Sermon at First Presbyterian Church Lockhart
Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18 Psalm 27, Philippians
3:3-4:1, Luke 13:31-35
February 28, 2010
by James Greene
It is always seems hard to have patience, and to wait. It is almost against our nature to stand still, when everything around you is moving
at light speed. How many times do we find
ourselves waiting in line: at the H.E.B., waiting to get
into an event like a football game,
a show, a pot luck dinner at church, or
the time spent sitting in the
chair at the doctor’s office? Sometimes, it seems like time stands still while we wait our turn,- our time to be
able to act, or to be served. It seems at times, that while we wait we are passed-by, by life.
In the readings
this morning, we see our call by
God to Wait upon the Lord. We see it reflected in Abram’s experience,
the Psalmists confidence and trust to Wait upon the
Lord, in Paul’s call for us to
stand firm, and in Jesus’ example
of waiting upon the call of the Father.
The
reading from Genesis, we see Abram being called to wait in hope. God reassures
him “Do not be afraid”, and that
God will be his “shield” and
“great reward”. It is because 15:V6 “Abram believed
the Lord, and [the Lord] credited
it to him as Righteousness.” God’s plan went beyond Abram’s understanding of time. It was really greater, and beyond “thinking out side of the box.” Abram was worried about not having a son to continue his family, when God reassures him that his
offspring will be more than the stars he can count.
We
know today, that with the Hubble
telescope, we have discovered more stars than we ever knew existed just 50 years ago. And,
there are even more stars beyond what we can see now. What a promise
God made to Abram even in his
doubting. Imagine, while looking at the stars at night, that you would
have that many grandkids, and great grandkids?
Looking
at the stars and thinking of God’s Covenant with Abram, reminds me of the Aggie Astronomer who was studying
the sun. After researching
the sun in his study, he decided to spend the day studying the sun with a special telescope. After
observing the sun all day, he sat
down and wondered where the
sun went when it sank below the
horizon. He thought about this phenomenon
all night, - then suddenly -
it dawned on him.
Sometimes
we, like Abram, forget that God is into fermentation and not microwaving. Our current culture, is filled with Instant
Messaging, and Facebook, where
we want immediate answers to all
of our questions and problems. We forget the long-term view, and
focus of God’s Plan for Creation
and our lives.
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It is the like interest on
our savings in the credit union. It builds slowly, but it pays to
be patient and wait. If we look at God’s Plans, through our
lens of history, we get a
sense of perspective. The Covenant made with Abram begins about 2166 BC, and ends with the entering into and taking of The
Promise Land by the Israelites under Joshua in approximately 1375 BC. That is a span of about 991 years. That is a long time to wait on
our time scale. Think about Abram’s descendants “today”,
they’re still growing in all
parts of the world. That is a span of 4176 years, and counting. Now that is a Promise! That is what, waiting on the Lord, in Hope, is about.
In Psalm 27, we see the example of waiting with out fear. When God is our light, our salvation,
and the stronghold of our lives
we should not fear. The Psalmist calls upon God
to receive him even though his parents forsake him. He
has the long-term focus of
Abram. He believes and knows that
God will protect him and he will see the Lord in the land of the living. This is a hint, and a glimpse of what it will be like, in the Resurrection.
Sometimes,
when we are forced to wait on things, we forget
that it is a time to prepare. It is a time
for us to prepare ourselves for
what God has in store for
us.
It is not only a time to reflect,
but it is a time to stand firm
in our faith and wait upon the Lord.
In 2002,
because of downsizing in the
industry, my job changed from
being a Supervisor to an Operator. I went from being in charge of an area
in the wafer fab to being a worker bee on the production line. It
was the same year that I graduated
from Seminary. It was during this time that I began to lay the foundation that would eventually lead me to Lockhart. It was my time to prepare, and to wait. I used
my time, during breaks and
lunches, to read, and re-read the Bible. It was my time to focus on God and The
Word: to stand firm, and to wait. I didn’t know what the future held, but like the Psalmist,
I knew who held the future.
I began to prepare for God to
use me. It was in 2005, that I began doing occasional pulpit supply through the Seminary.
The
Psalmist tells us, to wait for the Lord. It is a message
we can learn from when we are
faced with all of the elements in displayed in the Psalm. We, like Abram, must Wait,-
and during that time we are called
to be prepared and to prepare. It is our time to remain faithful and to stand
where God has placed us and Wait.
In Philippians, Paul continues the same
theme and preaches about “standing firm” in the Lord. He describes a picture of the culture that is very much like today; it is a hostile environment to the followers of Christ. The culture’s destiny is destruction, the
people’s god is their stomach, and their mind is on earthly things.
In this context, Paul tells
us how our citizenship is in heaven. It is the
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of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” It is about being a part of God’s People, and a citizen in God’s Plan. Paul is talking about the power of Jesus and how he will bring everything under his control with the coming of the Kingdom.
IV Waiting upon the
Father’s Duty
In
Luke, we see the patience in Jesus. We also see his mourning and
longing for God’s
people, and his tender heart for
When
we wait upon the Lord, we do
everything we can do, and then stand.
We are to be faithful like Abram, and keep our focus on God, like
the Psalmist. We remain patient even as the world comes after us to destroy us, like the Christ. Knowing
of God’s Promise and God’s faithfulness to us, it is all in his time and his season. So we Wait upon the
Lord, and we do it …In the Name of …
…
the Father….
the Son, and the Holy Spirit. A-Men
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