SERMON: MORE THAN THESE

Preached at Koinonia
14 November 2010

I. Introduction
-- turn in your Bibles to John 21

John 21:1-17 -- Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Jesus Reinstates Peter
15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.

-- this passage is one of the most familiar passages in the Bible -- it occurs just a few days after Jesus and His disciples had shared the Last Supper together in the upper room -- as you probably remember, after Jesus and His disciples had finished their Passover meal together, they left the upper room and went to the Garden of Gethsemane, at the foot of the Mount of Olives, to pray
-- it was there in the Garden that Judas came with the temple guards and betrayed Jesus -- His disciples fled -- and Jesus was carried off and crucified -- three days later, He rose from the dead and, at the time this story takes place, He had appeared to the disciples two times
-- and now, here in this passage, Jesus appears to them for the third time -- this time in Galilee on the shores of the Sea of Galilee while they are out in a boat fishing

-- but that’s not really why this passage is so well known -- it’s not simply because it tells us about Jesus’ third appearance to the disciples after His resurrection -- no, most people know about this passage because it is here that Jesus comes to Peter and restores him after Peter’s denial of Jesus on the night that He was
-- but when I was reading this the other day, I stumbled across something in here that I had never seen before -- something I had never noticed -- and I realized that this passage is more than just a story about Peter -- it’s a call to us
-- let’s look at it a little closer and let me explain what I’m talking about

-- look back at verse 1

1. Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

-- now John tells us that 7 of the original 12 disciples had gathered there on the shore of the lake of Galilee -- and, if you look at their names -- Simon Peter -- Thomas -- Nathaniel -- James and John, the sons of Zebedee -- and two others, who I’m going to assume included Peter’s brother Andrew -- you’ll notice that these were the first disciples -- these were the men who had lived and worked there along the lake their whole life -- some of them, like Peter and Andrew and James and John, were fisherman -- while others, like Nathaniel and Thomas, lived in towns in Galilee near the lake
-- before Jesus called them, this is where they were -- this is where He found them -- and now, after the resurrection of Jesus -- after everything that had happened in Jerusalem over the past several days - we find them again at the place where they started
-- now we know that Jesus had sent them there -- when Jesus first rose, He told Mary Magdalene to send the disciples into Galilee, and that He would meet them there -- and now we find them gathered on the shores of the lake
-- so, why are they there? -- they’re waiting for Jesus -- and what do they do instead of patiently waiting where He told them? -- they go fishing
-- it makes sense -- this is what they have their whole life -- this is who they were when Jesus found them -- but stepping on that boat and picking up those nets was a decision point in their life that I think this entire passage is about
-- real quick, let me give you a short synopsis of the life of Peter so you can understand where I’m going here -- not long after Jesus had started His ministry -- after John has baptized Him in the Jordan River and He has been tempted by Satan in the wilderness, Jesus was traveling around the region of Galilee preaching and teaching
-- one day, He had a large crowd following Him right there on the shore of Galilee and they were pressing in on Him -- so He stepped into a fisherman’s boat that was there on the shore and asked him to put out into the water just a little ways so that He could speak to the people -- when Jesus got done speaking, He told the fisherman to drop his net into the water and, even though they had caught nothing all night long, the fisherman’s net was filled to overflowing with fish -- Jesus looked at the fisherman and told him, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” -- and from that point on, his life was never the same again -- this fisherman was Peter
-- Peter left his nets -- and for the next three years he traveled with Jesus -- he watched Jesus heal the sick and minister to the needy -- he listened as Jesus preached and taught the people -- he watched as Jesus did miracle after miracle -- and one day, he even walked on water
-- it was Peter who gave the great confession early on and said that Jesus was the Messiah -- it was Peter who led the others -- it was Peter who went with Jesus to the Mount of Transfiguration -- it was Peter and his faith that was to be the rock that Jesus would build the church upon -- it was Peter who cut off the ear of the temple guard who came to arrest Jesus in the garden -- Peter was the one who always stood with Jesus -- Peter was the one that Jesus called “the Rock” -- Peter was the one who was always steadfast in his faith
-- but now, after Jesus has died -- after He has left the disciples and only appeared to them twice since his death -- Peter and six other disciples are right back where they started -- right back on the shore of Galilee where Jesus had told them to wait -- and what does he do? -- he goes fishing
-- let me read some more of this to you -- as I do so, pay attention to how many times we see the words “fish” or “fishing”

-- verse 4

4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”
“No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

-- now, keep in mind that John was a very concise writer -- John was not one to mince words -- he was not one to add fluff to his stories -- when John told you something in his gospel -- when he wrote something down -- he did so for a reason -- so, I’m convinced that all of these references to “fish” in this passage mean something -- I think this is getting us to the heart of the passage
-- a few moments ago I reminded you of the story of Peter -- I told you how Peter was the one who was the leader of the other disciples -- how Peter had steadfast faith -- how Peter followed Jesus through thick and thin -- but I left out one part of the story -- Peter was also the one who denied knowing Jesus on the night that Jesus was arrested -- and not just once, but denied knowing Him three times
-- Peter had a choice to make that night -- he had to choose between being faithful to Jesus and possibly losing his own life or turning away, following the world, and saving his own skin -- and that night, he had chosen the world instead of Jesus
-- what I think is going on in this passage is that Jesus is offering Peter the chance to make that choice again
-- now at this point, the damage has been done -- Peter’s rejection of Jesus separated him from fellowship with Jesus -- in other words, Peter and the other disciples gathered there on the shore of Galilee were far from Jesus in their hearts
-- we see that in verse 4 -- John tells us that Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize it was Jesus -- these were men who had lived with Jesus for three years -- these were men who had seen the risen Christ twice already -- and now, when Jesus has turned up right where He told them to wait for Him, they didn’t recognize Him
-- I don’t think John talking about physical recognition here -- I think he’s talking about their spirits -- I think he’s talking about their hearts -- they had left the place where Jesus was -- they were out on the Sea of Galilee away from Him -- and so they didn’t know Him
- but, thankfully, the story doesn’t end there

-- look down at verse 15 and let me bring all of this together

15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”


-- now here’s where I saw something the other day that I had never seen before -- here’s where I think that choice of Peter comes in
-- I had read verses 1-14 and had noticed just how many times that John mentioned fish -- over and over again -- and then I read verse 15 and when I pictured the scene in my mind’s eye, I noticed something
-- there they are -- all seven of the disciples -- Simon Peter and the others -- sitting with Jesus next to a camp fire on the beach -- and right there next to them was a net full of fish -- 153 fish, John tells us
-- and now that the meal is done, Jesus turns to Simon Peter -- the fisherman -- the man He told to follow Him and He would make him a fisher of men -- He looks at Peter and He asks him, “Peter, do you love me more than these?”
-- my whole life I had thought that Jesus was talking about the other disciples -- but, now I’m not so sure -- I think the “these” that Jesus was referring to was the net full of 153 fish -- I think Jesus looked Peter in the eye and pointed to the fish on the shore -- fish that represented Peter’s old life and asked him, “Peter, do you love me more than these?”
-- in other words, “Peter, do you love Me more than the world -- do you love Me more than your old ways of life -- do you love Me more than your old profession -- or are these fish more important to you than Me?”
-- those fish, laying in that net there on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, were more than just fish -- they represented everything that Peter had left to follow Jesus -- they represented another life -- another choice -- another path -- the same choice, in fact, that Peter had picked when he had denied Christ three times after Jesus’ arrest
-- Jesus is saying, “Peter, what is more important -- these or Me?”

-- and I think that’s a good question for all of us
-- what are the “these” in your life? -- what are you clinging to that is keeping you from following Jesus with all your heart and soul and mind and strength? -- what are your “these?”
-- Peter had a big old pile of fish lying there stinking in the rising sun that convicted him of the path that he had chosen -- what is it in your life that convicts you?
-- is it your job? -- your family? -- the things you own? -- the things that you want to own? -- is it a better house -- a nicer car -- a secure life? -- is it just safety? -- what is your “these?”
-- what takes up your time and your thoughts during the day? -- where do you spend your time and energy? -- what do you spend most of your resources on? -- I heard a speaker one time who said that if you want to know what you love more than Jesus, just look at your checkbook and your calendar -- and these will tell you
-- everyday, we are confronted with a choice just like Peter -- we have to choose between following Jesus or between following the “these” in our lives -- and that choice makes the difference as to whether we truly know Jesus and whether we recognize Him when He is near

-- let’s turn over to Matthew 16 and I want to close there -- Matthew 16:24-26
-- verse 24

24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?

-- here we see clearly what Jesus thinks about the “these” in our lives -- He tells us here that if we are going to follow Him, then we have to first deny ourselves and take up our cross
-- to deny ourselves means that we put our own wants and wishes and desires behind us -- we take all the “these” in our lives and we willingly lay them down at the foot of the cross and then, and only then, can we follow Jesus and know Him in a true and personal relationship
-- this call to Jesus to choose Him and to get rid of our “these” is not a suggestion -- He doesn’t say it’s a good idea -- He says this is the only way -- “Peter, if you want to follow Me, you have to get rid of those fish -- you have to leave your nets behind” -- He tells us the same thing -- “Greg, if you want to follow Me, then you have to deny yourself -- you have to put aside your “these” -- you have to pick up your cross -- and then you can follow Me”
-- Jesus asks, “What good will it be for you to have the “these” in your life if it separates you from Me? -- What good will it be for you gain the whole world, yet forfeit your soul?” -- as Christians, we are not called to live for the “these” of this world -- we are not called to strive for good and happy lives here on this earth -- our vision should be greater -- our focus should be on eternity -- not what we can get now -- not on what we will do now -- but on what we will get and the relationship we will enjoy when Christ comes into His kingdom forever

-- let me close by sharing with you a story I read by George Washington Truett that I think speaks to the heart of this passage
-- Dr. Truett was a preacher in Dallas for 47 years -- one time he visited a wealthy West Texas rancher and had dinner with him in his huge ranch home -- after dinner, the rancher took Dr. Truett up to a veranda on top of his house and lit up a big cigar
-- the sun was setting, and if you've ever been to west Texas, you know you can see a long way out there -- the man pointed to the south toward some oil rigs and said, "I own everything in that direction as far as you can see"
-- he pointed east toward some cotton fields and said "and I own everything in that direction, too" -- he pointed north towards a huge herd of cattle and bragged, "and preacher, I own everything as far as you can see in that direction" -- finally, he turned to the west and said, "and I own everything you can see in that direction, except the sun, of course"
-- Dr. Truett turned to the man and pointed straight up to the sky and said, "and how much do you own in that direction"
-- that's a good question for all of us to think about and answer today -- everyday, we have a choice to make -- we can put our time and energy and resources into storing up the “these” of this life -- or we can put our time and energy and resources into following Jesus
-- the cost to follow Jesus is steep -- it cost Peter and most of the other disciples their lives -- it certainly cost them their way of life and all that they once thought dear -- but, you can certainly argue that it was well worth the price
-- so, as I close this morning, let me leave you with the same question that Jesus asked Peter, “Do you love Me more than these?”
-- let us pray

RESCUED FROM DARKNESS

Last week, the entire world held their breath as the capsule designed to rescue the 33 trapped Chilean miners made its initial descent into the 24-inch shaft drilled through hard rock to the chamber where the miners had survived for 69 days underground. As I watched with the rest of the world and followed the updates throughout the day, I wondered to myself what these miners must have experienced over the course of their time below ground.

Can you imagine the despair, the hopelessness they felt after the shock of the initial cave-in, when they realized they were trapped in a small chamber one-half mile below the surface of the earth with no hope of rescue? Can you think of what it must have felt like to live underground in total darkness for 69 days?

Can you imagine the glimmer of hope that they felt as contact with the surface was made and they realized, hope beyond hope, that there was a chance of rescue? And, what it must have been like when the rescue capsule finally made its way to their remote chamber, bringing each of them up to the surface and into the arms of their loved ones?

I can. And, I suspect you can, if you really think about it. You see, while we may not all have experienced being trapped underground for two months, we have all experienced being trapped in darkness, a darkness of our own making, a darkness that came to us through the Fall of Man in the Garden of Eden. A darkness of the heart.

The Bible calls this Sin, and tells us that all of us -- you, me, and everyone else that ever walked on this planet -- have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. In other words, from the moment of our conception, we found ourselves in the same state as those Chilean miners, trapped in a world of darkness with no hope of rescue. Separated from the world of light and from the God of light through our Sin and our sin nature.

But, just when all hope seemed lost, a glimmer of light was given. The God of all creation spoke to us through His Word and promised that help was coming, that a Savior was being sent who would come to bring us all into the light once again. And, just like a rescue capsule coming from the surface of the earth into the depths of a dark chamber below ground, Jesus left the world of light and became a man and descended into the very heart of darkness for one reason -- to save us from ourselves and to rescue us from the darkness of our own hearts.

The Bible tells us that Jesus came to save the world by giving His body and His blood for us, by dying on the cross in our place, and by being raised from the dead on the third day to prove His victory over sin and death and the darkness of the heart. All we have to do to be rescued is to reach out and accept His offer of salvation, step into the rescue capsule, and be transported out of this world and into the world of light. It's as simple as that. Accept and believe and trust that Jesus has already paved the path and laid out the way for us. Don't stay in the darkness any longer, but come into the light that He offers.

Let's Talk Mosques...

1 Kings 18:36-39

"At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command.

Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."

Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD -he is God! The LORD -he is God!"

For the last several weeks, the topic of discussion before our Bible studies and at work and at other gatherings has centered around the current state of affairs in our country and the controversy over the building of a mosque near Ground Zero in New York City. Rarely have I seen a topic generate such controversy and discussion and vitriole as this, from both sides of the political spectrum and from various religious traditions. I have not responded to the discussion in any meaningful way, but feel it might be prudent to do so now just to offer a different voice in the mix.

Generally (and I know I'm speaking very generally here), the two sides of the argument tend to polarize around: 1) The United States is a land of religious freedom, and it is a right for anyone to build a religious structure anywhere; and, 2) The United States is a Christian nation and it is a slap in our face to have a mosque built at the site of a terrorist act that occurred at the hands of Islamic Terrorists.

Now, what I have found curious about both of these viewpoints is that the reasoning behind both of them use the same source document to prove their point -- The U.S. Consititution. Even among Christian friends and in discussions at church and at other religious gatherings, I have heard no viewpoints other than these being offered up.

These arguments point to a great concern with the church in America today. Somewhere along the line, Christianity got blurred with American nationalism, not unlike the situation when the Roman Emperor Constantine proclaimed Christianity as the official religion of Rome. The result of this blending is that to be an American is to be a Christian, and to be a Christian is to be an American. In other words, rather than living as foreigners and aliens in America, for the most part American Christians have moved to the conclusion that you are a Christian if you live in America, and thus, anything offered counter to Christianity is anti-American and anything offered counter to America is anti-Christian. Hence, when Muslims exercise their right to freedom of religion under the Constitution, the act is regarded as both anti-Christian and anti-American. Conversely, as I stated above, some leaders have affirmed the Muslim's rights under the Constitution to build the mosque, but still express concern with their proposed action. But, still, the argument holds -- Christianity has merged with American nationalism to form an organic movement that affects all of life in America: religious, political and cultural.

But, is this what Christianity is supposed to look like? Are we supposed to yoke ourselves so closely with a Government to the point where our religion is taken to be the same as our political alignment?

If you read the Bible, this is definitely not the picture that we see portrayed in the New Testament. The early church struggled under both the yoke of Roman rule and the persecution of the established Jewish religion, but operated outside the bounds of both. To be a Christian in the first century A.D. meant that you lived outside the political, religious, and cultural norms and formed a new society, a Kingdom within a kingdom. The early Christians considered themselves first and foremost members of a greater country, the Kingdom of God, who just happened to be living in a foreign land as strangers and ambassadors. In other words, the politics of the land were not tied with the Christian religion, and Christians lived and worked and played as Romans, Egyptians, Syrians, whoever, while maintaining an independent relationship within the overall body of Christ.

Unfortunately, this is generally not the case in America today as evidenced by the fact that good Christians on both sides of the mosque argument are using the Constitution to defend their positions rather than the Bible, which should be the source book for us instead of any law or national document. Which leads me to ask the question, "What should be the Christian response to the building of a mosque at Ground Zero?" Or, more pointedly, "Why do Christians seem afraid of the building of a mosque at Ground Zero?"

For the majority of Christians today and throughout the history of the Church, Christians have existed in opposition to Governmental will. In places like China, the Soviet Union, and even early Rome, it was illegal to be a Christian, and to be a Christian was a national crime. Still, the Church persevered and even prospered in the face of persecution. They did so because their allegiance, first and foremost, was to God and not to the authorities that God had placed above them. Because of the persecution, they knew they were aliens, they knew they were strangers and outside the bounds of society, and they lived that way. More importantly, they lived without fear.

Take the example of Elijah that I quoted above from 1 Kings 18. Elijah and other followers of God were living in an oppressive regime with a pagan religion promoted by the authorities of their day. To be a believer in Yahweh was to face persecution and death. But, rather than hiding in fear, Elijah confronted the false gods of Israel in this dramatic show-down at Mount Carmel. For, "if God is for us, who can be against us?" If our God is the true and real and only God, then why do we fear false gods or idols? And on that day, Yahweh showed His power and majesty and glory and the pagan religions and false gods were felled.

Now, back to the mosque and the question of our biblical response. What would the early Christians have done if someone was to build an altar to a false god in their day? I think the response of Paul on Mars Hill is a good example. Rather than fighting against the various pagan altars and temples, rather than tearing down the monuments to false gods, Paul used this obvious desire for the transcendent as a jumping off point for evangelism. He spoke to the Greeks gathered at the Aeropagus and told them of the true and real God that their hearts were longing for.

Why don't we view the mosque in this same way? As Christians, we reject the religion of Islam. But, as Christians, we are called to witness to our faith to others. Rather than fighting the mosque, why don't we view it as an opportunity for evangelism?

Throughout this entire national debate, I have been reminded of the example of Brother Andrew, the missionary from Holland who carried the gospel behind the Iron Curtain in the days after World War II. In a sermon I heard one time, Brother Andrew talked about the invasion of Poland by the Soviet Union. As the Polish people were fleeing their country in advance of the Soviet troops, Brother Andrew loaded up his car with Russian Bibles and did the opposite -- he headed towards Poland and met with a church that he previously knew in that country.

Brother Andrew made this statement to the leaders of that church (and this is a paraphrase): "You have had the opportunity for many years to carry Bibles and the gospel to the Soviet Union and you haven't done so. Now, since you wouldn't go to the Russians, God has sent them to you. Go out and give them Bibles and the gospel and witness to them the grace of God."

Perhaps the building of the mosque is God's response to our inaction. If America is truly a Christian nation, then why haven't we reached out to other nations and shared with them the truth of the gospel? Could it be that because we refused to go to them, God is sending them to us? (Could the same be said for the illegal immigrants from Mexico, too?)

Rather than regarding the mosque as an affront to Christianity, perhaps we should welcome the Muslims into our country and take this opportunity to share with them the truth about Jesus and the salvation that He brings. It is time that we divided American nationalism from Christianity, and started being the church to those God has placed in our path. If Elijah didn't fear either Ahab and Jezebel or the false gods of his day, then why is the Church in America fearing the same?

TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT!

               FINALLY, A TECHNOLOGY I CAN FULLY EMBRACE!!!

The Quest Continues...

A couple of years ago, I realized that I was in a rut in my reading habits. I had gotten consumed with reading Christian fiction, and that was pretty much all I read. And while I still like Christian fiction, the truth is that most of it is pretty flimsy stuff -- not a lot of meat and quite predictable plots. Every now and then a book or an author would surprise me, but for the most part, you know what you're getting when you read Christian fiction.

So, I decided that I had allowed my brain to turn to mush long enough, and decided it was time for a challenge. I decided to improve my reading habits by reading every single fiction book that had won the Pulitzer Prize. Knowing that reading "heavy" literature might be onerous (remember school?), I set some rules and allowed myself some flexibility in my quest. First, I could read the books in any order I wanted -- I didn't have to read them chronologically. Second, I could intersperse my Pulitzer Prize books with other types of fiction, including Christian fiction, but I could read no more than three non-Pulitzer books without having to read another. Third, I put no time limit on my quest but relied on my rules to propel me forward. And, finally, I couldn't just read the books and stop with that. I had to try to make an effort to understand them, and if that meant I turned to Cliff's Notes or Spark Notes or some other commentary for assistance, then so be it. The goal was to read all the books and to be able to speak about them intelligently if the situation demanded it.

The Pulitzer Committee started giving out Fiction awards in 1948, with James Michener being the first receipient for his work, "Tales of the South Pacific." No award was given for the years 1954, 1957, 1964, 1971, 1974, and 1977. So, since 1948 there have been 57 novels which have won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.

Since I began my quest, I have read a total of 10 novels or 17.5%. Some of the novels have been outstanding and deeply affected my heart and soul. Others were excellent, well-written and well-crafted examples of the best of the best. While others were as onerous as I remember, and it was labor to read through these books, all the while hoping that this author never won another Pulitzer Prize and I would never have to read another book by them again.

A great example of these two extremes is found in the last two books that I read in my quest, "March" by Geraldine Brooks and "Tinkers" by Paul Harding. "March" was a sequel to "Little Women," by Louisa May Alcott, which followed the little women's father who was absent in the original book. For this reason alone, I thought I would not like this book, but I was pleasantly surprised. Following Mr. March through his early days as a salesman, on into his ministerial career, and then as a chaplain for the Union Army during the Civil War, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and its refreshing take on this subject. This was easily one of the best books I have read in a very long time, and I have several other non-Pulitzer prize winning books for Geraldine Brooks on my wish list.

"Tinkers" on the other hand was difficult for me. I really wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't. I obviously missed the point of the whole affair, other than that it was a story about a man's relationship with his father, but if that was the intent, the author missed his mark. I found the book disjointed and confusing and honestly had no idea what was going on or where the author was headed most of the time. It was well-written. The sentences were complex and the use of descriptive language was novel, but glimmers of expertise within the overall confines of this narrative could not make up for the short-falls of this novel.

Still, I pressed on and finished the book and the quest continues. At this rate, I will be done with my goal within three years. So, what shall I read next???

Are Mega-Churches Biblical?

Since I left the Methodist Church in June and started Koinonia Ministries, my family and I have had the opportunity to visit several different congregations in our local community for worship, trying to find a church that we could join while we waited for God's leading in our own ministry. We had the opportunity to visit mainline denominational churches and nondenominational churches. We worshiped in large churches (>200 people) and in small churches (less than 100 people). We enjoyed music that was very traditional and music that was very contemporary. And we listened to preachers who followed well-scripted sermons and those who seemed to just flow with the Holy Spirit's promptings with no defined plan or purpose at the start of the message. And, so what did we find?

Well, our experience was that God was present in every congregation, that the Holy Spirit moved among those who were present, and that the worship was real and genuine. It didn't matter if the church claimed a denomination or not and it didn't matter what type of music was played -- God was still there.

However, there was a major difference between the larger churches and the smaller churches that we visited. While the the churches we visited are certainly not in the Mega-Church category, the churches that had more than 200 members were very consistent in their worship services. Generally, their worship services were more ordered, more professional, and more entertaining. Attending a service at these churches reminded me of attending a contemporary Christian concert at a large venue or a Promise Keepers event back in it's heyday.

The music in these churches was nothing less than outstanding, and every single large church we visited had already put out CDs of their worship bands and/or choirs. Large screens were on the wall that displayed the words to the song on top of a moving background. And the congregation (audience?) sang along and applauded as songs ended. All in all, it was a very, very well performed and professional presentation.

The preachers were polished professionals. Their messages concise, specific, and relevant to what was going on in our world and in our lives today. As I listened to their sermons (and critiqued, as former pastors do), I felt that each of them would be successful on a national stage, such as at Promise Keepers or Catalyst or one of the other large national movements that draws thousands of people to hear a Christian message. In short, they were very, very good.

But, after the closing song and the benediction, as the doors in the back of the sanctuary opened, I felt like I do at movie theaters when the lights come up, "The show is over." And so we were ushered out into the world again, with the expectation that we would gather together again next Sunday for another polished performance and worship service.

But, as we emerged into the Sunday afternoon sunshine, I found myself somewhat melancholy, like I was missing something vital and real and important. Something that should have been there, but wasn't.

What I was missing was community. Relationship. Fellowship. Sure, we had just occupied the same space as 200+ other individuals. Sure, we had just joined together and sung praise songs to our same God. Sure, we had just listened together to the exposition of the Word of God. But, there was no sense that I had shared in the life of another. There was no sense that I had communed with fellow believers. The only people who greeted us in these services were those that we knew before we entered, friends who shared with us a relationship forged outside the walls of this church. I entered as a stranger to those around me, and I left the same way.

The question that kept rattling through my head on those Sundays after we left the service was, "Why do we go to church after all?" And, now, I realize the problem is inherent in the question. Church is not something that we should go to. Church is something we should be.

To be the church means that you are involved in the lives of your brothers and sisters in Christ. To be the church means that you, like the saints in the early church described in the Book of Acts, share with everyone as they have need. This does not only mean financially and materially, but spiritually and relationally, as well. To be the church means that you know your neighbor, that you care about your neighbor, that you love your neighbor as yourself. To be the church means that it is a place where strangers are welcomed, lives are changed, and God is exalted. To be the church means that you are in a place where everyone knows your name. This, I think, is an inherent problem with the large churches, and especially the Mega-Churches, today.

When I was a pastor in the United Methodist Church, I pastored two very small congregations. In fact, my churches combined were smaller than some Sunday School classes in larger Methodist Churches. Occasionally, the leadership of the South Georgia Conference would become concerned over the number of small (<100 member) churches in their jurisdictional boundary, and so us small church pastors would be invited to a workshop on "How to Grow Your Church." "You are too small," the facilitators would tell us. "You must get larger, at least 200 members or more, if you are to survive." The message given to us through workshops such as this and the metrics we were required to provide quarterly confirmed to us that larger was better, and if your church didn't have 200 members or more, you had failed. But, is this true? Is this biblical?

A friend of mine was doing one-on-one discipleship in a very large church in south Georgia a couple of weeks ago. Between discipleship sessions, he wandered around the church and peeked in at the sanctuary. The pastor joined him there and proudly showed him the size of the sanctuary, the stage where the worship team played, and the multimedia equipment the church had at its disposal. The pastor's chest puffed out in pride as my friend started to stammer, "How many... how many...," assuming my friend was going to praise him for the size of the congregation. But quickly, the pastor's chest and ego deflated as my friend continued, "How many people in your congregation do you know by name? How can you be a shepherd to your people if you don't know them?"

Isn't that the crux of the issue? Church isn't about size or numbers. It isn't about how many people sit in your pews or how much money you receive in offerings on any given Sunday. Church is about people. Church is about doing life together. Church is about knowing God and God's people intimately and sharing in what God is doing in and through everyone in the congregation.

I don't know a lot. I am certainly not a church growth expert. But, I have come to believe this. While smaller churches may not always have the best musicians or the professional worship performances, while smaller churches may not always have the best polished speakers who know Greek and Hebrew and every current theological trend, they do have this going for them -- their small size allows them to know each other and to do life together. This is what I see when I read the New Testament, and this is what I see when I think of Jesus with His twelve close friends gathered around a campfire in the wilds of Galilee.

I don't think church, real church, real relationships, can be realized in churches with more than 100 members. Large churches recognize this, too, so many opt for the "home group" or "life group" concept to form small groups for relational purposes. But, I think this still falls short of the purpose for which Christ called the church in the first place.

Human nature makes these small groups cliquish, and so what you find on any given Sunday morning in these larger congregations is not a single church, but multiple home churches gathering in one place to worship, but not to worship together.

So, what is the answer? I think, contrary to popular opinion and church growth teaching, that the size of a church should be limited by the availability of the pastor to the people. I think that a church is too large if the senior pastor doesn't know everyone in the church by name. And, I think we should concentrate more on doing life together rather than just coming to church.

Being a Servant

Matthew 20:25-28 (NIV):

25 Jesus called them together and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Not many people today remember the name of Booker T. Washington, but he was instrumental in helping African-Americans achieve their goals of education shortly after the end of the Civil War. Born a slave, after the end of the Civil War and his emancipation, Washington worked his way through school, eventually ending up with a PhD. So, when they were looking for someone to lead the newly formed Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, they turned to this bright star to be their first President.

Shortly after Dr. Washington arrived at Tuskegee, he was walking in an exclusive part of town, just trying to get his bearings, when a wealthy white woman approached him. Not knowing who he was but assuming he was just another poor black man, she asked if he would like to make a few dollars by chopping some firewood for her. Rather than being affronted by her request, Dr. Washington just smiled, rolled up his sleeves, and followed her into her yard where he proceeded to chop firewood for the entire afternoon. After he finished, he even took some of the firewood inside, stacked it by her fireplace, and neatly stored the rest in the shed outside for her to retrieve at a later time. As he was finishing up, a little girl happened by who recognized who he was, and who later shared this with the wealthy white woman.

The next day, a very embarrassed woman met with Dr. Washington in his office at Tuskegee. She apologized profusely for what she had done and for treating him as a menial servant. Dr. Washington brushed it aside and said that he occasionally enjoyed manual labor, and he always enjoyed helping a friend. It is this humble attitude of Dr. Washington that Jesus calls for in the passage from Matthew 20 above.

Jesus' disciples had a problem with constantly wanting to be the center of attention, with constantly wanting to be placed in positions of leadership and authority. Many times in the past they had quarreled over who would be greatest in the Kingdom. Here in Matthew 20, as Jesus begins His final journey to Jerusalem, we see His disciples once again jockeying for position. In fact, we read that the mother of James and John approached Jesus and asked that her sons be placed on his right and left hands when He came into His Kingdom. When the other disciples heard what James' and John's monther had done, they bristled and grew indignant, not only, I think, because James and John were seeking the higher positions, but because the other disciples didn't think of doing this themself!

Hearing their grumbling, Jesus called all the disciples together and told them that their actions reflected the values of the world and not of the Kingdom. "We don't do that in the Kingdom," He said. "That is what the world does. That is how the Gentiles do things. They try to exalt themselves over others and put themselves in higher positions of honor. But, if you want to be great in the Kingdom, you must humble yourself and serve those around you. If you want to be great in the Kingdom, you must be a slave to all, just as I did not exalt Myself but humbled Myself and became a man to serve and to offer My life as a ransom for all."

Even today in the church we still struggle with this desire for exaltation, with this need to be seen and recognized for who we are and what we have done. Pastors compare themselves to others based on the size of their church or the amount of money their congregation has. Members desire roles of leadership so they will be recognized for what they do. But, this is not the way it should be. We should seek to serve and to exalt others above us as we serve Christ.

To truly be great in the church today, we must possess three things:

First, we must possess a servant's hands. We must be willing to work behind the scenes, serving those around us. This may mean humbling ourselves and doing menial tasks, such as picking up trash or serving in a meal line for homeless people. The path to greatness begins with service.

Secondly, we must possess a servant's heart. In 1 Corinthians 13:3, the Apostle Paul writes, "If I give all my possessions to the poor and offer my body to the flames but have not love, I gain nothing." In other words, it doesn't matter what you do if your heart and your motives are not pure. We should serve out of gratitude for what Jesus has done for us. We should serve out of love because of the love that Jesus has shown for us. To have a servant's heart means that we serve with our hands because we love and sincerely want to help others.

Finally, we must possess a servant's hope. The ultimate goal of any service should be to please the Lord by ministering to the least of these. Our hope should be that others would be exalted and that the Lord be glorified and exalted above all. As we serve, we should never seek to take the higher seats of honor or the highest positions, but rejoice when our actions make it possible for others to assume those positions. Our hope is always to see Christ lifted up through our actions.

If we can just cultivate these three things in our life -- a servant's hands, a servant's heart, and a servant's hope -- then we will see great things happen through us for the church of Christ, and we will truly be great in God's Kingdom.

Ran across this excerpt from "The Christian Atheist" by Craig Groeschel. Really spoke to me and about my life as a bivocational pastor. This is something that has to be guarded against, especially for those who are trying to minister full-time and work full-time in secular jobs.

"As if on cue, when I was twenty-three, God opened a door for me to work at a historic downtown church. My dreamcome-true slowly turned into a spiritual nightmare. What started out as a good thing quickly became an obsession. My service was never enough. And as my love for ministry burned hotter, my passion for Christ cooled.

"My mission had become a job. Instead of studying God’s Word out of personal devotion, I studied only to preach. Instead of preaching messages to bring glory to God, I preached to bring people to church. I promised hurting people I would pray for them, but I usually didn’t follow through.

"At the age of twenty-five, I was a full-time pastor and a part-time follower of Christ."

[The Christian Atheist,By Craig Groeschel | LifeChurch.tv]

So, What's the Deal with "Woof and Worship?"

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have separated from the United Methodist Church to follow a call of God and start a non-denominational ministry called "Koinonia." As part of this ministry, we have started an outreach that we have been calling "Woof and Worship," and which has caused no end of concern for Christians in our city.

"Church for dogs?" they ask incredulously. "You are starting a worship service for dogs? What is this, a dog cult?" To which I would wearily reply, "No, that is not what we are doing." Of course, I can understand their confusion. National leaders like Albert Mohler have misunderstood similar services and commented on the same in their editorials.

So, what is "Woof and Worship" about anyway? Well, it's a concept that I stumbled upon several years ago and one that Ted Haggard promoted in his book, "Dog Training, Fly Fishing, and Sharing Christ in the 21st Century."

Here's the gist: Christianity is about relationships. And, relationships center on a common interest, whether that is family, church, hobbies, school, etc. In my experience, the best way to reach another person and introduce them to Christ is to build on an existing relationship and share from your heart into that relationship. As the Walk to Emmaus puts it, "Make a friend, Be a friend, Introduce your friend to Christ." So, if you are serious about sharing Christ with others, the first place to begin would be with those people you already have a relationship with.

As I looked around at my circle of friends and the interests that we shared, it struck me how much of my family's life revolved around dogs: dog shows, obedience training, kennel clubs, etc. In fact, my wife even began a doggy daycare/boarding facility several years ago because of her love and interest in all things canine. We had lots of friends who owned and loved dogs. We did lots of things with friends that owned and loved dogs. Hence, what better place to begin an intentional outreach that would share the love of Christ through already established relationships? Thus began Koinonia's "Woof and Worship."

My wife graciously opened up the doors of her shop to us on Sunday nights to allow us to host a small worship service for people interested in dogs. This is not "dog church," but rather a gathering of people who have an interest in dogs. The interest in dogs created the relationships in the first place -- we are simply building on that relationship and introducing our friends to the God that we serve. Remember, Christ met everyone where they were, and shared His love with them no matter what the established church leaders thought about Him or them.

The only "weird" thing about this service is that we allow the seekers and the worshipers to bring their animals with them to the service -- not to let the animals worship, but simply to accompany them and to serve as a reassuring presence for people who are uncomfortable in traditional church services. The goal is simply to introduce our friends to Christ and to introduce them to a worship service that affirms who they are and what their interests are rather than requiring them to fit into a "norm" that they felt uncomfortable with.

That is what "Woof and Worship" is all about. It's no different from the "Cowboy Churches" that have cropped up throughout the country. It's no different from a group of friends coming together around any interest (sports, hunting, fishing, etc.) and then sharing about Christ afterwards. It's not church for dogs. It's church for people who like dogs. And you are invited to attend if you are ever in Valdosta, GA, on a Sunday Night.

Vidalia Onions, Christ Jesus, and Gay Marriage

Juliet: "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Romeo and Juliet (II, ii, 1-2), William Shakespeare.

In this quote from Shakespeare's famous play, he makes the point that a name is just a thing. It doesn't matter what you call it -- the object itself is the important thing. A rose is still a rose and still smells just as sweet if you were to mistakenly call it a daffodil or a turnip or anything else. In other words, many different names can be used to describe the one real and true flower that we recognize as the rose. I think we can all agree with that assertion made by old Will. The truth is the truth no matter what you call it.

But, in our day and age, we are seeing the converse applied with the same assertion that the truth is the truth no matter what you call it. However, in this case, the name has been misappropriated and misrepresented rather than the object itself. Let me explain.

For instance, take Vidalia onions. The Vidalia onion is a sweet onion that comes from a twenty-county area in the great state of Georgia. That is a fact. To be a Vidalia onion, this particular type of sweet onion must come from this region. Thus, the name "Vidalia onion" is unique. It can only refer to one object, to one true reality. So, while Shakespeare might be correct in saying that it doesn't matter what you call a sweet onion, it does matter what you call a Vidalia onion. Vidalia onions are sweet onions, but not all sweet onions are Vidalia onions. Now, why does this matter?

It matters because some grocery stores in other parts of the country were acquiring sweet onions from outside of the twenty-county area in Georgia that is legally recognized as the only producers of Vidalia onions and were calling them "Vidalia onions." They were using the same name, but meaning something entirely different. Just because they called it a "Vidalia onion" didn't mean that it was a Vidalia onion. In fact, it was no where close, because, as all Georgians know, the Vidalia onion is simply the best sweet onion in the entire world and all others pale by comparison (Take that, Walla Walla!).

So, let's get to the real point. What does our illustration about Vidalia onions show? First, it shows that, despite Shakespeare's assertions, sometimes what is in a name matters. Sometimes it matters a lot. For instance, think for a moment about the name of our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus. You see Jesus' name used a lot. You hear Jesus' name being used a lot. In the Bible, in Christian literature, from pulpits, in church documents, even in religious blogs. We all know Who we mean when we say, "Jesus," right? WRONG!

On occasion, I will be disturbed in my living room early on Saturday mornings by the visit of uninvited guests. They have come by my house on this fine morning to share with me the good news of salvation that we have in Jesus. Now, I love talking about Jesus with other people. In fact, it's what I do. So, I welcome the conversation.

I listen as they open their holy text and share with me who Jesus is and what Jesus does and then, it hits me. The Jesus they are talking about is not the Jesus that I know. I don't remember the Bible talking about Jesus coming to North America. I don't remember my Jesus being the physical son of a sexual union between Heavenly Father and his wife. I don't remember reading that Jesus and Lucifer (Satan) were actually brothers. And then I understand what is going on.

We are using the same name (Jesus), but we are meaning something entirely different. The Jesus that I know from the Bible, the Second Person of the Trinity, God incarnate, is not the same Jesus that they have been sharing with me. And I wonder how many people have been led down a false path simply because this other group misappropriated a Name that means everything to me and to the world.

Names are important. That's why God changed people's names quite frequently in the Bible. That's why Abram became Abraham, Sarai became Sarah, Jacob became Israel, and Simon became Peter. Names stand for something. They have meaning, and if used in the wrong way, they can cause a shift in understanding that will have effects all the way down through history. In other words, if you change what a name means, then you are exchanging the truth of that name for something entirely different.

We see the same thing going on right now in the push for same-sex marriages in our country. For years now, same-sex marriage has been an issue that has caused confusion, division, and discourse from federal and state politicians and judges to denominations and churches to the average man or woman in the grocery store.

On the surface, the issue appears easy enough -- why not allow homosexual couples in America the right to enjoy the same relationships and priviledges that heterosexual couples have enjoyed since the beginning of time? What is the harm in doing so? How does it affect heterosexual marriages in any way if we let gay couples marry? I can't tell you how many times I have heard those questions thrown my way in discussions with friends after work.

It all comes down to what I have been saying: Names matter. From my limited understanding of the issue and from what I know to be true from the few homosexual people I know, when the conservative Christian community uses the term "marriage," it means something entirely different than what the homosexual community means when they use it. When we use the term "marriage," we are referring to a God-given institution that was defined as one man and one woman whose lives, including their sexual lives, are experienced solely through that union. They leave their mothers and fathers, they cleave together, and they become one flesh.

However, when the majority of the homosexual community uses the term "marriage," they are not referring to a closed institution lived out between two persons (yes, I know that there are many gay couples who have lived monogamously during their entire relationship, but that's not the real issue here). Instead, they are referring to an institution that allows for openness among partners in the area of sexual intimacy, an "open" marriage, if you will. And, that's fine, if that's the type of relationship they are looking for. I can live with and tolerate things I don't agree with.

However, if the push for gay marriage succeeds, then more has been accomplished than just allowing homosexual couples to enjoy the same legal benefits of heterosexual married couples. What will have been allowed is the complete redefinition of "marriage." No longer will marriage mean the same thing it means today. No longer will marriage be defined through the religious communities that originally recognized it as a gift from God for men and women meant to reflect our relationship with God Himself. No longer will marriage be defined as one man and one woman living in a committed monogamous relationship for life.

Instead, "marriage" will mean something entirely different, and from the moment that same-sex marriage becomes the law of the land, the meaning of the word will have changed forever. The original institution of marriage will have been lost because of what scholars call an epistemiological shift. In other words, once the definition --the meaning -- of a word changes, it can never revert back to its original definition, and the new meaning takes hold in the hearts and minds of the people.

Thus, the battle over same-sex marriage is not so much a fight against the rights of others to enjoy relationships, but a fight for tradition and honesty and meaning. It is a fight for the true definition of marriage over a false definition that will change our lives forever.

This is the inherent danger with the push for same-sex marriage. This is the inherent danger with other groups who use the name "Jesus" but mean entirely something else. And this is why Shakespeare was wrong.

A rose may be just as sweet if you call it something else, but to call a garbage dump a "rose" and to change the meaning in the process, is just wrong.

What I am doing now...

As many of you know, I resigned as a pastor in the United Methodist Church effective June 16th of this year. While I absolutely loved being a pastor and I loved the churches that I served, I felt a calling from God to leave to pursue other interests. Specifically, I felt a calling for intentional evangelism, outreach, and teaching to the unchurched persons in our hometown who were not being ministered to by existing churches.

Thus, my wife and I created a new ministry called "Koinonia." "Koinonia" is the Greek word used in the New Testament for "fellowship," which we felt was an apt description of where we felt God was calling us. Our goal is conversation and fellowship with those who feel isolated and uncomfortable in formal church settings. Our hope is that through our ministry we might help these people become closer to God and eventually become part of an active and vibrant church.

Our approach is three-fold:

First, since we came to realize that many of my wife's clients at her Doggy Daycare were unchurched and unwilling to go to church without their dogs, we created a worship service on Sunday nights called "Woof and Worship," where people can bring their pets with them to a seeker-sensitive worship service.

Second, we offer more in-depth Bible studies in three locations, studying through the Bible with a verse-by-verse exegetical approach, tailored to the various participant's needs.

Finally, we are trying to get our friends to participate in servant evangelism and outreach to the community because we firmly believe that faith without feet is, as James put it, "dead." By encouraging our friends to get out and exercise their faith, it is our hopes that it becomes real for them as they see God minister through them and change hearts and transform lives.

This is our goal and mission as we see it, and it is for this reason that we have parted from the Methodist Church. As time passes, I will try to continue to update any readers of this blog on what we are doing and how things are going. You can also find us on Facebook by clicking here.

If anyone is in the Valdosta, Georgia, area and wants to participate or to help in any way, please send me an e-mail at: gwlee2 at bellsouth.net.

SERMON: NEW BEGINNINGS, AGAIN...

13 June 2010

I. Introduction
-- if you have your Bibles with you, I would invite you to turn with me to Luke 24:13-35

13. Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.
14. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened.
15. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them;
16. but they were kept from recognizing him.
17. He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?" They stood still, their faces downcast.
18. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"
19. "What things?" he asked. "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people.
20. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him;
21. but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.
22. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning
23. but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive.
24. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."
25. He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
26. Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"
27. And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
28. As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther.
29. But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.
30. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.
31. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.
32. They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"
33. They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together
34. and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon."
35. Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

-- well, here we are again -- ten years ago I stood on this spot and read to you this exact same passage from the Book of Luke as I ended my first message in this church
-- we began that day in 1 Corinthians 3 as I shared with you my thoughts on Paul's message to the Corinthian church concerning following human teachers -- just as we discussed last week, Paul's concern in this passage was that the church at Corinth had elevated earthly leaders to unseemly positions and that they were becoming divided because some would only listen to the teachings of Paul -- while others would only follow Apollos -- and still others, Peter
-- I used this passage as a springboard to the start of my ministry here -- and just as Paul pointed out that it was God who raised up each of these men and who gifted them in different ways in order to accomplish different purposes in the church, I told you that I could not be another Allen Carmichael or another Fred Foster or do what any of the other former pastors had done
-- we talked about how God moved pastors in order to build upon the foundation that He had built in the church -- and how every pastor had something to offer -- even if it was not exactly what you expected or wanted
-- I told you I didn't know how God wanted to use me -- or where He was leading the church at that time -- but I made you two promises on that first Sunday ten years ago
-- first, I promised to be myself and not to try to be Allen or Fred or any other pastor -- I promised to use the gifts and talents that God had given me to do the best I could to faithfully serve you as your pastor for as long as God allowed
-- and, secondly, I promised to let God lead through His word -- to base all my sermons and all that I did on the Word of God and nothing else
-- and, then, I challenged you to make a commitment to me -- do you remember what it was? -- I challenged you to bring your Bibles and to check everything I said and everything I did and everything this church did against the Word of God -- I told you that you were to be like the Bereans that Luke mentions in the Book of Acts -- men who would go home each night after Paul preached and who checked what he said against the Scriptures
-- I told you that this Bible was to be your guide and that, if we let it, it would be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path
-- and then I turned to this passage in Luke 24 that has probably become very familiar to you over the past ten years -- the story of the two disciples leaving Jerusalem on the road to Emmaus after Jesus' death on the cross
-- this passage has always been a personal favorite of mine -- and I can honestly say that it has changed my life
-- it is a passage that speaks of transition -- of new beginnings -- of new journeys -- of new experiences with Christ
-- and, just as we looked at it as I began my ministry here, I would like to look at it again -- as my part in this great adventure with you comes to a close and as another prepares to take my place

II. Scripture Lesson (Luke 24:13-35)
-- so, let's share together the word of God from the gospel of Luke again this morning
-- before we turn back to this passage, let me give you the background of this passage and remind you once again of one of the key elements to understanding scripture that I have tried to impress upon you for ten years
-- context, context, context -- never take the word of God out of context -- never allow anyone to share with you the word of God out of context -- but always make sure you know and understand the background of a passage -- know who the passage was originally written to and what they would have understood from this passage before you ask the Holy Spirit to help you apply it to your life
-- with that said, let me give you the context of this passage

-- the good doctor Luke -- Paul's traveling companion -- wrote this letter that we call the Gospel of Luke for one main reason -- to make sure that early believers had the true and complete story of Jesus' life so that they might know with certainty the things they had been taught and could live out God's truth in their own lives
-- in this particular passage, Luke is continuing to tell us what happened after the chaos of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday -- Jesus had been betrayed into the hands of the Chief Priests by one of His own disciples -- He had been tortured and crucified and died -- and He had been buried in a borrowed tomb in a garden not far from Calvary -- that was about as much as these two disciples on the Emmaus Road knew
-- they had heard that the women went to the tomb and found it empty -- they knew that Peter and John had gone to the tomb and found it in the same way -- but they didn't know why -- they didn't understand the meaning of the empty tomb
-- all they knew was that Jesus was dead -- and all they had dreamed and believed about Jesus was dead too -- all they knew was that the disciples had scattered and the priests were persecuting them -- and while some of the disciples hid in the upper room out of fear of the authorities, these two did the only thing that made sense to them at the time -- they left Jerusalem

-- look at verse 13

13. Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem.
14. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened.
15. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them;
16. but they were kept from recognizing him.
17. He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?" They stood still, their faces downcast.
18. One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"
19. "What things?" he asked. "About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people.
20. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him;
21. but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.
22. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning
23. but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive.
24. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."
25. He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!
26. Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"
27. And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.


-- What was Emmaus? -- we know from the text that it was a village about seven miles from Jerusalem -- you can go to Israel today and see Emmaus -- or at least the ruins of Emmaus -- that is the historical and physical fact
-- But, Emmaus was something else spiritually to these two disciples -- it was the place of new beginnings -- it was the start of a new journey for them
-- as the Sabbath ended and it became lawful for Jews to travel again, Cleopas and his companion hit the road and started on a new adventure together -- they didn't know what to make of the events of the past three days -- they didn't understand what was going on -- and so they walked down this road together -- talking and discussing everything that had happened and trying to make sense of what God was doing through the death of Jesus
-- as they are walking along trying to make sense of life, they were joined by Jesus Himself -- He opens the scriptures to them and reveals to them the story of their life -- sharing with them the truth of what they had been going through and explaining how it all fit together and how everything was going to work out for good in their lives because they loved and believed in God

-- in a very real sense, isn't this what church is all about? -- isn't this what we have been doing together for the past ten years? -- as I look back on the last ten years, I can see that we've been on a journey -- and on this journey, we have done exactly what Cleopas and the other disciple are doing here in these verses -- we've talked and we've discussed everything that is going on in our lives -- and we've tried to make sense of what God was doing in us and through us along the way
-- we've laughed -- we've cried -- we have seen new friends join us in our journey -- and we've said goodbye to loved ones -- we've rejoiced over the good times -- and we've been saddened over the bad
-- over the past ten years, we have been through so much together -- September 11th -- the tsunami of 2004 -- Hurricanes Charlie and Ivan and Katrina -- earthquakes in Haiti and Chile and China and Japan -- flooding in our own country and even in our own local area -- many, many natural disasters
-- we've seen wars start and wars end -- we've seen Bethlehem occupied by terrorists as Israel fought for its own survival -- we've seen our own men and women fight in Iraq and Afghanistan -- and, most recently, we've watched as an oil spill in the Gulf has threatened our economy and our way of life
-- we've shared in the glory and triumph of six different Olympic games -- the election of two presidents -- the birth and baptism of our own children and grandchildren -- and the graduation of our seniors -- we've worshiped at revivals and we've been filled with both fellowship and food time and time again -- at homecomings and fifth Sunday revivals and just because it was time to have another covered dish
-- we've been through two bishops and four district superintendents -- we've had 10 charge conferences and we've filled out enough reports and sent enough paper to the South Georgia Conference for a lifetime
-- but through it all, we have journeyed together with one goal and one purpose in mind -- to share life with one another as we sought to follow God with all our hearts and all our minds and all our strength -- and as we have walked along, talking and discussing the events of our lives, Jesus Himself has joined us in the journey
-- if that isn't the church, then I don't know what is -- if that isn't life, then I don't know what is

-- verse 28

28. As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther.
29. But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.
30. When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them.
31. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.
32. They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"
33. They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together
34. and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon."
35. Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

-- Even though these two disciples had been discussing spiritual things among themselves, the real truth came from Jesus
-- as Jesus broke the bread with Cleopas and his friend at the meal that night, their eyes were opened -- they finally understood as they recognized Jesus in their midst -- they understood what the cross was all about -- they understood what the resurrection meant -- and they understood what they had to do
-- notice that Luke tells us that when the disciples finally made it to Emmaus that Jesus acted as if He were going farther -- why? -- why did He do that?
-- Jesus always had a purpose for what He did -- He never did anything without there being a deeper meaning involved -- in this case, I think He was trying to let the disciples, and us, know that our journey is never done so long as we are here on earth
-- we might come to forks in the road -- we might come to a place where our paths diverge -- we might see the end of one adventure -- but all that means is that a new one is beginning -- all that means is that the journey continues
-- that was certainly true for Cleopas and his friend as they headed back to Jerusalem to share the good news of the risen Christ with those hungry for the Word
-- and this is certainly true for you and for me -- for a while we shared the road together -- but now our paths diverge -- Kim and Brooke and I are beginning our own new adventure and my time of walking with you is coming to an end
-- soon another will join you on the road -- another will share your journey -- and just think of this -- if we have been through so much over the last ten years, who knows where you and Jacque will go together? -- who knows what great adventures you will share? -- what great truths you will uncover?
-- but one thing is for sure -- your journey with Christ continues -- and I thank you for letting me be a part of it for the time we had together

-- as I end my time with you, I could think of no better way to do so than to share with you Holy Communion one more time -- this sacrament has deep meaning to all of us -- not only does it open our eyes and remind us of what Jesus has done for us -- of His body and blood that was given so that we might have life
-- but it reminds us that we are one -- that even though we make take different paths -- that even though we may tread different roads -- we are still family -- we are still one in Christ
-- and so, as we close in prayer, let us go to the Lord and rejoice in what He has done for us in the past and what He will do through us in the future as we prepare our hearts to receive Holy Communion together
-- as always, as the last hymn is played, the altar is open for any who wish to respond -- and after the hymn ends, we will share together in the Lord's Supper
-- let us pray

SERMON: THE TEST OF FAITH

6 June 2010

I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to 1 Corinthians 1:10-18

10. I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.
11. My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.
12. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas "; still another, "I follow Christ."
13. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
14. I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15. so no one can say that you were baptized into my name.
16. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.)
17. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
18. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

-- every year at Moody Bible Church they have what they call "Founders Week" -- it is held to commemorate the birthday of the founder of Moody Bible Church -- and it is a time for all of those who have been impacted by the church's ministries to come together for a time of spiritual enriching and renewal as the focus of this week is about getting back to the basics of the church's foundational beliefs
-- in the Methodist Church, we have something similar -- every four years we gather for what we call "General Conference," when Methodists from all around the world gather together to worship and to remember the past and to look towards the future -- we also have similar gatherings at the local levels called "Annual Conferences" -- in fact, the Annual Conference for South Georgia is just beginning this week in Tifton
-- as I said, these gatherings are times for the church to come together to do two main things -- to remember and to look forward -- to remember means that we look back at the beginnings of our denomination and to the foundations of belief that God called this church to when it was started back in the 18th Century
-- most of us know that John Wesley is considered the founder of Methodism, but did you know that this was not Wesley's goal when he started his career? -- Wesley was actually an ordained Anglican priest -- he was a member of the Anglican Church in England -- and his Methodist movement began -- not as a means to create a new church -- but as a way to reform the Anglican Church
-- Wesley was concerned that the Anglican Church had lost its way -- lost its meaning -- and he wanted to help get the church back to the basics of belief -- so Wesley began to work inside the church to encourage an orthodox view of Christianity -- he emphasized the fact that we had to meet people's physical needs as well as their spiritual needs -- and he felt that the church should do more to reach out to those who were outside the church -- to the social outcasts -- at that time
-- however, Wesley's efforts were not widely accepted within the church -- and because of persecution, he reluctantly allowed his Methodist Societies that were in the Anglican Church to begin meeting outside the church and eventually to form a new denomination
-- but Wesley hated the concept of denominations -- he felt it divided the church of Christ -- he felt it was unbiblical -- and he even had dreams about the effect that the rise of denominations was having on the entire church of Christ
-- he tells the story of a dream he had where he was ushered to the gates of Hell -- from outside the gate, he called inside and asked, "Are there any Presbyterians here?" -- and he heard a resounding "Yes!" from inside -- Then he asked, "Are there any Baptists? Any Episcopalians? Any Methodists?" -- each time the answer was "Yes!"
-- Very upset over what he had heard, in his dream Wesley was then ushered to the gates of Heaven -- There he asked the same questions, "Are there any Presbyterians here? Any Baptists? Any Episcopalians? Any Methodists?" -- this time, the answer came back "No!"
-- To this, Wesley asked, "Who then is inside?" -- The answer came back, "There are only Christians here."

-- I don't know what it is about human nature, but we sure like to divide up, don't we? -- we break up into clubs and cliques -- into groups and organizations -- into factions and gangs
-- if you take 100 random people and put them into a building, before long, they will have divided themselves up -- we can see this all around us -- we know this, because we do this
-- think about our schools -- when I was in high school, we were very much divided -- we had the jocks -- the preppies -- the druggies -- the brainiacs -- the farmers -- the cheerleaders -- and the losers
-- and it doesn't get much better when we grow up -- we are having our Squadron picnic in a few weeks at work -- this is a time for everyone who works in the Civil Engineering Squadron to come together and just take an afternoon off and eat barbecue and play games and just enjoy each other's company
-- when I first started at Moody, I went to a couple of these picnics, but I quit going -- someone asked me the other day if I was going to go, and I said, "no, because of all the divisions" -- even there, in a crowd of people who work together, we divide up into our own particular cliques -- all of the environmental people get together in one group -- and all of the shops -- the electricians and the plumbers and the HVAC folks get together in another group -- and all the engineers and architects in another group -- and all the squadron leadership in yet another one
-- this is supposed to be one big party, but instead it divides up into many, individual gatherings

-- unfortunately, that is what we see in the church all too often, too -- not only today -- but all the way back to the very beginning of the church -- we see that all too clearly here in this passage
-- Corinth was a cosmopolitan city -- it was kind of like Washington D.C., Los Angeles, New York, and Las Vegas all rolled into one -- people flocked there from all regions of Rome's empire
-- Corinth was the center of government, commerce, sports, wealth, and sin -- their patron saint was Aphrodite, the goddess of love -- and her temple was served by a thousand prostitutes -- it was a mix of saints and sinners and of every ethnic group at that time
-- Paul had founded the church that he writes to in this letter -- he first visited Corinth around 51 AD and within eighteen months he had formed an exciting community of converts from all walks of live -- but, just five years later when he wrote them this letter, the church was on the verge of disintegration because of division and factions and cliques -- he wrote this letter to them because he was upset with them and was concerned about what they were doing to the body of Christ
-- let's look back at this again and see what we can learn from Paul's message to the church

-- verse 10

10. I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.


-- Paul doesn't waste much time getting to the point in this letter -- right after his opening greetings to the church, he immediately launches into the reason for this letter that we know as 1 Corinthians
-- he says, "I appeal to you, brothers, that you might agree with each other and have no division in the church" -- the KJV makes this a little stronger -- it says, "I beseech you" -- in other words, Paul was so concerned about this that he was literally begging the church to come together -- he was pleading with them to get rid of this divisions -- to put aside their differences -- and to unite together as one under Jesus
-- he doesn't appeal to them based on his position as the founder of the church or as their pastor, but rather, he appeals to them on the basis of Jesus -- "in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, stop these divisions"
-- and then he goes on to let them know exactly what he is talking about

-- verse 11

11. My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.
12. What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas "; still another, "I follow Christ."


-- divisions had risen in the church at Corinth in just five short years -- and these divisions weren't over doctrine -- they weren't over worship matters -- these divisions were about who the church was going to follow
-- you had some people there who were going to follow Paul -- it didn't matter who Paul sent to lead the church, they weren't going to listen to them -- "I'm a Paul man -- Paul started this church -- and he never steered us wrong -- I'm going to follow Paul"
-- you had others that really liked Apollos -- Apollos was a fiery young preacher -- new in the faith and very eloquent -- and that's just what they were looking for -- "I'm going to follow Apollos -- boy, he can really bring it -- he's got fire in his sermons"
-- others said they were to follow Cephas -- Peter -- after all, wasn't Peter the head of the whole church -- Peter was there from the beginning -- wasn't it Peter who Jesus always called to go off with Him when He needed a friend? -- "if he was good enough for Jesus, he's good enough for me"
-- finally, you had a group of them there who took the spiritual high-road, "We follow Christ" -- sounds good, but in reality all they were really saying was that they wanted to do their own thing and they weren't going to follow any preacher, regardless of who he was
-- divisions -- cliques -- factions -- I'm glad that we're above that now in the church -- or are we?

-- verse 13

13. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?
14. I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15. so no one can say that you were baptized into my name.
16. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.)
17. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel--not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
18. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

-- not many of us here know the name, Dr. E.H. Chapin -- but when it came to revivals -- when it came to evangelical preachers in the mid-nineteenth century -- he was the man -- you might say that he was the Billy Graham of their day -- people would come from miles around just to hear him -- they would travel days just to sit and listen to this well-known and respected evangelist
-- well, one day Dr. E. H. Chapin got sick and knew that he wasn't going to be able to preach that Sunday -- so he asked a friend to fill in for him at church -- as the service began, there was a buzz in the congregation as a stranger got up and stood behind the pulpit to announce the opening hymn -- within seconds, a whole group of people got up out of their seats and began making their way to the door
-- the stranger looked around and understood at once what was going on -- so, from the pulpit he said, "All who came here to worship Dr. Chapin can leave now; but those who came to worship God can turn to hymn number 43 and sing all three stanzas"

-- that's basically what Paul is saying here -- he reminds the church of Corinth of the real reason they are there -- that church wasn't formed for Paul -- it wasn't formed for Apollos or Peter or any other earthly leader -- no, that church was there because of Jesus and Him only
-- the problem was, the church had forgotten why they were there
-- so, Paul tells them, "I didn't die for you -- I wasn't crucified on the cross for your sins -- you weren't baptized into my name or Apollos' name or even Peter's name -- the one you should be following is Jesus because He's the one that we all are called to follow"
-- what is important is not what I did or what I said, but the message of the cross -- the message of Jesus -- the good news that Jesus died for our sins and rose again to prove His victory over sin and death
-- quit saying you're following me, because I'm nothing -- quit saying you're following Apollos or Peter or anyone else, because we're all nothing -- the only thing we are is servants of the living God, Jesus Christ Himself -- He is the one you should be following -- not us
-- over in Chapter 3 Paul carries this lesson a little deeper -- turn over to chapter 3 and let's end there

-- verse 4

4. For when one says, "I follow Paul," and another, "I follow Apollos," are you not mere men?
5. What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe--as the Lord has assigned to each his task.
6. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
7. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

-- Paul points out that regardless of how charismatic a preacher might be -- how gifted -- how talented -- how dedicated -- they are still only human -- and humans are not to be worshiped
-- by breaking into factions like they had, the church at Corinth was, in essence, putting Paul and Apollos and Peter up on pedestals where only Jesus should be -- and they were worshiping them instead of the risen Savior
-- Paul once again points out here -- "Apollos and I are just servants -- and we're different servants -- God gifted us in different ways and He used us in different ways -- and just because God touched you through one of us, doesn't mean that you should follow only that person from now on"
-- Paul points out that his calling was to evangelize -- to plant the seed -- to spread the gospel
-- Apollos came after him -- not to replace Paul -- not to supplant Paul -- but to further God's work in Corinth by watering the seed -- by building on the foundation that Paul laid and by helping the people grasp deeper spiritual truths
-- but, over all, Paul writes -- it is only God -- God is the One who made you grow -- God is the One who works in you and through you to build this church -- and you need to quit trying to divide yourselves up over earthly leaders -- but follow God and Him alone

III. Closing
-- I read one time about this church that had gone out and bought a new church sign -- you see, the old church sign they had only had the name of the church on it and the worship times and it couldn't be changed -- and they wanted one of those new signs so they could put out a catchy message on the road to get people's attention
-- well, this church was a lot like the church at Corinth -- and they were divided -- and so, when it came time to put a message on their new sign, they argued back and forth -- and they yelled at each other and they just couldn't decide what to say
-- finally, they said, "well, for this one Sunday, let's put out a message that sums up the way our really thinks" -- so they had the sign-keeper put out the message, "Jesus Only" on their sign
-- that night, there was a major thunderstorm -- lightning and thunder -- hail came up and the wind roared and roared -- that Sunday morning, when they went to church, they found out that the wind had actually blown some of the letters off the sign -- and the new message really reflected who they were
-- you see, the "J" and the "E" and the "S" got blown away -- and instead of reading, "Jesus Only" -- the sign now read, "Us Only"

-- that's the problem with division -- that's the problem when people get so enamored over earthly leaders or over their particular issue that they forget what the church is all about -- it quits being about Jesus and it starts being about "us"
-- Paul's message is clear -- our purpose as the church is to exalt and worship Jesus and nothing or no one else -- and when we quit doing that, then we're no longer the church
-- so, as we close today, I want to encourage you to take a moment and think about why you are here -- what is the reason you are here today? -- is it to worship man or is it to worship God? -- is it to press your agenda or God's agenda?
-- let's pray