SHAPING AND RE-SHAPING

15^th Sunday After Pentecost

September 5, 2010

Scripture – Jeremiah 18:1-11

1^st Cumberland Presbyterian Church Cookeville, TN

          After the exilic period(Judah was exiled to Babylon & freed by

        Persia), some of the Jews remained under Persian rule.  Nehemiah lived during this time

         a.He was a cupbearer to King Artaxerses.  Nehemiah’s brother, Hanani returned from Judah to visit and give this news:  “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.”  Although he was not living in Judah, he still loved Judah and their predicament became his predicament, and he started pouting!

            While he was in Persia & around the throne, he worked well.  Because he worked so well & kept a pleasant disposition, he  stayed in King Artaxerses favor.  When the king saw him pouting, he was disturbed by it.  Some of us can keep up so much hell, that when we’re really in need, no one cares!  The king inquired of Nehemiah, and he told the king what was wrong.  The king asked, “Do you want to go home?”  Nehemiah replied, “Yes.”  Nehemiah asked for traveling papers for his safety and material request forms to get what he needed, by way of the

king, to get to work on the wall!

            When he recognized the danger Jerusalem was in, Nehemiah felt compelled to do…something!  Even being on a hill wasn’t enough to protect them from their enemies.  They needed a wall.  Whenever you have something precious, you want to protect it - keep it safe!  That’s what Nehemiah wanted and he was compelled to keep his precious Jerusalem protected.

            Nehemiah was ready to work after he heard the problems in Jerusalem.  We see things going wrong and aren’t move to do anything!  1.5 million homeless children in the USA should compel us!  1.3 billion people in the world are living without water should compel us!  Teenagers killing teenagers should compel us!  High divorce rates should compel us!  Illiterate adults should compel us!  THE NEEDS OF OUR CHURCH SHOULD COMPEL US!  Making sure we’re financially secure and independent should compel us!  Helping with our youth and children’s programs should compel us!  Dirty windows and dirty flower beds in the Lord’s house should compel us!  An unfinished youth room & library downstairs should compel us!  These things should compel us to work hard enough to make a positive, Christian difference in the lives we come in contact with!

            So often the reason why we aren’t compelled to do more is because we don’t have the right minds about us.  The King James Version of Nehemiah 4:6 says that they rebuilt the wall “because the people had a mind to work!”  When your mind is on doing the Lord’s will, there’s no time for foolish stuff.  How do we gain a mind to work?  Romans 12:2 states, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

FIRST – They’ll make fun of you (Neh.2:19).  But you hold firm, for your purpose is greater than their amusement.  SECOND – They’ll try to intimidate you, hoping you’ll stop (Neh.6).

Sanballat sent word to Nehemiah that the neighboring nations were concerned that Jerusalem was going to revolt.  You hold firm, for your purpose is greater than their jealousy of you.  THIRD – They’ll attack you (Neh.4:7-8; 6:2).  They’ll attack your character; they’ll sabotage your program; they may even threaten to do you physical harm.  You tell them the same thing Nehemiah said, “I am carrying out a great project and cannot come down!”

            Isn’t that like Jesus?  He didn’t come down either!  On the cross where people spat at him; threw things at him; chose Barabbas over him; taunted and teased him; and rejoiced as he died, HE STILL DIDN’T COME DOWN!  Why?  Because dying for you and dying for me – the work was too important to quit or let a bunch of Sanballats slow down the progress!  HE DIDN’T COME DOWN!  DON’T YOU COME DOWN EITHER!  Remember you’re doing a great work for the Lord, and don’t come down.

            I enjoy flying.  I especially enjoy the window seat.  As a matter of fact, all my flight arrangements include a window seat.  I enjoy flying, but there is one area of the plane I try to avoid:  the seats next to the emergency exit doors.  It hasn’t always been this way.  I used to choose to sit in the exit row; for my thought was “if something goes wrong and we have to get out of here in a hurry, what better spot to be in than next to the door!”  One day, I heard the actual instructions about the exit row:  If you sit there, you are agreeing to a major responsibility.  If there are problems and evacuation is necessary, you open the door, clear the pathway, and help everyone else off the plane first – then you get out…if there’s still time.  I was twenty-five years old when I heard that.  It changed my whole perspective.  How could I agree to do something that when the time comes…I’m probably NOT going to do.  I was a “Me First Please!” person. 

            I’m sure I’m not the only one.  Perhaps we’re born with this issue, or maybe this typical understanding that develops early in life.  But there is an ugly name for it:  selfishness!

            Perhaps the greatest sermon ever delivered was not from a pulpit, but a mountainside from a preacher who did not stand, but sat and said:  “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven;” AND “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God;” AND “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden;” AND “Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No;” AND “Be careful not to do your ‘acts of righteousness’ before men, to be seen by them.  If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven;” AND “You cannot serve both God and money;” AND “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”  But before he concludes this sermon and gives a benediction so everyone can leave and go to Cheddar’s, he says “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”

            Many people have misused and abused this simple verse: “do to others what you would have them do to you…”  Some say, “I want people to leave me alone.  I want them to stay out of my business – so I stay out of other’s affairs.”  By keeping this attitude, they fail to meet the needs of others under a guise of “I don’t want to be involved.”  Some use this verse in their romantic relationships as a way to guilt their partner into doing something immoral or unwanted.

Some will try to tweek this verse into a retaliatory statement:  “I know you’re going to try to do something mean to me, so I’m going to get you first.”  This verse is not based on reciprocity:  “You do something good for me first and then I will do something good for you.”  “You come to my party first with a big gift and then I will come to your party with a big gift.”  For Jesus, this statement is initiatory.  It’s so simple, we’ve complicated it.  Philippians 2:3-4 states, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.”  Jesus wants us to anticipate or expect that folks will have trouble – that people will have needs; and then meet their needs based on how you would want someone to meet yours!

            Here are some examples as to how this should work.  If you were hungry, would you rather someone read a menu from the nearest restaurant or take you there?  If you were sick, would you rather someone list all the medications at the pharmacy or help you get what you needed?  If your car battery was dead, would you rather someone tell you about the batteries on sale at Sears or give you a jump?

            This concept of community was not actually new.  The Old Testament was and is replete with stories about community and the communal effect on the children of Israel.  Jesus’ statement; however, would become inclusive for the Christian community, including Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians.  Jesus says in Matthew 5:48, “Be perfect [complete, whole], therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”  The Lord wants us to be complete and whole in our service to God which surely includes how we treat and respond to each other.

            Didn’t Jesus exemplify this verse, this rule:  “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.”?  He wants us to put him first in everything that we do; he wants us to do his will.  But he didn’t wait to see if we would follow him first, he didn’t wait until we proved our loyalty first.  Before we put him first he put us FIRST!  Philippians 2:5-8 states, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:  Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant…humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!”

            Jesus didn’t wait for a committee to be formed before he healed the sick.  Jesus didn’t wait until a policy was introduced before he included women in his ministry.  Jesus ignored the complaints of folks and gave sight to the blind; set the captives free; feed the hungry, gave water to the thirsty; shelter to the homeless; friend to the friendless.  Jesus ignored the statements of Satan and the disciples and died for us anyway!!  He put us first!

            Since the Lord put us first, we should seek to do the same with our sisters and brothers.  It should no longer be “me first please.”  Our witness should say, “after you.”