Pastors have a lot of different jobs. They preach. They teach. They counsel. They can be a youth group leader, a maintenance guy, a musician, even an administrator.
The other day I was performing one of the jobs that I am especially skilled at… Door stop. I was holding the door for parents as they came to pick up their kids at Precious Lambs. As I greet them, I try be friendly, make connections and ask, “If anything cool had happened lately.” One friend did not have anything cool happen lately. Life is hard, Pastor. Finances have been stressful. My work has been busy. Virtual learning is difficult. And my dad is in the hospital. Honestly, I don’t know if I can do this. I listened and applied God’s Word, “That is difficult. Thankfully you aren’t alone. Your God is with you. He lived for you, died for you, and rose for you. With him by your side, you will get through this. Because nothing is too difficult for God” They smiled. “Thank you.” I said, “I’m glad you found it encouraging. There’s more where that came from. In fact, this weekend our church is gathering for worship, we’re examining some uplifting promises from God’s Word. Do you want to come? Their smile turned to amusement. Church? Pastor, I don’t need church. I believe in God. That’s good enough, right? Maybe you’ve heard that sentiment before. Maybe you’ve said that sentiment before. Maybe you’ve been a long-time church person, but the pandemic has made you wonder… Why do I need Church? Our goal over the next month is to discover reasons behind church given from the inventor of church himself -- God. Before we begin, a prayer: O Lord, strengthen us by the truth. Your word is the truth. Open our eyes to see what you want us to see; open our ears to hear what you want us to hear. Open our hearts to believe what you would have us believe. Amen. I. Because We Get to Meet with God The first section of God’s Word we will look at to find the importance of church is found in the book of Hebrews. A bit of background. Hebrews is a book written with an unknown author. It is one of only a handful of books with an unknown author. Some think it was written by the apostle Paul. Some think it was written by Paul’s comrade Apollos. Some think it was Barnabas or Timothy. One thing that isn’t unclear is who inspired the book. God. God is the author. God is the one teaching us. It also isn’t unclear to whom the book was written. It was written to recent converts to Christianity from Judaism. Those who read the book would have had a good understanding of Old Testament and the work of Jesus. It also written at a time when persecution was at an all-time high for the Early Christian church. Some Jews hated Christians. Groups like the Pharisees wanted to kill believers. Especially those who used to be of their faith. The Romans had a growing hatred for Christianity. If you were a believer, it was very scary to meet up in person. You could be thrown in prison. You could have rocks thrown at you. You could have a group of Roman soldiers interrupt your meeting, arrest you, and making you fight a pack of lions. In short, if you went to a church, you could die. Considering COVID-19, maybe you get it. It seemed like the wise choice was to stay home. It seemed like the wise choice was to disconnect from the church. It seemed like the wise choice was to just do faith on your own. But is it? Brothers and sisters, we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place through the blood of Jesus. It is a new and living way he opened for us through the curtain, that is, his flesh. (v.19-20) It makes a reference to the Most Holy Place. That was something from Old Testament Jewish worship. (Remember – the recipients were converts from Judaism. They would have understood the reference). The Most Holy Place was a part of Old Testament temple. It contained the Ark of the Covenant. Inside the Ark was the original stone copy of the ten commandments, a jar of divine bread that had fallen from sky, and Aaron’s wooden staff. (It had once been a dead piece of wood, but had come to life with flowers blooming upon it. It was a special place. It was a place of God. It was a place where God dwelt. Not just anyone could go in there. The temple courtyard was for commoners. That means that lay people who had Jewish blood could enter. But if you weren’t Jewish, you couldn’t. Inside the temple was the Holy Place. It was sealed off by thick doors. Only the priests (kinda like pastors) could enter to offer animal sacrifices. Common people were not allowed. Then, there was the Most Holy Place. It had a 4 inch thick curtain that separated it from the simple Holy Place. Only the high priest (think lead pastor) could enter one time per year and only to offer sacrifices. All of this was to get across a point to God’s people. God is holy. You aren’t. Because of your sin, you can’t get anywhere near him. Reread the passage from Hebrews, “We have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place through the blood of Jesus. It is a new and living way he opened for us through the curtain, that is, his flesh." If we did worship like the Old Testament Jews… It’d be as if our Hospitality team stood at the entrance to the parking lot. They make you show your Gethsemane membership card to park in the parking lot. Then, an usher would come to your car and ask what kind of prayers you had for God. He’d deliver them to the usher who would enter the church. That usher would put some money in an offering plate and give the request to me. I would take a special key to open up the double doors to the worship space, deposit lots of money in an offering place and prayer your prayer to God. God would feel so very distant. Because of our sin, he would be. Maybe you get that feeling. Maybe you’ve even felt that. Like church cannot be for you, because you are too sinful. Because you’ve been away for too long. Because you are too ungodly. But you’re wrong. Because of Jesus, the temple is open. Because of Jesus, we can enter. Because of Jesus, we can enter the Holy Place. Because of Jesus, we can enter the Most Holy Place. Because of Jesus, we have access to God. Friends, why be a part of a church? Why gather in the presence of God? WHY CHURCH? Because we GET TO meet with GOD! The barrier of sin has been removed. The curtain of guilt has been torn down. We have access to our Lord and Savior. You get to talk to the one who created you. You get to hear from the one who created you. You get to commune with the One who loved you so much that he died to save you. You get to rub shoulders with the One so powerful, he conquered death itself. And it really is true. Even if you can’t see him. Can I show you something Jesus told his disciples? Jesus said, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Mt. 18:19) Jesus told them this before he physically left his disciples for heaven. I imagine they went back to this promise. When things got tough… When they suffered… When they felt guilt… When they felt attacked… When they felt persecuted… When they felt like they were all alone… They could gather together. There would be 1, 2, 3 of them… Plus 1 more. There would be 10, 11, 12 of them… Plus 1 more. There would be 55, 56, 57 of them. Plus 1 more. That 1 more? Jesus. And…the same is true with us. When we get together… Whether it’s in worship on a Sunday. At a coffee shop with a few others. Even at VBS yesterday! Jesus is with you. II. To Keep our Faith Unwavering But that’s not the only reason to stay connected to church. Let us approach with a sincere heart, in the full confidence of faith, because our hearts have been sprinkled to take away a bad conscience, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. Let us hold on firmly to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful. (v.22-23) Do you know what a front delt fly is? It is a type of weightlifting exercise where you grab two dumbbells and lift them to shoulder level without bending your elbows. You keep your arms straight and hold at the top. When I first started doing them, I wasn’t so great at them. When I held them for a moment at the top… …my arms would waver. …my weight would shake. …my grip would loosen. And I’d be seconds away from letting them drop. But after lots of training, my grip strengthened, and my hold became unwavering. WHY CHURCH? To Keep our Faith UNWAVERING Because when it comes to keeping our faith strong, we aren’t just talking about holding onto a 5-pound dumbbell. We are talking about holding onto the eternal life-giving promises of the One and Only Savior. You need him for heaven. Don’t drop him. And just like weight training, you lift more with a trainer. You lift more with a buddy. You lift more with a friend saying, “You got this.” Because if you wanted to push me theologically on the last point, you might say, “Jesus is always with us pastor. Even when we aren’t in church.” Fair enough. Jesus is absolutely with us even when we’re alone. He promised, “Surely I am with you always to the very end of the age.” (Mt. 28:21) Jesus is always with you. But it doesn’t always feel like it. And when you don’t feel like it, it is hard to convince yourself of it. That’s when you need someone else. Someone to look you in the eye. Someone to tell you, “Jesus is real.” Someone to have coffee, listen to your confession, and say to your heart, “You are forgiven.” A pastor to remind you that you have been sprinkled with the waters of baptism and you are his child. A group to meet you on ZOOM, hear your doubts, and encourage you. A large group to fill your ears with the joyful melodies of a risen Savior. III. To Encourage But church isn’t just about keeping you… Let us also consider carefully how to spur each other on to love and good works. Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have the habit of doing. Rather, let us encourage each other… (v.24-25) In a 2015, pew research poll Americans from all walks of life were asked what they looked for in a church. 80% said they wanted sermons to uplift them 77% said they wanted to feel welcomed. 75% said they wanted a worship style they liked. 70% said they wanted a location convenient to them. Do you know what was way at the bottom of the list? Volunteer opportunities. Most were interested in how the church could serve them. Few were interested in how they could serve the church. But that just shows a misunderstanding of church. WHY CHURCH? To ENCOURAGE others This isn’t just about you! You need to be an active part of this to encourage others. To look them in the eye. To tell them, “Jesus is real.” To have coffee, listen to their confession, and say to their heart, “You are forgiven.” To remind you that you have been sprinkled with the waters of baptism and you are His child. To meet them on ZOOM, hear their doubts, and encourage them. To join this large group to fill their ears with the joyful melodies of a risen Savior. I get it… Some of you might still say… I am one of the few, pastor. I know that I have access to God. I am one of the small percentage who can keep their faith unwavering on their own. I don’t need church. I got this. If that’s you… After this point… You’d better be getting on Google right now to get connected with a local church because you understand from your careful study of scripture that the local church needs you and your encouragement. IV. Because the Day is Approaching One more reason from this section. Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have the habit of doing. Rather, let us encourage each other, and all the more as you see the Day approaching. (v.25) What does the writer mean by “the Day?” Any ideas? The start of school? Back to Church Sunday? The Day that Amazon package arrives? Nope. “The Day” is a phrase that is used throughout the book of Hebrews to refer to a day that hasn’t happened yet. Judgment Day. The Last Day. The Final Day. Or even… The Day you die. What God is saying is that if you’re reading this, you are alive. If you are alive, then you haven’t made it to heaven yet. If you haven’t made it to heaven yet, do all you can to keep your faith in your Savior. WHY CHURCH? Because the DAY is Approaching During the pandemic, death has been a real possibility. We’ve told to stay home to keep people physically. Fair enough. I don’t debate that. Science is good. But… could one unintended consequence of keeping our space physically… Be that we separated ourselves spiritually. And a very real consequence of separating ourselves spiritually, Be that we put ourselves in danger spiritually? Rather than the pandemic being a reason to disconnect from church. Hasn’t the pandemic been a reason that we desperately need church. Be safe. But, be safe. Be physically safe. But spiritually safe too. Stay connected to your Savior. Stay connected to other. Stay connected to church. Amen
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September 2021
Pastor Phil Kiecker
and his wife, Julianna love serving the community of North Raleigh.
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