Three years ago this past summer, one of the college students at my former congregation found out that he had a brain tumor.
I’ll never forget that evening waiting with members of his family and girlfriend as he had an MRI done and then was told it revealed a brain tumor.
But, what is special about this story is the support I saw from his friends as he readied for surgery. The morning of his surgery, I had to step over people in his room because his friends, who had camped out all night with him and would stay almost around the clock, were lying on the floor around his hospital bed.
The surgery that August Friday morning came and went. It went well, but they could not get the entire tumor.
Early the next week, they asked him what he wanted to do. “Get all of it,” was his reply. And so, the following Friday, a week after the first surgery, he was opened up again. And they got the rest of the tumor.
Today, he is a junior in college and there has been no sign of another tumor.
Those days and weeks were moments of sheer anxiety for this young man and his family, but, God was very present, and through the miracle of modern medical procedures, he was made well.
One of the songs that I shared with those who crowded in his room was “God Is In Control” recorded by Twila Paris. It spoke to me and many others, I believe, about the reality of who is really in control when life, as we have tragically seen this week, is out of our control.
I have had many different thoughts and directions of thinking this week in regarding to what I would say this morning under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
After the attacks of this past Tuesday, I was ready to both dismiss the next passage in our study of Romans, which will conclude next week, by the way, and address this week’s events and its surrounding attitudes and emotions. But, then I thought about what the next text is and remembered that there is an important connection with it and the events of this past week.
However, I also realized that as you would enter this morning for worship, there most likely would be an attitude of “Pastor, is there a good word for today?” And my answer to that important question is, “Yes, there is a good word for today!”
And in the processing of all of this a passage out of Isaiah came to mind, a passage that speaks to the reality of this past week’s events. It speaks to the reality that God is in control!
The passage is Isaiah 36:13 – 20. Now, before I read it, I want to place it in context. Israel is shattered. It has split into two kingdoms – the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Hezekiah was king of Judah. This was some time after David and the dominant nation of that time was Assyria, which included the area of the nation that we now call Syria, northeast of modern day Israel.
The Assyrian king, King Sennacherib, had pretty much taken control of the surrounding area and Judah was next on his list. So, he sent some representatives to King Hezekiah to ask basically for surrender.
Well, as kings usually do, Hezekiah sent out his representatives to talk with the Assyrian representatives. Diplomacy has been around a while.
Well the two sides engage in talks, like nations do today. The Assyrian representative begins to harass the Israelites by bragging about the strength of his king and the power of his nation and that who do you think you are, Judah, to withstand this great and powerful nation?
Well, the Assyrian speaks all of this loudly in front of other Israelites who are standing around and listening along with Hezekiah’s representatives. They ask him, as we read in verse 11, “Please speak in Aramaic, for we understand it well. Don’t speak in Hebrew (the native tongue of Israel), for the people on the wall, (the others) will hear it.”
That somewhat enrages the Assyrian delegate who then, as we pick up the text at verse 13, speaks to the people on the wall.
Read the text
The guy had an ego didn’t he? We can hear the mockery, the condescending tone, in his voice, can’t we? “Your god (small g, by the way) save you? Nonsense! No other god has been able to deliver its people, what makes you think that yours can?”
Well as we read on, this really discourages Hezekiah and his leaders. They rip their clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, a Middle Eastern sign of mourning and sadness. But, Hezekiah seeks God and the prophet Isaiah says to him “God will deliver you and this nation from this threat.” And God did, as we read in chapter 37: 36-38.
Read the passage
So, what’s the good word for the day? God is in control! He is still God! And though sin still is very much alive in the human heart, grace, God’s grace is still very much alive as well! We do have much to be thankful for.
But, how has/how will the tragic events of this past week change us? Will it change us for the better or for the worse? Is it causing us to head toward God or away from Him and toward something else?
Right now, I want you to place your right hand on your left shoulder. Now, tap your hand on your shoulder. Do it again. One more time.
What have the events of this week done to you? What have the events of this week done for you? Have you said, “I love you” more to those who really count in your life? Have you found yourself reflecting on your commitments, your schedule, and your agenda and thinking, “what is really important?”
I believe that there are a lot of people today who are reassessing their lives, their commitments, and their values. I think especially of those whose family members called them from a highjacked airliner in their last moments of life. But, will it move them toward or away from God?
One of the expressed hopes in light of September 11, 2001 is for America to turn to God like never before. But, who is America? (Tap your hand on your shoulder) I am America, you are America and if America is going to return to God that means that you and I must return to God. What does that look like?
This brings us to our second scripture text this morning – Romans 12. And this chapter provides us with some important targets and directions for what return to and living for God looks like. Read along as I walk through this chapter.
Paul says many important things in this chapter. But, today, in light of this week, in light of our future, in light of eternity, there are four major areas that Paul says to us that we need to not just understand but also do as we realize that we live between two worlds.
Major Area #1:
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world. Let God transform you by changing the way you think. In Colossians 3:1-3 Paul wrote, “Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.” Does this mean that we don’t care what has happened in New York, Washington, and the Pennsylvania countryside? No, it means that we care because we see these tragic events in light of a different perspective because we think and see through the eyes of God. Paul also lists some other ways that allowing God to change the way we think, makes us grow closer to God:
A. By having an honest opinion of ourselves. In verse 3 Paul says, Be honest in your estimate of yourselves by how much faith God has given you. Some of us here today are people of great faith. Some of us struggle to have faith. Others of us are growing in our faith. But, pride has no place in any of our lives. Pride and conceit, block faith because the emphasis of the first two is on our self while the emphasis of the third is on God. God has much for us to possess. We need to show proper humility and care to one another as we seek to listen, understand, and love.
B. By finding our place of service in the life and ministry of the church. In verse 4 – 8 Paul basically says, What ever your gift is, use it well and use it for God! Every one of us has a gift. Every one of us has a calling, a ministry in this congregation. Part of our spiritual renewal comes as we take what God has given to us and use it within the body of Christ and out in the communities – home, neighborhood, work, and school – that we are a part of. What is your ministry? How are you actively serving God these days? Do it well, do to the best of your ability because America needs to see and experience the church like never before.
C. Finally in regarding to a life lived by changed thinking Paul says in verses 9 - 11, don’t pretend to love – LOVE! Probably the greatest indicator of our spiritual condition is how well we love. But, not just say it – but do it. John said it bluntly in I John 4: 20 and 21, “If someone says, “I love God,” but hates another Christian, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we have not seen? And God himself commanded that we must love not only him but our Christian brothers and sisters, too.” Pretty blunt, isn’t? Take a moment a look around the sanctuary – some of us have been sitting next to or near one another for years – how well do we love one another? Our nation needs to see real love in action not just talk and that means that they see and experience and God’s love in practical ways.
Major Area #2: Living for what is good.
Paul then goes on to make statements that are very imperative for us right now. They deal with how we are going to handle opposition to not just the Christian faith but to the wrong that, as we are painfully aware of this week, is a part of life. In verse 9, in the midst of his encouragement to love, Paul says, hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. What does he mean? How do we do this? Especially when there is an overwhelming desire to fight back and there is anger toward those who did these terrible things and those who helped them. The placement of this statement is important to note. Paul wraps it around a call for love – real love, God love, along with caring relationships in the following ways:
D. In verses 10 and 11 Paul says take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically. How well are we honoring one another? How well are we spending our time at work, in retirement, in the classroom, at home? One of the ways that we stand on the side of the good is by honoring one another and spending our time very well.
E. Another way that we stand on the side of the good, God’s good by the way, is mentioned in verse 12, be glad for all that God is planning for you. Do you believe that God has plan, a future, and a mission for you and are you willing to gladly and willingly accept that plan? I believe that God has such a plan for each one of us and we need to accept that plan – and that plan involves helping others to understand and then experience God’s desire to make them right with Him through Christ.
F. Another important way that we stand on the side of the good is stated in verse 12. Be patient in trouble and always be prayerful. Now let’s take a minute a look at the person on our right, now look at the person on the left. Do you know what you are looking at? You are looking at America! Oh how we need to demonstrate to America right now a very Godly patience amid calls for immediate and significant action! And not only that, we need to pray and pray for God’s will to do be done. I would have us remember there are Arab Christian brothers and sisters both in this country, and in the countries of those we will militarily target, who may have some influence in ways that our power may not. Are we willing to pray that God would use them, like He used Queen Esther in ancient times to protect His people?
Major Area #3: Dealing with persecution and opposition.
Finally one of the ways that we understand what it means to live between two worlds is how we will decided to stand up under persecution. I would have us remember this war Rome that Paul was writing to. It was not a safe place for Christians. It was a place where Christians were persecuted. Paul says in verse 14: If people persecute you because you are a Christian, don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. How do we bless them? Here are some ways in Romans 12
A. Be happy with those who are happy and be sad with those who are sad. Seek to understand another’s situation. Clichéd phrases just don’t make it sometimes. Be sensitive to the other person. If they are happy about something that you find insignificant don’t demean it – be happy with and for them. Likewise, if they are grieving over something that is very personal to them – think about what makes your grieve – and grieve with them. Sometimes the two best words of comfort are, “I’m sorry.” Of all people, followers of Jesus Christ should be able to do this better than anyone else. By attempting to identify with the joys and sorrows of others, we make the Christian faith more presentable to them.
B. Live in harmony with each other, Paul says in verse 16. One of things that I appreciate about our church is its diversity. But, we also need to live in harmony. I like good harmony in music; it adds richness and depth to a performance. Harmony is needed a much as unity right now. It is what really makes things happen. Harmony helps unity stand up under persecution. Take another look at the people around you, what kind of harmony can or do you bring to their life? Our nation needs both unity and harmony. Peace is a combination of both.
Major Area #4: Doing and being good.
In all comes down to this, “Don’t let evil get the best of you, but conquer evil by doing good.” We need to hear that this morning. And we need to more than hear that, we need to do it! Amidst the tragedy and shock and anger and anguish and the fallout of this past Tuesday we need to overcome evil by doing good and we have just listed some ways of being good – honor, love, respect, expectancy, restraint, compassion, and harmony. We now must do good!
This is not a time for panic although we certainly feel uncertain and afraid. This is not a time for unbridled anger although we certainly want justice to occur. This is a time for faith. This is a time for us to do what is right and to stand for what is right. This is a time for us to really pray what has been known for years as the Serenity Prayer; God grant me the serenity to accept the things that I cannot change, courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.
There is a lot in life that we cannot change and we waste so much time and effort trying to fix things.
But there is a lot that we can change – primarily in ourselves. Do we have the courage do so?
The entry for the May 8, 2000 Promise Keepers’ devotional guide, Men of Integrity, shared this story.
After a daring and successful 1942 bombing raid over Japan, led by Jimmy Doolittle, Bombardier Jacob DeShazer was one of eight downed in Japanese-occupied China. The military rulers took savage revenge on them. Three died by firing squad. Jake DeShazer, in solitary confinement and consumed with hatred of his captors, frequently fought with his guards. In return he was cruelly beaten.
But one day, a guard thrust a Bible into DeShazer’s hands. In the dim light of the cell, Jake read and was gripped by the prophets, which he reread six times. Moving on, Jake read with mounting excitement about Jesus. Reading in today’s Key Bible Verse, (which was "If you confess with your mouth, ’Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9).) DeShazer fell to his knees and prayed for forgiveness.
Jake forgave his captors as God had forgiven him. He realized that they mistreated him because no one had offered Jesus to them. If he survived his prison ordeal, DeShazer promised God, he would do so.
Released at war’s end, he trained for missions, returned to Japan and over the next 30 years witnessed to thousands who flocked to see the "Doolittle raider."
In becoming a prisoner of war, Jacob DeShazer had to surrender to his captors and he lived for over 3 years between two worlds – the world of life, which was not easy as a POW, and the world of death, which was a very real possibility.
This morning, our future is very much on our minds. What will it bring us as both Americans and as Christians? God knows and because of that I think that it is time for us to surrender ourselves as both to God. We need God because it is God’s desire to have a right relationship not with America but with Americans, and really the entire world, for that matter.
We live between two worlds. We must draw on the hope and life that is offered by the one in order to live in the other and that comes only as we surrender all of ourselves to Christ. Do so today! Amen.
