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“Education Promotes Course Corrections” Sermon Delivered By Rev. Dick Stetler – December
3, 2017 Centenary United Methodist Church
Psalm 80:1-7; Isaiah 64:1-9 Many nations today including the When I was appointed to We all know the old saying that
we can't teach an old dog new
tricks. While this is not true, in certain circumstances the quote
is accurate for many people. This social action group was successful in
helping people to find jobs but frequently, after the first paycheck,
the freshly hired employee did not last. A good number of them had never worked a forty-hour week in their
lives. They were never taught
why it is important to show up on time every day.
People
cannot exhibit healthy work habits simply by being given an opportunity
to do so. In every aspect of living, a person's attitude tilts
the scales toward success or
failure.
Many people remain challenged to motivate themselves due to
the number of years of growing comfortable at living unproductive lives.
Jesus said, "You will always have the poor with you." (John 12:8) What does this
line of thinking about jobs have to do with the first Sunday of Advent?
The world into which Jesus was born was a society that had no
prior training or background that would have prepared them for what
Jesus would later teach. The Jewish culture was one that celebrated events in their past
where God had done everything for
his chosen people. Think
about the Biblical record and how their understanding had conditioned
them for centuries to wait on God to act on their behalf.
They had grown comfortable with
allowing God to make all the next giant steps toward their future. God had acted decisively to motivate Abraham to move his
family. The migration moved his large family from The Biblical writers had God interactive with the Jews because of
their covenant with God. The Jews fully expected God to perform as he
had done for their ancestors.
Our lesson this morning from Isaiah opens with such a dramatic
request: God, why don't you
tear the sky open and come down. There was a time when you came and did
terrifying things that we did not expect.
Even the mountains saw you and shook with fear. No one has ever
seen or heard of a God like you, who does such deeds for those
who put their hope in him.
(Isaiah 64:1-4) When Jesus
embarked on his ministry, almost immediately his
emphasis had little to do with God actively intervening in their lives
with such high drama.
What Jesus began teaching was that
each person was totally responsible for developing his or her own
attitudes and behavior, i.e., the spirit by which they live.
(John 3:6)
God was not out there
in some nebulous environment. God's spirit was living inside of each of
his listeners where their inspiration and guidance from God would
originate. (Luke 17:21)
We have discussed before how and why Jesus became such a radical
teacher. He had completely
abandoned Judaism so automatically what he taught sounded ridiculous to
many listeners. Jesus’
message was vastly different from what the Jews had been trained to
believe. God had led the Israelites to conquer and destroy their
enemies when they entered the
promised land. Jesus
came to educate his listeners to love their enemies.
He said, "If a Roman soldier orders you to carry his heavy
backpack a mile, you offer to carry it for two miles." (Matthew 5:41)
Jesus tried to educate his listeners that the days of the war-god
Yahweh were over and that the new
marching orders were that the greatest among them should become the
servant of all people. (Matthew 23:11f) Now
that we are living in the 21st century, what do we honestly believe,
think and feel about this shift from God answering prayers in such a
dramatic fashion to Jesus educating people in how to develop their inner
spirits where
their treasures are located?
(Matthew 6:21)
Are we still asking God to bring peace into our world for us, to
remove our personal pain and to give us strength and courage to face
some new experience? Instead of asking God to be with us in some
exclusive way, when do we
realize that it is our responsibility voluntarily to turn the other
cheek and forgive, return kindness to those who are mean-spirited and
give generously to those in need when no one is asking us to do so? This
lifestyle is what Jesus came to teach. The re-training of humanity began with a carpenter and his twelve
disciples. Jesus knew that
his teachings were so different that it would take eons for his words to
become incorporated into people's lives.
(John 3:12) Jesus also knew that, initially, only a few people would
understand and experience the abundance that each person could create if
they looked within rather than beseeching God for favors.
(Matthew 7:14). Today
there is a real tension between people who want the redistribution of
wealth among their population, and those who want people to become
self-motivated to become financially independent through the choices
they make.
When people pursue
their unique passion with
energetic commitment, there is no evidence that suggests that people
fail when they literally live their dreams.
In fact, the opposite is true.
They go on to live remarkable lives. Humanity is still in its infancy when it comes to understanding the power and creativity that is experienced from following the vision and dreams that arise from within our spirits. How many role models do we need before we realize and learn that it is not luck that causes many people to become extremely successful in their lives? What stimulates the desire for success in anyone's life is
choosing to follow with an irresistible passion or urge to create by
writing poetry, by their desire to paint with oils, by teaching others
how to pursue their dreams, by creating new architectural designs, by
creating time-saving products to sell to the public or by finding a
single cure for all forms of cancer. Last week, another level
was shattered of what a single individual could reach with their
personal wealth. Jeff Bezos became the first human being to have a net
worth of over one hundred billion dollars.
Bezos owns 82 million shares of Amazon stock, the company that he
founded while passionately pursuing his inner vision and dream. This kind of news awakens people to the near infinite
possibilities that can arise from within them when they follow their
dream. Even today, many
people do not understand the symbolism of what this means when they put
the success of Jeff Bezos along side the success of Jesus who had no
place to lay his head. (Luke 9:58) Their passionate purposes were very different. Jeff Bezos became passionate with how his vision and dream would completely change the way that people engaged in commerce. Jesus' passionate vision was teaching people how to master their own inner world. Both were completely successful.
Look at what is now happening during our lifetime because of the
existence of the creation of Amazon.
Try to imagine how Jesus' three-year ministry has inspired the
living patterns of individuals and entire societies all over the world. No
one has our unique vision and dreams.
We may not need a re-distribution of wealth if everyone pursued
their personal and individual dreams instead of engaging in
wishful thinking about a time in the future when God or the government
will finally bring to them what they seek -- peace and prosperity. Jesus inspired the chief tax collector, Zacchaeus, to give away
his money. (Luke 19:8) He said to people that were healed, "Your
faith has made you well." (Mark 5:34)
He taught people that the fruits
of their labor will be their reward during this life.
(Matthew 13:12) Many people look at
Jeff Bezos with contempt because of his wealth. Merchants are frightened
by what he is doing by developing his vision of giving people what they
want, i.e., ordering a product online from their computer and having it
delivered the next day below the cost of what is available in
brick and mortar stores. For a growing number of people, this activity translates into no
more driving to crowded shopping centers, finding a parking space and
standing in long check-out lines. Countless people want more convenience
and a life that is hassle free. How
many people today have a passion to make visible the dreams and visions
given to them through their imaginations?
Jesus came among us to educate us that God created us to be creators.
Are we creating or are we still waiting for God
to fix us and to fix our
world for us? A new hope came into our world for everyone.
This morning we have lighted the candle of that hope on our
Advent wreath in honor of what Jesus brought into our world. We are slowly making the discovery that everyone has been
hardwired for success. When
people become very serious about pursuing the potential of their lives,
all they need to do is risk in following-through with living
their dreams and visions with passion.
Like all wise parents, God wants to wean people from the feelings
of needing God to help them excel in life. God equipped birds to learn
how to fly. Again, God
created us to learn how to create from our imaginations.
We were created to see how we do
with riding
our bikes once God has
removed the training wheels. Many people are seizing the moment during our lifetime to make a
difference even if the only thing they do is to support something they
believe in. In so doing
people become co-creators with God.
This is how Jesus' teachings reached our ears from their origin
in one of the most obscure parts of the world.
CONGREGATIONAL PRAYER Eternal and always faithful God, there are moments when we feel like the
ancient Hebrews.
Uncertainty is everywhere.
Guidance from you is frequently mixed with other voices that cloud our
perception.
We are more
than ready to prepare ourselves again for the coming of Jesus into our
lives. Clearly, he taught his listeners about a new loving spirit never
before seen in Yahweh. Renew our hope that life only gets better when we
replace our doubts and fears with trust in your guidance. Bless us as we
enter Advent together. Amen. PASTORAL PRAYER Loving God, we come into your presence
this morning hoping to renew our lives as we experience the unfolding
themes of Advent.
Every year we go through the same themes week after week until we plunge
into the New Year carrying the same responses to life.
We would be inspired to live fully and learn to love with abandon
if we practiced everyday what we claim to believe. This morning we thank you for inspiring
us to remember who we are and how you equipped us to bring the vitality
of your presence into each moment, each drama and each relationship. As
we prepare ourselves to welcome again your son into our world, we do so
remembering how he embodied a brand-new hope. He did not come with a
message that You would take care of us.
He taught his listeners attitudes of being.
He pointed to a God-consciousness that would enable us to reveal
your likeness. Thank you that through him we have learned that by loving
others just as they are, we demonstrate our faithfulness to you who
created them. Help us to realize that our faithfulness to you becomes the source of
our strength and the channel through which your spirit achieves form in
our world. There is nothing in the world like knowing that we are a part
of the created order as being your children, your angels-in-the-flesh
and your presence in the material world at this unique time in human
history. We ask that you continue
to write history by using our lives as the
ink in your pen. We pray
these thoughts with grateful hearts, through the spirit of Jesus, the
Christ, who taught us to say when we pray . . . |