Sunday, November 14, 2004

Fellowship • November 14, 2004

Isaiah 65:17-25; Isaiah 12 or Psalm 118; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-13; Luke 21:5-19

Sermon by Michael R. Martin
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

Today’s Psalm, Psalm 118, is one of the hallelujah psalms. Hallelujah means “praise the LORD” and expresses the uplifting and optimistic tone of these songs. Psalm 118 is one of the psalms traditionally sung at the Passover meal, commemorating Israel’s escape from slavery in Egypt (Exodus 11-12). Isaiah Chapter 12 is offered as an alternative to Psalm 118. This chapter is a hymn of praise and a graphic description of the people’s joy when Jesus Christ comes to reign over the earth.

In our reading from Isaiah 65:17-25, we have a pictorial description of the new heavens and the new earth. They are eternal, and in them safety, peace, and plenty will be available to all. Isaiah recounts the lord speaking, beginning with:
Isaiah 65:17-18a (NLT) "Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth—so wonderful that no one will even think about the old ones anymore. [18] Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! . . .
And concluding in verse 25 with:
Isaiah 65:25 (NLT) The wolf and lamb will feed together. The lion will eat straw like the ox. Poisonous snakes will strike no more. In those days, no one will be hurt or destroyed on my holy mountain. I, the Lord, have spoken!"
And our reading from the Gospel:
Luke 21:5-19 (NLT) Some of his disciples began talking about the beautiful stonework of the Temple and the memorial decorations on the walls. But Jesus said, "The time is coming when all these things will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another."
"Teacher," they asked, "when will all this take place? And will there be any sign ahead of time?"
He replied, "Don't let anyone mislead you. For many will come in my name, claiming to be the Messiah and saying, 'The time has come!' But don't believe them. And when you hear of wars and insurrections, don't panic. Yes, these things must come, but the end won't follow immediately." Then he added, "Nations and kingdoms will proclaim war against each other. There will be great earthquakes, and there will be famines and epidemics in many lands, and there will be terrifying things and great miraculous signs in the heavens.
"But before all this occurs, there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will be accused before kings and governors of being my followers. This will be your opportunity to tell them about me.So don't worry about how to answer the charges against you, for I will give you the right words and such wisdom that none of your opponents will be able to reply! Even those closest to you—your parents, brothers, relatives, and friends—will betray you. And some of you will be killed. And everyone will hate you because of your allegiance to me. But not a hair of your head will perish! By standing firm, you will win your souls.
Our reading from Luke, 21:5-19, begins with the disciples and Jesus in the Temple built by Ezra in the 6th Century BC and remodeled and expanded by Herod the Great over a 46 year period. When some of the disciples commented on the beautiful stonework and decorations of the temple, Jesus stated "The time is coming when all these things will be so completely demolished that not one stone will be left on top of another." (Luke 21:6 NLT). The temple was indeed destroyed in A.D. 70 when the Roman army burned Jerusalem. In response to Jesus’ prophecy, the disciples asked Jesus about the times ahead. Jesus did not leave his disciples unprepared for the difficult years ahead. He warned them about false messiahs, natural disasters, and persecutions; but he assured them that he would be with them to protect them and make his kingdom known through them. The persecutions of the disciples soon began. Luke recorded many of them in the book of Acts. Paul wrote from prison that he suffered gladly because it helped him know Christ better and do Christ’s work for the church (Phil. 3:10; Col. 1:24). The early church thrived despite intense persecution. In fact, late in the second century the church father Tertullian wrote, “The blood of Christians is seed,” because opposition helped spread Christianity. Jesus warned that in the coming persecutions his followers would be betrayed by their family members and friends. In fact, Christians of every age have had to face this possibility. In the end, Jesus promised that he would return in power and glory to save them. It is reassuring to know that even when we feel completely abandoned, the Holy Spirit will stay with us. He will comfort us, protect us, and give us the words we need. This assurance can give us the courage and hope to stand firm for Christ no matter how difficult the situation. Jesus was not saying that believers would be exempt from physical harm or death during the persecutions. Most of the disciples suffered martyrdom. Rather Jesus was saying that none of his followers would suffer spiritual or eternal loss. On earth, everyone will die, but believers in Jesus will be saved for eternal life.

On this, the international day of prayer for the persecuted church, I’d like to reflect on Christian suffering. As Christians in the United States, we do not often truly suffer for our beliefs, suffer for Christ, but there are many around the world who do, who are truly risking everything for their faith. James speaks to suffering and healing in:
James 5:10-11, 13-16 (NLT) For examples of patience in suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. Job is an example of a man who endured patiently. From his experience we see how the Lord's plan finally ended in good, for he is full of tenderness and mercy. . . 13Are any among you suffering? They should keep on praying about it. And those who have reason to be thankful should continually sing praises to the Lord. 14Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15And their prayer offered in faith will heal the sick, and the Lord will make them well. And anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16 Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results.
God intends for us to experience life together, what the bible calls fellowship. Fellowship, especially fellowship in small groups, is an essential part of being a Christian and belonging to a church. Nowadays, fellowship often refers to casual conversation, socializing, food, and fun. Asking “Where do you fellowship?” means where do you attend church. Inviting someone to “stay after church for fellowship” means join us in the back for refreshments. Ask Rick Warren tells us in the Purpose Driven Life, real fellowship is much more than just showing up at services. It is experiencing life together and includes unselfish loving, honest sharing, practical serving, sacrificial giving, sympathetic comforting, and all the other “one to another” commands found in the New Testament. As a church nowadays, we really miss the opportunity to be function as a family, to be there for one another, to truly interact in small groups. Think about how you can take what we have here this morning out into the rest of your week, not just to minister to the community at large, but to minister to one another as brothers and sisters in Christ.

On this day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, remember that you are not responsible for everyone in the Body of Christ, but you are responsible to them.

Now I’d like to invite you now to the alter rail to be anointed by Pastor Linda. In Scripture, oil was both a medicine (such as in the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:30-37) and a symbol of the Spirit of God (as used in anointing kings, see 1 Samuel 16:1-13). Thus oil can represent both the medical and the spiritual spheres of life. Christians, we should not separate the physical and the spiritual because Jesus Christ is Lord over both the body and the spirit. Western science & medicine is finally starting to recognize that there is a strong link between spiritual and physical health. So, come forth in an attitude of personal confession and prayer. This is an opportunity for the forgiveness of sins and for healing. Pastor Linda will pray over you and anoint with oil in the name of the Lord.

May the grace of the Lord be with you always, for you are precious family. Amen.

Michael R. Martin – November 14, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Sunday, October 24, 2004

God's Comfort • October 24, 2004

Joel 2:23-32; Psalm 65; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18; Luke 18:9-14

Sermon by Michael R. Martin
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

Ever have one of those weeks where you just don’t seem to get anything worthwhile accomplished and you are sort of feeling a bit down and a bit worthless? Well, I am at the tail end of two weeks in a row like that. I haven’t been getting anything done at work, days and nights have gone by with nothing accomplished. And right smack in the middle of it, a good friend dies suddenly.

Twenty four hours after hearing of Rob’s death, I found myself sitting with my bibles and my journal. I turned to a little resource I think I adapted from the back of an old Gideon’s Bible, entitled “Help in Time of Need.” I was directed to a couple of verses listed under “Comfort in Time of Sorrow” that I would like to share with you this morning. I guess if I have a message to share today, it is contained in these verses I am about to share, from the New Living Translation bible. May you be blessed and refreshed by His holy word.
2 Cor. 1:3-5 All praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the source of every mercy and the God who comforts us. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. You can be sure that the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
Romans 8:26-28 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our distress. For we don't even know what we should pray for, nor how we should pray. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God's own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
And I am not sure how I stumbled upon this last reading, but I hope you will find it as uplifting as I did.

Col. 3:12-16 Since God chose you to be the holy people whom he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love. Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are all called to live in peace. And always be thankful. Let the words of Christ, in all their richness, live in your hearts and make you wise. Use his words to teach and counsel each other. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts.
May God bless you and keep you, my friends.

Michael R. Martin – October 24, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Friday, October 22, 2004

Reflections on Galations 6:1-1


If another is overcome by sin, help them back and don't fall into the same trap. Share each others troubles and probems. Don't get tired of doing what is good, don't get discouraged and give up, for we will be rewarded at the appropriate time.

Gal 6:10 (NLT) Whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone, especially to our Christian brothers and sisters.

Sunday, October 17, 2004

Laity Sunday • October 17, 2004

Jeremiah 31:27-34; Psalm 119:97-104 or Psalm 19; 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5; Luke 18:1-8

Sermon by Michael R. Martin
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

I'd like to start by reading something by Sandy Zeigler (szeigler@gbod.org), Director of Lay Leadership Development at the General Board of Discipleship

Partners in Ministry: All God's People, Singing the Song and Living the Life

As this year's Laity Sunday theme suggests, we are all called to ministry and to sing the song and live the life. What is your song? How do you sing it? Are you a soprano, alto, tenor, or bass? We all have a song to sing, no matter how we sing it. We are all called.

It is not just the clergy who are called to live for Jesus and represent him to a hurting world; we all belong to a royal priesthood of believers.

How does the song you sing affect your life? Do you whistle while you work? Our lives should reflect Christ. No matter where we are or what we do, we must mirror our faith. Jesus tells us that we are the light of the world, that a city set up on a hill cannot be hidden, and that we should let our light shine for all to see and not hide it under a bushel.

To reflect the light of Christ, we need to spend time with him. Prayer, searching the Scriptures, Christian conferencing, worship, fasting, and Communion are ways to develop a closer relationship with Jesus. John Wesley called these practices the means of grace. They are ways in which we can partake of and experience more fully the grace of our Lord and Savior.

Living the life is more than just attending worship on Sunday or attending meetings or singing in the choir. Prayer, both private and corporate, is essential to a close relationship with God. Searching the Scriptures (Bible reading and study) is crucial to our development as disciples. Worship and Holy Communion and fasting can draw us closer to God and help renew our relationship with God. Small groups or covenant discipleship groups help us to grow and persevere in our daily walk. Acts of compassion and justice reveal our faith to others.

How are you singing the song and living the life? Are you devoting time to abiding in Christ? Can others see Christ through your actions? I would suggest that you seriously consider practicing the spiritual disciplines — means of grace — so that you can more perfectly reflect the light of Christ and live as his disciples.
As part of the family of Christ, we are all automatically part of the priesthood of all believers. Laity Sunday is designed to recognize those who are committed to discipleship. But I think that is all of us: by living a Christ-filled life, we are bringing his light into this world for others to see. Its as simple as being nice, being generous with your time, your good attitude, your skills – and not just to the church, but to all around you, stranger and friend alike.

I am reminded of a saying I heard last weekend: God does not choose those who are talented and gifted, but gives gifts and talents to those who choose him. I have seen this happening in my own life. People tell me I have a powerful speaking voice – first of all, God gives me the words to speak. And 20 years ago, about the best you could say about my public speaking ability was that I could read pretty well. In fact, the first time I ever spoke in public, at a conference, the comment I got at the end was that my talk was “very nicely read.” And people seem to be moved by the music when I play and sing. I have been playing guitar and singing for almost 25 years, but it wasn’t until the last five years when I began to sing regularly for Christ that my humble talents really began to shine.

Whatever gifts or talents you have, God will use them if you let him. And if you pledge to serve God, ask him “Lord, use me as you can, your will, not mine,” listen, and go where he calls, you will find gifts you didn’t even know you have.

2 Corinthians 5:17 speaks of what it means when we become part of the Body of Christ. “What this means is that those who became Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life is begun!”

When we choose Christ, it is not a one-time thing. We are baptized once in our lives, but we choose Christ daily, sometimes minute by minute. We are sinners by nature, frequently tempted or distracted by daily life. Micah 6:6-8 (NLT) speaks to us sinners who choose Christ:

What can we bring to the LORD to make up for what we've done? Should we bow before God with offerings of yearling calves? Should we offer him thousands of rams and tens of thousands of rivers of olive oil? Would that please the LORD? Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for the sins of our souls? Would that make him glad? No, O people, the LORD has already told you what is good, and this is what he requires: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
We who have made that choice to follow Christ, who daily make that choice, our fate is sealed. We can not give back the knowledge we have gained in knowing Christ, the knowledge of right and wrong, the call to serve. However, in return we are many times blessed by God’s love, God’s forgiveness, and God’s grace. Yes, we are sinners, but it is our sins that have made us who we are. It is our sins that have brought us to this very place in our lives. And it is God’s forgiveness that enables us to use our humanity to serve others, to tell others. We have been filled with the Holy Spirit. Now that we have it, what are we going to do with it? Now that you know the power of Christ in your life, what are YOU going to do with it?

Michael R. Martin – October 17, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Saturday, October 16, 2004

A High Priority Relationship • September 19, 2004

Hosea 11:1-11; Psalm 107:1-9, 43; Colossians 3:1-11; Luke 12:13-21

Sermon by Michael R. Martin
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

Introduction

In a couple of weeks, I will be spending the weekend with a number of pilgrims who will be experiencing the Walk to Emmaus program. In the past, my role on these weekends “Short Crash Courses in Christianity” has been as music team leader. This coming weekend, God has called me to serve as a group table leader and giving a talk, entitled “Life in Piety: Giving our Hearts to Christ.” The talk is the keystone talk on Friday. The day focuses on God’s grace and ends with my talk about developing a close relationship with Christ. I would like to share a little of this subject with you this morning.

The subject of my talks is “Life in Piety.” My dictionary defines Piety as “Religious devotion and reverence to God” and it stems from the Latin pietás, meaning dutiful conduct.* A life in piety is a life lived in close relationship with God. I am not talking about random acts of kindness here, but a life where God is THE priority. It means surrendering your heart, mind & will to God. As Kahlil Gibran wrote in The Prophet, "Your daily life is your temple and your religion." Living a life in piety means changing the priority of your life. Think about your life today. How do you spend your time? How do you spend your money? Where you spend your time and/or money is generally where your priority is. A life in piety means living a life where God is number one, above all else.

Living a life in piety doesn’t mean that you give up your present life & livelihood to become pious. It does not mean we become celibate or silent monks or anything like that. Living a life in piety doesn’t mean your life will be without its share of pain and woes. Even Jesus, whose relationship with God was his total being, experienced some tremendously painful events. Living a pious life does not mean you become perfect, either. None of us are perfect, we are humans. Fortunately, God never asked us to be perfect. But God does expect us to live as best we can in His way, to have a personal and ongoing relationship with him. Lastly, living a pious life does not mean you are better than anyone else. In fact, in time you’ll seek being the least, the servant.
Ephesians 3:7-8 I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God's grace given me through the working of his power. Although I am less than the least of all God's people, this grace was given me. . .

Philippians 2:3&5 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. . . Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
Characteristics of High Priority Relationship

The characteristics of ANY high priority relationship are honesty, authenticity, depth, and resourcefulness. These are also the characteristics of a high priority relationship with God. To me, the key to living a life of piety is recognizing, truly recognizing, that all that you are, all that you have, all that you have been, life’s past journey and your future, all of these you owe to Christ, to God, to the Holy Spirit. Be ever thankful for all that you are and have been given.

Let’s examine the four characteristics of the high priority relationship we seek with God: Honesty, Authenticity, Depth & Resourcefullness. Honesty, first and foremost, is essential in any relationship that matters. Honesty means sharing your true feelings with God, even when they are negative. One of the most wonderful enlightenments I have ever had in my conversations with God began with me alone in church late one night, kneeling at the alter, yelling in anger at God. I don’t even remember now what got me to that place, but I clearly remember how my honesty was rewarded with an overwhelming feeling of peace.

Authenticity means sharing yourself completely. It means giving your best to God, rather than trying to hold a little something back for yourself. Depth means being willing to give your self completely to God, all that you are and all that you do. Resourcefulness in your relationship with God means having the assurance to deal with life’s ups and downs without forgetting your most IMPORTANT relationship. Resourcefulness is living a life in God’s grace, using the gifts He has given you, to make a difference in the world.

Devotional Practices That Enhance the Relationship

God wants a total commitment. Mark 12:30 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.'

Any great relationship requires focus and attention. As Rick Warren tells us in his book, The Purpose Driven Life, "Like any friendship, you must work at developing your friendship with God. It won't happen by accident. It takes desire, time, and energy. If you want a deeper, more intimate connection with God you must learn to honestly share your feelings with him, trust him when he asks you to do something, learn to care about what he cares about, and desire his friendship more than anything else."

John Wesley talked about a variety of works of piety – devotional practices that enhance our relationship with God. Wesley said: “The chief of these means are prayer, whether in secret or with the great congregation; searching the Scriptures; (which implies reading, hearing, and meditating thereon;) and receiving the Lord's Supper, eating bread and drinking wine in remembrance of Him. . .”

With that in mind, let us now examine the devotional practices that enhance our relationship with God.

Prayer: constant conversation with God


The first of these devotional practices is prayer, what I like to call a constant conversation with God. John Wesley considered prayer an essential part of Christian living, calling it, in many of his writings, the most important means of grace. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 reminds us to “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.”

I’ve spoken to you here about prayer before. Remember that the average American Christian prays four minutes a day and the average American pastor prays seven minutes a day. Jesus tought us to persistence in prayer, to knock often (knock, knock, knock, knock, knock) yet this is the prayer life of American Christians (knock). Prayer was enormously vital to Jesus. And so it should be with us. God wants that relationship with you as much as you need it from Him. Rick Warren in The Purpose Driven Life reminds us that "Friendship with God is built by sharing all your life experiences with him. . . . He wants to be included in every activity, every conversation, every problem, and even every thought. You can carry on a continuous, open-ended conversation with him throughout your day, talking with him about whatever you are doing or thinking at that moment. "Praying without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17) means conversing with God while shopping, driving, working, or performing any other everyday tasks."

Searching the Scripture

Conversation in any relationship is a two way street. One of the best ways we can become closer to God so that His will becomes more evident in our lives is to read the scripture. The scripture is the source from which we learn the heart, mind, and soul of the One who calls us into this relationship. If all you get of the Bible are the few verses that are read to you each Sunday and the preacher’s interpretation, you are not getting the full story at all and you are not having a conversation with God. It wasn’t until I really started studying the bible that I realized how MUCH I was missing from this brief exposure to the scripture. It is but a teaspoonful of the Bible’s richness at best. Immerse yourself in the book, and read beyond the few verses that come up every year in church. This book will illuminate your life!

Meditation: Seek God's word & will

Meditation is another devotional practice that enhances your relationship with God. Meditating on the scripture is how we seek God’s word and will for our lives. As Billy Graham wrote in his wonderful summary called Living the Christian Life†, “The Bible is God's inspired Word. Besides revealing the Good News about forgiveness and eternal life, it can also answer the many questions you will have as you try to live a life that pleases God. It will enable you to be "thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:17, NIV). Think about what you read; study and analyze it. Pray for understanding. The Holy Spirit will help you (Psalm 119:18), and you will begin to see life from God's perspective.”

The bible tells us in John 4:23-24
''Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
One cannot worship in truth unless one knows the Bible, God’s word. We are not commanded to worship God as we'd like him to be, but in truth, as He is revealed to us.

Once you become more confidant in your understanding of God’s word through study and meditation, venture forth and start reading some of the “popular” Christian books – you’ve heard me quote from several here already. But always be strong in your personal relationship with God, put your relationship with God first, and filter everything else through that relationship, no MATTER the source. As Rev. Matthew Baldwin tells us in the Dirty Hippy Liberal Christian Home Journal: “We must not assume that a Biblical teaching is immediately clear or applicable . . . (and) . . . We must also not simply accept another Christian's interpretation, however authoritatively it is given.” The familiarity with God’s word I have gained through study and meditation helps me evaluate all that I hear and read, whether it comes from a pastor, radio minister, or Christian author.

Worship

Worship is another devotional practice that enhances your relationship with God. Billy Graham wrote “When you received Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you began a relationship not only with Him but also with all other Christians. Whatever it meant to you in the past, going to church can now become a rich and rewarding experience”

Billy Graham pointed out that, through organized worship:
  • “You will grow in understanding by hearing God's Word preached and taught.
  • You can ask questions and discuss Scripture with others.
  • You will learn to worship God, which means praising Him for all that He is and thanking Him for all that He has done for you.
  • As you worship, learn and serve with other Christians, you will find individuals with whom you can form lasting friendships (friendships that will last for all eternity!).”
Worship is not only what we do in our outward life, but what we do inwardly as well. The apostle Paul instructed the Romans in this fashion: “Use your whole body as a tool to do what is right for the glory of God” (Romans 6:13b). Rick Warren wrote: "Worship is far more than praising, singing, and praying to God. Worship is a lifestyle of enjoying God, loving him, and giving ourselves to be used for his purposes. When you use your life for God's glory, everything you do can become an act of worship. "

Communion

Communion is another form of worship that enhances our relationship with God. Through communion, we actively participate in the drama of forgiveness and thanksgiving, receiving the bread of life and being restored as brothers and sisters in God’s family. Through communion, we celebrate with God remembering the love He shows us in Jesus Christ.

Spiritual Direction

Spiritual direction is a practice that will help you get the most out of the other relationship-enhancing practices. Spiritual direction is a relationship with a clergy or layperson who practices a relationship with God and is willing to guide you as you seek to experience your own fuller relationship with God. As your relationship with God grows, this spiritual guidance can grow into a mutual relationship of spiritual guidance called spiritual friendship.

Conclusion

Living a life of piety IS a life lived in a close relationship with God; a life lived with God as your number one priority. It is a life not just committed to making a better you, but becoming more Christ-like through your relationship with Him. It is a life of constant conversation with God, through prayer, scriptural study, meditation, and worship.

I promise you this: do these things and there will come a time when all of this will be natural, this conversation with God, this closeness to God, and that will be its own reward. Do these things and you will find that which is bad in you will become easier to manage, and that which is good in you will become richer, more evident, and more beneficial to you and those around you.
Romans 8:35-39 - Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Michael R. Martin – September 19, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Monday, August 02, 2004

God's Love • August 1, 2004

Hosea 11:1-11; Psalm 107:1-9, 43; Colossians 3:1-11; Luke 12:13-21

Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

God has blessed my life and I have much to be thankful for.

I woke up this morning with these words in my head. God has blessed my life and I have much to be thankful for. I have a house on a good chunk of land, here in the mountains, surrounded by green trees and mountain views. I live minutes from dozens of clean lakes and expansive wetlands. I am surrounded by the nature that I love, just waiting for me to explore. I have a successful business and the respect of colleagues scattered across the nation. A drive to a “job site” for me, like just this Friday and Saturday heading out to sample Minerva Lake, might take me through the Cascade Gap. And though I am often disturbed by the number of cars along the roadside there, I am reminded that I live in a place so desirable, so beautiful, so special, that people drive for hours, days even, to spend their precious vacations here, hiking, camping, canoeing, and dining out. And when I return home from work, I return to the home we call Cedar Eden, where I have a loving wife, two wonderful children, and a wonderful dog.

But that is me this morning. Too often I am too busy worrying about what needs to get done, the work that is overdue, the mess that the house is in, the remodeling that seems to have been stalled for decades. Too busy to notice, to reflect, on all that is good in my life.

Sometimes I get angry and scold Emily & Mathew for acting like spoiled children. I am disappointed, discouraged that it seems like they do not appreciate all that we do for them, all that we give them, the care we provide, the food, the home, and the gifts. I’ve learned from other parents that mine aren’t the only children that seem to want something, want more, nearly all the time. It’s not enough that perhaps we just took them on a trip to a museum, which they loved. The also want something from the gift shop. Or we just spent a bunch of money on school clothes, now they want that special backpack that all their friends have. Collectively, our children are a lot like us, they do not always appreciate what they have.

But does that mean we do not love our children. Of course not, we love our children more than life itself. We would protect them from all of life’s pains if we could. We want them to be happy and healthy. The sound of their laughter lifts our hearts, their pain breaks our hearts. We love them, unconditionally: not for who they are or what they do, but just because they exist.

Such is God’s love for us. Our lectionary this week is RICH in guidance for Christian living, RICH in the promise of God’s Love. In our Old Testament reading, Hosea Chapter 11, the prophet Hosea prophesies of God’s Love for Israel, speaks of God's tenderness in the face of rejection. "When Israel was a child, I loved him. . . . but the more I called them the more they went from me. . ." Throughout this passage, we sense the tempestuous moods of God, the deep tides of God’s compassion surging against the rock of a justly-deserved punishment for the people’s faithlessness. God speaks of caring for his people, like a parent with children, teaching them to walk, taken them in arms and healing them when hurt, loving them, feeding them, making their life easier. And yet the people sacrificed and worshiped false gods. We glimpse the pain of a parent’s heart, torn by the thoughtless straying of a wayward child, yet loving nonetheless. Here we are shown the Holy One who is beyond our ways, whose steadfast love outlasts all betrayal. Long before the coming of Jesus, we see our loving God.

In Paul’s letter to the Colossians, we are reminded to set our hearts and minds on things above, rather than on earthly things.

NIV: Colossians 3:1 - 11 – Rules for Holy Living:
Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
We are told to “put to death” those things in our lives that belong to our “earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.” We are reminded to “rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips.” We are told “not lie to each other,” Paul is not calling the Colossians evil for being human, he is telling them to recognize that as humans they have these evils and temptations as a part of their being. Paul is telling them to recognize them so that they can put them to death, throw them off, live a purer life without them.

In Luke, Jesus counsels against greed and tells a parable of a greedy farmer who built bigger barns to hold his "stuff" and felt that he could retire to a life of ease and luxury. The farmer said: “’This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.’ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ And Jesus’ moral of the parable: “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.”

When I was growing up, I wanted to get to a point in my life where if I wanted something, I could have it. I didn’t want to wait for “things,” I wanted to have them when I wanted to have them. I’ve long since reached that point in my life where if I want some thing, I can have it. Those who know me know I love electronic gadgets, and I have lots of them. But, thankfully, I have also come to point in my life where I recognize that it is NOT the things in life that matters, but life itself, and the blessings God bestows upon our lives. How fortunate we are to be alive today, this day, this moment, together, because of God’s grace. If only we could constantly remind ourselves: “How fortunate we are to be alive today, this day, this moment.”

So, we are blessed by God’s love, loved by God no matter that we are only human, no matter that we too often fail in perfection. The bible reminds us to recognize our humanity, our shortcomings. But we are not instructed to beat ourselves up about it, we are told to repent: recognize our humanity, be sorry for our transgressions. And then rejoice in the Good News that God loves us, Jesus loves us, each and every day. He loves us when we hold Him close, He loves us when we push Him away. He loves us, unconditionally.

So let us go forth today, lifted UP by this wonderful knowledge, and see that we are sorrounded by His blessings. Let us go forth, and pass it on.

Michael R. Martin – August 1, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Monday, July 26, 2004

Prayer • July 25, 2004

Hosea 1:2-10 • Psalm 85 (UMH 806 • Colossians 2:6-15 (16-19) • Luke 11:1-1

Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

The issue of prayer is a simple one. Prayer is talking to God. Prayer involves several elements including thanksgiving, praise, and confession. There are names you may sometimes hear for two types of prayer: "intercessions" and "supplications". Intercessions are prayer-requests for others (*Entreaty in favor of another, especially a prayer or petition to God in behalf of another), and supplications are prayer-requests for ourselves (*to ask for humbly). I didn't call these "two special types of prayer because for the most part, prayer is prayer. And to pray is to talk to God. When the disciples questioned Jesus about prayer, they were asking for an understanding of how to pray and what to pray for. Jesus teaches them both a form of prayer, what we call The Lord's Prayer (in this case Luke's version) and a story of persistence in prayer. Some folks use this reading to suggest that we need to PESTER God with our prayer requests, but certainly at the very least we are being instructed to talk frequently with God.

American Christians, that is us, don’t pray like this at all. American Christians knock on God’s door once a day (knock once on wood pulpit or communion table) whereas Jesus taught that we to knock often and long. Research has found that the average American Christian, that is you and me, prays four minutes a day and the average American pastor prays seven minutes a day. There is an enormous contrast being the teachings of Jesus about prayer (knock, knock, knock, knock, knock) and the prayer life of American Christians (knock).

Why is this? Pastor Edward F. Markquart of Grace Lutheran Church on the West Coast gives us four reasons why American Christians don’t pray much.

First, American Christians are very busy. The richer a culture is, the less time it has for prayer because money and wealth gives one so many opportunities to be busy. We are so busy, we just don’t have time to pray. In the life of a busy American Christian, the first thing to be let go of is one’s prayer life. We are all busy people, and the first thing to go in the life of busy people is our prayer life.

A second reason that American Christians don’t pray very much (e.g. four minutes a day) is that we don’t believe prayer does that much good. For many Americans, prayer is essentially talking to yourself; prayer is positive pep talk; prayer is psychological motivation to be a better person.

A third reason that American Christians don’t pray very much (four minutes a day) is that American Christians often believe that a good God should protect them from the disasters of life, from cancer, car accidents and coronaries. When God doesn’t protect their friends and family from cancer, car accidents and coronaries, then there must not be a God.

A fourth reason that American Christians don’t pray very much is that we don’t walk closely with God. To have any close relationship, you need to talk often and deeply. You can’t have a close relationship with anyone without persistent intimate conversation. That is just the way it is with marriage, family, friendship, and God. Four minutes a day is not much intimate conversation with God. It’s not by accident that nearly every time I share with you I encourage you to read your Bible. Prayer and the study of the Scripture and the reading of Christian literature is our only way to have an intimate relationship with God. God wants that relationship with you as much as you need it from Him.

Pastor Markquart, concludes that for these reasons and more, American Christians ultimately conclude that prayer doesn’t work, that it is like star gazing, that it doesn’t change the nature of things. And so our society concludes that prayer doesn’t work. Our society: that is addicted to sex and violence, that our televisions are filled with so much sex and violence that we have actually become numb to it. Our society: that is filled with broken down marriages and broken down families. Our society: that has the highest rate of people in prison in the industrial world. Our society: that has twenty percent of our children living in poverty. Our society: that has the largest economic difference between the rich and the poor. Our society: that is known world wide for our moral decadence and spiritual poverty. Our society then, with all these things, concludes that prayer doesn’t work. It is like finding a drunken alcoholic on the street and asking him, “Does alcoholic treatment work?” and he replies, “O no. Not at all.” So it is with asking American Christian who pray four minutes a day, “Does prayer work?” And the American Christian replies, “Well, I don’t think so.” If you ask Christians in South America, Asia and Africa about the effectiveness of prayer, they answer, “O yes. Prayer works enormously well.” Ask Minnie what about the prayer life of the Africans sometime and listen to what she tells you. You don’t ask for a drunk for advice about drinking and you don’t ask American Christians for advice about prayer.

Jesus was not at all like this. Prayer was enormously vital to him. And so it should be with us. So, how do you pray? Well, the bible tells us. . .

In Matthew 6:5-8, Jesus instructs the disciples in prayer etiquette, saying "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him."

I don’t know about you, but I HATE praying aloud in a group setting. But I think it gets easier over time. But praying aloud or alone, I consider the Lord’s Prayer in the Gospels as somewhat akin to a prayer outline. We address the Father with respect and give praise and thanks. We make requests. We ask that in all things they be His will, not ours. And we ask for forgiveness of our inevitable human failings. In our home, we are fortunate to often share dinner meals together, and most nights make it a point to sit down at the table and dine. We take turns saying grace before we eat, and it has evolved into its own special prayer, so that if any of us were to say this prayer, it would go something like this: “Heavenly Father, we thank you for this beautiful day. We ask that you be with (insert loved one’s name here) and watch over him or her as she or he goes through their (whatever). Bless this meal that it may nourish us and bless this home and family. Amen.”

There is a great scene in the film Bruce Almighty when God, played by Morgan Freeman, asks Bruce, Jim Carrey, to pray. If we had the capabilities here, I’d love to be able to play just that brief, wonderfully moving scene for you. Maybe now that the lift is done, that can be our next project, bring our worship services into the 21st Century. At any rate, in this scene in Bruce Almighty, God has asked Bruce to pray, and Bruce prays haltingly: “Um, Lord, feed the hungry and . . . bring peace to all of mankind.” and asks "How's that?" to which God replies "Great . . . if you want to be Miss America.'' God than asks "What do you really care about?'' Bruce says the name of his estranged girlfriend, who left him because he was being such a jerk. God asks if Bruce wants her back, but Bruce says “No, I want her to be happy, no matter what that means.” He asks that she find someone to give her all the love she had deserved from him, and who will always see her the way he does now, through God’s eyes. “Now that’s a prayer,” God responds.

Does God answer prayers ? You bet he does! I couldn't give you scientific proof, but I am certain that God has been working in my life for many years. An example of answered prayers: a year ago, almost to the day, my baby sister was diagnosed with rapidly an aggressive, fast moving metastatic melanoma. The prognosis was quite grim. Her chances of even living long enough to see her daughter married just last week were very slim. Just several weeks ago she got the news that she was in complete remission, thanks to excellent treatment at Dartmouth-Hitchcock & many many prayers. This is not to say that your life will be easy or you won’t experience hardships. Answers to prayers are not always what you expect, for God works in accordance to his will. But prayer is a vital part of our conversation with God.

So, here is my list of prayer guidelines:
  1. Prayer early, Pray often - Doesn't have to be special time or place - use any time you've got: in the car, wherever.
  2. Praise God and be thankful for all that is good in your life - this also serves to get you recognizing the good even what things seem to be falling apart. My sister, even when her future was very uncertain would say what a blessing her sickness was since it brought my family closer.
  3. Don’t be afraid to ask for help for yourself and others. Recognize that God's will may be different than yours, but ask & know He has a plan that most certainly includes you.
  4. Don’t worry about the words. God knows your heart. The act of prayer simply shows your loving commitment to Him.
  5. Most importantly, pray from your heart.

Michael R. Martin – July 25, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

*Definitions: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition: College Edition Copyright © 2002 by Houghton Mifflin company. All rights reserved.

Monday, July 12, 2004

Three to Love • July 11, 2004

Amos 7:7-17 • Psalm 82 • Colossians 1:1-14 • Luke 10:25-37
Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY

In Luke this week, we come (once again) to the familiar parable of the good Samaritan. Now Luke has turned from mission and discipleship, which has been our focus in readings and the message over the past few Sundays, to basic attitudes the disciple is to possess. In a series of three passages he addresses attitudes toward neighbor, spending time with Jesus and prayer to God. There is an important connection here. How we respond to our neighbor and how we walk with God are integrally connected. Both Jesus and the lawyer connect these two concepts in this week’s reading.

As it starts, we have a Jewish lawyer asking Jesus: "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus replied by asking the lawyer what the scriptures said and the lawyer replies with the Great Commandment of Deuteronomy: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live."

The story of the Good Samaritan is a familiar one, and it teaches us who is our neighbor and how to treat our neighbor. In those times, as now, there was the concept of neighbor and non-neighbor, us and them. Or should I say us versus them? Through this parable, Jesus tells us to treat everyone as a neighbor. There is no US and THEM. Not only that, we are to love our neighbor, that is to say EVERYONE, as we love ourselves. And the tremendous power of the story back then was this: nowadays we think of “good Samaritan” and we think “Oh, well, a Samaritan is good.” But the truth of the day was that to a Jewish scribe a Samaritan would have been the exact opposite, a notorious "bad guy" and traitor. So the HERO of this story was a bad guy. Culturally he was the last person expected to be hailed as an exemplary neighbor.

Ethics, how we conduct ourselves, how we treat others, our neighbors, is not an abstract question of options in a particular situation; it is a matter of character developed through a walk with God and a focus on Jesus. I am reminded of an incident that I experienced this past week, a lesson in ethics.

Marlene & I were in Yorktown Heights in Putnam County, working on a project I have to help clean up a lake. On this particular trip we were looking at storm sewers, drains and underground pipes, that dump polluted stormwater into the lake. After visiting the main problem area at the lake, a large storm drain that was adding pollutants to the lake, we decided to find the Town Hall since my client had said that the Town had a map of the storm sewers. We could use the maps to determine how big of an area was contributing to the problem.

Well, finding the Town Hall was an adventure. Yorktown is a large town, and that part of the state has lots of roads, lots of traffic, and more than their share of dangerous intersections. Some helpful folks at the local fire station gave me directions and we set off. After several missteps, we knew we were close. We drove by the Town Garage and continued on, finally coming to the Town Hall. The parking lot was full, but inside it was very still. We could see folks in various offices, behind windows, talking among them selves. As you first walk into the building, a sign directs visitors to the building directory, I guess so you can find where you need to go with out disturbing anybody. Marlene and I studied the directory and decided that the engineering department, which included environmental issues and mapping, was the place to go. According to the directory map, the engineering department was in the basement, so we set off, found the stairs, and hidden behind a corner, found a very uninviting closed door marked “Engineering.” I opened the door, rather hesitantly, and went inside. Two women were talking. One looked my way and I told her we were looking for storm sewer maps. She quickly pointed to the other woman, and turned away. The second woman looked at me, and I repeated that we were looking for storm sewer maps. “Well, that is two separate things,” she replied rather haughtily. She obviously misunderstood me, thinking I was referring to storm sewers (storm drains) and sanitary sewers as one. “OK,” I explained, “we are looking for storm DRAIN maps.” “You have to go to the Highway Department. We do sewers here, they do storm drains there.” Now, Marlene and I know that while Highway Departments often CLEAN storm drains, it is usually the engineering department that creates and maintains the maps. But we set off to the Highway Department. Of course, at the Highway Department, we were told that all mapping was done at the Engineering Department back at the Town Hall. Back through all the traffic and REALLY dangerous intersections from whence we came.

So back we went. And I nicely said to that same secretary that the Highway folks said the maps were here. Fortunately, as she was denying it, someone over the wall heard her, came out, and brought us back to where he did the mapping. As this fellow explained, they did the mapping but the highway department was given the software to look at it too. And over the wall we could hear the secretary say something to the effect of “See, I WAS right.” Well, we got what we needed and more from the gentleman who came and rescued us from that secretary, but here attitude bothered me all the rest of the day. I wasn’t so much mad at her treatment of us, but saddened by her attitude. To this woman, it mattered more that she was right, could justify herself to herself right or wrong, than whether she was nice to us, or helpful, or learned something new. She was the “Anti-Good Samaritan” and it seemed it would probably take some serious shock to change her ways.

The lawyer in Luke brings forth one of the most abstract, but important, questions we can wrestle with: What is the goal of life. Humankind has struggled with this question throughout its history. Many people engage in such a quest whether they have religious interests or not. Most of us sense that power and possessions are really meaningless life goals. We sense that there is something more. But beyond that, we often draw a blank.
Ephesians 1:11-12 It's in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone.
I’ve started reading a book called The Purpose Driven Life by Rick Warren – This is NOT a self-help book, as the author is quick to point out. The premise of the book is that if you want to discover your life's purpose, ask God. The book is a 40 day journey, each chapter seeking to focus your thoughts on the meaning of life. Chapter two, for instance: "You are not an accident. Your birth was no mistake or mishap, and your life is no fluke of nature. Your parents may not have planned you, but God did. He was not at all surprised by your birth. In fact, he expected it."

Rick Warren writes: "The search for the purpose of life has puzzled people for thousands of years. That's because we typically begin at the wrong starting point — ourselves. We ask self-centered questions like What do I want to be? What should I do with my life? What are my goals, my ambitions, my dreams for my future? But focusing on ourselves will never reveal our life's purpose. . . Contrary to what many popular books, movies, and seminars tell you, you won't discover your life's meaning by looking within yourself."

The author continues: "The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It's far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose."

I’d like to end with a verse from Colossians 3:12-14
Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
To that, I would only add this: There are always those people out there who are a challenge to love. But one of the hardest things some of us struggle with is loving and accepting ourselves. After all, God didn’t want us loving our neighbor as ourselves if we don’t like ourselves, don’t take good care of ourselves. The bible tells us to love one another, love your neighbor. Please be SURE to include yourself in this equation. Love GOD, love yourself, love your neighbor.

Michael R. Martin – July 11, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Monday, July 05, 2004

Independence Day • July 4, 2004

2 Kings 5:1-14 • Psalm 30 • Galatians 6:(1-6) 7-16 • Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY
• In loving memory of Ed Rhodes•

Luke 10: Jesus Sends Out the Seventy-two

Our gospel reading today recounts Jesus recruiting and sending a large number of new disciples ahead of him. Depending on which bible translation you read, the number of disciples is either 70 or 72. For consistency, I will be using 72, the number in my NIV translation. This story takes place right after Jesus had conversations with the several reluctant disciples we talked about last week, those who would follow Jesus after they had taken care of other matters, to which Jesus replied that nothing was more important than this calling, that nothing come before God.

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road. “When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.’ If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house. "When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick who are there and tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you.' But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, 'Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near’ . . . . "He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me." The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

In Luke 9, our Gospel reading over the past two weeks, Jesus sent the twelve ahead of him, two by two. Now, in Luke 10, 72 new recruits, new disciples, are sent out by twos. The number twelve would remind the hearers of the twelve tribes of Israel, while the number seventy-two would remind hearers of the Gentiles. The Jews believed that there were 72 nations traceable back to Genesis 10. The progression from twelve disciples in Luke chapter 9 to the 72 disciples in Luke chapter 10 hints that the Gentiles or all the nations, not just those who considered themselves “God’s chosen,” would be recipients of the gospel. As these new disciples were sent, Jesus used two metaphors to prepare them for their mission:
• Harvest and laborers – the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few; there are many to be saved and so few disciples
• Lambs and wolves – I am sending you out like lambs among wolves; this task will not be easy. In fact, going forth will be at times quite dangerous. Just imagine yourself a cute fuzzy little lamb hopping around the pasture, and behind every boulder, every tree is a big wolf, lying in wait, long toothy jaws snapping in anticipation, just waiting for that tender morsel to skip on past.

So Jesus has told the disciples there is much for them to do, and it will be dangerous. Yet he also told them to take nothing with them. The community would care for them. Matthew 10:9-10 recounts this same event and provides Jesus’ reasoning. Jesus instructs his disciples in Matthew
"Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff; for the worker is worth his keep."
Later on, in Luke 22:35-36, Jesus refers to these very instructions & instructs his disciples to do just the opposite as he prepares them for the coming of Judas & his betrayal:
Then Jesus asked them, "When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?" "Nothing," they answered. He said to them, "But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one."
But for now, early on in his journey to the Cross, Jesus sends them empty handed so that the good people of the communities they visit have the opportunity to take them in and feed them. Jesus is saying: we do not need anything to be a disciple, except a trust in the Lord that he will provide. Go out into the world prepared only to preach the Good News and all else will be provided.

Jesus’ guidelines for discipleship were simple:
• Go where they were received.
• Remain in one place and eat what was set before them. In other words, don't move around seeking a better deal - take what ever is provided, lest they be accused of being opportunistic.
• Do the works of Christ and proclaim the kingdom of God in places where they were welcomed.
• Wipe the dust off their feet in protest against places where they were rejected.

Make no mistake, however. Jesus never said that to be a disciple for Christ would be a picnic. In fact, we are repeatedly told just the opposite. In today’s reading, Jesus likens it to being a lamb among wolves.

I believe that we, as modern day disciples, can act with this same trust, that we can proceed armed only with God’s Good News and our needs will be taken care of. All that is required of us is FAITH. I am reminded of Joshua 1:9 –
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
But do we, as modern day disciples, have the same power to heal as Christ gave the 70? I suppose it depends on how you look at it. We DO have the power to comfort and to trust God’s will, and to help others come to know Christ so that they to might trust in God’s will. And the power to comfort, to love with compassion, should not be taken lightly. I believe that God’s love and the Holy Spirit, which fills all believers to overflowing, is channelled to those we comfort if we do so with a pure heart, without motive or thought of self. And bringing someone to peace who is troubled, sick or in pain, bringing that person to acceptance of God’s will, IS healing. I think of our pastor visiting the aged and infirm at Uihlein and how appreciative they must be, I think of Cindy Smith visiting those of us who find ourselves rooming at the Adirondack Medical Center and how thankful the patients must feel. And I think of Ed, gleefully recounting the travels to the White Mountains of NH in his early life to my son Mathew and me when we dropped by during one of his recent stays at AMC, and I think of Ed this week, to weak to even speak, barely able to keep his eyes open. I see the twinkle in his eye and the smile on his face as I played and sang a few songs for him; how he clearly said my name, “Michael,” and “thank you” when I got up to leave – I’m not sure who was healing whom, but that is the wonderful thing about sharing Christ’s love – the more you give, the more you receive back. It is a well that will never run dry.

In the Gospel, Jesus instructs his followers in missionary technique and he gives them authority over all spirits. When the 70 returned, they were excited -- even the demons submitted to them! Jesus both encouraged and warned them. Yes, they had authority, but their salvation was cause for greater rejoicing. The disciples were instructed not to rejoice in their power over the spirits, but rather rejoice that their names are written in heaven.

Today, our nation celebrates its independence – fireworks and “hurrah!” for we are a great nation. There will be beer drinking and barbeques, a nation rejoicing. But you and I, the Body of Christ, let us celebrate our TRUE independence: independence from SIN by Christ’s suffering for us on the cross; independence from worldly worries having FAITH in Christ the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

As we read in Nehemiah 8:10 –
"Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength."
Rejoice! These good things are promised to us, given to us, ours for the taking. Take it! You deserve it, you are worthy of it. Take it all! Let THIS be your Independence Day. Rejoice that your name is written in heaven!

Oh yeah. And just one more thing:
As we are reminded in Paul's letter to the Romans (chapter 12: 13)
"Share with God's people who are in need."
Now that you HAVE your independence, go OUT THERE and share it!

Michael R. Martin – July 4, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM

Monday, June 28, 2004

Would Be Disciples • June 27, 2004

Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY
2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14 • Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20 (UMH 798) • Galatians 5:1, 13-25 • Luke 9:51-62

Our reading in Luke introduces the start of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem:
When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem.
At that time, Jews and Samaritans despised each other. This animosity dated to the eighth century B.C., and arose out of the Assyrian conquest of the Jews. Samaritans claimed to have maintained proper worship in their land while other Jews were being compromised in exile. Mount Gerazim was the center of their religious life. Jews, on the other hand, accused Samaritans of losing their religious identity through intermarriage with pagan neighbors. The Jerusalem Temple was the center of their religious life. Samaria's location between Galilee and Judea, exacerbated the situation. To get to Jerusalem, Galileans had either to go through Samaria or to take a longer, more difficult route east of the Jordan River. Always tense, the relationship between Samaritans and Jews sometimes broke out in violence.

Luke is not clear concerning the intentions of Jesus' messengers. We don’t know if they were sent ahead to Samaria to make travel arrangements or to prepare the Samarians for Jesus’ ministry. Either way, the Samaritans would have no part of it. After all, Jesus had set a course for Jerusalem, which to them was a center of false religion. They surely resented the fact that Jesus was going there rather than Mount Gerazim.

When James and John learned of the Samarians refusal of hospitality, the offered to command fire to come down and consume them. Jesus had named James and John the Sons of Thunder, presumably because of their noisy, violent personalities. They were surely familiar with story in which Elijah called down fire from heaven to consume Samaritans. If Jesus would just give the word, they would repeat that action.

When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" But he turned and rebuked them. Then they went on to another village.
Jesus’ response to the punishment suggested by James and John is stern and swift. He REBUKED them. Rebuked (epetimesen in Hebrew) is a strong word. Elsewhere in Luke’s Gospel Jesus rebukes demons, fevers, and storms, but never disciples. Jesus responds so strongly to James and John because he had instructed them to love their enemies, not to judge others, and to shake dust from their feet as a response to rejection. James and John had failed to listen. As closely as Jesus' ministry might have paralleled that of the prophet Elijah, Jesus was not Elijah and his mission was not to destroy but to save and reconcile. God will judge those who reject Jesus in due time, but disciples are to leave judgment in God's hands. By simply continuing on to another village, Jesus models the behavior that he expects of the disciples when they experience rejection.

VERSES 57-62: WOULD-BE DISCIPLES

As the Gospel continues, Jesus demonstrates that discipleship will be no easy task as Jesus encounters those who might become disciples. In these verses, Jesus clarifies the extreme nature of this call. Those who would follow him must first count the cost, because they will share Christ's suffering. They must not give anything priority over Jesus – not even good things. Jesus never said to choose him over the devil but to choose him over all, including family.
As they were going along the road, someone said to him, "I will follow you wherever you go." And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head."
It is thought that perhaps this man saw Jesus as a man who was “going somewhere” and wanted to ride along on his coattails. And so Jesus’ reply to the man who offered to follow him everywhere was that He, Jesus, was going nowhere. Jesus’ ministry was not to be King of All but servant of all. Jesus was on his way to Crucifixion and the Cross.

To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, first let me go and bury my father." But Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
In those times, an unburied body was a mark of disgrace, and the burial of one's father or mother was an important part of honoring them in accordance with the Law. Perhaps the man’s father was not yet dead, and he was asking for time to care for his aged parent, which was also an import part of honoring them in accordance with the Law. Perhaps this was the man’s excuse to buy him time to consider discipleship, maybe later to come up with another excuse not to follow. Whether the father be dead or alive, Jesus' call is unequivocal. Let those who are spiritually dead bury the physically dead. Those with a spark of spiritual life have a responsibility to those who are still alive – those whose lives can still be redeemed – who are still able to decide for or against Christ.

Another said, "I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home." Jesus said to him, "No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."
This recalls the Old Testament story with which Jesus' audience would have been familiar. Elisha was plowing with his oxen when Elijah called him. He asked, "Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you." In the end Elisha committed fully to Elijah, for he slaughtered the oxen with which he had been plowing and used the yoke and harness as fuel to cook the oxen for neighbors to eat.

"Jesus said to him, 'No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God' ".
Having mostly lost our agricultural roots, this imagery might be lost on us. A farmer plowing with an animal must watch a fixed point ahead to plow a straight line. Looking back causes the farmer to swerve, plowing a crooked line, the mark of an amateur. The crooked line will be there for all to see for a full year – until the next plowing. The farmer who plows a crooked line will be the butt of many jokes during the year, and will try his/her best to plow straight lines next year. An Adirondack example that would be familiar to any one who has paddled a canoe or kayak across a lake or pond – If you don’t fix on a point on the opposite shoreline, but look around and back, you will “plow a crooked course” through the water, leaving a very obvious trail behind you as you go. So Jesus is saying if you will come with me, you must commit to the course and not look back.

We are told of these two men whom Jesus asked to follow him, and both gave an excuse rather than jump right in. But Jesus takes these excuses in stride, and does not rebuke the Would Be Disciples, but rather explains to them that their time to disciple is now and nothing takes precedence over His calling.

How many times have you asked someone for help and gotten what surely was a lame excuse? How often have YOU given an excuse to avoid having to do something you just didn’t want to do at the time? I can talk because I am the King of excuses . . . well, at the very least a Prince. Overwhelmed with things to do, exacerbated by my own procrastination, my natural response to being asked to do ANYTHING is to say NO. “Say No, ask questions later” – that is my usual modus operandi. In fact, when Susan Waters first approached me about preparing this very Sunday service, I said no. And it’s not a lie to say I am too busy, because, after all, who ISN’T these days? But I thought about it some, and changed my mind, which also seems to be part of my typical response. I’ve even come to recognize that this is the way I am and TRY, when asked to do some thing or another, TRY to say “let me think about it and get back to you.” But I will also admit there are times when I have committed to something where I bemoan having agreed to do it, whatever IT might be.

We should be slow to condemn those who offer excuses. Who among us hasn’t done the same? We all lead busy lives and experience all sorts of demands for our time. And even some of the giants of our faith first offered excuses before they finally accepted God's call.

• In Exodus, Moses protested, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" He argued, "O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue".
• Gideon pleaded, "But sir, how can I deliver Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."
• Jeremiah protested, "Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy"
• Isaiah said: "Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips…!"

And yet each of these people, however reluctantly, did what God asked, and God blessed their reluctant discipleship. This is Good News, because it means that God does not put a big X through our name when we sin or protest or offer excuses. Every failure is an invitation to repentance and blessing. Did any of the three men in our Gospel lesson dropped their excuses and followed Jesus? We do not know for sure, but I am fairly certain they did, since Luke later states that Jesus sent 72 OTHERS ahead of him. It doesn’t really change the lesson either way.

My message last week at the 8:30 Praise Service was that God WILL call you to service if you only seek quiet and listen. To that, this week, I ask “What will you do when you hear that call?” Remember, you may be asked to serve in ways you least expect it, but ALL you do for good is service to God. As we are instructed in Galatians: “serve one another in love. . . . Love your neighbor as yourself."

How can we prepare ourselves, heart and soul, to serve, to be a disciple? Start by reading the Bible. Each week we are given readings, called the lectionary readings, which include text from the Old Testament, the Psalms, and the New Testament. They are read to you here in Church, but take the time to read beyond the text on your own. Read the whole Chapter and perhaps the Chapter before and after, not just the few verses specified by the lectionary. For my birthday, I received the Bible on CDs, read in dramatic fashion, and I have found it enjoyable and enlightening to listen to these while I travel. It really is amazing the stuff that is in the bible when you go beyond the little bit we get exposed to in church. If you find the traditional bible to dense, try reading a different interpretation, such as The Message, which presents the scripture in literary form.

In addition to the bible, read a daily devotional, which offer scriptures, prayers, and modern-life stories as illustration. The Upper Room Daily Devotional Guide is available out front, in the church vestibule. The daily devotional I really like is called Our Daily Bread by RBC Ministries. If you are so inclined, go online – the United Methodist General Board of Discipleship (GBOD for short) has excellent online resources for making sense of the lectionary readings (www.gbod.org). Most importantly, make some time for yourself to focus on the Word – think about what it means to you, how does it apply in your life?

I believe that we are all asked to serve as disciples in some fashion, big or small. Sometimes it is just discipleship by example, in the way you live, the way you treat others, sometimes it’s being there for a friend in need, or a stranger in need. What WILL you do when presented with the opportunity to be Christ’s disciple? Will you offer up excuses like the Would Be Disciples in Luke Chapter 9, or will you offer up yourself in service? Who will you put first? Your job? Your family? Yourself? Or Christ?

There is only one right answer. Prepare yourself for His call. Be a disciple for Christ.

Michael R. Martin – June 27, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30AM & 10:00AM

Monday, June 21, 2004

Fear, what is thy name? • June 20, 2004

Sermon by Michael R. Martin, Certified Lay Speaker
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY
1 Kings 19:1-15a • Psalm 42
Galatians 3:23-29 • Luke 8:26-39

In the readings for this week, we hear from and about people who are dealing with some pretty dark moods: depression, dispair, fear. I’m going to look at some excerpts from these readings and talk a little bit about the experience of those in the stories, and reflect on those times in our own lives when we are perhaps taken a bit by these moods. And once again I invite you to find a time later when you can read and reflect upon the lectionary readings which are listed on your bulletin.

In our Psalm for this week, Psalm 42, we get some lovely imagery that has been captured in the song we will sing after the message: “As the deer longs for water, so my soul longs for you.” The psalmist speaks of a longing, his soul thirsting for God, brought on by a deep sadness. “My tears have been my food, day and night, while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?" and “Why are you so downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?”

Yes, the psalmist writes: “Why are you so downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?” but then answers himself in the next lines with “Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” The answer to each blue mood is, "Put your hope in God." This Psalm is a teaching psalm designed to show us where to turn in times of dispair. If you read it through you will note that it traces three stages of the Psalmist's experience, and at the end of each stage there comes the refrain that describes what brought him through, " hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God."

In our Old Testament scripture, Elijah is running for his life, away, afraid, for all of the other prophets had been killed with a sword. And Jezebel has threatened to do likewise to him. He ran to the town of Beersheba, left his servant, and continued into the desert. Elijah sat down beneath a broom tree and prayed for God to take his life. He fell asleep, and was twice awoken by angels who instructed him to get up and eat, and there was before him fresh bread baked on coals and a jar of water. God then asks Elijah, "What are you doing here?" and Elijah explains what he is fleeing.

The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD , for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

The reading invites us to take a look at how God deals with us when we are afraid for our lives and dealing with depression. We run away, we hide. But what if we are silent, in worship and prayer, might we not hear God? What if, like Elijah, we were to lie down in a quiet spot, and sleep. Wouldn’t God see that we are fed? Too often we expect powerful, big, impressive things to awaken us to God’s presence. Have you ever prayer for a sign – a powerful wind, an earthquake, a fire – when perhaps it was the whisper you should have been silently awaiting?

Luke: story of Legion & the Pigs

In Luke, we read of the demon-possessed man in Gerasenes. Gerasenes was Gentile country, evidenced by the presence of a herd of swine, to the Jewish an unclean animal. This is the only account in the Gospel of Jesus in Gentile territory, and the second of four stories demonstrating the authority of Jesus, the first being the calming of the storm. So, Jesus and the disciples come to land sometime after the calming of the storm, and are met on the shore by a man who was demon-possessed. He wore no clothes, and lived in the tombs. This possessed man had broken the chains and shackles the townsfolk had used to try and contain him, so he had incredible strength. Yet, he fell to the ground and cried out “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?!” when he saw Jesus. For the demons had recognized Jesus for who and what he was. When Jesus asked the man’s name, he replied “Legion” for there were many demons within him.

A legion was a Roman army unit of about six thousand soldiers, a powerful occupying force whose power was overwhelming and whose presence meant the loss of control over every dimension of free society. The man's response tells us the extent of the forces arrayed against Jesus. The man's demons are many and powerful. It also tells us that the man had lost his identity to his demons. He bears their name and is controlled by their power.

But the legion of demons within the man recognized Jesus’ power, begging Jesus to spare them, allowing them to enter into the nearby herd of pigs rather than being thrown down into the Abyss, which is the dwelling place of spirits and the dead. And when Jesus so allowed, the demons went into the pigs, which ran into the water and drown. But the pig herders and the townspeople, rather than being amazed by what Jesus had done, were seized with great fear and asked him to leave.

Why were these people afraid? Surely, Jesus has performed a miracle. The possessed man was now sitting with Jesus, dressed in good clothes, and talking rationally. They were probably afraid because they did not understand this power they had witnessed and were uncertain what it would do next. After all, this power freed the possessed man, yet bankrupted the poor swineherds. Uncertainty, doubt -- fear! And then, there was the loss of the known to the unknown. Sure, the man was possessed, was mad. But they knew him and of him, and were adjusted to having him run free, living naked among the tombs. Now that he is "clothed and in his right mind", they will have to find room for him in their village. Will his family welcome him home, or will someone have to take him in? Has his wife remarried? Have his children made their peace with his absence? How will he make a living? Can they trust his healing to be permanent? Will he become dangerous again? Will one of their daughters fall in love with him? Jesus has solved one problem and created a thousand new ones! The routine changed, and therefore more uncertainty -- fear again!

Name your fear

Fear can be a very debilitating treacherous emotion. There is a healthy level of fear that we all need for basic survival but some people literally let fear rule their lives. This can take a person to the 'depths of hell' so to speak and keep you chained to a life that is full of guilt and regrets.

Catherine Glennie, in Overcome the Dragon of Fear, wrote:
Every single person faces the dragon of fear. No one is exempt. Fear is man's enemy. Fear is the factor that holds people back from doing what they really want to do in life. Fear is also the father of all bad behavior. Fear, unchecked, will lock into your body and there begin its awful work of disease.

Fear is different things to different people. Certainly, there are clinical fears or phobias. Phobias are characterized by being an irrational fear that is instantly triggered, provoking an immediate anxiety response – the phobic typically knows that the fear and response is unreasonable or out of proportion but can not help it. I did a little research and learned that are between 200 and 500 named phobias that clinical psychologists deal with, nearly 200 which are considered most observed in practice. These phobias cover pretty much anything you can think off – for instance, Philemaphobia, which I think my son has, since he always turns away when he sees this in a movie, is the fear of kissing. Meathesiophobia is the fear of change -- I think perhaps this afflicted the folks in Gerasenes. Autophobia is the fear, not of automobiles, but of being alone with one’s self. I think these last two fears are quite commmon, perhaps not at the level of being a phobia, yet many fear change and being alone with one's self.

I don’t know how many people carry secret phobias around with them – you know, I am afraid of spiders but I wouldn’t call it a phobia – but I suspect that many, many people, myself included, carry within them a number of secret fears that they allow, knowingly and unknowingly, to rule their lives. When I played trumpet in high school, I would make myself physically sick with nervousness before a concert; the first time I ever had to speak professionally in public, before my peers, I was a nervous wreck, and simply read what I had written. And I used to be sick for days before I had to get on an airplane to fly somewhere. I recognized these fears, named them, but it has taken me literally decades to get to where I am now, more comfortable flying because I love to visit different parts of the country and flying allows me to do that; typically at ease speaking or playing music in front of an audience, large or small. When I speak professionally now, which is fairly often, I don’t even bother to write out a script, because I have gained the confidence that I know what I need to say and will say it. Of course, as you can plainly see, I am not so comfortable preaching the Gospel that I’m ready to throw away my notes and wing it – though this is certainly how Jesus instructed his disciples.

So, yes, I am still far from perfect, far from being whole. I still fear many things, named and unnamed, that prevent me from being the best Christian, the best husband, the best father that I could be – fears that drive me to unhealthy habits when I know what would be better for me.

What fears to you have? Maybe it’s simply the fear of change, or fear of the unknown – common fears so well illustrated by the people of Gerasenes. What fears do you have? Can you name them? We probably inherit some fears, perhaps learn others: however we get our fears/wherever they came from -- our fears are ours alone and it is only between ourselves and God to name them, acknowledge them, learn from them, and ultimately deal with them. Not an easy task – conquering your fears – and it may take a lifetime. But not only will this make you a happier, healthier person, but it will also make you a better servant for Christ.

The man whose legions of demons had been driven away asked if he might continue on with Jesus. But Jesus instructed him to stay and proclaim throughout the city what Jesus had done – to give testimony to the Gentiles, who were not yet ready to receive Jesus. The man must have been disappointed at being denied the opportunity to stay with Jesus, but he obeyed. Like him, we find ourselves called to a different calling than the one which we would have preferred. For instance, many pastors are introverts who are uncomfortable in their very public life – our own Pastor Bill admitted to being extremely introverted during one of our small group lessons. Others, who might enjoy preaching or teaching, find themselves serving in quieter, behind-the-scenes ways – how often have you paused to appreciate the unseen at a function who prepared the meal. Some might have wished to serve on some distant mission field, but find themselves called to live their whole lives within the confines of their home state. Or, like Albert Schweitzer, a renowned physician and concert organist, we might find ourselves called to leave the limelight to serve in the hinterlands. The important thing is to listen carefully and to obey faithfully the call to which we have been called. It is better to be a doorkeeper in the house of the Lord than to be a prince or princess anywhere else – if God has called us to be a doorkeeper.

So, seek quiet prayer and reflection, name your fears, and listen.
God will feed you.
God has the power to chase away your demons.
God will call you to serve.

Can you hear His whisper?

Michael R. Martin – June 20, 2004
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 8:30 AM

Thursday, June 03, 2004

Lord of All • August 11, 2002

Sermon by Michael R. Martin
First United Methodist Church of Saranac Lake, NY
Genesis 37:1-5, 12-28 • Romans 10:5-15 • Psalm 105 • Matthew 14:22-33

Our old testament reading begins the tale of Joseph as told by his father, Jacob. This is the start of the story of Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors. (Ref: Keith Kogut’s spectacular performance in the high school rendition of the play last year). Joseph was just 17 when the story begins – I imagine just about the age Keith was when he gave his performance.

Our reading says Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons (Remember Israel is Jacob, for God had given Jacob the name Israel after he had wrestled with God and returned to Bethel), “Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to him at an old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him.” Joseph, you see, was the baby in the family, the last child, and its not hard to imagine how he was loved. We, too, sometimes lavish extra attention on the baby in the family, even as he or she grows up. We wouldn’t say we love them anymore than the others, but I think it is just a natural human tendency. Well, when Joseph’s brothers saw this, that their father loved Joseph more than any of them, they hated Joseph and could not speak a kind word. It pissed them off! To make matters worse, one day as our tale begins the brothers and Joseph were all out tending the flocks together and Joseph runs home with a “bad report” about them.

On another day, Israel sends Joseph back out to meet with his brothers who are tending the sheep. The brothers had moved the flocks from where they started, but when Joseph finally catches up to them, the brothers see him coming and make fun of him “Here comes that dreamer!” And the brothers plot to kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns, after which they will tell a story of a ferocious animal that devoured him.

I always thought a cistern was a large jar for holding water, but its much more than that. Up until fairly recent times, towns and villages in more arid regions such as the Middle East relied on surface water collected from the winter rains and stored in man-made reservoirs called cisterns. Communities constructed large cisterns and each home would typically have its own. Community and household cisterns were generally carved out of rock, below ground, with bell-shaped, pear-shaped, or bottle-shaped interiors. Some of them were quite large. Rainwater was collected from roofs and courtyards and directed into the cisterns. Sometimes the rainwater was directed through some form of sediment basin to settle out solid materials first. A 1921 census of Jerusalem found 7,000 cisterns in use. In recent times, cisterns have fallen out of use and become filled with sediment and debris, since it is far easier to open a faucet tap then haul buckets from the cistern. Some middle-eastern towns still require a cistern with each new house, although the owners would fill them now with a hose rather than rainwater.

So, anyway, the brothers are plotting to kill Joseph and throw him into a cistern. Yet one brother, Rueben, acted to spare his life by suggesting they just throw Joseph into one of the cisterns alive rather than to kill him first. (Rueben was planning to come back later and rescue Joseph and return him to his father.) So the brothers grabbed Joseph, stripped him of his richly ornamented robe, and threw him into an empty cistern. A bit later that day, a caravan of Ishmaelites approaches. The caravan was on its way to Egypt, the camels loaded with spices, balm and myrrh that they had acquired in Gilead. Joseph’s brother Judah suggests they sell Joseph to the Ishmaelites. The brothers agree, Joseph is sold for twenty shekels of silver, and he is taken along to Egypt with the other goods. Rueben, by the way, apparently did not take part in the sale of Joseph, for in the next passage following our reading Rueben returns to the cistern and finds Joseph gone and yells at his brothers, “The boy isn’t there! Where can I turn now?”

I wondered how much Joseph was worth as a slave. A shekel was not only a coin but a measure of weight, about 2/5 of an ounce. I have no idea what 20 shekels of silver might have been worth at the time of our story. But the twenty shekels paid by the Ishmaelites for Joseph was 8 ounces of silver, which would be worth about $100 at today’s depressed silver prices. In our time, silver prices peaked around 1980 at $25 an ounce, when Joseph would have cost us $500. And you can go on the internet and buy actual shekel coinage from 93 BC for between $315 to $415. So if you had to pay for Joseph today, using actual shekels, you would shell out $8,000.

Our passage from Romans speaks of righteousness, proclaiming and confessing of faith, and includes the wonderful passages: “For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” and “For there is NO difference between Jew and Gentile – the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him.”

“It is with your heart that you believe and are justified.” Justification here does not refer to our common definition of the word, being proven right, but refers instead to God’s justifying grace. Justifying grace describes what God does when we come to faith – providing a lasting relationship between us and God.

There are generally considered to be three forms of God’s GRACE – God’s gift to humankind. God’s Prevenient Grace is with all of us from birth, preparing us for a new life in Christ. Prevenient means “coming before.” It is what guided each of us from birth on the path of life before we even knew we were on a path seeking God. Here is what John Wesley said about Prevenient Grace in his "Free Grace" sermon:
The grace or love of God, whence cometh our salvation, is FREE IN ALL, and FREE FOR ALL.... It is free in all to whom it is given. It does not depend on any power or merit in man; no, not in any degree, neither in whole, nor in part. It does not in anywise depend either on the good works or righteousness of the receiver; not on anything he has done, or anything he is. It does not depend on his endeavors. It does not depend on his good tempers, or good desires, or good purposes and intentions; for all these flow from the free grace of God; they are the streams only, not the fountain. They are the fruits of free grace, and not the root. They are not the cause, but the effects of it.

So we are all born into Prevenient Grace – God looking out for us if you will. But we are free to accept or reject God's justifying grace. When we experience or accept justifying grace, we come into a new life in Christ.

And in case you are wondering what comes after Justifying Grace, it is Sanctifying or sustaining Grace. It is the cycle of repentance and faith we continually repeat as we struggle to walk just a little closer with God.

We don’t often focus on the lectionary Psalm in our worship and meditations, other than our Act of Praise. Our Psalm for the day, Psalm 105, also recounts the story of Joseph sold to slavery, released by the king, and made master of the king’s household, ruler over all the king possessed, and free to teach the king’s princes as he pleased and teach wisdom to the king’s elders. More importantly, the Psalm opens by speaking of giving thanks to the Lord, calling on His name, and making known among the nations what He has done. Sing praises to him, tell all of his wonderful acts. Look to the Lord and his strength and seek His face always.

And then we have the reading from Matthew, Jesus Walks on the Water. The story takes place after Jesus had fed the multitudes – five thousand men, PLUS woman and children – with five loaves of bread and two fish. Following this, Jesus makes his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side of the lake, while he dismisses the crowed. At long last Jesus finds the solitude he so desperately sought, as he went up a mountainside to pray. By evening, Jesus is still alone on the mountainside, and the boat with the disciples is far from land, buffeted by the waves and the wind. During the fourth watch of the night (the morning watch, from 3AM to 6AM – some call it the darkest time of the night, but having risen early in the fourth watch many times myself, it could also be as the sky is beginning to lighten). During the fourth watch of the night, Jesus walks out to the boat, on the lake, and the disciples are afraid, thinking it is a ghost. Jesus tells them to not be afraid, but Peter replies, “Lord, if it is you, tell me to come to you on the water.” When Jesus says “Come” Peter walks on the water toward Jesus, but begins to sink when he becomes frightened by the wind. “Lord, save me!,” Peter cries, and Jesus reaches out his hand and catches him. Jesus, probably a bit disappointed, asks, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” The wind dies down as Jesus and Peter climb back into the boat, and the disciples worship Jesus, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

So how does this all come together: Brothers hating brother, plotting to kill and selling one off into slavery; Romans reminding us that it is with our hearts that we believe and are justified, and it is with our mouths that we confess and are saved, and the Lord is the Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him; the Psalm calling us to give thanks and praise to the Lord and making His works known among the nations; and lastly Jesus walking on the water, calming the sea, but more importantly lifting up Peter as his faith falters and he begins to sink?

Taken apart, each reading has a story and a lesson to tell in its own right, but as the person in the pulpit I have tried to reflect on the meaning of the collective word. So here is what it says to me, and here is the message I offer to you. When I think about the story of Joseph and his brothers, I recall those times when I, too, like the brothers have been caught up in pride and fear and jealousy and all those things that must have motivated their actions. And I think of Joseph, who as near as I can tell was not particularly religious, and probably had no reason to suspect his brothers would go to such lengths to be rid of him. Joseph knew not of his fate but God had a plan for Joseph and God’s prevenient grace was at work to see it through. I only pray that those times in my life when I have acted as shamefully as the brothers that God was watching over those I wronged.

I don’t know about you, but there are times when I have doubts, when my faith fails. Much like Peter walking out on the lake towards Christ, I have looked around, felt the wind of the world, and began to doubt. One of the strongest religious experiences I have had in my adult life came one night, in the back of a dimly lit church following an evening service. I was sitting towards the back of the church, watching flames flickering on the alter, and pondering all of my doubts in my head: What if there IS no God? What if Jesus was just a man, or worse just a story? What if it is just some strange biochemical reaction in our brains that makes us sometimes feel “strangely warmed” by Christ’s presence? Low blood sugar, who knows? And when I could take all this rattling around in my head no longer, I spoke to the one person in the pew in front of me, in fact the only other person in the back half of the church where I sat. I said, “What if it’s all a lie?” And I don’t recall her exact first response, but this woman, a visiting pastor from Vermont, essentially told me it was okay to doubt. In fact, having faith does not mean checking your mind at the door. God would want you to explore and question and come to believe on your own terms. And we only spoke briefly, but when I leaned back I found that my fears and doubts were gone, and my mind was finally quiet – something I had been seeking for a long long time.

And so, this is what I think it means to be a Christian: it means we strive recognize our faults and our failings, we understand that as humans we will fall, but try not to use that as an excuse. And most importantly, and I still need to work on this part, always turn to Christ for a return of strength in faith, and to do it better the next time. Christ knows we will have doubts and will reach out to us as we reach out to him, as he did there on that lake. And when we have returned to faith, we need to use that strength to help others to know that the Lord is the Lord of All and to bring that message forth in ministry and deed.

Michael R. Martin – August 11, 2002
First UMC of Saranac Lake, 9:00AM & 10:00AM