Friday, October 29, 2010

Graphic of Sin & Salvation


In a recent search for information on the internet, I came across this animated image depicting sin (separation from God) and the saving grace of Christ.
I included it here - Also, to learn more, visit the website that it came from about "getting right with God."

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

Judgement in Luke 18:9-14

This last Sunday, one of our lay speakers, Tiffany Gaines delivered a wonderful sermon on the parable from Luke 18:9-14. Many people have asked me to repost her sermon illustration about judging others on the basis of what we see. I have located it for you! Although the illustration is not fact, it is still a very great example of how people can be blinded by stereotypes. Thanks Tiffany for such a thoughtful, well-delivered sermon on laity Sunday!

A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband, dressed in a homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked timidly without an appointment into the president's outer office.
The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods, country hicks had no business at Harvard and probably didn't even deserve to be in Cambridge.
She frowned. "We want to see the president," the man said softly.
"He'll be busy all day," the secretary snapped.
"We'll wait," the lady replied. For hours, the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally become discouraged and go away. They didn't. And the secretary grew frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was a chore she always regretted to do.
"Maybe if they just see you for a few minutes, they'll leave," she told him.
And he sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, but he detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office.
The president, stern-faced with dignity, strutted toward the couple.
The lady told him, "We had a son that attended Harvard for one year. He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was accidentally killed. And my husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him, somewhere on campus."
The president wasn't touched, he was shocked. "Madam," he said gruffly. "We can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery."
"Oh, no," the lady explained quickly. "We don't want to erect a statue. We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard."
The president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun suit, then exclaimed "A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the physical plant at Harvard."
For a moment the lady was silent.
The president was pleased. He could get rid of them now.
And the lady turned to her husband and said quietly, "Is that all it costs to start a University? Why don't we just start our own?"
Her husband nodded.
The president's face wilted in confusion and bewilderment.
And Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford walked away, traveling to Palo Alto, California where they established the University that bears their name, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer cared about.

You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who can do nothing for them or to them
.

Monday, October 18, 2010

The Lesser Told Story of the Miners

This month, we've been studying the 2nd Letter to Timothy, one of the three Pastoral Epistles in the New Testament. Last Sunday, we looked at 2 timothy3: 14- 4:5. Paul tells Timothy to Preach, proclaim, persist and persuade and then concludes “Do the work of an evangelist.”

“An evangelist? Really?” you wonder to yourself, “Surely, a run-of-the-mill Christian like myself is not an evangelist. Evangelists cause a scene. That's not me.”

But before you determine that evangelism is not for you. I want to share with you a story from the rescue of the Chilean Miners. It's a story few people may have heard about. It is a story of evangelism.

A man named Igor Bravo is the engineer who owns the geo-technical monitoring company that was called on to assist with the rescue efforts when the 33 men were trapped in a living room-sized chamber beneath the earth. The job of his company was to design a way to get through to the men with supplies. They were successful but as they continued, Igor became concerned that there was more than just miners' physical needs at stake. If they were to survive 2,000 feet below the earth, they needed hope.

See, Igor was a trained engineer who also attended a local church. He was a Christian, a Baptist, who may have learned (as paul describes Timothy) of the teachings of the bible from childhood. We don’t know for sure, but he said later that his faith is important in everything he does. He saw the devastation of the situation and he told reporters later, "I had to help in some Christian way." (emphasized by me)

Igor Bravo called his pastor, Luis Cortéz, for help. They decided that if the pastor could get bibles, inspirational music or audio of sermons to the site, then Bravo would send it down to the men.
The result? Those men were lifted up, not only by prayers of us on the outside, but by the inspirational Christian music, sermons and also the 33 Bibles that were made available. The men essentially “had church” a half-mile underground!

Igor Bravo said,
“If there is an opportunity to share the Gospel -- to contribute to the Christian cause and evangelism, it's something that's in [my] blood, in the church as a whole that all of us, no matter our job, are evangelists.”

All of us are evangelists.
All of us see needs everyday. They may not be as dramatic as the needs of men in peril a half mile beneath the earth. But the needs are there all around us.

For Igor Bravo, the need of God’s people was plain and clear. There was danger and the men were trapped.
But there are people in danger all around us. They may not be trapped 2000 feet underground, but they are trapped by relationships, substances – they are running on the wrong path in life and like a mine that only has so much oxygen, there is only so much life left on those paths that bring about death and destruction.
Does any of us see opportunity to be an evangelist right in your neighborhood? In your community involvement? In the gym you work out at or in the grocery store where you shop?
All of us are called to be evangelists - and invite people to the source of life – the grace of God in Jesus – For us at Olivet, we reconnect with the grace of God's love when we attend worship together. When we meet and remember and proclaim the “good news” that none of us is trapped. Life can be different as we grow in our understanding of the mystery of Jesus Christ's death and resurrection.
Invite someone to church. A stranger. A coworker. A neighbor. Afterall, it is most likely that you made your way to Olivet by invitation.
Let us learn from the committed faith of Igor Bravo, and see that all of us can do the work of an evangelist.
For more on the story of Igor, visit Baptist Press for more.

Friday, October 15, 2010

In Honor of Lieutenant Looney


This last week on the cover of the local newspaper was a photo of a young man who died in the war. Lieutenant Brendan Looney, USN, 29. He was a navy seal, and one of the nine special forces personnel killed when a NATO helicopter crashed in Afghanistan on Tuesday.

He was on the cover of our paper because of his connection to Calvert County. So many were looking forward to him coming home this month - and this tragedy struck everyone so deeply.

The funeral was at Arlington was last week – and as ridiculous as this may sound, the TV news reported that as the hearse rounded the hill to enter the gates of Arlington, they were greeted by several protestors. Yes, protestors. Angry people who were not there for any personal reason against Brendan (they didn't know him) but they were there to make a theological statement about his death. The statement on cardboard signs was their statement of faith "Thank God for Dead Soldiers." "God Hates You."

Paul in his writing in 2 Timothy points out that heretical teaching harms innocent bystanders. This was certainly true last week.

The actions of the protestors have become a case to be argued before the Supreme Court - They call their protesting "freedom of speech." And certainly people have a right to such freedom.. but even when it means offending the family trying to make their way to the funeral of their young son killed in combat?

For the court, the question is: When does free speech become harassment?

For me as a pastor, the question isL when does for freedom of interpretation of scripture (which I believe we need) become harassment?

Paul's advice to Timothy,was not to fight the battle but to remind them. Remind them.
Remind them of what?
Remind them of the salvation story. The Holy Mystery. That Christ is Died, Risen and will come again. Remember it for yourself and remind others. It will keep things in perspective.
The Holy Mystery of our salvation is profound. We all can agree that there are things on this side of heaven that will be won and lost. But the one who is eternally linked to the soul of Christ Jesus will endure, die and be raised to new heights in the end. What matters most, it seems, is that we cling to the truth of this Holy Mystery... even though it holds a truth that none of us can ever fully grasp.

I offer the Holy Mystery to my brothers and sisters of WBC who believe that God is punishing our nation by killing soldiers. I remind you of the salvation story. You are right that in order for us to be saved, there is punishment for sin. But the punishment is over. The debt of sin has already been paid. No more sacrifices need to be made to attone for the sin of our our nation (or every nation for that matter)

The mysterious part of all of this is that the punishment was not upon us who deserved it, but upon Himself. He paid the cost. Once and for all.

I remind you and I remember it for myself because in pondering this mystery of faith is how we grow in grace.