Hello, and welcome to another posting of the Weekend Sermon. I am glad to be with you again this week to share the love of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I want to begin this week by asking you all to pray for the Pacific nation of Vanuatu. This nation which is a collection of islands was hit by a terrible cyclone this week. The storm caused horrific devastation to the island, and many are reported to be dead and injured. Let us pray for those who are injured that they may recover and that aid will reach the people. May the Lord comfort those who mourn.
Let us continue to pray for peace in the world especially remembering to pray for peace in Syria, Iraq, Libya and Ukraine. Let us pray for our brothers and sisters in Christ who face persecution around the world.
I had fair week at work. Please pray that I will be able to do a good job. I want to do well so that I can earn enough to get my debts paid and start a larger ministry. Also, please pray that I can get a buyer for the house. I tried to do some work on the yard this morning, and I injured my foot again. My health is just not good enough to keep the place up anymore.
The stress of work and trying to keep everything going around the house hasn't helped my health situation. I am not feeling well at all, and I would appreciate it if you would pray for me. It took weeks for my foot to get better this winter, and now I went and worked outside one morning, and it is hurt again. It is very depressing. Thank you for your prayers.
For the last several weeks, we have been studying the epistle of I Peter. We completed chapter 1 of this interesting epistle last week, so I have decided to take a one week break and deliver a message about Jesus. We will resume our study of I Peter next week taking breaks from time to time.
In today's message, I wanted to write about an occasion where Jesus described Himself. Instead of asking others what they believed about Him, Jesus, in this instance, actually described His own personality.
Matthew 11:28-29 states, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."(NIV)
In this passage of Scripture, the Lord Jesus invites those who are burdened with sin and care to come to Him and let Him be the Lord of their lives. He is not an odious taskmaster. Instead, Jesus describes Himself as gentle and humble of heart.
As follower of Jesus, part of what we are required to do is to follow the example of Jesus. We are to see how Jesus acted, and we are to do likewise. In this passage, Jesus describes what He is like. We, as Jesus' followers, need to emulate our Lord's example.
First of all, Jesus describes Himself as being gentle. What does this mean. Jesus was never mean or nasty to anyone. This is one of the reasons that people were attracted to Him and wanted to listen to His message. Jesus did not condemn those that the religious leaders of His day heaped condemnation upon. Jesus had compassion upon the people. Jesus reached out to help those that society rejected.
One good example of this is the way in which Jesus reacted to lepers. In the time that Jesus was on earth, the religious leaders viewed leprosy as a sign of God's punishment for sin. Those with leprosy were excluded and cast out.
One day, a man that was filled with leprosy approached the Lord Jesus and asked if Jesus wanted to heal him. This man had probably been rejected by religious leaders countless times, and he probably wondered if Jesus would reject him too. However, Jesus reached out and touched the leper and told him that of course He wanted to heal him.
Jesus brought His healing message to everyone. In fact, in one passage of Scripture it says that the people brought the sick to Jesus from all the surrounding country, and Jesus healed them all.
Another good example of the gentleness of Jesus is found in His dealing with children. In Jesus' day, children were viewed as nobodies. But Jesus said to let the little children come to Him for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus took the children in His arms and blessed them. In Jesus' day, this was revolutionary behavior.
One of my favorite stories about Jesus is the story of Jesus and the woman who was caught in the act of adultery. Jesus demonstrated His gentleness in this account by not joining in the condemnation of this woman. Jesus said to her, "Neither do I condemn thee, go and sin no more."
We as Jesus' followers need to emulate our Lord's gentleness. Instead of heaping condemnation on people, we should show them that Jesus loves them. We should reach out and help those who need help. We should be the friend to those who are friendless. We should show Christlike love to those that others have rejected.
Jesus could be and was very bold and forthright as well. He always let the Pharisees, religious leaders and the self-righteous know just exactly what He thought of them. When His Father's house was being desecrated by those who were extorting the people for monetary gain, Jesus took a whip and drove them out.
Sometimes, we must earnestly contend for the faith as it says in Jude. We should do this with gentleness and with respect. In this too we must follow the example of our Lord and Savior.
Jesus also described Himself as being humble in heart. Humility aptly describes Jesus. Think about it. Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, was willing to leave Heaven and come to earth born as a helpless infant. He took upon Himself human flesh and was tempted in all manner like we are, yet without sin. Jesus was willing to suffer the agony of crucifixion and bear our sins in His body on the cross. He didn't have to do any of this. He did it because of His great love for us. He expressed absolute humility.
Jesus also expressed humility by acting as a servant. This is exemplified when Jesus washed His disciples' feet. This was the duty of a servant in Jesus' time. Yet, Jesus who is Lord of all washed His disciples' feet as an example for us of humble service.
Jesus never went around seeking His own gratification. Instead, Jesus helped others and met their needs.
Jesus is our perfect example. We as His followers need to have a humble heart like unto His humble heart. Our mission is to serve others. This includes sharing the message of the gospel with the world. It includes caring for others and encouraging others. It means acting like Jesus in a world filled with pride and self-promotion.
This week, let each of us look at the life and example of Jesus and find ways to be gentle and humble of heart.
If you have never accepted Jesus' invitation to come to Him and find rest for your soul, I invite you to do so today. Repent of your sins, believe that Jesus died for you and rose again, and ask Jesus to be your Savior and Lord. Take His yoke upon you and learn from Him. Then you will find rest for your soul.
Next week, I will post a verse on Monday. I will try to have a review on Wednesday. The Weekend Sermon will be posted on Saturday. May God bless you all. Amen.
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