Matthew 16:21-28

September 3, 2023

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 16:21-28

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.”

Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? “For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

| Centering Prayer |

“Messiah, the Son of the living God,” Peter had correctly identified Jesus.

More than the son of Mary,

The boy from Nazareth,

The healer, miracle worker, and preacher

From up north

Who attracted great crowds of followers, imitators, and want-a-bees.

Flanked by idols to the Greek god Pan, and

The Philistine god, Baal, on his left,

With the ominous cave opening, on his right,

Believed by the population as being

the literal gate to hell,

Jesus advances to the next slide of his orientation curriculum

What it means to self-identify as messiah.

Messiah, classically defined,

the anointed leader, savior, deliverer of the Jewish nation

as prophesied in scripture.

Jewish descendant. Jesus checks that box.

Anointed with holy oil. Jesus checks that box in Matthew 26.

King of God’s Kingdom. Jesus, Son of the Father, next in line of succession. Check that box.

Ruler of God’s Kingdom during the messianic age,

An era of universal peace and brotherhood,

With an absence of evil.

Every one of his 12 disciples expected Jesus to check that box, too.

In the mind of Peter and fellow Jews

Danced the sugar-plum vision of Jesus ruling the messianic age;

Swords beaten into plowshares,

Wolf and lamb, natural predator and prey, living in peaceful harmony,

With the earth full of the knowledge of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:6-9)

Except, Jesus didn’t check that box.

Jesus had other plans.

What could be more important then

God solving their immediate problems?

Come on, God. Show your stuff.

Send your Son.

We will make him King.

Remove Rome.

And all will live happily ever after.

Lesson #1.

Avoid thinking small.

Yes. Your life,

Your social circle,

Your bubble,

The weather, your garden, the start of the new school year, the state of local politics,

Your reality, the good, bad, and ugly,

Are important to Jesus.

Yet, Jesus wants us to think bigger,

Bigger than human things.

Life, death, and eternity is greater than just you and me and that slow driver plugging up traffic by lingering in the left hand lane.

Christianity cannot be self-centered, Jesus is telling his disciples this morning.

Peter, you, and me fall down the bottomless hole of human things,

While, Jesus has his eye on divine things.

Personal salvation is wonderful

Until eyes are opened to the world burning.

Forgiveness of sins is great

Until pardon is withheld and amends fall on deaf ears.

Why fix and repair

When the same old wrong

Works so well to perpetuate and personify all that sucks in my life?

I can assign blame to everyone and everything bad in this world

Without ever lifting a finger of personal responsibility,

Because Jesus forgave my sins and I’m saved.

There are few greater criticisms of Christianity

That self-righteous, self-centered Christians.

With an eye on divine things,

Jesus is frying other fish.

Jesus wasn’t constrained by his small group,

Anchored to a temporal time and space,

Tethered to personal forgiveness and salvation.

Jesus was looking to the cross

While the world was looking for the crown.

Lesson #2.

Jesus was focused on divine things,

Facing the cross of crucifixion;

Soo, too, should we.

The cross of Jesus Christ

Transcends time and space,

Is God’s gift of grace to all people, nations, races, cultures,

Spanning all time; that which was, that which is, and that will be.

Fixing the stain of sin becomes the necessary prerequisite for the empty tomb and eternal life.

You can’t get there

Without first going through here.

Before you get to St. Peter

Make certain you are shaved, showered, and put on your Sunday best.

Temptation is to avoid Good Friday

And just show up for Easter sunrise,

Treating the passion of Christ

With antiseptic and a clean bandage.

Lesson #3.

Being a Jesus follower isn’t for sissies.

The very one to whom Jesus had just given the keys to the Church

Jesus calls out Peter for thinking “crown”

When he should have been thinking “cross.”

“Get behind me, Satan!

You are a stumbling block to me;

For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.” (16:23)

As if a punch in the face and a bloody nose isn’t enough,

Jesus shares his expectation

That everyone who follows him

Should be expected to take a knockout punch.

The great “if” clause of the

“if/then” function

Becomes Christ’s most important challenge.

To be

Followers of Jesus

Requires

Denial,

A readiness to die,

A willingness to follow.

Denial.

A complete surrender of self.

Letting go of all control, ego, and pride.

A recognition that control is a mere illusion,

That all power is the exclusive domain of God.

Self-denial

Is best illustrated in our lesson from Romans (12:9-21)

Love.

Hold fast.

Serve.

Rejoice.

Be patient.

Persevere.

Contribute.

Extend hospitality.

Bless.

Live in harmony.

Feed the hungry,

Give drink to the thirsty.

Overcome evil with good.

Every quality implies a denial of self and the promotion of others.                                                    

A readiness to die.

There is an empty cross with your name on it.

There is one for me, too.

When eternal life is on the table

Why would any of us engage in a struggle to save our own life?

Live everyday prepared to die,

Is the sage advice of the Apostle Paul.

“For to me,” he writes to the church in Philippi,

“to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21)

“Follow me,” Jesus extends the invitation. (16:24)

Only after submission and sacrifice is one ready to follow Jesus.

If you want to know where Jesus goes and what Jesus does,

The follower needs to know Jesus inside and out.

Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

The Gospels

Report the Truth about Jesus Christ.

Learn from them.

Write them upon your heart.

What Jesus and his followers believed

Is found in Hebrew scriptures,

Which we call the Old Testament.

It establishes a foundation

Of God’s power and creation,

God’s love and covenant,

God’s desire and law.

To know Jesus means that one must know Adam, Moses, Abraham, the prophets, and the Psalmists.

What happened to the world

Because of God’s great loving gift of Jesus

Is recorded in the Acts of the Apostles through the book of Revelation.

We call it the New Testament.

The world was, and is, forever transformed,

Transfigured into a likeness of Christ,

The Body of Christ,

His Church

As it began to live out the call to discipleship.

To know Jesus

And to know of God’s great transformation

Is to be able to find ourselves in this transformation

And to make productive contributions

To its fulfillment.

Denial.

Willingness to die.

Follow. Faithfully following Jesus.

Yeah, discipleship isn’t easy;

But it is worth it.

…

Beloved,

Think big.

Think outside the box.

Forget the crown. Focus your eyes on crucifixion.

Seek and discover the divine things emerging around you.

Surrender, the Kinks sang.

Unlike their lyrics,

Jesus urges those who choose to follow

To give themselves away.

To be willing to even give away the precious gift of life.

For when God holds the gift of eternal life in hand,

What does it matter?

Surrender.

Take up your cross.

Know Jesus.

Follow his example.

Adhere to his lessons.

Some will find it easier than others.

Some will taste death before seeing Christ return.

Others will be blessed to bask in his glory.

Amen.

Matthew 16:13-20

August 27, 2023

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 16:13-20

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”

And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”  

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

| Centering Prayer |

Fresh out of seminary

I was too wet behind the ears

To be able to distinguish the difference between

Caesarea Philippi and Caesarea Martima.

Can you?

Using Tiberius on the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel as a navigational anchor,

Caesarea Martima is 51.4 miles southwest of Tiberius,

A coastal Roman capital on the Mediterranean.

Warm, sandy beaches with a protected port fed by a massive Roman aqueduct,

Caesarea Martima was a place of trade, commerce, military might, and Roman power.

Pontious Pilate called it home.

In contrast,

Caesarea Philippi is 46.7 miles due north of Tiberius.

It was a cool mountainous outpost at the base of Mt. Hermon,

Noted as the spring water source of the Jordan River.

Caesarea Philippi was deep in gentile country.

Caesarea Philippi was the nexus of Baal idol worship and allegiance to Greek gods and myth.

At this location the first king of Israel, Jeroboam,

Led the northern kingdom into idolatry.

Flanking the grottos where Jesus taught

Were rock carvings and statutes

Of Baal, Pan, and what was believed to be the pagan gate of Hades.

For the observant Jew

Caesarea Philippi was where the devil did his work.

The only thing in common was the name Caesarea;

An ominous homage to where true power lay;

Before the throne of Caesar,

Emperor of Rome.

…

Jesus brings his disciples on retreat.

Today’s gospel is a lesson in leadership development,

Taught from the heart of darkness.

Jesus had recruited his disciples,

Students who he demonstrated his divine powers of

Healing the sick, cleansing a person with leprosy, casting out demons, fixing a withered hand.

Jesus had taught his disciples in beatitude and parable,

What it meant to live a life of blessings,

To bring salt and light to a bland, dark world,

Filled with sorrow and sin.

Jesus taught

To temper anger and a prohibition on divorce,

To love enemies, to be charitable to the poor, and to pray without ceasing.  

He taught them to sow seeds, harvest fruit, and to remove and burn weeds

As a sign and symbol for disciple making.

Jesus had demonstrated to his disciples

The awesome, unlimited power of God,

Stilling a raging storm, walking on water, and feeding four thousand with seven loaves and a few small fish. (15:14)

Jesus had also warned his new disciples,

“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth,”

Jesus warned with messianic overtones,

“I have not come to bring peace, but a sword!” (10:34)

Jesus turns and asks the group,

“Who do people say I am?”

…

The bland as milk toast

group of non-committal disciples

lowered their eyes,

kicked some dirt,

and responded with the safe answer.

“Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” (16:14)

John the Baptist: dead.

Elijah: dead.

Jeremiah: dead.

Jesus was no more the resurrection of a dead prophet

Then he is the resurrection of George Washington.

Which brings us to the first lesson for today.

1. When it comes to your relationship with Jesus, don’t play it safe.

Token, semi-annual appearances at worship

Is no substitute for a living, breathing, growing relationship with Jesus Christ.

Christmas Eve and Easter appearances may appease the family

But reflect a hope that is built on nothing less than sinking sand.

When it comes to Jesus, don’t play it safe.

The Church is not an organization to financially support,

a building to be repaired,

a politic to be mastered,

or a ladder for the ambitious to climb.

Work, without faith, is dead;

Just as dead as John the Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, and the other prophets.

…

Jesus narrows the search

From “who do people say the Son of Man is?”

To looking Peter in the eye, asking,

“who do you say that I am.”

Messiah! Peter, boldly proclaims,

Making reference to

Not bringing peace,

But the sword he had armed himself with

In anticipation of the messianic apocalyptical consummation of history and time.

You are the

Son of the living God!

Peter, correctly contrast

The living, breathing Jesus

Standing surrounded by all things idols and pagans

Beside the very entrance to what was believed to be the gates of hell.

2. Which brings us to the second point in today’s gospel:

When it comes to Jesus, go big or go home!

Bold is the faith of Christ’s true disciples;

Fearing none,

Every thread of embarrassment or self-doubt squared away.

Timid is the faith of chaff

That is gathered, cast out into the darkness, and burned in the fire.

Make bold your faith!

Say is loud.

Say it proud.

Shout it from a mountain top that all the world might know:

Jesus is Messiah,

Our Savior,

From sin to salvation,

From life to eternal life,

From the dust of mortality to immortality.

Messiah has come!

We need not wait for another.

Jesus breaks with the synagogue down the street.

Jesus become the one who will endure

“and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.” (16:18)

We have a winner!

Jesus is Son of the living God,

Alive, at work

In your life and mine.

Deny his presence and will

at your own risk.

Accept the reality of Christ for your benefit, and for mine.

It is as if Peter wells in song:

“Christ is alive, and goes before us

to show and share what love can do.

This is a day of new beginnings;

our God is making all things new.”

(Words by Brian Wren, “This Is a Day of New Beginnings”, UMH# 383, v.4)

….

“Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah!

For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you,

but my Father in heaven.” (16:17)

Simon Peter hadn’t heard it on the grapevine.

It wasn’t sent out in a Rush Tidings, printed in Our Faithful Followers, or printed in the bulletin.

He didn’t read it in the Democrat and Chronicle or the Hometown Sentinel.

Peter listened for,

Paid attention to,

The revelation of God.

3. Which brings us to the third lesson for today.

Be silent.

Watch.

Listen.

Discern

The words and will of God.

Be patient.

Wait for the Lord.

Scripture tells us no less than fifteen times to

Wait for the Lord.

Blessed is the one,

Earlier the subjects of the Beatitudes,

Here, Blessed is Simon Peter,

Who faithfully reported the Good News given to him

From Our Father, who art in heaven.

How often do I jump to conclusions?

Conclude without facts, and leap to judgment?

How often do I make assumptions?

Draw correlations without first listening for the voice of God?

How often do I ignore all warning signs from God, and

make decisions without first considering the unintended consequences of my actions?

Wait for the Lord.

Why?

Because the Lord is ready and willing to speak

To those who are willing to listen.

…

Ah, Simon Peter,

The follower,

Destined to deny,

Is transformed into rock,

A solid foundation upon which

Christ will build his church.

Which brings us to point number four.

4. If Jesus could use Peter to build the Church, imaging what Christ can do with you.

Peter: blue collar, common fisherman.

Peter: a bone-headed, open mouth, insert foot kind of guy.

Peter: Three times a liar – I don’t know him. I’ve never seen him. I’ve never followed him.

Peter: Three times the penitent groveller. Yes, Lord. You know I love you. Yes, Lord. I love you. Yes, Lord. I love you.

Peter: Barbequed and martyred by the hand of Nero, crucified upside down, set afire.

If there was room at the table for Peter,

There is room for you.

If there is room at the table for me, I assure you,

There is room for you.

Christ can take the most beaten down, beaten up, shot to … smithereens

Body, mind, or spirit,

And use you as a foundation for the building of his church.

This is why we have no throw-aways, cast-offs, or cast-aways in the church.

If Jesus can use Peter,

Jesus can use you.

…

To Simon Peter,

Jesus gives the keys of the kingdom of heaven.

Not everyone gets a set of keys;

Only Peter

The rock,

The foundation of the Church

Upon which Jesus builds,

And builds,

And builds.

To Peter

And to his anointed, ordained called to follow in his footsteps,

Is given the responsibility of stewardship of the Church,

To bind and to loose,

Decisions that transcend the boundaries of earth and heaven.

Which brings us to the fifth and final point in today’s gospel:

5. Respect and support the chosen.

The yoke born by bishops, presbyters, elders, and deacons is heavy and leads to the cross.

“Bind” and “loose” were common to Jewish legal phraseology

Meaning to declare something forbidden or to declare it allowed.

A key is used to lock or unlock a door.

The key given to me at my ordination is used to open the door to Christ’s forgiveness and redemption to people broken by sin and evil.

An open door shows the way to the cross of Jesus Christ.

That same key given to me

is used to open the door of salvation

To invite the world to enter.

Beloved, step from your grave

And into the light of eternal life.

That same key

Locks the door

Providing protection to the church

From wolves who seek to destroy everything which Christ has built.

Heavy is this responsibility.

Heavier still is this responsibility

As I discern and consider the call of the next generation of

Called and ordained clergy of tomorrow’s Church.

…

What does this interaction

Between Jesus and Peter mean to us today?

1. When it comes to your relationship with Jesus, don’t play it safe. Spice it up and be bold!

2. When it comes to witnessing for Jesus, go big or go home!

3. At the same time learn patience. Be silent. Be patient. Wait. Watch. Listen. See. Discern the words and will of God.

4. Imagine what Christ can do with you and through you.

5. Respect and support the chosen. Our job is to protect the Church;

to open the door to Jesus Christ;

and to invite you to accept his grace of forgiveness, redemption, and salvation.

Amen

Matthew 15:10-28

August 20, 2023

the Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 15:10-28

Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, “Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.”

Then the disciples approached and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?”

He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.”

But Peter said to him, “Explain this parable to us.”

Then he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.”

Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon.

Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.”

But he did not answer her at all.

And his disciples came and urged him, saying, “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.”

He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.”

He answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.”

She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”

Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

And her daughter was healed instantly.

| Centering Prayer |

Our Gospel lesson for this morning is quite remarkable.

It flies in the face of over a thousand years of Church doctrine.

It is this very inconsistency,

between the Biblical Word and Church doctrine,

that makes us squirm uncomfortably in our seats

when we experience the fullness of this passage

spoken and left to hang in our midst.

The fourth verse of the hymn, “Jesus Is All the World to Me”

helps define the issue.

It goes,

“Jesus is all the world to me, I want no better friend; I trust him now, I’ll trust him when life’s fleeting days shall end …” (Will Thompson, 1904, The United Methodist Hymnal, No. 469).

Our trust in Jesus doesn’t waver,

and it shouldn’t.

Our trust in Jesus is predicated upon the assumption

that Jesus never changes.

Jesus is the constant

in our relationship with the Divine.

That unchanging nature of Jesus brings us comfort, at times.

Though life might toss you about

and lead you down numerous valleys of the shadow of death,

the one thing that remains constant is Christ.

If all else fails us in life,

at least the one thing we can count on

is that Jesus will remain the same.

He is the same today as He was yesterday,

as He will be tomorrow.

The Jesus we received as a child,

is the same Jesus

that I will leave with my children.

Of this we are assured!

This unchanging nature of Christ

sent me rummaging through my old textbooks from seminary.

I searched the tried and true systematic theology

titled “Principles of Christian Theology,”

by John Macquarrie.

In his section The Person of Jesus Christ,

I found what I was after.

He writes

“The core of traditional Christology is, of course, the two-nature doctrine of the Chalcedonian definition, which speaks of one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only-begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation;  the distinction of nature being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two person, but one and the same Son and Only-begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ.”

(Macquarrie, J., Principles of Christian Theology, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York, 1966. p. 273)

There you have it.

Since The Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon

held in 451 AD,

the new orthodox doctrine has been laid down.

We believe in the unchanging nature of Jesus,

and have been doing so for the past 1,500 years.

A thousand years after the Council of Chalcedon,

Martin Luther, the Protestant reformer

penned the descriptive hymn “Ein’ Feste Burg”

or “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God.”

Listen to his second verse

“Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing, were not the right man on our side, the man of God’s own choosing. Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is he; Lord Sabaoth, his name, from age to age the same, and he must win the battle.” (United Methodist Hymnal, #110)

Apparently Luther intended to bring this doctrine

of the unchanging nature of Christ with him

to the newly reformed protestant church.

A hundred and fifty years later,

a contemporary of John Wesley, Isaac Watts,

certainly reflected on the psalmist

when he wrote the 4^th verse of “O God, Our Help in Ages Past”

“A thousand ages in thy sight, are like an evening gone; short as the watch that ends the night, before the rising son.” (United Methodist Hymnal, #117)

The Psalmist wrote in the 90^th Psalm,

“For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” (Psalm 90:4 KJV).

It certainly doesn’t appear to be much change over time

in the nature of God.

Three hundred years after Luther

and a hundred-fifty after Isaac Watts,

a minister in the Free Church of Scotland,

Walter Chalmers Smith,

wrote in 1867 these well-known verses to our favorite hymn:

“Immortal, invisible, God only wise, in light inaccessible hid from our eyes, most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days, almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.” (United Methodist Hymnal, #103)

This hymn is likely to be sung and affirmed

in any Christian church today.

Romans Catholics,

Eastern Orthodox,

and we Protestants alike –

all affirm

the unchanging, unmoving, immortal, invisible

nature of Jesus Christ.

As I look back at the history and development

of United Methodist doctrine,

I find in The Book of Discipline, Article II,

in the Doctrinal Standards of the Methodist Church to read:

“The Son, who is the word of the Father, the very and eternal God, of one substance with the Father, took man’s nature in the womb of the blessed Virgin; so that two whole and perfect natures, that is to say, the Godhead and Manhood, were joined together in one person, never to be divided; … “ (The Book of Discipline of the United Methodist Church 2004, P.103, pg. 60)

With this preamble

about the unchanging nature of Jesus Christ,

we are confronted this morning with Jesus,

who, when confronted by a desperate mother –

pleading for his mercy on behalf of her demon possessed daughter,

tells her “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24).

Jesus! that is cold!

Jesus is the one who left Jewish territory,

Invading this woman’s world.

Furthermore, this Canaanite woman,

An unclean outsider,

Demonstrates she has a better grasp of Jesus’ identity

Then his hand-selected disciples.

(With thanks to Carla Works, Professor of New Testament, Wesley Theological Seminary, Washington DC, as found at Working Preacher dot org)

This woman is persistent.

Note to self: persistence pays off,

when it comes to faith.

Be persistent.

She bites and doesn’t let go.

She comes back a second time,

kneeling at the feet of Jesus, pleading

“‘Lord, help me.’

He answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” (Matthew 15:25-26).

I may have done a lot of foolish things in my life,

but I have never in public

compared a parishioner to a dog.

But, there you have it

– if you want it that way –

the unchanging,

stubborn,

Pennsylvania Dutch nature of Jesus Christ,

laid right out before us

for all the world to see.

It fits the doctrine perfectly.

Knowing what I know,

having my background, experience and theological education,

if the story ended here,

I would have to cash in my credentials

as a baptized disciple of Christ and leave the church.

If I had to fall in and adhere lock-step

to an incomplete doctrine like this,

I would have never been able to take

that one additional step and responsibility of faith

– I would have never gone to the extra effort to developing

a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

He would continue to be

a name in a book,

a principle in a text,

a bullet point in a lecture.

But Jesus is more.

I know Jesus Christ as a personal Lord and Savior,

just as much as I know him as the savior of the world.

Jesus, in my life, and in my experience,

is always changing.

He changes in response to the faith

I’m working, churning, growing.

The woman,

wells up in faith and confidence and says,

“Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”(Matthew 15:27).

And I say, “yea! You go girl!”

Jesus would either change and embrace faith as it is brought to him,

or he would walk away unmoved.

It was his call;

his choice to make.

Jesus answered her,

“Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”

And her daughter was healed instantly. (Matthew 15:28)

I follow Jesus because

I know he moves and changes, develops, and grows.

If he were an unmoving, unchanging, uninvolved stone,

he could be replaced with

just about any other rock, idol, or fad that pass through life.

Jesus changes;

Meets me where I am,

Meets you where you are, too.

In fact, Jesus is so moved,

so involved in your life and mine,

that he responds to the human condition of sin.

He moves to bring forgiveness to repenting believers.

He allows himself to die upon a cross,

as a ransom payment,

for our trespasses.

And he makes one addition move,

in response to the mortal nature of humankind;

Jesus gives to us the gift of eternal life

by means of his resurrection from the grave.

Throughout Jesus’ life, he is moving.

He is responds to pleads of faith,

to a woman who falls at his feet begging for her demon possessed daughter,

to an unclean woman who reaches out to touch his garment,

to a woman drawing water from a well,

to a father whose child has died,

to two friends in mourning,

whose brother had died and laid three days cold in a tomb.

It is this nature of Jesus

– a God who responds with compassion and grace

to the desperate pleads of God’s people.

It is the grace of Jesus Christ that makes me his disciple.

It is the grace of Jesus Christ that makes him

a moving, changing, relational forgiver of sins, and savior of souls.

It is the grace of Jesus Christ

that comes to you today

in the form of an invitation,

to bring your life before him,

to kneel next to the mother in today’s Gospel, and plead,

“Accept me, Jesus. Accept even me.”

This amazing grace of Jesus Christ,

to forgive sins of sinners like us,

and to save wretched mortals like us,

is built on a solid foundation,

an absolute

which the doctrines of the Church

make every attempt to establish and reveal, and that is this:

The only thing unchanging about the nature of God

is God’s unchanging love for us.

The love of God for you,

His child is unending, unchanging, and without limits.

That’s what is unchanging about Jesus Christ.

The apostle Paul assures us

there is nothing that can separate anyone from the love of Christ.

Nothing; period.

In many ways,

I find I’m like that stubborn woman kneeling before Jesus,

refusing to take no for an answer.

That persistent faith is what opened the heart of Christ,

releasing the floodgates of grace.

Like that woman, join with me.

Lay your life before Jesus.

And don’t take no for an answer, either.

Dearly beloved, that persistent faith will save you, too.

Amen.

August 13, 2023

Matthew 14:22-33

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 14:22-33

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. 

But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. 

But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” 

Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 

He said, “Come.”

So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” 

When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

| Centering Prayer |

Did Jesus know where the stones were?

Did Peter get lucky?

Stepping on a few stones by chance,

But inevitably missing a step and start to sink?

Sounds like an old Rabbi, Priest, and Minister joke.

When I used to lead junior high fishing camp,

I would often be teased by campers

To get out of the boat, walk to shore, and return with something cold to drink.

Walking on water?

Sorry, folks. I missed that class in seminary.

Did Jesus know the weather forecast?

He sent the disciples out on a boat for a simple night crossing of the Galilee.

“Red sky in the morning, sailor’s warning;

Red sky at night, sailor’s delight,” my mother always used to say.

I’m thinking the disciples willingly got into the boat that evening

Because the lake was calm

And there was a glorious sunset.

It seams that while Jesus was great at weather control,

On this day, his weather forecasting was … below average.

As a pastor who always gets blamed for poor weather

And praised for good weather

“because I have a link to the man upstairs” wink, wink, nod, nod

I feel like I’ve been vindicated and somewhat relieved of my duty

To forecast the weather for your future special event.

Sorry folks, I missed that class in seminary, too.

While I may have missed those classes on walking on water and weather forecasting,

I have experienced numerous occasions

Where the presence and power of God has

Worked miracles in and through my obedient hands.

When I traveled to Galilee twelve years ago,

While on a boat floating in the middle of the Sea of Galilee

In a stiff wind, choppy surf, and overcast sky

I read the similar passage from Matthew 8

Where Jesus stills the storm.

I cried out “Be still!” exactly as I imagined

Jesus would have commanded.

God as my witness,

Together with about 40 pilgrims in my group,

The wind stopped, the lake smoothed, and sunshine peeked through the clouds.

Now that, my friends, is the power and presence of an omnipotent God.

Fundamentally, our Gospel for this morning

Is about how the presence and power of God is able to save

One person

And a whole community

From death

Into life … eternal.

…

Allow me, for a moment, to notice some of the gems in our scripture.

1. First, about the presence of God:

This is the first time the disciples are sent forth without Jesus.

Jesus is Emmanuel – “God with us”

Yet, at the same time,

Jesus made the disciples get into the boat

And go on ahead to the other side

While he dismissed the crowds and he retreats

Up the mountain to pray.

Nice vantage point, don’t you think?

Apparently, Jesus sends his disciples out

But watches them closely.

They are not allowed to get so far away

That he can’t immediately intervene, if necessary.

That is a nice metaphor for us today:

We never get too far away from Jesus

That he can’t immediately intervene in our lives, if necessary.

Our Gospel for this morning

Is about how the presence and power of God

Watches over us,

Cares for our wellbeing, and

Is able to save

One person

And a whole community

From death

Into life.

…

2. Secondly, it is hard to experience our Gospel for this morning

Without noticing all the intentional symbolism in the text.

Think of the mountain, where Jesus retreats to pray.

It should remind us today, just as it reminded early church fathers,

Of Mt. Sinai, Moses, and the Ten Commandments,

Mt. Tabor, teaching the crowds,

The mountain of Transfiguration, where Jesus is transformed and God speaks

The Mt. of Olives, where Jesus prays to and with the Father.

One communes with God on a mountain.

Think of the Boat;

It was an early church symbol for the church;

The gathering place and dwelling of the community of faith.

The Boat was necessary for survival,

The fragile difference between life and death

Keel, ribs, and hull separating one from the depths and all it’s unknown perils,

Is the communion we share with each other and with our God.

Think of the Sea, the chaos, created by God,

Yet, held in check by God.

Consider the Storm

As a symbol of the suffering the church faces:

Martyrdom, persecution, division, and tension.

These symbols serve as wonderful metaphors for us today:

Though the storms of life are raging all about

This is God’s plan,

These are God’s terms.

God is still in control.

The power of God is greater than the power of chaos and suffering.

Let there be no doubt,

No misunderstanding:

The power of God saves the church;

Every one of us gathered in the boat.

No one is lost.

No one is left behind.

Our Gospel for this morning

Is about how the presence and power of God is able

Watch and care for us

To see us through everything life has to throw at us

To save

One person

And a whole community

From death

Into life.

…

3. Thirdly, Peter, as always, is a gem in our Gospel this morning.

Peter makes three mistakes

We would be wise to learn from.

First mistake: Peter wants proof and temps Jesus to prove his identity.

Jesus assured him, “It is I; do not be afraid.”

But Peter answers, “Lord, IF it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”

What part of “Thou shall not tempt the Lord your God” did Peter not understand?

Note to self: don’t tempt God or place conditions upon God’s response.

Second mistake: Peter is in the boat.

Jesus is walking to the disciples and Peter in the boat on the stormy sea.

In spite of the fact

That Jesus is coming to the rescue,

Peter wants to step out of the boat,

To exert his will,

To prioritize his will over the will of Jesus.

Peter, what about thy will, not my will be done, don’t you understand?

There is a time,

This is the time,

For patience,

To sit on the hands,

Shut the mouth,

And wait for the will of God to reveal itself.

Third mistake: Peter becomes frightened and takes his eyes off Jesus.

He sees he is sinking

And he panics.

Landing an aircraft onboard a carrier

Naval aviators are taught to fly the ball,

That is to use visual perception to interpret glidepath information

To align perfectly with the boat.

The meatball indicates descent path.

Line-Up ensures landing on the centerline.

Angle of Attack indicates the correct attitude and airspeed.

Successful naval aviators never take their eye off the ball

When landing night or day.

Even a blink results in a wave off, at best,

A swim and the destruction of an aircraft, or

At worst, a certain fatal collision into the back of the boat.

Peter should have flown the ball.

As soon as Peter takes his eyes off of Jesus

He becomes a part of the chaos.

He loses faith and he doubts.

Note to self: keep your eyes upon Jesus.

As soon as we lose that personal, intimate, eye-contact with Jesus

We become the problem,

We become the chaos that is

Washington,

Ukraine and Russia,

Despair,

And death.

Our Gospel for this morning

Is about how the presence and power of God is able to save

One person

And a whole community

From death

Into life.

…

4. Finally, let us learn from how Jesus responds.

First, Jesus responds with these words of assurance:

“Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”

The I makes me think of the “I Am” on Sinai,

The self-identification of an omnipotent God.

Confidence comes from divine assurance.

God is with us.

God wins for us.

Secondly, Jesus responds by reaching out his hand:

“Jesus immediately reached out and caught him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith why did you doubt?’”

(Matthew 14:31)

Jesus catches us even when we doubt.

We are saved in spite of the fact that sometimes

Our doubt has grown to the size of a mountain and

Our faith has shrunk to the size of a mustard seed.

Jesus takes our hand

And saves us.

Period.

Finally, Jesus and Peter get into the boat, and the wind ceased.

Jesus finally commands the wind and it obeys.

At the end of the day,

God wins.

Yes, this should provide for us a sense that we will come into God’s kingdom;

Where calm has replaced chaos,

Where all are safely home,

Where God is eternally with us.

…

Fundamentally, our Gospel for this morning

Is about how

the presence and power of God is able to save

One person

And a whole community.

Keep your eye on Jesus.

Watch, listen, obey.

Be aware of God’s awesome presence,

God’s power and desire to save,

And of Christ’s amazing love.

Amen.

Matthew 14:13-21

August 6, 2023

The Rev. Todd R. Goddard, Pastor

Rush United Methodist Church

Matthew 14:13-21

Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick.

When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”

Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”

They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.”

And he said, “Bring them here to me.”

Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

| Centering Prayer |

Congratulations, Benjamin Thomas Kingsley, on this,

Your day of Baptism;

And to your parents, Dan and Kathy,

And to your brother, William.

Well done, good and faithful servants.

Benjamin, you should know

That your baptism was not a fluke or by chance.

Your baptism is highly intentional and set to be a defining moment in your life.

You see, God spoke to your mom and dad.

The Holy Spirit came upon them …

… in a dream,

through reflections upon scripture,

maybe through a sermon,

Even, possibly,

By means of stern admonitions of parents or grandparents.

This is your day, Benjamin.

This sermon is my gift to you.

…

Life lesson number 1, Benjamin:

God has a habit of achieving God’s will by what ever means available.

Jesus was, is, and will remain forever, the Son of a Loving Heavenly Father.

Jesus was sent to forgive the sins of the world

And to offer salvation to all who accept this gift

For the simple cost of belief.

Your baptism today, Benjamin,

Forges you as a disciple of Jesus.

Vows to follow Jesus Christ

have been made in your name

by your parents

Until the day comes when you are able to confirm these vows for yourself.

I look forward to that day

When you will complete God’s baptismal will for your life,

And accept Jesus Christ for yourself,

As your Lord and Savior.

…

Life lesson number 2, Benjamin:

You are a disciple of Jesus.

It’s a done deal.

Nothing you can do to change it.

God owns you.

God’s plan is for you to live as a faithful disciple of his son.

Thank goodness, our God is a loving, benevolent God,

Who has given us his Son as a gift of love.

You’ve got the rest of your life to learn everything you can about Jesus,

To discern and follow his will and ways,

To invite others to meet and follow him,

To build God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven,

To be forgiven of every sin, and

To claim eternal life.

Spend your time well.

Don’t waste away time.

Once time is gone, it is gone for good.

…

Life lesson number 3, Benjamin:

God has given you the members of the Rush United Methodist Church

To support you and your family,

To teach you all that has been taught to the rest of us about Jesus,

And to love God and serve our neighbors in need.

Crowds that surrounded Jesus

Wouldn’t leave him alone.

Jesus had compassion on them and cured their sick,

Even though, at the time,

He was grieving for the murder of his friend and cousin, John.

A crowd gives cover for complaints.

Don’t be that guy, Benjamin.

Instead, think of it this way:

This is your tribe.

Learn the best from them,

But don’t be afraid to discard worldly traits

That don’t square with the Gospel.  

…

Life lesson number 4.

Jesus was, and is, in the healing business, Benjamin.

So, too, should you.

Make it your business to bring God’s healing

To the sick of body,

The sick of mind,

The sick of spirit.

Heal with compassion, Benjamin,

Just like Jesus does.

Illness and disease are all around.

Hurt and brokenness divide families and alienate friends.

Be the healing hands of Jesus, Benjamin.

Lead with love.

Speak words of kindness.

Serve, instead of being served.

Give freely of your time, talent, and money to bring healing to those who are sick.

Where you see a need, meet it.

Lace up your sneakers and walk that 5k for breast cancer.

When you are older, volunteer and make contributions to organizations that facilitate healing.

When leadership openings arise,

Step up, man up, be that community servant leader and join the Board of Directors.

…

Life lesson number 5 Benjamin,

Is that, while people may fail you,

Jesus will never fail you.

He will abundantly provide.

No one in the crowd planned ahead by packing a lunch.

Short sighted disciples suggested

Jesus let them go to feed themselves.

Jesus has a different plan.

He wants his disciples to feed the crowds.

You can’t give what you don’t have,

So fill yourself up daily

With all the blessings a life of discipleship has to offer.

Study the Gospel.

Remain laser focused on Jesus.

Learn scripture inside and out.

Pray daily, and meditate on God’s word.

Watch and listen for God to act.

Discern God’s intent.

Act boldly.

Jesus will never fail to fill you up, Benjamin.

Just open yourself

To receive God’s abundant, amazing grace.

…

Life lesson number 6;

Jesus doesn’t take kindly to complaints.

Benjamin,

If Jesus tells you to do something,

Don’t complain that you lack the resources to get it done.

Complaints reflect poorly on God, you, and all other Jesus followers.

The only thing worse than whining

Are fingernails on a chalkboard.

Oops. You’ll probably never know what a chalkboard is.

Seriously,

When tempted to whine or complain

Step back.

Count to ten.

Pray. Listen. Think.

Consider alternatives to complaints.

Replace complaints with opportunities,

Even if solutions require personal sacrifice.

…

Jesus doesn’t suffer fools.

Life lesson number 7.

Don’t be a fool, Benjamin.

Weather it be work, school, church, or family,

Work hard.

Set goals.

Make progress.

Get it done.

Once you have faithfully fulfilled the will of God,

Move on to God’s next job.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 25

Fools fail to see the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, or prisoners.

The wise not only see,

The wise meet and exceed the needs of others.

The wise feed, at the same time, they work to correct the root causes of hunger.

They quench the thirst of the thirsty, as well as help drill new water wells.

The wise welcomes strangers, as well as creates opportunities for a new life.

The wise clothe the naked, and support the Super Sale (unique to the Rush UMC),

The wise keeps in contact with the prisoner, and work tirelessly for justice.

The wise love God and

Love their neighbors.

…

Life lesson number 8, Benjamin.

Jesus has already given you everything necessary for the successful completion of God’s will and kingdom.

If you come up short,

It is because your stewardship hasn’t been up to snuff.

If you come up with an excess,

Say 12 baskets full,

You’re not giving enough away.

Expand your distribution plans.

God is not now, nor has ever been, a god of scarcity.

God is a god of abundance.

The problem, Benjamin,

Is when you or I become too greedy,

Too self-centered,

To see a neighbor in need

And to reach out with love.

Greed, ego, and pride suck the compassion right out of person.

Don’t be that guy, Benjamin. 

…

Life lesson #9,

Make it a habit, Benjamin:

Before every meal, first pause and give thanks to God

For the gift of our daily bread.

Jesus did it,

So, too, should we.

Don’t shirk praying if you are out in public,

Say, in a restaurant.

Let others witness your example.

Let others learn by your humble act of

Recognizing God

And giving thanks for the food you are served.

….

Life lesson #10,

Take the time, Benjamin,

To occasionally retreat from life

Just to take time for yourself.

Jesus did it,

And so, too, should you.

Take care of yourself.

Grow and be healthy.

Find time to rest and reflect,

Time to restore and revitalize,

Time to listen and learn.

Always keep learning.

Practice a healthy lifestyle

And you will always be prepared

For the crowd or crisis that is coming tomorrow.

….

It appears to me that others have been listening in, Benjamin,

To these life lessons I have shared with you,

That come from today’s Gospel from Matthew 14.

That’s great; because someone might learn something.

Someone might be bold enough to apply it to their own life.

(I’m looking at you, Mary Ann David!)

Someone might be bold enough to apply

These life lessons from Jesus to their own life.

I hope and pray

Many do.

Benjamin, I hope and pray

You do, too.

Amen.