Sermon for North Hill Adventist Fellowship, November 5, 2011.
I will post the full manuscript later.
Matthew 4:12-5:2
The people sitting in darkness have
seen a great light.
Jesus called helpers then began
healing. People came from everywhere to be healed of everything. When
Jesus saw the crowds he sat down and taught them.
Religious dignitaries challenged Jesus'
disciples: “Why does your master eat with tax collectors and
sinners?”
Overhearing this, Jesus said, “It is
not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn
what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice.' For I have not
come to call the righteous, but sinners.” Matthew 9:12-13
Jesus went through all their towns and
villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news of
the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the
crowds he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and
helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his
disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask
the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his
harvest field.” Matthew 9:35-38
This is a a picture of our calling as a
church: To spread light. God does not call us to condemn sin, to
focus “dark beams” on behaviors and persons at variance with our
ideas of goodness. Instead we are called to shine the light.
Show the kindly affection of God to
your kids, your spouse, your employees, your neighbors, your in-laws,
your co-workers. Shine the light. Offer hope and help. Give affection and affirmation. Talk of grace and mercy. Teach wise and effective habits.
Shining light is, by far, the best way to deal with
darkness.
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2 comments:
Dear man of God, Holy Greetings to you from India in Christ Our Lord.I am Pastor from India. Your Writings are Wonderful.I and we pray to God That HE may Bless you Richly and abundantly. I pray to God That HE may use you until the ends of the Earth in His Glorious Service.
If it is God's will, Please Pray for me and for Our Ministries.
If it is HIS will,If you have any Direction from God, Please send an E.mail.
In Christ Alone
Listening to one of my young adult children wax eloquent on God and the world in general, I was impressed how much different the world of my children and grandchildren is from the world that my parents and grandparents knew. In ages past - and my heritage is pioneer homesteaders - it was accepted that the world was hard and not always friendly. If there was anything good in one's life they should be thankful to God and to their loved ones (and the ability to do hard work!). But some of my kids seem to think that the world should be "user friendly" and if there is bad stuff or bad people then God is to blame. Maybe part of that was that my parents and grandparents had to grow what they ate in their gardens - or pastures - or hunt... and they canned and sewed and built for themselves... These days we have food stamps and walmarts and laptops and I-Pods and cell phones and whatever. Even Google makes research and encyclopedias and such obsolete!The world has changed so much.
My life experience is as you wrote here - It is darkness until prayers and study and communion with God and others brings light and life and hope. Again you are "right on" in what you preach. I wonder how many - maybe even in our congregations - have not experienced that light and uplifting?
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By the way - when you do not post all of your sermon in a timely manner - it penalizes those of us who are too lazy or whatever to make it to church to hear your sermon in person! ;-) Maybe that is a commentary on the need to seek light and nourishment and not just expect others will automatically bring it to you!
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