Saturday, December 21, 2013
GRACE APPEARED
I think it is
possible that Christmas raises more questions that it answers. Questions like:
What are we going to do about
Christmas? Now that God has come, how will we live from this day for the rest
of our lives? When the excitement, and maybe even the anxiety of Christmas is
over, what are we left holding in our hands and in our heart?
I believe Christmas is all about love,
and the grace that love creates. God brought us the gift of grace, undeserving
forgiveness, and the opportunity for each of us to live a holy life. So we
celebrate God appearing with grace, and that great gift requires a response
from each of us, answers to questions. God
could have sat on his throne in his glory while we struggled, but he gave up
his glory and came to visit us. God could have been only almighty and powerful,
but he decided to be also all-loving and available, stooping to address our
needs and our humanity. God could have judged and condemned us for our sin
without mercy, but he forgave us and made possible a holy life. God could have
turned away from us, for we as sinners deserved it, but instead he turned
toward us because we could not come to him. God’s grace made all this possible.
Paul makes it very clear in Titus 2:11-14 that because God has appeared
among us in the person of Jesus, that he brings with him grace, forgiveness,
and mercy. The announcement that Jesus has come never
grows old because it is the “good news” that has changed the course of history,
tilted the world on its spiritual axis, and transformed the hearts of those who
believe. And because of the power of the story of Jesus’ birth, we are required
to respond. Even though we do not really understand what happen that night, we
must answer the question, “What difference does Christmas really make in my
life?”
We must realize that God did not send his
grace into a “Christmas card” perfect world. Jesus
came into an ugly world, filled with chaos, sin, and needy people. He came with
his grace to fix the problem of sin. And so, we continue to celebrate Christmas
because the chaos and darkness still exists in the lives of so many of us. But
God has filled this world with his grace, therefore, we need to hear the
Christmas story once again, the story of hope, the story of transformation.
I think the coming of Jesus presents a
great challenge to anyone determined to live a Christian life. The great
challenge is to never separate the gift of grace, forgiveness, and salvation
from the call of discipleship. God not only rescues us from a sinful life, but
then calls us to live differently, and to actively pursue a holy life.
Salvation does not end with receiving forgiveness, that is only the beginning.
So we are back to the same questions.
What does Christmas really mean to me? Should it mean something different than
it does? Am I any different because Jesus came?
Howard Thurman wrote
a poem entitled “The Work of Christmas.”
"When the song of the angels is stilled, When the star
in the sky is gone,
When the kings and princes are home, When the shepherds are
back with their flock,
the work of Christmas begins: To find the lost, To heal the
broken, To feed the hungry,
To release the prisoner, To rebuild the nations, To bring
peace among brothers and sisters,
To make music in the heart."
Christmas is for the needy; those who have
realized the need for grace, forgiveness, and change in the way life is lived.
Christmas is for those who need someone besides themselves; that someone is
Jesus and he brings salvation and holy living. Grace has indeed appeared!
Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC ,
December 22, 2013
LET THERE BE JOY
If you have been
lighting the candles of the Advent wreath, you will soon come to the pink
candle, sometimes called the candle of joy. Just
as the pink candle stands out from the solemnness and demands of purple, joy
bursts out from the dark colors of hopelessness and lostness. So we light the
pink candle. The candle of joy!
In the letter
that Paul wrote to the church in Philippi , we find words
that just seem to pick us up and put a different spirit in our hearts. Yet at
the same time we may find ourselves doubting whether we can really carry out
this mandate. In the fourth chapter of Philippians, the verses 4-7, we find the
challenging call to, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again, I will say, rejoice!” Did
Paul really mean that we should be joyful all the time? I believe he did. You
see, Paul wrote from the darkness of a Roman prison cell.
Jesus also thought it was extremely
important for us to have joy in our lives. In the last conversation Jesus had
with his disciples, he stressed the necessity of having joy. Jesus, even as he
faced the torture of the cross, had the joy of obedience, knowing that he was
following his Father’s will. Jesus said, “One of the last gifts that I would
like to give to you is this same kind of joy that I have. The kind that exists
even in the darkest of situations. I want all my disciples to have this kind of
joy that only I can give.”
One
of the keys of joy is knowing without a doubt that we are loved; by God and
also by others. God tells us of his love over and over in so many ways. We find
that Advent proves that love.
Another
key of joy is the realization that God holds us physically and spiritually in
his control. The psalmist tells us, “…his hand will lead us, and his right hand
will hold us fast.” It should give us joy knowing that our hand is in the hand
of God.
A third key to joy is the absence of
fear. The 121st psalm tells us that God will keep us from all evil,
keep us in his care no matter the circumstances. We serve a God who does not
sleep, so why should we fear?
Someone has suggested these rules for joyful
living;
Give something away- no strings attached
Do an act of
kindness- and forget it
Spend a few minutes
with an elderly person- their
experience is priceless
Look intently into
the face of a baby- and marvel
Laugh often- it is the oil that lubricates the wheels of
life
Give thanks- a thousand times a day is not enough
Pray- or you will lose the way
Find God’s will for
you- and work at it
Plan as though you
will live forever- because you will
Live as though you
will die tomorrow
If you have that
unspeakable joy of salvation in your heart and life this morning, hold on to it
with all your determination. Hold on by faithful prayer, searching his Word, and
complete surrender to God. Resist fear, discouragement, and worry, because you
are not alone. You are loved, cared for, and protected by a God who never gets
tired. Even if you have lost the joy of salvation, it can be found again by
pausing and listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit as he calls your name.
Let us claim our salvation
and our joy, and then let us go out proclaiming joy to the world.
Rev Tim McConnell.
Long’s Chapel UMC , December 15, 2013
THE INTRODUCTION
A good introduction, whether it is for a
movie, book, or a speaker, has the difficult job of getting the attention of an
audience and creating excitement and anticipation. The introduction of a
speaker should be done so that attention is focused toward the speaker to come,
and not on the one making the introduction.
As we continue our Advent journey, we
find in Luke 3, John the Baptist’s introduction of Jesus. One preacher
introducing another. Advent, the beginning of the Christian year, always begins
with John, who gets us ready to meet Jesus. You see, we cannot get to
Christmas, we cannot get to Jesus, without first hearing John’s introduction of
Jesus. It may be that we do not really want to hear John’s introduction. We had
rather hear Jesus. Yet we must realize that the introduction comes along with
the headline speaker. So John says, “I’m not the main event. I am just
preparing the way. I am just introducing the Son of God.”
“First of all, you need to repent,” John
tells his audience. “You’re going in the wrong direction and you need to turn
around. Repent, ask for forgiveness of your sins, and be baptized. You are not
who you think you are in the eyes of God.” Now this is bad news to many people.
This is not the good news that, “You’re OK and I’m OK. We are just human and we
just cannot help wallowing around in our self-pity and sins. So we will just do
the best we can. God will understand.” It was not that kind of news.
And if we keep reading it seems that some
of the people may have been looking for the exits. Because John continues,
“Some of you think because your Daddy was Abraham and he gave the land for the
church, you put your offering in the plate each Sunday, and you show up
regularly; that you don’t need improvement. You better turn around, get washed
and cleaned, get into a right relationship with God and other people. You’re
not as good as you think.”
What in the world was John thinking? Why
would anybody have listened to him, much less stayed for the sermon? I think I
know! There is something inside each of us that knows, this is the kind of
message we need to hear at the appropriate time. When we are really honest with
our selves, we know that we are not right, our world is out of balance. A preacher
with a message like John the Baptist’s tells the truth. So he intruded, stood
up, and told that contented, self-satisfied religious congregation that they,
especially they, needed to change. That their religious pedigree was no
guarantee to escape the judging eye of God. In addition to all that, John told
them they could change.
John said “I offer you the chance to
repent, ask God for forgiveness, and be baptized in the river. That is a start!
But Jesus is the one who can finish the job with a cleansing and baptism with
the Holy Spirit. That is what will transform you into who God wants you to be.
I’m just the introduction, but Jesus is the three-year long sermon!”
In verses 4-6 in our reading today, John
quotes the prophet Isaiah. Through Jesus, God prepares the way for us and
others to get back to him by “making paths straight, filling up the valleys,
cutting down the mountains and hills; straightening the crooked ways, and
smoothing out the rough ways.” Mountains
of pride and selfishness need to be leveled. Valleys of the denial of one’s
need to be forgiven are to be filled. Crooked, immoral, and ungodly paths and
ways need to be straightened. Rough places where we are guilty of judging and
criticizing others must be made smooth.
John knew that only Jesus could do all
that in a person’s life, so he pointed the way to the Savior of the world.
I believe the challenge is for each of us
to follow the example of John the Baptist-pointing others to Christ. But first,
let’s come into Christ’s presence asking him to fill us up, straighten us out,
cut us down, and smooth us out. Prepare us to introduce Jesus to those who are
waiting to hear.
Rev
Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC , December 8, 2013
GOD INTERRUPTS
As I read these verses from the prophet
Jeremiah in 33:14-16, I keep hearing the word promise. The prophets
Jeremiah, Isaiah, Micah, writers of the Psalms, and even Moses tell of a
promise; the promise of a deliverer. I am convinced that Advent is really all
about God’s fulfillment of a promise; a promise not only made to the Jewish
people, but you and me, and to all of his people wherever they are found.
And then, maybe
we can look at Advent in another way, as an interruption of the routines of
people’s lives. Have you ever wished for something to happen in your life, not
something bad, but just something to break the routine and the humdrum of daily
living? In Advent, the church celebrates a God who keeps promises, who cares
about his people, who wants to be with them, and puts into action his love. We
also celebrate a God who hears the cries of his people as he told Moses at the
burning bush. Moses’ routine life as a shepherd was interrupted by a God who
needed a messenger. So we celebrate a God who hears, intervenes, and
interrupts. That is our great hope. A God who searches us out, who loves us so
much that he cannot leave us alone; so he interrupts our lives, not only at
Bethlehem, but in many other times and places. Jesus Christ, whose advent we
celebrate in this season, is the great, loving, divine Interruption.
God, in his
incessant desire to be near us and to bring us to himself, from time to time
breaks into the life of the individual and into the life of the church. There
are times when the Holy Spirit is sent to disrupt our comfortable routines, to
give us new directions, convict us, and refresh our faith walk. This is called
revival. Revival starts within the hearts of people who see the need of
intervention and renewal. Revival starts with prayer. God can then come and
interrupt what we have been doing and how we have been thinking and replace it
with a new “Order of Worship.”
This is what
happened at the first Advent. Paul wrote in the letter to the Galatians in
chapter 4 that after 400 years between the Old and New Testaments, God
interrupted human hopelessness and
discouragement, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent his son, born of
a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who are under the law, so
we might receive adoption as children.” When the fullness of time had come, God
intervened, and interrupted so that his people would have hope and
salvation.
So our lives,
which are closely regulated by the clock and the calendar, must realize that
here we are once again at the season of Advent. If you follow the church
calendar, you know that Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year. It is
the beginning because God in the fullness of time sent his Son, Jesus. God
stepped in and interrupted the flow of human history. God began, once again,
something new.
The Advent
season is proof that God is a God who loves us enough to interrupt our lives
and show us a better way-the only way. God interrupts in John 3:16, “For God so
loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.” Here we are plodding down
our comfortable way of life, creatures of habit, and getting by on our own just
fine, we think. And then, in a place we do not expect, in a way we do not
expect, in God’s own time, God comes. God is born among us, as one of us, in a
form we do not expect. It happened in Bethlehem
When God’s grace intervenes in our
life, we must be prepared to receive it. “Surely the days are here when the
Lord will fulfill his promise.” Let this be the Advent in which God’s
interruption changes our life.
Rev. Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC ,
December 1, 2013
Tuesday, November 26, 2013
GOD INTERRUPTS
As I read these verses from the prophet
Jeremiah in 33:14-16, I keep hearing the word promise. The prophets
Jeremiah, Isaiah, Micah, writers of the Psalms, and even Moses tell of a
promise; the promise of a deliverer. I am convinced that Advent is really all
about God’s fulfillment of a promise; a promise not only made to the Jewish
people, but you and me, and to all of his people wherever they are found.
And then, maybe
we can look at Advent in another way, as an interruption of the routines of
people’s lives. Have you ever wished for something to happen in your life, not
something bad, but just something to break the routine and the humdrum of daily
living? In Advent, the church celebrates a God who keeps promises, who cares
about his people, who wants to be with them, and puts into action his love. We
also celebrate a God who hears the cries of his people as he told Moses at the
burning bush. Moses’ routine life as a shepherd was interrupted by a God who
needed a messenger. So we celebrate a God who hears, intervenes, and
interrupts. That is our great hope. A God who searches us out, who loves us so
much that he cannot leave us alone; so he interrupts our lives, not only at
Bethlehem, but in many other times and places. Jesus Christ, whose advent we
celebrate in this season, is the great, loving, divine Interruption.
God, in his
incessant desire to be near us and to bring us to himself, from time to time
breaks into the life of the individual and into the life of the church. There
are times when the Holy Spirit is sent to disrupt our comfortable routines, to
give us new directions, convict us, and refresh our faith walk. This is called
revival. Revival starts within the hearts of people who see the need of
intervention and renewal. Revival starts with prayer. God can then come and
interrupt what we have been doing and how we have been thinking and replace it
with a new “Order of Worship.”
This is what
happened at the first Advent. Paul wrote in the letter to the Galatians in
chapter 4 that after 400 years between the Old and New Testaments, God
interrupted human hopelessness and
discouragement, “When the fullness of time had come, God sent his son, born of
a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who are under the law, so
we might receive adoption as children.” When the fullness of time had come, God
intervened, and interrupted so that his people would have hope and
salvation.
So our lives,
which are closely regulated by the clock and the calendar, must realize that
here we are once again at the season of Advent. If you follow the church
calendar, you know that Advent is the beginning of the liturgical year. It is
the beginning because God in the fullness of time sent his Son, Jesus. God
stepped in and interrupted the flow of human history. God began, once again,
something new.
The Advent
season is proof that God is a God who loves us enough to interrupt our lives
and show us a better way-the only way. God interrupts in John 3:16, “For God so
loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.” Here we are plodding down
our comfortable way of life, creatures of habit, and getting by on our own just
fine, we think. And then, in a place we do not expect, in a way we do not
expect, in God’s own time, God comes. God is born among us, as one of us, in a
form we do not expect. It happened in Bethlehem
When God’s grace intervenes in our
life, we must be prepared to receive it. “Surely the days are here when the
Lord will fulfill his promise.” Let this be the Advent in which God’s
interruption changes our life.
Rev. Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC ,
December 1, 2013
THE HOUSE CLEANING
In “The Principles of a Methodist Further
Explained,” John Wesley said, “Our main doctrines, which include all the rest,
are three—that of repentance, of faith, and of holiness. The first of these we
account as it were, the porch of religion; the next, the door; the third,
religion itself.” (The Works of John Wesley, Volume VIII, Zondervan Publishing
House, 1959; page 472)
Since Wesley and Methodism is all about
the grace found throughout scripture and strongly expressed by Jesus, the imagery
of the “house of salvation” makes sense through the eyes of grace. Prevenient
grace, grace that makes it possible for us to see our need for God, brings us
to conviction and the porch of the house. Justifying grace, grace that allows
us to ask for forgiveness and to say yes to God, opens the door, invites us in,
and makes us a member of God’s family. Sanctifying grace, grace that reminds us
that God wants every room of our house to be cleaned out and under his control,
makes it possible for us to live a life that is holy and acceptable to God.
Soon after we become believers, we begin
to see things in our words, thoughts, and actions that are not Christ-like. We
need a spiritual “house cleaning” if we are to imitate Christ.
Joanna Weaver, in her book, “Having a
Mary Spirit,” provides a list of undesirable “clutter” and sins, which we must
ask God to cleanse from the “rooms” of our heart.
Jealousy (You are all you get to be—enjoy it!)
Regrets (You cannot undo mistakes, so learn from
them.)
Shame (If you have asked God to forgive you, accept
that forgiveness)
Blame (Stop pointing the finger at
everyone else)
Gossip (If it cannot be said in front of the
person, do not say it)
Fear (Stop and pray before fear takes hold)
Envy (Learn to want what you have)
Lies (Disregard the habit of half-truths,
exaggerations, full-fledged
deception)
Complaining (Do not nurse
it or rehearse it…disperse it)
Ingratitude (Look for things to be thankful for---tell
someone about it!)
Careless words (Ask, “Does this really need to be said?”)
Laziness (Do one thing today that you really do not
want to do.)
Greed (Give something you love away.)
Self-Pity (Cry for five minutes if you must, then blow
you nose and
Move on.)
Lust
(Eliminate the I-must-have-it-now desire for people and things.)
Paul writes in 2Corinthians, “Let us cleanse
ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work
toward complete purity because we fear God.”
Rev. Tim McConnell Long’s
Chapel UMC , November 24, 2013
ENOUGH FAITH TO BE FAITHFUL
In the first ten verses of Luke 17, Jesus
continues to tell his disciples and us what he expects from his followers. He
sets the scene by bringing up two connected teachings.
Jesus
said, “In an imperfect world with imperfect people things, which cause people
to sin, are bound to happen. But make sure that you are not the one who causes
another person to sin. Woe unto a person who willingly becomes a stumbling
block to another.” Paul echoes Jesus’ words when he says that there are things
he could do or say, but chooses not because it might cause someone to sin. Are
we sensitive to the weaknesses of others? Jesus warns against any behavior of
ours that might “trip up” or cause someone to compromise his or her beliefs, or
maybe even turn and follow Jesus no more.
Then Jesus says, “If someone within the
body of Christ, within my church, sins against a brother or sister, there
should be a spirit of forgiveness.” Our sins are ultimately directed toward
God, but most often carried out toward one another. Luke has Jesus saying we
should forgive seven times in a day, Matthew says seventy times seven. The idea
is not the quantity but the unconditional quality of the forgiveness—the
genuineness and the sincerity.
So Jesus brings up two important
spiritual practices. Do not be the cause of someone sinning. Even if you feel
you are entitled to do a certain thing, or to give your opinion, Jesus says to
be careful, you may cause someone to become weak. You will be accountable for
their compromise. Then Jesus says we are to be willing to forgive
unconditionally and without limit. If we expect God to forgive us, we must
forgive each other.
The disciples hear Jesus and immediately
connect these two responsibilities of discipleship with the need for faith.
They do a quick faith check and make an obvious request to Jesus. “Increase our
faith.”
The disciples realized very quickly that
they did not have enough faith to fulfill these two teachings of Jesus. It is
interesting that the disciples did not ask for love or understanding, they
asked for faith. They realized that they would need faith in God to help them
be sensitive to the needs of others; to lay aside the things they liked to do
if it has the potential to harm others. They also realized that they would need
much faith in God to forgive, as Jesus wanted them to forgive. They would need
faith to make the connection between God’s forgiveness of them and their
forgiveness of others. They did not think they had enough faith to do any of
this, so they asked Jesus to give them more.
Jesus is quick to respond. He tells them
that all they need is faith the size of a mustard seed. It is not the amount of
faith that is important; it is the strength in that tiny seed. It is all about
the awesome things we can do if we use the faith we already have, and as we use
it, its strength increases and we find ourselves trusting God with the things
concerning our faith walk that we never thought possible before. That gift of
faith can even move us into a more intimate relationship with Jesus, a
relationship of complete surrender to his will.
If we are going to be people who are
sensitive to the spiritual needs of others, people who practice forgiveness,
and people who are true servants of God, then we need to be people of faith. It
is not great faith that we need, but mustard seed faith in a great
God. Even the tiniest peephole in the window of faith will give us access to
power in our daily walk like we never thought possible. And that power can used
to uplift our brothers and sisters, encouraging them, showing them a holy
example, and forgiveness, even seven times a day.
This may sound like radical talk, and it
is, but it is also Jesus talk. Maybe we
have been as guilty as the disciples were by asking for our faith to be
increased when we have not been using what we have. So Jesus looks at us in our
weakness, our hesitancy, and fear of the unknown and says simply, “You have all
you need. You have been given enough faith to do what I expect you to do. You
have enough faith to be faithful.”
Rev
Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC , November 17, 2013
GOD WINS
Followers of Jesus have been let in on a
secret, yet it is an open secret, open to all who will acknowledge it. This
special open secret is, in the end, when all is said and done, when the last
tick-tock of time has sounded, God wins. That “end of time” knowledge
should tell us that we are to live in the present as different people, as
people who are expecting Jesus to return to earth, as people who know the
expectations and requirements of eternal life, as people who are hopeful and
confident in the Jesus story because we know the end of the story. At the
completion of history, we will experience the fulfillment of God’s promises of
a new heaven and new earth, and we can be a part of it.
In Isaiah 65:
17-25, we find the prophet predicting a day when there will be “new heavens and
a new earth.” He tells us there will be peace and rejoicing for the world. All
that is wrong with the world will be set right by the intervention and
intrusion of a judgmental, yet loving God.
In Luke 21, we
hear Jesus warning his disciples and us not to try to predict when he will
return and set up his kingdom. We do not know the details of the “end times” or
what the future holds, but we can live with the confidence in the present age
because we know that God holds the future. Throughout all of Jesus’ teachings
about the “end times”, he focuses on living holy and acceptable lives here in
the present so that we will be ready for what ever the future may hold. The
present age, with all of its tribulations, is a time to bear witness to the
loving purposes of God, because now is a time filled with grace and opportunity
for repentance and outreach to others.
When Jesus talked to the people about his
kingdom, he was referring to a spiritual kingdom made up of the body of
believers, those who believed in him and followed his teachings daily. We sing
a hymn from time to time about this kingdom. The chorus tells us, “For the
darkness shall turn to dawning, and the dawning to noon day bright, and Christ great kingdom shall
come to earth, a kingdom of love and light.” Jesus’ kingdom can be found in the
heart of every believer. When we pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done on
earth as it is in heaven,” we are inviting Jesus to set up his kingdom now in
our hearts and lives.
Just as those
ancient people in Isaiah and Jesus’ time looked around at their world and saw
that it was not the world that God intended for it to be, we too look around at
the lives of our neighbors and our own lives and say there must be a better
way. Can this world go on the way it is going? Can it ever be restored? Can the
world that God made so good, ever recover what it has so carelessly squandered?
Is there any hope for humanity?
Maybe this is all
about hope, because it is on the basis of hope that we are called to be
faithful to God in the world. We are called to live now on the witness of a
certain future. Because we have hope, and faith, that God will not leave the
world the way it is, frees us to be his people, frees us to light candles in
the present darkness of sin, knowing that finally the darkness will be
vanquished! God wins now, and he wins throughout eternity!
Jesus’ kingdom
is not some future mystical creation that he will someday create. Jesus’
kingdom is now. Jesus did not come here just to get us ready for the next
world, he came into this world to transform us into people through whom he
could do his work in this world. He is creating now. He is creating disciples,
transforming lives, and shining the light of salvation into a dark and confused
world. God invites each of us to become
a part of his future kingdom today.
Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel
SURPRISING EXAMPLES
I think that
occasionally, maybe more times than we realize, Jesus will push us to look
beyond our familiar boundaries. Sometimes he will cause us to look beyond our
circle of friends, our small groups, and the congregations who gather each
Sunday in our churches. Jesus then focuses our attention on the persons who
live on the margins of our somewhat exclusive world, those on the outside of
our normal mindset, and in a surprising move, uses one of “them” as an example
for us.
That is just the way Jesus operates, one way
in which he reveals his purpose for us. And at the same time, it is Jesus’ way
to remind us that he is Lord over all things and that his kingdom extends
beyond the boundaries we have created, even beyond the boundaries of the
church.
The Gospels of
Luke and John give us three of these surprising examples, which come from
persons outside of the comfort of the “church.” All three of these examples
given by Jesus involved Samaritans, who were definitely on the margins of
Jewish culture and religious life.
Luke gives us
the familiar story of the Good Samaritan, which Jesus told in response to the
question, “Who is my neighbor?” A traveler had been robbed, beaten, and left to
die out on a deserted road. Soon, a priest and a church member walked by, but
chose to ignore the desperate man’s needs. But Jesus tells us that a Samaritan,
an outsider, came by and “had compassion” by providing complete care.
John, in chapter
four of his Gospel, tells a story of Jesus going out of his way to pass through
the “out of bounds” territory of the Samaritans. There he meets a woman at a
well, who accepts Jesus’ offer of living water and eternal life. A revival
breaks out in an unlikely place because Jesus used an outsider to tell the
“good news.”
The next story
again comes from Luke. Jesus chose once more to go through Samaria
The Good
Samaritan becomes the practical example of how we are to “love others as our
selves.” Jesus used the sinful woman at the well to show us how we can be
transformed into powerful witnesses for him. And the one grateful leper who
came back to thank Jesus is our example of how our thankfulness should overflow
into worship.
I wonder what
the disciples thought when Jesus used one example after another of people from
the “margins” to teach God’s way. Were they as surprised as we are today when
Jesus does the same to us? How often are we surprised when God shows up by
focusing our attention toward someone outside our “boundaries,” using that
person as an example for our good?
Sometimes
“outsiders” remind us of the purpose of the church. They should remind us of
God’s mission to all people wherever they may be found. And just maybe, we can
remember that at one time we too were “outsiders,” yet someone came to us.
As the early
disciples were sent forth to witness, Jesus used Samaritans to witness to his
own disciples. As we go forth into our world, let us be expectant and eager for
Jesus to teach us in the same way. Let us
not be surprised when Jesus uses “outsiders” from unexpected places to teach us
powerful lessons.
Rev. Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC ,
November 3, 2013
WHO IS THIS PERSON?
Luke is a wonderful storyteller, and how
I love to hear the stories of Jesus, over and over again. We learn who Jesus is
and who God is by hearing and reading these stories. The Jesus story for today
is found in a series of miracle stories. These stories reflect who Jesus is and
how he can work in our lives.
In one of these stories, Luke tells how
Jesus was asleep in the boat when a storm came up. The terrified disciples woke
Jesus up, who immediately calmed the storm. The disciples asked an eternal
question, “Who is this man that the wind and waves obey?”
In the very next story, the boat lands on
the opposite shore, and Jesus begins to answer that question of who he is. Who
Jesus is begins to unfold; he is the one who heals both body and spirit, who
gives new physical and spiritual life, the one who takes an out-of-control
sinner and changes him/her into a disciple who is on a mission to tell others
the story.
In Luke 8:26-39, we find this strange
story with many odd twists and turns. Jesus casts many demons out of a man. The
demons go into a herd of hogs, and the hogs drown themselves in the sea. The
townspeople hear about all this, come and find the formerly wild man sitting
calmly at Jesus’ feet—a student learning from Jesus. They are afraid and ask
Jesus to leave.
But then the story takes another
interesting turn. As Jesus was getting into the boat to go back across the
lake, the healed man wanted to go with Jesus. However, instead of saying
“Follow Me,” as he usually does, Jesus said to the man, “Go home, and tell what
God has done for you. Go home to those who so long ago turned you out. Go home
to those from whom your sickness has separated you. Go home and tell your
story. Go home and witness what God has done for you in your healing.” In other
words, stay here and follow me at the same time. And the man does just that. He
does not just witness to his family and relatives, but “proclaims throughout
the whole city” what Jesus has done for him.
Bishop Wilimon tells of his recent visit to the area across the Sea of Galilee where this story took place. This region is
now in the country of Jordan
What happens to the man in this story is not just about a remarkable
healing, it is about salvation. It is about attitude and behavior changes. It
is about God’s love being placed into a person’s way of thinking and acting.
And that person becomes so different from who he/she was before, that it
attracts attention. So different that some people are afraid of the change in
his/her life, some cannot understand it, some are skeptical, and some want to
know more about it.
So who is this man Jesus? He touches,
forgives, heals, and sends us out on a mission, his mission. However, we cannot
serve and tell a story that we do not have. We must experience his healing
hand. Jesus has shown up, he is here. Jesus can send us out with a story. Let
us claim this story as our own.
Rev Tim McConnell
Long’s Chapel UMC , October 27, 2013
LIVE LIFE
TO THE FULLEST
In the last few
verses of John 9 and in the first half of chapter 10, we find a rare sermon
preached by Jesus. It is rare because it was directed primarily toward the
Pharisees. They had asked Jesus a question, which had opened the door for this
unusual sermon. We should never ask Jesus a question unless we are prepared for
a very honest and sometimes exposing answer.
As we read the
words of Jesus, we begin to see where the Pharisees fit into the picture, the
role of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, and the church as his sheep. We can visualize this peaceful scene that
Jesus gives us in these verses. There are green pastures, the safety of the shelter
for the sheep, and the Good Shepherd who goes before the sheep. There is an
intimacy between the shepherd and the sheep. They know each other by name. The
relationship is personal. Then Jesus reminds us that things are not always as
they seem. There are thieves and outlaws, false shepherds, and those who are
trying to destroy the flock.
When Jesus looked at the Palestinian
countryside, he saw the peaceful sheep, the green pastures, and some of the
people loving one another as he had intended from creation. However, Jesus also
saw the hunger, oppression, sin, and violence in a world that had rebelled
against the very person who had made all things possible. Yet, almost
surprisingly, in the middle of all this Jesus spoke of the abundant life, a
life lived to the fullest.
I
find it interesting that a sermon about thieves, outlaws, and wolves trying to
scatter the sheep in the church, and directed to the hypocritical Pharisees,
would have a promise of something so precious as life. We find this promise in
verse 10, “I came so that they could have life—indeed, so that they could live
life to the fullest.” This is the picture of the church and the life Jesus
promises each of us if we are in his flock—a promise even for those outside.
Jesus brings life, not just eternal life, but life lived to the fullest now.
Jesus is our example of how we can live
the full life today in the middle of pain, disappointment, sin, and evil. Jesus
moved through this life reaching out through the suffering and lostness of
humanity, rebuking the evil, ministering to the pain, and giving people hope
and a taste of the abundant life—the same life each of us can live today. So
you see, it is all about Jesus. It all begins with Jesus. This is what Jesus
said he died for, “I came so they (you and I) could have life—and have it to
the fullest.”
Jesus lived and died to give us this gift
of abundant life, so how do we go about receiving it? We see the need to change
direction in our lives, the need forgiveness for past sins, and the need to
start down the path of discipleship with Jesus. But that is only the beginning.
The next part is the “following” part, the “imitating Jesus” part. We begin to
realize that there is left in our life a root of sin, from time to time we act
unchristian, and we know that there must be more that God has to offer us than
what we have. So we ask God to take a certain habit away, to prune away a
particular behavior, and as God takes away those undesirable traits in our
life, we ask him to fill those spaces with his love, his “likeness,” and his
presence. It is then that we find ourselves becoming more and more Christ-like
as we give up more and more of our self.
I believe this is life lived to the
fullest, the life God intended for each of us, and the life for which Jesus
died. This is the life that we can claim today.
Rev Tim McConnell
Long’s Chapel UMC , October 20, 2013
BLAMING THE HOLY SPIRIT
In
the tenth chapter of Acts, Luke tells a story that shook the very foundations
of the early church. The Holy Spirit had come and had begun to work in the
lives of the disciples and the newly formed church. Up to this point, the
church was centered primarily in Jerusalem
But God had different plans for these
leaders of the early church, and he began with Peter. God used his Holy Spirit
to change the thinking and the hearts of these men and women so that the story
of who Jesus is and what he came to do for all people could be told
beyond Jerusalem
The story that changed the direction and
thinking of the leaders of the early church is found in Acts 10. In the first
scene of our story, we meet Cornelius, a
Roman army officer. Cornelius, a believer in God, has a vision in which, the
Holy Spirit tells him to go find a man named Peter who will help Cornelius move
beyond the first step of believing
in God, to a personal
relationship with a Jewish man named Jesus.
Meanwhile, Peter also has a
vision in which he is shown all kinds of animals, many of them unclean, and
told to “kill them and eat.” Kosher Peter refuses saying,“What?!
I don’t do that “unclean thing,” Lord! We Jews can’t do that!” And God said to
Peter, “What I have made clean and pure, you should not call unclean.” Peter is
bewildered by this vision, especially when it happens three times. Divine
emphasis!
When the two men finally get
together at Cornelius’ house, they compare their visions and decide it is time
for a prayer meeting. But first, Peter is asked to preach to this diverse congregation.
He begins, “I’m really beginning to learn that God does not show partiality to
one group of people over another. He does not play favorites. As long as each
person worships the true God through the revealed person of Jesus Christ,
he/she is acceptable to God. No matter social or economic level, skin color,
nationality, or language, God accepts all who go through the cross of Jesus. I
know Jesus is real because we heard his teachings, saw his crucifixion, ate and
drank with him after his resurrection. So we are determined to carry out his
command to share his story with all people.”
This is a story about the
working of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church by changing people. The
Holy Spirit brought Peter and Cornelus together into the same church, two very
unlikely people. Peter’s eyes were open to the endless possibilities of those
outside the walls of First Church Jerusalem. And Cornelius’ hunger to know
Jesus as his personal Savior was satisfied. We have the Holy Spirit to blame
for the outcome.
Just as God spoke to Peter
to get up and go, he speaks to us. Yet, sometimes we cannot see the infinite
possibilities because we are looking at ourselves. There are new things to be
done, visions to be carried out, and hungry people to be brought into God’s
kingdom. God wants us to stir up the good that is left in the world and tell
the Jesus story to all the people we can, in all the ways we can. Peter found
out that the gospel story about Jesus was to be shared. It is a universal story
to be told in all languages. All are invited to become full members of the
family of faith. And we have no one but the Holy Spirit to blame.
Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC , October 13, 2013
TOUCHED BY THE SPIR IT
We
can see from the words that Paul writes in Galatians 5:16-18, that he wanted
his readers to see the conflict between God’s Spirit and sin. “I say be guided
by the Spirit and you won’t carry out your selfish desires. A person’s selfish
desires are set against the Spirit, and the Spirit is set against one’s selfish
desires. They are opposed to one another, so you shouldn’t do whatever you want
to do.” That war takes place within the souls of all human beings and the
evidences of that conflict can be seen in how we behave and respond toward God
and other people.
When God’s spirit comes into our lives,
we know it and so do those around us. There is proof of a change, change in how
we look, act, think, and treat other people. We begin to see evidences of a
change in our behavior toward God and spiritual things. We do not just become
more “churchy,” but begin to have a strong desire for “God things.”
If we claim to have been forgiven of our
sins, claim to have returned home from our wanderings away from God, and have
received the Holy Spirit, then there should be evidences. I want to share with
you some of these evidences of the presence of the Spirit in the life of a
believer. Each one relates very closely to our personal walk with God.
The first evidence is that a
Spirit-filled believer will have an appetite for spiritual things. Paul writes
in Romans 8:11 that the Holy Spirit will raise our spirit from the dead. We
will come alive spiritually. Our spiritual appetite will increase, while we
begin to have less and less interest in the things of the world.
Another mark of a Spirit-filled believer
is the desire to pray. We will have a longing to communicate with our God who
loves and cares for us so much. When we love people, we want to be near them,
to talk to them, and to feel their presence in our lives. The spiritual desire
to pray silently, continually, and in the presence of others is strong evidence
that we have allowed the Holy Spirit to fill our souls with God’s love.
The desire to associate with other
Christians is another evidence which can be seen in the daily walk of a
Spirit-filled disciple. This certainly can be done by attending church, but
also by seeking out the fellowship of Christians in our work place, school,
neighborhood, and as we go through the work and play of each day.
A Spirit-filled Christian will also show
a strong longing to share with others what Jesus is doing in his/her life,
while also sharing spiritual knowledge in a way that encourages others. This
evidence is perhaps the one that speaks the loudest concerning the
transformation in our lives by the Holy Spirit. We should seek every
opportunity to witness by simply telling how we came to know Jesus by sharing our
story. The way we tell our story and live it each day can make a difference.
One of John Wesley’s preachers rode into
a town in England
Can we make such a difference in the
lives of others? Can others say that about you and me? They can if we have been
touched by God’s Spirit.
Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s
Chapel UMC October 6,2013
WHO IS THE HOLY SPIRIT?
We speak much about God as our Father,
the one who created us and loved us enough to send his son, Jesus. We also seem
to know much about Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, through the stories
found in his ministry. But the Holy Spirit, the spirit of God and Jesus, we
seem not to know as well. We learn much about God from the reading and studying
of the Old Testament, just as we learn much about Jesus from studying the life
and teachings of Jesus in the New Testament. But somehow, we just seem to skim
over the places which mention the Holy Spirit, and fail to really study God’s
Spirit; therefore, we sometimes misunderstand the third person of the Trinity.
In order to live as a true disciple of Jesus, to function as an effective
member of Christ’s church, and to grow in our relationship with God, we must have
a personal understanding of who the Holy Spirit is in our lives.
The Holy Spirit is God, and also the
voice and spirit of Jesus. And as so, he has all the attributes or
characteristics of God. Just as God is omnipresent, able to be anywhere and
everywhere at the same time, so is the Holy Spirit. No matter where we go, he
is there. The psalmist wrote, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Or where can I
flee from your presence?” (Psalm 139:7) Just as God is omniscient, knowing all
things, so the Holy Spirit has all knowledge. Paul writes, “The Spirit searches
all, yes, the deep things of God.” (1Corinthians 2:10 ) It is the Holy Spirit who
teaches us and takes us deeper and deeper into God’s truth as we go along in
our walk as disciples.
Just as God is omnipotent, all-powerful
and sovereign, so is the Holy Spirit. We read in the book of Micah 3:8, “I am
full of power by the Spirit of the Lord.” It is through the power of the Spirit
that we can be resurrected from a sinful life and begin a new journey. It is
through the power of the Holy Spirit that we can become Christ-like and live a
holy and sanctified life. It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that we look
at other people in a different way, through the eyes of Christ. The Holy
Spirit, not only has the power to change us, but can keep us spiritually clean
and pure in a world that is dirty with sin. The Spirit is holy and wants us to
be holy also.
The Greek word for Holy Spirit is
“paraketos.” The English pronunciation would be “paraclete.” The meaning is
“advocate, exhorter, encourager, and counselor,” all wonderful uplifting
descriptors. When the Bible translators tried to translate the Greek word “paraclete”
into the Karre language of equatorial Africa , they ran into difficulty.
How could they describe the Holy Spirit to these people? One day the
translators came across a group of men going off into the brush carrying
bundles on their heads. They noticed day after day, as different groups passed
by with their loads of goods, there was always one man who did not carry
anything. They assumed he was the boss and was supervising the others. However,
they discovered he was not the boss; he had a very special job. He was there in
case someone fell over with exhaustion; he would come, attend to the one who
had fallen, then pick up the man’s load and carry it for him. The word for this
special man was known in the Karre language as “the one who falls down beside
us.” The translators had found the word for Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit, the spirit of God and
Jesus, will not come into our lives without an invitation. He wants to live
within us, to comfort us, and to teach us. He wants to help us on our journey,
but we must ask him to guide us and direct us. The Holy Spirit wants to be the
“One who falls down beside us,” picks up our load, brushes us off, and walks
along with us.
He
wants to go before us as we witness to others about God’s love and a transformed
life.
So, who is the Holy Spirit in your life
and what does he mean to you?
Rev
Tim McConnell, Long’s Chapel UMC , September 29, 2013
SAYING YES TO GOD
I find it easier to say “Yes” to God when
things are going well and life is smooth. However, when God asks me to move out
of my comfort zone and do something that is different or inconvenient, the
“Yes” may not come as readily as before. God may direct me toward a new vision
for my personal faith walk, or a new ministry in the church or community. Or,
an opportunity to say “Yes” may arise in my daily routine. It may be at that
point the “Yeses” begin to slow down.
Yet, it is precisely during these times
that our answers to God’s call should be a resounding “Yes.” After going
through the discernment process and recognizing God’s voice, we should be
willing to say “Yes,” even to the seemingly impossible vision placed before us.
We
have many Biblical examples of “yes” answers to God’s call to action; Noah to
build the ark, Moses to lead his people, Esther to save her people, David to
provide the Messianic linage, and many more. But there is one person, besides
Jesus, who stands out in my mind as the ultimate “Yes” person. That person is
Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Donna Otto is quoted in Joanna Weaver’s
book, “Having a Mary Spirit,” as she discusses Mary’s affirmation of her role
as Jesus’ mother. “As far as I can tell, once Mary had said yes to the angel,
she kept on saying yes to whatever God was doing in her life and her home. She
said, ‘Yes, I’ll go to Bethlehem
“The life of Mary shows that great
things, important things, always begin with someone saying yes to God, and then
moving along one yes at a time.”
Maybe we tend to think that the call of God on
our lives and saying “Yes” involves just the big events. Maybe we are thinking
of Isaiah and the awesome “Here am I, send me” response. However, I believe
that it is our “Yeses” to the small ordinary things that can also make a big
difference in our relationship to God, our spiritual growth, and the building
of his kingdom.
Weaver suggests that these important
little “Yeses” sometimes go unnoticed.
·
Saying
yes to inconvenience so someone else might be blessed
·
Saying
yes to a backseat role though we are qualified to drive
·
Saying
yes to doing the unseen, the unnoticed, and the underappreciated
·
Saying
yes to overlooking faults and inconsiderate slights
·
Saying
yes to patient listening though there is much to do and more to say
·
Saying
yes to chores others should rightfully do
·
Saying
yes when we’d rather say no.
In Luke 16:10 we find these words,“
Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much.”
Rev Tim McConnell, Long’s
Chapel UMC , September 22, 2013
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