Weekly Message

Tom Seymour

December 7, 2013

Advent Begins – Colors: Purple or  blue, pink on third Sunday

Mark 28: 18-20 – “All authority on heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Did you know that of all the states in the union, Maine is the least religious, or as some might say, “the least churched?” Even worse, Waldo and Hancock Counties are home to the least religious people in Maine.

These statistics are nothing new, nothing that just happened. I recall this being the case well over 30 years ago and it probably was the same way before that. So what is the answer? What can anyone do? And should we even try and do anything? Well, if you believe that the great commission (Mark 28:19) applies to you as well to the 11 disciples, then the answer is yes, we should do something.

But where might we start? How would we go about it and to whom should we direct our efforts? Well, it might be good here to look back on my message posted on Tuesday, November 5, “Long As I Can See The Light.” That points out how believers should serve as a light to the world. If your faith, and accordingly your actions, is strong and Christ-based, then your light will shine and it will attract others.

Some people feel the need to go abroad as missionaries to foreign lands. That is laudable. But missionary work needn’t remain limited to far-off places. Rather, it can begin right here at home. It can begin in the church. That’s right, even righteous churchgoers may not have responded to Christ’s calling.

For instance, some people attend church and participate in church ritual. But they have not taken God’s word and internalized it. Many, too many, feel that the haven’t even sinned. But did you know that it’s a sin to hear the word of God as given in the bible and to scoff at it, or to “tweak” it for modern-day use. It’s a sin to think that just because something was considered wrong or sinful 2,000 years ago, the same doesn’t hold true today. God’s word does not change. The way we respond to it might change, but His word does not.

Esdras tells us that God surely made all things and searches out hidden things in hidden places. He tells us that God will examine our works. And he says “woe to those who sin and want to hide their sins.”

So the first step in doing God’s work is to begin with yourself, your neighbor, the one who sits in the pew next to you, your family and even the pastor who peaches to you if that pastor does not preach the word of God as presented in the bible.

God created heaven and earth and formed his people from the dust of the earth. Then he imparted his spirit to that newly-formed creature and we became living beings. If your pastor does not preach that, then you should first try and reconcile that pastor to the word of God. And if that fails, then find a new pastor.

So you see, we can fulfill our commission without going far at all. It begins with ourselves, with self-examination of how we adhere to and promote the word of God. And it extends to those around us.

Perhaps the best way to convince people, including yourself if needed, is to share the words of Esdra 16: 76 – “You who keep my commandments and precepts, says the Lord God, must not let your sins weigh you down, or your iniquities prevail over you.”

We know that the one born on Christmas Day is the one who takes away sin. All we have to do is believe in him. It is only those who have not a love for Christ who are weighed down by their sins.

So as the old song says, “Take a load off Annie, and put the load right on me.” That’s Christ talking and it behooves all of us to take his advice.