September 5, 2021

September 5, 2021

Today’s service will not be live streamed as we are at Lakeshore Park. If you are unable to join us you can find a pre-recorded message at stmarkknox.org/sermons

“… 11 Let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy, and the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” 12 “See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone’s work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” – Revelation 22:11-13

Three times in the book of Revelation do we hear the term, “The Alpha and the Omega.” Once at the beginning of the book, with the beginning of the revelation, and then twice at the end, with the giving of the water as a gift of the spring of life, and with the pronouncement that Jesus is coming soon.

The idea that help is soon to come, gives a great hope for those who are in the midst of suffering. Though we might all confess that any suffering seems too long, but to know that it is only temporary helps us to keep holding on, to keep going. we want to see the light at the end of the tunnel, we want to know that there is hope on the other side.  In this final call of Jesus to say that he is coming soon, it is interesting how it is set up. “let the evildoer still do evil, and the filthy still be filthy,” he says, “let the righteous still do right, and the holy still be holy.” The interesting thing is the call to let people be who they are going to be.

In the midst of everything that is has been before us, that we are going through now, and even what we may go through in the future, there is a truth that some will not change, some will not repent, some will continue to do what is evil. As heartbreaking as that is, for we like Christ should desire for all to know the love and grace of Christ; we must recognize that there will be times that we must walk away, or allow someone to walk away.

I do not give up hope if this happens though, I continue to pray and believe that God is still working in that person’s life even if I don’t get the opportunity to see it. For all of us, having hope in God’s working in the life of another is sometimes the best hope we can have. None of us truly know what another is going through, or why they act or react a particular way, but God does, and we have to trust that the one who is coming soon, is working in ways we cannot see or know, and perhaps this is the call of faith to be even greater as we place our hope that God’s goodness, mercy, and love goes beyond what we have the opportunity to see.

We continue our labor for righteousness, our acts of kindness, and show compassion to all whom we meet, and then trust that God will do the rest. This, I believe is the work of a disciple, to show the love of God for those who are ready to receive, and those who are not yet ready. For one day, we will rest from our labors, and rejoice in heaven, and I have hope we will, then, know the impact of the love we have shown for the glory of God.

Grace and Peace,
Sam

September 1, 2021

September 1, 2021

O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling. – Psalm 43:3

The often used phrase “light at the end of the tunnel” indicates that as we move through times of darkness, if we can see the flickers of light, we know that the darkness will soon be over, and we will again feel secure.

The notion of this phrase perhaps predates the phrase itself. For the ancient Israelites, especially for those who endured exile in Babylon, they longed for a time when they would return to Jerusalem, the shining city on a hill.  Those who saw Jerusalem fall, and the temple destroyed mourned how God could let such a tragedy occur. They were God’s people after all. Though if we were to read Jeremiah’s Lamentations we would soon realize that God warned the people that their lack of faithfulness would cause this dark time.

Yet, we are reminded again and again that though we often are not faithful to God, God’s steadfast love and faithfulness to us remains. We may have to deal the consequences of our actions and choices, but when we choose to turn back and seek God, God is ready and willing to answer. It is in this turn we find the substance of Psalm 43.

The Psalm reminds us that in the midst of the experience of exile and divine absence, sometimes it is reminding ourselves through the liturgical movements of worship that make it possible to move from exile to dialogue with God. God is in the midst of worship, and even when we simply move through those motions of worship we may find hope in the experience.

So often in times of crises our culture suggest that we need to depend upon ourselves rather than upon God. Yet, the result of such action is isolation and fear. Instead we need to be reminded again, and again that the true hope is found as we engage in community worshipping God. It is in such communal worship that we can see the light that leads to God’s truth.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 29, 2021

To join us live in worship at 10 am, YouTube, or you may view later at stmarkknox.org/sermons

August 29, 2021

When I thought, “my foot is slipping,” your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. – Psalm 94:18-19

In the 1999 film, The Green Mile, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name we hear character John Coffey, who had been wrongly accused of a terrible crime, is reveled to have a special power of healing. John Edgecomb, a guard on the green mile row, realized Coffey is innocent, and even offers to let him go free. Though innocent, Coffey tells John he’s ready to go with the following quote.

I’m tired, boss. Tired of bein' on the road, lonely as a sparrow in the rain. I'm tired of never having me a buddy to be with, to tell me where we's going to or coming from, or why. Mostly, I'm tired of people being ugly to each other. I'm tired of all the pain I feel and hear in the world every day. There's too much of it - it's like pieces of glass in my head, all the time. Can you understand?

Coffey, a larger than life black man, with an incredible story, and incredible healing power is tired of what he is hearing in the world every day, he knows that he simply wants to go on. He knows he has done nothing wrong, even if the world believed differently, and he’s tired of it all.  It’s a hard story, but one that may seem familiar to followers of Christ. Of a man wrongly accused, and chooses to face his imminent death. The difference is when Jesus took on death he did it so others might have life.

The life we have given to us through Christ is one of hope, one of joy, and one which calls us to love one another. Yet, there are times when we feel tired, worn out, or even overcome. Like Coffey we’re tired of people being ugly to each other. And we might even ‘let our foot slip’ so to speak, and fall towards being angry or even ugly to someone in response to what we hear. But the steadfast love of the Lord will lift us up as the Psalmist writes. Then we can give our cares to the Lord, again, who will give us consolation in our grief, in our pain. God will lift us from the anger of our slipping and remind us once again that we are loved, and that His steadfast love remains. When we come again to know this steadfast love, we might even find that though we walk this sometimes lonely road, God’s consolation helps us know His freedom even as we keep walking on.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 25, 2021

August 25, 2021

Written by David Petty

Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose. - First Corinthians 1:10

“Any law enforcement officer,” says Methodist Bishop William Willimon, “will tell you that he or she would rather try to stop a bank robbery than intervene in a domestic argument.”  He goes on to point out the familiar finding that more people are murdered by relatives than by strangers.

My interest here is not disputes in your biological family, or in mine or in the one in the trailer down the road.  I’m concerned here about disagreements in the church family.  Christians have disagreed from New Testament times to the present, and as we are currently aware our situation is no exception. 

And yet many times Christians have managed their disagreements without a lasting division.  At what point is our support of what we believe to be the truth overruled by our recognition that God treasures everyone, even those with whom we disagree?  

Surely the first difficult step, as Paul suggested (Ephesians 4:31), is to let go of anger.  Trying to have a conversation with another Christian without cooling our anger is a bit like trying to drive uphill without turning on the engine.  Much the same thing can be said about fear and other negative emotions.

But if we do rid ourselves of the anger, fear, cynicism, etc., what do we replace it with?  Here’s my suggestion: the willingness to be surprised.  If we enter arguments willing to be surprised by what the other person really believes, and by how our own beliefs might change, I think we can reach general agreement quite often (surprisingly often.)

We should seek counsel from those around us who are notable more for the wisdom of their words than for the volume of their voices.  (This is not to deny that, whichever view we take, there will be people on our side with loud voices.).  Often the best answer to a difficult choice is to look for a third alternative —or a fourth or a fifth.

Nor should we underestimate the power of prayer or of the Holy Spirit.  Perhaps these are really the same thing; perhaps good prayer is just hearing what the Spirit says.

Gracefully submitted,
David Petty

August 22, 2021

August 22, 2021

To join us live at 10 am, YouTube, or you may view later at stmarkknox.org/sermons

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us 5 even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— - Ephesians 2:4-5

The apostle, Paul is writing to the Ephesian church reminding them, that without Christ, without their faith in the resurrection of Jesus they were dead through the trespasses and sins in which they once lived. In this section of Paul’s letter we hear about how it is that any of us can receive salvation, and is said multiple times that it is only through the grace of God and through faith.

To put is plainly, there is nothing we can do to earn God’s salvation. There is nothing we can do to assure that we have made the right decisions in every interaction in our life to show love. there is no way that we can save ourselves. It is only by God’s gift of grace. Sometimes, we need to back up, take a deep breath and become re-aware of this great truth – we are saved by grace through faith.

This is not just the truth for ourselves, but the truth for each and every person who chooses to rely on the love of God. None of us truly know the heart of another person. None of us can say with certainty that God cannot or does not forgive someone. If we believe in the grace of God for our salvation, then it should be how we choose to treat others in this life. It’s been said many times, that there is not one face we see, which isn’t loved by God. Every person we encounter is loved by God. Some may not know it yet, some may have not come to understand that love yet, but God’s love is still upon that person. It might even be our job to share it with them. After all, Paul reminds us that we were “made alive together with Christ.” I like to think this “together” is not just me with Christ, but all of the faithful, in community, enjoying knowing the presence of God because of this great gift of grace we have received through faith.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 18, 2021

August 18, 2021

Pleasant words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.
– Proverbs 16:24

We should never underestimate the power of kind and pleasant words. In our world that seems so focused on keeping our minds attuned to negativity, we need to keep the positive voices alive in our hearts and minds. In my opinion keeping positive starts with gratitude, and gratitude is how we should strive to start each day.

Each morning when we wake up and take that first breath we have the option, to begrudge that we yet alive and need to get up and do the tasks of the day. Or, we can take that breath and be grateful that we are yet alive, and have a new opportunity to accomplish our work for the day.

It all comes down to that internal attitude in which we choose to start. This same attitude filters into the rest of our day. When we continue with notion of gratitude, we are more likely to be pleasant in our interactions with others, we more likely to share joy, we are more likely to feel the presence of God leading us in love.

The writer of Proverbs reminds us that pleasant words are like the sweetness of honeycomb. These words are not just the kind words that we may say in our daily interactions, but the more intimate words we share within our families, and even more the positive words we speak to ourselves within our minds and souls.

I’ll confess, that often the voice which is harshest on myself is my own. If I allow any words that come from the external can compound on those I speak to myself, and become detrimental to soul and mental health. However, if I choose to start the day speaking gratitude to myself, looking for the goodness of God that has given me a new day, then like the Proverbist states, sweetness can come to my soul and to the health of my body.

The kind and pleasant words we speak in gratitude make a difference to ourselves and to others, and our calling as those who profess Christ are to love one another as Christ has first loved us. I believe this starts with loving ourselves, speaking those kind and pleasant words of gratitude, and perhaps they will spill over to all whom we meet each day, spreading the sweetness that brings healing to body, mind and soul, for the glory of God.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

St. Mark in the Park - SEPT 5

ST MARK IN THE PARK!

Sunday, September 5

10:00AM at Lakeshore Park

TVA Pavilion behind large playground

*This will be our only in-person service on this day.

St. Mark at the Park is this Sunday, which is also Labor Day weekend, and for many the kickoff weekend of college football. As you prepare to join us at Lakeshore Park to worship this Sunday, I want to invite everyone to feel free to dress for the picnic and show some school pride! You are invited to wear the colors of your alma mater, or whatever school you choose to cheer on nowadays. I look forward to seeing everyone at the Park for some fun outdoor worship on Sunday.


-Pastor Sam

August 15, 2021

August 15, 2021

Join us live online at 10 am on YouTube or watch later at stmarkknox.org/sermons

So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
– Romans 10:17

Every week in worship, we follow a tradition that has been passed down to us through the ages, and that tradition is the reciting of a creed of faith. We typically say it is the affirmation of our faith, and our custom is to recite the Apostle’s Creed. There are other creeds and affirmation such as the Nicaean Creed, which are in our hymnal, but I wonder if we know why we have these affirmations?

From the time in which the church was established through resurrection of Jesus, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, humanity has struggled with how to live their faith; questioned what are faith’s requirements? And asked how can I be assured of my salvation? As the message of the gospel spread from the Jews to the Gentiles, and from there into many different nations and cultures, the way people practiced their faith adapted and changed as well. It’s why so many of the letters of Paul and even the ones from Peter and John focus on the basics of how one should interact with another through grace and reconciliation. Everywhere they went different peoples disagreed with how to worship God. Churches developed different traditions and different expressions of their faith.

Under the leadership of the Roman Emperor Constantine in 325 AD, who was the first to advocate for Christianity a council was called bringing together Christian leaders of that time from all over the known world. The purpose was to create a consensus of the basics of Christendom, from here we get the Nicaean Creed, which at the time represented the very foundations of what one should believe to truly be Christian. As we might imagine there was great debate, and even though a creed was formed, some still disagreed. The church continued to spread and grow, and more cultures were converted to Christianity which created more expressions of faith. By 1054 these divisions became so great especially between the growing western culture in Rome and moving towards Britain, and the eastern cultures that remained in the Holy Lands and expanded to Africa and Asia that the church had a great schism. Even though it is argued that the schism was more greatly caused by political disagreement than faith disagreements, it still makes the first great division in the church based on culture. Other divisions would follow, and as we look even at our American Christianity we see the plethora of denominations that all profess to following Christ, and belief in God through the death and resurrection of Christ.

Pauls’ letter to the Romans in some ways speaks to our cultural divisions. Even though he was a once a Jewish pharisee, someone who believed in keeping every letter of the law, his faith in Christ transformed his understanding. Paul recognized that Christianity was meant for the salvation of people of every culture, it was a salvation for all people, and all of creation. As he confesses faith comes from hearing the words of Christ, the recognition is that we all hear Christ’s words and as we open ourselves to believe through faith. God works in us to create a change in heart. God hears our cries and brings us to salvation. We do change because of the love of God, but the greatest part of that change is to learn to love like Christ, and understand that we are now a part of great multitude of believes from all nations, ages, races. We won’t all express our faith in the same way, but we are called together through one love.

If anything can mend the things that often divide us, it is learning to love those whom God loves, and showing compassion that all might hear the words of Christ and believe through faith.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 15, 2021

August 15, 2021

Join us live online at 10 am on YouTube or watch later at stmarkknox.org/sermons

So faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ.
– Romans 10:17

Every week in worship, we follow a tradition that has been passed down to us through the ages, and that tradition is the reciting of a creed of faith. We typically say it is the affirmation of our faith, and our custom is to recite the Apostle’s Creed. There are other creeds and affirmation such as the Nicaean Creed, which are in our hymnal, but I wonder if we know why we have these affirmations?

From the time in which the church was established through resurrection of Jesus, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, humanity has struggled with how to live their faith; questioned what are faith’s requirements? And asked how can I be assured of my salvation? As the message of the gospel spread from the Jews to the Gentiles, and from there into many different nations and cultures, the way people practiced their faith adapted and changed as well. It’s why so many of the letters of Paul and even the ones from Peter and John focus on the basics of how one should interact with another through grace and reconciliation. Everywhere they went different peoples disagreed with how to worship God. Churches developed different traditions and different expressions of their faith.

Under the leadership of the Roman Emperor Constantine in 325 AD, who was the first to advocate for Christianity a council was called bringing together Christian leaders of that time from all over the known world. The purpose was to create a consensus of the basics of Christendom, from here we get the Nicaean Creed, which at the time represented the very foundations of what one should believe to truly be Christian. As we might imagine there was great debate, and even though a creed was formed, some still disagreed. The church continued to spread and grow, and more cultures were converted to Christianity which created more expressions of faith. By 1054 these divisions became so great especially between the growing western culture in Rome and moving towards Britain, and the eastern cultures that remained in the Holy Lands and expanded to Africa and Asia that the church had a great schism. Even though it is argued that the schism was more greatly caused by political disagreement than faith disagreements, it still makes the first great division in the church based on culture. Other divisions would follow, and as we look even at our American Christianity we see the plethora of denominations that all profess to following Christ, and belief in God through the death and resurrection of Christ.

Pauls’ letter to the Romans in some ways speaks to our cultural divisions. Even though he was a once a Jewish pharisee, someone who believed in keeping every letter of the law, his faith in Christ transformed his understanding. Paul recognized that Christianity was meant for the salvation of people of every culture, it was a salvation for all people, and all of creation. As he confesses faith comes from hearing the words of Christ, the recognition is that we all hear Christ’s words and as we open ourselves to believe through faith. God works in us to create a change in heart. God hears our cries and brings us to salvation. We do change because of the love of God, but the greatest part of that change is to learn to love like Christ, and understand that we are now a part of great multitude of believes from all nations, ages, races. We won’t all express our faith in the same way, but we are called together through one love.

If anything can mend the things that often divide us, it is learning to love those whom God loves, and showing compassion that all might hear the words of Christ and believe through faith.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 11, 2021

August 11, 2021

8 Good and upright is the Lord;
    therefore he instructs sinners in the way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right,
    and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,
    for those who keep his covenant and his decrees. – Psalm 25:8-10

Walking in the woods one day, a hiker found that they were not where they were supposed to be. It wasn’t that the hiker meant to be in the situation in which they now found themselves, but at some point had read the trail incorrectly and taken a wrong turn. Now, the hiker needed to find a way back to where they once were, or at least figure out how to get to where they were going.

We’ve all probably felt lost at some point, not knowing what direction to go, or if it would be better to turn back, or perhaps keep going. I’ve read many stories, such as the one above, and some cases, the best course of action was to turn back, and find the trail head. In other cases, the hiker felt confident they knew where they were, and made it to where they were supposed to be. However, there are also the stories that don’t end well. Living new the smokey mountains we perhaps have been made aware at times with the national forest service is actively looking for that person or group that has lost their way, and other times the tragedy of the loss of life is the end of those stories.

The writer of psalm 25, attributed to David speaks from a lost position. They aren’t lost in the woods like the hiker, but the writer speaks as though they are at a loss of what direction to take in faith and in life. They know they are hated by some, they know their own shortcomings, and sins, they know that God has been a past help, and believe God will be a present and future help as well.  So they pray this prayer, lifting themselves to God. We probably recognize the prayer from verse 4-5 which state “make me to know your ways, O Lord, teach me you paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation…

Yet, what strikes me from the verse shared above, is that while we are looking for the Lord’s path for us, God may be on another path. “All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness.” So which path do we find?

I believe sometimes the best course of action is to stop, wait, and listen. If we are lost, if we don’t know what direction to take, perhaps that is the moment when we need to wait upon the Lord. To pray, believe in God’s goodness, trust in his mercy and grace, and perhaps even look for where His compassion and love is evident. When the Lord meets us in those places we feel lost, or in those places where we have the most doubt, we can then know the assurance of his love that lifts us, and hos presence which will sustain us, and then, we can follow our Lord from there.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 8, 2021

August 8, 2021

To worship with us online, please visit stmarkknox.org/sermons

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for his steadfast love endures forever. - Psalm 136:1

There are always an abundant many reasons to give thanks to God for the great things God has done in our lives.  Most of the time we can admit that we should “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for [us]” (1 Thessalonians 5:18).  As we Endure in our love for God, I believe that we do try to give thanks for the circumstances of our lives, but I can admit, that’s not always easy.  Reality is, many of the things that we should give thanks for we often take for granted. 

In psalm 136, the psalmist takes a slightly different path from the normal metered proven lyrical psalms of the day.  The tone, here, falls in line with our contemporary music of saying the same thing over again and again, always coming back to the point.  That point is “his steadfast love endures forever.”  This line occurs 26 times in Psalm 136, and occurs after each line expressing gratitude for God and what God has done.

I wonder, are we as the people of God today, expressing that same understanding as we give thanks to God? Do we proclaim time after time that “His steadfast love endures forever?”  Are we finding that we are living, serving, and witnessing in all things to this enduring love?

As Christ followers today, we need to be reminded that living with patient faith isn’t always using words, but acts of kindness and compassion are necessary for our lives to become the gospel carried to those who need to know it most. God call us in seedtime and in harvest to bring praise for his enduring steadfast love. I believe we do this by offering the love with which we have been filled to others in word, deed, and especially acts of service and compassion.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

August 4, 2021

August 4, 2021

Submitted by David Petty

Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiveness you. — Ephesians 4:32

Two thoughtful and well-respected authors, Philip Yancey and Adam Hamilton, have both recently re-issued previous books on forgiveness.  (Yancey’s has been re-titled and somewhat revised.)  Evidently they, or at least their publishers, felt that this is an important subject right now.  Given the amount of bitterness that exists currently in our country, and in our world and the church, I would agree.

Current events are one good argument for the importance of forgiveness, but there are others.  Another is amount of attention given to the subject in Christian writing — and I‘m not just talking about modern writers like Hamilton and Yancey.  The early church, for example, felt that forgiveness was important to enough to include in the statement of faith (Apostles’ Creed).   Look back at the creed: there stands forgiveness of sins, apparently on equal footing with such theological giants as the trinity and the resurrection.

And Jesus included it in what we call the Lord’s Prayer.  In fact, although that prayer contains general statements about such things as doing God’s will and avoiding evil, the only specific human activity that it references is forgiving others.  Of all the good things we could do (and bad things we could not do) Jesus singled out forgiveness.

Hamilton has observed that knowing forgiveness involves three difficult tasks.  First, we must believe that we have done something wrong; if we hadn’t done anything all that bad we wouldn’t seek forgiveness.  Second, we must believe that God is capable of forgiving us.  Some people are so overcome with the depth of their sin that they don’t believe forgiveness is possible.

The third task is to forgive others.  It seems to me, though, that this can be broken down into the same two steps.  That is, we must first believe that the others have committed a sin.  That usually isn’t difficult.  C. S. Lewis distinguished between excusing and forgiving.  They are not the same thing; in fact, they are in a sense opposites.  If there really is a good excuse for something, it doesn’t require forgiveness.  If it’s inexcusable, forgiveness is the answer.  Lewis said that we tend to overestimate the portion of our own behavior that is excusable and underestimate the portion of others’ behavior that is.

Finally, we must believe that it is possible for us to forgive others.  Sometimes when we have been hurt badly, forgiveness of others seems impossible — but Christian teaching implies otherwise. 

There is a lot more that can be said about the subject, and I’ve probably said a lot that you already knew.  Please forgive me.  Or excuse me.  Or maybe some of both.

Gracefully submitted,
David Petty

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

As our attendance increases weekly we are in need of friendly faces to greet and help usher in our members and guests. Please contact the church office (office@stmarkknox.org) or Dave Stott to volunteer. We thank you for serving.

Ushers-needed-banner.jpg

As we get back into the routine of church, together, we need more help. Especially, in the audio and video department. We are very blessed by those who have stepped up, and in some cases the children who have learned these new skills, but they can't do it alone. If you have a willingness to learn to run sound, or learn how to help with our video presentations/live streaming. Please contact the office or Sam Ward. We could really use the help. 

MEDIA.jpg

August 1, 2021

To join us in online worship please visit stmarkknox.org/sermons

August 1, 2021

15 As for man, his days are like grass— he blooms like a flower of the field; 16 when the wind passes over it, it vanishes, and its place is no longer known. 17 But from eternity to eternity the Lord’s faithful love is toward those who fear Him, and His righteousness toward the grandchildren 18 of those who keep His covenant, who remember to observe His precepts. 19 The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.
- Psalm 103:15-19

The kingdom of heaven is an eternal kingdom. This is a precept that comes down through the ages is passed from generation to generation throughout the history of Israel. Even in those time when Israel is captive in Babylon or under the reign of another authority we find verse eluding to the coming of an eternal kingdom of God, or kingdom of heaven. This same ideology is passed on to the Christians of the first century, who have faith in the resurrection of Jesus, believing that the eternal kingdom is soon at hand, and will be established as Jesus returns to earth. It is now God’s plan that not only the people of Israel to be a part of this kingdom, but all who confess Jesus as Lord, the tent becomes larger.

From this point forward in history, the Christian faith was placed in the notion of when Jesus returns this eternal kingdom will be established. Most of us hold this belief, and have waited and believed that the eternal kingdom of God is coming soon. I still believe this to be true, yet at the same time I have to really understand what ‘eternal’ means.

The idea that an eternal kingdom is something that will be established seems to contradict the idea of eternal, because eternal is forever, meaning forever in the past as well as forever in the future. After all we believe that God is “from everlasting to everlasting.” When we look to the psalmist’s understanding I think we gain a little perspective. Humanity is like the grass, or flowers in the field. We are only a short part of eternity. Yet, the Love of the Lord remains forever. To me this notion of the forever-ness of God and God’s kingdom can’t truly be understood while we are still the grass. We are confined to the passing of time, minutes, hours, days, years pass by and there is nothing we can do to stop them, nor can we go back through them aside from in our memories. Yet, God is outside of all of this, and a part of all of this time simultaneously. The comfort of knowing God is present with us, already puts us in a part of the eternal heavenly kingdom. This eternal kingdom holds us because God hold us in his arms, uplifts us, and share with us an eternal love. Knowing such love establishes in us the sense that God is as in control as God has always been, even when we were unaware.

God’s kingdom is truly eternal, it has been, and always will be. When we become aware of God’s love for us, then we enter in. This kingdom becomes alive in us, and we become truly alive in God’s love. Sharing the truth of this kingdom and it’s love is the greatest gift we receive, and the greatest gift we can offer as well.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

July 28, 2021

July 28, 2021

Written by David Petty

You return man to dust; You decreed, “Return you mortals!”  For in Your sight a thousand years are like yesterday that has passed, like a watch of the night.  You engulf men in sleep; at daybreak they are like grass that renews itself; at daybreak it flourishes anew; by dusk it withers and dries up ... Teach us to count our days rightly, that we may obtain a wise heart.
—Psalm 90: 3-6,12

Famous (and sometimes infamous) rock musician David Crosby, now 79, was recently asked by someone roughly the same age, “How can us old people enjoy the time we have left?”  Here’s what Croz answered:

    The question isn’t how much time you have; it’s   

    what you’re going to do with it.  If you agonize over the

    fact that you’re going to die, you’re wasting it.  If you 

    spend that time helping other people, making new 

    things, making anything better for anybody, then the 

    time that you have left, whatever amount it is, will be 

    well spent.  You may die tomorrow, but you’ve got today.

    So why don’t you use the heck out of it?

    (Rolling Stone 1352, June 2021, p.14)

The popular cliche puts it somewhat differently: it’s better to add life to your years than to add years to your life.  Where better to find that life than in the author of life (Acts 3:15), the one who came that we might have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10)?

I can only add that, from a practical standpoint, these things are more easily done in the company of a group of like-minded folks.  That’s why I hope to spend the remainder of my years with the people of St. Mark.

Gracefully submitted,
David Petty

July 25, 2021

July 25, 2021

To join the online worship please visit stmarkknox.org/sermons

For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20 Yes, you are our glory and joy! – 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20

There is no better compliment than to know that you are the glory and joy of heaven. You, the person that you are, is loved, forgiven, and known by God. Paul writes to the church, the people of faith at Thessalonica, and lets them know that at the Lord Jesus coming, he will have something in which to boast, those who have come to know God’s grace.

People are the greats treasure that any of us can know. We don’t give ourselves enough credit, we don’t give others enough credit, but the truth is we all need one another, and God knows that. It is why we have this innate sense to be in community. Even the ‘loners’ out there, or the extreme introverts, though their community may be smaller there is no greater joy than sharing life with someone else.

A Christian should reflect that great joy of living in a community, it’s the reason we enjoy gathering together, and as Methodists it’s one of the reasons we long for the days of the ‘covered dish.’ There is no great way that we know to show love than to feed one another, and enjoy the conversations that nourish our souls. This is why I believe we are drawn to that line in Acts 2:42 “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, and to the breaking of bread…” We call this the pinnacle of the Christian community the “Acts 2 church,” but what I think we love about it is the sense of true community.

Community is something that has been a struggle for us to gather back into, and some of us are beginning to find it, but it is needed more than ever, to know that we have someone with which to share life, the ups and downs, to know that with them, we can experience the joy and glory of the kingdom that is to come, because we know the joy of being together in Christ.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

July 21, 2021

July 21, 2021

…And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecutions you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers…
- 1 Thessalonians 1:6-7

What does a Christian look like?

Depending on how you read that question, what is on your heart or mind at the moment, or any number of other circumstances the answer to that question might change. Or the questions itself might seem loaded, as if there is some underlying agenda to the answer.

I don’t know why so many people seem to think there are underlying agendas to everything that happens in our world; perhaps they do exist, perhaps not. However, there is a greater agenda in which to place our focus. The agenda of the kingdom of heaven, promised by Jesus, as being so close, yet we feel it is so far away. Paul and his companions of the moment, Timothy and Silas compose a little letter to the church at Thessalonica, which speaks of a great example of faith found in the people there.

This letter is believed by scholars to be the earliest in Christian communication. At least this is the letter for which the earliest manuscripts are found. Before the writings of the gospels, revelation, and even the letters attributed to the disciples Peter or John, Paul’s letter to Thessalonica was written first (as best as we can tell). The early Christians did not have an easy road, and many were severely persecuted for leaving behind an old way of life and worship, and choosing instead to follow a patter of the man named Jesus. The teachers called Jesus the Christ, meaning king, but he was not an earthly king, but a heavenly one, teaching and living among the people to show them a better way.

The term Christian, in those days, meant that people were imitating the teachings of Christ and his followers. Paul says to the church ‘you became imitators of us and of the Lord…” And from that joy, “…became an example to all the believers…”

The lesson for the church, here, is that we might recapture what it means to truly be a disciple of Christ or Christian, to recapture the joy of sampling being the presence of Christ our God, knowing that He is with us now and always, and beginning to live in his example offering compassion, love, grace with everyone whom we meet, teaching through living our best life in Him. Then maybe we, too, can become the example our community needs to see, and example of how to live free in Christ – living into a kingdom we don’t yet see, but believe is here and still to come.

Grace & Peace,
Sam

July 18, 2021

July 18, 2021

To join our online worship please go to stmarkknox.org/sermons

34 Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. 35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
 – Matthew 24:34-35

There are times when being a disciple of Jesus is hard. We want to be obedient to the call to love our neighbors, we want to share in the peace of Christ, we want to believe the best in humanity. However, humanity often doesn’t care. We look around us and if we listen too much to the news or believe the things we read that get shared the most, it would seem as though people are working harder for the world to end than for the kingdom of God to become a reality.

Jesus taught his disciples many things about an end. He told them about desolations and persecutions. He told them to look for signs, then he told them that they would not pass away until they saw these things.  Jesus told them the truth. During the remaining days of the disciples, from the time of the resurrection until their deaths each of them saw horrible things happening to those who believed in the words of Jesus. And for those who made it to 70 AD, they saw the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, forever marking an end to a Jewish way of life. The disciples, now apostles were starting something new, in Jesus name, that would change the world.

It’s hard for us to imagine, about 2000 years removed from these events how the world changed, but it did. The ushering in of a new kingdom had begun in that generation. However, so many have looked at their world since then and thought, this can’t be the kingdom of God because it’s not perfect. Some have tried to re-predict an end based on their interpretations of signs in our world, others have worked to burn down (and perhaps still are) the world as we know it, in hopes that something new would arrive.

In all my studying, what I have come to understand is that the kingdom of God is here. It is being formed and created as people capture what it means to live together in community, sharing as each has need, and offer the reconciliation of God’s love to others.

We often want to see massive justice happen where God would end the chaos, and peace would come swiftly restoring all things to how they should be. Unfortunately the restoration of anything takes time and passion. Time and passion that those who believe in God must put in to see any change at all.  The world may never cease to want to destroy itself, but the words of Jesus, that live in us, that we share to offer peace, reconciliation, and love will work against those things that want to destroy, in order to create something better.

These are the great words of hope that we hold on to from Jesus, that will live forever, that we would choose to bring new birth into this world, by sharing in expectant hope the love we have first know from the one who is love incarnate, Jesus our Lord.

Grace & Peace,
Sam