The First Word THE HEARTBEAT OF FAITH PART 9 SERMON BY REV. DAN OEDY AUGUST 4, 2013 FROM FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BONITA SPRINGS

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The First Word FROM FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BONITA SPRINGS SERMON BY REV. DAN OEDY AUGUST 4, 2013 THE HEARTBEAT OF FAITH PART 9 So the Miami Heat are NBA Champions.

1 The First Word FROM FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF BONITA SPRINGS SERMON BY REV. DAN OEDY AUGUST 4, 2013 THE HEARTBEAT OF FAITH PART 9 So the Miami Heat are NBA Champions. I am not celebrating this as a Heat fan or as a resident of South Florida. In fact I was rooting against them. But I did celebrate the end of the NBA Finals in June, because the end of the series meant I could finally get some sleep. What is with these games that start at 9:00 PM and don t end until midnight? I know there is a West Coast audience to consider, but staying up that late several nights a week really takes a toll. The Finals reminded me of how old I am getting, and I realize this is a bad setting for a 37-year-old to be complaining about their age. But those two weeks of games were a consistent reminder that I am not getting any younger. First off, it really was hard to get used to being up until midnight, and then try to get ready for the next day. It wasn t that long ago that staying up until midnight was no big deal. But the fatigue caused by lost sleep wasn t the only thing making me feel old. As I sat and rooted for Tim Duncan and the fundamentally sound San Antonio Spurs over the star-laden young and flashy Miami Heat, I felt kind of like my Grandpa. I remember back in the day, he used to pull for the Celtics of Bird and McHale and he wasn t too fond of Magic Johnson and the Showtime LA Lakers and all their flash. So, yeah, I felt a little old school rooting for the veteran team and their brand of smart and skilled basketball during the finals. The Spurs almost had it. They almost pulled off what everyone determined would have been an upset over the heavily favored Heat. In fact, in Game 6, having already won three games in a best of seven

2 series, they were winning by five points, with 28 seconds to play. In fact, Miami fans started to leave the arena. They had lost hope. The Spurs looked like they had accomplished the upset. Some fans even gave interviews to local media in the parking lot, detailing how sad they were the Heat had been defeated. And then < then Lebron James hits a miracle 3-pointer for the Heat. On the next possession, after the Spurs miss one of two free throws [I know I am totally losing some of you who couldn t care less about basketball, but stick with me: there is a point here, I promise], Ray Allen hits another 3-pointer to tie the game. The game goes into overtime and the Heat win it in an extra period. As word about the miraculous comeback started to spread those fans that left Miami s American Airlines Arena early tried to get back into the game to watch the overtime period. At which point they were made aware of the Arena s strict no reentry policy. Many of you saw the footage from there, as news crews covered the exiled fans as they clung to the windows trying to get a glimpse of the action inside. I couldn t help but think about those fans. Have you ever tried to buy tickets for a championship series? These fans paid hundreds and even thousands of dollars for those tickets and the chance to see the NBA Finals in person. And they were so convinced of their defeat they left the game before the outcome was actually determined. To add insult to injury, they were denied reentry and missed what might have been the greatest comeback win in NBA Finals history. Could you imagine being so convinced of your defeat that you don t even need to see how things might work out? I know a couple hundred or a couple thousand dollars comes easier to some folks than others, but I just cannot fathom what it must be like to drop that kind of money on an experience like that and then be so convinced of my defeat that I don t even see it through to the end. I felt bad for those Heat fans. They have been called fair weather fans by some. Being called a fair weather fan means you are a really outspoken supporter of the team when things are going well, but once 2

3 the bandwagon hits a bump in the road, you are quick to jump off and create distance between yourself and the team. I initially felt bad for those Heat fans, but as I thought more about their situation, I started to really feel for people who approach life like those fans approached Game 6. Have you ever met someone like that? Someone who lives defeated? Someone who isn t even letting it play out to see how it might turn around, but is just convinced of the outcome and convinced that it is going against them? Maybe you don t just know someone like that maybe you feel like I am describing you. Now we all have times of defeat and doubt in our lives, but I want to share a text with you today that addresses those feelings a text that reminds us and reiterates to us that we Christians do not ever have to live a defeated life, but rather can go on day to day living what I am calling the fair weather life. This doesn t mean we will never have struggles in life, but rather what I see in this text is the secret to understanding that we can maintain a sunny disposition, regardless of what storms are actually stirring around us and regardless of what storms we might be weathering right now. Let me warn you: This isn t easy stuff and, in fact, I admit and recognize right now that it s a lot easier for me to stand up here and say than it will be for some of you to apply to the storm you are currently experiencing. But my prayer is that this installment of our summer sermon series in the Psalms (The Heartbeat of Faith) will provide encouragement for those of you in a storm of life, and a little weatherproofing for those of you who are currently enjoying smooth sailing. So let s turn to Psalm 118, our text for the study of God s Word today. 1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. 2 Let Israel say: His love endures forever. 3 Let the house of Aaron say: His love endures forever. 4 Let those who fear the Lord say: His love endures forever. 3

4 4 5 When hard pressed, I cried to the Lord; he brought me into a spacious place. Psalm 118:1-5 A few years ago we took a group of youth and adults from this church to Brazil. Pastor Paul and Linda Fahnestock were introducing us to some of the people and projects they had been involved in during their time in Brazil as missionaries. I remember our first flight, an 8-hour plane ride from Miami to São Paulo. Have you ever been on a 757, with two seats, an aisle, then five seats in the middle, an aisle and two seats? As we were boarding the plane and I was looking at my seat number, I quickly realized that my seat was in the middle of the five seats that were in the middle of the plane and I started to get a little nervous about this 8-hour trip. I found my way to my middle seat and sat down. Now you re probably not going to believe this but it is absolutely true: The minute I sat down and put my bag under the seat in front of me (thus giving me even less legroom) the lady in front of me reclined her seat back so far I could actually read the pages of the book she was reading and smell the fragrance of her shampoo. I m somewhere between 6 3 and 6 4 (depending on how good my posture is at the moment) and I weigh about 50 pounds less now than I did then, but I am still not a small guy. I have never been claustrophobic or had any problems with small places. But I will tell you that in that moment I remember feeling this anxiety welling up inside me and I am usually pretty calm and collected but I honestly thought to myself: I am going to freak out here! I cannot do this for 8 hours. But in that moment I felt this psalm. I was living verse 5: When I am hard pressed (stressed, feeling imposed upon by the world), I cried out to the Lord and He brought me to a spacious place. Notice something very important in this text. When the Psalmist (believed by most scholars to be David, in this instance), is feeling hard pressed, he cries out to the Lord. I think this is a very important aspect of the fair weather life. When we are in the midst of the storms of life,

5 we need to remember where our help comes from. So many of us make a small but critical error: when we are in the storms of life we don t cry out to the Lord, we cry out at the Lord. We don t seek God s deliverance from the storm. We seek to punish God or curse God because we had to experience the storm in the first place. That could be described as being a fair weather Christian although it is an understandable and almost natural response. But notice what calling out to the Lord does. Let s just do a quick word association here. If I say the word legroom, what happens? You get like a warm fuzzy feeling, don t you? You can almost imagine yourself stretched out somewhere, relaxed, at ease, peaceful. Even to this day, all these years later, when I tell that story about the flight to Brazil I can still feel the same stress and anxiety that was welling up inside of me. I still feel the anxiety and pressure of wondering, How am I going to survive this? What am I going to do? So do you see the point of the first part of this Psalm? The Psalmist says, when I cried out TO the Lord (i.e., when I trusted the Lord), He took me from a place of stress and anxiety to a place of ease and peace. Some of you who are in a storm may be thinking, Wait a minute! I have been calling out to God, I have been looking for His rescue from this storm and I just don t see it. The truth is, sometimes we have to look in difficult places to find the Lord s victory and His response to our storm. 6 The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? 7 The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I look in triumph on my enemies. 8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in humans. 9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. These are words of Eternal Life. Psalm 118:6-9 5

6 First, in verses 6-9 we are consistently reminded not to trust in the powers of this world, but rather to take refuge in the Lord. Take refuge; go to the Lord for security, protection and shelter The Lord s right hand is lifted high; the Lord s right hand has done mighty things! 17 I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done. 18 The Lord has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death. 19 Open for me the gates of the righteous; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord. 20 This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter. 21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation. 22 The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; 23 the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 The Lord has done it this very day; let us rejoice today and be glad. Psalm 118:16-24 In verses we see repetitive references to the sacrifice of Christ. In verses we see a reference to the gate, a Messianic allusion picked up in John 10: I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. Jesus is the Gate, the entry to eternal life. He has come so that we may have life, and have it to the full that is, a life undergirded by the hope of eternity. Jesus Himself cites verse 22 in Matthew chapter 21. He is in an exchange with the Pharisees. In the midst of this conversation He tells them the Parable of the Vineyard, where the owner of the vineyard rents

7 it to tenants and they tend to the crop. But the tenants kill the son of the owner so that they can have his inheritance and place of authority. In this parable, God is the owner of the vineyard. The vineyard is the temple or the faith of Israel, and the Pharisees are the tenants who God has allowed to manage the vineyard. But now they are about to murder the Son to try and take His place. In response to them Jesus cites this passage. He is the cornerstone, and the rejection comes in the form of His crucifixion and sacrifice. So, here is the psalmist s point of all of this talk about eternity and hope and the kingdom to come and this might be very difficult to hear: For some of you, your victory might not be in this life. God s answer to your storm or your condition or your struggle might not be one of a miraculous healing or a blessed reunion or reconciled relationship < in this life. But that doesn t mean God hasn t given you victory. Communion We are going to come to this Table this morning, and we are invited to come with great joy. We come with joy because of what it means, that Jesus has given His life. His blood was shed to atone for our sins. His body was pierced and beaten so that the penalty of sin might be paid once and for all, that we might be reconciled to God. If you have put your faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and if you believe that His sacrifice on the cross was the only thing that will sufficiently atone for your sin, then this is your table of victory. This table is the key to your Fair Weather Life < because this table means that eternity a blessed and beautiful and perfect eternity awaits all those who put their faith, hope and trust in our Savior Jesus Christ. Conclusion A fair weather fan gives up when the situation looks bad. They walk out on the team, and may even miss some of the greatest victories that are beyond even our wildest imagination. 7

A fair weather Christian turns from God when their life encounters a storm they think is too big for God or when they don t see God at work in their pain.

8 A fair weather Christian turns from God when their life encounters a storm they think is too big for God or when they don t see God at work in their pain. My prayer is that the hope of God s Word is evident to you today. That above all else you understand that we have victory. That you understand Christ has overcome sin and death, and victory is ours. Pastor Doug put it this way in his Easter message, Round Trip to Death: The next time someone has a near death experience, someone flat-lines and gets a glimpse of the kingdom and wants to come back to earth, the next time someone feels the presence of God surround them and wants to walk away, the next time someone enters into eternal peace and asks to give that up, the next time that happens will be the first. I know it sounds unfulfilling in some ways to say that if God doesn t give you victory in life, He will give you victory in death, but friends, that is the overwhelming message of Scripture, and the consistent witness of those who have glimpsed the kingdom. Victory is ours; no matter the outcome, we have the hope of the kingdom. And friends, trusting in and abiding in that hope the peace of the kingdom to come is the key to living a fair weather life Bonita Beach Road Bonita Springs, Florida fpcbonita.org

PSALMS That Point to the MESSIAH A Psalm of Thanksgiving PSALM 118 Layne Lebo November 25, 2018

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