LOOK UNDER THE BED

December 15, 1996
Russell Metcalfe
Looking Forward to Christmas
Advent III - John 1:26b Among you stands one
whom you do not know

This past week our grandson Jake was stuck at our house for a few
hours, which usually means watching Rugrats or sheer boredom for a
six-year-old. But somehow this week Jake got to exploring the
upstairs bedrooms. He discovered that his grandmother has turned the
guest bedroom into a sort of Santa's workshop with wrapping paper and
ribbons. And what is more, Jake discovered mysterious boxes and
packages of different sizes and weights. Jake proceeded to
investigate. Believe me, Jacob was pleased with himself. He was
excited! I'm not sure if Jake has what I could theologically call a
proper Advent spirit, but I can tell you he is certainly looking
forward to Christmas.

Of course, our anticipation of Christmas and all it stands for is
much more mature than a six-year-old's, or at least I would hope it
would be. Still, there is still something of that little child in
each of us, and I'm glad there is. Our Christian faith, when it is
mature, can enjoy human traditions, and gifts, and carols, and all the
rich human mosaic that brings families together again and again for
the holidays, just so long as the trappings don't become ends in
themselves. We understand that.

But maybe we think we understand Christmas better than we
do. Advent means Christmas is coming. Again. We've heard all the
sermons about "Let's keep Christ in Christmas..." We've been there
before. We've done that. We know the "Jesus part" of Christmas--
know who Jesus is-- don't we?

John the Baptist said two things that might help us anticipate
Christmas a little better this year. First, surprisingly, he said, "I
am not Messiah!"

John turned aside questions about himself, for he knew he was
just a messenger, a voice crying in the desert. It certainly sounds
like stating the obvious, but John told us something both about
himself, and about how to get ready for Christmas when he told us who
he was not. Sometimes we need to say what we are NOT.

When it comes to really changing lives, we need to understand
just how limited we are in ourselves, and how important it is to point
them to the One who can make all the difference. The sooner we realize
"I am not God!" the better. John the Baptist knew we all need to know
Jesus.

But then, John the Baptist said, "Messiah is already here with
you and you do not know Him!" Maybe this Christmas we need to look
for Jesus in ways we haven't looked for him before!

Certainly we Christians DO know Jesus! John was speaking to those
sinners who were coming to him for baptism when he said they didn't
recognize Messiah-- wasn't he? Certainly this does not apply to me! I
have heard about Jesus all my life! I cannot remember a time when I
didn't know about Jesus, and did not believe "Jesus loves me, this I
know, for the Bible tells me so!" I certainly DO know Jesus!

Yes, we do know Jesus! We do not need to get saved all over
again to understand what Christmas really is about. But in John the
Baptist's words is a kernel of truth for you and me, here today:
however much we know Jesus, and however precious he may be to us,
there are wonders and surprises in store for those who want to know
Him better, and are willing to ask Him into the scene where they are.

Jake will find as he grows older that while Christmas presents
are always nice, the good feelings they bring don't last forever.
He'll find out if he's spiritually smart that our hearts really crave
being loved, and being able to respond in love. That is what really
meets the needs of human hearts.

And if that is true on a human level, it is also true on the
highest level, our relationship with God. Advent is when we celebrate
the miracle of miracles: the fact that God loves us so much he gave
his only begotten Son to become one with us, to live among us, to die
on the cross for our sins, and by his rising from the dead provide
eternal life to every one who believes in him. Advent is when we
rejoice in the gift of a Savior. But Advent is also when we try to
grasp the fact that God is not just interested in our "souls" but that
he loves us, and wants us to love Him. Advent is a time when the
people who know Jesus best seek to express that desire to know Him
better. If we have not learned the daily walk with Jesus as Friend,
then in some sense "one stands among us that we do not (yet) know (as
we might.)"

Advent is for right NOW! It is not ancient history! We need to
understand that Advent is not trying to identify with the people who
sat in darkness, and imagine what it was like before Jesus came.
Millions of people still need the message John the Baptist shouted.
And we ourselves, in our deserts of isolation, or nights of darkness
of the soul, can cry out for God to come, even as we know He is now
with us. The "One among us" cares very much where YOU are right now.

Advent is for right NOW! It is not ancient history! But more
than 1,000 years ago hymns were written to express the deepest
longings of the human heart for Christ. There were seven titles or
names in those hymns: " Come, O Come!" (the "O Antiphons") Come thou
Wisdom from on High; Dayspring; Root (or Rod) of Jesse; Key of David;
Adonai (Lord!); Desire of Nations. But all these are summed up in the
most familiar of all, "O Come Emmanuel!" And that name means, "God
with us!"

God IS with us, waiting for us to ask Him into our lives where we
are right now!

It is in that coming-- in the certain knowledge that God is
indeed "with us" that there is JOY - an audacious thing, certainly NOT
the product of our will and energy, but rather the result of realizing
that we are not alone, not lost-- but that God Himself is here with
us. This Emmanuel does not "fix things" necessarily in the way we
think they ought to be fixed. He simply says, "If you will open your
heart to me, I will come to where you are and I will never, ever leave
you again!" We get the idea that if this is true, then maybe we can
face the unthinkable. We're still very human, very fragile. But
Jesus is, too-- human, that is-- and he shares his strength with us.

One very human story illustrates the power of love that comes to
where we are:

Henry Carter, a pastor and an administrator of a home for
emotionally disturbed children, tells of an encounter he had one
Christmas Eve that gave him a new insight and perspective. He
was busy with last minute preparations for the worship service,
when one of the floor mothers came to say that Tommy had crawled
under his bed and refused to come out. He followed her up the
stairs and looked at the bed she pointed out. Not a hair or a
toe showed beneath it. So he talked to Tommy as if he were
addressing the bucking broncos on the bedspread. He talked about
he brightly lighted tree, the packages underneath it and the
other good things that were waiting for Tommy out beyond that
bed.

No answer.

Still fretting about the time this was costing, Henry dropped to
his hands and knees and lifted the spread. Two enormous blue
eyes looked out at him. Tommy was 8, but looked like a 5
year-old. He could easily have pulled him out. But it wasn't
pulling that Tommy needed - it was trust and a sense of deciding
things on his own initiative.

So, crouched on all fours, Henry launched into the menu of the
special Christmas Eve supper to be offered after the service. He
told of the stocking with Tommy's name on it, provided by the
Women's Society.

Silence. There was no indication Tommy heard or that he even
cared about Christmas.

At last, because he could think of no other way to make contact,
Henry got down on his stomach and wriggled in beside Tommy,
snagging his sport coat on the bedsprings on the way. He lay
there with his cheek pressed against the floor for a long time.
He talked about the big wreath above the altar and the candles in
the window. He talked about the carols all the kids were going
to sing. Then, finally running out of things to say, he simply
waited there beside Tommy.

After a bit, a small child's chilled hand slipped into his.
Henry said, " You know, Tommy, it is kind of close quarters under
here. Let's you and me go out where we can stand up." As they
slid out from under the bed, Henry realized he had been given a
glimpse of the mystery of Christmas.

Hasn't God called us too, as Henry had called Tommy, from far
above us? With his stars and mountains and his whole majestic
creation, hasn't God pleaded with us to love him and to enjoy the
universe he gave us as a gift?

And hasn't he drawn closer through the Bible, and through
preaching, and conviction for sin? At then that very first Christmas
God stooped to where we live, and came all the way down to live among
us. And we have heard, and received, and found assurance of His
salvation.

But even this very day, wherever we are in our spiritual journey,
One is among us, where we are, that is willing to "get under the bed"
with us and stay with us until we have the courage to come out and go
with Him, and He will go with us.


PRAYER for Advent

Stir up your power, O Lord, and with great might come among us;
and, because we often are so easily centered in ourselves, let your
light shine on us, to show us how very near You are to us, and how
very much You love us. We invite you to enter every part of our
lives. O Come and let your bountiful grace and mercy speedily help and
deliver us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom, with you and the
Holy Spirit, One God, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen

#155 - A Name I Highly Treasure

Song of Joseph

THE WORD IS HOPE
Matthew 2:21 "And (Joseph) arose
and took the Child and His mother, and
came into the land of Israel."

THE STORY IN MATTHEW

For a very brief time in the beginning of the Gospels' story of
Jesus, the focus of attention falls on Joseph. It is easy to pass over
the importance of the part Joseph had in the life of the Lord Jesus
Christ. For Joseph was the guardian of hope.

Everything that we know about Joseph is good. But in his
lifetime, so far as we know, Joseph never saw the full fruition of his
faith and obedience. Still, his obedience kept HOPE alive for us all,
and is still bearing fruit to this day.

Joseph is the guardian of hope. Before he ever SAW any of God's
promises fulfilled Joseph was willing to obey and believe. First
Joseph was confronted with misunderstanding and shame. He chose to
take Mary into his home. Then Joseph had the privilege of naming the
Holy Child "JESUS" in accordance with what the angel had told him.

His faith was rewarded, and there were visitors who came and
confirmed what he already knew; there were shepherds that very first
day; there were devout people in the Temple in Jerusalem, Anna and
Simeon, who confirmed and assured his heart that the Child truly was
Messiah.

Then came even greater surprises; kings, strange Gentile wise
men from distant lands came paying homage to the Child, and bearing
costly gifts, but at the same time speaking, perhaps in surprise, that
the local authorities were unaware and probably hostile to this great
HOPE of all the earth. Then that very evening Joseph had a vision of
the angel again warning him: "Take the young child and his mother and
go to Egypt. He is in danger!"

We see this story from the perspective of centuries; we read it
like a drama. How could anything ever harm the Lord's Anointed One,
even as a Baby? Would not the angels keep watch over Him? If Jesus
was truly God and the Son of God, why shouldn't he, Joseph, simply
take the Baby to Jerusalem and proclaim Him before all the world?

But Joseph was living out his relationship with Jesus in the
harsh reality of life. God's TIMING is impossible for us to figure.
All Joseph knew was that precious LIFE must be protected at every and
any cost! Whatever it took to keep the Baby alive and well Joseph
would do! That very night, before dawn, Joseph was on the way to
Egypt.

Where he stayed, what he saw-- so pleasant for our speculation--
the pyramids were already nearly 3,000 years old-- did Joseph and Mary
see them? What happened-- the Bible is silent. Joseph stayed in Egypt
until the angel sounded the "all clear." And then, with human fear
and trembling, the Holy Family made its way back to the home town of
Mary, to Nazareth, where Jesus spent the rest of his life until He
began His ministry.

Joseph had the discernment of humility and obedience. He kept
HOPE alive!

THE PRAYER IN EPHESIANS

What comes to us in a story in the Gospels Paul often packs into
a lesson in the Letters. The connection between Joseph's obedience and
this prayer in Ephesians 1 is not immediately apparent, but in both
there is underscored the importance of keeping HOPE alive and
well. Paul prays first of all for discernment, for enlightenment, so
that believers can see what the essence of HOPE really IS.

Paul's world was dark and gullible; it was impressed with
soothsayers and Caesars. Even believers were turned on by visible
gifts more than they were by love and integrity; they were challenged
by the show biz and glitz of their age, as we are by our own. And so
Paul prayed: Lord, help my people to be able to see what is the HOPE
of their calling, where the true POWER is to be found!

HOPE is not self centered! There is an element of risk
involved. Hope is the confidence that God will carry through-- in
God's own good time.

Hope must be nurtured in obedience and faith.

Hope is related to what God can and will do.

Hope on our part has to do more with BEING than it does with
DOING!

It is interesting just here how a best-selling book, The 7
Habits of Highly Effective People, by Stephen R. Covey, interacts with
the Christian concept of the importance of discernment and keeping
genuine HOPE alive. In his book Covey says that:

For the first 150 years of our existence as a
nation we were challenged along the lines of CHARACTER:
the qualities that make for quality of life and
relationships: integrity, honesty, fairness, congruence
between profession and life-style.

For the last 50+ years the literature of practical
life has swung to the emphasis on PERSONALITY: those
attributes of human nature that make for success and
the appearance of completeness. Techniques and short-
cuts and seminars that bring about desired results
without the outlay of personal development. He says
that we have been taught that if we maintain (1) good
public relations, and (2) keep a positive mental
attitude we can accomplish "success," whatever that is.
"Success" can be had by shortcuts, including cheating
in school, being insincere in business relationships,
and selfish in our own families.

Interestinly, Covey says this is NOT SO. He calls
his readers back to the basics of CHARACTER FOUNDATIONS.

And really, that is what Paul is praying for: that we will
discern how important it is to keep HOPE alive!

THE PROMISE IN JEREMIAH 31

The third seemingly unrelated passage in this morning's message
comes from "the weeping prophet," Jeremiah; a man so burdened with the
hardness of his generation and the shallowness of worship that he
earned that pseudonym. "Weeping prophet!" But some of the most
beautiful and sensitive passages in the Bible come from Jeremiah's
heart! For all ages Jeremiah caught something of the extent of HOPE
which shall be, through Jesus, for all people.

How important to "nurture the Babe" and let Him grow and become
Lord on His terms! How important to seek the noble way, the way of
integrity and honesty before God, and leave the timing up to Him!
For, according to the promises of God through Jeremiah, HOPE opens up
these realities of faith:

I will gather my people

I will lead them

I will turn their mourning into joy [My people will be satisfied
with My goodness]

I will be their God; they will be My people [I will write My law
in their hearts and they will KNOW Me!]

CONCLUSION

Hope is what makes life worth the living. All these great
stories and promises are nothing if they are cut off from where we
live and where we are just now.

But HOPE must be sustained by obedience. HOPE does not follow
our agenda, nor does it follow a timetable which we set. We, like
Joseph, may have to move to Egypt for a while, whatever that means. We
WILL have to listen carefully for God's voice. If we think we hear
Him saying exactly what we want Him to say we had better be very, very
careful!

For God NEVER asks us to take short, cross-lot, cheap methods
into "success." God never compromises His demand that we serve Him
with excellence, with the best that we have. God never sacrifices
CHARACTER on the altar of PERSONALITY!

If we have the precious LIFE of Jesus within, then that LIFE must
be preserved at ALL costs!

CHARACTER OVER PERSONALITY
INTEGRITY OVER IMAGE
JESUS OVER ALL KINGS AND GIFTS

Who's that knocking?.....

IF ANYONE HEARS MY VOICE . . .
...how cxan we hear over the racket in our heads-- the stuff of life important and worthless all jumbled together?

IF ANYONE HEARS MY VOICE . . .
...I don't need to listen because I invited You in years ago . . . You're here somewhere among the stuff . . . aren't You?

IF ANYONE HEARS MY VOICE . . .
,,, my God! I'm sorry! I haven'tr been aware - - I think I DO hearYou . . where ARE You? Help me!!

. . . AND OPENS THE DOOR
...come in!

... AND OPENS THE DOOR!
. . . .how do I go about 'opening the door'? You open it!

. . . AND OPENS THE DOOR
. . . how do I go about opening "the door"? -what do You mean? Where have I shut You out?

REPENT! TURN!HOLD FAST! YOU HAVE COOLED DOWN! I LOVE YOU!
. . .I think I hear what You're saying HOw can I get this door open? it seems stuck! will you HELP me get it open?

REMEMBER OUR COVENANT? YOU SAID
. . . I said "I am not my own but Yours . . put me to what You will . . ." I still mean it!
the door is open . . .come in . . . this is Your Table

Wise and Foolish Virgins . . .

I wonder sometimes, knowing that God is just, and knowing how He judged Sodom and Gomorrah, what great impending judgment lies in store for the civilization in which we now live! We're so selfish!
Jesus said Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold! -- You really won't love Me any more!
Jesus did not say, "The righteousness of many will grow cold!" And He did not say, "The honesty of most of My people will be called in question." Or, "The faithfulness to committee meetings will grow slack." That is not what is breaking His heart!
The message I get in Jesus' parable about oil and brides and lamps and all is that I need to keep a light burning in that God-room of my heart, where I meet with Him every day! It isn't automatic, I'm sure! How can I keep it personal?
Lord Jesus, I want to know You better! You have been good, been kind, been patient with me. Help us-help me- to do whatever is necessary to keep close to You! Keep us all close to You. Don't let any be lost! Amen.

If I Could Preach One Sermon to the Christian World . . .

2 Chronicles 7:14
THANKSGIVING SUNDAY
Covenant for Life

On a Friday morning, April 21, 1747, to be exact, John Wesley rode
his horse into the village of Thirsk, about 25 miles north of York, in
beautiful north Yorkshire, England. John Wesley came intending to
preach and conduct religious services. But if the countryside there is
beautiful, the spirit of the town, as, indeed, the spirit of much of
the entire nation, was ugly.

Wesley wrote in his Journal that night: "I called at Thirsk; but
finding the town full of holiday folks, drinking, cursing, swear¬ing,
and cockfighting, I did not stop at all, but rode on to Boroughbridge,
and in the afternoon to Leeds."

In Thirsk, as well as in all of Britain, Wesley and his Christian
contemporaries faced a sea of evil. The people were scripturally
ignorant and illit¬erate. The living was hard. The character of the
average man in the street was coarse. What could one man, or a few
people, or even a few hundred people do to stem such a de¬generate
tide?

WHAT COULD GOD'S PEOPLE DO?

THEY COULD RESOLVE TO BE HOLY.
They could live to please God!
And THEY COULD MAKE THEMSELVES AVAILABLE TO GOD.

And a relatively small number of people set out to do exactly
that. They had no delusions of grandeur, but they knew that they
served a great God. And they determined to live to please Him. AND
GOD, THROUGH THOSE RELATIVELY FEW PEOPLE, BROUGHT ABOUT A SPIRITUAL
AWAKENING!

Perhaps it is not possible to make parallels between our modern
culture and early 18th century England, and draw spiritual and moral
conclusions. But I feel challenged by what I perceive to be almost
identical spiritual confrontations. I have no way of knowing whether
our pornography and abortion and political corruption are worse or
better than the brutality and prejudices and class discrimination
which Wesley faced. BUT I DO KNOW THAT WE ARE IN DANGER OF SIMPLY
ACCOMMODATING THE WAY WE LIVE TO THE TENOR OF THE TIMES.

We go home from our worship service, where we all agree that sin is
bad and God is good-- and we tell ourselves that we are on God's side
with all we have. And maybe we are. But I also do perceive that
UNLESS MORE HAPPENS TO STEM THE FLOODTIDES OF EVIL IN OUR DAY THAN IS
HAPPENING NOW, THEN WE SHALL SINK QUICKLY and quietly into a
post-Christian, hedonist, Godless society that will swallow up our
children and our own faith as well!

I believe I sense some of the same frustration that Wesley may have
felt as he rode his horse into Thirsk that spring morning. I believe
that he was at least tempted to say, "What can one person do against
such emboldened evil!" I know that I am tempted! But WE KNOW AS
CHRISTIANS WE MUST TO DO SOMETHING!

[Transition:]

I'm sure that it is natural to think first of all about doing; and
particularly about acting politically. It seems natural to see the
sinful conditions of society and begin by attacking those evils,
wherever and however we are able. It might do us well, instead, TO
LOOK TO Wesley for a working model, and beyond Wesley, to THE
SCRIPTURAL PRINCIPLES WESLEY USED in the spiritual awakening which
came during his lifetime.

These principles come into sharp focus in the words of our text:
(2 Chron. 7:14)

THIS IS A COVENANT STATEMENT.

It is not "contractual;" it does not give service rendered for value
received, and in no way can a spiritual awakening ever be earned,
merited, deserved, or "prayed down." But it is a covenant statement.

GOD SAYS "I'LL BE RESPONSIBLE AND DO CERTAIN THINGS, IF YOU WILL
BE RESPONSIBLE AND FOR YOUR PART, YOU WILL DO CERTAIN
THINGS!"

I. THE PART WHICH FALLS TO GOD'S PEOPLE IS CLEARLY OUTLINED:

(1) IF MY PEOPLE, which are called by MY name

I have made this phrase a separate "condition" even though it isn't
something to "do;" but it DOES tell WHO is called to be the agent of
God's healing. The call of God is not first of all to militancy
against the evils of society, but to the people called by His name,
that they will come to Him. The call is not to reform the terrible
conditions we see on the outside (although we must do what we can when
and where we can.)

GOD'S CALL IS TO SEEK HIS FACE, and His promise is that if HIS people
will hear and believe Him, then HE will heal the land. This task of
land healing is too big for any of us, and it is too big for all of us
put together! But it is NOT too big for God!

[Somehow I see Abraham standing on the edge of the mesa
over¬looking the valley of the Dead Sea below. I hear him
interceding to God for Sodom and Gomorrah, and hear God saying,
"If there are 40 righteous, I will spare the city! If there are
30 righteous, I will not destroy the people!"]

[And somehow I wonder who is holding back the fire and brimstone
of God's wrath on a society that has absolutely no time for any
god but pleasure and convenience and comfort?]

(2) SHALL HUMBLE THEMSELVES

This means putting ourselves into the "servant role." We see
ourselves as the agents of God's work; 'any great awakening depends on
US!' BUT GOD SAYS HUMBLE YOURSELVES!

Recognize the helplessness of all flesh apart from God! Cry out in
desperation to God! WE'RE so "cool!" WE know so "much!" Just a few
more seminars-- a few more hard prayers-- a little more sweat and
busy-ness-- and we'll bring in the New Jerusalem all by ourselves! WE
THINK!

God says: Either I do it-- or it won't get done!

(3) "Humble yourselves . . . AND PRAY AND SEEK MY FACE"

This means giving God TIME and giving Him ATTENTION for AS LONG AS IT
TAKES, until we get ourselves lined up with His good, and acceptable,
and perfect will.

It isn't a matter of praying to change God's mind. God is not
reluctant to help us against the forces of evil. He is ready and able
right now to move in and change our world under our feet. But our
problem is praying, without mixture, "I delight to do YOUR will, O
God!" Your kingdom come! In YOUR way!

God says: "Pray and seek my face until your whole being is on the
stretch for more of ME!"

(4) AND TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS

And how will we know when we are coming near to praying and seeking
God's face enough? The answer is: WHEN WE ARE WILLING PUT THE WAY WE
LIVE ON THE LINE, WHATEVER IT COSTS US TO OBEY GOD'S WILL! We think
of "wickedness" as violence and impurity and flagrant greed and denial
of God. But GOD SAYS WHEN HIS PEOPLE STOP PUTTING OTHER THINGS FIRST
AHEAD OF HIM-- WHEN THEY ARE WILLING TO PUT COMFORT AND SECURITY AND
LEGITIMATE PLEASURES WAY DOWN THE LIST OF THEIR LIFE PRIORITIES, and
absolutely put God FIRST-- THEN GOD'S PEOPLE WILL BE LEAVING THEIR
WICKED WAYS!

[This is 'our' side of the covenant. But God Himself has made a
promise of what He will do for His part of the covenant!] And
WHEN IT IS GOD THAT MOVES IN, then the dynamic, and the wisdom,
and all the glory are HIS!]

II. AND THE COVENANT PROMISE OF THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY IS CLEAR: THEN
WILL I:

(1) HEAR FROM HEAVEN

YOUR PRAYERS WILL "CONNECT!" Did you ever have a prayer "connect?"
I'm not sure how to describe "praying through." And I know that we
are called upon to pray in faith no matter how we "feel," and I am
also sure that some of our most effective prayers are "embattled
prayers." We are to "be instant in season and out of season."
(2 Timothy) BUT IT IS GREAT WHEN PRAYERS "CONNECT!" It makes all the
difference when, beyond mere emotional feeling, there is the
assurance, the certitude that God is not just "aware" of what you have
prayed, but that God has heard!

(2) WILL FORGIVE THEIR SIN

WHOSE SIN? The sins of the abortionists and drug pushers? Not yet--
THE SINS OF HIS OWN PEOPLE! The sins of NEGLECT-- of BROKEN ALTARS
and NEGLECTED BIBLES and UNKIND ATTITUDES and PRAYERLESS DAYS and
WEEKS. THIS FORGIVENESS IS KEY!

WHAT SIN? Once again-- THE SIN OF BEING "DISCONNECTED" from the
Source of Goodness and Life and Light. The connection once again will
be established. God will have a voice in the land. God's Word will
be heard in its glory!

(3) HEAL THEIR LAND

If the job is too great for us-- and the sickness too profound, it is
not for the great God we serve. This is a covenant statement! AND ONE
WAY OR ANOTHER, GOD WILL HEAL THE LAND OF THE PEOPLE WHO KEEP COVENANT
WITH HIM! And make no mistake, we will have a part, and an important
part to DO. For THERE DOES COME A TIME FOR "DOING!" GOD WILL ASK US TO
PUT OUR LIVES ON THE LINE! But it begins with HUMBLING, and continues
in PRAYER, and SEEKING GOD'S FACE, and TURNING FROM SELFISH WAYS!

Because God does the healing does NOT mean that we will not have any
part in the healing process. John Wesley was certainly an instrument
in the awakening of His day. GOD WILL USE HUMAN INSTRUMENTS IN THE
AWAKENING WE SEE. But remember: THIS COVENANT PROMISE CLEARLY DOES
MEAN THAT THE HEALING WILL COME FROM GOD.

Conclusion:

Wesley was dismayed and temporarily dismissed in Thirsk and a number
of other places because of the prevailing spirit of lawlessness and
sin in his times. But Wesley went back to Thirsk another day..and
another and another! There are 14 entries in his Journal that record
visits to Thirsk. After 1747 there are entries like June, 1755:

Thirsk: a little society; June 1763: intended to preach by a
house, but asked by gentlemen to preach in the marketplace; to a
large, deeply attentive congregation;

June 1764 "exceeding large congregation"

May 29, 1766 I preached in the new House (chapel) at Thirsk.

And Wesley kept on recording visits to Thirsk until 1788, a year
before his death! And if you go to Thirsk today there stands what to
Americans is a very old, substantial chapel built of brick, built by
the people called Methodists. Indeed, in just about every hamlet and
village in Britain there is a Methodist chapel that testifies to the
truth of our text,that: "if God's people . . ."!!

It is past time for another awakening in our world! And we are
frustrated-- we are helpless. We cannot begin by starting out to tilt
against the windmills of evil in our own righteousness and our own
strength and power. WHAT CAN WE DO AGAINST THE CURRENT OF DEGENERATE
TIMES?

WE CAN RESOLVE TO BE HOLY. We can live to please God. And WE CAN
MAKE OUR¬SELVES AVAILABLE TO GOD.

Prayer: Lord God, The task is too large! And we are so very small!
But we are NOT alone! Together with Your people today all over this
world we pray! Heal our land! Your kingdom come! In US as it is in
heaven! Amen.

An audio copy can be found (20 minutes long) at:

http://russellmetcalfesermons.nazarene.nl/AudioSermons/If%20My%20People.mp3