Let Us Go into the House of the Lord

Transcription

1 Luke 2: 41-49, Hebrews 10:23-25 What a joy it is to gather this morning in the house of the Lord. As we approach the fall season, we are excited the all the activities, music program, and ministries that are resuming. You can sense a high level of energy and enthusiasm as we enter this time of year. And you know what every pastor dreams of hearing from his or her parishoners when it comes to life in the church. They would love to hear every person echoing the words of the Psalmist: I was glad when they said unto me: Let us go into the house of the Lord. Okay you can make my day. Let s repeat those words together: I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord. What a wonderful affirmation, what a tremendous statement about our feelings about worship and our relationship with God. It s not a sentiment that you want to hide, or an expression to keep silent about. I was glad it brings me joy, I have this eagerness, to be in God s house. Now I want to be realistic. I know there are mornings when we don t quite feel that enthusiasm. There are times when we would prefer just worshipping at the bedside chapel. And I also have been in the ministry long enough that sometimes coming to church is done for different reasons maybe a sense of obligation, or out of guilt, or perhaps for social reasons or who knows, whatever the reason. And yes, there have been those times that we can make our excuses for not making it to worship. Well, I want you to know that I found a remedy for all of this: I came across a church that made it possible for everyone to attend church. And they did it by announcing one Sunday that they were going to have a special Sunday called: No Excuse Sunday And here is there list (almost like a David Letterman top 10 list) so there could be no excuses for not coming to church. 1. Cots will be placed about the sanctuary for those who say, Sunday is my only day for sleeping in. 2. Eye drops will be available for those who eyes are bleary and tired from watching TV too late on Saturday night. Page 1 of 5

2 3. We will have steel helmets for those who believe the roof will cave in if they show up for church service. 4. Blankets will be furnished for those who complain that the church is too cold. Fans will be on hand for those who say the church is too hot. 5. We will have hearing aids for those parishoners who say the pastor doesn t speak loud enough. And there will be cotton balls for those who say: The pastor talks too loud. 6. Score cards will be available for those who want to count the hypocrites. 7. We will arrange for relatives to be present for those who like to go visiting on Sunday. 8. There will be TV dinners available for those who claim they can t go to church and cook dinner, too. 9. One of the sections of the church will have some trees and grass for those who see God in nature, especially on golf courses. And number The sanctuary will be decorated with both Christmas poinsettias and Easter lilies to create a familiar environment for those who have never seen the church without them. Don t worry, that last one doesn t apply to anyone here, because you re here in September. Well, I guess some of those suggestions were a little much, but it does make us think about this thing we call worship and our motivation for being here. Rising above all the motivations and excuses and reasons for going or not going to worship is the attitude and the spirit of the Psalmist: I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord. That verse is such a familiar verse to me, I had to go back and remind myself what that expression was all about. It comes from Psalm 122, the first verse. The context had to do with coming to the house of the Lord for a time of festival and thanksgiving. In particular, the Israelites were required by the law to attend 3 yearly festivals. The festival of unleavened bread, or Passover, the festival of harvest, or Pentecost, and the festival of ingathering, or booths. These were very special occasions, where people would travel and gather together in a spirit of Page 2 of 5

3 celebration and praise. For the Psalm writer, it is a wonderful declaration, saying, This is such a special time to gather with the people of God, to experience the living God, to offer myself in praise and rejoicing. I wonder what Jesus was feeling and thinking as he travelled with the crowds of people on a journey to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. He is now 12 years old. And according to Jewish law, he could now prepare himself to participate in the religious community. Can you picture this scene, a 12 year old boy, feeling such anticipation, running ahead of his parents. Usually in these processions, the women in the caravan would start out earlier than the men. There would be these two sections of people that would not meet until evening encampment was reached. This was Jesus first Passover. Maybe Joseph thought he was with Mary and Mary thought he was with Joseph or he was with some other family members and possibly not until evening did they miss him. They return to Jerusalem to look for him. In this Passover season, it was the custom for the Sanhedrin to meet in a public area in the temple court to discuss, in the presence of all who would listen, religious and theological questions. They took great pride in what they knew, and they were ready to tell people what they should know about God and how they should follow his laws. And there he was, there was Jesus, sitting among these teachers of the law, asking all kinds of questions and astonishing everyone with his words and his answers. Well it s been three days his parents have been looking for Jesus and like any good parents, they were concerned for what had happened to him. But Jesus, has a different viewpoint about this situation: Didn t you know that I must be in my Father s house? and even though his parents didn t fully understand, they must have known something special was going on here. I like how Luke adds: And his mother treasured all these things in her heart. Page 3 of 5

4 For Jesus, like those who travelled to the festival, coming to the house of God was very important. You can sense the joy and excitement he must have felt to be there. For the followers of Jesus, coming to the house of the Lord is an opportunity to experience the joy of worship and praise. And for us it is an opportunity to be renewed in our faith every Sunday, for every week is a celebration of the resurrection, every Sunday is a time to celebrate our faith in Jesus Christ. It is a special time to gather to pray for one another, to experience the joy of our fellowship, and as one person put it, to have my spiritual batteries re-charged each week. Life can weigh heavily on us, it s easy to get overwhelmed or discouraged. It s easy to get side-tracked by temptations or pulled away by the world s values and voices. And so we need this place to gather, and to do it often so that we stay focused on the priorities for our spiritual life. It is here we are supported by one another, it is here we are encouraged by one another s faith. It is here we can keep our faith alive and burning. I heard about a pastor who had noticed the long absence of one of his parishoners. This person had once been an active and faithful member. And so after some time had passed, the pastor decided to call at the home of this man and he found him sitting before the fire. This church member was somewhat startled by the intrusion, and he hastily placed a chair next to him for the pastor and then waited for the expected rebuke. But the pastor did not say a word. Instead as they sat before the fireplace, the pastor took the tongs and lifted out a glowing coal from the midst of the others and laid it by itself on the hearthstone. Remaining painfully silent, he watched the blaze die out. Just before the pastor was ready to leave, he picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it. As the pastor reached the door to leave, his host said, "Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday." Page 4 of 5

5 I was glad when they said unto me, let us go into the house of the Lord. We heard it this morning in the Hebrews reading: Let us hold fast to the confession of our faith hold fast, because we are tempted to let go, Hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. Let us provoke one another to love and good deeds. And here s the emphasis for today: Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching. How important to be reminded of this important practice a good reminder as we approach this fall season. And also a good reminder to explore other opportunities for spiritual growth and discipleship maybe a SS class, a Bible study,a small group, the church offers a number of options to consider to deepen your faith. I invite you to pray about not only the weekly practice of worship, but also an additional means of spiritual growth. Don t know if this is a true story, but I love the message: One day the phone rang in the pastor s office of a church in Washington DC that was attended by the President of the US. There was an eager voice on the line as he asked, Pastor, can you tell me, do you expect the President to be in worship on Sunday? The pastor replied: That I cannot promise, but we do expect God, and we consider that will be incentive enough for a reasonably large attendance. Today we come to worship the Lord with joy and praise. We are blessed by the fellowship and prayers of our brothers and sisters in Christ and we have the privilege to gather at the Lord s table, to partake of a holy meal. I believe that s cause for celebration and reason to gather every week and say: I was glad when they said unto me: What? Let us go into the house of the Lord! Page 5 of 5