2023.11.05 What To Do With This Inheritance
Notes
Transcript
What To Do With This Inheritance
What To Do With This Inheritance
Psalm 149 • Ephesians 1:11-23
11 In Him we also have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things in accordance with the plan of His will,
12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in the Christ would be to the praise of His glory.
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise,
14 who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.
15 For this reason I too, having heard of the faith in the Lord Jesus which exists among you and your love for all the saints,
16 do not cease giving thanks for you, while making mention of you in my prayers;
17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.
18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,
19 and what is the boundless greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might
20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,
21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.
22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and made Him head over all things to the church,
23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.
Have you ever been given a gift that you didn't understand? Maybe the gift was something you didn't really want or perhaps it was too extravagant for your taste. Maybe you didn't even know what it was.
[I was working on a project with a friend one time and he handed me some drill bits to help drive some screws in. The bits included a a piece I'd never seen before. I didn't know what it was, but it looked like something that would hold the bit further away from the drill, so I didn't want anything to do with it. After he watched me struggle with a couple of those screws, he recommended I use the piece. Then, he taught me what it did. It holds the screw in place so it doesn't buckle while you're drilling it in place...AWESOME!]
In an instant, I changed from not wanting to use it to "I GOTTA HAVE ONE OF THESE!" Today I own 3 of them!
Today is All Saints Sunday. This is the day we remember the saints from our Church and our families who have gone on to their rest in the last year. Today, we lit candles for 12 souls beloved of God … but more importantly, we get to go over their Will … The inheritance they leave behind.
A few years ago, my dad cleaned out an old cedar chest and he discovered an old prayer book in German. There are two names written in it: my dad’s grandmother and her brother. Dad didn't know where it came from originally and he had long forgotten that he possessed it. But he remembered seeing his grandmother holding it. I only have one memory of my great-grandmother and it is so faded it could very well be a conglomeration of things I've heard more than an actual memory.
He asked if I wanted it. You bet! Who knows … it could have been something she'd inherited from her parents and their parents, all the way back to Germany (the copyright date in it is 1878). It may not have appeared in her legal will, or my grandfathers', or my dad's … but I inherited my Great Grandmother's German prayer book!
Paul writes:
11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.
12 God’s purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.
13 And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.
If you’ve commited your life to Jesus … you have received an inheritance in Christ! You and I are called to be an honor to God's glory! We heard and received the good news of salvation, and we were sealed with the Holy Spirit!
So, what are we doing with our inheritance? Most of us are likely familiar with the Prodigal Son in Luke 15, who asked for his inheritance before his dad died. What did he do with his inheritance? He blew it! He spent the money on friends and women and wild living. He spent his entire inheritance on himself … and it left him empty!
What are you doing with your inheritance? Annette and I were a part of in our college ministry group. [Explain "God's Love" skit]
You see, if you try to keep this inheritance to yourself, you will lose it.
One of the partner verses for this week is from Luke’s telling of the Sermon on the Mount.
27 “But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your enemies! Do good to those who hate you.
28 Bless those who curse you. Pray for those who hurt you.
29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, offer the other cheek also. If someone demands your coat, offer your shirt also.
30 Give to anyone who asks; and when things are taken away from you, don’t try to get them back.
31 Do to others as you would like them to do to you.
The Golden Rule is certainly not exclusive to Christianity or Judaism. Jesus wasn't the first teacher to teach some version of this life lesson. Nearly every neighboring religion had a similar statement in their doctrines. Having heard this our entire lives may tempt us to look at the Golden Rule as trite or passe.
Yet, it is true and wise!
Put in the context of the inheritance of the saints, what does it mean to "do to others as you would like them to do to you."
What To Do With This Inheritance
What To Do With This Inheritance
Often, this becomes the trite heresy of 'living a good life and being nice' being sufficient for admission into Heaven. Baloney!
Pic of Jesus
According to Jesus Christ, there is only one way into Heaven.
According to orthodox Christian teaching, there is only one way into Heaven.
According to United Methodist doctrine, there is only one way into Heaven.
That way is the inheritance we celebrate and enjoy today: the good news of salvation that comes exclusively through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God!
If we really believe that, let me ask you a question. If you did not know that truth … How would you want others to "do unto you"?
Golden Rule
31 Do to others as you would like them to do to you.
This statement is not about being courteous or considerate or nice. “Doing unto others” is a statement that commands us to share the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ with other people. We have found the love of God, and wouldn’t we want someone else to tell us if we hadn’t. We MUST share the love of God in order to continue living in it.
What To Do With This Inheritance
What To Do With This Inheritance
But, Pastor, I'm not a good talker. I'm not a leader. I can't … ENOUGH! Stop with the excuses!
If nothing changes, our friends and family are doomed to Hell and are we not compelled to overcome the awkwardness to share the Truth with them? Would we seriously want to be left alone if we were doomed to Hell, or would we hope someone would "do unto us" by offering us the inheritance of salvation?
Do you think the souls we remember today are proud of us or embarrassed? Does the inheritance they handed to us stop here? Was the light of Christ that shined in them and the other saints who came before us a silent light, or was it a light that overcame the darkness in our lives when we needed to see Jesus?
Ephesians 1:17
17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, will give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation that makes God known to you.
We “do unto others”, when we share that truth with them. When we offer them the rescue we've received from God through his son Jesus.
We celebrate that gift, when we celebrate Holy Communion. We celebrate all of God's mighty acts in Jesus as we come to this table…
Service of Word and Table II (page 13) Starting with The Great Thanksgiving
THE GREAT THANKSGIVING
The Lord be with you.
AND ALSO WITH YOU.
Lift up your hearts.
WE LIFT THEM UP TO THE LORD.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
IT IS RIGHT TO GIVE OUR THANKS AND PRAISE.
It is right, and a good and joyful thing,
always and everywhere to give thanks to you,
Father Almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
And so,
with your people on earth
and all the company of heaven
we praise your name and join their unending hymn:
HOLY, HOLY, HOLY LORD, GOD OF POWER AND MIGHT,
HEAVEN AND EARTH ARE FULL OF YOUR GLORY.
HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST.
BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD.
HOSANNA IN THE HIGHEST.
Holy are you, and blessed is your Son Jesus Christ.
By the baptism of his suffering, death, and resurrection
you gave birth to your church,
delivered us from slavery to sin and death,
and made with us a new covenant
by water and the Spirit.
[Pg. 14]
On the night in which he gave himself up for us,
He took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
Gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this is remembrance of me."
When the supper was over, he took the cup,
Gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you;
This is my blood of the new covenant,
Poured out for you and for many
For the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
In remembrance of me."
And so,
In remembrance of these your mighty acts in Jesus Christ,
We offer ourselves in praise and thanksgiving
As a holy and living sacrifice,
In union with Christ's offering for us,
As we proclaim the mystery of faith.
CHRIST HAS DIED; CHRIST IS RISEN; CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN.
Pour out your Holy Spirit on us gathered here,
And on these gifts of bread and juice.
Make them be for us the body and blood of Christ,
That we may be for the world the body of Christ,
Redeemed by his blood.
By your Spirit make us one with Christ,
One with each other,
And one in ministry to all the world,
Until Christ comes in final victory
And we feast at his heavenly banquet.
Through your Son Jesus Christ,
With the Holy Spirit in your holy church,
All honor and glory is yours, almighty Father,
Now and for ever.
AMEN.
THE LORD'S PRAYER
And now, with the confidence of children of God, let us pray:
BREAKING THE BREAD
The pastor breaks the bread and then lifts the cup, in silence or with appropriate words.
[Pg. 15]
GIVING THE BREAD AND CUP
The bread and wine are given to the people, with these or other words being exchanged:
The body of Christ, given for you. AMEN.
The blood of Christ, given for you. AMEN.