After the terrible storm we had this week, I am very glad to be with you today to post the Weekend Sermon. I hope that those of you who read this blog have had a less eventful week than I have.
We had the most rain fall in one night since records have been kept in my area. I've never seen it rain that hard for that long. I did get a little bit of water in my garage, but it was not that bad. I had no other damage. I just want to thank everyone for their prayers.
Please be in prayer for those who did have flooding damage in my area. One of the rivers had a record crest, and several businesses and homes suffered significant damage. As far as I know, no one was injured. It was a really bad storm.
I am working on my writing business and ministry. Please pray for me during this time of transition. Also, please pray that the mole in my yard will quit tearing things up. This is really bothering me.
In other matters, please be in prayer for those who are suffering from the cholera outbreak in South Sudan and Yemen. Pray that these nations will receive the aid that they need, and that these two nations will be at peace.
Let us all be in prayer for peace in the world. There is so much violence and warfare. Please, let us concentrate our prayers on Syria and Iraq.
For our prayer focus countries this week, let's all pray for the nations of Tunisia and Japan. Pray that many in these nations will hear of the love of Jesus.
The last two weeks, we stepped away from our series on the parables of Jesus so that I could bring messages on a couple of passages that have had significant meaning in my life. Today, we will resume our parables of Jesus series. Some do not think that this passage of Scripture is a parable, but I think that it is.
Our parable today is told by Jesus in response to an encounter that He had with the disciples of John the Baptist. John was in prison, and while there, he began to wonder if Jesus really was the promised one. John sent some of his disciples to go and ask Jesus if Jesus was the Messiah, or if they should expect someone else.
Jesus told John's disciples to go and tell him that the blind are receiving sight, the lame are walking, the deaf are hearing, lepers are cleansed, the dead are being raised and the poor are having the good news preached to them.
When John's disciples departed bearing Jesus' message, Jesus gave the crowd a message about John the Baptist. Jesus said that John was the one who was prophesied of in Malachi. John was the one who prepared the way for Jesus the Messiah.
After these remarks, Jesus told a parable. He said, "To what shall I compare this generation." Jesus said they were like children calling to each other, "We played the flute for you, and you did not dance, we sang a dirge for you, and you did not mourn."
Jesus said that John came neither eating nor drinking, and the people said he had a demon. Jesus came eating and drinking, and they called Jesus a drunkard, a glutton and a friend of tax collectors and sinners.
What did this mean? Well, it had a very specific meaning in the context in which the parable was told. John was very ascetic. He was out in the desert preaching a message of repentance. He wore a camel hair garment and ate wild locust and honey.
Many people came to hear John and were baptized by him. However, he was rejected by the religious leaders of the day. Most people went on about their business and ignored the message of John.
Jesus had a different style than John. Jesus was not ascetic. He went to feasts and parties. He turned the water into wine. He brought His message to those who were the outcasts of society. Just as they hated John, the religious leaders of Jesus' day despised Him as well. Ultimately, most people would reject Jesus.
Jesus was saying that the people of his day basically just didn't want to hear and respond to the truth no matter the way in which it was presented. They always had an excuse, and they wanted to attack the messenger. No matter what presentation the message came in, their problem was ultimately with the message and not the messenger. The people did not really see a need to change. The religious leaders just wanted to hold on to their power.
So, what can we learn and apply from this parable for our own lives? One thing that I take from this parable is that some people will always find an excuse not to respond to the message of Jesus. It seems that we are always trying to find some new way in the church to package the message of Jesus to make it acceptable to the masses. This is never going to work. Ultimately, the problem people have is that they will not recognize their need for a savior, and they are not willing to turn their lives over to the lordship of Jesus Christ.
We need to realize that regeneration is the work of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit does a work in someone's life, only then can that person respond in faith to the message that they have received. Our responsibility is to preach the word of the Lord.
Another lesson that I take from this parable is that some people will never be satisfied with what you do. As a minister, you will not be able to please everyone. When my uncle was a pastor, he always had someone in his congregation that didn't like him, or someone that was always critical of him.
What you have to do in these circumstances is to remember to be faithful to the Lord. Keep serving Him and presenting the message that the Lord has called you to bring.
One final message that speaks to me in this parable is about relationships. In our lives, we will encounter people who are not willing to accept who we are. They want us to be different, and they try to get us to act the way they want us to act. For instance, they may not be satisfied with your appearance or with your job or career. They always want you to change something about yourself to make yourself acceptable to them.
Often, people will try to change for someone else. Usually, this turns out bad. The other person really did like the person they wanted to change to begin with, so after they change, they still don't like them.
If someone can't accept you for who you are (I am not speaking about something that is illegal or destructive) then that is not someone you really want to be around. People should love you for who and what you are not for what they think they want you to be.
Next week, our schedule is going to be different. I will post the verses on Monday. There will not be a book review this week. I have to go to the dentist on Wednesday. I don't know yet what all this will entail. I would ask that you pray that all will go well. Depending on what happens with the dentist, the Weekend Sermon may be delayed until Saturday. May God bless you all. Amen.
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