Foolish Greed

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 3rd of August, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

The bible is often misquoted when people say that money is the root of all evil.  The actual phrase comes from the Apostle Paul’s 1st letter to his young protégé Timothy when he states that, “the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.”  Paul goes on to add that, “some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.”

Money itself isn’t a bad thing.  It’s the love of money – the love of what money can do – that corrupts people.  And we actually have a couple of instances in our bible of rich people who are OK with God as long as they are honest and their hearts are clean.  But we also have a couple examples of some whose wealth only makes them greedier for more.

One such instance occurred when Jesus was speaking to a crowd that just kept growing and growing, to the point that the people were stepping on each other.  He warned the people to be wary of the Pharisees and their hypocrisy.  He promised that anyone who acknowledges Him publicly, He will acknowledge in heaven, but anyone who denies Him, He will deny in heaven.  And He told us not to worry about how to defend ourselves if brought to trial over our faith, for the Holy Spirit will give us the words.

But that’s not all He said.  Please listen and follow along as Jesus continues His lesson as recorded for us in chapter 12 of the Apostle Luke’s Gospel account, verses 13 through 21, and I’ll be reading from the New Living Translation of our Holy Bible this morning…

13 Then someone called from the crowd, “Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father’s estate with me.”

14 Jesus replied, “Friend, who made Me a judge over you to decide such things as that?” 15 Then He said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.”

16 Then He told them a story: “A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. 17 He said to himself, ‘What should I do? I don’t have room for all my crops.’ 18 Then he said, ‘I know! I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I’ll have room enough to store all my wheat and other goods. 19 And I’ll sit back and say to myself, “My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get everything you worked for?’

21 “Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.”

--Luke 12:13-21 (NLT)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for sending us a great Teacher, who shared Your will with us and demonstrated the ways of heaven by how He lived and interacted with others.  He used every opportunity as a teaching moment, trying to help Your children see and understand the truth.  And You gave us this mission of reconciliation, too, Father.  But with all the challenges in life, we sometimes struggle to summon up the will to do as You command.  If we truly loved all others as You command us, we would be more than happy to help reconcile all people to You by sharing Jesus with them.  Please forgive us our failures, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your command so that others may also find salvation through Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot.  He wanted more of everything.  One day he received a novel offer.  For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day.  The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown.  Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace.  By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground.  Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point.  He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run, knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost.  As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line.  Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared.  He immediately collapsed, blood streaming from his mouth.  In a few minutes he was dead.  Afterwards, his servants dug a grave.  It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide.  The title of Tolstoy's story was, “How Much Land Does a Man Need?”

Our insatiable appetite for more and more will only lead to our downfall.  There really is only so much we need to get through this life.  It's not how much we have, but how we use what we have, that will matter in the end.

You could say it’s only coincidence that both Jesus and Tolstoy told stories about greedy farmers.  After all, farmers aren’t the only type of folk who can be greedy, who are tempted by more and more.  But then again, I personally define “coincidence” as “the hand of God”.

I believe the Spirit led me to both the parable and the story, not because the spotlight was on a farmer, but because both make the point in simplistic terms that we can all understand and relate to.  In both stories, God did not fault the farmer for being rich and successful.  It was only when their riches – what God had already granted them - didn’t satisfy them and they wanted more and more.  More and bigger barns, more land, more wealth.  And in the end they lost it all.  If they had enjoyed a rich relationship with God, they would have been delighted with what they had been given and not wanted more.

Jesus said that life is not measured by how much we own, nor by how great our worldly wealth.  Our desire for material things leads us in the wrong direction.

There was a day when the Pharisees admonished the disciples for not following the traditional hand-washing ritual before eating.  Jesus rebuked the Pharisees, using this as another teaching moment.  The Apostle Mark saved for us what Jesus said to them and the crowd that gathered, in the 7th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 20 through 23…

20 And then He added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. 21 For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23 All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”

--Mark 7:20-23 (NLT)

It’s not what we have that corrupts us.  It’s not what we eat or drink that fills us with foolishness, that fuels our evil ways.  It’s what is in our heart that makes the difference in how we act.  And if we don’t have that rich relationship with God, then our hearts are filled with lust and desire.  Greed takes over and we want more, no matter what we might have to do to get it.  But how much more do we really need?  How much land, how much money, how much wealth is enough?

Remember, it’s not money or wealth that causes us problems, that makes us evil in God’s eyes.  It’s the love of material, earthly wealth that drives our greed and desire, that becomes our idol replacing God in our lives.  All those defining traits Jesus mentioned in Mark’s account reflect the things of the earth, our desire for earthly things, the hold this world has over us.  The Apostle Paul tells us we need to shift our focus, in the first two verses of the 3rd chapter of his Letter to the Colossians when he writes…

1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth.

--Colossians 3:1-2 (NLT)

Think about the things of heaven rather than worldly things.  Turn our focus to God, and enrich our relationship with Him.  Don’t covet what someone else has; be happy for them that they have it.

Trust in God to provide for all we need, and He will give us even more.  As Habakkuk said, wealth is treacherous, but our faithfulness to God, our trust in Him, is never misplaced.  Trust in God, and be happy and content with all He gives, for He is all we need.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for providing for all our needs and then giving us even more.  Father, we know that sometimes we think we need something more.  We see something we want, maybe something someone else has, and we think we need it to make our life complete.  Remind us, Father, that You give us all we truly need.  We know that this world is full of greedy people, people who will do anything to get more and more.  Greed is a horrible tool the devil employs, and it ruins lives of both the guilty and the innocent.  Remove greed from our hearts, please God, and forgive us those times we want more.  Please help us reach out to others and share with them what Jesus teaches.  Help us lead them to Jesus so they too may be saved. 

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for taking every possible opportunity to provide us with a life lesson, a teaching moment, so that we can learn more about the ways and will of God.  We know that we receive all we need to get by, but sometimes we long for more.  Sometimes we just think that some thing will make our life better.  Please forgive us, Lord.  We know it disappoints You when we let greed get the better of us, even if only for a moment.  Please help us be more like You, focusing more on the things of heaven, on what You have taught us.  Help us serve You by telling more people all about You and what You taught.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Ask, Seek, Knock, Trust

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 27th of July, 2025.  Our air conditioning was not working, so we held the service in our Fellowship Hall.  For this reason, there was no streaming nor recording of this service.  Most of our services are available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

My family, some of you know how much I hate to cancel a worship service, and will normally only do so if safety is an overriding concern.  So I didn’t want to cancel this one today.  But I will concede that the current situation is uncomfortable, so I am going to make this as short as possible while still getting God’s message across.  With that being said, let’s jump right into our scripture reading.

This comes right after Jesus taught His disciples the Model Prayer, or what we call the Lord’s Prayer.  Please listen and follow along as Jesus continues with a very important lesson for His followers, including us.  This comes from chapter 11 of the Apostle Luke’s Gospel account, verses 5 through 13, and I’ll be reading from The Living Bible version of our Holy Bible this morning…

5-6 Then, teaching them more about prayer, He used this illustration: “Suppose you went to a friend’s house at midnight, wanting to borrow three loaves of bread. You would shout up to him, ‘A friend of mine has just arrived for a visit and I’ve nothing to give him to eat.’ 7 He would call down from his bedroom, ‘Please don’t ask me to get up. The door is locked for the night and we are all in bed. I just can’t help you this time.’

8 “But I’ll tell you this — though he won’t do it as a friend, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you everything you want — just because of your persistence. 9 And so it is with prayer — keep on asking and you will keep on getting; keep on looking and you will keep on finding; knock and the door will be opened. 10 Everyone who asks, receives; all who seek, find; and the door is opened to everyone who knocks.

11 “You men who are fathers — if your boy asks for bread, do you give him a stone? If he asks for fish, do you give him a snake? 12 If he asks for an egg, do you give him a scorpion? Of course not!

13 “And if even sinful persons like yourselves give children what they need, don’t you realize that your heavenly Father will do at least as much, and give the Holy Spirit to those who ask for Him?” 

--Luke 11:5-13 (TLB)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for inspiring Your faithful children to come out this morning during a heat wave, knowing that our conditions are less than optimal this morning.  You fill us with faith, Father, and we use that faith to worship You and to follow Your Son.  But with all the challenges in life, we sometimes struggle to summon up the will to witness for our Lord.  If we really loved all others as You command us, we would gladly share Jesus with them, trying to lead them to salvation so they won’t have to suffer eternally.  Please forgive us our failures, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your command so that others may also find salvation through Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

James Brown - not the singer, but the pastor of Evangeline Baptist Church in Wildsville, Louisiana - writes, “Some years ago when I was learning to fly, my instructor told me to put the plane into a steep and extended dive.  I was totally unprepared for what was about to happen.  After a brief time the engine stalled, and the plane began to plunge out-of-control.  It soon became evident that the instructor was not going to help me at all.  After a few seconds, which seemed like eternity, my mind began to function again.  I quickly corrected the situation.  Immediately I turned to the instructor and began to vent my fearful frustrations on him.  He very calmly said to me, ‘There is no position you can get this airplane into that I cannot get you out of.  If you want to learn to fly, go up there and do it again.’  At that moment God seemed to be saying to me, ‘Remember this.  As you serve Me, there is no situation you can get yourself into that I cannot get you out of.  If you trust me, you will be all right.’  

That lesson has been proven true in my ministry many times over the years.”

There are two important conditions noted here for God getting us out of any situation.  The first is as we serve Him.  When we are serving God, He is helping us, no matter what we might get ourselves into.  And the second is that we trust Him.  Trust Him as we serve Him, and He will see us through.

Our scripture reading is quite familiar to most folks, even some non-believers.  Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened for you.  And if this passage was all we read, we might lose faith when we ask for something and don’t receive it, if we look and look but can’t find, if doors all slam shut in our faces.

Sometimes non-believers use this as an argument against God and Jesus, noting that they never got what they asked God for.  James, the brother of Jesus, has an answer for them, in verses 2 through 4 of the 4th chapter of his letter to the early church…

2 You want what you don’t have, so you kill to get it. You long for what others have, and can’t afford it, so you start a fight to take it away from them. And yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t ask God for it. 3 And even when you do ask you don’t get it because your whole aim is wrong — you want only what will give you pleasure.

--James 4:2-4 (TLB)

So, yes, there’s a little more to it than just asking.  God is not our fairy godmother or a magic genie, just waiting there in heaven to grant our every wish.  Jesus tells us there’s also the need to believe.  The Apostle Mark saved for us a declaration Jesus made to His disciples, in the 11th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 22 through 24…

22-23 In reply Jesus said to the disciples, “If you only have faith in God — this is the absolute truth — you can say to this Mount of Olives, ‘Rise up and fall into the Mediterranean,’ and your command will be obeyed. All that’s required is that you really believe and have no doubt! 24 Listen to me! You can pray for anything, and if you believe, you have it; it’s yours!”

--Mark 11:22-24 (TLB)

To me, this might be the hardest part.  While our mothers may have told us that anything is possible, that we can accomplish anything we set our minds to, life has taught us that we can only do so much.  Move a mountain into the sea?  Nope – not possible.  Turn water into wine?  Sorry, that’s above my pay grade.

We have trouble believing – truly believing in our hearts and our minds – that we can actually receive some of the things we ask for.  We think it impossible, and so we don’t receive.

And yet, as we saw in that little story at the beginning, there’s also the elements of service and trust, especially trust.  We must trust Jesus when He says if we will seek, we will find.  Please listen to what the Apostle Paul wrote to the church in Colossae, in verses 6 through 10 of the 2nd chapter of his Letter to the Colossians…

6 And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust Him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with Him. 7 Let your roots grow down into Him and draw up nourishment from Him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all He has done.

8 Don’t let others spoil your faith and joy with their philosophies, their wrong and shallow answers built on men’s thoughts and ideas, instead of on what Christ has said. 9 For in Christ there is all of God in a human body; 10 so you have everything when you have Christ, and you are filled with God through your union with Christ. He is the highest Ruler, with authority over every other power.

--Colossians 2:6-10 (TLB)

Trust in the Lord in all things.  Trust Him enough to get out there and serve Him.  Trust Him enough to believe we will receive what we ask for, we will find what we search for, doors will be opened and our way made clear.

Ask, seek, knock, and trust.  It really is that simple, if we could only believe.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for giving us the faith to believe in Your Son Jesus, and by our belief, to hear and answer our prayers.  We pray that more people would come to accept Jesus as Lord.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the folks who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or follow Him to salvation.  There are many who have never even heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for giving us every reason to trust You.  We know in our hearts and minds that we will receive what we ask for, we just have trouble fully believing it’s possible.  Thank You for assuring us that all we truly need is faith, full faith in You.  Lord, we know it disappoints You when we don’t go out into the world sharing the Good News and making more disciples.  But it's so hard for us to gather up the courage and the motivation to go face-to-face with other people, telling them all about You.  We want to serve You, and it hurts to admit it, but we often let little things get in the way of witnessing to You and the Gospel.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Jesus, the Visible God

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 20th of July, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Test time, family.  What does it mean to be invisible?  Not visible, right?  Is glass invisible?  No, because from the some angles and when the light hits it right, or if it’s dirty, we can definitely see glass.  Glass is transparent, see-through, but not invisible.  How about our stealth fighter jets and bombers?  Are they invisible?  Trick question – yes and no.  They are clearly visible to our human eyes, but some can be invisible to radar.  We can say, then, that some things we may think of being invisible are actually quite visible to some sense under certain circumstances.

OK, last question: Is God invisible?  Yes, God is spiritual, not physical, so God is invisible.  We can see the effects of His hand, in our lives and in the world, but we can’t see Him.  No one has ever seen Him, not even Moses, who was allowed to catch a glimpse of God’s glory in passing, but not of God Himself, who warned Moses that no one could see His face and live.

God is invisible.  So it turns out that we believe in an invisible God, whose existence we cannot truly prove.  The author of the Letter to the Hebrews tells us that this defines faith.  And faith is a gift from God, that same invisible God we believe in because of the faith He gives us.  Sounds kind of circular, doesn’t it?  But fortunately, we have a little more going for us, and it comes from eye-witness reports of events a couple thousand years ago.

The Apostle Paul and his young protégé Timothy traveled together often, starting churches around the Mediterranean before Timothy began pastoring the church in Ephesus.  After one such visit to the town in Colossae, Paul wrote back to the church there to share more about Jesus with them.

I’d like to read a passage that to me, sounds a lot like how the Apostle John opened his Gospel account.  See if you agree with me.  Please listen and follow along to how the Apostle Paul describes Jesus in the 1st chapter of his Letter to the Colossians, in verses 15 through 29, and I’ll be reading from The Living Bible version of our Holy Bible this morning…

15 Christ is the exact likeness of the unseen God. He existed before God made anything at all, and, in fact, 16 Christ Himself is the Creator who made everything in heaven and earth, the things we can see and the things we can’t; the spirit world with its kings and kingdoms, its rulers and authorities; all were made by Christ for His own use and glory. 17 He was before all else began and it is His power that holds everything together. 18 He is the Head of the body made up of his people — that is, His Church — which He began; and He is the Leader of all those who arise from the dead, so that He is first in everything; 19 for God wanted all of Himself to be in His Son.

20 It was through what His Son did that God cleared a path for everything to come to Him — all things in heaven and on earth — for Christ’s death on the cross has made peace with God for all by His blood. 21 This includes you who were once so far away from God. You were His enemies and hated Him and were separated from Him by your evil thoughts and actions, yet now He has brought you back as His friends. 22 He has done this through the death on the cross of His own human body, and now as a result Christ has brought you into the very presence of God, and you are standing there before Him with nothing left against you — nothing left that He could even chide you for; 23 the only condition is that you fully believe the Truth, standing in it steadfast and firm, strong in the Lord, convinced of the Good News that Jesus died for you, and never shifting from trusting Him to save you. This is the wonderful news that came to each of you and is now spreading all over the world. And I, Paul, have the joy of telling it to others.

24 But part of my work is to suffer for you; and I am glad, for I am helping to finish up the remainder of Christ’s sufferings for His body, the Church.

25 God has sent me to help His Church and to tell His secret plan to you Gentiles. 26-27 He has kept this secret for centuries and generations past, but now at last it has pleased Him to tell it to those who love Him and live for Him, and the riches and glory of His plan are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ in your hearts is your only hope of glory.

28 So everywhere we go we talk about Christ to all who will listen, warning them and teaching them as well as we know how. We want to be able to present each one to God, perfect because of what Christ has done for each of them. 29 This is my work, and I can do it only because Christ’s mighty energy is at work within me. 

--Colossians 1:15-29 (TLB)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for men like Paul and Timothy who spread the Gospel of Jesus across the known world, laying the foundation of the church we have today.  You, Jesus, and Your Holy Spirit worked on the Pharisee Saul, changing the man hell-bent on destroying the church, into arguably the greatest evangelist the world has ever known.  His steadfast witness for Jesus would be a wonderful example for us to follow, but we struggle to muster up the courage and the will to provide our own witness for our Lord.  If we really loved all others as You command us, we would gladly share Jesus with them, trying to lead them to salvation so they won’t have to suffer eternally.  Please forgive us our failures, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your command so that others may also find salvation through Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Em Griffin, in her book The Mind Changers: The Art of Christian Persuasion, relates that, “There's a story about a kindergarten teacher who asked a boy what he was drawing.  Without pausing to look up, he said, ‘A picture of God.’  The teacher smiled and responded, ‘But nobody knows what God looks like.’  The boy carefully put down his crayon, looked her squarely in the eye, and declared, ‘After I'm finished here they will.’”

Do you suppose the lad was drawing a picture of Jesus?  This young boy had absolute confidence that he could capture the image of God.  This is that childlike faith that Jesus spoke of.  Now class, continuing my questions, since we were created in God’s image, could the boy have simply drawn his teacher or a classmate to draw God?

And that leads us into our scripture reading this morning.  Paul tells us that Jesus is the exact likeness of our invisible God.  So when we see Jesus, we see God, right?  Jesus is the spittin’ image of His Father God.

Well, again, yes and no.  I think Jesus, in the flesh, physically looks as much like God as we do.  When Jesus walked among us, He was fully human even while still fully God.  He was just like us, physically.

But neither I nor Paul are talking about God’s physical image, because He doesn’t have one.  Paul says Jesus is the exact likeness of God, not in appearance but in manner.  Other versions of this passage say that Jesus is like God, or is the image of God, or that Jesus shows us what God is like or who God is.  To net it out, we cannot know what God physically looks like because God is spiritual, not physical.  But through Jesus, we can “see” God, we can know what God is like.

Paul goes on to note, like John, that Jesus existed before creation and participated in the creation of all there is, both seen and unseen, visible and invisible.  And I love what Paul said in verse 19, that God wanted all of Himself to be in His Son.  God in Jesus, and Jesus in God.

Jesus cleared a path for all things, in heaven and on earth, to come to God, through the death on the cross of His human body.  Jesus did not die on the cross.  Only His human body died.  Jesus lives on, just like some day our human bodies will die, but we will live on because of the sacrifice Jesus made for us.  And all we had to do was accept Jesus as our Lord and follow Him.

A little earlier I mentioned the author of the Letter to the Hebrews.  For the longest time, we attributed this letter to Paul, a very prolific letter writer himself.  But in latter years, in careful examination and comparisons to the letters we know Paul wrote, most scholars now believe Paul did not write this letter.  It just doesn’t match his style of writing.  So we don’t know for sure who wrote it.

No matter, whoever it was pretty much concurred with Paul and John when it comes to Jesus.  Please listen to what he wrote to the early Hebrew converts to Christianity, in the first three verses of the opening chapter of his letter…

1 Long ago God spoke in many different ways to our fathers through the prophets, in visions, dreams, and even face to face, telling them little by little about His plans.

2 But now in these days He has spoken to us through His Son to whom He has given everything and through whom He made the world and everything there is.

3 God’s Son shines out with God’s glory, and all that God’s Son is and does marks Him as God. He regulates the universe by the mighty power of His command. He is the one who died to cleanse us and clear our record of all sin, and then sat down in highest honor beside the great God of heaven.

--Hebrews 1:1-3 (TLB)

God spoke to us through His Son Jesus, and we have the faithful and trustworthy witness of those people who heard those words and recorded them for us to read today.  God still speaks to us through Jesus, by His sacrifice for our salvation, by His love.  Jesus shines out with God’s glory, and all that He did and does even today shows that He is God.

Through Jesus, through His love and sacrifice, we can see God, for Jesus is the visible likeness of God.  Jesus is God.  Look upon Him and be saved.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for sending Your Son into this world to clear a path for us to come back to You.  We turned away by our disobedience and sin, but Jesus washed us clean of our sin by His own blood.  Now, by the faith You gave us and our belief in Jesus as the visible God, we are assured of everlasting life with You.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the people who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or follow Him as their Lord.  There are many who have never even heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for taking human form when You came into this world.  In this way, we can not only relate to You better, but we can see our Father God in You, through You.  You are the visible God.  Thank You for coming to rescue us when we were lost in sin.  Thank You for washing us clean so we can stand before God.  Lord, we know it disappoints You when we don’t go out into the world sharing the Good News and making more disciples.  But, Lord, it's so hard for us to gather up the courage and the motivation to go face-to-face with other people, telling them all about You.  We want to serve You, and it hurts to admit it, but we often let little things get in the way of witnessing to You and the Gospel.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the 

Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Who Is My Neighbor?

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 13th of July, 2025.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Family, unless we’re fortunate enough to have a home out in the middle of a vast expanse, most of us live in a neighborhood.  And neighborhoods come in all shapes and sizes.  There are older, established neighborhoods, and newer, more recently built neighborhoods.  Newer neighborhoods these days come with a Homeowners Association that strives to keep property values up by dictating what can and cannot be done to homes and yards in the neighborhood.  Of course, all neighborhoods are composed of a group of houses within fairly close proximity, a defined area, often created by a real estate developer.  And the people living in those houses are neighbors, by virtue of living in a neighborhood.

OK, so much for the obvious.  But it can get a little tougher and not so obvious when we look at areas like our church building and parsonage are in.  How far up the City Lake Road does our neighborhood run?  Does it go down around the curve and past the lake, picking up the few houses along the way?  Or do we include all of Pilgrim Church Road?  What about Hill Everhart Road or Greensboro Street Extension or Ridge Road?

The tougher question may be who is my neighbor?  I consider the Waitmans and the Banks my neighbors, as well as Donnie Hege, the Spaughs, and Jeff Leonard.  But there are other folk living nearby, many of whom I don’t know, that I’m not familiar with.  And that is a common situation.  We may live very close to people we’ve never met, that we know nothing about, even though they are our neighbors.  Can we consider someone our neighbor if we don’t even know their name?

Last week we looked at the time when Jesus sent out 70 of His followers two-by-two, into the towns and villages He would soon visit.  This was kind of a follow-up to the time He sent His twelve apostles out to prepare the people for His coming, to proclaim the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  In both cases, He gave them specific instructions on what to take, where to stay, and how to interact with the people they encountered.  And He warned them that He was sending them out as sheep among wolves.

I’d like to pick up from there this morning, after the 70 returned and told of their experiences.  They had all gathered together, and that large a group would have drawn even more folks.  Jesus was a people magnet, after all.  So please listen and follow along to what came next, as recorded by the Apostle Luke in the 10th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 25 through 37, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

25 And behold, a certain expert in the law stood up and tested Jesus, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”

26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?”

27 So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’”

28 And He said to him, “You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.”

29 But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

30 Then Jesus answered and said: “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.’ 36 So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?”

37 And he said, “He who showed mercy on him.”

Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

--Luke 10:25-37 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us a commandment that would make life so much better if we would all follow it.  There would be no more war, no hatred, no fits of anger, no fights or riots or shouting matches or finger pointing if we would all just love one another and consider everyone our neighbor.  But we are a stiff-necked people and we struggle to even love ourselves sometimes, let alone people who we perceive as our enemy.  We forget, Father, that You created everyone in Your image, not just us believers but everyone.  When we fail to love someone else, for whatever reason, it’s almost like we’re not loving You.  We’re definitely not showing our love.  Please forgive us our failures, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your command so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

I may have used this little anecdote before, but it makes a great point and reinforces our scripture.  This comes from Luis Palau in his book Experiencing God's Forgiveness:

A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. 

"But I don't ask for justice," the mother explained. "I plead for mercy." 

"But your son does not deserve mercy," Napoleon replied. 

"Sir," the woman cried, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask for." 

"Well, then," the emperor said, "I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's son.

We would not need mercy if we somehow deserved what we are given.  Our salvation is granted by God's mercy, not that we could ever deserve it.  Since we first walked through the Garden, we have disobeyed God.  We have rebelled and turned our back on Him.  But still He had mercy and gave us the great gift of faith, a gift we can use, or ignore.  By our faith, we believe in His Son Jesus, and by our belief and discipleship, God again shows mercy and grants us salvation and eternal life.  And it all starts with love - God’s love for us.

So this cocky lawyer stands up and tries to trap Jesus in a battle of wits, not realizing he was woefully out-matched.  What must I do to be granted eternal life?  Now this would have been one of the Pharisees’ scribes, experts in the Law of Moses and very familiar with what we now know as the Old Testament.  So I’m sure he knew the answer.

Jesus was sure, too.  “How do you interpret what is written in the law about this?”, He responded, prompting the man to take the bait.  The man gave the correct answer, of course, quoting the letter of the law.  We are to love God and love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  Jesus agreed with his answer, and told the man that following this commandment would lead to eternal life.  But the scribe wasn’t through yet, for Jesus had not fallen for his trap.  “Who is my neighbor?”, he asked, setting the hook on his trap.

Who is my neighbor?  Jesus replied by telling what we call the Parable of the Good Samaritan.  And I think we often tend to think of this parable as being all about helping other people in their time of need.  While that certainly is a valid point and very good moral to the story, Jesus also answered that question of who is my neighbor.  But we have to read between the lines for that answer.

The obvious is as the man replied: the one who showed mercy.  This says that mercy is definitely a major component of neighborliness.  But the not so obvious answer comes from the identity of the good Samaritan.  We don’t know his identity.  We don’t know who he is.  All we know is that he is a Samaritan and the injured man is a Jew, and the two normally do not get along very well, to say the least.

Can our neighbor really be someone we don’t know, someone we don’t get along with, someone we consider our enemy?  Can we expect love from them?  Can we find it in ourselves to love them?

Love our neighbor.  Wise King Solomon, in the 21st verse of the 14th chapter of his Book of Proverbs, gives us a very good reason to at least try when he writes…

21 He who despises his neighbor sins; But he who has mercy on the poor, happy is he.

--Proverbs 14:21 (NKJV)

You know, that rings true for our next-door neighbor as well as for a neighbor as Jesus defines it.  If we sometimes didn’t despise our neighbor, then we wouldn’t have that old saying that tall fences make good neighbors.

Showing mercy to the poor can make us happy, Solomon says.  We have all experienced that good feeling when we help out the less fortunate.  But when Solomon speaks of the poor, I don’t think he only means those without financial resources.  There are many who are poor in spirit, whose hearts are hurting, who truly need mercy.  These, too, are our neighbors.

Getting back to Luke’s account, looking just a few verses before our reading this morning, I believe Jesus reveals more to us about understanding who our neighbor is and why it’s important to us.  Please hear what Luke recorded in the 10th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 21 through 24, immediately after the 70 returned…

21 In that hour Jesus rejoiced in the Spirit and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. 22 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.”

23 Then He turned to His disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things you see; 24 for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see what you see, and have not seen it, and to hear what you hear, and have not heard it.”

--Luke 10:21-24 (NKJV)

Jesus has revealed to us just who our neighbor is.  He has shown us the Father, and the Father’s will.  We are to love our neighbor, and our neighbor can be anyone, even our enemy.  We are blessed if we understand this, and more blessed if we obey it.  Can you even imagine how much better this world would be if we all treated each other with love, if we considered everyone we encounter as our good neighbor, someone we want to know better and be closer to?  This is why God commanded us to love one another, that we might live in harmony with each other, rather than constantly be at each other’s throats.

Let’s give this love thing a chance and see if we can’t make our corner of the world a little better place. Let’s love our neighbor in the same way we love ourself, remembering that everyone is our neighbor.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for Your holy word and Your commands to us, that we might grow closer to You and to others we encounter.  If we show love to all others, we can show them Your love, and just maybe help bring them into Your household.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the people who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or follow Him as their Lord.  There are many who have never even heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for revealing our Father’s will for us.  Thank You for showing us just who our neighbor really is, and what our responsibility is toward them.  You are the Son and You know the Father.  Thank You for revealing Him to us.  Lord, we know it disappoints You when we don’t love others as You love us.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  And You’ve let us know that anyone and everyone can be our neighbor in God’s eyes.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give of ourselves to those who don’t care about us, who would harm us.  It hurts to admit it, but we often let little things get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

As Lambs Among Wolves

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 6th of July, 2025, the Sunday after Independence Day in the United States.  Our worship service this morning included our observance of Holy Communion with our Lord.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

Back when I was working toward my Masters degree, I attended a seminar hosted by a gentleman who had once worked for Rev. Billy Graham.  I can’t remember his name - too long ago – but I do remember he had a Doctor of Theology degree.  Breaking a bit from the seminar topic, he told a few stories of his time with the great evangelist.  The one that stuck with me was of the time he worked with the advance teams for Billy’s crusades.  Each team was composed of two people, and they would travel to the towns where Billy was to hold a crusade and set everything up.  They’d meet with all the relevant officials, check out the preferred venue, grease the wheels… just do whatever it took to get the place ready for Billy to come preach.  Billy would send them out, two-by-two, to the cities and towns he would soon visit.

Does that sound familiar?  The Gospel writers Matthew, Mark, and Luke all three reported on the time that Jesus sent His twelve disciples out as His apostles, sent them out two-by-two, sent them out to the towns and villages He planned to soon visit, sent them out to prepare the people for the coming of the kingdom of heaven.  Billy Graham knew a lot, especially his bible.  He became a great evangelist by studying the work of the greatest Evangelist, Jesus Himself, and then applying what he learned to the modern world.

As I said, all three of the Synoptic Gospel writers reported on Jesus sending the twelve out into the towns and villages, giving them the power to heal and drive out evil spirits.  But only one reported on a second time when Jesus did this, and on a larger scale.  According to the author, this occurred after Jesus had sent out His twelve, after the feeding of the five thousand, and after Jesus was transfigured on the mount.  Please listen and follow along to how the Apostle Luke recorded this follow-up exercise, from the 10th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 1 through 12 and 16 through 20, and I’ll be reading from the Living Bible version of our Holy Bible this morning…

1 The Lord now chose seventy other disciples and sent them on ahead in pairs to all the towns and villages He planned to visit later.

2 These were His instructions to them: “Plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out more laborers to help you, for the harvest is so plentiful and the workers so few. 3 Go now, and remember that I am sending you out as lambs among wolves. 4 Don’t take any money with you, or a beggar’s bag, or even an extra pair of shoes. And don’t waste time along the way.

5 “Whenever you enter a home, give it your blessing. 6 If it is worthy of the blessing, the blessing will stand; if not, the blessing will return to you.

7 “When you enter a village, don’t shift around from home to home, but stay in one place, eating and drinking without question whatever is set before you. And don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, for the workman is worthy of his wages!

8-9 “If a town welcomes you, follow these two rules:

Eat whatever is set before you.

Heal the sick; and as you heal them, say, ‘The Kingdom of God is very near you now.’

10 “But if a town refuses you, go out into its streets and say, 11 ‘We wipe the dust of your town from our feet as a public announcement of your doom. Never forget how close you were to the Kingdom of God!’ 12 Even wicked Sodom will be better off than such a city on the Judgment Day."

16 Then He said to the disciples, “Those who welcome you are welcoming Me. And those who reject you are rejecting Me. And those who reject Me are rejecting God who sent Me.”

17 When the seventy disciples returned, they joyfully reported to Him, “Even the demons obey us when we use Your name.”

18 “Yes,” He told them, “I saw Satan falling from heaven as a flash of lightning! 19 And I have given you authority over all the power of the Enemy, and to walk among serpents and scorpions and to crush them. Nothing shall injure you! 20 However, the important thing is not that demons obey you, but that your names are registered as citizens of heaven.”

--Luke 10:1-12, 16-20 (TLB)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for inspiring the Gospel writers to record the words and deeds of Jesus during His short ministry on earth.  Each one gives us a slightly different perspective, a little additional insight into our Lord and His ways.  They give us the information to study, the examples to emulate, the behavior to adopt.  And thank You for watching over us when we walk among wolves.  Father, You and Jesus ask so little of us, yet we often fail to follow through with what You command.  Too many things in this life distract us, pulling us away from doing what we know we should do.  Please forgive us our hesitation, our lapses, our failures.  Help us more closely follow Your word so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

D. L. Moody once related this little anecdote about sheep:

“Dr. Andrew Bonar told me how, in the Highlands of Scotland, a sheep would often wander off into the rocks and get into places that they couldn't get out of.  The grass on these mountains is very sweet and the sheep like it, and they will jump down ten or twelve feet, and then they can't jump back up again, and the shepherd hears them bleating in distress.  They may be there for days, until they have eaten all the grass.  The shepherd will wait until they are so faint they cannot stand, and then they will put a rope around him, and he will go over and pull that sheep up out of the jaws of death.  ‘Why don't they go down there when the sheep first gets there?’, I asked.  ‘Ah!’, he said, ‘they are so very foolish they would dash right over the precipice and be killed if they did!’  And that is the way with men; they won't go back to God till they have no friends and have lost everything.  If you are a wanderer I tell you that the Good Shepherd will bring you back the moment you have given up trying to save yourself and are willing to let Him save you His own way.”

Too often, we try to save ourselves from whatever predicament we’ve gotten into.  And sometimes we can succeed.  But usually we just dig the hole so deep we can’t climb out again.  That’s when our Lord will extend His hand and lift us out, if we would simply call on Him.  Let’s be smart sheep and call on God before our situation becomes too dire and we risk perishing.

Jesus often spoke of sheep in His parables, like when He equated the joy the shepherd would feel over finding a lost sheep as to the joy in heaven when a lost soul is rescued.  Now, while the Apostle John didn’t report on Jesus sending any teams out to spread the word before Him, he did record some of those sheep and shepherd parables.  One of those times came after Jesus had given sight to a man born blind, while some Pharisees and others were present.  The Pharisees rebuked the formerly blind man, and tried to trap Jesus.  After a short rebuttal to the Pharisees, Jesus turned to His followers.  The Apostle John saved the words He spoke in a promise to His sheep, from verses 11 through 16 of the 10th chapter of his Gospel account…

11 “I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12 A hired man will run when he sees a wolf coming and will leave the sheep, for they aren’t his and he isn’t their shepherd. And so the wolf leaps on them and scatters the flock. 13 The hired man runs because he is hired and has no real concern for the sheep.

14 “I am the Good Shepherd and know My own sheep, and they know Me, 15 just as My Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16 I have other sheep, too, in another fold. I must bring them also, and they will heed My voice; and there will be one flock with one Shepherd.”

--John 10:11-16 (TLB)

When the wolf comes for a sheep, the hired hand will flee so the wolf doesn’t get them, leaving the sheep unprotected.  But the good shepherd will stand and fight, and if necessary, give up his own life to save his sheep.  Jesus is our Good Shepherd, and He did indeed give up His own life to save us.  He will watch over us when the wolves come.

Family, we do indeed walk among wolves.  They are on the prowl, ready to pounce on us if we let our guard down.  They will try to deceive us, take our money and possessions, with no concern as to our well-being.  And there is one wolf, stronger than all others, who will even try to take our eternal soul.  The Apostle Peter warns us of this wolf in the 5th chapter of his letter to the early church, in verses 8 through 11, when he writes…

8 Be careful — watch out for attacks from Satan, your great enemy. He prowls around like a hungry, roaring lion, looking for some victim to tear apart. 9 Stand firm when he attacks. Trust the Lord; and remember that other Christians all around the world are going through these sufferings too.

10 After you have suffered a little while, our God, who is full of kindness through Christ, will give you His eternal glory. He personally will come and pick you up, and set you firmly in place, and make you stronger than ever. 11 To Him be all power over all things, forever and ever. Amen.

--1 Peter 5:8-11 (TLB)

Just as the twelve and then the seventy, we too have been sent out into the world, preparing the way for Jesus to come again.  There are wolves and lions out there, ready to devour us without warning.  Among their ranks, we are mere sheep.  But we serve and follow a mighty Shepherd, so we need not fear the wolves and lions.  When Satan attacks, with his deceptions and temptations, trying to tear us apart from God, we must stand firm and trust in the Lord.

There is a Good Shepherd watching over us.  He is standing firm and fighting Satan for us.  Resist the wolves.  Trust in the Lord.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for Your holy word, that we might study and learn more about Your Son, building a closer relationship to Him.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the people who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or follow Him as their Lord.  There are many who have never even heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for coming and finding us when we were lost.  You freed us from our sin and offered salvation to those who follow You.  You are our Good Shepherd, watching out for us, guarding us from the wolves.  Thank You, Jesus.  Lord, we know it disappoints You when we don’t put all our trust in You, especially when the wolves attack.  We become more afraid as they come near.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give of ourselves to those who don’t care about us, who would harm us.  It hurts to admit it, be we let too many simple, foolish things get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Christ Died For Our Freedom

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 29th of June, 2025, the Sunday before Independence Day in the United States.  A recording of our service should be available on our YouTube streaming channel: 

https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams.]

In mid-April of 1775, a small group of men – shopkeepers, farmers, and the like, including a number of young teenagers - wielding their own firearms stood face-to-face against British Army regulars… and opened fire.  The Battles of Lexington and Concord marked the start of the American War for Independence.  At this time each year we put out flags and hang bunting to celebrate our independence from foreign rule, documented by our Declaration of Independence, formalized on July the 4th, 1776.

Men and boys, and women, too, faced off against the mightiest army on earth at the time.  And they won.  The leaders of this ragtag band, most notably George Washington, knew and understood that this victory would not have been possible without divine intervention.  Washington gave all the glory and praise to God, who saw us through our efforts to defeat tyrannical forces, that we might become that light of the world, the city set on a hill.  Our fight for independence, our freedom to rule ourselves and determine our own future, was only won with God’s helping hand.

But there was another hard-fought battle, many years before this, against an even greater enemy, that was won only through God’s intervention.  In a war that began shortly after man’s creation from the dust of the ground, Satan and his evil forces have sought to undermine and overthrow God’s kingdom.  He tempted Adam and Eve to sin, and has been tempting mankind ever since.

That original sin brought death into the world.  God created us to live forever, because He wanted us to be with Him forever.  But when we sinned, that all changed.  God took away our immortality so that we would not be forever separated from Him.  We would die to this life in our sin.  In this way, we can see our time here on earth is limited, we’re just passing through for now.  But God still wanted us to be with Him forever, so He gave us a way to be forgiven of our sin, to be freed from the bonds of sin.

Please listen and follow along to what the Apostle Peter has to say on the subject of freedom, from the 2nd chapter of his 1st letter to the early church, verses 11 through 25, and I’ll be reading from the Contemporary English Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

11 Dear friends, you are foreigners and strangers on this earth. So I beg you not to surrender to those desires that fight against you. 12 Always let others see you behaving properly, even though they may still accuse you of doing wrong. Then on the day of judgment, they will honor God by telling the good things they saw you do.

13 The Lord wants you to obey all human authorities, especially the Emperor, who rules over everyone. 14 You must also obey governors, because they are sent by the Emperor to punish criminals and to praise good citizens. 15 God wants you to silence stupid and ignorant people by doing right. 16 You are free, but still you are God's servants, and you must not use your freedom as an excuse for doing wrong. 17 Respect everyone and show special love for God's people. Honor God and respect the Emperor.

18 Servants, you must obey your masters and always show respect to them. Do this, not only to those who are kind and thoughtful, but also to those who are cruel. 19 God will bless you, even if others treat you unfairly for being loyal to Him. 20 You don't gain anything by being punished for some wrong you have done. But God will bless you, if you have to suffer for doing something good. 21 After all, God chose you to suffer as you follow in the footsteps of Christ, who set an example by suffering for you.

22 Christ did not sin

or ever tell a lie.

23 Although He was abused,

He never tried to get even.

And when He suffered,

He made no threats.

Instead, He had faith in God,

who judges fairly.

24 Christ carried the burden

of our sins.

He was nailed to the cross,

so we would stop sinning

and start living right.

By His cuts and bruises

you are healed.

25 You had wandered away

like sheep.

Now you have returned

to the One

who is your Shepherd

and Protector.

--1 Peter 2:11-25 (CEV)

Let us pray…  Heavenly Father, thank You for helping us gain freedom from foreign rule, foreign tyranny.  And thank You for also giving us freedom from eternal death, for providing a way for us to not live forever separated from You.  You want us to live forever with You, but You also want us to be a beacon, a light onto the world, shining through the darkness of sin to show the truth of Your Word.  You and Jesus ask so little of us, yet we often fail to follow through with what You command.  Too many things in life distract us, trying to pull us away from You.  Please forgive us our lapses, Father.  Help us more closely follow Your word so we can grow ever closer to You and our Lord Jesus.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us and better grasp the message You have for us this day.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and one purpose in our love, our worship, and our service.  And please keep us healthy and safe through these trying times.  This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

A sign once posted in a textile mill instructed, “When your thread becomes tangled, call the foreman.”  A young woman was new on the job.  Her thread became tangled and she thought, “I’ll just straighten this out myself.”  She tried, but the situation only worsened.  Finally she called the foreman.  “I did the best I could,” she said.  “No, you didn't,” the foreman replied.  “To do the best, you should have called me.”

Too often, we try to straighten out the tangles in our lives by our own hands, in our own way.  We do the best we can, we say, but things only get worse.  We should have called upon the great Foreman in heaven to clear up the mess.  That would be the best thing to do.

It's as Ruth Bell Graham noted in her book, Prodigals and Those Who Love Them, when she quoted this comment made by Lady Culross to John Livingston of the Covenanters:  “Since God has put His work into your weak hands, look not for long ease here: You must feel the full weight of your calling: a weak man with a strong God.”

We are weak but God is strong.  Through Him, anything is possible.  But we must put it all on Him.  We must acknowledge our dependence on Him.  Weak though we may be, God has given us the mission of carrying on His Son’s work of reconciling mankind back to Himself.  Especially in this effort, we depend on God’s help.

Now, if we pay close heed to Peter’s words, we would never have rebelled against British rule, cruel and capricious as it was, for Peter tells us to obey all human authorities, even the cruel.  He also tells us to always do what is right.  In the case of our war for independence, one can easily see that our founders were doing the right thing in freeing us from foreign rule that held us in servitude for a debt we had long since repaid.

God blessed us in that effort, and then we gave thanks and showed our loyalty by doing something pretty much unheard around the world: we made a friend of our defeated enemy.  This trend continued in US history – we have turned our defeated enemies into our allies and our friends.  So even though we may not have always obeyed human authorities, we tried to obey God.

And I believe Peter is trying to emphasize that point.  He uses Jesus as our example.  Jesus never sinned, or told a lie, or made threats, or sought revenge for harms He suffered.  Instead, He had faith in His Father God.

We should be more like Jesus.  He was nailed to a cross, gave up His earthly life, so that we would stop sinning and start living more righteously.  He washed us clean of our sin with His own blood.  He defeated death, so that we too can defeat eternal death and not be separated from God forever.

Family, thanks to Jesus we enjoy freedom from death!  Not mortal death, not death from this life, but the second death, everlasting death, the death of separation from the One who loves us and created us.  Jesus stood face-to-face with our greatest enemy – Satan – and defeated him.  And when we accept Jesus as Lord, we get to share in that victory.  By His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus freed us from the burden of sin.

The Apostle Paul speaks to this freedom in the 5th chapter of his letter to the Galatians, in the 1st verse and then verses 13 through 25, when he writes…

1 Christ has set us free! This means we are really free. Now hold on to your freedom and don't ever become slaves of the Law again.

13 My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don't use your freedom as an excuse to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love. 14  All the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. 15 But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves.

16 If you are guided by the Spirit, you won't obey your selfish desires. 17  The Spirit and your desires are enemies of each other. They are always fighting each other and keeping you from doing what you feel you should. 18 But if you obey the Spirit, the Law of Moses has no control over you.

19 People's desires make them give in to immoral ways, filthy thoughts, and shameful deeds. 20 They worship idols, practice witchcraft, hate others, and are hard to get along with. People become jealous, angry, and selfish. They not only argue and cause trouble, but they are 21 envious. They get drunk, carry on at wild parties, and do other evil things as well. I told you before, and I am telling you again: No one who does these things will share in the blessings of God's kingdom.

22 God's Spirit makes us loving, happy, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, 23 gentle, and self-controlled. There is no law against behaving in any of these ways. 24 And because we belong to Christ Jesus, we have killed our selfish feelings and desires. 25 God's Spirit has given us life, and so we should follow the Spirit.

--Galatians 5:1, 13-25 (CEV)

Jesus set us free from the tyranny of the Law that was handed down by Moses, the Law that humankind is incapable of fully obeying.  Jesus came to free us from the chains of the Law, and the first step was to free us of our sin.  He washed away our sin with His precious blood.

But it’s just so easy to sin again, isn’t it?  It’s so easy to becomes slaves of sin, turning our backs on the One who saved us and doing whatever we want to do, as if we didn’t know better.  But we who were saved have God’s own Holy Spirit living within us, trying to guide us, prodding us in the direction of righteousness and away from sin.  We just need to pay better attention to Him.  He’ll continue the work in us that Jesus began if we let Him, if we heed His still, quiet voice.  We need to let the Spirit do His work, making us more loving, happy, peaceful, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and self-controlled, just like Paul says.

Let’s kill our selfish feelings and desires.  Jesus gives us a second chance, God’s Spirit gives us life, so let’s obey Jesus and follow the Spirit.  In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Almighty God, thank You for giving us victory over tyranny, freedom from foreign rule so that we can govern ourselves.  But more importantly, thank You for sending Your Son to free us from sin and death, and for sending Your Spirit to continue Your work within us.  By Your mercy, You offer salvation to all who will accept Your Son as Lord.  It saddens us, Father, when we think of all the souls who will never recognize Jesus as Your Son or obey Him as their Lord.  There are many who have not heard of Jesus, have not been told of all He did and taught.  And there are even those who deny Your existence, and the existence of Your Holy Spirit.  We admit that we have not done as good a job as we could reaching out to these people.  Too often we find excuses not to carry out our mission of making more disciples.  Sometimes we’re too busy, too distracted.  Sometimes we’re just too hesitant, too afraid of getting it all wrong and doing more harm than good.  Please forgive us those times, dear Father.  Please help us reach out to the lost, to anyone who does not know Jesus as their personal Savior.  Help us be more like Your Son in our love and our ways.  Help us show Your love to others by giving of ourselves, giving of our love freely, unconditionally, sacrificially, just as Jesus gave of Himself for us.  And please help us share our Lord Jesus with others so that they too may be saved by Your mercy and His sacrifice.  

Father, please shield us from Satan as he attacks our faith, trying to make us his own.  Help us be better servants, glorifying You in all we do so that the world can see You in us, through our deeds, in how we live.  And help us remain strong, faithful, and true to You in all things, no matter what comes our way.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…

Lord Jesus, thank You for freeing us from sin and death!  By Your sacrifice and our faith, we are given eternal life.  You died to mortal life so that we can avoid the second death.  You died for our freedom.  Thank You, Jesus, for giving Your all for us.  Lord, we know it disappoints You, but sometimes we struggle to do as You commanded us.  You told us to love others, even our enemies.  But it's so hard to love all people, to give of ourselves to those who don’t care about us.  It’s not even all that easy to love some of our fellow believers.  It hurts to admit it, be we let too many simple, foolish things get in the way of our love.  And too often we hesitate to witness to You and the Gospel, making more disciples.  Please help us in our struggles to show You to the world.  Help us be more like You, loving all others, even those who hate us and wish us harm, without any concern for reward or recognition or even being loved in return.  Help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, showing Your love through our love.  Give us the words to say, show us the deeds to do to lead the lost to You.

Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises.  Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares.  Help us see though his temptations.  Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer.  All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord.  Amen.