[Propertalk] Fwd: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Easter 3C

[joeparrish]

Forwarded:

From my Android phone on T-Mobile. The first nationwide 4G network.

-------- Original message --------
From: Judy <judy_boli at ecunet.org> 
Date:04/10/2016  10:47 AM  (GMT+09:00) 
To: Propertalk <propertalk.topic at ecunet.org> 
Subject: [propertalk.topic] Sermon for Easter 3C 

Dear Friends,

 

This Sunday’s sermon is entitled “God So Loved the World” or “Eternity- Smoking or Nonsmoking?” and deals with all the lessons.  Here it is:  

 

Do you remember the story of the kindergarten teacher who asked her students, “What is the shape of the earth?”  One little girl raises her hand.  “Yes, Sally, what is the shape of the earth?”   Says the child, “According to my daddy, it's terrible, because he cusses every time he watches the news on TV.”  Jesus would agree.  John 3: 16-17 reminds us- “God loved the people of this world so much that he gave his only Son ….God did not send his Son into the world to condemn its people, but to save them.”  The thought for the week also fits in to this idea- “How will you spend eternity -- Smoking or Nonsmoking?” (Anonymous)  This morning I’d like us to focus on evangelism- bringing other people to Jesus through his church, because we’re not just thinking of how we ourselves will spend eternity- heaven or hell; but how our friends and loved ones will spend eternity and what kind of life they will have right now.  Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life…Without me, no one can go to the Father” (John 14:6), and we have to take him seriously.  Two of our Bible lessons give us insights into what Jesus expects of us when he tells us to “Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do everything I have told you” (Matthew 28: 19-20).  We just heard “why.”  Our gospel lesson tells us “who” and our lesson from Acts about the conversion of St. Paul tell us “how.”

 

We’ll start with the Gospel and “who.”  Does anyone know that old children’s song- “I Will Make You Fishers of Men” (or People if we’re trying to be nonsexist)?  Those fish Jesus helped the disciples catch represented people- all kinds of people.  How do I know that?  Because in Jesus’ day, people thought there were 153 different kinds of fish in the world, so the 153 fish represented all the different kinds of people that existed on this planet.  In other words, here was one more instance of Jesus trying to impress on his disciples (and us) that when he said “Go to the people of all nations,” he meant EVERYBODY.  So when you start thinking about whom you can invite to church, don’t worry about race or age or money or health or schooling or past mistakes or anything.  If they’re breathing and human- they qualify!  Try to get them to church to be saved and discipled.

 

The Bible lesson from the book of Acts tells us “how.”  Ananias had one of the most dangerous jobs possible at that time- allowing a known terrorist to go to his house so he could cure him of his blindness.  Paul had been going from town to town torturing and killing Christians, yet Ananias trusted God enough to obey him.  What can we learn from Ananias?  Some kinds of evangelism are one-time efforts that take a lot out of you- like a sprint in track.  Paul, on the other hand, shows us the other “how”- the evangelism effort that is like a marathon.  You stay at it and at it and at it.  You find different ways over the years of inviting someone to church, and one day- it works.

 

Last, let’s look at the focus God expects us to use for His Kingdom work.  I’d like to close with a story you heard a while ago, so if you remember it- you’ve got a good memory.   A ten-year-old boy was failing math. His parents tried everything from tutors to hypnosis, but to no avail. Finally, at the insistence of a family friend, they decided to enroll their son in a private Roman Catholic school. After the first day, the boy's parents were surprised when he walked in after school with a stern, focused and very determined expression on his face, and went right past them straight to his room, where he quietly closed the door. For nearly two hours he toiled away in his room - with math books strewn about his desk and the surrounding floor. He emerged long enough to eat, and after quickly cleaning his plate, went straight back to his room, closed the door, and worked feverishly at his studies until bedtime. This pattern continued ceaselessly until it was time for the first quarter report card. The boy walked in with his report card -- unopened -- laid it on the dinner table and went straight to his room. Cautiously, his mother opened it, and to her amazement, she saw a bright red "A" under the subject of MATH. Overjoyed, she and her husband rushed into their son's room, thrilled at his remarkable progress. "Was it the nuns that did it?” the father asked. The boy only shook his head and said, "No." "Was it the one-on-one tutoring? The peer-mentoring?" "No." "The textbooks? The teachers? The curriculum?" "Nope," said the son. "On that first day, when I walked in the front door and saw that guy they nailed to the 'plus sign,' I just knew they meant business!"  (jokeswarehouse.com)

 

My friends- God meant business when he sent his Son; and Jesus meant business when he said to go to the people of all nations and make them his disciples.  May God bless us as we take him and his expectations seriously.

 

For anyone who is interested, this sermon and updated African-American wisdom statements are posted on our parish’s web site under “Sermons & Stuff”. The address is: http://www.stpaulsepisag.org .

 

Blessed preaching,

Judy Boli

St. Paul's Episcopal Church

Saginaw, Michigan

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