Messed Up But Still Anointed

Messed Up But Still Anointed

Pastor Talbert W. Swan, II

Leviticus 21:16-23

16 The LORD said to Moses, 17 "Say to Aaron: ’For the generations to come none of your descendants who has a defect may come near to offer the food of his God. 18 No man who has any defect may come near: no man who is blind or lame, disfigured or deformed; 19 no man with a crippled foot or hand, 20 or who is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or who has any eye defect, or who has festering or running sores or damaged testicles. 21 No descendant of Aaron the priest who has any defect is to come near to present the offerings made to the LORD by fire. He has a defect; he must not come near to offer the food of his God. 22 He may eat the most holy food of his God, as well as the holy food; 23 yet because of his defect, he must not go near the curtain or approach the altar, and so desecrate my sanctuary. I am the LORD, who makes them holy.

INTRODUCTION

Statistically 97 out of 100 babies are born healthy…however, an expected mother has a 3 to 4 percent chance of giving birth to a child with defects. However, if defects run in the family then the chances are alarmingly higher. A birth defect is a problem or challenge that is present at the time of birth. A birth defect can be so mild that on the outside the baby looks normal…it is not until testing has taken place that it can be ascertained that something has gone awry. In medical terms there is phraseology called congenital anomalies, which is an abnormality of birth. Something happened while you were still in the womb that was not detected. 40 percent of birth defects come from genetics or environment. 60 percent of birth defects to this day cannot be traced to the place of their origin. With all of the technology, all of the strides…they still cannot pinpoint where the brokenness came from. They just know that 40 percent comes from genetics or environment.

BORN AGAIN

I’m saying all of that to say that any person who was born again…there is a high chance that while you are born again….you were born again with some defect. Because I’m born again does not mean that I’m perfect…it doesn’t mean that I am devoid of issues…but 40 % of my issues come from the stuff I had to deal with in my family or my environment. But there is 60% percent of the stuff that is going on with me that is not from my family…not from my environment and I don’t know how to fix it because I don’t know how it got broken. So how do I deal with my issues when the church doesn’t even have an answer for the issues and the areas of my brokenness? And what happens if my brokenness is so mild that by looking at me I seem normal. It is not until you have spent some time with me that you find out that there are some deep seeded wounds that I don’t know where they came from…..and I don’t know how to get rid of them.

I don’t know where you’re sitting in this sacred space called sanctuary but somebody…everybody around you was born with something. We were born in sin and shaped in iniquity…my sin may not be your sin but if you stick with any person long enough you will see some traces and some highlights of a person who is wounded with an issue.

Because we are living in a politically correct era we no longer use the term handicapped…we now use “disabled, challenged or impaired” So my hearing is impaired…my sight may be impaired…If I’ve lost my limbs I am challenged. But isn’t it strange that when you try to live for God…what you face are challenges…things that God never designed to handicap you but to see if you would be able to walk through life knowing something is wrong. The only way that you’ll keep hurting yourself is if you pretend that you don’t have a challenge. But when you know you have a challenge you can readjust your life bcuz If you don’t readjust your life you’ll keep bumping into stuff…you’ll keep falling over things…you’ll miss it when things come in your direction.

TEXT

So imagine how alarmed I was when I read Leviticus chapter 21 with all of the sensitivity training that is given in a corporate structure as to how to use proper terminology and what needs to be in the restroom and how there needs to be an adequate entrance way and how there is a need to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act….so how out of all places in world that in the Word of God we seem to find discrimination against people who have issues. In Lev. Chapter 21 God uses an unlikely source…he tells Moses..these are the people who cannot work for me in the church. These are the people who can’t bring the offering…who can’t stand on my behalf…these are the people who do not meet the standard…these are people that are messed up.