“Rested and Restored”
July 16, 2023
Dear brothers and sisters, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.
When I lived and worked in Southern California before coming here, there were two things I was pretty much immersed in a lot of the time: weddings and sports. Weddings, because that was how I made a good part of my income, and at one point was doing at least three weddings a weekend; and sports, because, of course, it was easy for me to get to see my favorite teams since I lived right near a lot of the places they played, and they were easy to get to. But they both had something in common: they were both noisy. Now, of course, the wedding ceremonies themselves were usually peaceful and calm, but the receptions afterwards could get pretty loud and boisterous. And, of course, most of us have been to at least one sports game in our lives so far, so we know how loud those can get. To say the pace of life and general lifestyle between Southern California and Farmersville are two different experiences would be like saying water is wet. I’m already starting to prepare myself mentally for (God willing) going back to Southern California for a few days in December, and move faster, think faster, even drive faster than I have to here. In Southern California, everything goes fast, fast, fast; while here in Farmersville, things move at a much slower pace, which, believe me, I’ve really appreciated these last six and a half years. What I really came to appreciate was that, even amidst the constant fast moving and loud lifestyle and atmosphere, there was at least one moment of peace I was able to experience during the week: the church I served in the high desert. There, we had a small but friendly crowd – even smaller than we have now. Which meant that, especially with weddings, I would only be able to hang out with one group of people, knowing I would probably never see most of them again, at the church I served, there was always one group I could come back to week after week for support and encouragement. The worship service itself was always calm, restful, and peaceful. Even the drive there was relatively peaceful, especially the earlier I left in the morning. And, if the Senior Pastor was preaching that week, so much the better – I got to be able to focus just on worshipping. So, even though I was still working, being able to be at church every Sunday was a time I was able to rest – to take a break from the fast-moving and loud life I was living, and be able to rest, be refreshed, and be restored to be able to make it through the rest of the coming week.
Indeed, that’s exactly what church is supposed to be. Although we may think of it as being one more obligation or place to be during the week, it’s meant to be a place for us to be able to take time out from everything else we have going on, and just be able to rest and be refreshed. It’s where we come to be in the presence of God – and where He renews and re-energizes us to keep going, whatever might be going on with us. It’s a place where we can be reminded that, even though we may be struggling, tired, or feeling pressured from life, God is still here with us, is in control of our lives, and is here for us. It’s also where we can come to enjoy the support, love, and encouragement from each other; even though, yes, we can pray and worship God anytime, anywhere on our own, we still need each other to be reminded we have friends and supporters. Church is meant to be a place where we feel welcomed, where we belong, and are accepted for who we are. It is to be where we can find a place free from the conflicts of the rest of the week, with others who share our same desire for having a time of peace. We can come be as we are, without being judged for who we are. Ultimately, church is meant to be a place where we can come to rest.
Specifically, to rest in the presence of Jesus. To know that, whatever else we may be having to deal with in life, we can come be with someone who just wants us to be with Him – Jesus. He wants to take our burdens, worries, and everything else that’s been weighing us down during the week, and relieve us of them; taking them off our backs and off our hands. He also wants to heal us of the pains, disappointments, and sadness of the past week. If we let Him, He will do as He promises, and restore us to peace, calm, and refreshment again.
The way Jesus reminds us of His promise to heal, restore, and refresh us is in the Bible. Usually, we read the Bible as a rule book. In fact, in today’s Gospel reading, what Jesus means when He thanks the Father for hiding these things from the wise and learned and revealing them to little children, is that being a Christian isn’t as complicated as we make it out to be. In fact, it’s a lot simpler than a set of rules, lifestyle code, or philosophical system – as those who considered themselves wise in Jesus’ day were trying to make religion into. In other words, trying to make it into some sort of great mystery that only the experienced and learned would be able to do correctly. But there actually isn’t any kind of special mystery for following Jesus, or being a Christian: it’s instead, as Jesus Himself says, all about love. We follow the law of love in response to God loving us freely and unconditionally. Of course, as Paul reminds us in Romans, we don’t do this perfectly, because we are still in a constant struggle between living according to what God is making us into – becoming more like Jesus – and what our instincts want us to do. Which is usually to try to fight, react, want revenge, be angry, or defend if we feel threatened. Even this can come out of a certain view of God we may have or have had: that God leaves us to fight our battles on our own, or even may be angry with us, because of something we think we’ve done. This usually happens because of a misunderstanding of the Bible, again, focusing on what we interpret to be rules and consequences.
Instead, we are to read the Bible, as both Soren Kierkegaard and the late Billy Graham once said, as God’s love letter to us. Because that is what the Bible really is: it’s a reminder of how, even since the beginning of the world, God has shown His love for all people in many different ways. Even though disaster happens, God comforts us by taking charge and making things better, just as He did even back in ancient times. His greatest expression of His love was sending His Son to die on the cross, showing how far He was willing to go to love us, and then rising again, to rescue us from fear, doubt, and despair. So, each time we read the Bible, or hear it read, we are to ask ourselves, first of all:
What promises, comfort, and assurance is God or Jesus giving us in the passage? To go back to something said a minute ago, we may think of the God of the Old Testament as being one who is vengeful and angry. But nothing could be farther from the truth: the God of the Old Testament is the same as the God of the New Testament – a God who loves, and, ultimately, restores. Even in today’s First Reading, God, speaking through the Prophet Zechariah, promises to restore everything that has been lost. Maybe some of you are here today feeling defeated, broken, or discouraged. Today, God gives you His promise, in verse 12, “I will restore twice as much to you.” Just like the people of Israel to whom Zechariah was speaking thought that all was lost, you also might be feeling like all is lost – but God’s telling you everything you’ve lost is going to be given back to you. You’re going to receive blessings even greater than you could possibly imagine. Whatever you think is gone is going to be restored to you – you’re going to receive healing, peace, stability, security, self-esteem, and well-being again. This is God’s promise to you.
Second, when we read the Bible, we are to ask: in what ways, in the passage, is God or Jesus encouraging us to grow, progress, or mature in our relationship with Him? Not what are we to think about whatever the issue of the day might be, but how can we move forward in our relationship with God? How does God want us to be able to grow closer to Him? What do we need to give over to His control in order to have any distractions from Him be removed? Also, in a way, as Paul encourages us to think about, what are we still struggling with that is keeping us from growing closer to God? Not in the sense of what is keeping us from living a morally Christian life, but what is keeping us from putting God first, going to Him for help, spending time with Him, and making Him the source of our satisfaction? Also, in what ways is He encouraging us to live out our calling as Christians in our love for Him and others?
One of the most important ways is in how we talk to each other, and about each other. Last week we talked about how each of us are given the gift of prophecy by the power of the Holy Spirit. We are to use our gift of prophecy, and prophetic voices, for encouraging, building up, and lifting up each other and other people. Especially if we want church to be a place where we feel welcomed, accepted, and encouraged, it has to start with us: how we talk about each other, and how we treat each other, determines how much we are able to rest in Jesus’ presence here in church. If we are able to support each other, and build each other up, then we will be able to feel refreshed and renewed, and help each other do the same, whenever we are here. And, then we will be able to help others come to Jesus for rest, to be refreshed, and be restored. Let this be our goal, and our purpose.
Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment