Saturday, May 26, 2018

SERMON: BREAKING FREE OF THE RUT



20 May 2018

I.  Introduction
            -- turn in Bibles to Acts 2:1-4

1 When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues[a] as the Spirit enabled them.

            -- I want to begin this morning by sharing with you a true story about a woman named Annie -- now, Annie was a fan of Do-It-Yourself TV -- she would watch all the DYI shows on the Home and Garden Network and the Learning Channel and all the others -- she’d watch as these normal, everyday people transformed their houses into showplaces all on their own, without having to hire others to do the work -- and Annie caught the buzz
            -- you see, Annie wanted to tile her kitchen floor, but after watching all of those DYI shows on TV, she came to the decision that rather than paying over $700 to an expert, she could do it herself -- so, she went out and bought a "do-it yourself" tile kit from Home Depot -- this kit was perfect -- it laid out the procedures step by step and all you had to do was follow it and your tile would be laid in no time at all
            -- Step One was simple -- just spread the powerful glue on the floor -- done -- Annie was proud of herself -- then, Annie went to Step Two, only to slip and fall face-first into the slippery glue -- and, before she knew what had happened, she was stuck to the floor
            -- when Annie's Yorkshire Terrier saw her lying on the floor, she did what all dogs do when their owners are in trouble: she went over to lick her owner's face -- so now both Annie and her dog were stuck in the glue
            -- But luck was on Annie's side, because her two daughters -- ages 9 and 10 -- were home -- she yelled out for help, and when they came running and realized what had happened, they began laughing hysterically -- But eventually, with their help, Annie got unstuck from the floor and was able to go on to Step 2 and lay the tile -- mission accomplished -- But she still had glue all over herself, and didn’t know what to do -- they never covered this on TV -- so she called a glue emergency hotline, but no one answered.
            -- now, as Larry Munson used to say, “Get the picture” -- While she was waiting for someone on the hotline to pick up, the glue on her body finished hardening, such that:
            (1) her right foot became stuck to the floor
            (2) her legs became stuck together
            (3) her body became stuck to the chair, and
            (4) her hand became stuck to the phone
            -- Finally, she managed to hang up and had to dial 911 with her nose.
            -- When the rescue personnel arrived they found Anne still stuck to the chair and the floor and the phone -- sitting there, wearing only her underwear.
            -- Fortunately, the rescue crews were serious, competent, highly trained professionals, who laughed until they cried -- After they recovered, the rescue crews were able to free Anne with solvents, and everything was fine -- Anne got her new floor and saved herself $700 
            --  So, what is the point of this story? -- well, just like Annie, we sometimes find ourselves stuck -- we find ourselves in a rut, unable to get out -- we find ourselves just doing the same old-same old in the same way, every day -- and, this can happen in our spiritual lives, too -- even though we’re Christians, we can get caught up in a familiar old sin, and find ourselves just unable to get loose -- or, maybe we’re just stuck going through the motions and we feel like our faith is not what it used to be
            -- this morning on Pentecost Sunday, I wanted us to talk for a few moments about breaking free -- about getting out -- about getting unstuck and out of our ruts and into the life God has planned for us
            -- for, you see, that’s really what Pentecost is all about -- that’s what the Holy Spirit can do in your life -- if you let Him

II.  Pentecost
            -- let’s touch on the story of Pentecost from Acts 2 -- everyone in here is familiar with this story -- with this seminal event that is the true birth of the Christian church
            -- as we read in Acts 1:3, after Jesus rose from the dead, He spent a period of forty days with His disciples -- teaching them and showing Himself to them and giving convincing proofs that He was alive -- this was a crash course in Christianity for the men who would become the leaders of His new church
            -- and, at the end of these forty days, when the time was right, Jesus called His disciples together and told them that He was leaving -- but, He said, “do not leave Jerusalem...wait for the gift My Father promised which you have heard Me speak about -- for John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit”
            -- and Jesus led them out to the Mount of Olives where He ascended into heaven, physically and visibly, before their eyes
            -- the disciples left the Mount of Olives and returned to the place where they were staying, and a few days later, on the day of the Jewish festival of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came to the disciples as promised -- He didn’t come upon the disciples as He did in the Old Testament with the prophets and the kings -- temporarily resting upon them for a time and a purpose
            -- no, when the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, He came to indwell the believers -- to fill them with His presence and His power -- to live within them -- and us -- forever more
            -- this is the story of Pentecost -- this is the story and the event that we are celebrating and recognizing today
            -- with this backdrop in place, I want us to go back to our original concern that we opened with -- what do we do when we find ourselves in a rut? -- trapped in the familiar? -- in the same old-same old of life -- both physically and spiritually? -- and what role does the Holy Spirit play in helping us break free from this place of bondage?

III.  Breaking Free from the Same Old-Same Old
            -- I want us to answer that by looking at a story from Mark 10:46-52 -- the healing of blind Bartimaeus -- because I think we can find an example of breaking free from the actions of Bartimaeus in this account
            -- look with me now at Mark 10, starting in verse 46

46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging.

            -- so Mark tells us that Jesus and His disciples had come to Jericho -- we don’t know how long they were in the town, but we have to assume they were there for at least a day -- we don’t get the impression they just came to the city and walked through on their way to somewhere else
            -- they were there long enough for a large crowd to gather -- which kind of implies that Jesus had been teaching and preaching and maybe even doing some miracles and works in that place -- He had done enough that He had caught the attention of the people, and now they are walking with Him as He is leaving their city
            -- Mark tells us that as they were leaving, they passed by blind Bartimaeus, who was sitting there beside the road begging -- Bartimaeus was in a rut -- he was the epitome of being in a rut -- for his life consisted of sitting there in that same place day after day after day, begging from those who passed by
            -- every day, Bartimaeus would get up, roll out of bed, and make his way to the gate of the city where the largest crowds would filter through -- every day, he would find his spot -- the same old patch of familiar ground where he sat every single day -- and he would begin to beg -- calling out to the crowd for money to support him -- and every day, after the crowds dwindled down and as the gates were starting to close, Bartimaeus would get up and maybe go to the market and buy a loaf of bread and a flask of wine from the vendor and go home and eat and go to bed -- knowing that tomorrow was going to be the same -- every single day exactly the same
            -- kind of like that movie, “Groundhog Day,” where Bill Murray’s character experiences the same day over and over again -- that’s the way Bartimaeus was going through life
            -- maybe that’s the way that some of you are going through life -- maybe that’s the way your secular life looks -- just getting up, going to work, coming home, going to bed, and doing it all again the next day
            -- and maybe that’s the way some of your spiritual lives look -- your faith has turned into a routine where you just get up and come to church on Sunday and sit in that same seat you’ve been sitting in for years and years and years and sing the same old hymns over and over again and you hear that same old preacher just droning on and on about a passage you’ve heard preached before and then you get up and you go home and nothing changes and you come back next week and do it all over again
            -- that’s where we are at at the start of this story -- that’s where Bartimaeus is at -- maybe that’s where some of you are at, too

            -- verse 47

47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

            -- so Bartimaeus is sitting in his same old familiar place, doing his same old familiar thing, but today, there’s something different -- but today, there’s Jesus
            -- what a great phrase! -- what a great thought! -- but, today there’s Jesus -- we can have that thought, too -- it changes everything -- look what happened to Bartimaeus
            -- when Bartimaeus heard the noise of the crowd, he knew something different was going on -- he asked those around him what was happening -- why were all the people there -- what was different? -- they told him it was Jesus of Nazareth -- so Bartimaeus began to shout out in a loud voice, “Jesus, have mercy on me”
            -- here we see the first step in breaking out of our ruts -- in getting unstuck from the spiritual glue that bind us -- we have to open our eyes and see the possibilities around us -- we have to open our eyes and see what could be
            -- this week I listened to a commencement speech from David Foster Wallace, an author I am currently reading -- and this speech just really resonated with me -- in this graduation address, Wallace encouraged those young men and women to get past the mundane -- to get past the self -- to not allow themselves to get stuck into a prison of their own making, but to open their eyes and look around them and see the possibilities -- to choose to live differently from the world
            -- that’s what’s going on with Bartimaeus here -- he may have been physically blind -- he may have been trapped in his same old-same old rut, but when he heard Jesus was walking by, he realized what that meant -- he had heard the stories of the healings -- of the miracles -- of the great prophet and teacher who taught with authority and spoke the word of God to everyday people -- he knew that Jesus had healed others -- and, if Jesus was walking by, then why not cry out for that same healing for himself?
            -- now, think about this from your standpoint -- if you find yourself trapped in a rut this morning -- physically or spiritually -- open your eyes -- look around -- and look within -- for Jesus may not be walking by for us as He did for Bartimaeus that day, but He is present within us -- we carry within us the capacity for change -- the means of a miracle -- the ability to get out of our ruts once and for all -- all we have to do is open our eyes -- believe it is possible -- and cry out to the Holy Spirit for help

            -- verse 48

48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

            -- there’s that same old story again, this time from the world -- that same old defeatist attitude -- “stop calling on Jesus -- nothing is going to change -- just be quiet -- accept who you are -- accept where you are -- and just get on with your life”
            -- the second step in breaking free is to stop listening to the voices of the world that tell you that you can’t -- that you won’t -- that you aren’t able
            -- drown them out -- don’t listen to their voices -- but cry out all the more to Jesus, just as Bartimaeus did -- Mark says when the crowd rebuked him and told him to be quiet, he just yelled all the more for Jesus
            -- someone once said that we can’t solve the problems of today by using the same kind of thinking that created them -- you have to think differently -- you have to stop listening to the voices of the crowd and believe that things can be different when Jesus comes by

            -- verse 49

49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.”

            -- Jesus stopped -- read that again -- “Jesus stopped” -- Jesus always responds to the cry of a true believer -- He always responds to someone who calls out to Him in need
            -- when He heard the cries of Bartimaeus -- when He saw his persistence and his insistence, even in the face of opposition from the crowd, Jesus stopped and said, “Call him -- bring him to Me”
            -- step 3 in breaking free is persistence -- we have to keep on, keeping on -- don’t let the world get you down -- don’t listen to their voices -- but believe that Jesus hears your cries and that He is going to respond -- know that the Holy Spirit who indwells you is working within you to intercede on your behalf -- and that by crying out in Jesus’ name, He will stop and move heaven and earth simply because you ask

            -- verse 50

50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

            -- now, don’t miss what is going on in this verse -- when Jesus said, “Come,” Bartimaeus leapt up and threw his cloak aside and ran to Jesus -- that cloak was important -- that cloak was more than just a piece of clothing -- it was a symbol of his position -- it was a symbol of his need -- it was what he sat on, day after day after day, as he begged for his survival -- it was what he wrapped himself in to protect himself from the elements -- it was his comfort and his protection and his means of making a living
            -- but when his eyes had been opened -- when he realized that Jesus was offering a different way -- he left the old behind -- what need did he have of a cloak when a miracle was waiting? -- what need did he have of reserving a spot to beg in tomorrow if his eyes would be returned today?
            -- step 4 in breaking free is to cast off that which is hindering you -- to cast off and leave behind the same old-same old that has you trapped -- and to step out in faith into the possibilities that Jesus has for you
            -- it’s like the quote in your bulletin from Joyce Meyer -- good intentions aren’t going to get you out of a rut -- good intentions are not going to effect a change in your life -- the only way to get out of a rut is to jump up, cast off that which is hindering you, and take action -- that’s what Bartimaeus did by running to Jesus and looking for His power to change his life -- that’s what we can do as Pentecost people, knowing that we have the Holy Spirit within us
            -- the power to break free is with you daily -- all you have to do is believe and take action

            -- verse 51

51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him.

The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”


            -- why did Jesus ask Bartimaeus, “what do you want Me to do for you?” -- because Bartimaeus was facing a choice -- he could have chosen the same old-same old -- he could have said, “I need money -- please give me some food -- please fill my cup for today” -- but, that would have put him right back in the same place tomorrow
            -- but Bartimaeus chose to break free of his rut and to ask for that which would make a true difference in his situation -- he chose to seek the extraordinary over the ordinary -- “Rabbi, I want to see”
            -- with that request, Bartimaeus demonstrated his faith -- he believed Jesus could heal him -- he believed that Jesus could make a difference -- he believed that Jesus could set him free from the bondage he was in
            -- to paraphrase the old cliche -- he asked for more than just a fish -- he asked Jesus to teach him to fish
            -- with eyes, he would no longer have to beg -- with eyes, he would no longer be trapped in the same old-same old -- with eyes, he could do that which was impossible at this moment
            -- when we come to Jesus -- when we ask the Holy Spirit to do something in our lives -- make sure you are asking for something that is not just temporal or temporary -- ask for the stars, because the Creator of the stars is waiting for you to do so

            -- verse 52

52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

            -- with a word, Jesus healed blind Bartimaeus -- his eyes were restored and he received his sight -- but still, a choice remained
            -- what was Jesus saying when He told Bartimaeus to “go?” -- what choices were laid before him?
            -- he could have chosen to go back to his old life -- back to Jericho -- maybe not blind, anymore -- maybe with more opportunities to do things -- to make a living -- to change his life -- but his world would still be limited -- he would still be there among the same old people that he knew -- walking the same old streets that he walked every day -- doing the same old things in the same old way again -- and, before you knew it, he would be back in another rut of the familiar
            -- but, Bartimaeus chose differently -- he chose a different road -- he chose to follow Jesus into the unknown and to live a life of unexpected blessings and opportunities in gratefulness to the Savior who had saved him
            -- what will you do with your freedom? -- when Jesus reaches down -- when the Holy Spirit works within you and changes you and opens your eyes and offers you a new way, what will you do?
            -- what road will you follow?
            -- Bartimaeus chose the road with Jesus, and it made all the difference

IV.  Closing
            -- reading this story on Pentecost Sunday made me stop and consider where I am in life -- the choices that I make -- the things that I do
            -- I couldn’t help but think of Robert Frost’s poem, “The Road Not Taken”
            -- I had to read this poem in school, but I never really appreciated it until I was much older and was out in the real world where we are faced with decisions and choices every day
            -- if you don’t mind, I’m going to read it to you right now -- it’s not a long poem, but I believe it does bring home the point of this passage when it comes to choosing a different way -- a different path -- of choosing to break free from our ruts and in choosing to receive the possibilities that the Holy Spirit opens for us

The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

            -- Frost tells us in his poem that the two roads he faced were entirely different -- one was well-traveled -- the other was not -- one was the path taken by most of the people -- the other one  was selected by the few
            -- that’s the choice that is before us as Christians today -- we are faced with so many choices and so many decisions in our lives -- where do we go? -- what do we buy? -- how do live? -- what should we do?
            -- the example of Bartimaeus urges us to take the less-traveled path -- the path that leads out of the same old-same old and into a life worthy of the calling of God -- this is the higher path -- the better way -- a way filled with opportunities and excitement and adventure

            -- because of Pentecost -- because of the sending of the Holy Spirit to indwell us and to fill us with His power and His presence -- we have the choice to break out of our ruts -- to break free from our same old-same old existence -- and to step out into a new life with Jesus
            -- choose today to do different -- choose today to be different -- open your eyes -- cry out to the Holy Spirit -- receive the impossible -- and follow Him down the road where He beckons
            -- if you’re lost -- if you’re trapped in a spiritual rut -- if you’re unsure of where you are with God at the moment -- do what Bartimaeus did -- cry out to the One your heart seeks -- go back to your first love -- begin again by seeking God, because God has promised if we seek Him, we will find Him -- if we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us -- begin by seeking Him through His word -- by crying out to Him in your heart -- and running to Him through the word and through your prayers -- this is the way you find yourself again in God -- this is the way you break free of your spiritual ruts
            -- let us pray

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