Acts 2:1-4
I Peter 2:4-10
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Scripture Reading
(Acts 2:1-4) When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. {2} Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. {3} They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. {4} All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
(1 Pet 2:4-10 NIV) As you come to him, the living Stone--rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him-- {5} you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. {6} For in Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame." {7} Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone," {8} and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the message--which is also what they were destined for. {9} But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. {10} Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
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SERMON
Three important things come together on this Sunday. Today is Pentecost Sunday- the seventh Sunday after Easter celebrating the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples- the birthday of the church. We have just commissioned our fourth class of Stephen Ministers- gifted and caring people. We are preparing for Mexico 2000. At this time next week, Lord willing, 140 adults and high school youth will have just been prayed over by you and will be loaded into 14 vans to go to Mexico to build 8 houses. That week we will be pouring concrete, framing up walls, rolling out roof and stuccoing.
"Come and be built into a spiritual house"- Peter is telling us. God wants to do a building project and He wants to use us- you and me- as "living stones" in the project. What does that mean? What is this "spiritual house"?
Usually when we think of building we think of workers constructing something- erecting buildings, pouring concrete, putting in
electrical, hanging drywall, etc. God is also a builder- a very unique kind of builder- who specializes in building the Church. I am not talking about a sanctuary and office space or a new educational wing. I'm talking about a special group of people called and brought together for a purpose.
God brings us together. He creates a group of people who have a God-given love for each other, who are a special kind of family, with a special kind of mission. God takes each of us as individual "living stones" and, like a master brick-layer, is putting us one upon another and binding us together. God's spiritual house is built of people- flesh and blood people. The house is "spiritual" because God has sent the Holy Spirit to live in each Believer- as at Pentecost. It is "spiritual" because the Holy Spirit gives us gifts and abilities that make us fit into His house.
But what is the reason that we are called "living stones"? Well, Peter goes on. Peter calls us a "chosen people". God has chosen us to be in relationship to Him- to know and trust and serve Him. Having real life is completely dependent upon having a right relationship with the Living God. Do you believe that? Let me put it negatively. Is there death without God? I said this the last time I preached: Hitler believed
Nietzsche who said "God is dead" and 6 million Jews and 9 million others (mostly Christians) were liquidated. Stalin believed Lenin who said "religion is the opiate of the masses" and 40 million died. Mao had the record with 72 million human beings killed- during what has been called "history's most systematic attempt ever, by a single nation, to destroy Christianity and religion". What kind of views are being bandied about by influential people who have rejected God about the significance and value of human beings: Novelist Daphne Du Maurier called us- "A fungus on the surface of one of the minor planets" Poet Rudyard Kipling- "Small potatoes and few" Schoenberg called us- "The hairless ape" and Stephen Gould- paleontologist- the Jurassic Park guy- said that humanity is "an accidental twig". Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said- "I see no reason for attributing to man a significant difference in kind from that which belongs to a grain of sand." As James Kennedy said - "The fungus just got demoted." These people would say our hope for heaven and all things coming around right is escapism. Who talk the most about escapism? Jailers. Think about it.
If we have risen from the primordial soup and pass into oblivion- obvious questions must follow: what is the purpose of my existence? The answer: pointlessness- there is no final purpose. Who made you my boss? The answer: lawlessness- there is no binding authority. What does it matter how I live? The answer: immorality and inhumanity- it does not finally matter how one lives.
The positive answer to all of this is that "we are a chosen people"- the Living God has chosen us to be in relationship with Him- forever. He came for human beings- beings made in His image. Scripture tells us that Jesus is worth the whole universe (He made it), yet He knows us and loves us. His death on the cross established the value of human beings. God loves us that much and wants us that badly.
We are also a "royal priesthood". We need to be careful here- the "royal priesthood" is not only the group of clergy types- pastors and preachers. All people who are built on the cornerstone of Jesus are the "royal priesthood". If Jesus Christ is your Lord you are part of what our Reformed faith has called- the priesthood of all believers. I like the Latin term for priest- it is pontifex- it means "bridge builder". Each of us is called to build bridges between lost people and God. We each have the
privilege of direct access to God and we each have the responsibility of telling others the Good News of Christ and living in a way that the Good News makes sense- by our caring, loving and serving- by our integrity and selflessness. Every Christian has a special place in God's building.
We are also called a "holy nation". The Greek word for 'holy' is . It means "set apart", "different". We are bound to God's ways and standards. It is important to know that if you are to walk the Christian Way, it will compel us to be different. The world is hostile to this. But it is not that we set ourselves as 'above' others- it is not that we are uppity and think ourselves better than those 'outside'. Actually, the reverse is true- it is great humility to say that my way is no good and I am not worthy to walk God's High Way. He simply calls and I come. Jesus said in John's gospel- "Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light..." and "He came to His own but His own did not receive Him." The dividing wall of hostility is built by those on the outside.
God has a plan for this spiritual house He is building. Peter says- "we are to "declare" the wonderful deeds of God. To make them clear. There are two closely associated ways to declare this Good News. One way is simply to say it. Share the story of how God demonstrated His love in the person of Jesus. God came to us as one of us- a human being- in the person of Jesus. He had compassion on the people around Him and deeply helped many people with problems. Finally, He died on the cross to bear the penalty for our rebellion and make us right with God. The other way is to live like Jesus lived: loving, serving, teaching, healing, practical, down-to-earth care. We are now called to build on this foundation.
This task is not an easy one; it involves work and seeking out and taking advantage of opportunities available to us. The two ministries I mentioned at the beginning of this sermon are two of such opportunities. One is Stephen Ministry. It is because of Christ that we are committed to deep care for hurting people. Divorcing people. People who have lost loved ones. People who cannot forgive themselves. People who are facing life changes and want someone around committed to listening and helping and praying. This is a spiritual task. If a person is grieving the loss of a loved one- the Stephen Minister brings God's comfort and peace to the one grieving. Where there is fear and anxiety, they can bring God's presence and strength. Where there is guilt and remorse- they can bring God's own forgiveness and acceptance as we forgive and accept. Stephen Ministers are active participants and partners in the total mission of God's spiritual house.
The Mexico Mission is a good example because we have so many different kinds of stones- some are builder types and are put in charge of a house, some are counselor types- people who love high school kids, some lead in worship, some speak mesages of challenge and hope, some organize, some speak Spanish and bring us together with those for whom we build, and some cook up some of the best camp grub ever. This wave of organized chaos, this spiritual house, built with a big variety of living stones goes South to love and give hope and declare the greatness of our God. The Holy Spirit runs amuck and lives are changed. The truth is- we get more than we give- we, too, walk away with a blessing.
Come on then! Be built into a spiritual house- a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God. Stand on Christ- the cornerstone- as living stones, useful to God. Bricks- and not gold ones. Useful stones bound together by the mortar of the Holy Spirit.
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