Dirty Laundry

A friend of mine and I were chatting the other day about the faith gathering and how things have changed. I recall many decades ago my grandmother was dressed to the nines with her best hat on, white gloves and her handbag matched her purse. Grandad always had on his best hat and a three-piece suit. We both talked about the shift to a more casual attitude and the relaxation of the attire requirement. Years ago, I was the guest speaker at a church on the east coast. Now, I was not the one who came up with this approach but I had so much fun doing it. It started two hours before the service by me hanging around the entrance of the church dressed as a street person.  I had my bags of recycle (I donated them to the church after the service for missions), my matted wig was horrendous and state of my clothing probably warned people that this homeless person probably stinketh. There was one lady at the church who kept coming up to me and asking me to come into the service and share in a coffee and a good message. She was very convincing and I did go into the service much to the surprise of the individual I sat next to. I came in with my cans a rattling and a good hearty cough rattling the rafters. The associate pastor started the service off in prayer and opened the prayer altar before while they waited for the guest preacher. I appreciated the altar call and went from the back of the church up to the front. A couple people came up to pray with me and when it was done, I got up from the altar and took my place at the pulpit, stripping off the outerwear and washing my face of the dirt and grime.

It is not what you wear that allows you access to glory but how your heart is. The filthiest of beggars, sickly and “unworthy” sought out the mercy of Christ when He was walking the streets. While the “most clean” looked down on the “filthy”, Jesus knelt with them, associated with them and loved them perfectly. He met them where they were and lifted them up to where He is, whereas the priesthood wanted the sinners to become clean before they approached the temple. This is so backwards!

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

“What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”

He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ Luke 10:25-37 NIV

Love your neighbour as yourself. The church is that place where people should come just as they are and be washed by the blessings of the Holy Spirit. We are cleansed by the blood of the Saviour and are promised our place in heaven when we claim Jesus as Saviour and ask His forgiveness for our sins. This salvation is not contingent on what we wear on the outside but what we wear on our hearts, that is the Word of God. He has paid the price and watches over us. He sits at the right hand of the Father and intercedes on our behalf fully. Will there be three-piece suits in heaven? No clue, but this I know, there will be no judgement in Glory after we enter the gates of Heaven.

This Sunday, we once again welcome Rev. Hillock and look forward to his wonderful message. We invite you to join us either in person (we are limited to numbers inside the building) or online. Should you wish to join us online, click on either link below to join us live:

Facebook Live - https://www.facebook.com/main.ave.31

YouTube Live – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCs9LIkN_QTdVM6eVXEgy9QA

See you all Sunday.

Blessings,

Pastor Todd

www.mainavefellowship.blogspot.ca