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<DIV><FONT size=5>Forwarded:</FONT></DIV>
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<DIV style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; FONT-FAMILY: arial"><BIG>15th Sunday after
Pentecost<BR><BR>Proper 19<BR><BR>Lectionary 24<BR><BR>Mark
8:27-38<BR><BR>"Faith's Famous Four Words"<BR></BIG></DIV><BIG>
<DIV><BR> <BR><BR>27 ¶ And Jesus went on with his disciples, to the
villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do
men say that I am?"<BR><BR>28 And they told him, "John the Baptist; and others
say, Elijah; and others one of the prophets."<BR><BR>29 And he asked them, "But
who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Christ."<BR><BR>30
And he charged them to tell no one about him.<BR><BR>31 And he began to teach
them that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders
and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise
again.<BR><BR>32 And he said this plainly. And Peter took him, and began to
rebuke him.<BR><BR>33 But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter,
and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of
men."<BR><BR>34 And he called to him the multitude with his disciples, and said
to them, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his
cross and follow me.<BR><BR>35 For whoever would save his life will lose it; and
whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it.<BR><BR>36 For
what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his
life?<BR><BR>37 For what can a man give in return for his life?<BR><BR>38 For
whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful
generation, of him will the Son of man also be ashamed, when he comes in the
glory of his Father with the holy angels."<BR><BR>Grace and Peace to you from
our Lord and Saviour, Jesus who is the Christ. Amen<BR><BR>Many years ago, Wanda
and I visited Niagara Falls. It was a tremendous sight. The roar of the water,
the mist spraying up from the river, the power of the water rushing down that
river all of this was a wonder to behold. As you looked above the Falls there
was a cable stretched across the river. On that cable was a warning that all
boats needed to stay on the other side or the power of the rushing river would
send the boat and its occupants over the falls to sudden death.<BR><BR>There is
a story about a sailor and a miner who lost control of the rowboat they were
rowing above the falls. The swift water started pulling them to the edge of the
falls. Someone from the shore flung a rope to the two as they were tossed from
their boat into the pounding current. At that same time, a floating log shot by.
The sailor grabbed the rope and hung on, but the miner seized the log and
wrapped himself around it ignoring the rope. You know the outcome, one man was
saved, the other lost. One man was pulled to safety because he choice the right
course, the way to safety, the other perished because he choose
wrong.<BR><BR>Our gospel lesson this morning talks about the life line of life,
Jesus Christ. Our lesson speaks about the one, Jesus, who throws us the safety
line of salvation when we are going down the river of life. Our lesson
tells us about one man's confession, one man's declaration about the
savior of his life.<BR><BR>Jesus is in the middle of his public ministry. He is
in northern Galilee, and he is now heading down to Jerusalem where he knows that
the cross, suffering and death await him. As he begins this most difficult part
of his ministry, he has to know if he has done any good ? He has to know if
anyone has figured out who he is, why he has come. He doesn't ask the crowds,
but he asks the men who have been with him night and day for a year and a half.
He asks the ones who are suppose to know him best. He begins by asking them what
others are saying about him. They tell him, some say you are Elijah, other a
prophet. Then Jesus brings the question from out there to home, he asks
them,<SPAN style="FONT-STYLE: italic"> "But who do you say that I
am</SPAN> Notice the disciples don't all answer at once. They don't all
jump in with the answer, but one of them, Peter has figured it all out Peter
thinks he knows, so brave, bold Peter says, <SPAN
style="FONT-STYLE: italic">"You are the Christ."</SPAN><BR><BR>This morning I
would like to look very closely at Faith's famous Four words, I would like to
look at each word of this confession of Peter, so as we study Peter's
confession, we might be able to make our own confession Jesus you are the Christ
in our lives.<BR><BR>The first word in Peter's confession is You. Peter is
saying, You, this Jesus of Nazareth, you are the Christ. Notice that this word
you is a very personal word. Peter was saying loud and clear that he knew this
savior well, he had a personal intimate relationship with him. You, someone that
I know, someone that knows me. This you is not some vague God, but a personal
God, a God who is concerned about me, as much as I am about getting to know him
better.<BR><BR>When I was in college, at Wartburg College, my first two years
were spent as a drama major. One of the plays I was in an actor was Luggi
Pirandello's Six Characters in Search of an Author.<BR><BR>In this play a group
of actors were assembled on a stage, rehearsing a new drama. And they were
interrupted by the arrival of six "character" who clamored to be
produced.<BR><BR>They address the stage manager: "We bring you a drama, sir,"
said one of the characters. " We are six most interesting
character.<BR><BR>"Well, that's most interesting," said the stage manager, "but
what do you want here, all of you?"<BR><BR>"Why" came the repeated plea, "we
want to live in you."<BR><BR>The play goes on as these six characters act out
their drama in these actors on the stage, they fight, they quarrel, they love,
they hate, they bring all the emotions of life alive on that stage.<BR><BR>As
you think about that play it intrigues me that those six characters wanted to
live their lives in someone else because that was the only way their story would
be told. I think all of us have a character in us who is clamoring to be heard,
we have someone who is trying to tell his life story through us, the chief
character in all of our lives should be Jesus Christ. That is the meaning of
Peter's word, You. Peter brings Jesus into a personal relationship with him by
using that word you. Is Jesus personal for you?? Do you have an intimate
relationship with him? Is your relationship so intimate with Christ that he is
the character trying to live out his life in you???<BR><BR>The next word of
Peter's confession is are. Peter says you are. Are in the English language is a
verb, a to be verb which means something now, something for today, and something
for tomorrow and forever. Jesus is for Peter something for today, and something
for ever. Is Jesus that kind of person for you? Is he going to be in your
today's and well as your tomorrow's???<BR><BR>There is a story about a man who
had been very faithful and active in church, but all of a sudden he didn't come
and didn't come. Then one day, he was back in church. The pastor was pleased and
asked him how he had come to return to church he said:<BR><BR>"Every Sunday
morning and evening a certain man would pass my house on the way to church. The
worship services were so important to him that he did not let the snow or rain
stop him. We would talk and he told me he had to walk 8 blocks to church. He
often extended me an invitation to join him by saying, " This is a good day to
go to church with me." But I never said yes, but he never seemed discouraged
when I refused him.<BR><BR>"While I never accepted his invitation to go with him
to church his passing by twice on Sunday made me feel dissatisfied. I learn. of
his illness by his failure to go to prayer meeting on Wednesday night. I thought
that someone ought to take his place. I know I can't, but I do want to sit in
his pew. That man's steps in the snow made me want to rejoin the church. He had
something which I need; and after many years away from the church. I am now back
ready to join."<BR><BR>A relationship with Jesus Christ is something for today
and tomorrow. Even when we have turned away from Christ, he is still there
working through the events and people in our lives.<BR><BR>Jesus Christ is in
your life whether you know it or not. Are you willing to acknowledge his
presence today and tomorrow? Are you willing to let him be the power and the
strength for your life? Can you confess as Peter did, You are the
Christ.<BR><BR>The next word in Peter's confess, the next word in Faith's most
famous four words is the.<BR><BR>Sometimes we tend to skip over words like the,
a, an and others. They are words that usually carry very little weight. But in
faith's famous four words, the is very important. For this "the" tells us that
Peter was seeing Jesus as the only Christ, the only Lord, the only savior for
his life. Peter didn't say you are a Christ, a Christ among many, a savior among
many, a lord among many, a God among many. No, Peter said the, meaning the only
one, the only Lord, the only savior, the only God of his life.<BR><BR>When you
and I think about Jesus for our lives, do we tend to put an a before his name or
a the?? Is Jesus one savior, one God among many, or is he the only God in our
lives?? Is Jesus the only God we worship, the only God that is glorified, the
only God that brings meaning and purpose to life, or is Jesus one among a whole
host of god's in your life?? Does he have to take second place to money, or work
or time, or hatred, or unloved? Is Jesus just one of the many gods that you
worship?' Many people place making money ahead of God, many place time ahead
because they say they don't have or want to take the time to worship God. Many
place hatred or unloved before Jesus because it is more important for them to
carry grudges from the past, or find faults in people today which hinders them
from worshiping the one true God.<BR><BR>What is it for you?? Is there an a
before the name of Jesus for you or a the meaning that Jesus is the only God for
you.<BR><BR>Finally, the last word in faith's famous four words is Christ.
Christ which means Messiah, the anointed one, Son Of God, one part of the
trinity, Christ, one part of the Godhead, Christ the Son of God who came to
earth to show tell and bring the love of god to us.<BR><BR>Elizabeth Browning
wrote:<BR><BR>Earth's with heaven<BR>And only he who sees takes off his
shoes<BR>The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries.<BR><BR>Only one of the
disciples saw God in Jesus, Peter. For the first time, Peter grasped the
momentous fact that Jesus was the Christ. It wasn't a full understanding,
nevertheless, Peter was able to comprehend if only dimly--God's presences in
Christ. He was able to make his own confession of faith. Yes, Jesus you are God,
you are the anointed, you are God incarnate.<BR><BR>You and I are called by God
to make that same kind of response. We are called to respond to the same
personal question that was asked the disciples, "But who do you say that I am?"
What matters is whether or not we can perceive the reality of the presence of
God in Christ--and relate to that reality with our lives.<BR><BR>Jesus asked,
"But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered,"You are the
Christ."<BR><BR>Jesus is asking us, "But who do you say that I am.<BR><BR>I
answer.<BR><BR> Written by Pastor Tim Zingale <BR><BR>You may freely
use this but please give credit. Not for commercial use.</BIG> </SPAN><FONT
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