March 17 – Sermon
Father in heaven, thank You for calling us out of the darkness and into the glorious light of Your ever-expanding kingdom. Please forgives uswhen we have failed to recognize You among us. Open our eyes to see Your presence in our neighbor. Open our spirits to trust You in all things now and for all eternity. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
There was a little boy named Bobby. Bobby was like most age six boys. He liked to run and play. But Bobby didn’t like to listen very well. When his mother would call Bobby, he’d pretend not to hear her, and keep on doing what he was doing.
Well, one day, while Bobby was riding his bicycle up and down the block, his uncle stopped by to visit and wanted to surprise Bobby by taking him to the circus. Bobby’s mother called for him several times but Bobby wouldn’t come. Bobby heard his mother but wanted to keep riding his bike. His uncle couldn’t wait any longer, so he left. Bobby missed out on going to the circus.
A week later, Bobby’s dad came home from work early and said he’d been given 3 tickets to the Kansas City Chiefs football game. Bobby’s brother went to him to tell him to come home, so they could go to the football game. But Bobby didn’t believe him, so the family left and Bobby went home to a baby sister. Bobby missed out again, because he wouldn’t believe or listen.
Later on in the month, Bobby’s grandparents came for an unexpected visit. Bobby’s mother called and called for him, but Bobby wouldn’t come. His grandmother and grandfather could only stay a little while because they were just passing through, but Bobby came home too late and missed out on something very special again.
This is a sad story about a boy who wouldn’t believe in the love that everyone wanted to give to him. But there is another sad story about the people of Israel who wouldn’t believe in the love that God had for them. And it’s a sad story about the people today who won’t believe in the love that God has for them.
In our Gospel lesson, Jesus laments over the failure of the people of Israel to heed the call of God in their lives. Jesus says, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!”
Time and time again God used the prophets to tell the people of Israel His message of salvation. But time after time, the people would not listen. The prophets told them about the love God had for them. They were told to turn from their evil ways, to obey God, to gather under His love, but they would not. For the many times God told them, the people turned a deaf ear.
So God decided if the people wouldn’t listen to Him, He’d go directly to earth and speak to them Himself. But we know the outcome. Some people listened, but many more did not. Some became so upset by the presence of God in their lives, they killed him.
Each time God called to His people, they would not believe that God only wanted to give them His blessing and love. That sad story is true today for those people who know the whole story, but do not heed the call of God.
People today have an advantage over the people in Jesus day. Then they didn’t know the ultimate outcome that we know today. It has been written down for us, it has been witnessed to by generations of people who were there, but still people do not believe or trust in God’s love for their lives.
The Greek philosopher, Plato, has a fable that can help us to see the importance of listening to God’s call in our lives.
A man is seated in a carriage drawn by a pair of young and spirited horses. Using the reins the man guided the horses on the straight and smooth road.
One warm day the driver fell asleep. The horses, not feeling the restraint of the reins went off the right path and went speeding over tall grass and brush. In their mad flight they neared the edge of a cliff, which fell off into the ocean. A shepherd seeing the danger, yelled to the driver: “Wake up! Save yourself!”
The driver suddenly awakened and realized his peril. He hastily grabbed the reins and succeeded in saving his own life and those of his animals.”
God’s voice is calling us as we approach the pit of death and destruction in our lives. He calls us, he even reaches out to help us grab the reins, to stop the forces of evil, sin and death in our lives. But how many heed that voice? Sometimes you and I are asleep as we live our lives. We are tossed to and fro by all the different conditions of our culture. We are called to a life of consumerism. We are called to a life that is easy with quick fixes, we are called to a life that idolizes youth, sex and beauty. We are pulled along in a headlong flight to destruction, until we listen to the voice of God to rein in our lives.
God helps us to live not for ourselves, not for our culture, not for what Madison Avenue would think is important, but what God declares is important in our lives: His love, His mercy, His forgiveness, His grace, and then sacrificing our wants, ideas, and passions so that we might serve Him and our neighbor.
The Jews of Jesus’ day missed God’s call to leave their lives of religiosity and accept the gift of salvation He wanted to give them. They refused to leave their old ways behind and live in God’s grace. They that didn’t let God help them to get back on track and they fell over the cliff.
God is calling us to leave our life that is lived for self, bounced around by the demands of our culture, by the demands of “everyone else is doing it,” syndrome. God is calling us to heed His word so that we might follow Him, we might live in His love, we might accept His forgiveness, His mercy, because of the sacrifice Jesus made on the cross of Calvary. God calls us to let Him help us steer our lives in the right direction leading to the abundant life. The question is: will you let him? Amen
