SERMON OF THE WEEK First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu at Ko olau August 17, 2008 The Rev. Dr. David C. Stoker Rest In Peace - John 20:19-21 T his morning I would like for you to imagine several scenarios, and how you might deal with each of these situations. You are shopping at Safeway or Foodland. As you start to go down one aisle, at the other end of that aisle you see a person who has hurt you so much. But the person hasn't seen you. So immediately you turn, go down another aisle, abandon your half-filled grocery cart, and leave the store. Just seeing that person from a distance caused you to not finish your shopping, to be irritable with your family for the rest of the day, and it robbed you of sleep that night. What spiritual resources could you use to let go of a grudge that has been robbing you of peace? Let's consider another scenario. You are driving down the road, listening to music on the radio. You hear a song that brings back memories of years ago and you experience feelings of guilt over a terrible thing that you did to a person back then. You don't even know where that person is now, but the guilt you feel is still there. What spiritual resources could you use to let go of this guilt that has made peace so absent from your life? Or, you are depressed. Everyone agrees that life handed you a raw deal. Your life hasn't been the same since that terrible thing happened. Ever since then, your life has been filled with sadness. You keep saying over and over again "Why me?" What spiritual resources could you use to allow you to address the tough situation that life handed you and allow peace back into your life? I'll give you one last scenario for your consideration. You never knew that having children was going to be like this. As hard as it seemed years ago when they were younger, you long for those early childhood years. It feels now like you have lost all control. You are constantly worried about what they are, or aren't, doing. Your need to control your children has started to hurt your relationship with the children. What spiritual resources could help you give up some of your tremendous need to be in control and find peace? Several years ago, Duke 1 University did a study on "peace of mind." The factors that I just used for each of those four scenarios are the primary things that this study said rob us of emotional stability and peace. 1) Grudge over what somebody did to you. 2) Guilt over what you did to somebody else. 3) Depression over a raw deal that happened to you. 4) Worry because you can't be in control. With those difficult circumstances in mind, listen to Jesus in this morning's scripture. The setting of these words is the evening of that first Easter. Jesus appears in the midst of his disciples, who are hiding in a closed room in Jerusalem. Many of the feelings that I have already described this morning are swirling around in that room. When Jesus sees these distraught men and women, His very first words to them are, "Peace be with you." Let s look at our verses this morning: John 20:19-21.
O n the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." Isn't this fascinating? The first thing that the Risen Christ offers His followers is peace. He doesn't say, "It's me!" He doesn't say, "Death couldn't hold me." He doesn't say, "Can you believe it? I'm back. Now, let's go show them the mistakes that they made!" Instead, his first words were, "Peace be with you." Jesus wanted his disciples, then and now, to experience PEACE. And one of the most difficult things for us to understand about this peace that Jesus offers is that we mistakenly think that peace means the absence of struggle or conflict. We think that if we have Christ in our life, we will have Christ's peace, and that means there will be no struggle or unresolved issues in our lives. Friends, the Bible teaches that Jesus' peace comes in the middle of the struggle, conflict. Christ's peace does not drive all the difficult things from our lives. Instead, His peace allows us to live meaningful lives while the difficult or unfair things are happening to us. Let me W tell you a story that will help you with this idea about Christ's peace in the middle of the storms of life. There was a very wealthy man who announced a contest for the perfect painting of peace. Paintings arrived from far and wide. When the day of the judging arrived, one peaceful scene after another was uncovered. The large crowd that had gathered clapped and cheered. Only two pictures remained. As a judge put one on the stage, a hush fell over the crowd. It was a mirrorsmooth lake reflecting green branches of a birch tree. And along the grassy shore of the lake there was a flock of sheep grazing undisturbed. Surely this was the winner. Then the final picture was uncovered, and the crowd gasped in surprise. Could this be peace? A tumultuous waterfall cascading down some rocks. The crowd could almost feel its cold, wet spray. In the background were stormy-gray clouds with hints of wind, lightning and rain. At the edge of the waterfall there was a tiny tree clinging to the rocks. And on one of its branches a little bird had built a nest in the curve of the branch. Content and undisturbed in her stormy surroundings, the mother bird rested on her eggs. With her eyes closed and her wings ready to cover her little ones, she displayed a profound peace that surpassed all the turmoil going on around her. 2 Do you understand? Christ's peace does not mean the absence of turmoil; instead peace comes in the midst of our problems. The key to experiencing peace in the middle of the challenges of your life is to remember you belong to Jesus Christ. You are in relationship with Him. And He has promised you peace. Practically, what can we do to find peace? I want to offer this morning several things we can do to find peace. First, we must be connected to Jesus Christ. We must be in a relationship with Him. We must believe that the Lord loves us, never abandons us. Remember what Jesus said in Matthew 11: 28: "Come to me all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you. Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart. Your souls will find rest, for my yoke is easy and my burden light." What does this mean? What did Jesus mean by His 'yoke'? It is a confusing image for us because we don't see any yokes as we drive down the streets of Honolulu. And yet there are more than 50 references to 'yoke' in the Bible. A yoke was a wooden device that joined two oxen, or two horses together and made them a team. There is a famous study that was done on two horses. The first horse could pull 10,000 pounds on a sled, while the second could pull 14,000 pounds.
W hat would you think they could pull when yoked together? Most people would guess something like 24,000 pounds. But the answer is 49,000 lbs! The sum is greater than a combination of the parts. When we lay down our burdens, our agendas, and take on God's yoke we find it easy and light because we are joining Jesus in the work. And we discover that the yoke is also on Him. Now the yoke we are wearing with Jesus, what is it like? The New Living Translation of this text says: For my yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light. If I put a flat, uncarved piece of wood on an ox's neck and use it to pull a cart, very quickly pressure sores will break out on that animal's neck, and he will be useless. A good yoke must be formed to the shape of an ox's neck. It should also be smooth, rounded, with no sharp edges. The animal can haul heavy loads for years, and his skin will remain perfectly healthy, with no pressure sores. Jesus in much the same way promises a burden designed to fit our individual needs, strengths, and capabilities. The problem so often is that we try to wear a yoke that we have designed, or that someone else wants to put on us, rather than the one that Christ has designed for us. When we do that, we get weary, or hurt. We have to allow the Holy Spirit to direct us and put on us the yoke, or labor that he designs for us, not one that someone else has laid on us. So we need to be connected to Jesus Christ. Be as close as two oxen walking side by side. Secondly, ask Jesus to help you let go of the resentments that rob you of so much peace. It doesn't matter what another person has done to you and me. It's over. Nursing a grudge hurts you far more than it hurts the other person, and it makes peace impossible. Dr. John Claypool tells the true story about two brothers. They were very close in all of their growing up years. They worked for their father, and when their father died they took over the store and they owned and operated it together. And then one day a customer came in, made a small purchase, and paid for it with a dollar bill. One of the brothers took the dollar bill and put it up on the cash register and then he walked the customer to the door. When he came back to the cash register the dollar bill was gone. He turned to his brother and said, "Did you pick up the dollar bill that was here on the cash register?" The brother said "No, I didn't." The other said, "You must have. I put it right here. Now it's gone. There is no body else in the store. You must have picked it up." No I didn't. The other brother was insistent. He said, "You are not telling me 3 the truth. I put it here. It was here. No one else is here. You took it." The other brother exploded in anger. That incident drove a terrible wedge between these two. Finally they got to the point where they could no longer work together. Do you know what they did? They built an enormous partition right down the middle of the building. And they divided the store into two. And they became two stores and they began to compete with one another. They refused to speak to one another. It went on for 20 years. And then one day a stranger came into one of those two stores and he said to the proprietor. "Have you been in business here long?" The owner answered, "Yes, about 30 or 40 years." The stranger said Good. There is something I need to tell you. I traveled a long way to let you know that 20 years ago I passed through this town. I was out of work. I had no money and hadn't had anything to eat in several days. And I happened to walk down the alley right next to this store. And I looked in and saw a dollar bill sitting there on the cash register. And I slipped in and I stole that dollar bill. Just recently I have become a Christian and I feel like I need to put things right in my life. And I have done lots of things that were wrong. And that was one of them. So I have come all this way to tell you what happened and to repay you the money with interest and beg your forgiveness."
T he man was stunned when the shopkeeper suddenly began to weep. The shopkeeper said, Would you mind coming next door and telling that story to my brother? So they went next door and with the second telling of the story the two brothers were brought together once again with tears and hugs and apologies. I want you to think about that for a moment please. Think of it. Twenty years of hurt and broken relationship because of mistrust and resentment. Jesus says let go of the resentments that rob you of so much peace. Nursing a grudge makes peace impossible. Third, allow yourself to let go of the mistakes from your past. What I am basically saying here is that you and I need to forgive ourselves for the mistakes we have made in our lives. So many people are saying to themselves: "God may forgive and forget, but I can't forget - or forgive myself. I feel like I should pay for what I've done." What do we do then? Some suggestions: 1. Preach the Gospel To Yourself. Remind yourself of the truth of verses like 1 John 2:1-2 - "My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense-jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, A and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." Psalm 103:2-4 - Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits- who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion. Jeremiah 31:34 - For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. 2. Tell Another Person What You Are Most Ashamed Of. There is something very liberating when we allow another person to hear our regret and shame, and then, in the name of Christ, pronounce us forgiven. You might want to do this to someone you really trust in your small group, or perhaps a pastor or counselor. Remember James 5:16: Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. 3. Ask Yourself, 'Why Can't I Let This Go? Why Can't I Forgive Myself?' Ask yourself if you have the right to hold something against yourself, when God has forgiven you. Someone said, "Forgiving yourself means letting go of what you are holding against yourself, so that you can move on with God. If God has moved on, 4 shouldn't we do the same? Philippians 4:8 tells us to dwell on whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, and admirable. 4. Receive God's Forgiveness Through A Prayer Pray something like this: "Dear Heavenly Father, I confess my failures and sins and foolish decisions (name them one by one, specifically). I mourn my sin and I am sorry. On the basis of Jesus' blood, I ask you to forgive me. Forgive me for letting this hurt control me and for hurting others out of my hurt. I repent of this behavior and my attitude. I ask for Your forgiveness and healing. Thank you for loving me and for Your grace to move forward with You. In Jesus' Name, Amen." Offer what you did wrong to God; and the Lord will forgive you. A preoccupation with old mistakes and failures will rob you and me of any chance of peace in our lives. Practicing these four suggestions will help you and me let go of the mistakes from our past. Fourth, let go of self pity. Remember that really unfair things happened to Jesus. He was deserted by his friends and crucified on a cross. And yet He refused to indulge in self-pity when life handed Him a raw deal. Accept the fact that nobody, not even Jesus, gets through life without some sorrow and misfortune.
A ll of us would have liked for some things in our life to turn out differently. But they didn't. So let it go! Let us not spend our lives having a pity party. Frances Weaver was a woman who never missed the chance to have a pity party. She was 55, and very gifted. But at the early age of 55 her husband died. She was a widow, and every afternoon at four o'clock, Frances Weaver had a pity party for herself. She would have a little alcoholic beverage, and a pity party that she didn't have all those future years with her husband. She felt terrible sorry for herself. And then one afternoon, after two years of this, when she was 57, a friend called her and said, Frances, why don't you come with me today and fly a kite! And Frances couldn't think of any good reason why she couldn't go, and so she went and she had a wonderful time. And as that kite went up into the sky, it was almost as if Frances heard God say to her, Frances! You should soar! You were meant to fly! Frances, your life isn't over. You're only 57 years of age. You've got some wonderful years. Frances! You soar! And Frances went to a junior college. She'd never gone to college. And at the age of 63, Frances Weaver graduated from college. When she graduated her professor told her Frances, you've got a gift of writing. You should write books. You should write poetry! She said, What do I write? He said, Look all around you. There's stories, things to write about, all around you! One day she was playing with her four-year-old granddaughter. The granddaughter said, Grandma, what are you doing? She said, Well, I'm getting ready for tonight, the girls are coming over. The granddaughter said, The girls, Grandma? What do you mean the girls are coming over? She said, Well, you know, all my girlfriends. They are coming over for dinner tonight. You know the girls, you've seen them before! And the little girl lit up and she said, Oh, Grandma! You mean the girls with the grandmother faces! And so Frances Weaver wrote a book, and it was called The Girls With the Grandmother Faces. And in that book she tells wonderful stories. She tells of her sixyear-old grandson who said, Grandma, did you know God created the world in six days with his left hand? She said, Honey, the Bible does say God created the world in six days, but what do you mean with his left hand? He said, Well, the way I figure it, God had to create the world with his left hand. Because Jesus Christ was sitting on his right hand! Frances Weaver is in her 70's now, and she has just written another book! No more pity parties. She speaks churches and Christian conferences across the nation. She is delightful. What if she remained stuck in her 5 pity party? Remember that really unfair things happened to Jesus. All of us would have liked for some things in our life to turn out differently. But they didn't. So let it go! Don't spend your life having a pity party. Lastly, Be serious about your faith now. Practice your faith now. Don't wait until those tough times come. Monica, my wife and I were reflecting recently on a woman in one of my former churches named Robin, who had cancer, and how close she is to the Lord. Monica made the comment that Robin was close to the Lord before her cancer. Cancer didn't make her strong. She already had a close walk with God. We need to be working on our faith now when life is good so that we are strong when the tough time, which would rob us of peace, comes. You don't learn to read in just a day. You can't just pick up a novel and begin reading it one day. We have to start with beginning books, with simple sentences like we learned to read in the first grade. Sentences like "See Sally. See Jane. See Spot run." And then we work ourselves up to more difficult material. You don't suddenly get up one day and run a marathon, or run in the Olympics. You work at it, and work up to the point where you are able to be strong enough for such an event. So the same is true for our spiritual lives.
W e must be working now in the relatively peaceful times to have a faith that will sustain us in the tough times. As I prepared for this message on peace I reread a book this week The Gift of Peace by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin. He experienced several tough experiences in life that could have robbed him of his peace. The final one was cancer. I spent only one night in the intensive care unit. Then they brought me back to my own room, where I experienced the discomforts one normally encounters after going through extensive surgery. I wanted to pray, but the physical discomfort was overwhelming. I remember saying to friends who visited me, "Pray while you're well, because if you wait until you're sick you might not be able to do it." They looked at me astonished. I said, "I'm in so much discomfort that I can't focus on prayer. My faith is still present. There is nothing wrong with my faith, but in terms of prayer, I'm just too preoccupied with the pain. Remember that you must pray when you are well! We must develop a strong prayer life in our best moments so that we can be sustained in our weaker moments." When I think of Robin and her witness, and I couple that with these words by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, I see how important it is that we have a close walk with God now. That we have an active prayer life now. That we develop a strong prayer life in our best moments, while things are going well in our lives, our church, our families, so that we can be sustained in our weaker moments. Please hold on to the last words that Jesus spoke when He said "Peace be with you." In the midst of all of the tough situations you will find yourself in during the coming weeks and month, you can know the peace that Christ gives. Remember that Christ's peace won't make your problems go away, but it will allow you to experience a serenity in the midst of all the circumstances of life. Let us pray: Father, help us to remember the things that make for peace in our lives. And help us to remember the words of Jesus in John 16, when He said: I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. May that be our experience, O God. We pray in Christ's name. Amen. 6