|
Location:
6425 Jefferson Hwy. For
directions, click
here. Joseph
Slife, lay speaker February
27, 2011 A
few weeks ago, Joye and
I were in Anderson,
South Carolina, and we
stopped at the Anderson
Mall to go to Bath and
Body Works. They had
hand soap on sale, and
Joye wanted to stock
up. We
had never been in the
Anderson Mall before, so
we didn't know where the
store was. But, of
course, shopping malls
usually have a mall map
in the concourse, about
20 or 30 feet inside the
door. So I took a glance
at it, found Bath and
Body Works on the map
and said confidently,
"It's just up here on
the right." And
soon I figured out what
the problem was. The
first time I had looked
at the map, I had not
taken time to get
oriented. And so I
headed off in what
seemed to be the right
direction, that turned
out not be the right
direction at
all. Before
I could get to where I
wanted to go, I need to
know "You are
here." Well,
this is what I want to
talk to you about today.
Where we are. And, my
friends, it's going to
be good news. Let's
pray. Does
anyone have an idea what
this is a picture of?
It's a visualization of
the interconnectedness
of the Bible. This
line at the bottom
represents the 66 books
of the Bible, and these
lines coming down
represent the number of
verses in each chapter.
I don't if you can see
this very well at a
distance, but this long
thin line right here,
for example, is Psalm
119, with 176
verses. These
lines going across in an
arc show the places
where something
mentioned in one place
in the Bible is
mentioned again in
another place. In other
words, this is a
visualization of the
fact that Genesis is
tied to Revelation, that
Joel is tied to the Book
of Acts, that the OT
prophecies of the coming
Messiah are fulfilled in
the gospels. The
colors show the distance
from one mention to
another. Some related
passages are close
together in the Bible.
Others are far apart.
And what you end up with
is this rainbow
effect. So
that's a nice picture,
but what does it have to
with where we
are? A
few weeks ago, I was
reading in Romans and
came across this verse
— it's in chapter
15, verse 4. Here's what
it says: The
great missionary and
theologian Lesslie
Newbigin wrote this. He
said: "The way we
understand human life
depends on what
conception we have of
the human story. What is
the real story of which
my life is a
part?" Now,
don't be misled by the
word "story." I am not
talking about a
fabrication. Usually, we
think of stories as the
things we turn to for
escape or entertainment.
We like stories because
they help us get away
from reality – at
least for a
while. That's
not the kind of story
I'm referring to.
Remember, Newbigin
called it the "real"
story. Well,
what is the real story?
What is really going on?
How do we understand the
world and our place in
it? The
Bible tells such a story
— a real story.
The real story.
It tells us what is
happening. It tells us
what happened before we
got here and what will
happen in the
future. And
as we grasp this story,
this comprehensive, true
story, we are taken up
into it. We're not just
spectators like we are
when we watch a movie or
read a book. We are a
part of the
story. But
I'm getting ahead of
myself. The biblical
story is not like most
other stories that we
read. It is not a neat,
tidy narrative where boy
gets girl, boy loses
girl, boy gets girl
back. But
it is a love story. A
vast, sprawling love
story that begins —
who knows when? A long
time ago in a galaxy not
yet created. "When
God began to create
the heavens and the
earth, the earth was
formless and empty,
darkness was over the
surface of the deep,
and the Spirit of God
was hovering over the
waters. And God
said…" (Genesis
1:1-3) This
is
Act
1
of the story:
The
Creation.
God made all that there
is — and it was
"good." And
he said it was
"very good."
But
God has an enemy —
a great fallen angel,
who seeks to steal, kill
and destroy. And that
brings us to
Act
2: The
Fall. God
commanded the man and
the woman: And
so there was introduced
the possibility of
disobedience.
And
the fallen angel —
the devil —
exploited that
possibility. Presenting
himself as a serpent, he
persuaded the woman and
the man to disobey the
Lord's
command. Sin
entered God's creation.
That which was "very
good" was now marred.
The close relationship
between God and the
people he had created
was broken. Suffering
and death entered the
world. But
God made a promise that
someday one would come
who would crush the
serpent's head. (Genesis
3:15) As
time passed, that first
sin of rebellion gave
way to deception and
jealousy and murder. The
human race descended
into greater and greater
wickedness. Sin upon
sin. Rebellion upon
rebellion. Act
1 was Creation.
Everything was "very
good." Act 2 was the
Fall. And
the LORD's heart was
deeply
troubled. But
God would not abandon
the works of His hands,
because he had a plan
— a plan that began
before the world was
made. God
begins to unfold that
plan as he initiates
Act
3
of our drama, our story:
Redemption
Begun.
We see it as early as
Genesis, chapter 12 when
God calls a name named
Abram. He tells
him, From
Abram, whose name is
changed to Abraham, God
raises up a people
— a people who
later become known as
the Israelites. But like
the first man and woman,
Israel ultimately rebels
against God, breaking
the covenant He had made
with them. In
his anger, God brings
judgment upon Israel,
but still He refuses to
abandon his plan.
Another prophecy is
given. God
says through the
prophets Isaiah and
Jeremiah that one day he
will raise up a king, a
descendant of King
David, who would be the
greatest king of all. He
will be the agent of
blessing for all the
peoples of the
world. But
hundreds of years go by.
No king. And Israel is
in dire straits. The
nation is overrun and
occupied by a foreign
power. Then
Act
4
of our drama begins:
Redemption
Accomplished. One
day angel appears and
tells a young Israelite
woman, a young woman who
is not married and has
never had sexual
relations with a man
that something
remarkable will soon
happen: she will give
birth to a child —
a child who will be
called Elsewhere
Scripture says that this
child is "'Immanuel'
—means, 'God with
us'" (Matthew
1:23). This
boy — whom the
Bible declares to be God
in human flesh —
grows up to be the man
we call Jesus of
Nazareth. He is Jesus
the Christ, the Messiah,
prophesied down through
the ages. This great
king whom God has
promised who would crush
the serpent's head and
bless the peoples of all
nations. The
Bible tells us that
Jesus went about doing
good, healing sickness
and disease, confronting
demonic powers,
forgiving
sins. "The
time has come!" Jesus
declared in Mark
1. And
he gathered a small band
of believers to learn
from him and to do
ministry in his
name. But
then the story takes
another turn — a
tragic turn, it would
seem. Some of the
religious leaders of the
day — many who had
been hoping that Messiah
would come — do not
accept him as Messiah.
They even turn against
him and seek to put him
to death. And they are
successful. With
help from the occupying
Romans, Jesus — the
Messiah sent from God
— is crucified on a
cross, the common manner
of death used to execute
criminals. But
there is much more here
than meets the eye.
Jesus is not so much
"put to death" –
which is the way it
seemed. Instead, "he
laid down his life." He
willingly sacrificed
himself to accomplish a
purpose that God had in
mind before the world
was even created —
a purpose that no one
else yet
understood. In
his death, Jesus —
the perfect lamb of God
— was taking on the
sins of the entire
world. In his death, God
punished your sin and
disobedience and
mine. He
was crucified, he was
dead, and he was buried.
Then there came another
twist — a twist
that Jesus had said
would come, but his
disciples didn't
understand what he was
talking about.
Jesus
— the lamb of God,
the Messiah sent from
God, the One who was the
incarnate God —
rose from the dead,
never to die again!
Having paid the price
for sin — yours and
mine and the sin of the
whole world — up
from the grave he
arose. After
spending 40 days more
with his disciples,
Jesus returned to
heaven, leaving his
followers with a mission
— to go into all
the world and to tell
others about him. To
tell to people that God
has made a way for them
to again be in communion
with God, just like the
first man and woman
before they fell. To
tell people that there
is a way to escape the
judgment that is coming
on this world.
And
he told his disciples
they would have a helper
in fulfilling this
mission, the Holy Spirit
— the very Sprit of
God who would take up
residence in their
lives. Now
begins
Act
5:The
New People of
God. These
disciples — once a
rag-tag band of
fishermen, a political
activist, a tax
collector, and few
others — are
empowered by the Holy
Spirit, and they begin
to declare that Jesus
the Messiah is
alive. And
that in him, people can
have new life. That in
Jesus death the price of
sin has been paid, and
in his life, there is
power for living
today. And
they take the gospel to
Jerusalem and to Judea
and to Samaria —
and they begin to take
it to the uttermost
parts of the earth (Acts
1:8). A very big mission
indeed. Now,
let me take you back to
the mall in Anderson,
South Carolina. I stood
there looking at the
mall map, trying to find
the "You Are Here"
sticker so I could
figure out where I was
and where I needed to
go. I
have just laid out for
you five acts of the
drama we call the
gospel. We are in Act
five, which began with
the pouring out of the
Holy Spirit on the band
of believers — the
first of the new people
of God. They
went forth on a mission
— and that mission
has been going forward
now for nearly 2,000
years. But
Act 5 is not yet
complete. And this is
where our "You Are Here"
sticker goes on the map
of divine history. You
and I are the actors who
inhabit this part of Act
5. We
are here. We too are
part of the new people
of God — and
therefore we have roles
to play in this great
drama of the gospel.
This story is not over.
And we are not merely
observers of it. We are
participants in
it. In
many ways, the modern or
post-modern or
institutional church has
lost sight of this. We
wander around like Joye
and I did in that mall,
not quite sure which way
we're supposed to be
going. I
know that the Bible has
principles for raising
kids and managing money
and having a better
marriage and having good
government. Don't
misunderstand. All that
is important. But
it is all part of a
larger story. A story
that began long before
we got here and that
will continue long after
we're gone from here.
And if we turn this book
simply into a book of
principles of how to
have a better life, we
are missing the
point. We
need to be reminded "You
Are Here!" You are in
Act 5 of a Six-Act
story. You have a role
to play. There is a
mission. There is a
plan. What began before
the foundation of the
world is moving forward
— and you and I are
part of the unfolding of
that plan, as God seeks
to call together people
from every nation,
tribe, and tongue to be
His people. Because,
my friends, Act 6 is
coming. Act
6 is the consummation,
the restoration, the
fulfillment of God's
plan from the beginning.
Jesus is coming back
— and he will make
all things new. There
will be a new heavens
and a new earth. And
there will be no more
death or mourning or
crying or pain. This is
what the Bible declares
to us. The
great poet John Milton
called Act 2 of the
gospel drama, what I
called the Fall, he
called it Paradise Lost.
And he called Act Six
"Paradise
Regained." Have
you ever heard this
Bible verse: "I will be
their God and they will
be my people"? Did you
know that that phrase
is, or some slight
variation of it, is in
the Bible 17
times? "They
will be my people, I
will be their God." "I
will be their God, they
will be my
people." This
is what the LORD wants,
it is what he seeks, it
is what he has been
working toward from the
beginning. A
people — a people
who will love him and
not rebel, a people who
will serve him with
gladness, a people not
only made in his image,
but in whom that image,
once marred by sin, has
been restored by God
himself, through faith
in the Son of God who
loved us and gave
himself for
us. A
people — "a great
multitude that no one
can count, from every
nation, tribe, people
and
language" (Revelation
7:9). And
here is the climax of
Revelation
21: My
friends this is the
great story. It is the
real story. It is the
story to which we are
called, the story of
which we are a part. It
is the story that gives
meaning and purpose to
our lives individually,
as a local body of
believers, and as part
of the family of faith
across time and around
the world. But
if I understand the
Bible correctly, we are
taken up into this story
only when we ask to be
taken up into
it. The
story affects everyone
— because it is
reality, it is the way
things really are —
but we become positive
actors in it only by
saying, "Jesus, make me
part of your story."
People
say that in different
ways, of course. The
thief on the cross said
simply, "Remember me
when you come into your
kingdom." The man with
the demon-possessed
child said, "I believe.
Help thou my unbelief."
The woman at the well
said, "Give me this
living water." Peter
said, "You are the
Christ, the Son of the
living God." However
we say it, it involves
turning away from a
false story to the true.
In the church, we use
the word repentance for
that. Turning away from
sin and a focus on a
story that is false and
turning to God and to
the story that is
true. What
do I mean by a false
story? A story that
tells us that there is
no God, that the
universe is a cosmic
accident, that you and I
all the people are earth
are simply bits of
protoplasm that somehow
coalesced into what we
call human
beings. A
story that tells us that
what is really important
is money and fame and
power and
pleasure. A
story that tells us that
it's all about us —
and so we don't need to
be concerned about the
poor or the old or the
sick. Jesus
calls us to repent and
believe the good news
— the true story,
about a God who created
all that there is, who
was deeply troubled when
those he loved turned
from him, who acted to
judge sin and at the
same time offer a way of
hope and redemption to
those who would turn to
him in faith. The true
story about a mission to
proclaim in Jesus Christ
the forgiveness of sins
and newness of
life. The
true story about a
kingdom that has already
begun, and will some day
be consummated in a new
creation when paradise
will be
regained. This
is my story, this is
your story — if you
have put your faith,
your trust, in Jesus,
the Christ, the Messiah,
the eternal Word who
became flesh and made
his dwelling among
us. That
is what this book
declares. And
Because
we know — and we
are part of — the
greatest story ever
told. Let
me end with this. On
June 17, 1940, Winston
Churchill, the prime
minister of the United
Kingdom, made an address
to the British people.
It was not a happy
address. Hitler's forces
had taken France, just
across the English
Channel. It
was a very serious time.
People were scared. The
enemy was at their
doorstep — and they
didn't know how the
story was going to end.
Churchill went on the
BBC and gave a speech to
rally the nation. After
he explained how serious
the situation was, he
pledged that Britain
would not give up and
would ultimately
prevail. And he
concluded with these
words: "We are sure that
in the end all will be
well." My
friends, if you have put
your faith, your hope,
your trust in Jesus
Christ — if you
have turned from false
stories to the true one
— you can be sure
that in the end, all
will be well. If
you haven't yet embraced
the true story you can
do that today —
right here, right now
— and your life
will never be the same.
I am going to lead in
prayer about that in a
moment. And
if you have
already turned to
the true story —
and I know many of you
have because I have
known you for a long
time, I want to ask you
to re-embrace the story.
Sometimes we get so
focused on the
day-to-day stuff of
life, we lose sight of
the big picture. So in a
moment, I want to lead
in prayer about that
too. And
as I pray here, if you
want to come up front
and kneel and pray, if
you're physically able,
I hope you'll do
so. Let's
pray: Lord,
there may be some
here today who have
never heard this
story before, or some
who have had some
inkling of it, but
have never really
considered it from
beginning to
end. Hear
now, as I pray for
them and as
them. I
want to believe.
Help my unbelief.
I want living
water. I don't
want to be putting
my hope in false
stories. I want
what is true. So,
Lord, speak to my
heart. I turn from
the false to the
true. I turn to
Jesus. I want a
new life in him. A
life that is part
of the greatest
story ever told.
Hear my prayer. In
Jesus'
name. And
now, Lord, for those
of us who maybe have
lost sight of the
story we are in,
those of us who need
to reminded, "You are
here," hear me now as
I pray for
us. Thank
you for calling me
to be part of it.
Thank you for
calling Gateway
Church and the
United Methodist
Church to be part
of it. Help
me to play my
part, help this
church to play its
part as the new
people of God in
the continued
unfolding of Act 5
of the great story
— as we wait
with confident
expectation for
Act 6, when Jesus
returns and ushers
in the everlasting
kingdom. Give
me a confident
heart and an
optimistic mind.
Continually remind
me that no matter
the circumstances
of the moment, no
matter how much
flak may be
flying, no matter
how things may
look, you are
working out a
plan, you are
unfolding a story
that is the
greatest story
ever told —
and in the end,
all will be well,
through Jesus
Christ our
Lord. Amen. (I
am indebted to Michael
W. Goheen, Professor of
Worldview and Religious
Studies |
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
