Who Do You Follow? What Will You Do?

Psalm 146

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!

2 I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.

3 Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.

4 When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.

5 Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God,

6 who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever;

7 who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free;

8 the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.

9 The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

10 The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord!

*Definition:  In this sermon, I will use the term "world." By Wold, I am NOT using the Old Testament definition of God's good creation.  I Am using the New Testament definition of the sinful forces that take form in God's creation that act against the will of God.

When you read John 3:16 "For God so loved the WORLD that He gave his only begotten son..." That means that God EVEN loves the unlovable. That is why God sent Christ into the world! That ANYONE who comes to faith has a place in the Kingdom of God!

“Where is Your Trust? What will You Do?”

Much of what this sermon says is not easy to hear (or read), but it is a message that needs to be heard (or read).  It is a message about faithfulness...The faithfulness of God and our response to that faithfulness.

Some Christians cry that Christianity is being persecuted in the USA. They may have a point - I've never met a holiday that uses a "Holiday Tree" except for Christmas, in that case, why wouldn't we call it a Christmas tree.  This may not be the best example because it seems trivial in comparison to severe persecutions where people are chastised and even disowned for coming to the Christian faith.  That, however is not limited to America. That happens all over the world.  

    Compared to the sufferings of other areas of this world, the persecution of Christianity in America is little more than a flesh wound.

·    Few if any people in the US are killed for being Christian, and it is not done on a systematic basis.  In other nations, that is not the case.

o  In Saudi Arabia if you convert from Muslim to Christianity, you can be killed

§  I am NOT saying there are not Good and Peaceful Muslims in the world who recognize our common Abrahamic roots.  I AM saying that in Saudi Arabia that persecution is the case.

o  In Israel, Palestinian Christians are looked down upon.  The first Christians ever were the Palestinian Christians. In the Book of Acts, the first converts were inhabiting the land now called Israel and Palestine.

*  Not all Palestinians are Muslim and yet the land and lives of ALL Palestinians are always in danger by the Israeli Government.

§  That is not to say that all Jewish people or Israeli People are anti-Christian – just in that particular case, they lump Palestinians into 1 group for security risk case, and many well meaning and peaceful individuals get hurt in the process.

Instead, in the USA, we tend to focus on how our individual rights are violated and some people attribute it to a “War Against Christianity”

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     It may be that individual rights are violated, but Christianity was never about Individual Rights.

·      In God’s Eyes, we don’t have “rights.” According to God, we don't have the "right" to "Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness." Instead, we have abundant gifts that only God Gives.

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   Biblically, God’s promises are to communities of believers. In the Old Testament, God's promises are made to the community of Israel.  In the New Testament, the promises are made to all believers. Only in very specific cases does God make promises to individuals who carry out a special role, such as the prophets.

Americans are good at turning Christianity into a political party – Both Democrats and Republicans do this equally well – Not one party is innocent, nor is one party completely guilty.  The truth of the matter is that  God is NOT a Republican or a Democrat, and our Faith should always come before our Party affiliation.

As the Psalm says – Don’t put your trust in Mortals/Princes/Political Figures – When their breath departs (or when their term ends), so do their ideas – BUT, God’s plan will never die!  Look at all the presidents we've had - How many have kept all of their promises.  I can think of a whopping "0." But yet, people put their faith in politicians. And if actions speak for belief, one would think that many people have more faith in their earthly leaders than in God.

Faith in God is contrary to what the world tells us:

·      * God tells us to put self interest second to communal interest (What is best for God’s Reign vs. What is best for me?).  When we make decisions, we make decisions for the common good, not just what is individually good for "me."  We have to ask ourselves, "how does this choice advance or hinder God's plan?" 

·  *We may have to endure a hardship that we can bear so that others will benefit.  Feeding the homeless is not convenient.  We leave the comfort of our own homes, but yet we are answering a call from God. Ministering to prisoners can be scary, but some are called to that ministry.  Most prisoners will be released, and if we can get them to know Christ, when they become our literal neighbor, all of us benefit.

·   *We are charged to speak the truth in love to people who are unlovable. There are A LOT of unlovable people out there! We are to love everyone - even the unlovable.  That in itself is a task because we all know someone who is difficult if not impossible to love.  But as Christians, we are called to speak the truth IN LOVE to them.

·      Most of all, we are charged to get out of our church pews and DO SOMETHING. If we don’t, we are practical atheists - people who say we believe in God but do nothing about it - and a waste to God’s Kingdom.

o  To find what you are called to do, you MUST approach God in prayer and discernment. God will answer, but you must pray and be willing to listen.  God will lead you on paths you've never expected.  God may keep your call the same, or it may change. God works differently for different people.

Little of what I said is popular, but God is not popular. God is necessary.  But, how can we expect the world to know about God if we don’t tell them? We can’t approach 2013 problems with a 1950 attitude.  Things will not go back to the way they were…ever.

·      We can help others realize God’s necessity one person or one group at a time, but that only comes through engagement. So, do you go to church to be fed? Or are you going to be nourished so you can do something for God?