Sermon Video: Simply say thanks - Psalm 117

There are a lot of ways to say thanks, there are a lot of things to be thankful for.  The Psalms contains a variety of thanksgiving psalms that express gratitude to God primarily for his Covenant faithfulness to either individuals or to the nation of Israel.  Psalm 117 is different, rather than the Covenant people being called to praise God, it is "all you nations" and "all you peoples" who must raise their voices.  The question then becomes, what have the Gentiles received from God that would require their thanks in an era prior to the Gospel's call?  Rather than being an anomaly, the inclusion of the Gentiles in Psalm 117 continues the pattern that began with God's initial conversation with Abraham during which God clearly indicated that his concern went beyond this man and his descendants to all the nations and peoples of the earth. 
As we consider this psalm today, we have much to be thankful for; we can agree with the writer that, "great is his love toward us", and we can also affirm that, "the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever."  Psalm 117 is the shortest psalm, but it still says all that needs to be said.  When you have put your trust in the love and faithfulness of the LORD, you will not be disappointed.  We, as a Church, have much to be thankful for; we, as a nation, have much to be thankful for, what praise do you have to offer to God in addition to these great things?

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Sermon Video: Peter and the Gentiles Part 3 - Acts 11:1-18

After Peter finishes his unexpected but extraordinarily successful outreach to the Gentiles in Caesarea, he returns to Jerusalem only to be confronted by Jewish Christians whose primary objection to his recent efforts is that Peter ate in the home of a Gentile.  There is a huge looming question for the Early Church as to whether or not Gentiles believers need to become Jews, by converting, before they can become Christians, but Peter first has to deal with the teaching of the rabbis that forbid all sorts of interaction with Gentiles.
Peter defends himself by focusing on the choices and directions of God throughout his journey to and stay in Caesarea.  It was God who gave him the vision, the Holy Spirit that told him to go with the messengers, and an angel that told Cornelius that Peter would have a message for him, "through which you and all your household will be saved."  In addition to God's directives throughout this process, there is also the seal of approval from God of the gift of the Holy Spirit.  It was not withheld until the Gentiles had been circumcised or in any other way brought under the Law, instead it came upon them before Peter had even finished speaking.  Peter concludes after relating these events, "Who was I to think that I could oppose God?"
Peter's defense convinces his earlier critics who in the end praise God that "even" the Gentiles will now be saved.  This episode provides an interesting glimpse into the sometimes tumultuous struggle to not only obey the will of God for believers, but also understand it and agree upon it as well.  Only those whose hearts are truly set against God would dare oppose his power or authority, but what of those who, like Saul in the beginning, oppose God out of ignorance?  In the end, we have tools given by God to help us understand his will, chief of which is his written Word, but also the wisdom of our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, both now and throughout history.  God's will for you or I is never given in a vacuum, but instead forms part of the great redemption story of God's self-revelation throughout history.  Lastly, what do we do when Christians can't agree upon God's will, even with the evidence of Scripture as a guide?  The choice between peace and conflict is clear, Christ commanded his Church to be one, therefore we must always strive to keep our focus upon the mission of the Gospel and not let our human failings get in the way.

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Lost in the translation

Nicole and I attended an information/fundraising banquet for Wycliffe Associates, the Bible translation missions agency whose goal is to have started translating the Bible in the remaining 2,000 languages that don't have any portion of Scripture translated into them by the year 2025.  First Baptist Church supports a Wycliffe Missions team, Dave and Joyce Briley, who have been working for almost 30 years in Papau to first learn, and then translate the Bible into, the language of the local people.  The extraordinary men and women who do this work are a rare breed, deserving of honor, that now thankfully are being assisted by technology to do the work faster than ever.  What once took a team a whole lifetime to accomplish, can now be done much faster.  The goal of having the Bible available in every language on Earth is indeed viable.
At the banquet, Jack Popjes, a translator who along with his wife spent about 30 years in the Amazon bringing God's Word to an isolated Indian tribe, spoke about the biggest hurdle he faced in the actual translation process (apart from other factors like health, governmental interference, isolation, etc.).  The people of the Amazon have no sheep.  The Bible contains a lot of sheep related metaphors that need to somehow be rendered understandable to the people.  When it came to translating in Matthew 9:36 Jesus' comment that the people of Israel were "like sheep without a shepherd", Jack was able to use a concept that they did understand, "like chicks without their mother hen".  The purpose of the metaphor remains the same, the Indians who knew about chickens but not sheep understood; problem solved.  However, when it came to John the Baptist's exclamation in John 1:29, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" Jack was stumped.  There didn't seem to be any local example that could explain the metaphor of God taking our punishment for us.  This problem persisted for ten years, other parts of the Bible were translated, the work continued, but this key concept of understanding WHY Jesus died remained beyond the grasp of the translation process.  Eventually, in God's providence, Jack returned to the tribe after a long absence (due to the government of Brazil) only to arrive in the middle of a cultural ceremony in which trouble making youths were being punished by a tribal elder.  In this ceremony, Jack witnessed for the first time, teen girls stepping forward to take the punishment for a boy with whom they had a special friend relationship.  Jack, his wife, his kids, all had these "friend" relationships in the tribal society, it was a something he was well aware of, but for the first time the connection between the Lamb of God and the tribal friend who can take your place struck Jack like thunder.  When he substituted this word for "Lamb of God" and told them the proclamation of John the Baptist, the whole tribe suddenly understood the Gospel in a whole new light.  God is good, he looks after his servants.

So, why do I tell this story that I heard from Jack?  One reason would be to encourage you to support the work of Bible translators, another would be to remind Christians here in America that even if we are all speaking English to each other, that there are people we interact with for whom our Bible-speak might as well be a foreign language.  If you've never been to Church before, the lingo we use on Sunday morning will be as incomprehensible as the techno-babble about computers, cars, or finances that so often befuddle those who don't understand it.  How is someone who doesn't even know who Jesus is, or what he did, supposed to know what we mean we we talk about justification?  The list of theological words that are difficult to grasp is long: propitiation, consubstantiation, transubstantiation, sanctification, providence, etc.  Not to mention the terms we use in ways that seem odd to those who don't understand them, like born-again and saved.  What can we do about it?  An easy enough answer is for pastors to teach and preach in a way that is mindful of those who may not understand the deep theological point you might want to make.  We need to be willing to return to the basics on a regular basis and we need to be unafraid to slow down and explain things.  What we really need is humility.  We know all we know about God because he reveled it to us.  We didn't climb a mountain to discover God, he came down from Heaven to pull us up out of the depths.  Jesus spoke about sheep, fishing, and farming to his audience because it was what they understood; we need to do the same.  "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world", what an amazing and wonderful truth, let's make sure we share it in a way that everyone can understand.

Out with the old, in with the new?

We're in the middle of a kitchen renovation at the church parsonage.  Ross Kilian (from MSM, he's our contractor on this job) and I tore out the old cabinets and the old ceiling tiles on Monday.  The newspapers from behind the wall were from 1968 (the sports page had an article on Pistol Pete Maravich, he was held to "only" 28 points the previous day).  One of the things that we were able to do is reuse the old cabinets, two pair of them above the washer and two above the dryer as well as the other ones out in the carport to store garden tools.  We live in a culture where yesterday's anything is designed to be thrown away and replaced by the next greatest thing, that in turn will be discarded when a new whatever it is comes out in six months.  Living in a home that was built in 1904 helps us to appreciate the craftsmanship and quality of the work that they did back in the day even as we update the kitchen.  Just because something is new, doesn't mean that it is better.  Yes, we need to embrace progress and we need to be willing to change, but not simply change for the sake of change.
The attitude that allows for change, but seeks to do so with wisdom is valuable for the Church.  There will always be some people who seek to change the Church, and there will always be some who try to keep it the same.  How are we to judge who is right and who is wrong, how can we be relevant without being relativistic?  Fortunately for the Church, we have a bedrock of solid ground to stand upon.  The Gospel of Jesus Christ is the same for you and I as it has been since the days of Peter, and it will be the same long after today's fads had faded into the obscurity of answers to trivia questions.  The Word of God is the same for you and I as it was in the days of Abraham, Moses, and Paul, and it will be the same long after today's expert has been replaced with tomorrow's.  Because we stand upon solid ground, we as a Church do not have to fear change, we don't have to fight progress because our goal and our mission have not changed during the past 2,000 years.  Out with the old, in with the new?  Maybe, let's talk about it, think about it, pray about it, and find out what the Word of God says about it.

Sermon Video: Peter and the Gentiles, Part 2 - Acts 10:30-48

Whether it is among family, at work, or in the justice system or government, favoritism or partiality can be a huge problem.  The question that Peter answers, as he speaks to a crowd in the home of the Gentile Cornelius, is whether or not such a charge can be made against God as it often is against man.  Peter declares to this crowd of people who are earnestly seeking God, but are outside of the Covenant of Abraham, that he is absolutely certain that "God does not show favoritism".  How can this be when God has a Chosen People, a holy nation that has received the blessings of the Covenant?  The answer, although radical to mind of the Jewish nation, is that God is willing to accept all people who "fear him and do what is right."  Peter then proceeds to explain to the people that Jesus Christ has made this relationship with God possible through his death and resurrection.
The results of Peter's message are immediate and dramatic.  The Holy Spirit comes upon those listening and confirms without a doubt that God is indeed amongst these Gentiles who demonstrated their faith by gathering to hear the word of God from Peter.  Peter, along with the Jewish Christians who traveled with him from Joppa, can now see that the same Spirit of God has been poured out upon all who believe in Jesus, regardless of their past, race, or gender.  Is there any favoritism with God, no, he gives grace to us all if only we will accept it.

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