God’s Will, Our Purpose

By Dr. Sanejo Leonard

Responding to God’s call is not always easy, and there is never a “right” time to do so. Most good decisions requiring action and movement can be a struggle to finally settle, and one of the struggles we have is when to take action. Planning and preparation are always important. As the saying goes, “measure twice, saw once,” so decisions should be carefully evaluated and weighed out. However, our human nature and the second law of thermodynamics tend to work against us in the area of change, shifting direction, and forward movement.

God’s Will

Additionally, there are some decisions that don’t require much thought: show love, kindness, and care to others; love God and pursue spiritual growth; lastly, respond to God’s purpose and intention for your life. The last one becomes harder as it can be difficult to know what God’s purpose is for your life. The essence is that God’s will and calling for your life is to grow into Christ’s likeness so that you can become, through His careful sculpting and transformation of your character, the best version of you that He created you to be. God’s will for your life does not have to be mysterious and something you wait for years to understand. Simply and purposefully grow towards God and develop the personality, gifts, and talents He has given you.

God’s Calling

For some, God has called you to start businesses, create safe and healthy places for people to work and be productive in society. For others, God has called you to be creative and write, design, draw, and share musical and artistic beauty. To some, God has called you to vocational ministry and has equipped you to do so.

I finally embraced my call to ministry after several years of trying to understand how God had uniquely gifted and prepared me for vocational ministry. The calling grew stronger and stronger in my heart and mind in my junior year in college, and after several confirmations by professors who saw in me what I couldn’t as yet see in myself. There were gifts and talents God had given me that I couldn’t manufacture, and I knew at several points along the way that I was in the right place when I ministered to others and I felt a sacred sense of God’s presence that also resonated with the other person; when I preached and felt an unmistakable anointing coming over that I could not create on my own; when I taught my first college course at a Bible college on the importance of theology and Bible study and people were touched connected with the ideas on a deep and profound ways. These gifts came from inside, from the years of preparation as a young person through memorizing scripture and being engaged in my church and youth group, through the talents and personality God created me to have, and the years of education and ministerial training I received.

Our Purpose

Fulfilling our purpose requires preparation, education, training, and embracing the calling God has given to us. Being willing to embrace life’s challenges as part of our preparation, all of the education we have received or need to receive, and understanding our personality, our gifts, and the talents with which God has entrusted us—all are needed to help us step into our calling and purpose.

Our purpose in life is to respond to God’s specific and individual call for each of us, and then to embrace His collective will for all of us to grow into transformational Christlikeness.

I pray that each of you would lean into God’s purpose for your life, your calling, and His will for you.

Abiding in Christ in the Midst of COVID-19

By Dr. Sanejo Leonard

The past few weeks I have been meditating and practicing lectio divina on a familiar passage in Luke 13, the one where Jesus cries over Jerusalem in his desire to draw the city and its people back to himself. In reflecting upon that scripture, I was drawn to the start of the passage where Pharisees come to him and urge him to leave because Herod wants to kill him. Luke, ever the detailed writer, tips us off in dramatic fashion to the urgency in the narrative by writing “At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you [italics added]” (Lk. 13:31, NRSV).

Whether the Pharisees were trying to help Jesus, or this was a ploy to get him out of their city (probably the latter), the sense of urgency would cause any normal person to react: someone is trying to kill you, do something about it! Yet, Jesus was no “normal” person. While Jesus was both human and divine and struggled with many of the same human emotions we deal with, there was also a sense of calm deep within him, showing his ability to remain at peace despite the fear and anxiety that swirled around him (e.g., remember the story of Jesus asleep on the boat in the midst of the storm in Luke 8:23-25). Jesus’ frequent time spent with the Father in prayer (Lk. 5:16) seems to have contributed to his ability to respond to life’s challenges with a sense of calm rather than the temptation to react. Knee-jerk reactions often reflect ingrained habits, habits and parts of our character that have yet to be transformed into Christ’s likeness and Christ’s character.

Instead of reacting to the Pharisees and their attempt to cause fear, Jesus brings the focus back around to his mission and to others. It is from there that Jesus proceeds to express his sorrow over Jerusalem, desiring to gather her children together in a protective manner (Lk. 13:34), and as such, letting everyone know that his life was not his own; his life was meant to be lived and to die for others.

Jesus’ example shows us that our ability to weather our current storm of a global crisis is in our daily and frequent connection with God our loving Father, and the deep and abiding peace we will find from that relationship. As we grow in our ability to remain or abide in Jesus and his love, the fruit from that abiding will be our ability to love others (Jn. 15:5-12). The fruit will be our ability to respond from a well of peace rather than react from a shallow point of fear and anxiety. Our fruit will be responding with hope that only comes from a God who is bigger than our current crisis than a trust in human ability alone to fight this crisis. It is only when we learn to abide in Christ that our reactions change to thoughtful and peaceful responses because we are deeply rooted in Christ and his love (Eph. 3:17-18). Being the self-proclaimed “fraidy-cat” that I am, I need to remind myself of this practice as much as anyone.

May we this day, this week, and in this crisis learn to abide in Christ and find peace and calm there, and in turn, love and care for others to bring God’s light in the midst of this darkness.

Amen.

The Nature of Christian Ministry

By Dr. Gary Munson

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. (Colossians 1:24-28 ESV)

This passage from Paul’s letter to the Colossians explains the nature of Christian ministry. Here are some of the main points:

1. There is sacrifice involved: Christ suffered for the sake of His body and as ministers, we will also participate in that suffering. Does that mean there was something lacking in the work of Christ? Not at all, only that He left a portion of His work to be completed by the church, His body.
2. Paul describes ministry as “stewardship” which means we don’t own our ministry or calling, God is the owner. We are called to faithful participation with Christ in fulfilling that calling.
3. Ministry is given by God: I don’t choose ministry, God chooses us and our part is to respond to His choosing.
4. Ministry is not for me, it is for others.
5. Our ministry is to make God’s word fully know. Ministers are to teach and preach the whole counsel of God, not just the popular verses that get a lot of “Amens” from the crowd.
6. Making God’s word fully known involves revealing a mystery that was hidden by God but revealed through Christ. That mystery is revealed to His holy ones, not generally, and they in turn make the mystery known among the Gentiles. The meaning of the mystery is found in Christ.
7. The mystery is very valuable, in fact I would suggest, the most valuable thing anywhere, anytime.
8. The mystery is the meaning of “Christ in you.” Ministry is not about me, it is about Christ in me (us). (see John 15 about abiding in the vine)
9. The hope of glory: from the human point of view this glory is often understood as heaven, or the return of Christ, His millennial kingdom, or the new heaven and new earth promised in the Apocalypse. But this passage is talking about God’s purpose and His mystery, so if we ask, “what is the hoped-for glory from God’s perspective?” I suggest that it is the fulness of Christ in us. The character of Christ, the dedication of Christ to God’s purpose, the absolute surrender to the will of God, the power of God that reveals His kingdom, and the full manifestation of what it means to be a child of God.
10. How will this purpose come about? Through our proclamation (preaching), warning (prophecy), and teaching.
11. The final statement in this passage points to God’s purpose indicated in Greek by “ ἵνα παραστήσωμεν πάντα ἄνθρωπον τέλειον ἐν Χριστῷ. In order to present all people mature in Christ. Present to whom? God at the end of the age. Present whom? All peoples of all nations. What is meant by “mature?” this comes from the word τέλειον in Greek which means to attain one’s purpose.

My purpose is God’s purpose for me. All living things are intended to reach maturity but in this case, we need to ask what would God mean by that as opposed to a human understanding of “maturity.” Ephesians 4:11-13 explains God’s purpose as ministry working until all come to “maturity” which is then defined as, “attaining the fullness of Christ.”

I suggest that this purpose of God remains largely a mystery today. The church has most often translated God’s message, His purpose, into human terms and it has come out as “me going to heaven”, or “me being blessed,” or “me being powerful.” Those things can be good and God certainly does bless us, followers of Christ are certainly going to heaven and we absolutely can participate in His power. But if those concepts are viewed from within a purely human paradigm, they become selfish, ambitious, and lack the character of Christ revealed through suffering and sacrifice.

As Christian ministers it is our role to proclaim, warn and teach these things until all come to the fullness of Christ that is found in Him and is the meaning of the mystery, “Christ in you.” We have received a responsibility (stewardship) from God and He has chosen to fulfill His purpose through us.

Reflections of a Military Chaplain in COVID-19 Duties

By Dr. Page Brooks

I received a call that Mr. Norman had passed away. Mr. Norman was a Marine Corps veteran, Purple Heart recipient, and had fought on Iwo Jima during World War II.  He was 96 years old and passed away of COVID-19 complications in his nursing home. The problem was that because of COVID-19, no honor guard was going to be available to honor him at his funeral.

I have served for over 18 years as a chaplain in the Louisiana National Guard. I enjoy chaplaincy ministry because it is one of the ways I am able to get outside of the four walls of the church and do ministry in the community. Chaplaincy ministry is primarily based upon what is called “ministry of presence.” The phrase means that our ministry is primarily relational. We might go around and visit at a location or an institution where we serve as a chaplain and simply build relationships. In such a way, when something happens in their life, hopefully there is an open door for them to come to us for help.

As chaplains, we serve as a reminder of God’s love and presence to people during times of victory and trials. We are there to celebrate with them when things are going well, but also to be a presence when hard times come. Sometimes simply being present in a hospital room, saying nothing at all, but being a gentle reminder of God’s presence, can be just as powerful.

Chaplains are often able to go and do ministry where others are usually not. This is especially true in ministry contexts like the military. I have had wonderful adventures while serving in the Army National Guard but also walked through some very trying times with soldiers. I rode with “my guys” in convoy operations in Iraq. I have waded in water that was waste deep to pile sand bangs on levees during hurricanes in Louisiana. I sweated with them going through tactical operations in the woods. And I have provided comfort when we lost soldiers to suicide.

Most recently, during COVID-19, I have walked with my soldiers providing care to sick patients in the New Orleans Convention Center. My duties have involved making site visits to soldiers at the testing sites where members of the community may come to be tested. Some soldiers are packaging meals at area food banks to ensure individuals and families have food. I will usually provide a “word of the day” that I can share in about 45 seconds when soldiers gather around to be quickly encouraged. But I also conduct worship services on the weekend because soldiers, most of the time, are not able to go home. Sermons usually involve sharing a word of hope during long hours of duty, helping to provide a sense to them that in small ways they are making a difference in the community.

My chaplaincy ministry has taught me a great deal in the civilian pastorate as well. Chaplaincy has taught me to see my community as my “parish” just as I might see an institution as my “place of ministry” in chaplaincy. Chaplaincy has taught me to be quiet and listen when often, as a preacher, I just want to talk. I have learned that ministry by presence and action is just as important as ministry through words and preaching.

Serving at the funeral of Mr. Norman was an honor and privilege. I also play the bagpipes and have played Amazing Grace more times than I can remember. So, my way of honoring Mr. Norman was to show up in military uniform, play Amazing Grace on the bagpipes, and render the salute he was due when no one else was able to do it. But that action sums up what chaplaincy is all about. We are there to minister in the toughest of situations, providing a reminder of God’s love and comfort.

Mr. Norman, as a Purple Heart recipient and Iwo Jima veteran, deserved to be honored. But in this situation, the honor was all mine.

Essential Worship

By Pastor Melanie Francis

Scripture Focus: Micah 6:6-8

Central Thought: What does God require of you?

My third daughter was born on May 1, 2002. I remember calculating her graduation year and thinking how cool it would be to be the Class of 2020. We talked about that often through her years of schooling. When we greeted the New Year in January I heard countless messages proclaiming the year of perfect vision. I wanted to embrace that title, but it felt off. Three months time has brought much clarity to my hesitation. I now firmly believe this year will not be marked by perfect vision but by refocus. This pandemic has brought our world to a standstill, sending us home like we are all in “time out.” Even our houses of worship are closed. It brings us to the point of questioning, a point of re-evaluating, hopefully a point of refocusing our faith. This process of refocusing should cause us to ask, “What is essential to my worship?” and “What does God require of me?”

These are not new questions. Humanity has been asking them for generations and finding different answers, some right and some wrong. Consider Cain and Abel. They answered the same question differently. God honored one and corrected the other. Unfortunately, Cain did not respond well to that correction. My prayer is that we respond well to the correction or refocusing of our perceptions of worship during this season of individual and corporate reflection.

The Essence of Essential Worship

My husband and I have pastored for more than two and a half decades, which provides at least some context and experience with common perceptions of what God requires in worship. Many worship by performing religious duties such as attending church, singing in the choir, serving in the nursery, tithing, praying for others, teaching a class or small group; the list can go on and on. While all of these activities are good, and essential to the function of a church organization, they are essentially works flowing from our worship, not worship itself. This nuance can be easy to miss. In fact, James addresses it in James 2:14-26, so we can be assured this struggle is not new to followers of Christ. That doesn’t change the fact that our current worship paradigms have shifted significantly in this time of “sheltering in” requiring us to ask and answer the question again.

The Biblical Essence of Worship

Micah, an Old Testament prophet, asked the question as well. He struggled with the concept of essential worship in his culture. Of course the worship paradigm in Israel and Judah was different at that time. Instead of singing in the choir or writing a check, worshippers in Micah’s day brought a calf, dove, wheat, or oil to be offered as worship before the Lord. I guess it was a little more difficult in his day to “pass that plate.” Micah knew, through the prophecies that God had given him, that a time would come when his people would no longer be able to come to the temple and offer their worship. He struggled through these really important questions in Micah 6:6-8. What does God require? How can I worship him now?

Micah 6:6-8 What Does the Lord Require? 

6 “With what shall I come before the Lord,

    and bow myself before God on high?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

7 Will the Lord be pleased with [will the Lord accept] thousands of rams,

with ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”

8 He has told you, O man, what is good;

and what does the Lord require of you

but to do justice, and to love kindness, [steadfast love]

and to walk humbly with your God?

I love the answer Micah reaches. He realizes it doesn’t matter the size of the offering brought to the temple. God doesn’t care about a herd of rams or barrels of oil. He doesn’t even ask us to sacrifice our firstborn. God is not counting the hours we spend in a church building each week, monitoring our tithing to the penny, analyzing our fasting, or keeping a checklist of the ministries we lead. His concerns are different. What pleases God, what God requires, is different. According to Micah, God requires that I “do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with my God” (vs. 8).  Will this require some action from me? Yes. Do these activities need to be completed inside a church building? No, which is quite relieving since we cannot be inside a church building worshipping in our traditional, cultural expression right now. Knowing this allows me the freedom to continue worshipping while corporate gatherings are on hold.

Micah redirects his audience to consider what God really required of them. According to the prophet, God already told them what is good and they kept doing other things anyway. Did you ever wonder why? It seems the things God required were even harder to perform. It is so much easier to measure my time, sacrifices and gifts than to measure qualities like justice, kindness, and humility. It is easier to serve when someone organizes an event and tells me where to go and what to do, and of course, it doesn’t hurt if it is fun and I get to spend time with people I like. This isn’t bad, but in this season of refocusing, I will need to be more intentional with my personal worship.

Essential Worship in 2020

How can I apply this right now, in 2020, during my coronavirus isolation? How can I worship in a way that God requires while obeying the directives of my state? Do Justice:  do I have any responsibility to the elderly and weak around me? How are my actions (hoarding, going out, gathering) impacting those around me? Is it right that people should endure poverty due to this illness? What about the businesses that will close or the families who will lose their homes? What can I do about this? Love Kindness: ask, how am I acting toward the people in my home? What about the people in my neighborhood? Am I serving anyone beside myself right now? Walking Humbly with God: ask, am I relying on God’s leading right now? Am I following him? Am I sure I have all the answers? Am I willing to accept a change in my plans? It’s Your Turn: How are you applying this right now? Justice: what are you doing to establish justice? Kindness: how are you demonstrating kindness? Walking humbly with God what does it look like for you to walk humbly with God?

Does this mean I won’t return to my Sunday worship routine when the shelter in place is lifted? Of course not. Corporate celebration of God’s goodness and Christ’s sacrifice are an important expression of my faith. Serving in my Christian community allows me to be more effective; my works united with the works of others bring synergy as we labor together to proclaim the kingdom of God is near. Learning together with others sharpens me and the other Christians with whom God has surrounded me to share in life and faith. This is all good, and perhaps a separate blog.

Next in Series: Essential Faith, Essential Community

Compassion, Not Sacrifice: Same Mission, Different Strategy

By Dr. Brandon Kertson

I have been reflecting on Jesus’ words in Matthew 9:13, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire compassion and not sacrifice.’” Sacrifice spoke of the dominant system of worship of the day. People followed the system thinking it is what pleased God. An orchestration of religious acts that served to help people feel secure in their standing before God.

Jesus rarely just speaks words, rather he also lives them out. In the next series of stories after Matthew 9:13, there are numerous miracle stories where the marginalized are included, the strangers are welcomed, and the poor are empowered. First, Jesus heals a woman with a hemorrhage (Matt 9:20-22). This hemorrhage made this woman economically poor because it ran up her doctor’s bills. It made her poor in spirit because she would have been perpetually unclean and unable to enter the temple to participate in sacrifice (Lev. 15:19-30; 21:20). Finally, it would have made her socially marginalized because touching other people or being intimate with a lover would have made them unclean as well. Jesus has compassion on her, heals her and she is restored. Next, Jesus heals two blind men and next a mute demon-possessed man who have similar holistic needs that are met by Jesus’ compassionate healing touch. Jesus goes outside of the constraints, outside of the normal way of doing things and meets these individuals where they live, because they would never have been allowed in the halls of worship.

A summary text in verse 36 brings the word compassion back into purview telling us that when he saw these marginalized, he felt compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. It was this feeling of compassion for the holistic distress of the forgotten that led Jesus to say to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but workers are few. Therefore, beseech the Lord of the harvest to send workers into his harvest.” This context gives whole new meaning to what these workers are supposed to be doing in this oft quoted mission passage!

Why am I writing this blog at this moment at this time?

I am sure you have been as inundated with covid-19 news as I have. News and the expectations of daily life have been changing on an hourly basis. In the midst of the chaos our rallying cry should be: our strategy changes, but our mission does not. The original goal of the sacrificial system was to connect people with God, but when it had served its usefulness, people were slow to move to new strategies to fulfill God’s mission of reconciliation.

Perhaps we have been too in love with our systems of worship rather than trying to extend compassion to people in need through other strategies. Many churches have been employing new strategies to move church online during this pandemic, but my fear is that we are simply moving the same system of worship to a new environment and not asking, “How do we meet the needs of people that are hurting, excluded and alone?” Rather we are simply asking, “How do we keep people coming?”  During this time of crisis, we need to find new ways to minister and my prayer is that it will help us to learn what God means when he says, “I desire compassion and not sacrifice.” May we be challenged during this season to not get caught up on a specific methodology as being pleasing to God, but a true heart of worship – compassionate obedience that leads to transformed lives and transformed communities.

Endurance

Dr. Bill Oliverio

“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Romans 15:4-6

The quarantines and sheltering-in-place as we face the medical and financial challenges that the virus is causing across the globe are no longer new experiences, at least for most of us now. The realities are already setting in. At this time, over 1.5 million cases have been identified worldwide, and deaths are nearing 100,000, though no one really seems to know the actual extent or fatality rates at this point since even the best epidemiologists are making educated guesses as to how many undiagnosed or unreported cases there are.

As the realities are setting in, folks are responding in different ways, with more assertive and passive tendencies. Some are ready to move on and get life “back to normal” as soon as possible. While this tendency is helpful in the sense that it will take this kind of assertiveness to get social-cultural actualities to whatever the “new normals” will look like, it also can lead to an unrealistic sense that things will just snap back in a short amount of time, which will likely be quite disappointing and even dangerous. Others are more passive and are feeling despair. For some, this is a time to just crash or insulate, though complying with the distancing mandates is, of course, an honorable and right thing to do. Even more so, many are entering into what psychologists call “learned helplessness,” as a psychologist friend of mine noted to me recently, where resignation turns into lack of personal agency to do what they can to make things better.

There is reason to be hopeful about the long-term future. Yet the moment now, in mid-April 2020, is one of endurance, courage, discipline, and wisdom in the middle of this tribulation.

The word that Paul uses in Romans above that is translated for us as “endurance” has the connotations of “holding steady” or “stay centered” or “don’t break apart.”

That is a good word for us right now. It reminds me of how important holding steady can be in moments of difficulty. An example from my own life experience might illustrate this.

When I was home from Bible college one summer, I decided it was a good idea that I would throw my Bible and some books in my backpack and climb to the side of a ravine in an urban park where I grew up, an area I knew very well, and prepare a sermon for my church youth group. Quaint idea. Except that it had recently rained and the side of the ravine was muddy.

I made it up from one side, and, not heeding better judgment, I kept going, realizing that I was getting myself in a worse and worse position. I ended up a good 60-100 feet up the side of a muddy ravine and in a place where I was at a very difficult slope, and still maybe 50 feet below the top of the ravine and in a very muddy spot. At that point, I realized something. If I slip, I may die, will likely break multiple bones, and perhaps become paralyzed. No one was around. I had a decision to make, and I thank God that he graced me with calm at that moment.

I needed to “hold steady” and “stay centered” and “not break apart.” I took a deep breath, smooshed myself into the side of the muddy ravine, and stayed calm. I plotted the best way out. It was up. I could not slip. I knew that 80-90% of the time I could do this without slipping, but that 10-20% chance was real. I needed to make that 80-90% a reality, and thus very much needed to concentrate. Over the course of the next 15 minutes, then, I carefully plotted and made my way to the top of the hill. There were a few moments where my heart nearly rattled out of my chest, but I still stayed calm. I had to make a few adjustments along the way, but calm thinking helped me find the way out. I have lived to tell this story. The Cleveland Plain Dealer, my local newspaper, didn’t have to run a short story on 15B of the Metro section titled something like “Bible College Student Kills Himself on Sermon-Prepping Hike.”

As I got to the top of the ravine, I felt relief. I came out in a backyard where some adult was doing yard work. I can’t remember the specifics, but I can remember the feeling that I had no shame for looking what may have looked odd and silly to that person. I can’t even remember if it was a man or woman now, as it was over 20 years ago. At that point, I just didn’t care. I lived. I wasn’t laying at the bottom of the ravine paralyzed and broken desperately hoping that someone would find me. I wiped the mud off of my face and the front of my body, and, literally soiled up, I hiked safely along the sidewalks back home.

I endured. I was able to “hold steady.” I “stayed centered.” I “did not break apart.”

The tribulations we are all going through during this season call for us to “hold steady,” to “stay centered,” to “not break apart” here. Almost all of us have had some major life changes, at least temporarily. Others of us have lost jobs and are facing fears or fears for others. Others, still, are sadly facing disease more directly. Yet others are facing emotional, financial, relational, or vocational losses, at least for the time being.

Calmness and centeredness in the face of adversity means getting outside of our own selfish interests and turning towards God’s gracious and never-ending supply of endurance. If our hearts continue to beat, and our lungs continue to breath, and our minds and neurosystems continue to operate, then God has given us another opportunity to endure and work towards the good of God’s world in this life.

So, let us hold steady in our homes as well as our necessary work and outings. Let us not freeze nor project unrealistic desires onto the realities we face. Let us stay disciplined in our actions so that we can calmly climb the side of our ravines.

No one can say when we’ll climb out of this, soiled up as we’ll be. Sooner or late we will. Right now, though, we’re still on the side of the ravine. So, stay steady and endure. And let the love and grace of God, and others, build up to encourage us in our endurance.

The Cross-Antidote for Idolatry

By Dr. Gary Munson

Dr. Gary Munson, SUM’s Chief Academic Officer, shared a powerful message at Chancellor’s Chapel on April 8, 2020. This serves as a timely reminder as we celebrate the atoning death of our Lord Jesus Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of all our sins and idolatry. Please take time to read the text of the full sermon below.

Today is Wednesday of the week approaching Resurrection Sunday. We are in the midst of one of the most unusual seasons of time for America and the world that we have known at least in our lifetimes.  There have been some comparisons between the current crisis and times of war, only in this case, war with a virus. However, in times of warfare the nation often will come together in a united effort against a common enemy, that seems not to be the case here. Political haggling, finger pointing, accusations and investigations continue. It seems to be preferable to find someone to blame more so than working together to find solutions. Yet, many are working together and seeking a way forward.

When David was first anointed king over Judah, some of those who came to Hebron were  “of Issachar, men who had understanding of the times, to know what Israel ought to do…” (1 Chron 12:32). We need men and women today who understand the times and know what the people of God ought to do.

The book of Daniel in the Bible tells of a time when his nation was suffering in captivity. During that season he sought the Lord and discovered in the scroll of the prophet Jeremiah that it had been predicted their captivity would be for 70 years. Realizing that that time was nearing its end, he knew what to do, he prayed.

Daniel 9: 2—5. In the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the world of the Lord of Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years. Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. I prayed to the lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules.

Reading the history of the Southern Kingdom and the invasion by Babylon leading to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, the story centers on idolatry and the worship of false Gods. While in captivity in Babylon, Ezekiel had a vision of the temple in Jerusalem. In his vision he saw in the spirit the temple in Jerusalem and the leaders and priests inside who were worshipping many false Gods (Ezekiel 8) .  Indeed, Israel’s captivity in Babylon was described in scripture and understood in intertestamental literature as the result of their sins and particularly the sin of idolatry. For the prophets such as Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel, destruction of Jerusalem and the temple was the consequence of turning away from the true God to worship idols.

To the modern mind, idolatry is an out of date concept. No one worships idols anymore, least of all modern, techno-Americans. In truth worship of idols is common both in other nations and in America as well. Physical idols are worshipped in many places and I have visited numerous such sites around the world. But the essence of idolatry is preferring something in our heart ahead of God. The truth is that the U.S. is one of the most idolatrous nations on earth.

But, of course, with our love of technology, we access our idols digitally: bank accounts and investments; social media fame; marketing ourselves and ministries; entertainment; sports and games. We are so brash we have even had a wildly popular TV show called, “American idol.” Idolatry influences culture and as Christians we live in and are influenced by the culture around us just like everyone else. Idolatry is insidious, it works its ways into hidden places of attitudes, priorities, and values. I remember working for a company many years ago managed by Christians but owned by a bank. My supervisor would from time to time make the statement, “There is a lot of money involved.” That indicated we were being asked to compromise our values.

America is a marketing culture, we are always selling something and all things have been commodified with a price tag attached. Marketing is about creating an appearance whether or not there is substance to that image. The church has adopted many marketing approaches to the way it operates as well. We seem to want to appear to be like the world, what is popular, and what people want. But no-one wants the cross of Christ, sacrifice is not popular or appealing. Yet without Christ on the cross there can be no resurrection.

In the early days of the Welsh revival, Evan Roberts led prayer meetings with groups of young people who shared their sins publicly, crying out to God in repentance and God answered by sending His Holy Spirit. Evan Roberts understood what Daniel understood, he understood the time he lived in and that the proper response was prayer, repentance, seeking God, and praying for mercy.

The antidote for the idolatry of the church is the cross of Christ. 

There seems to always be a segment of the church that opts to point the finger at the lost. Over my years in the church I have from time to time heard calls for judgment by Christian leaders and would-be prophets. I remember years ago hearing prophecies that San Francisco was coming under judgement because of all of its sin, and was about to have a great earthquake and fall into the ocean. Actually, according to those “prophesies” Las Vegas should be beach front property by now. Such prophets needed to learn the lesson of Jonah who deeply wanted Nineveh to be destroyed since it was the enemy of his own people. He sulked because they repented and thus God had mercy upon them. The word of the Lord came to Jonah telling him, “and should not I pity Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than 120,000 persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also much cattle?” Or to put it in the terms used by Abraham, far be it from God to destroy the righteous with the wicked (Gen 18:22-33).

Jesus loved the lost even unto suffering and death. Jesus did not make promises He did not deliver. He suffered and sacrificed for others. Jesus did not go to the cross to become God, he was already with God, an eternal member of the Trinity, before He came into the world. He was willing to suffer and sacrifice in order that those who believe in Him could also become children of God (John 1:12). Jesus interceded for the world. He did so by sacrifice. The church is called to be intercessors, not critics, to become vessels of mercy, not accusers. There is a choice to be made, we can intercede or we can criticize, but we cannot be both intercessor and critic.

It is not uncommon for the church to point our fingers at those who do not follow Christ and to blame them for current or impending calamity. But 1 Peter points in another direction when it records, “For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome of those who did not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17).

How much have we become a part of the culture around us. The Spirit cries out to the church to come apart and to be separated unto God (1Pet 1:15-16).

Jesus speaking to Peter in Matt 16:19 says, I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

For Protestants this has long been understood as authority being given to the church as a whole, and not Peter as an individual. Jesus says, “I will give you the keys of the kingdom.” We have been given the keys, we open or close we allow or we forbid. So why do we continue to look to the sin of the world? Honestly that is not the issue. When we open the door, evil will come in. If we close the door, we have the authority to keep it out. When evil enters, a seed has been sowed and a door has been opened. If the door is open, the ones with the key must have opened it!

The world does not have the keys… We are responsible? That is how Daniel prayed, and that is how we must pray.

It has been reported that David Wilkerson gave a prophecy in 1986 through a personal correspondence that certainly speaks to our time. “I see a plague coming on the world and the bars, church, and government shut down. The plague will hit New York City and shake it like it has never been shaken. The plague is going to force prayerless believers into radical prayer, into their Bibles and repentance will be the cry from true men of God in the pulpit. And out of it will come a third Great Awakening that will sweep America and the world.” —David Wilkerson 

“Prayerless believers” he says, isn’t that a contradiction in terms? How have we reconciled the two opposite terms of “prayerless” and “believer?” And yet, here we are, hardly shocked or disturbed with the idea that a believer might be prayerless. The people of God will return to prayer, the scripture, repentance and a true gospel will be preached. A gospel that calls us back to God,  a gospel that calls us to intercession, a gospel that calls us to sacrifice, the gospel of the cross. This message came through a personal communication and we have no public record of this prophecy, but it is consistent with what I think many of us are hearing in this hour. It is time for God to move again across this nation and across the nations.

There is no gospel without Good Friday, there is no gospel without the cross. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (I Cor 2:2). If the blood of Jesus speaks, what is it saying and what is He saying in this hour? (Heb 12:24) It is a moment that the Spirit is calling us to prayer, to fasting, to repentance and seeking God. It is a time to declare the truth of God, even unpopular truth. But before we speak, let us pray.

The Cross is the antidote to idolatry. If we suffer with Him, we will reign with Him. If we join in His death, we will also join in the power of His resurrection. If we cry out to Him, He will answer. If we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. If we intercede for our nation, revival will surely come…

Lord forgive us and cleanse us of our idolatry, we turn back to you and pray for mercy upon our families, our communities, our nation, and our world. “If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chron 7:14).