The Jesus Creed, Part Two

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Sunday sermon from Oak Grove United Methodist Church, Broxton, Ga.

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Sermon from Broxton United Methodist Church, Sunday, July 5, 2020.

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"Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sins against us." - Luke  11: 4  

The forgiveness we are called to exhibit as Christ's disciples is  radical. It’s the kind of forgiveness that people don’t understand. It  baffles them. It doesn’t make sense to them to forgive the unforgivable.  Our default position is to be self-righteous, to seek revenge, and to  harbor resentments; but that’s not the way of Jesus.   

Like our own justification before God, the forgiveness we are called to  live out isn’t based on merit, and it isn’t based on what we think one  deserves or doesn’t deserve. It is based on grace and grace alone.  

This is the upside-down way of the Kingdom of God that we are called  into as residents of that kingdom on Earth. It is precisely this kind of  forgiveness that has brought about true healing and true change  throughout history time and time again.

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"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were  harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." - Matt. 9: 36  (NIV)  

“Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into the places of  pain, to share in brokenness, fear, confusion, and anguish. Compassion  challenges us to cry out with those in misery, to mourn with those who  are lonely, to weep with those in tears. Compassion requires us to be  weak with the weak, vulnerable with the vulnerable, and powerless with  the powerless. Compassion means full immersion in the condition of being  human.” - Henri Nouwen  

Do people see compassion when they see us? 

Do people think of compassion  when they heard the words “Christian” or “Christianity?”  

Do we reflect compassion in our words and actions? What about our  opinions? What about our internet presence?  

Do we feel drawn to get involved with the needy and the suffering or  would we really rather let someone else do that?  

Do we enjoy our general comforts and lifestyles more than the thought of  giving and living sacrificially for the benefit of people created in  the image of God?  

Why does compassion matter? Because it matters to Jesus, and it’s who we  are as those called to reflect the Kingdom of God on Earth as it is in  Heaven.

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We in the Church have, very oftentimes, bought into and sold a short-sighted version of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Salvation extends  far beyond simply getting our ticket into heaven .   

Baptist theologian and philosopher Dallas Willard put it like this: “The problem is that we have been obsessed with this idea that the real issue is 'making the cut' to get to heaven. We have taken the discipleship out of conversion….Salvation is not an event - it is a life. It is not just forgiveness and a 'ticket to heaven' - it is an interactive life with God, participating now in what Jesus is doing on  earth."  

The gospel is so much bigger than our individual justification before  God. It is the whole, complete story of Jesus - his birth, his life, his  teachings, his death, his resurrection, his ascension, and his invitation to join him in subverting the ways of the world and joining  him to reveal God’s kingdom on Earth.

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As we remember on Pentecost Sunday the outpouring of the Holy Spirit and we pray for the renewal and revival of Christ’s Church, let us also seek another revival: a renewed knowledge of our Biblical call to seek justice and reconciliation, to call out oppression, and to take the steps necessary to identify and fight against all forces of evil.   

Sin is not only those things we do that are in conflict with God’s perfect will, but also the things we fail to do when we know better. The author of the Book of James writes, "Whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin." (James 4:17)  

Too often, the Church of Jesus Christ has turned a blind eye to the reality of racism in our communities and, yes, even inside our churches. We have turned blind eyes to injustices all around us, and we have turned blind eyes to the continued oppression of all kinds of individuals and groups on the margins of society who are unable to speak up for themselves, much less take action.  

Through God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit, may we be silent no more.

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John's gospel recalls an exquisite prayer by Jesus on the night before He died in which the Messiah pleads that He and God will be glorified through the work about to be done on the cross. Following, he intercedes in prayer on behalf of His disciples and the Church.   

As Christians, our primary work is prayer, and there is no greater model to follow than Christ himself.   

So, how would you rate your prayer life today? Do you communicate in a two-way conversation with God or do you, more or less, talk at Him? Is  your prayer life truly relational, and if so, do you find yourself being  more conformed in your heart to God's will as a result of it?  

If you feel like your relationship with God is lacking, maybe now is the  time to rekindle, or begin, an authentic and engaged discipline of  prayer.

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Jesus tells his disciples in the Gospel of John, "If you love me, obey  my commandments." This may seem like a tall order considering some of  Jesus's commandments call us to love our enemies, deny ourselves, and  love God and others with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.  

As Christians, however, we are filled with the very presence of God  through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, who advocates for us, endows  us with spiritual gifts, and empowers us to carry out the mission and  commandments of Christ.

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So much can be gleaned from the tragic, yet somewhat beautiful, story of  Stephen found in the Book of Acts. Here, we look at three lessons we  can learn from the narrative of this early Christian martyr and how we  can apply these to our lives today.

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