Great Themes of the Kingdom: Healing, 2/21/16

Sermon 2-21-16 great themes of the kingdom lent – healing Matt 12:1-14

12 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick some heads of grain and eat them.² When the Pharisees saw this ,they are following them! they said to him, “Look! Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.”

³ He answered, “Haven’t you read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? ⁴ He entered the house of God, and he and his companions ate the consecrated bread—which was not lawful for them to do, but only for the priests. ⁵ Or haven’t you read in the Law that the priests on Sabbath duty in the temple desecrate the Sabbath and yet are innocent? ⁶ I tell you that something greater than the temple is here. ⁷ If you had known what these words mean, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice,’^[a] you would not have condemned the innocent.⁸ For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.” ⁹ Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, ¹⁰ and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Looking for a reason to bring charges against Jesus, they asked him, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?” ¹¹ He said to them, “If any of you has a sheep and it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will you not take hold of it and lift it out? ¹² How much more valuable is a person than a sheep! Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” ¹³ Then he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other. ¹⁴ But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus.

Healing- I believe in healing.

Most of us think nothing of it, until we are sick

Then we are too concerned with bodily healing.

As if our body is the only thing that matters.

The Christian faith is not a healing cult.  If it were, then the Christian faith would be about us.

Face book prayer likes …. Getting more does not insure your healing

God does heal people though and we should pray for it, but trust him no matter what.

The prayer that I pray in the hospital when it is touch and go.

What is Jesus doing

Jesus is going vs. the convictions of his day

Religion has become binding instead of freeing

We get stuck in our rules…….. jesus wants us to focus on our walk with god

And who is the bound person in this story?  Who is in need of healing?

Arent the Pharisees bound?

Sometimes our minds keep God from moving in our souls.

Before God can do his work, we must be healed in our minds.

Healed of selfishness, healed of arrogance, healed of not listening.

Jesus would have loved to see the Pharisees healed too.

There is much hubbub about the rules

Lets not miss the miracle, the man is healed

Instead of arguing about procedure and rules someone should have throw a party.  We need to throw more parties.

The Christians are arguing again about baptism, doctrine or some social issue……….. someone visited church and made a commitment to Christ and the Christians are arguing

We forget that life is good and amazing and pretty soon it is all rushing by.

You woke up?  Celebrate?  You are well?  Offer prayers of gratitude?

Someone is healed?  Throw a party.

We don’t throw enough parties in this life.

Sometimes people are not healed.  What do we do with that.

My question to Oral Roberts in 1984

Sometimes the human body simply fails.  While God cares for our bodies, he is most concerned with the care of our souls.  Someone prays for life to go the way that they want it to go, other people pray for patience, understanding and character.  Surely if we are in the right place inour souls, then whether we get the healing that we want or not, our hearts will be in the right place with god.

There’s a famous Evangelical Christian named Joni Erikson. She had a diving accident at age 17 which left her as a quad­riplegic in a wheelchair, She wrote a beautiful story about her accident and her relationship with God.  Having lost the use of her arms she eventually learned to paint by holding a brush in her teeth.

Joni Erikson appeared as a guest on the Christian TV talk show, 700 Club some years ago.  She is a lovely human being and what she said in that interview forever changed how so many people viewed the issue of healing.

There were several well meaning and enthusiastic “prayer warriors” who offered to pray for Joni to be healed of her quadriplegia.  But from her wheelchair Joni Erikson said to them, Could you instead please pray for the times when I cherish inflated ideas of my own importance … the times when I fudge the truth … the times when I manipulate my husband to get things my own way… if you want to pray for me please pray that I receive the power of  resurrection to put to death the things in my life that displease God.

So while others were praying for a cure, Joni Erikson was praying for things that would allow her to trust and glorify God.

I have a friend in Florida who is praying that I am offered just the right church.

God stands by us in our health and he stands by us in our sickness.  God never fails us.  He never leaves us alone.

We pray for what we want and we trust God.

We also must learn to savor every day that God gives us.  Every moment.

Even the difficult ones

In fact, The scripture is pretty big on Finding god in trials

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faithproduces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.  James 1:2-4

So your life is going along pretty well.. Then suddenly. Bang. Here it is. What? Where did that come from? Are you kidding? I would have never seen it in a million years. Shock and awe.

Grief. Anger. Bargaining with God.

Grief is an interesting animal to live with.

The wound keeps getting scratched open.

Well, there is some good news. Trials make you closer to God. The raw edge of the pain just takes you to a place where your communication is so much better. Nothing else matters. All of the things that were distracting you last week, well, they all have taken a back seat now.

The words of the Laura Story song, blessings…..

Laura Story blessings song
We pray for blessings
We pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for Your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while, You hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

‘Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
What if Your healing comes through tears
What if a thousand sleepless nights
Are what it takes to know You’re near
What if trials of this life are Your mercies in disguise

finally I would tell you today ways that we participate in the healing

Healing isn’t just something that Jesus does or doesn’t do

We humans can play a pretty big role too, or not.

The story of my moms illness and death

Life

Faith

Diagnosis

Denial

No one from church to visit

Cancelling appointments, no show

Praying for demons to come out of her

But there was another church who stepped in for jeff and cathy

I was new…. I found out then that I was cared about

It is so important that we be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Sherri Swanson is preaching to day and she will be talking not just about the healing that came from doctors and medicine, but from the cards, the calls, the hugs, from the people that came to visit her and stand with her in a difficult time.

Oh the power of A kind word a warm embrace

We close w the words of Teresa of Avila-medieval mystic (1515–1582)

Christ Has No Body

Christ has no body but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
Compassion on this world,
Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,
Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.
Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,
Yours are the eyes, you are his body.
Christ has no body now but yours,
No hands, no feet on earth but yours,
Yours are the eyes with which he looks
compassion on this world.
Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

The Real Jesus: Carrier of Burdens & Caster of Demons, 2/8/15

Feb 8  – pt 6 carrier of burdens- caster of demons  Mark 5:5-20 (NIV)

Jesus Restores a Demon-Possessed Man

5 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes.^{[a] 2} When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. ³ This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. ⁴ For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. ⁵ Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. ⁶ When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. ⁷ He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” ⁸ For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” ⁹ Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?” “My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” ¹⁰ And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area. ¹¹ A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. ¹² The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” ¹³ He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned. ¹⁴ Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. ¹⁵ When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. ¹⁶ Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. ¹⁷ Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.

¹⁸ As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. ¹⁹ Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” ²⁰ So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis^[b] how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

Sermon Series – the real Jesus

Next week – lent begins – series on transformation

Today

This is a classic story of possession,-we all have them, right?

This is a classic story of possession, but also a story of healing.

I would simply lump it all in together…….jesus is in the healing business

Lets chat a bit about demonology

Some people believe that the devil is the opposite of god - why?

·        Because they believe what they have been taught

·        Because they have not read the scriptures

·        Because our brains like dualism

·        Because we like to blame someone else when we have problems

The book – heaven is for real

A war in heaven between the devil and god?

Not biblical.  Its dualism.

Where do you hang your hat regarding the devil and evil?

We have every extreme at WCC - Some don’t believe - some make him really big

I have experienced in my lifetime 2 people who I believe were possessed.

Both were in cults that sacrificed animals

I have kept over the years a book of spells that one of them gave me many years ago.

Nothing in the scripture teaches that the devil is the opposite of God.

He is a created being, an angel that fell away.

A created being.  Like Michael and Gabriel

          Omnipotent- omnipresent-omniscient

Here is where I hang my hat…….

 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you

James 4:7

I want you to Spend your life glorifying god, not fighting against the devil.

Back to the story

Here are some - Interesting notes of the story

·        The man could not be dealt with by the people –

And we have some problems that are unresolvable seemingly

·        The people see the demons – Jesus sees the man

Christian theology should focus on the remedy not the problem

Legion felt defined by his demons.

Sometimes we do as well

We think of the worst of who we are, or the worst that we have done and we focus on that……

But jesus is stronger……..

Back to the story……

·        He had many demons.  Many issues.  So do we

·        The people were more concerned about their pigs then the healing of the man

·        The healed man wanted to hang w jesus.  So do we all.  let me stay in the comfort zone, on the mountain top

Jesus says, no.  go tell others what god has done for you.

Decapolis – jerash, hippos, Gadara, pella, Philadelphia, damascus-

Take a  - - It seems that Healing was more prominent in jesus day. 

Not by anyone, but by him. And a few followers

I am going to side with the theologians who believe that healing continues,

No longer in the ministry of one man, but it is normative in the church.

Example from our congregation – bob spence

Jesus healed a bunch of people.

List some examples

·        Man born blind

·        Ten lepers

·        Lazarus

·        Nicodemus [healed his questions]

·        Mary Magdalene [brought her forgiveness]

·        Woman caught in adultery

·        The man with the withered hand

·        On the list goes

Healing.  It Is what Jesus does

If you are here today and you are not sure about jesus, this we know, he healed people over and over and over.

The wounded healer

Henri nouwen wrote a book called the wounded healer

There is a fundamental woundedness in  humanity

Its about how pastors and caregivers are not perfect

Everyone has a story.  Every one has their wounds

You are not a good healer because you are perfect, but you become a healer because you too know what it means to suffer

Who would you go to for help if you had a problem?

Here are some examples of things that jesus has fixed, healed in my life

·        When my mom died

·        When I had a friendship dissolve

·        When I was sick ………. To my liking

·        But it wont always be

·        Healing is about being with him, not getting your way

And so jesus stands for us.  The one who suffers.  Who understands our suffering

 ¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. ¹⁶ Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.                             Heb 4:15-16

If you are here today and you are wondering, you can bring your burdens to jesus

Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you; ps 55:22

⁷ Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. 1 peter 5:7

Yes i want you to know that God is in the business of healing and restoration

Not judging, but caring, bringing hope

·        Hope for marriages

·        Hope for illness

·        Hope for whatever you struggle with

Let me say a word about Praying in difficult situations

We pray for what we want

With the addition – no matter what, we put our trust in you – peace that passes understanding

When folks join the church here, we tell them that we hope they find comfort and community, but we also insist that they find a place to serve.

There is an exception to that.  If you are broken, rest.  Heal.  Find the strength of God.

Then when you are healed, go out to care for others.

For those of you who are doing ok, I offer to you the story of Arlington cemetery

The story of Arlington cemetery. – wife of Robert E Lee

1 in 10 Americans died.

Taken over by the union for a paupers' cemetery

Originally an insignificant place, born of hatred.

It was a grave for the poor

In civil war battles the officers usually stood in the rear. 

So, they survived such battles

But when they grew old and died, they chose to be buried with their men

And so Arlington changed.  Once a paupers' field – now it is transformed into a hallowed sacred  place

Not because great men are buried there, but because those who did not suffer, chose to stand with those who did.  Those who directed men into battle, now chose to be buried with the poor and the unknown, the broken, who had paid the ultimate price

In this life there are those who are struggling under the weight of life and the battles of this world.

They need someone to be there for them and with them.