If you have ever opened a Bible before you probably took notice of how the margins change. In one moment everything lines up and it looks like a normal paragraph then in the next the lines are indented and the text is hanging. Seems odd. What is happening is the author is breaking from a basic recording of story or retelling and moving into prose or poetry. More importantly though is that these sections generally represent a sort of breaking into song. You might notice this in Genesis for example. The story of creation is told but then comes a very important point in the story, the creation of man in God’s image, and we see this transition to prose. Or again we see it we Adam reacts to the creation of Eve, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” Have you ever wondered why the authors of scripture switch back and forth like that, what is the point?
Have you ever tried to express a feeling, or tried to put something beautiful into words? Take a moment and try to describe to your neighbor in one sentence what beauty is. Some answers were probably better than others, but ultimately every single answer fell short of describing what beauty was. Our expression of language falls terribly short of describing beauty and majesty, yet somehow we have to find a way to do such. So in trying to express beauty we try to bring beauty to our description. Imagine if you were asked to describe how beautiful God was. One person answers Our God is an Awesome God, while another breaks out in song singing the song we are all familiar with, Awesome God. Which method communicates more deeply? I would say that the song does. It does something to us, it connects us in a way that simple verbal expression misses. When we sing out in song we move beyond simple words and communicate emotion and depth. This applies to much of art, whether it be through music, painting, or prose, art has an ability to communicate in a way that words cannot. When we read this in scripture it is the difference between saying God is awesome and singing Awesome God in praise to him. When Adam reacts to Eve the author has him break out in song, in poetry in order to ascribe depth and meaning to something so great and beautiful that words fall short of accomplishing. It is the difference between poetry and a list, a story or a commandment. Think about Mary. Here she is with this great savior being born through her. Mercy has come and it is beautiful, it is so amazing. God is great. But it is not enough to simply say that, it leaves here still empty as if there is so much more she must express, so Mary breaks out in song in what is now known as the Magnificat. Turn with me to Luke 1:46-55 and we will read it together.
And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the Lord, 47 and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48 for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49 for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50 And his mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51 He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts; 52 he has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate; 53 he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. 54 He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55 as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and to his offspring forever."
Mary had experienced the Father. She knew that he was so great, so beautiful, so merciful. So what should she do? How do you bring praise to one like this? How do you describe the majesty, the unworthiness, the love? How are you supposed to communicate such things? Mary had no choice, she had to break out in song. If she held it in any longer she would burst. Something had to come out and it was beautiful. Our God is majestic, he is great. There is so much about him that we simply cannot describe. What greater expression of love and adoration can there be than to pour out your heart, emotions, and very being into song before your creator. God and his creation is beautiful and we must find expression for it.
But it is not God alone that is beautiful, but it is also our gospel. Jesus describes the good news in Luke 3 as proclaiming liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, setting at liberty those who are oppressed, and proclaiming the year of the Lord's favor. The good news, the gospel is beautiful. If is amazing, it is so powerful. Just as Mary had to break out in song to describe the majesty of her God we need to find a better way to proclaim the good news of our savior. Our God, our redemption cannot be summed up by lists and commandments. The greatness of his mercy cannot be retold by Roman’s roads or processes of salvation. They must be communicated in story. Lists have no meaning or impact, they have no beauty or majesty and so they fall terribly short of the glory of the gospel. These stories cannot simply be stories of someone else. Mary didn’t tell of God’s mercy in Elizabeth’s life she sang his greatness in hers. She told of how her soul rejoiced.
What I am trying to get at today and what you need to write down and remember is that evangelism demands honesty. God has redeemed us for the dirt and filth of our own lives, but not so that they might be forgotten and hidden, but so that they might display the power, mercy and grace of our God. When we become embarrassed by our failures, when we hide our struggles, and keep silent about the filth that once covered us and we even struggle with now we hide the grace of God. We say God can do this for you, but he didn’t do much for me. We conceal the beauty and greatness of our God when we fear our own past failures. It is not enough to communicate the beauty of God in someone else. We need to make it personal and become vulnerable. This is what God has done in my life. This is where I was, this is what I did, this is what I struggle with. My God is so powerful, so merciful, so gracious that he has redeemed me even from this. Imagine Paul’s life and his testimony. He was not shy about his past or even current failings. Paul couldn’t keep his mouth shut because his words were not deep enough to describe the grace of God. He had to break out in song, he had to tell his story. Turn with me to Acts 22:3-11;
"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated at the feet of Gamaliel according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as all of you are this day. 4 I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering to prison both men and women, 5 as the high priest and the whole council of elders can bear me witness. From them I received letters to the brothers, and I journeyed toward Damascus to take those also who were there and bring them in bonds to Jerusalem to be punished. 6 ¶ "As I was on my way and drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from heaven suddenly shone around me. 7 And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?' 8 And I answered, 'Who are you, Lord?' And he said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.' 9 Now those who were with me saw the light but did not understand the voice of the one who was speaking to me. 10 And I said, 'What shall I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do.' 11 And since I could not see because of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me, and came into Damascus.
This story is embarrassing, it is shameful. It tells just how deep the filth and atrocities went in Paul’s life. It left Paul vulnerable, it left him weak. But it is only in our weakness that God works. We cannot substitute relational meaning and experience with a well diagramed cause and effect list of beliefs. You were filthy and yet God has redeemed you. You still today stumble and fall yet God’s grace remains. The experience is the beauty of the gospel, the story communicates the depth of its majesty. Paul could have been shamed by all of this but rather this was his source of pride. This is how far God brought him. This is how great God is and that cannot be communicated by simple lists of doctrine and belief. Remember we talked a few weeks ago about the man who was born blind that Jesus healed. Remember his response to the Pharisees? I don’t know, but I do know this I was blind and now I see. In order for us to say I was blind, but now I see. In order for us to say I have been forgiven, we need to remember we were blind. We need to be able to tell what we were forgiven from. We need to be able to say, God can redeem even that, because look what he did for me. It is not enough to say God can set you free, but we must also add because he set me free from this.
I told you before evangelism is hard. It requires of us to admit our past failings and even to proclaim our current ones. The church has gained a much earned stereotype of hypocrisy because of its refusal to proclaim our story honestly. Our history has been one of covering up and hiding failures. Every single one of us has something in our past to be ashamed of and something in our current lives to be ashamed of. In order for us proclaim the beauty of the gospel, for to show the majesty of God’s grace we need to tell the story. The Bible is not the extent of God’s working in our world. He continues to work in our lives today and we need to tell that story as well. God has worked in this church body, he is working in us right now. But in order for that experience to mean anything to us, in order for it to show the greatness of God’s grace and ability then we must remember and keep the story alive. This church has had a rocky road, but the power of the gospel is that God has redeemed us even from that. There unholy attitudes that have been unleashed on those in this congregation in the last year, month, and even week. But God has redeemed us from even that. There are relationships that are separated and cold today, but God will redeem us from this. This is the beauty of the gospel, a pattern of redemption. Do not try to mask your failings and make yourselves appear holy, but speak openly of them, speak of your change and redemption. Speak of your confidence in God to Love you and change you still. Be honest. The beauty of the gospel is the experience, so let’s break out in song, have a portion of hanging and indented text and express the depth of God’s love. We have nothing to hide because we have been redeemed, forgiven. We have nothing to be ashamed of, only glory to give to God.
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