"Central" Sermon

“CENTRAL” SERMON

The Saviour in His earthly sojourn had a unique way of wrapping his messages around contemporary events (Luke 13:1-5), so toeing my Master’s line, here I go…

“Jab tak rahega , Samosae mein Allu, tab thak rahega Bihar mein Lallu” (till potato remains in the Samosa, till then Lallu will remain in Bihar…an apt rustic translation eh…) shouted the angry supporters of Lallu Prasad Yadav, the Chief of Rashtriya Janata Dal party and Ex-Chief Minister of Bihar State (the second largest in India in terms of Lok Sabha seats), even as he was being whisked away by the police from Ranchi High court recently after being convicted in the infamous fodder scam. A jail sentence of five years aside, can anyone bet against this earthy, street-smart Political maverick from making a strong comeback both in State and National politics? Now for the catchy afore-mentioned slogan… for the uninitiated Samosa with spiced, mashed potato filling in the CENTRE is an Indian snack relished by every Indian from “Kashmir to Kanyakumari”…(in the Biblical parlance the equivalent of Dan to Beersheba- 1 Sam 3:20). Really what is in the centre makes the difference in a sandwich too, isn’t it?

Now coming to the spiritual realm in this message, I am inspired to focus on only the “Central” subjects. Firstly…

CANON…

Action: Display of picture of Psalm 118:8

Psalm 118:8…the Central verse in the Bible (also described as the Canon) virtually sums up the Biblical message which is all about God-dependence in every area of one’s life. During moments of difficulty, by nature, we tend to look for visible, easily accessible means for problem solving. Though praying to the Almighty may seem to be a “long Route” in relation to juicy short-cuts in front of us, it is the surest way to get the best help possible in times of trouble. Let’s always be reminded of what the Scripture says in Zechariah 4:6

“…‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’…”

Now consider this Biblical example…Let’s pick-up action from 2 Chronicles Chapter 14…there was that good Judean King Asa facing the bleak prospects of winning a war against a million Ethiopian soldiers who were marching against his relatively tiny Kingdom. What did he do? Let the Scripture take over…

Zerah the Cushite marched out against them with an army of thousands upon thousands and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah. Asa went out to meet him, and they took up battle positions in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.

Then Asa called to the LORD his God and said, “LORD, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, LORD our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this vast army. LORD, you are our God; do not let mere mortals prevail against you.2 The LORD struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled, and Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar. Such a great number of Cushites fell that they could not recover; they were crushed before the LORD and his forces. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of plunder.-2 Chro 14:9-13

Action: Display of the map of the actual battle scene

Was King Asa faithful all along in the matter of God-dependence, after being a first-hand witness to God’s redemptive power? Well, that’s a different story but what I want to highlight is this; in this particular incident the great Grandson of wise King Solomon got his spiritual bearings right when confronted with the problem.

I have no qualms in saying that during a crisis the “real problem” for a believer is not the “problem” itself which is facing Him, but willful choice he makes at that time. Is he/she looking prayerfully unto the Lord for guidance and deliverance or is the believer’s gaze shifting to finite men and their puny resources for help?

CARAVAN…

Action: Display of map of camping arrangement of 12 tribes of Israel during their journey from Egypt to Canaan

Hey, did you ever notice, the truthful Scripture that does not gloss over the incidents of rebellion against the Redeemer God by the redeemed Jews (it’s painful, reading about them) after their shackles of slavery were broken in Egypt does NOT record a single incident of stampede when the caravan of nearly 2.5 MILLION PEOPLE under Moses’ leadership wandered in the Wilderness for 40 long years. Simply amazing, considering that even in this so-called “enlightened age” in various pilgrim centres’ around the World there are several instances of avoidable stampedes and subsequently tragic loss of many lives. The reason why there was not a single incident of stampede was that our orderly God (I Cor 14:33) led them in a highly systematic way as borne out by their perfectly methodical camping arrangement CENTERING AROUND THE HOLY TABERNACLE (NUMBERS 2:2) WHICH SYMBOLIZED THE ALMIGHTY’S PRESENCE. Also in their march, there was perfect order with the tribe of Judah leading at the front and the Tribe of Napthali at the rear (Numbers 10:14-28).