"FAITHFUL SAVIOUR" Sermon ByRev. Keliihananui Makalani MESSENGER: Kuuipo Makalani

"FAITHFUL SAVIOUR" Sermon By Rev. Keliihananui Makalani MESSENGER Kuuipo Makalani
February 15, 2010

Hebrews 3:1-2

Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! On Valentine's Day this week we will speak of love, but the world has seen no love which can compare with that of the crucified Lord and Saviour. This week, on Mardi Gras, the world will look at sin, but no one has done more to remove that sin than has the risen Redeemer. Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviours' life, death, and resurrection show the Father's desire to replace our sins and sadness with the joy of forgiveness and life eternal. God grant these gifts be given to us all. Amen.

In the year 1778, Captain James Cook discovered the Hawaiian Islands. That those Islands were already occupied and had been settled for some time did not seem to bother him overly much. In the best of European tradition, he felt quite comfortable in claiming those islands and renaming them the "Sandwich Islands" after his boss, the Earl of Sandwich, who was the 1st Lord of the British Admiralty. The following year, in 1779, Cook and his crew returned to Hawaii. For two months he sailed around the archipelago before he decided to come ashore at the big Island's Kealakekua Bay.

Cook received an incredibly warm welcome. There was a reason for that. Totally unknown to the Captain, he had landed during the season of peace, the festival of harvest, the days when the Polynesians celebrated a thanksgiving for their god, Lono. The significance of Cook's arrival at that particular instant was amplified by the fact that before he came ashore, Cook had sailed clockwise around the islands, just like Lono's religious processions.

Cook didn't know all these things when he stepped ashore, but it didn't take too long for him to realize some of the natives were welcoming him as an incarnation, a physical manifestation of their god. Now, when it comes to making good trades, when it comes to resupplying your ship, when it comes to getting anything and everything you might want, there are certain, very distinct advantages to being considered a god. Captain Cook knew that, and that's why he never really worked all that hard at letting the natives know he really wasn't a deity.

After about a month, Cook, having restocked and refitted his ship, set out to investigate the Northern Pacific. Shortly after he left Hawaii, his ship was hammered by a storm and the foremast of the Resolution was broken. There was nothing for Cook to do but to return to Hawaii for repairs. This time the natives did not receive the returning ship's contingent so warmly. "The festival of Lono is over", the Hawaiians thought. "We've moved on to celebrating another deity." So what is he doing here?" Soon other questions were being asked; questions like, "If this guy really is a deity, how come his ship got nailed by that storm? A real deity should have known the storm was coming. A real deity should have been able to stop the tempest." Then, almost as one, the people concluded, "If this god can't protect himself, he can't protect us either. In fact, we don't think he is a god at all.' The disappointed people turned on Captain Cook. One thing led to another and before too long the Captain and crew were on the beach trying to launch their small boats. That's when Captain Cook was stabbed; stabbed to death by islanders who had been disappointed to find he was not a god.

Disappointment. Life is filled with disappointments, isn't it? There are little disappointments. You go to McDonald's for breakfast and your taste buds are ready and waiting for an egg, sausage McMuffin with cheese. You park the car; walk into the restaurant just in time to see the manager-on-duty replacing the last of the breakfast signs with ones which show what's for lunch. Breakfast is over, and your betrayed and disappointed taste buds revolt at the idea of having a burger in the middle of the morning. Small disappointments.

I read of a South American explorer who had to abandon his journey because of some little things, chigoes. The man's expedition was ready to deal with leopards, serpents, and crocs, but he hadn't come prepared for chigoes, the multitudes of minute fleas, numerous no-see-ums that showed up and gnawed on him as a dog might a bone. Those inconsequential creatures gave him a great disappointment as he had to cancel his mission. At that moment the explorer understood, and maybe you do, too, that poem which says, "Here's to the chigger, the bug that's no bigger Than the end of a very small pin; But the itch that he raises simply amazes, And that's where the rub comes in!"

Yes, life has a lot of little disappointments that annoy and irritate, aggravate and infuriate. But it's the big disappointments which leave scars on our minds, the wounds on our hearts, the bruises upon our souls. You probably don't even want to think about your big disappointments. More than likely you've tried to bury them in some place way back in your brain; shut them up and wall them off in some dark spot in a remote corner of your heart. You don't speak about your disappointments, do you? What you do is say things like, "What's done is done, no point in talking about the past. No purpose in digging up old sorrows and sadnesses. Let those things stay buried." That's what you say, but the truth is, those disappointments aren't over, they're not done and they most definitely don't stay buried. More than you can or will ever let anyone know those disappointments shape what you do, how you think, how you live, the decisions you make or don't make.

What have been your big disappointments? Do you want me to guess? Do they revolve around a financial ship which never managed to sail into port? Maybe you've worked like a dog only to have the rewards go to someone else, someone lesser. Maybe you invested your life working for a company, but that company has balanced its books on the back of your retirement account. Maybe you invested, and lost, your money because of some sure-fire advice which came from someone you trusted. What are your big disappointments? Have you had faith in a political candidate who said the right words, whose ideals struck a chord, whose promises of hope and fairness helped you to believe that tomorrow and tomorrow's tomorrow would be different, better, fairer, righter? And has that candidate for whom you worked, whom you defended, whom you believed in, let you down so deeply, so profoundly you have promised that while you will vote, you will never again invest yourself in a politician.

What have been your big disappointments? Most of you, if you are being honest, will say your hardest let downs have always come from those who were closest to you, or would it be better to say those who should have been closest to you? How many children have felt second-rate and worthless because of a classmate's criticism, a bully's threat, a teacher's oversight? How many children, wrongly believing their parents can do no wrong, have ended up taking personal responsibility for mom and dad's divorce, the termination of family affection, and the household's dissolution? What is your biggest disappointment? When most of us were married, we gladly gave and joyfully received vows which promised undying love, unreserved support, unending encouragement, honor, faithfulness. Today would you, could you make those same vows to that same person again?

What is your biggest disappointment? For many of our seniors their pain may revolve around children who no longer call; who no longer write; who no longer visit; who no longer remember the countless sacrifices which were made for them years ago. No parent gives as an investment for the future and no parent expects to be repaid. But it should also be noted, no parent expects to be forgotten or shut away in a closet, either. What is your disappointment? Are you down on yourself? Could you have said a right word of encouragement to someone, but chose to leave that word left unsaid? Could you have made a difference to someone in need but decided it was smarter to mind your own business? Are you disappointed with yourself because you didn't extend a hand in sympathy, offer a hug showing empathy, or invest a few minutes of time in someone who stood alone, lost, confused, or hurting?

What has been your biggest disappointment? Has it been God? A lot of people I know would answer 'yes' to that question. There are many folks who are convinced God doesn't exist, or God doesn't care, or God has let them down big time. Sometimes this negative opinion of the Lord has come from their dealing with Christ's people. Still sinners, although saved sinners, we Christians are not always the Savior's best representatives. It's true, Christians can turn people off on God; but I think it's just as true, most people are disappointed in God because of a time when they asked, when they hoped to get something from the Lord and He didn't deliver; He didn't fork over; He didn't obey their prayer. Folks, let's be honest about what happened that day. You may have called it 'a prayer', but it was closer to a command, a demand. No, I know you didn't say it that way, but that's what it amounted to. You put your relationship with the Lord on the line, you gave Him an ultimatum. AND, and if God didn't come through for you, you decided you were going to take a hike. You might not have said it that way, you might not even have thought it at the time, but that's what happened. You wanted to be in control and you wanted God to take your orders.

If that explains why you are disappointed with God, you should realize you are not alone and you are not the first to think you are wiser and know better than the Lord. Adam and Eve came to that same conclusion in the Garden of Eden. Their first bite of the forbidden fruit was their way of saying, "God You're too confining, too limiting. We think we know what is best and right for us, and, if You don't mind, we're going to take control." Read through the Bible and you will find almost all of God's heroes of faith, at some point, concluded God had let them down. Read the book of Psalms and you will hear cries of sadness and sorrow. Psalm 13:1 says, "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" There's Psalm 35 (17), which pleads "How long, O Lord, will you look on? Rescue me from their destruction..." Listen as Psalm 79: 5 says, "How long, O Lord? Will you be angry forever? Will your jealousy burn like fire?", and again in Psalm 22: 1 the writer asks, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

For those of you who have no use for God, I can't be sure what life's disappointment has brought you to this point; but without hesitation or fear of contradiction, I am able to offer this assurance: "God has NOT forsaken you." True, He may not have always given you what you wanted, but, as a parent, I haven't given my children everything they wanted either. Because I didn't let my children play with the electrical outlets like they wanted; because I didn't let them cross the street unattended like they wanted, because I didn't let them stay up as late as they wanted, or watch whatever TV program they wanted, that doesn't mean I didn't care. On the contrary, I did those things because I loved them and because I was committed to them. That is the way it is with God. The Triune God, who is far wiser and more faithful than you can possibly imagine, has done everything He has because it was right and best for you. You may not understand Him, you may not agree with Him, but your lack of understanding and agreement makes God's love and faithfulness no less real.

And if you demand to know how I can be so sure of the Lord and His good intentions toward you, this is my explanation: I believe in God's commitment because I have seen what His Son has done to save us. Now I would love to tell you I am good, and kind, and caring, and, well, all kinds of wonderful things. But I'm not, and you're not either. Each of us has done things we are not proud of, things which we would like to keep hidden. Now while we may put on a false front before all humanity, we cannot do the same before God. The all-knowing Lord has seen who we are, who we really are. He has looked into our hearts and seen the corruption, the filth, and sin which is there.

But the amazing thing is this. Having seen what we have done wrong in the past and all we will do wrong in the future, God has not smashed us as we might crush one of those chiggers we talked about before. Amazingly, He did not brush us off and go about His business unconcerned and uncaring about inconsequential us. What God did end up doing is a mystery, a mystery so profound as to escape any and all rational explanation. God sent His Son into this world to save us. God's perfect Son, Jesus, was born into this sinful world to find and rescue lost humanity. Those words are so easy for me to say, so familiar to your ear that you may not think about their meaning and the price which was paid so I could say them.

Did I lose you there? Here, let me give you an example. Listen to this sentence: "We live in a land of freedom." Those are easy words for me to say. But to understand what is behind those words, you must go to the military cemeteries around the world and look upon the graves, the row after row of tombstones, each white stone representing a life. These lives were given so I might be free. But there is more. Go to the Veteran's hospitals and see those who have given an eye, a leg, a hand, their sanity so we might be free. And still I am not done. You must also go to homes where there is a picture of a deceased service man or woman hanging on a wall or sitting on a table. This picture reminds a mother of her son or daughter who was sent off to war and never came home, who will never come through the front door again. That picture is a reminder to a spouse who will never be held again, a reminder for a child of what mommy or daddy once looked like. You must see and understand these things if you wish to understand the words, "I live in a land of freedom."

And if you are to understand the Lord's love and the salvation He gives, you must look to an animal's feeding trough in Bethlehem and see God's Son Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who was born true Man so He might redeem all of humankind. So we might be saved Jesus gave His life. Every moment of every day, He stood on guard against sin; every moment of every day He resisted Satan's enticements to disobey, to step away, to go AWOL. Jesus gave His life so we might be saved. Look at the price which was paid so I could say those words to you. Look as Jesus was betrayed by a friend. A kiss was placed on his cheek by a disciple and the innocent Savior was taken to trial, His fixed trial. It's true. The witnesses were paid to lie about Him; the charges against Him kept changing and the verdict which sentenced Him to death was predetermined before the court ever began.

Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviour gave His life so we might be saved. Think about the price which was paid so I could say those words. Look, have you seen Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviour beaten, watched as He was spit upon, crowned with thorns, whipped and laughed at? Have you seen how, with grim efficiency, the Roman execution squad pounded nails through His wrists and ankles and set His cross into the ground? Have you heard Jesus call down from that cross and speak words of forgiveness to those who had nailed Him there? Have you looked at the price which was paid so we could be saved? Have you heard the Christ cry out from the cross: "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

Look at the price Jesus paid so you could be saved. He was the only Person who has ever been forsaken by God. If you think God doesn't care, or believe God has forgotten you, you are wrong. This is the truth: Jesus, and only Jesus, suffered that terrible pain and loneliness. Jesus, and only Jesus, gave His life so you might be forgiven, so you might believe, so you might be saved. The death of God's Son is what it cost for me to be able to say, "God loves you." Do not minimize those words, do not mock them, do not pretend they are not true. Jesus' death in Jerusalem, His glorious resurrection, are God's guarantee that all who believe are forgiven and saved.

Throughout this message I have spoken about your disappointments, your disappointments both large and small. I'd like to finish talking about God's disappointment. Yes, I'm pretty sure the Lord can be disappointed. In the Gospel of Luke (15:7) it says 'there is joy in heaven over a sinner who repents and is saved.' That passage makes me wonder, "What is there in heaven when a sinner doesn't repent and decides to stay in sin?" I wonder what there is in heaven when a sinner turns his back on the Saviour's cross and empty tomb. I wonder what there will be in heaven if your life is lived without Jesus, His forgiveness, His salvation. Let's not find out. Today the Holy Spirit calls, ACCEP THIS DAY JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR AS YOUR PERSONAL SAVIOUR Amen.

Peace Be With You A ll
In The Name Of Jesus Christ
Our Lord And Saviour,
Rev. Keliihananui Makalani