| Redeemer Lutheran Church 1084 W. Bullard Ave. Fresno, CA 93711 Phone: (559) 439-8500 Fax: (559) 439-8585 office@redeemerfresno.com The Reverend Clarence Eisberg Phone: (209) 725-9082 Cell: (209) 631-3108 pastor@redeemerfresno.com Worship ~ 8:30 a.m. & 10:00 a.m. Family Ministries ~ 10:00 a.m. Holy Communion ~ 2nd & 4th Sundays |
| Connecting People to Jesus and to One Another! www.lcms.org |
The Reverend Clarence Eisberg |
July 31, 2011 |
“As Is” |
| In certain stores you will find a section of merchandise available at greatly reduced prices. The tipoff is a particular tag you will see on all the items in that area. Each tag carries the same words: “As Is”. This is a nice way of saying “these are damaged goods.” Sometimes they are called “slightly irregular”. The store is issuing you a fair warning. You are going to find a flaw here; a stain that won’t come out; a zipper that won’t zip; a button that won’t button…there will be a problem. These items are not normal. “We are going to tell you where the flaw is. You’ll have to look for it.” But we know it’s there. So when you find it…do not come whining and sniveling to us. Because there is a fundamental rule when dealing with merchandise in this corner of the store. No returns. No refunds. No exchanges. If you were looking for perfect you walked down the wrong isle. When you deal with human beings, you have come to the “as is” corner of the universe. Think about the people in your life. Aren’t they slightly irregular? That person comes with a little tag: there’s a flaw here… a crude tongue, a passive spirit, an out of control temper..or you can add other behavior traits to the list. But when you find it don’t be surprised… if you want a relationship with this model… if you want to be part of the community there is only one way. “As Is”. When we enter relationships or friendships or marry into a family, or join a bowling league, or join a community of people such as a church… we may have the illusion that the people are normal. That’s what happens when the Bachelorette or Bachelor visits the home of their prospective bachelor or bachelorette. We resist the truth that they are not normal. One of the great marks of maturity is knowing that everyone comes “as is”. The most painful reality is that I am in the “as is” department. Throughout history human beings have resisted owning up to that little tag. We all want to look normal but the writers of Scripture insist that no one is “totally normal” at least as God defines normal. “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We all have habits we cannot control, past deeds we cannot undo, flaws we cannot correct. “The good I want to do…” Paul wrote. “I cannot carry it out.” “but the evil I don’t want to do, I keep on doing.” (Rom. 7:15- 20) We lie and sacrifice integrity for the sake of a few dollars. “Officer, I don’t understand…. my speedometer must be broken.” Or we gossip for the sake of feeling superior to another just for that moment. We know in our hearts this is not the way we are supposed to be. From the time of Adam in the Garden of Eden, sin and hiding have been as inevitable as death and taxes. Some people are good at hiding…. But get close enough and you will see the tag “As Is”. Even with this known reality…. We each have a need for community with people and we seek a “oneness” with the God who made us. The need for community marks us from the nursery to the convalescent home. An infant toddler holds up two arms……why? The need to be accepted. It is a longing in every human heart. God created human beings to be in “connected community” with others and Himself….. even when we wear the tag “As Is”. When we look at the creation story in Genesis there is a refrain which keeps repeating: “and God said….. and it was so…. And God saw that it was good…” Everything was good….until the final act… God creates man in his own image. God looks at Adam, who bears His likeness and says: “Not good”. Why? Does this mean that God likes women better? Not quite. The Fall has not yet happened…. There is no sin. No disobedience. The human being is in perfect harmony, intimacy with God… who walks each day in the garden in the cool of the evening. The man is loved…. But it is not good for man to be alone…. With billions of people in the world someone should figure out a system where no one is lonely. Someone Did. That someone is God. That system is call family…. Community it is more that a bowling league, a baseball team, a Bunco night, more than a building. God created a community of persons who love and accept others, just as He does. Jesus Christ created the “ekklesia” the Church, The body of Christ on earth. (Eph. 3:10) “Love one another as I have loved you.” Jesus said. By this all men will know you are my disciples. Peter: “forgiven one another, not 7 times but 70 times 7. John, Peter why are you arguing amongst yourselves…. Serve one another as I have washed your feet. Edward Hallowell, a senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School speaks of the basic human need for community. He uses the term “connection” …the sense of being part of something that matters, something larger than ourselves. This is exactly what is happening in our midst as we conclude our pledge drive and work together to expand the ministry of our Lord’s “Ekklesia”, seeking to find ways to serve one another and reached those who are still seeking a “community” of acceptance. One of the great stories in the bible about community involves a paralyzed man and his friends who brought Him to Jesus. Imagine what life was like for a paralytic in the ancient world. His whole life is lived on a mat 3 feet wide and 6 feet long. Someone has to feed him, carry him, clothe him, clean him, move him and keep him from being covered with bed sores. Nothing can be done medically. No surgery. No rehab. No treatment centers. He is a beggar…. Placed at the side of the road, dependent on people dropping coins to help him live another day. He has no money. No job. No influence. His “as is” tag is 3 feet wide and 6 feet long. But he has friends!!! He has a great group of friends. Without friends he never makes it to Jesus; never gets healed; never gets forgiven. The development of friendships did not happen accidently. His “as is” tag was an obstacle that kept people away. Today an obstacle to friendship, to community is the fast pace of our lives. How often do you hear or say: “we’ve got to get together soon.” Or “Let’s do lunch in a few weeks when things slow down.” Wise people cannot microwave friendships, parenting, or marriage. You can’t do community in a hurry. You cannot listen in a hurry. You cannot mourn in a hurry. You cannot rejoice in a hurry. Everybody has a mat. One day, Jesus came to the village. These four men wanted to hear the famous rabbi. One of them says: “we cannot go ourselves…let’s bring our friend. Maybe Jesus can heal him.” They go and pick up their friend. He does not have a choice. They pick him up. When they arrive…it’s standing room only. They are desperate. What do they do? You know the story. The carry the man to the roof. There is no hole? They don’t have ropes. One of them finds a rope while the others begin to remove the matting of reeds and branches. Dirt and dust begins to fall. The conversation in the room stops. If you were the man on the mat could you trust your friends to keep you safe…not lowering one rope faster than the other? Will Jesus be able to heal me? Will the others in the room be upset that I cut line? Jesus knew the man needed forgiveness and healing. Luke tells us: When Jesus saw their faith… he said, “son your sins are forgiven. Get up and take your mat and go home.” He stands up. Folds up his mat. He has been healed and forgiven. Paul writes: “It was God’s intent that through the “Ekklesia” the church, the manifest wisdom of God should be made known……(the love of God and the forgiveness of sins) which He made accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Ephesians 3:10) You are members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Christ Jesus Himself the cornerstone… In Him the whole building rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.’ We are that community of God in this time and in this place to tell the “old, old story” of God’s love and forgiveness. That’s why we are pooling our resources, committing ourselves to create a “community of believers” who live in peace and harmony with God, our creator and with one another. The building is not an end in and of itself… it is a tool for ministry. When the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit realized that the devil had seduced us in the Garden, and last week… He was pretty upset. He was upset we had disobeyed Him, the one who has given us everything and only asks for our love in return. He was upset that sin and death came into His perfect world, along with distress, disappointment, discouragement and discontent. God could have abandoned us. He could have vaporized us but he chose instead a way for us to be saved while holding on to our mat, keeping the name tag “as is.” God sent His son to fix what we had wrecked. Jesus kept the laws of God we have broken. His job was to carry our sins… all of our hateful acts and thoughts… to should all those and carry them to His cross. There Jesus took our place. Our sins were nailed to the cross. “…we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once and for all…. Because by his sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy….” Even as you and I hold the tag “as is.” Hebrews 10:10,14 |
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