MORE TO THIS LIFE: Why are we here? 7-2-23

MORE TO THIS LIFE: Why are we here? 7-2-23

 

INTRODUCTION

 

God is doing a new thing!

There has got to be more to this life!

The ontological question - What am I?  The inevitable question about God

The existential question - Who am I?  How should we exist?

Whose are we?

 

Ephesians 1 and 2 assignment

 

Why are we here?

 

The story has often been told about the message the founder of the Salvation Army sent to their international convention. General William Booth was unable to attend personally because of ill health, so he cabled the delegates a message containing one word: "OTHERS!"

 

In the popular comic strip "Peanuts," Lucy asks Charlie Brown, "Why are we here on earth?" He replies, "To make others happy." She ponders this for a moment and then asks, "Then why are the others here?"

 

"One another" is one of the key phrases in the Christian's vocabulary. "Love one another" is found at least a dozen times in the New Testament, along with "pray one for another" (James 5:16), "edify one another" (1 Thes. 5:11), “prefer one another” (Ro 12:10), "use hospitality one to another" (1 Peter 4:9), and many other similar admonitions.

 

Yes, Lucy......we are here for OTHERS.

 

As the new plant manager walked through the factory he noticed, in the distance, a worker hit the machine he was at with a large hammer. The manager stopped and watched the worker. It was remarkable, every three minutes the worker would pick up a large ballpeen hammer and strike the machine a savage blow.

 

The manager turned to the area foreman, who was walking with him, and asked why the employee was striking the machine with a ballpeen hammer. The foreman nonchalantly replied: "That is what we always do."

 

The plant manager finished the inspection tour and returned to his office.

 

The next day, at the morning department manager's meeting, the plant manager asked if anyone knew why there was an employee beating on his machine with a ballpeen hammer. None of the production managers had an answer. The procurement and supply manager made the statement: "Probably because we only stock ballpeen hammers."

 

By this time, irritation could be easily discerned on the plant manager's face. He stated, rather firmly: "You mean we have an employee beating a piece of equipment with a hammer and no one knows why?"

 

An old and rather crusty maintenance manager spoke up: "Did this happen at the annealing furnaces?"

 

"Yes," replied the plant manager.

 

Rubbing his jaws with a large knurled hand, the maintenance manager slowly commented: "I bet it was at the 101 line. About 10-years ago that line had a froze link in it and every time the link came around to the center idler cog you had to hit the machine on the idler bearing mount to keep the chain from hanging up. But we fixed that chain a long time ago."

 

The room grew very quiet as the plant manager leaned forward and gently said, "Ten years ago."

"Yep, at least 10-years, just as soon as we got a new link," replied the maintenance foreman.

The annealing department manager blurted out, "No one ever told us that the machine was fixed!"

The plant manager leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling thinking, "I wonder just how many people in this factory don't know...why."

 

He slowly leaned forward and placed his hands, face down, on the table in front of him. He spoke gently, "When our people do something without knowing why they are doing it we have reduced them to nothing more than an extension of the machine they are working at. We cannot build a quality workforce unless everyone knows...WHY!"

                              Robert Sickler

 

I.  WHY are we here?

 

A little girl was visiting over at grandpa's house. She crawls up into his lap and says "Grandpa, did God make you?"

 

He says "Oh, yes, my dear, God created me a long time ago."

 

She says "Did God make me, too?"

 

He says "Oh, yes, my dear, God created you a little while ago."

 

She thinks about it for a moment. Then she says "God's been doing better work the last while, hasn't He?"

 

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

                             Ephesians 2:10 NIV

 

               A.  We are God’s handiwork.

               B.  We are created to do good works.

               C.  We have work to do.

 

II.  why are WE here?

 

We are not put here on earth to play around. There is work to be done. There are responsibilities to be met. Humanity needs the abilities of every man and woman.

                              Alden Palmer

 

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 2, 1926, takes pleasure in presenting the Soldier's Medal to Specialist Fifth Class Alden S. Palmer, Jr., United States Army, for heroism at the risk of life not involving conflict with an armed enemy at Charlottesville, Virginia on 20 August 1969. On that date Specialist Palmer, a member of Headquarters Company, Davison United States Army Airfield, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, rescued and saved the lives of two civilians in the vicinity of Charlottesville, Virginia, who were the victims of flooding in the James River area. Specialist Palmer was in the vanguard of personnel sent as relief element to assist civilian authorities with the disaster caused by Hurricane CAMILLE. Upon reaching a group of houses in the flooded James River, Specialist Palmer volunteered to be lowered by hoist from a helicopter with complete disregard for his own personal safety to search the houses for survivors. After being lowered by hoist in a buffeting wind to the roof of a house being inundated by rising water from the James River, he placed himself in danger and entered the home by an upstairs window where he found two elderly persons in shock and bewilderment. While the water was undermining the house at a level now approaching the porch roof, he courageously persuaded the two persons to leave the house and was successful in having them hoisted aboard the helicopter. Specialist Palmer placed himself in additional danger by remaining behind while the survivors were being flown to a safe location, since there was no remaining space for him to board the aircraft. The helicopter returned to pick up Specialist Palmer, and he continued to search houses for survivors until all remaining dwellings had been searched. Specialist Palmer received superficial wounds from flying glass when the window of a house broke because of the stress from floodwaters. He continued the search in complete disregard for his own safety and welfare until the search had been completed. By his courageous action and humanitarian regard for his fellow man, in the dedication of this service to his country, Specialist Palmer has reflected great credit upon himself and the United States Army.

 

               A.  We are here for a reason.  We are the body of Christ.

 

“Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.”

                             1 Corinthians 12:12-14 NIV

 

               B.  We are here for a reason.  We have a function in the body of Christ.

 

“From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

                            Ephesians 4:16 NIV

 

               C.  We are here for a reason.  We need each other.

 

"If God designed the Church to function like a body with every member ministering in the power of the Holy Spirit to other members, in regular interpersonal relationship, then would it be surprising to find that the neglect of this regular interpersonal, spiritual ministry cripples the body in some of its functions and causes parts of the body to be weak and sick? Isn’t that what you would expect?"

 

"Psychological problems, marriage problems, parenting problems, self-identity problems, financial problems, career problems, loneliness, addictions, phobias, weaknesses--I wonder if the epidemic of emotional and psychological woes is not the symptom of an organic flaw in the way most Christians experience corporate church life."

                              John Piper

 

III.  why are we HERE?

 

Before 1492 when Columbus sailed the ocean blue, the common belief was that if a ship from Europe sailed too far West, they would either fall off the edge of the world or face terrible danger. There was fear of the unknown. In England, there is an ancient nautical map dating back to the time of King Henry IV. On it, the mapmakers wrote these words over the Atlantic Ocean: "Here be dragons; Here be demons; Here be danger." And based on those superstitious warnings, sailors were afraid of sailing there. But there was an English navigator named John Franklin who was a mighty man of God. He knew the Word of God that says God sits above the circle of the earth. He took that same map and crossed out those fearful words and added these three words: "HERE BE GOD!"

 

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”

                              Romans 12:3-8 NIV

 

               A.  We are the body HERE at Kenwood.

 

               B.  We have a job to do as the body here at Kenwood.

 

               C.  We fulfill our individuality in community here at Kenwood.

 

We may touch others when God is leading. 

 

Miss Thompson taught Teddy Stallard in the fourth grade. He was a slow, unkempt student, a loner shunned by his classmates. The previous year his mother died, and what little motivation for school he may have once had was now gone. Miss Thompson didn’t particularly care for Teddy either, but at Christmas time he brought her a small present. Her desk was covered with well-wrapped presents from the other children, but Teddy’s came in a brown sack. When she opened it there was a gaudy rhinestone bracelet with half the stones missing and a bottle of cheap perfume. The children began to snicker but Miss Thompson saw the importance of the moment. She quickly splashed on some perfume and put on the bracelet, pretending Teddy had given her something special. At the end of the day Teddy worked up enough courage to softly say, "Miss Thompson, you smell just like my mother . . . and her bracelet looks real pretty on you too. I’m glad you like my presents." After Teddy left, Miss Thompson got down on her knees and prayed for God’s forgiveness. She prayed for God to use her as she sought to not only teach these children but to love them as well. She became a new teacher. She lovingly helped students like Teddy, and by the end of the year he had caught up with most of the students. Miss Thompson didn’t hear from Teddy for a long time. Then she received this note: "Dear Miss Thompson, I wanted you to be the first to know. I will be graduating second in my class. Love, Teddy Stallard." Four years later she got another note: "Dear Miss Thompson, They just told me I will be graduating first in my class. I wanted you to be the first to know. The university has not been easy, but I liked it. Love, Teddy Stallard." Four years later: "Dear Miss Thompson, As of today, I am Theodore Stallard, M.D. How about that? I wanted you to be the first to know. I am getting married next month. I want you to come and sit where my mother would sit if she were alive. You are the only family I have now; Dad died last year. Love, Teddy Stallard." Miss Thompson went to the wedding and sat where Teddy’s mother would have sat, because she let God use her as an instrument of encouragement. What about you are you willing to let God use you?

 

Miss Thompson was there.  She was present.

 

CONCLUSION

 

Why are we here?

 

Why do we celebrate the 4th of July?

 

But there is a reason why we celebrate on the 4th and we can’t forget that! It was the day the day the colonies declared their independence from England. Freedom was declared in some famous words of the Declaration of Independence, which starts:

 

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

 

And it was signed first by John Hancock and then by representatives from all the states. We still honor John Hancock by saying, "Put your John Hancock on there," whenever we ask for a signature. If you want to get a blank stare, ask someone for their "Josiah Bartlett." He’s the second guy to sign, but nobody remembers him.

 

This was an exciting day! A day of joy and celebration. But what followed was anything but a simple joy or easy. You see, every Independence Day, my thoughts race ahead to what followed July 4th. Actually they run all the way to December of 1776. They go to this point in history because it’s here that that history shows us how brittle and fragile was the hope of independence.

 

George Washington was commanding an army that was disintegrating before his eyes. It looked as if all hope for victory was gone. He had made a military blunder that had lost New York to the British Army. The Congress had fled from Philadelphia because the city was seen as a lost cause. The Continental Army was low on gunpowder, guns, food, and other supplies. The civilians that had celebrated so heartily on July 4,5,6th, were now wondering if it would be wisest just to give up at this point. Most of the soldiers would finish their enlistments on December 31, and other didn’t wait that long and simply deserted. George Washington’s Army was about to be destroyed by British troops and German Mercenaries (Hessians). The future of America was hanging on by a thread.

 

Which makes the events of Christmas Day 1776 all the more amazing. Washington led his troops across the Deleware River against incredible odds. There was hail and sleet, and iceflows. The operation took hours longer than originally thought. Two of the generals failed to join in the fight because of the bad conditions. But Washington led his troops against all odds on a nine mile march and defeated the better trained and equipped Hessians and turned the war around. An almost impossible mission completed, and a seemingly undefeatable enemy, defeated. The future hung by a thread, but a thread was all it took. This is our history as Americans, and we ought to cherish it, and be grateful for it.

 

But for as great as this is, we have a richer and more amazing history and heritage as Christians. We have a great gift in the Bible. We can read our past, present, and future in the God-inspired book. We can look at our history as people of faith and we can see how time and time again it looked like our history hung on by a thread, but a thread was more than enough for God to sustain his people. My prayer is that as we take some time to look back this morning, that we would be inspired to trust God, to trust his provision, to trust his grace as we look to the future, and the times when it seems that our future may be vulnerable, or fragile, or in danger.

                              Matt Hoffmann, "Happy 4th: Faith Hangs on More Than a Thread" 7/3/2009.

 

We are here to fulfill God’s purpose in us.

 

"Richard Baxter, a great Puritan thinker and writer, well understood the real truth. He used to write these words whenever he was asked to sign one of his books: "Lord, what Thou wilt, where Thou wilt, and when Thou wilt." In the old Puritan manner of speaking he was saying, "Lord, whatever you want, wherever you want it, and whenever you want it, that’s what I want."

                              David Jeremiah, Prayer: the Great Adventure, p. 106

 

INVITATION

 

It is our custom to offer an "invitation" following the preaching of the Word.  You may want to follow Jesus.  You may want to proclaim your faith.  You may want to repent (stop doing ungodly things and start doing Godly things).  Perhaps you want to be baptized for the forgiveness of your sins and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  Possibly, if you have already responded to God’s call in these ways, you would like to become a member of Kenwood Church.  If you have been moved by the Holy Spirit to make a decision in your life, you can come forward now.  If you would like, I would be honored to speak with you following the service about what God is doing in your life.