LOVE THAT KNOWS NO END

Yesterday, I sat for awhile... and stared at a picture on the wall. It's a picture of our grandson, Archer, staring back at the world, and I could see nothing but joy in his eyes. His mother was holding him in her arms and her eyes sparkled with the same unfettered joy. It was compelling, and I couldn't turn away from its radiance.  As every preacher knows, while we only have one word for love in English, there are several words for love in the Greek language. "Agape" is something like God's love. It is far bigger than self and counts neither giving nor receiving. "Philia" (as in Philadelphia) is the love of friend for friend, and it can be very deep, even sacrificial. Eros is an intimate love, from which we get the word erotica. It is tempting to dismiss it as lust, but in truth...it, too, can be a powerful expression of deep feelings and true commitment. Then there is "storge," which is a general affection that people share when they are related in some way. There is room for all of these "loves" in our lives (although the latter three can be contaminated with self and sin)... but when I looked into Kendra's and Archer's radiant faces, I knew that I was being blessed with a love that I cannot even express. My heart filled with joy, my eyes watered a bit, and I knew for sure that I would do or give up anything for either one of them.

There are others who have touched my heart in depth as well. My wife, Sherry, our daughers, our granddaughters, and our little great-grandson, Donald, are at the top of this list. I rejoice when I hear their good news or see their smiles, and I'm burdened when they feel sad and troubled. It will always be so... because I love them in a way that I cannot find the words to express... and I find that time and distance do not diminish the depth of this sort of love. For instance, I haven't seen Donald since he was an infant, and I suspect that I won't see much of him as he grows up because he lives in North Carolina   ...but when I stare at his beautiful face and see his wonderful twinkling eyes, I love him with all of my heart and, even across three generations, I feel a "oneness" with him. In short, with people you truly love, their joy is your joy, and their pain is your pain. You can't take all of their pain away, or even make them happy by yourself, but like God, you will always be present to them. I can't imagine hurting any of them in any sense of the word!

It's been more than two years now since Sherry and I took our dog, Nikki, to the Vet. Her pain was non-stop and she was getting up in years, but still, I intially thought that we were making a routine visit. Until I found out it wasn't, that Sherry could know longer bear her suffering, and that it would be Nikki's last ride. When we arrived at the Vet's office, he conducted the same examination he had conducted a dozen times before, and when he finished, he reached the same conclusion: Nikki's condition was bad and would only get worse. So, the three of us went into a back room, and someone gave Nikki a shot, and she was quiet... as we held her. All three of us (Sherry, Nikki, and I) were down on the floor, and I remembered the times when she and I walked through the woods together in Michigan, and how she would run like the wind when I let her off the lease. I looked into her eyes, and I wanted to cry out, "Stop this. Right now! I will leave her here until the drug wears off, pick her up as I always do, and pay you for your time." But the Dr. came in and gave her a final shot. Her heart stopped and my heart broke. I looked into her eyes and my heart broke... at a depth that I didn't even know I had. Her face, though not as cute as Archer's and Donald's, was beautiful to me, and her eyes, though not as lively as theirs, contained the same inexpressible love that I saw yesterday, when I stared at the pictrure on the wall. 

Oh, the heights and depths of honest-to-God, no-strings-attached love. In English, I have only one word to use for "love," and I use it to say "I love ice cream," and "I love America." In Greek, I could use other words- some spiritual, some relational, some physical-  and in Hebrew, I could say, "I would die for you-ani met aleha," or "You are my soul-nishoma sheli." Actually, these do get at some of what I am trying to say... but they fall short. The sort of love that I have in mind "hangs on a tree and forgives." This, of course, is God's love... and I'm not claiming to reach that high. But more and more, I encounter a love that both surrenders and triumphs; that yearns to fly, but never alone; and laughs and cries when someone or something that is a part of it... is born or dies. Good bye, Nikki, and as for the rest of you, Poppy will be around for a while.

HOW MUCH FORGIVENESS DO YOU NEED?

SALIGIA. S-A-L-I-G-I-A. This is a clever mnemonic that helps us remember the 7 deadly sins… and if you were confirmed in the 14^th century, you would’ve learned that Superbia (pride), avaritia (greed), luxuria (lust), invidia (envy), gula (gluttony), ira (wrath), and acedia (sloth) are the seven deadly sins. Except for the 10 Commandments, the 7 deadly sins have framed the church's thinking about sin since the Middle Ages... and in a quest to discover if we're sinners ourselves, let's see if these ancient seven are still around. Pride is unreasonable and inordinate self-esteem and in my experience, it is pride, not guilt, which prevents people from accepting God’s grace. How many of you know someone who is filled with inordinate self-esteem? Greed is an insatiable desire to have more wealth. Consider Ebeneezer Scrooge. Consider the rich man in hell- the one who passed by Lazarus every day- but remember- greed is not having it all. It is wanting it all- so badly, that getting it justifies sins like lying, cheating, and many others. Lust is an intense feeling that knows no boundaries, and ever since Jesus said “Whosoever looks on a woman to lust has already committed adultery in his heart” (Mt. 5), we think of sex when we think of lust, although a person can lust after other things, such as your neighbor’s house or oxen (Ex. 20:27).  Envy is a feeling of uneasiness, even mortification, when someone else receives honor, riches, or happiness... and by definition, it is suspicious and hostile to others. Do you know of anyone who would refuse to applaud if you won the lottery? Gluttony is eating too much, too extravagantly, or too eagerly… all of which suggest a lack of balance or self-control. Wrath is anger on steroids. It is forceful, often vindictive, and all-consuming... but all of these sins want all of us. Rather than being a little bump on an otherwise smooth road, they lead us down a different road altogether. They set us... in opposition to God, and sloth is no exception. A slothful person may be lazy, apathetic, or bored, but for whatever reason… his service to others and his stewardship for God… is less that it should be. The 7 deadly sins. How many of us know someone who has been in the hands of one or more of them? And how many of us... would they know by name?

Well, in our quest to find out if we're sinners or not, let's consider the 10 Commandments, which could be summarized in this way. Thou shall worship God with all of your heart, mind, strength, soul, and with every fiber of your being… and never worship yourself or anything that exists in your world- not Wall Street, main street, the corner office, not even the NFL, and certainly not the Cubs- not even really good things, like family country, and church. God first, last, and everything in between- this is the greatest commandment. Have you ever fallen short of this standard?  Have you ever failed to honor His name or to keep His Sabbath day sacred? The second part of God's commandments deal with family and neighbor, and the love and respect we show them. Honor your father and mother. Keep your hands and thoughts off your neighbor and his things. Do not murder, steal, commit idolatry, bear false witness, or covet what he has! Well, it's not easy to keep these commandments, is it? Of course not, and, and apart from God's grace, it's not even possible to fulfill these commandments... but I get ahead of myself... and there are other sins to consider, like the list of the things that God hates, from Proverbs (6)- a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plots, feet that are swift to run into mischief, a deceitful witness that utters lies, and a man who sows discord among his brother and sisters. Have you ever told a lie, been involved in a scheme to hurt someone, engaged in gossip, sown discord in a community… deliberately?  Who among us has never committed any of these sins? 

Still, there are more sins to avoid. At one time or another, and in differ places, the church has considered the following behaviors to be sins. How about you? Homosexuality, girls in low-cut tops and mini-skirts, dancing, rock music, adult movies, movies period, wearing blue jeans to church, wearing blue jeans to golf, smoking, drinking, swearing, voting Democrat, having a beard, voting Republican, waging war, letting pedophiles and other deviants out of jail, nonfat foods, flirting, fantasizing, wealth, and poverty? In a recent poll by Gallop, Americans ranked sins, and here are the top five: #5 pornography, #4 suicide, #3 cloning humans, #2 polygamy, and #1… adultery! They also thought that divorce, gambling, stem-cell research, and Dr.-assisted suicide were prominent sins, although not at the top.

Well, how about it? Have you committed any of the sins we've mentioned? Are you a sinner, and if so, are you as bad as other people? In the 18th chapter of Luke's gospel, we encounter two men, both of whom are praying in the temple. One of them is a well-respected Pharisee, who offers a prayer of gratitude, thanking God that he, himself, is not a sinner. The other man is a despised tax collector, who offers a prayer that is little more than a plea for mercy. The text invites us to identify and join with one of these two men. Indeed, it insists that we do because, if we are to encounter God at all, it must be as a righteous man... or as a person in need of grace. One or the other. When we offer our prayers of confession, we will offer the prayer of a grateful non-sinner... or the words of a sinner in need of grace. One or the other.

Let's close with one of two prayers. If you don't consider yourself to be a sinner, or if you feel that your sins are less serious than those committed by other people, let the words of Luke 18:11 be your prayer: Lord, I thank you that I am not like those here today who have committed adultery or gotten a divorce. I am neither a pedophile nor a glutton… but if, in some small way, I have inadvertently disappointed you, I seek your understanding. Amen.  However, if you have sinned in some, many, most, or all of these ways- and are, in fact, a sinner- join the tax collector (Luke 18:13) and say this prayer with me: God, have mercy on me. I am a sinner, and I’ve been a sinner throughout my life. I love you, Lord, but apart from your grace, I will never see your face. I cannot save myself- so, I put my trust in Christ Jesus, who has already saved me on Calvary’s Hill. I put my trust in Him, Holy God, knowing that, in Him, I am reborn and free. May I continue to grow in my faith; may I continue to serve you in more and bigger ways, and may I never forget… that I am saved by grace… and grace alone. Amen.

A LOVE NOTE TO MY WIFE

This is Saturday, October 19, and Sherry is taking a nap on our couch. Since she has Multiple Myeloma, she takes frequent naps... but she looks especially at peace today. Yesterday was her 68th birthday, and it was a good day for her. She heard from her "kids," and received a lot of cards and FB messages. I earned some points with the card I selected, not to mention the candy and a nice dinner at a new Indian restaurant in town.

I had coffee and lamb. She had wine and chicken, and we talked about her journey with cancer. It was on October 6, 2002, when our family physician in Peoria sent her to a specialist because her blood counts were startling to him. Well, as it turned out, he had reason to be concerned, and on election day, Sherry received a phone call from the specialist. "You have an incurable blood cancer," he said, "and you must see an Oncologist asap." This is what she heard in the early afternoon, but she didn't tell me until I picked her up from work... and then I fell apart! I really did. It was as if her news sobered me up, although I had not enjoyed a drink in years. I had lost my father and my youngest brother; I'd been in and out of a treatment center; I had seen marital counselors and family counselors; I had done enough sinning and enough praying to know both sides of the street... and I am proud to say that I handled (or took) it all... like a man... but when I was told that my wife had just received a death sentence, I fell to pieces.

I looked up Multiple Myeloma online, and saw that the median life expectancy was 1-3 years (it's much higher now). I made it a goal to find a specialist for Sherry, and I did. That was 11 years ago, and I am writing these words as she sleeps. We've been married since August, 1967, and it seems so far away now. Sherry had no way of knowing that I was not prepared for marriage at the time. I had neither seen nor knew much about love, and I was essentially a frightened, immature brat. She put up with this, and she endured all of my tantrums along the way. She was pleased to go with me to Omaha and start a new life, but disappointed to find that life with me was pretty much the same as it had always been. I was driven to become a success in business and frustrated that I had to take out time to run errands and handle family needs. Sherry didn't drive and I was gone 3-6 weeks at a time, and with the needs, fears, guilt, and other pressures, our life together was often tumultuous. Encounters became a way of life, and at times, we both felt trapped in some sort of crazy, dysfunctional dance... but she stayed. She stayed with me and loved our girls. She went to great efforts to get things done, and she did. She even left Omaha (and she loved Omaha) to join me in student housing in Hyde Park. We traded the best of woodwork... for duct tape... and she stayed at my side.

And so it went- from Joliet, to Kalamazoo, to Peoria, to Rock Island- and I am watching her... as she sleeps. Over the years, our family has grown. We have two beautiful daughters, two beautiful granddaughters (I use the word "beautiful" intentionally), and two wonderful little boys. I love each one of these people in ways that words cannot express! But it was Sherry Cox Wick, who had a uphill journey in the first place-who now has cancer and glaucoma, worsening vision and fibromyalgia- who has walked with me... every step of the way! Without Sherry, I certainly would not be a Minister, and there's a high chance that I might not even be here. Without Sherry, I would have lost the very things that make life worth living... and without her fervent and persistent prayers, I would still be lost spiritually. Sherry has been on the Myeloma Chatline for years now, and all of the names that she first saw in that community, save 3, are gone now.

Still, she sleeps on- we will leave for Trivia Night soon- and she continues to teach me that love is a much deeper and more sacred thing than being "in love." Praise God, I have learned this... but I am also beginning to see that you can love someone from the depths of your soul and be "in love" with her... at the very same time! Well, she's awake now. So I will close. I just wanted to say that I have a deep and abiding love for the one I am in love with. Happy Birthday, Sherry!

THE 4 P'S- PERSEVERANCE, PATIENCE, PERSISTENCE, & PROMISE

Among many other things, Winston Churchill once said, "If you're going through hell, keep going," because he believed that perseverance will get you through anything. But he wasn't the only one. Thomas Carlye observed, "Permanence, perseverance, and persistence, in spite of all obstacles, discouragements, and impossibilities: It is this, that in all things distinguishes the strong soul from the weak." And Calvin Coolidge summed it up: "Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not: nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent; genius will not, unrewarded genius is almost a proverb; education will not, the world is filled with uneducated derelicts. Persistence and determination (perseverance) alone are omnipotent." The prize belongs to those who finish the course- this seems to be an undeniable truth- whether we're talking about a youngster taking accordian lessons (yes, that happened in the old days), a person working on a graduate degree (one of my professors told me that, to get a Doctorate, one needs nothing more than a modicum of intelligence and a wealth of perseverance), a soldier trying to take a hill somewhere, or any parent with a teenage child. In all of these cases, uncontrollable factors are affect one's fate... but the person involved... can (and must) keep moving... and not quit.

Sometimes, of course, perseverance leads to unexpected victory. We all know Lincoln's story. He failed in business at 22, was defeated for congress at 23, failed again in business at 24, was elected to congress at 25, only to have a nervous breakdown at 27. He was defeated for Speaker at 29, defeated for congress altogether at 34, and again at 39 (he won a seat when he was 37). He was defeated for the Senate at 46, defeated for Vice President at 47, defeated for the Senate again at 49... and elected President of the United States at 51! What incredible perseverance. Anyone in his or her right mind would have closed up shop and gone fishing somewhere along the way. But according to his dairy, John Wesley had much the same experience. Here's one of his entries: Sunday morning, May 5- Preached at St Anne's. Was asked not to come back anymore. Sunday afternoon, May 5- Preached at St John's. Deacons said, "Get out and stay out." Sunday morning, May 19- Preached at another church. After service, Deacons held a special meeting and determinedn that I was not welcome. Sunday morning, May 26- Preached in a meadow. Chased out of the meadow when a bull was released during the service. Sunday morning, June 2- Preached out at the edge of town. Kicked off the highway. Sunday afternoon, June 2- Preached in a pasture. 10,000 people came out to hear me!

There are many of these stories, but for those of us who are responding to God's call in our lives, perseverance is its own reward. If we're following God's call, if we're about the Lord's business, there is great joy in just doing it... and besides, we know that our Master will see us through. When he had lost yet another battle in his quest to end slavery in England, William Wilberforce, discouraged, sat alone and thumbed through his Bible, and as he was doing so, a note that John Wesley had written him, shortly before he died, fell to the floor. Wilberforce picked it up and his spirits were lifted when he read these words: Unless God has raised you up... I see not how you can persevere in your glorious enterprise (of opposing slavery), which is the scandal of religion, of England, and of human nature. Unless God has raised you up, you will be worn out by the opposition of men and devils. But if God be for you, who can be against you? Oh, be not weary of well-doing. Go on in the name of God, and in the power of His might.

Go on, go on. Going on in the name of God. That's what perseverance is about. That's why perseverance is so important. Each of us has work to do for God, and we've all been equipped to get it done. We are all capable of making a difference for Christ... and we must not quit! Our work is too important. Our promise is too great. If we prepare ourselves for service, if we keep ourselves spiritually fit, and if we "go on," we can do wonderful things for Christ. This is much of what Paul said in most of his letters, and certainly in his 2nd letter to Timothy. Paul was nearing the end of his life, and as he awaited his prize, and he offered Timothy a bit of wisdom. Things are going to go from bad to worse, he said, and people are going to become even more resistant to the Word of God than they are now. Expected to be persecuted. Indeed, anyone who does anything worth doing for Christ, Paul notes (3:12), will be persecuted. (Get involved and get persecuted- how about that for a church growth theme?) So, be prepared. Keep preaching to people... who are reluctant to listen and continue to counsel, encourage, and admonish them with God's word, even if they resist your words and reject you. Doing God's work, the apostle noted, is not easy.. and you, Timothy, will need all the prayer and perseverance that you can muster. But God will always be with you. You know this. You've known it for a long time, but you need to recall it everyday... because knowing (really knowing) that you're in God's hands will see you through anything! Don't quit, Timothy! Don't ever change your message ...just to please others. Keep yourself strong, stay in touch with God, and keep on keeping on. This then is Paul's simple message to us. 1) Keep yourself spiritually fit, 2) stay in touch with God through prayer, 3) study God's word, 4) find a way of serving, and 5) keep on. Whatever your task for Jesus, keep on. Perseverance is more important than all of the charm, money, and education in the world, and it is ours for the asking. If we stand on God's word (please join one of our adult classes and learn the Bible) and invest in our own spiritual fitness (prayer, devotions, church groups)... we will soon be spiritually mature enough, as people and as a people, to discern God's call in our lives and to start taking steps down the path less traveled. Can we do this? Can we equip ourselves... for bold and faithful service to Christ? Of course we can, and what is more, once we begin our journey, we will see it through. After all, perseverance is a gift of the Spirit and we know, deep in our hearts, that God is walking with us. Rather than just gathering together every Sunday (as nice as it is), let's begin a journey together.

I doubt if 10,000 people will turn out to hear me, and I suspect that none of you will be elected President... but our prize awaits and besides, we will find great joy in the persevering!

GOD LOVES A CHEERFUL GIVER!

In the fall of 1968... I interviewed for a job with the Iowa Commission for the Blind, and during the interview, Kenneth Jernigan, Director of the Commission, asked "How much do you want?" And I said, "$6800 per year." It was strange question for him to ask, but my answer was even stranger. Indeed, it was foolish... because $6800 a year wasn't enough money to live on, not even back in '68. In any event, he hired me (at a slightly higher wage), and I absolutely loved my job! I loved visiting my clients; I loved teaching white cane travel (although I never taught it particularly well), and I loved selling White Cane Candy in the factories of Dubuque and on the streets of Fort Dodge. Although I wasn't getting rich, I had a purpose that seemed bigger than money to me, and I threw myself into my work. In time, we moved to Omaha, and over the years, I held positions that provided much greater salaries and significantly more perks than I ever would've received with the Commission. However, it was in downtown Des Moines,where I learned that giving is a source of joy... when you're in love with a purpose... and I did love the idea of helping others find dignity and opportunity. When you give to something (or someone) that is every bit a part of you... the giving brings you great joy... and enriches your soul. 

Now, in the fall of 2013, I'm a pastor in the Presbyterian Church, and it's "stewardship time" again. Year after year, we hand out commitment cards; year after year, we ask you to pledge; year after year, we ask people from the congregation to tell you why it's important to give generously; and of course, we always set aside a Sunday (or two, or three) for a stewardship sermon. For those who are practically minded, we cite the expenses we have to pay- which, given the size of our building, are very real. For those who are program-oriented, we note that it takes money to fund Learning Centers and Tutoring programs, and it does! For those who are faithful to God's word, we anchor our requests in Biblical terms, and for those who see giving as an investment, we cite all the things that God can do with our contributions. There is merit in all of these. We do have bills to pay. God will bless our giving, and there's no doubt that God commands us to give. However...none of these reasons will accomplish much.... without love! Unless we give out of our love for Jesus, we will only... and always give on our own terms. We will never give sacrificially... unless we are in love! This is a spiritual axiom, and it's corollary is this: if we are in love, no power on earth can keep us from giving all that we are and all that we have... to the person or object we love! 

Unless you're passionate about the person or cause, "joyful giving" will forever be an oxymoron. In a phrase, love is the key to stewardship because love demands giving. Tell a man who has fallen in love with golf... to play the game that he loves just every once in a while... and watch as he spends money (and time) on lessons, equipment, and as many rounds of golf as he can. Why? Because he's enthused, en fuego, in love. Tell a young man who has fallen in love with the woman of his dreams... to quit buying her flowers, dinners, and other tokens of love... and see how that works! Tell a young girl who has given her heart to the piano... that she needs to have a more balanced life... and note that she will forsake all others, even the boys, and practice by the hour, without ever being nagged... because she finds deep joy in giving to what she loves. Tell a Christian who is on fire for Jesus, to "cool it," and you'll find that you might as well be talking to the wall... because he is driven to give everything he can... to his Lord and Savior! Love is the key to generous giving... and this is especially true of money ... because only love is strong enough to sever the delicate cord that connects the heart and the purse.
Even the best of church members are prone to give in a measured way... unless they are "in love with Christ" but if they are... they will give and give and give and count it all joy. Unless giving gives us joy, we will never do much of it, and it will only give us joy... if we truly believe that, in giving, we will become rich.

So, our stewardship campaigns take place in the midst of a conundrum: if you are on fire for Christ, you don't need the campaign... but if you aren't in a place spiritually where "joyful giving" makes much sense to you... all of the reasons why in the world won't affect you much, Thus, when all is said and done, we simply remind some of you that it's time to give joyfully, and encourage others... to discover the joy of giving by tippy-toeing into the waters of faith.  If you are at a place spiritually where you simply can't give joyfully, let me suggest that you give 1, 2, 5, 10% MORE than you are comfortable with...and discover how rich you feel. ! Amen.

pk

WE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME

This morning, we have the privilege of participating in the baptisms of Jack Carmon-Castillo and Lynn Deitz. One of them is a toddler... the other is grown-up, but in both cases, baptism is a sacred, kairos moment... with life-changing power. In Jack's case, we are celebrating the fact that he is now "in Christ" and "Spirit-filled." He was a child of God in the first place... but today, God has surely laid His hand on him and blessed him with the Holy Ghost. Lynn comes to the water as a adult, and while we still believe that she comes in response to God's call, she nonetheless, on this day, is making an intentional decision to die to her old nature and to live for Christ from this moment on. As she is baptized, Lynn will be entirely new in Christ. She will be born-again, and she will have the God-given opportunity to live as a new creation. Being called into a new community always changes everything. The people who have been joined will never be the same, and the one(s) who is joining will never be the same... because we are interrelated- brothers and sisters- in Christ.

Friends, today we celebrate two baptisms...and the joy of welcoming Bianca, Karen, Charlene... and Lynn (again) into membership. Their joining us... will change the both of us, and even as they are picking up the responsibilities of membership, we also know that our Lord has commanded us to love them... as He has loved us. In just a few minutes, two new saints have been ushered into the kingdom, and four Christians have committed themselves to SPPC. They've confessed their faith in Christ, and they've pledged to share their time, talent, and treasure with us, even as we share ours with them. As a people, we've vowed to love, teach, welcome, and know them, and to open up doors of service and ministry unto them. The words that we've said today are meant to be taken seriously... because we need one another! In a world filled with critics, we need cheerleaders, and in a world where people are inclined to tell us what we want to hear... we need people who will tell us the truth in love.

We need to embrace our new members and to let them embrace us... because we have work to do for Christ. As Peter noted (1 Ptr. 2:1-10) we are being built into a holy priesthood, where the word "holy" means to be "set apart" and the word "priest" suggests that we ought to mediate God's grace to one another. In other words, we are called to let our light shine in at least two ways- by the way we live and by the love we show to one another. Concerning the way we live, it is important to remember that you may be the ONLY Christian another person knows. To someone, YOU ARE THE CHURCH
and they will form opinions about us (and perhaps even our Lord) based on your words and actions! Concerning the love we show in His name, it must take many forms. As "priests," we mediate Christ's love when we... pray for one another, listen to one another, involve one another, affirm one another, empower one another, teach one another, visit one another, cry with one another, laugh with one another, trust one another, and share with one another...to name a few. Priestly acts like these built up the body of Christ... and they attract people who don't yet know God's love. Friends, there are all sorts of clubs where people can meet friends and find a committee to join. There are alot of places where people can hear songs...  but no one can preach, teach, and live out the good news with greater power than a Spirit-filled church (no matter it's size). People need to love and be loved. They need to be known and accepted. They need to experience Christ's forgiving love for themselves... and for many people, SPPC will be their ONLY HOPE! 

So... let's be holy. Let's march to a different drummer and lift up different values than those around us... and let's also be priests! Let's mediate God's love in every way we can... using the talent and treasure he has given to each one of us.  We have only one job really- to proclaim Christ crucified and risen... and to live as a forgiven and saved people! This is our job. It has always been our job, but today, we will do it in ways that we could not have done it yesterday... because Bianca, Karen, Lynn, Charlene, and Jack have been added to our family. Praise God!

ARE YOU... A FOOL FOR CHRIST... OR JUST A FOOL?

In the fall of 1976, Lu Ratmeyer led me in the "sinner's prayer," and in the spring of 1977, I joined a church for the first time in my life. Actually, I threw myself into as if my life depended on it. There were Sunday morning services, Sunday evening services, midweek services, adult education classes, youth events, and of course, Evangelism Explosion. Initially, everyone I knew was happy for me. They knew what I had been through, and they felt that any new version of "me" had to be better that the one they had known. However, when they saw how enthused I was about the gospel, they became concerned. Everything is better in moderation, they suggested, and they certainly didn't want me to become a "fanatic," or "a fool for Christ." It is good, they thought, to make faith part of your life, but it is foolish... to let faith direct your life. Well, as you can tell, I didn't listen to them. I couldn't listen... because I knew that my very life was at stake. If I had any hope of living a full and joyful life, or of being any good to anyone, I had to be "a fool" for Christ, which meant that I had to surrender completely to his Lordship and serve him with every fiber of my being.

So, not thinking that I had a choice, I became a "fool for Christ," but in becoming a fool- in trusting Him instead of myself- I was liberated from the second-guessing and people-pleasing that had dominated my life. I was free to take risks and to be vulnerable, and besides, I found myself in very good company! Paul noted that he was a "fool for Christ" because he preached nothing more than Christ crucified and risen. Yet, even Paul was just one more in a long list of fools... Noah was the first "fool for God." He took God at His word and built a boat on dry land. It wasn't a small boat either. It was a big boat and he led all sorts of animals into it. He was like the man we see on a street corner- the one with a sandwich board saying "the end of the world is at hand"- and he must have been mocked and ridiculed every single day... until the first raindrop fell. Abraham was the next fool in line. He was born in modern-day Iraq, and his family had worshiped the gods in that place for who knows how long. Abram, as he was known then, was neither a Christian nor a Jew, but in response to a new voice, he pulled up his stakes and wandered as an alien land for the rest of his life. He trusted in God, it seems, to the point of appearing foolish. He was willing to take his son, Isaac, up Mount Moriah, believing somehow that God would provide the sacrifice. Leaving the known for the unknown, tying your son up on a sacrificial altar- these acts are not reasonable. They are not measured, and there is no doubt that Father Abraham was a fool for God.

The prophet, Isaiah, walked naked and barefoot for more than 3 years to make a point for God. Hosea married a prostitute, and gave his children odd names, for the same reason. God told him to do these things because Israel was unfaithful. John the Baptist lived in the wilderness. he ate locusts for dinner, and he looked like a wild man. He was another fool for God, as was Peter and the others, who immediately left their jobs and followed Christ. They, and the generations who preceded them, made their living as fishermen on the Sea of Galilee... until Jesus said, "Follow me," and then, they threw down their nets and followed him. Today, we are prone to read this story as if it is reasonable... but how many of us would leave our jobs and businesses to follow Christ... with or without giving notice? Not one, I would guess, because radical, faith-based decisions are NOT reasonable. How could they be? They are based on faith. According to the world, a wise man would never leave the security of home, unless he had a nest egg hidden away and his other bases covered. Finally, let's consider our Lord. From the world's perspective, there was never a bigger fool for God than Jesus of Nazareth. He never once listened to the voices of reason; he never once diluted his message or minimized the cost of discipleship. Bonhoeffer noted that, when Jesus calls a man, he bids him, "Come and die," but what kind of church growth slogan is that? It's foolish, but no more foolish that believing that you can change the world... without money, power, or press coverage. Even Satan pointed out that Jesus could accomplish his mission by making a name for himself and by taking matters into his own hands. When we were uniting two churches in Peoria, one of our elders gave an impassioned plea against the union, telling everyone in attendance that "Pastor Kenn and the leadership board were going too much on faith!" Yes, that's what he said... and his message makes sense to many people who have come to believe that the church is mostly a "business." Start with a prayer- certainly; sing a sweet song if you must; be a little bit bold and chalk it up to faith... BUT make your decisions on the basis of facts and reason. Living on faith never makes sense, and it never will. Thus, if you pick up your cross and live by faith, you will be a "fool" for Christ. If you share what you have with the poor, if you love your enemies, if you forgive 70 times 7, and in other ways, act like someone who has been born again, you will be labeled as a "fool for Christ," but in the process, you will claim the fullness of life. Your cup will overflow and you will dwell in the house of the Lord forever!

Jesus talked about money a lot- a fact that many of us forget... because he often talked about it 1) in the sense of NOT falling in love with it and 2) in the sense of using our wealth to clothe the naked and feed the hungry. Money, as an object of our love, or as our own exclusive source of pleasure and comfort, was never condoned by our Lord (period). There was a very rich man (Luke 16:19-31) who dressed in purple and dined in luxury every day of his life. We don't know how we got his wealth, but we do know that there was  a desperately poor beggar lying beside his gate. The beggar, whose name was Lazarus, was covered with sores. He was ill, and he was starving. Indeed, he was "longing" to eat the crumbs that fell from the rich man's table. In the hierarchy of living things, Lazarus had even slipped below the dogs, who came and licked his sores whenever it pleased them. There is no evidence that the rich man (aka "Dives") gained his wealth dishonestly or used it in unsavory ways. Nor is there any evidence that Lazarus brought his troubles on himself. All we know is that there was a very rich man who drove by a very poor man day after day... without sharing what he had, or even looking him in the eyes. In a story that stands in contrast to the "good Samaritan," the man who is lying beside the road is allowed to lay there... and die! Of course we all die, and Dives does too, but the story goes on: in the afterlife, Lazarus is in heaven and Dives is in Hades. "Father Abraham," the Dives cries out, "Please warn my brothers. Tell them not to live as I lived... so that they won't have to endure this hell." "If they haven't listened to God's word," Abraham concluded, "They will not listen to me." Let those who have ears hear: if you are blessed with great wealth, share it with those who are lying by your gate!

There are two comments that I will never forget from my time in Peoria. One (about me relying too much on faith) has already been mentioned. The other came from a friend of mine who had been blessed with a very good year. He said, "Pastor, I'm going to buy another silo for one of my farms. I need the tax deduction so that the government won't get all of my money." Wow, I thought, how about the church? Or just the poor? For the record, this man is a devout man, and in many ways a generous man. My point is simply this: it's very easy for a rich man to slip into thinking that what he has is his. To illustrate the dangers of living for wealth, (Luke 12:13ff) Jesus told a young man this story: there was a certain rich man who was blessed with a bunker crop. In fact, his yield was so great that he was not able to store all of it. So, he thought to himself, "What shall I do?" Then it came to him- I will tear down all of my barns and build bigger ones. Bigger ones that will allow me to store up my excess and take life easy. "I will eat, drink and be merry," he said, but... God interrupted him with challenging words, "You fool! You poor, poor fool. You never got it. You ignored my words. You never considered your neighbor's needs, and now, tonight, as you approach your death bed, you're drawing plans for bigger barns.You poor, poor fool." Whoever told you that it was all about you? What made you think that the future was yours?

Christ crucified, Paul noted, is foolishness to the Greeks, and we still marvel at those who let go of what they have for Christ's sake. We want to admire them, but there's part of us that considers them fools. When Christ hung on his cross, they laughed at him. "Look at the fool hanging there," they might have said. "His back his shredded, his head is bleeding and bruised, we can hardly understand a word that he says... and he thinks that He's some sort of Savior." What a fool! And what fools we are to believe that... by trusting in this man ourselves... our own sins are forgiven! What could be more foolish than to trust in a crucified man for eternal life? Unless of course, it's true. Then it's not foolish at all, is it? CS Lewis noted that, given who Jesus claimed to be, we cannot call him an enlightened man or a good teacher... but must either embrace Him as Lord and Savior, or dismiss him as a fool. There are only so many Biblical passages we can ignore... without admitting that we really aren't taking Christ seriously... and after hearing all of this, some of us will continue to put our trust in bigger barns. Some of us will always be bigger fans of the Bears than we'll ever be of Christ's, and this is foolish indeed. Friends, we can be a fool for the world and trust in gold, or we can be a fool for Christ and trust in His Word. We can be a fool for Jesus, or just a fool-I really don't think there's any in-between. Amen.