Sunday Service – July 19/20

As always, the transcript follows below

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

There is a time for everything,and a season for every activity under the heavens: ² a time to be born and a time to die,a time to plant and a time to uproot,³ a time to kill and a time to heal,a time to tear down and a time to build,⁴ a time to weep and a time to laugh,a time to mourn and a time to dance,⁵ a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,⁶ a time to search and a time to give up,a time to keep and a time to throw away,⁷ a time to tear and a time to mend,a time to be silent and a time to speak,⁸ a time to love and a time to hate,a time for war and a time for peace.

Matthew 16:13-18

¹³ When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”¹⁴ They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” ¹⁵ “But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?”¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”¹⁷ Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven.¹⁸ And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; Matthew 16:13-18
Springford Baptist Church: July, 19, 2020.
GOD IS THE MASTER BUILDER

(Summer Sermon Series: A SEASON FOR SERVING)

In this summer sermon series, it is our desire to understand the truth and application in our lives that, “There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under the heavens.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1) These times are held in God’s hands, not ours.

This week finds us focusing our attention on verse 3 of Ecclesiastes 3: “a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build.”

As Christian believers, we have been praying for the Covid19 virus to be brought under control. We long for there to be a time for people and our world to heal. Even though there are indications of progress in this fight here in Canada, we know that this virus continues to kill and we pray for the time when this virus will be killed. We are thankful for the many people who have recovered from this disease and those who are slowly healing from the fear and disruption that this pandemic has caused. Healing is essential when there has been a time of killing and fear.

We cannot pretend this has not happened and carry on as before. This is a time for rebuilding and in order for there to be rebuilding there must be tearing down. This process of building requires our humble prayers for God to show us the way. Only God, the Master Builder, can wisely oversee what must be torn down in order for what needs to be built to be carefully constructed.

Near where we live there is a lot where a new house is being built. We have watched the construction project with interest. It began with an old tumble down house and the lot being up for sale. When it was sold, the old house was torn down. It had served its purpose. There were children raised there, and dreams fulfilled, and family memories created, but now that old house was beyond repair and it was time for something new to be built. There was, “a time to tear down and a time to build.”I am not suggesting that it is always time to tear down the old and replace with something new, but sometimes it is.

We will need wisdom from God to know, “a time to tear down and a time to build.” When it is a time to build, there needs to be planning and purchasing of building materials, and workers and a foreman to guide the whole process. We can look to God to be the Master Builder in our lives.
He knows what needs to be torn down in us so that what needs to be built, can be. God has good plans for each of us and for our church. If there is a crumbling down structure in our relationship with God, that needs to rebuilt. If there are attitudes in us that are meanspirited and show prejudice, those need to be torn down. Then something new and God pleasing can be built.

This corona pandemic has shone light on various shaky approaches to life that need solid structures built to replace them. If something that is not functioning well is torn down, that is only part of the process. There will still be the challenge of determining what to build in its place.

Since God is the Master Builder, we can look to him to show us His plans for us as individuals and for our church, our gathering of believers who want to serve Jesus well.

Before this pandemic had struck and drastically altered our lives, we had planned to host a meeting at our church on Wednesday April 1^st. Doesn’t that seem like a long time ago now? I saw the poster for this on my desk at the church just this week. We were wanting to be aware of ways we could serve well in our community and had been discussing several ideas. The poster read:

“Please join us at Springford Baptist Church on Wed. April 1^st 2 pm to discuss together the interest in various needs we might respond to in Springford and the surrounding area. Would there be an interest in?

-a seniors’ monthly drop in
-a weekly exercise group
-foot care
-Meals on Wheels
-Volunteering as a driver for Meals on Wheels
-Volunteering as a driver for those going to various medical appointments -Something else we haven’t thought about

We want to hear from you so that what we plan does meet the needs!”

Of course that meeting was cancelled and we have had to consider other ways that we can serve at this time. Going forward, we are being challenged to recognize what being the church will need to look like in the days ahead. Please pray about this.

There are expectations and assumptions about church that we will need to tear down in order to respond to new realities. Are we willing to do that? These are exciting days to be living in because God the Master Builder certainly intends that we keep building the kingdom of God everyday and seeing people’s lives transformed by trusting Jesus.

A conversation that Jesus had with His disciples is recorded in Matthew 16 and gives us direction in the building of God’s church in any time and in any circumstance. At the heart of the building of God’s church in this SEASON FOR SERVING is the answer that Peter gives to Jesus’ crucial question, Who do you say that I am”? Peter replies, “You are the Christ (the Messiah) the Son of the Living God.” (vs. 16) Jesus is so pleased that God has revealed this truth to Peter. This is the truth that the church of Jesus Christ is to be built on. Jesus affirms, “on this rock, I will build my church” (vs. 18) And there is nothing that can stand against or tear down what God the Master Builder decides to build!

As we choose to build our lives and Christ’s church on the true confession that He is the Son the living God, we can know that God will oversee the building plans. There are circumstances we cannot predict and challenges we will keep facing, but with God as the Master Builder, He will determine what He wants to build through us in this SEASON FOR SERVING.

Will we allow Him to show us, “a time to tear down and a time to build” in His “time for everything and (His) season for every activity under the heavens”?