. Thus Jesus was identified as the “Sacrificial Lamb” that would save the people of their sin. And over the years, Jesus has often been known as the Savior, the Great Deliver for truly, he has delivered us from our sin.
The 40th Psalm is said to be “A Psalm of David”. I can image that David did indeed write this one. Remember David had gotten involved with a woman who was the wife of another man, and David had him killed. The King was in a horrible pit of guilt and “God inclined his ear to me, he heard my prayer, and he lifted me up out of the horrible pit out of the miry clay”.
Since the hurricane of September, many of you have walked in the miry bog. Some have for years due to depression or a low self esteem, felt like your feet have always been in a miry bog.
Well listen up, “God heard my prayer and lifted me up out of the horrible pit, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock…We sometimes sing: “Love lifted me, Love lifted me, when nothing else would help, love lifted me.” The love of God has and will lift us up.
Furthermore, He gives to us security. “He set my feet upon a rock”. Maybe that’s why sometimes we sing “Rock of Ages, cleft for me let me hide myself in thee.“
Isaiah had known this kind of security because he felt himself called of God from the womb for a purpose beyond his strength, He was Chosen of God and thus found ultimate security in God.
And then there is the assurance of God’s gift of guidance and joy. “He directed my steps and put a new song on my lips.”
It doesn’t get any better than joy, guidance, security and deliverance. Surely, “God inclined his ear to me, and heard my cry."
Leonard Griffith, was some years ago, the preacher of City Temple Church in London, England. He wrote a book entitled “Barriers to Christian Belief”. In the book he dealt with stumbling blocks or obstacles for people living a life of faith. One of the “barriers” identified was “unanswered prayers”. Many a person becomes a dropout in faith, because they feel a sense of failure in their prayer life. The truth is most people today drop out before they ever get started. We are so quick to give up on our marriage, on our job, on our faith.
There are many an individual who will try our faith, but will not stick with it. I will occasionally see them on an irregular bases but the problem is that their faith is not vital, because it has little to do with their everyday journey. Maybe they have tried praying about their problems once or twice and they see no results.
In the cartoon “Peanuts”, one Christmas Charlie Brown asks Lucy if she thinks that he might get what he wants for Christmas if he prays “with his palms up or palms down?” I pray with mine up in a receptive posture, I think. The truth is prayer is not like rubbing a magical lamp in a crisis. Much that passes for prayer is irrational and self-centered, while it is intended as time spent with a friend in which there is given counsel and encouragement.
Jesus prayed a lot. The Disciples noticed how he would retreat from them and would be quietly alone and one day they asked him to teach them how to pray. That was the occasion when he taught them what we call “The Lord’s Prayer”…
1. Jesus prayed Regularly. Like eating or drinking water, or exercise, some things you need pretty often. Prayer was not something you could store up. It was more like standing in a stream of flowing water.
So for those of you who think you have an already busy, overwhelmed schedule and can’t add something else? Prayer is really not an option if you want to experience deliverance, security, guidance, and lasting joy. Prayer is a way of life.
I know something about busy schedules, about deadlines, about pressures, about having more to do than you can possibly get to. But no one wants to hear your complaints, everybody has more to do than they can adequately do. No one is interested in hearing your problems, except God and he will help you sort out what’s important. In prayer, God can with your help separate the wheat from the chaff. The truth is we cannot not take time to pray.
Everything and Anything of real value takes time—regular, consistent, disciplined time. Ask an artist. Ask a musician. Ask an athlete. Ask a doctor, lawyer, engineer, minister, teacher. Most things of real value don’t come overnight, but at the end of a long road. Jesus prayed regularly.
2. And Secondly, Jesus prayed trustingly.
In one of Jesus’ prayers near the end of his life, he prayed “Thy will be done.” You have to put your hand in the hand of the Master if you want to walk in His holy ways.
Someone has described prayer as “friendship with God.” It is like placing your hand in the hand of a friend.
Leslie Weatherhead has described an elderly member of his church when he served City Road, London. He was in a nursing home and there was always an empty chair beside his bed. The older gentleman told him that in a time of his life when he was struggling with his prayer life, a pastor told him to treat God like a friend and simply place him in his mind in an empty chair and talk with him. Weatherhead tells about a call that came in time from the old man’s daughter saying that he had died and they were making plans for the funeral. One thing of interest the daughter said was that when he died, he had reached out to the empty chair and rested his hand easy in the empty seat. Said Weatherhead, he was simply reaching out in trust to his very best friend.”
God hears our prayers, like a very good friend.
This weekend the nation honors Martin Luther King, Jr. A man of the faith who was shot down by an assassin in a small motel in Memphis, Tenn. He was not yet 40 years of age when he died. Martin knew he was at risk. He and his Southern Christian Leadership organization had challenged the societal structures of America and demanded rights and freedoms and opportunities for the black people of America of the l960’s. The American government had eliminated slavery but had allowed a caste system to develop in America that created a second class citizenry. And Martin challenged this system of prejudice and racism. In prayer, God had called Martin to lead a peaceful revolt he trusted in God’s promise that he would overcome the opposition and racial hatred which was deep-seated since before the War Between The States. Martin believed that God would hear his prayer, that God would reach down to him and lift him up from the miry bog, from the horrible pit, and that he would set his feet upon a rock, would give him guidance and put a new song on his lips.
The song on his lips was “The Lord will see us through, The Lord will see us through, The Lord will see us through, someday”. And He will for he hears our prayers, he delivers us from the horrible pit, from the miry bog, and sets our feet upon a rock, directs our steps and places a song on our lips.”
Affirmed in the ancient writings of the Psalmist, written hundreds of years ago, is found the wonderful Promises of God. Today, we consider the promise that God will provide us with Sanctuary—meaning a place of safety, security, refuge and protection. This promise is found in the words of the 27th Psalm.
“The Lord is the Stronghold of my life, of whom should I be afraid? The Lord is my light and my Salvation, whom shall I fear? He will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble, he will cover me under the cover of his tent, he will set me high upon a rock.
In Hohenwald, Tennessee, located some 85 miles southwest of Nashville, Tennessee, there is a 2,700 acre reservation, which provides a natural habitat refuge for old, sick, or needy elephants that have been retired from zoos or circuses. It’s called a sanctuary. There the elephants are protected in the closing days of their lives. They don’t have to perform for anyone; they just have to be in safety.
We have a wild life refuge in Pensacola designed as a hospital…It’s called a sanctuary for old, sick, tired birds.
This is one of the reasons, I am anxious to get our retirement home being built just across the street finished and running because soon some of us are going to be looking for a place for old, worn out Methodists.
By the way, The Assisted Living Retirement Center should be open by June of this year. It will be on a rental basis and although there are a number of persons who have expressed interest, no rooms have been committed to anyone. The first of February the brochures and registration materials will go out to those of you who have registered your desire to receive the first mailing of the information. So information will be out in another month and the home should be open by the first of June. How many years have I told you that it was coming? I might be right this time. Though I don’t particularly care for the colors of the building, I do like the name of the facility: Wesley Haven Villas. A Haven is a sanctuary or a place of care, love, safety, and protection.
Although both animals and humankind need sanctuary or haven in the later days of their lives, so also do we need to find places of safety, security, nourishment and shelter during the days of our lives.
David, the attributed author of the 27th Psalm found such a place in the presence of God.
The Lord is:
My refuge
and strength, a very present help in time of trouble.
The Lord is:
The
Stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?
The Lord is:
My light and my Salvation,
whom shall I fear?
Over the years, people have sought sanctuary in various places which often have proven to be nothing but an illusion.
The Bottle—through alcohol or prescription drugs people desperately look for refuge. I will not dignify this temporary, pseudo, illusionary source of refuge with any comments. Only to say, how sad.
The Family—the place where when you go, they have to take you in. But some homes are a long way from a refuge. So many are smoke and hate-filled, and children are being stifled. When the children can’t breathe, it is just not fair.
I spoke with an individual sometime ago who said to me, “Thank God for my grandparents, because they were the ones who provided me with confidence, self-esteem, a regular diet of love. I don’t remember sitting in church with my Daddy, but I remember sitting with my grandparents.” He said, “What my grandparents provided for me is what I want to provide for my children.” When children are born into a family, they come with a lot of responsibility for the parents. Frankly, if you are not willing to shoulder the responsibility, you should not exercise the privilege.
Divorce has taken its toll on the stability of the American family, but I have been guilty of misleading you in being fearful about the lack of longevity of marriage. It is true that there are about 2.4 million marriages in America each year and it is true that there are 1.2 million divorces. That would look like 50%, but that’s not true because the 1.2 million are not from the same 2.4 million who marry. The 1.2 is from a figure like 60 million marriages in America, some of which have been married for a long time…
The figures are much better if a person waits until they are over 20 years of age to marry, and if they have made it through 10 years of marriage and if they are active in a church family. With all of these factors one is less likely to divorce.
The truth is marriage is not breaking down, not in general at least. Marriage is what it has always been, a commitment or a promise between two persons who chose to remain faithful to each other. Thank heavens for the marriages in our fellowship which provide love and support. It is easy for those who have gone through a divorce to begin to feel guilty about right now, but don’t be silly about this business. You have done and are doing the best you can do.
I know in many of your prayers this morning you are thankful for your family, and you should be for you are blessed! But the truth is with crime and disease and irresponsibility, sanctuary is not always found in the home, and that’s a shame, because innocent children need sanctuary.
The Church—Many come to the church for here is a place where sanctuary can be found. Interestingly enough, oftentimes in the last century, there have been many churches which have provided sanctuary for immigrants and political refugees. This has been true in South America, the U.S. and Canada. In Germany today, there are some 300 Churches which provide sanctuary for individuals from Iraq, Sri Lanka from threatened deportation. In Arizona and Texas there are found places where the Sanctuary movement provides protection for immigrants who make their way across the border from Mexico. Sanctuary is a place of refuge, safety, security, and protection.
For 183 years Methodist people have worshipped here in our church family. The ministers have come and gone and the lay persons have come and gone, but God has continued Sunday after Sunday to provide Sanctuary for you, and I know many of you are thankful because you financially support the church and invite others to come here to share in what is good for you.
But the church here and across the denominational line is a human institution and in too many instances over the years church members and ministers have not always walked the talk. We have not always been obedient to the commandments and the teaching of our Lord. And it has been a shame. News reports have revealed that children and women in great numbers have been abused. And there is no excuse for this kind of shameful activity.
I know you are grateful, as I am, for our church and for our staff and our members. But we are ever only one step away from violating the integrity of each other. Truth and Integrity demands a constant vigil in any institution as it does in every individual, but especially in the church, because here we represent a trustworthy God who offers sanctuary. Anything less than the best is a violation of God’s desires.
The only place that is ultimately a safe place for each of us is in a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ. As someone once said in their prayers: “Well God, it’s you and me, and sometimes I wonder about you and me.”
Let us in faith, remember what David said in Psalms 27: “The Lord is the Stronghold of my life, of whom should I be afraid. The Lord is my light and my Salvation, whom shall I fear? He will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble, He will cover me under the cover of his tent, He will set me high upon a rock. Thus, one thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”
There is a great need for security and refuge. I think that is certainly one of the reasons why Jesus said to his disciples when he was about to die: “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. I go to prepare a place for you, so that where I am, you may be also.” This comes from John 14. When he had said this, the disciple Thomas said, “How can we know the way,?” And Jesus said: “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
Summary: Don’t you like the name, sanctuary? It has a nice ring to it. That’s why we call this building “The Sanctuary”. It is not an auditorium, a theater, or a performance hall, no, it is a sanctuary, a holy place. A place of refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble.
“The Lord is the Stronghold of my life, of whom should I be afraid. The Lord is my light and my Salvation, whom shall I fear? He will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble, He will cover me under the cover of his tent, He will set me high upon a rock.