The Voice (2)

Invocation

The Lord is in His Holy Temple.

Let all the Earth keep silent before him.

I was glad when they said unto me let us go into the House of the Lord.

Our feet shall stand within Thy gates Oh Jerusalem.

Give Scripture: Acts 12:11-16

Song-

Read: Acts 12:11-16

Acts 12:11–16 KJV 1900

11 And when Peter was come to himself, he said, Now I know of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his angel, and hath delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews. 12 And when he had considered the thing, he came to the house of Mary the mother of John, whose surname was Mark; where many were gathered together praying. 13 And as Peter knocked at the door of the gate, a damsel came to hearken, named Rhoda. 14 And when she knew Peter’s voice, she opened not the gate for gladness, but ran in, and told how Peter stood before the gate. 15 And they said unto her, Thou art mad. But she constantly affirmed that it was even so. Then said they, It is his angel. 16 But Peter continued knocking: and when they had opened the door, and saw him, they were astonished.

Subject: The Voice

Prayer

Introduction

Each day we interact with hundreds of people through one mechanism or another. These interactions can take many forms as they can include in-person exchanges (meetings, conferences, and daily interaction), communication through written media (letters and papers), and increasingly they can take place virtually (text, phone calls, Zoom, Skype and others). We are in a place now where we hear more voices than ever before because the number of ways people can interact with you have increased throughout the decades to now, it is almost at a fever pitch. However, it has not always been this way but due to technological advances and population expansion, our society has become increasingly interconnected in some cases to an alarming degree. Whether you work with the public on your job or you log on to social media and read posts from hundreds of people you have connected with, your daily interactions are high and in our society, they are only increasing. But where and how did it start.

It all starts with the telephone which was invented in 1876...

Stories regarding who bares responsibility for its invention are murky but it is generally accepted that Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in February 1876.

The telephone was invented as a method of communication designed to improve upon the technology of the telegraph which limited communication due to its inability to exceed certain rates of transmission and because it only allowed one-way communication at any given time.

You send a message at around 8 words per minute and someone else responds to you several moments later at the same speed.

With the telegraph, distance often imposed great pressure on the telegraph line as it decreased the speed that the words were sent.

In addition, the telegraph often required a middle-man in the form of a telegraph operator who would send and receive all messages which meant they were prone to misinterpretation or other errors that could make them less than useful.

Finally, the telegraph used only words to communicate and we all know that communication often includes tone, body language, and other factors that are nearly impossible to communicate in words alone, so often times telegraph based communication was limited because it was missing on the key expressive element brought out by The Voice.

And yet, the telegraph was faster than mail, it was more reliable than carrier pigeon, it was often cheaper than a messenger, and was relatively cheap to install/ or migrate. (It had its benefits).

And so, Alexander Graham Bell sought to create a system that allowed for two-way communication, worked better over long distances, eliminated the middle man, and most importantly.... It brought about the use of the voice in communication.

See, it is hard for us to imagine today but...

Prior to the invention of the telephone and later the radio (which came in 1995) the only way you heard someone’s voice was if they stood directly in front of you and spoke with you in conversation

In fact the only way you communicated with someone is if they spoke in front of you or sent you a letter/ or telegraph, both of which were not incredibly ubiquitous because the expense and the shear fact that at that time only a limited portion of the population could even read.

And I get why it is hard for us because in a country where the President can tweet at the drop off a dime or daily press conferences are a thing, it is hard to imagine a world where 80% of the population had never heard the voice of the President of the United States of America.

In a world where we have 2000 friends on Facebook and we see their posts on our social media page each day, it is hard to imagine living in a world where the people you talk to EVERYDAY are the sum-total of your world.

In a society where we send 6 Billion texts per day in the United States alone, it is difficult to wrap our heads around a society where the post office is the life blood of SOCIAL communication and not just bills and junk mail.

In a society where your opportunities to communicate were minimal… In a society where modes of communications were far fewer in number… In a society where voices were your only means of communication and were heard from a relatively small number of people… words held enormous power.

To here the voice of one person was an often an important experience, something especially true for someone you rarely heard.

We remember speeches like Lincoln’s Gettysburg address not so much because of their value over other speeches but we remember them in part because they are rare moments where a disjointed society came together around the words of one man...

Put simply, in a society where few words were spoken and even fewer words were heard… Voices held more power.

Now, we live in a society where the atmosphere around us is often stimulated and charged with the words of others.

People we have never met and people we will never hear from again speak into the atmosphere of our homes, the vault of our heart, and the sponge of out minds on a near continuous basis without pause or reprieve.

Between our phones, televisions, and computers we are constantly bombarded by speeches and thoughts of others… and this trend has pervaded our lives such that words have lost value.

Not to say that no one’s words matter but because the sheer number of voices we hear on a daily basis we find ourselves falling into a lull of constant communication and information where everything seems to be on equal footing with one another.

If the President makes statements everyday how can I ever truly elevate one of his speeches to a higher level than any of the others because they all seem to bear equal weight.

Voices have lost their value and many people find themselves struggling to overcome the clamor of 21st Century life just to stay relevant.

Celebrities are struggling to keep their status because social media has made it far easier to be famous because now you can post a video of your dog and have more followers on Instagram than Kim Kardashian.

It has now become commonplace for White House Press Conferences to fall into the abyss of news and updates about things going on around the globe.

This society has become lost in an endless cadre of voices of people seeking superintendence and others seeking clarity. Many have been left confused because they are seeking something that sticks out amidst the confusion. Its like trying to pick out a voice from a choir when everyone is singing a different song. And it leads me to ask this question....

If everyone is talking… who is speaking?

Within this question, we see our text for today.

Acts 12:11-16

We see in the text that Peter has just been freed from prison by the Angel of the Lord.

He was arrested by Herod who wanted to make an example out of the Christian leaders of that time, as he was persecuting all believers in an attempt to extinguish them.

What he had instead done was driven them underground and forced them to hide their belief but practice it nonetheless.

But he has Peter arrested and while he sat between two soldiers and was watched by the night watchmen of the prison, the Angel of the Lord visited Peter in his sleep and literally walked Peter out of his imprisonment.

And now we enter the period of the text where Peter is going to the house of Mary, John Mark’s mother to find shelter from persecution and any of those who may seek to arrest him again and possibly increase his crime for escaping judgement.

He arrives at the home where they are more or less having a service

They are reading the Word

Sharing stories

And praying for Peter’s release

They are doing all of this under the cover of night, lest they risk being persecuted and imprisoned just like Peter.

It is here that I truly begin my analysis of the text because I see Holy Temple represented all throughout this text.

At the point that Peter knocks on the door, Rhoda enters the scene for the first time.

I could see the entire Church family as Rhoda because of her faith but also because the important role she plays that in many ways goes overlooked.

See Rhoda was a house servant of the House of Mary and when they were in service, they were trusting her to keep watch but to also keep them informed.

If a soldier knocked, she had to put up a good front to prevent them being found out but she also had to make sure they were aware in a way that did not compromise her integrity.

She was faithful because in the midst of the confusion and commotion because she held to her responsibility to check the door and did not allow herself to forget the assignment to which she had been appointed by Mary, the Lady of the House.

In this situation however, it was not a soldier at the door but it was Peter and I love to see her faith because she KNEW it was Peter and she would not relent to the people who refused to believe her.

In many ways, Holy Temple, you are like Rhoda as you have constantly stood on your faith to declare and live out God’s word.

You have remained faithful to your community as shepherds among sheep and as citizens.

You are committed intercessors and carriers of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

You have been faithful even to those who continually serve among your ranks as lead servants.

And yet, today it is not Rhoda that I want to talk to you about today.

This Church… this People are also like the Angel who freed Peter, a role which sits on the fringe of our text today.

You see, the Angel came at the moment of greatest trouble for Peter and was able to get him out of his situation.

Despite Peter being unable to get himself out of the situation and what seemed to be the impossible nature of the situation, the Angel showed up at just the right time to free him literally right from underneath his captors.

Many times this Church has stood in representation of the community fighting for fair or equal treatment.

Fighting for the preservation of black owned lands and property.

Or even better, you stood beside your brothers and sisters in the faith in the midst of great trial and difficulty (even if it may have been their own fault).

You all are willing to fight for people, even when it may not make sense, because it is what God called you to.

You fight for the family

You fight for your Church

You fight for your Community

And you fight for your God

And yet still, I do not want to discuss the Angel as a representation of this body of believers.

In fact, today where I see this Church most represented in this text is in the Apostle & Bishop Peter.

Peter is an accomplished Man of God at this point in his life.

Having walked with Jesus

Preached the Day of Pentecost

Saved Countless souls and baptized even more in the Holy Ghost

He has walked the chalk as a leader within the Christian movement even at this relatively early period in his ministry.

Even more so, God has personally dispatch an Angel to rescue him from his imprisonment and he has overcome two guards, a watchmen, and three gates to the prison all to reach the door of a friend and find himself stopped in his tracks.

Isn’t funny how you can overcome so many barriers just to reach a simple problem and be thwarted.

I know sometimes it can feel like as a people, you move forward only to be seemingly set back by a change in circumstances.

You know all the difficult stuff… and as a body of believers… as a Church family… you stand beside everyone else to convey strength and knowledge but when your time comes you feel like that same strength may be waning.

And yet, this is where we find Peter.

Peter is at the door waiting for entrance and where I see this Church more than anywhere is what it is that actually gets Peter into the doors in the first place.

Being a man like Peter you would think its his accomplishments that got him into the door.

Or you might event think its the gifts in his life that set him a part so he could get into this particular door.

You might believe that it was his attitude that got him into the door, or his resume, or his looks, or any of those things but that would all be wrong.

And I encourage you… look around your Church today and think about the ministry of this Church, the miracles that have been wrought in the Church, the gifts that are locked up inside of this Church...

Holy Temple may not be a Potter’s House but it is a Power House in the spirit.

And while many of these things are important… it is none of these things that truly underscore the gift this Church is to the Kingdom.

What ultimately makes you all a true gift to the Kingdom… What separates you from everyone else… What highlights this Church amid the clamor and confusion of 21st Century life.... IS YOUR VOICE.

Your voice can be heard as a clarion call above all the others because you, as a people, have elected to give your voices over to God.

Closing

I thank God for your voice that is still crying in the wilderness, compelling men towards Christ.... A voice that we can all hear and immediately hear and know who it is but we can also hear it and immediately recognize the anointing that ebbs from this place.

Society and our current way of life have taught us to take the voice for granted.

We just spend hours and countless resources trying to leverage our accomplishments, our followers, and our money against one another to elevate ourselves onto this pedestal created by our peers…

And by doing that, we have devalued everything that we have, including the voices of people around us and even ourselves.

But when it is all said and done, your accomplishments are meaningless but it is all about the weight those accomplishments carry.

What can you use your words to change?

How many lives can you change?

How many jobs can you create?

How many souls can you save?

How many people can you minister to?

And I THANK GOD for Holy Temple United Holy Church because despite all the influences to the contrary you have all joined your voices together and used them as a beacon for God.

We thank God for a VOICE in the wilderness

We thank God for a VOICE crying out to GOD

We thank God for a VOICE speaking out against the wiles of the enemy

We thank God for a VOICE anointed by GOD.

Their are men and women, boys and girls, all who are looking for the call of God and it comes from this place. And if you can remain true to the voice God gave this Church… independent of its Pastor, independent of its Founder, and even Independent of its leadership… people will stand at Holy Temple and asked the question what must I do to be saved.

They will not be able to explain it because something about the atmosphere of the Church has the power to change lives and it is because you have elected to make God the head of the Church and when that happens he can make the impossible happen.