Third Sunday of Easter 4/22/12

Third Sunday of Easter 4/22/12 Text: Luke 24:36-49 Title: Peace Be With You. This past week while on vacation a good friend of Penny and I had what we first thought was a stroke. He was sitting on the side of the bed getting ready to go play golf when all of a sudden he had no idea where he was. His short term memory was gone. We rushed him to the hospital where after examining him they told us he had a T.I.A from which he should have full recovery. Needless to say that day was not very peaceful. That incident led me to focus on the words of Jesus, “Peace to you.” the words he spoke to his frightened disciples that first evening after his resurrection. They were frightened and not at peace that evening, for they did not believe in Jesus’ words that he would die and rise again on the third day. They were disappointed to say the least, for things had not worked out as they had planned. There was no peace in that room that evening. In the Old Testament we read of another man who after hearing the Word of God was not at peace. His name was Naaman the Syrian general who had gone to Elisha to be healed, but left disappointed because Elisha did not ask him to do something difficult, something expensive, something that would be more in tune with Naaman’s position. Elisha had not asked him to do enough and if it had not been for that little Israel slave girl, Naaman would have missed out on being healed. Naaman learned that day that God did not need any of his help to cure him, as he stepped into the River Jordan. I am using this story about Naaman to illustrate the power of God’s Word particularly the Gospel to produce results. Naaman only had to make himself available to be healed which he did when he stepped into the river. His stepping into the river did not heal him. God healed him with the water and the Word’s that Elisha spoke to him that day. Just like Naaman that day we only have to make ourselves available to God for him to give us peace, as we bear with whatever physical, emotional, or spiritual wounds that have taken away our peace. I can say that because God left nothing undone when he planned and carried out his act of justification for us. From the time that Adam and Eve sinned God has been acting on behalf of people who could not save themselves. Noah, his family, and a whole bunch of animals were saved by God’s action in keeping them safe in the Ark. When the Israelites were backed up to the Red Sea by the Egyptians and all hope was lost God acted on their behalf. He parted the waters with a great wind. All the Israelites had to do is walk across on dry land. The people of Israel because of their bad behavior toward God wandered into an area of the desert that was filled with poisonous snakes. They were dying by the thousands doing whatever they could to get away from the area, with no success. God stepped in by telling Moses to hold a bronze snake up on a pole, so that everyone looking at it was healed. It was not the act of looking that healed them, but God’s promise that all who looked would be healed. It was all God’s work. I could go on and on with true stories from God’s Word showing us the power of God to rescue people who consistently turned their backs on him, as they followed the evil ways of the people around him. They could not save themselves; their actions showed that. We don’t just see God at work in the Old Testament, for the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John show the same thing; God working alone to accomplish what he has promised to do, whether that is healing, rescuing people from trouble, forgiving, or blessing them. Jesus’ words and work did not appeal to a lot of people in his lifetime any more than his words and work appeal to a lot of people today because Jesus’ words and work do not allow anyone to contribute anything to his work on their behalf. His work is his work alone and we don’t by our very nature like that. We want to, at least in some way, contribute something to his work and therein is the problem. Jesus did, just as he still does today, condemns the self-righteousness and those who trust in their own works to give them peace. It is true, but, don’t take my word for it. Listen to Saint Paul in his first chapter of Romans verses 16 and 17, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith." God’s work saves, not our work, no matter how well intentioned and done it might be. Jesus came. He lived perfectly. He died innocent. And he rose victorious, all without anyone’s help. No one can add to what Jesus did. Everything else falls short of being acceptable to God. We know that because he tells us in his Holy Word that our best of what we consider good deeds toward our neighbor and God are nothing but the filthiest and vilest of rags worthy of only being burned up before him. When a person understands that, it is only then that they can truly understand the power of the Gospel. God is doing the work. We cannot add anything to his work in our lives except make ourselves available to his work in us. Take for example the jailer in Philippi who was about to die by his own hand. All was lost. He knew he would bear the full weight of the law and he was helpless to do anything about. Even under those circumstances of hopelessness he still tried to find something he could do to save his life, as he cried out to Paul, “What must I do to be saved?” Paul’s answer, a wonderful message of hope was essentially, “You can’t do anything and don’t have to because God through Jesus already did everything. Just believe.” God alone resolved the problem. The jail keeper did not die. He and his family learned about life, as they had never known it before; life with Christ. That is only one of many examples you can find in the Bible where God teaches, heals, and forgives people who admit that they are powerless to help themselves. You would think that since we all know that, that we would turn to God first for help in our troubles of life. But we don’t, do we? We don’t because we all have the Old Adam in us who wants to, just as non-Christians do, try to find peace first in other things rather than God’s completed work on our behalf. Too much stress in life? Take a pill or turn to drugs or alcohol. Then when you are properly sedated things are bearable, almost normal whatever that means. Changing one’s behavior is another way we think we will find peace with God and self. Millions of self-help books, CD, DVDs, programs are sold each year. Just do it they promise and you will find peace with God and self. The problem is that that in the end they will not bring lasting peace because they all share one thing in common; finding the power within oneself to achieve peace. Many have Christian in them to appeal to Christians who are searching for ways to help themselves, but using God’s name on unscriptural material does not give it the power that only the gospel has the power to give. Here is just one example among many. Robert Schuller who was one of America’s most popular preachers in one of his books Peace of Mind through Possibility Thinking on page 150 writes, “All things work together for good to those who love God and keep his commandments.” A quote from Romans 8:28. Sounds good doesn’t it? The problem is that it is a misquote. He added the words, “and keep his commandments.” which completely and wrongly changes the meaning of the passage. Trying to keep the Law as God demands that it must be kept will never give you peace. But most Christians never catch that false preaching because first of all they don’t know God’s Word and secondly it appeals to their self-help attitude. There is also an old saying that people love to quote when a person is struggling. It goes like this “You should just pull yourself up by your bootstraps.” Think about that for a minute. Imagine for a moment that you can actually pull yourself up by your bootstraps when you are standing in the boots. One of two things will happen. You will break the bootstraps or your back. But you will never pull yourself up. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ don’t be misled by those of the world even if they call themselves pastors or teachers of God’s Word who tell you that you can find peace with self and God if you pray hard enough, or believe more, or give more, or whatever they tell you that you must do, for all they will do is drag you down, for they are all law. Peace is ours because God has done everything. Our relief comes from what Jesus said on the cross, “It is finished.” For in that wonderful gospel statement he was talking about his freely giving us peace. Let God do his work through the wonderful message of the Gospel, for as Saint Peter tells us in 2 Peter 1:2-4, "May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire." What must we do then to have the peace he has promised us? Accept his wonderful free gift of peace letting him change your life, as you give all praise and honor to God, for his wonderful deeds on your behalf. Amen.