Long Branch Baptist Church
Halfway, Virginia; est. 1786
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Enter to Worship
Prelude David Witt
Meditation Ps 127:1, 128:1-2, 5-6
Invocation
*Opening Hymn #492
“I Know Not What the Future Hath”
Welcome & Announcements
Morning Prayer [See Insert]
*Hymn #373
“Take my Life and Let me be”
*Responsive Lesson [See Right]
*Hymn #344
“I Know Whom I have believed”
Offertory Mr. Witt
*Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow / Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise him above, ye heavenly host / Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*Scripture
Sermon
“Standing Tall ‘midst the Sirens’ Call”
Invitation Hymn #191
“I have decided to follow Jesus”
*Benediction
*Congregational Response
May the grace of Christ of Savior / And the Father’s boundless love
With the Holy Spirit’s favor / Rest upon us from above. Amen.
* Congregation, please stand.
Depart To Serve
RESPONSIVE LESSON
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd.
I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep.”
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate.
Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. The Father and I are one.
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths.
They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’
As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.
Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!
Jn 10:14-15; Ro 12:1-2 Jn 10:7-10, 27-30; Ro 12:9-10; 2 Ti 4:3-5; Luke 7.32; Ps 95:6-7
Long Branch Baptist Church
Halfway, Virginia; est. 1786
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Enter to Worship
Prelude David Witt
Meditation Ps 127:1, 128:1-2, 5-6
Invocation
*Opening Hymn #492
“I Know Not What the Future Hath”
Welcome & Announcements
Morning Prayer [See Insert]
*Responsive Lesson [See Right]
*Hymn #344
“I Know Whom I have Believed”
Offertory Mr. Witt
*Doxology
*Scripture
Sermon
“Standing Tall ‘midst the Sirens’ Call”
Invitation Hymn #191
“I have decided to follow Jesus”
Lord’s Supper
The Bread
The Cup
*Benediction
*Congregational Response
May the grace of Christ of Savior / And the Father’s boundless love
With the Holy Spirit’s favor / Rest upon us from above. Amen.
* Congregation, please stand.
Depart To Serve
RESPONSIVE LESSON
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd.
I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep.”
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate.
Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.
I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. The Father and I are one.
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths.
They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’
As for you, always be sober, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully.
Come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice!
Jn 10:14-15; Ro 12:1-2 Jn 10:7-10, 27-30; Ro 12:9-10; 2 Ti 4:3-5; Luke 7.32; Ps 95:6-7
MORNING PRAYER
Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for
our learning: Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn,
and inwardly digest them, that we may embrace and ever
hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have
given us in our Savior Jesus Christ; Grant us the pardon of those things which prevent us from beholding you.
PRAY FOR FORGIVENESS OF YOUR SIN
You are worthy to receive praise, honor, and glory.
Individuals’ Prayer List:
- Richard Puryear’s Mother
- Betty Privett’s daughter Cindy, and son-in-law: Lee
- Susan Schulz
- Martha Puryear & her son Burton
- Warren Lee
- Irene Griffith
PRAY FOR YOUR NEIGHBORS
You are worthy to receive praise, honor, and glory.
Lord, we praise you for the direction in which you have taken this country. Be a more present help to those whom you have elected to rule over us. Guide them not as we would want, but as you know we need. Lord, we pray for our enemies; we pray for our troops set in their way. Bring your peace to your world. We pray for your peace in Banda Aceh. What you have wiped clean with the tsunami can be overwhelmed again with your presence and love. Protect those who serve you there, we ask. But Lord, most of all, we pray for Long Branch and for our community. Let us be your witnesses as you promised we would be. Give us the lives and words we would need to be to share your love with our friends.
PRAY FOR YOUR COUNTRY AND CHURCH
You are worthy to receive praise, honor, and glory.
You are worthy to be our God. You are worthy to be Father, and so we return the prayer you taught us: Our Father …
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Thank you to everybody who came out for Saturday’s food drive. Seven Loaves’ pantries are getting better! Why not continue the trend? Harris Teeter has $0.39/lb turkeys, and Safeway has at $0.49/lb. “Bloom” seems to have a lot of $0.50 cans too. You can bring donations to Middleburg Methodist.
DATES FOR YOUR CALENDAR
11/22, 7pm Marshall Area Community Thanksgiving Service,
at Emmanuel Episcopal in Delaplane. Finger Food Fellowship follows.
12/2 (5pm), 12/3 (3pm) Christmas Concert at Emmanuel Episcopal in Middleburg. David Witt & Susan Hollinger will be singing.
12/ ( pm). Long Branch Christmas Party at Long Branch. Please bring a covered dish to share and any Christmas Cards you’d like to deliver
12/10 11am Middleburg Church Cantata “Celebrate the Child”
12/24 5:30pm. As Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday this year, we will be having a morning service, but not the traditional Christmas Eve Candlelight Service. Christmas Eve Night Service will most likely be held in Conjunction w/Middleburg (They’re still deciding)
DANIEL 3.16-18
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to present a defense to you in this matter. If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up.”
Title: Standing Tall the Sirens’ Call
Text: Daniel 3.1-18
FCF: Standing Firm against the world is only the last act of long process.
Intro:
The Greeks told a story about a guy named Ulysses. He was an old war hero trying to make his way home. But at one point on his perilous journey, his ship had to pass by a rock, on which lovely women – half women, half-bird, would sing to the sailors. Their song was so beautiful that they could entice anyone. And that was their trap. So enticed, any man who came near eventually became their next meal. So, Ulysses hatched a plan. He stuffed cotton and beeswax into the ears of every man on the ship, save one – himself.
As the men rowed past in silence, Ulysses desired to hear the song. As those faint chords echoed past, the story goes he became so enthralled and so enchanted with the song, that he started going berserk in an effort to reach the sirens. His men finally had to lash him to the mast to keep him from jumping overboard – to certain death. I guess it gives a whole new meaning to getting a song out of your head.
The Illiad, of course, is only a story, but even back 800 years before Christ, those Greeks knew a thing or two about the call of the world. We live in a world that is constantly calling out to us, begging us in a thousand different directions. Some are so obvious. I mean let’s face it: we all know drugs and pornography are dead end streets. Some are more subtle. Stay in bed, it’s so, comfortable. And, who says there is only one way to God. That’s so exclusivist! Others simply confuse: Give us this, Give us that! Send some more seed money! All voices designed to attract us to ‘their’ way of thinking, whoever ‘they are.’
But as Christians, we have only one shepherd. And, as the Bible says, we know his voice. Anything else is a distraction. When the world calls, there is no imperative to pick up. We serve but one Master. We need only listen to his voice. But I have to tell you: that is easier said than done.
This morning I want to set up a story I know you already know. But I want to focus your attention on this siren call, this pressure to conform to what “everybody else is doing.” Because, let’s face it. That’s the world we live in. From Howard Stern to Ted Haggard, everybody has a message for you, everybody has a plan for your life. But real life lives in those places where we have learned to discern the right voices, no matter the consequences.
As Christians, we are well aware of Paul’s admonition, not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. If we would live this out, we could take some good cues from our good friends, Rack, Shack, and Benny. [I’ll spare you the Veggie Tales theme song.]
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“And if not, O king, we will still not bow down.”
Those are some pretty tough words, but they are not out of character. We’ve already seen these three boys stand up to a king twice before. They wouldn’t eat his food, and when the king wanted to kill the wise men, they were there with Daniel.
Admittedly, I have no idea where Daniel himself is, in this chapter, though I found it interesting that at least one person suggested this reinforces the reality of what was happening. After all, if you’re trying to write a book about Daniel, it isn’t good practice to leave your hero out of a major scene!
But back to these men. Like I said, these words may be strong, but they aren’t out of character. They aren’t even presumptuous. We know how the story is going to end. They don’t. They even say as much – did you catch it? Our God is able to deliver us – but even if he doesn’t, we ain’t gonna bow.
Jesus often asks, if you aren’t faithful with little things, who is going to trust you with the big ones? God isn’t going to put you in the furnace until you are ready for it.
These are simply the words that are the natural result of living a life consistent with the promise: Bold words that come out of ordinary circumstance. So, this morning, I just want to briefly point you down this same path. Know where to go so that you can stand firm in the face of fear, no matter it’s size.
1. Know
I’d suggest to you firstly, that you must begin with a deep understanding of where you come from. You will notice that Rack, Shack, and Benny knew the law. They didn’t equivocate; they didn’t hedge; they didn’t feign ignorance. They simply called it as they knew it. You don’t bow down to idols. They didn’t have to look it up somewhere; they didn’t have to ask the pastor. The law was written on their minds and their hearts.
How do we do that? Simple. We do what they do. We read it. We read the law and we see who God is. We read the stories and see what God’s children do. We read the love letters and see what pleases God. Don’t get hung up in the details. As someone who actually can tell you the difference between a Moabite and Ephraimite, let me suggest to you that it will never be helpful to you except if you’re playing Jeopardy.
When you read, “Hear O Israel, the LORD your God is one,” you better believe, God is one.
Now, when somebody tells you, oh, Jesus is just one way to God? Well, it is helpful to know that Jesus said, No one comes to the Father, but by me. My sheep know my voice. Yeah – that’s important. Just take an hour a week and pick out a story or a small book, in an easy to read translation, and you’ll be amazed at what you learn. Trivia here: Acts tells us about some Christians in a little town called Berea. They knew the Scriptures, and Paul gave them a ‘shout out’ for it that now 2000 years’ worth of Christians have seen. You really can know the scriptures. If you can read, you are already ahead of 90% of the Christians that lived before literacy was universal.
2. Decide
But, I’d also caution you, don’t let it become just a head thing. You need to come to a decision about what you read. Will you know it in the way that I know who Adam and Eve are, or will you know it in the sense that Adam knew Eve? And that’s where Cain and Abel came from… When you have decided if you will be in charge or God will, you’ve made the decision.
In one of my classes this week, I read a sentence that said it best. “You will become what you worship.” If, like 99.99999% of the Babylonians on the plain, you decide to worship the king, you’ll end up like him. In the last chapter, we saw that king was, ultimately, going to die and someone else would take his place. In the next chapter, we’ll also this king literally is a nut case for 7 years. By deciding to worship that king, people decided they were ok with that. That’s what they chose.
But precisely three men realized that was a dumb decision.
