My Graduation Sermon:Throwing Seven Different Kinds of Smoke

So it’s time for a graduation sermon. My third one here. I said last year, and I feel it is true again this year, that giving a graduation sermon is always a bit intimidating for me. I feel like I may just be one of the least qualified people to give you all advice on going out into the “real world”. Seriously. I mean, my favorite author was a man who wrote books about cats in hats, green eggs and ham, one fox, two foxes and the places you’ll go… I almost exclusively eat cereal with cartoon characters as their main spokesperson, at anytime of any day, there’s a good chance that Looney Tunes will be playing on my TV, and I’m a 25 year old man who regularly wears a Superman t-shirt…in public.

But you know what, I do a lot of thinking when I’m not watching the coyote not catch the roadrunner, and I feel like I know a few things, so forget what I told you about not being qualified and listen up, because y’all are catching me on a day I’m throwing seven different kinds of smoke.

I have been in the “real world” for a little bit now and I’ve learned a few things. What I’ve learned very rarely in fact comes from books. That’s number one. You can’t learn it all from books! I love books, and I love to read. Reading is something that has always been a constant in my life, and I actually go crazy when I don’t have a new book to read. I had a friend come over to my house for the first time awhile back, and he looked at my bookshelf and asked “Have you actually read all of those books, or did you just buy them and put them there to make yourself look smart?” Books and school is a great source of knowledge and information, but, you cannot, let yourself get so wrapped up in a book or a GPA that you don’t see what is going on around you. That may be the last thing your parents want me to say to you but I believe it’s true. Life is happening all around you, and if you have your nose in a book or homework up to your ears, and you never take the time to look around, you’re going to look up in four years and wonder where the heck your college years went. So do what you gotta do, get your work done, but live, at the same time.

Second kind of smoke…forget the timeline. I know there are a lot of people that go to college that got a timeline set up for themselves. I didn’t even do the traditional right after high school college thing, but I still had a timeline set up for myself, certain things that were going to be going on in my life by the time I was twenty-five, and when those things didn’t happen, they were hard to face. I’ll tell you what happens, because I’ve seen it firsthand in my life. You want to make God laugh? Tell Him your plans. God takes what you want for yourself sometimes, and he tells you “Oh yeah? You think you got this figured out? Here’s a curveball for you. Strike out. Sit back down. I got other stuff for you in mind.” But don’t worry though. Because even if you don’t have it figured out, God does. That’s the third kind of smoke. Proverbs 16:9 says it perfectly “A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord determines his steps.”

Fourth kind of smoke that I’m throwing today is if you don’t know what you’re doing out there, that’s ok!!! It’s fine! I still don’t know what I want to do when I grow up! You think I’m worried about it? No way! As you’re going through your life, you have to find your passion, not your job! If you’re out there looking for what job is going to give you the most money, make you the most successful, make you the most powerful…you might find it. But you may also lose a little bit of yourself along the way. In one of our bible studies we talked about what society and our culture and world say about success. Remember? And what did it say? Society’s views of success, and God’s view of success, are most likely to be a lot different. But trust in yourself, and more importantly your God, and you’ll find something. I wake up every day thankful that I get to do what I do. I love it. I have the greatest job in the world. I didn’t plan it to happen this way. But it did. It happened this way because I finally decided to stop fighting God and just go along for the ride, and so far, this is where he’s taken me.

For my fifth! Kind of smoke that I’m throwing out there today, I am going to tell you something that I know you are not going to believe. Sometimes, I don’t believe it myself…but it’s true. Mom and Dad are right. They have always been right, they will always be right. Forever. Till the end of time. I’ll be the first to admit that I didn’t always listen to my parents when I was growing up, but then again what kid does? But seriously, it turns out; they have been right about a lot of things. But not all of them are the things you roll your eyes at. My parents believed in me. They always have. Always will. I remember anytime I didn’t really get as good of grades as I could have, it would be the “We just know you can do better”. And they were right. I could have. I just didn’t want to. Or the “I’m not mad, I’m just disappointed.” Oo, that one was the worst. But still, through everything I have done in my life my parents have always believed in me. That has taken me places! I’m a smart cookie!!! I know things, and I’m good at things. My parents believe it. Your parents believe the same things for you. I know they do. Because I know all of your parents. I talk to your parents sometimes. Sometimes I talk to your parents, not even about you. I know it’s tough to believe that when the Youth Minister and the parents get together sometimes you’re not the only thing on our minds… But most of the times we do talk about you, and I can tell that you’re parents want what’s best for you. They believe in you. And the funny thing about this is, and this is just a personal philosophy, but, I think that if at least one person in the world thinks that you are the greatest thing in the world. Then it’s gotta be true. I think Anna Beth is the cutest girl in the world. Gotta be true. I think my mom and dad are the greatest parents in the world. Gotta be true. I think I’m the best looking guy in the world…ok, maybe that’s not true, but you get the idea. Your parents believe in you and think you are the best Kaitlyn, the best Laura, and the best Alyssa, that there ever was. Gotta be true.

So please, don’t forget to thank your parents the day you graduate, the day you graduate college, the day you get that first awesome job, the day you get married, and the day you have your first kids. Your parents won’t always be around forever, take it from me, so make sure you tell them how awesome they are.

Sixth kind of smoke that I’m throwing out there today, man, we’re getting close to being done. No applause please. The sixth kind of smoke is something that I wish more people would say to you. If you were at the Feed Store basketball fundraiser, the speaker kind of touched on it, and I’m glad he did. Now, you guys that know me, you know I don’t hold any punches with you, and I’m always really honest, but I try to do it in a loving way, but there isn’t just a real loving way to say this. Sometimes, out in the real world, life sucks. Sorry. Hate to be the one that has to tell you that, and if you haven’t heard it already, sorry it’s coming from me. But it does. Sometimes, it’s just a day. Sometimes your day just doesn’t go the way it should. Like you bomb a test, forget your homework, then you go to work and your boss is a jerk to you and you have to put up with rude customers then you go back to your dorm or apartment and your roommate is playing weird music and smells like potatoes. But then, the next day, everything readjusts itself, gets back on a more even kilt, you realize the potato smell was just coming from next door, and everything is better. But sometimes, the bad sticks around for awhile. It’s bound to happen. I’m pretty sure if you asked all of these adults in this room, I doubt any one of them could say they have never hit a bad spot in their lives. I’m gonna go Biblical for a minute, because there’s some pretty good stuff in here. Book of Job. Now let me tell you about Job. Job had it all. Yeah. Job was living the life. Look at the Book of Job. Chapter one, verse 2. ² He had seven sons and three daughters. ³ His estate included 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys, and a very large number of servants. Job was the greatest man among all the people of the east.

Yeah, Job has it all, until the Lord decides to let Satan test him. Look at verse 6 now, because that’s important too.

“From roaming the earth and walking around on it.” That’s what the devil says. Yeah, you don’t believe he’s out there, read it again. So, the devil and God have a little feud going on here with Job. God says that Job is the best there is, and Satan says well yeah, that’s because you gave him everything. Who wouldn’t be happy and praise you as long as he’s successful? Let me take away some of his stuff and see what happens. So God says ok, take away everything he owns, but don’t lay a hand on Job. So look now with me at chapter one, verse 13.

¹³ One day when Job's sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, ¹⁴ a messenger came to Job and said, "The oxen were plowing and the donkeys were grazing nearby, ¹⁵ and the Sabeans attacked and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!"

¹⁶ While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, "The fire of God fell from the sky and burned up the sheep and the servants, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!"

¹⁷ While he was still speaking, another messenger came and said, "The Chaldeans formed three raiding parties and swept down on your camels and carried them off. They put the servants to the sword, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!"

¹⁸ While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, "Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, ¹⁹ when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!"

²⁰ At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship ²¹ and said:
"Naked I came from my mother's womb,
and naked I will depart. ^[c]
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;
may the name of the LORD be praised."

²² In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

Man, bad day for Job. But what is his response? Look at verse 20. He worshiped. He fell to the ground…and worshiped. Man, Job is one tough dude. All that stuff happens to me in one day, I’m gonna have a hard time worshipping God.

So after this, Satan is mad. Because Job doesn’t even think of him yet. The devil is over here, hey look at me, look at me, I did this to you Job, and Job isn’t having it. So God and the Devil up the ante a little bit. God says to the devil, ok, you can do whatever you want to Job, just don’t kill him. So the devil puts these boils on Job from head to foot and STILL, Job didn’t sin or curse the Lord in what he said or did.

So at this point in the story, three of Job’s buddies come along because they had heard about all this trouble he was having. Chapter 2 verse 12. And what’s in chapter 2 verse 12 is the seventh kind of smoke I’m throwing, but we’ll get to that in a little bit.

So Job has all of his friends there and so he starts talking. He starts cursing the day he was born, and he gets pretty intense in Chapter 3. So he goes on and on, cursing everything about his life, and two of his three friends respond, and they go back and forth and back and forth until the third friend, who is younger, gets angry and can’t take it anymore. ⁴ Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because they were [all] older than he. ⁵ But when he saw that the three men could not answer Job, he became angry.

⁶ So Elihu son of Barachel the Buzite replied:
I am young in years,
while you are old;
therefore I was timid and afraid
to tell ^(D) you what I know.

⁷ I thought that age should speak
and maturity should teach wisdom.

⁸ But it is a spirit in man ^[a]
and the breath ^(E) of the Almighty
that give him understanding.

⁹ It is not [only] the old who are wise
or the elderly who understand how to judge.

¹⁰ Therefore I say, "Listen to me.
I too will declare what I know."

So then Elihu starts getting mad at Job and asks him “Hey, who are you to be questioning God? You think just because you were a righteous man and you had everything you can question God. And you expect an answer from God? Man are you dumb! God doesn’t have to answer you! God does speak sometime, we just don’t hear it. Boom! Wait a minute! What was the Fourth kind of smoke? That if you don’t know, it’s okay because God does? Yeah. And God is gonna speak to you but you have to listen! So anyways, Elihu goes on and on telling Job how foolish he is for questioning God and whatnot, and God must’ve liked it because here he comes, and he’s coming in a whirlwind. And man, he comes in hot! He’s mad at Job, and he’s gonna let Job know it. Chapter 38. Job 38

The LORD Speaks

¹ Then the LORD answered Job from the whirlwind. ^(A) He said:

² Who is this who obscures [My] counsel
with ignorant words? ^(B)

³ Get ready to answer Me like a man;
when I question ^(C) you, you will inform Me.

⁴ Where were you when I established ^(D) the earth?
Tell [Me], if you have ^[a] understanding.

⁵ Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?

Oh man, if you’ve never read Job you need to check it out because I love how the Lord is talking in it.

³⁵ Can you send out lightning ^(Q) bolts, and they go?
Do they report to you: "Here we are"?

³⁶ Who put wisdom ^(R) in the heart ^[m]
or gave the mind understanding?

³⁷ Who has the wisdom to number the clouds?
Or who can tilt the water jars of heaven

³⁸ when the dust hardens like cast metal
and the clods [of dirt] stick together?

And the Lord goes on for awhile about how awesome he is. And it’s not really a “Look at me how big and great I am” kind of way, but it’s more like a “Come on Job, I’m disappointed in you. Do you know how great I am and what I’ve done? Who are you to tell me I don’t know what I’m doing” kind of way.

Now at this point, Job has to be feeling small. He just got scolded, by GOD! God just came down in a whirlwind and told Job what’s up! Job can’t be feeling good right now…

So what does Job do? He apologizes. He mans up. He tells God he’s sorry, and he tells God “You know what, youre right. I am sorry. I had heard rumors about you, but now that I’ve seen you, I take back my words, and repent.”

Bad times are gonna happen. They’re bound to. They happen to everybody. Sometimes, it’s because of bad mistakes you’re gonna make. Sometimes, just for no reason. Christian author Stephen M. Miller sums it up better than I could when he says “You may never know why you suffer. Perhaps it’s to strengthen your faith. Perhaps it’s to show God’s power, which is why a man that Jesus healed was born blind. Or maybe you suffer because of the effects of someone else’s sin. Whatever the reason, God will see you through the suffering. He’s also an expert at turning tragedy into blessing. “

I’ve seen it happen. I’ve seen what at the time, looks like a tragedy, be turned into a blessing that I never could’ve or would’ve imagined. God’s got a better imagination than I do.

Seventh kind of smoke. Go back to Job. Chapter 2. Verse 12. ¹² When they saw him from a distance, they could hardly recognize him; they began to weep aloud, and they tore their robes and sprinkled dust on their heads. ¹³ Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was. I want you to look next to you. Look left. Look right. Turn around. Look at those people out there. The friends, the family. These are the people, that are gonna be there for you in those troubling times. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief, who can tolerate not knowing not healing, not curing, that, is a friend who cares. Not just in times of trouble, but in times of happiness. I know some of you are best friends. Stay that way. You don’t realize it yet, but those are the people that are going to be with you for the rest of your life. At stuff like graduations, parties, weddings, funerals, births. The whole thing.

I know that I call you, my friends, and I hope you can do the same about me.

My Dad's Eulogy: One Year Later...

“Quite a Party”

My Dad’s Eulogy

Gabriel S. Stokes

Thank you all so much for being here. I love and have always been honored and proud to introduce myself this way, my name is Gabriel Stokes, and Fred Stokes is my dad. My dad and I have been so close to each other over the years, and we got to be so close we could communicate and let each other know what we were thinking without even saying a word, and I know that he is looking down at us right now, and thinking “Geez, there are a lot of people here making a big fuss over me…”. Because my dad was the most humble and modest man I’ve ever known. He wouldn’t ever want anyone making a big deal about him, so I know he’s laughing somewhere, seeing all of us here today.

My dad loved to read, it didn’t matter what it was that he was reading, as long as he had a book in his hands. He especially loved western books, Louis L’Amour being his favorite author. As a matter of fact, he taught me how to read at a very early age, and I’ve always said that was one of the best blessings he has ever given me.

My dad also loved to do crossword puzzles. I was looking at one yesterday, and man, those things are hard! I don’t know how he did all of those as fast as he did. I even bought him a crossword dictionary one time, thinking he’d put it to good use, but I’m pretty sure it’s still at the Barbershop right now with a lot of dust on it. He never needed it.

That’s because my dad had a wide vocabulary and knew a lot of words, but there is one word that I don’t think ever crossed his vocabulary.

Me.

My dad was never one that was out for himself. He put others before and above himself always. Over the past week people have come up to me, wanting to tell me stories about my dad, and one of the common threads that kept coming up was, how if ever anyone needed something, they could always go to my dad. I remember as a kid, sitting with him at the Barbershop, sometimes, after working all day long, before we would go home, he would sometimes make a house call. Sometimes, one of his customers would become disabled or too old to leave their house, so my dad would go to their house, and cut their hair. For free. To me, my dad and all of his acts of love and giving to others fits the perfect example of what Christ calls us to be, servant leaders.

The Bible talks about being a servant leader in Mark, Chapter 10, verses 42-45. Christ is talking to His Disciples and says to them “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles dominate them, and their men of high positions exercise power over them. ⁴³ But it must not be like that among you. On the contrary, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ⁴⁴ and whoever wants to be first among you must be a slave to all. ⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life—a ransom for many.” I think that verse perfectly describes the way my dad lived his life.

There are so many stories and memories that I have with my dad, and this past week I have been trying to think of all of them, trying to remember every detail, every time we went to lunch, every conversation we had, every piece of great wisdom and advice he gave to me, and I have a few stories I’d like to share today.

One of my favorite times, was when my dad and I decided to learn to play the guitar. A couple here at the church, The Siltmans, decided to offer guitar lessons to the entire congregation. My dad had always wanted to learn to play the guitar, and even as a young kid, I realized the potential playing the guitar had for getting all the cute girls to notice me, so we started taking guitar lessons. After about six months of these weekly lessons, it came time for our first ‘gig’. We were going to play Christmas Carols for the residents of a local nursing home. As we were setting up and getting ready to play, my dad got soooo nervous at the thought of playing in front of a crowd, and he began to inch his chair closer and closer to mine, until finally his chair was touching mine and he could scoot no closer. Then he looks over at me, with that big cheesy grin, and says “Bub, I’m gonna sit extra close to you, and I want you to play your guitar extra loud, so that way, everyone will think I’m playing too!”. To this day, I still play my guitar extra loud, so that everyone will know that my dad is sitting next to me, playing his guitar too.

Another time was two summers ago, when we made a family trip to Canada. One of the stops that we made was Pikes Peak, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. If you’ve never been to Pikes Peak, the drive up this mountain takes you 14, 110 feet skyward over twelve miles of unpaved roads, with no guardrails. My dad had driven up Pikes Peak several times, and wanted me to be able to say I too had driven up it. The drive was a great experience for me, because even though I couldn’t look out the windows to see the scenery because I was concentrating on the road, I could hear my dad in the seat next to me, ooo-hing and ah-ing. I was able to give my dad the gift of seeing the beautiful view of the scenery, for the first time. Once we made it to the top, I was looking out from the top of the mountain, and it is truly a breathtaking view. It’s even been said that from the top of Pikes Peak, on a clear day, you can see as far as the surrounding four states. My dad came up and stood beside me, and after a few minutes of silence, he said “You know, it would be impossible for someone to come up here, see this view, and how beautiful it is, and not believe in God”. My father had a love for God that runs so deep, it is in his very core, it is in his very being, and now finally, he gets to see the glory of God as it was intended to be seen.

If you’ll look on the inside of your bulletin, you’ll see a Latin quote. People have already been asking me about it and what it means, and I promised to explain it today.

As I mentioned earlier, my dad loved to read, and he passed that onto me. Our favorite book, and movie, has always been Lonesome Dove. Lonesome Dove is the story of two retired Texas Rangers and lifelong best friends, living in the old west, who decide to trail a herd of cattle from Texas to Montana. The two main characters of Lonesome Dove are Augustus McCrae, and Woodrow F. Call. Augustus is a bit of a joker who loves to laugh and be happy, very much like my dad. Augustus, or Gus, also considers himself to be something of an educated man, and writes a sign for their company on an old table he found. At the bottom of the sign, he prints the words “Uva Uvam, Vivendo Varia Fit”.

What that is, is an old Latin phrase, used to describe grapes. You see when one grape is ripe and sweet, it makes all of the grapes surrounding it sweeter. That’s my dad. Through his life, all of us who were lucky enough to know him were made sweeter, and better, just for being around him.

Towards the end of the story of Lonesome Dove, Augustus is shot in the leg with poisoned arrows as he is on a scouting trip ahead of the main group. Gus somehow manages to make it to a small town, where he begins to die of gangrene from the arrows in his leg. After traveling quickly to find Gus, Woodrow finds him lying in bed, close to death. As they sit there talking, Gus begins to fade quickly and Woodrow lays his hand on Gus’s chest, and holds his hand, and Gus looks up at Woodrow and whispers “My God, it’s been quite a party”.

About two years ago, my dad’s abdominal aorta ruptured, and we came very close to losing him. As we waited for the long surgery to be over, I went to the chapel in the hospital and began to pray. I began to pray for my dad to get better, for everything to be alright, for God to not take my dad away from me. But then I realized that there is a big difference in God taking my dad away, and receiving him. I then began to pray for God to be with the doctors and nurses and to guide their hands, and to be with my mom and make her strong, to be with my family, and lastly, to give me peace. I love telling this story, because as soon as I thought the word peace, I immediately felt peace. I felt a physical love and happiness and joy that I can only describe as when you’re walking outside, and it’s cold, and it’s raining and sleet is coming in sideways, and you open the door of your house and the heater is on inside full blast and you feel that warmth spread over every inch of you, making you feel instantly better. That physical feeling, that love and that joy that I felt that day, was the most beautiful and joyous thing I have ever felt in my life, and even though I only felt it for a split second, that was all I needed. I know now that that feeling of love, and happiness, and peace, is now what my dad gets to feel all the time. And I can only wait and pray for the day, hopefully years from now, when my mom, and my family and I get to sit with my dad, and feel that love and happiness again.

On Monday night, as my dad lay there, surrounded by his beautiful wife, his children, grandchildren, and friends, I laid my hand on his chest, held his hand, and whispered quietly into his ear “My God, it’s been quite a party”.

Did You Notice the Clown???

I am an avid reader. You all know this. I read everything I can get my hands onto. I picked this up from my old man, who read more than anyone I’ve ever known. As I’ve gotten older, I realize that reading is probably one of the single greatest things my old man ever taught me to do. It’s served me well countless times.

One of the things I read every month is the magazine “Gentleman’s Quarterly”, or more commonly known as “GQ”. Not only does “GQ” have great style tips (if anyone wants to buy me the suit on page 56 of April’s edition, I’d appreciate it), but I think it also has a finger on the pulse of current culture and trends. One of my favorite articles in “GQ” is the letter from the Editor. This month’s Letter from the Editor happened to particularly catch my eye, because it’s something that I feel like I have said time and time again, and I’m going to say it again before MY article is done.

At the start of the article, the Editor begins by saying that recently he was walking on the street when he was seen by one of his friends, who didn’t even stop him to say hello. This was unknown by the Editor until later on, when he actually did talk to his friend. The Editor asked his friend why he didn’t stop to say hello, to which the friend replied “Man, you were in your own orbit. You were looking down at your hand-held (a geek’s term for an iPhone, BlackBerry etc…), just totally locked in, answering emails or tweeting or texting. I didn’t want to bother you.” The Editor replied, “You should’ve called me on my hand-held, I totally would’ve answered…”

The Editor then goes on to talk about an article HE read (funny, an article about an article about someone reading an article…follow me here…) that said that scientists recently did a study in which a clown riding a unicycle rode by people in public. Out of all of the people studied, only about twenty-five percent of people who were talking on cell phones at the time the clown rode by noticed the clown. Twenty-five percent…that means if there were one hundred people, only twenty-five of them noticed.

Shocking.

But not really...

I’ll be the first to admit, I’m usually locked away in my own little world of texting, emailing, Twitter-ing, or facebooking. It’s funny, we are more connected as human beings have ever been, yet at the same time are grossly unconnected.

We as humans, by nature, are social creatures, yet our current society has made us more unsocial than ever.

This has lead me to believe, what else are we missing out there? According to these fancy scientists, and by scientists I mean people who have a clown out riding around on a unicycle, twenty-five percent of us wouldn’t even notice a CLOWN RIDING A UNICYCLE!!!

In Christ’s day and times, people really were connected. They didn’t have emails or facebooks, yet they were connected in real ways. They walked with each other, they traveled with each other, they *gasp* talked to one another. Actually talked, not texted! I have to think that these people, the original disciples, had to be the most spiritual and closest to Christ people that have ever walked the earth! Not just because they actually got to walk with Christ, but because they were legitimately connected to Him. They actually listened to His words. They actually listened to His stories. They actually heard His message.

Now granted, they may have had a slight advantage. The disciples got to walk and talk with a walking talking Messiah.

But, I would go so far as to say we have an opportunity to do the same. The Bible gives us the same words, the same stories, the same message, but we have failed to utilize those tools we’ve been given! We can’t pick up a Bible, because we can’t put down our phones or log out of facebook! (Just so you know I’m not just bashing facebook here, I’m most likely going to blog this article and post a link to that blog on my facebook account!)

So, people, I’m saying again, put the phones down! Look up from the computer screens every now and then! I’m not just telling you to do this, I’m YELLING at myself to do this! Our personal Lord and Savior can be as real today as He was to the disciples back then, the only difference is, WE have to be His voice! We have to walk and talk for Him! He’s given us the tools, I know you know Him, and I know you can do it. I know WE can do it!!! The question is…will we???

Wake up and see the clown around you! But not only that, wake up and see Christ around you! Wake up and make Christ walk and talk around you!!!

Love, peace, and all other things that matter,

Gabriel “Gabe” Stokes

The Son of Man Forgives and Heals

John 5:17-26

¹⁷ On one of those days while He was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea, and also from Jerusalem. And the Lord's power to heal was in Him. ¹⁸ Just then some men came, carrying on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed. They tried to bring him in and set him down before Him. ¹⁹ Since they could not find a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the roof tiles into the middle of the crowd before Jesus.

²⁰ Seeing their faith He said, "Friend, your sins are forgiven you."

²¹ Then the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason: "Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?"

²² But perceiving their thoughts, Jesus replied to them, "Why are you reasoning this in your hearts? ²³ Which is easier: to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you,' or to say, 'Get up and walk'? ²⁴ But so you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"—He told the paralyzed man, "I tell you: get up, pick up your stretcher, and go home."

²⁵ Immediately he got up before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. ²⁶Then everyone was astounded, and they were giving glory to God. And they were filled with awe and said, "We have seen incredible things today!"

Ok. Everyone has most likely heard that story by now. But let’s go back, and break it down. This story happens around the area of Capernaum, which is usually accepted as Jesus’ hometown. Now at this point in the Gospels, Jesus’ ministry and teachings were still in their early phases. Jesus had done some cool stuff, but some of his bigger miracles and more widely known sermons are still in the future. Stuff like the formal calling of his twelve disciples, his preaching of what we call the Beatitudes, the first saying of The Lord’s Prayer, resurrecting Lazarus, a lot of His famous parables, all of those things are still in the future at this point.

But, like with anyone today, anyone famous, people were starting to pick up on the buzz that Jesus was creating. So it’s no surprise that a lot of people are there to see this guy named Jesus that they’ve been hearing all this talk about. The Bible says that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law there, and it doesn’t even mention all of the “common people” that were there. So I imagine it’s a really large crowd.

Now think about a really large crowd. When I think crowd, I think Six Flags… It’s always hot, everyone is always sweaty, you’re standing next to complete strangers waiting to ride the Texas Giant, not everyone smells that great… Yeah, think crowd like that.

So then, through the crowd, walk these men. Carrying their friend, who is paralyzed, on a stretcher. Trying to get their friend somewhat even remotely close to Jesus. So their pushing, trying to get closer, I imagine some of the crowd is giving them dirty looks, there are toes getting stepped on, that kind of thing. Like trying to go to the concession stand during the middle of a movie when you’re sitting in the middle of the row. You know you get those groans and those dirty looks? Yeah, that’s what’s happening.

So these men, they’re trying to get their buddy close to Jesus, just on the off chance that if they can even get close to this guy Jesus who is supposedly doing all of these miracles and helping all of these people, maybe, just maybe, He will help their friend.

But, they can’t get close…

They can’t even get close to the building.

So at this point in the story, it would be really easy for these guys to say “Hey man, sorry bud. Tried to get you close to Jesus, didn’t work out. You see this crowd? Sorry…”

But, they didn’t. If they would’ve stopped there and turned around I wouldn’t have much of a sermon today.

So lets skip over the trouble it mustve been to get onto the roof of this house, and get to the part where they lower their paralytic friend in through the roof.

Wait a second. Lower their friend in through the roof. Yeah, that’s what the Bible says. But the Bible is trying to get to the point and doesn’t mention that these guys have to start tearing apart the roof! I don’t know what the roof was made of, maybe some tiles, maybe some mud, with a little bit of straw thrown in there, whatever, THESE GUYS ARE TEARING APART THE ROOF!!! I’ve never done roofing, but I’ve seen guys that do roofing, and I would not want any part of that.

So these guys, these friends, and I stress friends because they would have to really care about this paralytic to be going through all this trouble, are up on a roof, tearing it apart. So think about the noise that’s going on in this room that Jesus is in. There’s probably banging, and dirt is probably falling down on everyone inside of the room… Like I said, the Bible gets straight to the point, and sometimes in doing that, leaves out some of the little details. So really think about what is going on here, and it sounds kind of crazy. Some guys, are on top of the house, breaking apart the roof, and here Jesus is trying to talk…

So these men finally get a hole in the roof that is big enough to lower their paralytic friend down into, and they lower him into the room right in front of Jesus. These men don’t even get in to see Jesus?!? They don’t even get to talk to Him? Like I said, these must be really good friends.

So then we get down to the point of the story…

Jesus sees the faith that this paralytic has, but really, I think he also sees the faith that the friends have! How could he not. These guys just did some crazy stuff, not for themselves, not for any benefit of theirs, they did it, just for a friend. A selfless act of friendship…

So Jesus says to the paralytic, “Friend, your sins are forgiven”. Jesus doesn’t say anything about ‘Your healed”. No, not yet.

Well at this point all the Pharisees get into a frenzy. They start getting flustered. They’re saying to themselves “Well, now hang on a second. Who does this guy think he is? Yeah, ok, he’s said some good stuff, and he’s a pretty good teacher, but come on. Forgiving sins??? Only God can do that.”

Well Jesus knows what’s going on in their heads, and so He turns to them and he says “Why are ya’ll acting like this? Is it easier to say that Your sins are forgiven, or to say Get up and walk.”

Now, this part is my favorite part. Now let me be clear. I don’t think Jesus did anything by accident. I think he knew exactly what his plans were, and what was going to happen, but I also think that he was open to the Holy Spirit making an opportunity to do something awesome. So I think what he did next was just that.

So then Jesus says “ Alright, you know what Pharisees guys, check this out. Just so you know that I can, and just so you know that I am who I say I am, and just so you know that I have authority to forgive sins,” now he turns to the paralyzed man and he says “You. Get up. Pick up your stretcher. Go home.”

And then, the paralyzed man does. And he doesn’t hesitate. It says “Immediately” he got up before them.

And of course, everyone is amazed. Everyone is in awe. Everyone is giving God the glory. And can you imagine this once paralyzed man? You think he “walked” home? No way! He’s running and jumping and dancing the whole way home.

So, I like this story. I really like this story. I think though, that in this story, the friends, get lost. If you just read straight through this story, the friends are only in the very first half.

Now, the Bible, at least my version, doesn’t actually use the word “Friend”. But I have to think, I have to figure, I have to believe, that these guys are all friends. I don’t see it happening any other way. The man on the mat is paralyzed. He cant work. He has no money. He has nothing to pay them back with. He cant tell them that he’ll do something for them in the future. So these men, out of sheer friendship, do something selfless for this paralytic. In looking at it at first, they get nothing out of this deal, except being covered in whatever this roof was made out of, and staring down at the top of Jesus’ head. But think…about it. After this is all over with, after they get down off of the roof, after they deal with an angry homeowner who now has a hole in his roof, what do they have? They have an amazing shared experience together. They have an amazing thing to tell their children. They have an amazing thing to tell their grandchildren. They have witnessed, a miracle. They have witnessed, their friend, who just seconds ago couldn’t move, get up, pick up his mat, and head for home. They have witnessed Jesus the Christ, perform a miracle. And they played a part in it. How awesome would that be?

You know, I have a lot of friends. Over the years, I’ve had even more friends than I have now. I had a lot of really good friends in high school. I had some people that I was friends with since back in the fourth grade. You know what? I don’t talk to most of them anymore. Kinda sad. But I don’t. A lot of them still live in Abilene. Only thirty minutes away. I’m there a lot through the week. But still, I don’t see them a lot. I don’t talk to them much either.

Now, those, are school friends. I haven’t gotten to talking about my real friends yet.

A lot of what I would call my “real friends”, they’re from camp. I’ve been going to Lake Brownwood Christian Retreat since I was in fourth grade. And I have made tons of friends there. Lifelong friends.

People like my friend Keith “Skippy” Lewis. I talk about this guy all the time. I call him my mentor. Kind of like the Merlin to my King Arthur. I take a little creative liscence there and make myself a king, but whatever… But this guy Keith, I call him my mentor, and, after my dad, Keith has probably made the biggest influence on my life, more so than anyone else. I call him for advice on stuff, I called him for advice on this sermon. He’ll call me to tell me a joke he heard, or something really funny or cool that happened to him. One day, a couple of weeks ago actually, I was having a bad day. Nothing serious at all, just one of those bad days, where I didn’t feel like talking to anyone or seeing anybody, you know, they happen sometime. Well Skip calls me, and just says, “Hey man, whats happening? Wanted to say whats up, hope youre doing okay, and let you know that I love ya. Anyways, gotta run, taking my girls to cheerleading practice, just wanted to say, whats up. Hope you have a great day. Love ya.” I remember looking down at my phone after we had both hung up, and that phone call only lasted a short 47 seconds. I had said maybe a couple of words. That phone call wasn’t about what I had to say, it was about what Skip wanted to say. Just took 47 seconds. That was it. Totally changed my day. Totally changed my life. The rest of the day, I’m walking around with a smile on my face.

Keith, married his wife Brenda a little over a year ago. I got to do a part of that wedding and it was an honor to do so. Brenda has two daughters from a previous marriage and Keith treats them like his own and they love him like they love their dad, but when we found out that Brenda was going to have another baby, all us were really excited about it. A little Skip! We were just praying that the baby would get Brenda’s looks.

January 26, 2010, Brenda gave birth to Madison Grace Lewis. That night, Skip called me. He told me it was amazing, and he couldn’t talk long because the baby was right there and asleep, but he just wanted to tell me everything, and both mom and the baby were cool and doing fine. Then he says “Alright man, gotta go. Love ya Uncle Gabe.” That’s amazing.

And what is amazing to me about that, and about all of my relationships with people I know from camp, is how strong those friendships are. Keith is just one example. I haven’t even gotten to my friends Tyler and Zach. I talk to those guys every single day. Tyler and Zach both come here to Albany all the time. Tyler says it’s like his getaway. Me and Zach stay up all night sitting on my porch just talking. Those are stories for another sermon and maybe another time altogether. Me Zach and Tyler call ourselves The Tripod. Because if you kick one of us down, the whole thing is gonna fall. That should tell you enough right there.

My friend Mandi. I’ve known Mandi since I was in the seventh grade, and she was in the sixth. She beat me in basketball at camp. And so of course I liked her. We were camp boyfriend and girlfriend, serious stuff. Just this past summer, I got to be one of the ministers that married Mandi and her husband Dan Ruff. Dan is an Albany boy. So now, I have one of my best friends in the whole wide world, Mandi, who I was used to seeing three or four times a year, living in the same town. What are the chances of that? And not only that, I get to be friends with her husband Dan, who is just an awesome shirt off his back for you kinda guy. How great is that?

So I look at all of these friendships of mine, and I look back at this story from Luke. A story that I believe, is a story just as much about friendship as it is about a miracle of Christ. I look at all of this and I wonder, what is the common factor here?

One word.

Christ.

Jesus Christ is the common factor in all of this. Because I truly believe, that a friendship, a relationship, a partnership, all of these things that are created in Christ, all of these things that are lived through Christ, all of these things that are rooted in faith and in Christ, these are the things that are going to last.

You know, when you get down to the basics, you get down to the brass tacks, I think friendship is a big part of the teachings and message that Jesus Christ came to give to us in the first place. Could you imagine what this place would be like if we could all just be friends? I know it sounds cliché and very John Lennon like, but think about it for a second. If we could just get over the little squabbles and insecurities that we have with ourselves and could just love everybody for a minute, imagine the difference something like that could make. During my time at First Christian Abilene, a lot of people there, weren’t friends. A lot of the congregation members, members of the same church, weren’t friends. How ridiculous does that sound?!? I came to this church, and I was blown away. Everyone is friends here. Do you know how nice it is to be in a board meeting, and to hear laughter? Do you know how amazing it is to be able to see someone walking up those stairs for church on Sunday morning and to be able to joke with them and laugh? Do you know how amazing it is to be driving through town and get a wave from everyone you see?

The love and the friendship of this church is truly amazing. You all have something to be truly proud of, because seriously, it’s amazing. But, I like to end my sermons with a challenge. And it’s a challenge to myself, just as much, if not more than it is a challenge to all of you as well. I want all of you, in this next week, in this next month, in this next year, to really think to yourself, what a difference we could make, if we were just, everyones friend. Sounds simple enough doesn’t it? Need another push?

My favorite scripture, my very favorite verse comes from John. Christ had just washed all of his disciples feet. An act that was usually reserved for the servants. Christ had just eaten his last supper with his disciples. Christ wanted to give his disciples, a last command.

Christlike Love

⁹ "As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in My love. ¹⁰ If you keep My commands you will remain in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commands and remain in His love.

¹¹ "I have spoken these things to you so that My joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. ¹² This is My command: love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴ You are My friends if you do what I command you. ¹⁵ I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn't know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from My Father. ¹⁶ You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you. ¹⁷ This is what I command you: love one another.

I hope you all take me up on my challenge, although, it’s not really my challenge. It’s Christ’s command. I hope you’ll follow it. You never know how a 47 second phone call could change someone’s life.