Sermon Prayer God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, as you sent upon the disciples the promised gift of the Holy Spirit, Kindle in us the fire of your love, and strengthen our lives for service in your kingdom. Sermon Rev. John Sovereign I grew up outside of Kakabeka Falls, where the post office was. I received my share of bumps and scrapes, and I do remember some exciting childhood stories. I remember telling you a while ago about waking up to find my mother gone, and the door wired shut. We didn’t have any locks. I cried. My mother came and opened the door, and when I got outside my Dad was scalding and butchering a young pig. It turned out that a bear had got into the pig pen, and one of our two young pigs had a big chunk out of it. The squealing had woke up Mom and Dad. Years later, my Mom told me she had to stop me telling the story, I told everyone “Dad ran after the bear and he was in his underwear.” The wire was on the door because the bear had been shot, but ran off, and my Dad wasnt sure where it was. I enjoyed childhood’s innocence. I didnt really worry about any bills, or finding food and water, or the necessities of life. There was no hunger for things. I even took God for granted, because everyone else around me took God for granted and talked about him as if he were there. Questions never entered my head. Do you remember in your own lifetime just such an Eden? Were you born into a protective and nurturing home, your original Eden. Many children are not. History has always blamed Eve, the woman, for the fall of Adam. It even comes through in the new testament, where Paul accuses Eve of being deceived. (2 Corinthians 11:3) God’s order not to eat the fruit was expanded on by Adam to include not touching the fruit. Women today will tell you that is because men hardly ever get anything right. Truth is, it was Adam’s responsibility to pass on God’s message. Adding anything to God’s word is punishable by death. (Deuteronomy 4:2) I grew up thinking I was doing pretty good at the ten commandments. I hadnt yet murdered anyone, and I was seldom aware when I lied. Stealing was not an option, we lived in the country. It was pretty easy. Until my teen years. That is when I ran into all kinds of trouble. That is when I became terribly self-aware. Eve ate the fruit, and humanity came of age. No more innocence. Suddenly self-aware. Suddenly responsible. We would all like to return, wouldnt we? Back to the heady days when everything was Mom and Dad for us. Even if we now question how good it was, really. I am thankful for the fruit of the tree. There is innocence in Eden, but little personal growth. Someone said to me a few days ago “It seems we learn best when we’re in trouble.” My mother knew that, and I have to agree. The fruit of the garden broke Adam and Eves simplistic relationship with God. They suddenly hid from God, they had to work at that relationship, they embarked on journeys of personal discovery from the apple onward. It was time for the human race to grow up. We can’t hope to learn by knowing only the good. That is not how it works, even for Jesus. The devil tempted Jesus, much as he tempted Adam and Eve. This time, he had met his match. When we think of Jesus and sinlessness, I wonder what we expect. Is it the kind of sinlessness experienced in Eden, where nothing could go wrong? Or the kind of sinlessness known by Jesus, hammered out in real time, spent in the midst of broad human devastation, ending in the cruelty of a Roman gibbet? Jesus constantly said “no” to self serving, and constantly said “yes” to his Father. In the temptations, Jesus single mindedly pointed to a deep trust in his Father. In life he looked through difficulty, to the other side, by faith. With Eve’s decision to eat of the fruit, we moved from innocence to responsibility. We should be thankful for that! Our fallen world deepens our understanding, helps us grow and mature, and above all gives us opportunity to care for each other, the world, and God. Genesis has been used through many generations to undermine the role and status of women. Eden should not be about blaming women, but about the truth. In truth we love ourselves, and love our things, more than we love God. Eve sought wisdom, and sought understanding. These are qualities of the highest order, and lead us to the truth about ourselves, and the truth about God. Throughout the Scriptures, wisdom is associated with the Holy Spirit, and is an attribute of God. Eve was perhaps the first to hunger for a deeper experience of God’s wisdom. Our biblical parents made a choice to Eat and Know All. So here we are. No one to really blame. Instead its time to live and learn. And to choose whether and how we will walk with God in the cool of the evening. Life now demands our growth, Difficulties now demand our faith. Freedom now demands our maturity. Get with it, Jesus says, grow up! Sermon Prayer Lord Jesus, give us the faith that extends your kingdom on earth and carries the battle to the enemy, a faith that puts us on the front line of action. Receive our time, our skills and talents, our belongings and money, our love and devotion. May we serve you with all our heart.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Mar 2014 02:04:50 +0000
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