Number 434,484 - December 18, 2016 sermon

By Pastor Greg

            Hello, I'm child number 434,484 … if my math is correct.  Just an ordinary guy born on an ordinary day in an ordinary way in an average town in Pennsylvania.  Ordinarily, we don't get excited about ordinary births; it's the extraordinary that captures our attention.  3,977,745 births in America last year[1].  That's approximately 1 baby every 12.5 seconds in the USA if my math is correct.  And how many of those made the news?  Apart from the births that impacted your life, can you remember the birth of a child you've never met? 

          Ordinarily, that fact wouldn't make a bit of difference to me, but this Christmas season I have been struck by the ordinariness of Jesus Birth.  “She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the village inn.”  Luke 2:7

          Apart from what we know went on behind the scene, it was a rather uneventful birth … compared to the standards back then of course.  In today's standards, though, it would have caught the attention of the News Media and some News Anchor would declare “Give me a break!”  Then He'd point out how some poor young couple was turned out to the streets to have their baby because a hotel couldn't find them any room!!  And the chances are that he'd be more concerned why the hotels overbook than with anything concerning the baby.  After all, it was just an ordinary baby, one of many born that year.  Apart from the intervention and announcements from the Divine, the birth of Christ was, well, ordinary.

          A seemingly ordinary Child is born of ordinary parents in an ordinary way in some back-street barn in the ordinary town of Bethlehem.  Remarkable, isn't it?  God, instead of choosing royalty, wanted a common, everyday, ordinary couple to bring His Child into this world.  The Jewish Nation expected an extraordinary Messiah but instead received an ordinary Child.  The Wise Men expected someone of prominence, prestige, and power when they arrived at Herod's palace, but instead found an ordinary Child.  “Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We have seen his star as it arose, and we have come to worship him." Matthew 2:1-2.  Why did they go to Jerusalem?  Because that’s where kings lived, so why not this “New King” as well.  Also, if you’ll notice, it was too ordinary shepherds that the Heavenly Choir sang.   “That night some shepherds were in the fields outside the village, guarding their flocks of sheep.  Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord's glory surrounded them. They were terribly frightened, but the angel reassured them. "Don't be afraid!" he said. "I bring you good news of great joy for everyone!  The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born tonight in Bethlehem, the city of David!  And this is how you will recognize him: You will find a baby lying in a manger, wrapped snugly in strips of cloth!" Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God: "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to all whom God favors."  Luke 2:8-14.

          According to Luke's gospel, it was a group of ordinary shepherds who received an extraordinary announcement.  Not Kings.  Not Chief Priests or Scribes.  Not the Pharisee with his degree in Old Testament prophesies.  Not the Prophet preaching at the big tent just outside of town.  The Angel of the Lord didn't appear in the Temple that night and say, “Hey guys, He's over there in Bethlehem.”  God chose to make His extraordinary announcement to some ordinary shepherds doing what ordinary shepherds do … watching over their sheep that night.  Shepherds.  Ordinary shepherds.  And yet these shepherds do an extraordinary thing.  When the Heavenly Choir goes home, how do they react? 

“Yo, Levi. You see that?” 

“I didn't see nothin.” 

No. Of course not.  These ordinary shepherds take this extraordinary news straight into Bethlehem, and they tell everyone they meet.  All who heard this news from them must have been wondering the same thing too.  “Why shepherds?”

“When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Come on, let’s go to Bethlehem! Let's see this wonderful thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about."  They ran to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.  Then the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child.  All who heard the shepherds' story were astonished.”  Luke 2:15-18.

          If you learn anything this Christmas season, please know that the birth of Christ was not the show-stopping production we have been led to believe.  Here you have the Word becoming flesh; the Logos coming to earth.  And God almost snuck Him in unnoticed.  If it hadn't been for a couple of Wiseguys from the east and some ordinary shepherds, would the world have known about the birth of Jesus? 

If you notice, these common, ordinary shepherds become the first evangelist.  “Then the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child.”  Luke 2:17.  A revelation of the Messiah was given them, and they told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said.  Afterward, “All who heard the shepherds' story were astonished” (Luke 2:18), and even Mary “quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often” (Luke 2:19).

          Perhaps like me, you feel a bit ordinary.  I was one of 486 other children born that hour in 1960.  Approximately child number 434,484 that year … if my math is correct.  A meaningless number to the US Census Bureau.   I’m not the sharpest person you’ll ever meet.  I’m not some great theologian or Bible Scholar.  But I do know what I have seen and what I have been told.  I know what has been entrusted to my care; me, an ordinary person just like you.  And like me, you were probably just an ordinary child born in an ordinary way to rather normal parents as well.  But you too know what you have heard and what you have seen.  Like the ordinary shepherds back then, ordinary people like you and me have been given the responsibility of announcing the birth of Christ.  Instead of flashes of lightning and peals of thunder announcing the birth to the whole world, the fate of Christ's birth rests in the hands of a small group of ordinary people, just like you and me.

So … will we give our token church appearance during the Christmas Season and then go home?  Or will we join with these shepherds in proclaiming what we have seen and what we have been told?

          As you drift through yet another Christmas season that seems to be just like all the others, there is within this season an extraordinary message that needs to be told; “For today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”  What will you do with this extraordinary message?

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[1] https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nvsr/nvsr65/NVSR65_03.pdf

The Helper - December 11, 2016 sermon

By Pastor Greg

          A man was in his usual place in the room, sitting at the table and reading the paper after breakfast.  He came across an article about a beautiful actress who was about to marry a football player.  The player was known primarily for his lack of IQ, common sense, and good looks.  He turned to his wife: "You know, I'll never understand why the biggest, ugliest jerks always get the most attractive wives."  His wife replied, "Why thank you, dear!"

Ouch.  The truth really hurts sometimes.  But hey, someone needs to say it.

In this whole dialog with His Apostles, Jesus says lives must be changed in this wicked, hostile world, and it is up to the Church to make that happen.  Sure, people are not going to like what they hear, but someone needs to speak up on behalf of Jesus.  Jesus even warned His apostles that the world will hate them simply because they represent Jesus … which will make sharing the message of Jesus even harder (That message, by the way, involves conviction and repentance; two words the world does not like to hear).  However, rather than expect us to do this on our own, Jesus promised to send some help.

(John 16:5-15) ⁵ “But now I am going to Him who sent Me; and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’  ⁶ But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.  ⁷But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.  ⁸And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; ⁹concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; ¹⁰and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; ¹¹and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged.  ¹²I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.  ¹³But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.  ¹⁴He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.  ¹⁵All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you”.

To accomplish this seemingly impossible task of speaking His Truth to the word, Jesus says He will send the Helper.  He is talking about God’s Holy Spirit.  And isn’t it a bit odd that Jesus would use the word Helper?  Helper implies that the Church is responsible for telling the truth while the Spirit gives guidance and direction.  Shouldn’t it be the other way around?  It just seems natural that the Spirit would do the work, and the Church would assist.  Yet Jesus seems to imply that the Spirit would move and work in the hearts of the apostles, guiding and helping them.  Apparently, many Christians misunderstand how the Holy Spirit operates in this world.

Often, someone will pray “Lord, send Your Spirit to bring a revival.”  Or perhaps a Christian will ask the Spirit to touch the heart of a neighbor.  We want the Spirit to speak to the lost.  I’ve heard many pastors pray for revival in their community – as if the Spirit will move throughout the town leading people to the Lord.  Don’t we do this?  Don’t we want the Spirit to go through the pews in a church, seeking out the unsaved, and win them for Christ?

Just as Jesus came in bodily form to minister on earth, the Holy Spirt needs a body to accomplish His ministry; His body is the Church.  We are the tools through which the Spirit works.  The Holy Spirit empowers us to do the work of God.  For example, He, the Spirit, guided and empowered Peter to preach at Pentecost (Acts 2:14-36), which, by the way, was a very confrontational message (see Acts 2:37-38).  The Spirit does the same today.  So, if we, the Church, want revival, we are the ones who must get to work.  If we want a neighbor to come to Christ, we must be the ones to talk with them.  The Spirit works through us.  Revival will not happen unless we do something to make it happen.

However, in today’s text, did you notice what the Spirit will help us do?  Working through the Church, the Spirit will convict the world, reveal God’s righteousness to the world (and consequently show the world how sinful it is), and warn the world of God’s coming judgment against sin.  Oh yeah, that will make the Church popular.  People are going to flock to the Church.

Why is this part of God’s plan?  I mean, I’ve always heard that you catch more flies with sugar than with vinegar.  Why not preach a message of love and tolerance?  Why doesn’t the Spirit comfort the world and make the world happy?  It’s because God’s plan is redemption, not happiness.  God is not looking to make the people of this world happy; He is looking to make them holy.  And holiness does not happen when we are told just what we want to hear. 

Yes, the Spirit does comfort those who already believe.  A Christian does find love and acceptance from God through the working of the Spirit.  But in matters of sin and salvation, the Spirit’s primary role is to reveal the truth.  Sure, the truth hurts, but it does help.  The truth refines and transforms.

Yes, it’s true; the Spirit will help a Christian become more loving and patient and kind.  This is the “Fruit” the Spirit produces in us.  But when it comes to the people of this world, the Spirit, working through Christians, convicts a person’s sin, reveals a person’s sin, and warns that God will one day judge that sin. 

          Just as He did through Peter and Paul, the Spirit is looking for submitted and surrendered Christians today who will allow Him to guide and direct them.  He is looking for believers who are willing to speak the truth – speak God’s truth, not some modern-day, watered-down, feel-good message of tolerance. 

          It irks me when some Christians want the Church to become more like the world.  It irks me when misinformed Christians claim the Spirit is speaking new things to the Church today.  That’s a lie.  The Spirit will not speak on His own initiative (16:13).  He will not contradict what God has already said.  So, if we want to bear fruit, as Jesus has commanded, then we must be focused on helping people become holy, and not focused on popularity.

The bottom line is this: The Church needs to stop telling the world just what it wants to hear, and instead tell the truth.

It’s what the Holy Spirit will help us do.

The Vine - December 4, 2016 sermon

By Pastor Greg

Little Johnny wasn't getting good marks in school. One day he confided in his teacher: “Look,” he said.  "I don't want to scare you, but my daddy says if I don't get better grades, somebody is going to get a spanking."

Little Johnny didn’t realize who was responsible for his grades – who was responsible for his results. And sometimes Christians struggle with the same thing.  They don’t realize who is responsible for bearing fruit in this world.

Seven times in John’s Gospel, Jesus described Himself by saying, “I AM.”  I am the Bread of Life, the Living Water, the Good Shepherd, the Light of the World, the Gate, and The Resurrection and the Life.  In these examples, Jesus says He is the source of life, He watches over believers; He protects them, and provides for them.  However, in the last instance, His role surrounds a believer’s ability to bear fruit.

 (John 15:1-8)  ¹ “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.  ² “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.  ³ “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.  ⁴ “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.  ⁵ “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.  ⁶ “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned.  ⁷ “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.  ⁸ “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.^[1]

This discussion about Jesus being the vine and Christians being the branches is all part of the Lord’s answer to Judas.  Remember how Judas asked who was going to reveal Jesus to the rest of the world (John 14:22)?  Well, the Lord says those who bear fruit in the world are those who abide in Him.  Jesus tells the apostles that to complete the task they have been given, they must work to keep the relationship open.  Even though Jesus is going away, they cannot simply forge ahead on their own.  Their lives must remain rooted in Him and in what He taught.  They must worship, pray, and meditate on God’s Word (compare Acts 6:2).

Okay, great.  I think I’ve got this.  If a Christian is to bear fruit in this world, then they will need to abide in Jesus.  Does that sound about right?  Yes?  Then if “abiding” and “fruit” are so important, how can I tell if I am bearing fruit or “abiding in Christ?”  I mean, wouldn’t it be nice if there was some sort of test we could take that lets us know where we stand?  Alright then, let’s take a moment and talk about abiding and bearing fruit.

First, to be an authentic believer, we must make a choice in where we abide.  Yes, it is true.  Abiding is not a salvation term.  You see, abide is a relational term.  Before we met Christ, we were attached to (or Abiding in) the “vine of the earth” (see Revelation 14:18).  We depended on the things of this world for sustenance and satisfaction.  However, once we accept Jesus as our Lord, we must learn to rely on (or Abide in) Him.  And what many don’t realize is that it takes effort on our part to attach ourselves to the “Vine of Heaven.”  We must work to keep it alive.

Former Back to the Bible General Director Warren Wiersbe says certain things happen in our life when we abide in Christ.  “For one thing, when you are abiding in Christ, you produce fruit (John 15:2). Also, you experience the Father’s “pruning” so that you will bear more fruit (John 15:2). The believer who is abiding in Christ has his prayers answered (John 15:7) and experiences a deepening love for Christ and for other believers (John 15:9, 12–13). He also experiences joy (John 15:11)”.^[2]

By abiding in Christ, we bear fruit.  And by fruit the Lord means we lead others to a saving relationship with Jesus (Romans 1:13), we grow in holiness and obedience (Romans 6:22 - this is what it means to be pruned by the Father).  We give financially to the ministry of the Church (Romans 15:28), our character is changed (Galatians 5:22-23), and we are willing to serve (Colossians 1:10).  Even the praise from our lips is fruit from a life that abides in Christ (Hebrews 13:15).

So, a true believer (a branch that bears fruit) is someone who maintains an active relationship with Jesus throughout their life.  They help spread the gospel of Jesus and remove any habits and attitudes within them that hinder their Christian witness.  These Christians surrender their lives to the work of God’s Kingdom.  Their attitude and personality are transformed.  These are the believers who truly represent Jesus in this world because they draw their life from the Lord.  And the Lord works through these Christians to transform the world.  The believer who abides in Christ is the one who makes this world a better place.

But … don’t some non-Christians work to make this world a better place?  Yes, they do.  Even people who are not attached to the Vine give to others and make sacrifices in their lives to help the oppressed and the outcast.  It seems their results are similar to those who abide in Christ.  However, please remember that there is a big difference between results and fruit.  Man-made results are dead and cannot reproduce themselves.  Their works do not have within them the seeds to bear more fruit.  But Spirit produced fruit will go on reproducing from one life to another.  A person might earnestly labor to change their community or even change a nation.  And their work and sacrifice might result in better living conditions for those who suffered a tragedy.  But this is not the same as bearing fruit.  A church might organize and plan to get more people to attend.  And their labor and efforts might result in more members.  But this is not the same as bearing fruit.

Jesus says that bearing fruit ultimately leads another individual to the “Vine of Heaven.”  You see, the fruit of a branch benefits others, not the branch itself.  Which means, to successfully bear fruit, we help others to do the same … meaning, they too have attached their lives to Jesus.

Bearing fruit means that our labors for Jesus reproduce.  We bear fruit when we help someone else learn to abide in Christ.  This is the task Jesus has given us.  “I am the Vine, you are the branches,” says Jesus.  It is the branch’s responsibility to bear fruit.  I suspect most of us realize this, but unless our work as a Christian leads other to the Vine, our labors are fruitless.

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^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 update. 1995 (Jn 15:1–8). LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation.

^[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Jn 15:1–11). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.