December 27, 2009

2009 12 27-

You're Putting Me On (originally 2006 12 31)

1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26;

Psalm 148
Colossians 3:12-17

I love myself.  Now I am not trying to say that I am full of myself, but I love what God has made me.  Do you love yourself?  Do you love the way God has made you?  I do love myself.  I am 5' 4" tall, and that is just fine with me.  Would I be different if I were taller?  Certainly.  Would make me a better volleyball player?  Probably.  Would it make me a better person?  No.  God made my physical build just right. 

Now, it hasn't been easy being short...I mean...vertically challenged.  Hanging around with much taller people, I always sat in the back seat...and occasionally I even rode in the trunk.  I have heard most of the short jokes out there, and they don't bother me.  One thing that does bother me is buying clothes.  Did anyone get any clothes for Christmas?  I remember a couple Christmases ago, I was desperate for new jeans.  At the time, I had maybe 2 pairs of jeans, and one of them was coming apart at the seams...literally. 

I had asked Santa for some new jeans, but I really dreaded the whole thing.  Again, God made me just right, but I also know when I look in the mirror,  that he has a sense of humor.  You see, my size does not exist.  The shortest pants you can get at a store usually have a 30" inseam.  Well, that's too long for me.  Then I found out that Carhartt offers jeans with a 28" inseam.  On my way back from Columbus one day, I stopped at the Anderson's to see if they had any in this size.  They did.  I was so excited, that I was just going to grab a couple of pairs, slap them on the credit card and head out the door.  You know that's a bad idea, right?  Never buy things that are on your Christmas list, right?  Well, anyway, I thought that I would try them on so I could make a proper report to Santa. 

I was so happy..  I was going to finally find pants...in a store...that actually fit me!  I might have even broken into a little Hallelujah chorus.  Then I tried them on, and guess what?  They were still...too...long.  It wasn't even close.  They were still 2" or 3" too long.  Of course, I didn't buy any, and under the Christmas tree I found 3 new pairs of jeans.  And like every pair of pants I have owned in the last 35 years, I had to have them shortened.  I had to.  It was either that, or just go without pants...and no one wants to see me running around without pants.

In our Old Testament passage this morning, we see a young Samuel ministering with Eli the priest.  If you remember, Hannah, his mother had been barren.  She prayed to the Lord that if he would give her a son, that she would give that son back to God.  She sent Samuel to live with Eli, and he would be raised as a priest of Israel.  Samuel was a boy and like all children, he grew.  So each year, when it came time to bring the annual sacrifices to the priest, Hannah would bring him a new robe. 

In verse 26, we read "the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the LORD and with men."  Samuel was growing in spirit as well as in flesh. In the priesthood, it was understood that your sons would follow you, but Eli's sons were wicked.  They mistreated the people and stole from the Lord's sacrifices.  Eli's and his son's could not be trusted to care for the spiritual needs of the people.  God was growing Samuel to be the one who would lead Israel. Hannah brought Samuel robes to clothe his body, but the Lord was clothing his heart and preparing him for great works

3:19-21 The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD.  The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.

God was with Samuel.  And if you go back and read the first couple of chapters in 1 Samuel, it says that it was rare for the Lord to be with people.  Samuel had the Lord come to him in his sleep.  The Lord spoke to Samuel and gave him visions.  As a prophet of God, he was definitely a rarity in his time.  But through Christ and the Holy Spirit, we can be in constant communion with God.  Jesus came as Emmanuel...God with us.  The spirit came at Pentecost and remains with us today.  Jesus came that all may know him. 

Take a look at our passage from Colossians 3:11-12.  Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.  Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

Jesus tore down the things that tear us apart...things such race, gender, nationality.  Jesus came that all may know him, and the world will know us as his followers...as his disciples, by the way we are clothed...clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  It is through the actions of our hands that people will know the attitudes of our hearts.

In looking at the rest of this passage, Paul tells us four more ways in which the people around us will be able to tell if we are Christians...or not.

1.    The forgiveness of Christ.  Paul says to ^13b Forgive as the Lord forgave you. We are to forgive others as Christ has forgiven us.  Every time we pray the Lord's Prayer, we pray that he will forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.  Forgiveness cannot be one way.  You cannot hold grudges, and you must not withhold forgiveness from others.  We cannot expect to have forgiveness extended to us when we ourselves will not forgive others. 

2.    The love of Christ-love is the glue that holds our lives together.  We love God.  Our love of God binds us to him and to each other.  We are one.  We are the church.  We are the fellowship of believers.   But it is our love for others for those outside of the church that shows God that our love for him is real.  It is easy to love your friends and family.  The love of Christ must always be extended to those who are outside...to those who are marginalized... to those who are tough to love.  Because before we knew the forgiveness that Jesus offers us...we were on the outside too.

3.    The peace of Christ-¹⁵ Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.  If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Lord and savior, you have no forgiveness.  And without forgiveness, there can be no peace in your life.  But we who know Christ.  We, who have confessed our sins.  If we have taken off the old self and put on the new self...clothed with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience...we have a peace that the world cannot understand.  It is not just a brief, warm, fuzzy moment with God, or the occasional feel good moment at church.  We are to let his peace RULE!  His peace is not the exception, but the RULE...in our hearts!  And for that we must always be thankful to the Lord.  Why do you think we worship on Sundays?  We are here to praise and thank him for all that he does in our lives.  But the peace of Christ allows us to be thankful everyday and all the time.

4.    The word of Christ-another part of us joining together on Sundays is growing in the word.  The word of Christ is to be planted in our hearts and watered daily.  It takes root in our lives and guides us.  But I have to admit. We have become a rather thin-skinned bunch, we Christians.  If anyone sees us doing something we shouldn't be doing and wants to confront our sinful behavior...oh no no!  You can't do that!  The word is to be taught and to be learned and to be used to correct our brothers and sisters when they wander.  But a lot of people are not in the word enough to know what it says about this or that.  Christians are to know and to live the word of Christ. 

We must be...we must be people of forgiveness, love, peace, and the word because of the last thing I want to mention today...the name of Christ.  ¹⁷ And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

5.    The name of Christ-We call ourselves Christians.  We identify ourselves, and we are identified by the name of Christ. Above the name of the pastor, the congregation, or the denomination, we are identified as followers of Jesus Christ, and our words and actions reflect on him.  We may call ourselves by his name, but if we do not forgive as he forgave, love as he loved, share peace with the world, or live according to his word, then we are hypocrites.  We are two-faced in the eyes of the eyes of the world, and our God is a fake.  If you are a Christian in church, but the meanest most hateful son of a gun once you go out those doors, then please do not call yourself by his name.  Do not call yourself a Christian if you are not willing to walk the walk.

I had wanted to call this message Naked Christians, but I had to change the name of it.  Not because I thought that someone would complain about the title, but because it is a contradiction of terms.  If we are not clothed with Christ...if we are not showing the love he showed and living the life he lived...the life that he calls us to live...then are we Christians?  I say that we are not

Some of you might be thinking...Ah, come on, Pastor Scott.  None of us love and forgive others as well as we should.  To say that we are not Christians...you're putting me on, right?   No, Christ calls out to us all... You're putting me on.  People should look at us and see Christ.  They should be able to look into our lives and see the God who lives in us.  I know it is not easy.  The world seems to look at Christians very closely.  They have their magnifying glasses out, examining all that we say and do...waiting for us to fall. The world is waiting for us to slip up even the slightest bit, so they can laugh at us and try to cut us down to size. 

It is not easy because we're not perfect.  And while we are not perfect...we strive toward perfection, taking off the masks and falsehood and by surrendering ourselves to Jesus more and more each day.  Thankfully, we are not saved by our deeds, but by our faith.  It is through faith that we become God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved.  Because we believe, he will make us new and clothe us in himself, so that our lives will bring glory to him.

¹⁷ ...whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.