Hearing God's Word

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It has been suggested that there are no more fundamental questions that a human being can ask than: “Is God there?” and “Does he care?” And it seems to me that these questions are never asked with greater frequency and urgency than during times of conflict and war – times when death, destruction and widespread human suffering are sadly all too common. And they are questions that are also often asked on days like today when we remember those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in service of their country and we may be tempted to wonder was it, or is it, really all worth it?

My own thoughts take me to the trenches of the First World War and the Tynecot Cemetery near Ypres in Belgium where nearly 12,000 men are buried. Row upon row of gravestones almost as far as the eye can see. My thoughts also take me to the Normandy beaches where nearly 4,500 men died in a single day as they fought to gain a foothold on mainland Europe in June 1944. And my thoughts also take me to desert in Aghanistan and the memory of my friends and colleagues who lost their lives when their Nimrod was engulfed in flames and crashed near Kandahar.

From the sodden trenches of WW1 to the battlefields of Northern Europe to the islands of the South Atlantic to the deserts and trouble strewn Middle East: nation still rages against nation and we can be compelled to ask “Is God really there and does he care?”

And whilst we shouldn’t feel guilty about asking these questions from time to time, they are questions that all of us need an answer to. If the answer to these questions is no, then life really is a free-for-all and we must do all we can to look after ourselves. And – yes – the one with the most toys, the most money, the most guns & bombs – and the most power – really does win. But if the answer to these questions is yes – God is there, then finding him (or perhaps more accurately) responding to him is our most basic need and a fundamental issue.

As we continue our series in Luke’s Gospel these are questions are addressed, providentially, in the second part of our text this morning. But we are going to look at the first part of our text too because it is crucial for understanding that the only way we are going to get any answer is to listen to the word. God’s word – the Bible – is the way that he has chosen to reveal himself to you and to me.

So let’s take another look at the words of Jesus in this passage. This account comes hot on the heels of Jesus’ parable of the four soils – a parable that was basically about different responses (represented by the soils) to the word of God (represented by the seed) in people’s lives over time. Jesus moves on to talk about the word (seed) and its importance now using the imagery of light.

So my first point this morning is...

1. BE CAREFUL HOW YOU LISTEN TO THE WORD
v.16-18

... because there is a lot at stake.

Jesus challenges his audience, both then to the crowds and the disciples, and today to those who read these words; his challenge is to respond to what he says. His message is “put on a stand, so that those who come in can see the light.” Jesus describes the word as a light and we would do well to pay attention to this light for two reasons.

Firstly, light illuminates or guides us. And like a light being lit in a dark place, Jesus’ message can guide us through life in the darkness of this world. And if there is one thing that war and conflict does in this world, it is to bring out much darkness through pain, suffering, confusion and despair. But God’s words can guide us through such times.

Secondly (v.17) light reveals the true state of things. If we read God’s word we understand that we live in a world that is under a curse and is in open rebellion to its Creator. War and the human pain and suffering and tragedy that go with that, are all consequences of that rebellion. The ultimate consequence of that rebellion is death for all of us because of our own rebellion to God. But the Bible also reveals that God has done something about it through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. It reveals that Jesus’ death pays the price that all of us deserve and so if we believe and trust in him one day we will join him in the new heavens and the new earth, where there will be no more pain, suffering or tragedy. This is the Christian hope that the light reveals!

So God’s word illuminates to guide and illuminates to reveal the reality. That’s why…

… on the 4th June 1944, just two days before D-Day, US Army Chaplain George Barber held services on 11 different ships in Weymouth Harbour for thousands and thousands of soldiers. During those services, Chaplain Barber distributed many Service Testaments provided by Gideons. “Those men were anxious to get a Bible,” Chaplain Barber later said, and he was anxious to give them one. During those services he shone the light of the 23rd Psalm and emphasised the truth that no matter what “God is in control”. “We’re on His side,” he encouraged them. “Jesus gave his life for us and we may have to give our lives for Him and for our country. He knows all about it and He’s with us here.” Two days later, on June 6th, as his boat approached the shore of Omaha Beach, the ramp came down and Chaplain Barber led his men into enemy fire on the beach. Unlike all the men around him, the Chaplain was entering into the crossfire with no weapon other than the Word of God.“When we began to weave our way into the shore, there were bodies floating in the water, even that far out, men who had started the landing earlier in the day,” said Barber. “When we got closer to the shore there were lots of Higgins boats around us. One about forty meters from us hit a mine and blew up. Killed everybody. The bodies were floating in the water with pocket Bibles bobbing.” In 2001, three years before his death, Chaplain Barber reflected on those days and weighed up the eternal significance of his role in that historic D-Day invasion. The Chaplain summed up his emotions simply thus: “I’m glad I had a part in the distribution of those Bibles.”

Barber could say that - because he knew the importance of what Jesus here calls the light.

He knew that God’s word could guide his men and he knew that God’s word could reveal the true reality that this world is not all there is, and therefore he knew that God’s word provides hope despite the circumstances. Therefore, Jesus goes on to say that because the light guides, because it reveals the truth then (v18) consider carefully how you listen to it, and he gives the following warning. To him who listens and responds to what he hears – more will be given. But to him who does not listen – even what he thinks he has now, will be taken away.

Perhaps a good analogy here is a muscle. For a muscle to grow and be strengthened and to have more added to it - it must be exercised. But if a muscle is left unused (what happens to it?) it withers, becomes weak and useless. And so it is with us before God’s word. It is impossible to be in a neutral state – either we growing stronger as we listen carefully or we are growing weaker as we refuse to listen to God’s word.

How you is your listening going? How much care do you take to hear God?

There are some very practical things we can do to take more care in our listening. We can listen carefully by…
• ...praying for insight before, during and after hearing the word.
• ...coming with the right attitude, expectant and desiring for God to speak to us - whether it’s our favourite preacher or not. I think sometimes we can let our view of the human speaker (either positive or negative) influence the way we listen to God. Take care and work hard on hearing God and God alone.
• ...taking notes to remind ourselves what we have learnt, or what God has laid on our hearts as we have listened to his word.
• ...checking what we have heard in discussion with friends and family over coffee afterwards or at the Parish lunch!
We must be disciplined to listen carefully, but my second main point this morning is this:

2. DON’T JUST LISTEN – ACT
v.19-21

Luke records that because of the crowds, Jesus’ mother and brothers were unable to get near him. Word obviously reaches Jesus that they want to see him and he responds “my sister and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” Now, don’t get hung up on this passage as if in some way Jesus is rejecting his family. We know that this is not the case because there are other Gospel accounts where we see Jesus care deeply for his biological family. But here, Luke doesn’t tell us whether Jesus gets to see his family or not, because it is not central to the point he is making. And that point is that to be truly related to Jesus is not just to hear what he says, but to act in response to what you hear. It’s interesting to note that this episode must have made an impression on at least one of Jesus’ brothers. James, initially sceptical of his brother’s claims but later converted, writes “Do not merely listen to the word...do what it says.” (James 1v22) Later he writes “What good is it... if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?” (James 2v14)

All of which is to reinforce the point that we can’t divorce listening and action if we claim to be Christians.

To be a Christian is to act on what Jesus says. We were talking about this in our Home Group this past Wednesday evening. We were talking about a friend of mine who described himself as a Christian, but said that he didn’t need to go to church to be a Christian. Of course on one level he is absolutely right – going to church doesn’t make you a Christian. Just by attending JPC doesn’t make you a Christian, just like being born in a certain country or to a certain family doesn’t make you a Christian. What my friend needed to realise was that according to the very man he said he followed, to be part of his true family means listening carefully to him through his word, and then following and obeying what the word says in repentance and faith. And with regards to going to church…the word says that we should not give up meeting together.

My friends, firstly we are to be careful how we listen and secondly we must also act on what we hear, but you may be wondering why we should listen to Jesus in the first place. What authority does he have to demand so much from me? Well from v.22 Jesus begins to perform more miracles that are, in part, designed to reveal his true identity. And once we get Jesus identity right, we will understand why we should listen and obey him. So my third point:

3. WHY WE SHOULD LISTEN
– because JESUS IS GOD

I’d like for you to imagine the scene described from v.22 on for a moment. Try and place yourselves in the sandals of one of the disciples. The crowds have been growing, the days have been very busy and you’ve heard and seen some pretty amazing things from Jesus – not all of which (if you were being honest) you fully understand yet. Then one day Jesus suggests a trip to the other side of the Lake. As you and Jesus set about crossing the lake (actually the Sea of Galilee) a severe storm kicks up. Now you were a professional fisherman, you know only too well the volatile conditions that can occur on the Sea of Galilee, due to its location nearly 700’ below sea level. You know how common severe storms are – but there is something extreme about this one and you fear for your very life. The boat begins to take on water, it is being thrown about in the waves and you can see the panic in the faces of your friends. And then remarkably you notice that Jesus is still asleep. And so you go over and wake him up shouting above the noise of the storm, “Master, master – we’re going to drown!” Some of you even add “Jesus, don’t you care?” Then Jesus wakes up, gets up and he speaks to the wind and to the raging waves and at his word calm is immediately restored.

Jesus turns from rebuking the storm and looks you in the eye and asks “Where is your faith?” As you stand in that boat, staggered by what has just transpired in front of your very eyes, passages that you have heard read in the Synagogue Sunday School come rushing to the forefront of you mind. Passages such as the one we heard read from Nahum earlier: Nahum 1:4 The Lord “...rebukes the sea and he dries it up.” And verse 7 “The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who put their trust in him.”

And you think of passages such as Psalm 107 “...in their peril their courage melted away. They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits end. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.”

You know it is only God who can do such things. The control of nature is not in the hands of a mere man. And full of fear and marvel you ask “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water and they obey him.”

Now, we can’t be too hard on the disciples for asking such a question, because it is a good one. This is the question that everyone has to wrestle with and get an answer to, be they the disciples then, or us here today. Earlier Jesus had forgiven sins, now he is exerting his power of nature, all the time he is teaching with unparalleled authority and slowly the jigsaw pieces are falling into place for the disciples. In time they will come to see that Jesus is God himself in human form. And the main point of this episode isn’t for us to marvel at how powerful Jesus is as he calms the sea. The main point is that Jesus wants to remind us of his authority and care for us in the metaphorical storms of life.

He is there and he does care. And the fact that he is God means he can do something about it.

It might not seem like it at times, it certainly didn’t initially to the disciples in this episode. I’m sure for those soldiers storming the Normandy beaches it didn’t seem like it. I’m sure for my friends who came hurtling to earth in a Nimrod that turned into a fireball it didn’t seem like it. But appearances can be deceptive.

Even though Jesus appeared absent and uncaring he was there and they could have rested in the knowledge that he knew what was happening to them, if only they had enough faith. Faith would have told them that God would take them through the storm one way or another. How we like the disciples need to be reminded of this truth. We need a faith that will hang in there under pressure, a faith that Jesus had previously described (at the end of the previous parable in v. 15) as holding and retaining the word with patience and perseverance.

And so my last point is simply this challenge. Will you:

4. TRUST GOD
v22-25

To the question “Is God there?” Yes! He has revealed himself to us through Jesus and as we continue going through Luke you will see many times the proof that Jesus is actually God. He is not just a preacher, healer or prophet but he is God himself in human form.

To the question “Does he care?” You bet he does! If this episode teaches us nothing else it teaches us this:

That when the hostile waves in life pull us down … the waves of warfare and the waves of death, the waves of loss, of depression, the waves of illness, of unmet or unfulfilled dreams … when the hostile waves in life pull us down – and they will – there is only one way to turn. And that is to the only one who can calm those waves. It is to the only one who has the power to restore order. However great our plight, however dangerous our situation, however impossible it may appear, Jesus is aware and he is able to deliver, because he is God and we are not, and he calls us to trust him.

We need to remember however, that Jesus doesn’t promise to deliver us from such situations any and every time they affect us. Indeed deliverance often comes through our trials rather than from them as Nahum 1:3, that we heard earlier, says the Lord’s… “way is in the whirlwind and the storm.” Let’s listen in to a bit more of Lt Colonel Barber’s recollections from D-Day:

“Men were being killed all around me. We were all trying to dodge the bullets… Men were crying and praying and helping each other. Our men were shooting and throwing hand grenades. German soldiers were firing at them all up and down the beach.”Barber made his way to his men who had fallen. “I talked to as many as I could and prayed with them. I said, ‘Trust in God.’” As men died in his arms, the Chaplain quoted Jesus’ words from John 14 verses 1 and 2, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions…”

I don’t know what storms you might be facing in your lives right now. Maybe you need to trust him for the first time ever in your life. Maybe you need to recommit to trusting him anew, because things have frankly gone a little off track recently. Maybe for you it is just good to hear a reminder that you are not been made for trusting in him in your life to date.

He is there. He does care.

The questions you must answer are “will you do more than just listen?”, “will you act on what you hear?” and “will you trust him with your very life?”



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