At The Right Place At The Right Time
Sermon
No Particular Place to Go
Sermons For Sundays After Pentecost (Middle Third)
Sherry was struggling with some personal issues in her life. She would tell you that she was having a difficult time forgiving someone at work who purposely wronged her, leading to her eventual demotion. Sherry was upset with the person and could not even think of forgiving him. Her loss of income placed a financial hardship on her family. She was really struggling and trying to do what was best, but it certainly was not easy.
Sherry and her family were in church one particular Sunday morning when during time for prayer requests and concerns, one of the ushers asked if he could share his testimony. Jay shared with the congregation that he was having a hard time forgiving someone he worked with. He told of the disagreement the two of them were having and the hard feeling it had created. Jay told how he prayed about the situation, seeking the Lord's guidance in the matter. According to Jay, the Lord had convinced him that he should forgive his co-worker with whom he had a disagreement. As Jay shared his situation with the congregation it was evident that the healing process had already begun in his life. He spoke of genuine forgiveness. Jay concluded his few minutes by saying he felt the Lord wanted him to share what he had experienced.
Jay's words hit Sherry right between the eyes. Tears began forming in the corners of her eyes as she realized that this was exactly what she needed to hear that morning. It was as Jay was speaking that Sherry realized that she must forgive the person who had hurt her so badly. This was what Sherry needed to hear more than any sermon.
God has a wonderful way of working behind the scenes, bringing the right people into our lives at the time we most need to hear what they have to say. I do not believe it was a coincidence that Sherry was present that morning when Jay shared his experience.
David had also encountered the same thing, as the Lord God sent a prophet to speak the words he needed to hear after his adulterous affair with Bathsheba. To cover up his sinful action, David arranged for Bathsheba's husband, Uriah, to be murdered at the hands of the enemy. David arranged the murder so it appeared that Uriah was killed in battle, but actually the whole thing was planned out and executed by David's general, Joab. After an appropriate time of mourning her husband's death, David took Bathsheba as his wife. His plan had worked; his secret was kept. No one would suspect anything out of the ordinary. David might have thought he had gotten away with his deed, but scripture says, "The thing that David had done displeased the Lord." God knew all that David had done, including his feeble attempt to cover it up.
One morning David received a call in the honeymoon suite. Nathan was downstairs wanting to see him. It was urgent that Nathan speak with David that day. It was common practice for the king to listen to cases as a judge. No doubt Nathan had spoken with David on previous occasions about other current issues in the kingdom. When David went to see Nathan he had no idea what he wanted to talk to him about.
Nathan had a parable to tell David. I wonder if David saw Nathan's hands trembling as he began. Once there were two men, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had everything he desired including large flocks. In contrast, the poor man had little, but he was a good, hard-working man. The poor man took one little lamb and gave it to his children, who raised it as a pet. The lamb became part of that family, eating with them and even drinking out of the same cup. The poor man's children loved the little lamb as if it were a brother or sister.
One day a visitor stopped to see the rich man. Being a generous person, the rich man invited the visitor to have dinner with him that evening. But instead of taking one of his many sheep for the meal, he stole the lamb that was the children's pet from the poor man. It did not seem fair taking the poor man's lamb while the rich man had hundreds of lambs in his own pasture. The rich man took the family pet and had it served for dinner. The visitor was deceived into believing that the rich man was generous by the invitation to dinner, but actually there was a coldness in the rich man's heart who would steal and cook someone's pet. The rich man not only stole a precious possession, but he deliberately created the false impression of generosity in the process.
David, unsure why Nathan told him this story, was caught by its drama and emotion. The parable had a profound effect on David. He was outraged at the callousness of the crime; he was appalled by the whole thing. The parable did what Nathan had hoped it would. It forced David to think of others, since he was so fixated on himself. David pronounced the judgment, "As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die."
This was God's way of holding a mirror up in front of David so he could see the wrong he had committed. Sometimes we need someone to hold a mirror in front of us to see the wrongs we have committed. With great courage as well as risk Nathan told David, "You are the man." The parable Nathan told David was actually about him. He was the man who stole from the poor man in taking his wife to be his own. In effect David pronounced judgment on himself!
Jim had just started a new job in a new city in a new state. Jim and his family had just moved into a new home, welcoming the sense of a new beginning. Jim and his family had only lived in the new community a couple of months, but he had already proved to be a dedicated and hard-working member of the church. Still something was deeply bothering Jim. It was as if one day someone held a mirror up in front of him and he realized the wrong he had done. He thought a new job in a new city would erase whatever negative feelings he was carrying along with him. Jim had fallen into the trap many of us struggle with. He thought if only he had more then he would be happy, but he was not happy; he was miserable.
Jim went to speak with his pastor. Jim told his pastor that at his former job in another state he had embezzled several thousand dollars. He was able to do this without anyone even suspecting because of his position with the company. It was easy to take the money, he explained, and manipulate the books. No one at his former job ever realized any money was missing, but Jim knew and he knew God knew as well.
Jim told his pastor he wanted to make things right but was unsure what to do. He said he could no longer live with what he had done. Jim had confessed his guilt to God several times but felt God wanted him to do something about it. What Jim felt he should do was go to his former employer and confess that he had stolen money from him, though he realized that he was taking a risk. If he confessed he would be in jeopardy of losing his new job and his new home. He could even end up serving jail time that would separate him from his wife and children. When we sin, there is not always an easy way out.
Jim voluntarily turned himself in. He would spend nearly a year in jail. Jim vowed to pay back to his former employer every cent he had stolen. In spite of everything that had happened to him, this young person never felt so good. Jim sought to be right with God and made the necessary corrections. Today Jim remains optimistic about the future and is full of joy about life in general.
Mighty King David, who had an answer for everything, who thought his adulterous affair with Bathsheba was covered up and forgotten, stood in front of Nathan too dumbfounded to say anything. David might have kept his secret from others, but he could not keep it from God. God knew what David had done and was not pleased by it. There might be times when we are tempted to do something wrong, thinking we will get away with it since no one is watching, but God sees what we do. Now David was shown that God knew what he had done.
Sending Nathan to talk with David was God's way of getting David's attention. The prophet then spoke the word of God. Who was it that made David ruler over Israel in the first place? Who was it that rescued David from the hands of Saul? Who was it that gave him his master's house? Who was it who gave David victory after victory? The answer was that it was the Lord God who gave David all these things. Holding the mirror before David helped him realize that it was God who gave David everything he needed. It was God who empowered David and anointed him ruler. This was a humbling experience for David. David never could have accomplished so much if the Lord God had not been behind him.
If what God had given to David were not enough, the Lord God said, "I would have added as much more." Notice that God gave to David and that David took another man's wife. God had obviously favored David, but now in his cynical years David had forgotten God. David thought he could do it all by himself. "Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight?" David knew the Ten Commandments, although he managed to break three of them. The truth was David reached that point in his life where he mistakenly believed he was above the law. In David's own mind he thought he could do no wrong. He was sadly mistaken because God's law applies equally to everyone; it does not matter if you are a ruler or a servant. No one is above the law of God. This was a painful lesson for David.
David relied on his own wisdom and might and forgot that it was God who empowered him in the first place. And that is what got him into trouble. He probably could not name the precise time when he stopped thinking about God.
Then came the punishment. "I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house," the Lord God informed David. David sinned and strayed from God's ways and now he would have to face the consequences. "For you did it secretly," God spoke through the prophet Nathan, "but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun." When David took a long, hard look in the mirror, David realized the wrong he had done and made his confession, "I have sinned against the Lord." Even though David broke three of the Ten Commandments it was not too late for him to make a confession and repent of his wrongdoing.
In our experience, it is not always the big sins that cause our downfall. Often it is the slight unevenness of the pavement which causes us to fall. Oftentimes it is the pebble in our way rather than the boulder that causes us to sin. It's the little things that lead to big things. Just ask King David. The good news of the Christian faith is that once we acknowledge our sins and seek God's forgiveness we are forgiven by Jesus and our slate is wiped clean.
The most difficult thing is to recognize our sin before we reach the point where we can not stop the consequences. In the early years of this century there was a man named Eddie. Eddie was an attorney in Chicago. He gained the nickname "Artful Eddie" for his style and slickness. Artful Eddie was one of the roars of the Roaring Twenties. He worked for the mobster Al Capone, running a dog track. It was Artful Eddie who mastered the simple technique of fixing the race by overfeeding seven dogs and betting on the eighth. Eddie had it all: wealth, status, and style. Then one day his young son held up a mirror to him and Artful Eddie did not like what he saw. Eddie decided that he wanted out of the mob, but knew it would not be easy. He turned himself in and informed on his boss Al Capone. His friends and business associates could not understand why he would do such a thing. Eddie, more than anyone, understood the consequences of turning against the mob. What could he possibly gain by turning in his boss when he already had everything he wanted and more?
There was one thing Eddie still wanted, but he knew that it would be difficult to obtain. Eddie had a son who was also named Eddie. He wanted more out of life for his son than what he represented. He wanted to clear his name so his son would have a chance to live a decent life free from the influence of mobsters. To give his son a name he would first have to clear his own and that meant considerable risk. Artful Eddie would never see his dream come true. Soon after he informed on the mob, they killed him. Two shotgun blasts would forever silence him. His friends might have wondered if it was worth it.
Young Eddie lived up to his father's sacrifice, making a name for himself. He was commissioned to Annapolis. Eddie was a pilot during the Second World War and is credited for shooting down five bombers in the Pacific and saving the life of hundreds of his crew mates. Eddie became the Navy's first flying ace. He was quite a hero. A year and a half later in 1943, Eddie was shot down and killed off the Gilbert Islands. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
His name is one of the best known names in the world. If Artful Eddie had lived to see his son grow up he would have been proud. He had cleared his name. Today when you say the name O'Hare you do not think of gangsters, but instead you think of the international airport and of aviation heroism. He was Lieutenant Edward H. O'Hare, son of a gangster gone good.
Sherry and her family were in church one particular Sunday morning when during time for prayer requests and concerns, one of the ushers asked if he could share his testimony. Jay shared with the congregation that he was having a hard time forgiving someone he worked with. He told of the disagreement the two of them were having and the hard feeling it had created. Jay told how he prayed about the situation, seeking the Lord's guidance in the matter. According to Jay, the Lord had convinced him that he should forgive his co-worker with whom he had a disagreement. As Jay shared his situation with the congregation it was evident that the healing process had already begun in his life. He spoke of genuine forgiveness. Jay concluded his few minutes by saying he felt the Lord wanted him to share what he had experienced.
Jay's words hit Sherry right between the eyes. Tears began forming in the corners of her eyes as she realized that this was exactly what she needed to hear that morning. It was as Jay was speaking that Sherry realized that she must forgive the person who had hurt her so badly. This was what Sherry needed to hear more than any sermon.
God has a wonderful way of working behind the scenes, bringing the right people into our lives at the time we most need to hear what they have to say. I do not believe it was a coincidence that Sherry was present that morning when Jay shared his experience.
David had also encountered the same thing, as the Lord God sent a prophet to speak the words he needed to hear after his adulterous affair with Bathsheba. To cover up his sinful action, David arranged for Bathsheba's husband, Uriah, to be murdered at the hands of the enemy. David arranged the murder so it appeared that Uriah was killed in battle, but actually the whole thing was planned out and executed by David's general, Joab. After an appropriate time of mourning her husband's death, David took Bathsheba as his wife. His plan had worked; his secret was kept. No one would suspect anything out of the ordinary. David might have thought he had gotten away with his deed, but scripture says, "The thing that David had done displeased the Lord." God knew all that David had done, including his feeble attempt to cover it up.
One morning David received a call in the honeymoon suite. Nathan was downstairs wanting to see him. It was urgent that Nathan speak with David that day. It was common practice for the king to listen to cases as a judge. No doubt Nathan had spoken with David on previous occasions about other current issues in the kingdom. When David went to see Nathan he had no idea what he wanted to talk to him about.
Nathan had a parable to tell David. I wonder if David saw Nathan's hands trembling as he began. Once there were two men, one rich and the other poor. The rich man had everything he desired including large flocks. In contrast, the poor man had little, but he was a good, hard-working man. The poor man took one little lamb and gave it to his children, who raised it as a pet. The lamb became part of that family, eating with them and even drinking out of the same cup. The poor man's children loved the little lamb as if it were a brother or sister.
One day a visitor stopped to see the rich man. Being a generous person, the rich man invited the visitor to have dinner with him that evening. But instead of taking one of his many sheep for the meal, he stole the lamb that was the children's pet from the poor man. It did not seem fair taking the poor man's lamb while the rich man had hundreds of lambs in his own pasture. The rich man took the family pet and had it served for dinner. The visitor was deceived into believing that the rich man was generous by the invitation to dinner, but actually there was a coldness in the rich man's heart who would steal and cook someone's pet. The rich man not only stole a precious possession, but he deliberately created the false impression of generosity in the process.
David, unsure why Nathan told him this story, was caught by its drama and emotion. The parable had a profound effect on David. He was outraged at the callousness of the crime; he was appalled by the whole thing. The parable did what Nathan had hoped it would. It forced David to think of others, since he was so fixated on himself. David pronounced the judgment, "As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die."
This was God's way of holding a mirror up in front of David so he could see the wrong he had committed. Sometimes we need someone to hold a mirror in front of us to see the wrongs we have committed. With great courage as well as risk Nathan told David, "You are the man." The parable Nathan told David was actually about him. He was the man who stole from the poor man in taking his wife to be his own. In effect David pronounced judgment on himself!
Jim had just started a new job in a new city in a new state. Jim and his family had just moved into a new home, welcoming the sense of a new beginning. Jim and his family had only lived in the new community a couple of months, but he had already proved to be a dedicated and hard-working member of the church. Still something was deeply bothering Jim. It was as if one day someone held a mirror up in front of him and he realized the wrong he had done. He thought a new job in a new city would erase whatever negative feelings he was carrying along with him. Jim had fallen into the trap many of us struggle with. He thought if only he had more then he would be happy, but he was not happy; he was miserable.
Jim went to speak with his pastor. Jim told his pastor that at his former job in another state he had embezzled several thousand dollars. He was able to do this without anyone even suspecting because of his position with the company. It was easy to take the money, he explained, and manipulate the books. No one at his former job ever realized any money was missing, but Jim knew and he knew God knew as well.
Jim told his pastor he wanted to make things right but was unsure what to do. He said he could no longer live with what he had done. Jim had confessed his guilt to God several times but felt God wanted him to do something about it. What Jim felt he should do was go to his former employer and confess that he had stolen money from him, though he realized that he was taking a risk. If he confessed he would be in jeopardy of losing his new job and his new home. He could even end up serving jail time that would separate him from his wife and children. When we sin, there is not always an easy way out.
Jim voluntarily turned himself in. He would spend nearly a year in jail. Jim vowed to pay back to his former employer every cent he had stolen. In spite of everything that had happened to him, this young person never felt so good. Jim sought to be right with God and made the necessary corrections. Today Jim remains optimistic about the future and is full of joy about life in general.
Mighty King David, who had an answer for everything, who thought his adulterous affair with Bathsheba was covered up and forgotten, stood in front of Nathan too dumbfounded to say anything. David might have kept his secret from others, but he could not keep it from God. God knew what David had done and was not pleased by it. There might be times when we are tempted to do something wrong, thinking we will get away with it since no one is watching, but God sees what we do. Now David was shown that God knew what he had done.
Sending Nathan to talk with David was God's way of getting David's attention. The prophet then spoke the word of God. Who was it that made David ruler over Israel in the first place? Who was it that rescued David from the hands of Saul? Who was it that gave him his master's house? Who was it who gave David victory after victory? The answer was that it was the Lord God who gave David all these things. Holding the mirror before David helped him realize that it was God who gave David everything he needed. It was God who empowered David and anointed him ruler. This was a humbling experience for David. David never could have accomplished so much if the Lord God had not been behind him.
If what God had given to David were not enough, the Lord God said, "I would have added as much more." Notice that God gave to David and that David took another man's wife. God had obviously favored David, but now in his cynical years David had forgotten God. David thought he could do it all by himself. "Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight?" David knew the Ten Commandments, although he managed to break three of them. The truth was David reached that point in his life where he mistakenly believed he was above the law. In David's own mind he thought he could do no wrong. He was sadly mistaken because God's law applies equally to everyone; it does not matter if you are a ruler or a servant. No one is above the law of God. This was a painful lesson for David.
David relied on his own wisdom and might and forgot that it was God who empowered him in the first place. And that is what got him into trouble. He probably could not name the precise time when he stopped thinking about God.
Then came the punishment. "I will raise up trouble against you from within your own house," the Lord God informed David. David sinned and strayed from God's ways and now he would have to face the consequences. "For you did it secretly," God spoke through the prophet Nathan, "but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun." When David took a long, hard look in the mirror, David realized the wrong he had done and made his confession, "I have sinned against the Lord." Even though David broke three of the Ten Commandments it was not too late for him to make a confession and repent of his wrongdoing.
In our experience, it is not always the big sins that cause our downfall. Often it is the slight unevenness of the pavement which causes us to fall. Oftentimes it is the pebble in our way rather than the boulder that causes us to sin. It's the little things that lead to big things. Just ask King David. The good news of the Christian faith is that once we acknowledge our sins and seek God's forgiveness we are forgiven by Jesus and our slate is wiped clean.
The most difficult thing is to recognize our sin before we reach the point where we can not stop the consequences. In the early years of this century there was a man named Eddie. Eddie was an attorney in Chicago. He gained the nickname "Artful Eddie" for his style and slickness. Artful Eddie was one of the roars of the Roaring Twenties. He worked for the mobster Al Capone, running a dog track. It was Artful Eddie who mastered the simple technique of fixing the race by overfeeding seven dogs and betting on the eighth. Eddie had it all: wealth, status, and style. Then one day his young son held up a mirror to him and Artful Eddie did not like what he saw. Eddie decided that he wanted out of the mob, but knew it would not be easy. He turned himself in and informed on his boss Al Capone. His friends and business associates could not understand why he would do such a thing. Eddie, more than anyone, understood the consequences of turning against the mob. What could he possibly gain by turning in his boss when he already had everything he wanted and more?
There was one thing Eddie still wanted, but he knew that it would be difficult to obtain. Eddie had a son who was also named Eddie. He wanted more out of life for his son than what he represented. He wanted to clear his name so his son would have a chance to live a decent life free from the influence of mobsters. To give his son a name he would first have to clear his own and that meant considerable risk. Artful Eddie would never see his dream come true. Soon after he informed on the mob, they killed him. Two shotgun blasts would forever silence him. His friends might have wondered if it was worth it.
Young Eddie lived up to his father's sacrifice, making a name for himself. He was commissioned to Annapolis. Eddie was a pilot during the Second World War and is credited for shooting down five bombers in the Pacific and saving the life of hundreds of his crew mates. Eddie became the Navy's first flying ace. He was quite a hero. A year and a half later in 1943, Eddie was shot down and killed off the Gilbert Islands. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
His name is one of the best known names in the world. If Artful Eddie had lived to see his son grow up he would have been proud. He had cleared his name. Today when you say the name O'Hare you do not think of gangsters, but instead you think of the international airport and of aviation heroism. He was Lieutenant Edward H. O'Hare, son of a gangster gone good.
