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Rev. Cary M. Richert

October 7, 2007

Stewardship Emphasis Kick-off

DON’T LET GO! – HOLD FAST!

Hebrews 10:21-24

          I remember as a sophomore in college at Concordia, Ann Arbor, that in one of my Phys. Ed. Classes we had to climb a rope that hung from the rafters of the gym down to the floor … probably some 25 or 30 feet.  Climb it.  Touch the rafter.  Come back down.  As I climbed, I hung on for dear life!  The further I got from the floor, the closer I got to grave danger.  I hung on for dear life!  I wasn’t about to “Let go and let God!”

         There’s much in this life we refuse to let go of.  Some of it’s worth the effort and some isn’t.  Faith, family, friends, and fellowship in the Body of Christ rank pretty high on the list of worthwhiles.  iPods, Porsches, pearls, and other “treasures” that moth and rust destroy and that thieves break in and steal [Matthew 6:19], don’t!  Or shouldn’t!

          There’s a story about Rev. Glenn Adsit, a missionary to China who, with his family, found himself under house arrest.  One day the soldiers told him he and his family could go back to America.  They were so overjoyed they almost missed the announcement that he and his wife could only take 200 lbs. back with them.  Everything else had to stay.

          They’d been in China for years.  Two hundred pounds?  They started weighing the things they wanted to bring back:  a much-treasured vase … an expensive typewriter … some of his pastoral library.  Other things were added, but when all was said and done, they trimmed their collection to 200 lbs – on the button.

          A soldier asked:  “You ready to go?”   “Yes sir,” Glen replied.  “You weigh everything you wanted?”   “Uh-huh,” Glen said.   “You weigh the kids?”   A stunned Glen replied, “No, didn’t know we had to!”   “Weigh ‘em!”   In the blink of an eye, a vase, a typewriter, and a collection of books became trash!

          What do you hold on to for dear life?  The apostle Paul admonishes us to hold fast to (don’t let go of) what’s good. [1 Thessalonians 5:21]   The things that are truly good in our lives … truly meaningful and worthwhile … are the things we ought to treasure most.  Rev. Adsit’s wife and kids went home with him.  The rest stayed in China.

          Our text today points us to what’s good … to what we should never let go of as God’s people:  the hope we profess [v. 23].  And what’s the hope we profess?  It’s the sure and certain belief that Jesus Christ lived, suffered, died and rose again so that you and I might possess by faith His gifts of forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.  That’s the hope we, as God’s people, profess.  That’s the hope we’re called to hold on to unswervingly throughout every circumstance of our lives, good and bad.

          It’s easy to hold on to God’s Word and His gracious promises in times of plenty.  It’s another story when holding on for dear life gets difficult and challenging.  When the economy goes sour.  When our health takes a turn for the worse.  When our loved ones struggle.  When tragedy strikes unexpectedly.  These things shake our hope and confidence.  They often bring us to the depths of discouragement and despair.  Truly, they test the real substance of our faith and trust in God.

          Where can we turn when life goes sour?  Sadly, when life goes sour, the first place people often let go of is their Church.  Perhaps they don’t want others to know their struggles.  Perhaps in their struggles they harbor anger toward God.  Perhaps they feel unworthy, because they’re questioning God and their faith in Him. Of all the things you might want to let go of in difficult times, your Church ought not be one.  Why?

          When all seems chaotic and hopeless, when the struggle seems overwhelming, when the weight of grief seems too heavy to bear, this is the primary place where God calls us to Himself in Jesus Christ.  By His grace alone, He’s made us His dearly loved children through the water and Word of Holy Baptism.  Here in His Church the Lord nourishes and sustains us in faith and hope and love through the preaching of His Word and through the body and blood of His Son, freely given in the bread and wine of Holy Communion.

          This is the place where God surrounds us with the love and compassion of brothers and sisters in faith, who have the same struggles we do.  Today’s text points us to the blessings of our fellowship of Christian faith and love in Christ’s Church here at Redeemer:  Lets us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds [v. 24].  Jesus carries out His work of reconciliation … His work of rescue … His work of reassurance in the world through simple, trusting, faithful and forgiven people like you and me, as we reach out together with the message of His love and mercy in Christ.

          What is Redeemer Church to you?  Is it little more than an organization or society or club in which you hold a membership, pay dues, and participate in its functions and activities?  On a par with, say, the Kiwanis Club? … the Alumni Association of your alma mater? … the Birmingham Community House?  Or is Redeemer the Communion of saints … the body of Christ … the kingdom of God on earth?

          Through the thick and thin of our lives as God’s people, His Church is the sole
(soul!) refuge where we can flee and know beyond a shadow of a doubt that we are loved, forgiven, accepted, and equipped by Him with the gifts of His grace to face the difficult and challenging circumstances of our daily lives.  It’s here, of all places, that you can find the promises of God and people of faith who’ll help you climb the mountain of your struggles.

          We don’t want to let go of the one place on earth where the Lord Himself touches our lives deeply and powerfully with His Word of forgiveness and life.  Rather, we want to hold unswervingly to the hope and the blessing and the unity of faith that we know we shall always find here in our Lord’s Church at Redeemer, no matter what comes our way.

          Rev. Fred Craddock tells of a man who moved into a little cottage with a stove and some simple furnishings.  As winter cut across the landscape, the cottage grew cold.  So did the man.  So he pulled a few boards loose and started a fire.  Even though the fire was warm the house seemed as cold as before.  He pulled more boards and built a larger fire in his even-colder-house … which demanded even more boards for an even larger fire.  Somewhere in the middle of the long winter the man cursed the weather … cursed the house … cured the stove … and left.  No one really knows what happed to him.  Rumors are that he froze.

          When life gets discouraging, don’t freeze.  Be warmed by what’s good and meaningful in your life:  your Savior … your faith … your family … your friends … and your church.  Don’t let go!  Hold on for dear life! … as our Lord Himself holds on to you.