Brothers and sisters, this is the last sermon I will preach as minister of Central, and I wanted it to be very special to you and to me. I gave a lot of thought to it, and was having a hard time making it special. So, finally, my brothers and sisters, I thought, "I’m going to let Paul speak for me." Most of the sermon will be direct quotations from Paul.
Paul was very close to most of the congregations he wrote to. In some of the letters he sends personal greeting to individuals by name. I gave some thought to addressing individual people and decided it was too dangerous. Paul may have done it, but I’ll try to express my love personally and individually. Believe me, I really do love my flock, the good sheep and the bad sheep.
In several of Paul’s letters, he sent them a final greeting. Those "farewells" will be the outline of my sermon.
Let me begin with what he wrote to the people of the church at Philipi. "Finally, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord." [Philippians 3:1] I preached the whole sermon on this subject last Sunday, and I said it had been the theme of my ministry here at Central. And in the Children’s sermon I told them that if their religion was not bringing them joy, there was something wrong about their religion.
Don’t you think it is significant that Paul’s final word to this congregation, the congregation for which he had a special affection, is "Rejoice in the Lord?" And remember that this is what Jesus said in his farewell to his disciples, the time He gave them his new commandment. He said, "I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
"Smile, God loves you." has become a trite expression. Or as the message a former minister left on the mirror outside my office said, "Smile, God loves you anyway." The reason Paul tells the Philippians to "rejoice in the Lord," is because they had experienced the loving grace of God. As I’ve said so many times, grace is the unmerited love of God. God loves you not because you are good, but in spite of the fact that you are not good. You are a sinner.
So this is my final message to you: "Rejoice in the Lord!"
To the church at Ephesis, Paul had a different farewell message. "Finally, be strong in the Lord and the strength of His power. Put on the whole armor of God, so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." [Ephesians 6:10-11] The church at Ephesis faced a difficult environment. This was the capital city of the Eastern Kingdom of the Roman empire. It was the headquarters for the worship of Diana. I walked through the museums of Ephesis, and the largest number of surviving sculptures were of this goddess of fertility.
So Paul’s message for the congregations in Philippi was to be strong in the face of the temptations and pressures of the world in which they lived. He closed his letter by saying"Grace be with all who have an undying love for our Lord Jesus Christ."
You, too, are living in a hostile environment. The power of the devil can be seen throughout our culture where so often right and wrong are all mixed up. I never thought it would be possible for missionaries who are trying to feed the hungry in Afghanistan to be tortured and killed as happened last week.
It is not only in foreign lands that the enemies of God are working. I never thought I would be minister of a church where one of the boys of the church would be stabbed to death on the street. Murder and rape and brutality and wickedness are not only weekly occurrences, but we are at the point when the good people in the community are almost overwhelmed by lawless, immoral people. The Christian message is for loving your neighbor, being kind to one another, being forgiving of others, but it has become more difficult in our society.
So my farewell message to you is "Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might."
Paul’s message to the church at Corinth was this: "Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace and the God of love and peace will be with you." [II Corinthians 13:11]
The Corinthian church had been in turmoil. Their conflict was not so much from outside, but from inside the church. What the church needed at the time of this writing was to be reconciled. They needed to be reminded that they were brothers and sisters. I think that schism, disunion, discord, are deadly sins and should be added as the eighth deadly sin. I have often preached that our soul’s salvation depends on our relationship with others. We will be judged on how we love one another. It depends on our compassion, how we care for one another, how we are forgiving.
Like all of you, I have been anxiously thinking about Central’s future. Some believe Central will quietly die, as other congregations in Midtown have. Perhaps. But I don’t think so. Churches don’t die easily. They can be killed, but they rarely die. The division in the church that we had over a decade ago was such a hurtful thing for Central. We still suffer from it. Good Christian people turned their backs on us. The good thing that came from it is the determination of the congregation not to let it destroy Central. We rallied around with a new enthusiasm. We recognized that we had been drifting along without much enthusiasm and dedication. It resulted in a genuine renewal that was demonstrated by our "Turn the Light Back On" program.
So my farewell message to you is "Finally brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace and the God of love and peace will be with you."
The next text is from Philippians. "Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think on these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." [Philippians 4:8]
Once again Paul lists some of the virtues. He advises them to fill their lives and their minds with thoughts that will make their life richer. Real Christian character is not something you put on; Christian character is part of your whole being. By reading the Bible, by fellowship with your church family and by listening to the sermon each Sunday you internalize your faith so that you are good without even trying. Think and practice these characteristics: the things that are true, things that are honorable, things that are pleasing, things that are commendable. Fill your lives with these things that are worthy of praise.
I can’t emphasize how much I think we ought to internalize these virtues. What does it mean to have the Holy Spirit. It means that you have the guidance of God internalized. God is not "out there somewhere" -- he is dwelling in you. You have the fellowship of His spirit that guides and directs you from within yourself. He is closer than breathing, nearer than hands and feet.
There is a new sense of power because you have an internal guidance system. God Himself is dwelling within you to comfort and guide you. God is the source of all power which could fill your life and make it bright and meaningful.
In this text Paul says something that gives me pause. It comes close to bragging. He says, "Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you." Oh that I could say that, but I can’t. I can only say that from the beginning of my ministry I have prayed that I could be a model for the congregation to follow. I remember a class in seminary where they told us not to overestimate what we accomplished in preaching a sermon. They said that the congregation will learn from what we do, what we are. Wow! I think every preacher prays that his or her sermon will not only be heard, but will become part of the congregation’s faith.
I went to the hospital and stood quietly bedside the bed of a woman who has heard me preach Sunday after Sunday for years. They woman was going through a dreadful time, facing pain, facing death, facing the loss of her own being. It was a painful thing to stand beside her bed and look at her. All I could do was touch her and pray for her. And I thought. "Have my sermons prepared her for this experience?" Has she any comfort? Has she any faith? Has she any assurance that will uphold her?
I have had some experiences that I will never forget. I have heard members say some things that were what I have preached about often. They were not quoting me. They were speaking from their own heart.. What a reward that is for a minister.
So, on the last sermon I will preach as your minister, I want to say "Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think on these things. And I will cautiously add, Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you."
There is just one more time that Paul gives a final greeting to a congregation. He wrote, "Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us." [II Thessalonians 3:1.]
I covet your prayers. I need your prayers so much at this time. I am entering into another grand adventure. I am entering into a new life. All of this has converged at one time. I am entering into retirement, which will bring a different schedule and different tasks. I am moving to a new home that will bring new friends at a new location. And I have entered into marriage I want you to know how grateful I am to be entering the grand adventure with a loving wife by my side. She has given me such strength and encouragement, and has brought comfort and courage. Becky has so enriched my life and I look forward to spending the rest of my life with her by my side. Becky has made a great contribution to me, but she has made a contribution to Central, more than most people know. Because of her strong ties to Central since she was a young bride and because I treasure my friendships in Central, we plan to continue to be members of Central. I would like for Mrs. Woodall to join me for the benediction.
However, I want to caution you about my membership. I will not be your minister. I don’t plan to take any leadership positions in the church. You will have a new minister and you must look to him as you have looked to me. I love you, but don’t call me -- call your minister. He will be my minister also. Make him welcome and give him your love and loyalty as you have given to me.
So I close this sermon and my ministry by saying, like Paul, finally brothers and sisters, pray for us.
