Our oldest son is in the Navy. Last year my son’s submarine, the USS Santa Fe finished a major overhaul and returned to its homeport in Hawaii. When a ship or submarine goes through a major overhaul, it undergoes a series of sea trials and exercises before it deploys. The purpose of those is to make sure that both ship and crew are ready to engage in battle. Often, this is not a happy time for the crew of the ship. In fact, things can get down right testy.
When my son’s boat – I have no clue why, but that’s what submariners call their submarine, a boat – was on sea trials, my son was a bear. He was griping and upset the whole time. His blogs were angry, his tone of voice was rough – all this because the demands on his men and on him were so intense. They had to work 16 and 18 hour days and they were at sea and away from their families so much of the time. Now friends, I’m not sure whether you know this or not – but in the Navy, griping and grousing are taken to a whole other level. Complaining is a fine art with it’s own vocabulary and idioms. When it comes to fussing, Lutherans come close, but in a ‘griping and grousing super bowl,’ I’d put my money on the Navy guys.
In August of last year, during one of those sea trials, the USS Santa Fe engaged in a pretty routine manuever – the sub put up its air-recycling snorkel. This device is a periscope-like tube that is pushed to the surface of the water in order bring in fresh air. Then something very un-routine happened - a valve in that snorkel failed. Instead of fresh air coming into the boat – in a few seconds thousands of gallons of saltwater poured into the submarine. The saltwater caused some electrical fires in the boat. Immediately the crew went to general quarters. The long hours of training made a huge difference when the chips were down. The crew was able to control the situation and the USS Sante Fe returned safely to harbor.
When the chips are down – that’s when it’s important to respond with the right decisions and actions. Ask the 155 people who were able to walk away from the Airbus A320 airplane that was landed in the Hudson River by Captain Chesley Sullenberger. When a flock of birds knocked out both engines, every decision had to be right because life and death were at stake – and 155 people were able to walk away from the plane.
You might think that those kinds of situations only occur if you are a pilot or maybe a member of the crew of a nuclear submarine or in some another critical vocation. But that is not the case at all. You see, every single one of us steps into the breach much more often than you might imagine. While in that breach, we are right at the place where heaven and earth meet. We become part of an ageless struggle - a struggle whose cosmic significance was made plain on a Cross on a hill where the God-Man, Jesus Christ, put it all on the line when the chips were down. Jesus made all the right choices, under the most impossible conditions so that the people of the world would have an opportunity – a chance – a possibility, of coming
into a loving, living relationship with their Creator.
And this epic and cosmic struggle is re-lived in the life of each person. We all come to a place in our lives where heaven and earth meet. Sometimes this happens many times in the life of a person. It might be cancer. It might be a divorce. It’ll be different for each of us. And at that place we’ll find Jesus. At that place, the Lamb of God has met people for generations, taken them by the hand and translated them into God’s eternal Kingdom. At that place, people who are lonely and afraid - and sometimes despised - find a friend named Jesus who really, really understands them – and who is so very willing to embrace them.
How does God make this possible today? It happens as God puts his people in a position to be little Christs in the life of others. It happens as God puts us into positions to honestly, genuinely hear and engage others. We don’t even have to go out of our way to do it – God creates the opportunities and the venues that enable that to happen. There is a reason why the body of Christ is so diverse. There are cookers and bakers and candlestick makers in God’s Church. There are people weld and drive and people who are healers and CEOs. Each of us is uniquely prepared to be able to enter that one little corner of the world and to take the light of Jesus Christ into it.
God inspired Saint Paul to write: 19 Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.
As we learn about the life of Saint Paul, we find out that God put him into many, many unusual situations. He was able to be God’s messenger to Governors and Kings, and also to prisoners and philosophers. He engaged Apostles and religious leaders and physicians and sellers of purple cloth. He was beat up, locked up, put in chains arrested and finally martyred – killed - because Paul was so powerfully driven to become all things to all people so that he could be in a position to share what Jesus Christ accomplished through the Cross and the Resurrection.
Maybe the obvious question is, “Hey pastor, you saw what happened to Saint Paul, why should I put myself on the line in that way? My momma didn’t raise no fool - why should I risk my dignity, my pride, my cool image – by putting Jesus out there?
Well, I could give you a big, long involved theological answer to that question. But here is the bottom line, dear friends: The chips are down. Maybe on the surface of things it is difficult to see the enormity of the struggle that is involved. But it is a huge struggle. The Chips are down. Saint Paul was inspired to give us a powerful insight to what is really going on: He said, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:10-12)
We – as Christ followers have that rare privilege of being the vanguard of Jesus Christ in that struggle. There are no other things – there are no other things - in life that we can do that really and truly have the possibility of affecting eternity – but our relationships with others do have that possibility.
So what does this mean? How do we engage that battle? How do we become all things to all people? Here are some simple do’s and don’ts as we engage this battle:
1. Don’t try to provide answers to questions that people are not asking. Be real. I have seen Christians engage people in ways that feel like there is a predetermined script. But that isn’t the way that Jesus engaged others: He recognized the Samaritan woman’s personal situation; He offered Nicodemus personal words that he needed to hear; He loved the Roman Centurion’s faith and told him so; He recognized the rich young ruler’s problem and got to the heart of it; He knew where Zacchaeus’ heart was and opened heaven to him. Jesus engaged people where they were - personally. God puts us in positions to also engage people genuinely and honestly – out of that relationship we can actually earn the privilege of hearing what their worries and pains and struggles are and from that vantage point offer the reassurance of God’s love.
It doesn’t have to be hard. Just let people know that you care about them. At a congregation that I previously served – two ladies got breast cancer. Both of them were going through all that that involves. They were hurting, they were in pain, they were scared. They were even losing their hair because of the treatments. So – I shaved my head so that they would not feel so out of place in church. Now, let me tell you – I caught some grief for doing this – but those ladies really, really appreciated it. You met one of them at my installation service.
2. Here’s a second don’t: Don’t look at people as targets. Have you ever felt that you were simply one more notch on the belt of a Christian headhunter? So we engage people as people. The key to this is to keep your heart open to the leading of the Holy Spirit. This means that you will not necessarily ask every person that you meet, “Are you saved? – or, Do you know Jesus as your personal Savior?” But it does mean that you will be open to see if there is pain or hurt in that person’s eyes. You will laugh and celebrate with others. You will, as the Spirit leads you, offer to pray for people. And you won’t ignore them in the future if they don’t accept your offer. (story of young man who visited New York)
3. Here’s the final thought that I’ll offer you today: Do ask God to help you overcome fear. You see, I shared with you that the chips are down. You are engaging the powers of darkness when you decide to enter into another person’s life carrying the light of Jesus Christ. Don’t you know that the evil one wants nothing more than to have Christians be timid, fearful and isolated? But God continually puts us in positions to be salt and light. And what did Jesus promise as He sent us on the task of being salt and light – “I will be with you, even to the end of the age.” We as people convert nobody. But we are light bearers who take Christ’s love to others. By doing that we bring people into proximity of the Gospel so that God the Holy Spirit can bring people to Christ.
A few months ago I visited a rather unusual church in Houston. During the sermon, the pastor said this, “I was at a concert event recently where there were a lot of people. I wasn’t there five minutes before somebody asked me to go outside to smoke a joint.” For those of you who don’t know – what the pastor was offered was a marijuana cigarette. The pastor said, “I knew right then that I was right where I needed to be. Not because I took this guy’s offer – of course I wouldn’t smoke pot. But I was where the light of Jesus Christ was needed.”
May God put you, dear friends where the light of Christ is needed. May God give you the heart of Jesus Christ to engage people in loving, genuine ways. May the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus so fill you that you can see others the same way that Jesus saw you – with love and forgiveness. In our epic battle - may the Lord grant you the great privilege of making the right decisions when the chips are down. Amen.
