Isaiah 63: 7-9

(Sermon by Pastor Michael D. Schultz 12/30/07)

INTRODUCTION:

Good morning, yesterday... You wake up and time has slipped away.
And suddenly it's hard to find, The memories you left behind.
Remember... Do you remember?   

The laughter and the tears... The shadows of misty yesteryears,
The good times and the bad you've seen, And all the others in between,
Remember... Do you remember... The times of your life?

When that seventies song by Paul Anka became a hit, Kodak quickly turned it into a popular TV commercial to sell film.  Kodak had the film that could let you capture and remember the times of your life.  I don’t have a picture of it, but I can remember it as if I were looking at a photograph.  I was ten years old, sitting on a white ottoman of some sort in the living room of a house at 209 W. Monroe in Durand, Michigan.  It was April 8th, 1974 and I remember watching it live, Hank Aaron’s 715th home run over the 385’ mark in left field.  Even if you weren’t born yet, you can watch the video clip.  Do you remember seeing that?

I don’t know that Kodak has done a recent re-make of the Paul Anka song for a commercial.  With digital photography, it seems that photo albums are giving way to pictures stored on computers and viewed on screens.  But whether it’s on paper or a hard drive or only in your mind, pull out the photo album.  What do you see – some things that make you smile, some things that make you cry.  Black and white pictures of great grandparents, an old farmhouse, a high school graduation. 

Even if you’re starting to feel that there are some things that you don’t remember like you used to, there is a photo album God wants you to look at regularly and frequently and (here’s the challenging part) daily.  It’s the one that shows the kindnesses of the Lord.  Might there be some pictures in that album that you haven’t looked at for a while, some pictures that will help you a lot as you greet each new morning and tackle each day and retire each night?  There are some things we want/need to remember.

It’s Good To Remember The Kindnesses Of The Lord

We could, of course, view the whole Bible as a photo album.  We often do.  There’s the promise made to Adam and Eve – the Savior will come.  Noah on the ark and a rainbow across the sky.  Abraham looking at the stars – so shall your offspring be.  Israelites walking on dry land with walls of water on each side.  Elijah taken to heaven in a whirlwind.  Jesus taking hold of Peter’s hand as he’s sinking into the Sea of Galilee.

How does that story continue when we leave the pages of the Bible and open up your photo album?  Do you remember the times of your life when the Lord was so good to you?  Your baby pictures mean that God gave you the gift of life.  The picture of your baptism day (whether you have the actual photo or not) – that’s one of the best pictures of all, when God adopted you into his family.  Every birthday picture – another year of grace.  Your latest picture, one that shows you today – the Lord has seen you through it all and here you are.

I don’t know them all – I can only summarize them.  You know far better than I the countless pictures that would show God’s love to you.  Why are they in the album?  Why are there any at all?  What about all the pictures that would make us cringe?  What about the snapshots of sinfulness – how many of those are there?  What would it be like if they were projected on the wall in church in front of everyone?  When we overindulged and called it partying.  When we slammed someone and justified it by insisting that it was true.  When we thought and acted in ways that could not possibly be called Christ-like but would have to be labeled Satanic?

Because of God’s compassion, you turn the page of the photo album and there you see the Lord of heaven and earth wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.  “He became their Savior.”  It’s good to remember the kindnesses of the Lord.  You were rescued.  There is your Savior as a baby.  There he is on a cross being cursed.  There he is alive from the dead, saying, “Peace be with you.”  All the photographs of sinfulness were removed from the album by Jesus’ death.  There you are at the manger.  There you are at the cross.  And there you are at the resurrection.   It was all for you!   The kindnesses of the Lord!

Now here’s one that makes a big difference.  You know those T-shirts you sometimes see: “Property of such-and-such Athletic Department.”  Here’s the picture of you: “Property of Jesus Christ.”  You were redeemed.  In his love and mercy he redeemed them.  God “paid good money” for you.  Jesus gave his life for you and now you belong to God.  People don’t always like the idea of being owned by someone else. “You don’t own me!” people will say when they chafe under the authority of someone else.  But being owned by God is a blessing.  It means we are not owned by the devil, who would abuse us for all eternity.  It means we are not even owned by ourselves, which is good because we would mismanage our souls straight to hell.  It means we are owned by someone who will treasure us as a prized possession.

He lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.  It’s been a while since I’ve had a child who was demanding my attention by repeatedly crying, “Uppie!”  Whether you’ve asked him to or not, the Lord has lifted you up and carried you along all of your days.  Like that child that’s lifted up, it’s all security and contentment when you’re there.  And there you are, in his arms, not a single day missing your whole life long.

I realize that in many of these sermons I try to say things that are relevant by applying God’s Word to the challenging things that you face, making applications about all the different daunting things that lie before you.  Maybe for today we could not worry so much or talk so much about the daunting things that lie before you, trust God that he’ll take care of them, and instead remember the tremendous things that lie behind you.  Not all the photo albums in the world could hold the countless kindnesses of the Lord.

It’s when we forget them that we fall to pieces.  Remember the good things God has done.  Remember them today.  Here’s the photo album of God’s people in the Bible – chock full of pictures of God’s faithful love.  Here’s the one of Jesus’ life – full of God’s kindnesses, because every day of Jesus’ life was lived to rescue and redeem you.  And here’s the one of your life.  Look at this!  Every picture, every page – the Lord making his face shine on you and being gracious to you.  Today is one more for the photo album.

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