Fearless and Faithful
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 19:57
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1 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.
27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
We’ve all seen the news this week. And we’ve heard the scary words. Pandemic. Quarantine. Coronavirus. It’s certainly sounds frightening.
And when you turn on the news it’s all that’s being discussed. Ohio’s schools closed for 3 weeks. No public gatherings of over 100 people. Hospitals running out of masks.
Italy in quarantine. Thousands of people dying across the globe. Over 156,000 cases globally, and nearly 6,000 deaths. And we will cross that line soon. It’s all a bit daunting.
Entire countries on lockdown. Grocery stores shelves being raided and left empty.
I could continue on, but you already have heard it and don’t need me to remind you.
For Christians, this could be our finest hour- or at least one of them. The virus seems to have the final say, but we know that it doesn’t. We are not that far from Easter- and we need that annual reminder that Jesus overcomes death and sickness and disease. (Actually, that should be a daily reminder).
You see, for Christians, we are sent by Christ. He told us to “Go and make disciples”, and that word “go” is just that- get out there and show the world that Christ overcame death.
But those other words- “quarantine, pandemic, and coronavirus”… they are getting in the way.
I have thought quite a bit lately about a hymn most people aren’t thinking of in the context of our current dilemma- Coronavirus. The hymn?… The Battle Hymn of the Republic. One particular verse of the Battle Hymn of the Republic: Remember these words?
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat,
He is sifting out the souls of men before his judgment seat,
Oh Be quick my soul to answer him, be jubilant my feet
Our God is marching on!
THERE IS NO RETREAT!
THERE IS NO RETREAT!
Christ did sound forth the trumpet to us. The Great Commission bids us go, tell the world about Jesus. And he will never remove that from us. We are to be Christ in our world, taking the gospel to broken people. And we have responded, hopefully with joy.
But today… today, we’ve cancelled worship.
And it doesn’t feel right.
We were made for worship. The rhythm of worship. Not just the rhythm of a worship service, but the rhythm of regular worship.... momentarily, daily, and certainly Sabbath worship.
It’s Sunday, and this doesn’t feel right. Because it isn’t.
But, there’s coronavirus and the health and well being of our most vulnerable to consider- and yes, though it doesn’t feel right- in that light, it feels right.
God has sounded for the trumpet. And He’ll never call for retreat.
So please, don’t think God has called us to retreat. No, He hasn’t. And please- worship today. Sing a hymn or praise song, read the scriptures, look at the wonder of His creation, and pray. Pray for everything, and tell God how great He is.
BE AT PEACE
BE AT PEACE
We’ve cancelled worship in the short term. But our commitment is eternal. Don’t forget that.
And don’t be frightened or scared of anything that you hear or think about the current situation. God already knows it. And He still has us here.
Remember what Jesus said. “Let not your heart be troubled.... My peace I leave with you- not the peace that the world gives, my peace I give to you.”
In this world there will be no peace. The events of the past few weeks reveal that vividly. But in Christ we have peace. Peace that faces today, tomorrow, and eternity. Peace that is rooted in faith in Him, not ourselves. And we do not need to be restless, bothered, or scared. We have the same peace that faced storms and calmed them… hungry crowds and fed them… lives and restored them. The peace we have faced Herod and Pilate; it also faced sin and death; and it overcame Satan’s temptation and the world’s mocking. We have that peace- it has been bequeathed to us! Don’t be afraid.
In 2 Timothy 1.7, Paul says this:
7 for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
We are not afraid, in fact, we are far from it.!
Because our God is good, He is faithful, and He will never leave us or forsake us, He’s able to work in all things. Including our current situation.
Therefore, we don’t panic- He’s given us peace. We are not afraid because we walk by faith and not by sight.
7 for we walk by faith, not by sight.
When the early church faced extreme persecution, they lost their lives not their faith. We are facing a health crisis and it is our faith we need to cling on to. Because God is good, He will never leave us, we can trust He knows and He cares and He has a plan even in the face of Coronavirus.
When the early church faced persecution they didn’t hide out. They reached out- to those in need and those hurting. They placed others ahead of themselves. Read the early chapters of Acts and you will see immediately they didn’t run- they cared. Materially and otherwise, they took care of each other.
And they didn’t hoard their goods! They met needs with them. They helped each other. Look at Acts 2:44-46:
44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common.
45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.
46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,
And the early church continued to meet. Because our current situation places the most vulnerable at risk, we aren’t going to do that. But we can do what we can.
Most of us have an item that the early Christians didn’t have. A telephone. Instead of bemoaning our not meeting together to worship, what if we utilized what we have to continue to “meet”? Pick up the phone and call three people (or more) that you speak to on Sunday mornings at church and speak to them on this Sunday on the phone.
Check in on each other.
Pray for and with each other.
If there’s a need, figure out a way to meet it or call your church or pastor or friends and see if there’s a way to meet the need.
Older people shouldn’t be out in public. If you’re going to pick up bread and milk, call someone and see if they need help with picking up a few things. Go pick them up and check in on those you deliver to. It’s not hard and it’s the right thing to do!
Friends, this is not a time to be selfish. It’s a time to be sacrificial. With our time, our talent, and our treasures.
Finally,
Jesus said we are the light of the world.
In Matthew 5:14-16, Jesus said,
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.
15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house.
16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
During this pandemic, people are in fear. They are making unsettled, anxious decisions. They aren’t themselves.
We need to be. We need to show hope in Christ and love in Christ.
If you think the virus is infectious, love can be more so. Be sure people know it. Pray God will give you the spirit of love and the spirit of Christ. And let people see Christ in you and instead of running from you as if you had a virus, they may be attracted to what you do have and choose to catch it. Long before this virus began spreading, the love of Christ has and should have been spread. Keep it going.
This is not a time to be fearful. It’s a time to be fearless.
We live by faith in the living God. Not by fear.
We are not selfish, but have chosen the one who made the ultimate sacrifice. Model it in this situation.
Shine your light of Christ. This is no time to put it under a bushel!
Remember what Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4.7-9
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;
This is why we are not fearful; This is why we are able to follow the One who will never call retreat. We are not afraid, because He’s got this.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that will never call retreat. Be swift, O soul, to answer Him. Be jubilant O feet!
HIS TRUTH IS MARCHING ON.
In spite of a virus. His truth marches on.
In spite of fear and anxiety everywhere- His truth marches on.
In spite of hoarding and bad news. His truth marches on.
Jesus- the light of the world and the savior of our souls- Jesus, is marching on!
March with Him.
Glory, Glory Hallelujah!
Glory, Glory Halleluhah!
Glory, Glory Hallelujah!
His Truth Marches On!
Friends, though we cannot meet together, we can pray together. Let’s pray.
Eternal God, keep us mindful that you are still in control . This virus has not surprised you in anyway. Our circumstance and our very lives are in your hands.
We ask, Father, for your calm in this time of storm. Lord, we ask for the peace that you promised- not the peace of calm people, easy lives, and full cupboards= Lord, we ask for the peace that you alone can give. Lord we ask for the peace that passes all understanding so we can live for you instead of dying trying to live for ourselves.
Lord, take away the fear- replace it with peace.
Lord, remove the uncertainty, and establish our hearts in you. Make your spirit our heartbeat and your word our guide. Give us calm in the storm. And Lord, we’d love for this storm to leave- but if it doesn’t, teach us to walk on the water in the storm- with you.
Lord, Jesus, give us our daily bread- but also give us our daily faith that we can live trusting in you and nothing else. Lord, protect our children and our older folk. Lord, keep them healthy and safe… Lord, we pray.
Lord, our times and our days are in your hands. You magnificently created us, and you have sustained us. We pray for your hands now to protect us. Protect our family and friends, Lord.
Until we can meet again, Lord, as the people of God in one place- make us your people in many places. And Lord, Jesus, help us to utilize this opportunity to share with others the hope that lies within us- to share Jesus.
Lord, we ask this in your name. Amen.