Guest Minister, Rev. Kimberly Brown Barnes, Pastor, Gethsemane AME
Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, July 18, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson, Luke 11:1-13 – Jesus’ Teaching on Prayer. 1One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” 2He said to them, “When you pray, say: ” ‘Father, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3Give us each day our daily bread. 4Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. And lead us not into temptation.’ ” 5Then he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, 6because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.’ 7″Then the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man’s boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs. 9″So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. 11″Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” NIV Translation
The word “shameless” generally is not considered to have a positive connotation. But in a story captured in the scripture text, Jesus reminds us in the text that we are to be shamelessly persistent in our prayer requests to God. In the text, Jesus’ disciples walking with Jesus, but they are still in need of direction. Jesus uses a story to illustrate the importance of being persistent in our prayer lives.
1. We need to stand our ground. In the scripture text, a man came to his neighbor seeking assistance. In those days, people lived in small homes with elevated floors; the father of the family slept upstairs with the whole family. Once they went to bed, there was no getting back up, because it would wake up the entire family. The message of the scripture is that sometimes, in our faith walk, we need to stand our ground. We need to keep praying for our families and our loved ones; we need to stand our ground in whatever situation we find ourselves in.
2. We need to be tenacious. In our faith walk, we need to be tenacious and we need to seek God. And we ought not to be ashamed to shed tears for Him. In the story, we see friends who fall short in fulfilling a need, and we see a God who NEVER falls short. God will fulfill our needs, but we need to keep knocking. We need to shamelessly persist so that we can feed the hungry, clothe the naked. We need workers in our congregation. Let us shamelessly pray to God for some help. We need to fast together; we need to pray together as children of God; we need to shamelessly persist in our faith walk.
3. We need to be obedient. Finally, as we seek God, we’ve got to be open to God’s response. We have to be obedient to what God says. We need to be willing to wake some folks up. Jesus is teaching the disciples to be open to the responsibility that comes with obedience. We need to be obedient in responding to God, even if we have to come broken, we need to walk through that door, and we need to stand our ground.
At Metropolitan, some folks think we are crazy to be going through a restoration in the midst of a recession. But we are going to shamelessly persist; we are going to fast and pray, because a spiritual restoration is coming our way!
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Rev. Kimberly Barnes,
Sermon Notes
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, June 6, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson: Luke 7:11-17 11-15 Not long after that, Jesus went to the village Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman’s only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, “Don’t cry.” Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, “Young man, I tell you: Get up.” The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother. 16-17They all realized they were in a place of holy mystery, that God was at work among them. They were quietly worshipful—and then noisily grateful, calling out among themselves, “God is back, looking to the needs of his people!” The news of Jesus spread all through the country. The Message Bible translation
Most of us have lived through some desolate places in life. Illness, chronic pain, death of a loved one, financial disaster, loss of a home, loss of employment, break-up of a long term relationship, violence, child abuse – all are circumstances that shatter a private world. Over the last two weeks, all I have been able to think about is the status of the oil leaks in the gulf and the people who are most affected by it, praying that they fare better than the victims of Hurricane Katrina. I pray that they are not left in a desolate place.
In the scripture, Jesus ministers to a woman in a desolate place. In the village of Nain, he shows compassion for a woman whose son has died. She has no husband; and she is on the way to bury her only son. In those times, widows were in a tenuous status; their fate was left to the remaining male members of their family. If there were no male members of the family to take care of them, they were moved to the margins of society. The scripture provides three lessons for us when we are in desolate places in life.
1. Take comfort that there is no desolation that blinds you from the sight of God. You may not be able to see God, but He has his eyes on you. Jesus knows all about our troubles, he will guide us til the day is done. There’s no friend like the lowly Jesus; no, not one, no not one. You can look to the life of Jesus and see in him the goodness of God. In the text, God shows compassion for the outcast. He demonstrates his ability to reach into our suffering and hurt. The same power that resides in God resides in us. The woman is suffering a pain worse than death. Jesus instructs her: Stop your weeping! He commands the dead corpse to rise and he gives the boy back to his mother.
2. In your desolate place, you have more power and strength than you know. You have the same power that Jesus has. Use your power and command those mountains: Get outta my way! Stand firm; stand bold; stand defiant in your desolation. There is no secret what God can do; what He’s done for others He will do for you.
3. When God blesses you in your desolate place, let your voice of praise and thanksgiving be distinctive. When God enters your desolate place, he restores you, picks you up, and breathes new life into your dead situation. Don’t let anyone or anything drown out your praise and thanksgiving when Jesus opens doors for you. Don’t be afraid to say: Thank you God! Thank you for the food on my table! Thank you for moving the mountains out of my life! Thank you, Lord, in my desolate place!
Don’t wait til the Lord brings you out of your desolate place. Praise Him now. Don’t wait until you get a new job. Don’t wait until you get a new house after you’ve lost your old house. Don’t wait until he delivers your child off those drugs. In your rough places, raise your hand and shout: Hallelujah!
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Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton,
Sermon Notes
“Wow! Look at God!”
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, May 23, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson, John 14:8-17, 25-27 and Acts 2: 1-4. 8Philip said, “Master, show us the Father; then we’ll be content.” 9-10″You’ve been with me all this time, Philip, and you still don’t understand? To see me is to see the Father. So how can you ask, ‘Where is the Father?’ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you aren’t mere words. I don’t just make them up on my own. The Father who resides in me crafts each word into a divine act. 11-14″Believe me: I am in my Father and my Father is in me. If you can’t believe that, believe what you see—these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I’ll do it. That’s how the Father will be seen for who he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do. The Spirit of Truth1 5-17″If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you! ***25-27″I’m telling you these things while I’m still living with you. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be distraught. *** Acts 2: 1-4, A Sound Like a Strong Wind 1-4 When the Feast of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Without warning there was a sound like a strong wind, gale force—no one could tell where it came from. It filled the whole building. Then, like a wildfire, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks, and they started speaking in a number of different languages as the Spirit prompted them. The Message Bible translation
This is Pentecost Sunday. I was moved by the prospect of the subject “Wow! Look at God!” Have you ever had a moment in your life when God just broke through every obstacle in your way, then delivered even MORE than what you had expected, so you knew it had to be God? Like receiving a diagnosis of inoperable cancer, but when you went back to the doctor, the doctor noticed that the cancer had shrunk and he was being scheduled for surgery.
A “wow” event is an answer to a long-desired prayer. Such as the deliverance of a wayward child; a breakthrough at just the right time; an unexpected blessing you never dreamed of. You know it was nothing but God.
There is a lot of truth to the hymn: “God moves in mysterious ways, His wonders to perform.” I declare these “wonders” to be “wow” events.
In the scripture, it’s fifty days since Jesus’ resurrection; the disciples had come together in the place where they had last seen him. They were not expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen. There was a sound like a strong wind, the Holy Spirit spread through their ranks. The powerful manifestation of the spirit of God filled the room. Wow! Look at God!!
After the crucifixion, the resurrection, the ascension into heaven, the final concern of the disciples was, what would happen when Jesus was no longer physically present? John 14 tells us Jesus had already answered this question: “The ones who believe in me will do greater works than these. From now on, whatever you ask in my name – whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing – I will do it.”
1. Don’t ever be afraid to ask God for anything. Seek God first for everything in your life. There is nothing too big or too trivial. When stuff happens, we turn to every other resource. The Bible says seek first God, and all other things will be added unto you. God will step in. When does God answer? How does God answer? Why does God answer? You gotta ask God those questions, but when your request lines up with the perfect will of God for your life, God always answers “Yes!”
2. There ought to be a door in your life that you can open and personally experience God’s touch. God has an uncanny way of opening a door in our lives that we alone have personal access to. That’s a “wow” moment, when God decides to enter. You ought to have a “secret closet” – some refer to it as a “sacred closet” – a private space in your life and your house in which you can sit and meditate and reflect. Sometimes the door opens through a scripture, sometimes through a familiar line of a hymn, causing you to look back on how the Lord brought you from where you used to be.
3. God will show up in those “wow” moments. God has entered into the space where you are. Sometimes there is the miraculous “wow” – the “God blows your mind” wow. The “out of the ordinary” wow.
God can defy all your logic. It’s not always a “big bang”, yet it is still compelling, exhilarating, surprising, shocking, startling. It comes in different forms. Like the sheer joy when you discover that you made an error in your bank account that worked out in your favor. When the doctor’s diagnosis turns out to be not as bad as you thought it was. When you look at the graduation of that child you never thought would get through high school.
When you think about the goodness of God, sometimes all you can say is: Wow!
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Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton,
Sermon Notes
“Living Above Transition and Change”
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, May 16, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson Act 1: 1-11–To the Ends of the World 1-5Dear Theophilus, in the first volume of this book I wrote on everything that Jesus began to do and teach until the day he said good-bye to the apostles, the ones he had chosen through the Holy Spirit, and was taken up to heaven. After his death, he presented himself alive to them in many different settings over a period of forty days. In face-to-face meetings, he talked to them about things concerning the kingdom of God. As they met and ate meals together, he told them that they were on no account to leave Jerusalem but “must wait for what the Father promised: the promise you heard from me. John baptized in water; you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit. And soon.” When they were together for the last time they asked, “Master, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now? Is this the time?” 7-8He told them, “You don’t get to know the time. Timing is the Father’s business. What you’ll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world.” 9-11These were his last words. As they watched, he was taken up and disappeared in a cloud. They stood there, staring into the empty sky. Suddenly two men appeared—in white robes! They said, “You Galileans!—why do you just stand here looking up at an empty sky? This very Jesus who was taken up from among you to heaven will come as certainly—and mysteriously—as he left.” The Message Bible translation
After the crucifixion and the resurrection, Jesus’disciples knew what it meant to live life daily in transition and change; there was never a dull moment for them. In the scripture, Jesus is about to leave the men he had been coaching for the past three years. They were filled with anxiety. They had somehow gotten through Jesus’ crucifixion; then they had to get through the resurrection; then he presented himself alive over a period of 40 days. Now, Jesus is taken away again, creating another moment of fear and frustration, and yet another transitional moment.
None of us is a stranger to change; transitional moments are constant. Before long, we come to realize that “if it ain’t one thing, it’s another”; it’s “here we go again” – losing people in our lives that we love; losing jobs; losing homes – transitional moments. It often seems as if we are living from heights…to depths….to heights.
In the scripture, the disciples watched as Jesus “was taken up and disappeared into the clouds.” Has life ever caught you in a moment and left you speechless? Has there ever been a moment when all you could do was just stand there and look? This event (of Jesus ascending into heaven) will linger in the disciples’ minds for the rest of their lives. The last picture they would have of their life with Jesus would not be one of suffering; the last picture would be of their glorious, triumphant Lord rising triumphantly into heaven, having overcome every obstacle, every shackle.
The message from the scripture is this: Keep your eyes fixed on the glorious, resurrected, exultant Jesus. When you encounter hell on earth, fix your eye on the triumphant Jesus. Throughout your life, you will always have to deal with transition and change, ups and downs, “questions marks” and “whys?”. But you don’t have to live in the cemetery. You don’t have to live faithless, without a paddle or a boat. Fix your eyes on HIM, and He will give you the courage and the strength to overcome every challenge. There will be moments when you wonder, “Is Jesus absent from my life?” There will be moments when it seems, Jesus is absent, so it takes a tremendous FAITH to weather transitions. It takes enormous faith to live through these moments.
The disciples wanted something to hold onto; they wanted to know what was going to happen tomorrow, after Jesus left. But Jesus said “You don’t get to know that.” You have to muster up every ounce of faith you can muster or you will end up drowning in your own misery and suffering. I don’t what they say on TV; I don’t care what the palm reader told you: you don’t get to know about tomorrow until you get to tomorrow.
It takes a whole lot of faith to get up in the morning, to deal with that child when you KNOW he’s on drugs. It takes a whole lotta faith to grin and bear it, to keep on smiling, to say “yes” when you want to say “no”. It takes a whole lotta faith to keep from telling people where to go. My dear mother lived every day on faith, not by faith, but on faith. She used to get up in the morning singing: “There is no secret what God can do, what He’s done for others, He will do for you!”
If you want to live through life’s changes and transitions, if you want to live your life above gloom, live every day anticipating a blessing. No matter how hopeless things seem,, when you go to bed tonight, anticipate a blessing! When you wake up tomorrow morning, anticipate a blessing!
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Change,
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton,
Transition
Rev. Dr. Marie P. Braxton, Assistant Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, May 9, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson – Acts 16: 9-15 Lydia’s Conversion in Philippi. 9During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. 11From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day on to Neapolis. 12From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia. And we stayed there several days. 13On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. 15When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us. NIV translation
Life is a continuum of lessons learned; some of which are learned the hard way, through willfulness and disobedience. We have all taken those hard paths and have learned from them.
Many of the lessons we learned were taught to us in our early years. First Lady Michelle Obama held a Mother’s Day tea at which she told the guests of the lessons she learned from her mother, Marion Robinson. These lessons were on the value of a good education, how to present themselves appropriately, and about self-worth, self-esteem and building character. Mrs. Obama chose to share the lessons she had learned from her own mother with young girls in Washington, DC. At the tea, Alexis Herman shared stories of what her Godmother, Dorothy Height, had taught her. In Maya Angelou’s book “Letter to my Daughter”, she told the stories of how her mother had raised her, and she passed these stories along to Oprah.
In the scripture, Paul traveled to the Roman colony of Philippi after having a vision that a man of Macedonia had bid him to come. He used the opportunity to preach the gospel to some women who had gathered at the river. One of the women was Lydia, an influential merchant woman, a dealer of purple cloth – which was a very expensive, luxury item for the rich – who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened Lydia’s heart to receive Paul’s message, and after Paul baptized her and other members of her household, she invited Paul and his companions to come and stay at her home. Lydia teaches us several things.
1. Lydia teaches us some lessons on how to survive in a down economy. Rather than spending today with no plan for tomorrow, Lydia was a wise merchant, and she was a worshiper of God.
2. Lydia teaches us that no matter your title, degrees, or wealth, you still need to receive Jesus in your life. Jesus died for our sins, he was raised from the dead, he gave us everlasting life. Lydia teaches us that you can make it in a down economy if you have the Holy Spirit in your life. Lydia realized that although she had a lot of material things, she still needed to receive the Lord in her heart. Lydia was Paul’s first conversion of a European.
3. Lydia teaches us the power of “Christian Hospitality”. As Christians, we are expected to show hospitality; as a Christian, you are to go out of your way to be kind to others, to attend to another’s needs, to bring others into your space, to make others feel welcomed, loved, honored, and respected.
Christian hospitality, like love, is “not boastful or puffed up”; it’s not “all about me,” but it is about how I can honor and serve YOU. My mother-in-law taught me that no matter how little you have, you can always share what you have. My own mother – a gifted and talented journalist and editor – taught me that it doesn’t hurt to be kind to people, and you do not have to retaliate even if they are unkind to you.
These lessons of life have been passed down for generations. May we learn these lessons well, and may we teach by example to our own children, and to all of the other children in the Village.
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Rev. Dr. Marie P. Braxton,
Sermon Notes
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, April 18, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson – Acts 9: 1-11, Saul’s Conversion. The Blinding of Saul 1-2 All this time Saul was breathing down the necks of the Master’s disciples, out for the kill. He went to the Chief Priest and got arrest warrants to take to the meeting places in Damascus so that if he found anyone there belonging to the Way, whether men or women, he could arrest them and bring them to Jerusalem. 3-4He set off. When he got to the outskirts of Damascus, he was suddenly dazed by a blinding flash of light. As he fell to the ground, he heard a voice: “Saul, Saul, why are you out to get me?” 5-6He said, “Who are you, Master?” “I am Jesus, the One you’re hunting down. I want you to get up and enter the city. In the city you’ll be told what to do next.” 7-9His companions stood there dumbstruck—they could hear the sound, but couldn’t see anyone—while Saul, picking himself up off the ground, found himself stone-blind. They had to take him by the hand and lead him into Damascus. He continued blind for three days. He ate nothing, drank nothing. 10There was a disciple in Damascus by the name of Ananias. The Master spoke to him in a vision: “Ananias.” “Yes, Master?” he answered. 11-12″Get up and go over to Straight Avenue. Ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus. His name is Saul. He’s there praying. He has just had a dream in which he saw a man named Ananias enter the house and lay hands on him so he could see again.” The Message Bible translation
The scripture is one of a number of post resurrection stories of conversion of many people who either saw Jesus and believed, or whose eyes were opened to the truth of Jesus as a resurrected Messiah through the work of his disciples.
Jesus appeared for Doubting Thomas, the disciple who did not believe the report that Jesus was alive until he put his finger through Jesus’ side. Luke continues to tell the stories of conversion in the Book of Acts. There is the story of the conversion of the crippled beggar who had been begging for alms at the gate all his life, until he saw Jesus; there is the story of the conversion of the youth sitting by the roadside reading, but who did not know what he was reading until Phillip read to him; boy jumped up and shouted “Baptize me now!” Here in Book 9 of Acts, we have the famous story of the conversion of Saul, later called Paul, and the events on the “Road to Damascus”.
Saul/Paul’s story is a powerful story of the transformative power of God, through Christ, to reshape a life; the power to change the entire course of someone’s direction in life. It is rare for such a dramatic transformative experience as that of Saul/Paul. The story of your conversion may not be that dramatic, but it is as legitimate as Saul’s. Some of us have a “faith inferiority complex” because our conversion is not as dramatic as Saul’s. But God finds each of us “where we are”; God knows how each of us can best witness the transforming power of God, and some of us could not handle a dramatic witness as Saul’s. As the elders used to say: “Lord, let me get as close as I can bear.”
In the scripture, Luke tells the story of how awful Saul was to the post-ascension followers of Christ. In verses 1-2, we learn that Saul was a zealous persecutor of the disciples, “breathing down their necks…out for the kill”. The scripture teaches several lessons about what happens “When God Goes to Work in a Life”.
1. There is no life that is exempt from the transformative touch of the power of God. When God decides to work through you, there are no excuses. Whether you are an Anglican preacher named John Wesley, an Israelite named Esther, a freedom fighter known as the Black Moses, the son of a Baptist preacher named Martin Luther King, the son of a freed black slave named Richard Allen, or a poor black boy of single mother from a public housing project [named Rev Ronald Braxton], others can witness through the hand of Jesus touching YOU. Nothing and no one is too small, too big, too rich, too poor, too high, or too low that God cannot transform it.
2. When God goes to work in your life, you will never see life the same way again. In verse 8 of the scripture, Saul got up from the ground; his eyes were open, but he could see nothing. Ananias laid his hands on Saul, and suddenly he could see again.
There are a lot of folks living with their eyes open, but they can’t see God at work in their lives, and in the world. There are too many people suffering from an “eyes-wide-open-blindness syndrome.” Their eyes can’t see God, and their eyes can’t see the needs of others. On the healthcare issue, many people’s eyes are open, but they can’t see.
When God opens your eyes, He will show you new eyes, new hopes, new paths, new visions, new dreams. You will be able to do what you thought you could never accomplish. You will be able to walk through doors you never thought you could go through. You will see people differently – you will see joy, hope, missing power, potential for healing. You will suddenly see all the young boys and young girls losing their way, and you will reach out to them.
Ananias had no power of his own to open Saul’s eyes. He was but an instrument to send out the glorious power of a resurrected God. God opens eyes, changes lives, breathing through to a champion of the faith. It’s God, we don’t have the power on our own. It’s not until God steps in and puts his hands on your soul and opens your eyes, that we can see Jesus as our Lord. As the hymn goes: “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought, since Jesus came into my life!”
3. When God goes to work in a life, it’s not a “cake walk”. It’s not a cake walk when God goes to work in a life; when you have to start dealing with your own sins. It’s not a cake walk standing up here preaching; it’s not a cake walk singing in the choir, after being careful about where you were last night. It’s not a cake walk calling yourself a Steward or a Trustee, while you’re living ungodly, shabby lives. It’s not a cake walk coming to church on Sunday, because when God goes to work in your life, you can’t go home and beat up on your spouse; you can’t cuss out everybody on your job. It’s not a cake walk to live standing for Christ. It’s not a cake walk, but if you let Him go to work in your life, God will touch you and He will walk with you the whole way through.
I keep on learning that when God touches your life, the lives of unlikely people from diverse backgrounds will rise up to heal, to help to provide. I got news for a lotta folk in here: Ananias didn’t want to have anything to do with Saul/Paul; he protested God’s telling him to lay his hands on that “no good scoundrel” Saul. But he did what God told him to do, and the scales fell from Saul’s eyes.
When God goes to work on you, He puts people in your life; He’ll surround you with folks who will pray for you, who will have your back. He’ll stand by you when the storms of life are raging; when the world has tossed you HE will stand by you. Amen
Tags:
Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton,
Sermon Notes
Rev. Dr. Marie P. Braxton, Asst. Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, April 11, 2010 – Second Sunday After Easter
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson Acts 5:27-32: The Apostles Persecuted. 27Having brought the apostles, they made them appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28″We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” 29Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than men! 30The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead—whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. 32We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” NIV Version
The Scripture lesson starts at verses Verse 27-32, but I want to call your attention to the passages prior to those, Acts 5, verses 12-26. Today is the second Sunday of Easter. Last week we celebrated the resurrection. Jesus did not rise from the dead of his own accord; he was raised by God the Father. Easter goes on for four weeks, then there is the ascension into heaven; then there is Pentecost.
In the scripture, Jesus’ physical presence has passed; his disciples are now “apostles”; they have taken on Jesus’ ministry. They went out among the people and they preached, taught, healed the sick, cared for the widows and the orphans; they added many more believers to the kingdom, all in the name of Jesus. But this angered the high priest and his associates, the Sadducees.
1. Jealousy is a terrible thing. The apostles performed many miracles, but they were hated and persecuted, beaten and slandered by the community leaders because of it. In verse 17, Luke, the purported author of the Acts, writes that the Sadducees were jealous of the apostles and all of the attention they were getting among the people. Jealousy is when someone has some attribute, opportunity, gift, etc. that you don’t have, and you hold it against them. Jealousy can lead to other things; it can destroy a church.
2. Faith in God will not make your troubles disappear. Faith in God will not make your troubles disappear, but faith makes your troubles less frightening. We are all victors in the midst of strife. On your journey, expect to lose some friends; expect to have some lonely days and nights; expect some tears, but remember: have more faith in following the will of the Lord than the reactions of others. After the apostles were arrested and thrown into jail, an Angel of the Lord came to the jail and let them out. The Angel told the apostles to go back to the temple, pray at sunrise, and teach the people, so they did. In verse 21, we find the apostles at sunrise preaching and teaching about Jesus. Astonished, the high priest and the Sanhedrin asked the apostles why they had violated the order not to preach in Jesus’ name. But the apostles said: “We must obey God rather than men.” They just couldn’t help but to do what the Lord told them to do!
3. I just can’t help myself! When the Lord speaks and you know it is the Lord, you are compelled to do what the Lord says. When the Lord says feed the hungry, clothe the naked: I just can’t help myself. When the Lord says care for the homeless, help the imprisoned: I just can’t help myself. I have to do it because I just can’t help myself. I have come to know the Lord for myself. I witnessed the good news because I just can’t help myself. The Lord is my God, my savior, my shepherd, my healer, my provider, my shelter, my strength, my confidence my protector, my song, my joy, my deliverer, my peace. I said I wasn’t going to tell nobody but I just can’t keep it to myself. I can’t help but to tell somebody what the Lord has done for me. “He picked me up, turned me around, set my feet on solid ground!”
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Rev. Marie P. Braxton,
Sermon Notes
Rev. Dr. Ronald M. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, April 4, 2010 – Easter Sunday
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson: John 20:1-18: Resurrection! 1-2 Early in the morning on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone was moved away from the entrance. She ran at once to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, breathlessly panting, “They took the Master from the tomb. We don’t know where they’ve put him.” 3-10Peter and the other disciple left immediately for the tomb. They ran, neck and neck. The other disciple got to the tomb first, outrunning Peter. Stooping to look in, he saw the pieces of linen cloth lying there, but he didn’t go in. Simon Peter arrived after him, entered the tomb, observed the linen cloths lying there, and the kerchief used to cover his head not lying with the linen cloths but separate, neatly folded by itself. Then the other disciple, the one who had gotten there first, went into the tomb, took one look at the evidence, and believed. No one yet knew from the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead. The disciples then went back home. 11-13But Mary stood outside the tomb weeping. As she wept, she knelt to look into the tomb and saw two angels sitting there, dressed in white, one at the head, the other at the foot of where Jesus’ body had been laid. They said to her, “Woman, why do you weep?” 13-14″They took my Master,” she said, “and I don’t know where they put him.” After she said this, she turned away and saw Jesus standing there. But she didn’t recognize him. 15Jesus spoke to her, “Woman, why do you weep? Who are you looking for?” She, thinking that he was the gardener, said, “Mister, if you took him, tell me where you put him so I can care for him.” 16Jesus said, “Mary.” Turning to face him, she said in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” meaning “Teacher!” 17Jesus said, “Don’t cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I ascend to my Father and your Father, my God and your God.’” 18Mary Magdalene went, telling the news to the disciples: “I saw the Master!” And she told them everything he said to her. (The Message Bible translation)
The gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John do their best to tell us the stories of Jesus’ birth, life, ministry, passion, death and now, the resurrection. They try to recapture the events for us in sequential order. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John each share their take on the miracles, teachings and events leading up to Jesus’ final days. In the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Mary comes to the tomb with a number of women; in the gospel of John, however, Mary comes alone. The gospels each detail two days of agony – the crucifixion and the resurrection. Now, on the third day, this grief stricken woman, Mary, decides to go to the tomb to be close to Jesus’ body. She had no hopes or expectations, she was just trying to relieve her grief.
Have you ever lost a loved one? Have you ever gone to a cemetery to get relief from the loss? When Mary got to the tomb, she discovered that the stone had been moved. She saw that Jesus’ body was not there. That was just too much for the woman who was already consumed by grief – to find that Jesus’ body had gone missing was just the last straw. Overcome with grief, she wept. The two brothers closest to Jesus raced to see what had happened. They investigated; they saw his garments, but no body. They gave up the search and left immediately.
1. In every venture you undertake in life, give it your all. Whatever you take upon yourself to do in life, give it everything you have. Never let quitting become commonplace in your life, no matter how hard things get. If someone told you life is a bed of roses, they told you a “boldface lie” as they used to say when I was growing up. Life is tough; life has no sympathy for quitters. There is always someone waiting to take your place. So before you give up and walk away from something, do what Mary did at the tomb: look again!
“Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out,
Don’t give up though the race seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow…
Success is failure turned inside out–
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far,
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit–
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.”
Brothers and Sisters, when you undertake any venture, don’t give up! Hold on – until GOD says let go. Peter and John left the tomb empty-handed, but Mary stayed. She launched her own investigation. Don’t take anybody’s word for everything; sometimes you’ve got to do your own investigation. I know what Mama told you, what Daddy told you, but there comes a time in your life when you gotta find out for yourself. Mary wept at the empty tomb, but then she decided to LOOK AGAIN. This time, two angels were in the tomb; they asked Mary: “Woman why are you looking for the living amongst the dead?”
2. In every situation you encounter, you can trust that God will send and provide just what you need, just when you need it the most! Mary had had about as much as she could take. She needed an intervention on the part of God. She needed a miracle. In your family life, in your personal life, have you experienced a time when you did everything you could, then God stepped in and made a way out of a hopeless situation? God will step in at the right time. When the time is right, God will step in and do for us what we can’t do for ourselves. But you’ve got to be open and make yourself available to be blessed and used by God. Often we miss out on blessings because we are not available for God. He wanted to use us, to bless us with the overflow, to give us new life, to open new windows and doors so we can walk down new avenues. But we have to be available to Him!
Mary had almost given up; her spirit was low; she had little faith. She backed out of the tomb, but then she turned around and LOOKED AGAIN! This time, she saw Jesus! He may not come when we want him to, but he always comes on time! Unlike Peter and John who went home empty-handed, Mary stayed, looked again, and she saw Jesus. Sometimes, the clouds can hang so low that you can’t recognize Jesus. Jesus is not only present, but he is speaking to you. Our ancestors said “you can hear him in your heart when he calls your name”. If you look long enough, you too will be able to cry out “I know he lives!”
Don’t give up, you’d better look again…
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Rev. Dr. Ronald Braxton
Rev. Dr. Ronald M. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, March 28, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson: Luke 19: 28-44: God’s Personal Visit. 28-31After saying these things, Jesus headed straight up to Jerusalem. When he got near Bethpage and Bethany at the mountain called Olives, he sent off two of the disciples with instructions: “Go to the village across from you. As soon as you enter, you’ll find a colt tethered, one that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says anything, asks, ‘What are you doing?’ say, ‘His Master needs him.’” 32-33The two left and found it just as he said. As they were untying the colt, its owners said, “What are you doing untying the colt?” 34They said, “His Master needs him.” 35-36They brought the colt to Jesus. Then, throwing their coats on its back, they helped Jesus get on. As he rode, the people gave him a grand welcome, throwing their coats on the street. 37-38Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed: Blessed is he who comes, the king in God’s name! All’s well in heaven! Glory in the high places! 39Some Pharisees from the crowd told him, “Teacher, get your disciples under control!” 40But he said, “If they kept quiet, the stones would do it for them, shouting praise.” 41-44When the city came into view, he wept over it. “If you had only recognized this day, and everything that was good for you! But now it’s too late. In the days ahead your enemies are going to bring up their heavy artillery and surround you, pressing in from every side. They’ll smash you and your babies on the pavement. Not one stone will be left intact. All this because you didn’t recognize and welcome God’s personal visit.” (The Message Bible translation)
I’d like to lift up verses 35, 36, and parts of 37 and 39 of the scripture today:
35-36“As he rode, the people gave him a grand welcome, throwing their coats on the street. 37-38Right at the crest, where Mount Olives begins its descent, the whole crowd of disciples burst into enthusiastic praise over all the mighty works they had witnessed: Blessed is he who comes, the king in God’s name! All’s well in heaven! Glory in the high places!” The crowd of Jesus’ disciples burst into enthusiastic praise when Jesus rode the colt to Jerusalem. But see verse 39, where the Pharisees tell Jesus:
“Get your disciples under control!” But Jesus’ response was:
“If only you had recognized this day, you might have been saved. But it’s too late now, because in the days ahead, your enemies will bring their heavy artillery against you; not one stone will be left intact because you did not recognize God’s personal visit.”
I want to speak today on the subject: “Living a Marked Life.” Jesus spent the last three years of his life in active ministry. In the Gospel, we see him busy, moving from towns to hamlets, engaged in active ministry. It was not just his message, but his healings, his deeds of goodness, that set him apart, that affected people’s lives in a different way. It was clear that Jesus was anointed, set apart, marked by God for this ministry. He touched so many that the word went out about him and his work. But let me give you some “nevers” to learn from Jesus’ experience: 1. Never think your hard work or good deeds will be appreciated by everyone; and 2. Never work to please and to be appreciated by everyone; rather, give God a good days work and let the chips fall where they may. Let the work you do speak for the God in you.
Despite the fact that he had much opposition, Jesus was not overly bothered by his opponents; He kept working for the kingdom. This trip to Jerusalem took courage because his ministry stirred up contempt form the politicos. He was a marked man living a marked life. He was marked by Herod at his birth, and by Satan at his baptism; he was taunted in his hometown as a nobody; and criticized by the Pharisees and Sadducees as a rabble-rouser, a troublemaker, and a church. Jesus was also marked by God. His entry into Jerusalem contains a message on how to live a marked life. If you live for the enhancement of others, know that you will live a marked life. Your enemies will appear; your family and your friends will try to make you feel like you know less than you know; your co-workers and even your bosses will become envious. You might ask: What have I done to make this race so hard to run? If you live for Christ, rest assured, you will live a marked life. Here are some tools to help you if you are living a marked life.
1. Never fear what’s up ahead. Live with a superlative courage! Jesus knew he was a marked man. But he was clear about his destiny. When you live for God, never fear your future; never fear the craters ahead, because God has your back! You will never accomplish much living in fear of what lies ahead. If you take one step, God will run ahead and make a way out of no way. “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love and self -control.” “The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?”
2. Live with enthusiasm and excitement! From the scripture, you can see that Jesus’ disciples were excited people. So much so, that in verse 39, the Pharisees said to Jesus: “You better get control of these people!” The crowd was excited because they all knew what Jesus had done for them. The 10 lepers that Jesus had healed were in that crowd. Blind Bartholomew was there. The lame man at the pool of Bethesda who took up his bed was there. The woman with the issue of blood; the man with the demons inside him; the 5000 people who were fed with the two fishes – they were all there in the crowd cheering Jesus! Mary, Jesus’ mother, the disciples were all there – they could not help but to be enthusiastic.
When it comes to your faith-life, know that you are living a marked life. But no matter what happens, never lose your zeal. You ought to get excited about the goodness of God in your life. People ought to get so tired of having you talk about your God and your church that they say, “Oh no, don’t get them started…” If you are working for God, you are living a marked life; there are no excuses for a dead, dry church; there out to be some excitement, some joy, some enthusiasm in your life!
3. Whatever is put on you, honor God with every fiber of your being! When you are living a marked life, no matter what happens, God will keep you from falling apart or drifting away. When you choose to honor God, you can keep your head straight and your shoulders back. When you choose not to honor God, you live a spineless life; things temporarily fall apart in your life. Peter denied Jesus, he was not honoring God at that moment. The same crowd that cried “Hosanna!” on Palm Sunday cried “Crucify Him” on Good Friday. If you choose not to honor God, your life will have no hope, no faith, no loyalty; you will just be “floating from pillar to post.”
But if you honor God, when you get to your Calvary, He will be there with you; He will be there when they scorn you – not only in the bad times but in the good times too! When the good stuff comes, He’ll wake you up in the morning. When the doctor gives you some bad news, He will pick you up and turn you around! So whatever is put on you, honor God, no matter what you are going through!
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Jesus,
Palm Sunday,
Sermon
Rev. Dr. Ronald M. Braxton, Senior Pastor, Metropolitan AME Church
Sunday, March 21, 2010
www.metropolitanamec.org
Scripture Lesson Isaiah 43: 16-21: 16 This is what the LORD says— he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, 17 who drew out the chariots and horses, the army and reinforcements together, and they lay there, never to rise again, extinguished, snuffed out like a wick: 18 “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland. 20 The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, 21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.
Have you ever been in a situation in which you need to hear a good word? In the scripture, the Israelites found themselves in a bad way; they had lost everything. Their homes had been ravaged, families were broken up, their livelihoods were lost. Their worship and their faith had been put to the test and had come up short. Where was their God that had delivered them from Pharaoh’s Army? Where was their God who had spoken to Moses through the burning bush; who had parted the Red Sea; who had drawn water from a rock; who had provided manna from the sky for them to eat every day? Had God gone back on His word to be with them always?
The worst is when your faith and worship come up short; because that’s the only thing you have left to hold onto. Such was the crisis of the Israelites.
Change and transition in life can become most challenging. We get comfortable with things as they are. Here is some “breaking news” for you: Life has its own peculiar way of breaking up our “comfort levels”. Nothing can remain the same. Breaking up and breaking through is necessary to get to the next level. It’s painful; it’s not easy. Today, many are facing the challenges of the financial crisis, loss of a job, home foreclosure, a good marriage gone bad. Change and transition alone bring their own strife.
The scripture says at verse 19: “I am about to a new thing”. When God says that, you need to get ready to go through some stuff!
Everyone experiences transition, breaking up situations, life-altering moments. Then out of nowhere, a friend, a relative – or even a stranger – calls, with just the encouragement that you needed to hear at the right time. The right word at the right moment can make all the difference in your life; it can be your sunshine on a cloudy day, on a day when you wanted to just throw in the towel.
For the Israelites, they needed an encouraging word from God. Jesus went to the garden to experience a word from God before his Good Friday. He said: “Father, I need a word, a GOOD word, to get through this.”
Brothers and Sisters, the scripture today brings us a good word from God; a word of hope, encouragement, comfort, and joy.
1. God Cares about You! Verses 20 and 21 of the scripture says: 20 “The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, 21 the people I formed for myself that they may proclaim my praise.” Know that God personally cares for YOU; in His eyes, you are a winner – no matter what life throws in your path. Rest assured that you can say to yourself in worst of your crisis: “He walks with me, and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own!” You can cry out in the midst of it all: “Jesus love me, this I know!”
2. God is Able! One good word is that “God cares about you!” Another good word is: God is able! He makes a way out of no way; He brings chariots, armies, water, a way in the wilderness, rivers in the desert. Verse 20 says: “The wild animals honor me, the jackals and the owls, because I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen…” In the midst of all your challenges, the good word is that GOD IS ABLE to deliver you, to carry you through, to turn your darkness into light. When the doctor says he doesn’t know what to do, God is able. God makes your enemy your footstool; He is able to do what is impossible.
3. God is About to Do a NEW THING in you! Verse 18-19 says: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. 19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Yesterday’s blessings are overshadowed by what God is doing in you today. There is no need for you to rely on your PAST. God says: “Don’t even remember the former things, because I am about to do a NEW THING in you”. Don’t consider what you did yesterday, don’t think about what your Momma did for you, what your Granddaddy did for you – God says: “I am about to do a NEW THING.” But you are going to have to go through some things to get there. It’s like when the dentist says: “This won’t hurt a bit…” you know to get ready for some pain!
When you hear God say: “I am about to do a new thing”, keep in mind these three words: Hold…Keep…Trust: HOLD on! KEEP faith in God. TRUST in the Lord.
No matter how heavy the burden – HOLD on! No matter how dark the moment –KEEP your faith in God! No matter that the bills are coming due and you don’t have the money in the bank – TRUST in the Lord!
This is a good word for you today:
Beams of heaven as I go,
through the wilderness below,
guide my feet in peaceful ways,
turn my midnights into days.
When in the darkness I would grope,
faith always sees a star of hope,
and soon from all life’s grief and danger
I shall be free someday.
Refrain:
I do not know how long ’twill be,
nor what the future holds for me,
but this I know: if Jesus leads me,
I shall get home someday.
By Charles Albert Tindlay
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