Bible:
12 “Six days you shall do your work, but on the seventh day you shall rest so that your ox and your donkey may have relief and your homeborn slave and the resident alien may be refreshed. 13 Be attentive to all that I have said to you. Do not invoke the names of other gods; do not let them be heard on your lips. --New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
--New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE) 【Sermon】
The text of this hymn was written by Frederick William Faber, an Episcopal priest, born in Yorkshire, lived and died in London about 150 years ago, and the music was composed by Calvin Hampton in early 1970’s. A religious poem in Victorian era is set in the late 20th century American musical composition, and the composer was a revolutionary performer on pipe organ. Very interesting combination. My sermon today is an invitation for you to experience the healing story of Jesus, but not just hearing of it and being told how to understand it. We engage ourselves in this story, and each one of us, seek a point of view, feel the air of the day that might happen, and find the message for, and by ourselves; a message that can surprises us, humbles us, refreshes us, and changes us, makes us turn and turn around until we find ourselves come round right to meet Jesus Christ, and God face to face. We do this journey together, by the help of the power of Congregational Singin. Congregational Singing is something that can make an individual journey at the time of worship or bible meditation into a communal commitment. Inhale and exhale together, breathing together, we share the experience in which the words and music of the hymn guide us to give voice to our thoughts, our imaginations, and prayers at the deepest of our hearts. In that way, Congregational Singing becomes a sermon by the congregation, not only for the congregation itself, but also for the world that God created, and all created being in it. This entire universe is so wide that we cannot entirely grasp, so wide, as God Oneself. Wider than the sea and sky. As God’s HOLY being is wide, Holy one’s mercy is, so that the Holy One’s Judgment and its kindness is. So kindlily wide that we can all be free from any guilts. Everyone is welcomed in this God’s dominion. Sinners, like us, is welcomed, and if so, the good ones are no exception. EVERYONE has been healed and mended the wounds and scars by the sacrifice Jesus had paid. Let us join in the first verse of the hymn. There’s a wideness in God’s mercy like the wideness of the sea; There’s a kindness in God’s justice, which is more then liberty; There is welcome for the sinner, and more graces for the good; There is mercy with the Savior / There is healing in his blood.
He is suffering, unable to work to earn money for his family or even for himself to survive. His breathing is shallow and faint. Suddenly, someone, most probably the host of the feast, grab him to be in front of Jesus, a guest of honor of the table. Imagine how this man feels about it; being in front of entire guests of the feast, well dressed, healthy, and happy, and being watched by them. Luke the Evangelist recorded that entire guests of this sabbath dinner were watching, Nothing but Watching how Jesus behave in response to this “challenge”. SO excited that they can miss anything. Watching if, or even when, Jesus takes his initiative to DO something for this “challenge” ON SABBATH. CURIOUSE, ANXIOUSE, and ready, so ready to make comments on whatever would happen. Jesus was angry. Very angry at all these guests, especially at host, using a man living in flesh and blood, as if he is an no-living object for their entertainment, or a very interesting case study to discuss a limit of God’s Law about sabbath observance. They do nothing but watching, because on sabbath, no labor is required. It’s a lawful attitude that they do NOTHING about IT. Jesus however acted. Responding to their indifferences, Jesus healed the man and liberated from his pain and sorrow with a determined action. Jesus healed the man, and we must realize that this healing is not only the liberation from the burden of physical pain. Jesus brought him a liberty from the life of being sick, considered that he has been punished and forsaken by God. The sorrows of the man with edema is fully felt by Jesus. The failings that the people around the feast table is known and remembered by God, and moved the heart of our Holy one. However, God did not punish their inaction and indifference. Instead, there is a sign of forgiveness, a redemption. Joy of the healed, and holy surprises that might change the stone-cold hearts into beating, bleeding ones, and small minds into wide-open ones.
There is no place where earth’s sorrows felt than up in heaven; There is no place where earth’s failings have such kindly judgment given; There is plentiful redemption / In the blood that has been shed; There is joy for all the members / In the sorrow of the Head.
On the seventh day you shall rest so that your ox and your donkey may have relief and your homeborn slave and the resident alien may be refreshed. In this Exodus text, our Holy One specifically instructed the people of Israel to keep sabbath for not only the heavy laborers (slaves, servants, and women) but domestic animals, within each one’s household. Then the protection is further extended for the foreigners and outcast people who reside within them, travelers, sojourners and refuges. And if the outsiders are protected that much, their own people, the orphans and widows too, because they have much less (or no) safety nets in everyday survival. They are weary and exhausted, struggling to just survive day to day. So let them rest, our God calls for us: “if you think you are my people, lift up their burdens.” Just watching is not acceptable. Our inactions, our indifferences, a sign of breach of the mercy God has shown to us. The Holy One has ACTED for us, so now, it’s our turn to show our gratitude in our ACTION on sabbath. Feeling and remembering our pain and sorrows, God has acted in response, liberated us from our pain and sorrows, bought us back from the slavery to our failings. So In gratitude and with joy, we too, must feel our neighbors’ pain and sorrows, and welcome them to our table, re-member them in order to tell the world that our God is holy, the One who redeem us without limit.
For the love of God is broader than the measure of the mind; And the heart of the Eternal is most wonderfully kind; If our love were but more faithful,We should take him at his word; And our life would be thanksgiving / For the goodness of the Lord.
Imagine, then, a whole universe and all beings get together around our table. Here. At Kobe Union. Mind blowing. Imagine, also, that this mind-blowing event is always planned and make possible EVERY TIME we come around the table with Jesus. How can we deny that our Eternal One got the most wonderfully kind heart? And if we really know that our Holy and Eternal One is so wonderfully kind, how can we not be faithful to the word of God, trusted to us in forms of stories and parables, poems and sometimes, laws (but still in a history drama setting)? Should we not listened to it carefully, and to be moved by them? Being moved, not just motivated, but MOVED by the word of Living God. How does it look like to live in such a way? Confusing and even painful sometimes, for we might need to admit our mistakes and to change the ways we are so much get used to. But such changes surely bring us a new day. Full of surprises, definitely. Scary, may be, but we have each other, as companions at Jesus’s feast table. Companion means the one with whom to share one loaf of bread. If anyone can join the table, the word “companion” means a lot. Adventurous, of course. Exciting. A Hope for tomorrow, renewed, fresh, always. A life as thanksgiving, a feast table with Jesus. Let us sing entire hymn together.
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Let us pray. May the words of my mouth and meditations of our hearts together this morning be pleasing in your sight O Lord. You are our rock and redeemer. Amen.
So I have a confession to make: I didn’t start writing today’s sermon until 10 o’clock last night! Of course this isn’t really a surprise to those who work in the office or service on the translation team, since they know I’m usually tweaking my sermons right up until the last minute, but I have never put off starting the sermon until this late! The thing is, I knew that I was going to have a busy week. We had our kid’s camp yesterday, and thanks be to God it was amazing! I was blessed to have a good number of people helping with the camp, but there was still so much to prepare leading up to the camp. And, of course there were a few pastoral emergencies that came up during the week too. On Wednesday there was one situation that developed that required me to make myself available, and give up spare time I might have for the rest of the week. I’m not gonna lie. When I first learned about this situation and was asked to help, my first thought was, “Oh shoot, what is going to happen to the camp prep? What is going to happen to my sermon writing?” I wouldn't have enough time! In seminary, I was taught about the importance of placing boundaries. Of course you should always do everything you can to help, but if you don’t have clear boundaries and clear priorities, you will get buried in needs before you are ever actually able to help anyone. It seemed obvious to me that I would need to prioritize camp prep and sermon writing because I’m a pastor, and that’s my job! As a Christian I also have an obligation to help however I can, so in the middle of all the craziness of this week, I found myself stuck, torn between two different priorities, unable to decide what I should focus on. But then the Holy Spirit reminded me of the prayer I prayed after Roy’s message on Sunday, asking God to help me show love in action. That reminder from the Spirit was what made it clear to me; I knew that I had to prioritize this emergency that had developed, even over camp prep and sermon writing. And as soon as I realized that, as soon as I made the decision, I didn’t feel the pressure of all the other things I still had to do; it felt natural. Of course, this was still Wednesday, so I thought to myself that it would still probably all work out with enough time to spare. But time passed quickly, and before I knew it it was already Friday. As I had expected, I was struggling to get everything done in time. But the camp preparation was nearly done, and I figured that once it was finished I could still at least dedicate Friday night to sermon writing. That was when my husband fell ill. And not just normally ill, but sick enough that we emded up going to the emergency room. So, at around 9pm on Friday night - right when I was really hoping to get down to sermon writing - I was in the emergency room instead. Of course I was worried about my husband; he was in quite a lot of pain, and I hadn’t seen him this sick in a very long time. But, at the same time, I was also worried about my sermon because it was getting later and later and I hadn’t even started anything yet! I knew that I would have church camp all day on Saturday, and I knew that after the camp I would be far too exhausted to write a sermon. So, after we checked in, and I made sure that Don was resting as comfortably as possible, I asked Don if it was OK for me to work on my sermon there in the hospital. Of course, since Don is also a pastor he totally understood. In an anguished voice, he said, “yes go ahead.” So, right there in the waiting room of the ER, I pulled out my laptop and I started to type. At least…I tried to type. But within a couple of sentences, I realized I was hearing voices: the voice of a small child screaming in pain because of whatever was happening to this child, the sobbing of a woman who’s family member had been hit by a car, and the agonized cries of an old woman who just kept crying for the doctors to do something about her pain, to the point where her family didn’t seem to know how to respond anymore. Once again, I found myself stuck between writing my sermon, and the needs of the people around me suffering and in pain. So I closed my laptop, put it away, and began to pray. As I looked around, it seemed that the staff were all too busy to help those who were sitting and waiting, so when someone needed help to go to the bathroom, or someone with nausea needed a bag to vomit, or when someone was struggling to push their wheelchair, I went ahead and helped. I won’t go into too much detail, but there were a few other things that happened this week which had me anxious and worried about how the kids camp would go, so even as I was trying my best to help in the moment, I could feel the weight of what might go wrong tomorrow growing over my heart. I felt stressed. I felt nervous. I felt alone. I felt scared. But even as I felt all these things, this is what was placed in my heart: Psalm 46:10 “Be still, and know that I am God.” “Be still, and know that I am God.” “Be still, and know that I am God.” This God’s Word kept echoing through my mind, and it led me to the conclusion which is my sermon title for today! “God Is Bigger.” I know, it’s not the title you might have expected, but in my moment of realization I saw that I just had to change the title, because God really is bigger; bigger than my worries, bigger than my set priorities, bigger than my plans, my stresses, my fears, and my anxieties. God is bigger than my discomfort, bigger than my hesitation and unwillingness, and bigger than the criticism of others,. God is bigger than sickness, bigger than stress; bigger than anything we encounter in our lives. “Be Still, and know that I am God. I am exalted among nations. I am exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10) God is bigger than anything that exists on this earth; anything that can exist. In today’s story, David knew that God was bigger even when no one else around him seemed to believe it. To the rest of the Israelites, even King Saul, Goliath was bigger than everything else around. Goliath was strong and terrifying; a well trained fighter who may as well have been invincible. For all of them, the fear of Goliath was bigger than anything else they could imagine. Except for David. David knew that God was sending him out to fight the terrifying Goliath, just as he knew that God would save him from this fight (1 Samuel 17:37). To David, the question was never about who would fight Goliath; that had already been decided. What was important to him was whether he could step up and do what was important. You know, whenever we try to follow God, when we try to love God and love our neighbors, challenges will come. We try to make our God bigger in our lives, increase our commitment to God. But at the same time, the voices all around us keep speaking up, trying to stop us from pursuing God, from making more space for God. They keep telling us that God isn’t bigger than anything the world can offer, and that when we try to step up and follow God we will be challenged, tempted and tested. Look at what Eliab, David’s own brother said to him. “Why have you come down? With whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your presumption and the evil of your heart, for you have come down just to see the battle.” (1 Samuel 17:28) What did he think about David? “You don’t belong on this battlefield. Your motives are bad. You should keep doing what you’ve been doing because this is serious business here.” And what did King Saul say? “You are not able to go against this Philistine (Goliath) to fight with him, for you are just a boy, and he has been a warrior from his youth.” “You don’t have enough experience. You are young and incapable. You can’t do this.” Do you remember the song Ayami and Takayo sang at the beginning of the service this morning? That song actually comes from Matthew 19:14 where Jesus said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them.” Why would Jesus say something like this? We can see the reason in the verse that comes right before it. The children were brought to Jesus so that he might lay his hands on them to bless them, to heal them, and to anoint them. But the disciples spoke harshly to those who brought kids to Jesus. You might wonder how the disciples could say something so mean, but this actually happens more often than you think. In fact, we might actually find ourselves acting in this way. Even if we don’t say it out loud like the disciples did, it is quite possible that we might be letting our own expectations of how things should get in the way of welcoming kids, and just letting them come to Jesus. For instance, do we prioritize the spiritual growth and fulfillment of adults over that of kids? To put it in a more concrete way, do we think about Sunday school programs for children and youth as much as we think about Sunday school programs for adults? Are there just as many volunteers serving our kids as there are volunteers in other areas? Do children feel welcome in our church building? In our sanctuary? Or do we say and do things to make them feel unwelcome, only allowing them to be present if they sit in the back, don’t make noise, and don’t interrupt the service? When children say or do something that is hard for us to understand, how do we respond? Do we continue the conversation and interaction with them, or do we shut them down, judging both them and their parents? All of the things we hear from today’s story sound just like that. “You are just a boy….You can’t do it” Kids are just kids, they don’t understand. We don’t need to explain everything to them… David was told there was no way he could possibly win the battle, just as we tell kids that they can’t possibly do this or that, but is it really true? I don’t think so, because the God who created each and every one of our kids is so much bigger than what you or I might think about them! KUC family, I want to challenge you all, our church, and our community, to take the words of Jesus seriously when he said, “Let the little children come to me and do not stop them.” (Matthew 19:14). Are the things we say and do at church truly welcoming the children to Jesus, or are we hindering them by making things good, comfortable, and nourishing only for the grown-ups in the community? Let’s take a moment, here and really consider this: are we treating children the way Jesus asks us to? Let’s really think about this, and meditate on it in silence for a moment. If, in this moment, you are realizing that some of the things you might have said, or some of the ways you might have acted to either your own children or the children of the church, if you’re finding it weighing heavily on your heart, I want to encourage you to bring it before God and repent. You can say to God, “I’m sorry. Help me to live as you say. Help me to let the little children come to you, and help me never to stop them.” Know that God is graceful and merciful, and you will be forgiven, renewed, and changed. You will be given everything you need so that you can live into Jesus’ great love for our children. Kids, it was so awesome hanging out with you this weekend, seeing your many smiles and giggles, watching you run around and play with your friends, and seeing you worship God at church yesterday. We learned about fear yesterday, through the story of David and Goliath, and I would like to end today by repeating what one of our camp leaders, Andy, said about it: It is normal to feel scared and stressed when something bigger than your control is coming; shots, darkness, going to the bathroom at night, bugs, being alone, even mom and dad (especially when they are about to scold you). It’s normal to be scared of failing, doing bad on tests, being excluded, being misunderstood, or living in a new country. But please know that the God who created you and loves you is so much bigger than all these things. Our God is so much bigger than your worries, fears and stresses. God goes with you wherever you go. And that is why we praise God through singing, dancing and praying! Let us pray together. God, you are so big. Please make us the best us we can be in you. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen. STORY OF THE ONE HOUR CLEANER
A guy applied for a job that he really prayed for. Good news is that he was scheduled to be interviewed the next day. So, he was so glad and thanked God for the opportunity. Tomorrow came and he got ready for his interview at 3pm. After lunch he got the shock of his life when he saw all his formal clothes were all in a mess, dirty. It’s almost 1pm. He immediately rushed have it dry cleaned nearby. But the guy there said they are currently full and his clothes will be available the next day. Then he remembered two blocks from his house is this “One-Hour cleaner” shop. He thanked God for that idea! He rushed there and was glad no one was there. So he said to the lady there, Ok I can come back by 2pm right? But the lady said, sorry, sir, we can’t do that. We can have it ready later tonight. He said “What!” It says here ONE-HOUR cleaner. The lady said, that’s just the name of our business. We can’t do that! Don’t ask me what happened next, I don’t know? Realize that some of us use the word “Christian” placed all over us but then it does not really mean anything. I can go to a police station, but it does not mean I am a police officer. I can go to a hospital, but does not necessarily mean I’m a doctor. I can go to a church but does not necessarily mean I’m a Christian. I can be the “ONE HOUR CLEANER”. SCRIBE – someone who copies the scripture onto manuscripts for people. He spends all his day with the Word of God copying them because there are no photocopiers that time. In our day today, he can be called a scholar, a theologian or a very religious leader. History: Jewish traditions divided God’s laws in positive commandments and negative ones. 248 – We should do 365 – we should not do Traditionally, there are actually 613 commandments in the Tanakh or the Old Testament. It should not surprise us if Jesus chose the 1st from the 10 commandments which is in Exodus 20:2-3: “You shall have no other gods before Me.” BUT HE DID NOT! THE SHEMA - is a Hebrew word which mean “Hear or Listen”. Mark 12:29-30 “29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.” Jesus quoted this SHEMA from the Old Testament in the book of: Deuteronomy 6:4-5 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. The SHEMA is the most important spiritual concept and document among all of the Jewish documents that time and even until today is the SHEMA. It is the center prayer for Jews. Every Jewish child will have to learn to speak the SHEMA. It’s their first memory verse. BREAKDOWN OF THE SHEMA
The center of your FEELINGS. The center of your desires. This is the emotional part of you. When you say to your wife or husband: I love you with all my heart – You don’t mean I love you with all the blood in my pumping chamber in my chest. It means I love you with all my feelings, desires, all of my emotions! GOD WANTS YOUR PASSIONATE LOVE! It says Love God will all your PASSION! My dearly beloved make God first in your life, as if though you cannot live without Him.
OLD TESTAMENT SHEMA (Deut. 6:4-5) “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your HEART, with all your SOUL, and with all your STRENGTH. NEW TESTAMENT (Mark 12:29-30) 29 Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your HEART, with all SOUL, with all your MIND, and with all your STRENGTH.’ This is the first commandment. Why Jesus added the word “MIND”? Jesus made sure our intellect would not be overlooked. When you hear any preaching or any teaching, where does it go first? It passes to your ears, because “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17). Then after it passes through our ears, where does it go? It passes to your brain or our minds to be processed. God says “Love me by knowing me! “HOW CAN YOU LOVE ME IF YOU DON’T KNOW ME”. Absorb everything God is telling you with your mind! Then let that sink into your heart! THAT IS WHY GOD SAID IN JEREMIAH 31:33 “But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put My law in their MINDS, and write it on their HEARTS; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. THE MIND MUST CONNECT TO THE HEART. MEANING WHATEVER YOU HAVE LEARNED AND ABSORBED IN YOUR MIND ABOUT GOD, PUT THAT IN YOUR HEART AND MAKE IT YOUR PASSION AND DESIRE, ADD EMOTIONS TO IT. EXPRESS IT! GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR MIND ANOTHER POINT HERE IS WHATEVER KNOWLEDGE GOD HAS GIVEN YOU, GLORIFY HIM THERE. If you have been gifted with a mind that can do complex mathematical and scientific formulas and calculations, LOVE AND GLORIFY GOD THROUGH THAT TALENT! IF GOD GAVE YOU A MIND THAT IS GOOD IN BUSINESS, LOVE AND GLORIFY GOD IN YOUR BUSINESS. IF GOD GAVE YOU A MIND THAT CAN DESIGN BUILDINGS, HOUSE STRUCTURES, LOVE GOD AND GLORIFY GOD THROUGH THAT SKILL! AMEN! LOVE GOD IN YOUR ABILITY TO MAKE NOVELS OR POEMS, SONGS. WHATEVER IT IS GOD GAVE YOU TO HAVE THAT GREAT MIND, TAKE IT BACK TO HIM TO GIVE HIM HONOR AND GLORY. LOVE HIM WITH YOUR ENTIRE MIND! GOD HAS WIRED YOUR BRAIN TO FUNCTION, USE IT FOR HIS HONOR AND GLORY. AMEN!
However you use your body to love God! You use that strength He has given you. This is your ability to sustain and continue (STRENGTH) what you have known (IN YOUR MIND) and decided(in your SOUL) and be passionate ( in your HEART). THE TOTAL SET PACKAGE Isn’t that interesting that Jesus was asked one question, which is the greatest, but he had two answers? You ask one question, he has two answers. 31 And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:31) Like what? Like it is also a part of the GREATEST COMMANDMENT! You cannot separate each. IT says LIKE IT! That was why when he was asked, Jesus had two answers, why? Because it’s the total package. GOLDEN RULE Jesus tells us how we should treat love our neighbors the same way that we want to be loved. This saying also can be related to the Golden Rule in Matthew 7:12 and Luke 6:31 “DO UNTO OTHERS WHAT YOU LIKE THEM TO DO UNTO YOU” It might be a good principle to live in our Christian life with it, but if you misuse it or take it out of context, instead of acquiring goodness, you might end up having trouble with the Golden Rule. If it is taken out of context, it might end in personality conflicts. How can that happen? EXAMPLE: When I’m tired, I want my wife to massage my feet and legs. Does that mean if I find someone tired I will tell him to lie down and I will give him a free massage on the spot? (I want it that way) Or if want people to talk to me, so I talk to them all the time. But not all have the luxury of time to talk to you. If that happens, then you become frustrated when what you expect people to reciprocate back and it did not happen. If you take that Golden Rule out of context YOU WILL TREAT OTHER PEOPLE THE WAY YOU LIKE TO BE TREATED. MEANING YOU WILL DEAL WITH OTHERS IN YOUR OWN PERSPECTIVE. IT THEN IMPLIES THAT WE ARE ALL ALIKE AND WE ALL HAVE THE SAME NEEDS AND WANTS, WHICH IS NOT TRUE. WE ARE ALL UNIQUE. We all have different needs and wants. We all have different opinions and preferences of how we want to be treated. We have something alike because we are humans. PLATINUM RULE: "DO UNTO OTHERS AS THEY WOULD WANT TO BE DONE TO THEM" MEANING: Making sure you know how the people around you want to be treated. Don’t measure your relationships by what you want in the person you love but find out what is going on in the heart of the other person and help meet their needs. SO WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE GOLDEN / PLATINUM RULE? IT’S TAKING OUR EYES OFF OF OURSELVES AND GET OUR EYES ON TO OTHER PEOPLE. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. (Phil.2:4) Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification. (Rom. 15:2) Let no one seek his own, but each one the other’s well-being. (1 Cor. 10:24) EMPATHY
If we see our friends lose their spouse, it’s as if it almost happened to us. We discover what their real need of our neighbor and we identify it as if it was our own need. ALL THE LAW IS FULFILLED IN THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT Side note: “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Gal. 5:14 SUMMARY OF THE 10 COMMANDMENTS 1st to 4th commandment – Love God. 5th through the10th commandment – Love your neighbor. The scribe realized that loving God and his neighbor is more important than all the religious thing he does. This theologian who is a professional religious person, acknowledges that all that he is doing in the temple with all the sacrifices, rituals and offerings comes second place to Loving God and His neighbor! AGAPE LOVE And that word Love, is what we call “Agape Love” And it is almost unknown in the Old Testament because it was Jesus who introduced it when he came Agape Love is Unconditional Love of God. Agape is doing something for others without any expectation of anything in return. You know why God loves us the Agape Way? Because we have nothing to give him!! Totally nothing to repay Him. If God never loved us the Agape Way, we will never be loved, my dear brothers and sisters. He would have never sent Jesus His only son to die for us if the Love God has is the same as the World. When you love someone, it is the nature of God in you that make you love others the way He loves them, through that Agape love and you don’t wait for any repayment. NOT FAR FROM THE KINGDOM 34 Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” (Mark 12:34) Jesus affirms what the scribe had said. NOTE: BEING NOT FAR FROM THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH! HE IS STILL NOT IN THE KINGDOM. He was just not far from it! He is close, but still not in it. YOU MUST NOT ONLY APPROVE OF WHAT JESUS SAID, YOU MUST APPROVE AND - - JUST DO IT! (NIKE) TO KNOW AND NOT DO IT TO BE LIKE WHAT JESUS SAID “YOU ARE NOT FAR FROM THE KINGDOM OF GOD”. WE ARE BLESSED IN THIS CHURCH EVERY SUNDAY WE HEAR THE WORD OF GOD. THAT MEANS IF YOU AFFIRM IT, YOU ARE LIKE THIS SCRIBE, YOU ARE NOT FAR FROM THE KINGDOM. BUT LET’S TAKE A STEP CLOSER AND PUT A CHECK! JUST DO IT! BECAUSE YOU’RE JUST CLOSE, YOU’RE NOT FAR. BUT STILL YOU ARE NOT IN IT. WE DON’T WANT TO BE JUST CLOSE TO HEAVEN. WHO WANTS TO BE JUST CLOSE TO HEAVEN? WE WANT ALL THE WAY THERE INSIDE! YOU DON’T WANT TO BE BRANDED AS SOMEONE, QUOTE AND UNQUOTE, “HE IS NOT FAR FROM THE KINGDOM OF GOD” WE WANT TO BE ALL THE WAY. ACCEPT JESUS CHRIST AS YOUR LORD AND SAVIOUR, LISTEN TO WHAT HE SAYS AND DO WHAT HE TELLS YOU TO DO! DON’T BE CLOSE! JUST NEAR THE KINGDOM OF GOD! YOU HAVE COME ALL THE WAY, WHY NOT GO AND TAKE A STEP CLOSER AND DO HIS WILL FOR YOUR LIFE. BE ALL THE WAY! SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT LOVING GOD IS LIKE A WARM, GENTLE, FUZZY FEELING WHEN YOU SING A HYMN OR WORSHIP SONG, OR WHEN YOU PRAY OR READ THE BIBLE, YOU FEEL GOD REALLY LOVES YOU. THAT IS WONDERFUL! IT’S GREAT YOU HAVE THAT FEELING. BUT IT DOES NOT END THERE! LOVING GOD IS MORE THAN FEELINGS, MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS. LOVE IS AN ACTION WORD! “If you love me, (you will have a warm fuzzy feeling?) obey my commandments”. (John 14:15) WHEN YOU LOVE SOMEONE, YOU DO SOMETHING. YOU LOVE GOD BY LOVING OTHERS. YOU SERVE GOD BY SERVING OTHERS! LET’S NOT JUST LOVE AND WORSHIP GOD WITH ALL OF OUR HEARTS SOUL MIND AND STRENGTH BUT NEVER LIFT A HAND TO HELP AND COMFORT OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN NEED. JESUS SAID IF YOU REALLY LOVE ME, SHOW IT BY LOVING YOUR NEIGHBOR. JESUS TAKES IT PERSONAL MATTHEW 25:35-40 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’ 37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’ THIS IS NOW THE APPLICATION OF YOUR LOVE. IT SAYS IN THE WORD OF GOD THAT FAITH WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD. I ALSO BELIEVE, LOVE WITHOUT WORKS IS DEAD. THE SAME WAY GOD LOVED YOU. GOD DID NOT SEE YOU FROM HEAVEN, KNOWING YOU WILL GO TO HELL, AND SAYING, OH I LOVE HIM. ISNT SHE’S SO CUTE. OH NICE! WHILE KNOWING YOU WILL FOREVER BE SEPARATED FROM HIM. HE ACTED. HOW? HE SENT HIS SON JESUS TO SAVE YOU FROM THAT ETERNAL FIRE IN HELL. WHY, BECAUSE HE LOVES YOU. HE ACTED ON HIS LOVE FOR YOU! AGAIN. LOVE IS AN ACTION WORD! GREATEST FORMULA: IT’S A PRIVILEGE AND HONOR TO LEAD THE E&D Ministry of KUC. I encourage everybody to be a part of this ministry. It can be your personal ministry as well to tell about the Love and Salvation Jesus is offering to all mankind. OUR VERSE for the End Ministry is in MATTHEW 24:14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the E&D will come. THIS IS WHAT WE CALL THE GREAT COMMISSION NOW THIS COMMANDMENT THAT WE LEARNED TODAY WHAT IS IT CALLED? And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Mark 12:30-31) IT’S CALLED THE GREAT COMMANDMENT. NOW YOU HAVE THE GREAT COMMISSION AND GREAT COMMANDMENT HERE IS THE FORMULA: A GREAT COMMITMENT TO THE GREAT COMMISSION PLUS THE GREAT COMMANDMENT WILL MAKE GREAT CHRISTIANS WITH GREAT CHURCHES HAVING GREAT PEACE in their hearts! AND MAY THIS BE OUR PRAYER FOR LIVES AND IN THIS CHURCH. AMEN. Almost 27 years ago, I traveled for two weeks in the Holy Land. I do not know how many of you here have been to the Holy Land, but it is a wonderful experience to actually be in places where our Lord Jesus Christ could have walked. I was there attending an International Pastors’ Conference for English-speaking churches worldwide.
While in the Holy Land, I stood on a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee not far from the place where our Lord gave us the Beatitudes. Today’s scripture verse is part of the Beatitudes. Jesus’ words resonate with us today: “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called the children of God.” (Matthew 5:9) Today is Hiroshima Day. It was seventy-eight years ago on August 6, at 8:15 a.m., when a bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. It is estimated that between 100,000 and 166,000 people died in Hiroshima. (Source: Radiation Effects Research Foundation) And so, today is a day when we reflect on peace and on what it means to be a peacemaker. The Bible, as we know it, is a translation of a translation, so we might not always get the full meaning. Elias Chacour, a Palestinian Christian, in his book, "We Belong to the Land,” has said that knowing Aramaic, the language of Jesus, has greatly enriched his understanding of Jesus' teachings. The Beatitudes are often expressed passively. Today’s verse is part of the Beatitudes. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.” "Blessed" is the translation of the word makarioi, used in the Greek New Testament. However, when Rev. Chacour looked further back to Jesus' Aramaic, he found that the original word was ashray. But “ashray” does not have a passive quality to it. Instead, it means ‘to set yourself on the right way for the right goal; to turn around, repent; to become straight or righteous.’ So, looking at Jesus’ words in the Aramaic, it would sound more like: “Get up, go ahead, do something, move, you peacemakers, for you shall be called children of God.” In hearing it this way, we can realize that Christianity is not passive but active, energetic, and alive. So, in reality, perhaps we are being called upon to get up and go do something. When Jesus spoke these words, (and remember, this speech isn’t directed to the crowd, but to his disciples), it reads something closer to an injunction, “Get up, go ahead, do something, move, and build a world of peace, justice and equality.” Why are there wars in the world? Why does world peace seem to elude our government leaders? Why are there at least fifty civil wars going on all the time in various parts of the world? Why can’t we all be peacemakers? Christians throughout the world have repeatedly affirmed that military force alone, (and this includes the use of weapons of mass destruction), will not solve conflicts -- rather the underlying causes of conflict need to be addressed. I met Koko Kondo for the first time many years ago. Koko Kondo is an A-bomb survivor and peace activist has made peacemaking her life work. (You can google her name and see many YouTube documentaries and articles about her.) Koko was only eight months old when her city was destroyed by the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, but the bombing had profound implications over the course of her life. She and her mother survived the blast when their home was destroyed on that day in August, seventy-eight years ago. Their home collapsed on top of them but they survived. Her father, Kiyoshi Tanimoto, a Methodist minister, was featured in John Hershey’s book Hiroshima, and Rev. Tanimoto organized an effort called “Hiroshima Maidens” to allow Japanese girls burned and disfigured by the bombing to have corrective plastic surgery. Rev. Tanimoto went to the U.S. to promote peace and to collect money for the wounded in Hiroshima after the bombing especially for these women who had been so badly disfigured. He never stopped working for peace until his death in 1987. His work led him to be interviewed on the American television show, "This is Your Life” in the year, 1955. He was joined on the show by his family, including Koko, and was interviewed alongside Robert Lewis, the co-pilot of the Engola Gay plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. As a child, Koko described growing up hating the people who had destroyed her city and so many people’s lives. However, during the filming of that television show, and upon witnessing the deep remorse and regret from the co-pilot, Lewis first-hand, she realized, as she explained in her own words, “that hating people was not the way; it’s war itself that’s evil.” Koko is married to a UCC (Kyodan) pastor and has spent her adult life promoting peace. She came to WOW (Women on Wednesday) to speak years ago and has spoken many times at the Canadian Academy. She tells stories about Hiroshima and giving lectures at schools for students from elementary school to graduate school. She is also working on a new book with my friend Ruth Ingulsrud. Koko has long been involved with “Children as the Peacemakers,” which was started in 1982 in San Francisco. “Each one of us must be united in our desire to create peace for the children who will carry on the next generation. There is hope in the young people learning from the history of the past, and starting to take action.” Koko’s Christian faith has led her to the work she does and her hope is that we will continue to pray for peace in the world, from person to person, so that peace may be found in the hearts of each and every one of us. (https://rise.icanw.org/koko_kondo) When I visited Hiroshima I noticed the plaque for the A-bomb victims at Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park. This is one of the lines on the Epigraph: “To remember the past is to commit oneself to the future.” As Christians, we must repent of past sins done individually and collectively. Then, we look to the future with the Holy Spirit leading us because we Christians are people of hope. We are also people of peace. Part of being a peacemaker is doing what Jesus commands us to do – which is to love our enemies. We love our enemies because God practices universal love. God loves all of us. Because we are God’s sons and daughters, so we should do the same… which is to love one another and to share the peace of Christ. I would also like to add that peacemakers are at peace with God (Rom. 5:1, 11). The “God of Peace” is Yahweh–shalom ––“ “the Lord is Peace” (Judges 6:24), and our Lord Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. He is God's Peacemaker. “He is our peace” (Eph. 2:14). Jesus gives us His peace (John 14:27; 16:33). The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of peace. She applies and supplies the peace of God to our hearts (Gal. 5:22). We can draw upon the Holy Spirit for guidance, wisdom, and as a constant supply of God's peace. Peacemakers demonstrate in their own lives how to have inward peace with God and how to be instruments of outward peace in the world. As peacemakers, we put Jesus Christ as Lord first in our lives and let the Holy Spirit guide us. “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 5:1). We are called into action as peacemakers and this is what makes us blessed as peacemakers and as children of God. Passivity is not what God is looking for. Instead, God wants us to take action as peacemakers. How and when and where is something you can discern with the help of God but we must have the peace of Christ within us to be able to move outward to change the world. I will close with a little story that I heard recently. It is a story about two little bats. One day two bats fell into a pot of milk. The pessimistic bat said, “What can I do? Will I struggle and sink, and die so very tired? I will not die tired. I am just going to give up.” He sank and drowned immediately. He was passive in his circumstances. The optimistic bat said, “I will strive to the end, and work hard so at least they will say I tried everything.” She struggled and struggled, trying to fly, until she fainted. Later she awakened and found herself very much still alive and resting safely on a big roll of butter. She did not give in to despair, but was able to go beyond despair and take action in a situation that seemed hopeless. We cannot give in to despair. We may have our own problems which prevent us to live peaceful lives and we may not live in a world which is not peaceful. But like the little bat who survived, we must push onward into the future and when we do, we will find ourselves supported and held up by something beyond us which is God. Today is communion Sunday, so let us come to the altar to commune with the God of peace. Let us take nourishment from communion and the Holy Spirit in order to: “Get up, go ahead, do something, move, as peacemakers, for we shall be called children of God.” Amen. |
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