Is there such a thing as evil spirituality?Mark 1:21-28

PRAY
Is there such a thing as evil spirituality?
Context- Mark plays out Jesus’ role as Messiah as a secret
Mark 1:21-28
21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, 24 "What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are-the Holy One of God!"
25 "Be quiet!" said Jesus sternly. "Come out of him!" 26 The evil spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.
27 The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, "What is this? A new teaching-and with authority! He even gives orders to evil spirits and they obey him." 28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.
Well is there such a thing as evil spirituality?
Yes. Evil is very real- and evil likes nothing more than to twist and subdue the spirits of God’s people-
What is good spirituality?
A lot of things are said and done in the name of "spirituality" these days. But just because someone or something is said to be spiritual- doesn’t mean that they are- and even if they are "spiritual" this doesn’t mean that they are serving the right only Holy Spirit.
Spirituality- in and of itself is not really a biblical word- this doesn’t mean it isn’t a Christian word- for example the word Trinity is not in the Bible- but we draw it as a truth out of the Bible-
Story- I taught a class at another church called the spirituality of the cross- based on a book with that same title. After the first week I got a call from a concerned student. "Should we be studying spirituality?" "Shouldn’t we be studying the Christian faith?"
This was a classic misunderstanding. To be a Christian, is by definition to be spiritual. We believe that the Resurrected Jesus blew the Holy Spirit upon his disciples- we also believe that at Pentecost God displayed that faith in Jesus Christ would cause the Spirit of God to spread around the world- from believer to believer.
Each person of faith would have the Holy Spirit of God dwelling in and with them- this is God’s promise.
Therefore those who believe in Christ- have the Good Holy spirit in their life and the way the participate and respond to the Spirit is their spirituality
The Holy Spirit will convict you about sin- this is part of good spirituality
The Holy Spirit will lead you to give and do good to others- these are spiritual acts
The Holy Spirit will bless you when come into the presence of other believers
The Holy Spirit will lead you to prayer- I believe you cannot on your own pray- every time you pray God has been activating that in your life
The Holy Spirit leads you in worship
One of my goals I have as your pastor this year is this, and I quote, "Discipleship- I will encourage the spiritual growth of current and future disciples at Palouse Federated
I want for myself and for you to be more responsive to the Spirit of God in our lives
Are there really evil spirits?
Yes.- according to scripture and tradition- and the more we deny that, the more likely we are to give them a foothold in our lives. But how influential are they really? Do we give evil too much credit?
Star Wars- are a popular movies- you may have heard of them.
There is the force in these movies- you know what they say about the force- it is like duct tape it has a dark side and a light side and it holds the universe together. But this is not a Christian understanding of the world.
We do not believe that evil is as strong as good- we are not dualists. We believe that there is an ultimate Good God- and that nothing can challenge- the devil and all his minions are but a passing wisp of smoke compared to the great bonfire that is our God.
My opinion is that some believers talk of spirits and evil too little and some too much- the middle ground of believing in their presence- but not lending them power is the right place.
When I was a kid Ghostbusters the movie came out- it was a pretty popular deal.The Ghost busters got famous by trapping ghosts.
Here we see that Jesus was giving orders to spirits way before Dan Akroyd and Bill Murray. God can knock spirits out of your life with just a word or two- no equipment necessary. Spirituality is evil when it distracts you from the plan- the reality- that God has for your life. God is the real evilbuster- so who you gonna call?
Spirituality is evil when it is misleading- taking you away from the direction God has for your life- a relationship with Jesus that leads us to live Christian lives- we hear of this misleading in our OT scripture. Prophets were punished severely if they shared misleading information.
The real attempt at evil here is to distract Jesus from his main mission.
Sometimes we are being an evil distraction in someone’s life. Like the scripture from Corinthians, we may be doing things- that hinder another believer’s relationship with God. We may give them advice that they aren’t ready to hear- sometimes we are talking when we should just be listening- we should follow the modern proverb: A closed mouth gathers no foot
My understanding is that the man stood up just as Jesus was beginning to preach- so he really hadn’t had a chance to get his message across yet- the evil inside the man wanted to steal the show- and distract the others before Jesus had a chance to influence any of the lives that were there that day.
So even though the story does not say that he started preaching again after the exorcism- we know that he must have- because of the reflection that they were amazed at his teaching.
So evil- can be obvious and subtle and in between- in this case it was both
It was an obvious- blatant- attention stealing episode in the middle of a worship service
The possessed man is trying to tap in to the fears of the worshipers that day.All around the room there were people thinking- "But if I follow this guy- that would change everything" or "If this Jesus is the Messiah- how will Rome react?"
The evil spirit was not just there to interrupt Jesus’s sermon- he was also there to increase fear in the minds and hearts of the people there that day.
What amazed the people the most? Jesus’ Teaching with authority
Interruption and distraction can also mean opportunity.
Sometimes there are just these little things in our family, life, or in the church that bug us so bad- and we focus on them and get all upset- and we get blinded to the big ugly evil that could be and often is lurking in and around us. Jesus used this momentary distraction to establish his authority for teaching the people about good and evil in their lives.
Yes they witnessed what we would call an exorcism. But the exclamation point in this story is not reserved for the banishing of the spirit- it is placed on the excitement of Jesus’ teaching.
The people were excited to be taught by someone who had authority- and yes he can even tell the evil spirits where to go. But they needed more than an exorcist as a savior. They needed someone who could step into their everyday life and bring a living truth that touched their hearts and caused them to live life better.
There is a lot of distracting teaching and conservative and liberal- theology out there that boils God down to a theory that we can understand- and therefore control. But our God is beyond our control- like Aslan the lion in Narnia- God is not tame.
God has authority- remember this today- God is in control. God wants nothing more than to have a living relationship with you. This is the one place where God has surrendered his authority.
He can’t force you to love him. To follow Him. To love others. To forgive to serve to worship. But he urges you to do all of these and much more.
God’s spirit is in the world- God’s Holy Spirit- if you believe in Jesus- is in your life- urging you to surrender authority of your life.
It’s a wonderful thing. To live a life as God’s servant. To live in God’s plan, under God’s authority, in God’s story- there’s nothing like it. I’m done guessing what God’s gonna do- I’m done figuring out God- boiling God down to a theory that I can understand- every time I do that- I end up leading a distracting, misleading life.

Mark 1:14-20 "Changing Directions"

Mark 1:14-20- After John was put in prison, Jesus went into Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God. 15 "The time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"
16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." 18 At once they left their nets and followed him.
19 When he had gone a little farther, he saw James son of Zebedee and his brother John in a boat, preparing their nets. 20 Without delay he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and followed him.
Change is a part of life- 1. Change is part of following Jesus.
We are talking about changing directions today.
Arriving home from work at my usual hour of 5 p.m., I discovered that it had not been one of my wife's better days. Nothing I said or did seemed to be right.
By 7 p.m. things had not changed, so I suggested I go outside, pretend I had just got home, and start all over again. My wife agreed.
I went outside, came back in and, with a big smile, announced, "Honey, I'm home!"
"And just where have you been?" she replied sharply "It's after seven o'clock!"
2. Changing direction isn’t always easy
Sometimes starting fresh changing direction is easy- sometimes it isn’t
You are walking- and see something or someone in front of you that you don’t want to encounter
You turn on your heels and head the other direction
Or you are walking and you hear the voice of a loved one behind you= and you to turn heading toward their voice.
But changing directions in life isn’t always this simple or easy
Sometimes it is a bit difficult to change directions- it is not always immediate
Uhaul- trailer story- crossing the country- somewhere in South Dakota I pulled Our minivan and trailer into a parking lot because we thought we were lost [aside- sometimes you can make bad decisions when you are lost- not thinking clearly- you have no sense of which way is right- so you just pick any old way- have you been there? And I am not just talking about driving either...] Anyways...
I wasn’t that great at maneuvering a trailer- and unfortunately the parking lot that looked large when I pulled in was smaller than it appeared- and it had obstacles at every possible inconvenient location- isn’t that the way it goes?
It took me- it seemed- about 20 minutes of pulling up, backing up, steering and such to pull out of a parking lot that it took just a second or two to get into
The first change of direction was easy- You know, coming off the highway and into the parking lot
The second change was very difficult- getting out of the parking lot with my van pointed in the right direction - without damaging other cars
This is sometimes true in life
We sometimes make abrupt decisions and changes
Hey- that’s Jesus- the guy that John the baptizer said was so cool and righteous- I wonder what he’s doing here-
Woh- he’s talking to me- he wants me to follow Him.
And boom- they take off following this teacher- giving up fishing- for Jesus following- and fishing for people
But this isn’t the only change of direction in their lives- following Jesus out of the boat or away from the nets= is just the first step
Along the journey Jesus will teach Simon, Andrew, James and John- many truths- that will cause them to change the way they think- they will they live and treat others= Jesus will even change Simon’s name to Peter
Three of these four= Simon, James and John will be with Jesus on a mountain- when Jesus transfigures- when he shows a bit of his glory- They began to realize they weren’t following just a good teacher- they were following the Christ- the Messiah- this would change everything.
They will not be just followers- but close friends of Jesus- they will witness his death and also the resurrection- a decision to follow changed everything
Let’s Look Closer at this Story
Who can we see having life changes in this story?
Well first off John the Baptizer- went from preaching to prison- that’s what happens to prophets- they tell the powers that be- how things really should be and the powers lock them up- So John’s physical life changed direction- he now lived in a cell not in the wilderness- but in a very real sense John did not change direction at all because in the cell or in the wild- John was being faithful to his call to serve God
Second we see Jesus- is making a change- Right before this story we have been told that he was in the desert for forty days. He was fasting- and facing spiritual challenges. He was finishing off his preparation- and about to begin his ministry- here we see Jesus preaching for the first- "The time has come" he said.
He moved from preparing to preaching.
Next, we see Simon and Andrew- Jesus invited them to become "fishers of men"- at once they knew that he was not talking about throwing nets around people- they dropped their nets and followed him. They gave up their livelihood- job- and decided to become students.
James and John- are in a similar situation- they too are brothers. But there are some clues that tell us that they are likely wealthier than Andrew and Simon. They are in a boat. They have servants. They are leaving their job, but they also may be leaving behind a very angry father- maybe they are losing their inheritance- we don’t know.
There are the servants that John and James leave behind. Maybe they were happy. There was less hands to do more work and maybe this meant more pay. Or maybe not.
Then there is papa Zebedee- we don’t know if he was ticked off by his boy’s actions or not. For all we know he may have been a big fan of John the Baptizer and maybe he was excited for his sons to have a chance to become students and followers of this Jesus character- someone that John the Baptizer praised highly.
CHANGE- is the common link in this story. Changing directions is part of life- and it is especially part of following Jesus. Some change we control- and some change happens to us- and is out of our control- JBAP and Zeb.
So can we be open to change- believing that at certain times God calls us to do something new- and not the same old thing?
This goes for our families- when a new one comes in, or someone leaves- or the home is an empty nest- changes come- could God be calling you to something new? It goes for our church- It is true for this city
Let’s look at Papa Zebedee again...When our children decide to follow Jesus- this is a marvelous thing. But we have to come to peace with the truth that God will work with them according to the plan he has for them- not the plan we have for them. He will surely listen to the prayers of parents- like father Zebedee, like you and I- but the changes in store for our children- and grandchildren are beyond our control
For those of us who have children or grandchildren that have not yet decided to really follow Jesus- to make him their true God- more important than anything else- even family, even career even friends- If you desire for your children or grandchildren to follow Jesus- can I ask you something straight up? Are you doing anything about it? Are you being blunt in Jesus’ name? Saying things like, It’s time to get back to worshiping God. Or encouraging them with the blunt truth that Jesus loves them and has a good plan and purpose for their life. Now, you and they should know that doesn’t mean that they have to become boring preacher like me- Following God- means letting God live with you wherever you are at- I think father Zebedee might very well had been a Jesus follower- but somebody had to stay and manage the business.
God is calling you to be a disciple
It is often said that there were 12 disciples- this is only half right. There were 12 disciples- but really there were thousands and now there are billions through history that have been students and followers of Jesus.
Following Christ doesn’t mean saying one prayer or signing a belief statement and boom that’s it- It is a life-long journey. Filled with changes of direction. Filled with frustration and celebration.
Filled with repenting and believing.
Following Jesus- reading his words- praying to him will very likely change many things
How you relate to family- it should deepen your love and challenge you to practice forgiveness and patience
How you relate to neighbors-
How you relate to strangers-
How you make life decisions
Jesus said"Repent and believe the good news!"
Repent means to confess a problem and change behavior
It means changing direction
Maybe God is calling you to a life change today-
Maybe God is calling you to be open to someone in your life making a change of direction
But believe this- God is always calling you to discipleship.
Disciples would sit at their teachers feet= follow them around and learn from them
God is calling you to sit at his feet to learn from him- to follow him
God loves you and wants you to live a life of commitment

John 1:43-51, "Can anything good come from a small town? Come and see..."

Pray-
John 1:43-51
43 The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, he said to him, "Follow me."
44 Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida. 45 Philip found Nathanael and told him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote-Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."
46 "Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?" Nathanael asked.
"Come and see," said Philip.
47 When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, "Here is a true Israelite, in whom there is nothing false."
48 "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.
Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you."
49 Then Nathanael declared, "Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the King of Israel."
50 Jesus said, "You believe because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You shall see greater things than that." 51 He then added, "I tell you the truth, you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man."
Joke: A boy gives his pastor a quarter- the pastor asks little Johnnie, why did you give me this quarter-
The boy said "you need it"
Why do you think that?
My dad said you’re the poorest preacher he’s ever heard.
The same words- can mean different things to different people
a Person’s reputation- a town’s reputation can be understood very differently by people of different vantage points
Nathanael understood Nazareth to be a dead end town- "no-where-ville"
History understands Nazareth to be the home town of Jesus the Christ
Life is a struggle of conflicting realities.
Example- Evil is real, but not as real as GOOD- because evil has no eternal reality. Evil has its roots not in God- but in created beings perverting good things that God has made.
So bigotry is very real- but love will always win out in the very end- because bigotry is a perversion- a non-God originated idea- God created people- and then people start to think some of us are better than some others- this evil is not going to last forever.
As if Bethsaida is better than Nazareth- simply because of reputation
Or make it Palouse and Garfield- Potlatch and Troy- the truth is the same
So there are Conflicting realities in this life
We are going to focus in on one Reality Conflict
Reputation "Reality" vs. Resurrection Reality
1.reputation means= commonly held estimation- public
2. "Opinion" Reality
3.Your family’s opinion of you-
Your opinion of yourself
4.We allow reputation to speak volumes
5.I know the statistics of
My family- two children, two parents- My town and zip code-
My church
Resurrection Reality
1.Resurrection Means= life coming out of death
2.Reality that survives death
3. Only God knows our FULL potential for Good-
4. We should allow God’s word to speak volumes
5.A family, a town, a church- is much more than a set of statistics we often place artificial limits on the good we can do- its not up to us- or even stats- its up to God
Intimidation vs. Invitation
"Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?"- Nathanael’s words, were words meant to challenge or intimidate Philip’s hopeful statement
How often we do this- Someone says they have found something good in their life- something hopeful- and we respond with a cynical, biting intimidating statement- "I’ve found the savior- he’s from Nazareth" Oh great- Nazareth. Or we hear or say, "I met Jesus." And the response is great, woopee- that's original!
Our human trait of focusing on the negative- rather than the good news
But Philip and Jesus are inviting people- Come and See, Come and follow me- Jesus even compliments Nathanael- though Nath. Had insulted his home town- he doesn’t respond with intimidation, he responds with invitation- inviting Nath to a new way of living- living in a world where people really know each other- not just by reputation- but by God’s plan
where people really forgive each other- not to look good- but because they know life is more than just appearances
where people really help and love each other- not to gain advantage- but because we believe that we are created precisely to do two things- love God and love each other
It’s not about man-made religion- that is being from the right town, the correct tribe,
[Aside here- we don’t intimidate people into coming to worship= we invite- We don’t badger people- laying on the guilt- be kind]
saying the exact right words at the right times. NO- it’s all about following Jesus- and seeing and living life as it was meant to be lived- and invite others to see God’s love for us and His plans for us. we don’t want a super religious church or a super-religious town, No we want more people trying to live life like Jesus would if he were in our shoes
You are invited to meet Jesus?
Have you invited anyone to meet Jesus lately?
We should not take this invitation lightly
It is an invitation to see greater things
To see beyond the world’s reality- to God’s reality
To see beyond the rumors of this world- to see real truth
To see beyond who people say you are- who you say you are- and instead see who your really are in God’s eyes- a beloved child of God
Jesus Reality- tells us that God thinks we are all priceless- we are all worth the sacrifice of Christ
Come and See- An Invitation to see Greater Things
There is an invitation for you today on the insert.
Invitation- is it your day to start following Jesus? Come and see? He knows where you’ve been and he has a plan for you? Come and See.

Mark 1:4-13 "Our Lord Gets Soaking Wet"

Mark 1:4-13 "Our Lord Gets Soaking Wet"
4 And so John came, baptizing in the desert region and preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. 5 The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River. 6 John wore clothing made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. 7 And this was his message: "After me will come one more powerful than I, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit."
9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 As Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove. 11 And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."
12 At once the Spirit sent him out into the desert, 13 and he was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and angels attended him.
PROP- pitcher of water (bring in and pour the water out). Today is a day of water. Today is the day we celebrate and remember Our Lord’s baptism-
Our Lord Jesus was baptized
Our Lord Jesus was baptized.
He stepped into the water and he let John take him below the surface of the river Jordan.
He was in the water. [Pour out some more water]
As he comes up from the water- he can see heaven itself being torn open- and the Spirit of God- whom he has been physically separated from for 30 years- lands on him, peacefully- as a dove. Then a gentle reminder from Father God, who is in a sense saying, hey- "I know its been a while- but just remember this: you are my Son, I love you and am pleased with you."
Jesus doesn’t start his ministry in the Temple- he starts it in the desert- a good drenching in water followed by a time of spiritual challenge and fasting in the dessert is Jesus’ final act of preparation for ministry and his first acts of his ministry. He is both preparing himself and teaching US at the same time. He was convicted to be baptized- his conviction and action teaches us that we too should be baptized to honor him.
Father God doesn’t meet Jesus at a sacrifice at the temple- he meets him in a humble act of personal devotion and worship.
Nature was Jesus’ temple that day- his priest was John the wild man and his baptismal was the River Jordan.
He doesn’t seek approval of the high priest, he seeks baptism from the wild-prophet of the desert.
What a scene, what a story.
Our Lord Jesus getting baptized- getting soaking wet. Why? For what purpose?
What is baptism?
Baptism is an act of devotion
- You put your life in another’s hands
- It is a statement that says I believe that God has called me to be His servant
- The water symbolically seals a deal with God
- Parents and grandparents long to see their children baptized- because they know how God works. They know that their children and grandchildren can look back at this special event- this concrete-solid moment in time- and remember the love of God and that God has saved them and that their life has a meaning and a purpose. That they have devoted their life to God. No matter what may come, the troubles, the sorrows, the doubts of our faith- one can look back and say with confidence- "I was washed clean. The deal has been sealed. God loves me and I love God." Baptism crushes all evil lies:
Lies such as: You are not worthy of God’s love- You are not worth God’s time
Your sins are unforgivable- you are too dirty, too troubled
Friends baptism reminds us the truth is this: God created you to love you- there fore you are worthy of God’s love- not because of what you do or don’t do- but because God just loves you- warts and all
You are worth God’s time- He hasn’t missed a baptism service yet- he attends every single one- I guarantee it.
All our sins past, present and future are not only forgivable- they are already forgiven and nailed to the cross. God knew your worst sin before you ever committed it and decided you were still worth saving. No one is too troubled for Jesus. In fact he came not to save "the I already got It all together" folks- no Jesus came to save the sick, the hurting, the goofups and goofballs, the lost and the confused, the doubters, the crooks, the failures and even the liars- in short he came to save us humans.
In doing baptism, yes it is a sign that we are devoted to God, all the baptized are to proclaim that Jesus Christ is their Savior and Lord of their life.
but it is even more so a remembrance that God is eternally devoted to loving and saving us.
Baptism is an act of humility
A person steps into the water, right here in this baptismal fount, or at a pool or river, and puts their hands across their chest, proclaims Jesus as Lord and Savior and then waits. They wait for the action of the baptizer.
Jesus’ baptizer was John. Your baptizer could be me, another minister, maybe a family member or friend- the baptizer is to put your proclamation of Jesus as Lord and Savior into action. A baptizer pours the water or dips the person into the water.
The person being baptized is being held captive, of their own will and choice, by the actions of the baptizer.
The very act that we use to symbolize the start of our faith journey is a passive, humble act.
We surrender to our baptizer and in doing so we are showing the greater surrender we have to our Lord God.
As the Son of God humbled himself to become one of us, so we too humble ourself to admit that we are most truly a son of God or a daughter of God. It is the least we can do to honor what God has done for us.
I ask you today to seek baptism and if you are already baptized I ask you to reclaim your baptism- baptism is truly a spiritual birth- for some of you it is time to have your first birthday very soon, for some of you it is time to remember your birthday- to humbly praise and thank God for meeting you in the waters of baptism
Baptism is the start of a journey
After a very long and boring sermon the parishioners filed out of the church saying nothing to the preacher. Towards the end of the line was a thoughtful person who always commented on the sermons. "Pastor, today your sermon reminded me of the peace and love of God."
The pastor was thrilled. "Nobody has ever said anything like that about my preaching before. Tell me why."
"Because it endured forever."
Time is a relative experience. Some live short lives-that are filled full. And others live long and empty lives. Some live long full lives- and there are endless stages in between.
Baptism is the start of a journey- a journey that truly will never end. We will live forever in a relationship with God, in the presence of God.
But living forever is hard, if not impossible to understand- and I am convinced that the only way we will begin to understand the greatness and blessedness of eternity- is to fully live in the present moment.
From the concrete, solid moment of Our baptism- life can be a endless series of moments with open ends. An all wet follower of Jesus can live each moment with an end to do something eternal.
What am I saying? Stop and really think for a second- you can do something in a moment- in a few seconds- a conversation, an evening, a season- that will keep going even when the moment or the event has passed.
PROP- camera- it is like when I take this picture of all of you- it only takes a moment- but now the moment has been captured and appreciated- in this case by a camera- and it will live on.
A husband and wife kissing at their wedding- lasts only a moment- but this moment is open ended, and in a real sense it will stay alive as long as the couple honors it. If a person forgives someone on their death bed- the forgiveness will live- though the person dies and the moment will have an open end a life unto itself- this is somehow a bit of eternity.
When we do a loving thing or say a loving thing, the effects and power of these good acts can snowball and develop goodness in others
Take Jesus for example- at some point in time he said love your enemy as well as love your neighbor as yourself- likely he said these hundreds if not thousands of times in his short three year ministry- but these powerfully true words snowballed into people’s lives and changed how they lived and changed whole cultures and societies- they are still changing people- three years of devoted ministry started a movement that has no parallel in human history-
Baptism is God capturing us from sin- a moment that tells us, reminds us that we will live on! Jesus’ teaching moments have become eternal moments
Jesus was living out his faith as well as teaching us- when he sought baptism
He was living out His faith- by humbly entering the historic waters of Jordan, by putting his life in the hands of John- he was proclaiming that the time had come for Him to begin His redeeming ministry. He is saying "it’s on"- from this point on Jesus is publicly preaching and healing.
He was teaching us- to admit that our lives are not simply our own. We are God’s. Each and every one of us is loved by God and God calls all to baptism.
He is calling you today. [Give the invitation.] Amen.

Luke 2:22-40 "Old and New"

Pray
Luke 2:22-40 "Old and New"- a Christmas story that doesn’t get all the fanfare- there are no angels, no kings from distant lands- just a couple of elderly people holding a baby. When I read this story, I had to wonder why Christians and our culture hasn’t lifted this story up as one of the central stories of Christmas- it was, after all, only eight days after he was born, where the wise men visited Jesus months or maybe even two years after his birth
So let us hear this story again or maybe for the first time
Luke 2:22-40
When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23(as it is written in the Law of the Lord, "Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord"), 24 and to offer a sacrifice in keeping with what is said in the Law of the Lord: "a pair of doves or two young pigeons."
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord's Christ. 27 Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying:
29 "Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,
you now dismiss your servant in peace.
30 For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel."
33 The child's father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
36 There was also a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, 37 and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. 38 Coming up to them at that very moment, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.
39 When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40 And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.
(from New International Version)
A pastor was leaving his area and was saying farewell to his congregation at the Church doors for the last time. He shook the hand of an elderly lady as she walked out. She said "Your successor won't be as good as you."
"Nonsense", said the pastor, in a flattered tone.
"No, really", said the old lady, "I've been here under five different ministers and each new one has been worse than the last."
Knowing the future- is closely linked to understanding the past
How do we look forward?
Today we are learning from the story of Simeon and Anna and the Holy Family- and I believe there is something for us to learn- something from Anna and Simeon- how did they see the future for the baby Jesus?
I saw an article today, the headline read 2006 Economy looks strong- how do they know it was Dec. 28th when I read it, in the 2005?
Predicting economic activity is of course different than identifying the Christ child
But they have something in common- economic predictions are based heavily on the past- on past performances- on trends
They determine the news- by looking at the old- and making educated guesses
In the story of Anna and Simeon- they were old folks- on the verge of death
Their lives prepared them to see Jesus this day
Looking at Simeon’s Name and Life- and his part in this story
Gen 29:33- Leah’s second child, her first was Reuben, was Simeon. 33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, "Because the LORD heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too." So she named him Simeon
He was named after a second child- he may have been a middle child- beyond this we don’t know much about his name or family
- A person of the Holy Spirit- he was righteous and devout
- Had convictions, specific convictions- for example he would see the Christ before he died
- Though he was a person of the Spirit- a spiritual person- he was not always at the Temple, but indeed the Holy Spirit asked him to go to the temple on that day
- From the story it appears that Simeon was welcomed at the temple and he must have been near Jesus’ circumcision- possibly as a witness, or as an elder- but the text tells us he was because he had been moved to be there by the Holy Spirit.
-"For my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the sight of all people"
Simeon is impressed with the incarnation- the location of God on earth
- Simeon was living just to see the hope of God- and seeing the infant was enough for him, he was ready to die at that point
- Simeon’s words were not all sweetness and light- they were reality, he said, "This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
This the order of Simeon’s action that day:
1. Waiting
2. Moved by the Spirit to go to the Temple Courts
3. Took baby Jesus into his arms
4. Praised God saying, "Sovereign Lord..."
5. Parents were marveled- then Simeon said a blessing to them both
6. Spoke directly to Mary, ""This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, 35 so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too."
Could Joseph not bear to hear this difficult news?- We don’t know
Simeon’s thoughts cont...
7. Sum- encouragement and grounding-
Looking at Anna’s Names and Life- and her part in this story
Anna’s names have some history-
- Leah was Jacob’s first wife, her father, Laban had tricked Jacob into marrying Leah first
- Then Rachel had her maidservant Billah have children with jacob. Leah- was temporarily done with having children, so she had her servant- Zilpah have children with Jacob= Zilpah’s second son, a son of Jacob was named Asher (Jacob’s eighth son)- this is Anna’s tribe
- The name Anna- is related to the name Hannah- the mother of Samuel- the root word for Hannah and Anna means favor or "to bow to"
- Phanuel is really the Peniel- Jacob called the place where he wrestled God, "Peniel" because he saw God face to face- Phanuel= face of God
Anna is from an "average" tribe- her personal name comes from the mother of the prophet Samuel= and her father’s name means the face of God- though she was not a biological mother- she was a favored woman who held the God-child in her arms and saw God face to face
Anna’s identity:
- She fasted and prayed for DECADES=
- She was likely taken care of by the generosity of others- maybe family
- She came up to the "holy family" "the very moment" when Simeon was blessing them
Her ability to see the Christ- came from her preparation and her identity as being one in love with God
The old- Simeon and Anna- were indeed "new" thinkers
- They were old in age
- But they were willing to see that God was doing a new thing, through this infant- that this Christ was to be for the Gentiles and for Israel
A promise has two ends- the hope and the fulfillment
What is the point of this story?
God is encouraging Jesus’ parents- they needed it- think of their situation
You’ve heard the proverb, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
Well there is a Spanish Proverb, "An ounce of mother is worth a ton of priest."- Anna and Simeon were being used to give confidence, encouragement to Mary and Joseph
In a real sense- Anna and Simeon are Jesus’ God-parents- they are charging his parents to raise this child as the Christ
Jesus being the Christ wasn’t obvious to everyone
Jesus was normal (following traditions)- 2 pigeons- a sacrifice of poor people and not normal- not just another ooh your baby is cute
Simeon and Anna were devoted Yahweh followers- not religious elite- they were the personally devout- God is using his everyday- elderly church folk to be his prophets-
How does this story relate to my life? How do we see into the future?
Having visions of the future- means living in God’s love in the present
Spend time this year in prayer- in fasting- in worship- being in God’s presence and you will have visions of what could be– what could be in your life, in you family’s life, in our church’s life- in the life of our community
God will use what has happened to you in the past and make it a foundation for you to stand on so that you can be His servant
A New Year= things can get better- this year you can see God face to face in your life- You can be held- captured by a vision of God to live a committed, devoted, righteous and loving life
Amen