Draw Near to God With Confidence
(NIV) Heb 10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another —and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
In what or in whom do you place your confidence? When we cross a bridge, we trust that the structure will hold firm until we pass to the other side. When we board a plane, we rely upon that mechanical bird to transcend gravity to deliver us safely to our destination. And when we lift our voices in prayer, we believe our words will carry the weight of the Scriptures through the power of the Holy Spirit.
This morning, following my physical therapy, we stopped at The Toasted Yolk for breakfast. While waiting for our coffee, we began conversing with a woman at the table next to ours. She had just returned from a chemo treatment, and after a few more minutes I asked if I could pray for her. She readily agreed and I moved to her table where we joined hands and hearts as we approached our Heavenly Father. We exchanged names and numbers and I returned to my table.
After finishing our meal, our server stopped and told us our meal had been taken care of. I asked who had provided us with this kindness, and she pointed to the table. It had been occupied by four women, and one of them told our server that she had some extra money and wanted to pay for our meal.
I immediately thought of verses 24-25 of today’s scripture which I had read prior to my appointment— “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another…”
I never hesitate to encourage others because that is my heart. And regardless of what obstacles these people face, I join with them in prayer, possessing the full assurance brought about by faith. May we remain aware of those around us whose day can be made a little better by a caring word, a friendly touch, and the knowledge that God patiently waits for us to draw near to Him.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
That Great Cloud of Witnesses
(NIV) Heb 12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Do you ever think about that great cloud of witnesses? The author had just listed what is called the roll call of the faithful in Chapter 11. He then reminds us that those who persevered, not because they achieved God’s promises on earth but because they relied upon them, make up these witnesses. And I imagine them in an arena, and I am running a race. I am exhausted, close to losing hope, yet there is a mighty roar, and and I begin to understand the words—come on, Carol, keep going, you can do it!
I imagine my family and friends are in that great gathering, and they, too, cover me with prayers offered up over many years, and the prayer bowls where these petitions are stored are poured out upon me just when I need them the most.
We may be surrounded by people, or we may lead a solitary existence, but God’s promise that He will never leave you or forsake you is not conditional. And therefore, we can have confidence regardless of our circumstances, that faith will carry us through.
May we remain so grounded in God’s Word that our confidence will not be shaken, but instead we will press on toward the goal remaining strong in the Lord.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
On New Years Day, 2025, I would like to share a sermon I delivered in 2012. Happy New Year, everyone.
Wake Up, Christians!
Romans 13:10-12
10Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.
An Urgent Appeal
11 Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers; 12the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of darkness and put on the armour of light;
When we lived in Richmond, VA there was a radio show called “Earl Pitts, Uhmerican.” Earl began every rant with “you know what makes me sick, you know what makes me wanna throw up,” and then he would proceed to tell you. At the end of every segment Pitts said, “Wake Up, Uhmerica.”
Could it be that it is time for us to begin to say, “Wake up, Christians.” What I would like to share with you in these last couple of days in 2012 are these three things that I pulled directly from today’s Scripture:
- When given a choice, always choose love
- Wake Up to new possibilities
- Dress for a new day is coming
When I read the book of Romans, I feel like I am receiving a lesson on the history of Christianity. Paul recounts what life was like before Christ, and he instructs the converts that they are no longer under the law, but under grace. But grace does not free them to continue in their sin. As Paul says, God forbid. Rather, grace frees them to live in victory over their sin.
Our scripture today begins by telling us since love does no wrong to a neighbor, love is the fulfilling of the law. Amen and Amen. When the love of God begins to permeate our beings, then we will know we’ve moved beyond mere Christianity and into kingdom living.
Loving people who are like you is easy, but loving those who are different is not. Have you ever known someone who is just plain contentious? If you say black, they say white, if you say straight, they say crooked. What about people who clearly don’t love you? As disciples, how do we react?
1 John2: 5 But if anyone obeys his Word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in Him. 6 Whoever claims to live in Him must walk as Jesus did.
So the key to loving all people is obedience to God’s Word. Is it easy to love all people? No. But it is necessary. When we move into kingdom living, we are not made perfect but we are perfected in love. Our humanity is covered by Christ’s divinity, and because of Christ we are able to choose love.
Paul goes on to say that we are to understand the present time. During Paul’s time Christianity was facing very real obstacles. The Jewish Christians had reverted to a kind of hodgepodge of Christianity and Judaism. They would only accept Gentile Christians if they agreed to circumcision. So much for grace!
The Gentile Christians argued that God’s favor no longer fell upon the Jews so there was a real schism between the two groups. In reading the epistles, the early Church seemed to be in constant danger of eradication, if not from without then from within.
Today the problems Christians face may be different but they are no less threatening. Many people, even in North America, find the Church to be irrelevant. Christians are depicted as weak, using religion as a crutch. Some even go so far as to say God did not create us, but we created God so that we could have someone to blame when things go wrong.
We have lost many of our religious freedoms just in my lifetime. As a child, we read scripture, prayed and pledged allegiance to our flag at the beginning of every school day. In atheist countries such as China Christians are being imprisoned. In Muslim countries such as Iraq and Libya Christians are being martyred.
Paul says to wake up from sleep. What does that mean to us? We must stop playing church and be the church wherever we are. When we serve at a soup kitchen, do we perform such service as an obligation, or do we throw ourselves into what we are doing with a spirit of joy? When we see someone in need, do we hope someone else will stop and help so that we don’t have to, or do we give of ourselves, even if it is inconvenient?
Wake up, Christians, not to a new way of doing church but to a new way of being church.
How do you wake up in the morning? Do you have an internal alarm or do you need a physical alarm? Do you need someone to jostle you out of bed? Can you string a few words together to create a sentence or must you have a strong pot of coffee first to get your intellectual juices flowing.
If it is so hard to wake up physically, then how much more difficult is it to wake up spiritually? We don’t have an alarm clock to remind us that it is time to become alert, nor do we have the equivalent of spiritual coffee. So how do we wake up spiritually?
We must become disciplined in the word and in prayer in order to awaken to our responsibility and to grow the fruits of the spirit in our lives. Paul reminds us that when we accept the grace of God into our lives, we undergo a transformation. Where we once lived in the night, we now live in and reflect the light of Christ.
When the night is over, we take off our nightclothes and dress for the activities of the coming day. As disciples we are told to put on the whole armor of God. Ephesians 6 even lays out our clothing for us. We put on the helmet of salvation, we put on the breastplate of righteousness found only in Jesus, we gird our loins with the truth of the gospel, we pick up the shield of faith which can deflect slings and arrows from any direction, we are supplied with the sword of the Spirit, the living, breathing Word of God, and we go out with new shoes that leave footprints of peace wherever we go.
Should Jesus return during my lifetime, I want to be found sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, I want to be serving in my church, and I want to be helping the poor and the downtrodden.
A new year is upon us. We have a chance to start afresh, because that is what new years do, they enable us to leave our baggage in the previous year and begin with a new, fresh perspective.
Isaiah 60:1 says
“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.”
Eph 5:8 says
For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.
Eph 6:13 says
Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
The night is nearly over, but the day is almost here. Perhaps we should begin greeting each other with “Wake up, Christians” and the response would be “We are Awake.” So how about it church? Wake up, Christians! We are Awake!
In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Benediction:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace so that you may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Go in peace, and take the name of Jesus with you, and share Him with everyone you meet.
Mary Pondered these Things in her Heart
(NIV) 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.
Tonight is Christmas Eve, 2024. I have watched Home Alone for the umpteenth time, and I am reading the account of Jesus’ birth for more than the umpteenth time. I partook of Holy Communion on Sunday morning, repeating the liturgy to myself that I spoke so many times. I listened to Rev. Mark Evans’ sermon, “From the Cradle to the Cross,” where he made the very salient point that without the cradle we could not have had the Cross.
On Sunday night we returned for a Candlelight Service, where we celebrated the first Advent of Jesus, and the service concluded with lighting individual candles. My bonus child, Shawna, accompanied us and it was so good to worship with her again.
I think of the part of the Scripture that reads, “they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” What did Mary consider that night so long ago? Just a young teenager, had she been given any insight into what was to come?
Pondering means to reflect, meditate or ruminate. Did Mary pray for supernatural knowledge or wisdom, or was she content to rest in God? Could I be as faithful as she? Could you?
May we, as we celebrate another Christmas, remain faithful to the calling of Jesus Christ, recognizing Him as God made flesh as we share His light with a world that is in darkness.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Our Security is in God
(NIV) Psalm 16
1 Keep me safe, my God,
for in you I take refuge.
2 I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
3 I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
4 Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.
5 LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
7 I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
8 I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
10 because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your
faithful one see decay.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Don’t you love the Psalms? Part of my daily reading includes the Psalms, and when someone is grieving or dealing with chronic pain or disease, I always point them to the Psalms. Why? Because David experienced everything we have or could ever experience, and he recorded his defeats and triumphs, his joy and his sorrow, in that marvelous book.
In Psalm 16, David is running from Saul and at this point he believes his death is imminent. David, whose harp playing had once soothed Saul when he was overcome by depression and anger, has now become the object of Saul’s jealousy. Yet David knows, believes and understands that his hope is in God.
When we place our hope in God, our circumstances may not be altered, but the way we react to our circumstances will inevitably change. No one embraces life altering disease or injury, particularly if we have led active, healthy lives. But life happens and when we can turn our focus on God, claiming Him as our portion as David did, then we, too, can have the security of our faith.
May we, like David, seek after God regardless of our circumstances, praising Him through pain, resting in Him through hardship.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Seeking Holiness 