November 8, 2009   Judgment   Genesis 2.9,16,17;3.1-7,14a,15,21-24

Hymns: 208, 209, 382, 562

Honor the past...prepare for the future

This is the theme on which we are building our preparations to celebrate the 25^th anniversary of our congregation, which we will do in April of 2010. We honor the past by remembering the dedication and faithful commitment to the Lord Jesus of those families who were charter members of Atonement...who were willing to invest the time and energy to establish our congregation, not only so they would have a place to worship on the north side of Dallas but also to reach out to others in the area with the saving gospel of sins forgiven through faith in Jesus.

With this theme, Honor the past...prepare for the future we also want to recommit ourselves to the task of supporting our conggregation and, as did the founders, reach out to others by sharing the message of salvation through faith in Jesus. Preparing for the future not only means seeing to it that Atonement Lutheran Church is still around 25 years from now, and more, to celebrate more anniversaries. Preparing for the future also means making the effort to share God’s plan of salvation with others, for the sake of their eternal future, and not only keep this good news to ourselves for our own comfort and peace of mind.

For the next several weeks I will be preaching sermons that are intended to help you do just that, share the good news of Jesus with others. That’s not something that comes easy or naturally to a lot of people, even though every Christian agrees that we should be doing this. But what do you say? How deeply into doctrine to you have to get involved? How do you talk to people about Jesus who don’t want to talk about Jesus? How do you get through to people who have the wrong idea about Jesus and about Christianity?

My plan, based on an idea set forth by Pastor Mark Paustian, is to use Bible stories and parables and events that are familiar to you and easy to tell to reach people you know who have a personal issue that is keeping them away from Jesus. Today I will preach A SERMON FOR PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT FAVORABLY DISPOSED TOWARD GOD.
 

Read Text

Perhaps the most difficult thing about talking to people about Jesus, who don’t understand Jesus, is getting the conversation started. But you really can’t start talking to someone about Jesus until you know what they need to hear and what they are thinking about Jesus. This takes time...asking questions, listening to people’s hurts and ideas, doubts and fears, wrong ideas and misperceptions. And then, for example, if you learn that someone just doesn’t like God, they are not favorably disposed toward God because of things they’ve heard or been told about God which are not true, or because of sad experiences they’ve had in their life, then you can try telling them how it all began and perhaps the Holy Spirit will be able to bring about a change in their heart because 1) If you tell them the story of how it all began, they can’t blame God for anything that’s not going well in their life. In fact, when you tell them the story of how it all began, and they believe it, 2) They will thank God.

And it all began in the beginning, in the Garden of Eden, when life was perfect and sinless and happy and peaceful and loving and wonderful and... Adam and Eve never used words like ‘un-happy’ or ‘sad,’ ‘angry’ or ‘disappointed.’ They didn’t know what fear was, or frustration, or stress or impatience. Why? Be-cause God made them to be perfect in every way...in their thought process, in their desires, in the attitude toward God and each other. They loved God with all their heart and mind and strength, and the loved each other as themselves.

Until they chose to sin...to pollute the holy mind and heart God had given them by eating of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil...until they chose death. But they couldn’t blame God for that. This was a choice they made; God didn’t make them sin, he didn’t want them to sin and he gave them the ability to remain sinless. So when you tell someone the story of how Adam and Eve fell into sin, tell them that they can be angry at Adam and Eve but not God. They can’t blame God for sin then or for anything now that is giving them heartburn about him trying to warm up to God. They don’t like him; they aren’t favorably disposed toward God so they refuse to have anything to do with him...as if that’s a wise or reasonable thing to do.

Perhaps you get yourself in a spiritual bind from time to time and blame God when things aren’t going so well in your life. Confess that to your friend who is not favorable disposed to-ward God. Be honest. Aren’t there times when you think God should be taking better care of you...providing for you better than he is...showing a bit more understanding and just general good will? Acknowledge that to your friend.

But then also point out that you understand clearly that God should have and could have destroyed Adam and Eve right on the spot because they chose to sin. He warned them. He could have held them accountable even as God should and could hold you and all people today and of every generation accountable for our sins. He doesn’t "owe" us anything. He is God. He is the Creator. He sets the rules. If your friend knows the story he/she can’t blame God, can’t be unfavorably disposed toward God for anything...for being God. But, if your friend believes the story he/she can be led to be thankful to God.

READ 3.15 and Gal 3.16

Here is the rest of the story. Instead of punishing Adam and Eve for their sin and unbelief, God sent his own Son, Jesus, to be punished for their sin and unbelief. That punishment Jesus accepted when he died on the cross on Calva-ry and then rose again as proof that he paid the punishment of sin. Jesus did this is our substitute, our stand-in, our Mediator. What this means now is that even though Adam and Eve ruined any possibility of enjoying eternal life in heaven, Jesus restored that possibility that paying the debt of sin, not only for Adam and Eve but for everyone. Memorize 2 Cor 5.19,21: God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them...God made him who had no sin to be sin for us so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. And Jn 3.16.

Without faith in Jesus your friend will never know heaven and eternal life. Through faith in Jesus who paid for all sin, your friend will one day be in heaven. Blame God? No. Believe God.