Philippians 1:21 * New Year’s Eve 2008 * Pastor Leyrer

“For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”

Dear Friends in Christ,

Let’s begin by making a few attempts to describe where we are on this night.

Some years ago a well respected English clergyman wrote a book on preaching entitled, “Between Two Worlds.” While the content of the book does not necessarily apply to us tonight, the title itself is useful. Because never more than on New Year’s Eve do we see ourselves “between two worlds” – that of the past and that of the future.

Itasca State Park in Minnesota has the distinction of being the place where the mighty Mississippi River begins. If you’ve ever been there you know that there is a point that you can literally walk across it, or if your legs are long enough you can almost straddle it. Once a year the ever-rolling river of time narrows to the point that we can straddle it with one foot in the past and the other in the future. That time is tonight.

If we want to look for a Bible illustration, perhaps we can think of ourselves being like Moses on Mount Nebo. Behind him was the land from which the people of God had come, full of memories (both good and bad) of how their journey had gone – and how the Lord had preserved them through thick and thin. Before him stretched the Promised Land, the land of the future for God’s people, the land which all of their past led up to…

So that’s where we are tonight: Between two worlds; experiencing the moment where the ever rolling stream of time is narrow enough for us to straddle it with one foot in the past and the other in the future; high atop our personal Mount Nebo looking back on what has been and peering ahead to what may be.

Indeed, New Year’s Eve makes us aware of the passage of time in general and the individual passages of time we all go through.

So how do we as Christians approach each New Year?

A good answer would be: like the Apostle Paul. In his letters Paul has much wise (and divinely inspired) counsel to share with us on the subject of time. So what we’d like to do this evening is spend the last moments of this past year reflecting on

PASSSAGES FROM PAUL ON THE PASSAGES OF TIME

Past… present… and future

What counsel does God through Paul give us on the time that has gone by; in other words, the past?

In Philippians chapter three Paul speaks about his background. He had been a zealous Pharisee with impeccable credentials and in his zeal he had even persecuted Christians (who at one time he considered to be enemies of God). The point he makes is that if anyone could have earned their way into heaven by performance, he was the guy.

But then the God of grace got a hold of him and Paul understood that his eternal salvation did not depend upon what he did for God, but on what God had done for him through Jesus Christ. Everything changed.

What about this body of work he had so diligently devoted himself to? Paul says he now considers it all so much rubbish; a waste of time compared to “the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith” (Ph 3:9).

Nevertheless, Paul was aware of his past, and as he looked back, perhaps even troubled by it. So how did he deal with it? Listen to this passage from Philippians (3:13, 14): “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win (receive) the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

When it came to the past with its sins, Paul knew he was forgiven and he moved on. He made a conscious effort to forget what was behind because he knew that God had forgotten it. So it is with us.

I know I’ve shared with some of you the story written by Ernest Hemingway about a Spanish father and his teenage son. The relationship became strained and eventually broke. When the rebellious son – who bore the common Spanish name “Paco” – ran away from home, his father began a long and tiring search to find him. As a last resort he placed an ad in a Madrid newspaper, hoping his son would see the ad and respond to it.

It read: Dear Paco: Please meet me in front of the newspaper office at noon. All is forgiven. Love, Father.

As Hemingway tells the story, the next day at noon, in front of the newspaper office, there were 800 Pacos, all seeking forgiveness from their fathers.

All of us have a deep need to know we are forgiven. Did we sin and make mistakes in 2008 and before? Yes. Despite our best intentions did we in our weakness bring dishonor to God? Certainly. And sometimes we continue to feel – and perhaps to some degree always will – the repercussions of those sins, because actions have consequences.

But what we need to know about the past is that because of Jesus Christ all is forgiven.

And in a few minutes we will have the opportunity to personally be assured of that as we receive the very body and blood of Christ which provided our forgiveness.

So the past is forgiven. What about the present? Listen to what Paul says in Ephesians 5:15: “Be very careful, then, how you live – not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”

And then there is this passage from 2 Corinthians (6:1, 2): “As God’s fellow workers we urge you not to receive God’s grace in vain… I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”

More and more we seem to hear people talking about “living in the moment.” I’m not sure what they mean by that, but I think it is a caution to avoid the two extremes of either always dwelling on the past or always planning for the future. Because when that happens, the present disappears.

If that’s right, then it’s close to what Paul tells us in these passages. He reminds us that God has placed us in the present for a reason and a purpose, and that we are to live in the “now.” Furthermore, we are to use “now” wisely and to make the most of our opportunities. And the opportunities Paul is talking about here are spiritual opportunities.

So what is a wise, opportune use of our time? By taking the time to do what we are doing tonight – strengthening ourselves through Word and Sacrament. A wise life is a worshipful life.

When we keep ourselves spiritually fit through a personal study of God’s Word and/or a regular devotional life, we are engaged in wise living and are making the most of our opportunities to grow in grace and wisdom. A wise life is a personally connected-to-God life.

When we contemplate the goodness of God and all the things He has done, is doing, and will do for us through His Son and His grace, we will naturally become stronger in bearing fruit for God and being witnesses for Christ before a watching world. A wise life is a grateful life, which naturally becomes a spiritually productive and witnessing life.

We could put it this way: The present is indeed a present – God’s gift to us. Paul encourages us to use it wisely and to His glory and honor.

Finally, there is the future. What does Paul have to tell us about that? Two things, both found in Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8:1 – “There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” In other words, our eternal future is guaranteed. Sin condemns because it is rank disobedience before a just and holy God. That’s a problem for us, of course, because we sin. Each of us is like a prisoner on death row waiting for the sentence to be carried out.

But God intervened. Jesus kept the law perfectly for us, satisfying God’s demand for our holiness. Then He died on the cross for the sins of mankind, satisfying God’s divine justice. And everything Christ did is transferred to the account of those who trust Him as Savior. That’s us. Which means “there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Again, that’s us.

Not only is our future guaranteed, it will also be glorious. Listen to this passage, Romans 8:18 – “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” The Apostle Paul was no stranger to suffering. In 2 Corinthians 11 he provides us with a long and sobering list of things he went through for the sake of the Gospel. So he knew all about how difficult life could be.

Yet, Paul was always a big picture person. While he knew difficulty, he also knew that anything he went through was minimal in comparison to the blessedness of what was ahead of him in heaven. And that gave him the ability to face the future with confidence and even joy.

Therein is the lesson for us. Nobody knows what a new year will bring for us a nation or as a congregation or as individuals. For some here tonight 2009 may be a banner year – a year in which goals are reached and the Lord allows great accomplishments to take place. For others it may be just the opposite – a year of difficulty or heartache or loss in one way or another. But whether it’s a year of “weal or woe” or something in between, that’s the small picture.

The big picture is that God will never leave us or forsake us and will see us through whatever comes into our lives until that time when He safely leads us home. And when we get there, then we’ll know personally what Paul meant when he said “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” In the meantime this information gives us all we need to face the future with confidence and trust.

So here we are on New Year’s Eve. Momentarily living between two worlds. For one night straddling the stream of time with a foot on both banks. Perched upon our own Mount Nebo with a view of both the future and the past.

How do we enter 2009? With the understanding that the past is forgiven, the present is ripe with opportunity for a deeper relationship with our God, and the future is both guaranteed and glorious.

Maybe, just maybe, that’s what Paul had in mind when he said: “For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Good words to adopt as our own personal motto and carry into this – and every – New Year, wouldn’t you say? Amen.