Last night, I gave a sermon at BASIC, our large group gathering for InterVarsity Christian Fellowship at Coe College. These first four weeks, we've been focusing on our chapter's vision: transforming, missional, reconciling, and hospitable. This being the fourth week, it was a hospitable evening. We arranged the furniture of the student union to feel more welcoming. Some of us bought or brought food (because who doesn't feel at home when they're eating?). We had blankets and pillows. We worshiped. It was a beautiful night, with God's presence abounding.
After food, singing, a testimony, and a skit, it was time for the message. I chose the passage of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10:25-37. The expert in the law was asking Jesus what he had to do to get into Heaven. Jesus asked what the Law said. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind. And love your neighbor as yourself. But this expert wanted more. "Who is my neighbor?" he asked. Basically, what's the least I have to do to get into Heaven? Isn't that the question most of us are asking? How much of my own path can I follow, and how little of God's, so that I'll still get into Heaven? And then Jesus dives into what he does second best (after dying for our sins): he tells a parable.
Take the time to read it (it's linked, like a lot of things later on). Even if you know it by heart. Don't be fooled into thinking God can't reveal a little more of Himself in the places you'd least expect. You've read it? Good. Now what keeps us from helping people? Inconvenience? Busyness? Laziness? Selfishness? Fear? Lack of knowledge/ability? Let me tell you something: I'm frequently guilty of all of these things. I depend on the forgiveness God has extended through the blood of His Son.
Look at the priest and Levite. They didn't want to get dirty. It was inconvenient. Maybe they were hurrying to get to the 4:30 showing of Charlton Heston's The Ten Commandments. Maybe they were thinking, "Awwww, man! If I help that dying dude, I'd become ritually unclean and have to spend time going through the purification process to be able to rejoin society." Clearly, the right thing to do would have been to help this desperate man, but these two "good" men passed him by. Fortunately, the Samaritan (who might I remind you, probably wasn't a huge fan of Jews. A bit of cultural friction there) thought this man's life was worth missing that movie.
Do you believe God has a plan for your day? Is it possible that the second you wake up in the morning, God's knows exactly what He would have you do? And if you're getting up late, maybe you've already missed a couple hours of His plan. *wink* Could he put you in a position to save a half dead man? Maybe you have the ability to feed someone who goes to bed hungry every night. See that pregnant woman toting a toddler? Hold the door for her. It could be as simple as saying, "Hi. How are ya?" to that person you didn't even know needed that today. We don't know what opportunities He'll give us each day, but we have to be willing to act. We are His hands and feet. Each and every person, no matter how insignificant we deem them, means the world to our Father. Helping others is helping God. He says so in Matthew 25:34-30.
Another question is how much do we have to help? The Samaritan offered his time, then his material goods, and finally his essentially uncapped financial resources. He was willing to do anything it took to care for that man. God certainly spared no expense for us, offering His Son to die the death we rightly deserve.
Remember the Golden Rule? You probably learned it in elementary school. Do to other people what you want them to do to you. Guess where you can find that. Yep. The Bible. Matthew 7:12 and Luke 6:31. So how do you want to be treated? Or a better question: How do you want your loved ones to be treated? Your mother or father? Brother or sister? Son or daughter? How would you feel to find that as they lay dying, someone passed by on the other side of the road because it was inconvenient? Every person you come across is someone's loved one. Someone's parent, sibling, or child. And even when there's no one on this Earth who loves them, their Father loves them immeasurably.
In His Book, God made it fairly clear that we are to be hospitable and love others. Peter and Paul (in Romans) tell us we are to love. You know what the great thing about love is? It never runs out. The expert figured out that the Samaritan was the neighbor to the dying man, the one who exhibited love. As Jesus said, "Go and do likewise."
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Monday, September 12, 2011
My Story
Everyone has a story. Mine isn't particularly exciting. I didn't get into drugs and hit rock bottom--spiritually, emotionally, mentally, and physically--to be scooped up in Jesus' arms and carried into the realm of salvation. I don't have a Josh Hamilton story (but here's his. Really, read it). I don't even have one of those college experience stories. I didn't meet Jesus for the first time through a Gideon or college ministry group. The way my life looks to the outside world didn't change. What many people fail to realize, though, is that I needed saving just as much as anyone else.
If you asked most non-Christians what was wrong with me, they probably wouldn't be able to find much (physical appearance and intelligence aside). They might consider me a "good" person. But what does that mean? Because they can't see my sins, they believe them to be nonexistent, and that is far from the truth.
I grew up in a Christian household, attending an Episcopal church every Sunday. Even from a young age, I generally thought myself to be righteous. I was fooled into believing society's definition of good rather than the Bible's. I was a "good" kid. I listened to my parents and teachers, and wasn't a jerk to people. As I got older, I stayed away from alcohol, drugs, and sex. And if you listen to the world, that's plenty enough.
But it isn't. For me, discovering this was a slow process. It's hard to admit that you're not good enough, isn't it? It's difficult to tell yourself you're not worthy. But anything else we tell ourselves is a lie. "For the wages of sin is death." ~Romans 6:23. However, the verse continues. "But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Jesus was our perfect sacrifice. In His perfection, He was worthy to take on our sin. Although this is something that is beaten into our heads from an early age, it takes a little more effort to truly understand it.
So of course I stood and sang hymns every week, praying when the service commanded. And I thought I got it. But I didn't. God demands more from us. In my later high school years, I began to creep closer. My priest, Martha Kester, took me under her wing, and we dove into Joshua. But then I moved on to college, a true test for many Christians.
I never was really tempted to join the college partying scene. Even without my beliefs, it's not something I would find attractive. But moving away from home for the first time makes it difficult to hold onto your faith. Fortunately for me, InterVarsity, a Christian fellowship group, had a chapter at Coe. Naturally, I got involved. At first, it was more of the same. I'd go through the motions, always attending large group and Bible study, but never really getting more than a smug satisfaction that I had done what was required of me. But eventually, I would accept the challenge God had been waving in front of my face for years to enter a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him. For the first time, I began to have a consistent time to read the Bible, pray, and just be with God. And it's amazing how much more spiritually full I feel. There's a distinction to be made between knowing and believing. For years, I had known that Jesus Christ died for my sins. But every day, I understand it a little better and have come to truly believe. Like any relationship, yours with God must be nurtured. It requires effort. It requires time. But I promise that the returns are so much more than the costs (there's my economics background popping up. Don't worry, I'll suffocate it). Isn't an eternity with our Holy Father worth so much more than our finite time or other resources on this Earth?
God continues to reveal Himself to me, a little each day. He's blessed me with a wonderful family, amazing friends, and a beautiful, incredible, altogether lovable fiance. But so much greater than any of these is His greatest blessing of all: His Son. When I think about what He has done for me--no, not just think, but dwell, meditate, reflect, ponder, wonder--I am often brought to tears. Tears of joy with the knowledge that Jesus has defeated my sin and my death. Now my task is to continually seek Him and to remain in Him.
Do I still screw up? ALL THE TIME. God isn't asking us for perfection. He gave us the perfect offering. All we have to do is accept it. I can't make myself good, clean, or holy. But there is One who has been given to us who makes us presentable to our Father. And He loves me (and you, too) beyond all measure.
If you asked most non-Christians what was wrong with me, they probably wouldn't be able to find much (physical appearance and intelligence aside). They might consider me a "good" person. But what does that mean? Because they can't see my sins, they believe them to be nonexistent, and that is far from the truth.
I grew up in a Christian household, attending an Episcopal church every Sunday. Even from a young age, I generally thought myself to be righteous. I was fooled into believing society's definition of good rather than the Bible's. I was a "good" kid. I listened to my parents and teachers, and wasn't a jerk to people. As I got older, I stayed away from alcohol, drugs, and sex. And if you listen to the world, that's plenty enough.
But it isn't. For me, discovering this was a slow process. It's hard to admit that you're not good enough, isn't it? It's difficult to tell yourself you're not worthy. But anything else we tell ourselves is a lie. "For the wages of sin is death." ~Romans 6:23. However, the verse continues. "But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Jesus was our perfect sacrifice. In His perfection, He was worthy to take on our sin. Although this is something that is beaten into our heads from an early age, it takes a little more effort to truly understand it.
So of course I stood and sang hymns every week, praying when the service commanded. And I thought I got it. But I didn't. God demands more from us. In my later high school years, I began to creep closer. My priest, Martha Kester, took me under her wing, and we dove into Joshua. But then I moved on to college, a true test for many Christians.
I never was really tempted to join the college partying scene. Even without my beliefs, it's not something I would find attractive. But moving away from home for the first time makes it difficult to hold onto your faith. Fortunately for me, InterVarsity, a Christian fellowship group, had a chapter at Coe. Naturally, I got involved. At first, it was more of the same. I'd go through the motions, always attending large group and Bible study, but never really getting more than a smug satisfaction that I had done what was required of me. But eventually, I would accept the challenge God had been waving in front of my face for years to enter a deeper, more intimate relationship with Him. For the first time, I began to have a consistent time to read the Bible, pray, and just be with God. And it's amazing how much more spiritually full I feel. There's a distinction to be made between knowing and believing. For years, I had known that Jesus Christ died for my sins. But every day, I understand it a little better and have come to truly believe. Like any relationship, yours with God must be nurtured. It requires effort. It requires time. But I promise that the returns are so much more than the costs (there's my economics background popping up. Don't worry, I'll suffocate it). Isn't an eternity with our Holy Father worth so much more than our finite time or other resources on this Earth?
God continues to reveal Himself to me, a little each day. He's blessed me with a wonderful family, amazing friends, and a beautiful, incredible, altogether lovable fiance. But so much greater than any of these is His greatest blessing of all: His Son. When I think about what He has done for me--no, not just think, but dwell, meditate, reflect, ponder, wonder--I am often brought to tears. Tears of joy with the knowledge that Jesus has defeated my sin and my death. Now my task is to continually seek Him and to remain in Him.
Do I still screw up? ALL THE TIME. God isn't asking us for perfection. He gave us the perfect offering. All we have to do is accept it. I can't make myself good, clean, or holy. But there is One who has been given to us who makes us presentable to our Father. And He loves me (and you, too) beyond all measure.
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