Happy Mother's Day (To play video, just click on Pastor Dan's Face above)
05-10-2020 - HALL Wesleyan Church Message - Pastor Dan
(To play video, just click in the middle of the screen above)
John 14:1-14 New Living Translation (NLT)
14:1 “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in
God, and trust also in me. 2 There is more than enough room in my
Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to
prepare a place for you? 3 When everything is ready, I will come and
get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. 4 And you
know the way to where I am going.”
5
“No, we don’t know, Lord,” Thomas said.
“We have no idea where you are going,
so how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus told
him,
“I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
No one can come to the Father - except through me.
7 If you had really known me, you would know
who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”
8
Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”
9
Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still
don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you
asking me to show him to you? 10 Don’t you believe that I am in the
Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father
who lives in me does his work through me. 11 Just believe that I am
in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of the work
you have seen me do.
12
“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have
done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. 13
You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son
can bring glory to the Father. 14 Yes, ask me for anything in my
name, and I will do it!
CHANGES
What Types of Changes Are you Experiencing?
What Types of Changes Do You think Will Come
Out of this Period of our lives?
Some changes take Years and Years to produce.
And Some are just over night! Like I mentioned
in the Happy Mother’s Day Announcement: Southwestern Bell Made fortunes on
Today – from all of the Phone Calls to our moms. And Today – all of the cell
phone companies, they make fortunes every month from all of our cell phones,
tablets, computers, hotspots and so on. It took the 60s and 70s to bring in
long hair and it is making it come back just over night. I think I can braid
mine now.
Companies
such as Zoom and the new one out now from Google, only a few months ago, who
would have need of them?
Yes, I just
wonder – What will be The Next Item which has got its spark from this period of
separation.
John 14:1-14
Let me kick off - Today’s Session with a HUGE-Worldly-Type
of Question.
And I would like
for you to ponder over it, kick it around yourself as we talk about it within Today’s
lesson, and let us see what your answer will be.
SO, My Question for You Today is: What Do You –
REALLY – Believe In?
There are so many things to believe in within
this world. Did you know that there are over 4300 different types of formed
Religions? 4300 Different Types of widely celebrated religions
within our world! And that is NOT counting any of the mom and pop type of
religions who just want to get a tax break on their income tax.
So, How do you Really Know that what you believe
in is what you should be Believing In?
I mean – with 4300 Religions!!! Can’t Everybody
Be RIGHT?!?!! Can WE Not Just believe in Our Own Type of God in his or her Own Way?
YOU KNOW - With
ALL of these Choices, HOW can God REALLY Hold Us Accountable to WHAT we believe
in?
BUT
Does it REALLY matter
what you believe In? AND – IF It Does – IS THAT – REALLY - FAIR?
I Mean, isn’t it just
OK, that we JUST BELIEVE? IS THAT Not That We Are CALLED TO DO? Just Believe
in something?????
I mean – ‘The Church’
– Who Really Needs It?
Is
It Not Kind-of ‘Old Fashion’?
We Have ALL Heard This Type of Talk
before!
You know - When
I go to church, I don’t get anything from it, it is Just a Place Where there
are a Bunch of Silly Rules. I Mean - Didn’t this All Go Out during the 50s and
60s. Who needs all of those hassles that comes with church - Anyway? With all of that Talk about Money, ‘Tithes’, ‘No
Gambling’, ‘No Drinking’, ‘Give your money to the Poor and to the Needy’.
I
mean, I am a person and I am one of the needy – and No One helps me out. So,
Why Should I help them?
Did You Know that John 14:Verse
6, is the Most Disputed Verse, the Most Questioned Verse, the
Most Doubted / or Unclear Verse that is within the Entire Bible?!??!
6 Jesus told him,
“I am the Way,
the Truth, and the Life.
No one can
come to the Father except through Me.
REALLY?!!?
Tell me, - If God - is such a Loving God, will
He ‘Actually’ send all of those who do not believe in the Trinity God, through
that HUGE & GREAT LOVE that He has Will He – REALLY – Send all of those
people to Hell?
Church just tries
to control you.
They don’t want
you out Drinking or Smoking and having Fun.
Hey, I just want some PEACE in my Life.
When
I go to church, things in my Life just begin to fall apart!
Who
needs all of that hassle?
I
mean, Who can get close to God in the middle of all of that mess?
I can find God a whole lot better when I am out in the fields.
Or in the mountains. Or at the beach.
Or when I am out fishing.
And it doesn’t have to be a Sunday either.
I
am with my God whenever I look up into the sky.
When
I look at the Rolling Hills.
And
my God is in the Trees, and the Waves, and in the deer who run around.
Oh
Yes, it is so PEACEFUL Where I go - To be with my God.
Have you ever heard your Friends or Neighbors
talk this way?
Have you
ever heard of Yourself talking this way?
Do any of
these types of reflections - sound familiar?
I know - back about 20 to 25 years ago, I certainly
heard myself saying some of those words.
And yet, If I was a betting man, I would have
to say, that you too, have heard and Maybe, just Maybe You Too Have Said some
of those same words as well.
Most Social-Analysts have shared with us of
their findings that it is of this kind of Religious – Independence
– Type of Thinking which Has Just Flooded the contemporary-American-Society
on or about this last turn of the century.
It is True that Almost Every American has had some
period(s) within their own life when they were thinking that they can find God better
on their own than within the church.
Finding God within the Nature, through the Interactions
with other people, and Within the ‘Goodness’ of their life, and within their ‘Own
Heart’ or Within their ‘Own Conscious’.
I do not know about you, but there is so much of this which really
feels familiar within me. I am not proud of this but I can tell you that I went
through a period in my life.
For me, it came after our children were
grown and gone. It was a time when ‘church’ just turned out to be something
that I did. I began to notice that I didn’t get anything from it any
more. If I missed it or if I went, my life was untouched by it. And
it was within this same period of time, that the world seemed very inviting
to me. I began to think that I can find that same thing that I had in
church, but now, It seemed to also be within the world.
AND looking back upon it now, tt was also when
- all of my troubles within my Life swarmed in upon me just like bees
on honey.
BUT AT THAT TIME - WITHIN ALL OF MY BLINDNESS,
I Truly Thought, “WHO NEEDS THE CHURCH?”
Perhaps, some of you, have Never Even seen the
Road Sign for that road which I was on.
Perhaps, some of you, not only saw that Road
Sign but You were actually on that Same Road.
And Perhaps, some of you, saw that Road Sign, and
You not only took that Turn, but you are still on that same Road.
But Regardless of What Road you
thought you have been on: Have You
ever Wondered Whether the church is really worth all of Your Effort? Have
You ever Thought about whether You really need Your Bible? Have You ever
Felt that you could find God on your own without Religion?
DID YOU KNOW, that Your LIFE is a Giant Lesson,
BUT - The ONLY WAY in Which You can Learn from It Is
by YOU Being Honest with Yourself. That
is Plain and Simple! IF You are not Honest, then how Can You
Learn from it! So, I encourage you to Be Totally Honest!
Yes, we All Have Had – ‘Those Types of
Thoughts or Feelings sometime within our lives. BUT - It is in Today’s Scripture when
GOD Has something to say about those Types of ‘Thoughts’ or ‘Feelings.’ This
week's Gospel, comes to us from Jesus' Farewell Address: It was the night of
the Last Supper, and All of Jesus' disciples - knew that something was up.
You know how
it is sometimes –
When the
hair on your arms and on the back of your neck
Just seem to
stand up on end?
And with
every soft moment of the air, you can feel it?
Well that
was how it was on that evening.
Everyone’s
hair was on end and They were All on High Alert for ‘Something’.
They Didn’t
know what - But it was for sure – Something was Going to Happen.
Jesus just told them that they knew that Jesus
was going to be betrayed by someone!
“I tell you
the truth, one of you will betray Me!” (John 13:21)
And that Jesus had plans to leave them.
“I will be
with you only a little longer.” (John 13:33)
“When
everything is ready,
I will come
and get you,
So that you
will always be with Me where I am.” (John 14:3)
But-The-Thing-Was, at this time, they may Have
Not Yet Grasped the Understanding that Jesus was Actually Preparing to Die, but
- They were anxious.
“Lord, where
are you going?” (John 13:22)
“You can’t
go with Me now, but you will follow Me later.” (John 13:36)
Trust in God, and Trust also in Me.” (John
14:1)
They Just Didn’t Know What to Think! You Know that Now - We have so much more of
the full story however – And Yet – Do We Not Doubt?
How could God Possibly take Jesus away from
them? It did not make any sense. How could God, - Our Heavenly Father, - Allow
this to happen? How CAN He Be So Cruel? BUT - - THINK ABOUT IT!!! Jesus, - The Ever-Caring
Man that HE IS! Jesus Tried to calm His friends' anxiety
“Don’t let
your hearts be troubled.
Trust in
God, and Trust also in Me.” (John 14:1)
Think About It Some!
Here is Jesus, A Man, who is so ANXIOUS about HIS
OWN DEATH!
“Now Jesus
was deeply troubled in His Spirit
and He
exclaimed, “I tell you the Truth…” (John 13:21)
And Yet –
Even within the Weight of His Own Worries, He is Comforting Others!!!
NOW – That There is a Loving and
Caring God! How can Anyone -
Not Love Someone Like That?
And here – it is so neat - We actually see a
little Humanistic Side of Jesus.
Jesus assumes that His disciples know or
understand where He is going. [John 14:2-4]
But it was the ‘Soon to be, Doubting Thomas’, who
is the one – the one with enough Courage to speak up - and ask the very
question that was on every disciple.
“But
where are you going? And we do not know the way.” (John 14:5)
Then
Jesus answered them:
"I
am the way, and the truth, and the life;
No
one comes to the Father, but by Me”
(John 14:6)
Tell me if you are thinking of the same, to be
with Jesus, it would have been like living within a puzzle where every piece of
that puzzle, is so Perfectly Cut and it Had Exactly the Same Pieces but with -
Each Piece – Individually - Ever so Slightly, B E A Utifully Colored! Living as
Jesus’ disciples was tough! You would, but at the same, you Would Never-Ever Get
it Straight Answer from Him.
Jesus has laid it all out, everything that we need,
HOWEVER – We still do not get things Right.
Philip said:
"Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied” (John 14:8)
But – Isn’t this like the questions which we
ask: "Jesus - We want to know what God is really like.” “We want to know why
there is so much suffering in the world.” “Why did You have to die?” “Why do we
die?"
And Jesus looks at us so sadly as He Says:
"He who
has seen Me has seen the Father ....” (John 14:9)
"The Words
that I say to you I do not speak on My Own Authority;
but the
Father who dwells in Me does His Works.
Believe me that
I am in the Father and the Father is in Me.” (John 14:10-11)
And Jesus
said, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father ...” (John 14:9)
My friends, Right Here! We - perhaps Have
The Deepest Insight Into the Christian Faith.
IF we want to Know Who God Is, IF we
want to know what He Really Is Like, We already have our answer. The
only answer is "Jesus Christ." Jesus shows us who God is. For Jesus
is God.
This is the core Christian commitment:
Jesus
is God.
Whatever
Jesus Says,
Whatever
Jesus Does,
It
Is God Who Is Doing It.
SO - What is God Like? He is the kind of a God who Loves you and me
so much, He loves us so much, That God died for us.
SO - What is God Like? He must Really Truly Love us, because - Jesus Most
Certainly Did.
So – What Does God look Like? Whoever has seen Jesus hanging on the cross, has
also seen the Father. God is so full of Love, that He would even die for us. We
need to Look for Jesus, We need to Look within the Bible, To Truly Find Out –
Just Who God Really Is.
I Hope (with a Capital H), I Hope and Pray that
you caught the FULL THRUST of these questions and answers. Because, IF You Did,
You now Know the WHY One Religion is not like any other.
See – IT DOES MATTER WHAT YOU
BELIEVE IN. Many of the other religions of the world – They May Believe in God,
BUT, because they Do Not Know Jesus, They really Do Not Know God.
And Because of
that, They Do Not know Of His Great Love.
6 Jesus said,
No one can come to the Father except through Me.”
It is of No Accident, that all of the other religions
within the world, NONE OF THEM, SPEAK of their ‘god’ or their ‘ultimate power’ with
the Expression or Depth of Love which is in the One True God. None of them! Now
– Isn’t that something?
So, what does this Really Mean? For one, The
Trinity God is Unique and the evil one cannot imitate Him. But It Also Means
that - all of those who follow the other religions, None-of-them know who God Really
Is Nor-of-what Life is Truly All About. Yes - They may be trying. But they
really do not know of God's Great Love. There Is No other religion, within the
world, who talks about God's Love in the way that Christianity does.
SEE – IT Really Does Matter Who You Believe In
because - if you do not believe in Jesus, You DO NOT Truly know of God.
BUT – There Is More To It - Than Just
That!
“I am the Way,
the Truth, and the Life.
No one can
come to the Father except through Me.”
If you center your Christian beliefs upon Jesus
and you Truly Know who God is because of Jesus, then you cannot find God just
anywhere (without Jesus). You Also Need
Jesus Himself, His Bible, And His Church.
NOW - Do not get me wrong. I am not rejecting
the idea that God is in the nature or out in the woods on Sunday morning. YES -
He is there. BUT the Thing Is: IF that is the ONLY PLACE that you look for Him,
then, I would have to say, that you do not know God. Of course, The Woods are B
E A Utiful on a Nice Spring Day; And God - Really – Truly seems to be there in
a Good and Loving way. BUT Yet - What about - when a forest fire hits? If that
were all you had to go on, would God’s Love still seem to be as Strong? And
– What kind of Prayers come from those who have just lived through a tornado? AND
IF you found God within the Woods, your Home, or even in Your Church Building,
and now, all of that is but gone, Would God’s Love Still feel as Strong? Or
What IF you are a farmer, or a cattleman, or a goat or sheepherder, and IF you Find
your Closeness with God within the land or your herds, TELL
ME - What happens to Your Vision of God’s Love during a Devastation
drought? Or a Hail Storm? Or when disease wipes out your entire herd?
IF that is ALL of WHAT You Have as Your
Closeness with God THEN, YOUR IMAGE IS NOT ONE OF LOVE BUT of Just His
Beauty and NOT Upon His Love. And IF This is You, Then
here is the tough question: JUST How far Away Is Your Image of Who
God IS From All of the other 4299 religions within the world?
SEE - We can ONLY TRULY – REALLY KNOW Who God IS,
By Us Coming to Jesus And Getting to Know of Who He Really Is and to Find Him within
His Scriptures and Within His Church Body.
NOW - Do Not get me wrong.
I am most Certainly NOT SAYING: That
you cannot find God merely by praying to Him while WE ARE IN SOLITUDE. No Not
at All - Sometimes that is the Most Powerful of Prayers. HOWEVER - The Only Problem
is that SOMETIMES, it just does not seem that God is answering
our prayers.
Sometimes, we feel that we do not get the
answers which we are asking for. And IF that is all we have to go on, IF that is
all that we know of God, then it can seem that Our God is Not a very Loving
God.
Yes! We only truly know who God is by and When
our ‘Prayer-Life’ has been STRENGTHENED by looking to Jesus and to His Church.
NOW – Please – Don’t get me wrong. I am not
saying that you cannot find God Within Our ‘Life Itself’. That couldn’t be
further from the Truth. YES - There are those times when: Our Lives are Truly
Blessed, AND - In No Way, does it seem, that it could get better. Yes – God has
to be in the middle of it all. HOWEVER – What about those times when our Lives
are not – Let us say – ‘That Sweet’?
SO - How about you?
How
Are You Doing?
How Are You Doing
–
When You Get Knocked
down by Life?
SEE – The Thing IS – IF – IF The ONLY
Thing that we know about God is how Life
treated Us, IF That Was All, Then Tell Me, How would God seem to You. I would
Bet – Not so Loving. AND - Am I Right?
SEE – It Really Does Matter in What You
Believe IN. Or – I should Really Be Saying – In Whom you believe IN. It Really DOES
Matter.
It Isn’t ENOUGH - to Merely say that “I Believe
in God’! That’s Because – You Might Not Really KNOW WHO GOD IS!
JUST THINK ABOUT IT!!!
Is This Not PRECISELY
What the Christian Faith is proclaiming? We DO – NOT Call ourselves
"Godians". “Spelled: GOD – I A N S”. People who merely believe in
God. NO - We are not "Godians."
BUT RATHER,
WE Are CALLED BY YET ANOTHER NAME!!!
We Have Been Called to Be CHRISTIANS!!! Christians
– Spelled: "CHRIST - I A N S"
That is IN the ‘WHOM’ We are called to be of.
It is In His Name
– Jesus Christ – Who we proclaim. We are Christians! We are His People who Only
Know of Who God is, because of Christ (Acts 11:26). It is ALL from Jesus. The
Jesus - Whom we meet within the Bible and within the Body-of-the-Church. We
have the Way - The Truth - And the Life! AMEN!
