What Do You Want With Us, Jesus? (Mark 1: 21-28) 1/29/12

   What Do You Want With Us, Jesus?

                                      Mark 1: 21-28, Psalm 111

In the 1973 movie, “The Exorcist,” the old Priest has given it his best. In his last religious act on this earth, he has tried to exorcise the demons from a young girl. But time has taken its toll on the old priest. It takes massive energy and determination to wrestle with evil face to face. He dies before his task can be accomplished. The younger Jesuit Priest called in to assist now watches helplessly as the young girl’s body is ravaged and beaten from the inside out. The demons within her are choking the very life from her body. As he struggles to summon the demons possessing her, he realizes that the girl has little time. In a selfless moment, he calls the demons to himself. “Come into me,” he screams. In one of the most striking images I have ever seen in a movie, the Jesuit’s face contorts as the demons possess him. In the next instant, he realizes that he too is out of time. Rather than let the demons possess him, he hurls himself through a window three stories off the ground to certain death. In his death, his victory over the demons is sealed. They die with the priest and the young girl is saved.

The movie was based upon a screenplay written by William Peter Blatty.  It has been called the scariest movie of all time. One of my daughters says it’s so scary because it could happen in real life. She believes that demons are still very much with us.  I have a young friend in seminary who does mission work in Guatemala. He echoes my daughter’s sentiments. In the three years that he has been going to Central America, he has seen dozens of incidents of demon possession and exorcism. A theology professor with ten years in South American mission says the same. Demon possession is ordinary in many South American cultures.

The last several weeks, we have been marching through the gospel of Mark. Now we can begin to see a pattern. In the baptism of Jesus, we call see his call. We can also see God’s approval.  This is followed by testing and refinement in the desert. In the next passage, we see Jesus choosing his lieutenants; those in whom and with whom he will carry the good news.    In today’s text, it is time for the launch. Jesus goes to the synagogue in Capernaum and listens and then comments. Synagogue in first century Palestine is sort of a combination of school, prayer meeting and Quaker Friends meeting. It is the center of both Jewish social and religious life.  It is nothing like the Temple, which was the place to go for worship and sacrifice. The synagogue was for teaching and instruction. If twelve or more Jewish families could be gathered together, a synagogue was formed. Theologian William Barclay tells us that if a man had a new message to preach, the synagogue was the obvious place in which to preach it. It was not uncommon to receive an invitation from the Ruler of the synagogue to comment or teach. What was uncommon was what Jesus did with the opportunity. Apparently, he did not refer to the Torah, or to the oral tradition of the law, or even to the sayings of the patriarchs, as was the custom. Rather, he spoke as if he himself were the authority, as if he were the origin of the law. The operative word for the reaction of those present would be “amazed.” They ask each other “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority!”

Then, there is this guy at the church service. He is in the synagogue and Mark tells us that he is possessed by an evil spirit. Just like the movie, the evil spirit gains voice through its host. “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us?” says the evil spirit through the mouth of the man. The poor man has no more control over his voice or his body than I do over the weather. I already like this guy. He is possessed by an evil spirit and yet here he is on the Sabbath in the synagogue.  Maybe sometimes the evil spirit rests or sleeps and then this fellow can get himself to the church. Or maybe the evil spirit likes to taunt the Ruler of the synagogue and those attending by adding insult to injury, showing off right there in God’s house. Whatever the reason, the evil spirit is about to get an answer…an unforgettable answer.

What do you want with us, Jesus? It is a question each of us will ask of our Lord. What do you want with us? Jesus answered the evil spirit in this way: “Be quiet! Come out of him!” And the evil spirit shook the man violently. Then it came out of him with a shriek. Unfortunately, the question has way too much relevance today. I have never seen the kind of demon that Mark’s gospel describes. I don’t doubt that demons still exist. I just haven’t been up close and personal with one. I wonder if maybe demons of that sort gravitate to those areas of the globe where matters of the spirit are a way of doing business with life and culture and custom.

But I have equal confidence of this. While the demons that Mark describes are not an everyday occurrence for us, there are many other demons who are. They come in all shapes and sizes. They are disguised as toys, hobbies, customs. They have faces such as boredom, non-commitment, ambition and selfishness. They could as easily be called false gods or idols, for they represent the presence of weakness, of inability to come to God.  I wonder if perhaps we have made it easy for Satan to turn his army of demons on other cultures because America and the rest of the “post-religious” nations simply are doing enough damage on their own that Satan does not have to marshal as much resources here as elsewhere. We are literally our own worst enemies. Evil, whether it is Satan or demons or our own sinful natures, never takes a holiday. And it is no respecter of persons or places. It shows up in the synagogue and it sits down with us at the dinner table.

This era in western history is being characterized as the “post-religious” period. What does that mean? I do not pretend to know. Does it mean after religious? I hope not. But I do think that we in the so-called “first world” countries could take a lesson from the pages of Christianity below the equator.  The demons of today may not be expelled through exorcisms, but they are here and must be expelled if we are to answer that one simple question: What do you want with us, Jesus?

Jesus’ answer today is the same as it was in the Capernaum synagogue. “Be quiet!,” he says to the evil spirit.  He does not suffer from the fatigue of the old priest or the self doubt of the young Jesuit. He speaks with authority. “Be quiet,”  he says to the face of evil. While the leaders of the synagogue and those in attendance cannot discern more than an authoritative presence, evil spirits know exactly who Jesus is. Unlike the priests in the movie or other exorcisms in the Christian church, Jesus does not take days or weeks. He does not use elaborate incantations. He just commands. Such is the power of the Son of God.

“Come out of him,” Jesus said to the evil spirit and he says the same to us. That is what he wants with us. He wants us to be rid of the evil spirit. He wants us to see our sinful nature for what it is and to bring it to our synagogues and churches where the word of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit can shake our demons loose and deliver us into the hands of our Savior. What do you want of us, Jesus? We know the answer. He wants us for his own. He came for us. He died for us. He wants us to repent and believe the good news. Do you have demons in your life?  Deliver them to the feet of Jesus. Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed, out of control? Claim the promise that he made to you. You can be just as amazed as were the people in that Capernaum synagogue so long ago. He is real. He is powerful. He is authority. And he loves you. What he wants…is to be loved in return.  

Called to Serve (Mark 1: 14-20) 1/22/12

            

Here’s some breaking news. Yesterday’s Galilean Gazette reports that the new Messiah sensation Jesus picked up four disciples while strolling up the shore. At least that’s the way that local reporters Matthew, Mark and Luke see it. In fact, Mark tells us that these four fishermen just left their families and businesses and followed the guy without so much as a goodbye. We think there is more to this than the Gazette reported. One of those fishermen was a fellow named John and he tells it a different way.  He says that Andrew and Peter were at Bethany a couple days after John the Baptist baptized this new fellow Jesus, and that they followed him and so did Philip and Nathaniel, so that when they turned up here at Galilee, there were already at least four disciples.  It is speculated that Jesus is organizing, calling a core group of followers. Surprisingly to this reporter, he seems to be calling people from every day life rather than trained religious leaders. We reached a member of the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem, but he declined comment at this time. So there you have it. Stay posted for more disciple news.

Calling. Webster says it is a strong inner impulse toward a particular course of action, especially when accompanied by conviction of divine influence. How about fisher of men? Know anyone by that job title?  Today we’re going to learn a little about Andrew and Peter and James and John and, in so doing, we’re going to learn a little bit more about calling. It’s not just for New Testament apostles.

I have a friend who is retired…sort of. He still works, delivering prescription medicine to shut-ins. Another friend bakes a couple hundred cookies every week to deliver to a nearby prison on Sunday.  A third spends hours every week organizing, ordering and cooking meals for church meetings. These activities provide a chance to visit with or do for folks who don’t get to socialize very much. Right here in Rocky Creek, a church member notices a tenant’s health failing and brings this information to the attention of the Pastor and the session. The man’s family receives attention and food and clothing and love from caring Christians.   Men and women in this very church spend week after week, month after month for years playing the piano, the organ, holding choir practice, teaching Sunday school, organizing youth programs and camps and ball teams, holding church workdays. That sounds like calling to me.   

 Ever notice that when you meet someone who is on fire about

something, chances are he or she was on the way to something pretty

good before they got interrupted. Calling signals change. It’s not like a job or even a hobby. It’s more like a tugging at the heart that won’t go away. Hardly ever does it come at a convenient time. It takes us into a zone where we don’t have control, where it will become part of our life until finally, it will become part of how we are defined, how we see ourselves.  God is in the calling business, but he usually doesn’t call someone who has nothing to give up. The Bible is full of such examples. Abraham gave up his country. Moses gave up the throne of Egypt. Elisha gave up 12 yoke of oxen, a pretty penny’s worth in his day. Matthew and Zacheus gave up lucrative businesses. The calling of God is sort like Baskin and Robbins ice cream. It comes in lots of flavors, but its all ice cream. Some of us are called to serve in pulpits, some in choir lofts, some in weave rooms and some in classrooms. No matter what the venue, no matter what the dress, we who are God’s people are called to serve. Theologian Maynard Gutzke reminds us that

Jesus is still calling people to follow Him. To follow Jesus

does not mean one must go to Africa as a foreign missionary,

or to a seminary to study to be a pastor. Being called of the

Lord actually extends to every believer and means that the

believer comes to Him from wherever he has been and turns

himself over to Him.  (Plain Talk on Mark, p. 19)

In the Gospel of Mark, John the Baptist has been thrown in

prison by Herod. We don’t know exactly where Jesus was at the time, but he makes an announcement. He announces that the kingdom of God is near and that the time has come to repent and believe the good news. He takes a walk by the Sea of Galilee. Luke calls it the Lake of Gennesaret and John later refers to it twice as the Sea of Tiberius. Regardless of the name used, they are the same body of water. According to Mark, he sees the fishermen Simon and Andrew casting their nets into the lake. Apparently they are working from the shore and probably using a net called an amphiblestron. It is shaped like an umbrella and is not very big. It can be used from the shore. Jesus says “Come, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Mark says they left their nets and followed him.

          Jesus walks a little further and sees James and John in a boat. Maybe they have a bigger operation than Peter and Andrew. After all, these brothers actually have a boat. Their father Zebedee is also there, so this looks like the family business. They are preparing their nets, which are probably the other kind of net in use at the time called a sagene. This is a bigger, trawl net to be used from a boat.  Mark tells us that on the call of Jesus, they left their father in the boat with the hired help and followed Jesus. The whole group went on to Capernaum, probably about a ten mile walk.

          Whether they knew Jesus prior to this day or not, whether they were familiar with his claims or not, these men knew little by way of fact. As we have noted before, it is the event and not its details that we must understand when we read God’s Word. The event here is that when these men were confronted with that tugging of the heart that we identify as a call, they answered. It was not convenient for them. It must have looked pretty ridiculous to Zebedee and those other fishermen on the coastline that day to see these men following almost a total stranger. There was no explanation. There was no contract or trial period to get your money back if you’re not 100% satisfied with the product. There was just answering the bell.

`        Wow! Think about that one. Could you do that? I hope I could, but I really wonder if I would have done the same thing. I know I have been called, but I didn’t just up and leave my family to answer that call. Sometimes when I’m so immersed in my studies that I’m practically unresponsive, they might argue with that, but at least I am physically present. Those were special times, and I have no doubt that there was something special about the voice of Jesus, or the look he might have given. But we also know that when we receive that special tug at our heartstrings, it is without question the voice of God calling us to serve, to enter into discipleship with the Master.

           One of the things I love about Mark’s gospel is the urgency of it.  He uses the word “immediately” at least eight times. Mark is the shortest gospel. Everything is hurried.Mark himself is in a hurry to make us understand the identity of Jesus. He wants to convince us that this really is our Savior. The very fact that Mark gives us a gospel is a testimony to calling. Mark was not a disciple, Neither was Luke and yet, they are two of the four Gospel writers. The great theologian Augustine said it this way: “The Holy Spirit willed to choose for the writing of the Gospel two [Mark and Luke] who were not even from those who made up the Twelve, so that it might not be thought that the grace of evangelization had come only to the apostles and that in them the fountain of grace had dried up (Sermon 239.1).

          So we look at this immediate and total response from these men and we admire it. We cherish their commitment; their decision to act with significance and loyalty on so little information.   But what does it mean to us? How will we respond to the call we hear? As I said earlier, Jesus is still calling people to follow him. Our style of service is as varied as the number of people who belong to God’s church, but our commitment and our direction should be easy to see. We serve the God who created us and we do so in love.   We have the words of Jesus himself in Matthew 20 to instruct us:  “…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve…”

          As God’s people, we are all called to serve. Over time, the details of the call may change, the location of our efforts may move, but the call remains. He calls you and he calls me out of his love for us.  We should answer in the same way.

Ordinary Time Mark 1: 9-13 (1/15/11)

  

This is the “Book of Common Worship.” Until I went to seminary, I didn’t know this existed. Imagine my surprise to discover that the Presbyterian Church had published a book full of prayers, ceremonies, and preparation for worship. It also includes a lectionary, which is a sort of assigned reading for the Church… a three year cycle of scripture during which you will cover most of the Bible, particularly the Gospels. And you won’t be by yourself. On any given Sunday, Methodist, Lutheran, Congregational, and Roman Catholic churches are using roughly the same lectionary.

 Christmas and Easter are the two most important days in the Church year. Of course, we are all familiar with the terms Advent and Lent, that lead up to these high holy days. I’ve always thought that there are two awfully long dry spells in between these two special days. Well, there are! The Book of Common Worship calls these periods Ordinary Time. There are two periods of Ordinary Time, which are the times between Christmas and Easter and Easter and Christmas.  Today’s scripture is often read during the first Sunday of Ordinary Time after Christmas. I chose it because I think it teaches us something about what to do with this good news we just finished celebrating.

  We have been praising the anniversary of the birth of our Savior. In the last several weeks, we put up Christmas trees and decorated our homes. We decorated our churches. We gave gifts to each other, spent some time away from work, and generally we have tried to be nicer and more forgiving than usual. We have gathered and visited with family and loved ones. We have tried, each in his or her own way, to stop our little corner of the world from spinning for a moment in order to savor the meaning of this extraordinary event that we call Christmas.

But Christmas is over. All of us have already taken down the tree. Our long distance relatives who made it home for Christmas are back at work, as are we. And it’s three months of “Ordinary Time” ‘til the Easter season begins. What Now? Try as we might, Christmas just won’t stretch all the way to Easter. What Now?

The story of Jesus is in all four Gospels, but each tells the story in its own way. Each has little to say about the first 30 years Jesus lived. In Matthew, Jesus is taken to Egypt as a baby to keep him out of Herod’s way. This gets him to age 2. The next glimpse from Matthew has Jesus at the Jordan River for baptism.

In Luke, Jesus is circumcised on the eighth day according to Jewish custom. Luke tells us that Jesus grew and became strong; filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him. At age 12, Jesus sits in the temple courts debating with the elders. The next scene is at the Jordan.

Mark and John skip both Jesus’ birth and youth, and begin their stories with John’s baptism of Jesus. This baptism by John is understood as the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. In the Gospel of John, Jesus begins gathering his disciples the very next day after his baptism. But the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) are different from John, and remarkable in their similarity about what happens next. For Jesus, at the beginning of his earthly ministry, his “What Now” was to be led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil for forty days.

Let’s look at the lesson preserved for us by Matthew, Mark and Luke. First, Jesus went into the desert. He didn’t go home; he didn’t go to town; he didn’t go to anything warm and familiar. He went to the desert. The Greek word translated here as desert is often translated as wilderness. The Hebrew term is tohu vebohu, which means formlessness and void. The connotation is roughly the same. It is hot by day and cold by night, with nothing more than a rock for a pillow. In the winter, temperatures in the desert may drop over 80 degrees, turning a daytime furnace into a nighttime freezer.  It is lonely, and it can be dangerous in the wilderness. Tim Laniak, in his book While Shepherds Watch Their Flocks, says that biblically, the wilderness is a place of dependent, disciplined, purifying solitude where God must be trusted; that deserts bring people quickly to the end of their self-sufficiency and independence. This desolate, dangerous environment is the place Jesus went to prepare.

Secondly, Jesus was tempted by the devil. He was without comfort, without support from family or friends, fasting and hungry. He was vulnerable. The devil knew this well, and plied him with offers of fame, fortune and power. He used his knowledge of Jesus’ desires to test him in ways that were difficult for Jesus to resist. Satan knew the right buttons to push. He always does, doesn’t he? Yet, Jesus had a Scriptural answer for each question Satan posed.

Third, this whole desert experience played out over forty days. The Biblical significance of the number 40 is maturity; perfection. It’s the time needed for something to come to full flower; to reach wholeness. It is a time without which we cannot reach the goals we set, or that are set for us. Laniak says that “symbolically, Jesus relived the challenge that God’s people had once failed. Matching their forty years, Jesus spent forty days sustained exclusively by God’s word.”

Last, and most important, is the very first element named by the gospel writers. Jesus was led by the Spirit. Jesus sought this experience. He sought the wilderness and all its discomforts. He sought the temptation of Satan. He sought the time which would refine and purify his resolve; his mission. Why? Because he was led by the Spirit. And when he came out of the wilderness, out of the temptation, out of that seemingly interminable time, he was ready to do God’s work. Do not mistake that because he was the Son of God that this was somehow an easy task. Jesus was also the Son of Man, as Luke continually reminds us. It was not a foregone conclusion that Jesus would pass this test; any more than he would live a sinless life and take on the sin of mankind at Calvary just three years later. All this had to be done by a man, or Jesus’ example could not be held up to us as the Spirit filled life that we can imitate. As a man, Jesus lived the type of life that the apostle Paul tells us is available to each of us here and now through God’s grace.

Just a couple weeks ago, we as Christians celebrated the anniversary of God’s offer of a new beginning for mankind. But it’s a long time between Christmas and Easter; between birth and resurrection. There’s a lot of ordinary time in there to deal with. The birth and the resurrection are events chiseled in our memories. They are the cornerstones of our belief system. But cornerstones only start buildings. Site preparation has to be completed even before cornerstones are laid. Jesus knew this. And so, at the beginning of his ministry, he prepared himself. How did Jesus prepare? He was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil for 40 days.

What has this got to do with you and me?  I think it has to do with that space that the Book of Common Worship calls Ordinary Time. I don’t think Jesus would call it that.  I think Jesus would tell us that this space between Christmas and Easter is anything but ordinary. I think he would tell us, as I think Matthew, Mark and Luke have told us, that it is the end of the beginning. I think he would tell us that ordinary time is our time in the wilderness, and that we should seek it, for it is our time to get ready, to prepare, to be refined and sifted, not only by Satan, but sometimes by God himself.

As Christians, few of us will literally go into the desert, although such opportunities do exist. Sometimes mission trips provide a sort of wilderness experience. But there are all kinds of wildernesses. There is the wilderness that comes from the all encompassing attention required for parenting an infant. There is the wilderness that comes from an empty nest. There is the wilderness that inevitably comes from all kinds of loss, from dealing with the end of a marriage or the loss of a job or the ending of a career to dealing with issues of aging and death of loved ones and of ourselves. There is the wilderness of doing the same thing, going the same places, performing the same chores, day after day after day with no end in sight. Yes, there are all kinds of wildernesses.

 For Christians, there is also that barren place we encounter from time to time when, try as we will, we find ourselves some distance from the God we worship. These are the dark places where we call out to God for help, and wait, not so patiently, for his answer or guidance.

But there is another kind of wilderness for Christians; the kind Jesus experienced as his ministry began. It is the kind of wilderness that we should come to welcome with arms and hearts as open as those we have for loved ones returning home for Christmas. It is the kind of wilderness in which we are led by the Spirit, perhaps to be tempted, but always to be guided to a new depth of understanding of that for which we have been called. After all, we are God’s people. And we have been called—to discipleship, to ministry, to lives lived as His children. And our wilderness experience won’t last forever; just for forty days, just until we are made ready for the next step. It will last until we are led out of the wilderness by that same Holy Spirit.  

What Now? In this New Year, when we are prone to making resolutions for change, why not look for God in the wilderness that sometimes is life? The wilderness that begins for us as an earthly burden can become an encounter with the very Spirit of God, if only we invite it. Barbara Brown Taylor, the great Christian author, asks this:

What does this mean, day to day? It means noticing the

 difference between the times we are hanging back, clinging

 to our limits, and the times we are moving out, pushing into

 new and often frightening territory. It is the difference between…protecting yourself and putting yourself in the paths

of strangers, being the first to extend your hand, aching with empathy for a world in travail, trying new things, changing your mind.

In this period between Christmas and Easter, do as Luke tells us that Jesus did. Grow and become strong, filled with wisdom, and the grace of God will be upon you. Like Jesus, let yourself be led by the Spirit. Go willingly into the desert. God is there, and he is waiting for you. The deserts of our lives are the places and times into which God speaks a new creation. So when you find yourself led by the Spirit, welcome your time in the wilderness. Yes, you will be tempted. Yes, you will be hot, or cold, or lonely or hungry or tired. Ordinary time can be long and hard. But it will end in the fullness of God’s time for you. When you are with our Lord, there really is no such thing as ordinary time! And remember, there’s a resurrection waiting for you at the end of your experience.

What's Your Foundation 1 Corinthians 2: 10-16 (1/8/12)

You folks know that I am also a lawyer. What you don’t know is that I also used to remodel houses. Sometimes I would sell them; sometimes I would keep them as rental property. I used to do a lot of the remodeling myself. I don’t do that any more.   Even before the economy went south, I had already stopped working on the houses myself. I liked remodeling. I enjoyed bringing something old and damaged back to life. I’ve always liked to use my hands. I like to learn practical skills.  I always thought it helped keep my mind sharp.

A couple thousand years ago, there was another preacher who was a carpenter by trade. Of course, he was the greatest preacher ever heard. I’ve got a feeling he was a much better carpenter than I am as well. I find it curious that Jesus was a carpenter. Maybe that was Joseph’s contribution to Jesus. We know very little about Joseph, but it’s reasonable to assume that Joseph taught Jesus the carpentry trade. So maybe while Jesus was growing strong in Spirit, Joseph made sure that he grew strong in body as well.

It seems fitting to me that Jesus was a carpenter. He built things with his hands before he built up people’s spirits. The Bible doesn’t tell us what kind of carpenter Jesus was, but it’s for sure that his trade has some parallels to his ministry. In his ministry, Jesus was definitely a re-modeler. He never got to do new construction on anyone. He just took them as they were, old and damaged, and turned them into works of art; works good enough to get into the kingdom of heaven. When it comes to the human spirit, Jesus is the master re-modeler.

When I’m looking at a house to consider buying it, the first thing I do is look at the foundation. I check the brickwork. I walk the floors carefully, looking for signs of settling. I crawl underneath the house to check for hidden defects. If the foundation and the floor joists have held up to the test of time, then the house will be worth considering. If not, it may not be worth it to invest time and money in it.

This brings us to the subject of today’s message. The Apostle Paul was a tentmaker by trade. He was no stranger to using his hands either. In today’s lesson, Paul talks about foundations; in particular, the kind of Spiritual foundation needed for Christians.

Let’s look at the Scripture. In verses 10 and 11, Paul says he “laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it.” He warns each one to be careful how he builds. Paul says that “no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. Wait a minute here. Paul says he laid a foundation, and in the very next verse, he says the foundation is already laid: that of Jesus. So how can he have his cake and eat it, too? He can’t. Look back at verse 10. Paul’s preface is “by the grace God has given me…” In essence, Paul is saying that he can do nothing except through God’s grace. And that grace, we know, comes from Jesus Christ. Now who is the “someone else” in verse 10? That’s the church. That’s the Corinthians. That’s the whole reason for Paul writing this letter. He needs to talk to the church. And who is the church? The church is you and me. That’s who Paul is talking to.

Back to verse 11. Paul says “each one should be careful how he builds.” Each one is each church, each Session, each Sunday school teacher, each Minister…each believer.  We should be careful how we build because there will be a day of reckoning, a day of judgment.  And on that day, Paul says, our work will be shown for what it is. It will be exposed to the light that is known to God alone, the light that knows nothing but pure, unadorned truth, the light from which we can hide absolutely nothing. Paul says that whatever materials we use will be tested with fire, and in such way the quality of our work will be revealed. If we build on Christ’s foundation with anything consumable, it will be shown to be just that, and the fire of God will consume it.

Well, that seems a tall order, and indeed it is. What building materials cannot be consumed by fire? Wood burns. Even steel melts when there is enough heat. Concrete can turn into so much more rubble and dust when enough pressure is applied to it. If there were ever any doubt of that, the vision of the twin towers of the World Trade Center tumbling into an unrecognizable heap of ash and dust during 9/11 made that clear to all of us. So, what are the building materials of the Church? What do we add to the foundation that is Jesus Christ?

Let me suggest three building materials for the Church.

First:     be a witness for Christ.

Second: build up your fellow believers.

Third:   live a Christian life.

          Being a witness means you’re so convinced that God is sovereign, that Christ died for you, that Christ rose again and reigns even today, that you are going to tell others of this incredible news. It’s that simple.

          Can you do Christianity alone? No. Being a Christian is all about relationship. Having a relationship with Jesus comes first. You can’t get it without the Holy Spirit in your heart, and you can’t keep it unless you release that empowered Spirit by sharing your Christianity with other believers. In this way, Christ can use you to help others, and to grow strong from that sharing.

          In using the first two building materials, you are using the third. Living a Christian life means there are lots of things you don’t do, but much more importantly, there are lots of things you do or do differently. As the Spirit of God grows within you, you become free to bask in the warmth of life with meaning; life with purpose.

          Let me share a story with you. David Culver tells of a time that a TV news camera crew was in southern Florida filming the widespread destruction of Hurricane Andrew. In one scene, amid the devastation and debris, one house still stood on its foundation. The owner was cleaning up the yard when a reporter approached him.

          “Sir, why is your house the only one still standing?” asked the reporter. “How did you manage to escape the severe damage of the hurricane?” “I built this house myself,” the man replied. “I also built it according to the Florida building code. When the code called for two-by-six roof trusses, I used two-by six- roof trusses. I was told that a house built according to code could withstand a hurricane. I did, and it did. I suppose no one else around here followed the code.”

          Mr. Culver’s story reminds me of the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. You remember. The house whose foundation was dug deep into the rock withstood the torrent. Jesus says that that house was like the person who not only hears His words, but also puts them into practice. When the sun is shining and the skies are blue, building our lives on something other than the guidelines in God’s Word can be tempting. But there’s only one way to be ready for a storm.

William Barclay, the Scottish theologian, says that in Jesus Christ alone, we can find three things: 1) forgiveness for past sins, 2) strength for the present, and 3) hope for the future. Without the foundation of Christ, neither we nor the church will be able to find forgiveness or strength or hope for more than fleeting moments. But with that foundation, the grace of Jesus Christ will hold us together, no matter what goes wrong.

Let’s go back to Paul and verse 15. Paul says that if the building materials you use are inferior, they will be burned up, that the “builder” will suffer loss, but will be saved. What does this mean? I think it means that we get credit for good behavior. In God’s merciful plan, even the inadequate builder will be saved, because at least he or she tried to do something for Christ.

You know, even at our best, all our versions of Christianity are inadequate. We could save a lot of false starts and failures if we would first test our thoughts and actions in the light of the Cross. Whether we’re in a church meeting or at the checkout line, our response should always be framed like those bracelets we used to see everywhere: “What would Jesus do?”

So, to continue the metaphor that Paul uses in this Scripture, if we want to build God’s house, we need a good set of plans and specs. We can find that in God’s Word. We already have the perfect foundation in Jesus Christ. We need to use the Spiritual building materials of witness, fellowship and discipleship. And we need to build according to code. Jesus’ building code can be summarized in the Great Commandment: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength…and love your neighbor as yourself. If we will follow that code, no storm of life can overtake us or the church of which we are a part.

What’s your foundation? The task of any builder is to bring in the work in a manner that will stand the test of time. The task of the Church, and that means you and me, is to continue to build upon the foundation already laid; that of Jesus Christ and His offer of salvation to every one who hears and believes. Let’s keep on building God’s house right here in this church and this community. And let’s do it according to God’s code!