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Rev. Ronald E. Braxton

Rev. Ronald E. Braxton
October 9, 2011, 7:45 AM
Philippians 4: 1-9

 
Rev. Ronald E. Braxton
September 18, 2011

 
Rev. Ronald E. Braxton
July 3, 2011

Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor
Metropolitan AME Church, Washington, DC
Sunday, July 3, 2011
www.metropolitaname.org

Zechariah 9:9-17 The Coming of Zion’s King9 Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. 10 I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the warhorses from Jerusalem, and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River[b] to the ends of the earth. 11 As for you, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit. 12 Return to your fortress, you prisoners of hope; even now I announce that I will restore twice as much to you. 13 I will bend Judah as I bend my bow and fill it with Ephraim. I will rouse your sons, Zion, against your sons, Greece, and make you like a warrior’s sword. The LORD Will Appear14 Then the LORD will appear over them; his arrow will flash like lightning. The Sovereign LORD will sound the trumpet; he will march in the storms of the south, 15 and the LORD Almighty will shield them. They will destroy and overcome with slingstones. They will drink and roar as with wine; they will be full like a bowl used for sprinkling[c] the corners of the altar. 16 The LORD their God will save his people on that day as a shepherd saves his flock. They will sparkle in his land like jewels in a crown. 17 How attractive and beautiful they will be! Grain will make the young men thrive, and new wine the young women. NIV Bible Translation

The Book of Zechariah is a short, unfamiliar book tucked away close to the end of the Old Testament. The message of the prophet Zachariah in the scripture was addressed to the Prisoners of Hope. Peter Craig writes in The Book, that the Jews from Babylon began to move back to Jerusalem, their homeland, but they were ill-equipped to restore the temple. They lacked two features: 1) strong leadership, and 2) hope (for a promising future). As we rebuild this great church, we should keep in mind that rebuilding is a symbol of God’s renewal, and of a promising future.

1. The single worst thing that can happen to an individual, a child, or a community is to be robbed of hope. In verse 11, the words “I will free your prisoners from the waterless pit” were words of hope for those locked behind bars of “I can’t” “We can’t” – those who waste their lives in hopelessness. With God, all things are possible; but without the possibility of God, there can be no celebration of today or tomorrow. We must never let anyone rob us of our hope. We must never allow our children to become victimized by having no hope. Living without hope is worse than a sentence of death.

2. Zachariah does not invite the Prisoners of Hope to an institution; his invitation is to a new “movement of God.” In verse 9 of the Message Bible translation, he tells the prisoners of hope to: “Shout! Praise! Raise the roof!” In Verse 11 he tells the Prisoners of Hope “…you will be released, and restored with double of what you have lost.” Zachariah teaches that hope transforms the communities of those who participate in this “movement.”

3. As Prisoners of Hope, we are not an institution: we are a MOVEMENT. Brothers and Sisters of Metropolitan, we must be more than just another AME Church. We must serve God like we are participants in the life-transforming MOVEMENT of God. Our preaching, music, church school, spiritual attitudes and demeanor – all are transformative movements of God. As for me, I accept that I am a Prisoner of Hope – someone who God brought from a student who barely finished high school to someone who completed post graduate school. I am a Prisoner of Hope.

Prisoners of Hope live shackled to God’s redeeming grace. We live and move trusting God for everything. In the book, Scarred by Struggle, Transformed by Hope, Joan Chittester writes:

Hope is not a matter of waiting for things outside us to get better. Hope is about getting better on the inside…it is about allowing ourselves to believe in the future we cannot see…it is about trusting in God…Hope…sits by the window and waits for one more dawn, despite the fact that there isn’t an ounce of proof in sight…Hope is the last great gift to rise out of the grave of despair.

Rev. Ronald E. Braxton
Father’s Day – June 19, 2011

 
Rev. Ronald E. Braxton
June 5, 2011

Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor
Metropolitan AME Church, Washington, DC
Sunday, June 5, 2011
www.metropolitaname.org  

Acts 1: 1-11. Jesus Taken Up Into Heaven. 1 In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” NIV Bible Translation

Today is known as “Ascension Sunday.” In the scripture, the disciples were emotionally devastated after Jesus’ crucifixion. Some didn’t know what to do. Peter declared that he just wanted to go home and go back to being a fisherman. Jesus came and spent 40 days teaching them, but the disciples wanted to know more details about what the future held for the kingdom of God. Jesus told them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set…but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you…and you will witness to people of all nations.” Then Jesus ascended into heaven, right before the disciples’ eyes.

The Ascension marked a turning point, an end to Jesus’ physical presence, and the beginning of his celestial, divine advocacy. The Ascension was also a turning point for Jesus’ disciples, who were soon to be Apostles.

If you reach a point in life when you really turn to Jesus, your life will change and you will never be the same. You will glimpse a bigger picture of how you fit in when you give your life over to Kingdom Building. God has important work for you to do for him, but you have to wait on God’s timing and plan, and not your own. How many times have you just wanted to give in, or give up, but you felt compelled to just hang in there with the Lord?

Somebody here is confused: You may be asking: What does all this mean for me? The answer is instructive, contained in a popular old hymn called, “Brighten the Corner Where You Are”:

Do not wait until some deed of greatness you may do,
Do not wait to shed your light afar,
To the many duties ever near you now be true,
Brighten the corner where you are.

Brighten the corner where you are!
Brighten the corner where you are!
Someone far from harbor you may guide across the bar;
Brighten the corner where you are!

Here for all your talent you may surely find a need,
Here reflect the bright and Morning Star;
Even from your humble hand the Bread of Life may feed,
Brighten the corner where you are.
By Ina D. Ogden

1. In the bigger picture of God, you have a calling, a challenge, a place. We are here to witness to God’s glory. We have a part to play in our church, our communities, our families. All over the world, people are at a turning point with God. There is no limitation on what can be accomplished in the name of the Lord. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. He gives us power, hope, and a vision. You will witness to others at the turning point of your life, and he will give you power to do it.

2. The greatest challenge for us believers is keeping our lives centered, rooted, grounded in God. We must allow Christ to be our focal point. You cannot do this by yourself. Left to your own devices, will, wisdom, you will fail yourself, and God.

3. Every now and then you need to revisit your turning point. Take your eyes off the world and look up, because you are going through something. In the scripture, the two angels asked the disciples: “Why do you stand here looking up when your god is up in the sky.” As for me, sometimes I need to look up and see my Father telling me: “It’s gonna be alright.” Sometimes, when I am confronted with my humaneness, I need to go over to my turning point and look up. Sometimes I need to look up because it helps me to remember: “I took the master’s hand and I joined the Christian band, ‘cause I’m on the battlefield for my Lord!”

 
Rev. Ronald E. Braxton

Rev. Dr. Ronald E. Braxton, Senior Pastor

Metropolitan AME Church, Washington, DC

Sunday, May 22, 2011

www.metropolitaname.org

1 Peter 2: 2-10 2-3 You’ve had a taste of God. Now, like infants at the breast, drink deep of God’s pure kindness. Then you’ll grow up mature and whole in God. The Living Stone and a Chosen People: 4-8 Welcome to the living Stone, the source of life. The workmen took one look and threw it out; God set it in the place of honor. Present yourselves as building stones for the construction of a sanctuary vibrant with life, in which you’ll serve as holy priests offering Christ-approved lives up to God. The Scriptures provide precedent: Look! I’m setting a stone in Zion, a cornerstone in the place of honor. Whoever trusts in this stone as a foundation will never have cause to regret it. To you who trust him, he’s a Stone to be proud of, but to those who refuse to trust him, The stone the workmen threw out is now the chief foundation stone. For the untrusting it’s a stone to trip over, a boulder blocking the way. They trip and fall because they refuse to obey, just as predicted. 9-10But you are the ones chosen by God, chosen for the high calling of priestly work, chosen to be a holy people, God’s instruments to do his work and speak out for him, to tell others of the night-and-day difference he made for you—from nothing to something, from rejected to accepted. The Message Bible Translation

In the Commentary on the scripture, William Barclay gives behind the scenes insights into Peter’s writing of the letter to the five early Christian churches. The early Christians were tolerated by the Romans. People blamed Nero for starting the great fire in Rome so he could rebuild Rome to his own liking. Nero blamed the Christians for starting the fire. As a result, they were subjected to mockery, they were nailed to crosses and subjected to the cruelest kinds of torture ever invented. Their religion was proclaimed to be unlawful. Barclay said it was in this atmosphere that Peter wrote to a tormented people. He wrote telling them that there was “no place for small Christian living”, and that the time for bold Christian living was upon them.

Despite the harsh economy, most of us who came to worship this morning are doing okay; things are much worse for others. Others would view the house you live in as a mansion; they would think your clothes were fit for royalty, and that your food was the best. We are not living under public persecution like the early Christians.

Peter’s charge – for bold Christian living – is applicable to us today. Racism, sexism, colonialism, spiritualism, terrorism, capitalism – they all tear at the core of the House of Zion. Natural disasters, war, and upheaval claim our attention and fears. Despite these things, there is no place for small Christian living. God is calling on Christians to live big, bold lives for Christ. Now is our opportunity to be a solid rock!

In the text, Peter suggests that we are to become a living stone to witness God in a tormented world. In verse 5, he says: “let yourselves be built, like living stones, into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ…” God is calling us to holy living. We are called to be living stones, transformed by a living Christ to be a cornerstone in the world…or in DC, or in Maryland, or Virginia. We who know the goodness of God must be the message of hope, love, joy, and peace. God is calling us to be living stones.

If you look around, many people in our community are looking to find a way out. As Christians, we must be committed to be a living stone for them. The world is not looking for a preacher; the world is looking for a people who will stand up and live what they preach. We become a living stone for the world when we are rooted in Him, in His word, in His teachings.

At this juncture, when the tide turns on your life, you must be strong. No more feeding on baby’s milk; you need to be living stronger, committed to His word. Only then will you become a building block, trusting Him, reading His word every day. Those who obey and trust him, he will not let be put to shame!

Amen