Loving God of peace, bring lasting peace to the heart and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text today is from Galatians (The "Go" in Go Eat Peaches & Cream) 1:11-24:
11 For I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; 12 for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. 13 You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in Judaism. I was violently persecuting the church of God and was trying to destroy it. 14 I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. 15 But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being, 17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were already apostles before me, but I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus. 18 Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days; 19 but I did not see any other apostle except James the Lord's brother. 20 In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie! 21 Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, 22 and I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea that are in Christ; 23 they only heard it said, "The one who formerly was persecuting us is now proclaiming the faith he once tried to destroy." 24 And they glorified God because of me.
How passionate do you get about good news? We have all seen the range from a smile to a yelling, jumping, screaming response to hearing news of which one awaited. It's all good, yet the one who hears, lets it sink in and then reacts honestly tends to get the attention of others because of what the news means to them. Here Paul is sharing how he responded. He begins by explaining that the "good news" we're talking about here, the gospel of Jesus and how God loved him and us, comes from God. With the sharing and hearing of the gospel there is great power in that. How you choose to receive it determines your reaction and your response. Of course some may say, Paul was that way in so many things, including his former life! Yes, Paul says that too. He at this point was not particularly proud of rounding up and arresting Christians, but he does admit that he was good at what he did and it came about because of his zeal for anything and everything he did. But now that he's had his encounter with the fullness and truth about life as Jesus offers it, he says, "Hey, this is the only reaction I can give to God. He deserves it!
How does that compare with our church's response to the good news? And what a comparison I'm asking you to make. Sunday morning, Reverend, that's a dignified hour, solemn, sacred, quiet; to react any other way is to invite the ushers to come and escort us out of church. Yet, if the Cowboys are kicking off at 12 noon, "Reverend, could you please make the sermon short? The '"Boys" are starting early and I've got to go see them!" And exactly at 12:00 the mood changes; there's excitement and anticipation, nervousness even, for our very lives and our contentment with the world will hang in the balance on how the Cowboys do on that day. Once in front of the television the dignified, solemn, sacred, quiet hour has ended and whoops and hollers are the order of the day. Grown men "high five" each other, laugh, smile, dance, and celebrate a man successfully carrying a pigskin across a white line on a green playing field. Hmm. What's wrong with this picture? Let me try to win back some enemies, there's nothing wrong with the celebrations that go with football; I'm asking why don't we see this in church? Paul knew that to have his sins removed was great cause for celebration. His having been added to the Book of Life meaning he would spend eternity in Heaven was assured caused him to rejoice and rejoice again. We seldom see that, if ever, during a message where life in its fullest is shared with dying people. Paul understood the power and importance of the Gospel. Do we?
PRAYER: Loving Father, I am thankful for the things and distractions that cause me to yell joyously, but I ask You forgive me for those times I have done little to nothing about the great, eternal things You have done for me. Let me, like my brother Paul, rejoice in the news that I have gone from being a condemned person to one embraced with life and the fullness of it, and add to that the promise of eternal life! May Your Spirit move through me and my church so that the joy Paul had can be mine as well. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
