The Justification of the Reformation- The Biblical Idea of Unity and Separation

 There are many who are saying right now, as we witness the silly self-destruction of the Protestant Church in America and the West, that the Reformation was only a great hurt to the church.  These same (mostly Roman Catholic or Orthodox brothers and sisters and apologists) say that the church was greatly harmed and that the Protestants should repent and come back to the "mother" church.  
      Such statements gloss over the biblical basis for unity and separation, and even the historical events that led to the Protestant Reformation.  The other side are those who split over every wrong doctrine of the church, and who do not value true unity over their own pride.  One of the historical dangers of the modern day schismatics is that they have bought into the Enlightenment idea that we can all be judges of the Church.  Just as the Anabaptist with their polygamy, communism, and anarchy took to the extreme of Lutheranism, so schismatics have become extremists.  I contend that most schismatics view themselves as consumers of the church and can pick and choose or even create their own church without any fear of judgment from God who loves His bride- the Church. 
      So let us look at three things: 1) The continued reason for the Reformation churches- until unity is made; 2) The reason to not continue to split churches;  and 3) The reason to fear and respect the judgment of God on the Church and the basis for that judgment. 

First- What were the real causes of the Reformation?  There were secondary causes of the Reformation- from a purely secular viewpoint kings wanted more power and included in that was the wealth and power of the church.  But why did the church become so wealthy to begin with?  When you play chess it is a reminder that the bishop is more powerful than the knight or even castle/rook/pawn.  This is a far cry from Jesus who had no home of his own (Mt. 8:20), no savings accounts, and whose only possession- a robe was taken from him at his crucifixion.  The church can give into greed and think it is justified in doing so by thinking the church with gold, silver, ivory, ornate paintings and statues point to God.  Really, simplicity itself is a reminder of God in the flesh- Jesus.  
    But one hidden reason for the Protestant Reformation is found in the 40-217 antipopes (people who claim to be pope- or set up by a secular authority as a pope).  The greatest example is the Western Schism (1378-1417) when there were as many as 3 popes at once- all clearly for secular, political and financial power.  This was a sign that the church had become truly corrupt.  The schism between the Orthodox and Roman Catholic church (East-west of Great schism) in 1054 opened the door for more schisms in the trinitarian church.  The theological points were from heaven's point of view trivial and not worth the disunity of the church.  But there were other more immediate reasons for the Reformation besides any of these.  But I contend Sacerdotalism as perhaps the major cause- (excessive and unwarranted dependence on the clergy).  Thus no confession should be made without going to a priest; no one should die without a priest to give last rites; the priest withholding part of the eucharist from the participants; the priest withholding the Bible from the people (lest they misinterpret it- which the priests clearly already had done).  Thus the idea of the priesthood of all believers (1 Peter 2:9).  In the end, this was the primary reason.  When Luther, Zwingli and Calvin threatened this priestly hold- each was threatened with death (as Hus, Tyndale, and Wycliffe before them).   Indulgences- to buy souls out of hell by donating to the church were another way to sustain the sacerdotalism of the church.  Absenteeism- the idea that a person could pay to obtain churchly rule over a parish, or area without even visiting, or seeing, much less serving these people is another form of sacerdotal entitlement.  Nepotism- so many clerics appointed family members to clerical positions (De Medici were a prime example- Leo X set up cousin Clement VII).  The sexual immorality of the clergy was an issue then and it has risen its head again in our day.  So Pope Alexander Vi (Borja 1492-1503) had 9 children by 3 mistresses, and homosexuality was so prevalent Henry VIII established the Buggery Acts of 1533 mainly against corrupt monks and priests.  On the one hand marriage was declared a sacrament but celibacy was declared a higher calling and unbiblically demanded of the priesthood.  Thus the church was following into all these "pharisaical" rules- adding rules to scripture and then finding they were hard to keep.  Justification by works and grace- instead of by grace alone is another byproduct of sacerdotalism.  In making up penance requirements a priest had power over others.  Not only could belief of being saved by works bring boasting (Eph. 2:8,9), it could also bring the ability of church authorities to declare which works were necessary for salvation or to escape hell or purgatory. 
    Hus, Wycliffe, and Tyndale were pre-reformers killed for their beliefs.  Luther was threatened with death at Worms, Calvin escaped from his house as an exile in France.  Hunted, robbed, and penniless he went to Geneva.  Zurich was killed in a Roman Catholic attack on Zurich.  Luther, Calvin and even Zwingli did not intend at first to split from the church.  They wanted reformation until they were forced out of the church by both excommunication and the threat of death.  
2) In contrast to this, many today split over almost anything, without any justification for love or unity.  There are some who lecture on valuing love over doctrine.  I believe you should be able to hold both- until you are kicked out or threatened with death.  But taking schism into our own hands is not something the early reformers encouraged or envisioned.  Calvin writes much about the unity of the church because the fear is that the church would just divide infinitesimally.  So until 1054 there was 1 denomination; then in the Reformation there were maybe 15.  Today there are 47,000 denominations.  Today there are people who complain about denominations- then they go out and form their church then another then another- and then they have their own denomination!  There is an unwillingness to work with other churches for the glory of God- and a sad blindness that one day all those who believe will be in heaven together worshiping God.  
Jesus prayed (Jn. 17) that the believers would be one.  He told his disciples not to "lord it over" one another- but that the one great in his kingdom must learn to be the servant of all.  Paul decried divisions in the Corinthian church and said, "There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism- calling us to be one.  Those who claim to live by scripture alone must also live by the fact that scripture never encourages separation.  When the prophets of Baal were so numerous Elijah didn't form his own nation- though he was the "only one left."  Gideon did not start a new nation but reformed it.  We forget the power of a remnant a bit of salt to effect the whole body.  Too many times proud leaders- also hungry for praise, likes, or power (another form of sacerdotalism) split the church to have others follow them.  I think of Gresham Machen or Carl McIntyre.  In the 1920s the Presbyterian Church in the USA split because they rejected fundamentalism and rejected a separate mission board (power/control AGAIN).  But then after the group split off- they split again one because they were pre-millenialists and the others were post-millenialists. Such doctrinal pride and disunity is silly, schismatic, anti-evangelism.  In my past church we had two splits before I got there (and another split is going on after I left).  For every person who left for a more conservative church, another 1.5 dropped out altogether over all the lack of love and strong bickering.  So, if you cause one of these little ones to stumble...
But then there is 3) Those in denominational control who have rejected scripture alone as their guide.  We should be "reformed and ever reforming according to the Word of God" but instead some just believe in "reform and ever reforming" because they simply embrace change/fad/and a we-know-better attitude.  The Reformation also was a rebellion against the "experts" who could tell them how to live and a going back to the roots- the scriptures themselves to find out how to believe and live.  The Scriptures were seen as our anchor, our eternal Word from God that pointed to  THE Eternal Word in the Christ.  Those who think they can ignore the core of the Gospel to make up their own worship and on church, do indeed drive others away.  Such callousness cannot be ignored.  So I hear many in the mainline churches today say, "Let them leave... we'll be happier- they'll be happier- the church will be more united."  That is a lie and it flies against the idea of love and unity.  
So, today I suggest three things.  1) Be faithful right where you are.  In Thyatira where there was only a remnant opposing sexual immorality the advice (red letter) from God was: "To the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan's so-called deep secrets, I will not impose any other burden on you, except to hold on to what you have until I come."  Hold on- He's coming.  2) Pray- Jesus prayed for unity and we should too.  3) Love- Love those who differ from you and those who agree with you.  You may be accused by both sides, but love any way.  

To Know, Glorify, and Enjoy God"

 “To Know, Glorify and Enjoy God”  6/2/24  Isa. 43:6-13; Mark 9:2b-27  Ben Sloan at Eastminster  (Creed:WSC 1 & 2)    [For video: https://vimeo.com/953197300 https://vimeo.com/953197300]

The ushers, greeters, and staff are given these name tags so that you and guests will be able to see who we are.  Often I am running in here pinning my name tag on as I go, and a fair amount of time, I have carelessly  put it on upside down.  Often someone will be helpful and tell me that I have done so, and sometimes I say sheepishly, “That’s so I can read it, and remember who I am.”  Knowing who you are and whose you are is so important. Knowing who you are, whose you are, and a third question- where you are going in life- are so important.   If you don’t know where you are going, it doesn’t matter if you are in a hurry or not; it doesn’t matter if you go left or right or in the middle;  If you don’t have an end point to head toward- a final destination- a purpose.  Plankton are tiny organisms that float in the ocean- and the first building block of the food chain.  They have no eyes or other senses- and they just literally go with the flow- moved about by the waves.  Don’t be like the plankton- just floating or hanging onto any cause that comes along.  Be like a hummingbird.  Ruby-throated hummingbirds, by contrast have very poor eyesight, but they rely on smell- and they have an uncanny ability to migrate from southern Mexico to South and North Carolina about 2,500 miles going up to 600 miles without stopping.  Why do they migrate?  Other than God wants to spread their beauty, they also follow their food sources- the blooming cycles of flowers and nectar.  Don’t float with the tide and wind of life, but go with God.  Going is not the most important thing- a goal- a direction and a reason is.  As a boy years ago I borrowed my uncle’s rowboat in the sound off of Maine.  The first time I tried I was fairly unsuccessful- going around basically in circles.  But then my uncle told me to not look at the oars or the sea, but to fix my eyes on something on land and row toward it.  That is when I discovered the joy of rowing.  So let us fix our eyes on Jesus the author and perfector of our faith. 
        So the very first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism is “What is the chief end of man?”  Or in modern English- “What is the main purpose of human beings?”  Or another way of putting it- “why are we alive?” These are similar questions to who are you, whose are you, and where are you ultimately going in life. The answer is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.”  In other words, Your life is not about you.  The world does not hold its breath waiting for you to make a decision.  You did not create yourself.  You did not make yourself.  You are not here by accident.  You are made for a purpose.  The scriptures have some directions for your life.  We are part of a grand design- one puzzle piece in the puzzle- designed to make it happen. 
     At first, when I studied this, I thought- surely glorifying God is not what it is about.  Surely we are made to be saved- to go to heaven.  But that is not it.  God wants all to join Him in heaven.  But we do not just exist to exist on into eternity.  The Bible says, “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (Col. 3:23).  Thirty times in scripture it speaks of the glory or glorifying God.  It is an important idea.
Different books on theology start at different places.  Lutheranism and Melanchthon began his theology talking about sin.  Pentecostal and some fundamentalist theological works (eg. Duffield) often begin with the Bible.  Loyola of the catholic Jesuits begins his work with saying we should examine ourselves. Calvin, The Shorter Catechism and most Reformed theologies start with knowing God.  If you know God- you will know yourself.   People spend a lot of time these days trying to find themselves- trying to find who they are.  But, As Augustine said, “Our hearts are restless til they find their rest in thee.”  If you know God- not just know about God then you will know who you are and whose you are.  The focus on our worship is not on our feelings, what it does for us, how it inspires us- those are wonderful things that should not be downplayed.  But the focus of worship, and the focus of our lives should be on the One who made all- gives us life- sustains us in this life- and redeems us- that is God.  In fact, to focus on what God can do for us instead of focusing on God seems to be a half worship of ourselves. 
     Let the main thing be the main thing.  God is the main thing.  Jesus said apart from Him we are nothing- so let’s be something by plugging into God.  Jesus said, “Not my will but thine be done.”  He said that as an example for us- it is not what we want in the flesh that is the important thing- but what God wants.  You know there are neat yard decorations out there at Christmas and now Easter, Halloween, other times.  I’m talking about these blow up figurines.  When I walk my dog in the late afternoon I see them in the yards- my dog often barks at them.  But when I walk my dog in the morning- they are just flat, lying on the ground pretty pitiful- you can’t even tell what they are Santa or reindeer.  That is how we are without the Spirit dwelling in us- the wind filling us up- we exist but we are flat, pretty meaningless.  The Presbyterian and Reformed creeds and catechisms do not argue for or about the existence of God.  These confessions assume if you are reading them you are a person of faith.  Almost everyone was in the whole history of the world.  It is only as human pride rises and morals decline (both in the world and in the church) that we have the audacity to think we do not need to believe in God.  I truly believe that even for the staunchest atheist, sometime in their lives a spark of belief comes- though they may snuff it out.  But God is our first cause and our reason for existence as individuals, as a church, and as a world.  The church especially, does not exist well without God.  There are many who try to turn the church into simply a social club doing good in the world.  But belief in God is our motive for being and staying together, and also our motive to be generous to the poor, and belief I God is our motive to get up- leave our comfortable lives- and do something outside of ourselves for not only a greater good- but THE greatest good.  In fact, God and good are synonymous.  We think we can define good- but God is the ultimate goodness in the universe.  We are used to saying, “Goodbye.”  But before the mid 1500s in the old English language that is an abbreviation of “God be with ye.”  Similarly- Good Friday used to be called “God-Friday.”  In our culture we value God as a God of love, but we forget and are more and more blind that God is also good, righteous and holy.
       We are called to Glorify God.  “Glorify” is also a word we don’t use much anymore.  It really means to reflect- like a mirror.  2 Cor. 3:18 says, “all of us contemplate the glory of the Lord as though reflected In a mirror and we are transformed into that image.” So the moon’s light is not its own, it reflects or glorifies- even magnifies in the dark of night- the sun’s light.  Our lives are to be lived not simply for ourselves and our selfishness.  Rather our lives are to be lived to the glory of God- reflecting Him, imitating Him, pointing to Him.  In that sense, all of us are lights shining in the darkness (as the Bible says).  Ideally, when people look at us they do not see us- they see Jesus shining in us.  We are the light of the world only as we reflect THE light of the world- God Himself.  Jesus was the one who said, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven” (Mt. 5:16).  When we are good, it reflects the goodness of God- who not only loved us first but also was good first- setting the standard for goodness.  In that sense, we are all created and called by our faith in God to be missionaries for Him.  Jesus said, “And you will be my witnesses.”  So let us glorify Him- pointing to Him.  Romans 11;36 says, “For from him and through him and for him are all things.  To him be the glory forever!”  
      But the most neglected part of this Shorter Catechism answer about our main purpose or chief end is the last phrase- “Our main purpose is to glorify God AND ENJOY HIM FOREVER.”  Some have this mistaken idea that Christians cannot enjoy anything.  But to the contrary, Christians can enjoy everything in a way- and enjoy a relationship forever.  Everything we experience- even the evils and sorrows and sadness of life- will one day be redeemed.  There is a great song written by Thomas Moore that has a stunning line: “earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.“    The alternative is that without God there is no healing or hope in the face of evil.  We also have one who will be with us forever.  So Paul could sing in prison; So Joseph could trust God In the midst of injustice;  So Christian martyrs face death boldly.  Even in death believers triumph. But right now- We enjoy the love of God, the hope of God, the strength of God, the blessings of God, the peace of God, the grace of God, the answered prayers of God- not just for a moment but forever.  Every human relationship that we may enjoy will not last forever.  Everything, every gift will not last forever.  But there is One whom we can enjoy forever, and ever.   As one devotional I read this week said, we can move from merely believing in God to experiencing a friendship with Him. 
        It is one thing to say, “Oh yes, I guess there is a God up there somewhere.”  It is another to say we can trust God as our friend, and depend on Him.  John Paton was a Presbyterian missionary to the New Hebrides islands.  He was trying to translate the Bible for them in their own language, but they did not have an equivalent word for “faith.”  The right word came to him when he was going to sleep in his hammock.  He asked them what was the word for putting your full weight down.  That word for “resting” in something was the word he used for faith in God. So a little bit like our passage says, we believe- but we need help to believe more- and so we pray, “Help my unbelief.”   C.S. Lewis, the great Christian writer said he didn’t know what true faith was until after his wife died.  He said, “You never know how much you really believe anything until it becomes a matter of life and death to you.  It is easy to say you believe a rope to be strong when you are just wrapping it around a box.  But suppose you had to hang by that rope over a cliff.  Only a real risk tests the reality of belief.”  So I invite you not simple to believe in God, but to glorify Him and enjoy Him.

There is a Good Shepherd Psalm 80; John 10

 Psalm 80:1-7;  John 10:11-18  “There is a Good Shepherd”  4/21/24
Preached at Eastminster Presbyterian by Rev. Dr. J. Ben Sloan

Here is a video of a sheep that I would like for you to see at the beginning of this sermon:  

There are so many images of sheep in scripture.  In our more urban society, we may easily get confused.  But I remember 2 things: they can get messy and wander off;  I can remember when we had the Live Nativity here, and before we hired the sheep, we had a farmer, Mr. McCracken, who would allow us to have his sheep at the Live Nativity.  There were two problems.  First we had to catch the sheep.  My brother, who is about 10 years older than me—and I think David Chase, went to catch these sheep one Christmas.  It had rained the night before and they came home absolutely covered in mud!   Then the other problem was that the sheep tended to escape and headed down Trenholm Road toward what is now the field.  Sheep are cute, sweet, won’t hurt a fly, but they can be messy and get in trouble.  [show slide]  I love that meme.  It reminds me that as many times as Jesus rescues me, I tend to get in trouble all over again.  The good news is the Good shepherd does not give up- to the point that he would rather die than not rescue the sheep. 
     When Jesus restored Peter after his resurrection- He went after one of his lost sheep; His question  3 times (one for each of the times he denied him) was: “Do you love me.”  Then the next admonition was to “Feed my lambs, take care of my sheep, feed my sheep.”  He was asking Peter to be an under-shepherd- and a good one- motivated by love, and the need to care for the people of God.  He was asking him to be a good shepherd.  We need people who will consider the ministry.  Who are willing to give themselves fully for the glory of God.  Jesus here lists some qualities for a Good shepherd.  He listed them not just for the apostles, but for all who listen. 
He lays down his life; He knows his sheep; he cares for their being peacefully together; He gives them abundant life.
    1) THE GOOD SHEPHERD LAYS DOWN HIS LIFE FOR THE SHEEP- He Doesn’t run away when trouble comes.  Do you know how much you are loved by the God who made you?  He loves you, knows you, and gives Himself for you.  When you stray away- He reaches down to bring you back.  The birth of God in human form that we celebrate at Christmas shows God is willing to come down for you that you might be brought up to Him.  The death of the Good Shepherd, Jesus, is not some esoteric theological concept.  Jesus said it like this, Greater love has no one than this- that He gives his life for his friends.  He said the Son of Man came not to be served- like a hireling- but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son.  We know all that, but can you let it sink into your bones?  The Good Shepherd gives His life for the sheep.  God is not out to get you, or manipulate you, or zap you, or consume you. 
     That doesn’t mean that the Good shepherd doesn’t want you to come into His fold, into the safety of His care, to come back to Him.  The Good Shepherd cares when you go astray.  He doesn’t shrug his shoulder and say, “Those old dumb sheep- they’ll get what’s coming to them.”  No, He comes down.  He looks for us like the Prodigal’s father.  He leaves the 99 to go after us.  He looks for us as a person looking for a lost coin or a lost pearl, and He invites us to look for Him.  The Good Shepherd says, “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness then all these other things will be added to you.” 
   Eight months ago 9/2 at 1:30 AM, Joseph Pope and Charles Segar saved the lives of two 18 year old students whose car was burning in a late night wreck.  They saw the car burning, and when they looked they saw the man inside.  They busted out the window and pulled Anderson Jones from his Nissan.  Jones told him there was another in the car.  They pulled her from the car too as the car started to be engulfed in flames.  The car could have exploded.  Pope cut his arm trying to help and required stitches.  The two could not save themselves- but Pope and Segar saved them and were recognized for that by Clemson City Council, and the Boy Scouts.  Pope was an eagle scout from our own troop 10.   Jesus is our rescuer.  He came to us when we could not save ourselves at risk to himself.   When we rescue, when we help when we give of ourselves we are being Christ-like.

2) THE GOOD SHEPHERD KNOW HIS SHEEP AND HIS SHEEP KNOW HIM- he binds up their wounds, they call out to the shepherd, and the shepherd calls back to them.   I said this awhile back, but we tend to live like everyone knows us except God.  Our Snapchat, twitter, facebook, virtual friends may know us- but God doesn’t really know us.  If He did, He wouldn’t like that snidy comment I put up about someone else’s opinion.  We think our GPS service knows where we are- but somehow God does not.  We think Google can see our house from Google earth, but somehow God cannot.  If Google knows your email, your ad preferences and wants, and it is but a machine, cannot God Almighty the omniscient one?  The guillemot is an arctic bird that lays its eggs on the cliff . All the birds lay thousands in a row.  Yet studies show the mother incredibly  knows which egg is hers.  So God knows you by name and loves you.  There is a great article in the State paper about Dawn Staley texting a Clemson fan giving him comfort over his gamecock mother’s passing.  It meant so much that she took time and that of all the fans she met, she knew her and cared.  God knows you so well.  He made you.  He knows every cell, every molecule of your body.  He knows when you fall into a ditch.  He knows when you are in the green pastures feeding and lying beside the still waters.  He knows when your heart is broken.  He came down to earth to show us He understands us.  The One who is and gives eternal life understands suffering and death.  There is nowhere, not the darkest evil place, not the brightest good place;  not the stupidest place, or the most enlightened place; not the place where you feel horribly uncomfortable- even the death bed, and not the place where you think you are already in heaven.  There is no place where God does not know you and care about you.  Tim Keller said, “God know us to the bottom yet loves us to the skies.” 
3) THE GOOD SHEPHERD CARES ABOUT THE UNITY OF THE FLOCK- There are other sheep not of this pen—He is clearly talking about that there are gentiles that Jesus wants to invite into the fold.  They also will know Him, and he says, “And there shall be one flock.”  One of the saddest things in our day is that we seem to have lost in the last fifteen years, the desire to be one flock.  We divide and cast out and divide again until people say, “why do I want to go to that individualistic church.”  The number of denominations is growing.  The first 1,000 years of Christianity there was only one denomination.  The next 500 years there were about five.  Today there are roughly 45,000 different denominations in the world- including non-denominational churches who became denominations.  We have a problem.  The problem is not that our beliefs are not perfect- no one believes perfectly.  The problem is described in 1 Corinthians 13- “If I speak in the tongues of angels but have not love- I am nothing.  If I have a faith that can move mountains but have not love I am nothing.”  The church is dying today because we lack faith, hope and love. In our context, we must learn to love across denominational lines- to love those with whom we differ- or we will wither into nothing.   It is not our kingdom come- it is His.   The old joke is about a person who dies and goes to heaven.  St Peter is giving them a tour.  In one room are people kneeling.  The man says, “Who are those people?”  They are the Methodists;  Then another room there are people singing and raising their hands “Who are those people?”  They are the Pentecostals.  There were some with their heads bowed quietly- almost like they were asleep- “Who are those people?”  They are the Presbyterians.  Then there were three rooms with the doors shut.  The man says, “Who are those people?”  Peter says, “SHHHH!  Those are the indepen dents and they think they are the only ones up here.  It is time to repent of our divisiveness, and our willingness as sheep to wander off looking for greener pastures.  The Good Shepherd wants one flock. 
4) ABUNDANT LIFE-The Good Shepherd is not a thief who seeks to kill and destroy and take away your joy.  The thief is not just the devil.  There are many thiefs!  Envy steals our joy;  drugs we may think give us joy- but can also give us regret and addiction that kill and destroy- Last year in SC over 2,000 people died to drug overdoses and that is with an abundance of Narcan that keeps people from dying.  Immorality steals our joy- things like pornography- SC ranks 9^th in the nation in time spent on porn on the internet.  But porn can destroy a family.  There is a long list of wolves in sheeps clothing that people buy into.  Life can be hard and troubling- but we can be of good cheer- for the resurrected Christ has overcome the world.  The Good Shepherd is not a wolf in sheep’s clothing who wants to take the beauty of your life away.  The Good Shepherd says, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden- I will heal your wounds, get you beyond your past mistakes and hurts.”  The synonym for salvation is “eternal life.”  Jesus says, I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.  1 John 5:12 says, “Whoever has the Son has life.”  Ephesians 2 says when we were dead in our sins, Christ came to make us alive.  The abundant life is right here.  Today is the first day of the rest of your eternal life.  Are you just existing?  Are you just coasting in life?  Is your life meaningless?  Is loneliness consuming you?  Are you trying to find yourself?  There is one who wants us to open the door to His love.  He wants us to give up our destructive ways- give up jumping back into the ditches and live in the abundant life.  Today at Eastminster we will have baptisms of confirmation students and a baby.  It is not the end of their journey- it is the beginning of their abundant life!  Hedonism is living for pleasure.  John Piper coined the phrase “Christian hedonism” which means finding pleasure in the living God- the good.  We are made to not just glorify but enjoy God- right now and on into forever.   Do not let any thief steal your joy.  Instead, seek to relish the abundant eternal life- which begins today. 

4-1-1 Do You Want Information?

                                           Wikipedia- Partial Map of the internet
 What is Your Information Source?

Scripture: "The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the Lord are sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and drippings from the honeycomb." - Psalm 19:7-10

Today is 4/11. Many of those under 35 do not know what "dial 4-1-1" means. We may know what 9-1-1 means (emergency), but from 1930-2023, you would often hear on the other end of a 4-1-1 dial: "Information." The free directory assistance service was discontinued by AT&T in 2022 for cell users and in 2023 for landline users. With Google, and certain directory search engines as well as screens on cars that pull up directories, 4-1-1 became obsolete. However, since 4-1-1 was eliminated, the most helpful directory assistance websites either require payment or make you put up with annoying advertising. So where do you go for information?

We live in a time of information overload. We have access to more information than we can use. We also have so many prejudicial sources of information that we recognize that most truths are hidden and combined with a layer of slant or agenda. We have become so used to this that some have given up on believing there is any truth (or trustworthy information) at all in the world.

When confronted face-to-face with the living Truth of God in the flesh, Pontious Pilate asked the famous (pagan) question of doubt: "What is truth?"

So where do you go for real, deep information (epistemology)?

Some say to trust the truth to the experts. Certainly, we do this to a certain extent. When a car repairman services my brakes, I trust the brake expert more than my ability to even check on what he is doing. The problem is that sometimes experts get it wrong. When the locomotive was invented, one "expert" said the human body could not endure traveling at such speed and with such noise, thinking such travel would "injure the brain." Experts can contradict each other with half-truths. Just look at the political "experts" and debates of our day.

Our confessions speak of the Bible and especially the person and words of Jesus Christ as being the measure of real Truth and information. Jesus is the incarnation of God's love. In some ways, the whole Protestant Reformation was about putting the Bible in the language of the people (vernacular) and then putting that Bible in the hands of the people – teaching them to read it. One of the reasons we have so many Bible studies is we believe that what we ought to believe and do is found in the scriptures.

In addition to the scriptures themselves, we also need the church (and one another) to help us discern what the Holy Spirit is saying to us today through the scriptures. The information we receive is not just for trivial pursuit or encyclopedic storage but for application to change us and the world to make earth more like heaven itself.

So do not be afraid to seek the most important information from the One who claimed to be the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). He is the One who said, "Your Word is Truth" (John 17:17). The word "Gospel" can be translated as "good news” or "good message" or "good information."

The most important information is information that will affect us both now and in eternity. Part of our calling is to not keep the really great information to ourselves but to tell others how to have the hope, joy, and love that is within us. Look for ways to pass that 4-1-1, that important information, on to others.

Prayer: Lord, your commands are true and righteous altogether. In a drowning sea of information and misinformation, help me see your Word as my lifeline to hope and truth. Give me a heart to seek you in scripture and ears to hear your Spirit speaking to my heart. Amen.

DEVOTIONAL AND THOUGHTS ON THE ECLIPSE 4-8-2024

 

ECLIPSE

4/8/2024

All of the United States will experience at least a partial eclipse Monday 4/8.
There was a 2017 eclipse (8/21) that passed from Oregon to South Carolina in which 215 million Americans viewed it directly or digitally;  The 2024 eclipse (7 years later) will go from Texas through Maine.  If you combine them together, the two eclipses form an X or a cross intersecting south of St. Louis.  South Carolina will experience a partial eclipse 81%  to 69% beginning around 1:50PM peaking at 3:08 and ending at 4:25 PM.  Please wear special eclipse glasses to protect your retina.  I did not at a total eclipse when I was 13 and it damaged my retina which tore in 1993. 

Historical significances of eclipses:
1) On May 28, 585 BC there was a huge battle at the end of a six year war between the empires of Media (later Medes and Persians/Iran) and the Lydia in what is now Turkey. Herodotus recounts that “just as the battle was growing warm, day was on a sudden changed into night…when they observed the change, the Medes and Lydians ceased fighting, and were alike anxious to have terms of peace agreed on…This event was foretold by Thales.” 
2) Herodotus also accounts how the Persian king, Xerxes  saw an eclipse before invading Greece.  He was told by his Zoroastrian priests that it was a warning of the Greek’s destruction.  However, we know the Persians were defeated, not the Greeks and Xerxes was assassinated in 465BC. 
3) When Jesus died on the cross 3:00 PM 4/3/33 there was an earthquake (Mt. 27:51) and a darkening of the sun (Mt. 27:45; Mk. 15:33; Lk. 23:44) from 12-3:00 (sixth to the ninth hour).  Some say this darkening was by a solar, lunar, or simply dark clouds from a storm. 
4) Christopher Columbus on his third voyage to North America, was shipwrecked on Jamaica in 1503.  He and his crew was facing starvation.  Columbus forecast a lunar eclipse on March 1 as a sign from God that they should not withhold food from his crew.
5) Tecumseh’s brother prophesied a solar eclipse 4/16/1806 and it united the Shawnee and other Indians in a confederacy against William Henry Harrison and the Americans.
6) In 1919 an eclipse proved Einstein’s theory of relativity’s prediction that the sun’s gravity bent starlight forever changing how we look at time, space and motion. 

Religious significance of eclipse:
“The heavens are telling the glory of God.  The skies proclaim the work of his hands.  Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.  They have no speech, they use no words, no sound is heard from them.  Yet their voice goes out into all the earth.”  (Psalm 19).  An eclipse is another amazing sight in the heavens that could help us to think about the God who made it all. 
Jesus quoted Isaiah 13:10; 34:4 about the distress of the days around his second coming:
“the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the sarts will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.”  Joel 2:10 speaks of the great Day of the Lord that “the earth quakes, the heavens tremble.  The sun and the moon grow dark and the stars lose their brightness.”  (Ezek 32:7).
In other religions eclipses had different religious meanings.  According to a BBC article (Richard Fisher 10/12/23) in western Asia it was a dragon devouring the sun; In Peru a puma; The Vikings spoke of sky wolves.  In Choctaw Native American culture black squirrels devoured or clouded the sun, and we were supposed to remain quiet. 
In a total eclipse, the birds hush their singing, some animals curl up as if going to sleep, and there is a quiet upon the earth. 

From a Christian point of view, signs in the heavens are opportunities to re-think our faith.  It is a definite reminder that the universe is bigger than we are, and that we are not in control of it.  Nor should we expect that the universe is always constant and beyond change or the control of a Creator.  Even if an eclipse is predictable mathematically, that doesn’t mean it is not a huge event that effects life or is a possible wake up call.  When I see a sunrise over the ocean or a sunset behind the mountains such things are predictable but that does not take away the ability for them to inspire and even change me for the better.  Because Jesus (and Isaiah and Joel) predicted the darkening of the sun and moon before the day of the Lord (or the day of the second coming), seeing an eclipse can make us think of seeing our God face to face one day.  Perhaps (as the Lydians and Medes) it could inspire us to seek peace and pursue it.  Perhaps those who are dividing from others would seek instead to love and overcome their differences.  Perhaps our egos and pride will be seen for what they are in the shadows of an eclipse.  Maybe we could stand and see the Bailey’s Beads (sunlight around the edge of the moon) or the shadow bands (seen on the ground before or after an eclipse) , the 360 degrees of orange and feel the temperature drop and stand in awe of the God of the universe.
I remember the 2017 eclipse.  We had a worship service at the church.   There were no earthquakes, nuclear war, no apocalypse and the Lord didn’t come back.  But HE was present and we stood in awe and wonder at the God who made the sun, the moon, the earth, the stars, and “set their courses in the heavens.”  “But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God.”  (Acts 2:33). 

Prayer: Lord, you are the Creator of the sun, the moon, the stars, and all that I can see, including me.  Thank you for the gift of life, and the things that happen in life that make it interesting and point to you. I stand before you in humility at your greatness and power.  I kneel before you in silence, humility, and repentance.  How majestic is your name, Lord our Lord!  You have set your glory in the heavens. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and stars, which you have set in place.  What are human beings that you are mindful of them?  Yet you came down to our level in Jesus.  You showed your sympathy and love through Him making a way for us to come to you. 

 

Suggested Hymns:  For the Beauty of the Earth;  God is Working His Purpose Out, O God who Spins the Whirring Planets;  “Let all things Now Living” (has the great phrase- “His law he enforces, the stars in their courses, and sun in its orbit obediently shine.”). 

My pop song eclipse playlist:  “Here comes the Sun” (The Beatles) “Soak up the Sun” (Sheryl Crow); “A Sky Full of Stars” (Coldplay); “Fly Me to the Moon” (Frank Sinatra); “Moonshadow” (Cat Stevens)
But specifically for a solar eclipse:  “You’re so Vain” (Carly Simon); “Total Eclipse of the Heart” (Bonnie Tyler); “Bad Moon Rising” (Credence Clearwater Revival); “Eclipse” (Pink Floyd);

Christianity Today Article highlighting Footwashing (and Eastminster)

Christianity Today article on Footwashing

Maundy Thursday Thoughts

 

Maundy Thursday Eastminster 3/28/24- Sanctuary
Ex.  12:21-27;  John 13:1-17, 31b-35  Rev. Dr. Ben Sloan

The word “Maundy” in Maundy Thursday has some mystery to it.  We are not absolutely sure what it means.  I can remember one of my kids a long time ago asking, "Daddy are we going to church on Monday Thursday?"  Some speak of Maundy money- as a way to give alms or gifts to the poor;  Some say it has to do with anointing with oil.  Some say it has to do with washing the feet.  But most think the word comes from the French Mande- and the Latin Mandatum- meaning the mandate or command to love one another.
Tertullian recorded the washing of feet in the 2^nd century;  But Maundy Thursday services go back to at least 1250 AD- about 800 years ago.  Of course on this day, Jesus celebrated the Passover- the Last Supper- with his disciples.  He washed their feet.  They went out to the Garden where Jesus prayed so hard he dripped blood as He said, “Not my will but yours be done.”  He was betrayed by a kiss and arrested and taken to Caiaphas’s house.
      [Read Scripture]

A sacrament is a visible sign of God’s invisible grace.  It is something that you can see that reminds you of something bigger that you cannot see.  Much like this ring on my finger is a visible sign of my invisible relationship and love for my wife.  Everytime I look at this ring, I think of my promises and my covenant of love with her. 
The Roman Catholics thus had seven sacraments:  1) Baptism, 2) Eucharist (or Lord’s Supper), 3) Confirmation, 4) Penance/Reconciliation, 5) Anointing of the sick/Last rites, 6) Marriage, 7) Ordination  These are all means of grace- that is tools to enhance the Christian life and help us to grow.  But some of them are not for everyone- marriage is not for everyone- Jesus did not get married.  Ordination is not for everyone.  Luther said there were only two of these that were biblical.  There were only two of these that all people were commanded to do- 1) Baptism- Jesus said go and baptize;  and 2) Communion/Lord’s Supper- where He said, “Do this in remembrance of me.”  Baptism has an Old Testament equivalent in circumcision.  Both are initiation rites of cleansing.  Communion has an Old Testament equivalent in the Passover.  Both of these were to be done remember salvific acts- the exodus’ salvation from slavery and the Lord’s deliverance from our sins on the cross. 
      But I want to say using Luther’s standard, there is a third sacrament.  It is not found in the Old Testament as a sacrament- but it is a new commandment an ordinance.  This new commandment is not as clear.  But Jesus says it clearly, “A new commandment I give you that you love one another.  As I have loved you- so also you should love one another.  By this shall all the world know that you are my disciples- by your love for one another.”  Love is the new commandment- the new sacrament.  What is the visible sign of this sacrament.  Here he says, “You call me Master and Lord for that is what I am.  Now that I your master and Lord have washed your feet, so you should also wash one another’s feet.”  The visible sign of the new commandment- the new sacrament is foot-washing.  But it is not just washing feet, that would be too simple and constrictive.  His emphasis was on the Master doing the work of a servant.  In other words- visible service is a sacrament of God.  The standards of Luther and Calvin are met here- it is biblical- and it is commanded to all the followers of Christ- love one another by washing one another’s feet.  Or to translate it once again- love one another by visibly serving one another.  
       In the Reformed faith- Zwingli said that baptism and communion were just ordinances.  Just commandments- nothing special happens with them.  But the word “sacrament” means mystery.  It is in experiencing these visible ordinances that we experience the invisible presence and grace of Christ.  Calvin emphasized that when we are baptized and take the supper the Holy Spirit was especially tied or present in these things.  Sacraments are more than just something we’re supposed to do.  We have experienced God working through them.  So many people talk about their baptism or their baby’s baptism as a way that God really drew them to Himself.  It is a milemarker for them- a memory place holder- kind of like an event monument that helps them to remember.  Similarly the Lord’s Supper is a moving experience in which we remember Jesus giving Himself for us on the cross.  But service to others (especially when God gets the glory) is also a placeholder for when God drew close to us.  A sacrament is special- and I would say that service out of love for Christ is a sacrament. 
     So I want to say that when we serve other people in Christ’s name- His love, His Holy Spirit is especially present.  When you feed the hungry- it is a heart warming experience.  When you read a book to a child (like at Bradley) who has no one else to read to him or her- it is a heart warming experience- not just something good to do- but a spiritual experience.  When you do Salkahatchie or Habitat or Homeworks- and you know by hammering nails or patching holes you are helping someone else- it is not just a good thing= but a spiritual thing. 
       The Mennonites are often talking about a third way.  The Mennonites are known for their service- coming in when there is a disaster to help rebuild.  The third way- as Walter Wink speaks of it is that when someone slaps you on one cheek- you don’t 1) slap them back, or 2) run away, but 3) turn the other cheek.  When someone asks you to carry their load one mile- you don’t 1) throw their load in their face, or 2) begrudgingly carry it one mile but you 3) carry the load an extra mile.  The third way is not just rebelling against injustice as some would put it, but it is the way of love- the way of service.  It is not the way of comfort or pride or consumerism.  But it is the way of humility, gentleness.  Faith alone brings us into relationship with God, but James says this, “What good is it if you have faith but no deeds?  Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food . If one of you says to him, “Go I wish you well, keep warm and well fed, but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?”  You could say that once you have experience the love of God by faith, you can’t help but want to get outside of yourself and serve others. 
      We are familiar with St. Francis prayer- “Lord make me an instrument of your peace- where there is hatred let me sow love, where there is injury pardon…”  But the story of St. Francis has to do with his encountering Jesus through service- I think this third sacrament.  As a young strong, handsome man, Francis of Assisi hated and was scared of lepers.  There were two leper hospitals near Assisi.  One day a leper asked him for alms.  Francis passed by him thinking he was too good to help him. But then he felt God was telling him to turn around and help the leper.  He turned his horse around, went up to the leper, game him money and then he kissed him on his wound.  Then Francis got back on his horse.  He turned back around to say goodbye and the leper had vanished.  Francis believed that the leper was Jesus in disguise.  It was a holy, changing moment for him- and really the order of the Franciscans began with this act of service or love.  It wasn’t washing feet, but kissing a leper is similar in sentiment.  Washing the feet of the homeless at Central Christ church on Tuesdays, feeding the hungry at Washington Street Soup Kitchen, or Transitions, or Habitat build, or volunteering at Cooperative Ministries are all ways of washing feet, of this third way- the third sacrament of service.  Jesus said, “When you have done it to the least of these you have done it to me.”  The Bible says, “When you welcome strangers, you may welcome angels unawares.” 
     We have a new mandate- that makes this Holy Thursday “Maundy Thursday.”  It is to show love in service to others.  Amen. 

 

 

 

JOHN 13:1It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.

2The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

6He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”

7Jesus replied, “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand.”

8“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.”

Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”

9“Then, Lord,” Simon Peter replied, “not just my feet but my hands and my head as well!”

10Jesus answered, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you.” 11For he knew who was going to betray him, and that was why he said not every one was clean.

12When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13“You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.