“…that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures, might have hope.”
(Romans 15.4)
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
Last week, the readings told us of Christ’s Second Coming and the need we all have to prepare our hearts to receive Him. “Owe no man anything but love,” St. Paul told us. In other words, the best way to prepare for the Lord’s return is to clothe your soul in Love. This week, the readings set Hope before us – true and everlasting Hope which only Jesus Christ can bring.
Throughout the course of the day, we often use the word ‘hope’. “I hope you are feeling better soon,” we tell our friend. “Don’t give up hope ,” we say to another. “Hopefully they have finished fixing it by now.” But what exactly do we mean – what are we trying to say? Well, the dictionary says that hope is the desire for some good with the expectation that it will happen….Hope is the desire for something good with the expectation that it will happen.
The key part, then, is the expectation. Without it, our hope is empty. Lots of people tell us to think positively – and so we should – but unless there is an assurance or a solid basis on which our expectation rests, it is just wishful thinking, and not real hope. The question is, Who or What is the foundation of my hope? And, if we are expecting something because we believe that We can make it happen at some future date, then our hope is very limited. Instead of hope, maybe we should use the word ‘control’, because we are hoping only for what we can provide ourselves. Do you see how good hopes and possibilities are reduced if they depend entirely on us being able to fill them?
For example, if you asked me what my hopes are for the future, I would say that I hope to pay off my car loan and get some renovations done on the house. There is lots of good in these hopes, but they are limited to what I think I can do; and, they are limited to what I can see, and to what I know or understand.
In contrast, Christian Hope goes beyond these limitations.The motto of Christian Hope is, “With God all things are possible”. (St. Matthew19.26) Love is possible; good desires are possible; the forgiveness of sins is possible; the healing of a broken heart is possible; the resurrection of a dead body is possible; and so is the land of everlasting life. Even though all of these are beyond our abilities and understanding, we are hopeful for them. Why? Because of the saving work on our behalf of the Lord Jesus Christ.In a nutshell, that is the point of this morning’s readings.
In the Epistle, St. Paul tells us that the Holy Scriptures were written so that we might have hope. In them, we can see how God made promises to His chosen people, Israel, and how He fulfilled those promises through Jesus Christ. We can also see, says Paul, that these promises extend to the Gentiles – to the non-Jewish peoples, including us. In his words: “Whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning; that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.”
In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells of amazing signs that are to come at the end of the world – frightening things, terrifying things. “There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” And yet, He says that, “When these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draws nigh.”
Upon hearing these things, many people will simply walk away. They do not want to think about what is beyond their own power to control. So they avoid or deny the possibility. They continue to live only within the scope of their own desires. And although this may keep them comfortable for awhile, they are living in denial. As Christians, we do not need to live in this way because God has provided us with His Son to be our Saviour.In doing so, He has infinitely extended our hope and He has relieved our fears. Yes the end of the world will come; and, yes, it is terrifying to think about, but in the Lord Jesus Christ Who died and rose again for us, we have a sure and certain Hope.
The purpose of the advent Season is to help us prepare for the Second Coming of Christ, and today we are reminded that the best way to prepare is “by patience and comfort of the Scriptures” – that is, by reading them, marking them, learning them, and inwardly digesting them. As the written and inspired Word of God the Scriptures bring us the assurance of our Hope in Christ. They are God’s instructions to us and for us as we live in all the uncertainties of this troubled world. In the face of all that is going on around us – all the things that we cannot control – we have, in the Bible, the wonderful account of God’s Good News, and the eternal Hope which is ours in Christ. As Jesus said, “Heaven and earth shall pass away; but my words shall not pass away”.Let us then resolve to read, mark, learn and inwardly digest God’s Holy Word, so that we may live in Jesus Christ with Hope for today and tomorrow.
And now unto God Almighty: the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost be ascribed all majesty, dominion, honour and glory as is most justly due, henceforth and forevermore. AMEN.
Sermon for Trinity 23
Wednesday, 09 December 2009
Trinity 23, 2009
“Whose is this image and superscription?”(St.Matthew 22.20)
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.
The Lord Jesus faced two religious groups in this morning’s Gospel, who wanted to trick Him; and they used a coin with the Roman Emperor Caesar’s picture and inscription as their bait. These two groups of Jews who were at odds with each other, came and asked the Lord , “Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar or not?” It was a tough question, because if said ‘Yes’ He would side with the Herodians who supported the Emperor’s rule; and if He said ‘No’, He would side with the Pharisees who opposed the Roman government.
So, what did Jesus do? He asked to see the coin, and then He said, “Whose is this image and superscription?” (Whose picture and name is on this coin?”) Of course they answered, “Caesar’s”. Then Jesus said, “Render therefore (give) unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.” When they heard that, the Gospel tells us that “theymarveled, and left Him, and went their way”.
“Render unto Caesar’s the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s.” Inasmuchas the Lord spoke it to the Pharisees and Herodians, he says it also to us: “Give to God the things that are God’s”.” Hold on,” someone will say “what does not belong to God?...Don’t we say each week at the presentation of the Offering, ”All things come of Thee, O Lord, and of Thine own have we given Thee”? Of course we do – that is exactly what we say. What does it mean?
To acknowledge that all things come from God, is to place ourselves under Him, and to identify ourselves as belonging to Him. And truly that is the case, for He has made us and redeemed us through Christ, and He is even now at work sanctifying us by His Spirit. In Baptism, the Lord washed us and adopted us and we were signed with the sign of the Cross. And so we bear the image and inscription of Christ on our foreheads and in our hearts.
In addition to these spiritual benefits, we know that it is only by God’s power and grace that this world holds together. It is by His mercy that we live and move and have our being. He has set and He maintains the earth’s orbit around the sun so that we pass each 24 hour period through the cycle of a day and a night. He causes the plants to grow and the He sends the wind and the rain and the snow. By His perfect Wisdom our bodies have been designed with such excellent systems, and our hearts with the capacity to love and our minds to think and to remember. What else can we say, then, but “All things come of Thee, O Lord”? And, what else can we do, but offer Him ourselves, our souls and bodies in thanksgiving and praise?
But that’s the challenge, isn’t it? It is one thing to acknowledge that all things come from God; but it is another thing altogether to offer Him our all. Quite often, we render what we have to unto Caesar, and we keep a generous portion of our income for ourselves, and then give the Lord what is leftover. Why do we do this? Why is it so hard for us to offer the Lord more than our leftovers? For this simple reason: because the world is constantly telling us that we need money and things in order to be safe; in order to be successful; in order to be respected. Fr. David Currie puts it this way:
“Whether we are rich or poor, employed or unemployed, pensioned or unpensioned, we are under a constant barrage of images that seek to persuade us that we are merely economic beings, that our worth and the meaning of our lives is to be measured materially and financially. When we (allow this to happen) – when we allow ourselves to be defined economically, then we are “bellies” (as St. Paul says in today’s Epistle). That is, we are consumers, and, no doubt, ‘bellyachers’ as well. We are seduced into thinking that everything, including religion, must be a consumer product. The evil of money, then, lies precisely in making us fforget who we are.”
On the Job Market page of yesterday’s newspaper the headline was, ‘Hundreds of Casino Jobs are Available’. The story went on to specify 380-400 jobs in the areas of security, dealers, supervisors, marketers, surveillance experts, attendants and, of course, managers. All of these will be needed to run the 600 slot machines, 20 tables, 8 poker tables, the high-limit room, the food and beverage facilities, the 128 room hotel and the multi-purpose entertainment venue, called the Palladium; and to look after the estimated 1 million visitors per year.
On the surface this may sound exciting, but stop and think for a minute about the purpose of this venture and its foundation. It’s purpose is obviously to make money; and its foundation is gambling. What is gambling? It is a game of risk-taking on the odds, or on chance. And in this game, we are lured to lay down money in order to win more money. Although we may begin with a smile, and the intention of having a little fun, the whole thing quickly becomes very serious when we lose our money. In an instant, we can go from being carefree to being determined – about what? About our money. Satan loves for us to enter into this ‘no-win’ situation because by it we are drawn further and further away from God and our His Love. Money and winning more money becomes our all-consuming desire. This feeds the love of self.
But gambling is just a symptom of this deep-rooted sickness in our society. Everything is about money. So, as Christians, how do we break the power of this false god? By giving it away. By rendering unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and unto God the things that are God’s. You see, our citizenship is in Heaven. We belong to the Lord Who loves us with an everlasting love. Instead of money, we must identify ourselves with Him. We must define ourselves by the love of Christ, not by where we live or how much money we have. It the precious Blood of Jesus that has made us valuable to God, not our money. Remember, dear friends, as you think about money and expenses this week – remember the price that has been paid for your salvation. There is no bank account in the world that could purchase the kingdom of Heaven for us – only the precious Blood of Christ could do that.
It is time to close. Pray for me, please, and I will for you; that, by God’s grace, we will this week be able to recognize the limits of money (compared to God’s omnipotence; and step outside the fear that the world has about running out of money. Let us, rather, fear God from Whom all things come. And let us, with love and generous hearts, offer to Him all that we are, and all that we have, and all that we may become – for the glory of His Holy Name.AMEN.
Saint George's Anglican Church
