TRANSKRIP 🔗
1
00:00:32,368 --> 00:00:34,899
The Holy Gospel according to Matthew.
2
00:00:38,109 --> 00:00:43,814
Beware of practicing your righteousness before others in order to be seen by
3
00:00:43,814 --> 00:00:47,397
them, for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
4
00:00:48,059 --> 00:00:51,634
So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you,
5
00:00:51,634 --> 00:00:56,234
as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so they may be praised
6
00:00:56,234 --> 00:00:59,524
by others. Truly, I tell you, they have received their reward.
7
00:00:59,843 --> 00:01:03,724
But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand
8
00:01:03,724 --> 00:01:08,414
is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret, and your Father who sees
9
00:01:08,414 --> 00:01:11,052
in secret will reward you.
10
00:01:11,412 --> 00:01:16,474
Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume
11
00:01:16,474 --> 00:01:18,605
and where thieves break in and steal.
12
00:01:19,133 --> 00:01:23,994
But store up for yourselves treasure in heaven, where neither moth nor rust
13
00:01:23,994 --> 00:01:27,991
consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.
14
00:01:28,583 --> 00:01:36,040
For where your treasure is there, your heart will be also. This is the gospel of the Lord.
15
00:01:36,795 --> 00:01:38,397
Praise to you, O Christ.
16
00:01:46,540 --> 00:01:50,612
Not this past week, but the week before, I wrote an article in the Weekly Word
17
00:01:50,977 --> 00:01:55,370
about finding feathers everywhere that I was walking and experiencing this as
18
00:01:55,370 --> 00:01:56,570
a sign of the Holy Spirit.
19
00:01:56,570 --> 00:02:01,061
And I put a picture of all the feathers lined up that I had been finding lately,
20
00:02:01,432 --> 00:02:05,838
and I've been keeping them in this little cup in my office.
21
00:02:06,308 --> 00:02:10,627
And yesterday, I went on a long walk in the morning and was praying,
22
00:02:11,597 --> 00:02:16,368
and I found this feather just before I got home.
23
00:02:16,937 --> 00:02:22,950
And this is the most Holy Spirit-like feather I have found yet.
24
00:02:22,950 --> 00:02:27,780
I have blue jay feathers and other feathers. And I thought, boy,
25
00:02:27,780 --> 00:02:34,415
isn't that a dove-like looking feather for a baptism the day before a baptism?
26
00:02:34,781 --> 00:02:39,120
So I just thought I'd let you know that the Holy Spirit is alive and active
27
00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:46,260
at St. Luke's and having me trip over it before I write a sermon and get to
28
00:02:46,260 --> 00:02:49,000
church to baptize our dear Carol Sue.
29
00:02:49,500 --> 00:02:53,760
So that was not planned as a part of the sermon, but there you go. That's the Holy Spirit.
30
00:02:57,165 --> 00:03:03,065
For those who are our newer friends among us today, my husband Dan is the pastor
31
00:03:03,065 --> 00:03:09,692
of First Presbyterian Church of Garland, and about 20% of his congregation is from Pakistan.
32
00:03:10,644 --> 00:03:15,648
They have their own worship service in Urdu and have their own Pakistani pastor.
33
00:03:16,519 --> 00:03:21,295
And through these relationships, I have traveled with Dan to Pakistan two different
34
00:03:21,295 --> 00:03:27,145
times to build connections with pastors and with a seminary in a city called
35
00:03:27,145 --> 00:03:29,851
Gudrunvala, which is north of Lahore,
36
00:03:30,455 --> 00:03:32,214
in the eastern part of Pakistan.
37
00:03:32,940 --> 00:03:34,885
Christians are only 2% of the
38
00:03:34,885 --> 00:03:42,001
population and an often very vulnerable and sometimes persecuted minority.
39
00:03:42,709 --> 00:03:48,155
80% of Christians live in rural villages. Many live in poverty,
40
00:03:48,575 --> 00:03:55,387
working as laborers, brickmakers, or sanitation workers for only a few dollars a day.
41
00:03:56,681 --> 00:04:01,756
Yet the gospel speaks very powerfully into their lives.
42
00:04:02,818 --> 00:04:09,244
Imagine living in a society still shaped by class and caste divisions,
43
00:04:09,929 --> 00:04:14,849
being treated as though you are worth very little to nothing,
44
00:04:15,209 --> 00:04:18,849
and then hearing these words from 1 Peter.
45
00:04:20,215 --> 00:04:30,170
You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people.
46
00:04:31,296 --> 00:04:39,289
Once you were told that you were nobody, but now you are somebody, chosen by God.
47
00:04:40,211 --> 00:04:47,875
Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
48
00:04:48,990 --> 00:04:55,659
Once you were denied dignity, but now you have received dignity.
49
00:04:57,449 --> 00:05:03,501
You have received forgiveness and unmerited grace in Jesus Christ.
50
00:05:04,884 --> 00:05:07,659
What an incredible treasure to
51
00:05:07,659 --> 00:05:15,750
hear that you are seen and known and chosen and loved by an amazing God.
52
00:05:17,382 --> 00:05:24,821
On Friday, just two days ago, Dan received a message from our friend Shafiq,
53
00:05:25,205 --> 00:05:30,307
a Presbyterian pastor and board member of the seminary in Gudrunvala.
54
00:05:31,555 --> 00:05:37,985
Shafiq's wife had recently been in a car accident, and while examining her injuries,
55
00:05:37,985 --> 00:05:40,768
they discovered that she had cancer.
56
00:05:41,708 --> 00:05:48,705
It was 3.30 in the morning in Pakistan, and Shafiq was awake to lead an early
57
00:05:48,705 --> 00:05:56,557
morning prayer service, we assumed before the earliest laborers got to work at 5 a.m.
58
00:05:56,981 --> 00:06:05,869
But first, he messaged Dan, asking him, would he please call and pray for his wife?
59
00:06:06,832 --> 00:06:10,565
So Dan got on Facebook Messenger and called him up.
60
00:06:11,099 --> 00:06:18,205
And Shafiq and his newly ordained son, Dawood, which means David and is a popular,
61
00:06:18,785 --> 00:06:24,321
name for Christian men in Pakistan, placed the
Load full transcript
phone beside her bed.
62
00:06:24,774 --> 00:06:27,572
And Dan on speaker prayed with the family.
63
00:06:28,890 --> 00:06:35,099
So across thousands of miles and several time zones, Christians in Pakistan
64
00:06:35,099 --> 00:06:37,599
and Texas were joined in prayer.
65
00:06:38,805 --> 00:06:46,253
And after the prayers, Dan congratulated Dawood on completing seminary and becoming
66
00:06:46,560 --> 00:06:49,550
an ordained Presbyterian pastor.
67
00:06:50,479 --> 00:06:55,659
And you could almost hear the smiles of his parents, who were so thrilled and
68
00:06:55,659 --> 00:06:59,198
so proud of their son becoming a pastor.
69
00:07:00,144 --> 00:07:06,756
So Dan asked about Daoud's ministry, and Daoud explained that he is helping
70
00:07:07,081 --> 00:07:11,069
to provide Bibles for poor Christian families.
71
00:07:11,951 --> 00:07:18,145
In Gudrunvala, a city of over three million, there is only one Christian bookstore,
72
00:07:19,266 --> 00:07:23,514
and a Bible can cost the equivalent of two days wages.
73
00:07:24,390 --> 00:07:32,343
And so for a family barely able to afford food and shelter, purchasing one Bible may be impossible.
74
00:07:33,133 --> 00:07:39,119
So Daoud works to place Bibles into Christian homes where there may be only
75
00:07:39,119 --> 00:07:46,279
one person with the ability to read who can then share the scriptures aloud
76
00:07:46,279 --> 00:07:47,720
to the rest of the family.
77
00:07:50,001 --> 00:07:58,105
And as often happens with stories of faith from Pakistan, this story gripped my soul.
78
00:07:59,544 --> 00:08:05,378
We have Bibles everywhere. I have several translations in my office.
79
00:08:05,906 --> 00:08:07,689
We have Bibles in every pew.
80
00:08:08,792 --> 00:08:15,119
I can pull out my phone and read almost any translation I want within seconds.
81
00:08:15,560 --> 00:08:18,659
We can order one online in a moment.
82
00:08:19,640 --> 00:08:23,989
If you need or want a Bible, I encourage you to take one. I have more in my
83
00:08:23,989 --> 00:08:26,385
office if you would like a different one.
84
00:08:26,681 --> 00:08:30,861
If you have a friend that needs a Bible, please talk to me. I would be happy to provide one.
85
00:08:32,277 --> 00:08:35,371
The Bible is always available to us.
86
00:08:36,091 --> 00:08:43,638
But sometimes when something is so easily available, we forget what a treasure it is.
87
00:08:44,874 --> 00:08:50,099
Though the Word of God, through the Word of God, We hear that we are created
88
00:08:50,099 --> 00:08:55,822
and loved by such a loving, benevolent parent.
89
00:08:56,969 --> 00:09:02,479
We learn that Jesus walks beside us in our struggles, that he weeps with us
90
00:09:02,479 --> 00:09:06,834
in our grief, that he rejoices at our celebrations,
91
00:09:07,264 --> 00:09:11,513
that he forgives us when we fail, and most of all,
92
00:09:11,844 --> 00:09:17,712
that Jesus gave his life and defeated death to show us that absolutely nothing
93
00:09:17,990 --> 00:09:23,453
in the universe, seen or unseen, can separate us from the love of God.
94
00:09:25,049 --> 00:09:30,280
And today, we saw this promise made visible at the baptismal font.
95
00:09:30,843 --> 00:09:37,089
At 91 years old, Carol Sue heard God's promise spoken personally to her,
96
00:09:37,478 --> 00:09:39,631
You are my beloved daughter.
97
00:09:40,554 --> 00:09:46,801
God never stops calling us, claiming us, and finding ways to draw us closer.
98
00:09:47,758 --> 00:09:54,800
This is the treasure at the center of our lives and our life together as a church.
99
00:09:56,013 --> 00:10:01,470
Jesus tells us where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
100
00:10:02,451 --> 00:10:07,975
Sometimes we hear these words as just a warning about where we put our money.
101
00:10:08,315 --> 00:10:11,657
Well, yeah, spending can reveal our values.
102
00:10:12,273 --> 00:10:19,312
But these words, more importantly, are an invitation about where to put our life energy.
103
00:10:20,026 --> 00:10:26,888
Jesus invites us to first recognize the treasure that has already been given to us.
104
00:10:27,613 --> 00:10:33,012
God is crazy about you. This is what I love about Carol Sue's story.
105
00:10:33,279 --> 00:10:36,088
God is crazy about her, has been her whole life.
106
00:10:36,501 --> 00:10:41,963
God is crazy about you. Christ died and rose from the dead for you.
107
00:10:42,695 --> 00:10:44,155
And you did not earn it.
108
00:10:44,958 --> 00:10:47,495
And guess what? You can't do anything about it.
109
00:10:49,434 --> 00:10:55,605
That's the best part about grace. God's love is a fact of life. It's like gravity.
110
00:10:56,156 --> 00:10:57,567
You can't stop it.
111
00:10:58,218 --> 00:11:04,572
You belong. You have hope. And God's love is with you, no matter how hard you
112
00:11:04,572 --> 00:11:07,932
try to get rid of it or rub it off or sin a little bit more.
113
00:11:07,932 --> 00:11:12,943
And maybe then I'll be outside of the kingdom. No, no.
114
00:11:13,616 --> 00:11:18,598
There's no sin too great. You can't rub it off. You can't get rid of it. It's a fact.
115
00:11:19,555 --> 00:11:24,292
God wins. What's the point of the whole Bible? God wins.
116
00:11:25,320 --> 00:11:27,452
That's the whole point. God loves.
117
00:11:27,452 --> 00:11:33,034
God wins. And this community is here to help carry you through life.
118
00:11:34,363 --> 00:11:38,804
God's love story with us is the treasure of life.
119
00:11:39,258 --> 00:11:42,579
And it is all right here in this Bible.
120
00:11:44,098 --> 00:11:55,105
This is my study Bible. So Deuteronomy invites us to treasure God back as much as God treasures us.
121
00:11:55,865 --> 00:12:06,453
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all of your might.
122
00:12:07,597 --> 00:12:13,128
When the love of God rests at the center of our lives, our hearts begin to follow.
123
00:12:13,534 --> 00:12:18,097
Our time follows. Our choices follow. Our generosity follows.
124
00:12:18,532 --> 00:12:20,048
Our lives follow.
125
00:12:20,791 --> 00:12:27,321
We love because God first loved us. We serve because Christ first served us.
126
00:12:27,762 --> 00:12:32,064
We give because God first gives to us.
127
00:12:32,877 --> 00:12:38,774
And so as we recommit ourselves to mission for 2027 and beyond,
128
00:12:38,995 --> 00:12:41,944
we focus on the deeper questions of the heart.
129
00:12:42,403 --> 00:12:44,086
What do we treasure?
130
00:12:44,603 --> 00:12:49,229
And how does this treasure order our lives?
131
00:12:49,862 --> 00:12:55,384
Not as a have-to, but as an overflowing of what God has done for us,
132
00:12:55,384 --> 00:12:59,626
to God who is crazy about us and loves us so much.
133
00:13:01,177 --> 00:13:08,392
Today, beside Christians in Pakistan who treasure the gift of a single Bible,
134
00:13:09,088 --> 00:13:15,382
beside believers praying together across the globe, and beside a new sister
135
00:13:15,382 --> 00:13:20,849
in Christ who has shown us that God's love never has an age limit,
136
00:13:21,406 --> 00:13:23,642
we claim our greatest treasure.
137
00:13:23,642 --> 00:13:25,713
We are God's own people.
138
00:13:26,125 --> 00:13:28,854
We have received mercy.
139
00:13:29,301 --> 00:13:32,732
We are claimed as God's beloved children.
140
00:13:33,033 --> 00:13:38,496
We belong to Christ today and forever.
141
00:13:39,100 --> 00:13:46,282
And where our treasure is, there our hearts, our lives, and our mission are
142
00:13:46,282 --> 00:13:52,271
also with overflowing joy and gratitude.
143
00:13:52,596 --> 00:13:58,384
Let the church say amen. Your life matters. Your gifts matter. Your love matters.
144
00:13:58,581 --> 00:14:04,202
So live on purpose, give generously, love with your whole heart, and go in peace.
145
00:14:04,942 --> 00:14:11,232
And as you love, serve, and welcome all. Thanks be to God, and we will.
146
00:14:11,232 --> 00:14:12,502
If you were inspired by this week.