Brown's Daily Word 3/23/11

Praise the Lord or this new day. Since most of the Southern Tier of New York is under a winter storm warning until tomorrow morning, we will not be gathering for our Mid-week service this evening. All of the local schools in Broome County are closed today, as are many in Cortland and Chenango Counties. It came as a surprise since so many snow days have already been taken by the districts this year. Due to the snow event, the choir will not meet either.
The Epistle reading for last Sunday was taken from Romans 4. Up until this point in Paul’s letter to the Roman Church, Paul had stressed faith as the way -- the only way -- to salvation. To counter any arguments from Jewish Christians in the congregation, Paul used the example of Abraham as one who was made right with God -- justified -- by faith.
The word “faith” as Paul uses it in the Greek language is pis tis, and means a conviction in the truthfulness of God. Greek was a primary language which Paul used and the language in which the epistle to the Roman church was written. This is the kind of faith Abraham had, a conviction in the truthfulness of God. This faith - this conviction - is what God recognized when he, “credited his faith to him as righteousness.”
Everyone has faith in something or in somebody. Even a lack of faith denotes a kind of faith. In the Communicator’s Commentary, written by Dr. Stuart Briscoe, he writes, “The object of faith is what really matters, more than anything else. Some people who had strong faith in thin ice never lived to tell the tale but died by faith. Others who had weak faith in thick ice were as safe as if they stood on concrete.” In whom do we have faith? If we are Christians then we have faith in the Almighty God, the God of Heaven and Earth, who spoke the universe and this earth into being. Whether we have faith is not the question. The question really should be, “In whom do have faith?” Abraham is representative of those who believe in God.
Abraham who first believed God by faith or at least the first to have has faith in God credited as righteousness. God made an audacious promise to Abraham out of sheer grace and love, when He said, “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” Gen. 12:2,3.
Scripture continues with an account of great faith: “So Abram left, as the Lord had told him ...” What great faith Abram had! He left behind all those who were important to him, except his nephew and his wife. This 75-year-old man picked up, packed up, and followed God. Just a few verses later we find Abram in the land of the Canaanites. There a something remarkable occurred and perhaps this is why Abram believed, why Abram had faith. “The Lord appeared to Abram and said, ‘To your offspring I will give this land.’” Abram saw the Lord. We might be bold enough to say, “If I saw the Lord, I’d have faith like Abram’s too.” Let us remember, however, what our Lord Jesus told Thomas, the doubter, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen me and yet have believed.” John. 20:29 There is no doubt that Abram followed God by faith. By promise and by vision Abram listened, watched, and prayed and through his senses he found faith. He used his eyes, his ears, and his heart to find faith in God’s promises. Faith is not blind faith. Faith, the kind of faith that Abraham possessed, was intelligent faith. Abraham knew in whom he put his trust. “ ... in whom he believed - the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”
Abraham knew in whom he believed. He had the faith to believe in a God powerful enough to make something out of nothing, to create the father of all nations, of all peoples who by faith believe. Moreover, he made him from a 75-year-old man and a barren wife. Abraham knew when God called him that the natural chances of his ever becoming a biological father were very slim, at best, but he trusted that the God who told him he would be a father was not lying. He trusted
God.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUf5v0VySw0

Simon Peter

A special evening worship is coming to First United Methodist Church this Saturday evening, March 26, at 6:30 PM. We will be sharing in a special kind of worship experience with the presentation of the dramatic monologue, "Simon Peter". This presentation provides us with a worship experience through sacred drama and music by sharing a part of this disciple's life with our Lord Jesus Christ. Through his monologue, Peter shares with us some of the joys and conflicts of knowing Christ as a brother, of walking and talking with Him, and of experiencing the power of His Spirit. As we listen to him we, too, can share in his agony in denial and then in his tremendous victory through forgiveness. This beautiful and inspiring dramatic monologue will be presented by Dr. James Geer, PhD, distinguished Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at Binghamton University.
There will also be a meal at 5 PM preceding the presentation of "Simon Peter". The meal will be prepared by Lou Pasquale and Rodney Haines.
Please plan to attend, and invite a friend or two to come as well! .
For Information call: 607-748-6329
607-748-1358