Untitled Sermon (6)

Last week we were left with the picture of a hand with a whole in it.

Jesus holds out his crucified hands to you and says, come, die to your self, and live with me.

Place your hand in mine.

And tonight we get the privilege of reflecting what this looks like in specific examples.

We’ll see that our seeking shepherd calls us to take his hand and seek his sheep with him.

Me

Ever heard someone say, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

When someones asks you about how someone else is doing, or where they are,

It’s a response that says, I don’t know and I don’t care.

It’s a saying that comes from Genesis 4.

It’s the first story of two brothers.

The story doesn’t go well!

They’re both loved by God, but Cain is jealous of his brother’s success, and instead of learning from Abel, he deceives him and murders him.

In response God comes to Cain and says to him, “where is your brother?”

Cain responds with apathy and indifference by saying, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

This attitude of apathy sets the tone for the rest of the book of Genesis, where instead of loving one another, siblings either ignore or bite and devour one another.

Joseph’s brothers for example, again jealous of his success, beat him up and throw him into a pit to die. It’s only because one of his 11 brothers persuades them to sell him as a slave to the Egyptians that he survives.

He goes to Egypt, and 400 years later, God has rescued this family, made them his own children, and he commands them in Deut 22, love one another!

Don’t repeat the same mistakes your ancestors made!

Don’t be apathetic towards one another.

Don’t ignore one another.

Instead, love one another as your own selves.

Many people think that the opposite of love is hatred or anger.

This isn’t true.

Think about this; God loves his Son, so he hates those who reject him and mistreat him.

The Son loves the Spirit, that’s why he says anyone who calls the Holy Spirit evil won’t be forgiven.

God loves you and me, he created us in his image, so he hates it when people mistreat, reject or ignore us.

He also hates it when we do that to others.

If God were to see his Son Jesus being rejected, ignored and mistreated, and ignore him, not vindicate him by raising him from the dead, we’d assume he was cursed by God, as Deut 21:31 says, ‘cursed is anyone who is hung on a tree.’

If I saw my wife being bashed up, verbally abused, insulted, and did nothing, you’d rightly wonder whether I truly love her.

Not caring, apathy, indifference, ignoring, is the opposite of loving.

What’s the key idea from Deut 22:1-4?

Don’t hate each other by ignoring each other!! Love one another by helping each other!

22 “If you see your brother Israelite’s ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it; make sure you return it to your brother. 2 If your brother does not live near you or you don’t know him, you are to bring the animal to your home to remain with you until your brother comes looking for it; then you can return it to him. 3 Do the same for his donkey, his garment, or anything your brother has lost and you have found. You must not ignore it. 4 If you see your brother’s donkey or ox fallen down on the road, do not ignore it; help him lift it up.

Wow, what a community to be a part of!

A society where no-one is ignored.

Everyone’s property is treated equally.

Not only is there no theft, but everyone returns whatever is lost to their rightful owners.

Why does God ask them to do this?

Because God is like this.

The triune God who is love, loves us like he loves himself.

Imagine you’re an Israelite hearing this.

You know you had lost your freedom.

But God came and restored it to you.

He heard their parents cries for help in Egypt.

He didn’t ignore them.

He came to them.

He loved them.

Lifted them up out of slavery into his arms.

Their triune God is saying, “I don’t ignore you, so don’t ignore each other.”

“I love you, so love one another.”

When one of you is suffering, get down with them, and help them out.

When one of you is grieving because you’ve lost your ox, sheep, or donkey, your livelihood, your means of income, get down with them, don’t ignore them.

Help them!

Again, isn’t this the dream we have.

Living in a society were we bear one anothers burdens, were no one is ignored.

Everyone’s property is treated equally.

No theft.

Complete confidence that your neighbour has your back, is looking out for you! Just as they look out for themselves.

But there’s a problem, and it’s why Moses has to repeat it to them 3 times.

They have a tendency to ignore each other.

Why?

I think it’s because they don’t truly see one another as family.

That’s why he repeats 6 times, your brother.

What ruins this beautiful society from being a reality?

Let’s say your poor, finding it tough.

Finding someone else’s ox or donkey or sheep would be nice to get you back on your feet.

What a blessing from God.

I was just praying, and look, God’s provision.

But God says, no, return it.

I’ll provide, but not at the expense of your brother.

Remember, you’re family.

If you gain, but your brother loses, it’s a loss for the family.

On the other hand, let’s say you’re going well financially, your business is booming.

Finding your neighbours straying ox or donkey is just a hassle.

Your precious time and energy, that could be used for providing for your own family, is being used up, because you’re so called ‘brother’ can’t keep an eye on his own property!

And if you can’t find him, taking it back to your place, would cost you more time, money, space to feed and keep it healthy, not knowing how long until the owner would come to get it.

In both these examples, it’s a concern for your wants and desires that makes loving your brother hard.

Why are we like this?

Augustine and Luther both describes sin as humanity turned inward on itself.

Rejecting God means we reject one another, we turn in on ourselves thinking that we must protect and provide for ourselves, even at the expense of others.

Instead of living as children of God our Father, trusting in his provision, we ignore God and also ignore others.

We can do this as a religious person or an irreligious person.

It doesn’t matter.

You might be doing religious things for selfish reasons.

You might be doing irreligious things for selfish reasons.

It’s only by rejecting self in both of these two different expressions.

By trusting in and relying upon the love God has for us, that we can open up and love others.

What does Australia need right now?

A community of people who instead of being turned in on themselves, locked up, and locked down, are joyfully linving as children of God their Father.

A family that is looking up and opening up to the needs of their fellow brothers and sisters around them.

Do you want this?

To be free from fear and excited by love during this season?

How are we going to get the power to live this way?

1 John 4 says that God’s perfect love drives out all fear.

It’s only when you see the perfect love of your triune God that your fear will turn to faith.

your inward self-pity to outward longing to serve others.

And this is where the rest of the Bible story goes.

Listen to what the prophet Isaiah says:

“We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way…” Is 53:6

We’re all infected with sin, we doubt God’s love.

We reject our place is in his family.

Which has turned us in on ourselves.

And so we go our own way.

BUT

the good news is, God doesn’t ignore us in our need.

“But Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”

And who’s this person he’s talking about.

None other than Jesus.

When Jesus comes, he sees the crowds, “he has compassion on them, because they’re like SHEEP without a shepherd.” Mark 6:34

He says, “I have come to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:10

He says, “I am the good shepherd, I lay down my life for the sheep.”

Some of you may not think that you’re a straying sheep.

Others of you might be thinking you’ve strayed too far to be brought back!

Some of you might be acting like a stubborn donkey, you know Jesus is trying to help you, but you’re resisting.

Jesus is saying to you tonight, “you’re so lost, I had to die for you.”

But “you’re so loved I was willing to die!”

He sees us lost, he sees what it will cost him to bring us home, and yet he still chooses to come help us.

There are plenty of people who will give to you, as long as you give to them.

An employer, a company, will gladly take you in, if you perform.

A god will gladly welcome you, as long as you do your religious duty.

But what person or god have you ever heard of who would give to you when you’ve only taken from them.

Who would pursue you, even when you ignore him.

Who would welcome you with joyful celebration even when you fought against them.

This is our Jesus.

This text shows us the uniqueness of Jesus.

3Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Jesus says, you guys need to look up, and open up to the truth that I’m here to bring people home to my Father and my family. To heaven!

I’m seeking after my sheep, carrying them on my shoulders and bringing them home. I’ve come to seek and to save the lost.

He goes out to restore us, even though it will cost him his life.

Some say Jesus was a good teacher, they conflate him in with all the other gods and heroes out there.

But he’s far more worthy.

When you don’t know your place in God’s family.

The love God has for you.

That he would send his Son.

That the Son would pursue you, go into the death and hell we’ve found ourselves in, put us on his shoulders and bring us home.

That the Father and Son would send their Spirit to breath the life and love of God into you as a member of the family.

When you don’t know this, there’s fear, hopelessness.

Do you fear that you’ve got nothing left to look forward to in the future.

One student said to me the other day, “I don’t have hopes for the future, cause when I do I always get let down. I just role with the flow.’

Are you like this?

Have you given up hope?

Our hope is as big as God.

We have a hope not just for things being restored, but far better than that.

See when our brother saviour finds us, he doesn’t return us where we were, he brings us to where he is, into his family.

Are you feeling lost, like you don’t know who or where you belong?

Fall on Jesus and let him carry you home.

Are you feeling ignored?

The whole of Jesus life suggests otherwise.

He paid attention to the small and the great, the strong and the weak, especially the vulnerable, the mistreated, and the poor.

If he paid attention to them, why would he not pay attention to you?

Maybe you’re feeling the weight of your own failures.

You see the love Jesus has, and you see the lack of love you have.

You don’t find your heart being moved towards your fellow human in order to help them and restore them.

Jesus wants to help you.

He doesn’t condemn you, he takes you be the hand and leads you.

Jesus is asking each of us to take up our cross, to die, like he did, and to centre our lives around God and others.

To deny ourselves.

I find Jesus parable in Luke 10 particularly challenging at the present time.

A man is travelling and falls into the hands of robbers. They strip him, beat him up, and flee, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happens to be going down the road. When he sees him, he passes by on the other side. 32 A Levite also, arrives at the place, sees him, and passes by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan on his journey comes up to him, and when he sees the man, he has compassion. 34 He goes over to him and bandages his wounds, pouring on olive oil and wine. He puts him on his own animal, brings him to a hotel, and takes care of him. 35 The next day he takes out 500 dollars, gave it to the hotel owner, and says, ‘take care of him. When I come back I’ll reimburse you for whatever extra you spend.’ Luke 10:30-35

Do you love others like this Samaritan?

Because this is how Jesus loves.

There’s no one that loves like Jesus.

And if you want the power to love like him, let him love you first.

You are the one lying helpless, beaten up by sin and Satan.

Jesus hasn’t passed by you.

He hasn’t ignored you.

He looks up.

He sees you broken down.

He comes to you with tender compassion.

He picks you up.

He puts you on his shoulders.

He bandages your wounds.

He carries you to His Father.

He pays the full price for your healing.

Maybe you’re wondering what God has for you during this winter season?

Firstly, let him love you.

He’s here.

He’s arms are open to you.

Embrace him back.

Let him carry you.

This is the Christian life.

Feeling weak.

Vulnerable.

Like your just flopped over the shoulder of Jesus.

That’s ok.

Stay there.

Don’t try to kick and scream or do it yourself.

Because he’s picking others up along the way.

He’s rescuing people, and you get to share the experience with him.

Know that he’ll never let go of you.

He’s irrevocably given you his own Spirit to embrace you forever.

And he’s arms are now outstretched to the rest of the world.

Us

One community in history that lived this way was the early church.

In 362, Roman emperor Julian wrote a letter to his high priest in Galatia.

In it he talks about the Christians.

He says, “the poor that are being neglected and overlooked, or ignored, by us, are being picked up by the Christians. They’re devoting themselves to generosity to strangers, not only are they supporting their own poor, but ours as well! Everyone can see this!”

The historian Paul Johnson in his book A History of Christianity, says, “By Julian’s day in the fourth century it was too late to overtake this colossal result, the seeds for which had been planted in such teachings as “I am my brother’s keeper,” “Do unto others as you would have them do onto you,” and “It is more blessed to give than to receive.

The church was also essential in providing nursing care to plague victims, oftentimes at the expense of their own lives. The bishop Dionysius wrote that this was a form of martyrdom. Whereas pagan elites and their priests simply fled the affected cities, some even leaving family members behind, Christian presbyters, deacons, and laymen stayed to provide food, water, and friendship to their neighbors. So after consecutive epidemics had swept through a city, a disproportionate number of those remaining would either have been Christians or pagans who had been ministered to by Christians.

Christians did not practice abortion or exposure of infants; in fact, they passionately condemned such practices. It was common for the Greeks, Romans, and those of other ancient cultures to kill unwanted babies—those who were deformed, female, or illegitimate—by leaving them outside to die from exposure to the elements or from being eaten by wild animals. Christians, though, believe that all human life is precious to God and worth advocating for. They were known to take in victims of attempted infanticide and to adopt children whose families could no longer support them. In this way, their numbers grew.

Christianity was open to people of all ethnicities.

The Christian God is not the exclusive possession of any one people group; he is the world’s. His blessings are available to all peoples, regardless of region or race, and devotion to him does not require the giving up of one’s ethnic identity. In this sense, Christianity was the most inclusive of all the ancient religions.

Can this be our slogan. “My brother Jesus is my keeper; so I am my brother’s keeper.” “My brother Jesus is my keeper, so I am my sister’s keeper.”

It’s easy to see this season as a glass half empty.

Wishing for it to be over.

But is it possible that this is from our gracious loving selfless triune God, providing the exact conditions that will make his light shine for all to see?

It’s not only possible.

It’s certain.

Uncle Ray Ortlund says, “God doesn’t face problems, he makes plans.”

So I urge all of us, let’s stop facing our problems, and start facing our triune God, placing our hand in Jesus hand, facing our brothers and sisters, and facing the world that doesn’t know his open arms of love for them.