Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Look Up!

Pastor Sherry’s message for December 1, 2024

Scriptures: Jer 33:14-16; Ps 25:1-10; 1 Thess 3:9-13; Lk 21:25-36

Remember when you were a little kid, waiting on Christmas morning?  You knew Santa Claus would have come and that there were other surprises for you under that tree.  The time had finally arrived for you to unwrap those gifts you had spotted—with your name on the tags–that you had snuck around to shake, trying to figure out what was inside the box or bag.  That waiting was excruciating, wasn’t it?  Five more wake ups til Christmas…two more wake ups, etc.

Besides having to wait on Christmas, we wait on the arrival of a baby (especially when 8-9 months pregnant).  I think the last month of pregnancy is deliberately so uncomfortable that we are willing to go through the pains of labor just to be at ease in our bodies again.  How about the wait we undergo during the surgery of someone we love?  This time of year, we wait in lines in Publix, the Post Office, and the car wash.  Several days ago, I was waiting at the Customer Service counter at the grocery store. I only wanted a book of stamps, but I found myself in line behind a guy buying what looked like dozens of bouquets of flowers.  The cashier laboriously searched out the bar codes on each bunch.  Then the guy used a card to pay for his haul of flowers that did not work.  He had to search for another card that would.  As he fumbled in his wallet, I was becoming so impatient!  All I wanted were stamps, for heaven’s sake!  How ashamed was I to then be presented by the guy with one of his bouquets.  I was stunned!  Maybe it was his way of apologizing for keeping me waiting, but the store personnel told me he comes in weekly and buys up bunches of bouquets to give away.  How amazingly generous of him!  His gift reminded me that I needed to be more patient.

I also heard this week of a guy in NYC who was a professional line-waiter.  People paid him to wait in line to purchase tickets for them to a game, a concert, or a show.  He said his toughest wait was for tickets to “Hamilton” because his tent froze on the inside!  YIKES! He has also been paid to wait for a new IPhone model or for some other new tech gizmo to be released, or to purchase the latest limited edition hoodie, etc.  It is said that he made $86,000 a year!  Kind of an amazing service, isn’t it?

(as shared by www.sermoncentral.com, 11/29/2024)

With the possible exception of the professional line waiter, most of us hate to wait.  Today is the 1st Sunday of Advent, a time of waiting on Jesus.   We prepare for His 1st Coming, at Christmas, as a helpless infant, from a small, Hebrew, backwater town.  His mission then was to save a sin-sick and lost world.  We also await His Second Coming when He will return as a triumphant, all powerful king, with the mission to judge the world and create a heavenly, peaceful order on earth.  Our Scriptures today speak to both Advents or Comings:

A. In Jeremiah 33:14-16, the prophet reminds us that the promised Messianic King (Jesus) will be coming.  He will come from a righteous branch of King David’s family tree (a promise God had made to David that we spoke of last week).  This Messiah would save His people (Jesus’ name actually means God saves).

Jumping ahead to the end times, He will be called, “The Lord Our Righteousness.”   At His second coming, Jerusalem will Live in safety. 

It doesn’t now, by any stretch of the imagination, but it will then, praise God!

B. Our Psalm 25:1-10 is a plea from King David for God’s protection and love.  It suggests that God has a purpose as He makes us wait:  Waiting provides time/opportunity to learn (a) His ways more clearly: (v.4): Show me Your ways, O Lord, teach me Your paths; (b) to trust in Him more deeply; (c) to ask for His mercy, love, and forgiveness; and (d) to cling to hope due to His great faithfulness.  We can do these things by reading Scripture; praying/talking with God as we wait; remembering when God has shown up in our lives before; and by learning how others have experienced God’s intervention in their life. 

C. Our 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13 passage teaches us two other benefits of waiting: (1) God uses the time to strengthen a heart of holiness in each of us.  Waiting has been called “the crucible of the saints.”

One of my seminary professors used to say that as we wait, God is molding and shaping our character.  (2) He is also teaching us to abound in love–to love Him and to love others better. 

D.  In our Gospel lesson, Luke 21:25-36, Jesus gives us a few more clues as to what we can expect before His 2nd Coming:  Just as buds on trees broadcast the coming of Spring, we will know the end is near when…according to Peterson’s paraphrase of Scripture, The Message (p.1904): It will seem like all hell has broken loose—sun, moon, stars, earth, sea, in an uproar and everyone all over the world in a panic, the wind knocked out of them by the threat of doom, the powers that be quaking.  Heavenly bodies: stars, planets, our moon, will be shaken, doing never-before-seen things.  Worldwide, people will fear the roaring and tossing of the sea.  Does this mean an increase in the frequency and severity of hurricanes, typhoons, sunamis?  Perhaps.  What about a frightening incursion of water into previously dry land (like mountainous Western North Carolina during Hurricane Helena)?  Could be.  Whatever the case, everyone–especially non-believers–will be freaked.

Then, the Son of Man (Jesus’ favorite name for Himself) will come on a cloud.  He will arrive with power and with great glory.  Believers can and should rejoice.  We have every reason to Hope in Christ and in His return!

Today we lit the candle of hope on our Advent wreath.  “But,” you might say, “we hate to wait!”  Yes, but isn’t it also true that “good things come to those who wait” (consider my surprise bouquet of flowers)?  We believers in Christ Jesus celebrate His 1st Coming and dare to hope in His 2nd.  Remember, Hebrews 11:1 (New Living Translation, p.1572) tells us: Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.

One of my favorite stories about hope concerns Fiorello La Guardia, the Italian mayor of New York City from 1934-1946 (during the Great Depression and much of WWII).  It is said that he was…

“…quite a character. He would ride the city fire trucks, take entire orphanages to baseball games and whenever the city newspapers went on strike, he would get on the radio and read the Sunday “funnies” to the children.

“At any rate, one bitter cold winter’s night in 1935, Mayor LaGuardia turned up in a night court that served the poorest ward in the city, dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself [He was an attorney, but I doubt a mayor could substitute for a judge today]. After he heard a few cases, a tattered old woman was brought before him, accused of stealing a loaf of bread.

“She told LaGuardia that her daughter’s husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick and her grandchildren were starving. But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, insisted on pressing charges. “My store is in a very bad neighborhood, your honor,” he said. “She’s got to be punished in order to teach other people a lesson.”

“The mayor sighed. He turned to the old woman and said, “I’ve got to punish you,” he said. “The law makes no exception – ten dollars or ten days in jail” [Remember, $10.00 meant a lot more in 1935 than it does now.]

“But even as he spoke, LaGuardia was reaching into his pocket and pulling out a ten dollar bill.  “Here is the woman’s fine,” he said, “and furthermore, I’m going to fine everyone in this court room fifty cents for living in a city where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat [There were no welfare services in 1935]. Mr. Baliff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.”

“The following day, the New York Times reported that $47.50 was turned over to the bewildered old woman. It was given by the red-faced store owner, some seventy petty criminals, people with traffic violations and city policemen – and they all [75 people] gave their mayor a standing ovation as they handed over their money.”

(Erskine White, Together in Christ, CSS Publishing Company, as shared by www.Sermon Central.com, 11/28/2024)  

Mayor LaGuardia set such a great example of how things will operate when Jesus comes back to earth.  You might logically expect the worst in a given situation; but Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, will set things exactly right.  Tattered old grandmothers with poor, starving grandchildren will find mercy and provision.  The meek and the hungry will experience goodness and mercy.  Similarly, those who–like the baker—have been robbed, will be justly compensated for their labors.  Everyone wins!

Our Advent hope is that Jesus will come again, in His unlimited power and awe-inspiring glory, to restore us all to a true state of shalom: total well-being, physical, emotional, cognitive, and spiritual.  We can hope for this with confidence!

I don’t know how many of you have watched the 4 seasons thus far of “The Chosen.”  I think it is a beautifully dramatization of Jesus’ time with His disciples.  In an episode in which Jesus heals the woman who had been internally bleeding for 12 years, the series creators portray her huddled on her knees, head down in the roadway.  The crowd is clustered around her and Jesus wants to know who touched His garment.  A person who bled in those days was considered “unclean.”  Since her malady was chronic, she could not attend synagogue and had probably been shunned by her family and her community.  For 12 years she had been alone and alienated from all society.  Jesus tells her first to “Look up.”  He then goes on to reinstate her into Jewish community by calling her, “Daughter,” a relational term.  I was so stunned by His direction to her to “Lookup” that I bought a Chosen coffee cup that says exactly that: Look up!  Isn’t that precisely what we need to do when worried, troubled, or even joy-filled?  Because of Jesus Christ, we can all be brave and bold enough to Look up!  Amen!  May it be so this Advent and always!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Christ our King

Pastor Sherry’s message for November 24, 2024

Scriptures: 2 Sam 23:1-7; Ps 132; Rev. 1:4-8; Jn 18:33-37

Many of you met my houseguest, Elizabeth, last weekend.  She is a therapist I befriended at Honey Lake and had been recruited by them from Vermont (we’ve both since stopped working there).  When I learned she had never been to a major college football game, I invited her to attend last week’s Gator game against LSU.  It was a great game!  UF won in a surprise upset.  We both wore Gator shirts and hats, and I was amused to see her get so into the game, the cheers, the big crowd atmosphere.  We joked that the 90,000+ fans present outnumbered the entire population of the state of Vermont!

I must say, however, I became a bit frustrated by the lyrics to the UF alma mater, which I had never before really noted.  We were singing along to the words posted on the stadium “jumbotron.”  The last line states, “There’s no other name so glorious, all hail, Florida hail!”  It immediately hit me, “I love the Gators, but just a minute…there’s no other name so glorious?”  Are you kidding me?!!  How about the name of Jesus?

Similarly, if you follow professional fights, the announcers invariably use all kinds of hyperbole to introduce each fighter.  You’ll see them grab a mike lowered from above and shout out something like… 

“Ladies and gentlemen, we are liiiiiiivvvveeee! This is the moment you’ve all been waiting for. Iiiiiiiit’s TIME! Introducing out of New York City, he is the reigning, defending, undisputed heavyweight champion of the world, the one, the only, the infamous [fill in the blank] !!!” The crowd goes crazy.”

But let your imaginations go and consider what if he instead shouted this: “Ladies and Gentlemen, kings and lords, nations of the world, we are liiiiiivvvveeeee! This is the moment you have all been waiting for. It’s time! Introducing out of Bethlehem of Judea [having endured death on a Cross for our sins, and having risen from the dead 3 days later, we have the one, the only Son of the Living God, Jesus Christ, our Savior!!!]

(Concept and dialogue borrowed fromproclaimsermons.ccsend.com, week of 11/18/2024)

Wouldn’t that be something to amaze us and to applaud?  Today, the Church does just that.  Today we celebrate Christ the King Sunday.  It’s the final Sunday of the Church calendar.  Next Sunday we begin Advent, the time of commemorating the birth of Jesus, the “starting place” of the Christian Church.  No jumbotron/fight announcer proclaims it…but all of our readings today acclaim Jesus as greatest King of all times!  Follow along with me to see or hear how this is so.

A. Our Old Testament reading comes from 2 Samuel 23:1-7. These are the last words King David spoke publically.  They are prophetic and humble words.  King David reminds us his father was not a king, but a farmer and sheep-breeder.  He expresses gratitude that God raised him up to become Israel’s 2nd king (reigning after Saul for forty years, from 1010-970 BC).

In verse 3, he acknowledges that the Holy Spirit anointed him as a prophetic spokesman for God.  The Lord told him how a righteous king was to rule, and that he and his descendants would continue to rule over Israel until and unless they stopped worshipping and obeying God.  David says in verse 5 that he knows his family is not worthy—and they weren’t—all but 5 became idolaters!  So, his dynasty died out when Judah was taken captive by the Babylonians in 587BC.

Instead this last public statement becomes a prophesy of the One Who is worthy.  Many generations after King David died came Jesus, David’s descendant, the One King David called “Lord.”  God had promised him (2 Samuel 7:12) that the Messiah would come from his lineage.  (Both Jesus’ mother, Mary, and His step-father, Joseph, were poor descendants of David’s.)  Jesus would be the King that Isaiah will later call, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords” (think “Halleluia Chorus” from Handel’s Messiah).

B.  Psalm 132 celebrates God’s faithfulness to King David.

The psalmist is unnamed, so not King David.  In verses 1-5, he describes David’s greatest ambition as king: to build a house, a Temple, in Jerusalem for God.  He recalls for us in verses 6-9 how the ark of the Covenant was brought into Jerusalem, how the Temple was built (by Solomon), and how God, who is omnipresent, made His particular presence felt there.

Next the psalmist reviews God’s covenant with David:  His line shall continue as kings of Israel provided they do not stray from God—which, as I said earlier–they did.   Unfortunately, most of David’s descendant kings became disobedient idolaters so God brought their reigns to an end.  But, as Isaiah prophesied (in 11:1, NLT)—Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot—yes a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. 

Then he culminates with this assertion in verses 17-18—…My Anointed One [Messiah, Jesus] will be a light for My people…He will be a glorious king!  Like King David, the psalmist–who celebrates David’s relationship with God—prophesies that David’s most famous descendant will the greatest king of all!

C. The Apostle John wrote Revelation (1:4-8).  It is a narration of what he saw in a Sabbath-day vision.  Late in his life, he was on the prison island of Patmos, praying, when the Lord Jesus appeared to him.  He obediently wrote what he was shown and now addresses this revelation to the churches in Asia Minor with whom he was associated (as Bishop of Ephesus).  The revelation was given to him by Jesus Himself. 

In it, Jesus tells John that He is (v.8)—the Alpha and the Omega—the beginning and the end.  Alpha and Omega are the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet.  Jesus is saying He’s the A to Z, the complete package, all we have ever needed for salvation, blessing, and peace.

Earlier (v.5) John tells us that Jesus is—the faithful witness to these things [what is to be revealed], the first to rise from the dead [and not die again, like Lazarus, Jairus’ daughter, and the widow of Nain’s son], and the ruler of all the kings of the world.  There it is! John is stating that there is no king greater than Jesus.

D. Finally, we have Jesus’ own words in John 18:33-37.

King David, the psalmist who penned Psalm 132, and the Apostle John all testified that Jesus is the greatest of all kings.  Now Jesus Himself, on trial before Pilate, states that He is a king, but not a political one (v.36)—My kingdom is not an earthly kingdom.  If it were, My followers would fight to keep Me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders.  But my Kingdom is not of this world. 

Pilate, a cynic, probably didn’t know what to make of this, but he appeared to realize Jesus was not a threat to Roman rule—but rather to the authority of the Jewish religious establishment.  This side of the Cross, we know that Jesus is King over a spiritual kingdom, the Kingdom of Heaven.  And that His rule will manifest all over the earth when He comes again in all of His sovereign majesty. 

While today is Christ the King Sunday, we also celebrate Thanksgiving this week.  This is a good time to remember to thank God that Jesus is our King.

Just prior to this sermon, we sang the hymn, “Now Thank We All Our God.” 

“This particular hymn was written during the Thirty Years War in Germany, in the early 1600s. [The 30 Years War was a war fought between Catholics and Protestants over which brand of the faith would take precedence in Europe.  I cannot think that Jesus would have ever commended Christians for fighting Christians.]  The hymn’s author was Martin Rinkart, a Lutheran pastor in the town of Eilenburg in Saxony

“Now, Eilenburg was a walled city, so it became a haven for refugees seeking safety from the fighting. But soon, the city became too crowded and food was in short supply. Then, a famine hit and a terrible plague and Eilenburg became a giant morgue.

“In one year alone, Pastor Rinkart conducted funerals for 4,500 people, including his own wife. The war dragged on; the suffering continued. Yet through it all, he never lost courage or faith and even during the darkest days of Eilenburg’s agony, he was able to write this hymn:

Now thank we all our God,

with hearts and hands and voices,

Who wondrous things hath done,

In whom the world rejoices

…[So] keep us in His grace,

and guide us when perplexed,

and free us from all ills,

in this world and the next.

“Even when he was waist deep in destruction, Pastor Rinkart was able to lift his sights to a higher plane. He kept his mind on God’s love when the world was filled with hate. He kept his mind on God’s promises of heaven when the earth was a living hell.”

(Erskine White, Together in Christ, as shared by www.sermons.com, 11/18/2024)

If this man can celebrate God and thank Him in the midst of death, famine, overcrowding, and chaos, can’t we do the same?  By comparison, our lives seem relatively trouble-free.  Let’s remember all we have to thank our God and King Jesus for as we celebrate Thanksgiving this year.  Amen!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Recognizing Everyday Saints

Pastor Sherry’s message for November 10, 2024

Scriptures: WMC, 11/10/24; Ruth 3:1-5, 4:13-17; Ps 42; Heb 9:24-28; Mk 12:38-44

I heard this story just the other day.  It appears to describe a large Catholic parish in the Midwest:

“A priest once asked one of his parishioners to serve as financial chairman of his parish. The man, manager of a grain elevator, agreed on two conditions:  (1) No report would be due for a year, and (2) No one would ask any questions during the year.

“At the end of the year he made his report. He had paid off the church mortgage of $200,000.  He had updated the church’s interior. He had sent $1,000 to missions [he could have been more generous here], and he had put $5,000 in the bank’s savings account.

“How did you do all this?” asked the priest and the shocked congregation.  Quietly he answered, “You people bring your grain to my elevator. As you did business with me, I simply withheld 10 percent [in other words, he overcharged them by 10%] and gave it to the church. You never missed it.”

(Contributed by James S. Hewett, http://www.Sermons.com, November 5, 2024)

Now please don’t get alarmed.  I am not going to launch into a sermon on tithing, or your monetary giving to our church.  Too many people just happen to visit a church on the very day the pastor encourages everyone to contribute more money.  They walk away believing the church is only interested in digging into their wallets.  My son attended a non-demoninational church of 22,000 members in Texas.  He said at one point the pastor preached on tithing every week.  I guess he had a large facility and an equally large staff to support, so money was uppermost in his mind.

Because of this, however, I hardly ever say anything tithing.  Instead, I will let today’s Gospel passage speak for itself.

Instead, I want us to focus today on what our Bible passages tell us about how we might go about recognizing everyday saints.

Last week, I distinguished between canonized saints and “everyday saints.”

Canonized saints are those holy people who led obviously Christian lives, may have died for their faith, and often performed some sort of miracle.

Reports about their lives are scrutinized by the Catholic Church.  And if they meet the 3 criteria, they are recognized as true “saints of the Church.” 

Conversely, “everyday saints” are those of us who love Jesus as our Lord and Savior, and who try to model our lives after Him and what we learn from Scripture.  Keeping this 2nd category in mind, let’s examine the passages appointed for today to see how they help us recognize “everyday saints.” 

A.  Our OT lesson is from portions of Ruth 3 and 4.   You may remember that Ruth was from Moab, one of the perennial enemies bordering Israel.  The Moabites originated from the incestuous relationship of a drunken Lot and one of his two daughters.  The girls had seen the destruction of Sodom and feared they would never marry or bear children.  So they got their father drunk and slept with him.  Naturally this was abhorrent to our God (Genesis 19:30-37).  The Moabites also tried to hire a false prophet, Balaam, to curse Israel.  He was not a follower of the Hebrew God, but he obeyed God when He told him he could not curse His Chosen People. (Numbers 22 and 23).  So Ruth was from a nation that Israel despised and avoided.

Nevertheless, she had met and married one of the sons of the Israelite woman, Naomi.  From Bethlehem, Naomi had moved to Moab, with her husband and two sons, to escape a famine.  They had located food in Moab, and jobs, but all three men got sick there and died.  Naomi was once again faced with poverty and starvation and decided to return home to Bethlehem.

She tells her 2 devoted daughters-in-law to return to their Moabite relatives.

One, Orpah agrees and, though sorrowful, leaves her; the other, Ruth, loves Naomi dearly and loyally accompanies her into Israel.

What might this tell us about Ruth, a woman we might term an “everyday saint”?  For one thing, she’s compassionate: She puts her mother-in-law’s needs for companionship and help ahead of her own comforts.  Those of you who have cared for aging parents now or earlier have done the same, haven’t you?   Additionally, she’s loyal enough to accompany Naomi to a land where she might always be considered a despised outsider (Think of what a member of Hamas would experience today if such a person attempted to become a Jew).  Ruth is certainly courageous, willing to leave all she’s ever known to go where she might be treated hostilely.  And, perhaps most important, she has become a follower of Naomi’s God.

As we pick up in today’s reading, Naomi plays matchmaker for Ruth.

Naomi owned land in Bethlehem, land owing what we might call “back taxes.”  Back in Genesis (38: 13-30), the Lord had made provision for widows through the concept of a Kinsman Redeemer.  This male relative could claim the widow’s land if he paid what was owed, and he could marry the dead man’s widow (to continue her dead husband’s line) if she agreed.

Another, closer relation wanted the land but not the foreign widow.  But Naomi knew the kinsman-redeemer, Boaz (who foreshadows Jesus as our Kinsman Redeemer), had signaled he liked Ruth a lot.  So, Naomi has Ruth get all dolled up and approach the sleeping Boaz at a harvest festival.  By placing the blanket at his feet over hers, she signaled to him that she wanted to marry him.  (This may seem a little strange to us today, but that was the custom then.)

They do marry, and happily pick up in chapter #4 where Ruth bears Boaz a son, Obed [servant of the Lord], who will become the grandfather of King David.  Because of Ruth’s faith and character, the Lord establishes from her son, Obed, the line of Jesse, the stump of Judah, from whom Jesus later comes.  The Lord so values Ruth for her faith and character, that He places her—a hated outsider (like Hamas)—in the lineage of the Messiah.

B.  Psalm 42 was written by some sons of Korah.  Though their father had been discredited and killed for leading a rebellion against Moses (Numbers 16), God spared his sons and grandsons.  Those descendants of Korah who had been spared their father’s fate become gate-keepers and choir members in the Tabernacle.

This psalm is called a maschil or a teaching psalm.  Its primary message is that we are to hope and trust in God despite our negative circumstances.  The sons of Korah are certainly evidence that punishment for evil in one can result in good behavior in others, and that people do often recognize and appreciate God’s grace.  The instruction in this psalm consists of realizing that we worship a God of grace and mercy.

C.  The writer to the Hebrews (9:24-28) wants us to be clear that we realize that Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself for our sins was sufficient.  It was enough to clear our debt to the Father for our sins, past, present, and future.  Jesus’ atoning death on the cross was complete, sufficient, and perfect.  We don’t’ have to do anything to assure our salvation except say yes to Christ.  He did all the heavy-lifting, for all time.

Our response to Him should be one of gratitude.

D. Finally, in our Gospel (Mark 12:38-44), Jesus condemns the Pharisees for being fakers, posers, and hypocrites, caught up in appearing righteous to others, while missing out on a legitimate, honest, humble relationship with God.  Everyday saints are sincere.

They don’t just try to look good, but their hearts are good.  They desire to please God more than to please people.  And they, like the widow who gave her last coins to the Temple treasury, are fully trusting and fully committed.

So what are the characteristics of everyday saints?  The Book of Ruth shows us that everyday saints are compassionate, loyal, risk-takers, and courageous.  They are also committed followers of God/Jesus.

Psalm 42 teaches us that everyday saints are grateful to God, trusting in Him, through bad times as well as the good.  As Paul later on states, (Romans 8:28): For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, and who have been called according to His purpose.

Our Hebrews passage reiterates the powerful message that Jesus has done all that needed to be done to assure our salvation.

As He assured us from the Cross, It is finished.  Simply said, we are saved if we agree to believe in Him.

Finally, we demonstrate we are everyday saints if we are humble and sincere.  This means we don’t “put on airs” or fake our devotion to God.  This means we are not religious hypocrites.  Others will recognize we are everyday saints if we practice the Christian virtues our passages outline today

You may be thinking, “That’s a tall order to be compassionate, loyal, courageous, committed followers of Jesus, grateful, trusting, and sincere.”  Yes it is if we try to practice each of those virtues at once.  But we can consider which ones we already do pretty well, and then pick one we are less likely to demonstrate.  For this next week, try to practice one that is not yet true of you.  Psychology teaches us that it takes 23 repetitions to replace a bad habit with a good one. 

May the Holy Spirit empower you to cement these virtues in your life. Lord, make it so!  Amen!   

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Humility

Pastor Sherry’s message for October 27, 2024

Scriptures: Job 42:1-17; Ps 34:1-8, 19-22; Heb 7:14-28; Mk 10:46-52

In a story borrowed from Our Daily Bread, it was recounted that…

 “Shortly after Booker T. Washington, the renowned black educator, took over the presidency of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, he was walking in an exclusive section of town when he was stopped by a wealthy white woman. Not knowing the famous Mr. Washington by sight, she asked if he would like to earn a few dollars by chopping wood for her. Because he had no pressing business at the moment, Professor Washington smiled, rolled up his sleeves, and proceeded to do the humble chore she had requested. When he was finished, he carried the logs into the house and stacked them by the fireplace. A little girl recognized him and later revealed his identity to the lady. 

“The next morning the embarrassed woman went to see Mr. Washington in his office at the Institute and apologized profusely. “It’s perfectly all right, Madam,” he replied. “Occasionally I enjoy a little manual labor. Besides, it’s always a delight to do something for a friend.” She shook his hand warmly and assured him that his meek and gracious attitude had endeared him and his work to her heart. Not long afterward she showed her admiration by persuading some wealthy acquaintances to join her in donating thousands of dollars to the Tuskegee Institute.”

Another true story of a famous person who demonstrated humility is told of the great evangelist George Whitefield.  Whitefield was a friend and a contemporary of John Wesley, who, in the 1740’s, led the American colonies in a huge revival known as “The First Great Awakening.” 

“Although George Whitefield disagreed with John Wesley on some theological matters, he was careful not to create problems in public that could be used to hinder the preaching of the gospel. When someone asked Whitefield if he thought he would see Wesley in heaven, Whitefield replied, “I fear not, for he will be so near the eternal throne and we at such a distance, we shall hardly get sight of him.” 

(W. Wiersbe, Wycliffe Handbook of Preaching and Preachers,  Moody Press, 1984, p. 255.)

Both Dr. Booker T. Washington and Rev. George Whitefield illustrated the very rare virtue of humility.  We know that Jesus was humble. So too was Paul.  In Acts 20:19 (all biblical quotations cited are from the New Living Translation), Dr. Luke states that Paul asserted in Ephesus: I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews.  By the time he penned his epistle (1 Peter 5:5-6), Peter had also learned to be humble: All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” [Proverbs 3:34].  Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. 

Humility is one of the marks of a true follower of Jesus. I believe our God rejoices in us when we put aside our pride and live lives characterized by true humility.

A. Job (42:1-17) is another great example of a man who learned to be humble before God.  Verses 1-6 reveal that as a result of his confrontation with God, Job humbly admits he has erred by assuming he could judge God.  He admits his sinfulness (v.6): I take back everything I said, and I sit in dust and ashes to show my repentance

Then, in verses 7-9, God takes Job’s judgmental friends to task.

He rebukes them for their presumptions and their spiritual arrogance—for thinking they knew God’s purposes with Job.  He directs them to make sin offerings to atone for their guilt.  And then He tells them to ask Job to pray for them. God vindicates Job before his best but wrong-minded buddies.

Finally, God restores Job’s fortunes.  Somewhat like when the Egyptians gave the Israelite slaves their “back pay” when they left Egypt, Job’s relatives and friends (v.11) are prompted to bring him silver and gold, a kind of “grub-steak.”  God himself replenishes his supply of animals: WOW!  Consider the Lord’s largesse:  14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen (really 2,000 oxen), and 1,000 female donkeys (remember donkey milk was prized then in the Ancient Near East)—twice as many animals as before.  He also helped Job procreate 7 sons and 3 beautiful daughters (not 20 kids, because he would later see the first 10 in heaven.)  And He grants him long life.  Scholars believe Job was about 70 when all of this took place, so God added 140 more years to his life.

The book of Job illustrates, among other things, that humbling ourselves before God brings us blessings.  Job lost everything, even his health, but God restored him two-fold—due to his faith, trust, repentance, and humility.

B. Psalm 34 was written by King David to express his gratitude to God for rescuing him from his enemies.   In verses 1-2, David praises God for delivering him from a king of the Phillistines (Achish, who was an Abimilech, or ruler in the Canaanite tongue).  In verse 3, he calls on others to praise God too.  David says (v.4): I prayed to the Lord and He answered me; He freed me from all my fears.  He continues in verse 8, Blessed is the man [or woman] who takes refuge in Him.  He concludes in v.19: A righteous person faces many troubles, but the LORD comes to the rescue each time.  Just because we love the Lord does not mean we live trouble-free.  Actually, Jesus later stated (John 16:33): Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows [will not might or could].  But take heart because I have overcome the world.  It means that He will sustain us through our difficulties. 

Essentially, David’s point is that we can and should depend upon the Lord.  He can and does rescue us when we cannot save ourselves.  Holding firmly to this insight should make us humble, as we realize that we can’t but God can.

C.  The writer to the Hebrews (7:14-28) pretty much spends his [or her] entire book outlining why we humbly owe Jesus our love, gratitude, and respect.  (Many credit Paul with writing the Letter to the Hebrews, but Paul always identified himself as the author of his books and did not do so here.  Other scholars speculate it may have been Priscilla of Priscilla and Aquila fame.  She had been raised in Rome and probably had had an exceptionally good education, as the Greek used in this book is of a very high level.  We can only speculate and will have to ask in Heaven who the actual author was.)  

Whatever the case, Jesus was from the tribe of Judah, not of Levi, the priestly tribe.  But, as verse 16 explains: Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed.  He became a priest through His resurrection from the dead.  As is clear from Psalm 110:4 [God is speaking]: The LORD has taken an oath and will not break His vow:  You [meaning Jesus] are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedec [the mysterious priestly king of Salem, forerunner of Jerusalem, in Abraham’s time].  In other words, Jesus surpassed the Arronic priesthood (begun with Moses’ brother, Aaron) because He is both perfect (without sin) and eternal.  And today, He is seated at the Father’s right hand, interceding for each of us, sinners though we are.  If that isn’t humbling, I don’t know what is.

D.  As a good friend of ours often states, “moving right along,” in our Gospel lesson (Mark 10:46-52), Jesus encounters a blind fellow named Bartimaeus.  Jesus is leaving the vicinity of the Old Jericho (left in ruins with a curse upon whoever might dare to rebuild it) and instead is departing from the “new” Jericho, built in a different location by Herod the Great.  Beggars often sat outside city gates, so they could solicit money from passers-by.  Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is passing and calls to Him (v.47): Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!  Jesus graciously stops and responds to the man, What do you want Me to do for you?  We suspect the guy would want to be healed.  But maybe he wanted more money, or a better place to live, or even a spouse.  Jesus often asked people to clarify their motives for themselves and for any onlookers.  But, Bartimaeus honestly says, I want to see.  And in verse 52, Jesus heals him saying, Go, your faith has healed you.

Jesus commends him for his faith.  Huh?  Jesus realizes Bartimaeus is a man of faith because he calls the Lord, “Jesus, Son of David.”  This is a Messianic title from the Old Testament.  Bartimaeus believed Jesus was the Messiah and that He was meant to bring about God’s Kingdom rule on earth.  Bartimaeus knew from Isaiah 61 that this meant Jesus would minister to the poor—of which group Bartimaeus was one—and that He would heal the maimed, lame, and blind, his particular affliction.  Notice, Jesus doesn’t touch him, but simply speaks healing into his life.  And then a sighted Bartimaeus humbly and gratefully follows Jesus.

So, where do these passages lead us?  Our God has told us back in Micah 6:8: The Lord has told you what is good, and this is what He requires of you:  to do what is right [just], to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.  We don’t see much humility around us these days, do we?  Instead of being humble, people tend to put themselves forward and/or brag about their accomplishments.  I, for one, am much more impressed by a proficient athlete who praises God for their successes than I am by to those who take all the credit themselves.  Scripture provides us with many examples of men and women who humbled themselves before God and people.

I think a case can be made for us each to act humbly because…

1. As Job discovered, we can question God but our minds are not capable of understanding the complexity of the universe, nor of comprehending the mind and plans of the Almighty. We need to approach God mindful of and repentant for our sins.  We should come before Him in all humility. 

2. King David says in Psalm 34, God hears our prayers and rescues us from trouble.  As Beth Moore, the wonderful Bible teacher, frequently states, “God loves to mess with our messes.”  Even if we have behaved like an absolute stinker, if we ask the Lord to redeem our mess, He will in ways beyond what we might have asked or imagined. 

3. As the writer to the Hebrews says, Jesus is powerful enough to save us and to intercede for us with God the Father.  We can’t save ourselves by our own actions.  We needed our great high priest, Jesus, to do the work of atonement for us—and He has!

4. Similarly, Bartimaeus knew he could not restore his own vision.  He needed the healing power of Jesus Christ to do it for him.

This week, let’s try to do the right thing, to love extending grace and mercy to others, and to walk humbly with our God.  Amen!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

When God is Hidden

Pastor Sherry’s message for September 29, 2024

Scriptures: Es 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22; Ps 124; Ja 5:13-20; Mk 9:38-50

For several weeks we have examined the choice between living righteously for God—which the Bible calls ”wisdom”— and living foolishly for self.  The story is told of a burglar who cased a particular neighborhood, looking for evidence of folks who left their house unattended.

He observed one family loading suitcases into their car and decided to return to break into their house that night.  He rang the doorbell and waited for silent confirmation that no one was home. He then picked the lock on the front door and crept inside the home.

He called out, “Is anybody home?”  Expecting silence, he was shocked to hear, “I see you and Jesus sees you.”  Startled and frightened, he called out, “Who’s there?”

The voice again answered, “I see you and Jesus sees you.”

The burglar then switched on his flashlight in the direction of the voice and located a parrot.  He was relieved to hear the parrot say once more, “I see you and Jesus sees you.”  The guy laughed his head off as he switched on the lights.  That was when he saw the Doberman Pincer sitting under the parrot’s cage, beginning to growl.  At this point the parrot said, Attack, Jesus, attack!”

(Chuck Swindoll, The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart, Word Publishing, 1998, pp. 594-595.)

I apologize for using a joke that seems disrespectful to Jesus.  I can’t imagine naming a pet after our Lord.  I mean, come on!  But perhaps the owners rightly viewed the dog, like the Lord, as their protector and guardian of their safety.  And certainly the burglar was unwise to have broken into that house.

To me this story also raises the issue of how we are to act when it appears to us that God is hidden.  The dog owners were not home, but the dog—and the parrot—were both at work.  Jesus prayed to His Father, in Matthew 11:25-26—> I praise you, Father, because You have hidden these things from the wise and learned [the religious experts of His day] and revealed them to little children [we believers].  Yes, Father, for this was Your good pleasure.   Jesus appears to be saying that the Father does not always reveal His intentions to us at the time He is working.  But, if we have the faith of little children He does eventually reveal Himself and His actions.

Let’s look at how this truth plays out in the Scripture lessons appointed for today:

A.  Esther 7:1-10; 9:20-22 tells the amazing story of how a young woman (counseled by her wise uncle) saves the Jewish people living in the Persian Empire, post Babylonian Exile (500’s).  Unknown to King Xerxes of Persia, he chooses a beautiful Jewish woman to become his wife/queen.

Haman, the King’s “Prime Minister,” hated the Jews, especially Esther’s Uncle Mordecai, a palace scribe.  (Haman is descended from the Amalekites, long-term enemies of the Jewish people.)  He furtively manipulates the King into passing an edict that would allow citizens of his entire empire to attack and kill the Jews on a certain, future date.  Not realizing his queen is Jewish, Xerxes foolishly signs the edict into law.  Once he does so, according to Persian custom, his edict could not be rescinded.

Uncle Mordecai gets a message to Esther encouraging her to ask her husband to overrule his original edict with another which would allow Jews to defend themselves.  Our passage today describes her strategy: She invites the King and Haman to two banquets.  During the first, she does not make her request.  Xerxes is so pleased—and Haman is so flattered—that the King is willing to give her up to half his extensive kingdom.  But she simply invites the two men back to a second banquet.  At the second, she reveals that she is Jewish and asks that the king spare her people who are set to be annihilated.  The King has a short memory and he fails to realize he signed a death warrant for all the Jews in Persia.  Until Esther confronts Haman, Xerxes fails to remember the idea originated with his Prime Minister.

The King is furious and “takes 5” to mull it over.   Haman appears to attack the Queen as she is reclined on her eating couch.  Perhaps he was only frantically begging for clemency.  When Xerxes returns, however, he believes Haman intends to rape his wife in his own palace.  Ironically, Haman is immediately sentenced to death—for abusing the queen—on the very gallows or pike he had erected to hang or impale Uncle Mordecai!

Paul states for us “The Law of Sowing and Reaping” in Galations 6:7-8—> Do not be deceived:  God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.  The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.  I think you would agree the Esther/Haman story is a dramatic example of the boomerang effect of the Law of Sowing and Reaping.  What we hurl out to another can and often does come right back at us.  Other scriptural examples include…

(1) Old Testament Jacob who tricked his blind father, Isaac, into believing he was his father’s favorite twin, Esau; later Jacob’s 10 sons tricked him into believing his favorite son, Joseph, was dead.

(2) Jacob cheated his brother, just as Uncle Laban later cheated Jacob, over and over again.

(3) Paul appears to have authorized the stoning of the first Christian martyr, Stephen; later, Paul is stoned, almost to death on his 1st missionary journey.

If we choose to do the devil’s work, the same kind of evil often later boomerangs back to us.  God’s hand may be hidden in the outworking.

We often only realize He was involved after we look back from the distance.

B. Psalm 124 recounts what happens to those who choose to love God—He protects them!  King David reviews Jewish history and notes how often God has protected His people.  He asks the rhetorical question (vv.1-2)—> If the Lord had not been on our side [what would have happened to us?].  He accurately credits God with having saved Israel from (1) enemies (vv.1-3); (2) The deep and broad waters of the Red Sea and the raging waters of the Jordan at flood stage (v.4). (3) And other overwhelming circumstances of life are also implied—like hurricanes and too much rain, As we and the folks of North Carolina have just experienced with Hurricane Helene.

David is quick to give God the glory in his famous last line:  Our help is in the name of the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.  When we choose to honor God, to trust in God, He blesses us in a positive boomerang.

C. In James 5:13-20, the practical disciple reiterates King David’s point.  God is trustworthy and takes care of us.  If we love and serve Him, He answers our prayers and rescues us from trouble; He listens when we pray intercession for others; and He delights in our praise.  James gives the example of Elijah whose God-directed prayers prevented rain in Israel for 3.5 years.  Then, when again directed by God, his prayers brought on the rain.  James reminds us in verse 16b—> The prayer of a righteous man [woman] is powerful and effective.  There was a period in my life when I believed God was not answering any of my prayers.  I knew enough to pray to Him but I was not living for Him.  Once I turned my life over to Jesus, the Lord began to answer my prayers.  Voila! Righteous living results in prayers that are effective.  What a fantastic, positive, boomerang effect!

D. In Mark 9:38-50, Jesus spells out both a positive and a negative result of the Law of Sowing and Reaping:  Verses 39-41—> Blessings come to those who do miracles and provide physical refreshment to others in Jesus’ name.  Even if the person is not clearly identified as a member of our crowd of Jesus followers, if that person is doing good deeds in Jesus’ name, they and their efforts are blessed.  They may not be of our denomination, ethnicity, citizenship, etc., but if they are for Jesus, we need to be for them.

Conversely, in verses 42-48, Jesus states what happens to the one who causes the innocent to sin—> it would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a large millstone tied around his neck.  It brings to mind pedophiles and child-sex-traffickers, as well as drug dealers, doesn’t it?

There may be a special level of hell for those folks.  Again, if you/we perpetrate evil, it will boomerang back on us.  That concept is so important that we want to make every effort to keep our sin list with the Lord short.

We want to remain committed to Christ.  We probably need to ask His forgiveness daily.

Our God does not always take obvious credit for His work in our lives.  Just because He chooses to remain hidden does not mean He is not working on our behalf.  We can ask for eyes to see how He is at work in our lives.  And we can ask for faith to believe until He reveals Himself.

Meanwhile, this week, let’s try to be aware of the Law of Sowing and Reaping.  The Law of Sowing and Reaping is, like King Xerxes’ edicts, immutable.  Once our actions have put evil into play, we run the dire risk of having it return to us.  But, on the other hand, when we put blessings into play, blessings come back to us. 

With a thought toward reaping God’s best, this week let’s be aware of doing our best toward Him and others. Amen! May it be so!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

True Wisdom, True Greatness

Pastor Sherry’s message for September 22, 2024

Scriptures: Proverbs 31:10-31; Ps 1; James 3:13-4:8; Mk 9:30-37

A pastor was delivering a children’s sermon one Sunday in which he was trying to get them to tell him how a person might make it into heaven. 

He said, “If I sold my house and my car, had a big garage sale and gave all my money to the church, would that get me into Heaven?” 

“NO!” the children all answered.

“If I cleaned the church every day, mowed the yard, and kept everything neat and tidy, would that get me into Heaven?”

Again, the answer was, “NO!”

“Well, then, if I was kind to animals and gave candy to all the children and loved my wife, would that get me into Heaven?” 

Again, they all answered, “NO!”

“Well,” he continued, “then how can I get into Heaven?” A five-year-old boy shouted out, “YOU GOTTA BE DEAD.”

(illustration borrowed from www.sermons.com, 9/20/2024)

I love this story because it demonstrates the practical, literal wisdom that children sometimes exhibit.

Our Scriptures today all speak in some way about wisdom, with the Old Testament, Psalm, and New Testament readings forming the backdrop, or context, to Jesus’ Gospel lesson.  Let’s examine how this is so:

A.  Psalm 1 provides us with God’s take on wisdom.  Inspired by the Lord, the psalmist presents us with a dichotomy, a choice between two opposing options: (1) We can choose the way of sinners, the way ungodly folks behave (Psalm 19 calls this way “foolishness”); Or (2) we can choose the way of righteousness, the way a godly person behaves.  It’s one way or the other, no in between.  The Lord wants us to choose to live a life focused on Him—a life of righteousness.  The wise person, man or woman, chooses to align his/her life with God’s teaching, not that of the culture.  The wise person is a servant of (surrendered to) Christ.  The foolish person, on the other hand, is captured by the wickedness and sin advocated in the culture.  The righteous—those blessed by God—ultimately prosper, but the foolish come to a very bad end.

B. Proverbs 31:10-31 is ascribed to someone named King Lemuel.  Biblical scholars believe the description of the wise woman was told to Solomon by his mother, Queen Bathsheba.  They think “King Lemuel” was her pet name for him.  They believe this because there was never a king of Israel of this name.  They also believe this because many of us give our kids nick-names.  I called my son, David Morgan, “Rooney” when he was little; and my daughter, Meredith Claire, “Merry Sunshine.”  So, I can imagine the name, Lemuel, was a private joke between Solomon and his mom.

Mama Bathsheba was trying to convey to her son what he needed in order to live a good life.  God bless her for trying!  By the time he died, he had accumulated 700 wives and 300 concubines!  But she wanted him to realize he only needed one good woman.  He didn’t need multiple beautiful wives or dozens of women who would bring with them grand political alliances.  Instead, he would have been so much better off with one virtuous wife, a woman of character, strength, and real ability: someone faithful; a helpful partner to her husband; a woman who was energetic, not lazy; someone who would spend the family money wisely and who would manage the household (including raising children) well; someone kind and generous; someone wise in the ways Solomon was not.  Too bad that, as history bears out, Solomon did not listen to his mother (There could be a sermon in there somewhere)! 

This set of proverbs emphasizes the wisdom in joining ourselves to a wise spouse, and by logical extension, to wise friends.

C.  James, Jesus’ half-brother, is in total agreement with the author of Psalm 1.  In James 3:13-4:3, he reiterates that there are two kinds of wisdom in this world: (1) Heavenly, or Godly wisdom; and (2) earthly, unspiritual wisdom.  James says earthly, unspiritual wisdom is characterized by disorder and evil behaviors.  Consider the example of rap music star P. Diddy—if he is guilty of what they have alleged he has done, this is truly evil behavior.  He is currently in jail, on a suicide watch.  Is he suicidal because he has been caught or because he has come under conviction for his sins?  We need to pray for him to come to Jesus.  You see, earthly, unspiritual wisdom is more than us just being our “bad old selves.”

J. Vernon McGee writes, “the wickedness of the world is not merely human, but human plus something” [the devil].  (McGee, Through the Bible Commentary on James, Thomas Nelson, 1991, p.86.)

In verse 15, James says (people who are bitter, envious, or selfishly ambitious have chosen a ‘wisdom’ that)—>…does not come from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.  As with Psalm 1, James says we are presented with a choice as to which kind of wisdom we pursue.  People will be able to tell which we have chosen by the way we live our lives.  Those of us who seek Godly wisdom will live lives that are (v.17) pure, peace-loving, considerate, submissive [surrendered to God], full of mercy and good fruit, impartial, and sincere. 

Finally, James (vv.7-8) urges us to submit our lives to God, and to resist the devil…knowing he and his minions whisper into our ears all sorts of ideas intended to lead us astray.  We need to recognize that these sinful or destructive thoughts come from him, and then tell him to beat it, in Jesus’ name!  True wisdom means sticking as closely to God as we possibly can, and returning to Him in repentance when we blow it.

D. Our Gospel lesson today comes from Mark 9:30-37.   Jesus has just told the twelve that He must suffer and die to complete His earthly mission, but they act as though they have not heard Him.  I have seen this phenomenon at work in therapy.  If I offer an interpretation of a client’s behavior before they are ready to receive it, they deny it.  I realize I have moved too quickly and have to wait to restate it later when they are less defensive.  Sometimes people just cannot receive a truth that is too different from their usual way of thinking.  

Instead of considering what Jesus has said to them, His disciples foolishly get lost in which of them will take on what positions when He ushers in His Kingdom (in an earlier sermon on this passage, I have suggested the following):

a. No doubt, Judas wanted to be Secretary of the Treasury;

b. Peter, Secretary of Defense, of Homeland Security, or perhaps Chief of Staff;

c. Doubting Thomas, the “show me” Apostle, for Attorney General;

d. The loving, charitable John, Secretary of Health and Human Services, or perhaps Secretary of Education.

e. And so on.

In another of Jesus’ surprising reversals of cultural values, He tells the 12 that true wisdom is allot like how kids behave.  If you want to be greatest, be like a child, the servant of all.  If you want to be first, make sure everyone is served before you.  In other words, be humble, loving, and not hung up on yourself.  The true story is told of St. Paul’s School of Theology in Kansas City, MO.  They had launched a search for their next dean president, and had whittled down the pool of applicants to five.  Someone on the search committee then suggested that rather than comparing the candidates’ resumes or vitas, they send a member to their current positions to locate a janitor and ask him or her what they thought of the person.  They did this and selected a fellow whose janitor raved about his kindness and goodness.  When reporting their selection, the committee stated, 

“Those who live close to Christ become so secure in His love that they no longer relate to other people according to rank or power or money or prestige. They treat janitors and governors with equal dignity. They regard everybody as a VIP.  Children seem to do this intuitively; adult Christians have to relearn it.”

(“The Measure of Greatness,” www.sermons.com, 9/20/2024.)  

Jesus is teaching that true wisdom comes from dying to or denying self— obeying God, just as Jesus did and loving others, Just as Jesus did.

This is one of those difficult lessons Jesus poses for us.  It’s so counter to our typical way of thinking.  We don’t want to die to self!  That seems as painful as turning our toe-nails backward.  YIKES!  But perhaps it might be helpful to look at it this way:  The story is told of a long ago tribe of Native Americans who lived in Mississippi. 

“They lived next to a very swift and dangerous river. The current was so strong that if somebody happened to fall in or stumbled into it they could be swept away downstream.

“One day the tribe was attacked by a hostile group of settlers. They found themselves with their backs against the river. They were greatly outnumbered and their only chance for escape was to cross the rushing river. They huddled together and those who were strong picked up the weak and put them on their shoulders; the little children, the sick, the old and the infirm, those who were ill or wounded were carried on the backs of those who were strongest. They waded out into the river, and to their surprise they discovered that the weight on their shoulders carrying the least and the lowest helped them to keep their footing and to make it safely across the river.”

(King Duncan, “Carry Someone With You,” www.sermons.com, 9/20/2024.)

Jesus is teaching the 12 and us that whatever positions there are in God’s Kingdom—and we don’t even know what those may be—are not based on strength, power, worldly wealth, influence, or even skill or gifting.  Wise persons know that to lead, we must become a servant like Jesus. Wise persons know that we need to exhibit childlike joy, faith, and love.

Wise persons know that, “If you want to walk on secure ground in this world it helps to carry someone with you.”

(Duncan, Ibid.)

Let’s close in prayer:  Father God, we bless you, we praise you and we love you.  Lord, please give us the practical, childlike wisdom to be humble and painfully honest with ourselves.  Empower us to live out the Christian virtues of faith, joy, love.  Help us to become and live out our lives as true servants of Christ.  Amen.  May it be so!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Pick Up Your Cross

Pastor Sherry’s message for 9/15/2024

Scriptures: Pro 1:20-23; Ps 19, James 3:1-12; Mk 8:27-38

What do you think of when you look upon the Cross?  We have a cross both inside and outside our church.  The one inside is plain, crafted by Leonard Young, commemorating Jesus’ death and resurrection.  It’s empty because Jesus has risen from the dead.  The one outside is especially resplendent on Easter Sunday when we deck it out with flowers, symbolizing Christ’s victory over sin and death.

Coming home to Live Oak from seminary in Pittsburgh, I had to drive through West Virginia.  That state is very hilly!  Interestingly, on nearly every hill you will see 3 crosses:  The taller, central one for Jesus; the other two—often shorter–for the criminals crucified with Him.

The people of Siauliai, Lithuania, however, demonstrate a special devotion to the cross.  Sometime during the mid-19th century, they began to erect crosses in a particular place called “The Hill of Crosses.”  (Look it up on the internet and you will be amazed at the number and variety of crosses collected there.)  The Cross is the major symbol of the Christian faith.  To Lithuanians, it also represents the 3 major Christian virtues:  faith, hope, and love. 

When Lithuania has been under communist domination, the atheistic  communists have totally destroyed the crosses on this hill 3 times (in 1961, 1973, & 1975).  Each time, people clandestinely hurried to replace what had been destroyed.  Since 1980, and especially since the independence of Lithuania from Russia in 1991, more than 200,000 crosses of many materials and of many sizes, have been erected at this site.  So, to them, these crosses also represent persisting in their faith, despite persecution.

The Cross represents Jesus, Christianity, hope, love, persistence in the faith, and also courage➡️the courage to defy evil oppression.

(Billy D. Strayhorn, “At Cross Purposes,” www.sermons.com, 9/15/2024).

Like last week, our Scripture lessons offer us plenty of good advice on how to live life wisely.  Today, however, I want to focus on our Gospel lesson, Mark 8:27-38. Jesus covers quite a bit of theological ground in these 11 verses:

A.  First, He challenges the 12 about His identity.  They have just seen Him minster healing to two Gentiles.  On the road to Caesarea Philippi (present day Jordan), He asks them who folks are saying He is.  The answers suggest folks outside His inner circle think He is one prophet or another, brought back to life.  But since they are His closest followers and the most knowledgeable of His friends, He wants to know what they think.

Have you ever Googled yourself on the Internet?  It can be, surprising—even distressing–to see what information on you is circulating out there.

The story is told of a self-absorbed man who arrives at a hospital emergence room.  He rapidly  grows impatient with the long wait to be seen approaches the nurses’ station, and demands to be taken back to see a doctor, all while shouting, “Don’t you know who I am?”   The veteran, no-nonsense nurse at the desk calmly picks up a mike and states over the loud speaker, “I have a gentleman here who doesn’t know who he is. Can someone please assist him in finding out?  Thank you.”

(Stephen Sizer, “Who Am I?” www.sermons.com, 9/15/2024.)

Getting back to Jesus, Peter offers an inspired response (v.29)➡️You are the Christ [God’s anointed One; the Messiah].  Bravo, Peter!  He’s right!  And Jesus immediately asks the 12 to keep this truth to themselves.

B.  Then He proceeds to tell the 12 what will happen to their Messiah:  In roughly 6 months’ time, He will suffer many things.  He will be rejected by the religious authorities of Israel; even worse from their perspective, He must be killed; but after 3 days dead, He will rise again.

Peter, for one, cannot conceive that the Messiah would be killed, so he challenges Jesus.  Most Jews held that the Messiah would arrive as a conquering King and free Israel from the Roman’s oppressive regime.

Even though they had the Suffering Servant passages from Isaiah 43, 44, & 53—which so perfectly describe Jesus–they never believed these passages predicted what their Messiah would endure.  So Peter essentially tells Jesus He is wrong.  YIKES!  If we ever think God is wrong, we need to examine our own hearts and heads.  God/Jesus personify Truth/Wisdom➡️Our God is never wrong!

Peter had just previously answered so insightfully and brilliantly, but now he is just badly mistaken.  Jesus rebukes Peter for reciting thoughts inspired by Satan.  Satan excels in rebellion against the plans and the will of God.  Just as the evil one can manipulate Peter—a man who spent 3 years with Jesus and witnessed all of His teachings, healings, and miracles—so too can he tempt us to say and do things we later regret.  Without truly understanding God’s purposes, Peter is trying to talk Jesus out of obeying His Father.  Peter’s agenda, you see, is not the end or goal of God’s plan, but the means of securing Peter’s (and that of Judas).  Probably, without realizing it, Peter was using Jesus to get what Peter wanted.  None of us can do that!

C. This then leads Jesus into a teaching on what it means to pick up our cross and follow Him.  The pathway of true discipleship travels right through suffering (v.34)➡️If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.  First, we must deny ourselves and seek God’s will in place of ours.  This, in and of itself, may involve suffering. That’s the next requirement…take up your cross.  In what ways might you have suffered for Jesus?  Have you lost money?  I know a missionary who used to planted Walgreens drug stores.  He scouted out new locations for the retail store chain, and was headed up the corporate ladder, until God grabbed ahold of him.  I met him in Turkey in 2010 while on a short term mission trip.  He and his wife had taken a year to learn Turkish, then another 3 years to learn Parsi, the Iranian language.  His ultimate assignment was to minister to the more than 700,000 Iranian refugees who had fled their country to live in Turkey.  Among these immigrants, he had planted 18 Christian churches!  Since then, he now heads up a mission agency that plants churches in Moslem countries.  He may have lost money he might have earned from corporate America, but instead, he has brought many middle Easterners to a saving faith in Christ.

Have you lost opportunities to rise professionally?  Do your family and friends fail to understand you?  I have had friends shake their heads when I say I do not have a “Five Year Plan.”  I wouldn’t presume to make one, knowing that the Lord could change it radically tomorrow.  My 5 year plan is to follow Jesus.

Have some folks written you off as a religious nut or an intolerant bigot?  It’s interesting to me that our culture today considers Christians intolerant.  That’s exactly what the Romans used as an excuse to persecute followers of Jesus 2,000 years ago.  By refusing to proclaim, “Caesar is Lord,” or to worship the Roman panoply of Gods, the Roman authorities decided those who loved Jesus were narrow- minded and fanatically bigoted.  

Jesus is saying to the 12—and to us—“I am a King but not like any king you ever imagined.  I am a king who must die.”

(Timothy Keller, King’s Cross, Dutton, 2011, p.102.)

Additionally, if we refuse to travel the road to suffering for Christ—trying to save our lives—we will lose out in the end.  The Greek word Jesus uses here for life is psyche, which also means identity, personality, or our sense of self.  He is not calling us to allow our identity to be absorbed into some sort of cosmic soup, like most Eastern religions do.  Rather, He honors our unique identities—after all, He created them—but insists that we must leave off trying to control our destiny ourselves.  

He is also saying Jesus is saying we should not build our identity on the things of this world.  Collectivist cultures like those of Jesus’ time, and the Middle East now, base identity on honoring the family and on having children.  Individualistic cultures like those of modern Europe and America, claim our identity comes from our status, individual success, a fulfilling career, or the amount of money we make.  In both approaches to life, a person’s identity is based on their performance to please family or please self.  Jesus is saying this will never work for us, never satisfy or fulfill us.

What will satisfy and fulfill us is basing our identity on our love for and faith in Christ.  What will satisfy and fulfill us is basing our identity on Jesus and the Gospel.  We could say then that Jesus went to the Cross—He had to die—so that we would not have to strive in life, but rest in His completed work for us.

(Keller, King’s Cross, p.105)

So, if we lose our lives—by letting God lead, guide, and direct us—we will have eternal life.

And, additionally, if we can truly grasp this truth, we will realize how very much we are loved and how incredibly worthwhile we are.  I am often frustrated by those who weekly preach “hellfire and damnation.”  Yes, we are sinners who need to repent, but the Good News is that our God loved us enough to die in our place.  We are precious to Him.  Furthermore, if I base my identity on a romantic relationship, who am I if the relationship ends?  If I base my identity on a profession, who am I if I lose my job?  Instead, basing our identity on the Lord, we can firmly state, “Yes, we’re sinners, but the King of the Universe loved us enough to die for us!”

So what does the Cross mean to you?  Yes, it was an instrument of torture.  Yes, it is to many a symbol of hope, faith, resistance to oppression, and persistence despite persecution.  But it also represents for all time… 

Jesus’ submission to the will of the Father (There is no atonement for sin without the shedding of blood); our importance to God; an end to our need to strive; and Jesus’ sacrificial love for each of us.

Commenting on the meaning of this Gospel passage, C.S. Lewis wrote the following in his book, Mere Christianity (McMillan, 1943, p.168):  “The terrible thing, the almost impossible thing, is to hand over your whole self—all your wishes and precautions—to Christ.  But it is far easier than what we are trying to do instead.  For what we are trying to do is to remain what we call “ourselves,” to keep personal happiness as our great aim in life, and yet at the same time be “good.”  We are all trying to let our mind and heart go their own way—centered on money or pleasure or ambition—and hoping, in spite of this, to behave honestly and chastely and humbly.  And this is exactly what Christ warned us you could not do.  As He said, a thistle cannot produce figs.  If I am a field that contains nothing but grass-seed, I cannot produce wheat.  Cutting the grass may keep it short:  but I shall still produce grass and no wheat.  If I want to produce wheat, the change must go deeper than the surface.  I must be ploughed up and re-sown. “  The challenge to us all, just as Jesus stated it, is to  deny ourselves, pick up our Cross, and follow Jesus.  Amen!  May it be so!    

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Metaphors or Examples?

Pastor Sherry’s message for August 4, 2024

Scriptures: 2 Sam 13:1-31; Ps 51:10-19; Eph 4:17-24; Jn 8:1-11

Joe DiMaggio was a baseball centerfielder for the New York Yankees from 1936-1951, interrupted by 3 years army service during WWII.  He is probably most famous for maintaining a streak of hits in 56 consecutive games; for helping the Yankees win 9 World Series in his 13 years as an active player; and for having been married briefly to the actress Marilyn Monroe.  Curiously, there is a line about him in Paul Simon’s iconic song from the 1960’s called “Mrs. Robinson”—What’s that you say, Mrs. Robinson?  Joltin’ Joe has left and gone away…hey, hey, hey.”  Joe apparently wrote to Simon after the song came out and said, “What do you mean, where have I gone?  I haven’t gone anywhere!  I’m still around selling Mr. Coffee.”  (He advertised Mr. Coffee for a number of years on TV.)  Paul Simon mentioned his letter in a “60 Minutes” interview and told Mike Wallace, “Obviously Mr. DiMaggio is not accustomed to thinking of himself as a metaphor.”

(Anecdote borrowed from Scott Hoezee, www.sermons.com, July 30, 2024.)

I read this recently and thought, “Well, who does think of themselves as a metaphor?”  Jesus used metaphors to describe Himself:  I am the Bread of Life, the Good Shepherd, the Vine, the Living Water, the Gate, the way, the truth and the life, the Resurrection and the Life, etc., but He was and is God.  The rest of us tend to think of ourselves as ordinary, regular persons.  How would you describe yourself?  I would say I’m a mother and grandmother, a follower of Jesus Christ, a pastor, a friend, a neighbor, a psychologist, a daughter to deceased parents, an American, and so on. It might be fun to ask our families to come up with some poetic image they might use to capture in a word or phrase who we are to them.  Would they say we are “the Rock of Gibraltar? Or might they say we are “a pain in the neck”? 

Most of the time, in Scripture, the stories are of real people like us, facing real and sometimes tough situations, and are useful to us as examples, rather than metaphors.  Our Scripture lessons today contain several didactic examples and maybe a few creative metaphors.

A.  Let’s start with our Old Testament lesson from 2 Samuel 13:1-31.  If I’m not mistaken, this story never appears in our lectionary.

Perhaps it’s too violent, too upsetting, or too triggering.  But I appreciate that our God doesn’t try to “candy-coat” human behavior.  In certain stories, He shares with us how very depraved human beings can be if they are not following hard after Him. The story of Amnon, Tamar, and Absolom illustrates for us the initial outworking of Nathan’s prophesy to the guilty King David (2 Samuel 12:10)—Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised Me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.  In other words, David would reap a harvest of violent and reprehensible behavior among his own children.

It begins when Amnon, David’s eldest son and heir (by his 3rd wife Ahinoam), thinks he’s desperately in love with his half-sister, Tamar.  Tamar was reputed to be very beautiful.  Her full brother was Absalom, David’s favorite son.  Their mother was Maacah, David’s 4th wife.  She was a princess, daughter to Talmai, King of Geshur, so the marriage may have been a political one.

The true tale is accelerated by a wily cousin, Jonadab.  He recommends to Amnon that he lure Tamar into his bedroom.  (Beware of wily cousins.  I have to wonder how aiding Amnon to do wrong would profit Johadab.  Remember, last week I encouraged us to be somewhat skeptical of human reason.)  Amnon takes his advice, even asking his father to assist by directing Tamar to tend to Amnon.  David was a mighty general and a gifted leader, but he appears to have been pretty clueless or naive regarding his sons.

Amnon’s victim, Tamar, realizes his intentions are sinister when he grabs her, and she begs him to let her alone.  She first appeals to his morals, (v.12, NLT)—Don’t be foolish!  Don’t do this to me!  Such wicked things aren’t done in Israel.  She then asks him to consider what this would mean to her future, (v.13)—Where could I go in my shame?

Next, She reminds him of what this will do to his reputation (v.13)—And you would be called one of the greatest fools in Israel.  She even offers him an alternative (v.13)—Please, just speak to the king about it and he will let you marry me (probably not, but it may have bought her time or an opportunity to escape). 

Despite her pleas, Amnon won’t be persuaded and he assaults her.  Would real love lead a person to rape the one they claim to love?  No, he misperceived his lust for love.  After getting what he wanted, he then despises her and rejects her.  He doesn’t take responsibility for his sin, but instead blames his victim.  She is physically hurt, violated, humiliated, and grieved.  But notice she does not go to their father for help.  She knows that Amnon is his heir; no doubt she thinks, “Who am I compared to him?”She then runs to her brother, Absolom, for refuge.

King David hears about it afterward, gets angry, but does nothing.  Absolom despises Amnon and patiently plots revenge.  It takes 2 years, but he commands his servants to kill Amnon at a harvest celebration he hosts.

The rumor runs ahead that all the king’s sons are assassinated.  Wily cousin Jonadab tells the king that Absolom killed just Amnon—not the other sons—due to Amnon’s rape of his sister.  (Again, what was Jonadab after?)

David mourns Amnon’s death, but he again does nothing to his favorite son—now his heir–Absolom.  Absolom “gets out of Dodge” by taking refuge with his maternal grandfather, the King of Jeshur, for 3 years.

The grave, violent sins of two of his sons further grieves King David.

One kills the other.  The murderer, Absolom, no doubt develops contempt his father, David.  David has let his grief and favoritism get in the way of doing the right thing.  And to add insult to injury, he abandons his daughter—Scripture does not tell us how her life turned out.  (I want to ask about this when I get to heaven.)  These two sons are examples of entitled kids who go wrong. They are both godless and immoral.  They may even be metaphors for what happens when parental figures do not confront grave sin in their children.

B.  Paul seems to have had the Amnon-Absolom saga in mind as he penned Ephesians 4:17-24.  He clearly could have been referencing those two selfish and indulged princes when he wrote (vv.17-19)—Live no longer as the Gentiles [non-Jews but also nonbelievers] do, for they are hopelessly confused.  Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against Him.  They have no sense of shame.  They live for lustful pleasure and eagerly practice every kind of impurity.  He exhorts us all to remember that if we believe in Jesus, we will not behave in sinful or depraved ways.  Instead, we should (vv.23-24)—…throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception.  Instead, let the Spirit renew our thoughts and attitudes.  Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy.  In other words, don’t behave like Amnon or like Absolom.

C. Finally, Jesus sees the larger picture in the case of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11).  Unlike the seemingly naïve King David, Jesus immediately perceives the motives of the religious leaders who drag in the female adulterer: 1st, they rudely interrupt His teaching at the Temple.  Rather than taking Him aside privately, they thrust the poor woman onto the ground before Jesus and the crowd, and make their demands. This is staged-outrage, designed to discredit our Lord.  2nd, they are not really concerned about justice or correct theology.  It’s another trap, like paying taxes or healing on the Sabbath.  3rd, the woman has been caught in the act (they probably dragged her in from bed); there’s no question that she’s guilty.  The true question is, “Where’s the guy?”  This is not a sin that is committed without a partner.

The trap is this:  If He says, “You are right, stone her,” they can rat Him out to the Romans (only the Romans could authorize the death penalty).  If He urges mercy for her, they can claim He violates Jewish Law.

What’s interesting is that in trying to trap Jesus, they have themselves violated the spirit of the Law:  Leviticus 20:10—If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—the wife of a neighbor—the adulterer and the adulteress must be put to death.  Deuteronomy 22:22–If a man is found sleeping with another man’s wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.  Notice, the means of death is not cited, and the Law is primarily aimed at the male.

The scribes and Pharisees very publically demand to know what Jesus would do.  Notice Jesus doesn’t say a word.  Instead, He begins to write in the dirt with His finger.  What could He have been writing? Perhaps He looked at them one-by-one and wrote their name next to a big, secret sin.

This makes sense because, after having apparently listing their hidden sins, He then states, (v.7)—IF any of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.  The only sinless person there is Jesus.  One-by-one, they leave, in age order (maybe the eldest had accumulated more sins?)  So then Jesus turns His attention to the woman:  Woman, where are they?  Has no one condemned you?  She respectfully replies, No one, Sir.  And Jesus responds, Then neither do I condemn you.  Go now and leave your life of sin (sin no more).  The only one who could have legitimately judged her did not.  He called her behavior sin, tells her to amend her life, and offers her grace and forgiveness.

So what does this mean to us?  Several things:

(1) Scripture tells us, (Romans 6:23)—The wages of sin are death.  As far as we know, both Amnon and Absolom died with serious sins on their souls.  They predated Jesus and they did not seem sorry for the wrong they had done.  They probably now reside in hell.  

(2) But, for us, this side of the Cross, Jesus’ mercy triumphs over justice.  Thank God!  As Paul reminds us in Romans 3:23—For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.  And as John writes in 1 John 1:8—If we claim to be without sin we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.  We are all sinners in need of a Savior.

(3) And, praise God, we have One!  Jesus is our Savior! 

(4) So let us learn from the examples of the wrong-doers in Scripture.  Let us live like metaphors of those who want to please our Lord.  And let us praise Him!  Amen!

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Touched by Mercy

Pastor Sherry’s message for June 30, 2024

Scriptures:1 Sam 1:1, 17-27; Ps 130; 2 Cor 8:7-15; Mk 5:21-43

This morning I want to share with you two brief stories in which mercy is granted to someone:

In the first, “A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. ‘But I don’t ask for justice,’ the mother explained. ‘I plead for mercy.’ ‘But your son does not deserve mercy,’ Napoleon replied. ‘Sir,’ the woman cried, ‘it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask for.’ ‘Well, then,’ the emperor said, ‘I will have mercy.’ And he spared the woman’s son.” 

(Luis Palau, “Experiencing God’s Forgiveness”, Multnomah Press, 1984.)

The second is a true story from the life of President Calvin Coolidge (our 30th President, 1923-1929), which only came to light years after his death:  “In the early days of his presidency, Coolidge awoke one morning in his hotel room to find a burglar going through his pockets. Coolidge spoke up, asking the burglar not to take his watch chain because it contained an engraved charm he wanted to keep. Coolidge then engaged the thief in quiet conversation and discovered he was a college student who had no money to pay his hotel bill or buy a ticket back to campus. Coolidge counted $32 out of his wallet–which he had also persuaded the dazed young man to give back; declaring it to be a loan, he advised the young man to leave the way he had come so as to avoid the Secret Service! (Yes, the loan was paid back.)”

(Today in the Word, October 8, 1992).

Both of these stories illustrate the fact that mercy differs from justice.  Justice would require that both the French woman’s son and the felonious college student were punished for the crimes they had both truly committed.  Each had been caught doing wrong.  Each deserved the penalty required for their behavior.  But Mercy saw them both get off, hopefully to turn their lives 180 degrees around.

All of our passages today deal with mercy.  Let’s see what they have to teach us:

A.  In our OT lesson (2 Samuel 1:1,17-27), we see King David honoring the deaths of King Saul and Saul’s son, Jonathan.  Both logic and human nature would tell us that David had many reasons to be glad King Saul was dead.  We understand David’s deep and sincere grief for Jonathan, his best and truest friend.  But Saul, knowing God had anointed David as his successor, had repeatedly wronged David; jealously hunted him down, intending to kill him; and—because Saul ignored God’s will—would probably have killed David if he had ever gotten his hands on him.  (He never did because God protected David.)  In today’s cancel culture, many would have thought David justified in celebrating Saul’s death.

But such a way of thinking is neither Christian nor godly.  Remember, before Saul discovered that God had appointed David as his successor, David had played and sung music that calmed Saul’s troubled spirit.  David got to know Saul very well.  He became best friends with Saul’s son, Jonathan.  He married Saul’s daughter, Michal.  And, as we considered last week, Saul had allowed the youthful David to challenge and kill the pagan bully, Goliath.

So, in this passage, we see David illustrate the concept of mercy by honoring the good rather than only vilifying the bad.  He would have been justified in pointing out all the unjust ways in which Saul had treated him.

But instead, he laments Saul’s death, recalling the good the fallen king had done for Israel.  King David knew God had been merciful to him and so was willing to be merciful to his former enemy. 

B.  In fact, this is the point of Psalm 130—it is a prayer for mercy when someone is seriously troubled.  We don’t know the author.  But whoever he (or she) is, this person is well aware of God’s mercy.  He or she acknowledges their sinfulness (v.3)—If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?  This psalmist also celebrates the fact that the Lord forgives us, thanks be to God!  Ultimately, this psalm urges us to trust in God’s mercy.

C.  Paul, too, in 2 Corinthians 8:7-15, is focused on how we, as followers of Christ, must be merciful toward others.  He does not command the Corinthian Church to provide cash gifts to the poor, suffering church in Jerusalem (They were suffering due to a prolonged famine).  But it is clear from the passage that he wants them to do so.   He says essentially, (v.14)—At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need.  Then there will be equality.  The principle he outlines is that we are to give, when we have the means, because the time may come when we are in need and others will give to us.  This is a variation of “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”  If we have extra, mercy requires that we give to those less fortunate than us.

D. Jesus, in Mark 5:21-43, dispenses mercy to persons of very different social statuses:

Jairus, is a synagogue president, a privileged “insider.” 

He’s an important, socially prominent person.  We could say he was the  General Manager of the Synagogue.  He appears to be devoted to God, and he is very concerned about his daughter.  He is probably also rich, but his wealth could not cure his child.  Desperate for her healing, he falls at Jesus’ feet and says (v.23)—My little daughter is dying [is as good as dead].  Please come and put Your hands on her so that she will be healed and live.  He specifically asks Jesus to touch her.  Was he present in the Synagogue when Jesus quieted the demons or healed the man with the shriveled up hand?  Whatever the case, he has faith in Jesus’ ability to heal his child.  This 12YO child is precious to him and so he is motivated to seek mercy from Jesus.

By contrast to Jairus and his sick child, the chronically bleeding woman is a destitute “outsider.”  She suffered from whatever caused the bleeding.  She had also suffered from the medical treatments which failed to heal it.  She had suffered financially, having spent all of her money on doctors and prescriptions.  She suffered socially and spiritually, being considered ritually unclean.  Being ritually unclean–almost like a leper—she would have been exiled from her worshipping community.  Being ritually unclean also meant she had been exiled from her social community, including her family.  If she touched anything, it would become unclean (Leviticus 15:25-27).  No one could touch her either.  Imagine living for 12 years with no hugs or pats or handshakes.  If the crowd had recognized her, she could have been stoned for accidentally touching them.  She certainly could not touch a rabbi, like Jesus.

But look at her faith.  She must have heard that Jesus touched unclean persons (the leper); and that when He did, the unclean become clean; the broken, whole.  So she touches His garment in faith that doing so will heal her.  Some scholars contend that her faith was weak or superstitious.  I disagree!  She had faith that He could heal her, but was reluctant to draw any attention to herself.  Her only recourse was to touch His garment.   

Verse 30—Jesus realized that power had gone out from Him.  As Timothy Keller writes, “He has lost power so she could gain it” (King’s Cross, Dutton, 2011, p.61).  (Verse 29)—Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

Jesus wants to know who touched Him.  Why won’t Jesus allow her to remain anonymous?  He wants her to have a relationship with her Healer, her Savior.  He says (v.34)—Daughter, your faith has healed you.  Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.  She needs to know it was her faith and His mercy that healed her.  Before the crowd, He restores her physically spiritually, and socially.

Jesus also won’t allow her to remain anonymous because Jairus and others were watching.  He is saying to Jairus, Trust in Me, lean not upon your own understanding.  Meanwhile, (v.35)—Jairus is told that his daughter has died.  Jesus reassures him (v.36)—Don’t be afraid, just believe (keep on believing).  Trust me, be patient.  There is no need to hurry (death cannt defeat Me).   He takes Peter, James, and John with Him (the Law required 2-3 witnesses to confirm a truth), plus Jairus.

He takes the girl by the hand, and He says the equivalent of Honey/Little Lamb , get up!  On His mercy, He brings her back from the dead.

So what does this mean to us?  We are to demonstrate mercy toward others.  Isn’t it true that we often wish God would dish out justice for other wrong doers, but mercy towards ourselves?  But today, our Scripture passages show us that 

(1) King David offers mercy to someone who had repeatedly tried to kill him;

(2) Our God offers us mercy even though we are all sinners

(3) Paul urges us to offer the needy mercy through gifting them with money or food (a tithe to the poor);

(4) And Jesus offers merciful healing and resurrection life, regardless of a person’s social status.

This week, I challenge us all to think of times we have been touched by God’s mercy, and—like Napoleon and Calvin Coolidge—offer mercy to others.  Amen! 

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams

Posted on by Cheryl Norman

Holy Trinity Sunday

Pastor Sherry’s message for 5/26/2024 

Scriptures: Isa 6:1-8; Ps 29, Ro 8:12-17; John 3:1-17

Last Sunday, Pentecost, I shared with you 13 of the many functions of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Anticipating today being Trinity Sunday, I also pointed out the individual roles of the 3 members of the Holy Trinity.  In honor Trinity Sunday, let’s review these today and consider Who of the Godhead you tend to feel closest to:  

Maybe you stand in awe of the Father: Immortal, invisible, God only wise, in light inaccessible hid from our eyes, most blessed, most glorious, the ancient of Days, almighty victorious, Thy great Name we praise.  These are lines to a hymn to God the Father, Creator of the Universe, completely transcendent, wholly other.  He is the Covenant God, meaning He keeps His promises, always.  He is enthroned in Heaven.  He revealed Himself to Moses as (Ex. 34:6-7): The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. He is clearly in command, but never dominates the other two persons.

I was in the 9th grade before I ever learned my step-father had one good thing to say about me.  He was always very critical and I had learned I could never please him.  One day one of his friends gave me a ride home from school and told me how proud of me my dad was.  I was shocked!  I had been elected president of my high school class, but my dad had never said a word to me about it.  Reading the Old Testament through taught me how much my heavenly Father loves me—and you—and how often He says so, and I have been so grateful, and loved Him back, ever since!

Or perhaps you relate best to Jesus, our Brother, Our Savior, Our Redeemer, and Our Friend: What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!…Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.  Here we have a hymn about Jesus.  Jesus is God-in-the- flesh, coming to earth as a vulnerable infant, teaching and healing us, then dying for our sins.  He really helps us learn that God is indeed love.  Jesus too is compassionate, forgiving, and very patient.  If you have watched any episodes of “The Chosen,” you would have to agree that they depict Christ as someone easy to love.  He tried hard to reach us through memorable stories.  And, remember, it was Jesus who said (Jn 14:11), If you have seen me, you have seen the Father, for I and the Father are one.   Again, God-in-the-flesh.  

I was driving in Pittsburgh one winter, on my way to work, when I rounded a curve on a divided highway only to see several wrecked cars all over the road in front of me.  There was no place for me to pull off to avoid the wreck, as there were concrete barriers on both sides.  I downshifted and braked, but hit a patch of “black ice” and went into a spin.  I was then facing southbound in the northbound passing lane, and could see a large utility van headed toward me.  I knew he would soon hit the very same ice and skid into me.  I felt I was a goner.  I quickly prayed, “Lord Jesus, who will raise my daughter?”  My daughter, Meredith, was about 12 or 13; my son, David, was away in college and launched.  But my girl remained at home with me.  The van did hit me.  My airbag bruised my sternum; my glasses flew off and my briefcase went airborne from the back seat to the front.  The front of my little sports car crunched up like an accordian, but nothing was damaged in the cockpit.  Ambulances took a bunch of us involved in the pile-up to be checked out in the hospital.  But I was fine, just bruised and shaken up.  I knew Jesus had saved me and I was so grateful. 

Others gravitate to the Holy Spirit, the immanence of God, the “with us” God: Holy Spirit, Love divine, glow with in this heart of mine; kindle every high desire; perish self in Thy pure fire.   This is a hymn about the Holy Spirit.  He is how we experience God and Jesus now.  The Father and the Son reside enthroned in Heaven; so it is the Spirit Who leads, guides, and directs us here/now.  He tweaks our conscience when we sin;  He intercedes for us when all we can do is groan; and He equips and empowers us for ministry.  This week I had a word from the Holy Spirit.  He directed an intervention in a psychodrama I was to lead.  He told me to do something I had never done before.  I did what He said to do and the results were amazing!  I have learned to always do what He tells me to do, because He is always right.

Each of us may have a favorite, but the truth is the doctrine of the Trinity helps keep us balanced by reminding us there are 3 persons in our one God.  The Trinity also models for us how we are to live:  God lives in loving, cooperative community and we are to do the same!  The Son and Spirit are submitted to the will of the Father; but the Father does not dominate them.  Rather they coexist in steadfast love, mutual respect, and mutual cooperation.  That’s our model.

Let’s see how our Scripture passages today amplify these truths:

A. Our Old Testament lesson is from Isaiah 6:1-8 and recalls for us the priest Isaiah’s additional call to become a prophet.  He is apparently praying in the Temple when he has a vision of God the Father.

He relates that King Ussiah, the last good King of Judah, had just died, having reigned 52 years (792-740BC).  Isaiah sees (v.1): The Lord, seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple.  How enormous!  How exciting!  Isaiah is grieving the loss of the good king, but then realizes the REAL KING, God, is still on the throne.

Isaiah is reassured that all is still well.

Isaiah also sees seraphs—6-winged, angelic creatures who normally surround God’s throne.  They are shouting, Holy, holy, holy! for the 3 holy Ones, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Their shouts were so loud they shook the Temple foundations, and smoke filled the Temple.  Their job is to search out sin—God’s holiness does not keep company with sin.  In their presence—and in the Lord’s presence—Isaiah becomes mortally aware of his own sinfulness (v.5): Woe to me!…I am ruined!  For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and My eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.  As one commentator puts it, “Seeing God as holy reminds us deeply and painfully that we are not.”  (J. Fearless and D. Chilton, The Lectionary Lab for Year B, 2014, p.192.)

Job had a similar response to seeing God (42:5-6): My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.  Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.  Daniel saw God in a vision and reported (10:8): I had no strength left, my face turned a deathly pale and I was helpless.  We know what happened to Saul/Paul (Acts 9:4-19): he was knocked off his high horse and blinded for 3 days.  Even St. John, Jesus’ close friend, reports (Rev. 1:17): When I saw Him I fell at His feet as though dead.  So, like them, Isaiah expects to at least faint or even to be slain.

Instead, in God’s mercy, one of the seraphim-searcher-outers-of-sin, brings him an antidote.  He touches his lips with a live coal—OUCH!  And says (v.7): See, this has touched your lips: your guilt is taken away and your sins atoned for.  They have been instantly burned away.  Then God issues Isaiah’s call to become the Lord’s prophet: (v.8): Whom shall I send?  And who will go for us?  Hebrew has no royal “we,” the king speaking in the plural (for himself and the country).  Instead, this is an Old Testament reference to the Trinity.

B.  Psalm 29, written by King David, poetically describes the voice of God.  He mentions God’s voice 7 times (the number for perfection, completeness).  And every metaphor David uses is a strong one.  Isaiah perceived God as huge!  King David perceived God as loud and commanding.

C. In our Romans passage (8:12-17), Paul continues to list the roles of the Holy Spirit: Verse 13: He puts to death the misdeeds of our body [helps us overcome sin]; Verse 14:  He leads and guides us; 

Verse 15a: He does not lead us into fear, but into sonship/daughtership;

Verse 15b: The Spirit calls us into an intimate relationship with God, in which we can actually call Him Abba [daddy].  Verse 16: He testifies that we are God’s children.  And, verse 17: …we are heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ.

D. Finally, in our Gospel passage (John 3:1-17), Jesus is having a dialogue with an open-minded Pharisee, Nicodemus.  Nicodemus, an Old Testament scholar and teacher, wants to know how to enter heaven. Jesus says he has to be born again of the Holy Spirit.  Nick doesn’t understand this, confusing our spiritual birth with our physical one.

Remember, 4 weeks ago, I preached on what it means to be born again:  

(1) We believe in Jesus –so Nick has to have faith in Christ,

(2) And we learn to love Him—this is not so hard to do once we realize all He has done for us.  Being born again is a work of the Holy Spirit:  He leads us into faith in Jesus.  He convinces us to love Jesus.  Jesus is emphatic with Nicodemus:  We do not enter heaven because we know and follow the Law.  We do not enter heaven due to our ancestry or our spiritual or economic rank and privilege.  We enter heaven because of the efforts of the Holy Spirit to bring us into an intimate relationship with Jesus.

Jesus then reminds the Pharisee that no one sees or controls the Holy Spirit.  He shows up when and where God wants Him to be.  We don’t control Him.

I often remind my clients of the Serenity Prayer.  I want to end today with the Serenity Prayer, which always reminds me of the wisdom of the Trinity (The entire prayer is longer, but this is the short, easy to remember version): Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change [others’ behavior, my past, etc.], the courage to change the things I can [myself], and the wisdom to know the difference.  Our triune God grants to us the peace—serenity– that passes all understanding.  Our triune God infuses us with courage when we need it.

Our triune God gifts us with wisdom when we ask.  Amen!  May it be so.

©️2024 Rev. Dr. Sherry Adams