VERS QUI IRONS-NOUS? TO WHOM SHALL WE GO?

CHRIST THE ROCK CONGREGATION

DIMANCHE 24 JANVIER 2021

Sermon par Pasteur Marc E Siméon

VERS QUI IRONS?

TO WHOM SHALL WE GO?

Joh 6:66 Dès ce moment, plusieurs de ses disciples se retirèrent, et ils n’allaient plus avec lui.

 67 Jésus donc dit aux douze: Et vous, ne voulez-vous pas aussi vous en aller?

 68 Simon Pierre lui répondit: Seigneur, à qui irions-nous? Tu as les paroles de la vie éternelle.

INTRODUCTION

The Global Effect of the Pandemic and the Silence of God

• We are living in tempestuous and perilous times.
• All the indications lead to the one fact that we are living in times of judgment, times of calamity, of unrests, and uncertainties.
• Many are experiencing the silence and the seeming insensitivity of God during this pandemic.
• It’s as if God is giving the deaf ear to many of our petitions these days.
• Many feel that God is over punishing the world with this pandemic.
• Many are feeling at odds with God over the loss of their loved ones after much intercession for divine intervention, all to no avail.
• The natural closure that a human being should have toward God is repulsed by the endless fear and anxiety that seem to loom over the whole world for so long.
• Everyone’s faith in God is being put to test; while many may excel in their intimacy with God, the faith of the great majority shrinks considerably in layers and shackles.
• Families that have experienced the death of several members may agonize to make sense of it all. 
• Some churches have lost their pastors and several key members in a short frame of time during this pandemic.
• Some have lost their jobs, houses, businesses, life saving, and health due to the pandemic.
• Some of those victims are good Christians.
• Many books of lamentations are being written all over the world due to this plague.

Why we Need to Bear with God Even When our Heart are Heavy

• Times like these remind us how many of Jesus’ followers parted their ways from him after one sermon where he further explained what it entailed to be His disciple.
• The large crowd was reduced to the familiar 12 disciples.
• Jesus asked the disciples as to why they did not join the bandwagon of those who left.
• Peter seemed to have explored that possibility but came to his senses.
• Speaking for the 12, Peter seemed to indicate their displeasures concerning the sermon as well.
• But, upon further considerations, they came to the conclusion to remain with Jesus.

Jean 6:68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

Joh 6:68 Simon Pierre lui répondit: Seigneur, à qui irions-nous? Tu as les paroles de la vie éternelle.

• While you were talking, we googled the words “Eternal Life”, and only your name pops.
• Only your blood contains the cleansing power to blot out our sins.
• You alone possess the key to heaven.
• You alone can vanquish the power death.
• Only you can reconcile mankind back to God the Father.
• Only you can tame and defeat our adversary the devil.
• After much consideration, we’ve come to the conclusion to bear with you, even if we are not at ease with all your sayings.

Joh 6:9 Et nous avons cru et nous avons connu que tu es le Christ, le Saint de Dieu. (LSV)

 69 “Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (NKJV)

• We’ve already made the solemn decision to follow you to the end.
• We have already discovered that you are the Christ, the anointed one of God.
• We already see that you are compassionate and kind hearted.
• We already know that everything you do is propelled by love, truth, and righteousness.

THE LIMITATIONS OF THE HUMAN MIND

• We finite beings cannot understand the wisdom and the ways of God.
• We cannot fathom the silence or the laissez-faire approach of God over the evils of this world.
• Since we do not have the full scope of the big picture, therefore none of the detours that God makes seem to make sense to us.
• We can only evaluate life by the minutes, while God is orchestrating the events in our lives with a panoramic view of eternity.
• The ways of God are very far distant from ours.
• As we approach the end of this dispensation, the whole world is bound to experience labor pains with increasing frequency.
• At times, it will feel like the clothes in the laundry machine during the final spin.
• The clothes do not know that the purpose of the final spin is for extracting as much water as possible out of the tissues.
• The discomfort and the dizziness associated with the final spin prevent the clothes to see any benefit to it.
• Thanks to the final spin, some of the clothes will not even have to go to the dryer.
• God is purging the human race in aim to differentiate the redeemed from the crowd.
• We will have to make the firm decision to know that God knows best how to run His universe.
• We must never allow our faith to waiver by the happenings of the time, for we are fully warned by the Bible of the stances of the last days.

IS GOD TRULY DEALING WITH MANKIND BY MERIT?

IF SO, WE SHOULD ALL LIKEWISE PERISH

• The second part of the message is a view of the present happenings from the optics of God.
• Does humanity have any merit to stand up to God and say “That’s not fair”?
• Are we living so uprightly on this planet that such things like this pandemic should not have happened to us?
• The answer is no! We know that we deserve much worse.
• If it wasn’t for the elects, things would be much worse.
• When we see what is ahead in the calendar of events that concerns the earth, the corona virus is minuscule in comparison to some of the plagues that we see in the book of Revelation.
• Jesus revealed a chilling fact to his listeners who felt that they were righteous in the sights of God in seeing how others were caught under the grips of the judgment of God.

Lu 13:1 ¶ En ce même temps, quelques personnes qui se trouvaient là racontaient à Jésus ce qui était arrivé à des Galiléens dont Pilate avait mêlé le sang avec celui de leurs sacrifices.

 2 Il leur répondit: Croyez-vous que ces Galiléens fussent de plus grands pécheurs que tous les autres Galiléens, parce qu’ils ont souffert de la sorte?

 3 Non, je vous le dis. Mais si vous ne vous repentez, vous périrez tous également.

 4 Ou bien, ces dix-huit personnes sur qui est tombée la tour de Siloé et qu’elle a tuées, croyez-vous qu’elles fussent plus coupables que tous les autres habitants de Jérusalem?

 5 Non, je vous le dis. Mais si vous ne vous repentez, vous périrez tous également.

The background of this passage.

1.   Pilate was governor over Judea where the temple was.

2.   Those Galileans were under the jurisdiction of Herod, and there was animosity between Pilate and Herod.

3.   The people were doing something sacred in that is worshiping God.

4.   The sacrilege occurred in the sacred ground of the temple of God.

5.   The implication was “ Look how bad things happen to good people”; Look at a bad thing that God allows to happen

• Whether or not these Galileans provoked a riot or committed some other crimes and went and hid in the temple, Herod should have used better judgments than kill them right there and then to mix their blood with the blood of the sacrifices they were offering supposedly to God.

• While this was a good opportunity for Jesus to shoot some shots at Pilate and feed the crowd with words with a sense of indignation,
• Jesus rather turned the séance into a teaching moment.

THE INCIDENT AT THE TOUR OF SILOAM

• There was another tragic accident that made the headlines in recent past,
• As some construction workers were building or fixing a port or a bridge over the Tower of Siloam, something went wrong and seemingly a large object caved down on them and 18 people lost their lives.
• As always people tend to put an explanation on every bad thing that happens.
• Knowing the bent of the people to judge victims as guilty before God, Jesus reminded them that none of them in the audience were any less guilty than those 18 who perished in the incident.
• As this pandemic seems to show a weird partiality as to where it makes its strongest landfall, many of the people who are not affected are sitting on their pedestal trying to explain why such countries were so affected and some others not.
• I am here to tell you like Jesus.
• Unless we repent, we will all likewise perish.

THE RIGHTEOUS ARE NOT SPARED OF THE COMMON PLIGHT OF THE GENERATION

• Daniel the righteous man of God prayed “we have sinned against you God”
• Prophet Jeremiah admits to the sins of his generation.
• We all have done our share to cause the world to become such a hostile place as it is.
• Some by their silence
• Some by their compromises
• Some by their grievance
• Some by their actions
• Some by their condoning of evil
• This is a common problem for us all.
• We all have our share to do in order to suppress that pandemic.
• Just because you are not sick does not mean you are the most careful or the most righteous person.
• Just because you did not fall victim, does not mean you stand taller in the sights of God than those who are begging for another breath of fresh air as we speak.
• Let’s take heed to what Jesus told the crowd in verse 3 and 5.

Lu 13:3 “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. (NKJV)

Lu 13:3 Non, je vous le dis. Mais si vous ne vous repentez, vous périrez tous également. (LSV)

VERS QUI IRONS-NOUS AUTRE QUE DIEU ?

TO WHOM SHALL WE GO EXCEPT FOR GOD?

• What do we do from here? To whom shall we go?
• We stick to God regardless.
• Although we are not at ease with pandemic.
• Although we feel that God should come down from his anger by now,
• Although we feel that God should have spared some families from losing too many members at the same time.
• Although we feel that God should have been more sensitive toward His church with regard to this plague,
• Although we cannot see the point in bringing all these nations on their knees at this particular time,
• Although we question the duration of this plague,
• Although we are not at ease with the seeming disengagement of God.
• Vers qui irons-nous?
• To whom shall we go?
• Only God can bring a solution to this problem.
• Only God cares about the matters of life after death.
• Only God knows what He wants to achieve with this pandemic.

• I have decided like Peter to keep my faith grounded on God.
• Whether or not God brings a remedy to this problem, I will remain his faithful servant.
• If God chooses to allow things to get even worse, I will remain his faithful servant.
• I pray that God would allow each one of us to grasp this message to heart.
• Let’s brace up for better or worse with our hearts well fasted on Jesus who is the author and finisher of our faith.
• As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!

AMEN!