September 10, 2006

Pentecost 14

Have you ever gone to someone’s home for an evening party, thinking that dinner was going to be served, and you were mistaken?  You arrived hungry, only to realize it’s an open house with only a few finger foods or desserts on the table?  So you try to fill up on the finger foods, but they don’t satisfy, the way that a decent meal should.  And at the end of the night, you drive home hungry, thinking you might have to stop somewhere to eat.

Here is the sad thing.  The same thing happens when churches only care about traditions or entertaining people.  People come to church to be filled, but leave feeling empty.  They come hungry for the Word of God, for the peace of knowing where they stand with Him, but when they aren’t fed, they go empty, hungry, and frustrated.  We need substance.  A substantial meal.  To be filled with something good.  In order to be spiritually healthy, we need to be fed with proper spiritual food.  That’s what gives us life.  That’s what makes us well.

In our text, Jesus says: “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing.  The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.”  Life.  Being well.  Being spiritually healthy.  Being confident you are loved by God.  Knowing you’re forgiven for failures.  Not being overcome by guilt and shame.  Having something to look forward to, always.  Having a focus in life, since you know you are a child of God.  And of course, knowing your name is written in the book of heaven where you will spend a joyful eternity with God.  That is life.

That is being well.  That is being spiritually healthy.  And that is what Jesus’ words give us.  The Word of God, with the Holy Spirit working through it, gives us life.  It gives us all the things I just mentioned.  It gives us faith that Jesus has saved us.  It strengthens that faith.  It reminds us daily that we matter to God.  And it helps us grow. We need to be growing spiritually.  We need to be “getting well.”  And spiritual growth, or getting well, starts with the Word of God. It starts with Jesus.  Jesus makes us WELL.  He also makes our church WELL.

As we kick off our fall programs today, let’s make it our church’s goal to get well!  Healthy!  So that we can help each other be healthy.  So how do we know if our church is spiritually WELL?  Well, let’s look at a church that was well.  The first church.  The one talked about in Acts 2:42-47, our second lesson today.  It says: “And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”  This church was spiritually W.E.L.L.!  The Spirit had given them life and health!  It had made them well!  They were a Worshipping church.  They were an Evangelizing church.  They were a Learning church.  And they were a Loving church.

That first church was WELL!  Worshipping, Evangelizing, Learning, and Loving.  When God set up that first church, He did it right!  So if we are going to do it right, if we are going to be well, and healthy, and growing spiritually, we need to do it God’s way!  This year, let’s make it our godly goal to get W.E.L.L.  Each one of us individually, and our church as a whole.  Let’s worship together.  Let’s share Jesus with those around us.  Let’s get into the Word together.  And lets’ serve God together.  I believe that the small group initiative that we prayerfully launch today can be one of the greatest ways to model the way the first church became spiritually healthy.  So let’s get involved in growing with each other and pray that the Lord blesses this!

First, let’s make sure we put a priority on WORSHIPPING GOD.  That early church “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.  Everyone was filled with awe…every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts…praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.”  They began with worship!  They put God first in their hearts and lives, and praised Him in their actions. 

Being spiritually well means we are putting God first in our hearts and lives.  No matter how busy life gets with all the schedules back in place this fall, God needs to come first.  We have opportunities to worship Him here, and next week, in Milton too!  We also can worship Him during the week as we get together with our spiritual families in small gatherings and praise Him and pray to Him together.  And, you can worship God when you offer that prayer up on the way to work, or end your day with that prayer of thanks.  Let’s be a church that puts God first.  That worships Him!  And let’s be people who worship God at home, too.  Let’s be like Joshua, who said, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

A woman once read a book and stated it was the dullest book she had ever read. Then she fell in love with its author. From then on she found the book fascinating. For the unsaved, the Bible can be dull reading. But when you fall in love with its Author, it is inspiring, interesting reading.  We love God because He first loved us.  That’s why we worship Him.  Because He gave us life.  “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.”

Those words bring to life.  They change lives.  When C.S. Lewis came to Oxford University he was an atheist. He had lost his mother at nine and the rest of his life was spent in boarding schools. He had no use for or belief in God. But while at Oxford he met a man who became his best friend: J.R.R. Tolkein. You know him as the author of The Lord of the Rings. Tolkein, along with some other friends challenged Lewis to investigate the Bible. So Lewis did. It was from that investigation and through the counsel of his friends that Lewis moved from atheism to a deep Christian faith. And Lewis is not alone. There have been many brilliant or famous people who have given the Bible an honest chance and have been brought to life by it. People like Josh McDowell, Charles Colson, Lee Strobel, Kirk Cameron, Charlton Heston, Barbara Bush, Corrie Ten Boom, Connie Seleca. What did they do? They gave Jesus’ words a chance.  And those words brought them to life!

That’s what Jesus’ words do.  That’s why we need to be people who EVANGELIZE.  People who share the Good news of Jesus.  We need to be a church that reaches people with the message of Jesus’ forgiveness.  Like that first church.  In everything they did, they were sharing their faith.  Evangelism wasn’t some planned event.  It was the natural outgrowth of a healthy relationship with Jesus.  He had forever changed their lives in such a way that they needed to share that with others.  The early believers took everyday situations and turned them into opportunities to share the Gospel.  And “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”  Let’s be that way.  A church that shares Christ’s forgiveness.  Let’s pour out that message in Mississauga and Milton and at your workplaces and schools and streets and homes!

But now we get to that major L of being spiritually healthy.  LEARNING!  Let’s be people who are constantly involved in Learning about God!  Let’s get into the Word!  Remember?  It is Jesus’ Words that give life!!  The early church was well because they devoted themselves to the Word of God!  And to be well, we must too!

Fred Cropp, president of American Bible Society, received a letter asking, “What do you recommend for keeping the leather covers of bibles from getting stiff, cracking, and peeling?”  The reply was: “There is one oil that is especially good for treatment of leather on bibles.  In fact, it will insure your bible will stay in good condition.  It is not sold, but may be found in the palm of the human hand.”  Friends, take care of your Bible and it will take care of you!

You need some help?  Come learn about God’s love and plan for us in our foundational study: Growing in Hope.  Come join us any Sunday morning at 9:30.  There are opportunities for you to get into the Word with others, no matter what stage of life you are in.  Growing in Life.  Generations learning about God together.  Next Sunday, Bible study for adults, young and old.  2 Thessalonians.  Kids 4 Christ.  Sunday School for children of all ages.  Coming up:  Seminars, Coffee & Christ for women, men’s retreats, etc!

But today something maybe even more important begins.  House groups.  Small groups.  People gathering in homes just like that first church, to get well.  To grow spiritually.  Imagine the opportunity to just get together informally with other people going through the same challenges of life you do, to get a little strength from God’s Word.  To apply what you have been learning on Sunday.  To have discussions.  To ask questions.  To share.  To get to know people in a way that you never did by having coffee together on Sunday mornings.  To have a group that you can come to for help.  To learn about life together.  To LEARN about the Lord together.

This will help us with the final part of being spiritually WELL.  Let’s be a LOVING church.  Let’s be a church that serves the Lord and serves one another.  Like that first church.  “All the believers were together and had everything in common.  Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need…they broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts…enjoying the favor of all the people.” Could there be a better way that we could be a LOVING church than by making a regular habit to gather together around the Word of God, and serve each other’s needs?  Let’s let Jesus make us WELL as we meet together in our homes.  In our house groups.  And let’s serve Him in love.  Sunday school teachers, serve Him well as you teach His children.  Small group leaders, serve Him well as you shepherd your little flocks.  Leadership Team, serve Him as you provide wisdom and direction for the congregation.  People, serve Him on task teams and in spiritual growth and in prayer.  Let’s get healthy in our spiritual lives!  Let’s get WELL this year!

A lady who had a small house on the seashore of Ireland at the turn of the century was quite wealthy, but also quite frugal. The people were surprised, then, when she decided to be among the first to have electricity in her home. Several weeks after the installation, a meter reader appeared at her door. He asked if her electricity was working well, and she assured him it was. "I’m wondering if you can explain something to me," he said. "Your meter shows scarcely any usage. Are you using your power?" "Certainly," she answered. "Each evening when the sun sets, I turn on my lights just long enough to light my candles; then I turn them off."

She tapped into the power but did not use it.  Her house was connected but not altered. Do we make the same mistake? With our souls saved, but our hearts unchanged?  Are we connected but not altered?  We know Jesus is our Saviour, but aren’t growing in his Word and living our lives differently?  Do we occasionally flip the switch, but settle for shadows?  Or are we going to let Jesus fill us with his power?  Make us completely WELL?  Friends, let’s all challenge each other to GROW this year!  To get WELL!  To be worshiping, evangelizing, learning, and loving!  To get involved in every aspect of being a child of God!

Jesus is the One who makes us WELL.  “The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.”  Jesus loved us to life with his death.  And He has connected us to that life through his Word.  You are alive!  Because of Jesus!  You are loved by God!  Not because you are perfect.  You have failed, like me, in living as his child.  But God sees Jesus in you!  So let’s look to Jesus for spiritual health.  In our own lives.  And as a church.  Let’s say with Peter: “Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  We believe and know that You are the Holy One of God.”

And as long as Jesus is here, no one will ever drive home hungry.   Amen.

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