St Timothy Presbyterian Church in Toronto: Sermons

Psalm 46

Sitting Still

Be still and know that I am God.

How comforting this is! However, it is hard to be still. There is a war going on in Europe right now. It affects every body. It affects our life. But there is also a war within us. The world is in turmoil. And we are in turmoil. The storms are out there and the storms are within us. Even if we are SITTING STILL, we are not still. We are struggling with internal turmoil, uneasiness, worries and anxiety.

I realized people don't want to sit still. When they sit still, all the negative thoughts come up from within and we don't like it. We don't want to face the turmoil within us. So we distract ourselves, doing all kinds of things. We make ourselves busy.

It's not that you don't have time to be still. You don't want to do that because it is not a pleasant experience. And now you DON'T EVEN KNOW how to be still. We are scared of facing our own insecurities, our own darkness, and our own inadequateness. It is better to feel good than facing these unpleasant realities.

What Kind of Faith

So, being still is hard to do, I realized. To be still, you need faith. What kind of faith? The faith the psalmist expressed in the beginning.

God is our refuge and strength,

a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,

though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;

though its waters roar and foam,

though the mountains tremble with its tumult. (Psalm 46:1-3)

We heard this passage a lot right after 911 in 2001 The whole world was shocked. US experienced tremendous turmoil and chaos. We saw the power of evil and darkness invading our personal life.

Martin Luther, the reformer, also saw the power of evil and darkness oppressing people. So he wrote a hymn inspired by this Psalm around 1527 and 1529.

A Mighty Fortress.

A mighty fortress is our God,

a bulwark (a Defensive Wall) never failing;

our helper he, amid the flood

of mortal ills prevailing.

And though this world, with devils filled,

should threaten to undo us,

we will not fear, for God has willed

his truth to triumph through us.

In the midst of turmoil, overwhelming power of evil, THEY BELIEVED THE POWER OF GOD. They saw the very present help in trouble.

We see wars around us but we believe in the power of God.

He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear;

he burns the shields with fire. (Psalm 46:9)

To be still, we need to have this faith. We need to trust God even though mountains shake and waters roar. God is our help in our trouble.

Rest

The world does not teach you how to be still. The world teaches you to be productive. We are moulded and shaped to be PRODUCTIVE but we are not nurtured to be still. The world teaches you how to be effective, productive, and capable. But the world does not teach you how to be still.

The world wants us to become like machines. But we are not a machine. We are not a robot. These days, the world also recognizes the importance of being still, so they emphasize on training your mind, mindfulness exercise, and how to focus. But the ultimate goal is to make you more productive and efficient.

Byung Chul Han, who is a Korean-born professor of philosophy and Cultural studies in Germany said this.

Sabbath rest does not follow creation; it brings creation to completion.

He says that God made Sabbath, the day of rest, not because he had nothing to do. He created Sabbath to COMPLETE the work of creation.

It is a similar idea of Abraham Heschel, a Jewish scholar, who wrote the book Sabbath. He said, Sabbath does not exist for 6 days but 6 days for Sabbath. We need to restore the importance of Sabbath in our lives. We need to establish the theology and the lifestyle of Sabbath.

Rest is the completion of our life.

Another Korean scholar at Standford University, Alex Soojung Kim Pang said this.

We think of rest as simply the absence of work, not as something that stands on its own or has its own qualities.

He is saying that rest is not merely a negative space in a life defined by toil and ambition and accomplishment.

If your work is your self, when you cease to work, you cease to exist.

Rest is not work's adversary. Rest is work's partner.

They all emphasize the importance of rest. Rest is completion of everything we do.

The Eternal Rest

That is how we Christians see death. Hearing the death of his friend, Lazarus, Jesus said this.

Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him. (John 11:11)

Sleep is a short death and death is a longer sleep.

When we finish our life here on earth, what completes our life is the rest, the eternal rest.

Linda, Ken, and Wain's mother passed away last Tuesday. I went there on Monday to have the final worship with her. She passed away the next day. She lived a good life and went into the eternal rest. Her life has achieved completion.

Calm Water

Rest is not just being mindless, numb, and switching yourself off. Rest is not just physically taking a break. Rest is being still. Rest is to give your whole self in God's hands. To be still, you need faith. How important it is and how much people struggle because they cannot really be still and have a true rest. They can't sleep. They are struggling because of worries and anxiety. There is no peace in their minds. No matter how much they play, they don't have this wonderful peace.

Jesus said this.

Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

Coming to Jesus is the act of faith. You cannot just come to Jesus. You need faith to come to Jesus.

That is how John saw.

Everything that the Father gives me will COME TO ME, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away (John 6:37)

No one can COME TO ME unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day (John 6:44)

When you come to Jesus, Jesus will give you rest. Then you can be still. You will know that God is there to help you. You will know that God is your refuge and strength, and a very present help in trouble.

The mountains may shake and tremble and the waters may roar and foam, but you will be able to be still. These angry waters will become calm and become a river whose streams make glad the city of God.

Verse 4 is a very interesting verse.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,

the holy habitation of the Most High. (Psalm 46:4)

There is no river in Jerusalem. And yet the Psalmist said that there is a river. It is a spiritual imagination.

In your life, there may be angry waters that roar and foam, but they will become calm and become a river whose streams make you glad.

Be still and know that I am God.

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Luke 20:27-38

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Eternally Alive

Last week, I encountered many news of death. In Seoul, , so many young people lost their lives. Senseless death. Also in India, too many people were on the bridge which was not ready to take people. And it collapsed. In Seoul, at least 150 people died. In India, at least 135 people died. While listening to these sad stories of death, I read today's passage. I saw a video of people in before the accident. They had no idea of death coming to them. They were smiling and walking as though it was another normal day in that crowd. They were walking like sardines. There was only one policeman who was shouting to people not to go into the narrow alley. His face was filled with concern for the safety of people. He was the only one who was shouting and warning people.

In today's passage, we hear a lot about being alive. It says we are alive. We are not dead, but alive.

Indeed they cannot die any more (Luke 20:36)

Being children of the resurrection (Luke 20:36)

Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive. (Luke 20:38)

Being Alive! How wonderful it is. We have the resurrection and we are eternally alive.

Sadducees

Sadducees did not believe this wonderful truth. In today's story, we hear the debate between Jesus and the Sadducees. Because they didn't believe in the resurrection, they attacked Jesus with a ridiculous story they made up. They tried to prove how senseless it was to believe in the resurrection. I understand that they could not accept the resurrection. It is hard to believe it. Still, many people don't believe in the resurrection.

Sadducees misunderstood about the resurrection. To them, the resurrection was simply the continuation of the life they had. It was just the lengthening of the life they had. So they thought that they would get married and have kids and live in the same way.

But Jesus said this to them.

Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. (Luke 20:34, 35)

To Jesus, the resurrection was not just the repetition or the lengthening of the life they had. To Jesus, the resurrection was the transformation. To Jesus, the resurrection, was the change. You were dead but now you are alive.

The Power of Resurrection

Yes we experience death every day. We all become older, weaker, and in the end, we will perish. That is the life we know and that is the life we see. We see a lot of deaths around us. Many people become weaker, getting sick and die. That is what we see in our daily life.

But when St. Paul met Christ, he saw something different. He experienced the power of resurrection. Not only was the resurrection happened to Jesus, the power of his resurrection was working within Paul. It was not just the miracle he experienced on the road to Damascus that changed him. It was the power of the resurrection he experienced that changed him. Now he saw something different in his life.

So we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. (2 Corinthians 4:16)

So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (2 Corinthians 5:1)

This was what St. Paul experienced. He experienced something wonderfully different about his life. You don't just get older and weaker. You don't just perish. He realized that the life within him regenerated itself continuously. He realized that this was what it meant to be alive.

Being Alive

That was what Jesus said in today's passage.

Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive. (Luke 20:38)

God makes us alive. That is God we believe. In God, all of us are alive. Our souls will come alive. Our life will be awakened. Those who believe in God will not die.

This is what our Lord, Jesus said.

I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? (John 11:25, 26)

If there is no resurrection, we have no hope. Everything becomes meaningless and useless.

That was what St. Paul said.

If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. (1 Corinthians 15:19)

If Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:14)

If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile (1 Corinthians 15:17)

To St. Paul, the resurrection was the sure thing and everything. It was the very foundation of what he believed. Without the resurrection, everything would have fallen apart. His thoughts, his actions, his sacrifices, and his life. Because he believed in the resurrection, death could not overpower him any more.

That's why he was able to boldly proclaim to the death.

Death has been swallowed up in victory.

Where, O death, is your victory?

Where, O death, is your sting?

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:54-57)

In Christ, no more death! That was what Christ came to show us.

in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. (John 1:4)

Nothing could take away life that was in Christ. Nothing could destroy life that was in Christ. Even death could not defeat life that was in Christ. That is being alive.

The Living Power

When you are connected with Christ, you are connected with the life force. The life force will move within you powerfully. The eternal life does not become a theory. The power of the eternal life will work within you.

Fear of death will slowly lose its grip on you. Victory of life will take over your life. You will see hope in the hopeless situation. You will see the light in the darkness. You will see power in desperate situation.

When you fall into the unbreakable chain of depression, slumps, and lack of confidence, let the power of resurrection work in your life. Be connected with Christ and taste the power of life hidden within him. That is what it means to be alive. You will come out of your personal slump.

We live in a difficult time. Economically it is not so good. Everything is so expensive but our economy is not any better. My brother told me that is called stagflation.

Personally you may face challenging times. But we can all come out of these slumps when we experience the power of resurrection. That is being alive. Sadducees never experienced the power of being alive. To them, the resurrection was just a ridiculous theory. For us, the resurrection is the living power. Be alive in Christ!

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