Time Zones

0:00 hostility and rejection even of those they love. The scripture says, Jesus said, I came to bring fire to the earth and how I wish it were already kindled. I have a baptism with which to be baptized and what stress I am under until it is completed. Do you think that I've come to bring peace to the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on, five in one household will be divided, three against two, and two against three. They will be divided, father against son, son against father, mother against daughter, and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. He also said to the crowds, when you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, it's going to rain. And so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, there will be a scorching heat.

0:58 And it happens. You hypocrites, you know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and sky. But why do you not know how to interpret the present time? Let us pray. Good and gracious God, may the words of my mouth and the meditations upon all our hearts be acceptable to you, our Lord and Savior. Amen. Please be seated. Well, it's very nice to be back with you all. Thank you. As I shared last time, feel free to participate. I'll throw out an are you with me? You might say no or give me a second. Whatever's going to work for you. But are you with me?

1:52 There we go. We'll get started here. So the title of today's sermon is called Time Zones. Time Zones. Let me start with talking a little bit about a show called The West Wing. Are you familiar with that show? Okay, very good. So if you're not, it was an American political drama series that displayed life for those staffers that were working for the president in the show in the White House. And in 2002, there was an interesting episode that was highlighting the challenge of not knowing where time zones changed on the East Coast area. And the location was specifically in Indiana. And what happened was there was these three White House staffers. They were on a campaign trip in rural Indiana, and they were driving furiously to get to make a tight connection to go and board Air Force One. In their haste, they neglected to notice that as they were driving, they were crossing into a different county that at that time did not observe daylight savings times. Their watches were an hour behind the local time.

2:57 And they missed the flight. In 2002, the eastern time portion of Indiana, again, at that time, they actually didn't observe the daylight savings time. And so residents in Dearborn County, they unofficially observed daylight savings time to remain on that same time zone in near Cincinnati, Ohio. And there's the unofficial observance. And that's what this confusion in the show was all about. I bring up this fictional TV show and the real matter of time zones, the mix up because Jesus talks a lot or specifically about time and interpreting it. And I think we should consider this today. The main point that I'll be getting at is the question that Jesus brings up at the end of verse 56. He starts it off with hypocrites. And then he says, how is it you don't know how to interpret this time? So I want us to think about what time zone or time zones are we in? What time zone are you in personally? And what time zone are you in as a church?

4:11 How is Jesus in this passage helpful to us on a personal level and then also on a corporate level for you all as the church body? Well, I was thinking about this in time zones. And I mentioned last time I got to visit Fiji in the South Pacific. And if you've ever gone somewhere in the South Pacific, what happens is you cross this call, you cross something called the date line. And essentially, when you cross this part of the earth and you're going west, you go one calendar day ahead. You sort of time travel. And you lose a day, but then you get a day when you come back and you'll see on your plane ticket, it actually describes this phenomenon. There's a couple extra days. And it's very fascinating.

4:55 Or for some of you, I'm sure you have family, whether on the East Coast and they're an hour or so ahead or on the West Coast. And I always have to be mindful to text or call friends in Los Angeles. If I'm awake at seven, it's going to be 5 a.m. for them. Yeah. And I bring this up because you have to think about and remember, you have to stop and go, oh, wait, what time zone are they in? Are they Pacific, Central, Eastern? You have to interpret the time. You need to ask, what time zone am I in?

5:29 So if you look, we start at verse 56. I'll start by saying this. Jesus is a little hangry, it seems like, in this passage. He, you know, the whole passage, he's been preaching a lot or teaching. But he's not the kind and gentle Jesus that we're used to. And so that's a very interesting part there. As we noted, he talks about dividing things. And this is a hard teaching. And it's the whole chapter 12 is there's hard teaching here. And then even all the passages we read, they're beautiful, but they're heavy.

6:04 And so my first point is this on a personal level. How do we interpret this question? What time zone are we in? Or how do you interpret this time, as Jesus puts it? And I think a way to approach that is looking at the whole passage of chapter 12. We're not going to go into every single detail. But for example, just reviewing chapter 12, in verses 1 to 3, Jesus talks about the yeast of the Pharisees. The yeast of the Pharisees and being hypocrites. In verses 4 to 7, he says he speaks of having no fear.

6:34 In verses 8 through 12, he talks about having faith in God to speak through you, through the Holy Spirit in those times of challenge or persecution. In verses 13 through 21, he speaks of the parable of the rich fool. And the idea of storing ourselves, our treasures, in earthly things that moths and rust will destroy. In verses 22 to 34, Jesus speaks of don't be anxious. Don't be anxious. And then verses 35 to 48, being ready for the return of the Lord. And then if we looked at verse 42, we see, thankfully, Peter doesn't mind speaking up and asking questions.

7:15 Because Peter asked the question, wait, wait, wait, wait. Is this for the people or is this for us? Is this hard teaching about the return of the Lord for them or is it for us? Thankfully, Jesus, maybe not too hangry yet. He answers Peter's question with saying, who then is the faithful and wise manager whom his master will set over his household to give them their portion of food at the proper time? So we see Jesus brings up the matter of time. I suggest we consider how time and how we understand our time zone we're in and how to interpret that.

7:57 So on a personal level, I'll start with myself. For example, in my own life currently, I'm in a season of life where I just turned 41. I'm a working adult, essentially. I'm a professional. I have to think about things I'm going to wear. I can't just show up to work in t-shirt and jeans and flip-flops. You know what I mean. I'm not 20 years old anymore. I'm rolling out of bed, showing up to work and saying, what do I need to do? And that's fine because when you're 20, you don't have much to worry about.

8:39 But the point I'm getting at is I'm describing as I'm a working adult in my life at this point. I ask the question myself or Jesus asking the question, Brian, do you know how to interpret this time? Do you know how to think about this with you're worried about dressing up? Because I might be a little bit anxious. How am I supposed to get dressed? What am I supposed to wear? What am I supposed to look like at age 41 in this time zone, in this time period?

9:06 But wait a minute, didn't Jesus talk about something that teaches on anxiousness or worrying about what other people think? And he did. In the beginning of the chapter, he says, rather straightforward, don't be a hypocrite. Don't be a person who puts on a mask for others. This time zone I'm in, I'm thinking about how do I dress and how should I look? And for me on a personal level, that means I don't just put on a front or face with what I wear. I need to ask myself, Jesus, who are you calling me to truly be?

9:37 And how is that maybe reflected in what I wear? And how is that not reflected in what I wear? Because Jesus is with me. Are you with me? And this is important because you all are going to find yourselves in different seasons of life, in different time periods. You're probably going to find yourself in a situation and asking those similar questions. Jesus, what am I called to be now? What am I supposed to be doing with this time? How am I supposed to appear or present myself with others?

10:07 But there's more for some of you. You're in an age period or a time period of retirement. You're entering in a period about thinking about, well, you have to save enough money to be in a place. And right now, I'm sure we're all feeling financial stress. Are you with me? Yeah. Talk about financial issues and the markets and the tariffs and all sorts of things that we, our minds wander about and anxiety is created about. And in this time period, you might become worried. I know I am.

10:38 In this time period, you might become fearful. Is there going to be enough? In this time period, you wonder, is my storehouse, is my treasure, is my 401k going to make it? And these are not easy things. And so I think Jesus is asking you and me on a personal level, how are you looking at this time zone? How are you looking at this time period with these real worries? And within that question, what's going to anchor you in whatever time zone you're in? What is going to help you as you think about those things that create anxiety?

11:20 So the first point is considering the personal way of looking at this question. Where am I? What time zone am I in? How scared should I be? How worried should I be? And Jesus, help me. And I think he reminded me, don't be a hypocrite about what you worry with wearing things. But it also, I'm reminded he speaks in verses 29 or so. Fear not, for you're more valuable than many sparrows. Or in verses 29 through 32, Jesus says, don't seek what you're to eat, what you're to drink, nor be worried.

11:57 For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your father knows you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it's your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Keep these things in mind on those personal time zones you're in, and the real worries and struggles within them. Are you with me? We're going to shift to the second point. I recall last time when I was here, y'all briefly were talking about discerning things as a church.

12:33 Considering what is it going to look like for you in this next season, in this next time period of your church. Is that correct? Okay. And this is a hard thing to do. I know when I was working with churches back in California, I was working specifically with Presbyterians and working with churches in these types of questions. So it's hard because you're discerning, you're seeking, and you're looking and asking the question, what does it look like to evolve, to grow, to change a church? Those are scary questions.

13:04 And so when we look at the reality of this church that you all make up, and then we connect them with Jesus, there seems to be some dividing happening. There seems to be some things being separated. There's some challenges. There's some challenges. And I think there's something in this passage for you all as a church in this period for you. Because I'd imagine you're feeling conflicted. I'd imagine you're feeling divided. I'd imagine you're feeling challenged by each other, by God. And so what do we do with that?

13:36 Some of you are probably thinking, we want to do this. Some of you are saying, we want this. Some say this. The denomination says that. But what do we do? Because if we're honest, change is scary. Are you with me? So changing or considering this, we require that we have to come to Jesus and ask, what do we do with this? How do you interpret this time as a church? I'd encourage you to go back again to the passage in the beginning. First, don't be hypocrites.

14:09 And by this, I mean, don't put on a mask. And don't just be kind and share what you think other people want to hear. Doesn't mean be rude, but be open with each other. Share your heart's desires. Share what you think each other needs to know. And it's okay if you don't agree, but you'll start to hear each other. Are you with me? Secondly, have no fear. Jesus says, don't worry about those things that can be done to the body, but worry about those things that can be done to the spirit.

14:39 And there's some other ways of looking at this. But sometimes we focus so much on the physical changes of the church and we forget the internal parts of the body, our spirit, and the challenges being had there. So don't worry so much about the physical changes of the church at this time. Rather, look and consider what are going to be the things that are going to be changed in you in a good way, on your spiritual level. You want to be open to how God wants to change you internally as well, not just physically as a growing number of people, but growing in your spiritual faith.

15:18 Are you with me? And in this time, I think a good way to sense a barometer of change is, are you having more peace in your spirit? As you think about this, as you're growing in more peace. And consider again that you're valuable more than many sparrows. We're reminded that we are more valuable than we think to God. Keep that in mind during this process. And there's something said here about Jesus that he talks about speaking before others and having the Holy Spirit speak to you.

15:53 And so being open to that, what speaking in the Holy Spirit means in this time. And that you need each other. Not one person is going to have the market of the Holy Spirit speaking. So you need to be working and listening to each other. That requires praying together. That requires seeking God together. And I think that's something you all are doing, but I'd encourage you to keep doing that together. Are you with me? And then finally, looking at verses 30 to 34 and how to help the church interpret the time.

16:29 I read a little bit already, but this part says, I think here Jesus is reminding us individually and corporately. I think here Jesus is reminding us individually and corporately that God knows we seek these things. And God wants to give us these things. And in the process, we need to have the hope and the faith that God will provide those things in the right timing. And that God does desire good for us. Maybe perhaps on his timeline. I know at times I want things to move faster.

17:24 But thankfully, God knows me better than I know myself. And I think he knows the church here better than you know each other. But yet you're growing to learn more about that. Are you with me? So in this process, you're going to reconsider what is our treasure. Is it the physical building? Is it the people? Is it how God uses both of those things combined together? I would never want his church to be divided, but rather brought together. Is the thing that you treasure God or is it things personally or as a church?

17:58 Is the thing that you treasure God or a person? We don't want to fall into idolatry. Well, friends, coming to a close here. As I brought up, I sought to ask the question based on Jesus' question. How is it you not know how to interpret the time? This was considered personally for you and, you know, maybe for me as I think about clothing, for you and your finances in this time period. For some of you, now we consider also what does it mean as a church, as a body, as a people?

18:34 And I started with the show The West Wing. And as I described it briefly, it was actually when I watched the episode, it was rather funny because these staffers, there's two men and a woman, and then there's these two high school students that are there. And these, the men are breaking down like toddlers, freaking out that they missed their flight. And one of the men says, what, what, what, he's just roughing and puffing, what do you do, what do you do? People, they just, they just reset their watches when they commute?

19:04 They just change their watches every time they cross a time zone? And you see the high school students kind of looking at their watches. Yeah. Friends, I'm not sure what time zone you might be in. But as I shared, Jesus is challenging and encouraging us to consider and ask the question, how do we interpret the time? And this could be personally or corporately. And so the question I leave you with is, I don't have my watch on, but are you going to look at your watch and ask Jesus, what time is it?

19:45 You can do that through prayer, through meditation, through reading scripture, by being together, because now is the time to ask Jesus, what do we do with this time we have? Are you with me? Amen. Amen. We come now to the hymn of the day.