worship at the beach

      Imagine a crowded seashore in the heat of the summer and Jesus walking down across the sand dunes to the multitude gathered on the beach.  And as the crowd turns expectantly to see Jesus, He announces that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand and that He is here to declare the way to enter into the Kingdom.
     The expectant crowd draws closer in anticipation.  Jesus then announces in a loud voice that He wants all the good people to gather together on the north end of the beach, and all the sinners to go down to the south end.  Immediately, there is a great commotion as people start moving, and jockeying for position, hurrying to take their  place on the north end.  Some stand uncertainly, watching to see which way their friends go.  But when they notice that their friends are moving to the “good” end of the beach, they feel that certainly, they must be as good as their friends are, and so they move off to the north end as well.  The “good” side quickly becomes packed.
     Meanwhile, only a few downcast, sorry looking individuals move slowly down to the south end.  They huddle together with their heads down in a small group, embarrassed and ashamed, but knowing that there is no way that they can claim to be good enough to go to the good side.
     Once the crowd has separated, Jesus walks over to the good end of the beach and dismisses all the multitude on the north end.  He says they are not able to enter the Kingdom because of their self righteousness.  Surprised and indignant, the multitude begins to move away, grumbling and complaining.
     Jesus then turns His attention to the few despondent people on the south end - the sinner’s beach.  And He says to them, “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." (Luke 5:32)   “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to captives and freedom to prisoners.” (Isa.61:1)
     Jesus said, “I came to live the perfect life that you could never live, and pay the ultimate sacrifice that you could never pay so that you might be reconciled to God, that sinners might be made holy and righteous by God as a gift of His grace.  ‘If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.’” (Rom. 10:9,10)  And having been justified by faith in Christ’s atonement,  “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”  (Rom. 8:1)   Furthermore, He said, whereas before you were powerless in your captivity to sin,  now that you have been made holy by Christ’s sacrifice, God will give you His Spirit to live in you, that you might have power over sin, to live in sin no more.
      Now that “Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” (Rom. 8:10,11)
     The Savior then announces to this small group, whose faces are  now shining in hope, their consciences washed clean by faith in God’s forgiveness,  that “your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own. For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”  (1 Cor. 6:19,20)
     Before leaving them, Jesus gives them this final word. “Now that you have been delivered from sin, justified, made righteous and holy before God by the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for your sins,  ‘I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.’” (Rom. 12:1,2)

                              ***SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT***

This Wednesday, 5/16/12, we will be having a cookout at the Savages house.  Dinner is at 6pm followed by a short Bible study.  Please plan on joining us for a fun night of fellowship.  The Savages live on Central Ave., just past Bear Trap on the right side, about 4 houses past Burbage Road.  33476 Central Ave.  Frankford, DE 19945.