Dr. David D. Young
September 17, 2006
Isaiah 55: 10-13
Mark 8: 27-38
Acts 13: 16-33
Proclamation Power

Words!

They come at us faster than a speeding bullet – and they are more powerful than a locomotive. We live in a day of information overload! Words cascade across our minds so rapidly – that for many there is a loss of meaning in life.

Between the radio, television, movies, videos, DVD’s, newspapers, magazines, books, junk mail, the internet, e-mails, spam, I-pods, telephones, cell phones, conversations with family, friends and co-workers – there is little time left in the day for deep inner reflection.

In our attempt to “be in the know” we think that to absorb more is to know more – and we often get less. Words wash over us so rapidly that we risk the erosion of meaning in our lives.

Words are cheap!

But oh, how we long for meaning and the things that hold within…and …within our relationships. Well, today marks the second in an early fall sermon series “Images and Identity for the People of God” as we seek to discover “proclamation power” utilizing the image of a herald.

Some newspapers are called the “Herald.” A herald, you will recall, proclaimed a royal decree on behalf of the king to all the people. A herald was in the communication business. Not only did the herald have to communicate loudly and clearly, he had to develop astute articulation and know his audience well – such that what the king meant was conveyed accordingly.

I would venture to say that at least half the world’s communications problems – both at the personal level and international level – are caused by miscommunication and misunderstanding - rather than by flat out disagreement.

Words get abused and misused. They can be twisted and tangled – crafty and sneaky.

The children of a prominent and wealthy family decided to give their father a book of their family history. The biographer they hired for the job was warned of one problem – Uncle Willie, the black sheep, who had gone to the electric chair for murder. The biographer promised to handle the situation: “I’ll just say that Uncle Willie occupied a chair of applied electronics at one of our leading government institutions. He was attached to his position by the strongest of ties. His death came as a true shock.”

Words can deceive reality or they can reinforce it. In politics something outrageous can be said by someone in either party and it can be completely false – but because it is so common place anymore – it’s as if hardly anyone even bats an eye.

Words can create and build up or words can tear down and destroy. “Sticks and stones can break my bones,” – but words…can be devastating!

And so we have been called to be heralds of proclamation power – because we gather each Sunday – not to proclaim the bad news – but the good news of Jesus Christ.

A minister’s car broke down just after the morning service, so on Monday he took it to the local garage for repair. “I hope you’ll go a little easy on the price,” he told the mechanic. “After all I’m just a poor preacher.” “I know it,” came the answer…I heard you yesterday.” The point is this – that even though I or anyone else might be a poor preacher – the message we proclaim is anything but poor.

Last week on homecoming Sunday, which was by the way a stellar event in my opinion, we lifted up the reality that we are a search church. And today we are proclaiming the compensatory balancing point – that this church has a message to share.

In our contemporary culture we have heralds of a sort – news commentators – sports announcers – and media persons of all kinds. But instead of reaching hundreds of people as the heralds of old would have done – with all the advances of technology they can reach thousands and millions.

And so we learn quickly of war, of terrorist attacks, suicide bombings and military coups. This church will never reach millions of people – but we do reach thousands through our radio ministry and the internet.

The reach of our radio is determined by two things. First – the quality of our message – which we know to be true. And second – the quality of our broadcast – and I want to publicly acknowledge Bob Small who does no small thing each week with our radio broadcast. Bob is in the back every Sunday faithfully delivering our radio broadcast and he also makes it available for the internet - so that people can listen to it any time they want - digitally right off the internet. I just wanted to thank Bob for all the work he does Sunday in and Sunday out. Technology enhances our proclamation power.

Friends, our church has a message to share – a message of tradition and history. You see, his story – that is Christ’s story – is our story – and it is that history that we share in common and are called to proclaim.

Recall with me a portion of our Acts passage that Peter Schay read for us. For Paul and his company had come to Antioch and on the Sabbath day they went into the Synagogue. Paul stood up and began to proclaim the rich history of our ancestors in the faith – starting with Moses and culminating with Christ. In verse 24 we pick it up where Paul says,

“Before his coming John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his course, he said, What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie. Brothers, sisters, children of the family of Abraham, and those among you that fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation.”

Our church has a message to share,

• a message of salvation
• a message of baptism
• a message of redemption.