Throw Them Down and Build It Up

We celebrated Homecoming this past Sunday.  What a special time to see so many people come back "home" to visit and worship!  This Sunday was quite different from many.

We began by hearing an account of the woman who was caught in adultery and was brought to Jesus.  As we know, the purpose of the woman being there was just to put Jesus in an awkward position and have Him condemn this woman through stoning as was the law.  Instead, Jesus turned the situation around.  He had them look at themselves and the one without sin was to cast the first stone.  They, of course, dropped their stones and went away.  But, what about the woman?  Jesus is there for her, too.  He provides peace in this difficult storm.  He provides safety despite the circumstances.  He provides forgiveness as only He can do.  He provides a saving power that is unmatched.
So, I ask to you:

Have you felt the saving power of Jesus?  Have you felt the calm peace in the face of a storm in your life?  Jesus has rescued us all…we are all sinners.   One sin is not greater than the other.   We are all condemned.  We are only saved by the power of Jesus Christ.  We can know the same saving power as the woman in John 8.

 Let's think about the stones for just a moment.  In the story of the woman caught in adultery, stones were going to be used by the people of that day to kill.  They had already hurled stones at her before then.  They had hurled stones of bad looks…judgments…condemnation for what she had done – as if their sins were justified and hers not.  Jesus caused them to take a look at themselves and realize that their sins were no better than hers.  They were all sinners in need of saving grace.

I want to compare this with a scripture in the Old Testament that also talks about stones.  We talked last year about the memorial stones that Joshua placed after passing over the River Jordan.  That was a monumental event for God’s people.  He wanted to remember it.  I want to mention another Scripture as well:  1 Samuel 7:7-12

We can hurl stones at people – judge them for their actions – cast a glare because we think we know who they are…We would be forgetting that Jesus tells us to cast the first stone if we are without sin.

What happens?  Our stones begin to hit the ground.  We put them down…When we put them down…we should instead raise our Ebenezer…God has helped us.  We were sinful people who were condemned forever until the Redeeming blood of Jesus Christ…

Thus far, the Lord has helped us! 

What are you doing with your stones?  Are you casting them at “those people”…those people who are sinners just like you…OR are you raising your Ebenezer and letting others know that “thus far, the Lord has helped you…”  When we call on Him, He answers and helps…We can’t forget that.  When the Israelites called upon the Lord, He heard and rescued…the same happens for us.  For we serve a God that is the same yesterday, today and forever.  He is Unchanging…Faithful…Loving – and ALWAYS there!!  What will you do with your stone?  Let’s build an Ebenezer!! 

What would YOU say?

What if someone were to ask you what this “Christian stuff” is all about?  How do you answer someone who doesn’t get what Christianity is?  They see you come to church, maybe see that you are nice person, see how you react to difficulty…and now they want to know what it is all about.  What do you say?  It can be difficult because when posed with the question, we tend to stumble.  We can always go back to the standard – Jesus loves you.  But that doesn’t completely answer the question.  We could give them the pastor’s phone number and ask them to call him or her.  Maybe the pastor can answer better.  But, better yet…maybe we should all be prepared to answer.  We see in the New Testament that Paul was faced with a similar type of situation.  Acts 17:16-21

First, we see that Paul was in Athens and he noticed that there were many idols…and that these people had time on their hands…

Paul wasn’t afraid – he was confident in what he knew.  He debated with them and they must have heard what He was saying because they wanted to know what it all meant (it was new for them which they lived to hear new things).

Paul had several things to say…Acts 17:22-34

What did Paul say?  I have selected five main themes that I think will help us as we uncover what Paul said to those in Athens: 

1 – Paul looked around and observed his surroundings – he met them where they were – looked at the altar “To the Unknown God”.  He knew they spent much time worshipping these gods – so he wanted to tell them about the One True God.  He didn’t insult them, but started with what they knew.  As he looked at the altar of the Unknown God, Paul went on to explain who this God was that they didn’t know.

2 - He explained the difference in the God he served and their gods(verses 24-25) – Creator God, isn’t reliant on humans to help Him, gives life and breath to all things.  Their idols would be have been quite dependent on them and would not be considered creators.

3 – Shared how this Creator God is also a personal God (verse 26-28) – God created man that can seek Him, find Him and have hope in Him and He is not far from each of us – our life is found in Him.  It isn’t that God is one sitting high and mighty in heaven and doesn’t care about us or want to have a relationship with us.  This is also something quite different than they were use to.  They were not use to a personal relationship with their gods.

4 – Since we are God’s and we were formed by God, we shouldn’t think that God would be formed in gold or silver or stone or in an image that humans can come up with (verse 29).  God doesn’t want any other gods before Him and he certainly isn’t competing with something made by humans.

5 – There was a time of ignorance, but that excuse isn’t good enough anymore – There will be a day of judgment where all would be held accountable for their actions and now there is a call to repentance because of Jesus Christ (verse 30-31)

Here is the kicker – Jesus is introduced – as judge and redeemer…this would either open their eyes if their hearts were ready or turn them away…

Because Paul was willing to stick up for what he believed and tell them what it meant to follow Jesus, there were some who became believers.

What would you say if someone asked you about the God you served? 

Our Lifestyle...

I wanted us to continue to look at what it means to have our lifestyle match our worship.  James 1:19-27 is the Scripture.  I sum up this text like this:  "Our Mouths, Hearts, Hands AND Feet should all be in one accord with the Lord." 
In order to begin looking at ourselves, we need to compare ourselves with the Word.  It is as if we are looking into a mirror, except the Bible is our guide for how we are to be.  When we compare ourselves with the Word of God, we find that we are sinners...we find that we are not perfect...we find that we fall short...we find that we need God!  We realize that we need God more than ever and it is quite a humbling experience.  When we look at ourselves compared to the Word, several things may appear: 
What we say should reflect the love of Jesus - not filled with gossip, hate, hurt, filth. 
What we believe should be directly in tune with the Word of God.
Our hearts should be in tune with the Word and with the Lord because we are filled with the Holy Spirit.
What we believe and have in our hearts, what we say with our mouths, should then be reflected in our actions.
It is often said that we are to be the hands and feet of Jesus.  It is difficult to be the hands and feet of Jesus if we don't know Him, don't have a relationship with Him and/or don't listen to Him.
We can talk a good game and might even believe some good things, but if we don't act on what we know in the Word, it is useless. 
We are called to love, called to serve, called to be obedient...
May our mouths, our hearts, our hands, and our feet be in one accord WITH the Lord!

Transformed...

Do you ever feel like you need to justify yourself or make yourself feel better by looking at the good things you do?  You go to church...you pray some...maybe even open your Bible occassionally...then there was the time you helped that person...and that other time you went out of your way for the other person...
Why do we want to make ourselves feel better?  We may do this because we feel guilty for something - may not know what, but guilty and want to feel better about ourselves.  Maybe we don't feel guilty...but maybe slighted by God because He didn't answer our prayers the way we wanted or do exactly what we wanted...and look at all the good things we have done - we can name them all!!
We aren't the first to feel this way...Isaiah 58 tells us about a people who were feeling quite justified themselves...READ IT...
This scripture begins with a proclamation...God wants Isaiah to shout it out...get their attention!!  The prophet was to let them know about their sins (just like the Holy Spirit does today).  Too many times we do not see our sins (we can find them in someone else though).  God sees our sins and wants us to be aware of where we are straying away from Him. 
Here was a problem with the Israelites...they were doing the right things the right way - but not for the right reasons.  They were going to "church" and doing their daily devotions and fasting and praying and approaching God...but they were doing it so God would take note of what they were doing...in turn so they would get a blessing...
God didn't accept their sacrifice though...Reminds me of the story of Cain and Abel in Genesis...
God explained to them that they were doing all of these things but continuing in their sins all week long.  They would "do church" but go about their sins the rest of the week without any regard to God or His proclamations.  Their worship was shallow...no substance.  They weren't really there to worship the Holy One.
How about us?  Is our worship shallow because we aren't willing to follow the Lord all week long?  Our lives should be TRANSFORMED as we devote ourselves to Him.  Our lives should reflect that we have been with the Lord...that we have spent time with Him...that we have devoted ourselves to Him.  When our lives are transformed, we can serve God and in turn, serve others...
When we do the right things for the right reasons, then lives are changed (including ours!)  When we do these things, God recognizes this.  He provides mercy...He hears our cries...He provides the ultimate direction.
Why do you worship?  Just going through the motions or really giving yourself completely and totally to Him?  Let us be TRANSFORMED!