Be Here
Bible Passage:
Revelation 3:1-6
Pastor:
Pastor Mike
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Sermon Date:
2010-08-28
Dead bodies bother me. Whenever I attend a funeral, I’m never too excited to wait in line to see the body. Maybe it’s the childhood fear that the corpse’s eyes are going to snap open and his cold hands will lunge for mine. But mostly what bothers me is the body itself. Embalmers work meticulously to make the dead look like alive. Cosmetics hide signs of decay. Lipstick paints a pale mouth. Blush brightens up a colorless face. Skin is stretched. Hair is done. Hands are folded. All in an attempt to make our loved ones appear not dead and gone, but alive and here.
When Dr. Jesus examined the church at Sardis, he warned them of a similar danger. Sardis looked alive to the outside world. Historically, they were the western capital of the Persian Empire. Architecturally, they had one of the seven largest Greek Temples in the world. Spiritually, they had a church where people prayed and sang and confessed and communed and worshiped. They had a reputation for being alive in every way. But in Revelation 3, Jesus says, “1To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spiritsof God and the seven stars [that’s Jesus]. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” Jesus saw past the lipstick and blush, past the sound of prayers and praise, and diagnosed the heart. The world thought Sardis was alive. But Sardis was dead.
What gives a person today a reputation for having spiritual life? What makes people say, “He’s very close to God; She’s a strong Christian”? Since no one can see our hearts, that diagnosis has to based on the things the world can see. Where you sit on a Sunday morning. Whether you pray before the first bite at dinner. Whether you say things like, “God bless you,” “God willing,” or “God has a plan for all of us.” These things give us a reputation of being spiritually alive. But sometimes when the world sees a living being, Jesus identifies a cold corpse. “You have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.” Exactly what Jesus warned us of in the gospel lesson—“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” They look alive and well, but they’re dead. They’re not really “here”.
The diagnosis deserves our attention because one day Jesus will return. And here’s a glimpse of what won’t happen: One cloudy afternoon, a trumpet blasts into the ears of all mankind. The sky is ripped open and Jesus appears, flanked by 10,000 angels. All history gives up its dead and humanity stands before Jesus to be judged. First in line is Joe. 47 years old. Khaki shorts. Receding hair line. Trembling, Joe awaits Jesus’ decision. Just then, an angel swoops to Jesus’ side with a book in his hand. A church directory. Flipping through the pages, Jesus finds Joe’s picture—a little more hair back then, but definitely Joe. Jesus nods in approval. Six people back in the line, a woman raises her hand, “Excuse me, Jesus. I am…uh, was…Joe’s neighbor. And I can tell you he went to church almost every Sunday. He even had a fish sticker on the back of his Ford Taurus. “Wow!” Jesus shouts. “Very impressive!” The angels flap their wings in agreement. Jesus grabs Joe by both shoulders. “Well done, good and faithful servant. Welcome to heaven!”
And that is what won’t happen on Judgment Day. Jesus’ decision will not be based on our reputations. His final verdict will not depend on the church directory. Does being part of a church and attending on Sunday and sharing the faith matter to Jesus? Absolutely! But he will not examine the outward record of our lives without first looking at the state of our hearts. Because it is possible to have a reputation of being alive, but actually be dead. It’s possible to honor God with our lips, but have unbelieving hearts that are far from him.
Jesus examines us with those words, too. Perhaps you have a reputation of being spiritually alive. Going to church will probably make that happen. But most of us realize it’s much easier to get here than to “be” here. Being here in church is rarely the problem. “Being” here in this moment often is. We regurgitate the creed instead of believing it. We auto-pilot through the song and praise no one. We mentally prance through afternoon plans while we pray. We pay close attention to the clock, but little attention to the Word. Sometimes our lips move and eyes blink and hands fold, but we lack a spiritual pulse. We’re here, but we’re not “here.” Our lips honor God, but our hearts are far away. We look alive, but we’re dead in the pew.
Jesus’ diagnosis is clear—“2Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. 3Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.” Wake up! Before Jesus cuts past the reputation and exposes a dead heart. Wake up and repent!
Repent—Jesus’ only prescription for sin. What is repentance? It has two parts—first, we turn from our dead sins; then we turn towards the living Savior for forgiveness. It’s like breathing. We breathe out our sin—our mindless prayers and empty worship. And then we breathe in our forgiveness, the air of Jesus.
On the night before he died, Jesus asked his disciples to stay awake and pray with him. While he agonized over his approaching death, they snored away in a garden. When Jesus found them sleeping, what did he do? Abandon them? Condemn them? No, he shook them awake. And then he loved them enough to die for them. And Jesus does the same for us. He shakes us with these words today. And then he shouts, “Repent…and remember what you have received and heard! The cross. I hung for you, to take away dead sins. Remember? The tomb. I rose from the dead to give you eternal life. Remember? I make you alive, pure and perfect. Remember? I dress you in white so you can stand before God at the judgment and live. Remember? I have given you my Word right here. I have placed faith right here. I have written your name in my book right here. And one day I will say to my Father and to all the angels, “Father, this is one of ours, one I have made alive when he was dead. One I have covered in white who was stained in black sin. Here are their names in our book. They have overcome through faith in me. They have conquered the evil one through faith in me. And now they get to be with us right here.”
“They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. 6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
My friends, God’s love is here. In this Word that we study in this place. So don’t just come here. Be here. Before he died in 2007, famous tenor Luciano Pavarotti shared the life-changing advice his father had given him. God had blessed Luciano with a stunning voice and the chance to study under a professional from his hometown. However, Luciano also loved to teach and got a degree in education. After graduation, he asked his father, “Shall I be a teacher or a singer?” “Luciano,” his father replied, “if you try to sit on two chairs, you will fall between them. You must choose one.” And his son did. Pavarotti later shared, “It took seven years of study and frustration before I made my first professional appearance. It took another seven years to reach the Metropolitan Opera. And now I think whether it’s laying bricks, writing a book—whatever we choose—we should give ourselves to it. Commitment, that’s the key. Choose one chair.”
Whenever we come to church, stop to pray, or open our Bibles, both God and the devil offer us a chair, a place to sit. God’s chair is meant for focused attention, spiritual growth, and life. The devil’s chair is for afternoon plans, silly daydreams, and death. Our minds might want to multi-task, to sit on both chairs, but Pavarotti’s father was right. If we try, we’ll fall to the ground. We’ll be here but we won’t be here.
Sit on God’s chair. Fight for his Word. Remember to “be here” during every song, every lesson, every prayer, every confession, every blessing. Don’t come to church to relax. Come to church to work. Take sermon notes. Study the hymns. Apply the prayers. Bring your own Bible and highlight, circle, and underline. When your mind strays, shout, “Be here!” And you will find life. “Faith comes from hearing the message.”
One example--Just think of the familiar words we’re about to hear tonight. But don’t just hear them. Be here to hear them. “On the night he was betrayed...if I was about to be betrayed I would be angry…Jesus took bread. And when he had given thanks…Jesus thanked God in the midst of his betrayal…he broke it and gave it to his disciples…he gave a gift to those messed-up, sinful men…and he said, ‘Take and eat. This is my body. Take and drink. This is my blood of the new covenant…The new covenant? Isn’t that God’s promise to forgive and forget every single one of our sins?...which is given for you…for me?!? God personalizes this gift for me?!?...Go in peace…How could I not go in peace? I’ve been forgiven and dressed in pure white by the body and blood of Christ!”
Our services are filled with moments just like that. Every time you open your Bible is filled with words just like that. If you sit on God’s chair, you’ll see it. If you wake up, you’ll hear it. If you climb out of the casket and listen with living ears, you’ll be stunned by it. I thank God for every person who comes here. With the help of our God, let’s also be here. Amen.
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