Contract Renewal

OT Lesson: Jeremiah 31:31-34 (CEB)

The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. It won’t be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant with Me even though I was their husband, declares the Lord. No, this is the covenant that I will make with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put My Instructions within them and engrave them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be My people. They will no longer need to teach each other to say, “Know the Lord!” because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord; for I will forgive their wrongdoing and never again remember their sins.

NT Lesson: Hebrews 5:5-10 (GNT)

In the same way, Christ did not take upon Himself the honour of being a high priest. Instead, God said to Him,

“You are My Son;
today I have become Your Father.”
He also said in another place,
“You will be a priest forever,
in the priestly order of Melchizedek.” 

In His life on earth Jesus made His prayers and requests with loud cries and tears to God, who could save Him from death. Because He was humble and devoted, God heard Him. But even though He was God’s Son, He learned through His sufferings to be obedient. When He was made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey Him, and God declared Him to be high priest, in the priestly order of Melchizedek.

Sermon

Announcements

Good morning. I bet many of you were surprised during the announcements today upon hearing that Gretel has resigned. I was surprised as well. She informed the personnel committee of her resignation last Sunday afternoon. It came quite unexpectedly to me, not to mention it was the last thing I expected. Her last working day was this past Thursday, and she will begin a new full-time job at Titus Bakery this coming Tuesday as an ‘Afternoon Manager.’ So, if you find yourself missing her, you can always visit her at Titus Bakery Monday through Saturday in the afternoons. In my initial draft of this sermon, I mentioned she went to a better place, but upon review, I realised this phrasing might sound odd and carry an unintended meaning. Of course we all will go to the Better Place at some point, but not now. Therefore, I will simply say she is now working at Titus Bakery. But, for the time being, we are in need of either volunteers or a temporary part-time office assistant. The primary responsibilities include answering the phone and monitoring the front door in the mornings. If you are available and willing, please let me know. Meanwhile, the personnel committee will soon start the process of hiring a permanent church secretary, after assessing the church’s needs and situation more thoroughly.

Let me share a few more announcements. The Lenten Community Wednesday Soup & Supper will be on coming Wednesday at the Central Christian Church. And this coming Sunday is Palm Sunday, marking the beginning of Holy Week—the climax of the Lenten journey, leading us to the cross on Calvary. To conclude our Lenten journey alongside our Saviour, we have planned several gatherings. On Palm Sunday, we will hold our regular Sunday morning worship service. On Thursday, March 28th, join us for the Maundy Thursday dinner in the fellowship hall at 6 PM. This event also serves as a service, commemorating the Last Supper of our Saviour with His disciples. On Friday, March 29th, we will observe the Good Friday Service in the sanctuary at 7 PM. And on the glorious Easter morning, we will celebrate the Son-Rise service in the courtyard at 7:30 AM. Note that it is Son-Rise, signifying the rise of the Son of God, not sunrise. Breakfast will follow, and we will enjoy fellowship until the regular Sunday morning service begins. I hope we can all walk this final step of our Lenten journey together.

Introduction

How many pieces of mail do you typically find in your mailbox at home each day? Some days, it might be overflowing; on others, it is completely empty. Personally, I rarely receive personal letters. More often than not, my mailbox is filled with an assortment of flyers, of which I only find a few, like Burger King coupons, to be of any value. I’d guess that about ninety-five per cent of these flyers end up in the recycling bin without a second glance. However, occasionally, I receive renewal notices for services like Chevy OnStar, Hyundai Blue Link, Costco, AAA, Pestie, Indianapolis Zoo, Newport Aquarium, Indianapolis Children’s Museum, Fair Oaks Farms and Sirius XM just name a few among others. And no, I have not gotten anything from AARP yet. I am not there yet. So, if I decide I want to continue using for example AAA for another year, I need to renew my contract. The same goes for maintaining my Costco membership. Renewing these services and memberships is surprisingly easy and straightforward. Since they are eager to keep collecting your money or my money, the process is made as easy as possible. The renewal form usually comes pre-filled; all you need to do is sign it and send it back in the pre-addressed, postage-paid envelope provided. Despite the service fee, I find the convenience and benefits of some of these contracts to be worth the expense.

However, not all renewal processes are as smooth and friendly, especially when dealing with the government. With tax season upon us, many of us are navigating the complex process of filing our returns, hoping for a refund. The government, it seems, goes out of its way to make this process anything but easy. Filling out the forms, securing an envelope, and paying for postage all fall on you. And with the rampant scams and frauds promising easy tax refunds, one rule of thumb remains: if it seems too easy and kind, it is definitely not from the federal or state government. Their processes can often feel cumbersome and unfriendly, whether in person, online, or on paper. Honestly, they are more like cranky and grumpy.

Two weeks ago, I experienced this first-hand when I took my son Samuel to the USPS to apply for a new passport. Children’s passports cannot be extended, and with his expiring in May and a trip to Korea planned for July, we had no time to waste. Despite having completed the form in advance, I was met with a grumpy clerk who informed me that a reservation was required—a policy not mentioned on the U.S. Department of State’s website. After returning home to make the reservation, we came back a week later. Applying for a child’s passport requires both parents’ signatures, witnessed in person by a USPS employee. And we had to prove that we are his legal parents by providing his birth certificate and our IDs, which the clerk also needed to confirm in person on the spot. This strict requirement along with the grumpiness of the USPS clerk is just another reflection of the government’s often rigid and unfriendly demeanour. But, the hassle is a small price to pay for the immense benefit of holding a U.S. passport, which grants relatively easy access to approximately 185 countries without the need for a visa, and straightforward processes for acquiring visas to other countries as needed.

Renewal of Contracts with God

In today’s Old Testament lesson, we receive a divine invitation for contract renewal from God Himself: “The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah.” However, this renewal process is not as easy as renewing your Costco or AAA membership. It is more akin to the complexities of renewing an expiring passport at the USPS. And Jesus did not shy away from telling us the truth: those who lose their life for His sake and for the sake of the gospel will save their life. Living as faithful Christians is challenging. Yet, we willingly come to church on Sundays and live out our faith because the rewards of renewing our covenant with God are immensely greater. Jesus promised us that the reward is the eternal life.

During this Lenten season, Jesus calls us to join Him on His journey to the cross at Calvary, saying, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” As we are well aware, Jesus bore His cross to Calvary, and now He invites us to carry our own crosses. What does this mean? Are we to be crucified as well? Are we expected to face death or martyrdom? The Bible clarifies this through the example of Simon of Cyrene, stating, “A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.” Simon carried the cross and followed Jesus to Calvary. But what became of him? Was he crucified? Did the soldiers execute him? No, he was simply there on Calvary with Jesus. And it is clear that Simon and his entire household entered into this renewed covenant because the Bible promises “Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” It was also evidenced by Apostle Paul’s affectionate greetings to his family, treating Simon’s wife as a mother to him. Thus, Jesus asked only for his in-person presence. Therefore, renewing our covenant with God is not as simple as signing a piece of paper at home. It demands our physical, in-person commitment, much like being present to sign a U.S. passport application at the USPS.

Demo Version

In the ‘90s, there was a popular joke among those who were not fans of Microsoft and its founder. It went like this: Bill Gates passed away and found himself before God. Since he was not distinctly good or bad, God offered him a choice between heaven and hell, but Bill requested to sample each before deciding. He went to heaven first and found that all the people were singing boring Gregorian hymns all day long. It seemed dull to him. Hell, on the other hand, appeared lively with its club atmosphere of drinking, smoking, and dancing with rock music. After experiencing both, Bill chose hell for eternity. However, upon arrival, he found it to be a place of torture, far from the party scene he had seen. The demons were poking him all day long with tridents, and throwing him into a boiling lava. In despair, he accused God of deceit, to which God responded that he had only seen the “demo versions” and according to the Microsoft policy, it is not cheating or deceiving.

This leads us back to today’s Old Testament lesson about renewing our contract with God, which, as Jesus says, comes with a cost. Earlier, I mentioned how I don’t mind paying the renewal fees for Costco and AAA memberships because I see the benefits as outweighing the costs. However, I opted not to renew services like Chevy On-Star, Hyundai Blue Link, Newport Aquarium and Sirius XM, as I did not see enough value in them. This decision-making process highlights the need to evaluate whether the benefits justify the costs—a step Bill Gates humorously failed at in the joke due to being misled by a demo version.

The world often presents us with enticing “demo versions,” promising more than they deliver. And for the services we already experienced, they promise the same service with increased prices. People often jokingly say that the medical insurance agreement in one sentence is that “We will cover you unless you are sick.” So we are left to assess the true worth of our subscriptions to determine whether or not to renew. But here is the divine twist: God operates counter to the world’s ways. You may call it Christian paradox or divine paradox. The Old Testament announcement we are exploring today reveals that the new covenant with God is not just a renewal but an upgrade beyond what we could imagine. If the Old Testament was a demo, the New Covenant through Christ is the full release. If Moses’ laws were the initial contract, Christ’s salvation is the ultimate fulfilment. If the Jerusalem temple was but a shadow, then Christ’s body, the eternal temple, is the reality. If our earthly existence is temporary, heaven is the eternal continuum.

For these reasons, I confidently assert that renewing our covenant with God is worth any cost, echoing Paul’s declaration that our present sufferings cannot be compared with the glory to be revealed in us. Furthermore, once we enter into this renewed agreement with God through confession and repentance in Christ Jesus, it is like an automatic renewal—no need to sign again and again. This eternal commitment is why Jeremiah proclaims, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness, O Lord.” They are new every morning. That is, they are renewed automatically every morning.

Judge Francesco Caprio

I wonder how many judges we have in this country from the small municipal courts to the federal supreme court. But first, do we have a municipal judge here in this town of Lebanon? Anyway, I bet the number of judges across the United States must be vast—I would not be surprised if it totalled in the tens of thousands. But among the myriad judges in our nation, perhaps the most well-known on the internet is Judge Francesco Caprio, who served as the chief judge of the municipal court in Providence, RI, from 1985 to 2023. His courtroom was the focus of a local TV show, “Caught in Providence,” which aired for over two decades. Some episodes on YouTube have amassed more than five hundred million views, showcasing his reputation for grace and forgiveness. One aspect of Judge Caprio’s approach that resonates with me deeply is his respect for veterans. I recall a moving video where he pardoned a parking ticket for a Korean War veteran, a moment that brought me to tears as he expressed his gratitude for the service and sacrifice of the veteran. Anyway, Judge Caprio is really forgiving person.

This brings us to a crucial point: imagine you have a parking ticket and the judge Caprio has already decided in his mind to pardon you, but you fail to appear in court. What happens? Your pardon is voided. Presence is required to receive forgiveness. This principle mirrors exactly what God desires from us—our presence on the Lenten journey to the cross. Jesus wants Simon of Cyrene and us to be there as He sacrifices His precious blood for us. He invites us to partake the Communion table of His body and blood, asking for nothing more than our presence.

This is the essence of our Lenten observance. Our Call to Worship at the start of each service during Lent assures us of God’s presence among us, and our Benediction Response at the end, captured in the poignant hymn “Were You There?”, invites us to reflect on our own presence in the narrative of Christ’s passion. So those two hymns encompass the entire service, emphasising the importance of the presence of the Lord as well as ours. This Lent, let us respond to God’s call by being fully present, walking with Jesus to the cross and beyond, into the resurrection life.

Conclusion

Friends, now is the moment for us to renew our covenant with God—not under the old law of Moses, but within the boundless love of Christ. This revised, updated, upgraded and improved covenant is incomparably superior to what came before. Yet, there is a price, a remarkably modest one at that. What God asks of us is simply our presence: to take up our cross and journey alongside Jesus.

A few weeks back, in a moment that seemed to come from nowhere, my son Samuel, while sketching bridges in his sketchbook at home, posed a question to me: “Dad, do you want Jesus to walk with you?” My answer was a resounding yes. Absolutely, I do. And it is in our showing up—our presence—that we invite God’s divine presence to accompany us. When we decide to walk with Jesus, He walks with us. Do you, too, desire Jesus to walk with you? I believe you do. So, let us affirm our commitment to this renewed covenant with God. Let us demonstrate our presence to God not just within these sanctuary walls but in every aspect of our daily lives. That is how we renew our covenant with God. And that is how we let Jesus walk with us. Amen.