Let us pray: O God, let something essential happen to us, something more than interesting or entertaining or thoughtful. O God, let something essential happen to us. Something awesome – something real. Amen.
The letter to the Hebrews gives the shortest and most straightforward definition of faith found anywhere: “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1) If we want to get a grip on what is meant by these brief words though, we need to spelI them out.
What things do we hope for? That’s not exactly what faith is. Faith is the assurance of receiving the things we hope for. Maybe we hope that the rest of our families will join us for worship – not once in a while – but every week! But faith would not be hoping for this. Faith would be the assurance that in fact that every thing is what is going to happen. You hope that an airplane will not crash. You have faith when you board the aircraft!
Perhaps we hope that the person who holds a grudge against us for something they believe we have done wrong will stop being angry at us. But this hope is not faith! Faith is the assurance that this person is going to be friends with us once again!
God really does care about you, and not just everybody in general.
Over 20 years ago, I checked with a bunch of kids and they had no idea who Charles Schulz’s Peanuts gang were. All adults though, probably know Linus Van Pelt – whose crabby sister is Lucy. In one strip, Lucy laughs at the notion that insecure Linus could be a doctor. She said to him, “You could never be a doctor! You know why? Because you don’t love mankind, that’s why!” To which Linus replies, “I love mankind… It’s people I can’t stand!!”
God is not like Linus Van Pelt. God not only loves all of humanity – God loves you in particular. Whatever it is about you that makes you an individual; whatever peculiar things about you make you who you are, are the very things that God loves about you.
At times we all get some kind of self-esteem problem. We feel down about ourselves. We wonder whether our spouse, or our family love us any more. We think that we’ve screwed up, or we just feel ignored and insignificant.
It might even be that someone here this morning feels that way. My friends, I’m here this morning to tell you that not only are you significant, but you are significant enough that the God of the entire universe knows who you are and really cares about how you feel and how your life is going!
When we come together to be the church, we are meant to express that feeling that God believes. Each and every person is significant! We need to be about the task of making sure that people understand that! God has spread the world out before us. It is a world filled with endless opportunities.
God gives us a fair measure of health, a pretty happy family life, friends who care about us, work that can be satisfying – at least part of the time – and what do we do with what God has given us?
Sometimes we seem to think that life hasn’t given us a fair shake. But think again about the opportunities that God has given you, in particular, to be happy, and to make others happy as well.
Do you remember that special adult during your childhood who always seemed to have time for you? Perhaps there was more than one. In addition to loving parents, you may have had a special uncle, or a kindly next-door neighbour. Perhaps your grandmother was someone special in your life. What was it that made these people so special to you? Perhaps it was that they were happy to make time for you. Perhaps they seemed to get a great deal of joy out of the happiness that they spread your way.
You know, we also have equal opportunities to make happy times for the children in our lives – whether they be our own children, or the children of our friends, or the children right here in the church. Give a child five minutes whenever you see them, and you’ll have a friend for life.
What about that special friend that you have today? The one who is always listening to your problems, and who also seems to be made happy just by the knowledge that something good is happening for you. How often do we become that special kind of friend to someone else?
God opens all kinds of opportunities for us every day! Do you enjoy being part of this church? Perhaps some of your acquaintances at work, or your neighbours, could use that kind of caring church family community that we are trying to build here at the church.
It’s strange how we feel about inviting people to church. We often feel that we’re imposing on people just to tell them about the great time we are having here. Think about it for a moment. If you knew of an open party – that had a number of friends who you thought were wonderful people – you wouldn’t hesitate for a minute to invite your friends or neighbours to go along with you to that party.
Here at the church, we have a wonderful group of people who seem to be very happy to be spending time together – not only at Sunday worship – but also going to neighbourhood walks, Rooster Town tours, and all kinds of other things together – just because we like to be with one another!
That’s a pretty fine recommendation for a church!
Somehow, though we feel awkward when it comes to inviting people to come to church. Why is that? Perhaps it is because we know that church is a place which gives us encounters which may challenge people, which may stretch people, and which — just maybe – even gives us a chance to encounter the holy. That is a deeply personal an intense kind of experience!
One of North America’s top ten preachers, Fred Craddock, tells of a time he was riding in an elevator, and a very earnest young man said to him: “Brother are you saved? Do you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ?” Craddock was taken aback and offended that this fellow would leap out of the blue and ask him such a personal question! His response to the young man was, “I’ll tell you what you’ve asked about my religious life, if first you’ll answer two of my questions.” The young man said “Okay…” Craddock then asked him, “Tell me, how is your love life?”
We cannot bring good news to people we don’t even take the time to get to know. We can bring good news to the people we know and care about.
When Grace and I were getting the opportunity to have Michael be our son, it was not strangers I wanted to tell about Michael. I wanted to tell my friends! That is who we are meant to share good news with – our friends!
Religion is just as personal a thing as our family lives. It is something that we ought to be sharing with the people that we care about – not because it’s our duty to do that, but because we want to share something wonderful with people that we care about!
We cannot tell a total stranger very much about the love of Christ, but we can tell a great deal to someone who knows just who and what our stresses and difficulties, our joys and triumphs have been.
Faith is an intensely personal element of our lives, but don’t let that confuse you into thinking that other people do not want to hear about it. People are intensely interested in spirituality – they just aren’t very interested in religion! So don’t tell them about your religion – tell them what makes your life of faith interesting!
I believe that people in every day of our lives are just waiting for someone who can tell them about something – anything – that can make their lives more meaningful, and which can give them more of a sense of purpose in their everyday life!
I want you to ask yourself one other thing when it comes to the whole question of “if God seems far away, who moved?”
The question is this: Is it so strange that God should want enthusiasm from someone who is bold enough to call themselves a Christian?
Whatever you do in sharing the joy of your faith, don’t do anything unnatural! At the same though, be sure that you are not suppressing the joy and satisfaction in life that your friends, coworkers, and neighbours are just pining away – waiting to hear from you!
You can do it! God believes in you!
Amen.
