Institutions - Ours and Eternal

Institutions - Ours and Eternal Acts 2:42-47 There is a utility to this Scripture that we can apply to our use of every day. Let us think of it in terms of the cooperative ministry of the early church. We could also think of it as an institution, a pattern, a foundation that forms the base of the church, upon which it can grow, prosper and perpetuate herself. Consider for a moment, the institutions of man and those of God, how some come to a closure and others last for thousands of years, some forever. I got to thinking about a trip I took to the Williamsburg, Virginia, area some years ago. I visited the historical sites of the founding of the nation, through the establishment of trade, the development of our government, and the defense of the fledging country in war. One site in particular that caught my attention was the establishment of a family residence. I had passed the signs to it on the way to another site, but I was most curious to see what the sign indicated as the Bellfield Plantation. When I circled back to see the landmark, what I expected and what I saw struck me with an eerie awesomeness. I had this vision of touring some grand and beautiful southern plantation, with a long circular drive, a pillared mansion and a large expanse of grounds with fields of cotton and corn and tobacco and a host of people, much as we might imagine and have seen the South in its glory days. What I found was a long pathway that wound its way back into the woods. Ok, time for a walk. The sides of the path were groomed nicely, and there were large willow trees that formed a canapé through which you walked. The sun was reduced to mere flitters of light that would flash through the trees. Along the pathway, I came upon a sign post that spoke of a house that once stood there. All that was left was the perimeter of the foundation. I walked farther, and saw a couple burial sites, the family cemetery for generations past. This was a beautiful walk in the woods, but where was the mansion? Shortly, I came to the end of the trail, and suddenly realized that I had seen all that remained of a once great plantation. The site of the house and the site of the family cemetery were all that was left. As I returned to the car, I came upon one last signboard. It read, "Among the first to settle here was Capt. John West, who received six hundred acres from the Governor's Council in 1630. (John West was an 2 early member of the Virginia General Assembly and acting colonial Governor of Virginia from 1635 to 1637.) Captain's West plantation had grown to 1250 acres by 1650 when he sold it to Edward Digges, founder of an illustrious Virginia family. (Edward Digges was an English barrister and colonist who became a premium tobacco planter and official in the Virginia colony.) Later known as Bellfield, the plantation belonged to the Digges family until 1787. Bought and sold a number of times since, its agriculture was abandoned after WWI and gradually forest has reclaimed the plantation." As I strolled the remaining few yards of the path, I thought to myself, "Imagine what this must have been like. It was grand. Hundreds and hundreds of acres, hundreds of people all working together for a common existence; life, vitality, generations, those people must have believed it would last forever. And yet, in a few short years, as measured in the history of God's time, or even our time, it has come to this, a trail in the woods, being reclaimed by nature itself." Man's institutions, those that we may think would last for the foreseeable future, many times are found with an abbreviated lifespan, and their demise reminds us of our mortality and fragility. But the institutions of God are immortal. When did the church begin? Some would say at Pentecost with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Some would say when Jesus called His first disciples. Some would say when Jesus was born, coming to establish the Kingdom of God on the earth. Some would say with Moses or Abraham or Noah or Adam; and all would be right in their own way. The simple institution of the Lord's Supper has lasted over 2000 years. We practice it at least once a month. Some churches would practice it once a week. The early church broke bread daily. Jesus said, "As often as you would break bread, do it in remembrance of Me." Every time we pass food over our lips, it is as if, Jesus says, we practice the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. Somewhere, every day for 2000 years, this institution has been celebrated, and will continue until He comes again. This remembrance is the church alive. The institution of the body of Christ reminds us that it is the simple, the humble, the sacrifices of life that are intended for immortality. All that we may busy ourselves with shall one day come to a closure. But the life of Jesus Christ in the lives of you and I and our generations will live forever; and those who would believe 3 in Him shall never die, but have eternal life. As we set before ourselves the priorities by which we live, and embrace that which we believe is important, might we keep first and foremost before us the example of our Lord as the rule of our life. Jesus laid down His life for one and all. As for Memorial Day, Jesus also said in John 15:13, “No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends.” The greatest love a person can show is to be willing to die for his friends, or we might say, nearly so, as in the story of Travis Mills. Not yet 25 years old and already on his third combat tour in Afghanistan, U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Travis Mills never backed down from the toughest challenges. But that was before the day when, on a routine mission, an IED exploded beneath him. He immediately lost an arm and a leg and his other two limbs were hanging by a tendon. Against the odds, he lived, but at incredible cost. Travis became one of only five soldiers from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to survive a quadruple amputation. Still, his greatest challenge lay ahead. Would he be tough enough to make a life he actually wanted? Travis recalls his action-packed tours of duty with the 82nd Airborne Division, the agony of the explosion, and the traumatic days that followed, in his memoir. He takes the reader on the ultimate oddsdefying adventure where, in his darkest hours, he finds the willpower to push through pain and reach again for hope, this time with artificial limbs. In his book, Tough as They Come, he shares his riveting story of endurance, unconditional love of family, and deep faith that is inspiring to anyone who has ever felt overwhelmed by life. Today, Travis swims, dances with his ever-faithful wife, rides mountain bikes, drives his daughter to school, and travels the country inspiring millions with his never-look-back, never-give-up story. In the last pages of his book he writes, “It’s good to set big goals, but it is also good to set smaller goals too. Sometimes they can be just as satisfying... What does success mean for me? It’s being able to do normal things again. How simple that seems – to live normally – yet you’d be surprised how important that becomes when you can’t do it anymore. In fact, you’d be surprised how many people around the world don’t ever get that opportunity. The ability to live in freedom might be taken away due to any injury, or it might be because of 4 political oppression. To live a life in freedom is cherished, desired, worth fighting for, worth getting wounded for, and even worth dying for… At night I can’t help but think that we sleep ‘soundly in our beds because rough men (and women) stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm,’ as the saying goes. When I was in the military, I’m proud to say those were my rough men doing their job. And I was proud to be counted as one of them. To live in freedom. To go forward. To love your family. To make something of your life. To never give up. To never quit. That’s success.” Folks, as a church, we can also ask: What does success mean for us? Jesus bore the cost of our freedom, our spiritual freedom, our freedom from sin and death itself. We are lifted up by His efforts. What is our response? The church was born, invigorated, opened to all the world on Pentecost with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Our response is to be open to its continued inspiration, to make a stand for Christ’s sake, to have a spirit of fortitude, strength, and determination, “to be all that we can be” as the Army slogan goes. Travis is an inspiration to millions, and rightly and worthily so. Who can you be an inspiration to, to whom can you share the love of Christ? May that be our prayer that our church may grow, prosper and perpetuate herself, today, tomorrow and always.