Good morning ladies and gentlemen, it is a wonderful pleasure, and a deep privilege, for me to share the word of God with you this morning. I thank each one of you for your support of my ministry in Chile, and I especially want to thank Father David for inviting me to preach today. Let us pray: Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts together be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen
We are now in the season of Easter. Two weeks ago we celebrated Easter Sunday, and the resurrection of our Lord from the grave. In a few weeks time we will celebrate Pentecost, when we remember the coming of the Holy Spirit in power on the church. At the moment we are between these two important feasts, and it is a good time to ask ourselves what these great events mean for us today, as everyday Christians, here in Pass Christian. What difference is it meant to make to us?
If we can't give a clear answer to that question, well, we shouldn't feel too bad about it, because we are in very good company. In Acts Chapter 1, in a reading we didn't hear today, but which I would like to quote a little from, Luke tells us about one of Jesus's post-resurrection appearances to his disciples. Luke says: On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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.” know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 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.”
At that time, the disciples were also passing through the period between (in their case) the first Easter and the first Holy Spirit Pentecost. What I would like to draw your attention to here is that question they asked him: “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” Now, when you think about it, this was not exactly the best question they could have asked in the circumstances. It was a natural question for Jews to ask the resurrected Messiah, because it was central to their Old Testament faith that God in the end times would restore his chosen people to their land. But it surely missed the greater issue. The Lord Jesus, after having taught and preached for three years during his earthly ministry, had prophesied his own death on the cross to pay for the sins of all people, and also his resurrection. At the Last Supper, you will remember, he said: this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins, which are words we will hear again later this morning during our communion service. And then, it came true! He was crucified. He did die, and he was resurrected! Clearly, this was a world-changing event that was to have consequences throughout the earth, and for all time, as we have subsequently realized. However, seeing Jesus after his resurrection, all the disciples could think to ask was: “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
We shouldn't, however, be too hard on them. They, like we, were on a learning curve. The important thing to see here is, regardless of any misunderstanding they had, that the Lord is very gracious to them, and gently steers them towards the correct path. First he gives them a mild rebuke, telling them that God alone is qualified to know the answer to the question they asked, since by his own authority, he has established the times and dates, the stages and critical events through which mankind must pass until the kingdom comes.
And then, the Lord Jesus sets out clearly the really important issue, which is what the church must be doing until he does return, he says: 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. However long the Lord Jesus takes before he returns to the earth at his Second Coming, he expects the disciples, and after them, the church, including us, to be his witnesses, and to testify in places all over the earth, both near and far, about his resurrection, and the salvation that is available to everyone who believes.
Like the disciples, we are in the season of Easter. The Lord Jesus died on the cross, taking away all our sins, he rose from the dead to new life, and he brings us new life as well. I think what he is saying gently to the disciples is: Look at the big picture! It’s time to stop thinking about old historical issues and controversies, and failures, and to concentrate on proclaiming the wonderful new and fresh message that Jesus has risen from the dead! It’s a true story, and people out in the world need to hear it, because God loves them!
In our readings this morning we heard about two people to whom this teaching applied in a very powerful way. They were two men from very different backgrounds, who were going to play a very important part in carrying the Gospel to the world.
The first was Saul of Tarsus, who we now know as the Apostle Paul. Let us remind ourselves of the first few verses of the reading from Acts we heard this morning: Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
Now, it is important to recognize Saul was a very brilliant and well-educated man. He was a Pharisee, thoroughly trained in the rabbinical law, and a student of Gamaliel, the most highly respected Rabbi of those times. If Saul were alive today, he would probably become one of the top professors at Harvard Law School, or the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
But Paul was also a zealous idealogue, who obstinately believed in the absolutely importance of obeying and preserving the traditional Mosaic and rabbinical legal codes, and of stamping out any dissent, so that the ancient law could be maintained, and the kingdom of Israel restored. As far as he was concerned, this new Christian teaching, that God had been born into the world as the man Jesus, and that people could be forgiven and could approach God by faith in Jesus name, was a heresy which, if allowed to take root, would end up destroying all hope of restoring the old Jewish order. Saul even believed he was justified in killing people to achieve his ends. What does it say in that reading? Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples...
Paul was such a clever man, that it would have been impossible to argue him out of his point of view. The Lord knew that if he could be caused to see the truth, his gifts and talents could be used to spread the gospel throughout the Roman world, and that he would be able to preach so effectively that men and women of all backgrounds and cultures and nations would hear the gospel of Jesus and receive him as their savior.
But in Paul’s case it would take drastic action, and that is exactly what happened. The reading goes on: As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked. “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” Later, the Lord sends Ananias to pray for Saul’s blindness to be healed with these words: “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” Do you see how Saul, who later changed his name to Paul, became obedient to God’s command to be one of Jesus’ witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth?
The second man we heard of this morning, who had to change his way of thinking, so that he could become a witness for Jesus, was Peter. He was completely different from Paul. He probably only had about a seventh grade education, and made his living as a hard-working fisherman. I think many of us have a soft spot in our hearts for dear impulsive Peter. He always wanted to say and do the right thing, but often ended up making such a mess.
We recently heard, on Good Friday, how he said to the Lord Jesus “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times! Of course, we know he did deny the Lord, and it led to what must have been the most miserable three days of his life. This morning we heard the following words: The third time he said to him “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my sheep ... Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
So Peter was restored, and did follow Jesus, and was a witness of Jesus's resurrection and salvation throughout the rest of his life. On the first day of Pentecost, recorded in Acts, which we are going to read about in just a few weeks, it was the simple fisherman Peter, not Paul, who preached the first great public sermon in Jerusalem proclaiming the resurrection of Jesus, and the good news of salvation.
Though we may not be great scholars like Paul, or have the simple but immensely strong faith of Peter, we are also called to tell other people about Jesus. Let us show our love for him, and for others, by doing just that.
Let us pray: O Lord, at work and at home, at church and at play, with friends and family, in meetings and in solitude, in every situation, may we always testify of your love. Amen.
