Matthew 18:11-13 11 [a][For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost.] 12 “What do you think? If any man has one hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go and search for the one that is straying? 13 And if it turns out that he finds it, truly I say to you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine which have not gone astray.
Well, it has been twenty years here at Parkview. I just have some thoughts to share with you this morning.
Of course, Denise and I’s history with Parkview starts way before the last 20 years. Denise’s mother and her husband were members here back in the earlier days of the church. That was over 50 years ago. Bea was a newlywed. Jim Dyer was pastor. Bea helped teach a Sunday School class with such notable students as Alan Zluticky, Craig Kinkaid, Ron Buzard, Maxine and Geraldine Brock. (aka Geraldine Orchard) I believe, if Bea tells it right, she and Glen were a part of introducing Geraldine to a young man he worked with at the plant; Larry Orchard.
But Bea’s family ended up at another church, Southwest Baptist, for a time.
Then in 1980, the pastor of Prairie Hills Southern Baptist Church of Augusta, (Art Hays) resigned his position and moved his wife and three teenage boys out of the parsonage, and into Wichita. Art and Martha picked a Southern Baptist Church out of the phone book to visit.
When they came, the oldest Kevin, was graduated from High School and working with his dad at Mistletoe Express here in Wichita. Eric was a junior in High School, and Bruce was a sophomore. Kevin shortly married Janice Harris of Douglas, Kansas.
Yes, that was me. To some of you it may seem as if I’ve been here forever. In fact, I remember somebody here telling me that they remember when I was in the nursery. I came here as a sophomore in High School. I may have been immature, but I hope I wasn’t that immature.
I remember when we first visited Parkview thinking that this was a huge church. We had grown up in little churches of 20 to 50 people. When we came to Parkview, we were filling this sanctuary. In fact, there used to be a wall at the back archway that was removed in order to add more seats. Clyde McClain was pastor and we had a full program of children, youth, adult ministries.
Eric and I went to West High School and were very active in church. Kevin was married to Janice and lived in south Wichita. Janice became pregnant with my parents first grandchild; Benjamin Hays. My parents, Eric, and I were living in a new home down here in “Mobile Manor.” But, it wasn’t long before my dad started filling the pulpit in other churches, and eventually became the pastor of 1st Baptist Church in Burden Kansas, an hour southeast of Wichita. At 18, I surrendered to the ministry here at Parkview. And under the ministry of Clyde McClain, I was licensed to preach and made a “Pastoral intern.” I was given the opportunity to preach once a month on Sunday night. I preached through the book of Jude; all 25 verses. It took me 8 sermons. You’ll thought this preaching was new, no.
By now, Eric and I had graduated from High School and were working here in Wichita. I got a job delivering medicine through a connection to a pharmacist at Hudson Pharmacy; Maxine Ihrig, Geraldine’s twin sister. I started college.
And then, when I was 19, my parents were on a trip to Texas at the time, I got a call at my parent’s house. My oldest brother Kevin had drowned on an overnight fishing trip. I called my parents, and they headed home immediately. We had the funeral service here and then drove out to Douglas cemetery. Everyone here was very supportive and loving. In fact, I remember that after the funeral, Eric and I got caught up talking to people, and we missed the funeral procession to the cemetery. Luckily, Eric knew how to get there. We took off in his car. He broke the speed limit a little. And believe it or not, I think somebody was following us. They must have broke the speed limit a little as well. We all made it.
We’ve had many life experiences at this church. Shortly after that, I was helping with the youth group, as many 19-year-old college guys aspire to do. I found out that some 16-year-old girl in the youth group had a crush on me. Well, of course I had to let her down, then start dating her a few months later.
3 ½ years later, Denise and I got married here at Parkview, the ceremony performed by my dad, Eric sang. By then, Clyde McClain had resigned after his 13-year pastorate. First Wayne Norton was pastor for 18 months then Norvel Welch came as pastor for 6 years. Denise and I bought a 13 by 70 Homette and moved it into the Silver Spur mobile home park off of MacArthur. We weren’t around as much while Norvel and Hattie were here. I preached at a little church in Niotaze Kansas for a little while, and then Denise and I went to help with a new mission called “Hope Community Church” which began on south Hoover.
I led singing, accompanied by a little-known pianist named Marianne Bass. Bruce taught Sunday School. About this time, I had completed my degree in Religion from Wichita State University. You say, “What did a bachelor’s degree in religion get you?” A job as a highly educated custodian.
I was ready to go to seminary. Denise and I packed up the trailer and paid $800 to have it pulled to Kansas City. Then 6 months later we sold it for $600 and moved on the seminary campus. Don’t ask.
During the 3 years of seminary and for the 6 years that I pastored a church in Mound Valley Kansas, we kept in touch with Parkview. Norvel Welch retired, and Dennis Clough was called as pastor. Madison was born in 1996, and Ethan was born on August 1st of 2000. At that time, Denise and I were considering moving back to Wichita. I was working as a sheet metal mechanic at Cessna in Independence Kansas and knew that I could transfer to Cessna in Wichita. So, I did.
We moved into the apartments up here on the corner of 31st and Meridian in January of 2001. Our intention was to visit Parkview, say “hi” and then find another church to attend. But after we visited, two members came to visit us, and asked us to consider coming back to Parkview. Which we did.
It is remarkable to think about the last 20 years considering where we have come from. Twenty plus years ago this church went through a crisis. At a church business meeting, someone introduced a motion to call for a vote of confidence in the pastor. Words were said, accusations made.
Dennis Clough resigned before the vote was taken. Many of the church’s members pulled up stakes and went elsewhere. After the initial shock wore off, the church put together a pastoral search committee. I eventually put my resume into the mix. And I eventually withdrew my name from consideration. Months and months passed. Half the search committee resigned. I think the church discovered at that point that prospective pastors are hesitant to come to a church that has called for a vote of confidence in its pastor.
Then in 2002, toward the end of the year, Denise and I talked about it, and decided that I should resubmit my name for consideration as pastor. So, I told the chairman of the search committee, Allen Gordon, on Sunday, and on Monday morning I got my 60 day layoff notice form Cessna.
Things moved fairly quickly then. My name made it through the new search committee, then to the church. I preached in view of a call, it came for a vote, and I was called as pastor. Then, on the Monday after the Sunday after I was called, Cessna informed me that I would not be laid off. So, I had to go in and take voluntary lay off, which was for the best because it allowed me to get a little severance, and 6 months of health insurance coverage.
My first official Sunday as pastor was in February of 2003.
20 years as pastor. I was thinking about that a lot this week. And I kept asking myself, “20 years, is this an ending, or a beginning?” “Could I pastor here another 20 years?” Yes, it’s possible. I would be 78 in another 20 years. But I’ve learned a lesson from Scripture about making future plans. James 4:14-16a] 13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.”Yet you do not know [b]what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. 15 [c]Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your [d]arrogance. All such boasting is evil.Proverbs 27:1 Do not boast about tomorrow, For you do not know what a day may bring forth.
Where I am, where this church is in 20 years, depends on God’s plan. And, “if the Lord wills,” is a two-way street. He could will to prevent your travel and trade, or He could will to further it. But I’ve also learned something else in these years of ministry. The future depends on God, but it also depends on us. Now, before you accuse me of blasphemy, hear me out.
I got to thinking again about those 7 churches that the book of Revelation was written to. We are first introduced to these churches in Revelation 1;
9 I, John, your brother and fellow partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and [g]perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the witness of Jesus. 10 I was [h]in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 11 saying, “Write in a scroll what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.”
Then John finds himself in a vision with the glorified Christ in front of him.
12 Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands; 13 and in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like [i]a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and girded across His chest with a golden sash. 14 And His head and His hair were white like white wool, like snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire. 15 His feet were like burnished bronze, when it has been made to glow in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of many waters, 16 and having in His right hand seven stars, and a sharp two-edged sword which comes out of His mouth, and His face was like the sun [j]shining in its power.
Now, the long and short of it is that Jesus is represented as the High Priest in this vision. The seven golden lampstands represent the seven churches named earlier. And Christ monitors and maintains those seven lampstands, those seven churches. What that means is that He has the final authority over whether their light remains lit. Whether they continue as the Lord’s church.
As I said earlier, that tells me that every church, and its future are in the hands of the Lord, He can kill, or He can make alive.
But there is something else we should learn from this vision.
Jesus is tending and keeping the 7 candlesticks. He has say over their lighting and placement. But if you read the messages to the 7 churches, He offers them a decision to make; obey or disobey. If you obey, you continue, if you disobey, you will be removed.
Ephesus: 2:1-2 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:
This is what the One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks [a]among the seven golden lampstands, (I’m in charge.) says:
2 ‘I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot bear with those who are evil, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false;
3-5: 3 and you have perseverance and have [b]endured for My name’s sake, you also have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the [c]deeds you did at first. But if not, I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place, unless you repent.
“I am in charge, I know who you are, what you’ve done, I know your heart. It is my will that determines if you remain or if you are removed. But I’m giving you a choice. And I will decide based on your decision.”
Pergamos: 12: 12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: This is what the One who has the sharp two-edged sword says: (I’m in charge. Nothing says I’m in charge like a sword coming out of the mouth.)
12 “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write:
This is what the One who has the sharp two-edged sword says:
13 ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. 14 But I have a few things against you, that you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual immorality. 15 So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent. But if not, I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.
Again, the Lord is in charge of whether this church remains or is removed. But He says that His decision will be based on their decision. Same message for Thyatira
Thyatira: 18 “And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write:….(I’m in charge) This is what the Son of God, the One who has [f]eyes like a flame of fire and His feet are like burnished bronze,
But I’m giving you a choice. “25 Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come.”
Sardis: 3:1-3 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write:
This is what He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says: ‘I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, [a]but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of My God. 3 So remember [b]what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.
Laodicea: Even Laodicea. Of all the churches to give a choice. Laodicea is the worst.
14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: This is what the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the [h]Beginning of the creation of God, says: 15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will [i]spit you out of My mouth.
The Lord has nothing good to say about the Laodicean church. In fact, He says that the church disgusts Him because they are lukewarm. He is ready to spit them out like tepid putrid water. You half expect the message to that church to be; “Your days are numbered.” “You guys are over.” But look, even that church He says that His decision about whether they remain, or are removed depends on how they receive His message.
17 Because you say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and you do not know that you are wretched and pitiable and poor and blind and naked. 18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be manifested; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. 19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
And I firmly believe that that is how the Lord addresses churches, even our church. He is in control. He chooses whether we remain or are removed, but He gives us the choice of obedience or disobedience. And based on that choice, He makes His decision.
As we look forward to the next 20 years, it is our temptation to pray, “Lord, if it is your will. Save us, preserve us.” We are like Moses standing with the children of Israel on the beach of the Red Sea with the Egyptian army closing in. And Moses cries out to God. “Lord save us!” And God responds,
Exodus 14: 15 Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Speak to the sons of Israel so that they go forward. 16 As for you, raise up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and split it, and the sons of Israel shall [g]go through the midst of the sea on dry land.
God says, “Get busy.” We’re sitting around wringing our hands, waiting for God to do something, He’s saying, “What are you waiting for? Step into the water.”
We often do that in church don’t we? Wait on God. Watch and pray. But sometimes we just need to get busy doing what we know to do.
We laugh at that old joke about the flood waters coming up on the old farmer’s house. The farmer is on the porch with his yard flooded, and a firetruck drives up and says, “Come on! You’ve got to escape before this gets worse.” And the farmer says, “God’s going to save me.” A little later the farmer is standing on the porch railing because the water has risen up over the foundation of the house. And a neighbor in his boat come by and say, “Come on! You’ve got to escape before this gets worse.” And the farmer says, “God’s going to save me.” A little later the farmer is on the roof of his house, the flood waters are up to the rafters and a helicopter flies over. The pilot throws down a ladder and shouts to the farmer, climb up, to which the farmer replies, “God’s going to save me.” Of course, the farmer drowns and now stands before God’s throne. The farmer says to God, “I’m glad to be here, but why didn’t you save me?” You know the punch line, “I sent a car, boat, and helicopter.”
We do that in church. We shout to the heavens, “God save us.” He replies, “I’ve given you a book of instructions.” “Follow them.” I’ve said, “Believe, study, disciple, seek lost sheep, encourage, love, go into the world, be holy, speak, serve, redeem the time.” I’ve sent you the means of your church’s redemption, now do your part.
So, what now? Let’s say that we were told by God that we had 20 more years, but that we needed to do what He told the 7 churches of the book of Revelation; repent, remember where you fell from, hold fast, keep the Word. What does that specifically look like?
Well, I’m going to begin sharing that with you beginning today.
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