I wonder how you felt on the days that Oliver and Theadora were born. All the waiting was over, and they were finally here, a new person to light up your life, to fill your heart. The joy of introducing them to the wider family and friends. I wonder if you had their names lined up and ready, or it you needed a couple of days to think about it.<\/p>\n
On the day that Isaac was born to Abraham and Sarah, there would have been many of those feelings. But they were intensified by the wait that they had had for a son and the miraculous nature of his conception, as Abraham and Sarah were old, Sarah well past child-bearing age. So miraculous that when Sarah had heard about it, she had laughed in disbelief, and then, when he was born, her laughter was borne of joy which is why Isaac was called Isaac \u2013 it means \u201che laughs\u201d.<\/p>\n
You see, many years before Isaac\u2019s birth, God had called Abraham and Sarah to leave their home city and travel to Canaan, the land that God promised them and their descendants. And the descendants bit is important. God promised that they would have many descendants who would be a blessing to the whole world. The problem was that years passed, and there was no baby. And no baby means no descendants. The pain of infertility was just as real then as it is now, with no medical treatments or IVF available. Eventually, however, God provided them with a son, who would be the father of the twelve tribes of Israel, the first of those promised countless descendants. <\/p>\n
So, in summary, Isaac was Sarah and Abraham\u2019s only child, born late in life, as a fulfilment of a longstanding promise of God. All their hopes and dreams for the future were focussed in this boy, in this precious son. All is set well. <\/p>\n
Until the day dawns that we heard read about this morning. The day that God commanded Abraham to sacrifice this precious son, this fulfilment of the promise, this hope for the future. It\u2019s a strange story, isn\u2019t it? Granted, in the end God stays Abraham\u2019s hand, but it is still a bit close to the bone. We can\u2019t imagine ourselves doing what Abraham seems ready to do. What\u2019s it all about? We don\u2019t have time to unpack all of it this morning, but there are a couple of things that struck me as I was reading it this week.<\/p>\n
I find Abraham\u2019s reaction fascinating. He was grateful for the ram that God provided. I think if it had been me, I might have had some pointed questions for God about what had just happened, and why God had put Abraham and Isaac through all that. Yes, God had provided Isaac in the first place, and now had provided a ram to be the sacrifice, but it seems to me that it takes a special kind of faith for Abraham\u2019s reaction to be one of thankfulness and of praising God for that provision. So much so that Abraham names the place, \u201cThe Lord will provide.\u201d<\/p>\n
As we read on through the Bible, through the story of all those descendants, and their journey with God, we read of God providing for them again and again and again. Providing Moses to lead them out of slavery, providing food in times of hunger, providing water to drink in the middle of deserts, providing a promised land for them to live in, providing laws for them to live by. <\/p>\n
Until we get to Jesus, the ultimate example of God providing. Another son born in miraculous circumstances. Another son whose birth fulfilled promises made by God to God\u2019s people.
\nAnother son who would go to the place of sacrifice. But, this time, he was the sacrifice that God provided, there was no ram in a bush for Jesus. He went to his death willingly, to provide a way for us to be free from the consequences of our own rebellion against God. He defeated death, and offers us a way to life. It is because of Jesus\u2019 sacrifice on the cross that we can bring Oliver and Theadora for baptism in faith that as they follow Jesus in life, so they will follow Jesus through death and into life in all its fulness with God for ever. <\/p>\n
As well as himself being God\u2019s provision for us, while he was living here on earth, Jesus taught about God\u2019s provision for our lives. It\u2019s part of this teaching that we heard read from Matthew\u2019s eye witness account of Jesus\u2019 life. It begins with a phrase that is repeated throughout Jesus\u2019 teaching, \u201cDo not worry.\u201d<\/p>\n
I wonder what you worry about. Perhaps for some of us it is food and clothes, getting or keeping a roof over our heads. Paying the mortgage, meeting the car payments. Or perhaps it\u2019s not financial for you. Maybe it\u2019s something about work, or about parenting. Will we get things right, now that we are responsible for this new little human being?
\nYou will know the things that keep you from getting to sleep, or wake you early in the morning, those invasive thoughts that have you chewing your nails or snapping with bad temper and stress at your nearest and dearest. <\/p>\n
To all those things Jesus says, \u201cDon\u2019t worry.\u201d Now, I don\u2019t know about you, but when I\u2019m worried or anxious about things, I don\u2019t always find it very helpful if someone says, \u201cDon\u2019t worry\u201d to me. <\/p>\n
But Jesus says something else as well \u2013 he gives two reasons not to worry, and he gives us something else to do. <\/p>\n
The first reason not to worry is very practical, and can\u2019t be argued with. Jesus asks \u201cCan any one of you, by worrying, add a single hour to your life?\u201d In other words, worrying about something is pointless, it doesn\u2019t change anything, it just saps our energy and makes us feel worse. <\/p>\n
The second reason not to worry is a bit different, because it depends on what we believe about God. Jesus experienced God\u2019s providing for him in many different ways, and believed that God the Father knows what we need, so we don\u2019t need to worry. He calls his followers to trust God, and not to worry. This isn\u2019t an easy thing to do, particularly when things are tough. The reality of the world is that there are millions of people around the world who do not have enough to eat or clothes to wear. Many of them are Christians, followers of Jesus. God knows what they need, but hasn\u2019t provided it for them yet. This is a mystery that I do not fully understand, but I do know from my own experience is that some of the deepest and most profound faith in God that I have seen has been shown by some of the poorest people that I have met. <\/p>\n
So, what are we to do instead of worrying? We are to seek God\u2019s kingdom. What is God\u2019s kingdom? It is the place, the culture, in which God\u2019s loving rule and reign are experienced and seen at work. But what does this mean in practice? What difference does this make to us and to our lives? I\u2019d like to make a couple of suggestions.<\/p>\n
The first is about gratitude. There\u2019s a fair amount of evidence that gratitude is good for us, particularly for our mental health. Focussing on what\u2019s going well, what we\u2019re glad about, what we\u2019re grateful for, can lift our spirits and our mood. Doing this on a regular basis can help build our resilience and joy in life. One of the things that I expect you will have already starting teaching Oliver and Theadora is to say, \u201cThank you.\u201d I would like to suggest that we take that general attitude of gratitude a step further and think about who we are being grateful to. At the end of each day, to take a moment and look back and see what we\u2019re grateful for, and then say thank you to God for it. As part of a bedtime routine it can be lovely way to end the day. What made you happy today? Let\u2019s say thank you to God for it.<\/p>\n
The second suggestion is all about being an agent of generosity and provision to others. Another classic childhood lesson is about sharing. How often will you find yourselves saying, \u201cshare nicely.\u201d Whatever God has given us, has provided for us, we can share it with others. As I said earlier I don\u2019t really understand why God doesn\u2019t meet everybody\u2019s needs but it seems to me that part of the answer is that God has provided all that humanity needs, there is plenty of food, shelter, water, for every human being on the planet to flourish, but we have divided it up unequally. In general we have more than we need, and many have less than they need. So let\u2019s choose to share what God has provided. <\/p>\n
As we look to God in gratitude, and share what we have with others, so we will be seeking God\u2019s kingdom, we will have what we need, and our worries will start to fade.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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