September 10 * Exodus
12.1-14, Matthew 18.15-20 “God Will Do It for You” Pastor Jacqueline Hines
It was a special day in
the life of God’s people. Then again, every day is special, isn’t it? Every day
the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Flowers bloom and children
laugh. Every day is special! [slide
# 1 Every day of your life…]
God directed the people
to set aside a special day. It was called Passover. It was a day of
deliverance. It was a day of deliverance from an oppressive enemy who did not
care about God’s people. The enemy of God’s people only wanted to use them for
their cheap labor and other marketable assets they could get from them. The
enemy did not care whether they lived or whether they died. But, God cared, and
when they turned to God, God gave them a way out of their misery.
That day God’s people
were instructed to celebrate God delivering them from a big mess. Have you ever
been in a mess? Messes come in all types. There are health messes, relationship
messes, accident messes, political messes, legal messes, messes in the house
and messes at work. There are messes we make for ourselves and messes that
others make for us. Of course, there are messes we make for others, too. If we
live long enough, we will definitely have our share of messes.
By faith we can ask God
to help us to get through any and everything. This week I was contemplating how
we get mad at God and one another for the messes that come our way. I also
thought of the challenge: what would you do? You remember the bumper stickers
and bracelets we saw a few years ago: What would Jesus do?
If we turn the question
around, and if you were in charge, what would you do? Would we? Could we create
something that was always perfect and never without any issues? Yes we could, but only in our imaginations. We
cannot create anything. Everything we have comes from God. All the resources we
have, all the power we have. We came into this world with nothing, and we will
leave with nothing. All we have and ever hope to be comes from a higher power.
We call that power God.
All that being said, if
we are in a mess, God help us. If we make a mess, God help us. If we cause a
mess for others, God help us. If someone makes a mess that affects us, God help
us.
When do we learn to ask
God to help us and not try to take matters into our own hands? We usually learn
the hard way. Sometimes we learn when a lightbulb goes off and we feel
overwhelmed by God’s love. [slide
# 2 lightbulbs]
It is all about God’s
love, and love is something to celebrate. [side # 3 celebration time]
Just as workplaces
demand and command the taking of a holiday, God asks us to take a holiday, to
celebrate, to remember and reflect on how God is working in our lives so we can
see how evil is being overcome by good.
In the workplace, shops
and offices are closed for holidays. [slide # 4 closed] It is no longer business as usual. It is time
to get away, to stop, rest, and enjoy. For it is the joy of our Lord that gives
us the strength to do great work, to
keep on keeping on when the road is long and the journey is hard. The joy of
the Lord gives us strength. God commands us to celebrate so we can be strong. [slide # 5 remember with joy]
God commanded and
demanded that the people of God celebrate seven feasts representing God’s great
works among them. The Passover is the first of seven feasts. The Passover is a
celebration of God’s deliverance from slavery, which was a big mess for many
years, but the sweetness of deliverance is celebrated. [slide # 6 sweet deliverance] If you think
about it, God has delivered us from many, many troubling situations.
Secondly, there is the
Feast of Unleavened Bread celebrated the night after Passover. Matzo is eaten
to symbolize a holy walk, which at times involves sacrifice, even though
walking in holiness brings unspeakable joy. [slide # 7 Feast on Jesus] Certainly, you have
felt the sweet, sweet presence of Jesus while reading scripture, hearing a
testimony of God’s love and goodness, listening to k-love, or singing an old
hymn.
The Sunday after the Feast
of Unleavened Bread, the third feast called the First Fruits is celebrated. [slide # 8 First Fruits…]
Each family brings the first fruit of their crops and gives thanks to God for
the harvest [slide # 9
table and fruit with celebrants] and they celebrate together joyfully. [slide # 10 young dancers]
At Bethel, I cannot even count all the celebrations and moments of gratitude
and joy we share over good food and warm fellowship.
Fifty days after First
Fruits, the fourth feast of Pentecost is celebrated. [slide # 11 Pentecost / dove] It is also
called the Feast of Weeks because 50 days is 7 seeks after First Fruits. Pentecost is a time of rejoicing over the bountiful
summer harvest often in May or June. Our Bethel cupboards and tables overflow
with fresh veggies and fruit all of the time.
The Fifth feast is the
Feast of Trumpets, usually in September. [slide # 12 two men and ram’s horns] When the
trumpet blows, God’s people are beckoned to the Temple to worship. We hear this
in the Psalmist’s words: I was glad when they said to me, let us go into the
house of the Lord. [slide
# 13 …be the church] We always have chimes and trumpets or some type of
fanfare to begin worship. Our neighbors at Brownbacks UCC have bells that ring
on Sunday mornings.
The sixth feast is the
Feast of Atonement or Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year. [slide # 14 Yom Kippur] God’s people are to stay awake for 24 hours,
doing no work except confessing their sins and repenting before God. [slide # 15 mat at prayer wall]
How exceedingly wonderful to cleanse our souls and make our peace with God
again!
How significant is it
that just one day of the year is set aside for dwelling on our sins, and the
sins of our neighbor?
The seventh and last
feast is the Feast of Tabernacles, celebrating God providing shelter in their
journey through the wilderness. You may have seen Jewish neighbors pitching
tents outside their homes to remember what it was like before God led them to a
permanent home. [slide #
16 tent] Endless songs have been written about the joys of God’s
guidance and provision in our time of greatest need. We have all celebrated by
singing songs of thanksgiving when God blesses us with our safe and peaceful
homes. [slide # 17 Thank
you God]
From the beginning, our
spiritual roots urged us to gather, and celebrate and give thanks. Jewish
holidays like Rosh Shoshana – the New Year, Shabbat- the Sabbath rest, and
Hanukkah are in addition to these 7 feasts that were commanded to bring joy and
strength to God’s people. Even today, in our own way we celebrate more special
days and milestones of God’s goodness than we can even count.
In our scripture lesson
this morning, there is a call to celebrate the Passover Feast. They were to
gather together around the table with six symbols of their deliverance. It was
called a Seder meal. “Seder” means “order” or “arrangement.” It is a good thing
to order or arrange or plan and focus some of our time with God. [slide # 18 Seder plate]
– keep this slide up as
each of the six are introduced]
When our Jewish
neighbors eat the first symbol of bitter herbs, representing harshness they
endured, we can also identify the various ways we are slaves to sin or bound by
some tragic circumstance or mess in our lives.
The second symbol is a
sticky-sweet nutty cinnamon mixture to represent brick and mortar used by
Hebrew slaves in making storehouses for the pyramids. Some of us have labored
long and hard under oppressive circumstances that do not ever seem to go away.
In order to be delivered we first have to acknowledge the ways we are
oppressed. Then we can put all of those bitter memories before God and watch
God do a new thing in our lives.
The third symbol on the
Seder plate is a green, like parsley, that is dipped in salt water representing
tears and sweat shed while going through the valley of the shadow of death. We
too have shed plenty of lonely tears or corporate sweat over the years.
The forth symbol is another
bitter herb representing yet another bitter hour in life’s journey. All bad
memories can be placed before the Lord who is our comfort.
The fifth symbol is a
roasted lamb shank bone to symbolize the sacrifices made for our salvation.
Some say the bone juts out like the loving, outstretched arm of our God. God’s
love always goes before us in this world.
Finally, the sixth
symbol is a boiled egg symbolizing mourning – just as other cultures brings
many types of food when a family is in mourning, the ancients brought boiled
eggs. It is good to mourn our losses. It is good for us to bring comfort and
peace to one another in times of sadness. That in itself is a way to nurture
the joy of the Lord that is and always will be our strength. We never forget
those who bring us comfort in our time of sadness.
When we take time to
look back at our lives, there is no doubt that we see how God has faithfully
delivered us from many situations, and God will do it again.
Whatever deliverance
you need this day, God can and will do it for you. [slide # 19 God / deliverer] As you are
going through, just remember and celebrate what God has already done. Remembering
and giving thanks brings joy. The joy of the Lord makes us strong, strong
enough to make it through anything. Amen. [slide # 20 People with passion/ jumping for joy]
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