From time to time I put sermons I give up here. Not because I think they are particularly good, even less that they are model sermons. I can't even guarantee that I agree with everything I said then - I am (of course) learning all the time. But someone may be interested.
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I’m sure you’ve often heard it said that the it’s not worth being a Christian. After all, the church is full of hypocrites.
And, of course, the second half of that is certainly true. The church is full of hypocrites. And what a good thing that is – otherwise there wouldn’t be space for someone like me.
This morning we continue reading the story of Abraham.
Those of you who were here last week will remember that I said God is holding out to us the most amazing offer. He offers not just to be a God, but to be our God.
I also said that this amazing offer comes to us only through Jesus.
What I didn’t do was elaborate on what that means. Why is it so special to have God as our God? What difference does it make? What does it look like? What blessings come from it?
Basically: Why would anyone want to be a Christian? And what’s so good about being one if you are?
It’s comforting to know that there’s someone looking out for us, isn’t it?
It’s even better if we know that someone has made it their special business to take care of us. They’ve taken us under their wing. There’s what the Americans call a “special relationship”.
Lots of men in the world are fathers. Only one of them is my father. Lots of women in the world are wives. Only one of them is my wife.
There’s the world of difference between know that someone is a father, and knowing that they are my father.
What do you do when bad things happen?
I was speaking to someone last week, and we were reflecting on some of the sad things that have happened. Surely, he said, at a time like that, the most natural thing is to give up on God. What good has God done?
And he’s right, isn’t he? If God’s promised to look after us, what use is he if he doesn’t deliver?
Bad things don’t happen all the time. But we all know the frustration of seeing good things that God has promised fail to materialise. He’s promised to answer my prayers, but he didn’t answer that one.
Who can you trust?
That’s the question we are thinking about this morning. Who can you trust?
One problem with the Christian faith is that it’s largely about trusting in some promises that we can’t see. You can’t see God. You can’t see heaven. You can’t see sin or the forgiveness of sin. Which can make it all seem a bit “up in the clouds”. A bit unreal. Like the Christian faith isn’t in the real world.
I wonder how you think of God? Do you regard God as a blessing God, or a cursing God? Would you say that he is a God who enjoys spoiling our fun, or a God that is a delight to know? Does God dish us up with good things in life, or does God take from us the things that are most precious? What kind of God do you think God is?
This morning, we’re going to talk about sickness. Being ill. Getting better.
It won’t have escaped your attention that the NHS is struggling at the moment.
Let’s be clear: I’m not making a political point.
There has been more tinkering done to the NHS in the past 15 years than in the whole of the 50 years that went before it. Different governments have done different things.
Well, Samuel and Harrison: What have you just done? What have you just signed up for?
When someone becomes a follower of Jesus, what are they signing up for? Many of us here already follow Jesus: What have we signed up for?
We live in a world that is frequently dark, and that frequently lacks hope.
There is much that is good about living in Britain today. But our country, our lives, all at times need an injection of hope, of life, of light. Some words: Street crime. Unemployment. 1960s tower blocks. Economic downturn. Redundancy. Yobs. Drought. Petrol prices. Bereavement. Pain.
The Christian message is a message of hope. We have a real hope in the face of all the things that are gloomy about life. But God’s answer to our greatest needs is somewhat surprising.
