The Bungee Cord. 9-16-24
Hello,
John 6:41-51
“And I will raise you up. And I will raise you up. And I will raise you up on the last day.”
I have heard some Christians say that the life of a Christian is all about holding on tight.
1. When temptations come that try and pull you away from Christ, you need to pray harder than usual. Hold on tight.
2. When the world gets you spinning so fast…your job, you bills, your appointments…you need to get your priorities straight, put God first, start tithing. Hold on tight.
3. When you are lost and confused, and you don’t know what to do you need read the Bible more. Hold on tight.
4. When the road you’re on is really bumpy…your health, your relationship…you need to make time for worship. Hold on tight.
I’ve heard it and I bet that you have heard it too, that as you live this life as a Christian, you need to work on your grip, bulk up your muscles, strengthen your faith so that you can hold on tight.
That may be what others have told you and me, but that is not what Jesus tells you and me this morning. This morning in our Gospel lesson Jesus says this, “No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day.” Hear that again, “No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me; and I will raise that person up on the last day.” In other words, Jesus says that the life of a Christian is all about this, “Being held by God.” God’s word to you and to me is not, “Hold on tight.” No, God’s word to you and to me is this, “I’ve got you!”
Over and over again in scripture, God tells us this same message.
1. When you wander, I am the good shepherd who will leave 99 sheep to find you, and I won’t give up until I do. I’ve got you.
2. When you are swimming aimlessly in the sea going nowhere, I will like a fisher of people drop my net of love and gather you up, and you can fight it all you want, but you won’t be able to wiggle away from my love. I’ve got you.
3. When the devil comes along with its arrows of evil, I will clad you with the armor of God, and the devil’s arrows will bounce off of you. I’ve got you.
4. When death takes hold of you and shackles you in a grave that no human can open, I, who has shown you that I have the power to roll back death’s stone, will come and tear death’s shackles off of you in a prison break that will free you from death’s grip forever. I’ve got you.
Maybe you have seen the poster of a cat with its claws dug into a tree branch hanging above a drooling dog with the words, “Hang in there.” Of course, there’s nothing wrong in hanging in there when you find yourself in such situations. There’s nothing wrong in praying. There’s nothing wrong in generous giving. There’s nothing wrong in reading the Bible. There’s nothing wrong with attending worship weekly. But the thing is that even when we do all those things, we are still nothing more than that cat, holding on for dear life, fighting the ever-pulling pull of gravity (notice the word grave in gravity). Not even the strongest gymnast can hold onto the high bar forever, especially when that gymnast is being pulled down by an elephant whose trunk is wrapped around him. “Hang in there,” ultimately are not words of hope, but words of disaster.
So why pray? Why give offering of thanks and praise? Why read the Bible? Why come to worship every week? Why do these things if trying to strengthen our faith is ultimately a losing battle? Jesus tells us the answer in our Gospel, “47Very truly, I tell you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.’ In other words, the reason to pray, the reason to give offerings, the reason to read the Bible , and the reason to worship every Sunday is not to make us stronger, but rather to have us come to know what it feels like to be held in the hands of God.
When we pray, we get a feel for how strong God’s grip is on us in that Almighty God for whom the universe needs his constant attention, actually makes room in his schedule to stop and listen to you…without an appointment.
When we give offerings of thanks and praise to God, we feel how unbreakable God’s grip on us is as we discover that we give from a well of God’s love for us that never runs dry.
When we read the Bible, we feel how relentless God’s love for us is, love that existed for us even before time began, in every moment of time, and even when time shall come to an end.
When we come to worship, we feel how powerful God’s grip on us is as he physically enters our lives with his body and blood and takes ahold of every cell of our bodies.
In all those ways, prayer, offerings of thanks, and reading scripture, and worship , we “taste and see, that the Lord is good.”
You and I know, that when we step outside these doors, there is going to be a world full of things taking their grip on us….bills, health, job, family, loneliness, excitement, exhaustion, fear, and even death. So, as you take those steps out the door, God says, “go.” Go out with
• good courage,
• deep hope,
• and uncompromised peace.
Because God has said to you today, and every day, “I’ve God you.”
“And I will raise you up. And I will raise you up. And I will raise you up on the last day.”
Amen
<<
>>
Like
Comment
Share
No comments:
Post a Comment