I'm Invited
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
How do you identify? The world gives us innumerable options. The bible is a bit more limited in scope. What you think about yourself matters - who you are and what you are made for are really important things to think about and until you get the first one right, the second one is difficult. Emptiness in life, searching for meaning/purpose. Until we are in Christ and know our divine design the true meaning/purpose of our lives will evade us.
Identity plays a huge part in our message today as we think about being invited.
What is wrong with my shirt?
If I get the first button wrong, what happens?
If I get the first button right, what happens?
If we know who we are, how much easier is it for us to go about being the people and doing the things which God has called us to.
In a world where we are encouraged to identify ourselves by how we feel (which, by the way, I don’t know if you’ve personally noticed that your feelings can shift pretty quickly!), honestly, somedays how I feel is directly linked to caffeine!
The bible offers us two idetnties we can choose from:
Children of wrath - people made in the image of God who reject HIS rule and reign, choosing to be god over their own lives. Even for Christians it is easy to drift from living like God’s child as we excuse and satisfy the passions of the flesh and desires of the body.
Children of God - people made in the image of God who acknowledge and accept the work of Jesus on the Cross and live in glad submission to God’s rule and reign AND live to bring him honour and glory.
Will you live your way or God’s way - the way of grace?!
Ephesians 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” = reference point for next few weeks. We are prepared for a purpose…
Workmanship = where we get our word for poetry! We are God’s poetry… How amazing is that?!
If we get our identity right, we are better able to live our lives according to God’s plan for us! There is something specific that each of us have been prepared and predestined to do by God.
‘I am made for the day and the day is made for me.’
‘I am made for the day and the day is made for me.’
Are you going to seize the opportunity?
Say: ‘I’m Invited’
Setting the scene - Jesus has been invited as a guest of honour to a banquet hosted by Simon, the Pharisee. This was an important social event, involving theological discussion/debate between the wise teachers and was a spectator event.
FOMO
FOMO
This week I asked for help with my sermon prep from our followers on Facebook and Instagram.
To kick things off, across our channels 70% of people said they struggle with FOMO (or fear of missing out). I don’t know if you ever worry about missing out on something - if you do, the scene we find ourselves in might have been a case for you having to deal with the fear of missing out!
What I don’t want people to miss out on is doing what God has called them to do…
Back to our story, the woman is uninvited - her presence is not requested or required at an event like this, but she goes out of her way to be there, despite what it might cost her. Her presence would have been shocking.
Again, for context: in this scene the Pharisee would have been expected to offer hospitality to his guest. We learn that he has shown no hospitality to Jesus. Simon is ambivalent toward Jesus, seemingly cynical of the growing hype around Jesus and his ministry. There is something about Jesus making the sinful woman gravitate towards him… What might she have heard about Jesus or seen?
In Luke 4:14 Jesus begins his ministry and in this time we see him:
Heal a man with an unclean demon
Cleanse a leper
Heal a paralytic
Restore a man’s hand
Heal the Centurion’s servant
Raise the widow’s son back to life
In the course of the opening chapters of Luke we learn about Jesus goal in ministry:
to preach the good news of the kingdom of God (Luke 4:43), and that he had come to call people to repentance: Luke 5:31-32 “And Jesus answered them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.””
He came preaching and teaching in a way which would have directly spoken to the attitude a sinful woman like this prostitute would have been on the receiving end of.
Luke 6:37-38 ““Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you...””
We also learn about a key characteristic of Jesus in Luke 7:13 “And when the Lord saw [the widow], he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.””
All these things seem to have made Simon cynical, but they made the woman depserate to meet Jesus - she clearly had a bit of a basis to her reckless behaviour! She shows Jesus the hospitality (and then some!) that Simon should have shown him.
Simon, The Pharisee
Religious people can easily end up with his attitude towards sinners. Us/them. Judgmental etc.
He was proud, confident in himself and his abilities.
He lived a strict religious life, keeping himself distant from sinners
Through his observance of the law, he thought he had obtained right standing with God
A position of privilege/power within society
Unnamed Prostitute
She is humble/broken and demonstrates true COURAGE
She doesn’t know about the cross, but she knows Jesus can and will forgive her, making her clean/whole - this has a powerful impact on her
She didn’t live a life she could be proud of.
She was an outcast, looked down on by others
She was likely caught in a cycle of sin - she had been sinned against and it had led her to live this way (unlikley her career goal was prostitution).
My favourite bit about the story: Simon grew even more contemptuous toward Jesus because he didn’t know who this woman was and what she had done. He didn’t say this out loud, just thinking to himself…
He dismisses anything prophetic or powerful about Jesus.
Jesus jumps on this ministry opportunity!
He knows about the many sins of the woman.
He knows about the cynicism of Simon!
Question: What are you foolishly trying to hide from Jesus? What sin are you justifying? What attitude are you keeping hold of?
He knows. He knows you better than you know yourself. He knows what you’re keeping back from him. He knows the sin which is attempting to dethrone him from your heart.
Jesus uses a very simple parable to explain this. She has been forgiven much and responds accordingly.
How would you feel if you were her? Loved? Relieved? Comforted? Overjoyed? Exhilerated? Unworthy?
You certainly couldn’t remain unmoved.
With that in mind then, we are all the sinful woman at some point. We have all sinned many times, but we find grace, forgiveness and passion in Jesus. This should mark the community of faith, its worship and its conduct.
Non-Christian
Will you take a courageous step towards Jesus?
Will you allow God to forgive your sins, even where you might not believe he can or you feel unable to forgive yourself?
Christian
How have you fallen into sin? Where are you anger, cynical, proud, resentful?
Will you let the love of Christ break your hardness of heart?
A Prayer
I would like to encourage us to take a step of courage towards Jesus.
Close eyes, bow heads.
God:
You’ve made me for a purpose. You know me and you love me despite my many sins.
You’ve gifted me and prepared me and I want to step into your call on my life.
Today I choose to receive your forgivness.
Help me by your Spirit to step away from pursuing the passions and desires of my sinful body and mind.
Thank you that I am invited to be part of your family. I am your child and I want to live like it.
Amen.
If you have made this your prayer, raise a hand… We have prayer ministry available after the service or if you would like to chat with me, I’ll be on the exit…