He’s Been Everywhere

Acts 14:19-28

How does this sound as an itinerary? “The next day (Paul) went on with Barnabas to Derbe. After they had proclaimed the good news to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, then on to Iconium and Antioch…Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. When they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. From there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work that they had completed” (Portions of Acts 14:20b-26). Names of cities are flying around in this passage almost as fast as they do in the old Johnny Cash song, “I’ve Been Everywhere.” In it Cash sings,

I've been to:

Louisville, Nashville, Knoxville, Ombabika,

Schefferville, Jacksonville, Waterville, Costa Rica,

Pittsfield, Springfield, Bakersfield, Shreveport,

Hackensack, Cadillac, Fond du Lac, Davenport,

Idaho, Jellico, Argentina, Diamantina,

Pasadena, Catalina, see what I mean-a.

While Cash’s song is lots of fun, we need to recognize the significance of the reading from Acts. The sort of evangelism in which Paul is engaged is not for the faint of heart nor for the weak of spirit. It is grueling work demanding nearly tireless efforts, boundless energy, and, yes, the willingness to move about. Paul might have found a comfortable spot somewhere under a tree beside a river and waited for folks to come by, but instead he went (nearly) everywhere in order to find those in need of grace and to call them to believe in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Not all of us have that kind of energy or drive, not all of us are able to travel so extensively, but for those who are so blessed the ministry of evangelism is, in many ways, its own reward for it allows people of faith to see, firsthand, the gospel at work in ways that may not be imaginable otherwise.

So thanks be to God for those who are willing to travel and to witness and to share their faith with others. And may each of us find our own way to serve God.

Prayer: God of energy and movement, help us to serve you in whatever way you need us, but always according to your will. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Lost Identity

Lamentations 1:1-12

I wonder which is more tragic, those who are compelled to give up their identity, the essence of who they are, or those who give it up with no thought or concern. One answer comes from the book of Lamentations. “Judah has gone into exile with suffering and hard servitude;” we read, “she lives now among the nations, and finds no resting place; her pursuers have all overtaken her in the midst of her distress” (Lamentations 1:3). As a result of their sins the people of God have been dispersed into exile. They no longer have a place to call their own. They have been stripped of their identity in many ways.

I’m afraid that too often we are willing to lay down our identity as believers in order to blend in with the world and what it offers us. It’s a fools bargain, a bad deal for us, but we do it anyway. I’m not encouraging sectarianism or isolation or fanaticism on our part. What I am suggesting is that we honor our beliefs, that we participate fully in our religious institutions, that we teach our children to value the tradition in which they are being raised, that we study and pray and discuss and listen and contribute so that the community of faith may offer things to the culture that are worth having: peace and hope and justice and righteousness and truth.

We worry a great deal about identity theft these days. We fear that someone will use our name or our credit cards without our permission. Wouldn’t it be something if our identity as Christians so appealed to others that they were willing to use it as their own? Isn’t that what evangelism is all about? What will it take to get us to that point, where we live the joy of our faith to the fullest?

Prayer: Lord, help us to live our faith in obedience to you so that others may know the love that you alone offer. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

The Urge to Confess

Romans 10:1-13

Where does your faith take you? Does it move you from one place to another? Or does it effect you in some other way? Does believing lead you to do certain things? It should, and in Romans Paul offers one small example. “For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved,” he writes (Romans 10:10).

For Paul, that which the heart believes can and should lead to confession, what we usually call an affirmation or declaration of faith. In Presbyterian worship you will often find the Apostles’ Creed or some other statement of faith included in the service. And it is entirely appropriate for this statement to come after the sermon, as a response to the word. God speaks to us, we hear and then, because we believe and seek to believe more fully, we publicly profess that faith, going “on the record” as it were. It is probably the least we could do, to stand with other Christians and say aloud, “I believe…,” but it is significant nonetheless because in doing so we identify ourselves as God’s people.

To believe in the heart is a sign of God’s activity in our lives. To profess with our mouth is to allow ourselves to be moved by what God is doing and to show others where we stand. The urge to confess our faith, then, is another sign of God’s presence, one for which we may rejoice.

Prayer: Lord, may our hearts be filled with love for you and may our voices be lifted in praise. Amen.