Untitled Sermon (8)

Grace to you are peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ AMEN

Now I don’t want to worry anyone, however have been busy and adjusting to the new church and my preaching schedule has been way off, usually Monday morning, first thing I choose the text I will be preaching, read the Greek and Hebeww closely, look at sme commentaries and get a deep send of the scipture. But this week I didn’t really dig that deeply into the text in the end of ther week. Now I have told this church repeatedly through itnerview, and the sumemr and candidateing sermon and getting to know you these last couple of weeks that my passion is faith drift, I am driven by the question, the hope to understand how we mught draw folks back to the Christian faith, in particualr the younger generations who have drifted away form the church practice. I look at interviews, and theology, and sociology and then this week I read toda’s texct from Luke 21, and its all right there.

Jesus takes the disciples to the Temple, the heart of Jewish faith, and worship of God, and they are imporesssd. I guess it would suspect that any rabbi or pastor who would bring folks to a religious building wouild be impressed. But Jesus is unimpressed that theyre impressed! In fact, he seems to them, don’t be awed by the big stones, they are going to be torn down. Now this already may seem a little like he is raining on the parade. But they ask him when and rather than answering them he seems to say “Well, its coming and in themean time keep following because theres going to be wars and insurrection and fighting and chaos and just keep folliwing me. In fact, you don’t really even need to worry about all the political chaos in the world because before any of that even happens eberyone is going to arrest you, judge you beat, abandon, youpossibly kill you, including all your friend and family. THEN his only advice is, don’t be prepared for this, don’t think about what you will od or say, just know that I will give you the word.  I mean I am not sure what I have been hoping to find in all my study but it strikes me that perhaps some of the people who aren’t coming to church might not like his answer.

Then he finishes this teaching by promising “18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By your endurance you will gain your souls”. So that cover it right.

By your endurance you will gain your soul. I don’t know how this promise strikes you, now I wouldn’t blame if you if compaered to the promnised of insurrection, violencve arrests and betrayal your family and loced this sounded, lets say, a bit obsutde. C ouple of images might come to mind

Does anyone remember the seen in Caddyshack, when...

Or for that matter anyone remember Calbing an Hobbes?

Its hardly