In our call to worship this morning, we read the first Scripture of the day (The 23rd Psalm). This is one of the most comforting scriptures in the Bible. We read it when things are gloomy or when death raises its ugly head. But most of us have heard the stories about sheep and how dumb they are. Many of us really don’t like the Bible references comparing us to sheep. We think it shows that we are incapable of thinking or doing things on our own. It makes us sound like mindless robots just following what we are told and shown.
Part of the reason we try to distance ourselves from being compared to sheep goes way back to the early west when cows were the main animal of the day. Cattle were the first to go west because of milk and food and leather. They traveled well and could be driven across great expanses of dry, barren land. Cattle ranchers thought sheep were dumb because they didn’t behave like cows. And there were many more cattle ranchers than there were sheepherders.
You see cows had to be moved along from place to place by a bunch of cowboys getting behind them, shouting and hooting and cracking whips in order to make them go where you wanted them to go. That doesn’t work for sheep. If you get behind the sheep and start making a lot of noise and cracking whips, the sheep will just scatter and go right back behind you. Sheep like to be led, not driven.
Sheep don’t like to go anywhere unless someone goes there first. They will wait for someone to lead, namely the shepherd. The sheep need to know that everything is OK ahead of them. Sheep grow very fond of their shepherd and consider a good shepherd as part of their family. A language develops between the sheep and the shepherd that outsiders cannot understand. A good shepherd learns to understand the bleat of a sheep when it is in trouble or the bleat of contentment or the bleat of excitement. The sheep learn to understand that a simple noise from the shepherd means it is time to eat, or that two little notes from a flute means its time to go home.
When the shepherd walks through the flock, they remain calm and content and not one of them will move or run. But let a stranger try walking through the flock and pandemonium breaks out. The sheep know who they belong to. They know their shepherd’s voice and will only follow him.
This is why Christ often used the stories about sheep when talking to His people. He wants to develop that trusting bond that exists between a good shepherd and his sheep. Christ tries to show us the safe path to follow. He tries to lead us to fields of peace and contentment. He tries to keep us out of dangerous valleys. He tries to protect us and comfort us. He tries to drive away our enemies and keep us from those who would harm us. He wants only good things for us. And some day, He wants all of us to come and live with Him.
All we need to do is trust that He is the good shepherd and follow Him. But some of us act like cows. Instead of listening and following, we wait until someone gets behind us and starts shouting and pushing and hooting and cracking the whip. Then we just dash off in any direction until someone else starts hollering and banging, so we change direction again, not knowing where we are going. Not knowing what lies ahead. You probably know a person or two just like that.
I have chosen to be a sheep. I am content knowing that God will make a way when there seems to be no way. I am at peace knowing that, no matter how dark and dreary things may seem that God will make a way for me. He always does if I just wait and follow the lead of the Good Shepherd.
Our second reading this morning is found in your bulletins and is from
Acts 2:42-47 (Living)
They joined with the other believers in regular attendance at the apostles' teaching sessions and at the Communion services and prayer meetings.
[43] A deep sense of awe was on them all, and the apostles did many miracles.
[44] And all the believers met together constantly and shared everything with each other, [45] selling their possessions and dividing with those in need. [46] They worshiped together regularly at the Temple each day, met in small groups in homes for Communion, and shared their meals with great joy and thankfulness, [47] praising God. The whole city was favorable to them, and each day God added to them all who were being saved.
This scripture follows Peter’s great sermon given on the day of Pentecost. I don’t quite understand why it is given here when Pentecost is 4 weeks away except that it shows us what a church is supposed to be and is apparently what I am supposed to talk about today. We have watered down this model church somewhat, but the goals still need to be the same if a church is to survive.
The Scripture starts out by saying that they joined with other believers in regular attendance. They joined together in teaching sessions. Part of our Sunday morning worship services must be in teaching. But we should also be gathering together during the week to study the Bible. We should take other opportunities to study on our own so that we can understand all the things that Christ would have us understand; so that we can draw on Scripture to help us through a difficult time or to guide us in the decisions that we must make everyday. The answers to our most difficult questions are right in front of us in the Bible, but we must open it and study it if we are to find the answers.
They attended regular Communion services, celebrating the resurrection of Christ, sharing in the bread and wine. There are times when I think we should be sharing in Communion every Sunday to remind us continually of the life and death and resurrection of Jesus. We need to be fully and constantly reminded of how much God loves us.
And they joined together to pray. Prayer is our most powerful weapon against things that will harm us. Prayer is the most powerful kind of communication we can make with our Lord and Maker. Prayer is our most powerful method in achieving peace and understanding. And, when we join other believers in prayer, that power is magnified.
The Bible tells us we need to pray constantly. That does not mean that we need to kneel down and bow our heads and speak to God in formal tones, praising Him, thanking Him, then asking for guidance and do it all the time. We do not have to follow the patterns and guidelines set out by the many, many books on prayer. Some of the best prayers I have heard are just a few words long. It is not the words we use, it is the intent. There is nothing more beautiful than a person simply saying “help me” while looking sincerely towards God for help.
And how elegant is a single Thank You when something wonderful happens in your life? It’s not the words we use, it is the intent. Prayer is our one sure way to talk with God.
And when people regularly gather together as believers and share in the Word of God, there is awe. Awe is a peculiar word. It’s a mixture of emotions. It is reverence, respect, dread, and wonder all rolled into one and is inspired by authority, genius, great beauty, sublimity, or might. When we enter this sanctuary, there should be awe. There is nothing more reverent than gathering as friends to commune with God. We have been taught to respect our elders and we respect our heroes, but there is no hero greater than our God.
And there is that little bit of fear. Just like when we were children and had that little fear of our father whenever we did something wrong, we should have that little bit of fear when we are disobeying our Father in Heaven. That is a healthy, realistic fear.
And there is wonder. It blows us away to think about how God was able to create an earth with so much beauty and so much balance. He makes things work that should never be. How can a stream begin at the top of a mountain? This is one that has always made me wonder. I know all the scientific and archaeological explanations, but it just doesn’t make sense to me. I am in awe and wonder.
When Keely, Josh and I entered this church last week, we were in awe. You see, I’ve had the opportunity to speak at a number of churches over the past year to different types of congregations. All these churches had some really good people in them, but there was always something lacking. There was no spirit or there was very little spirit in them. When we walked through these doors last week, we were struck with the feeling of a spirit-filled church. As more and more people began coming through the doors, the spirit increased. Then as we began to worship together, there was no question. The Spirit of the Lord is fine and doing well at Cortez.
When we left the church last week that was all we could talk about. We had finally found a place where the Holy Spirit was alive. We felt blessed at the opportunity to be here for just one Sunday. And now we are truly blessed with the opportunity to be here for a while or at least for as long as you will have us. Keely told me yesterday that she was excited about this church. She had not felt very excited at all the other churches we had visited. She said she had not lost faith, but just didn’t feel right about worshiping at the other churches. But after being here last week, she is excited again. I am excited.
I have spent the last year and a half completely committing myself to the Lord and leaving myself open to anything that He led me to. I figured that I would wind up in a church that was dying, had no spirit, had a bunch of grouchy people that thought all they had to do was attend church on Sunday morning once in a while and their lives would be good. Instead, I am looking at the chance to be part of a spirit-filled church where the people understand that our God is truly an awesome God.
You see this is what a church is supposed to be. A place to gather and share, a place to worship and praise the Lord, a place where we support and comfort each other, a place where help is available to all who need it. This is what a church is supposed to be. This is truly a sanctuary. And God will add to us.
