Sermon by Dr. George Bryant Wirth
Palm/Passion Sunday
April 5, 2009
THE GIFTS OF GOD FOR THE FAMILY OF FAITH
–
FAITH IS STRONGER THAN FEAR
Scripture: Luke
19:28-48
INTRODUCTION
In 1933, this nation was suffering
through “The Great Depression,” caught in the vice-grip of anxiety and
apprehension. The older members of this
congregation remember what it was like back then.
Our banks were failing, the
stock market continued falling, unemployment was rising, soup kitchens were
feeding long lines of men, women and children who were hungry and hurting, and
our houses of worship were filled with people searching for hope on the horizon
with nowhere else to turn.
On the 4th of
March that year, our newly elected President Franklin Delano Roosevelt stood at
the podium in front of our nation’s Capitol wearing leg braces and looking into
the worried faces of a large crowd.
Speaking into the microphone, his speech was broadcast over radio to the
entire country, and Roosevelt said the words that
As he continued the address,
the President sounded like a Sunday morning preacher, offering consolation,
asking for dedication, and lifting up a sense of direction for the future,
saying:
“Where there is no vision, the people
will perish (Proverbs 29:18-KJV)…Happiness lies not in the mere possession of
money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative
effort…These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our
true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to
others” … And he concluded: “In the dedication of this nation, we humbly ask
the blessing of God. May He protect each
and every one of us. (And) may He guide
me in the days to come.”
It was an inspiring and
unforgettable speech, from the beginning to the end. But the words we remember today, which are
now embedded in our nation’s history, echoing, echoing, echoing down through
the past 76 years, are these: “The only
thing we have to fear is fear itself!”
On the 20th of
January, 2009, in a remarkably similar scene and facing a financial crisis of
parallel proportions, President Barack Hussein Obama gave his Inaugural
Address. Looking out at the vast
audience in
“Our economy is badly weakened…homes
have been lost, jobs shed, businesses shuttered…(with) a sapping of confidence
across our land; a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable…(But) on
this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose
over conflict and discord…The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit
(and) the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a
chance to pursue their full measure of happiness” …And at the conclusion, “Let
it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to
let this journey end, that we did not turn back, nor did we falter; and with
eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great
gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
Thank you, God bless you. And God bless the
Now those two Presidents came
from very different backgrounds, although they both were and are Democrats and
graduates of Harvard. But there is one
thing that they shared and believed deep down in their hearts: that “the only
thing we have to fear is fear itself!”
I
Now that phrase isn’t found
in the Bible, not exactly. But from the
Book of Genesis on through the prophecy of Revelation, one of the main themes
in all of scripture which is repeated over and over and over again is
this: “Do not be afraid!”
And that is what we have come
here to proclaim on this Palm/Passion Sunday, as we remember how Jesus entered
the city of
In their book “The Last Week:
What the Gospels Really Teach About Jesus’ Final Days in
“Two processions entered Jerusalem on
a spring day in the year 30 A.D…One was a peasant procession from the east, as
Jesus rode a donkey down from the Mount of Olives, cheered by His followers…On
the opposite side of the city, from the west, Pontius Pilate, the Roman
Governor…entered Jerusalem at the head of a column of Imperial cavalry and
soldiers…
Jesus’ procession proclaimed the
And caught in the midst of
that crossfire were some of the religious leaders in
According to Webster’s
Dictionary, fear is a “painful emotion, alarm and agitation, caused by the
expectation or realization of danger.”
The most common Hebrew word for fear in the Old Testament is “yare,”
signifying both the reverence and awe of God and also human terror. In the Greek New Testament, “phobos” is the
word for fear, from which our English language has derived a long list of
phobias, including acrophobia – a fear of heights, and claustrophobia – a fear
of being in close places, and a phobia which haunts most of the world today
called terrorism.
Between the Old and New
Testament, says Dr. Lloyd Ogilvie, retired chaplain of the United States
Senate, “There are 366 ‘fear not’ verses in the Bible – one for every day of
the year and an extra one for leap year!”
(From “Living Without Fear” by Lloyd Ogilvie, Word Publishing, 1987,
page 24)
And as Christians, we know
that fear is a reality which all of us face in our own lives. A little girl, growing up in a faithful
Christian family, was terrified one night by the lightning and loud thunder of
a severe storm. She was somewhat
relieved when her mother came into the bedroom and said “Don’t be afraid. This will pass over. Meanwhile, Jesus is here to protect
you.” The daughter thought for a moment
and then replied “Okay Mom, then you stay here with Jesus, and I’ll go sleep
with Dad.”
You see, it all starts at an
early age, and you’d think by the time we are grown up, the fears would subside
and even go away. But they don’t. Anxiety, dread, fright and apprehension
persist throughout all the stages of our lives.
And that is why, that is where faith can help us overcome our
fears. Because, when all is said and
done, Faith is Stronger than Fear. The question is: “Do you believe that is true
today?”
II
You say, “Preacher, aren’t
there some things of which we should be afraid?” And of course, the answer is “yes.” We tell our children, “Don’t touch that hot
stove,” and “Look both ways when you are crossing the street,” knowing that a
healthy kind of fear will protect them from harm and danger. As adults, we believe that the “thou shalt
nots” of the Ten Commandments will put the fear of God in us and keep us from
temptation and sin.
And speaking personally, I
can tell you that bungee jumping and sky diving in a parachute are not on the
top of my list of things to accomplish before I’m through in this life.
You see, there is a healthy
kind of fear that protects us. But there
is also an unhealthy kind of fear that projects us into paranoia and paralysis
of the mind, body and spirit.
Robert Hale reminds us how
that can happen to almost anyone:
“Fear
creeps in like a poisonous fog,
Making
us pull down the shades
And
double-lock the doors.
Fear
creates barriers of the mind
More
real than barbed wire
Or
the
Trembling
disciples behind our
Barricades
of fear,
We
have forgotten the Master
Who
walked through the doors
Of
that Upper Room to say
‘Do
not be afraid!’”
It happed to me during my
first year in seminary. Two friends of
mine, who were law students in
No one was there to greet me
– no voices, no friends, no laughter, no warm welcome – it was just me. I unpacked my suitcase, fixed a can of
spaghetti, read The New York Times and turned on the television.
Time slipped away, and the
silence got to me. So I telephoned a few
friends, but no one answered. I put on
my coat, and walked out into the streets, wandering around for what seemed like
an eternity. I saw plenty of people, but
felt strangely afraid and suddenly all alone.
After returning to the
apartment, and trying to reach others on the phone, I packed my things, got
into the car and drove home. What I did
not know had happened, but have learned to face since then, is that I had
suffered an anxiety attack and would need help to deal with depression. And by the grace of God, with the guidance of
professional counselors, that is what I have found.
So there is a healthy kind of
fear that protects us, and an unhealthy kind of fear that projects us into
paranoia and paralysis, and a debilitating kind of fear called depression which
requires the help of someone who can lead us toward hope and healing.
And the words we need to
hear, as we reach out to God for a faith that is stronger than fear, are the
words of Jesus who said to His disciples during the first Holy Week in the
Upper Room: “Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” Do you believe that promise is true today?
CONCLUSION
If you do, or if you want to,
then listen to this closing story. There
is a legend about a burdened old man who along his way met an angel on the
road. The man was bent under the
enormous weight of a great burlap sack across his shoulders and on his
back. It was so heavy that all he could
do was just stumble along.
The angel said to him, “What
have you got in there?” The man replied,
“In there are my regrets and my fears.”
The angel said, “Empty them out and let me see them.” So with great effort, the old man lowered the
sack and emptied it. Out came first
yesterday and then tomorrow, and the angel picked up yesterday, threw it aside
and said, “You don’t need that anymore, because yesterday is in the hands of God,
and no amount of regret can change it.”
Then the angel picked up
tomorrow, cast it aside and said, “You don’t need this anymore either, because
tomorrow is in the hands of God and no amount of fear will change it.” And the legend says that the old man
straightened up, began to smile and started to walk toward freedom. (From a sermon entitled “School Days,”
preached by Dr. Robert Cleveland Holland, Shadyside Presbyterian Church,
September 18, 1983)
If we really believe that
God’s perfect love in Jesus Christ has cast out our fear and set us free, then
it’s time that we resolved right here and right now to live that way and to
trust in Him. Because yesterday is
history, tomorrow is still a mystery but today is a gift which God has
given to us. That is why it is called
the present! So let us live today,
trusting in the Lord and knowing beyond the shadow of a doubt, that through God’s
perfect love in Jesus Christ, faith is
stronger than fear!
In the name of the Father and
the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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