February 15, 1998 - LESSON:Ephesians 1:7-8a, NRSV

SERMON TITLE: Recovered

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Jake was tired, he had worked hard all week.

Jake was an upholsterer

He had handled a number of heavy pieces of work for customers that were not especially nice.

It was necessary to make a run to the town dump.

This was when we still had town dumps.

He didn't want to go to the dump, but then, you never knew what you might find.

People threw away unwanted but sometimes good stuff.

He was unloading his pickup when he spied the old couch.

He walked over to take a look.

The fabric was worn and the stuffing was a little thin in places.

He recognized it as a substantial piece.

The frame was in great shape.

With a little work it could be restored and recovered.

It just might bring him in a few dollars more than expected.

So he tugged the couch up on the truck and went home.

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In a few weeks you never would have known that the couch had been thrown away in the town dump.

To use a religious term, we could say that the couch had been redeemed.

It was redeemed because Jake collected and restored it.

That is one of the primary meanings of redeemed, to restore.

Or you could say that it had been reclaimed.

One of my favorite stories on this theme is about a young boy who built a boat, lost it, and reclaimed it.

The story is about how he reclaimed it

After he built the boat, he liked to float it on the river that flowed near his home.

He would tie a string on the boat and let it run with the current.

One day just after a heavy rain, when the river was swollen and angry looking, he tried to see how his boat would handle the swifter current.

The tension on the string from the wave-driven boat was very strong.

It was so strong that it broke and the boat sailed down the river.

He didn't know whether he would ever see his boat or not.

He searched for it with no results.

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One day when he went to town with his dad, as they passed a second-hand shop, he saw his boat in the window.

He was sure that it was his.

He went inside and asked the person if he could look at it.

He confirmed that it was his.

Excitedly, he told the clerk, "That's mine! I made It! Please give me my boat!"

"Sorry," said the clerk, "I bought that from a young man who brought it into my store. If you want it you are going to have to pay for it."

The boy gave the clerk what money he had as a down payment.

The clerk promised to hold it for him, "no matter how long it took."

It took awhile.

But one day the boy had the money.

His dad took him into town and he went directly to the store and put the purchase price on the counter.

Lovingly carrying his boat he was heard to say as he left the store, "You are twice mine. I made you and I bought you back."

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When you think about it that is what God has done for us.

He made us.

We were not very loyal to God.

We decided to test the system, to strike out on our own.

We have not done a very good job of it.

We have gotten lost.

Tossed on the town dump.

Sold down the river.

God wouldn't not let us go.

He redeemed us.

He bought us back.

With the precious blood of Jesus Christ, he paid the price.

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The price was paid for a purpose.

The purpose is to help us recover.

For we, at least in this life, are never recovered.

AA is a wonderful program for alcoholics who want to struggle to overcome the addiction to alcohol.

AA offers Twelve Steps to help the individual engage in the process of recovering.

The alcoholic is never said to be recovered, only recovering.

God offers us steps to help us recover.

God offer us love

God offers us faith

God offers us hope.

God offers us grace

God offers us forgiveness.

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There is an old song which suggests that "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord.

It is based on Proverbs 20:24 "All our steps are ordered by the LORD; how then can we understand our own ways?"

It is not that God places our feet exactly where he wants us to go.

It is that he provides a plan that promotes the best and provides for all our needs.

The ultimate purpose is to reclaim us so that we can enjoy the world and life as God intended that it should be.

If we are to recover and be recovered, there is that one first step that we must take.

We cry for help.

We must use it.

There is a story about a man who died and went to heaven and complained that God didn't answer his prayer

Why didn't you save me.

I prayed.

I cried out to you, why didn't you save me.

God replied how did you respond to the emergency personal who warned you of the flood?

What did you say to the man who offered to give you a ride in his boat?

Why didn't you accept the ride in the helicopter when rescue team sought to save you?

I tried to save you, but you would not listen; you would not act.

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May he didn't recognize the help, but he certainly ought to have recognized the danger.

We are in danger and in need of saving.

This is the process of redemption

That's why the great song at the beginning of this service.

Read again the words.

Redeemed, Fanny Crosby

Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it!
Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb;
Redeemed through his infinite mercy,
His child and forever I am.