1. Good Morning. Let’s pray. Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing to You O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
2. Opening Comments: Do you know what phrase or phrases will mark this time in history? I thought it might be “It is what it is” and I was right but there is one that beats even this one. It’s the most hated word in our present culture. Does anyone have any ideas?
It’s “Whatever.”
A 2009 U.S. poll of 939 adults, carried out by Marist analysts, found the word 'whatever' was the most hated word among both sexes, all age groups, educational levels and incomes, and in all regions.
Let’s look a little further into this word.
The online Urban Dictionary defined it this way:
“’Whatever” is used in an argument to admit that you’re wrong without admitting it so the argument is over.
It reveals passive-aggressive behavior at its most eloquent.”
Michael Breaux, Chaplain of Wheaton College tackled this contrarian word and noted that what sociologists are saying about this current generation can be summed up in one word. Yes, “Whatever!”
· 66% of these students admitted that they drank underage – hey whatever!
· 56% were honest enough to admit that they regularly shop-lifted little things – hey Whatever.
· He pointed out that on the Bureau of Justice website that the rate of violent crime among students 12 to 15 has risen by 156% - “Whatever!”
Here are some “images” that seem to capture graphically the subliminal message of this mindset.
Please look at the Screen (ask Kevin show images) these are images of that word.
Look and briefly discuss each one.
We apparently hate this word but it seems to describe where many of us are!
What is it that this word reveals about our younger generations and what I think is largely true of many of us older citizens?
I think this word “Whatever” has infected all of our minds and worse yet – our hearts - with its careless impotency.
This word reveals our hopelessness and, indeed, our passivity. It reveals our fundamental “impotency” – our sense of powerlessness in a world overrun by rampant cynicism and endemic skepticism! “Whatever!”
There doesn’t seem to be enough moral energy to push back the tsunamic deluge of this mind-numbing disease gone viral in our time!
“WHATEVER” seems to be the only sane response to the incessant heart-numbing cynical drumbeat of this culture that seems unable to believe in anything but the endless accumulation of more and more technology – stuff!
Hope? What is that? Hope in what? In who? There’s nothing to believe in anymore and nothing to hold on to!
Josh McDowell ministries discovered that 80% of High School students believe that there’s no such thing as “absolute truth” and 67% admitted that they regularly cheat on their exams – hey! Whatever!
Now I know that I’m preaching to the choir and that there’s probably no one in this sanctuary who has become infected with this mind numbing, heart sickening virus! But the unfortunate fact is that we’re surrounded by this terrible moral virus and it’s contaminating our lives – our children, our spouses, our brothers and sisters – our mothers and fathers and unfortunately our fellow Christians.
What then can we do to respond to this terrible moral malaise that has struck our times?
SCRIPTURE:
Let’s see what God wants to say to us about all of this in today’s Scripture readings.
Please turn briefly with me to today’s Old Testament reading from Malachi – Malachi 3:19-21a:
“Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch says the LORD of hosts. But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays. (Mal 3:19-20a)
What I hear here is that God’s sovereign justice will inexorably rise with it’s healing rays and the proud and evildoers will be reduced to stubble!
Our Psalm Response – “The LORD comes to rule the earth with justice” reechoed this theme of God’s inevitable justice.
And in our Epistle reading from Second Thessalonians Paul reminded his readers that God’s servants serve one another. They don’t lord it over one another.
And finally turn with me to our Gospel reading from Luke chapter 21 beginning at verse 5:
Luke 21:5 One day people were standing around talking about the Temple, remarking how beautiful it was, the splendor of its stonework and memorial gifts. Jesus said, 6 “All this you’re admiring so much—the time is coming when every stone in that building will end up in a heap of rubble.”
Luke 21:7 They asked him, “Teacher, when is this going to happen? What clue will we get that it’s about to take place?”
Luke 21:8 He said, “Watch out for the doomsday deceivers. Many leaders are going to show up with forged identities claiming, ‘I’m the One,’ or, ‘The end is near.’ Don’t fall for any of that. 9 When you hear of wars and uprisings, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history and no sign of the end.”
Luke 21:10 He went on, “Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. 11 Huge earthquakes will occur in various places. There will be famines. You’ll think at times that the very sky is falling.
Luke 21:12 “But before any of this happens, they’ll arrest you, hunt you down, and drag you to court and jail. It will go from bad to worse, dog-eat-dog, everyone at your throat because you carry my name. 13 You’ll end up on the witness stand, called to testify. 14 Make up your mind right now not to worry about it. 15 I’ll give you the words and wisdom that will reduce all your accusers to stammers and stutters.
Luke 21:16 “You’ll even be turned in by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends. Some of you will be killed. 17 There’s no telling who will hate you because of me. 18 Even so, every detail of your body and soul—even the hairs of your head!—is in my care; nothing of you will be lost. 19 Staying with it—that’s what is required. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry; you’ll be saved.
When I read that I was wonderfully blessed by Jesus’ honest but comforting authority! Bad stuff is going to happen to us but we’re covered! Our final hope is not in the Good Life! As portrayed to us by the many “Reality” shows all over our televisions – from “American Idol” to “Dancing with The Stars.” These and so many others project a strange image of what is “real” in our culture BUT our dream and our certain hope is in what Jesus promises!
Luke 21:18 Even so, every detail of your body and soul—even the hairs of your head!—is in my care; nothing of you will be lost. 19 Staying with it—that’s what is required. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry; you’ll be saved. (Message)
Luke 21:18 but not a hair of your head will be lost. 19 Your perseverance will win you your lives. (NJB)
You see, we don’t have the option of saying “Whatever!” – a hopeless, powerless sigh, BUT rather our word is “Forever!” Everlasting life is our inheritance!
You and you and you and me – we have that phrase written in stone over us. This is our guarantee for life everlasting! Life without end Amen!
· You see we can live each and every day in the certainty that despair isn’t our end.
· failure isn’t our end.
· Death isn’t our end.
· Our enemies victories over us aren’t our end.
· Cancer isn’t our end.
· Old age isn’t our end.
· Heart disease isn’t our end.
None of these and many more are our ultimate end – but rather eternal life with each other and with God – that is not our end but our certain future – world without end amen.
Application: Now how do we live today in this reality?
We can’t make ourselves believe that. But the fact is that our souls are eternal and that self which we are every day needs to meditate upon its eternal destiny – to imagine it; to live into it; to become familiar with it and that takes time and spiritual effort.
Take a moment now and think about it. Just imagine that you really will be a living being 1,000 years from now. What will those 1,000 years have been like for you? The simplest word that comes immediately to mind is “bliss.” The sublime truth is that we ARE eternal beings and it is our joy to live now in that magnificent reality!
To imagine it; to dream about it is our calling for soon it will be a lived reality. How then can we live in the fullness of who we really are and experience today some of the bliss that awaits us beyond?
What makes all of the difference in the world as we think about this – dream about this; try to imagine what is coming - is that we are the objects God’s loving delight. He has numbered every hair on our head. Listen once again to the end of our Gospel reading;
. 18 . . . every detail of your body and soul—even the hairs of your head!—are in my care; nothing of you will be lost. 19 Staying with it—that’s what’s required. Stay with it to the end. You won’t be sorry; you’ll be saved.
Staying with it to the end – Ah! Living our lives today . . . pondering – wondering – imagining what all of this means is our daily calling. Trying to enter more and more fully into this romance which our heavenly Father is calling us into. In the presence of such a sublime reality the word “Whatever” has absolutely no part. Forever and ever and ever and ever – that is our true destiny and, if we will, we can learn to live in its infinite hope and promise today!
Let us pray . . .
