On The Road Again
Matthew 7:24-27
July 30, 2006
If I were to identify the top issues, causes or concerns of Christians in the United States, 3 come to surface immediately for me.
Based upon letters to the editor and Supreme Court Decisions.
Based upon agenda items at School Board meetings and news reports on the TV.
3 issues seem to get a lot of attention from Christians these days.
The issues of homosexuality
abortion
and evolution
Perhaps you might add 1 or 2 that are different, but I would make the point that these issues - homosexuality, abortion and evolution are among the top issues that Christians are concerned about these days.
Now hear me closely, I too have opinions on each of these issues. I believe the Bible does give guidelines to us that can help us to address these but my concern, my conviction of late is that our God has other concerns in addition to these 3.
Our God is passionate about other matters as well.
Our God has an opinion, a teaching, a desire that his people not just focus on these but on other matters that at times seem to be closer to his heart.
Issues such as poverty
racism
injustice
finances
adultery
to name a few. But the list could go on.
I believe that these 3 hotly publicized issues are indeed popular:
1st-because our current culture is causing us to respond to these issues as it wants to lead our country in ways that our contrary to the ways of God.
2ndly, I believe these 3 issues, homosexuality; abortion and evolution are also popular among us because for many, if not most within the Church, they don’t really affect us. We don’t deal with them personally or regularly.
If I were to ask how many of you have a friend who is a homosexual, many of us would say we may know some homosexuals, but are not friends with them.
If I were to ask how abortion has touched you personally, I’m guessing some here have had close contact, but most not.
And when speaking of evolution, most parents of children from my experience don’t get too emotional about this.
And it is because these 3 specific issues don’t contact us regularly that they have become I believe easy points, issues, concerns for us to rally against, because they don’t affect us. Jesus’ teachings on these matters are easy for us to follow. Obedience is easier here.
Some of you are thinking, I’ve never heard him begin a message like this in 6½ years. Does he know what he is doing? He’s stirring up a can of worms here. I may wonder when I’m done if it was the right thing to do.
But I begin this way to make this point. We cannot choose certain issues on which to advocate a Christian position and neglect others.
Said another way - we cannot only select these 3 issues/or whatever your top ones are and ignore other matters that matter to God.
Does a cook only choose certain steps in a recipe or certain ingredients in it to follow and ignore the others?
Does a good referee or umpire only follow half of a rulebook?
Does a car mechanic change only half the spark plugs or balance half your tires?
Do teachers only teach students half of the alphabet?
Of course not.
But far to often and far too easy is it for us/ for me to choose the rules, guidelines, teachings of Jesus that are easy for me to follow, while ignoring the one’s that would ask too much of me.
And far to common is the temptation to want to be vocal about matters that are easier for me to obey while keeping silent on issues that I struggle with.
I believe in many ways Jesus followers, of which I am one, have mixed up Churchianity for Christianity. We have settled for, created and institutionalized a way of thinking, living and worshipping and following of Jesus that is vastly different from what Jesus intended.
Even though we sing, "I surrender all - All to Jesus I surrender, I surrender all.
Churchianity says it is ok to select what you surrender to God
Even though we sing, "Seek ye first God’s Kingdom and His righteousness." A song about moving forward, seeking God and desiring to be made more holy.
Churchianity often doesn’t allow God in to lead, direct and guide.
"We’ve never done it that way before." Is the mantra.
Well could it be that if God is alive and is all powerful and knowing that he may be creative and do something in a way we’ve never experienced? You see Christianity doesn’t necessarily preserve the past, its rules and regulations but instead is open to allowing God’s new work, his new methods in.
Last Sunday, you’ll remember we had sand at each door to this room. Though most of you did your best to avoid it on the way in, I asked specifically that you not avoid it on your way out. I introduced to you a phrase common in Jesus’ time, the phrase "May you be covered with the dust of your rabbis feet."
The point of the sand was to illustrate the fact that you and I, as followers of Jesus can be and are to be covered with his dust, his teachings, his way of doing things.
And my point today, we cannot pick and choose what those things will be. We cannot choose to follow God when the path or issue is easy and then bail out when he is asking for something sacrificial.
We cannot give God our legs but not our arms.
our head but not our heart.
If Jesus is our Teacher/our Rabbi, we as his followers must trust that he knows what is best and adjust our life to his way. When we do, life truly begins.
This week, I was convicted that if Jesus were to analyze my ability to follow in his dust, to walk along his path or road, he might say that I stop in at too many rest areas. That I get off the main road for breaks too often.
With 3 kids now, Deb and I are becoming well acquainted with rest areas. Before we would zoom by them. But not now. Now we’ve made stops to most of them along I-5 it seems.
The thing about rest areas is that they are meant to be not the final destination but a break on the way.
To drink and drain as my 4th grade teacher would say.
To walk the dog and stretch the legs.
To empty the trash bag and to change the diaper.
But they were never meant to be the destination.
the final stop.
I’ve never seen a postcard of a rest area. I wouldn’t buy one if I did. Rest areas are only temporary spots on the journey.
There aren’t hook-ups.
hotels.
or restaurants at these.
And yet in my spiritual life, as I follow Jesus and desire to be covered by his dust, I in a sense pull off into a spiritual rest area when I choose not to follow his words for me about poverty, economic injustice, racism. I pull into a rest area when I let not his desires for me be those that guide me, rather than be ruled by what I am most comfortable with.
When I choose my way and not His.
When I am afraid to do what needs to be done.
When my own fears prevent me from being obedient.
When my own pride keeps me from reaching out.
I limit God’s good work in me.
My life, your life will only be transformed by God to the desire that you are willing to place it in his hands.
My mind will only be changed by God, if I allow him to have it. If I give it to him.
My family.
My friendships
My _______________ can only be brought into alignment with God’s desires if I allow him to lead me into his ways.
Instead of legislating and speaking up on issues that don’t affect me directly, the way of Jesus in me seems lately to be that he isn’t through. He isn’t through with me yet. He wants me on the road again to be covered by his dust.
So hear me, this sermon isn’t about
homosexuality
abortion
and evolution.
It isn’t, but what it is about is compartmentalizing my faith or my life and not letting God build his life for me in me.
So today I admit and tomorrow I will admit that I am unfinished.
I will always be unfinished.
I am a work in progress.
The Bible gives us many stories about people who only wanted to give God a bit of themselves, who only wanted God to have access to a piece of them.
I think of rich young ruler that approached Jesus, hungering to be transformed.
Though he was rich, $ hadn’t brought what he craved.
Though he was a ruler, having power, it didn’t quench deeper thirst.
Though he was young and full of life, something was missing.
When he approached Jesus and boldly said that he had been following all God’s commands, Jesus didn’t dispute with him, but simply asked him to give away his money and follow him. And he couldn’t do it.
He wouldn’t surrender it.
He would not let God be Lord over that part of his life.
I think of a group of people following Jesus who when they heard him, his purposes and his teachings, turned and walked away. (John 6:60-71)
They wanted to hold onto some thing in their life and when Jesus challenged it, they chose their way and not his.
But here is the deal, God knows we are like this. In part that is why the story of the Prodigal Son is so powerful. For when the son leaves home to live his own life. Life his way. In the fast lane, he does realize eventually that living this way will never satisfy.
And he bravely sets out to return home. Anxious and scared about how his father will react to him. But what does his dad do, he opens him up arms and welcomes him. He throws a party for him. For his child was home again to live life surrendered and in the care of his Father.
Friends, let us return to the Father.
let us allow him entrance in to all parts of our lives.
let us get out of those rest areas and walk and back on the road again. Seeking to be covered by his dust. Amen
