Friday, December 24, 2010

Sermon – Coming to Jesus – John – Matthew 3:1-12

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Church
Sermon – Coming to Jesus – John – Matthew 3:1-12
December 19, 2010

Christmas is almost here. The parades and shopping are almost over. The time with family and friends exchanging gifts and feasting together is just ahead. And we Christians are coming to Jesus. Three weeks ago we were joined by a young man whose life had been interrupted by the news that his fiance was pregnant and he took the bold step of welcoming a new life by obeying God and adopting Jesus as his own son and descendant of David. Then two weeks ago we were joined by some wise men who saw a star and remembered the ancient oracles that king was to be born in Judah. Last week we were joined on our journey to Jesus by the mothers of the children of Bethlehem who were weeping over the death of their children murdered by Herod and in their grief were joined by Rachel and God. Our journey to Jesus is about to come to an end. But first we will be joined by everyone else looking for an answer to the one thing that keeps us away from God. But before we get to this please pray with me.

Father in heaven, in anticipation of the shalom Christ brings to all people we come now before your throne of grace to give you our praise and thanksgiving. Amen. (adapted from When We Gather p.3)

Matthew 3:1-12In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea 2 and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." 3 This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" 4 John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. 6 Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8 Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. 9 And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 10 The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. 11 "I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 12 His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

Verse five tells us, “People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan.” This must have been a big crowd. Jerusalem is not that close to the Jordan. The Roman road passes though the desert from Jerusalem to Jericho. It is long and dry and dangerous. And yet people were using it to come to the Jordan river. And it was not just the people of Jerusalem. We are told that people from the whole region of Judah were coming. But it doesn't stop there. All the people of the Jordan river, the Galileans and even the gentiles on these east bank of river were coming. A a huge crowd had assembled. And it's bigger than that. Literally the scripture says that all of the people of Jerusalem, all of the people of Judah, all of the peoples around the Jordan have come. Well maybe not everyone went to the Jordan, but it was a very large group.

And we know that this was not just a one time thing. People kept coming to the river, over and over again. They were searching for something. They thought they found it and went home. But then they realized that it wasn't enough and they went back to the river over and over again trying to find what they needed. Why would they do this? Why would so many keep coming to the Jordan river over and over and over again. The reason they kept going to Jordan River over and over again was that they needed to do something about sin.

Sin was destroying their lives. Families were being destroyed by adultery. Lives were being destroying by alcoholism. Businesses were being destroyed by greed. Even the religious leaders were being destroyed by their lust for power. Sin was like a cancer eating away at society. The people realized that there was nothing they could do about it. They would try to do better for a while, but then they would slip up and sin would keep on going. The fads just didn't work. So when they heard that prophet like Elijah had come, baptizing people for the forgiveness of sins in the Jordan river, well this was an offer they just couldn't pass up. So huge crowds made this long and dangerous trip over and over again hoping that John was the one real thing that would work.

When they arrived at the river John warned them that a new kingdom was about to come. This kingdom would be controlled not by the Roman occupiers, or the religious leaders, or even the local political puppets, but by God. So the people had to choose sides. Would they continue in the sinful ways of the Roman Empire. Or would they repent, change their ways and obey God? John would baptize those who wanted to change, stop sinning, and enter into the new kingdom. But baptism in the Jordan wasn't enough because as soon as the people got home their sinful behavior would return. So over and over again they would make the long difficult journey to John, and hear the message of repentance over and over again.

John was a prophet. He saw clearly the problem the people faced. They were trying really hard to change, but they couldn't. No matter how hard they tried they just couldn't get away from sin. In fact they still wanted to sin. They knew that sin was bad, but sin had stained them so much that they actually wanted to sin. They had become addicts to sin and no amount of washing in the Jordan river could change this situation. John knew what was needed. God had to intervene. God had to remove the spirit of sin that plagued the people and give them a new spirit.

We see the chronic effects of sin in our own time too. Today's Washington Post Magazine has a wonderful example of sin at work. Two years ago the Church of Christ in Harrisonburg VA called a new pastor. At first he seemed perfect. He was a friend to all and preached wonderful sermons. But then some started questioning his theology. Heated arguments erupted in the congregation. Elders were removed from session. There were questions about the finances of the church. And a belated background check was made on the new pastor. The findings were startling. Their new pastor was a murderer. His first wife had complained about his drinking, that he couldn't hold onto a job, and was cruel to their children. After the divorce he found a new girlfriend, but one day became enraged and beat her fourteen month old baby to death. After 12 years in prison he seemed to be changed. A local pastor helped him to be paroled and found him a job. He seemed to be embarking on a new life. But a couple of years later he had an affair with a friends wife, and left the church. A few years later he was convicted of medicare fraud and landed back in prison. But in 2008 the Harrisonburg Church of Christ was looking for a new pastor. They were thrilled when William M. Drumheller III accepted their call. He and his fourth wife moved into the manse. The church didn't recognize the wolf in sheep's clothing. Their new pastor was a person addicted to sin.

This is way sin works. We know better. We know what to do. But we still sin, we still do what displeases God. And if we are honest with ourselves we must admit that it doesn't really bother us that much. We don't really care if we sin or not. Sin has so changed us that we begin to think that sinning is ok. And the last thing we want is to go to a church that tries to change that. John knew that his telling people to behave and dunking them in the river would have little effect on their behavior and desire to sin. Somehow God had to intervene; a savior was needed who would remove the sin from our lives.

And that is why we celebrate Christmas. At Christmas a savior comes into the world to remove the sin from our lives. The savior acts like a skilled surgeon cutting out our sin with a scalpel. The savior is like the radiologist directing a concentrated shot of radiation at the sin within us. The savior administers the chemo that kills the sins that infects us. The savior acts like a doctors curing us from a deadly disease. And sin is a most deadly disease. The good news is that the savior arrives at Christmas.

Jesus Christ is coming into the world. He is God's intervention in our lives. Through Jesus Christ the sin that stains all of us is finally removed. This allows us, if we so choose, to desire a godly life and to begin elimination sinful acts from our behaviors. In this process, Chirst's spirit is in us and with us to guide us and help become sin free. This is a lifelong process, but it begins now at Christmas when Jesus enters your life to free you from sin.

“What do you want for Christmas?” is the question Santa asks little kids. As your pastor I must ask you what you want for Christmas. Some of you might want a Lexus with a big red bow. Others might jewelry with glittering diamonds. Some of you might just want to see a smile on your grandchildren's faces. But the best gift waiting for you under the tree this Christmas is a savior, born in Bethlehem, who will free you from your desires for sin and deliver to you the life God's created for you. Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 17, 2010

Sermon – Coming to Jesus – Rachel – Matthew 2:13-23

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Church
Sermon – Coming to Jesus – Rachel – Matthew 2:13-23
December 11, 2010

I am continuing today with my series of sermon on Coming to Jesus. We have been looking at those who came to Jesus two thousand years ago as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. Two weeks ago we watched as Joseph heard the bad news that Mary was pregnant. And this led us to the genealogy in the first chapter in Matthew which demonstrated to Joseph and us that he was a descendant of David and was needed to adopt Jesus to make him the Messiah. Last week we watched as a wise men east of the Jordan saw a star and the oracle of Balaam guided them to Judah to search for a new king. Today we will look at a text we would rather avoid. It is a text of inexplicable evil. I warn you that children are about to die and women will experience inconsolable grief. And yet it is an important part of the Christmas story. Let us pray.

Father in heaven, in anticipation of the shalom Christ brings to all people we come now before your throne of grace to give you our praise and thanksgiving. Amen. (adapted from When We Gather p.3)

Matthew 2:13-23 13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. "Get up," he said, "take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him." 14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: "Out of Egypt I called my son." 16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: 18 "A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more." 19 After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt 20 and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead." 21 So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, 23 and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene."

In the common lectionary that most pastors use for preaching texts, this passage from Matthew is usually assigned for the Sunday after Christmas when most preachers take vacation and someone else has to preach this difficult text. We all enjoy Joseph’s dilemma and rejoice with him as he embarks on his new life with Christ as his adopted son. We also enjoy the historical research and careful thinking of the wise men. But we run away at the thought of dead children in the streets and grieving mothers.

The reason that this story is in Matthew’s account is that not all of us come to Christmas rejoicing. Some of us come filled with grief. Maybe a loved one has died this year and you are approaching your first Christmas alone. Maybe your health is not good and you won’t make it to the family festivities at all this year. Maybe your finances are so terrible that little will be under the tree for the children. So approach Christmas annoyed by all the rejoicing and hoping just to get through it. Grief is a part of Christmas for many of us, but none more so than Rachel.

Rachel was the pretty one who could have anything she wanted. When Jacob came to town looking for a wife he immediately spotted Rachel. She was the one he really wanted. So he worked seven hard years to get her and then was tricked into marring her sister Leah. So Jacob worked another seven hard years to get the sister he really wanted, Rachel.

But Rachel’s life was difficult. Her role was to bear sons, and in this she was a complete failure. Sister Leah had one kid after another, ten sons and some daughters. But Rachel had nothing. She grew so desperate she asked her husband, Jacob, to sleep with her servant so that at least she would have a child to care for. And she prayed over and over again asking for a son. Those prayers were heard and she called her son Joseph, which in Hebrew means “give me another.” So every time she said her son’s name she was praying for another son. Those prayers also were heard and Rachel became pregnant a second time. But she died in child birth, and she named her new son with her dying breath, “son of my sorrows.” Rachel died but was not forgotten. Her story stands today in the Book of Genesis.

Centuries later the prophet Jeremiah watched as the Israelites, naked and ashamed were forced to march to exile in Babylon. The prophet said that the matriarch Rachel must be weeping over the humiliation of her descendants. As Jeremiah watch the destruction of a once great nation and he spoke these words of hope.
Jeremiah 31:15-17 15 This is what the LORD says: "A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more." 16 This is what the LORD says: "Restrain your voice from weeping and your eyes from tears, for your work will be rewarded," declares the LORD. "They will return from the land of the enemy. 17 So there is hope for your future," declares the LORD. "Your children will return to their own land.

The ancient rabbis explained this passage in Jeremiah by saying that God was so moved by the exile of his children that God began to weep. And God did not wish to grieve alone so he asked Abraham so grief with him. But Abraham said to God, “why did you let this happen? You stopped my hand before the knife plunged in Isaac’s heart. Why did you not stop this?” So God kept looking for someone to grieve with and found Rachel. The two of them wept over the exile of God’s people, and it was Rachel who was comforted by God’s words that her children would one day return to their land.

According to Matthew this prophecy was fulfilled in Jesus Christ. By the divine care of God, Jesus was protected from Herod’s evil act. Egypt became a sanctuary just as it had for Rachel’s children. And in Jesus’ return to Galilee the son of God returned to the Promised Land. This is Good News for all who are experiencing grief this Christmas. You are never alone. Rachel and God are always there weeping with you. And they will comfort and remind you that your grief will come to an end because Jesus is coming to restore all things.

So how are we as church to help those who are grieving this Christmas? The author Philip Yancey tells a story about a woman named Claudia. Claudia was a young newlywed married to a hospital chaplain. Suddenly her world was turned upside down with she was diagnosed with cancer. A deacon of her church visited her in the hospital and told her to reflect on her life because she must have done something displeasing to God. A few days later a woman from the church arrived with flowers and began reading some happy psalms; she avoided any talk of illness. A friend dropped in one afternoon and told her about a television evangelist who does faith healing. Finally her pastor arrived and told her that she was on a special mission from God. All of these people were trying to be helpful, but none of them gave Claudia what she really needed. She needed to know that God still loved her. (Yancey, Where is God When it Hurts ch1)

There is another story about Saint Francis. One day Francis, a nobleman, was riding his horse. This was at a time in his life when he was bitter toward God. As he rode he saw a leper lying on the side of the road. Francis could have cursed the man for being sick. He could have cursed God for allowing the illness. But what Francis did was to get off his horse and embrace the leper kissing him on the lips. (Yancey p. 242)

What Francis did was to show God’s love to those who are suffering. And that is what we are called to do. We are to weep with those who grief joining our tears with their’s and Rachel’s and God’s demonstrating God’s faithfulness and love no matter what happens.

So I ask you to go out into the community this Christmas and visit those who grieve, those who have lost or are loosing a spouse, those who are sick, those whose children are in trouble, those with no money in the bank and creditors at the door. Visit them. Cry with them. Pray with them. And assure them that no matter what happens God will always be there to love them.

Lord God, be with all who grieve this Christmas. Comfort them and assure them of your great love. Weep with those who grieve as you did with Rachel for those mothers in Bethlehem. And prepare us for the coming of our savior who will redeem us from our grief. We pray all this in the name of your son whom you lost on the cross. Amen.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Sermon – Coming to Jesus: Magi – Matthew 2:1-12

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Sermon – Coming to Jesus: Magi – Matthew 2:1-12
Beaver Dam and Pitts Creek Presbyterian Church
December 5, 2010

I am continuing today with a series of Christmas sermons on the theme of coming to Jesus. Last week we started with Joseph and saw that sometimes coming to Jesus begins with God interrupting our lives and us taking a bold step into a new life that God has created for us. Today we will be journeying with some Wise Men from the East as they travel to pay homage and worship a new king. We will find that to be wise means to bless and not curse others. But before beginning all of this please pray with me.

Father in heaven, in anticipation of the shalom Christ brings to all people we come now before your throne of grace to give your our praise and thanksgiving. Amen. (adapted from When We Gather p.3)

Matthew 2:1-12 NIV Matthew 2:1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him." 3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people's chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. 5 "In Bethlehem in Judea," they replied, "for this is what the prophet has written: 6 "'But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.'" 7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him." 9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

This is the familiar story of the Magi. Some traditions say that these were kings bringing treasure. Some traditions say that since there are three gifts there must be three kings. Other traditions say that there were twelve kings. Some traditions call these “wise men”. The NIV translation that I just read simply transliterates the Greek word “ma,goi” into “Magi” from which we get the English word “magic” or “magician”. The text from Matthew tells us little about the Magi, except that they came from the east with gifts following a star and looking for a new king. Why would they do such a curious thing?

I think that the answer for this question lies in a odd story found in the Old Testament book of Numbers. In Chapters 22-24 of Numbers we find story of a wise man living east of the Jordan River in the land of Moab. His name was Balaam. Balaam was a wise man. He lived alone, probably high in the mountains. From there he could observe the world around him. He watched the heavens and saw the patterns of the rising and setting of the sun, and thus could tell the farmers when to plant and when to harvest. He measured rainfall and attempted to predict the weather. He taught young men to be wise. And he learned to write so that his observations of the world and his wisdom could be preserved for future generation.

The story in Number about Balaam goes this way. The Israelites, who had been wondering in the wilderness for forty years, were ready to go into the Promised Land. They assembled on the east bank of the Jordan River and prepared to cross the river and occupy the land. As you might expect, the king of Moab, on the east side of the river,was more than a little concerned. If he wasn’t careful the Israelites might turn on him and his kingdom would be in jeopardy. So he sent his advisers to see the wise man, Balaam, to tell him to come to the king to pronounce a curse on the Israelites.

When the advisers of the king arrived, they told Balaam what the king had in mind. Balaam decided to sleep on it. And that night the Lord, God of Israel, spoke to him in a dream and told him not to go to see the king. So the next morning Balaam told the king’s advisers that he was not going anywhere and he sent them back to the king empty handed. The king of Moab was, as you would expect, not happy with Balaam’s response. So he sent the advisers back, this time with more men, with instructions that Balaam must obey the king’s command and come to curse the Israelites.

While Balaam was on his way down the narrow mountain path to see the king his donkey suddenly stopped. Balaam was so upset with the donkey he began beating him with a stick. And an extraordinary thing happened. The donkey began to talk. “Why are you hitting me, Balaam? I haven’t done anything to you. I carried you all the way here.” And then the usually observant Balaam saw something that he had missed. There in front of the donkey was a angel with a drawn sword blocking the way. And the angel told Balaam that he was not to obey the king of Moab, but should listen for and obey the word of God.

So Balaam made his way to the king who wanted the Israelites cursed. Balaam raised his arms and prayed a blessing not a curse. This infuriated the king who told him to pray again and curse the Israelites. But again Balaam raised his hands and blessed them. And then Balaam spoke on oracle that will be remembered for all time. He said, "The oracle of Balaam son of Beor, the oracle of one whose eye sees clearly, the oracle of one who hears the words of God, who has knowledge from the Most High, who sees a vision from the Almighty, who falls prostrate, and whose eyes are opened: "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near. A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.” (Numbers 24:15-17)

Centuries later a group of wise men east of the Jordan River saw a star rising over Judah. They consulted their ancient scrolls and found the oracle of Balaam. The star which they saw rising over Judah meant that a new king had been born. This king would be powerful enough to destroy Moab. So they decided to travel to this new king with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh and to prostrate themselves before his throne. They made their way to Jerusalem for an audience with the king where they found out that the Wise Men of Israel were expecting a messiah, descended from David and born in Bethlehem. So the wise men continued on their way following the star and they came to a house in Bethlehem and a baby held by his mother, Mary. They prostrated themselves before the baby and presented him with their gifts. And this is the story of the wise men coming to Jesus.

We continue to have wise men and women today, wise people who are observant of the world around them, wise people who listen for God's word. Today’s wise people are the farmers who watch the calendar and measure the rainfall so they know when to plant and when to harvest. Today’s wise people teach students in our schools how to be wise. Today’s wise people pass on their wisdom to their children, grand children and great grand children. As we have seen one characteristic of a wise person is being receptive to what God is saying today.

One wise person we have today is Bill Gates. His development of Windows and other applications for the Personal Computer have revolutionized information flow around the world. Bill made billions of dollars and is one of the richest men in the world. Today he works full time blessing others as God has blessed him. He and his wife are giving their money away through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundations. This foundation is guided by the wise principle that “every person deserves the chance to live a healthy, productive life.” So they fund programs to improve the health and productivity of people throughout the world. A wise visionary who saw the impact that a computer on every desk on the productivity and well being of everyone on the planet is now putting his wisdom to work blessing people who need it the most.

So if you are a wise person, and I know that many of you are very wise, then I urge you during this Christmas season to watch and listen for what God is doing in the world. Use your powers of observation to see God at work in the world around us, and listen carefully to what God is saying to us and how God is guiding us into our future. Your wise ancestor, Balaam, did this and realized that God was calling him not as a curse to Moab’s enemies, but as a blessing for everyone. So this Christmas season be a blessing to others just as God has blessed you. Amen.