God?--Surprise Visit

An old man--almost 100 years old--sits at the front of his tent in the midday heat. Perhaps he is remembering some of the trails he has traveled. He was a herdsman, after all, who had traveled some 600 miles to a city called Haran and then another 450 miles southwest to the area of Shechem. Then, drought led him to Egypt, 250 miles each way.

It all began when this man, whose name was Abram had begun the journey from Ur in present-day Iraq with his father Terah and his nephew Lot. They had finally arrived in Haran in what is now Turkey, but settled there for a time. Perhaps Terah was tired. Suppose that they had been able to make 10 miles a day--unlikely at best-- traveling with livestock and families. That would have meant 60 traveling days plus whatever time they may have taken to rest and allow their animals to feed. Terah may have been worn out by this time, and may quite possibly even have died in this interval.

Abram had felt God's call to travel on to a land called Canaan. He had never been there and so did not knew really what to expect. But it had been promised to him that his descendants would have this land as their inheritance.. (free land--such a deal!). After Abram and Lot arrived they discovered that there was not enough pasture in one area for their combined herds. They separated and Lot who had chosen to go to the area around Sodom and Gomorrah, had been captured along with his neighbors by invading kings. Abram and his men had given chase and rescued the people, livestock and goods that had been taken.

Abram was a wealthy man according to Genesis 12:16. He had sheep, oxen, male donkeys, male and female slaves, female donkeys and camels. But the glory of all this faded for Abram because he did not have what he wanted most--a son. Possessions and power do not necessarily equate to happiness.

The promise of an heir to the childless Abram had been renewed at the time when he was 86 years of age. Growing weary of waiting, at the suggestion of his wife Sarai, he had decided to help God's plan along a little. Sarai had given her Egyptian maid to her husband as a concubine and she had produced a son for him.

Abram, a name that meant "exalted father" received a new name, Abraham which meant "father of many nations". Sarai became Sarah meaning "princess". Abraham was at that time 91 according to the account, and still no son had been born.

As Abraham sat on this particular day at the entrance of his tent--hot, like today?--he realized that three men were standing near him. 'Near' must have been a relative term because Abraham ran to meet them--no mean feat in itself for someone who was nearing 100? This was only the beginning of the hurrying. Remember that Abraham 1) hastened to the tent, 2) told Sarah to make cakes quickly, 3) ran to his herd where he took a calf, 4) had the servant hasten to prepare the calf for the visitors--a hurry-up deal when unexpected company arrives. Some of you women know the feeling?

The men ate their food under a tree and probably while they were eating, they asked where Sarah was. Evidently the tent was close by because Sarah heard the conversation and when one of the men renewed the promise that Sarah would have a son, Sarah laughed--not too hard to understand why she tought this a little humorous?

We know the rest of the story. The promise came true and wihin the year Isaac was born.

This story talks about an encounter with three men, but it also talks af the Lord appearing. Apparently one of the visitors was God. It is often true that God is made known to us in the form of another human person. God certainly comes at unsuspected times and in unusual places. That coming always changes the course of life. We either accept whatever God reveals to us and move forward with God's purpose or we reject the insight and move farther away. Again as we read scripture and look back on our own lives, we realize that our timetable is not God's. Furthermore, the decisions of others, as well as our own, may block the wishes and purposes of God.

John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism was sailing as a priest of the Church of England to the colony of Georgia in the New World. He was going as a missionary to the Indians as well as to shepherd colonists. On the way the ship was beset by a terrific storm that lasted several days. In the midst of the storm Wesley recognized God's presence in the lives of some Moravians who were on board. While other people were frantic and fearing for their lives, these Germans were meeting to worship and were calmly praying and singing. John Wesley was so impressed by the confidence these people demonstrated in God that upon his return to England he sought out other members of the same group.

Wesley had been a priest for a number of years, had belonged to what was called the Holy Club at Oxford College. Here he and his companions met regularly to read the Bible and pray. They ministered to the poor and to prisoners. They contributed of their meager means to the assistance of others. Still John had no assurance that he was in a living relationahip with God. On May 24, 1738 (270 years ago) he went very unwillingly to a Moravian society meeting on Aldersgate St. in London. Someone there was reading Martin Luther's preface to Paul's epistle to the Romans. As John records in his journal, "about a quarter before nine while he was describing the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ, I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation. And an assurance was given me, that he had taken away MY sins, even MINE and saved ME from the law of sin and death."

Here we have another man who encountered God in an unexpected manner and in an unsuspected place. The man who had lived with doubts and fears became a fearless preacher who took his message out of doors when he was prohibited from sharing it in the churches of England. He began class meetings of less than a dozen people each in which people prayed, confessed their faults and contributed money for charitable causes. He preached at the mouths of coal mines and at times to thousands of people who came to learn of God's love for them. This was in contrast to a cold and formal state religion in which many of the nobility wanted nothing to do with the poor working class and the drunkards on the street. Priests were government employees who were often more interested in foxhunting than they were in looking after the souls and bodies of human beings. Wesley preached 40,000 sermons during his lifetime and traveled 250,000 miles on horseback or in a carriage!

God may come to you in the life of a friend. God may reveal a personal message to you through the pages of scripture. God's truth may suddenly appear real in the pages of a book you are reading. Some calamity or some great joy may suddenly make you aware that God is at your side.

Go with me for a moment to Calcutta, India. Who would have expected that a woman born of a priestly caste Hindu would be the successor to Mother Teresa? Sister Nirmula, now Mother Nimula, heads the Missionaries of Charity which has more than 4000 nuns and runs 517 orphanages, homes for the poor, AID hospices and charity centers around the world. Sister Nirmula had herself run mission posts in Panama, Europe and Washington. She had converted from Hinduism to Catholicism at age 24 because she was so impressed by the life and ministry of Mother Teresa. Teresa had started an unlikely ministry of rescuing people from lonely deaths in 1947. Her order grew until it was able to raise millions of dollars for work among the poor, diseased and dying.

As I shared with some of you a couple of weeks ago, there were unexpected influences in my call to ordained ministry. I had no idea that 2 Methodist Pastors would show up in a ND farmyard to ask whether I had ever considered going into the ministry. Tho I truthfully answered "NO" at the time, I did have to at least consider the possibility from that time on.

Also quite unexpected was the news that a Methodist District Conference had granted me a local preacher's license--with some requirements included.

When I began taking Bible classes in college I could not have imagined that one day I would be asking the professor for assistance in making a decision about entering the ministry. This wise man made the following suggestions:

1. Read the Bible and try to understand what its message may be to you,
2. Pray about the matter..seeking guidance,
3. Listen to Christian people whom you trust. What do they have to say about your abilities and talents? and
4. Sometimes when you have done all of these it comes to a point where it is like standing a yardstick on end and watching which way it falls--ONLY be careful not to push it!

A Superintendent of the Ft. Wayne District of the Methodist Church came to the college and offered me a student charge near Ft. Wayne. I think the people of that small congregation--26 active members at the beginning of my service there--encouraged in me the certainty that I was being led in the right direction.

None of these people were God, but somehow their Christian faith and love gave me guidance, support and direction.

Back to today's scripture: Why Abraham? Why did God speak to a man in Turkey? Why not China? China had at least as highly developed a civilization as the Middle East at that time in history. We don't know! What we do know are some of the results. The promise of a land and a host of descendants gave direction and purpose to the people who followed Abraham. There would always be those who would believe that God was in charge and that history was moving on toward some final fulfillment. Life was not a meaningless cycle on a lost planet. Abraham is looked upon as the father of three great religions; Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

God still speaks. Why to you and me? Because we are involved in the great drama of God's purpose. As the book of Romans puts it: We are justified by faith (that is, in God and God's Son) and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God (5:2). Keep involved in the Christian fellowship of the church, study and pray. God may well meet you in unexpected ways and in surprising places. Watch and listen! You may be surprised at Who comes calling!

Sermon delived by Rev. Dick Unkenholz on June 15, 2008.