What’s Next: Guardian of our Souls – What’s Next Part III

Sermon Title: What’s Next: Guardian of the Soul

Good News Statement: Jesus guards us

Preached: Sunday, April 30, 2023 at Dogwood Prairie and Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): 1 Peter 2:19-25 Today’s scripture reading comes from Peter’s first epistle to the followers of Christ: chapter two verses nineteen thru twenty-five. In this particular passage, we are reminded that Christ is the guardian of our soul that protects by the promises endured in the resurrection.

¹⁹ For it is a commendable thing if, being aware of God, a person endures pain while suffering unjustly. ²⁰ If you endure when you are beaten for doing wrong, what credit is that? But if you endure when you do good and suffer for it, this is a commendable thing before God. ²¹ For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps.

²² “He committed no sin,
and no deceit was found in his mouth.”

²³ When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. ²⁴ He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. ²⁵ For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.

 

Psalm 23: The Divine Shepherd

¹ The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. ² He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; ³ he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. ⁴ Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. ⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. ⁶ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long.

 

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

Introduction:

So “What comes next?” is the question that I have been asking you and challenging you to think about for the best two weeks. After the resurrection of Christ, we find ourselves in an awkward transition: the festivities and excitement of Easter have come and gone, Mother’s Day and Memorial Day are a few weeks away, and summer vacations are on the horizon. During this waiting period, we simply wait for our schedules to give us a break and we often forget about what just took place: Jesus walked out of the tomb after being tortured and crucified, and then placed in a tomb by a rich, good, and righteous man who is a member of the religious council, named Joseph of Arimathea. During his days of resurrection, Jesus walked this earth visiting his disciples and others. As Jesus walked this earth, he called us to journey with him: to find ways to strengthen our faith, turn our unbelief into belief, and to realize that every day is a day of resurrection. So “What comes next?”

What comes next after the resurrection is the will to always have hope, to have the strength to remember, the ability to give praise, and the eagerness to love as Christ loves. We have been set free, our chains are gone, and we have been loosed from the bonds of yesterday because of Jesus’ resurrection. We are set free to be happy when skies are grey. We have been set free to know that things are okay. We have been set free to smile when the tears are done falling. We have been set free to experience Christ’s powerful and transforming love. We have been set free to be the disciple and church that God needs us to be. We have been set free to “Praise the Lord.”

Do you know you have a guardian in your life? Do you know you have someone watching out for you every day? Do you know that there is someone in your life that is willing to make sacrifices so that you are taken care of? Do you know who this person is? I believe this person is Jesus; the ultimate guardian of our souls. In the act of being set free, Jesus reminds us that he is the guardian of our souls, the protector of our heart, the rescuer of our busy minds, and restorer of our strength. As the author of First Peter notes when talking about Jesus, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:25). By his wounds we have been healed. He has, is, and will always be our guardian because of what he did for us. But what does it mean to say that Jesus is the guardian of our souls?

Body:

First Peter presents the guardian of our souls as the one who brings us back together, who brings us home. We celebrate that guardian today, the one who walked through the world and showed us what a life of meaning and purpose looked like. We embrace that model and aspire to the attributes that the epistle outlines for us. That kindness and honesty and purity appeals to us and inspires us. We lift up this person in worship, not just to admire but to pledge to emulate. We honor who this guardian is and always will be.

While thinking about the word “guardian” was taken aback by a movie that was released in September 2006 by Touchstone Pictures, Walt Disney Studios, and Motion Pictures. The movie is titled The Guardian, and it stares Kevin Costner and Ashton Kutcher. The premise of the movie is this: A Coast Guard rescue swimmer, Senior Chief Ben Randall, played by Kevin Costner, who is still mourning the loss of his crew in a fatal accident, copes by dedicating his life to training new recruits. A high school swim champion with a troubled past enrolls in the U.S. Coast Guard’s “A” School, where Ben Randall happens to be instructing. Jake Fischer, the high school swim champion, played by Ashton Kutcher, is molded into Ben Randall’s protégé.

The movie ends with this scene: As Jake Fisher and Ben Randall are being hoisted back up to the helicopter after being called to rescue individuals from a fishing boat on the verge of sinking during a category three storm, the line begins to fray. In an act of desperation, Ben begins to unfasten himself from the line and says to Jake, “It’s not going to hold us both.” Just before Ben falls into the ocean, Jake catches him. The camera zooms in on their clutching hands. Then Ben undoes the Velcro on his gloves and falls into the ocean. The line completely breaks when Jake makes it into the helicopter. “Ben is never found….but he is known as the Guardian.” Ben, Senior Chief, risked his life for many years to save others, to be their guardian, but then one day he made his last sacrifice to save one person who will save many others in return. To understand Jesus as our guardian, we must acknowledge his sacrifice and suffering for us and for others.

On the one hand, talking about suffering is easy. Everyone has experience with suffering. On the other hand, we struggle to talk about suffering because we often do that comparison thing and decide that our suffering isn’t as bad (or maybe is worse than) other people and, therefore, we feel guilty thinking about it, or even naming what we feel as suffering. But our pain is our pain. And it is real, and it shapes who we are and how we respond to the world. That is what Peter is trying to get us to understand. How we live with suffering and how we acknowledge God’s presence in our suffering is what makes us able to endure.

A guardian suffers and endures and doesn’t seek anything in return. The author of First Peter states, “When he was abused, he did not return abuse; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but he entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross…” (1 Peter 23-24). Jesus suffered. Jesus endured. Jesus endured forty stripes minus one (Deuteronomy 25:3; 2 Corinthians 11:24-26). Jesus gave his life as a ransom for many so that you and I would be set free, healed from our wounds and transgressions. Jesus sacrificed himself, knowing the pain and suffering that he would have to endure, just so that we would know that he is the guardian of our soul; so that we could feel and experience a moment of peace and protection during our day. A guardian endures suffering for others and does not retaliate that suffering with abuse or threats or with a loosed tongue. Our guardian undoes their glove so that we may be hoisted to safety.

A guardian assures us hope in our healing. There is a presence, a guardian of the soul, the author of First Peter argues, that gives us hope. This presence understands us. This presence has been where we are. This presence walks with us into the suffering. This presence is a close companion, not one who waits until we make it through on our own and then gives us a gold star or some other commendation; No, this presence is right there with us. This presence knows us, has inclined its ear to us, has strengthened us, helped us, and held us up by its victorious right hand (Isaiah 41:10). This presence is Jesus Christ and he is the healing guarding of our soul. First Peter 2:24 asserts, “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.” Isaiah 53:5 notes, “But he was wounded by our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities,…and by his stripes we are healed.” The guardian of our soul not only suffers for us but finds ways to heal us.

The guardian of your soul has healed you, praise the Lord. The guardian of your soul has removed your transgressions, praise the Lord. The guardian of your soul has taken care of your iniquities, worries, stresses, doubts, troubles, and problems, praise the Lord. The guardian of your soul is a constant presence that has saved your life, delivered your soul from death, removed the tears from your eyes, and has given you the strength to not stumble but “walk before the Lord in the land of the living” (Psalm 116:8). The guardian of your soul, Jesus Christ, has healed you to face tomorrow, he has decided to remove your wounds and carry them for you.

From this healing we find hope. After Jesus’ resurrection, we find the disciples hiding. John says, “The doors were locked where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews” had conquered their souls (John 20:19). To their amazement, Jesus came and stood among them, even though the doors were locked, and said, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19). John’s text continues, “After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained’” (John 20:20-23). Later on in this text, we are introduced to Thomas, who was called the Twin. We know Thomas as “Doubting Thomas.” In times of fear and doubt, Jesus gives us peace and hope; because as our guardian he knows what our soul needs to be healed and to be restored with belief again. He knows when we need to see the holes in his feet, hands, and side. Jesus knows that we are scared of something. Jesus knows that we have doubt. Jesus knows that we need to receive the breath of life—ruach. As our guardian, he is going to find a way to appear to us behind closed doors and penetrate our heart with hope and peace. He is not going to let his sheep go astray: he is going to guard them—no matter what they are going through. He will always find a way to find you and to help you believe; but are you wanting to believe and are you finding ways to search for him?

This is why in addition to being the guardian of our souls, Jesus is the shepherd, says Peter. First Peter 2:25 states, “For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls.” The guardian cares for us. We understand shepherd, even though most of us are somewhat removed from the sheepherding business. We’re familiar with that image, though. We’ve heard sermons and seen images of Jesus as the shepherd. We get it. And in large part, we get it because of a guy named David. You know David, Old Testament guy, king of Israel, war hero, builder of palaces, and writer of psalms. A lot of psalms get attributed to David. The truth is, we don’t really know how many or which ones were actually written by David and which ones were just attributed to him – meaning someone else put his name on them to get them published! But I like to think that this certain psalm was one that David wrote—something he plucked out on a lazy afternoon as he looked after the sheep.

He starts to sing. “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff– they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long” (Psalm 23:1-6). The final note seems to hang in the air like a spark ascending from a warming fire.

The Twenty-Third Psalm speaks of a guardian who is our shepherd, who cares for us. It talks about a shepherd who provides us with all that we need—“I shall not want”; a shepherd who leads us to green pastures and still waters—places that give us strength and restores our souls; a shepherd who knows when we are weary and heavy laden so he makes us lie down and rest; a shepherd who leads us on the right paths—and guides us away from wrongdoings; and a shepherd who removes our fear as we walk in the darkest of valleys. But that’s not all this Psalm offers us. It talks of banquet tables; it talks of overflowing cups; it talks of peace and of being pursued by goodness and mercy. It talks about not wanting, not because you’ve trained yourself not to want, but because you are filled up to the top and spilling over.

The Twenty-Third Psalm illustrates for us a shepherd and guardian who cares for us as we walk through this life. He is not going to leave us but continue to find ways to be with us. He is going to guard us from giving in to the temptations of the devil; to steer us away from whatever may bring us down; and to help us overcome the struggles of every day.  He is the guardian who is everything and more. He is the guardian who suffers with us, heals us, gives us hope, and cares for us. He is not going to let his sheep go astray—“your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”

For some of you, seeing Jesus as your guardian is like reminding yourself that you have a guardian angel, possibly named Clarence. St. Ambrose, the great preacher of the 4th century, said, “The angels must be entreated for us, who have been given to guard us.” John Calvin said, “The angels are the dispensers and administrators of the divine beneficence toward us. They regard our safety, undertake our defense, direct our ways, and exercise a constant solicitude that no evil befall us.” For some of you, seeing Jesus as your guardian is like reminding yourself that there is someone in your life that you can count on: that will be there for you, to listen to you, to pick you up when you fall, to help brush the dirt off, or who is always just a phone call or text message a way. Whether Jesus, an angel, or a friend or family member or loved you, you all have a guardian who is watching out for you. And that guardian is going to do whatever they can to suffer with you, heal you, have hope in you, and care for you today and every day. Who is the guardian of your soul that gives you strength and peace to say “Praise the Lord”?

Conclusion:

The movie The Guardian, after showing Ben Randall undue the Velcro on his glove, closes with these words, “The Coast Guard conducted one of the largest search and rescue missions for a single man in its history. But the body of Senior Chief, Ben Randall, was never found….” Jake asks this question, “What makes a legend, is it what someone did when they were alive or how they are remembered after they’re gone?” He goes on to say, “Some people actually believe Senior Chief made it to the Aleutian Islands, standing on a distant beach somewhere with a fishing pole in his hand; but I found my answer a couple of weeks later.”

A rescued individual asks, “Where is he?” Jake responds, “There is no one else out there man.” To which the individual says, “He was there. He was with me the whole time. He said he would hold on until help arrived. He never let go. He never let go.” Jake looks down from the helicopter at the raging sea below and says, “There’s a legend: a man who lives beneath the sea he’s a fisher of men, a last hope for all those who have been left behind. He is known as the Guardian.”

We don’t always have to see the guardian in our life to know that they are there. We don’t always have to see Jesus to know that he is walking beside us. All we need to know is that he is there and that he is never going to let go nor leave us behind. Jesus is the guardian of our soul and he always will be. So take a deep breath in and let it out: Jesus is by your side: he suffered for you, and has been resurrected to heal you, give you hope, to care for you, and to be the shepherd that will never let you go astray. If Jesus is our guardian, then who can we be a guardian for in our life? Who is God calling us to watch over and protect?

So what comes next? What comes next is taking to heart what it states in First Peter: “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you should follow in his steps….For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls” (1 Peter 2:21, 25). Allow Jesus to be the guardian of your soul as you follow in his footsteps. Give everything to him and know that Jesus is and forever will be your guardian. Through his resurrection you are healed, cared for, and protected. Now go and be a guardian for someone else. Let it be so. Amen.

 

Closing Prayer:

Let us Pray: Dear Jesus, through your resurrection and by your suffering and wounds, we have been healed. And because you were willing to sacrifice your life for us, you have made a promise to us that you will be the guardian of our souls who heals us, cares for us, give us hope, and who never lets us go astray. Jesus be our guardian today and protect us always. Amen.

 

Benediction:

I challenge you to think about the guardians in your life: those who go above and beyond to help you, protect you, strengthen you, and who give you hope. And then I challenge you to be a guardian for someone else in your life. Just because you may not see Jesus, doesn’t mean he isn’t still guarding your soul. May you be blessed knowing that someone is watching out for you. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, go, living and experiencing the resurrection of Christ in your life. And all God’s people said, Amen. Amen. Amen.