A CHRISTIAN BAPTISM

On July 22, Jackie was baptized. Her baptism is the story of a single mother in her mid-thirties who has two children and who a year ago had surgery for a brain tumor. The baptism was a combined effort of Jackie, her family, the church, people from the church who have been involved in Jackie’s life, the local YMCA, and the local nursing home where Jackie is currently receiving care.

When Jackie first began discussing baptism, she had been living at home for a few months following her surgery. Due to her physical condition, our church baptistery would not accommodate her needs, but another church had a baptistery that would, and they agreed that we could use it. Then, before we could make the arrangements, Jackie fell, was admitted to the hospital, and then transferred to a nursing home.

Due to the nature of her condition, everyone agreed that we should proceed with the baptism rather than waiting. However, now we would need to find a place to baptize her that would accommodate taking her into the water in a wheel chair. Consultation with the nursing home confirmed that they did not have facilities that would meet the need. Their administrator did, however, assure us that they would assist and provide transportation for her if we could find a place for the baptism.

We knew that the swimming pools for our three local YMCA facilities all had ramps, so we consulted with a contact at one of the YMCA’s. He was willing and able to work out the arrangements for use of the pool at the appropriate YMCA. He did so on a Thursday within a couple hours of our initial conversation, with the baptism planned for Saturday or Sunday.

     

While we had assurances from the nursing home that they would help with arrangements, we then had to work with them to get everything scheduled. A Friday meeting with one of the nurses put those steps in motion, including a call by the nurse to Jackie’s doctor for approval. After consultation with Jackie’s family the time was set for Sunday afternoon and was confirmed with the YMCA.

On Saturday afternoon a group of fifteen to twenty of Jackie’s family and church family gathered at the side of one of the YMCA pools. As we gathered around Jackie, read Romans 6:3, 4, and heard her confession of faith, the lifeguard kept the ramp area clear of those using the pool for an open family swim time. Then, two of us began to back Jackie’s wheel chair down the ramp. When the water was high enough, we lowered the back of the wheel chair into the water, and baptized Jackie.

I was told later, that as we backed Jackie down the ramp, everyone in the pool area became quiet and watched. When we began to lower the chair back to baptize her, two of the children swam over to the railing separating the ramp from the pool, held to the railing, and watched. As we began to wheel the chair out of the water, the people from church sang “Now She Belongs to Jesus.”

We needed some help to reposition Jackie in the wheel chair as we wheeled her up the ramp. Two of the church ladies, waded into the pool to assist, and two of the men swimming with their families came over to assist.

As Jackie’s van driver wheeled her chair from the side of the pool, I saw one of the most powerful scenes that I have witnessed at any baptism. Jackie’s family and the people from church formed a line, and her chair had to stop at each person as each one gave her a hug. In my sermon that morning, I had discussed Luke 16:9 – “Make friends for yourselves [who will] welcome you into eternal dwellings” – and encouraged people to make friends and influence people who will one day welcome them into heaven or who they will welcome into heaven. The line of people on this Sunday afternoon welcomed Jackie with that spirit into God’s family.

This baptism was a cooperative effort that included two community service organizations. This baptism was a witness to Jackie’s family and the families swimming together at the YMCA. May the people of the church and the ministry of the church always reflect such a witness in our communities.

Jesus Cares About People

In 2002, Time magazine ran a story describing a trip former President George Herbert Walker Bush took back to the South Pacific. Bush served there as a bomber pilot in World War II and was shot down by Japanese antiaircraft fire. The article detailed Bush's return to the very spot where he was rescued from his downed aircraft.

During that visit, Bush met with a Japanese man who said he had witnessed Bush’s rescue in 1944. The man told about watching the rescue and hearing one of his friends remark, "Surely America will win the war if they care so much for the life of one pilot."

We see such caring demonstrated repeatedly by Jesus in Luke’s Gospel:

• He healed Simon’s mother-in-law and laid his hands on numerous people with various diseases and healed them— Luke 4.
• He touched an untouchable leper and healed him, and then forgave the sins of a paralyzed man brought to Jesus by the main’s friends and healed him— Luke 5.
• He healed the servant of a centurion who sent others to Jesus to ask for his help and raised the son of a widow back to life— Luke 7.

Other examples could be given, but much of Jesus’ caring is demonstrated in two of Jesus’ most well-known parables — the parable of the Good Samaritan and the parable of the Prodigal (or Lost) Son. Consider the latter one in this regard.

Rembrandt portrayed it in his painting Return of the Prodigal Son which Christian writer Henri Nouwen discussed in his classic book by the same title. Peter Scazzero describes the painting like this: “The younger son is kneeling, resting his head on the father’s bosom. He is bald, seemingly exhausted and emaciated, without his cloak, wearing only one tattered shoe, and disheveled.” In contrast the older son “is well-clothed in a gold-embroidered garment like his father, judging, annoyed, looking down at the father’s lavish reception of his youngest son who has so disgraced the family and squandered the family fortune.”

The older son could not see his own lost condition, so when he asks his father how he could accept his younger son back, the father replies: “We had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” This is how Jesus sees lost people, and it is how we should see them— through his eyes.

There are people all around us who are lost. Some of them are angry and lash out at family and friends. Some are so mixed up that they return to drugs and alcohol. Others find their “god” in any of a variety of religious practices. Just as we do, they all need the compassion of a Father, the heavenly Father and his Son. Our challenge is to not take on the critical spirit of the older son, but to love them as the father in the parable and as the Heavenly Father loves us.

God Answers Prayer

A couple of weeks ago, I preached on Jesus’ teaching about prayer from Luke 11. I subsequently read about an answer to prayer that was experienced by a staff member from Gospel for Asia. If you ever wonder about your prayers being answered, you will be encouraged by this amazing answer to prayer:

Fred’s Answered Prayer

In 1996, Fred, along with the rest of the Gospel for Asia staff, put together a notebook with information about 100 unreached people groups in South Asia. They used this notebook to pray one by one for each of those groups during their Tuesday night prayer meetings, their morning prayer meetings, and even at home on their own.

He Saw His Prayers Answered

Fred had heard bits and pieces what God was doing among one of these unreached peoples: a remote animist group living in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains. So when he had the opportunity to see firsthand the evidence of God's answer, Fred was moved to tears with joy and amazement. He was amazed God had done so much among them.

Something to Remind Him

In 2010, Fred had the chance to attend a worship conference in Asia. As he and a few other GFA staff members were leaving, a lady approached them and asked if she could take a picture with them. Shortly after, about a dozen more people came and stood near them. Fred looked down at the name tags on their shirts and noticed they belonged to the same group he had been praying for. For the first time, he realized the Lord answered his prayers for these people, as these brothers and sisters represented 120,000 more believers in their home region who couldn't attend.

God is Still Moving

When Fred returned home, he brought with him a handwoven mat given to him by this remote group and a tie from another group with whom they used to be at war. He keeps them as a reminder of what God has done and is continuing to do between them. They are no longer killing each other, but call each other brothers and sisters in Christ.

Join with Fred and Pray

When Fred first saw this amazing answer to prayer he said, "God answers prayer; there's just no doubt about it. By faith you believe God is going to do something, and God's going to do it. We had nothing to go on, just trusting Him that somehow we could reach those people. We knew the need was great, but how are you going to reach 2.5 million in such a short time? But God's doing it."

A Congregational Prayer

Last Sunday, June 3, I preached from Luke 11:1-13 on Luke’s version of the Lord’s Prayer and the following discussion of prayer. At the close of the sermon, I led the congregation in praying a responsive prayer based on the Lord’s Prayer. The recording of the sermon can be found on this page of our church website.

Here is the prayer:

Leader: Heavenly Father, we come before you today as the Creator of our world and as our Creator. You created Adam and Eve, the first man and first woman, and have created each of us as your own special child.

Congregation: We praise you as our Creator.

Leader: We also come before you as our Father. A loving father will provide for his child and will give good gifts to his child. You are the best of fathers and always provide us with the best of what we need.

Congregation: We praise you as our Father.

Leader: We come before as the Holy One. You are holy. Your Son and our Savior, Jesus, is holy and without sin. Your holiness is far beyond anything that we can even imagine.

Congregation: We praise you as the Holy One.

Leader: You sent your Kingdom to earth through the ministry of your Son and desire to rule in every area of our lives.

Congregation: May your Kingdom come in our lives.

Leader: The work of your Kingdom is being carried on through the work of your church. We want our congregation to be a demonstration of the work of your Kingdom, a part of the work of your Kingdom, a fellowship that leads people to your Kingdom, a people who live for your Kingdom.

Congregation: May your Kingdom come in our church.

Leader: Your Kingdom will come in all of its power and glory when your Son returns. We long for his return. We long for that day when you will restore the heavens and earth to perfection and will take us home to be with you forever. We ask you to hasten his return.

Congregation: May your Kingdom come in the return of your Son.

Leader: In our land of plenty, you provide so abundantly for us, yet we seem to never be satisfied. May we learn to be satisfied with your provision. May we always trust you to provide for us exactly what we need.

Congregation: Give us each day our daily bread.

Leader: We acknowledge our sin before you. Because of our sin, we confess to you that we are not worthy of your love. Yet, you have offered your own Son as a sacrifice for our sins.

Congregation: Forgive us our sins.

Leader: Even though we gladly accept your forgiveness for our sins, we find it difficult to forgive those who need our forgiveness. However, if we accept your forgiveness, we should also forgive those who act unkindly and unfairly toward us. We need your help in forgiving family members and friends and even those we do not know.

Congregation: Help us to forgive those who need our forgiveness.

Leader: There are so many temptations around us everyday. It has especially become difficult to live holy lives with all the images our TV’s and computers and smart phones and devices flash at us and with all the music and language we hear around us. We also need your help with all of the temptations around us.

Congregation: Keep us from being led into temptation and from falling to temptation.

Leader: Lord, there are people around us for whom we need to pray today. So we ask for you to continue to be with Jackie Wickless as she battles her brain tumor. We ask you to heal her and we ask you to be with her during this battle.

Congregation: Lord, hear our prayer.

Leader: We also continue to offer our prayers for Loretta and her sister Denise as they both continue their individual battles against breast cancer.

Congregation: Lord, hear our prayer.

Leader: We pray for Barb, Terry’s wife, who has been diagnosed with stage 2 cancer.

Congregation: Lord, hear our prayer.

Leader: We pray for Nancy, Christine’s mother, who is facing a number of age-related health issues.

Congregation: Lord, hear our prayer.

Leader: There are others who need our prayers as well, Lord. Some of them are family members and friends of various people here today. We offer them all up to you.

Congregation: Lord, hear our prayer.

Leader: Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful gift of prayer. As we have learned about prayer again today, may we each make prayer a regular part of our lives. May we each be more committed to prayer. Thank you for always hearing us when we pray.

Congregation: We offer these prayers to you in the name of your Son and our Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

“Carpe Diem,” Jesus, and Us

My wife, Christine, graduated on May 19 from the University of Notre Dame Graduate School with a M.A. degree in Theology. The speaker for the Graduate School commencement was Dr. Thomas Quinn, a Notre Dame alumnus and a world-renowned and pioneer researcher on AIDS.

Dr. Quinn began his commencement address by relating that he sought to draw inspiration for his address from the speaker at his own commencement — only to realize that he did not remember who the speaker was or what he had said. Dr. Quinn then proceeded to deliver a memorable and inspirational address of his own!

The theme of the address was “Carpe Diem” — Seize the Day.” Dr. Quinn discussed four general topics around which he encouraged the graduates to “seize the day.”

As I pondered his address, it occurred to me that of all the people who have “seized the day” and thus had great influence, Jesus certainly did so. We can see that from the events of his life as told by the Gospel writers. Here are some thoughts, then, using Dr. Quinn’s four topics, on how Jesus “seized the day” and demonstrated to us how we should do so.

(1) Family — There are a few occasions in the Gospels where we read about Jesus interacting with his family. In Luke 8, Jesus is told that is family is outside, and he responds by saying, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear and do the Word of God.” Jesus’ seized the day with his family. He made every effort to influence them for the Kingdom of God, and eventually his family would also follow him. Do you make every effort to influence your family for Christ? Do you make the people of God your family ?

(2) Mentorship — One of the striking things about Jesus’ ministry was how he mentored twelve men, those he appointed as apostles. They became the individuals who led the early church. You no doubt have people who mentored you to faith in Christ and in your faith in Christ. Learn from them and then look for opportunities to mentor others.

(3) Collaboration — Even Jesus did not depend solely upon himself for his ministry. At one point, he sent the twelve out two-by-two to minister in his name. In Luke 10, he sent out 70 “to every town and place he himself was about to go.” Then, when he ascended, he left his followers to carry on his ministry, and all those who follow him continue to do so. In order to grow in Christ and minister effectively, we need to collaborate with other Christians. Every ministry of our congregation is a collaborative effort. Look for opportunities to collaborate.

(4) Influence — Jesus used his trials and successes to influence people’s lives. The greatest influence of all came through his greatest trial — his death — and his greatest success — his resurrection. As we serve others and interact with family and friends, we will make mistakes, but we will also have successes. We can use both to grow and develop in order to serve more effectively in the future if we “seize the day.”

Christine’s graduation was a memorable day, and Dr. Quinn’s address was also memorable. Jesus, though, teaches us the most about “seizing the day,” about living by faith. Learn from him, and “seize the day” in your life.

Dr. Marion Henderson — 1922-2012

On May 6, I began my message by telling our congregation that on Friday, May 4, Dr. Marion Henderson was called to his eternal reward. While you may not know him, his life is a testimony to a long life lived serving the Lord.

When I enrolled at Lincoln Christian University in 1969, the first class I attended was Gospels, taught by Dr. Henderson. That class met four times a week at 7:30 in the morning — but did we ever learn the Gospels! I had read the Gospels, but I learned the Gospels under Dr. Henderson. He taught the Gospels to countless Lincoln students from 1951-1976 and again from 1986-2006. He had a way of making the Gospels come alive. His last lecture of each course was an event every semester as he took us through the Garden of Gethsemane. Every student eagerly anticipated hearing that lecture for the first time. It was the stuff of legends at Lincoln. If I know anything about the Gospels today, it began with Dr. Henderson.

In my senior year, I completed the circle and took third year Greek from Dr. Henderson. I have forgotten how many classes I took from him in between, but each one offered something powerful from the Scriptures.

Besides teaching, Dr. Henderson filled many others roles. For many years he coached the college basketball team. As I said last Sunday, I never played for him. His last year of coaching was the year before I enrolled, but he still coached me — after games, as I came or went from class, or when we met in the hallway. In his own way, whether it was teaching in the classroom or talking about how you played in your last game or just talking to you about life, he encouraged you to give your best to Christ.

He also had a third legacy. During most of the years during his first stint at Lincoln, he preached for the South Fork Church of Christ, outside Rochester, Illinois, about 30 miles from campus. For those of us who were going to be preachers, he modeled every week what he taught in the classroom.

We can model someone with Dr. Henderson’s commitment to Christ and his church — and we should. It will not be the same going back to campus knowing I will not have a chance encounter with Dr. Henderson, but I will always be grateful he was my teacher. See you in heaven, Doc.

The Importance of Recognizing Who Jesus Is

On April 29 in our worship service at Westwood Christian Church, we shared together the most basic belief for we who follow Christ. First, we heard it in the confession a young lady made as she confessed her belief in Jesus as the Son God and was then baptized. Then, we repeated that confession together: “I believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Nothing is more central to Christianity than that confession.

Many people, however, think that you can have Christianity without that confession. For instance, Jeremy Bowen, the presenter of a 2001 British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) documentary on Jesus stated, "The important thing is not what he was or what he wasn't—the important thing is what people believe him to have been. A massive world wide religion, numbering more than two billion people follows his memory—that's pretty remarkable, 2,000 years on."

Bowen, of course, couldn't be more wrong. It seems that everyone has a theory about Jesus, and different religions have differing views about Jesus than the Biblical view. Mormons, for instance, are often considered just another Christian denomination, but they are far from that, which can clearly be seen from their view of Jesus.

I was asked recently for information about Mormon beliefs. About a week later, I came across a sermon from April 29 comparing Mormon and Christian doctrine by Brian Jones, church planter, pastor, and author from Philadelphia. Mormon belief about Jesus is by no means Biblical. They believe that Jesus’ father came to earth and had a relationship with Mary that resulted in the birth of Jesus. They also believe that Jesus had a brother, Lucifer, who volunteered to redeem mankind, but when God chose Jesus instead, he rebelled against God and became Satan. These and other Mormon beliefs are clearly not Christian beliefs.

Who Jesus is and what he did is, of course, the foundation of our faith. Just because another religion claims a belief in Jesus does not make them Christian. We actually have to look at the content of their belief.

The most well-known passage about Jesus in this regard is in Matthew 16. The same incident is also told in Luke 9, verses that will be included in the passage from Luke that I will preach from on Sunday. On the occasion of these two passages, Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do the crowds say that I am” (Luke 9:18), and then asks his disciples, “But you, who do you say that I am?” Peter is the one who responds: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,” or as Luke gives his response: “God’s Messiah.” Peter’s answer forms the basis for our Christian confession when we accept Christ as Savior and the basis for our following Christ.

This basic belief in Jesus had been announced by God’s Spirit upon the occasion of Jesus’ baptism at the beginning of his ministry. Peter’s confession was followed by another confirmation of Jesus as God’s Son at his transfiguration. On both of those occasions, God announced with a voice from heaven, “This is My Son, the Chosen One, listen to Him” (Luke 9:35).

On the basis of that belief, as stated in Peter’s confession, Jesus called for everyone who confesses him to “deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me.” He asked this of his first disciples, and he asks it of each of us. He is the Savior that we need to meet. He is the one we confess with our words and our lives.