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A story came out of the Civil War about a sergeant who went up to a tired soldier in the middle of combat and said, "Give me your rifle. Go to the back of the battle and rest."

A Steady Faith - Acts 5: 12-42 - July 18, 2010 - Cicero United Methodist Church- Everett J. Bassett

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A story came out of the Civil War about a sergeant who went up to a tired soldier in the middle of combat and said, "Give me your rifle. Go to the back of the battle and rest." The soldier ran around for a while, finding fighting everywhere he went, then went back to his sergeant and said, "Give me back my rifle. There ain't no back to this battle!"

And that's the feeling I get when I read this morning's scripture lesson; in fact, even before that, it's the feeling I get about the ministry of Jesus. A battle was going on all around him; there was no escape from it. There were crowds of cheering people, government and religious people plotting, demons conniving, children dancing, lepers trying to get close to him, disciples trying to get an edge up, soldiers keeping an eye on him, people looking from trees, coming at night. To get some respite, we see Jesus sneaking off early in the morning, hopping on boats, holding up with friends, and so on.

And now, in the early chapters of Acts, we see that same push and pull around the first
disciples. As they are teaching and healing and doing good works, the picture we get of the reaction ranges all the way from a wild and cheering crowd to the hate of the religious leaders, who want to do everything they can to shut them up. It is a wild scene.

So today I'd like to talk about having a steady faith. Because that's what seems remarkable about Jesus, and about those first apostles. Jesus was not just human, but he was human. And there were some moments - a couple we know about, and perhaps some we don't - when he lost his cool. But aside from those, it is amazing that while people were picking at him, plotting against him, and pulling on him - he just stayed steady through it all. One of the phrases used in the Bible is, he 'set his face' toward his goal. Even at the last, when he was arrested, and tried, and mocked, and beaten - for all we know, he stayed on course. And even as he died on the cross, he stayed true to his purpose -- forgiving his killers, caring for his mother, calling on His heavenly Father. There was, at the core of his being, a faith that couldn't be shaken.

And the same picture emerges from the apostles in Acts 5. To translate it to a modem image, the apostles are rock stars. There's this mixture of adulation and fear about them.  People are afraid to approach them. Or they are superstitiously hoping the apostles' shadow will fall upon them, and bring them good luck. And we know all too well what happens quite often to rock stars - they self-destruct. The weight of adoration is too great for the human ego. Yet the apostles stay on message·- we are witnesses, they said; Jesus died for our sins, repent and believe. Then comes the resistance. The enemies are angry, threatened. So, they have the apostles arrested. You would think that might knock them off course a little bit; but as soon as the angel assists them out of jail, they just go back to what they were doing - teaching about Jesus. They are arrested again, questioned, beaten, told to stop teaching - and they just go back to teaching. It seems like nothing can derail them - and that's true through the whole Book of Acts. If we continue to read through it, we'll read about the stoning of Stephen - and his calm faith even as it was happening. We'll read about the many perils of Paul, and his remarkable, consistent ministry. It is literally miraculous how steady they were.

I believe we need some of that steadiness. We may not be thrown in jail or beaten for our faith; and no big crowds are following us around treating us like rock stars. But our lives can get pretty hectic, and seem pretty helter-skelter. Sometimes it is because of our many responsibilities - being a parent, or someone with multiple demands. And even if your life is less demanding, we live in a world of fast-moving activity, and constant information, and multiple choices - and life can come at us from all directions. Many times we end up just spiritually tired, asking. How can I step off this whirlwind? The question is, How do we keep a steady faith that undergirds our lives, rather than have the hubbub of life dictate our faith, and drown out our spirits? How do we keep from being Christian people when everything is going smooth, but flying off the handle, or losing our way, or forgetting who we are when things get off-kilter? The answers aren't easy; but I believe there are answers, and the apostles found them, and relied on them.

For example, they stayed steady in prayer. The apostles were constantly in touch with the Spirit of God. This idea has fresh meaning for me. In the last week, I have been short of breath, the result of a flu bug that went through my system about ten days ago. And I've been reminded of one of the great teachers about prayer - Henri Nouwen. Nouwen reminds us that the source of the power in Christian life is the Holy Spirit, which breathes through our souls, and through the life of the church, like a steady wind, or a deep breath. If we don't pray, said Nouwen, then we are like a child with asthma - we end up gasping for breath, the way I did a few times this week. And the more activity there is around us, the more difficult it becomes to catch your breath. The absolute extreme of this situation is death - not being able to catch your breath at all.

There is simply no substitute, if you want to have a steady and reliable foundation of faith for your spirit, for a regular daily time to pray. I know many of us pray on the run, or do spot prayers, or multi-task prayer with driving, or exercising, and so on. That is probably better than nothing. But it is letting your lifestyle dictate your prayer-life, instead of the other way around. And if your prayer life is a slave to your life style, then it is hard to imagine that it will be a steady anchor in the storm - the kind of anchor that sustains your faith when times get really tough, and life threatens to spin out of control.

Secondly, there is no substitute for a community of faith - people of faith coming together on a weekly basis to praise and thank God, to share the message of scriptures, and to pray with and for one another. This is how the spiritual batteries stay charged. I know that we can worship in other, more solitary ways. I know we can find God in the woods, or even on the golf course. I know the old story about the two men who were out fishing in the boat on a Sunday morning, and they heard the church bells in the distance; and the one man said, "Doesn't that make you feel a little guilty, that we're not in church this morning?" And the other said, "Oh, not at all. I couldn't go to church today anyway. My wife's sick, and I had to stay home and take care of her." I know all those stories about staying away from Sunday church.

But I also know that solitary faith is rarely steady faith. It is more likely to come and go with the circumstances of the moment. It is more likely to be eclipsed by the demands of the our. A faith that is continually nurtured in the community of faith through regular worship together is a faith that will be there when you need it. That faith is more and more falling out of vogue. I had occasion to look at the religion section of one of the local bookstores, and was surprised at how big a deal leaving church is - it's a whole movement. There were books entitled, How to Leave Church, Why I Left Church, Saying Goodbye to the Church, and 1001 Better Things to Do on Sunday Morning. And I thought, "Why is that such a big deal? A lot of people don't go to church. Why do we need thirty books about it?" And I really think it's because you can step away from church, but you can't step away from the spiritual hunger that is satisfied by sharing spiritually with people who believe like yourself. If you want a steady faith, one that will always be there for you, you nurture it, you practice it, you test it and stretch it, by sharing it with other believers. And then when the storm hits - and the storm hits all of us - there will be people there to remind you that faith is the anchor, and Christ calms the storm. We can forget otherwise. We need each other.

Another great resource the disciples had was a sure sense of purpose. They stated it over and over - 'we are witnesses' - they were here to share the love of Jesus. It wasn't just about being a good person; or staying out of trouble; or being in good relationships; or finding peace of mind. They had a job from Jesus -- a God-given mission on earth - they were to tell the story of Jesus. That was their path to finding their destiny, and making the world a better place in the bargain. And so, whatever happened, whether it was mad devotion or being beaten or thrown into jail, they simply kept on with what God had called them to do. And that kept them steady and on task.

Sometimes being a Christian seems pretty complicated - we have moral decisions to make; the world is constantly changing and finding new technology and new realities to throw at us; the demands of social justice and peace are constant; there are always new expressions and fads, and our life-choices change as we go through various stages. The life of the church seems complicated as well- constantly trying to discern how to be the people of God in changing times; taking care of practical matters like buildings and budgets and slates of officers and staying afloat. It's so easy to feel like the purpose is lost, and to forget what it's about. And the faith seems like a slender reed that we have to protect and worry about constantly.

But I don't believe it; I believe that faith is not a fragile reed; it's a mighty anchor. I believe our purpose is still as strong as it ever was for those first apostles - to share the greatest love the world has ever know - sometimes in words, but always in deeds. This world, so hectic and confused and ever-shifting and spiritually hungry - is longing for something steady and sure. And nothing is more steady and sure than the steadfast love -- that phrase is used so often in the Bible - the steadfast love of God through Jesus Christ. It is anchored. It doesn't change; it doesn't move. And if you and I - by praying and belonging to God's people and remembering our purpose - if, through all of these things, we are steady in our faith and in our love and in our witness - then the world will take notice, and people will come. If it's loving; if it's real; if it's steady -- people will be drawn to it.

We are here this morning because of the steady faith of generations of Christians. This last week I was reminded of just one example. His name is Fred, and he was elderly and weakened with cancer when I met him. I never met anyone for whom coming to church was more of physical struggle. There were four steps up into the sanctuary, and every Sunday the ushers helped Fred up those steps through incredible pain, and he took his same seat he'd sat in for over sixty years, and gasped for breath through most of the service. And when a naive young pastor suggested that maybe Fred could stay home and I'd bring him Communion, he said that the Lord has suffered more than Fred ever did, and the least Fred could do was to take his place in the pew once a week. When Fred died, his funeral drew the most people I ever saw climb those four steps, and the testimonies of the firmness and blessing of Fred's faith could have gone on and on.

That's the power of a steady faith lived out through thick and thin. You've known somebody like that too. And could we be that person - that steady and reliable witness -- for somebody else who is struggling and longing for a solid rock to build a life on? If so, I believe the world will be blessed, God will be pleased, and your life and mine will matter more than we have ever imagined possible.