Many of you who drive up and down Mechanicsville Turnpike each day probably noticed the demolition last week of a stately old two-story brick house that stood on the property right next to the church. Perhaps you had a certain amount of nostalgia or sentiment as that elegant piece of the past was removed to make way for the future “progress” of another new self-storage unit complex. We all have too much stuff. Maybe you thought as I did, “It’s a shame to see a house that seems so nice, even beautiful, to have to be destroyed.” Now, I’m not one for chaining myself to a tree to prevent bulldozing. In fact I am a pretty ardent capitalist! Personal property is just that- property that belongs to its owner- and he can use it however he feels best! Still, it seemed kind of wasteful to bring down a historic house - one that had stood like a sentinel along “the pike” for so many years. At least it did… until I got a look inside.
You see, when the heavy equipment began to bring the house down, the outer walls collapsed revealing what lay inside. The interior of the house was trashed! Vandals and squatters had destroyed things inside, spray-painting vile and obscene words on the walls. One upstairs interior wall bore a twelve foot wide graffiti-scrawled mural which depicted a man throwing a cross into a trash can. Beneath this was written an angry caption: “NO GOD!” I am not sure if this meant, “There is no God!” or if it was a voice of rebellion directed at God speaking a furiously negative answer to God’s offer of salvation: “No, God!” Either way, it was a slap in the face to a God who gave His Son to us. The image of the cross being thrown away will stay with me for a long time, causing me to ponder many things.
I first began to chew on the old saw: “You can’t judge a book, (house or man) by its cover.” I do not really know what is going on inside the house next door or the man standing beside me. What came next were lots of scriptures that seemed to apply, so here’s a short sermon preached by a house that was pretty on the outside but ugly on the inside:
(1 Sam. 16:7) “Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
(Ephesians 5:11-13) “Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. But everything exposed by the light becomes visible.”
(John 3:19-2) “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
(Matthew 12:35-37) “The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned."
(Luke 6:43-45) "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thorn-bushes, or grapes from briers. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.
(Hebrews 4:13) “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”
( 2 Corinthians 5:10) “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.”
And finally,
(Proverbs 4:23) “Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.” Amen.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Walking the Vale
I lost a good friend Monday morning at 4:11. He got his “early release” pass from school down here on earth and went home victoriously to be with Jesus after a long and hard-fought battle with cancer. You know, you can learn a lot about living by spending time with those who are dying. They have no time for the trivial, meaningless stuff that clutters up life for those of who are still denying our mortality. They are past the delusion that keeps the rest of us from thinking or talking about the big ugly bully that hides just behind all fears… death. Words have more meaning when they flow from a man who knows they might be his last. This man used his final quota of words to bless and not curse. He could have been bitter, angry, and selfish, and the world would have said, “He has a right to be!” but he wasn’t. He was gracious, thankful and kind. He said “I love you” to his friends and family – probably a whole lot more than he ever did before. He told his friends about his faith – a faith that grew and deepened right up until that faith became sight – a faith that did not disappoint him but ushered him into the glorious hope that awaits all those who believe.
You see, he had found a treasure near the end of his road- a pearl of great price. He came to understand that he had a Heavenly Father who loved Him, a Father who sent His Son to die for him. He learned that through faith he could be adopted into God’s family and that the Son who died and rose again was now his big brother who has already whipped that ugly bully named Death. When we grasp that truth, there is nothing to fear. The real truth is, I didn’t lose a friend, we’re just going to be separated for a little while. King David said it this way about the death of his infant son, “He shall not return to me, but I shall go to him.” Many years later when King David faced his own death, he spoke these words to his son Solomon who would soon be King himself: “I am about to go the way of all flesh.” No denial there. Deep down we all know it’s true. Every living thing dies. Wrapped up in the very definition of life is the expectation of death. Ernest Hemmingway wrote: “Every true story ends in death.”
Old Ernest was almost right. Every true story ends in death….every true story that is - except one! And it is in that one true story that ends in life that we place our hope! Jesus conquered death. He raised Jarius’ daughter and the widow’s son. He called Lazarus from the tomb. And at the end of His earthly story there is an EMPTY tomb. He died and rose again! “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1Cor. 15:20-23, 42-44, 51-58)
You see, he had found a treasure near the end of his road- a pearl of great price. He came to understand that he had a Heavenly Father who loved Him, a Father who sent His Son to die for him. He learned that through faith he could be adopted into God’s family and that the Son who died and rose again was now his big brother who has already whipped that ugly bully named Death. When we grasp that truth, there is nothing to fear. The real truth is, I didn’t lose a friend, we’re just going to be separated for a little while. King David said it this way about the death of his infant son, “He shall not return to me, but I shall go to him.” Many years later when King David faced his own death, he spoke these words to his son Solomon who would soon be King himself: “I am about to go the way of all flesh.” No denial there. Deep down we all know it’s true. Every living thing dies. Wrapped up in the very definition of life is the expectation of death. Ernest Hemmingway wrote: “Every true story ends in death.”
Old Ernest was almost right. Every true story ends in death….every true story that is - except one! And it is in that one true story that ends in life that we place our hope! Jesus conquered death. He raised Jarius’ daughter and the widow’s son. He called Lazarus from the tomb. And at the end of His earthly story there is an EMPTY tomb. He died and rose again! “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1Cor. 15:20-23, 42-44, 51-58)
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