A Season of Reckoning

Intro

welcome!

I missed you!

What a thrill that I feel when I get together...

We are returning to church to Worship God, Win the lost, Nourish the Found.

The lostness of man is even more noticeable today than ever before

Since we were in this sanctuary last time, the world has changed.

COVID 19

The killing of George Floyd

The ensuing protest, call for social change

Social, political upheaval

Some of you are asking

“Where is the church?”

“What is the church’s position?”

“How do we respond?”

What is my role as a Christian?

Sermon: A Season of Reckoning

Reckoning:

This is a season where we are all being called to task - to take account of ourselves.

To search our hearts and minds, reflect upon our biases and prejudices.

Today, I’d like to present a framework from Scripture to inform our position and response as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ.

“I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back!”

“I pledge allegiance to the Lamb”

The call of Jesus rings ever more strongly today to the Christian

Matthew 16:24–26 ESV

24 Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 26 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

Let’s use the Scripture to inform us, guide us, provide the SOP

The Word of Almighty God, the Bible is our guidebook, our manual

Psalm 119:105 ESV

105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

What are the issues facing us?

As we view the death of George Floyd - What is the value of a human life?

As we listen to the call for of leaders - What does the Bible say about racial prejudice, blatant rascism?

What does the Bible say about social justice?

As we see the protests - How do we advocate for social change?

What is the role of government?

I do not have all the answers.

But I am a shepherd of God’s saints who wants to do his sacred duty of preaching the unadulterated Word of the living God to heal the broken hearts of man.

1. What is the value of a human life?

TURN TO BIBLES

Genesis 1:26–28 ESV

Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Man was created in the likeness and image of Almighty God.

We did not evolve from a primordial soup.

It is not matter, plus time, plus chance.

You and I bear the very image of the God heaven -the Imago Dei

We are not animals. We didn’t evolve from them.

We have intellectual, moral and spiritual capacity.

Man is spirit, soul and body.

Man was created to have dominion

Man was made to have dominion

over the animal kingdom

not over each other

the desire for power, to rule, have dominion, is innate but because we have lost our way, we want to rule each other, dominate each other.

Man was created as two sexes/genders.

male and female

That is evident today at childbirth.

Midwife/Ob examines the genitalia - “It’s a boy.”

Man was blessed by God.

God has the very best intentions, desires for you and me.

He has my best interest at heart.

He is not trying to con me, use me for his own self-interest.

The entrance of sin sought to destroy the imago Dei.

Ch 3 - man rebels against God.

Sin entered the world and mars the heart of man, the very soul and spirit of man.

Jeremiah 17:9 ESV

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

The very next chapter, brother rises against brother and murders him.

Genesis 4:3–5 ESV

3 In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, 4 and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, 5 but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell.

Cain does not bring the kind of offering God desires

instead if correcting his actions, he is angry

There is a lot of anger in the world right now.

Eph. 4. 26 “In your anger do not sin”

God warns him

Genesis 4:6–7 ESV

The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.”

Where did his anger lead?

Genesis 4:8 ESV

8 Cain spoke to Abel his brother. And when they were in the field, Cain rose up against his brother Abel and killed him.

Sad! A brother’s anger and hatred leads to murder.

Is it any wonder that Jesus said these words

Matthew 5:21–22 ESV

21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

He knew the destructive force of anger. So he says, Get it under control.

There is anger in the world presently. People are angry and anger against evil and injustice is justified.

However, anger must be controlled, managed.

The response has to be measured, wise, reponsible, just and righteous.

God declares it a sin to murder.

Exodus 20:13 ESV

13 “You shall not murder.

This is enshrined in the Ten Commandments.

The Jews considered these three as major sins: Idolatry, Murder, Sexual Immorality.

The current social upheaval today was triggered by a death caught on video.

The Scriptures indicate that human life is precious, valuable, given by God.

Modern society has cheapened human life.

After all, if we are just matter, space dust, then what does it mattter?

What about the unborn?

According to WHO, every year in the world there are an estimated 40-50 million abortions.

In the USA, there are over 3,000 abortions per day.

Twenty-two percent of all pregnancies in the USA (excluding miscarriages) end in abortion.

Since 1973, 50M babies have been aborted in the USA

2. What does the Bible say about racism?

All men are created equal

If God created Adam and Eve, the first man and woman in His likeness and image, it implies that all humanity bear the Image Dei.

Regardless of the color of my skin, the texture of my hair, my culture, my country of origin, my height, the color of my eyes.

Regardless of religion, of caste, tribe.

Adam -Seth -Enoch-Methuselah, Lamech, Noah.

All the nations were from Noah’s sons - Shem, Ham and Japheth.

When God called Abraham, the plan was to bless all the fmailies of the earth.

Genesis 12:3 ESV

3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Israel was instructed to love the foreigner

God had clear instructions for Israel on how to treat those of another race, ethnicity.

Exodus 22:21 ESV

21 “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppress him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

Deuteronomy 10:19 ESV

19 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.

Jesus’ taught us to love our enemies

Matthew 5:43 ESV

43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

The world’s standard is love myself, and people like me in appearance or like-minded

OT: love you neigbor.

What does Jesus say? love your enemies

Matthew 5:44–45 ESV

44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

God makes His sun rise on the evil and the good, sends His rain on the just and unjust.

He treats everyone the same

How did Jesus treat those who were different to Him and other ethnicity?

Luke 15:1–2 ESV

1 Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”

He was called: “A friend of sinners.”

Jesus reached across ethnic barriers

There is one story where Jesus crossed over racial divide.

TURN TO BIBLES

3 he[JESUS] left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar ......

6 Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.

7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.”

8 (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.)

9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

Who were the Samaritans?

After Assyria conquered the northern kingdom of Israel in 722 BC and deported most of its people, Samaria was inhabited by a mixed population.

This included Israelites left behind after the deportation and foreign peoples relocated to the region from other parts of the Assyrian Empire (2 Kgs 17:24–41).

Those groups intermarried and thus a distinctly Israelite identity in Samaria was lost, forming the people group the Samaritans.

Like the Jews, Samaritans worshiped Yahweh and used a version of the Pentateuch as their Scripture.

Jews and Samaritans typically had a mutual hostility based on ethnic, religious, and political barriers.

Jews had no dealings with Samaritans

Here was Jesus crossing ethnic lines, gender diffference and even religious barriers.

Female

Samaritan

Immoral life

Jesus’s teaching is clear

Mark 12:31 ESV

31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”

John 13:34 ESV

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

Peter - God shows no partiality

Acts 10:34 ESV

34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,

Paul - the dividing wall of hostility is broken down

Romans 10:12 ESV

12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him.

Ephesians 2:14–16 ESV

14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility 15 by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, 16 and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility.

Blood is thicker than water

Spirit is thicker than blood

John - He who loves God must love his brother

1 John 3:15 ESV

15 Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.

1 John 4:20–21 ESV

20 If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.

James - Show no partiality

James 2:9 ESV

9 But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors.

Conc.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair,

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together.

Revelation 7:9–10 ESV

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”