「恵みを振り返って、前を向く」 七月第一主日礼拝 宣教 2024年7月7日
使徒言行録 Acts 22章6〜16節 創立59周年を覚える礼拝 牧師 河野信一郎
Good morning. This morning’s service is a time to give thanks to the Lord for the 59th year since Okubo Church was established in Shinjuku, Tokyo, and to make a decision together to walk in trust with the Lord in the future. As a church located in the middle of a world-class metropolis like Tokyo, we face many unique challenges, and we will continue to face many challenges in the future. However, if we continue to trust in the God of love and mercy, pray for His will, and faithfully obey His Word, this church will be fine. If we continue to love God and Jesus, love our neighbors, and resolve to share the gospel of Christ with others through Okubo Church, we believe that God will continue to protect and bless our church and use it as a flock to do His will.
If our church continues to be in God’s plan, we will be protected. Even if we disappear one by one as time goes by, if the Lord of this church is Jesus, there is nothing to fear but blessings. What we need now is to strengthen our commitment to serve the Lord in this church.
What kind of commitment is it His will? Children make “Five Promises” to God in church school: 1) read the Bible; 2) pray; 3) attend church school; 4) give an offering; 5) invite a friend. We adults should basically follow the same commitments. That is, read the Word daily and continue to receive spiritual nourishment from the Lord. Continue to pray to God in the name of Jesus Christ. Continue to make it a point to attend worship services and meetings. Continue to give thanks for God’s blessings in the form of offerings. Continue to invite family and friends to worship and church fellowship. If we keep these five simple things, we will be blessed first, then the church will be blessed, and that blessing will spread to our families and communities.
The other day I was looking at a SNS post by an acquaintance of mine and I found a comment from another person saying “I go to church more often than not and I am not fulfilled”. If you received such a comment from someone, how would you reply? My friend replied, “Well, that’s too bad,” and I felt very sorry for him. What does it mean to say that “going to church doesn’t satisfy you”? What is faith? What is church? What is worship? What is praise, what is the Lord’s Day, and what does it mean to worship together? What does it mean to be “filled”? Do we stop going to church because we are not satisfied? We are made to think deeply about various things.
In considering such things, there is a foundation and basis for our faith that we must never forget. That is that it all begins with God. It is not us who started it all. The only thing that we humans started is our disregard for God’s will and our sin against Him. If we make ourselves the starting point of our life of faith, we miss the most important thing. So, what is the most important thing?
Pastor Rick Warren preached the following sermon. “Ladies and gentlemen, your mission in life, your primary purpose, is not to love God. The primary purpose is first of all that you receive God’s love and rejoice that God loves you. You cannot love God, love your neighbor, or love yourself unless you receive God’s love and are filled with joy. We cannot love God, people, and, first and foremost, ourselves, unless we are connected to God, the source of love, through Jesus Christ our Savior.” And. I believe this to be true.
Are you here today because you want to be filled by God? What kind of things do you want to be filled with? And if you are not filled with what you expect, will you go home feeling empty, thinking that there was no point in coming to church or attending the service?
But what we must pursue and really ask is God’s will, what does He want to fulfill and bless us with? It is not what we want from God, but what God wants from us. It is not how I want to live, but how God, who made me, wants me to live.
God gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from sin and death. He did this so that no one who believes in him will perish but will have eternal life. Jesus gave His life on the cross to atone for our sins and make us children of God. Where on earth can we find a greater love than this? We are constantly invited to receive this love of God and Jesus, to be saved, and to live. If we have received this love and life, we are already abundantly satisfied. What are we to do when we are so filled, but to love God, offer worship, praise, prayer, offering, and share this love with those around us? What else is there?
As a prelude to this morning’s service, Erina offered a special praise on the saxophone. It was a hymn from Sweden, where her roots are, called “O STORE GUD”. I was really moved, “That little Erina-chan! After that, the call to worship was read, and the original hymn of Okubo Church, “Because the Lord is Seeking You,” which was the praise song of the year 2012, was sung. The call to worship is also the scripture of the year 2012.
Deuteronomy 10:12-13. It reads. “O Israel! What does the LORD your God require of you now? Only that thou fear the LORD thy God, and walk in all his ways, and love him, and serve him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and keep his commandments and his statutes, which I command thee this day, that thou mayest be blessed. This is what God says to us.”
This is God’s will for us. To live in obedience to this will, we need to believe in God’s love, Jesus Christ, and to heed His words. If we walk in obedience to Jesus, we will realize that we are already fulfilled, we will be filled with joy and gratitude, and we will be given peace and hope.
If there is a desire in your heart to be filled, you need Jesus Christ. You need to meet Jesus and be surrounded by God’s love. If you are a Christian and you are still not satisfied in your heart, I strongly recommend that you go back to the starting point of your faith. In other words, looking back at what kind of life you were leading before you met Jesus, what led you to meet Jesus and believe in Him as your Savior, who led you to Jesus, etc., should help you recover your faith.
The Apostle Paul reflects on his life on every occasion. In chapter 9 of the Acts of the Apostles, we read how Paul, who was persecuting the Christian church, met the resurrected Jesus Christ on the road to Damascus, was converted, and was made an apostle of the gospel of Christ, and in this chapter 22, verses 1 through 16, and 26, verses 12 through 18, Paul asks himself He tells what kind of life he had before he met Jesus Christ, how he came to meet Jesus and be converted, and how he was made an apostle.
I believe that when we get stuck in life, in the life of faith, or in the life of the church, we need to look back at our lives. Or should I say, we need to go back to the starting point of our faith? I think it is the same for each of us and the church. What kind of life did I lead before I met Jesus? What was the trigger that led me to believe in Jesus? What kind of change was given to me after I received God’s love from Jesus? From then until today, I think it will refresh my faith, refresh my heart, and recharge my joy and gratitude to reflect on how the Lord has led me and met all my needs.
The Apostle Paul lived a life that was the opposite of God’s will until he met his Savior Jesus. He was “Saul” until he met Jesus. But one day, “suddenly, about midday, a strong light shone around Saul from heaven. Then he hears Jesus’ voice saying, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? He asked, “Who are you, Lord?” and the answer was, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.” He was blinded and was led by others to Damascus. He must have been in a state of anxiety for a long time.
But to him God sends a man named Ananias to declare, v. 13, “Saul, my brother, restore your sight.” And he did so, and immediately began to see. Ananias goes on to say, verses 14-16, “The God of our fathers has chosen you. That He might make you realize His will, and that you might see that righteous One and hear His voice from His mouth. For you are his witnesses to all men concerning what you have seen and heard. What are you hesitating now? Stand up. Recite his name, be baptized and wash away your sins.”
What are we to take from this Word this morning? First, that God has a plan for each of us. For that purpose, Jesus calls us by name. He prepares those who will lead us to Him. And just as He transformed Saul into Paul, God will transform us anew through the Word of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, giving us a new mission, a new purpose in life, to be “witnesses” of Jesus Christ.
If we are to look back to the past, we should look back only to God’s grace and not miss the times when we were in a state of sin in the past. Looking back to the past, we should be thankful for God’s love and mercy, Jesus’ cross and resurrection, and His numerous blessings. Then look forward and live for the Lord. That is living for ourselves and that is God’s will. The Holy Spirit says to us this morning, “What are you waiting for? Get up!” Let us be encouraged by the Holy Spirit and walk together on the path He is leading us on.