May 23, 2010: Deep Water Healing Ministries (Under the oversight of Paul and Paula Bishop) Mike and Cindy Teagarden, Mike 740-517-1640/Cindy 740-590-4977. (deepwaterhealing.com or E-Mail theteagardens7(at)yahoo.com) Healing Class Graduation - Impartation at Hopewell UM Church, Pastor Erladean Heffner, 740-862-8231. Three Oakland UM Church people along with eight Hopewell UMC people graduated today.
Mike Teagarden: It's interesting. Cindy and I usually hear it right off the bat; what to speak on. It didn't happen this time. We had a lot of things going on, so we settled down and prayed. Instantly we heard what we are going to speak on today, and you will understand why I said that in a few minutes. We are here to impart something to you today that is very important. It pertains to it's different in the old testament and the new testament. In the old testament, the Holy Spirit is with you, but it shall be human. In the new testament, the Holy Spirit was in us. The day that we get the revelation on what that means is the day our whole walk with the Lord changes. That is because we don't know how much we have. The fact that God can live in us is amazing.
I want to begin briefly with this. The story from Acts, the 12th chapter, verse 25 says, "When Paul and Barnabas were in Jerusalem, they picked up a fellow by the name of John Mark. Now John Mark is a young man at this point. He is kind of a beginner in the outfit. He goes along to help, so he is probably a "Go-For". Then later, he becomes more. They took him from Jerusalem. Then in Acts 13:5, as Paul and Barnabas go, it says they were in Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also had John in their midst. In other words, John is a servant in their ministry at that time. In chapter 13, verse 13, an interesting thing happened. Now as Paul and his company set sail from Paphos to Perga in Pamphylia, John departing from them returned to Jerusalem. How many of you know that's probably not a good thing? We don't know what happened to John. The Holy Spirit does not embarrass him. It doesn't tell us something like maybe he got homesick. Maybe the work was just too hard, because I tell you, traveling in those days was hard, so maybe that was it. They had just come through a serious deliverance involving being accosted by basically a witch Doctor. He spoke blindness on that man, and that man went blind. John Mark just went through a deliverance. Sometimes that is a little strange. We have had some demons manifest, and they were scary. It was challenging, especially if they want to talk back to you - if they scream, and all of that garbage. It can be scary, expecially for someone new. Maybe that is what it was. We don't know why John Mark went home. He quit and went home.
Now, it is a good thing God is a God of second, third, fourth, and 100,000 chances. None of us would be here if that wasn't true. Isn't that the truth? I don't know if you accepted Jesus the first opportunity you had. Most people don't. I don't know if you ever quit on the Lord. Most people have. Those are tough times when we fail God miserably. Those are tough times. God takes us back, and God takes us far. That's the amazing thing to me. The love of God is something we can talk about all day and all week. His love ever fails. His love knows no bounds. His love is totally unconditional. You know Marilyn, (Hopewell Song Leader) it doesn't matter how well you perform. God will love you. You know, God will love you when you are really bad just as much as He does all the time. He doesn't love you anymore when you are really good. He just loves you the same all the time. He can't change. God is God. God loved John Mark. When John left and returned to Jerusalem, it wasn't over. In Acts 15, verses 38 and 39; Paul and Barnabas are going back to visit the Church's they visited on their first journey. Barnabas wants to take John. Now John is Barnabas nephew, and that had something to do with it, I am sure. Barnabas name means "The son of consolation or comfort." Barnabas was the one who put his arm around the apostle Paul and took him in when he came to Jerusalem. Everyody was afraid of him, and nobody wanted anything to do with him. Barnabas took him in. Thats the kind of heart Barnabas had, isn't it? Barnabas was a powerful man of God. He wants to keep working with John Mark. He wants to give him a second chance just like God does. Paul didn't think so. Paul said, "No, he is not ready. He showed us that when we went before. He had to go back home. He quit and went back home. He is not ready." So they disagreed. They disagreed so strongly that some people think they had an argument. It doesn't really say that in the scripture, but they disagreed strongly. They couldn't resolve it, so Barnabas takes John Mark, and they go one way. Paul takes Silas, and they go another way. That's the last we hear of Barnagas, but that doesn't mean Barnabas ministry is over. Barnabas went on with John Mark to do great things for God. You don't hear anymore about John Mark for quite a while.
In Second Timothy, chapter 4, verse 11, Paul is in jail. He is writing to his young apostle Timothy. He says,"when you come, bring John Mark, because he is profitable to me in ministry. A big change. A really big change. Barnabas changed. John Mark grew up, and Paul became more accepting. He took John Mark back in as part of his ministry. Isn't that an awesome story? You see, all of this happened under the Holy Spirit. The wonderful Holy Spirit. Today, we have the Gospel of Mark, as written by John Mark, because Barnabas stayed with him. Paul took him in. Paul's Spirit never let go of him.
I want you to realize this morning that the Holy Spirit is after you. He is not after you in a way of capturing you or making you do something you don't want to do. The Holy Spirit is a lover. He loves you. He is looking for the next best thing for you. You are here today, because the Holy Spirit wants to do the next best thing for you. Isn't that amazing? Cindy and I are here, because God wants to do the next best thing for us. God wants to bless everyone here in the Hopwell United Methodist Church. We are all in the same boat in this way, the Holy Spirit is loving on us. He wants to do more for us all the time. When you get down, he is immediately picking you up. When you are heading for trouble, he is all the time working to keep it from happening. That is the Holy Spirit that we have within us.
Now, we want to talk about another man. This man is the Prophet Elijah. It's amazing to me that Marilyn sang that song about this. The Prophet Elijah was one of the greatest men of God of all time. It isn't his story that we want to talk about so much as Elisha's. If you read Second Kings, second chapter - we have a story that is amazing. We could preach all week on this passage. Just be thankful that we can't due to time. My wife Cindy used to say Amen to that. Here is what is going on. It has been revealed to the Prophets - at this point there is a school of Prophets. Have you heard the names of some of the Prophets in our time? It used to be that you had to travel three states to find a legitimate Prophet. Now you can just go down across town. There are true, legitimate Prophets everywhere propesying the word of God. It's an amazing thing. God has restored this ministry to the Church. In those days, when they had a school of Prophets, you could hear the same thing. That is one of the ways they knew they were hearing from God. One Prophet would confirm what another Prophet heard. When you are young and you are learning to prophesy, you may not always get it right. You are not going around saying, "Thus sayeth the Lord." You are not doing it that way. When you are just learning, you say, "I think I heard God last night." Somebody else says, "You know, I heard it too." Somebody else says, "Oh man, I know I heard God last night." Somebody else says, "I had a dream --- ." It is confirmed over and over. That is how God works in prophesy.
In those days, it had become known that it was Elijah's time to go. I believe when you are close to the Lord, you know when it is your time to go. It's not my time to go. Praise God! In Second Kings, chapter 2; it came to pass when the Lord would take up Elijah - If you want a fun thing to do, study what happened before this. At Gilgal, then at Bethel, then at Jereicho, then at Jordan. Those are sermons all by themselves. We are not going there today. They are at Gilgal, and Elijah said onto Elisha, "Wait here." In other words, Elijah says to Elisha, "I am going to Bethel. You wait here." Listen carefully to what Elijah says, "The Lord sent me to Bethel." Elisha said onto him, "As the Lord lives." In other words that is the Spirit. "As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave." Would you say he is pretty adamant about that? Elisha says, "I am not leaving. Now this is interesting, because of Paul and Barnabas. They didn't want John Mark to leave. They wanted him to stay and learn. But now, here is Elijah saying to Elisha, "I am leaving. You stay here." In other words, he is going to depart. Actually, what is going on here; Elijah is testig Elisha. So then it goes on and says, "The sons of Prophets of Bethel came forth from Elisha saying onto him, "Don't you know the Lord will take away your Master from your covering today?" And he said, "Yes, I know. Hold your peace." In other words, he doesn't want to talk about it. It's a hard place. I'll talk about why it's a hard place in a minute. Elijah said onto him, "Tarry here, I pray you for the Lord has sent me to Jericho." But he said, "As the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, I will not leave you." Now you have to understand that Elijah is the Master. Whatever the Master says, It's the law. You just do it. If you have been in the military. and the sergeant says do something; you don't argue unless you want real trouble. It's kind of that way with these people where they have mentors, and so forth. Here is Elijah getting old and ready to go, but his word stings. Elijah is at the point where if he says it won't rain for three and a half years, it won't rain. When he prays for the rain to come, it rains. Whatever Elijah says is going to happen, it happens. When he tells Elisha to wait here - if it was a word meaning obedience, Elisha would stay right there. You see, it sn't. He was saying, "I want it all." He was saying, "You stay here." Elisha said, "No, I won't stay here." He is being tested. So now we are at Jericho. The day goes on. The Prophets and sons of Prophets come. Elijah said onto him, "Tarry here I pray you for the Lord has sent me to Jordan." Elisha says, "As the Lord lives and as your soul lives, I will not leave you." The sons of Prophets stood afar off. You never want to be where these Prophets are. Now listen and hear this. The man of God is about to enter into a movement of God. These Prophets are standing afar off. Don't do that! Whenever you find out which way God is going, go with Him! See, the sons of the Prophets here and Elijah are at two ends of the spectrum. The sons of the Prophets are standing afar off watching. They refer to Elijah as Master. Elisha will not leave Elijah's side. He will not get any distance. He is staying in an intimate place with him. He calls Elijah on.
There are Churches full of Christians all over the country who are standing afar off from God. When God moves, they go the other way, because they are afraid. They think it's stange. They want to be prayed for or judge like the Parisees did. Do you hear what I am saying? We need to draw close to God like Elisha. We need to come into the intimacy. I told God one time, I want to be so close to you that I smell your sweat. Maybe God doesn't sweat. I don't know. I want to be close. Don't you want to be clsoe to God? See, that's what Elisha said. I don't want to miss even the smallest thing. I want to be so close to you Elijah, that when God moves, then I want that to be mine. The story goes on, it says in verse eight, Elijah took his mantle and wrapped it together and smote the Jordan River. He smote the waters. Remember I said that anything Elijah says, it happens. Elijah comes up and takes his mantle off, which is like a cloak. He split's the waters with it, and the waters part. Elijah and Elisha walk across the Jordan River on dry land. This is strong stuff. Don't you agree? Then as this happens, at this point Elijah asks Elisha, "Ask me what I shall do for you." Now our culture is so different that we don't understand what happened. This is why. In that culture, when a Father died, the first son, the oldest boy got a double portion of the inheritance. Let's say a man died, and he had eight kids. The inheritance would be divided up into nine portions. The oldest kid would get two portions, and the other kids would all get one portion. The oldest son is entitled to a double portion. Elisha, asked for a double portion of Elijah's mantle. He was asking for what is truly his by right supernaturally. He asks for a double portion of Elijah's mantle. Now Elijah says, "You have asked for a hard thing." Do you know why that is? Its because you can't give what you don't have. Elijah could only give him his portion. He couldn't give him a double portion. So Elijah says, "If you are still here when it happens, you will get it." You will get a double portion, because Gode can give the double portion. On that day Elisha was there. I would love to hear what these men talked about. It doesn't ever tell us. It just says, "It came to pass as they still went on and talked" - These two Prophets talking. Oh man. I bet that was some beautiful stuff. "Behold, there appeared a chariot of fire and horses of fire that separated the two of them. Elijah went up by a whirlwind into Heaven. Elisha saw, and cried, "My Father, My Father." The chariot of fire and the horses of it, and he saw him no more. He took hold of his own clothes and tore them into pieces. Tearing your clothes was always a sign of repentance in the Bible. More than that. He was getting rid of his own self to take on Elijah's double portion. When that mantle fell to the ground, Elisha picked it up. He put it on. He went back to the Jordan River. He took that mantle off and spoke down to the river, "Where is the God of Elijah?" The river parted just like it did for Elijah. During Elijah's lifetime, he did sixteen miracles that are recorded in the Bible. Elisha did thirty two. Elijah commanded it not to rain for three and a half years. Elisha made it not rain for seven years. Everything Elijah did, Elisha did double. That's bacause he got the double portion. You see, it's so powerful that this can be done.
Now let me explain to you how this can happen. If you give your heart to the Lord, the Holy Spirit didn't come on you like it did to Elisha. The Holy Spirit came in you. That is what Jesus said. He shall be with you, and he shall be in you. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came as a permanent resident not to be on us anymore, but to live in us. Let me tell you how marvelous and miraculous that is. If someone had one sin. One sin, and he came face to face with the Holy Spirit; that sin would need to be forgiven. God and sin can't go together. We will never have God and sin together. God has to remove the sin as far as the East is from the West. He has to forgive sin. Then He can enter in, so the Holy Spirit comes into us. It's only because Jesus died for us, took away our sins, and made us ultimately and completely free from sin. No sin whatsoever, when the Holy Spirit comes in. It amazes me. It just amazes me. We don't get more Holy Spirit. We are not going to impart to you today more Holy Spirit. What does happen when we lay hands on those who have finished the healing school - when we put hands on, the Holy Spirit in us stirs up the Holy Spirit in you in a particular way. The difference is negligible. In other words, when Moses imparted the Holy Spirit to Joshua, and when we stir up the Holy Spirit in you, you can't tell the difference. There is a difference technically. In practice, it feels like more of the Holy Spirit. That's not because more of the Holy Spirit has come in. It's because more of the Holy Spirit in us has been released. Cindy and I have had impartations from Charles and Francis Hunter meetings in Fairmont, Texas. Joan Hunter had just received her Mother's (Francis Hunter) impartation before she died. We were among the first people to receive her impartation. When we came back from that. we were different. We went to the ordination in Texas with Joan Hunter, then a week or so later we went to Haiti. She told us that is a Haiti anointing. She imparted that to us. When we came back from Haiti, we were different. You see, each time we can receive more of what God is doing on the inside of us, it changes us and we are different. Amen.
Cindy Teagarden: Mike was talking about the mantle falling on Elisha. That was not activated months later, or years later, or anything like that. It's not like O.K., I am going to let you have this mantle by the power of God. Then years later that anointing would come on. When you read the story, you see he went right out and started performing miracles. What I am saying to you in relationship to this story is that you don't have to wait for something else to happen. Well, I don't know if I feel anything. I don't know if I have received anything. You probably won't know until you do something. For example, when we came back from Joan Hunter's meeting, we expected something to happen, because every time we are with her sometimes there is an impartation to our Pastor. When we stand up to share, or when we stand up to pray for someone. It's like, "Man, we are all charged up!" Marilyn and Erladean (Hopewell UMC people) came expecting to walk in something different. When you leave this place; this place you have not been at before in the spirit. You need to walk out these doors, not based on how you feel, not based on what we speak over you, not based on how you fall out into the spirit or you don't. None of that. It's not based on any of that. It's clearly marked when the there is an impartation, and that anointing of God. When you walk out and get ready to pray for someone, you should expect a boldness and an anointing to come on you, and the fire of God as you begin to lay hands on the sick. More so than ever, you can feel the power of God leave your hands. The words that come out of your mouth - sometimes I just feel a ring of fire around my mouth. Sometimes I don't know what to do. Yesterday, we were in prayer, and I was just beside myself. I didn't know whether to curl up in a ball and cry, or what to do. I was just beside myself, because the power of God was there. It was all over the place. I said, "Oh my goodness!" I just wanted to get a whole line of people and pray for them. It's being charged up and plugged in. When we do the activation, the impartation, the certificate is fine. You can put it on the wall. You can put it in a file. You can put it in a drawer. You can do whatever you want. What has taken place? Yes, you have gained knowledge. What taken place is a change on the inside.
We were at the hospital a couple of days ago, and there was a young lady there. When she came through the entrance, she was not feeling well. The Lord said, "She is here because she is going to have a miscarriage." I am thinking, "Oh Lord. It's O.K., but we don't want that." So I got real quiet for a few minutes. I thought, "What am I to do?" I wanted to go over and say, "I know you are having a misdcarriage. Can I pray for you?" I am just sitting very quietly saying nothing, doing nothing. A fellow left, which I assumed was her boyfriend, not a husband. I don't know that for sure. As soon as he left, she started getting really uncomfortable. I mean she was in pain. I'm like, "Go to her." I go over to her and I ask her, "Whats going on?" She said, "They are telling me they think I am having a miscarriage." I asked, "Can I pray for you?" She said, "Yes." Tears began to roll. She was sitting down, and I was standing up. Probably no one knew I was praying for her. I don't know, and I don't really care. I was not trying to be obvious, or trying to be loud, or trying to be anything except to bring life to that little baby. I leaned down, and I as praying. She was crying. I just declared life to that baby to have a chance to come out of the womb. The Lord has been speaking to me ever since. I can't get this woman off my mind. We have been praying and interceding for this baby and for this Mother. The Lord said to me that it is awseome that we may carry spiritual things until full fruition, and things come to pass through our prayers, our praying. We are birthing those things. We are pushing those things out of the way that are in the physical sense. When we are praying about things we are coming up against, we are breaking strong-holds. We are doing all the things that God would have us do to bring forth His purpose, His destiny. Satan wants to take that little baby and destroy that baby. We are always against death and life. We go around and use these hands and use this mouth to speak and impart life. We want to carry on, when we carry something. You know when you are pregnant and lose that baby, you have a miscarriage. The Lord says, "I don't want a spiritual miscarriage." He shared with me this morning about the Anges, and the chariot, and the horsemen that took Elijah up. Then if you go to First Kings, chapter 18, verse 46; I don't have the full revelation on it, but it's talking about horses and chariots in the natural. This is a word the Lord gave me several months ago. It says the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah, and he girded up his loin. He ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. God Almighty! This has been a year of acceleration. This has been a prophetic word that has been known all over television - prophets. This has been a year of acceleration. If Elijah can outrun a horse and chariot in going about twenty-five miles - What does God want to do with us? Do not wait after this day to go find someone to lay hands on. Find someone to encourage. You can't save that babies life, but the Spirit of God in you can save that babies life. All we need to do is speak quietly. The first thing they are going to miss here is the possibility they are going to lose that baby. We come along and we speak. We say, "No! You stay put. You stay in that womb. You stay in there until you are ready to come out at full maturity. " The Lord is saying, "I have been carrying you. You have a purpose, and a plan, and a destiny. It's about to come to full fruition." He doesn't want any more miscarriage. He doesn't want anymore abortion. He wants to take you out of your comfort zone, that you will come up boldly. You will say, "I am nobody, but the God in me is everything in the Name of Jesus." If you are half-dead, you just say, "Rise up and live." If someone has a stroke, you just say, "I release a brand new brain in the Name of Jesus." They say over here, this one is blind. You say, "Uh-Uh. The blindness has to go." They say, "Over here a leg has to be amputated, because it is dead. It has no life left in it." You say, "No-No'No! Satan we serve you notice. You are not cutting off anymore limbs off the Body of Christ." We are the body. It's time for us to get up and declare those words. Don't shrink back. I'm telling you, He will meet you right where you are at to pray for someone, whatever hospital you are in, or whatever rehabilitation place you are in. You need to expect the Spirit of God to raise up on the inside of you to give you words of wisdom and words of knowledge that you will speak, that you never heard before in your entire life. I'm telling you right now. there is a movement of God right now on you that you don't want to sit still. You don't want to ever sit still, because He is moving all the time. We might sit still wondering what He is doing. If you get up and move, He will be right there. He will show you what He is doing. He will tell you what He is doing. When people walk in the door, He will say, "This one is about ready to commit suicide. That one is about ready to take too many drugs. That one there was a school teacher, but now --- ." He will tell you. He will tell you the plan, and the purpose even before they come out of the womb, he will tell you. He will say, " That one is going to stay put in that womb. He is not coming out." I tell you what. Miscarriage and abortion are nothing but the enemy. If you had an abortion, then you can be forgiven. If you had a miscarriage, and you didn't know what to speak - I wouldn't have known years ago either, but now you know. If someone is sitting in the emergency room or doctors waiting room next to you, and the Lord keeps giving you a feeling. You say, "Oh man. I just keep feeling Light." Just get real quiet. Don't get anxious. You are not going to hear anything. Just get real quiet. He will say what to do. He fills in the blanks. There is a blank, because you don't know what goes in there. He makes up the difference when you don't even know what to say. Trust God. He knows what to say. He knows what to fill in the blanks if there is a void. Do you know that one word from God Almighty can change a persons entire destiny. One word. Oh Lord, just give me a word. Oh Lord, I just need your strength. Someone walks up to you and says, "You know what? God has been releasing strength into you that you have been asking for." He loves it when you ask Him for that strength. One word. You know what? This young lady that was pregnant, and this young boy; my perception was that they probably were not married. I'm not judging them. It doesn't matter to me if they are married. God can fix that. I don't care. Do you know what I mean? I don't look at them and say, "Oh my. I am not touching them." Uh-Uh. I am going to love on her. If I come over there and pray for her and she felt the presence of God, and we gave her a little card - Who's to say that they are not going to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. Who's to say that they are not going to get filled with the Holy Ghost. Who's to say they are not going to be the next Binny Hinn. These little kids out here. We don't know who they are going to be. We don't know what God is going to do with them. One of them might be a strreet evangelist, one of them might be a preacher, one of them might be --- whatever. There are so many varieties of things they could do.
When we pray for you today - We want you to receive all that God has for you. All that God has for you. Then when you leave, that you take and you immediately - IMMEDIATELY need to walk in the supernatural more than you ever walked before in order for the anointing of God to come on you. This gives you the words of wisdom and knowledge, and the gift of faith, and the workings of miracles to operate in Him. You have the knowledge, and you know what to do. You know what to exect. Now we encougage you to go out and do it, and watch what God will do. Let's make a difference in the hearts and lives of others. That is our goal, and our plan is to make a difference. We want to bring forth life, the abundant life of Jesus Christ.
April 25, 2010: Mark and Bev Donahue, Paraguay Missionaries
Mark: When Bev does her devotions in the morning, sometimes she is reminded of a song. Bev: If you turn to Psalm 37, verses 3 and 4, this is some of the words in the song we are going to sing. Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Mark played the piano and sang along with Bev and their child Andres.
Mark: It's good to be with you this morning. I have special memories of Bible studies at the Methodist campground in Lancaster. Those were some of the years of my life that I wasn't sure where God was going to take me. I had no idea about Bolivia or Paraguay. We don't always know some things in our life, but we can still trust God to be faithful as we follow Him. I married the single gal who was a missionary to Bolivia. I remember those days when I had long distance phone calls. My phone bills were $400 and $500 for a few times. Some of my friends at work said, "Maybe you should just buy a ticket and go on down. It would be a lot cheaper." Finally, I did, and the Lord worked it out. We were married in 1995.
What I want to do right now is that I want you to imagine you are in the Paraguay International Airport with me, Bev, and Andres in July of 1998. We had been in Paraguay two years, and we were getting ready to return to the U.S.A. We had our things, our boarding passes, and our passports. Our friends in Paraguay were there to see us off and say goodbye. What would you have thought if something like this would have happened. I felt something being draped over my shoulders. It wasn't Bev. This was at the airport. How would you have felt if this happened to you at an airport? (He put the Paraguay flag over his shoulders and back. Bev tied it in the front near the neck. This looked like a superman or spiderman cape.) I felt a little more obvious than I wanted to be at the airport. I was a little upset. I felt all eyes were on me. My friend Ogle was writing on it. What he wrote on the back was, "We love you 100%." Then he signed it. I asked my friend, "Can you write on the Paraguay flag? Are the airport police going to escort us out of the airport?" He said words in Spanish that mean, tranquil. Everything will be alright. I left it on until we left the airport. We were friends from two years before when we first came to Paraguay.
What we want to share is just a little bit about those two years. God sometimes opts for change even with a missionaries life. We were in Bolivia. Another couple was in Paraguay. They needed to come home, and there was no one to fill in. Would someone in the Bolivia field come down? So Bev and I and our things rode a bus for 24 hours from Bolivia to Paraguay along with a group of Bolivians who worked in our Church. After that, we returned to the States. Andres first day of school was the day after we left for World Gospel Missions in the U.S.A..
In Paraguay, I was in charge of administration for World Gospel Missions. I was taking care of Visa work, paying bills, and so on. Asuncion was a city of about a million people. A very large city. Bev and I know Spanish, but we didn't know much about the city. I knew I needed to pay the bills and get them in the mail. I didn't know how you found the Post Office, and all those things. Ogle and his wife lived next door to the Church, and they were custodians of the Church. He was 26 years old. He and his wife had a three year old son. I found myself knocking on his door, "Ogle, this is what I need to do today." How do I get to the Post Office? Also, I had an alarm on my house, and I had to get some things changed in the authorization code for that. Sometimes he would tell me how to get there, and sometimes he would take me on the back of his motorcycle. That was an experience in itself, riding a motorcycle in Paraguay. I asked him, "Has any other missionary rode on the back of your motorcycle before?" Ogle answered, "No, you are the first." Anyway, he helped me, and I got to know him. Ogle told me that something happened in his family. There was some problem, and he moved out into the streets. He lived there about five years. He said, "I can sleep on a slab of cement like it's a mattress." Someone came across his pathway and offered him an invitation to God. He accepted the invitation. He put his things in a cart, then lived and worked at a Church where he met his wife, Edith. He also worked in a place where they sold motorcycle parts. I began to learn more and more about Ogle. One day, as I came home, Ogle's wife was outside working. She told me, "You are different. You are becoming friends with Ogle." I said, "How is that different?" She said, "Most people in the Church don't accept him, because he is different. He lived on the street." I said, "He is a child of God. To God, he is like us." It saddened me that because of his past, he wasn't accepted by the Church people.
Bev: As Mark became acquainted with Ogle, I began to become acquainted with his wife, Edith. I observed some things. One of the things I observed was that she had physical problems. One of the problems she had was varicose veins. She had worked all her life, even as a child. She already had one or two surgeries due to infection. The Doctor was saying that she needed to walk. How many of you have experienced how what the Doctor wants you to do and what you are motivated to do are different? I knew that she needed someone to come along side of her to help. I asked her, "Would you like to walk? I will walk with you." Behind the Church was what they called a Youth Center. It was a concrete floor with a metal roof. It was a place where her kids could run and play. We continued to walk. Now when women walk they usually don't walk in silence. We began to talk. Some things she talked about when she began to share with me; she gave me permission to share with you. As she shared with me, she told me some things that really saddened me. When she was four years old, she was sexually molested by a relative. She was the oldest kid in the family and had to take care of the younger kids when she was growing up. Basically, she described a childhood unlike we think of it, because she could not play. She had responsibility for the other children. By the time she was ten, she was taken from the country to be a maid for another family in the city. A lot of things had been going on in her life. Things she kept stuffing inside. One day when she was thirteen years old, she had a nervous attack. Basically she described a little 13 year old kid going out of control. Ladies, I have a question for you. If you had a thirteen year old child, what would you do if she suddenly went out of control? What would you have done? This lady went out and got drugs for her, sedatives. Little did she realize that was going to take her on a downward spiral. She started using pills for whatever negative thing that happened in her life. By the time I met her she was taking something to get up in the morning, something to get her through the day and something to help her sleep at night. The pills she was taking at night really were not working that well.
As we walked, she would talk. She would share what was going on in her life. We find when we use His Word as a foundation to hear about God. We can give them hope. Something to help them in their life. As time went on, she began to realize that what she was doing was ruining her body. Each and every one of our bodies is a temple, so I asked her if she wanted me to do something with her pills. I knew that as long as they were around, she would not be able to stop taking them. She had a room set aside for her things. She went in to get the pills. She had in her hand a little black cannister like a 35 mm film cannister. She put into my hand what had been her crutch to solve any problem in her life. Any sickness of if people critized her work, and so on.
Mark: There is a passage of scripture in Isaiah chapter 43, starting at verse 18. "Do not remember the former things or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?" I continued to knock on Ogle's door and ask for help. Sometimes, Ogle would knock on my door and talk before he went to work. Sometimes, he just needed to talk at 5 o'clock in the morning. So we did that. I would call him to ask if he wanted to have lunch with me. I began speding time with Ogle as I was working on things I needed to do. I learned that Ogle desired to share Jesus with his family. He was from a large family. He said, "When I try to share Jesus they don't want to hear it. They ignore me, they change the subject, they will do something else. They are not really open to hear the Gospel. I am really concerned for my family. I would like to do something for them."
Time went on a little bit. Ogle said, "I have an opportunity. A gentleman out in the small village, where my family, lives owns a small radio station. The owner asked me if I would do a spot on Sunday morning at 6 to 8 a.m., two hours to do broadcasting on a radio station." My first question was, "Ogle, do you know anything about radio stations. Do you have any training?" Ogle looked at me and scratched his head, "Training? How hard can it be to talk into a microphone and play CD's?" I said, "Oh, O.K." It was going to start on Sunday morning at 6 o'clock. It was an hour and a half drive to get out to the radio station. I remember the Saturday before he was looking through his christian music CD's, and marking Bible verses to share. He told me, "Micals, you have to get up at 3 a.m. Sunday morning to wake me up so I have time to get ready." So I got up at 3 o'clock. You know, it's pretty dark at 3 o'clock in the morning. He was ready to go at 4 o'clock. He had his satchel and his black jacket on. I had a word of prayer with him. I prayed for God to protect Ogle as he traveled, and to annoint him with His Word. Then, off he went on his motorcycle. When he came back, I asked him, "How did it go?" He said, "Oh, it went great." He talked a little bit about it, but Ogle is not one for a whole lot of words. He was kind of quiet. During the week, I asked him, "Ogle, can I go with you? I want to see how it works." He said, "Sure, Micals." The next Sunday morning, we got up at 3 o'clock to get ready to go. I had a word of prayer with him. Then, off we went on his motorcycle. The radio station had a microphone about like this one (As Mark pointed to the microphone in Church.), except it was a little more beat up. It was in a very little room. It had a big old computer that was monitoring the sound. The owner came to the station. He was an older man riding a bicycle. We were sharing and I was just amazed. He said, "Micals, do you want to talk on the radio?" I said, "No, no, no." Ogle said, "My friend Micals is here, and he is going to greet you." So I greeted the people in Spanish. After the broadcast, we went to Olga's sisters home. She was all smiles. She said, "I heard you on the radio this morning." His mom and step-dad were there. "I heard you on the radio this morning." His grand-pa came walking in, "I heard you on the radio this morning." I don't know if any of them accepted Jesus. When I go back, I plan to continue to help Ogle minister to the people. What an awesome opportunity for a missionary. We are trained to do that. Ogle got to see how to do that - How God can use people like Ogle.
Bev: The last thing before we returned to the States, we were with some friends. Ogle's wife Edith was sharing her testimony. She was sharing what God had done in her life. That was July 2008. In 2007, cancer had been put in her veins. God had helped her well over a year. I remember going to see her one time. She told me that at one point, there was no way she could deal with it without going back on her crutches (drugs). She thought in her mind, I am going to my room to look in my closet or somewhere trying to find at least a half tablet. You know what? She found something. She said, "I got a glass of water, and I took the pill in my hand. A profound nauseated feeling well up in my stomach. I got my kitchen dirty right then." She vomited. I remember when she told me that, my response was, "Praise the Lord. " Why was I saying that? Because it was once again a confirmation of God's Word and His promise. You know, in His Word in First Corinthians. He tells us that He will not give us a situation greater than we can handle.
After she finished giving her testimony, we had a little ceremony. As time went on, people would bring pills and I would take them away so she wouldn't be tempted to use them. I had these pills and I didn't know what to do with them. Maybe someone could use them, but I didn't even know what they were. I was thinking what am I going to do with these? There was that confidentiality and trust. Lord, what as I going to do with these pills? I remembered when my father passed away, there were some pills left. The Hospice people went to the commode and flushed them away. We flushed Edith's pills down the drain.
As we got near to the States, I was thinking God has changed the World for us. I am so thankful that He has been so good to us. When I was in Bolivia, we hardly ever hear from our friends there. When I returned home, I heard about Ogles brother. He said one day, "I want to mix with you." She said, "What do you want? You are already staying here with us." "You have something I want, but don't have." Of course, this was the perfect opportunity to share what she had inside about the Lord. That's what it is all about. God takes us to other countries to talk with other people. Sometimes, when you walk with people who are not Christians, you can share Jesus with them, you can share the light with them. You can share the Good News with them. That is a privilige. That is the hope we have for this World that we have everyday.
This morning, we extend an invitation to you. We hope to go back to Paraguay by the end of June. That is our trust in the Lord. What I want to draw your attention to is that on the table you will find prayer cards like this. Will each one of you stop to pick up one of these? You can put it in your Bible, or on your refrigerator or somewhere to remind you to pray for us. We need you prayers on a daily basis. You can tear the card off and write your contact information on it. Then give it to us, so we can keep in touch with you.
The World Gospel Mission says we have to be fully funded before we can go back. We have to go out in the States to raise support. We have 78% of the money needed. As you pray, maybe God will lead you to contibute as individuals. You may be led by God as a Church to contirbute on behalf of everyone in the Church. We do need your prayers. Thank you for the opportunity to be with you today. Our doors are always open, if you can come to Paraguay. If you can't come, please continue to pray for us. Thanks again for the opportunity to be here with you today to share our world and our family.
April 18, 2010: The Joy of the Cross, Hebrews 12:2, Pastor John Glick
I want to preach this morning on the joy of the cross. It's the final Easter sermon. I know it's after Easter, but I'm still stuck with it. Something we don't consider very often is the joy of the cross. When you think of an old wooden cross and Christ hanging on it and suffering and bleeding and dying. There is nothing joyous about that. Yet in the scripture in Hebrews twelve verse two, it says Jesus knew the joy that was set before Him, and He endured the cross in spite of the shame. He didn't do it because it hurt. He didn't do it for any other reason. The one thing I want you to understand this morning is that He did it for you, and He did it for me. It is for us that He died. It's for us that He suffered. Of course, we ask ourself, "How can someone 2,000 years ago suffer and affect us?" As it was in the old testament, God could not forgive sin, because God is perfect and Holy. He just couldn't do it. There had to be someway for God to make a way to break through that Holiness, so He sent His Son Jesus into the world to die. When He was dying, Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." In that moment, you and I were given new life. He heard His Son and the Son was faithful to death which gave license to His words and God was able to forgive us of our sins when we ask. You know, we have to ask. It's not just automatic that Jesus is going to forgive us of everything, and that is going to be it. For the joy that was set before Him, the joy of seeing us set free from our sins, He went to the cross and died.
Easter is such an important thing to us that we don't usually just set it aside. You have heard a lot of sermons on the subject of the cross. How bad it was. Scripture tells us that He was so badly beaten that He didn't even appear to be a human being there hanging on the cross. He was in bad shape. He wasn't just dying, He was suffering. I think that is what we have to understand. He was willing to die for us. He was willing to suffer really bad. That's like when you have a tummy ache. It's not bad eating the candy. It's the hurt later, when you suffer the hurt of eating candy. The loneliness ofthat cross must have been terrible. Scripture tells us that everyone turned their back on Him. Everyone. Even those He was trying to save. They turned their back to Him. Peter who was one of His closest friends, one of the twelve who walked with Him, and Jesus taught him. The Romans said, "Aren't you one of those who walked with Jesus?" Three times, Peter denied knowing Jesus. How many times have you denied Jesus? How many times have you literally said - You probably didn't say it in those words - but your actions account for it. "God you might be there, and you might be real. I don't know, but I'm not going to do it that way. I don't want to be no religious type." I am just not going to do it." How many times have we put ourselves in bad, bad situations. When we do that we are saying, "God, I don't want you to help me. God, I don't want you there when I die. I don't want you to take me to Heaven. I don't want you to do anything for me. Just leave me alone. I'll do it my own way." You know, that's the way we are. We want to live our own life, and we want to live it the way we want to live it. "I am going to live as I please. I am not going to pay attention to anyone else. I'm not going to be kind just to be kind. I don't feel that wa. I'm not going to be honest just to be honest, and maybe do without something I really want. I'm not going to always say the truth, because sometimes the truth hurts. It gets me in trouble." Nontheless, we don't want to be that honest. We want to be just what we are. Jesus said, "I am going to the cross to die for you, so you can ask forgiveness." That's what we do. When we ask Jesus Christ to forgive our sins. We bypass all the evil we have done, because Jesus died on the cross to provide a way for God to say, "I'll forgive you. I'll do it." The only thing that can move God's heart toward us are the words of Jesus Christ. I can picture it. This is just me again. I can picture Him sitting in heaven beside God the Father, and as people come and stand before God to be judged. Let's say that I am standing there. Jesus will say, "Father, this one I know. Forgive Him. He asked." God will forgive me. Now I have a place in Heaven forever. I don't have to go to that place called Hell where I would suffer. Jesus suffered on the cross. The joy of the cross for Jesus was so that He could say to His Father, "Forgive him. He is one of mine." You know, it behooves us in these days to be one of His. We never know when we are going to be with Him suddenly. If it happens suddenly, you don't have time with the Father to make final arrangements we would like to make.
Here we are. We have a day in which we can ask God to forgive our sins. You can make it perfectly acceptable to God the Father. I know when I give an altar call at the close of service, I can read faces. I can see faces saying , "On, no. not that again." I still say, "That's your opportunity. You better take advantage of it. Don't wait until it's too late. After we die, it's too late." After we are gone - many times in these days, when we get sick.The first thing the doctor does is shoot us full of something that puts us out, and we don't feel pain. There is no chance then to ask forgivness. We are just unconscoius. We don't do it unconsciously. To Jesus, it was a joy that He gave His life for us that we could simply say, "God forgive me." God could forgive us for Jesus sake. Then you are on your way to Heaven. That sure beats this world. Beats anything in this world that I know of. It beats anything I ever heard about.
You know, the shame of the cross is frequently preached and talked about. I do it too. The shame of Jesus when He was put on the cross. He was put there unhidden and undeserved. He didn't deserve to go there in my place. I am the one who should have been on my cross. You are the one who should have been on your cross. Jesus said, "For my sake forgive them." and He did.
What would it be if we could possibly be in an attitude of Worship every moment of everyday. I don't mean on our knees and praying. That's not what I am talking about. An attitude of - God, I belong to you no matter what happens today. I am still going to be Yours. I built a Church once. I mean with my hands. I built a Church. I learned to lay block. All the things necessary to build a building. Not beautifully, but I did it. While I was doing that was one of the best times of my life. I was constantly praying to God. There was no one helping me. Nobody showed up. I mixed the mortar. I carried the cement. I wheeled it to the site and laid the block. I had to hoist the block. I am not a carpenter or bricklayer, but I built everything all by myself. I think if God called me to build a Church again, I could do it. I know what it takes. The point is all the time I was talking to Jesus. When I got a block probably about the twentieth one, it was so heavy I could hardly pick it up. I talked to Jesus. Oh Lord, I need some help here. My back is about to break. You know, He helped me. I got the job done. The hardest job I had to do was put the window frames over where the windows would be. Those things are heavy. They are not easy to lift, but I wrestled them into place head high. Then I cemented them in place level and even. How I did it, well Jesus was there with me. Look at what I did is not what I am saying. I am saying, "Look at what Jesus did" Today, if I had to do it, I would break my back. I still believe if I had Jesus help, I could do it again. Not that I am going to. I'm not going to build a building, but I could because Jesus is there. I know it, and He knows it. He is there willing to help me. That's what really counts. We have to have Him present.
Right in the book of Hebrews, He gave me something to think about when He said "for the joy that was set before Him, He went to the cross." The joy that was set before me was to build a Church. I saw the thing grow. I saw it become real. All the things it takes to be a Church. I served it for fifteen years. I saw it grow and saw it become financially solvent. It was great. It was done not because of me, but for God who was in it. God was leading it. God was doing it. I was His tool, His weapon. It became a beautiful little Church with a beautiful congregation. It was financially solvent. I felt the joy even with the pain of all the work. The joy of building for God. I wasn't building it for the community or the people. I was building it for God. This is the way we do it. God should be telling us what to do next and how to do it. Are you listening for God? If you just sit in a chair and wait for a voice to speak, that doesn't do it. You ask God to speak to you, and then you go about your business. The right time is God's time. God will speak, and He will tell us exactly what He expects of us, or God will show us. If we are the instuments to do it, God will ensure we have the strength to do it. We didn't have any money to build a Church, but we did. The first services we had were in a big old farm hnouse. We had the service in the living room. I stood in the dining room. The rabbits and deer outside were going around everywhere. It wasn't a civilized place. My little grandson who is my big grandson now looked out the window all the time watching the rabbits playing and the deer going by. It was a good little Church. Then we decided to build a building. I mean building it. Then the Church began to grow. You can do it if you have the joy of glorifying God. The joy of working for God. The joy of building for God. It wasn't for me. That's not the point at all.
There are four things I want to say about the joy and glory of God. When Jesus prayed to God. "Father, the hour has come that the Son may glorify you." Jesus was not saying it's over. Jesus was saying "let the glory come forth." Let's make it worthwhile. Let's make it a worthwhile deal. God was building a Church. I think Jesus knew He was building a Church. I think He knew what was going to be even though He only had a few men Himself. He knew how it was ging to expand and grow and become the Church. Did you ever wonder how a group of twelve men with a leader became the millions in the Christian Church today? Christians in all places all over the world with all denominations. How coud the word spread so much. Even in 2,000 years, how coud it become so strong? There is a sad aside to that, because today I see the Church weakening in it's message. The message is not Church. The message is Jesus. The message is not; we have a place to go. The message is Jesus. Jesus is Lord. Church is not the important thing in our life. Jesus is. Church is not what makes the world go around. Jesus is. Do you realize the world today is the same as it was 2,000 years ago when Jesus was in it? Why? God hasn't changed a thing. God hasn't done anything different whatsoever except to access Christ when we ask. In Jesus, day you couldn't sit in a little Church like this, and at the close of service when we give an invitation for you to come to the altar to say God forgive me of my sins. Some of you have. So you know it's true, but have you done it lately? Have you asked Him again? Have you ever done anything wrong? Are you as sure as you were back then? Are you like the fellow who said, "I am not going to do it again. I did it forty years ago, and I am not going to do it over again." It's kind of like being married. Some of you have been married for forty years. You are not going to be married over again. I have been married fifty years, and I don't want to be married again. I'm going to pass right on by past that one, so I don't get in trouble. We don't have to re-do everything. But, I think we need to come to God every so often and make sure we are doing all right. It's the safest way. We never know when we are going to leave this world, and go to meet our God. It could be anytime, any moment. We need not to have in mind that I can wait, I'm going to die someday. That' not the way to live. I live with the idea that someday, I'm going to meet God. God is going to judge me. God is going to judge you. It's going to make a difference in where you spend eternity. I don't want to go to what the Bible calls Hell. I want to go to be with God, and the Lord Jesus Christ in Heaven. I want to one of those who spend 10,000 years on my knees praising Him. 10,000 years? Wow! That's a long time. It's a worthwhile goal to live for. It's a goal worth going for. All it takes to get there is to be honest with God. Be honest with Him. It's not just kneeling at the altar. That's not what does it. It's coming to God and saying, "God, I am going to live for You. God, I am going to follow You. God, I'm going to be Yours. God, I am going to live for You, not this world." That's not saying, "I don't care about this world. We do care. We want to make this world a better place to live as much as we can. We want to build and rebuild it the best we can. We want to do things for this world and for the people of this world. We want to do the best that we can. Personally, we have to be associated with God. That is so we can be associated with Him in the afterlife.
Could Jesus have escaped the cross? The Devil thought so, and tempted Him. Remember the Devil came to Him, and said, "Here you are sitting on this cliff. Throw yourself down and let nothing happen to you." Jesus said, "No. You don't tempt the Lord your God." The Devil said, "See these stones? Make bread out of these stones so you have something to eat." Jesus said, "No. That's not the way God wants it." And on and on. I imagine He had a lot more temptations than what we have written, and what we know about. I'm sure He was tempted all His life. It was things that were important, but He never gave in. He stayed true to God and so can we. We can stay true to God. We don't have to give in. We don't have to give it up. We don't have to. We may do different than people around us, but we can be as honest as honest can be. I think we have to do that to the best of our ability. The Devil has misrepresented our relationship to God all down through history. He came to Adam and Eve, the very first couple, and tried to fool them. He did fool them once. He tried to fool them again, and couldn't get away with it. They wouldn't buy it.
So here we are today. Jesus died on an old cross to repute everything the old Devil has brought into this world, and to give us a way out. He says come onto me. I'll make a way for you. Come onto me. That's my message this morning Jesus, with the joy set before Him, went to the cross, so we could say to Jesus come to me. Help me. I leave you with that this morning. I give you this invitation. This altar is open to you. Come onto me. I'll give you peace. I'll give you what you need. I'll make your life worthwhile. If you will just come to me. You want to be related with Jesus, so that when He comes into His glory, He can bring you into His glory too. I'll pause right now for just a moment to give you an opportunity. Coming to the altar isn't the only way. You can do it at home, but I dare say if you won't do it here, you won't do it at home. So I give you the opportunity to come. Come to Jesus. Lay your life before Him, and join to Him. Come. (No one came to the altar.)
I have to leave you to go to the next Church to help the Minister there. As I leave, you will sing "Beneath the Cross of Jesus." After the song, Worship leader Joan Glick prayed: Father, just give us all a blessing this morning. We thank you for what Jesus did on the cross for each one of us that we can live fully and sacrificially for Jesus. Thank you for the love You give us. In Jesus Name. And all the people said, "Amen".
April 11, 2010: On the Road to Emmaus, Luke 24:13-32, Pastor John Glick
I'm reading the Bible today in the book of Luke, chapter 24, starting with verse 13. This is the Sunday after Easter, and we are following up the Easter story. It's an event that has always thrilled me just to read it. I love this.
And behold, two of them were traveling that same day to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. They talked together about these things which had happened. It always interested me that they walked seven miles home after all the excitement and the crucifixion in Jesuralem. That reminds me of back when I played football, and from school to walk home was six miles. During the war, back when I played football, there was no gas. It was rationed. My Dad couldn't come for me. I had to walk home all the way. It was six miles. I was probably in the best condition as anybody on the team. I got exercise all the way home even after practice at school. Sometimes, I ran all the way. Now, back to the Bible. They were seven miles from Jerusalem. They talked about the things that had happened. So it was, while they conversed and reasoned, that Jesus Himself drew near and went with them. Their eyes were restrained, so they did not know Him. He said to them, "What kind of conversation is this that you have with one another when walking, and so sad?" The one whose name was Cleopas answered and said to Him, "Are you the only stranger in Jesuralem who does not know the thing that has happened in these days?" He said to them, "What things?" They said to Him, "The things concerning Jesus of Nazerous, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people. How the chief priests delivered Him to be condemned to death and they crucified Him. We were even hoping it was He who was going to redeem Israel. This is the third day since all this happened. Certain women of our comany who arrived at the tomb early astonished us when they did not find His body, saying they had seen a vision of Angels who said He was alive. Certain of those who were with us went to the tomb, and found it was as the women had said. Him they did not see. He said to them, "Oh foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets had declared. Am I not the Christ who suffered these things, and then enter into His glory?" Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them all the scripture things concerning Himself. As they came near the village to which they were going, He wqalked ahead as if He were going on. But they urged Him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over." So He went in to stay with them. When He was at the table with them, He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized Him, and He vanished from their sight. They said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while He was talking to us on the road, while He was opening the scriptures to us?" That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together. They were saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and He has appeared to Simon." Then they told what had happened on the road, and how He had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread. May God add His blessing to the reading of His Word.
Easter is over, and Jesus has risen. We are living now in New Testament times. The difference between the coming of Jesus and before His birth, before His coming into the world was the Old Testament. After His birth, it was the New Testament. What's the difference? Him. Jesus. He is the difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. Jesus also makes a difference in our lives. What Jesus was doing on that particular day was something we don't know. We don't know what He was doing. We don't know why He was there. The other two men were going home disappointed. They had been to Jesuralem to see all the excitement. They had gone to see Jesus crowned King. They went to see all their religious views accepted, and all that, and everything had failed. It was over. It was done. It had failed as far as that was concerned. They didn't know what else to do. Jesus had failed. Everything had failed as far as they were concerned. On the way home, they were talking aout it. They were disappointed. It was not like our Easter. We are not disappointed. Jesus had come and done what He said He would do. It happened a long time ago as far as our life is concerned. Yet we know it happened. I wonder sometimes if the Church really does know what happened. Does the Church really know that Jesus has risen from the dead. Does the Church really accept the Jesus who has risen from the dead? Does the Church really believe it? Can we believe it? Do we believe it, as a body of what we call believers? Jesus has risen from the dead. Do we believe that with Easter is just over last Sunday?.
These two guys were walking on the road were just disgusted. The whole thing had failed. They had great hopes for Jesus. They had great hopes that He was going to come and reign as King. Everything would be O.K. All their pockets would be lined with gold. That always seemed to be a part of it, but it wasn't going to be. They were talking about all the strange things that happened. It was strange. It was different. It was difficult to understand. All those things that happened that were not supposed to happen. These kinds of thing were not supposed to go on. Men are not supposed to be killed like that. They are not supposed to be raised from the dead after they are dead. We don't see it happening in our day. When people die, they are dead. Yet we say God is able to raise the dead. God is able to bring new life, and all those things. What are we talking about? The new life we receive is new life while we are living here in this time of testing and trial. Jesus can come into our life if we allow Him to. He can make all the difference in the world. I think that's what we have to understand this morning. It's not Jesus in the world. It's Jesus in our life that counts. It's what really means something.
Now these two men are joined by someone they don't know. He walks along with them and asks, "What are you guys talking about?" They said, "Where have you been? Weren't you in Jesuralem when all this was happening?" Jesu said, "What are you talking about?" I think that is what the world is asking the Church this morning. When we talk about Jesus, "What are you talking about? "Are you talking about someone who lived and died 2,000 years ago? Someone being alive and influential in people living today? How can that be? How can it be that Jesus can still touch our lives?" Then their eyes are opened, and they recognize Him. They said this Jesus was a prophet. He said He was the Son of God, but we call Him a prophet. We think He was something special. We hope this was the one who was to come and change the world for us. What Jesus answered, we don't really understand, but what He said was that's going to happen. That's the way it is. I did come. The world has changed. It's not like it was. You can have new life. Real life. Whole life. Eternal life. Now. They didn't know that was possible before. They didn't realize that the coming of Jesus was going to make so much difference in their Nation. In the time to come, what a difference it was going to make for people in all the world. No one could know that. No one could understand that. Easter was going to make a difference. That's why I think it's maybe blasphemous in our day when Easter is a time of flowers and clothes and a certain day to be brought to Church. Some will not darken the door for another year. Like a fellow said, he went to Church every Easter, and every Christmas. Never missed. Isn't that wonderful? What does it mean? What did he do it for? He just showed up. It's in the books, as a check-mark by his name. He was there that day. In God's book, there was no mark. Just an "X" that he wasn't there. He didn't come. He hadn't accepted. Jesus really didn't mean anything to him. He was just going because it was a certain day. It's like the fourth of July. We all celebrate the fourth of July because it's the birthday of our Nation as far as we are concerned. It means something to us, because we became a Nation. Did any of you watch the other night, the program on public tevevision about the writing of the Star Spangled Banner? They told the story of the flag at Baltimore when Francis Scott Key was on the ship that was there during the battle. What he saw are the words you sing about our Nation. I thought it was interesting. Francis Scott Key was there while the bombs were bursting. As they burst, he could see the flag. Do we honor our flag anymore? What does the American flag really mean to you? Let me ask, what does the Christian flag mean to you? The Christian flag and the American flag are both here on each side of the altar. The Cross is here near the altar. What does the Cross mean to you? The death of Jesus? Is that all it means? No, it means our salvation, our liberty. It means freedom from sin that we can have because of Jesus. It means a whole lot. How do you rate Jesus in your consideration of Him? How high do you rate Him? Is He really important to you? Is His influence important in your life? Is what He said, as you read your Bible, important to you as you study His words? Do you know what He is saying? I like certain sections better than others,even though He said it some place. I like the one where Jesus took a little child, and put him on His lap, and said, "Hey, leave hese kids alone, they belong to me." He didn't say it in those words, but that's what they mean - that such is the Kingdom of God.That's why I love these kids that come up here on Sunday morning. I love them. I really do. They keep me going. They give me new life. They give me new hope. They are onery. They are noisy sometimes. They are smart. These are smart kids. They really are. Sometimes smart-aleck, but they are smart. I love them. Such is the Kingdom of God, such is the future of this world. When I look at what's happeing around us, I think of the world they are coming into. It hurts me. I'm afraid they are coming into a world that's so ugly and debt ridden that all of ther energy is going to be put toward getting out of it. We are like the fellow who went down to the canal when Fulton was going to float his steam boat. Boats had been pulled by mule along the canal up to that time. The old fellow stood there and said it will never sail. It will never go. He will never get it started. He will never get it moving. Nothing will ever happen. All of a sudden, with a cough and a flash, and a puff of smoke, the boat was alive and started to move. He watched it as down the canal it went under it's own power. Wonderful! Wonderful! Then the old fellow said, "They will never get it stopped." But they did. The boat stopped. You know, we are like that. We are contrary sometimes. We just don't give in to anything.
The two people on the road to Emmaus; nothing was going right. Everything had gone wrong. To Jesus, who was walking along with them, everything had gone right. Nothing had gone wrong. Who can we trust? Two men walking along the road discouraged, or Jesus? I encourage you this morning to trust Jesus. That's the most important thing you can do. Trust Jesus. He is the answer. It was just another day in the life of those poor disappointed people. To Jesus, it was the greatest thing that could happen. He had died for the sins of the world that you and I could be set free. For us to be set free, we have to do something too. Jesus had done His half of it. We need to do our half by accepting Jesus. Accept what He did for us, and believe in Him. Jesus, as the scripture put it, rarely said trust me. He said believe in me. Believe in me. If you can you believe my words, your life will be changed. I say that this morning. If you believe the words of Jesus in the Bible, not me, the words of Jesus, your life will be changed too. In the right way. It will make a difference. It will make a difference in the life you are living, so that it takes away a lot of fear, a lot of anxiety about the future, and things like that.
Jesus said, "Oh foolish men, foolish and slow of heart to believe. Come on. Shape up. Were not the problems spoke of that Christ had to suffer in your place?" That's what the prophet said would happen. That's what I did." Then they believed. Then their lives were changed. Then they knew that everything is going to be alright. Do you believe what is written in God's Word is true and meaningful to you? Do you really believe some of the things He said could really happen to you? That you could be born again. That you could have new life. He told that to a preacher. The preacher said, "Oh come on - how can a man be born again when he is old. How can he enter again into his Mothers womb and be born again? It's impossible." Jesus simply said that what is impossible for men is possible with God. When God does it, He does it right. When God does it, it is done. Period. There is no question. You see, the only way that sin could be taken away from sinners was for Jesus to die in our place for our sins. That's what He did. Now, it is done. The thing is that God was interested in the common people just like us. God is still interested in common peope like us. The happiest thing that could happen as far as God is concerned is for a sinner to repent and come to Him. The greatest joy a Church could have is for a sinner to repent and come to God. Let me say this. We were just talking about raising money. Once we come to God and obey God. Once we come to Him and let our lives be changed the way they ought to be changed - Most of the problems of the Church would be solved. The problems of the Church are we who are sitting in the seats this morning. The problems are not in the building, the program, and so forth. The problem is we the people. We are the problem. That's the thing Jesus is working on this morning. He is working to make life more possible. More realistic. Easier for us. He does that. The way is to come to Him for it to happen.
So it says that Jesus began in Moses and explained to them scriptures about Himself. Wouldn't it have been wonderful? That's the part that I think would have been the greatest. Jesus began to explain to them how the scriptures applied to Him. I would have loved to have been there. I would have loved to sit at His feet. That's one reason I would like to go to Heaven, to sit at the feet of Jesus for 20,000 years and just hear him expound the Gospel. Jesus, what does this mean? How do you apply this? What do you do with all this. What do live like this? What is meaningful here? Let Him explain it. He would explain, for example, Isaiah 53:3. It says "He was despised and rejected. A man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief. We turned our backs on Him and looked the other way. He was despised and we did not care. All this happened to Him and we didn't care." Jeremiah 23:5 says behold the day is coming says the Lord when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch and He shall reign as King and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. Who is this? King Jesus. I fear that we come into this Church, and go through the motions of the Church. Then we miss the King. I fear tht we come into the Church and try the best "our way" to do it our way to make the Church meaningful to ourselves. We do this instead of letting God give it meaning. I think God will do that if we allow Him to. We have to change our ways first.
One of the two men asked Jesus to come and spend the night with them. He did. He took meal with them. In the morning, after breakfast, He just disappeared. They said to one another, "Didn't our heart burn within as we walked with Him by the way?" That's what you have to do this morning, my friends. When we walk with Jesus our heart should burn within us. With joy. Fulfillment. Anxiety. Interest in your head. This Jesus that we love. Eventually the two guys returned to Jerusalem, and went to the Upper Room, and they told the eleven disciples that they had met Jesus and talked with Him. I imagine they laughed at them. You two guys are having nightmares at noon. You two guys are nuts. But they had seen Him. They walked with Him and talked with Him. Wouldn't that be wonderful? Most of the world didn't. Just those two. They walked with Him and talked with Him. The point is that He ever lets us down. He never disappoints us when we need Him most. He is right there. Now He is not there to help us out of silly little things that we think are important. He is there to help us when we need Him. It's that we don't understand His way of working things out. He is there and He is doing it. He is blessing us and we are receiving His blessing. This morning, as we come to Holy Communion; remember we are coming to Jesus. We are coming to Him, to His blood that was shed for you, His body that He sacrificed for us. I never come to communion with what's in my mind to say. He did this for me. What am I supposed to do about it? Just accept it? Just believe it, and that's it? Just take a little cup, and a little bite of bread. Then go home, and that's the end of it? No, there is more to it than that. He said do this in remembrance of me. As often as you do it, do it for my sake. Remember me. Remember what I did for you. I stand here knowing Jesus died for me. I am just standing here sharing Him. It's come today to the point of Communion. I ask you to stand as I read to you the invitation. Then I will uncover the elements and instruct you in taking communion.
He who has truely and earnestly repented of your sins and intend to lead a Christian life, following the commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ, and to follow His Holy ways with faith. Take this Holy Sacrament to remember the sacrifice of atonement that He made for you. (Children and teachers came from the side room to take Communion along with the people in the Worship room.) You may kneel if you desire, or just remain standing. This represents the body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was broken for you to bring you everlasting life. Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you. Drink this in remembrance of me. The Lord bless you. The Lord keep you. The Lord make His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you. The Lord give you peace. Amen. Hymn # 167, He Lives
Father, we thank you this morning that we can know you live. You live in our hearts and minds. Bless us as we separate and go to our homes today. Help us make this day special for you. In Jesus Name, Amen
April 4, 2010: Worship, Pastor Glick, God Makes a Way, Matthew 28:1-10.
There is really only one message you can preach on Easter Sunday. That is the resurrection of Jesus. Right? You always try to have something that is new and different. I'm reading in the book of Matthew chapter 28, verses one to ten. After the sabbath, as the first day of the week was dawning,
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord, descending from Heaven, came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. For fear of him the guards shook and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He has been raised, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples, "He has been raised from the dead, and indeed He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him. This is my message for you." So they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Greetings!" And they came to Him, took hold of His feet, and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid, go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, there they will see me." May God add His blessing to the reading of His Word.
We spend our time leading up to Easter doing just that, following the path of Jesus Christ as He went to His death. That's not a very happy sounding thing. We follow His footsteps to His death, and His point of victory, His resurrection. I am proud and happy to say this morning that He is not dead. He is risen. He is alive. He is just as real right here this morning in this little Church as He was anytime in history. Right here. I praise and glorify His name more than I do anytime. He is Jesus. He is Lord and Savior. He is alive. He is not dead. God was not going to let His Son be dead. I thought about that a lot. Particularily this time of year when I am trying to prepare sermons that are meaningful. What does resurrection really mean? We read about it, and think about it. We are used to reading books, papers, and magazine stories that most of them are made up about things that happen. We are kind of used to unusual things. I wonder if we think of it in that way - Jesus coming back to life after death. Sort of a science fiction like thing.
You know, God's problem wasn't about Jesus death. God's problem was our lives. He didn't need to change. He needed to change our lives. That's why Jesus died. He wanted us to have life. There was no outcome solution for mankind until Jesus. Now we have it. God allowed it, because it was the only way for mankind to be redeemed. Resurrection is the one big word. The other one is redemption. This morning, I want to think more on redemption than the other word. We are redeemed by God's lamb. It was Him hanging on the cross. It was Him dying. It was stained with His blood. If there wasn't a cross stained with His blood, there would be a cross somewhere stained with mine. I would have had to die for my sins. He died for me. I didn't ask Him to do this. God made a way. Maybe that should be the thing this morning. God made a way. Whenever you have a real problem, go to God. God will make a way. Whenever something is really bothering you, go to God. God will make a way. I've told you different times a number of things I am involved in where I didn't fit in. Always, God made a way. God has always made a way out of the situation. Even with getting lost and getting found. God makes a way. No matter what it is in your life that is holding you back and hurting you, destroying your happiness and peace of mind. Whatever it is. God will make a way. That's redemption. That is what it's all about. God will redeem you. God will change things. God will make it right. God has to do it. You can't do it on your own. I can't do it on my own.
Today, we need to consider some things that answer the question that Pilate had to answer. What do we do with Jesus. People asked Pilate, and Pilate asked the people. What do we do with Jesus. They said crucify Him. Pilate said let Him go. He was outnumbered. He dared not do what was right. He told them to kill Him. That they did. They killed Him for the moment. God said that is enough. Redemption is now paid for. He paid the price. His blood is sufficient. God raised Him from the dead for us. We don't have to die. We can live. Oh, we can die. We will do the natural thing, but that isn't the end of it. God has a way. God has a plan. God has a purpose for us. That's what Easter is all about. Easter is God's purpose for us. It's to live with Him. God's purpose is for us to have something, and that something is hope. Not you Hope. (As he looked to one of his relatives named Hope). I mean hope in God. Maybe you don't realize it, God is wonderful. God is absolutely wonderful. God is out there for free today. What would you do with Jesus this morning? The first thing that's important is to love Him. Lets adore Him. Let's really appreciate Him for who He is and what He is. Jesus is the greatest person who ever came out of history. The wonderful thing is that He is still living. He still cares about you and me. Easter proves that. I can't imagine in my wildest imagination Jesus going to the cross to die for me. I cant imagine the horror it must have been on the cross that He would hang there until He died. Three days later, God brought Him back to life. I don't know how God did it. I don't know if God stepped into the tomb and said stand-up. Maybe He just waved his hand, and said come forth. I don't know how He did it, but He did it. Someday, Jesus is going to face me, and say you are forgiven. I hate to think of facing Him knowing He is perfect and how imperfect I am. I can't imagine how He can even forgive me. In my imagination, I can see myself standing before Christ, and looking up at Him probably with tears in my eyes. Hoping against hope that something will happen that spares me from going to hell. I can imagine Jesus leaning over and saying, God forgive him. He is one of mine. Can you imagine how happy I am going to be when I hear those words? It won't be that way exactly. I am sure He may say something like, "Look at that dummy. We can't let him go." That's alright. Just so it happens. I believe He has a way that He is going to determine something about me.
You know, sometimes when I think about it, not everybody has a word of praise for the Lord. When I read the newspaper and magazines and the junk that comes out from writers, God is not really exalted. Isn't God more important? It's come to a point in history where it's chic to bad mouth God. There is a total shift to bad-mouth something. That's putting it in a nice way. We make fun of God. We make fun of what's holy. We struggle with that, because we know it's wrong. I think of some of the great men of our day. People whose names are in the news constantly. People who are supposedly doing great things for us. People who are going to have to face God. God will say, "Why did you say that? Why did you put me down like that?" There will be no answer. I'm sure many will say, "Hey, that's the way I believe." God will be able to say, "I taught you." They will say, "No, you didn't teach me. No one ever taught me." God will say, "It's in my book." They will say, "I didn't read it." Why not read it? If we don't understand what God has for us, its our fault. It's all there. If you don't have it, I have a copy of it right here. (He held up a Bible). It's all in here. What God wants for us. How we can know Him. How we should act. How to live for Him. It's all here. I think we have to under stand. God is serious about what we are doing. We come to Church on Sunday morning. We sit and worship in our own way, and our thoughts are a million miles away. For example, there is a roast in the oven. If we don't get home a certain time, it will burn, and so on and so forth. God will say, "Why didn't you hear me?" "But my roast was burning." I can imagine God saying something like, "Better your roast than you. It's too late now. You burn."
We have to do it for ourselves. We have to determine who Christ is to us. Then begin to live it. He is already resurrected. He is the resurrected Son of God. You don't have to go to the cross. He is crucified. He is alive. He is sitting at the right hand of God right now. Right this instant, He might be pointing His finger at us and saying, "Father, look at that little group of people down there worshipping. I know them. Forgive them. I know them by name. I know they are not perfect, but they are mine." God for Jesus sake will forgive us. Did you ever wonder why when you pray that you pray in Jesus name? You are praying to God, but you are praying by the authority of Jesus Christ in His name. By His authority you say, "God for my sake." It's God, for Jesus sake. In His name, Amen. Amen, I am done. I think we say amen too soon. You need to understand. We have to learn to know Him and let Him know us for Easter to be real. If He doesn't know us, He didn't die for us. He died for those who will accept Him. He died for those who believe in Him. He died for those of us who will live for Him. There has to be a response from us It has to be more than "I read that or I read a whole chapter last night. What do you think of that?" I read whole chapters of the Bible, and I think I've done a good job of it. I think back on it, and I can't remember very much of what I read. I can read ten verses, and pray about it. I think about it for a while, and then I get a lot out of it. Sometimes I don't even use my Bible, the Upper Room devotion, or other devotions that have scripture in them. I will think of just two or three verses. I'll think on those verses. Lord, what did you really mean? What did it mean in that day, and what does it mean in this day? I go through all kinds of twists trying to get the truth out of it. I'm sure sometimes I never do understand what I read. I think I do, and I'm satisfied I did. I probably was wrong. I might have been right. I believe when we read God's Word with more sincerity and intensity, God gives us a special understanding of His grace. A special outpouring of His grace. That's what I pray for this morning. A special outpouring of grace.
Jesus Christ went to the cross and died for us that we could be here this morning and hear Him. He went to the cross to die for us, so if we never get home. If for some reason our life is taken from us before we ever get home, we can be in Heaven. Did you take Him with you when you left home today? Did you bring Jesus with you when you came into Church today? Did He come in with you? Is He waiting for you at the door? Is He sitting with you in a seat? Do you hear His voice in your mind? I pray, Father God, that you speak to the minds of everyone here today. Make your Word plain, so we know whatever you have for us, and we will understand you this morning. This is Easter. This is, God, your day. Speak to our heart. You died for us. You were raised from the dead for us. Now speak to us again. Help us to understand you.
Jesus represents God to us. He is God. You know, this is His Church. This is not just a Church. This is the Church of Christ. This is where we Worship Him. This is where we either accept Him, or we reject Him. This is where good things happen or not. Maybe nothing will happen. Nothing happening is a bad thing. Did anything happen in your heart this morning? You have sat through many Easters like this. You sat and listened to the preacher. Then you went home and thought that was a good message. Then you forgot it. Is God speaking to your heart today? Was God with me any moment? Has God touched me? Is your life going to be any better, any different? Any more hopeful? Any more fulfilled? Any more different than it was when you came in this morning? It can be. Ask God to come into your life and change those things. Problems? God can help.
When you turn your radio on to listen to a ball game, you have to adjust it to the right station. You have to have the menu adjusted so you can hear it clearly. You adjust little knobs to take out the static. That's what we have to do when we are listening for God. We have to adjust our thinking, dial out static noise. Turn to the right station. I listen and get the score at least of the ball-game. If I don't have the score, it doesn't mean too much. Just because a player takes the ball down the court, throws and misses doesn't mean anything to me. What's the score. If we are ahead ten points, it doens't matter if he does miss. It's kind of that way with us when we get with God. What is the score? Is God on your side? Are you on His team, or are you on the other side? It's Easter. It's not just a day to reminisce about life. Easter means life. I wish I had a good term for this day. Resurrection day? Salvation day? That just doesn't fit. It's Easter. It's a day that God made special for our lives. The world can't understand it. Oh, they might say, "We won't call it Easter. We will call it something else." That doesn't change anything. It's still the resurrection day of Jesus. You will be resurrected if you will change your life. You can change your heart. You can change your hope. You can be different. You can call it Holy Youth day. I hope you understand. Life is no childish game. Life is not just that we are here for 100 years. In that 100 years we have to work hard. Earn money, struggle, have an illness, go to the hospital, and raise a family. All that, work hard to the end of our life. Then lay down for someone else to take over and get benefits. The goal of life is to know God for our own future. Our future is not in this world. Our future is in the life of Christ. It's coming. It's not here. It's kind of like all this past week. We have looked forward to Easter. It wasn't here. It was coming. That's the way God is. He's coming. He is not here. When our loved ones die and are in a casket, we go see them. They are quiet. No, they are not. They are in their world. They are in a place God has prepared for them; Heaven. Or if they miss that, they are in the alternative place. I don't want that. I want to, as the Bible says, cast my crown at His feet. Can you believe of all things that we will have a crown in eternity? If I make it, when I make it. At a certain time, I will cast my crown at His feet and glorify God. Hey, that will be easy for me. I can take off my golden crown and cast it at His feet, and glorify God. Let's start doing that this morning. Let's in our imagination cast our crown at His feet. Glorify Him. Jesus the Son of God. Our redeemer. Lord of our lives. Jesus is everything. Here you guys thought your wife was everything. You guys thought your children were everything. No, Jesus is everything. Put Him first in your life, and everything else will fall into place.
I pray that on this Easter Sunday; if you haven't done it before, you will make plans to be with God in eternity. That's what Easter is all about. Jesus made a way. Heavenly Father, we thank you for making a way to give us a place in glory. Jesus, we thank you for making a way by dying on the cross for us. We think of the cross and talk about it, and read about it. We read it in the Bible. Help us to appreciate it more. I pray that in our heart, we will glorify you more. I pray that we glorify Jesus as Lord and Savior of all mankind. It's Easter. It's a resurrection day. Resurrect us in what you want us to be. In Jesus Name, Amen. Hymn # 167: He Lives.
April 4, 2010: Sunrise Surprise, Mark 16:1-7, Howard Eblin
(Instead of a live piano prelude, a CD of "You Raise Me Up" with spiritually moving violin and singing was used in the prelude time. Thomas Eblin, a young person who is gifted with the ability to pray "spiritually moving" prayers gave the invocation.)
The Church has white "Easter lillies" today, and one pink/mottled to represent the blood of Jesus. As I was walking up the lane to get the newspaper today, God reminded me of the comics from last year where the little girl in Family Circus was telling her Mother that the Church should be filled with roses. That is because Jesus "arose" from being dead.
I am going to read the in book of Mark, chapter 16, starting at verse one. When the sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. They had been saying to one another, "Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?" When they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had already been rolled back. This is the first surprise for them on this special day. God had moved the stone before they arrived.
Here is what I told the kids during Church part of the Stepping Stones project. These are the stepping stones you see along the walk-way outside the Church. Who will roll away the stone? We have "stones" in our life today. Stones are symbolic of problems that block us from having the wonderful, awesome kind of life our loving God wants for His loved children, all people. There was a stone in front of the tomb. God moved it; the earthquake and angels in the scripture. There can be stones in your path today that can trip you. Stones that are too big for you. God still speaks to us today. He comes into our world. He comes to do what you can't. He comes to move the stones you can't budge. Stones are no match for God. Not then at Jesus resurrection from the dead, and not now. God still moves stones. Do you see Jesus as a close friend? Jesus desires to relate to us as a friend. Talk with the Lord, and tell Him of all your needs. Don't forget to thank and praise the Lord for His help.
Let's continue on in the book of Mark, chapter 16, verses 5-7. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man, dressed in a white robe, sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. But he said to them, "Do not be alarmed; you are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has been raised; He is not here. Look, there is the place they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you." After the surprise of the stone being rolled away from the tomb, the next sunrise surprise was the angel. The biggest and best suprise of all would be when they finally realized that Jesus had been resurrected from being dead.
I have a carton of eggs here that has a dozen plastic eggs in it, each has a different color. Each egg has a different symbol of Easter in it. Pastor Glick had Easter symbols as part of his talks with the young disciples during Worship each Sunday before Easter Sunday. Each week he put another Easter symbol on the cross in the Church, right over there. For example, you see the money bag that was put on the cross the day he talked about Judas betraying Jesus, and the crown of thorns they put on Jesus to mock Him, and other symbols. These plastic eggs have the symbols in miniture form. My very favorite one is the empty egg that represents the empty tomb due to Jesus resurrection.
Let's read some of the resurrection message in the book of John, verses 11-16. But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" She said to them, "They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him." When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, "Woman, why are you weeping?" Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, "Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away." Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, "Rabbouni!" (Which means teacher). In verse 15, Mary didn't know Jesus was there until He spoke her name. Through tear dimmed eyes she just glanced at a human form standing there, and didn't know that it was Jesus. I can relate to Mary not knowing Jesus at first. When I was younger, I almost always saw people we knew before they saw me. Now it's the other way around, they see me first and come to speak with us. That may be because I am more preoccupied now with shoving Rose around in a wheel-chair, along with trying to manage a grocery cart, and so on. Mary was preoccupied with tring to find Jesus body to anoint it in respect for Him. She was sad and crying. Imagine what surprise and joy she felt when Jesus spoke her name, and she realized that Jesus was alive. She was weeping until Jesus said her name.
Jesus the Risen One knows your name too. Be very still and use every one of your senses. Listen for your name lovingly spoken. Listen. Sense, think, and feel what it means for you to hear Jesus Christ, the Risen One, say your name. We will pause a moment for this.
What's in it for you? Let's read what the apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, verses 19-26. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead had also come through a human being, for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ. But each in his own order. Christ the first fruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when He hands over the Kingdom to God the Father, after He has destroyed every ruler and every authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
In Heaven, there will be no more death. Heaven is the end. It's the end of things like Mary's mourning and crying at the tomb. Mary will have only joy and praise for the Lord in Heaven. Let's read the closing scripture. This is in Revelations chapter 21, verses 1-5. Then I saw a new Heaven and a new earth; for the first Heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them, they will be His peoples, and God Himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more, mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away." And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See I am making all things new." Also He said, "Write this for these words are trustworthy and true."
God raised Jesus up then. He can still raise you up today to a better life now and forever. All you need to do is accept Jesus as Lord and Savior. Confess to God all our sins, and tell Him you will change yor life to live for the Lord.
Lets pray. Heavenly Father God, Thank you for your plan for salvation and eternal life through repenting of our sin, and accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Thank you for giving us all the joy of Jesus Christ's coming to life again after death. Help us all to live for Jesus, Son of Man, and Son of God. Help us find ways to serve the Lord. Give us opportunities to tell others about this wonderful resurrection of Jesus Christ. Father God, we ask you to bless the food prepared for breakfast this morning, and please bless the people who provided the food. May it nourish us and give us strength to love You more and to serve You better. In Jesus Name, Amen.
March 28, 2010: Palm Sunday March, Mark 11:1-11, Pastor John Glick
This is Palm Sunday. We may think more of palms than what it represents. Palm Sunday is the Sunday that Jesus made His last entry into the Temple. I'll tell you in the sermon why He did it. It's an event that turned out to be a non-event. The crowds were looking for Him to go into the Temple, and throw out the soldiers and foreigners. Then to restore the country to them, the people who had been badly treated for a long time. They really wanted something to happen, and this was it. This was the event. You know, we have times like that in our own lives. We are expecting something big to happen. All of a sudden - nothing. How do we handle that? Let me read from Mark, the eleventh chapter, the first few verses.
As Jesus and His disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead. "Go into that village over there.", He told them. "As soon as you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ""What are you doing?" just say, "The Lord needs it and will return it soon." The two disciples left and found the colt standing in the street, tied outside the front door. As they were untying it, some bystanders demanded, "What are you dong, untying that colt?" They said what Jesus had told them to say, and they were permitted to take it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their garments over it, and He sat on it. Many in the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of Him, and others spread leafy branches they had cut in the fields. Jesus was in the center of the procession, and the people all around Him were shouting, Hosanna, Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessings on the coming Kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna. Praise God in highest Heaven! So Jesus came to Jerusalem and went into the Temple. After looking around carefully at everything, He left because it was late in the afternoon. Then He returned to Bethany with the twelve disciples. May God add His blessings on the the reading of His Word.
It was a joyful day. This was the day that was supposed to happen. This man Jesus who had been going through Israel proclaiming Himself to be something now needed to prove who He was and what He was. He had to do something. What is He going to do? They gathered to get a closer glimpse of what was happening. Do you suppose their curiosity was increased just by the mystery of religion in general? Was there really something to this man Jesus? Was it the rumors spread by His followers that He was the Son of God? Which they didn't believe. I wonder how many people today still do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God? He really is God, or do we just accept what Churches spout.? Do we accept what the Bible says without really thinking through who this man Jesus is? Who is He? What does He do for me? What has He done for me? I didn't see Him. He didn't come to my house. He didn't knock on my door. he didn't send me a letter. He didn't pay any of my bills. What was this man Jesus?
An odd kind of day in that far off land was a day of contrasts. The Sun was rising high in the city when Jesus and the crowd came. Jesus was riding on a donkey or colt. I'm sure it was a funny looking outfit. Here was this man riding on a colt. The people throwing clothes and palm branches on the road in front of Him. Shouting Hosanna in the highest. Hope was high in their hearts. You know how it is when you want something bad. Bad enough to get your hopes up. Then nothing happens. You know how it is. You know how you feel. It's rough. Then there was that moment when things got bogged down a little bit. He stopped and got off the donkey. He looked at the city and for some reason He began to cry. A grown man standing in the middle of the street crying.Can you imagine that? Maybe they didn't hear Him, but some of them must have heard in order to record it. Oh Jesuralem, Jesuralem, how many times I witnessed to you, but you wouldn't have it. We don't want you. He could have been saying, "You don't understand." I'm sure they didn't. They didn't understand Him or what He was about. People grabbed anything they could lay hands on and began to throw it down for Him to walk on.
The point of the story here is not what happened. The point is what did not happen. He was there to throw out the money changers, the foreigners, the Romans. He was there to change things, to put the country back in Jewish hands. He was supposed to come and take charge. He was the Son of God. He was something, but what was He? He did nothing. He cried, went into the Temple and looked around. Then He walked out and left. What a disappointment. That's the story. That is what happened. He went away. Laughing and shouting, the crowd went through the city gates ready for something to happen. You can't possibly imagine what it meant to the crowd to realize that this is the day. This is the day we are going to take over again. We are going to have our own nation. We are going to be able to go back to our Temple and worship the way we want to. We are going to do it. We are going to make these unclean foreign dogs leave our land forever. It didn't happen. He didn't say a word. He just cried. Then went away. That is one of the saddest moments in the whole New Testament. He went away. He left without doing anything. We have a tough time understanding. The scripture says He went into the Temple and looked at everythig. Since the hour was late, He went out again. That's the only way they could record it. He went out again. He left. He took off. Why didn't He do something? Why didn't He just snap His fingers and get rid of the Romans? Why didn't they all fall dead? Why didn't they pack up and leave? Why did He not sit on the throne and be the King of Israel? If He was God, He could do that. Why didn't He do those things? We look back at it and we see why and what caused the let-down that day. Oh Jesuralem, Jesuralem - how many times I wanted to save you, but you wouldn't have it. Jesuralem, you wouldn't have me. Now Jesuralem, I am leaving you to your fate. Jesus knew what was going to happen in the situation with Himself. He knew what was going to happen in the situation with Jesuralem. The moment Jesus arrived in the city and did nothing, He fate was sealed. When He did nothing, the soldiers captured Him. When He did nothing and said nothing, His fate was sealed. What we have to understand, even in our day is that His fate being sealed at that moment for our salvation meant His fate was sealed, not ours. Had He declared Himself in that hour, we wouldn't be here. Had He declared Himself Son of God and taken over, history would have changed. Maybe time would have ended. It was be as though we didn't count. It would be as though we didnt matter. Jesus didn't see it that way. We all matter to Him. It mattered, so He went to the cross and died for us.
The people who were following Him. Why were they following Him? For what they could get out of it. They really didn't see Him as God or Son of God in that sense. Their worship of Him was empty. Think of what that means - empty. Think of that this morning. Is our worship empty? Are you really feeling God? Are you feeling God in the depth of your soul? Do you realize you are in the presence of God? God is right here among us. Do you suppose today that Jesus came in and looked around, shook His head, then just left? Do you suppose Jesus just looked at us and said, "Oh no, not again." Then walked away. Will there be big crowds in Church this morning? As people come and do their thing. People will come and say, "O.K. preacher, now get to it and do your thing, so we can get out of here and go home. We have spent enough time on this religion business. Let's go do our thing. Dinner will be ready when we get home. We have to go places and do things. Life just can't take a back seat because it's Easter. We can't just go along as usual. Things just haven't changed much.
Theologians said we are like the Pharisees. We go down to the Temple to pray and prove ourselves, then go home feeling justified. We feel like a cloud to almighty God and imagine He can't see through us. God does see through us. Easter comes once per year. It comes to remind us that God is still God. Reality is still real. God is still here. God is right here, no matter how we feel about Him. God is still in charge of this Church. This is still God's Church. I thought about it many times. It is kind of funy. It's the Oakland United Methodist Church. Maybe it's God's United Methodist Church. Maybe it's just God's Church. That's my seat. That's my place. That's where I belong. I -ME. Do you understand what I am saying? This is God's Church. It is God's presence here this morning that makes this a worshipful place. It's not the preacher, or even the people. It's God. Do we recognize God this morning? Do we see Him in the cross? The flowers? The candles? The Altar? The kneeling benceh? Do we see God here anywhere? Does any of this stir our hearts? Does it stir our memories? Does it stir our souls?
I heard a Pastor say one time when leading His congregation that a woman complained that she couldn't understand a word the choir sang. His answer to her was, "Who was the choir singing to, God or you?" I bet God. Maybe that's what we ought to realize when we come to Church. We don't come just to see each other, we come to see God. Can you see God or just each other. Strange isn't it? How often I hear the old excuse, I don't come to Chruch, because I don't understand what is going on. I don't get anything out of it. My answer is, did you put anything in to it? Did you mean to get anything out of it? I think of a lady who told me not too long ago, I go to a big Church in Columbus. I can get lost in the crowd, and they can't single me out to give me a job. Isn't that some reason to go to Church? Saint attendance, Saint preacher, Saint choir, Saint and so on. Attending Church is for God. That's what we have to understand. It's all for God. I hear someone once in a while who asks, "Can't we sing some song I enjoy? Some song I know? Some song that stir my heart? Joan keeps saying to me, "I want you to sing with me." I'd like to, but I can't sing any more. I lost my beautiful voice. I say that humbly of course. I lost my voice. I used to sing bass. I sang in a quartet. Now I can't sing at all. I still love to sing, but I can't do it. I hear, for example, with all the money we spend for heating, we didn't have the house very warm this morning. In the summer, "We have air-conditioning, but we didn't cool it enough - or it was too hot. There is always something that is not just right. Always. The preacher is either too loud or too soft. I either heard, and I didn't want to hear, or I didn't hear, and I wanted too. We are never satisfied. That's just the way we are. I have an idea that God might leave us to ourselves, because it gets disgusting. We gather for Worship and Prayer. Yet it's like we do so without the slightest concern for God. Does God really want us together? Yes. He wants us together. He also wants us to Worship Him. We don't just gather to read a Sunday School lesson. We don't gather just for the Preacher to read the Bible, or just take notes. Where is God? Are we listening? Are we listening to God? Are we hearing God? Are we Worshiping God? Are we just going through the motions? Do we feel God at all this morning? We never learn, do we?
The man on the colt going into Jerusalem was criticized, because He didn't do what they expected. He went into the Temple and looked around. They didn't realize He was checking. Do you suppose if God came to our Church Sunday morning, came in and looked around and heard what the Preacher is saying. Maybe He would be checking. Then He would go back out. Let's give God credit. God knows what He is doing. I don't know God does that, but it's possible. I know there are some Sunday mornings that I don't feel God here. I don't imagine God feels me here. We try to get together as often as we can. What's He doing today? If He is in our Temple, what is He doing? What is God doing here? He is trying to get our attention to realize that He is something, and that we need Him far more than He needs us. We need to learn to Worship God. That's what Easter is all about. Learning who God really is. Learning to accept God. Learning to be what we should be. You see, He gauges the thoughts of our hearts every day. He guages our lives. If we allow Him to, but if we don't, then He doesn't do anything. He just turns and walks away. God may have turned away this morning. No, it was not God's fault.
Palm Sunday. We do a thing here, and all laugh about it. After the Ushers hand out the palm leafs, we are going to do a victory march with Palm leaves. I am going to say everybody get up, and follow me and I'm going to march around the inside of the Church. We are going to do something. We are not going to just sit this morning. We are going to do something. We are going to march with Jesus. We are going to carry and wave our palms just like they did when Jesus was riding on a donkey. He won't be on a donkey ahead of us, but He will be with us. Alleluia will be sung without piano as we walk. If you want to walk. I'm not forcing you. Palm Sunday and you all have palm leaves. Are you ready to march? (The kids came from the side room and walked around the Church behind the Preacher along with all the adults.) Everyone walked around the Church, behind the Preacher, and one behind another.
O.K. thanks, you all. Lets pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you this morning for palm Sunday. We thank you for the coming of Jesus into our lives to make a difference. Lord, we accept Him into our hearts. Bless us now as we go our separate ways into our homes. Bless us real good. Bring us together next week. In Jesus Name, Amen.
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March 21, 2010: The Cup and Bread, Luke 22:14-20, Pastor John Glick
I want to continue on this morning with the meaning of Communion. (Pastor Glick talked about Communion in the young disciples part of Worship). What does communion really mean to us? What is this drama of the bread and the wine we go through every so often. Why do we do it. I would like to ask, but I won't - I wonder how many of us really know what communion really is. What it really means. It's just something we do as a Church. It's a ritual that we go through, and don't really understand what it means. Do we know what Jesus was doing when He instituted the Holy Communion. I'm going to read St. Luke chapter 22, verses 14-20.
When the hour had come, He sat down with the 12 disciples with him. Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this with you before i suffered. For I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God. So He took the cup and gave thanks and said take this and divide among you. For I say to you I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the Kingdom of God comes. He took bread and gave thanks and broke it and gave it to them saying, "This is my body which was given for you. Do this in remembrance of me." Likewise He also took the cup after supper saying, "This cup is a new covenant in my blood which was shed for you. But behold, the hand of my betrayer is with me on the table. Truly the Son of Man knows it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed." Then they began to question among themselves which of them it was who would do this. May God add His blessing to the reading of His Word.
The act of communion in the New Testament is really a way of observing what God had already done in the Old Testament. As I explained to the kids, and I hope to you, Jesus was reinstituting the Passover event. God had once saved the Jewish people from being annihilated by the Egyptians. Now He was going to save the people again through Jesus Christ. This time it had to be a different sacrifice. In the Old Testament, they sacrificed lambs. The scripture said they would bring a lamb - You will find this in the book of Exodus, chapter 12 - You take a lamb and kill it and eat all of it. Eat it all. Don't leave anything. If it was too much for one family, then they would get together and two families would eat the meat. But do it My way. Save the blood, don't lose any of the blood. The way it was instituted was to take the blood outside and dispose of it in a proper way. There is a whole chapter in Exodus that explains how that should be done to eat the Passover lamb. It must have been pretty important to God that He be honored at this time and in this way. When we have Holy Communion that is what we are doing. We are honoring God. We are remembering what God did for us, individually as people. God did something in our place. He died for us on a cross. The old rugged cross. Thats what Easter is all about. Communion really favors Easter a lot, because it's part of what we should do. The idea of blood is a token of obedience to God. This is my blood shed for you. We have Communion, and we use grape juice. Someone questioned me - why don't you use wine like Jesus did. That's because I don't have wine like Jesus had. The only wine we have is the stuff you buy in stores. That's strong wine. We use grape juice. I would not use boughten wine, because that's not the kind of wine they drank in Jesus day. What they drank, they made themselves. It was a flavored drink made from the juice of the grape. How they made it, I don't know. You see pictures of people climbing in the vat and stomping grapes with their feet. I wouldn't want to drink that. I imagine you get a lot more than just juice.
In the Old Testament, the blood was put over the door, the top of the door and over the sides as a sign for the death Angel to pass over that house. When we take communion and we drink wine in the cup, we are asking the death Angel to pass over us. God is going to do someting special for us. He is going to passover us. That's where we get the term passover. The death Angel passed over the house, and they were saved. That's where we get passover in the Easter service. We have a passover meal. Have you ever had a true passover meal? The same as the one outlined in the Bible? We have. We have eaten it a time or two in Church groups. It's not good food. It's bitter with no sweetening or anything like that, and no salt. You don't add anything to God. When God gives you something, you don't add anything to it. Do you realize that? If God gives you meat, you don't add salt to it. You don't try to flavor it. That's what was going on there. When God saw the blood applied to the door, He passed over them. When we take Communion, and drink from the cup, we are applying the blood to ourself, so that God will passover us again. We don't think of that when we take Communion. We just be careful that we don't spill it on our clothes and things like that. Communion is more important than that.
And the bread. The bread represents the broken body of Jesus. When the Passover lamb was slain, part of it was torn apart, not cut. There were things you had to do - save the blood. As it went on, they built temples, and they built altars like this one in Church. Around the outside altar was a trough. There was a horn at each corner. There was a place where you could hang a chunk of meat. The blood would run into the channel to be saved and taken outside to be disposed of. That's all explained in the Old Testament. God gave instructions on how to do that. As I understand, Jewish people still do that to a certain extent. Although it is now illegal to kill lambs or sheep even for sacrificial purposes. It has to be done dishonestly or in secret. That's not a good way to serve God.
God said to meet the conditions that I set. God sets those conditions, not because He wants to give us rules. He wants our obedience. God is high on obedience. He wants us to obey Him. He wants us to obey His laws. He wants us to obey Him in every way. As a result of our obedience then, we can be spared death. We can be spared a lot of things in this life. Jesus and His disciples were observing and obeying the command to keep the early feast. It was in the Upper Room that Jesus took the occasion to tell the disciples, "I am going to die for you." That's where we come to the cross. Jesus said I am going to die for you. Of course, they didn't understand that. He was going to replace the old Passover situation with a new one, with Him at the center of it. We don't keep the Old Testament Passover anymore. We remember Jesus who hung on the cross as the sacrifice for our sins. He didn't ask us if we wanted it. He died for us irregardless. If we don't accept it, it is as though we reject Him. If we can't accept that Jesus died for our sins, then we are denying Him. He said that if you deny me, I have to deny you. What that does is it puts into our own hands whether or not we are going to Heaven. Whether or not we are going to be spared in the afterlife. I decide every day where I am going to be, if I should die. I decide every day if I am going to obey God. That doesn't mean I sit down first thing in the morning and say, "Well, yes I will be a good boy today, or no, I won't be." We have to recognize the fact that every day we have temptation to sin, to do wrong. If we sin, we are against God. If we don't, we are for God. Sometimes we have to suffer a little bit, because of that. We suffer, because we really don't know what to do. We have to be obedient, if we can. Having His body broken on the cross Jesus became our sacrifice. When we leave the altar after Communion, we are observing the sacrifice of Jesus giving His body and blood for us. It's a very solemn and Holy thing. It's not just something we do once in a while, because it says so in the Book. We do it because God said so. As often as you do it, do it in remembrance of me. He didn't say do it often in remembrance of me. He just said, "Do it." You could only do it once per year. They only kept Passover Feast once per year. If we would keep Holy Communion once a year, it would be satisfactory, if we would keep it in that way. We have to remember that people in Egypt obeyed God and lived. Those who didn't obey God didn't live. The Jews in Egypt who didn't believe Moses, and didn't keep the rules as he laid them down, they died. It's as simple as that. You know, God isn't playing games with us everyday. He really isn't. God is serious about how we live for Him. He is serious about how we act for Him. He is serious about what we think of Him. He is serious about our prayers. For many of us - I am pushing this a little bit - our prayers are sort of automatic. I've got to do this before I go to bed. I generally do it every night anyway. We don't really put our personal emphasis in our prayers. God I really want communication. I really want to talk to You. We get into trouble, and we are hurting. Then we get pretty serious. We will sit down and say, "God, I hurt." We are serious. When we are just praying on an everyday basis, we don't get serious. I do. Sometimes I don't really feel the presence of God when I pray - as far as a deep warm feeling is concerned. Other times I do. God expects us to obey Him and God expects us to pray. God is waiting on us to pray. We are obeying God's command to obey Him. That's how we remember, "This is my body." and "This is my blood." As often as you do this, do it in remembrance of me.
The Last Supper was an illustration of what was going to happen in the New Testament. If the Jews could have known thousands of years ago that Jesus was going to come and give His life for all mankind, it would have made a difference to them. It was prophesized hundreds of years before Jesus ever came on the scene. It was prophesized what He would do, who He would be, and what He would do. It's all there in the Bible. You can read it for yourself. Of course, He did. He was going to be a sacrificial lamb. Isn't it something to think that God - This God that we pray to - sent His Son, His Holy Son, His sinless Son to die for us. I look at myself. I look at my life. Am I deserving of that? I have to be honest, and say no. But God still did it. God I haven't been everything you want me to be. God, you did it anyway. He didn't wait for me to get better. He went ahead and died for me 2,000 years ago. He made a place for me in history. All I had to do is say yes, Jesus. I've loved You. I want You in my life. That's why I invite people to come to the altar. I don't invite you to come and be a Church member or become a super-hero, or anything like that. Just come and accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Then you too will live forever. If we never do that, we live forever, but we don't live in Heaven. We don't want that outcome. What I have read in the book of Revelation makes me not want any part of that. We want to avoid that Lake of Fire. Ive wondered sometimes why God would even make a Lake of Fire, and prepare it for us. The Bible explains it pretty specifically for those who don't obey God. Those who don't love God. Those who don't accept God. That's the alternative. You don't want me, then I don't want you. Yet God loves us so much that He allows us to be what we are. Holy Communion alone symbolizes a oneness between us and God. We don't feel that oneness in any other way in the Church that I know of. I always feel when I am serving the Communion elements. God forgive me. Am I worthy to do this? Am I worthy to hold the element, or pass it to my people? God, is this right? Should I just sit them down, and say here they are? Help yourself. No pretense of any king. At the campground, sometimes at the end of services, we have Communion, and the Communion Steward stands at the front of the service and holds the elements while people come around to take them. You have to come to get them. We don't bring them to you. I like that. I really do. If you want it, come and get it. If you want God, come and get Him. If you want to be Holy, come and get Holy. You can if you try. Then there is the bread. This is my body. I've thought about it many times. Jesus broke a loaf of bread demonstrating His body being broken for us. It's pretty hard for me to realize His body was broken for me. Why did He do it for me? I wasn't alive at that time. I wasn't going to be around for 2,000 years. Yet He died for me.
In these days, when a covenant is made, we don't take it very seriously. Covenants are easily broken. Yet what we are doing when we take Communion is make a covenant with God. Now I am going to obey You. I am going to love You. I am going to be what You want me to be. I'll do what You want me to do. I'll be a Church member. I will give my tithe. I'll do what I am supposed to do. I will do what You want me to do, God. I'll be what You want me to be, God. I think that's the way we have to see it. Back in those days, when a covenant was made, it was sealed by a blood sacrifice. The deal was made then a lamb was killed, and blood was put on both people. You have probably seen this in movies, sometimes each cut their finger or their wrist and put them with the other persons blood. That made them one. They did that kind of thing when they sealed a bargain in Bible days. Maybe we ought to do that now. Maybe we ought to cut our wrist and say, God here I am. Here is my blood. I'll shed my blood for You. I don't know about you, but I don't want to. I am squeamish. Never let us take it lightly, the service of Holy Communion. If we do then we are taking lightly the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are taking lightly what He did for us. What He did for us is eternally effective, because it gives us the opportunity to be with Him. Without it, we would not be with Him.
We are not taking Communion today. When we do take Communion, I want you to remember what we are doing when we pass the cup to you, and when we pass the little pieces of bread. It's not just little things to eat. It isn't the body and blood of Jesus. Now these are representative. They are not the actual body. Sometimes there is a a question, "Why do you allow children to take Communion?" Remember when Jesus took a little child and put him on His lap? He said, "Hey, don't forbid little children to come to me for such as these are the Kingdom of God. Why would I deny a child to receive Holy Communion and bond with Christ? Jesus Himself did it. That's why. You just have to remember that Christ's blood atones for the sin of the world. His body was broken and His blood shed for that atonement. Thank You Jesus, thank You for what You did for us. Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, we thank You this morning for Your sacrifice. Thank You for dying for us. Thank You for being alive today. Because of You, everything is possible. Without You, nothing is possible. Help us to realize, Father, the Church is not just a place, not just a building. It's not just for the people. Church is Communion with You. Church is being alive in this old dead world. Thank You for what You did for us and what You do for us every day. In Jesus Name, Amen.
Closing Song # 154, Beneath the Cross of Jesus. Closing Prayer: Father, show us Your glory. Help us this Easter season to see You. Help us to know You as our Lord and Savior. Bless us each one now as each one of us goes our separate ways. Bring us together again next week. In Jesus Name, Amen