The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, August 6, 2023) Rev. Dr. Scott Morschauser “What Shall We Say to This?” Romans 8:26-39 Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, our Lord.” These verses from Paul’s Letter to the Romans are among the most magnificent in all of Scripture and are among my personal favorites. They have provided me with encouragement and hope throughout my life. Thankfully, the Holy Spirit has brought them back to me and shone God’s light in Christ on me even in the darkest times. I really became aware of these passages watching a TV series from forty years ago called A.D. It was based on a novel by the British author, Anthony Burgess, in which he dramatized the spread of the gospel in a world and to a world, that the writer called “the kingdom of the wicked.” Not surprisingly, the apostle Paul was a focal point of the series. In one of the closing scenes, Paul is facing his execution. As he is awaiting the fall of the executioner’s blade, he is kneeling and praying the words I just read to you. That image on the TV screen became seared into my memory- - -but it wasn’t the ferocity of Caesar’s vengeance that impressed me, but the fervor of Paul’s faith, his trust in the promise of Christ, even as the “kingdom of the wicked” seemed to be triumphant over the kingdom of God. Given its enduring impact on me, it came as a shock when I discovered that not everybody reacts to the apostle’s words the same way I did. One day, a woman came up to me after my preaching a sermon, and told me that her college-age son had been reading the eighth chapter of Romans and was peppering her with questions. “What do you mean that in everything God works for good with those who love him? What about all the tragedies that happen? And what about this stuff about being called and justified and glorified? That doesn’t seem fair: that God chooses some and not others.” Finally, the young man showed his disdain for the declaration, “We are more than conquerors.” It smacked, he said, of conceit. That Christians think of themselves as better than everybody else and regard the rest of the world as losers. “What arrogance!” he pronounced. The mother, who was very religious, was distressed, because she had viewed Paul’s words much in the same positive and uplifting way that I did- - - and still do. “What about that?” she asked in frustration and sadness. Or to paraphrase Paul himself, “What shall we say to this?” Sadly, I have to tell you that that young man’s cynicism is sometimes borne out. Some time ago, my wife and I went on a trip to the Sight and Sound Theater in Lancaster, Pa. to watch a dramatization of the life of Christ. The conclusion of the performance was a portrayal of the Last Judgment. It was sobering, to be sure, but what was disturbing was that as different parties were being cast into perdition, with their specific sins announced, members of the audience were cheering and shouting and hooting, as if they were at a football game. It was obvious that they did think of themselves as “the winners,” and those transgressors as losers, and to them, deservedly so. I suppose this attitude might even be fostered by a popular paraphrase of the Bible, which translates our verses as: “With God on our side like this, how can we lose?.. . . Who would dare tangle with God by messing with one of his chosen?” What then shall we say to this? Perhaps the very first thing to be said is that, despite how some people might take these verses, Paul’s brothers and sisters in Christ were not privileged in any material way. They were not powerful in terms of their political clout. On the contrary, they were regarded as outcasts, subject to scorn by the elites, derided and rejected by the movers and shakers of the age. Importantly, the apostle’s words about “tribulation, distress, and persecution,” as well as the whole gamut of misfortunes that he lists, are really prophetic. He’s preparing the church in Rome for the not-so-distant future, when the most terrible of storms will break over this little band. When the full fury of sin against God will be unleashed, upon them- - - and upon Paul himself. This is what well might happen, and well did happen. They will be privileged, indeed, to bear witness to Christ in the most fearful of times. This was not an easy thing to hear- - - even as it is the greatest assurance that no human hell can nullify God’s claim upon us. Nor can anything- - - no matter how monstrously inconceivable in the imagination of man- - - rip us away from the grasp of Christ. Though we seemingly be powerless, the power of the Cross and Resurrection is more powerful still. Though we may be rejected by the kingdom of the wicked, God reigns over us and for us. Though we be without allies and friends in the high reaches of society, we have the Most Steadfast of Allies and the Greatest Friend in the highest of places, as God has pledged that he is with us, through his dear Son, and remains so, ever, and always. This Truth undergirds everything that Paul writes, and it is the key to understanding what he is saying. Even as he will say it over and over again; in different ways, with different nuances, but it is the same Truth, which God says to us- - - in Christ. So, when Paul declares that “we know that in everything God works for good with those who love him,” this is not to be understood as it is sometimes taken- - - that devastating and destructive things are really events sent by God as instruments of his divine benevolence. Of God’s slamming the door by toppling a house on top of us, in order to open a window. Of our being led to make lemonade out of shattered dreams and broken hearts. No. It is clear that Paul’s roster of horrors- - - “nakedness, peril, sword”- - - humiliation, threat, violence from the hands of man- - - are horrible. Signs of the kingdom of the wicked’s rebellion against God by trying to be God and venting its frustration upon the people of God. Nor is he providing an easy answer for those misfortunes of the so-called natural world- -- which theologians have called the “shadow side of Providence”- - - and for which any explanation often takes on the misguided counsel of Job’s supposed, but false friends. While the reason for such tragedies will be revealed to us in eternity, the apostle is speaking about something else here; he is using Scriptural language. “God works for good” is a way of expressing “God fulfills his covenantal plan” “in everything”: not “through everything,” but “in spite of anything,” no matter what. In everything we experience, that we face, God fulfills his eternal will for us. Jesus Christ is God’s “good”- - - His saving work and purpose in, and through, and as Jesus Christ, is always in effect. Paul then proclaims the same thing when he reveals, “that nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus, our Lord.” The “love of God” is much more than just an expression of lofty emotion- - - though it is certainly that, it is intensely personal! But this is once more part of the biblical vocabulary of covenant. God’s binding himself to us. God’s working out of that bond is expressed as “love”: unswerving loyalty, unshakeable allegiance. God’s faithfulness to us in Christ is firm, despite the wavering of our own faith; it is steadfast, notwithstanding how much our spirits are shaken and circumstances around us change. God works for good in the love of Christ from which we cannot be separated, not even by death. Some of you well know that Romans 8 is often read at funerals- - - and rightly so! But God’s word is for the church for its life- -- for living amidst the kingdom of the wicked and its pursuit of death-dealing idols. And it is to this present reality that Paul alludes when he writes: “Those whom God predestined, he also justified; and those whom he justified, he also glorified.” And yes, that skeptical young man I mentioned might view this verse through the prism of material favor. Of seeing Paul’s words as expressions of revenge, that the shoe will be on the other foot, and we shall be in charge, and we shall be the winners. But this is about commission, vocation, purpose. This is the language of discipleship. Of God’s choosing for us in Christ before all things, notwithstanding our choosing against him. Of being called by Jesus Christ. Of being justified, that to follow Christ is the right way, amidst all the lures that would lead us off a cliff, despite all the other voices that would browbeat us into submission. Of being glorified. For the Rome of Paul’s time and for much of the world’s history, to be “glorified,” was to achieve fame, be granted power, to be elevated by and above the adoring crowds. In the Scriptures, “to be glorified,” was linked to a term that meant “to bear a weight”: of being given great responsibility. The apostle is referring to receiving God’s commission to be his people; the community of disciples. Of living life as intended by God and revealed in and through Jesus Christ, whose glory will be shown in his assuming the role, the weight, the merciful burden as the Servant who suffers. The light sent right into the darkness; and declaring “his kingdom come,” smack in the midst of the false boasting of the kingdom of the wicked. Yes, we are claimed by Christ and we not only live this Truth, but are to live by this Truth. Yes, we are in his eternal presence and will be so for eternity. But the bond of Christ, the covenant of Christ, the love of Christ embraces us, holds us fast now, protects us now, amidst the temptation that we, too, are to employ tribulation; that we too, are to bring distress; that we, too, are to persecute; that we too, are shame; that we, too are threaten; that we, too, are to employ violence, and so become the very thing we are to hate. That we, too, forget the True Shepherd and instead, follow wolves in the sheep’s clothing, and be conquerors in their stead. What then shall we say to this? To this our time, which is no different from that of Paul’s. To this world, which is still in bondage to the corruption of sin, and enslavement to its idols. To this present culture, that deigns itself God, and so reveals its woeful identity as “the kingdom of the wicked.” What then shall we say to this? “If God is for us, who is against us? In all these things, I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” That is what we say, have to save, must save, and thanks be to God, can save. And because of this, yes, we are “more than conquerors through him who loved us”- - - we are better, through Christ, than the kingdom of the wicked. And nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Of that we are sure, because He is Lord, he is Savior, no matter what, and still, and always.
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The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, July 2, 2023) Rev. Dwayne M. Doyle, Guest Preacher “The Pearl of Great Price” 1 Kings 3:3-15, Matthew 13:24-52 If you could have anything you wanted in the world, what would you ask for? And you can’t ask for a million other wishes either. Would you ask for a long life? Good health? Riches? Wisdom? To be famous? Solomon was asked that very question by God after becoming the King of Israel. He didn’t ask for the things that most people ask for, instead he asked to be able to have good judgment to rule the kingdom that was handed down to him by his father, King David. God was so impressed with Solomon’s answer that he blessed him with great riches and a long life (with the condition that he followed God’s Commandments), as well as good judgment or wisdom (discernment). We know that Solomon had great wisdom by those that reported visiting him like the Queen of Sheba. He also demonstrated his good judgement by how he dealt with difficult situations, like the two mothers who claimed that each one of the other killed their baby in the night, or switched their dead baby for the live baby. In the morning one of the babies was dead and the other alive. They brought their case before Solomon who said the answer is, “I will cut the baby in half and give each of you your half”. The true mother said, “Don’t kill my baby, give my baby to the other woman”. Solomon reasoned that that was the true mother. And all Israel marveled at his judgement. Solomon wrote many of the Proverbs, the Book of Ecclesiastes and Song of Solomon. He was known as the wisest, richest kings in all of the world! Yet Jesus said that in His coming to the world there was something greater than Solomon here. Matthew 12:42 The Queen of Sheba will also stand up against this generation on judgment day and condemn it, for she came from a distant land to hear the wisdom of Solomon. Now someone greater than Solomon is here-but you refuse to listen. The Book of Proverbs speaks about seeking after Wisdom, Sophia, as you would seek after hidden treasure. Our scripture in the New Testament today is about the Pearl of Great Price. A man went out to seek for a pearl of great price, when he had found it, he sold all that he had to get it. What would you be willing to do to get wisdom? When I was in college, I determined I was going to be like Albert Schweitzer, a great missionary doctor in the deepest parts of Africa. That plan didn’t work out. Instead, I began studying the Bible and eventually ended up as a minister. While in college I determined that if I could spend the rest of my life studying the Bible, and make a living at it, I would be the happiest person in the world. What is it that you would be willing to sell or give up to have the most important thing in the world? Some people would say that love is the most important thing to have in the world. The Apostle Paul said in 1Corinthians 13:1-3 that you might have everything, but if you have not love, you have nothing. He said, “If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.” How true, how true. Love conquers a multitude of sins. And perfect love casts out all fear. Where would we be without love? And Paul concludes, three things will last forever: faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love. 1 Cor. 13:13. Maybe we should ask what or who is Wisdom. If we are talking about knowledge, or intellect, or common sense, we may not be looking for what we should really be looking for. Proverbs 2:1-12: “My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for hidden treasures. For the LORD grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the paths of the just and protects those who are faithful to him. Then you will understand what is right, just, and fair, and you will find the right way to go. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe. Wisdom will save you from evil people, from those whose words are twisted.” Matthew 6:33: “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” James 3:17: “But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace-loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.” 1 Corinthians 1:17-30: “The message of the cross is foolish to those who are headed for destruction! But we who are being saved know it is the very power of God. As the Scriptures say; I will destroy the wisdom of the wise and discard the intelligence of the intelligent.” (Isaiah 29:14) So where does this leave the philosophers, the scholars, and the world’s brilliant debaters? God has made the wisdom of this world look foolish. Since God in His wisdom saw to it that the world would never know Him through human wisdom, He has used our foolish preaching to save those who believe. It is foolish to the Jews, who ask for signs from heaven. And it is foolish to the Greeks, who seek human wisdom. So when we preach that Christ was crucified, the Jews are offended and the Gentiles say it’s all nonsense. But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And He chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit, God made Him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; He made us pure and holy, and He freed us from sin. Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “if you want to boast, boast only about the LORD.” (Jeremiah 9:24) Point #1 Seeking after wisdom Point #2 Acquiring Wisdom Point #3 Practicing lessons learned from wisdom Point #4 Sharing the wisdom we have learned with others The kind of wisdom God has revealed to the children of God is not of this world. Jesus Christ is the Son of God. The human race was in a state of separation from God the Creator, and the only way that the relationship could be fixed was for God himself to fix it. The way He fixed it was to come Himself as one of us. He lived the perfect sinless life. He was punished for the sins of the world. Jesus died for us and on the third day rose from the dead. All who put their faith in Him, whether Jew or Gentile, will be saved! This is the gospel or ‘good news’. To understand this truth is true wisdom. We must first understand that we live in an imperfect world. It was created to be perfect, but it became flawed. God was upset with the human race and destroyed almost everyone but Noah and his family. He started over with Noah and then selected one man, Abraham, and his wife Sarah to begin his mission to redeem the human race. Through the faith of Abraham, He would one day produce a Savior, Jesus of Nazareth. Although Jesus came specifically to His own race, His mission was much broader. Anyone who put their faith in Him would be saved. This kind of wisdom does not come from the world, but is from above. I went to a liberal arts college and received a good education. I studied philosophy, politics, economics, science, math, art, music. I have been fortunate to have traveled to see different places where people practiced other religions like Buddhism, Islam and different forms of Christianity. I have studied world religions and have studied Christianity. I studied about Community Development and how to help people in places where they are not so well off as we are in the United States. I am thankful for the education that I have and would encourage anyone to get an education and continue to learn all that you can to be helpful to people, animals, and our creation. Knowledge is amazing. I thank God for doctors, dentists, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, engineers, lawyers, politicians, astronomers, physicists, musicians, actors, dancers, artists, etc. We need you all. But the most important thing that I have learned about is to know Jesus and to make him known. With this knowledge I know where I will be spending all of eternity. This knowledge to too precious to keep to ourselves. There is a world dying to know it. Some of our famous Presidents also knew that they needed to ask God for wisdom when they took office. Two such historic figures were President George Washington and President Abraham Lincoln. A PRAYER BY GEORGE WASHINGTON: Almighty God: We make our earnest prayer that Thou wilt keep the United States in Thy holy protection; that Thou wilt incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government, and entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another and for their fellow-citizens of the United States at large. And finally that Thou wilt most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility and pacific temper of mind which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion without a humble imitation of whose example in these things we can never hope to be a happy nation. Grant our supplication, we beseech Thee, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. https://www.loc.gov/resource/rbpe.20803000/?st=text Library of Congress 07/30/2023 Abraham Lincoln once expressed the importance of seeking God in prayer for wisdom. He said, “I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had no where else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day.” Abraham Lincoln https://awaa.org/blog/national-day-of-prayer-abraham-lincolns-prayer-for-our-nation/ 7/30/2023 A PRAYER BY ABRAHAM LINCOLN Almighty God, Who has given us this good land for our heritage; We humbly beseech Thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Thy favor and glad to do Thy will. Bless our land with honorable ministry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties, and fashion into one united people, the multitude brought hither out of many kindreds and tongues. Endow with Thy spirit of wisdom those whom in Thy name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be justice and peace at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth. In time of prosperity fill our hearts with thankfulness, and in the day of trouble, suffer not our trust in Thee to fail; all of which we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. https://awaa.org/blog/national-day-of-prayer-abraham-lincolns-prayer-for-our-nation/ 7/30/2023 What is your ‘Pearl of Great Price’? What are you willing to give up to get wisdom? Sometimes God does call us to give up everything like St. Francis of Assisi. What are you willing to give up to get to know Jesus better? Remember our task is ‘Seek after Wisdom’, ‘Acquire Wisdom’, ‘Practice the principles learned from Wisdom’, and to ‘Share that Wisdom’ with those around us’. Knowing Jesus was never meant to be just a personal thing or for our church. There is a world out there just waiting to hear about the hope that we have found in Jesus Christ. Think about it. I hope that you all have a wonderful week. Pray that you will meet someone this week that you can share your faith with. I will be looking forward to seeing you when I come back next time. God Bless. The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, July 16, 2023) Rev. Dr. Scott Morschauser, Guest Preacher “RADICAL FAITH-RADICAL CHURCH” Acts 2: 37-47 “The Chapel bells were ringing/In the little valley town/And the song they were singing/Was for baby Jimmy Brown. . . And the little congregation/Prayed for guidance from above/‘Lord lead us not into temptation/May his soul find the salvation/Of thy great eternal love.’” Perhaps some of you remember that song. It’s still sung occasionally by religious groups, but it was a popular hit in the 1950s in America. It spoke of the church with the deepest affection and without the least bit of cynicism. The lyrics celebrate the importance of faith throughout life’s journey - from birth to marriage, through death; each step accompanied by the hope of salvation “of thy great eternal love.” I recently heard this tune on Sirius Satellite Radio’s Fifties Station. It stuck out like a sore thumb against the rock-and-roll culture that was emerging, but especially to our present time. “The chapel bells were ringing. . . ” There’s a church about half a mile away from my house, and every noon it would ring its bells to hymn tunes, until one of my neighbors complained. It offended him, he said. Predictably, those chapel bells aren’t ringing any longer for little Jimmy Brown or anybody else in my town. We might ask what has happened? Why is it that the church which was so present in the lives of so many Americans, now absent, avoided, verbally attacked by some, and sadly enough, physically assaulted by others? Sociologists look at this issue all the time, but it is central to our Scripture reading for today which addresses what the church is to be in the world and to the world. Some preachers hold up our verses as providing the model of the church, and they even call it, “the Acts 2 church”. They will challenge congregations to compare themselves to what Luke shows us asking, “Are you an Acts 2 church?” This episode itself can be divided into two parts. The first section presents the impact of Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. The second part shows its application: how the proclamation of the Gospel was put into practice. How the church of the Word is also the church of action - the church of Acts if you like. Notably, the apostle concludes his address with the counsel, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation,” which would have rung bells among his listeners. It evokes the story of Noah and the Ark, when God instructed the patriarch to build a ship to preserve his family from the moral anarchy, which would unleash a flood upon the world. The apostle is making the equation that the community of the baptized is, in effect, an ark. Not surprisingly, in the earliest Christian art, the ark is a prominent motif. The church was to be an ark. The church is an ark. There are some modern theologians who object to this imagery. “No! The church is not to shut itself off from the world!” Yet Peter’s reference is not to condemn the world, but to save God’s beloved creatures from “this crooked generation.” Again, this is another Scriptural allusion. “Crooked generation” refers to the age that has turned away from God’s covenant and has chosen to embrace the beliefs and practices of the surrounding culture. But let us make no mistake, this “crooked generation” is not anti-religious, at all. On the contrary, it is as religious as it can get. Everywhere one looks there are monuments to its deities. It extols any god, and all gods, except The Saving God. Disregarding God’s commandments, it holds firm to its tenets, enforcing them with vigor. Rejecting that it is under the gracious lordship of God, this “crooked generation” would declare itself God and seek to shape the world according to its image. Later on, the apostle Paul will unveil what results from exalting the deities of “the crooked generation.” It is not a pretty sight: immorality, discord, envy, violence, exploitation, greed, and naked ambition. That was their creed, that was their song. “Save yourself!” Peter and others will counsel. It’s not to lock out those suffering, but the invitation to enter the door opened to everybody, drowning, floundering, sinking, who cries out “What shall we do?” And then, hearing that Christ provides refuge, an ark for those drowning in the chaos of the “crooked generation,” an anchor for those who would be swallowed up in its whirlpool. Hearing what Christ has done amidst the roaring and ranting of the age. Acts then relates the impact of Peter’s message: “and there were added about 3,000 souls.” Which is matched by the changed conduct of their lives: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching . . . and all who believed were directed toward the same goal, all held everything the same; and they sold their goods and possessions and distributed them to all, as any had need. Day by day, they persevered together in the Temple, and breaking bread at home . . . in exaltation and with singular hearts.” It's hardly unexpected, that many people today view this passage through a purely economic lens. In fact, Karl Marx took one of its verses, “each according to his ability, each according to his need,” to create a system without God, but would elevate the all-powerful state to the status of deity. Yet, that sort of entity was in existence as Peter was speaking. It assured people that it would take care of you from birth to death. It would provide you with welfare, food, offer diversions to keep you entertained. That was the promise of Rome - “bread and circuses.” All you had to do was to give this state -ever present, all powerful - your allegiance, your loyalty, your soul. Everything. But if you read these passages carefully, you’ll discover this isn’t the language of business; it’s about covenant. About being bound together in Communion with Christ, and through Him, and because of Him, with one another. Christ is the center of the covenant community, and the first law of its economics is “to love your neighbor as yourself”; that person in need is your neighbor. However, the whole purpose is for the church - the Acts 2 church - to disentangle, disenthrall, distance itself from the powers and principalities that would claim everybody and everything as their possessions, to be bartered and sold as objects. The community that has been freed by Christ is the community that is freed from and free of the idols of the state, and free for each other. The community dependent upon Christ and which follows his Way is the community independent of “this crooked generation.” I just read an article about a letter written by the ancient author, Pliny the Younger. Dated to the early second century, Pliny was a Roman governor in what is now modern day Turkey. He had been asked to investigate a strange group that was called, “Christians.” Pliny discovered that at their meetings held on Sundays, these Christians read the Ten Commandments, recited an early form of the Apostles’ Creed, sang hymns, and they swore to be honest - not to get into debt, and to pay all debts owed - followed by a meal taken together in the name of this Christ, whom they worshipped. Apparently, this was an Acts 2 church, in its form and in its function; in its preaching of the faith, and in its faithfulness to its preaching. Pliny’s letter has been known for centuries, but a scholar recently pointed out that the reason why Pliny had to look into the Christians, was that the temples in his jurisdiction had complained that people had stopped sacrificing to their deities; stopped following the dictates and customs of their cults. They were leaving behind “this crooked generation,” and heading towards the church - to get on the ark which is Jesus Christ. Despite the fact that these Christians treated one another with simple dignity, that they were honest, and that their behavior demonstrated their belief in their Christ - for Pliny, that was a little too much. The governor was instructed that upon arresting a suspected Christian, he was to offer them the choice of pledging their allegiance to Caesar - to entrust their body, soul, heart, and mind to the ruler of the age. The emperor noted, “A true Christian would not do this.” The choice was simple: rejoin “this crooked generation” and save your life - for a while. Or refuse to abandon the Ark and lose your life - but save your soul. Pliny was astonished that not many would jump ship. The theologian and preacher, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, having been arrested by Hitler, wrote a series of letters from prison. In one of them, he posed the question, how does one preach the gospel, to “a world come of age.” That phrase has been debated endlessly, but it should have rung some bells. It comes from a writer of the 18th century Enlightenment, and it referred to a generation that had now asserted its total independence from God. The “world come of age” was the mature world, that had cast aside all the wisdom and learning of the past. The world come of age, took its own path, charted its own course, decided its own destiny. This is the modern world - it is also the “crooked generation.” How can the church get through to this world, that would close its ears to Scripture; a world to whom God’s Word was more and more unfamiliar and unknown? A world that would seek to silence any and all chapel bells and sing its own songs. Bonhoeffer concluded two things: one is that to even such a world - this world come of age - this generation wandering a road crooked and lost - even to these Jesus Christ comes. The second thing is that if the spoken Word has no effect, then the Word lived out, does. That the church - the Acts 2 church - the church whose members hold Christ as their center; the Church that declares its common faith in Christ; the Church that “perseveres in the temple and breaking bread at home” - that in public and private it shows its integrity - that it is integrated into Christ, and that it lives wholly from his claim … That while the present generation may no longer comprehend the Word of God in Christ, it can see that we do. It can see that we take the Word seriously. And that might get them to think, and begin to listen, and go through the door to the Ark. One day, some of my students were speaking and yearning about being “revolutionaries,” that they wanted to change the world. I listened quietly and began to smile. One of them asked me why I was reacting in the way that I did. I replied, “You want to be a revolutionary? The greatest act of revolution - the most counter-cultural gesture you can make nowadays - is to go to church.” When you answer the summons of the chapel bells when they are ringing, when you pray “for guidance from above, ‘Lord lead us not into temptation,’” and rejoice and live by “the salvation of Christ’s eternal love.” You are an Acts 2 church. You are the real radicals; you are true revolutionaries. First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday ~ July 9 2023) MATTHEW 11:25-30 Rev. Dr. Debby Brincivalli The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, July 2, 2023) Rev. Dwayne M. Doyle, Guest Preacher ‘The Importance of Daily Choices’ Joshua 24:14-15; Ecclesiastes 4:9-12; Rom. 6:12-23 If we are working against doing the wrong things in our lives then we are doing well. It is when we stop striving to do the right things and feel no sense of remorse over doing the wrong things then we need to be concerned. Most of my life I have spent trying to do the right things. I was given fantastic parents that guided me the best way they knew how. I had an older brother who was literally my hero. I had teachers who taught me how to read and write and graduate from school. I had Sunday school teachers and pastors who guided me to a knowledge of God and spiritual things. When I was in high school my girlfriend encouraged me to read Mathew, Mark, Luke and John. Little did she know that this would be an important turning point in my life, because after reading these four gospels I concluded that if Jesus wasn’t the answer to all of the world’s problems, I didn’t know who else could be. That was in the summer of 1980, the year I graduated from high School. Other important decisions I made were to go to college, asking Jesus to be my Lord and Savior, meeting and marrying my wife, and the decision to be a missionary. Daily choices we make each day may have eternal consequences. Our choice to follow Jesus is one of those critical decisions in our lives. For when we ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior, all the angels of heaven rejoice. God and his angels are rejoicing and Satan and his demons are crying. How are we to combat such a force as Satan and his demons? Satan also knows our weak points. Remember when he came to temp our Lord Jesus I the wilderness; He came after Jesus had fasted for forty days and forty nights, when he was at his weakest. He will come to us when we are tired and weak. He also will try to keep us separated form other believers. The second biggest decision is to commit to following Jesus every day. Joshua, the leader of God’s army after Moses died encouraged the Hebrews to make a decision. Chose who you will serve this day, but as for me and my family, we will serve the Lord! Joshua 24:14-15 On July 4th, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence, announcing the colonies’ separation from Great Britian. The following are excerpts from the Declaration of Independence. “When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. . . . We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.” The 56 signatures appear on the Declaration of Independence. Declaration of Independence 1776 https://billofrightsinstitute.org/primary-sources/declaration-of-independence 6/30/2023 By signing their names to this document these men also were signing their death warrant if the colonies were to lose their war with Great Britain. In a sense, we have signed our own death sentence says the apostle Paul with our allegiance to our old Nature. We have pledged our lives to follow Jesus unto death so that we may also reign in newness of life with him at the resurrection. Jesus challenged us to follow his teachings and that if we did we would be building our lives on a firm foundation, one that could withstand the storms of life. Jesus is our rock. And God never meant for us to go about our journey alone. One strand is good and well, but two are stronger, but three stands woven together are even stronger. (my paraphrase). Ecclesiastes 4:9-12. In our scripture text today in Romans 6:12-23 we read about the theology of the apostle Paul. He is trying to help us understand the battle we are all up against in life. Some of you here today are going through difficult struggles. God knows all about it. Some of you may be dealing with life-or-death decisions. The body of Christ or church was established by Jesus himself to be here for you. Jesus said, that he would will build his church and the gates of hell would not be able to stand against it. We must daily make our decision to again follow Jesus, no matter what the world may say. In all that we do, think or say, Jesus must take top priority. Let’s recommit ourselves today to reaffirming our faith in him. I'd Rather Have Jesus Song by Jim Reeves I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold I'd rather be His than have riches untold I'd rather have Jesus than houses or land I'd rather be led by His nail-pierced hand Than to be the king of a vast domain And be held in sin's dread sway I'd rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today I'd rather have Jesus than worldly applause I'd rather be faithful to His dear cause I'd rather have Jesus than worldwide fame Yes, I'd rather be true to His holy name Than to be the king of a vast domain And be held in sin's dread sway I'd rather have Jesus than anything This world affords today Source: Musixmatch Songwriters: Rhea Miller / George Beverly Shea I'd Rather Have Jesus lyrics © Word Music, Llc The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday June 25, 2023) Elder Russ Long Finding Rest Matthew 11:25-30 25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 27 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. 28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am [a]gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Jesus said “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” I don’t know about you, but some days I am just plain weary. I let the daily things in life weigh my spirit down. The last two sermons I shared came from a personal struggle I was having, and I thought I would share that with you, as you might be struggling too. The last was about sharing one another’s burdens. This one is about finding rest. Some thoughts borrowed from Rev Ken Sauer sermon Central: Life and stress…they go hand-in-hand. We will all experience this. There is no getting around it. Ultimately, the only way to find the rest we need is to turn to Jesus. A yoke is a wooden instrument that yoked two oxen together and made them a team. You wouldn’t think a yoke is light, but Jesus is saying let’s share the load. Jesus is saying: “Be my teammate and together we will pull the load. Together we will deal with the stresses of life. Together we will carry your Cross. Together we will lift your burdens and help lift the burdens of others. Together we will be victorious over those things that seek to destroy you. Together we will live the life you have been created to live.” Being yoked with Jesus means that we are in a relationship with Him where we have the opportunity to learn from Him the art of gentleness, warmth, love and assurance. Being yoked with Jesus means to walk with Him and do the things He does—to be humble, putting the cares and needs of others before our own. And in this relationship with Christ we find life—eternal life and life abundant. We experience true freedom because we no longer need to go it alone. Because, when we are walking with Jesus Christ—we are too concerned about the feelings, the well-being and the salvation of our fellow human beings that we don’t have time to be all wrapped up in self. “Come to me,” says Jesus. “Come to me with anything that wears you down. Come to me with any burden on your heart. Come to me and I will give you rest.” Not only is a yoke a wooden instrument that was used in farming. The term was also often used to refer to the task of obedience to the Torah. Earlier and later in Matthew, he calls out the legal yoke imposed by the Pharisees. An impossible yoke to bear. He says that they “tie up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on other peoples’ shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.” The religion of Jesus’ day was based on rules and regulations. It was a weight and a burden that was loaded onto peoples’ shoulders. The Pharisees—the leading sect of Jesus’ time—had 600 rules and regulations having to do with just about every aspect of life. They made people feel guilty and “not good enough” as no one was able to follow all the rules to a “T.” Jesus came teaching the “heart of the Law” which is to love God and Neighbor. He taught people not to judge one another. He said that “God desires mercy, not sacrifice.” And He told folks over and over again how much God loves us. And then, to prove the full-extent of God’s love and to save us from our sins—Jesus went to die on the Cross—only to rise again, defeating sin and death and the Law that stood against us once and for all. Many people think God is disappointed in them. That is the kind of thing Jesus came to erase. Some of us deal with feelings of “I’m not good enough for God to love me.” And so, we try all the more to be some kind of “perfect person”—which is an impossible task. And the more we try the more disillusioned and depressed we get until we finally give up. And it’s easy to fall into this trap. But that is not what God is like; that is not Who God is. And Jesus came to show us Who God really is. In the verse right before our Scripture lesson for this morning, Jesus says: “All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” When we look to Jesus, we see God. And Jesus is compassionate, merciful, unconditionally loving, and forgiving. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross.” Jesus died for us once and for all. He died to forgive us. He died to set us free from sin. He died so that we may live abundant, fruitful lives in Him. He calls those of us who are carrying enormous burdens around. He calls us during times of trial and trauma. He calls us as we mourn. He calls us from our self-destruction. He calls us as we are stressed out and burned out. And if we heed His call, we learn that the yoke Jesus gives us is not packed with the dead weight of sin. Instead, it is the yoke of Christian freedom, the joy of serving Him, the joy of helping others, the opportunity to live a life of praise and thankfulness. We are not meant to go through this life struggling on our own. So, let’s not try. He is our God Who is right here every day and will never stop calling out in love: “Come to me.” Won’t you come to Him today, right now? Jesus’s great invitation for us to come to Him, exchange yokes, and find rest is not intended for us to do in isolation. He intends for us to come to him in community, to come together. That’s one of the reasons the church exists. We all bear burdens and become weary, but in different ways, for different reasons, and often at different times. When we are weary, we are easily discouraged and can be given to cynical unbelief. I have a term I call “praying, not believing”. In those moments we are often not the best preachers for our souls. We need others to speak truth to us and help us. That’s why we are not to neglect “to meet together, as is the habit of some, but [to keep on] encouraging one another” (Hebrews 10:29). We are to “exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Hebrews 3:13). So if you are weary, for whatever reason, however complex, Jesus invites you to come. Come, take His light yoke of believing in Him. And if it’s hard, don’t come alone. Come to Jesus with and through a believing friend. Believe, abide, and follow Jesus’ example. And you will find rest for your soul. As we look forward to the next phase of this congregation and what the future has in store for us, the load may seem overwhelming. But as we look to Jesus to guide us, the yoke will be light and indeed rewarding. And at just the right time, He will show us who He has prepared for us. Amen. The First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, June 18, 2023) Rev. Dr. Scott Morschauser A FISH STORY Romans 5:1-8 Today is Father’s Day. We celebrate all those who have assumed that important role and all who have carried out their tasks with commitment, dedication, and love. It is not surprising if on this occasion, I remember my own father. My dad was an avid fisherman, and an extremely competitive one, at that. One year, he took my brother, Tommy, and me on a fishing trip to Canada. On that excursion, we caught a lot, but it was my brother who landed the biggest fish -- a huge pike that weighed over twenty pounds. I congratulated my brother, but I also warned him, “Dad will not rest until he outdoes you.” And for the remainder of our stay, my father would be up at dawn, he’d keep fishing the entire day without a break, until sunset. In northern Quebec in early summer, that meant from about 4:00 AM to 10:00 PM. He just would not give up. The day came for us to return home. We packed up our equipment and began the long trip back to New Jersey. But a few miles down the road, my dad saw a lake by the road. He pulled over, “Just one more cast.” He took out his rod and reel which he conveniently left on top of the other gear, went down to the shore, and tossed his lure into the water, without success. We continued on. Another couple of miles there was another lake. We stopped, “Just one more cast.” My father threw and retrieved his line for twenty minutes, with no result. We proceeded on to another lake. Same thing. Then another, and another, and another. For my dad, there was always one more lake, one more cast, one bigger fish out there. Whatever else I learned on that trip, my father taught me about his persistent character, perseverance, and hope. “Just one more cast.” “We also rejoice in our sufferings because we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance, character, and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because by the Holy Spirit, whom God gives, God has poured out his love into our hearts.” Our Scripture reading for this morning from Paul’s letter to the Romans is centered around perseverance, character, and hope. These verses are among the most quoted of all the writings of the apostle. And they are sometimes taken as proverbs about how experience is crucial in molding our outlook on life. Challenges strengthen character. The German philosopher, Fredrich Nietzsche parodied Paul when he once said, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” and these sentiments can often be heard from the lips of high-school coaches, “No pain, no gain.” Yet, some of you may know of people whose life-experiences have not shaped them in a constructive way. Instead of offering them perspective, they are bitterly pessimistic. Even worse, suffering -- past experience --has made them resentful, even vengeful: “I’ll make others know how I felt!” Nietzsche for all of his posturing about how hardship creates heroic supermen, himself went mad, for want of hope. But what is hope? According to standard dictionaries, “hope is a belief that something you want will happen. It is to cherish a desire with anticipation; to want something . . . to be true.” We do certainly see these sentiments in antiquity. Throughout the Mediterranean world, there was a little deity -- the goddess of hope -- who was often appealed to, and prayers offered to make your personal wishes come true: your desire for romance; your yearnings for success; your achieving riches. You’d often see a statue of Hope at racetracks: she was the goddess of long shots. But this being was fickle; she was linked to chance and fortune and noted for her unreliability. A famous writer stated: “One can indulge in hope if one already has advantages to fall back on- - - but those who risk their all on her, find out what it really means, only when they are already ruined.” Hope is for the desperate. Hope is undependable. Hope almost always disappoints. So, what does the apostle Paul mean when he refers to hope? I would like to explore this with you this morning. The first thing to grasp is that for the apostle, “hope”--as well as suffering, perseverance, and character--were not lofty philosophical concepts, nor intellectual abstractions. No, these things were part of a story, and have to be understood within that story. Ironically, it was around a figure that the early Christians referred to by the Greek word for “fish: “ichtus” -- I-C-Th-U-S -- with the letters forming an abbreviation -- “Jesus Christ the Son of God Savior.” Paul is telling us a fish-story. Accordingly, when he speaks about “our suffering,” he is referring to the Fish- - - Jesus Christ the Son of God, the Savior’s- - - suffering on our behalf. When Paul talks about “perseverance” it is about the Fish -- Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior’s -- obedience and dedication to God’s plan of salvation for us. When Paul upholds “character,” it’s about the character of that Fish -- Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior -- and his fidelity to the Father’s Will to us. And when Paul mentions “hope”- - - it is about the Fish- - - Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior’s- - - total dependence upon and trust in, God to bring His Story to its fulfillment- - -revealed in the suffering, perseverance, character, and hope of the Fish- - - in the life, death, resurrection, and reign of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior. That story encapsulates our hope. That one embodies the Christian’s hope. The story of the Fish, which Paul declares, is not accomplished through our dreams, our wants, our yearnings, our assertions, our feelings. No, it is “the love of God” -- his faithfulness, poured out into our hearts -- borne witness, “through the Holy Spirit.” The center of which is “while we were still weak . . . Christ died for the ungodly . . . while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” The hope of the Christian -- the Christian hope -- is that Fish Story -- the Story of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior. That’s what Paul is teaching his friends in Rome and us. Still, there is another aspect to this hope, which we cannot forget. That Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior- - - that Fish, through his suffering for us, through his perseverance in his mission, through his humble and obedient character, through his hope in God- - - He claims us, as part of his school. That we are to follow him as he leads us through the currents and torrents of existence. That “our sufferings” are themselves to imitate and reflect the life of Christ. That our perseverance is to endure whatever obstacles we face, faithfully through Christ. That our character is one molded and shaped and defined by Christ’s own character. Our hope is one which we confess is not in ourselves, in our cleverness, our wisdom, our experience- - - that’s not what makes us who we are, but Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior. “Therefore, since we are justified by God’s faithfulness in Christ, we have peace with God through our lord Jesus Christ.” This is Paul’s mighty announcement that whatever we may have been, whatever we may have done, however the world might try to define us, the loving and forgiving God, does not toss us back. In Christ, he assures us that we are worth catching, and keeping and saving. And that the Fish Story- - - the Story of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior- - - the Gospel includes us, too. The Eternal God, in Jesus Christ, has entered into our stories, and has taken up into His- - - he has made us part of his story, and we have a part to play in his story. That is the Hope of the Christian. The hope of the world. We are to get the Story right. In J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, two of the characters, the hobbits, Frodo and Sam, are embarked on their dangerous mission to destroy “the ring of power” on Mt. Doom. As they go on their perilous journey, they are mystified at the events about them, and as to why they- - - little unassuming creatures- - - are tasked with such terrible responsibility. As they puzzle it over, Sam says, “Mr. Frodo, I understand now that all those old stories about good and evil, and right and wrong, are really true.” Some of you may know that Tolkien’s epic fantasy is really a Christian allegory about fallen man’s idolatry of power and the knowledge of good and evil- - - represented by the Ring- - - and the only way to freedom is to give it all up through sacrificial and self-giving love. It is the gospel story. “You know, those old stories are really true.” When Paul wrote his letter to the Romans, he was reminding them that the stories on which we base our lives, the plots we follow, are of the utmost – eternal --importance. Crucially, Paul was not thinking theoretically here. At the time of his correspondence, the church was living under the reign of the emperor Nero, who was a very young man. Nero was a person who loved stories: he liked to perform in them on stage -- dressing up like gods and heroes. But Nero wanted to create his own story. Actually, he wrote an epic poem that started with the Creation of the world, but whose end-point -- the climax of history- - - was he. He proclaimed that he was “the Savior of the world,” and all were to acknowledge him as such, following his dictates and commands, and imitating his ethics. Nero’s character was to be the model for everybody else. Nero announced that his rule would be “the Revolution of Youth,” the center of which was his overturning all past standards. Gone were the ideals of dignity and seriousness and replaced with exhibitionism and excess. Nero redefined nature, gender, human relationships. Roman senators were pressured to follow the new order, and the rest of the population fell into line, with Nero rewarding them with food and entertainment. This was the culture encountering the church in Rome, with its story- - - the Story of Nero, His Revolution, His New Creation, his Salvation. But Paul reminds his friends, about the Fish- - - Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior- - - of his suffering, his perseverance, his character, his hope- - - God’s story of his being with us. That it’s crucial to get the story right- - - the Story of God’s righteousness in Jesus Christ. Because it will not be very long before everything will go wrong with Nero’s Story. And it will result in the Christians in Rome having to suffer, persevere, show their true character, and understand that their only hope is the Fish. There is no other person in the New Testament who writes more about hope than Paul. The hope of the Christian- - - the Christian hope- - - which is anchored in the faithfulness of God in Christ, and to live faithfully in and by Christ. That the more we know about Christ, the more we grow in Christ, the more we go with Christ: that is the Christian hope. That is our hope. Towards the end of another letter, this one written from a Roman jail, the same apostle recounts to the church in Philippi his autobiography, the story of Paul’s own life: “Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. . . I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus, my Lord. For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things . . . in order that I may gain Christ, and being found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, but that which is through faith in Christ. The righteousness from God that depends on faith; that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and may share his suffering becoming like him in death, that, if possible, I may attain the resurrection of the dead.” I, Paul, gave up all other stories, and trusted the story of God’s promise of salvation- -- the Story of the Fish- - - Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior. That I may share his suffering- -- that I may live according to Christ’s life; becoming like him- - - that I might have the character of Christ- - - that if possible- - - I hope, my hope- - - is that I may attain the resurrection with Christ. Suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character, and character hope. A hope based in the Story of the Fish. It is not a wish, but the Truth, by which all other stories are measured and judged, and to which they are to be conformed and transformed. Let me end with Paul’s own prayer for the church in Rome and for us: “May the God of hope, fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you may abound in hope- - - that you may trust in, and entrust yourselves to the old, old story about a Fish, indeed: the Story of Jesus and his love.” First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday June 11, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “God Is Able!” Psalm 121; Jude 24-25 The story is told of a little girl and her father who were crossing a narrow bridge. Concerned about his daughter’s safety, the dad turns to his little daughter and says, “Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don’t fall into the river.” The little girl replied, “No, Dad. You hold my hand.” “What’s the difference?” asked the puzzled father. “There’s a big difference, daddy,” said the little girl. “If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go.” In a greater, deeper, and richer way, our Scripture lesson from the Letter of Jude reminds us this morning that God is ABLE. He is able to keep us when we feel we cannot keep ourselves. Real power comes from clinging to God. In the Bible, God’s hands are described as mighty, righteous, strong, delivering, upholding, healing, creative, good, and powerful. As children of God, we can be comforted knowing that God’s hold on us is never at risk, even as we falter. Jude is a very short letter. It is one chapter, only 25 verses long. The purpose of the letter is found in verse 3: “Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt compelled to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to God’s holy people.” The Book of Jude, therefore, is a call to live faithfully and to hold onto the truth of the gospel. Well, since this is my last Sunday in the pulpit as your Pastor and at the same time, we are celebrating two baptisms today, Rae and Dean are getting baptized, I thought to leave you with a word of encouragement. Like those early Christians who lived during the time of Jude, we live in a culture that’s not very friendly to the Christian faith. Those early Christians were persecuted and discriminated against because of their faith. Will the Christian faith be able to stand that hostility? Will the second generation embrace the faith of their parents? The words of Jude 24-25 remind us that God is able when we realize our own inability. The doxology of Jude 24-25 is a song of victory, a high note of praise, and a great assurance of the redeemed. Out of the most desperate situations in life, we are to keep our eyes on the Lord when everything else fails us. So as we look at this short Scripture passage this morning, please allow me to underscore two observations: First: God Will Keep us from Stumbling Jude reminds us in verses 24-25, “To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” Friends, we live with the awareness, the daily possibility of stumbling. We know the weakness and wickedness of our own heart. In James 3:2 we read, “We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.” If stumbling is a sad reality, there is even a greater and more comforting reality. God is fully committed to us. Like in the story of that little girl, our hope does not lie on the fact that we hold God’s hand, but on the truth that He holds our hand. His work in us is being perfected. He will keep us from stumbling today, until by His grace, stand before His throne faultless and fully sanctified by the blood of the Lamb. 1 Peter 1:5 states, we are “kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” Second: To God Be Glory, Majesty, Power, and Authority As we contemplate the depth of this truth this morning, as we think about God’s ability to save and to perfect, we find ourselves shouting our halleluiahs. “To the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore,” says Jude 25. May our lives reflect not our inability, but God’s capability; not our limitations, but God’s limitless power and grace. “I lift up my eyes to the hills-- where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth” Psalm 121:1-2. Friends, may the God who is an ever present help in times of need strengthen this congregation and keep you from stumbling in the days to come. May the God of might and power give extra grace to young families as they raise their kids in the instructions of our Lord. Pray for Franco, Erica, Rae, and Dean. May we learn to lean on the everlasting arms of God. Be there for each other in the days to come and even more importantly, remember that Christ, our companion, is always there for you. “To Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy — to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.” First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday June 04, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “The Friend at Midnight!” Psalm 78:1-8; Luke 11:1-13 Compared to the other three gospels, the gospel of Luke has, by far, the most emphasis on prayer. Luke has more references to the prayer life of Jesus than any other gospel. There are at least 13 times in Luke where we encounter Jesus praying or encouraging others to pray. No wonder that one Bible scholar calls Luke, “The gospel of prayer.” Luke tells us that prayer was so central to the life and ministry of Jesus, therefore, it should be important to those who follow in the way of Christ. Having seen the power of prayer in Christ’s life, one of the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray. This is what Luke says in chapter 11:1, “He was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” The prayer life of our Lord prompted that disciple to press Him to teach them to do likewise. In other words, seeing Christ’s intimacy with His Father in Heaven, seeing His focus on His Father’s mission, and seeing Christ’s spiritual strength, that disciple approached Jesus and said, “Give us the formula of your strength. Give us the secret of staying focused and firm despite opposition and rejection.” Jesus’ response was short and direct. Prayer! Prayer was the need of Christ’s disciples back then as it’s one of our greatest needs today. “Teach us to pray!” The disciples not only needed instruction; they also needed motivation to spend more time in prayer. I believe we do need the same. This morning I would like to spend a few minutes with a story that Jesus told his disciples to motivate them to pray and from that story we will draw a single application. First: The Story ~ Luke 11:5-8 In response to the disciple’s request, “Lord, teach us to pray”, Jesus tells a story. A friend arrives at your door unexpectedly late in the evening. He is hungry and tired from the long journey. Your friend expects lodging and food, which was commonly given. Back then, you could not run to a store, or to a late-night drive through at the local MacDonald’s! They didn’t have freezers or refrigerators full of food. Where do you go? You go to a friend’s or a neighbor’s house. At any rate, even though it was late, this man knocked at his friend’s door, woke him up, and asked for food for his guest. Luke says in chapter 11:5-6, “Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.” It’s dark inside and the door is bolted shut. The family would all be sleeping together in one place. The guy inside says, “Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.” But the “friend” keeps on knocking and asking! Finally, the guy in bed realizes that the quickest route to getting back to sleep is to get up and give him what he is after. Second: The Application Then Jesus gives an initial application in Luke 11:8 before expanding on it in verses 9-10. In Luke 11:8 Jesus says, “I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.” We are to approach God with bold persistence, knowing that as a loving and gracious Father, He will always provide for our needs. Jesus continues to say in Luke 11:9-10, “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” We are to approach God with boldness, persistence, and assurance. As we reflect on this story, however, we should recognize the stark contrast between the friend in bed and our God. The man in bed was asleep, whereas God never sleeps. The friend in bed did not want to be disturbed, whereas our requests do not disturb God. The midnight request probably put a strain on the relationship between these two friends, whereas our midnight requests do not strain our relationship with God. Jesus’ main point here is that we should be boldly persistent in bringing our requests to God at any hour and in any situation. What Jesus was saying if a cranky friend responds to this kind of bold persistence, how much more will your true friend and Father in heaven respond! Church, be encouraged to pray in the days to come. Pray for this congregation. Pray for me and pray for God’s Kingdom. A few months ago, I came across this poem that sums it all up. The poem entitled: “Go On!” It goes like this: One step won’t take you very far; You’ve got to keep on walking; One word won’t tell folks who you are; You’ve got to keep on talking; One inch won’t make you very tall; You’ve got to keep on growing; One deed won’t do it all; You’ve got to keep on going. And I might add – One prayer won’t keep you close; You’ve got to keep on praying. The great British Preacher Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) once wrote: “By perseverance the snail reached the Ark.” By prayers, the impossible will happen. Our greatest motivation to keep going today is that we have a loving heavenly Father who is present and attentive to our prayers. In the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen! First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Pentecost Sunday, May 28, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “The Power of the Holy Spirit!” Joel 2:28-29; Acts 2:1-13 Pentecost is a watershed moment in the history of the Christian Church. It was a moment of empowerment, a moment of consolation, and a moment of affirmation that we, as Christ’s followers, are not abandoned here on earth as spiritual orphans. The Day marks the giving of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Christian Church. On the day of Pentecost, the Lord fulfilled His promise by giving the Holy Spirit to the Church. Ten days earlier, as Jesus was taken up to heaven on the Mount of Olives, He promised His disciples in Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” So when those gathered in Jerusalem for Shavuot – the Feast of Weeks (Deuteronomy 16:10; also known as the Feast of Harvest (Exodus 23:16), or penetkoste, as it was known among the Jews that spoke Greek, they knew that God was up to something amazing. For those early followers of Jesus, especially from a Jewish background, the Feast commemorates the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai and for us, as followers of Jesus today, we get to remember the generosity of God in giving us the Holy Spirit. So as we reflect on this watershed event this morning, please allow me to underscore two lessons: First: We Do Need the Holy Spirit It’s been 10 days since Christ was taken up to heaven. It must’ve felt awful without having Jesus around. The disciples’ only comfort during this time of waiting was a promise that Jesus gave them. “If I go, I will send the Advocate to you”, says Jesus in John 16:7. This is not going to be a visit of God’s Spirit, it’s a dwelling. The Old Testament saints longed for this day. On Pentecost, God poured out His Spirit upon His people. His generosity in Christ was shown to everyone. That’s what the Prophet Joel foretold a few hundred years before Christ. Joel 2:28-29, states, “After that, I will pour out my spirit upon everyone; your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. Even on the male and female slaves, in those days I will pour out my spirit.” In Acts 2:17, Peter quoted these words saying that they had been fulfilled today. The first lesson we need to remember on this Pentecost Sunday is that we really do need the Holy Spirit. We need the companionship of God in this journey we call life. Jesus knew that following Him in the world is not going to be easy. There is no way we can manage life on our own. One of my favorite African American Spirituals is “Give Me Jesus!” The earliest known version of “Give Me Jesus” was published in 1845 by the Rev. Jacob Knapp, a Baptist minister from New York. It goes like this: (1) “In the morning, when I rise … Give me Jesus. Give me Jesus … You can have all this world … But give me Jesus. (2) And when I am alone … Oh, and when I am alone … Give me Jesus … You can have all this world … But give me Jesus. (3) And when I come to die … Oh, and when I come to die. Give me Jesus … You can have all this world … But give me Jesus.” God’s presence is what we need the most. Second: We Do Need Each Other But there is a second lesson we are reminded of on this Pentecost Sunday. Not only do we really need the Holy Spirit, but we also need each other; we need this community of believers. It should strike us that Jesus could have sent the Holy Spirit on each of the 120 followers individually when they were praying at their own homes. Instead, the Holy Spirit fell on the disciples when they were in the Upper Room praying together. There is something indescribable about “being together.” What is striking about Acts chapter 2 is that it begins with togetherness, and it ends with togetherness. Acts 2:42 speaks of shared teaching, shared meals, shared prayers, even shared possessions. The Holy Spirit united their hearts in singleness of purpose and mission. Simply put, we cannot accomplish individually the mission God that God has given us. A few weeks ago, I pointed out that community is at the heart of Jesus movement, and we should make it our priority to unite ourselves with the Body of Christ. I have always said that faith is a journey and it’s not meant to be traveled alone. Community is extremely important. We get fed in this community. We are protected in this community. We are safer in this community. We reach our potential in the church community. We love and we are loved in this community. We exercise our spiritual gifts in this community. We get blessed and we become a blessing to others in this community. Friends, on this Pentecost Sunday, we are reminded of two amazing, uplifting, and transformative truth. First, we need the dwelling and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Don’t face your Goliath alone. You will not stand the battle. Let God be your refuge and strength. Second, we need each other. We need this body of believers. We journey together. We follow together. We rejoice together and we cry together. On these two important foundations, rise or fall our witness in the world. In the Name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen! |
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