Walking Into Our Change; Sermon on Acts 3:1-6

Rev. George Miller
April 26, 2020
Acts 3:1-6

Teachers are essential.

Regardless if you’re talking about math, home economics, or music, teachers are essential.

Teachers care about their students, they challenge us to be better, and they pass on knowledge that is necessary for any community thrive.

I think back to my Creative Writing teacher, Mr. Posner.

It was he who told us that if you wanted to be a good writer you had to know the Bible, because the Bible influenced so much of literature.

It was because of Mr. Posner that I began to read the Bible. Originally, it was to hone my craft. Eventually it was to hone my heart.

The stories in the Bible spoke to me. They inspired, providing a road map for how to live, overcome, have hope.

Two biblical stories left their footprints upon my spirit.

The 1st is about Abraham and Sarah- an elderly couple with no children who were told by God to “Get up and Go!”

They were given the promise of home, family, and the ability to bless others.

So they went.

They had many adventures, met many people, and made many mistakes.

Eventually the promises of land, children and blessings came true.

The 2nd story is the crossing of the Red Sea. It features Moses leading his brothers and sisters into a new life.

As the enemy approaches, they come across an impassible body of water. With death a certainty, the people cry out to God.

God hears, God acts, God speaks. “Do not be afraid, stand firm, watch as I fight for you.”

God parts the waters, and the people walk through, stepping into freedom.

There are countless other stories in the Bible that inspire:

The widow who feeds Elijah with a jar of ingredients that never runs out.

Queen Esther who risks her life to speak out for the sake of her people.

Today’s reading featuring the apostles.

Here we have Peter and John after the Resurrection. A new reality has begun.

Thanks to the Holy Spirit they are now empowered to do all the things they saw Jesus do- feed the hungry, show compassion, and offer gifts of healing.

On their way into the Temple they meet a guy who is crippled. He asks for alms, but they have something else in mind- “In the name of Jesus, stand. Walk.”

Offering their brother an arm, the man gets to his feet, and the 1st thing he does is walk into House of Worship, stepping and singing praises to God.

Sarah and Abraham. The Crossing of the Red Sea. A beggar made well.

These stories teach us that even when you think you’ve come to the end of your story, God has another chapter.

That even when you come to certain defeat, God can find a way through.

They teach us that even when we feel helpless, God has a way to raise us up.

Thank God for these stories, Thank God for Mr. Posner who made sure my 7th grade self knew these scriptures.

Teachers are essential. After all, Jesus was a teacher.

If you noticed, these three stories all feature something similar- walking.

All 3 stories are about people who are “here” but God brings them “there.”

They are about people who get up and go get their blessing, who cross a sea to enter into freedom, and step into a sanctuary to get their praise on.

All three feature traveling, walking, dancing folk whose lives are forever changed, and nothing is ever the same.

…If you noticed, one of the narratives this week is people realizing that even after this pandemic ends, things will never be the same.

There is much lament going on.

Will we no longer be able to greet one another with hugs and handshakes? Will we no longer sit side by side in restaurants and movie theaters?

We’ve hearing it again and again- “We’ll never be able to go back to the way things were.”

This is true. But this is the very essence of life.

Things always change. Nothing stays the same.

After the Corona virus is done ravaging the globe, our lives will be different.

Things we loved will be lost. Things that needed to go will be gone.

Just as our world adapted to life after the Revolutionary War, the Industrial Revolution, and James Bond going blonde, we will too.

We have no choice.

But we can choose how we will respond and adapt to the change.

Change is how we grow. It’s how we improve. Change allows us to let go of what no longer works and to embrace what does.

One thing we can do is to look towards the stories of our faith, to remember the tales of our spiritual ancestors.

We can recall the stories of Abraham and Sarah, Moses and the Israelites, the apostles and the crippled man.

We can find inspiration in how they
Stepped forward.
Stepped through.
Stepped inside.

For all of them, change took place; that was the point.

When Abraham and Sarah answered the call to get up and go, it was to receive blessings, not to return to Haran as a childless couple.

When the Israelites walked through the Red Sea it was to enter the Promised Land, not to step back into slavery.

When the lame man was given the gift to get up and walk ahead, he did not sit back down and beg.

Instead he entered the Temple, praising God.

Friends and family, from California to Michigan, Highlands County to Long Island,

right now, you may feel like you are crippled, stuck in place, unable to do anything because of what’s happening.

But we are encouraging you to trust. To believe. That one day, one day…

We are ALL going to walk again; we are ALL going to get back on our feet.

With God we will get through this; we will get to the other side; we will re-enter the sanctuaries.

We won’t be the same. We can’t be the same. We’re not supposed to be the same.

But know this- Christ is walking with us every step of the way.

We may feel crippled, we may feel defeated. But we are not.

We are walking with the Lord every step of the way.

Amen.