¿ Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin ?

¿ Love the Sinner, Hate the Sin ?

Half-Truths - Part 5
(based on the book by Adam Hamilton)

August 3, 2025
with special guest preacher: Rev. McKenzie Sefa

Matthew 7:1-5, Matthew 9:9-13
see also: Romans 14:4-13, Acts 11:2-18

Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged. You’ll receive the same judgment you give. Whatever you deal out will be dealt out to you. Why do you see the splinter that’s in your brother’s or sister’s eye, but don’t notice the log in your own eye?

Matthew 7:1-3

_______________

Of all the “half-truths” or statements of “Bumper Sticker Christianity” we have talked about, this one feels the most right.

God hates sin. God loves sinners. So why shouldn’t we do the same?

Unfortunately it’s a bit more complicated than that.

Let’s take the statement apart piece by piece.

1. Hate the Sin.

Yes, of course we must hate sin… all sin. Sin breaks God’s heart and leads to destruction. Sin causes harm to ourselves and to others. There is nothing good about sin. The problem is that we rarely use this statement as a declaration against the sin in our own lives. Paul writes that we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23) and countless scriptures warn us about judging others because we cannot see clearly with the log of sin in our own eye (Matthew 7:4-5).

Generally this is a statement we use to justify our judgment of people who “sin differently than we do.” We will not say we “hate the sin” of the gluttonous person who eats four desserts at a church potluck, but we are quick to “hate the sin” of the homosexual teenager who never comes to church anymore because everybody glares at him with holier-than-thou stares, which we see as perfectly justified.

Yes, we should hate sin, but we must always begin with our own. Do we truly hate the sinful attitudes and behaviors and habits in our own lives? Do we hate the times we sleep in when we don’t feel like going to church? Do we hate the countless excuses we use for avoiding Bible study or times of prayer? Do we hate the ways we avoid difficult conversations about God with people who need to hear the Good News of the gospel? Do we hate the lustful thoughts that pop in our minds out of nowhere? Do we hate the anger and resentment that fills our heart toward that person we just can’t forgive because “they hurt us so deeply?”

Until we hate the sin in our own hearts enough to repent and change, we have no business calling out the sin in others who sin in ways that may not be a temptation for us.

2. Love the Sinner

The problem here is that it is not our place to decide who is a “sinner” and who is not. As we’ve already seen, we are all sinners. At best, this statement is simply redundant. Love the sinner = love everyone because everyone is a sinner. Why not simply say it the way Jesus said it… Love your neighbor (the fact that they are a sinner is irrelevant to the way we are called to love them). When we say “sinner”, we usually have a specific person or specific characteristic in mind. If we are all “sinners,” we have no business singling out people who struggle with specific types of sin.

Secondly, Jesus never actually called anyone a “sinner.” He called people to repent of their sins, and the sins that most angered him were the sins of the religious crowd who should have known better. But remember, it was the Pharisees and Sadducee's who condemned him for “eating with tax collectors and sinners.” Jesus simply saw them as people who God loved that happened to be caught up in sin. He offered them forgiveness and a fresh start. He loved them even before they “repented” or cleaned up their act. He loved them even when they walked away and refused to repent. Their sin did not have any impact whatsoever on his love for them.

Likewise, someone else’s sin should not be a factor in how we treat them and how we love them.

There is really only one part of this statement that needs to be said.

LOVE.

Period.

Nothing else matters. We are all sinners and we are all loved by God.

While we were still weak, at the right moment, Christ died for ungodly people. It isn’t often that someone will die for a righteous person, though maybe someone might dare to die for a good person. But God shows his love for us, because while we were still sinners Christ died for us.

Romans 5:6-8

Stop worrying about whether you think somebody is a “sinner”. Just love.

¿ God said it, I believe it, that settles it ?

¿ God said it, I believe it, that settles it ?

Half-Truths - Part 3
(based on the book by Adam Hamilton)

July 20, 2025
with special guest preacher: Rev. McKenzie Sefa

Deuteronomy 23:12-14, 2 Timothy 2:14-15, 2 Timothy 3:15-17
see also: John 1:14-18, John 8:2-11 (Leviticus 20:10, 21:9)

You have heard that it was said to those who lived long ago, Don’t commit murder, and all who commit murder will be in danger of judgment. But I say to you that everyone who is angry with their brother or sister will be in danger of judgment. If they say to their brother or sister, ‘You idiot,’ they will be in danger of being condemned by the governing council. And if they say, ‘You fool,’ they will be in danger of fiery hell.

Matthew 5:21-22_______________

“You have heard it said… but I say to you…”

Such a statement from almost anyone would quickly raise a red flag today. We hear and use the arguments all the time. “What do you mean, “you say”?” “We’ve always done it this way. Are you telling us we’ve been doing it wrong all this time?” “Who are you to say my parents and great grandparents were wrong?”

I was talking to a group of church people once using a similar sentiment. I have had these kinds of conversations on a wide range of subjects. People have told me I did not preach God’s Word because I didn’t use the King James Version. Another man said I would “burn in hell if I didn’t get my wife to repent because she is a pastor,” which in his mind is clearly against God’s Word. The most extreme I have ever seen involved a church leader who actually believed that God’s commands to Joshua to drive the Canaanites out of the land also applies to white American Christians who are charged with ridding our nation of all minorities and non-believers, especially Muslims. His wife proceeded to send me a series of gruesome and inflammatory internet articles about extremist groups and they warned me that my Muslim friends would rape and mutilate my daughter, who was only 2 years old at the time.

Of course these are extreme distortions of Biblical teaching, but the truth is that Scripture has been used throughout history to oppress women, to endorse slavery, and to justify countless wars, the burning of so-called “witches”, the excommunication of scientists, and many other unjust atrocities throughout human history. This is the kind of violence and extremism that results in an “Us vs. Them” culture where God always just happens to be cheering for our team.

Yet Jesus himself said these words… “You have heard but I say,” not once but several times in His famous Sermon on the Mount. Jesus consistently re-frames the people’s understanding or interpretation of the law, not to undermine it, but to get to the heart of God’s intent. Lust is just as bad as adultery and hating someone is the equivalent of murder. “An eye for an eye” becomes, “love your enemies” and the Sabbath should never prevent us from doing good and bringing healing to others.

It’s easy to affirm, at least in words, because Jesus said it. But we must remember that Jesus’ audience did not attribute to him the same divine authority Christians recognize today. When they accused him of breaking the Sabbath or condemned him for defiling himself with sinners, they could just as easily have pointed to any number of scriptures to make their case and declared… “God said it, that settles it.”

If anything, Jesus, Paul, and other New Testament writers demonstrate that it’s not quite that simple. Scripture, just like any other text, can be twisted and distorted to say just about anything. Dr. Joy Moore talks about those preachers who have a verse for everything stating, “If you’ve got a topic, I’ve got a text.” Whether the text actually applies to the topic hardly matters, so long as it came from somewhere in the Bible, or at least “sounds Biblical.” Dr. Ben Witherington III is known for saying “A text without a context is a proof-text for anything you want to say.”

If God truly says something, and if we truly understand the meaning for our context, then yes, it may be fairly black and white. But more often than not, we are not as clear or certain as we would like to think. Let’s take murder for example. The command, “Thou shalt not murder” is one of the most black and white laws in Scripture and in almost every religion and law code throughout history. But even here we argue about gray areas. What about war, euthanasia, self-defense or the death penalty? Do these controversial issues count as “murder” and if so, are they justified? Some would even take it to the extreme that we must not kill animals, but even if someone could prove that was God’s intent, I imagine few of us would become vegetarian.

There’s no one-size fits all interpretation or even a universal method of Biblical interpretation throughout Christian history. We must wrestle with issues of language, context, socio-historic realities, literary styles, authorial intent, original audience and countless other exegetical and interpretive concerns. Rarely will all Christians of all times and all places ever fully agree on what it is that God actually said.

While I believe we must continue to study and wrestle with the meaning of the text in the context of the global Christian community throughout history, we must be careful making absolute statements that we and we alone have the only “right” interpretation on any given issue. Every time we are certain we are right, we will likely find another sincere Christian scholar interpreting the same passage in a very different way.

Understanding what God actually “said” or “meant” is no small task. If we’re honest, most of the time we are not even as clear as we thought we were about what our spouse means. This complex reality should not paralyze us to Biblical interpretation and study, but it should at the very least give us pause and keep us humble in our beliefs and out judgments against the beliefs of other Christians.

Two final words of advice.

1. Remember that the Word became flesh… not text.

   When in doubt, always interpret the text through the lens of Jesus’ life for he is the only person to ever live out the fullness of God’s Word on this earth.

2. Take to heart the wisdom of Mark Twain who writes, “It is not the parts of the Bible I do not understand that worry me, it is the parts I do understand.”

   For as much as Christians argue over the interpretation of obscure and controversial scriptures, we all know far more scripture than we actually put into practice. First and foremost, let us become doers and not merely hearers of those parts of the Word of God that are crystal clear… to love God and love our neighbor (which includes everyone)… to do justice, to love mercy and to walk humbly with our Creator.

   This alone may take more than a lifetime to master, and the world will be far better for it.

Special thanks to my wife, Rev. McKenzie Sefa, who preached this challenging topic today in our first of two pulpit swaps during this “Half-Truths” series. You can listen to her full sermon at the link above.

Firm Foundation

Firm Foundation

It’s Complicated: Family as a Means of Grace - Part 7
June 15, 2025
Matthew 7:24-27

Everybody who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise builder who built a house on bedrock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It didn’t fall because it was firmly set on bedrock. But everybody who hears these words of mine and doesn’t put them into practice will be like a fool who built a house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It fell and was completely destroyed.

 Matthew 7:24-27

_______________

A couple of years ago, our daughter was building a sand castle at the beach — correction - a sand kingdom… or as she called it: Sand-topia.

It was evening and the tide was coming in.  Eventually she stopped adding to her kingdom and focused instead on building sand walls and moats to hold back the water.  Needless to say, her defenses didn’t stand a chance.  The tide came.  The walls crumbled.  The moats overflowed.  Sand-topia was lost.

I have never seen anyone work harder to save a sand castle.  She spent more time trying to protect her kingdom than she did building it. 

The next morning, we walked past the former site of Sand-topia, and something struck me.  The waves didn’t “destroy” Sand-topia in the way a flood might destroy buildings and roads in real life.  There was no rubble, there were no mold ridden building frames to muck out, there was no crumbled asphalt.  There was nothing. 

In fact, there was absolutely no evidence that anything had ever been built there.  The sand was pristine, smooth, natural, as it had always been.

What if the tide is a sign of grace?

I don’t want to diminish the real destruction floods can cause.  I’ve lived through Florida hurricanes.  But sometimes, when natural forces move through uninhabited places, they can leave beauty in their wake.  Fire can bring new life to a forest.  Sinkholes in the Florida panhandle have been turned into a state park with breathtaking landscapes and even a waterfall where a river drops into one of those seemingly bottomless pits.  The same sinkhole or fire or flood that would be tragic in a neighborhood can be transformative in another place.

Sometimes it feels like life is collapsing under a flood.  Sometimes it actually is.  

But what if, at times, the flood is actually God’s grace? What if, like the tide, God is simply trying to restore our souls the way the waves restore the beach to it’s original, pristine condition? 

Spiritual growth, or sanctification, isn’t about building something new, or adding more to our lives.  It’s a stripping away of everything in us that’s not of God.  The Spirit’s work in us is not to sculpt a masterpiece out of a human shaped pile of garbage and sin.  Instead, the Spirt gently restores us to the image of God that we were always made to reflect.

The firm foundation isn’t something we build.  At best, our efforts create temporary barriers to protect our fragile lives and hearts.  What if, without realizing it, we are resisting grace?  What if the Spirit is simply trying to uncover the firm foundation God has already laid for us?

What might God be gently washing away in your life — not to destroy, but to restore?

The Accumulation Story: Us Competing With Them

The Accumulation Story: Us Competing With Them

February 16, 2025
Luke 12:15-21, Matthew 6:19-34

Series based on The Seventh Story, by Brian McLaren & Gareth Higgins

Stop collecting treasures for your own benefit on earth, where moth and rust eat them and where thieves break in and steal them. Instead, collect treasures for yourselves in heaven, where moth and rust don’t eat them and where thieves don’t break in and steal them. Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 6:19-21

_______________

The Accumulation Story is centered on the belief that wealth and material success are essential to happiness and security. The Herodians, a political group that supported the Roman-appointed Herod, are often seen as the embodiment of this story. They were willing to align themselves with Roman rule in order to maintain their wealth and status. Their pursuit of material success often took precedence over faithfulness to God.

The gospels mention collaboration between the Pharisees and the Herodians as a way to hold onto their power, wealth and privilege.  Herodians are portrayed as astute and cunning, using their connections solely for their own personal interests.  They often accommodated to Jewish customs and practices, but this in many ways was just to prevent any uprisings and keep the peace so they could maintain their good standing in the Roman government.  In some ways, we might call them the “God AND Country” people, in the sense that the were fine with God so long as their religious interests aligned with their political interests.  To challenge unjust Roman practices in the name of their religious beliefs would be too great a risk for their personal comfort. 

Jesus countered this mentality in powerful teachings, warning against the accumulation of earthly wealth. "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth... But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven". For Jesus, true success and security came from dependence on God, not on material wealth or political influence. The Accumulation Story often leads to anxiety and greed, while Jesus calls us to trust in God's provision and practice generosity.

In our consumer-driven culture, the Accumulation Story is alive and well.  At the end of the day, the market, the economy, and our personal bank accounts have far more influence on our everyday decisions than our faith.  We are often willing to turn a blind eye to unjust practices if it means more profit, and we have no  problem lining the pockets of the ultra-wealthy and giving them virtually unlimited power so long as their services make life easier and more comfortable for us.

Jesus invites us to redefine success, finding meaning not in material wealth, but in spiritual richness and  generosity.  He warns that storing up treasures on earth is a foolish endeavor because all that will remain are the investments we make in the kingdom of heaven such as our care for the poor, the widow, the orphan and so on.  It’s easy for those of us who are not rich to think this is not an issue for us, but it is so embedded in our culture we cannot escape it.  This story is going to take a lot of hard work to change.

• Where do you find yourself placing security in material possessions rather than in God?

• What steps can you take to live a more generous life and resist the Accumulation Story?

The Isolation Story: Us Away From Them

The Isolation Story: Us Away From Them

January 26, 2025
Proverbs 18:1-2 (NRSV), Matthew 5:13-16

Series based on The Seventh Story, by Brian McLaren & Gareth Higgins

Then the Lord God said, “It’s not good that the human is alone. I will make him a helper that is perfect for him.” 

Genesis 2:18

You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can’t be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on top of a lampstand, and it shines on all who are in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before people, so they can see the good things you do and praise your Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 5:14-16

_______________

The Isolation Story is one of separation, often driven by the belief that the world is too corrupt to engage with.  It is a form of escapism, where we simply want to disconnect from the evils of the world and isolate ourselves in a perfect little “Christian” community.

The Essenes were a Jewish sect in the first century who embodied this story, retreating from society to form isolated communities in the wilderness.  John the Baptizer is among the most well known of this group.  They believed that the world had become so impure that the only way to maintain faithfulness was through complete withdrawal.

Jesus, however, rejected this path of isolation. He declared, "You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden... let your light shine before others”. Rather than retreating from the world, Jesus calls His followers to transform it through their presence. He modeled a life of engagement, healing, and teaching, calling His disciples to be agents of change in the world, not isolated from it.

Our times are filled with escapist theology that treats the earth as dispensable because we are just biding our time until we get to some other worldly heaven. While we await this final destination somewhere else, many seek to live out the Isolation Story by creating “Christian” subcultures that choose separation from the world in the name of purity or faithfulness.  We want our own music, our own movies, our own coffee shops, our own schools, our own neighborhoods, and on and on it goes.  It’s ironic that we seem to want all the things the world offers, but just in a uniquely “Christian” version so we can pretend we are separate from it all. 

We are to be in the world, not of it.  Too often, however, we live as people of the world, but not in it.  Studies show that the everyday lives of self-proclaimed Christians don’t look that much different than any other group, but our determination to separate ourselves allows us to turn a blind eye to the needs around us.  Jesus' call challenges us to step into the world, bringing His light into even the darkest corners.  Our light does no good in a well lit isolated room.  If we are to be agents of transformation, bringing God’s kingdom to earth, we must be fully engaged in this broken world God so dearly loves.

•  Are there areas of your life where you withdraw from the world to maintain purity?

• How can you engage more fully with your community, bringing God’s light into dark places?

The Revolution Story: Us Versus Them

The Revolution Story: Us Versus Them

January 19, 2025
Luke 23:34, Matthew 5:38-48

Series based on The Seventh Story, by Brian McLaren & Gareth Higgins

You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.  But I say to you that you must not oppose those who want to hurt you. If people slap you on your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well.  When they wish to haul you to court and take your shirt, let them have your coat too.  When they force you to go one mile, go with them two. Give to those who ask, and don’t refuse those who wish to borrow from you.

Matthew 5:38-42

_______________

The Revolution Story is fueled by a desire for justice but often resorts to violence as the only means of achieving it.  In Jesus’ time, The Zealots most embodied this narrative, fiercely resisting Roman rule through armed rebellion. They believed that only a violent  revolution could restore Israel's independence and  purity. In their eyes, the Romans were oppressors who had to be overthrown at any cost.  Interestingly enough, even Jesus had a zealot named Simon among his disciples.  Simon undoubtedly hoped Jesus would lead a successful revolution against Rome, while in turn Jesus modeled for Simon a revolution of the heart.

Jesus' teachings directly challenged the Zealots' methods. While He preached justice, he also called His followers to love their enemies, even those who persecuted them. “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). Jesus proposed a revolutionary approach — one that sought peace through love, reconciliation, and forgiveness, not violence. This is seen clearly when He prays from the cross, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34).

In our polarized world, the Revolution Story plays out in social movements and political ideologies that often escalate into conflict.  Recent leaders in our own country have proclaimed the “eye for an eye” texts from the Old Testament as a valid Biblical way of dealing with political opponents, despite Jesus’ explicit renunciation of this teaching. 

Jesus’ example calls us to pursue justice, but without compromising the call to love and forgiveness.  Some view such a response as weakness, but the reality is much deeper.  Jesus was actively leading a non-violent resistance movement, much like Ghandi and Martin Luther King Jr. 

The historian Josephus personally struggled with such non-violent resisters, because they didn’t fight fair.  Rome knew what to do with a revolutionary… they would simply kill them.  But to kill an unarmed and seemingly weak protestor would bring shame upon the far more powerful Roman soldier.  If a soldier was allowed to force someone to carry their pack for a mile, for example, carrying it a second mile would make the soldier look like he was abusing his power and cause him a great deal of trouble with his superiors. 

Jesus isn’t calling us to be doormats, but he does require that our resistance to oppression in this world models the ways of peace, love and justice for all.

• In what areas of your life do you struggle to balance justice with mercy?

• How might you adopt Jesus' nonviolent revolution in your own personal conflicts?

Home By Another Route

Christmas Far & Near

January 5, 2025
Matthew 2:1-12

Because they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they went back to their own country by another route.

Matthew 2:12

_______________

The Magi gaze long and hard into the darkness. They spend years, perhaps, scanning that night sky waiting for the appearance of a certain star.

When they finally spot that star, a star that is bright enough to follow, they set out on a journey. They take gifts of value and meaning: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Never in the course of this journey is there any sense of jealousy among the travelers. They do not compare the gifts they carry, trying to decide which is best. Somehow, they have the grace to cherish and come to love each of the unique gifts that they are bringing, content that those gifts are enough…

When the Magi reach the place where the Christ child is, they gesture their commitment. They do not just journey to this place; they stop and walk over the threshold, they enter in.

Bending low, they open their gifts and surrender them, laying them at the feet of the child. They trust that each gift is received and is accepted.

Then, in a completely unexpected turn of events, just as they have reached their long anticipated goal, they must abandon their intention to return the way they came. They are cautioned to go home by another route, ultimately because of threat or danger.

They must find another way; the familiar and the planned will not work.

~ excerpt from The Epiphany Cycle, Marianne Hieb

Walking through the story of the Magi, Marianne Hieb suggests a 7 stage cycle that applies quite well to our own spiritual journey and it is a cycle we repeat many times throughout our lives. 

     As you walk through the stages on the other side of this page, consider where you  might be on your own journey right now.

The Epiphany Cycle for your Spiritual Journey

1.  Waiting in darkness 

2. Searching the night Sky

3.  Recognizing the star enough to follow 

4. Setting out on a journey

5.  Following the star

6. Identifying and bringing your giftedness

7.  Enter the new place and find the Lord

8.  Offering and laying down your gift

9.  Returning home by a different route.

We may journey through this cycle many times and in many different ways, but a few key themes are necessary every time.  First, we must begin with a deep awareness… waiting, searching, recognizing.  We must be intentional about seeking God’s presence.  Second, we must step out in faith and take the risk.  We bring our whole selves and our gifts, meager as they may seem, to lay before God as an offering which God graciously and lovingly accepts.  Finally, we must return by a different route.  If our lives are not changed, we have not truly encountered God. 

How will you cultivate awareness this week? 

What gifts will you bring? 

What transformation is God preparing in you for the journey home?  What new route will you take?

Listen to full sermon here

Christmas at Matthew's

Christmas at Matthew’s

December 8, 2024
Matthew 1:18-25; 2:13-15, 19-23

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph, before they were married, she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit.  Joseph her husband was a righteous man. Because he didn’t want to humiliate her, he decided to call off their engagement quietly.  As he was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child she carries was conceived by the Holy Spirit.  

Matthew 1:18-20

_______________

Overall, Matthew draws heavily on Mark’s account of Jesus life, death and resurrection, but as we saw last week, Mark doesn’t give Matthew much to work with when it comes to Jesus’ birth.  We don’t know Matthew’s source material for the first few chapters, but we do know that he is very intentional about the way he frames the story.  Matthew relies heavily on the hope of Israel’s prophets and he even begins his story with a genealogy tracing Jesus’ family lineage through Abraham and David. 

Christmas at Matthew’s house is a great big family reunion, but when we look closely at the genealogy, we find that he even invites a few of the “black sheep” that some would rather not see at the reunion.  Outsiders ranging from Rahab to the Magi get a seat and Matthew’s table, but it is clearly still Israel’s table. 

At the end of the day it is Joseph, son of David, who is addressed first by the angel.  Joseph must fully embrace Jesus as his own son, to adopt him as a legal part of David’s household, despite the questionable circumstances around his conception.  

I can only imagine how Joseph must have felt being addressed as a “son of David.”  As an ordinary craftsman, his “royal” lineage did not carry much weight.  King Herod was on the throne and he was little more than a puppet of the Roman Empire.  There was no “son of David” waiting in the wings to save Israel from their oppressors this time.  The idea that Joseph would be in line for the throne must have seemed as laughable to him as the idea of having a child in her extremely old age seemed to Sarah. 

But this is precisely Matthew’s point.  He builds on Mark’s emphasis that this Jesus is indeed the son of God and will usher in God’s kingdom, but Matthew also knows that for his people, none of Jesus’ signs or wonders will mean much without some serious credentials in the Messianic bloodline. 

While Christmas for Mark is all about Jesus’ messianic activity through his life, death and resurrection, Matthew’s Christmas is all about family.  Who is Jesus’ family?  Where does he come from?  Can he truly be the one we have waited for? From the genealogy to the announcement to Joseph and even to the foreign astrologers who see the sign of a new king in Israel, everything about Matthew’s Christmas story points to this simple truth, that Jesus is indeed the heir to David’s throne. 

The Jewish people have gotten a bad wrap in history and even in the gospels as they are often made scapegoats for Jesus’ death.  Matthew reminds us, however, that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel.  Gentile Christians are not a replacement for the Jews.  Instead we see God’s promise to Abraham fulfilled, that through him and the nation of Israel, all nations would feast together on God’s Holy Mountain and God, Emmanuel, would come and dine with us.

Listen to the full sermon here

How Many Times?

How Many Times

November 17, 2024
Matthew 18:21-35, Matthew 6:14-15, Colossians 3:12-14

Then Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, how many times should I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Should I forgive as many as seven times?”

 Jesus said, “Not just seven times, but rather as many as seventy-seven times.

 Matthew 18:21-22

_______________

Seventy seven or more accurately 70 x 7 times.  In one humorous telling of this story, Peter continues the conversation…

“Seriously Jesus, first you tell me to forgive the one  who sins against me and now you’re going to make me to math too?!”

Taken literally, I suppose that means we only have to forgive someone 490 times, but if we’re counting that high, I’m not sure genuine forgiveness is really on our minds.

Seven is commonly used in scripture as a number of completeness or fullness.  In other words, we are to forgive the full or complete number of times… which would be every time.  At first glance, this seems a bit unreasonable, until we understand the parable that follows. 

A servant owed the king 10,000 talents.  I have seen several different calculations on what this would look like in 21st century American dollars, but needless to say, they are all exorbitant amounts.  There is no way this debt can ever be repaid, and yet the king releases him of the debt rather than forcing him to pay for the rest of his life. 

Of course the servant is beyond grateful, until he comes across someone else who owes him a much smaller amount, perhaps only a few dollars by comparison.  In turn, he refuses to forgive the debt owed to him.  When the king learns of this, he is furious.  He reinstates the tremendous debt and throws him into prison.

Perhaps one reason we struggle so much with forgiveness is because we don’t realize just how much we have been forgiven.  We don’t appreciate the value of the forgiveness and mercy we have experienced in our lives, not only from God but also from others.

It’s amazing how stark this truth becomes when we look at it in the financial terms Jesus lays out.  Forgiveness sometimes feels abstract.  We can’t always put a price on how much someone has hurt us.  But when money is involved, we know exactly how much we are owed and how much we owe others.  When we see others in debt, we can be quick to judge.  We don’t ask what happened that led to such debt, what tragic circumstances or exploitive systems may have led them to being in over their head.  We simply demand that they pay up, just like the man who the servant refused to forgive.  Yet when it comes to our own, though we my do our best to pay, there may very well come a time when we ask for mercy, for an extension, for a reversal of unfair fees, or some other relief during a hard time when other expenses overwhelm us. 

When Jesus forgives those who hung him on the cross, he declares that they do not know what they are doing.  Perhaps that alone is a good reason to forgive.  We simply don’t know what’s going on in the other person’s life.  Maybe they don’t fully understand what they have done.  Maybe a bit of mercy will help them turn things around.  May we forgive as God has forgiven us. 

Seen and Heard

Seen and Heard
August 11, 2024
Back to School Sunday

Matthew 18:1-5, 19:13-15

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

Then he called a little child over to sit among the disciples,  and said, “I assure you that if you don’t turn your lives around and become like this little child, you will definitely not enter the kingdom of heaven.  Those who humble themselves like this little child will be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

Matthew 18:1-5 (CEB)

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Jesus teaches that to enter the Kingdom of God, we must become like a little child.  Ironically in our culture, like the culture of Jesus’ day, children are often dismissed or ignored.  They are to be taught, but we rarely learn from them.  They are expected to listen and to respect adults, but adults so often refuse to listen to and respect children in turn.  Children, our culture says, are to be “seen and not heard”. 

This also sadly applies to our own “inner child” who may have a lot more to teach us than we realize.  No matter how much responsibility, stress or even trauma we have built up, our inner child is always with us and is often wounded.  Here are a few ways to know if your inner child is hurting:

• Hypersensitive to emotions, constructive criticism, and negative situations.

• You’re a chronic people pleaser

• You seek heavy validation through achievement

• Your sense of worth is tied to your work or productivity

• You feel numb or avoidant of your feelings

• You avoid conflict like the plague

• You find it difficult to set and stick to healthy boundaries in relationships

So how can we begin to nurture and care for our inner child so that we can get back to that child-like spirit that Jesus invites us to? 

Here are a few ways to start:

• Acknowledge and validate memories from your childhood, even the painful ones.

• Listen closely and pay close attention, especially when dealing with tough emotions and which emotions you tend to most gravitate toward.

• Reconnect with your sense of joy, remembering what it felt like to be a child and maybe even picking up a favorite childhood hobby again.

• Be silly, use your imagination, let go of having to have everything under control.  Have fun.  Play.

• Be curious and excited.  Allow yourself to be amazed by the beauty and joy of life.

• Be fearless.  Take risks.  Try new things and don’t be afraid of failure. 

• Live in the present moment and fully experience the depth of your feelings.

What is God trying to teach you right now through children in your life?

… through the younger generation in general?

… through your own inner child?

We spend our whole childhood wanting to grow up  faster.
But we spend our whole adult life, wanting to go back to the simplicity of being a kid again.

anonymous

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Source Material from:

• 20+ Inner Child Activities to Heal and Feel Alive

• 6 Important Life Lessons We Can Learn From Children