THE FIRST "COME TO JESUS" MOMENT

 

A “COME TO JESUS” MOMENT

 

In 1975, maybe it was ’76, I was driving under the influence of alcohol in St. Joseph, MO.. I drove by the same police officers at least twice at 3-5 miles per hour, and finally they pulled me over. I failed their sobriety test and they took me into custody, even though I kept telling them that a couple of small town Barney Fifes had no business arresting a man of my status. They were not impressed with my attitude and they locked me in a cell. Come morning, we all rode in a van to see a judge, and while we were getting into the van, the driver told me to sit up front with him. Looking at my suit, he told me that I didn’t have to sit with all of the drunks in back. He meant to be thoughtful, but I knew… that I was just a drunk in a suit! A drunk in a suit! It hit me hard. It got my attention and I knew that I was in deep trouble. So, for the first time, I came face-to-face with who I had become… and I prayed that somehow, in someway, God would clear my mind, forgive my sins, and lead me out of the abyss I was in!

 

For me it was a “come to Jesus moment,” and in recent years, I’ve heard the words- “come to Jesus”- more frequently than I like because the phrase seems a little flippant and a bit disrespectful to me. Yet, there are times when we need to confront the truth. There are moments when we need to get deep and lay our cards on the table. There are times when we need to assess where we stand and come to grips with what it means to be saved and “in Christ,” According to Webster, a “come to Jesus” moment is a moment of sudden realization, recognition, or comprehension- and it that’s the case, the 6^th chapter of John is an example of a “come to Jesus” moment!

 

People follow other people for a variety of reasons. The person they follow may have a talent that they can hardly live without, or wisdom that they can’t find anywhere else, or charisma that attracts followers everywhere around. People follow other people to “fit in,” and to be part of something that’s transforming. There are a lot of reasons for following someone, but in most cases people follow people… who give them what they’re looking for!

And this has always been the case. Long before any church council told us what to believe and do, the people of the land followed Jesus because he set them free from the demons who possessed them, because he healed them and reunited them with their families and their communities, because he listened to them and gave them hope. Jesus attracted people because they believed that he could (and would) meet their needs. But there comes a time when a mature Christian begins to see that being “in Christ” has nothing to do with getting whatever we want! Jesus will never turn us away, but He is NOT our vending machine or ATM! As we mature in our faith, we begin to see that “being saved” leads us into a life of service and sacrifice!

 

After he fed the 5,000, Jesus returned to Capernaum, and when the crowd found out that he was gone, they crossed the sea and confronted Jesus… and when Jesus saw them, he accused them of seeking him for nothing more than another free meal. Free meals won’t save you, he seemed to say. Work for the food that gives you eternal life, he told them, and they asked him what that they needed to do for eternal life. And Jesus answered, “believe in me!” Trust in me because I AM the bread of life! Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst! The bread. The fish. Your gated community, the size of your bank accounts, the important titles that you may have, the important people whom you may know, and your considerable charm- if you trust in these you will die. But if you trust in me as your source of life, you will not be disappointed.

 

Next Sunday, we’ll see that the banter between the crowd and Jesus gets more intense because the people cannot understand and are offended by … Jesus’ insistence that salvation is not possible at all unless we “take in” the flesh and the blood that Jesus sacrificed at Golgotha. The body of Christ- take and eat! The blood of Christ- drink your fill! This was the message… and many of those who were following him… walked away, saying that his teaching was too hard and harsh. Many followers who would have gladly settled for another meal… walked away because Jesus was asking for more than they wanted to pay. Then Jesus turned to the twelve and asked, “Are you going to leave me too?”

 

It may have been the first “come to Jesus moment” in the sense that people are using the phrase now. The crowd crossed the sea to hear a good message, to be healed, and to receive another fish sandwich. But then the moment became deeper and more demanding. It was something beyond the joy of fellowship and even the thrill of being healed. It was a moment when they were asked to show their cards and reveal the extent to which they really believed.

 

It was direct and unmistakable- THE BODY OF CHRIST, TAKE AND EAT- THE CUP OF SALVATION, DRINK YOUR FILL-and serve, pray, give, and love until you hear the words you long to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” Amen

THE GOOD LIFE

THE GOOD LIFE

 

O, for the good life! We all want the good life… but we don’t quite know how to get it, or even what it is. Is it a life of wealth? Will money bring happiness and, if so, how much money will it take and how long will it last? Plato noted that an “unexamined life” isn’t worth living, and Maslow said that becoming who we are is as good as life gets! A painter must paint. A singer must sing. Does the good life rest on family, or friends, laughter, good deeds, or the choices we make? The “night life,” the singer sang, “ain’t no good life”… but a life without song isn’t all that good either.

 

What is the “good life” made of? Well, there are almost as many suggestions as there are people. Stay curious, travel, trust yourself and others, take chances and accept risks, choose relationships over possessions, be disciplined, be present, quit people-pleasing, forgive yourself and others, keep family first, live generously, live gratefully? When the people of God reached the Jordan River, Joshua cried out, “Choose this day whom you will serve, the gods your fathers served, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Choose this moment… to get involved in something that will result in a lot of pain, or to be true to your God and to those who love you! Choose this moment to serve yourself… or to serve your community. Choose this moment to speak the truth in love… or to say what you think others want to hear. Choose this moment to thank God for your daily bread… or to let it go because you’re dining in public.

“Everything you are comes from your choices.” Jeff Bezos noted, and Anne Frank added, “Our lives are fashioned by our choices. First we make our choices. Then our choices make us.”

 

The “good life,” it seems, is not out there, somewhere, waiting to be found… but the product of the choices we make as we walk through life! We don’t have to surrender to God, but we can; we don’t have to love our neighbors as much as we love ourselves, but we can; we don’t have to invest in Bible Study, worship, and ministry, but we can. We don’t have to choose the path less traveled, but we can. We don’t have to forgive the one whom we need to forgive, but we can.

 

According to Proverbs, Solomon must have believed what many of the old folks believed in my youth- that the good life is built on obedient love and prudent decisions. The good life will be ours… if we honor God, obey our fathers, hang out with good kids, and stay far, far away from unruly women. The good life is measured more by the restraint we’ve shown and the good deeds we have done… than the fun we’ve had Honoring God is the foundation to a good life, but beware of unruly women and rowdy men! Invest in knowing the Lord and show that you know the Holy One by using accurate weights in the market. Don’t get drunk on your own wine.

Let me close with some of the ways in which Christ lived a good life here on earth:

1. His life was all about love! Love for God and love for our neighbors!

2. From beginning to end, His life was all about forgiveness! He came into the world to save our souls and died with the words, “Father, forgive them,” on his lips.

3. His life was filled with prayer! He prayed well into the night, he prayed very early in the morning, he prayed daily and thanked His Father for daily bread, he prayed at Gethsemane, and just before he died. He loved to talk with his Father!

4. His life was about invitation and acceptance. Jesus drew scandalous circles of grace because people of all sorts found hope, healing, comfort, and direction in his presence.

5. Jesus didn’t judge others and he had trouble with those who did

6. Jesus knew that people needed money to meet their needs… but he reminded us to lay our treasure up in heaven,

7. Jesus always spoke the truth in love!

 

Love. Without judgment. Know that you are accepted. And forgive… until people think that you’re crazy. Pray big prayers, little prayers, formal prayers, casual prayers, pray before meals and pray as you drive around. Love others as you find them and help them become all that they can become. Give until others call you a “fool,” and you will have the good life. Amen!

DON'T TUG ON SOPERMAN'S CAPE

 

DON’T TUG ON SUPERMAN’S CAPE!

 

You don’t tug on Superman’s cape.  You don’t spit into the wind, You don’t pull the mask off of the old Lone Ranger… and you don’t mess with Jim! Do you remember that song? You don’t tug on Superman’s cape, you don’t spit into the wind, you don’t pull the mask off of the old Lone Ranger, you don’t play with fire… and you don’t mess with Sin, which will always cost you more than you wanted to pay and keep you longer than you wanted to stay. You don’t tug on Superman’s cape, you don’t spit into the wind, you  don’t pull the mask off the old Lone Ranger… and you don’t mess with him, meaning the devil, diabolos, the tempter, the manipulator, the deceiver, the liar… because he will make a mess of your life! 

         You see, in the beginning Christians were persecuted because they didn’t “fit in.” They marched to a different drummer. They held different values and they measured “worth” in a different way.  When Paul planted the first churches, the word "Christian" (first used in Antioch) was a noun. Rather than being a "Christian merchant" or a "Christian mechanic," Christians were men and women who dedicated their lives to Christ. They weren’t people who attended church more frequently, or were a "bit nicer," to strangers. or more likely to attend church. They were intentional about worshiping Christ and they showed their love for him in the way they lived their lives.

In Paul’s time Christians were in a distinct and unwanted minority. They worshiped and served a little known Galilean who had been crucified for sedition… and they insisted that he was God! They refused to worship the Roman emperors and and their gods. They simply didn’t ‘fit in’… and they were under attack from local authorities, synagogue leaders, angry family members, and in Paul’s view, they were also being attacked by forces of evil and the Devil himself! They were not able to serve Jesus and blend in with those who didn’t at the same time. They weren’t able to compromise and they were persecuted in the ways that people who are “different” always are: their friends kept their distance, invitations to community events dropped off, and people made a point of belittling their commitment to Jesus. They were hauled before courts and pressured to deny Christ… and the Devil marshalled a constant attack of temptation, doubt, and ridicule!

When Jesus began his ministry- after he was baptized and heard his “Father’s” voice of approval, he was pushed into the wilderness and tempted by the devil. He was tired, hungry, and disoriented, and the Devil kept telling Jesus that his suffering was not necessary… and that there were easier and softer ways of reaching his goals. Your Father doesn’t want you to go hungry, so turn these stones into bread and eat your fill. Your Father doesn’t want you to labor anonymously, so make a name for yourself by jumping from the highest point of the temple! If you want to help a world of suffering people, worship me, Satan said, and I will give all of them to you. Jesus was on the most important journey ever taken, and he overcame the temptations to pursue his Father’s needs on his own terms… by claiming God’s word.

Well, if follows that, if the Devil would attack God’s Son, he will most surely attack us! So, Paul warned the Christians at Ephesus and the Christians in Illinois… that they are under attack. He wanted to remind us that this attack will be like the one that Jesus experienced. We would be tempted to abandon our walk with Christ, or to make it about ourselves, or to settle for an easier way, to compromise our work for Jesus or denounce if altogether. This will surely happen because we don’t want to be an outcast.

Well, it turns out that we can defeat our enemy… if we are intentional about serving our Lord, if we KNOW that we are in God’s hands, and if we start each day by putting on the armor of God, which includes: 1) the belt of truth, because it is the truth that sets us free and it is “truth on which we stand!” Speaking the truth in love is the language we speak.

Our strength is lodged in our minds and in our hearts. So we put on the breastplate of righteousness… which Billy Graham described as a bullet proof vest for our soul! If we wrap ourselves in Christ’s righteousness, the arrows that threaten our resolve will simply bounce away. In a time when many believers were coerced to deny Christ, Paul noted that we need to buckle our shoes of peace, because they will give us firm and unshakeable footing! The helmet of salvation is knowing that we are saved, in Christ, forgiven and redeemed. The shield of faith provides sure protection because faith cannot be shattered. It endures all things… and the sword of the Spirit- the word of God, is the same weapon that Jesus used three times when he was tempted by the Devil.

         As we go into the world, we will walk in confidence if we are clothed in Christ. And knowing this, we will be able to

1. Speak the truth in love;
2. Distance ourselves from temptation;
3. Forgive and love others as God has forgiven and loved us; and
4. See and respond to Christ when he appears in the least among us, or at the family table.  Amen.