August 7 preview
Title: Walking On Air
Scripture: Matthew 14:22-33
I Kings 19:9,11-13; Psalms 85:9-14;
Romans 9:1-5; Matthew
14:22-33
" Courage, it is I, do not be afraid"
(Matthew 14:27).
In
an old cartoon, a monastery scene features a large
well-manicured green lawn ...
In the middle of that lush greenery, there is a small,
swimming pond.
Two monks dressed in brown robes are passing
by, their eyes focused on a sign posted in the grass
at the edge
of the pond. The sign reads, "PLEASE DON'T WALK
ON THE WATER."
An
American traveler in the middle East decided to visit
the Sea of Galilee where, the Bible tells in today's
Gospel Lesson, Jesus walked on water ...
He approached a boatman and asked if he knew the place
where Jesus performed the great miracle.
The boatman told
him that he could take him out to the exact spot. Moreover,
he said, "I'll take you there
free of charge." Whereupon they got into the boat
and the boatman rowed out a considerable distance from
shore. Then he stopped. "This is it," he said. "We
are in the exact position Jesus was when He walked on
top of the waves."
After drinking in the sight and
meditating for a while, the American said he was ready
to be returned to shore. "That
will cost you fifty dollars," the boatman said. "But
you told me there would be no charge," the traveller
protested. To which the boatman replied, "I told
you I would take you our here free, you didn't ask about
the return trip."
Then, as the traveler dug down for his wallet, he murmured, "No
wonder Jesus walked."
Rather remarkably in the four
Gospels, which cover about one hundred fifty average
pages, there are some fifty
references to water. Over-and-over again, the Gospel
writers describe Jesus' activities as being on the
sea or the seashore. In Matthew's Gospel account there
are
twenty such references.
For example, we read, "
As He was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers
and said to them, 'Follow Me and I will make you fishers
of men'" (Mt. 4:19).
From another scene we read, "Then
He got into the boats . . .
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August
14, 2005
Title: Choose Wisely
Scripture: Matthew 15:21-28
Isaiah 56:1,6-7; Psalms 67:2-3,5-6,8;
Romans 11:13-15,29-32; Matthew 15:21-28
"
Woman you have great faith. Let your wish be granted" (Matthew
15:28).
In her heyday, "Advice" Columnist Ann
Landers received more than ten thousand letters a month
-- nearly
all of them from people who were burdened with problems.
Asked if there was one predominant theme in her readers'
requests for help, she replied, "Yes there is: fear.
People are afraid of losing their loved ones, their health,
their wealth. People are afraid of life itself."
Fear
makes us humans believe the worst. And obsessive fears
can transform even benign and beneficial objects
into symbols of deadly terror. Persons who live in constant
fear of the possibility of sickness are capable of transforming
an ordinary itch into a symptom of some terrible disease.
We call them "hypocondriacs."
There are technical
names for others who fear such things as being alone,
water, high altitudes, closed-in areas,
crowds, etc. Obsessive fears themselves are called
phobias.
After
many years of air travel, a businessman suddenly developed
an intense fear of flying ...
"
Never again," he said, and for five years he didn't
go near an airport.
Then he decided to "tough it
out," and for
his next long business trip, instead of a train ticket
he bought an airline ticket.
As he drove to the airport,
his worst fears began to surface. And he wondered why
the sign directing to his
point of departure read "terminal." Then he
remembered the many times he had heard pilots announce
to their passengers, "We are approaching our final
destination." And he couldn't help remembering a
line from a popular comedian, who said, "More than
at any time in history, mankind faces a crossroad. One
path leads to hopelessness and despair. The other to
total extinction. May we choose wisely."
At this
point, the fearful businessman made what he believed
the wisest possible choice. In a fit of panic, he made
a quick u-turn and headed for the airport exit.
"
Fear is useless. What is needed is trust," Jesus
tells us. "Do not be afraid. Only have faith," says
the Lord.
Jesus' crucial advice rises above our
phobias and everyday concerns. Jesus is proclaiming the
Good
News that God
loves us so much that He will never abandon us. But merely
saying it is not enough. For the Good News to transcend
our every day, ordinary concern, for the Good News to
enrich our lives, as Jesus intended, nothing less than
a great leap of faith is required. Inevitably, we face
a crossroad -- one path leading us to hopelessness and
despair, the other leading to new life in Christ. "Choose
wisely," faith tells us. "Choose the way of
the Lord."
The miracle performed by Jesus recounted
in today's Gospel Lesson is about a woman whose daughter
is severely disturbed,
emotionally, physically and mentally. We don't know the
exact nature of her condition. However, the distraught
mother says to Jesus . .
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August 21,
2005
Title:Give It Away
Scripture: Matthew 16:13-20
Isaiah 22:19-23; Psalms 138:1-3,6,8;
Romans 11:33-36; Matthew 16:13-20
"
You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God" (Matthew
16:16).
Jesus began His public ministry by calling His
first disciples. And their decision to follow Him does
not
come out of the blue, so to speak. They respond in
the context of fulfilled expectations -- hopes realized,
dreams come true.
Early in John's Gospel there is a scene
in which Andrew, having spent the day with Jesus, seeks
out his brother,
Simon Peter, and tells him, "We have found the Messiah" (Jn.
1:41).
Immediately after receiving the call from Jesus, "Follow
Me," the Apostle Phillip hastens to tell Nathaniel, "We
have found the One Moses wrote about in the law ... Jesus,
Son of Mary and Joseph from Nazareth" (Jn. 1:45).
For
those first disciples who were reared in the Old Testament
tradition of expectancy, it was an awesome
experience. God had made good on His promise. The promise
was fulfilled, at long last, in the unique personhood
of Jesus of Nazareth.
The uniqueness of all living things is one of life's
most awesome wonders. No two blades of grass, no two
roses, insects or birds are precisely alike. Each creature
of God is different from all the rest -- each a unique
creation of God.
Geneticists tell us that prior to birth
each person has an array of genes unlike that of any
other person, living
or dead.
Each set of footprints, fingerprints and voiceprints
are unique, individual, unmatched.
Heart specialists tell
us that no two cardiograms are alike.
Neurologists tell us that no two brain-wave tests
provide the same result.
It is estimated over one hundred billion
persons have lived on the planet earth which means
that each of us
is a one hundred billionth wonder of the world -- each
a unique marvel.
It is also true that modern computer
technology has the capacity to record a variety of distinguishing
marks
of every living person, as well as those yet to come.
We have reached the point where it is relatively easy
to establish one's identity and virtually impossible
to conceal it. Yet, fingerprints, footprints, cardiograms,
voiceprints and brain-waves not withstanding, we never
cease to ask ourselves and each other, "Who am I?
Who do you say I am?" Not only is each human being
uniquely different from every other human being, but
also the entire species -- the entire community of mankind
-- is uniquely . . .
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August 28, 2005
Title: It Wouldn't Be Heaven Without You!
Scripture: Matthew 16:21-27
Jeremiah 20:7-9; Psalms 63:2-6,8-9;
Romans 12:1-2;
Matthew 16:21-27
"
If anyone wants to be a follower of Mine, let him renounce
himself and take up his cross and follow Me" (Matthew
16:24).
Youngsters in a religion class were asked to
write a letter to Jesus ...
One little girl wrote, "Dear
Jesus, my name is Karen and here is my picture so You
will know what I look like.
What do You look like? Can you send me a picture?"
"
Blue Collar Christianity" is a book in which the
author gives his version of what Jesus looked like. "Jesus
was a blue collar man," he says, "He was
a blue collar man, and He calls us to be blue collar
people
-- real, honest-to-goodness blue collar people. He
calls us to be hard at work, resolving human conflicts,
restoring
shattered self-esteem, loving the unlovable, even when
no one is watching."1
In today's Gospel Lesson
Jesus says, "If anyone
wants to be a follower of Mine, let him renounce himself
and take up his cross and follow Me" (Mt. 16:24).
That sounds very much like a blue collar assignment.
Being
Jesus' disciple means that we voluntarily accept
the cost of discipleship, day-in and day-out.
We need
to remember that there were people who heard Jesus' call
to discipleship who were not willing to
pay the price, not willing to report for work every
day.
People came to Him because they wanted the benefits,
they wanted the healing, they wanted the excitement,
they wanted the comfort that came with discipleship.
But when they began to make excuses for avoiding the
sacrifice, the hard work, the need to carry their crosses,
Jesus simply said "No! This is not for you. You're
not ready for this."
No one is forced to become
a disciple of Jesus Christ. You and I are free to accept
the call or reject it.
But, when we accept it, part of the cost -- often the
most
expensive part -- is the matter of following in His
footsteps by giving ourselves to others, doing for
others, even
when it hurts.
But, miracle of miracles, we discover in the doing
that this way of life (call it "Blue Collar Christianity")
is the most glorious life possible. And if some of
us are not harvesting the luscious fruit of this good
life,
it is because we are following Him at too great a distance.
Consequently,
our view of what the Christian life is all about remains
dim -- even grim.
However near or however far from the
Lord Jesus we may be at this moment, hopefully we're
here today trying
to close the gap.
Distanced from God there is no true
love. Moreover, to truly love God you must be expressing
that love
in and
through your love for other persons -- all other persons.
Time
and again, and in many ways, Jesus said, "You
will recognize by their fruits the persons whose faith
and trust in God's ways brings them into His Kingdom." You
will know them, he said, by the difference this faith
and trust has made in the way they live. And because
their faith and trust in God has made a difference
in the way they live, they are blessed.
"
Life with Father" has been called one of the most
enchanting comedies ever produced on the Broadway Stage
...
In the play, there is a heart-warming scene in which "Father" and
his wife "Vinnie" are having a playful
conversation about getting into Heaven.
"
Getting into Heaven is your job," says Father. "Everybody
loves you so much, I'm sure God does too." To
which Vinnie replies, "I'll do my best. But
it wouldn't be Heaven without you."
Father then
promises, "If you're in Heaven,
Vinnie, I'll manage to get in some way -- even if
I have to
climb the fence."
Our job is to rise above the man-made
barriers that stand between us and the members . .
.
