Sermons
Watch Out For The Bees
WATCH OUT FOR THE BEES
Sermon Outline By Terry Siverd
Cortland Church of Christ / June 24, 2018
Our 42nd Annual Summer Youth Retreat (Camp 2:52) begins in earnest this afternoon.
Several of our counselors (some with children) are already at camp, attending a pre-camp conference last night and this morning. .
At last count we had over 50 campers with about 25 counselors and 7 cooks.
BLESSING OF “THE FLEET”
(Campers, Counselors & Cooks)
SHOW ANIMATED VIDEO CLIP OF “CAMP GRANADA”
I will be brief with this morning's sermon.
Everyone needs to be at camp by three o'clock this afternoon, but you are free to arrive early - - anytime after this morning's worship, if you so choose. Directions to Blue Rock are on the back table. We will not have a caravan.
The title of my sermon this morning is meant to be a tribute.
We lost our beloved brother Mark Lombardi last August.
For 28 consecutive years - - every year after his baptism into Christ - - Mark served as a camp counselor.
He leaves some very large sandals to fill.
Mark worn many hats at camp and one of those was that he served as our chief Medic.
His training as a Marine and a policeman provided him with a solid background in first-aid.
Occasionally we would encounter a more serious injury - - a broken bone or twisted ankle.
But most of Mark's medic time was spent bandaging bruises and scrapes or extracting splinters
or soothing tummy aches or headaches, of something minor. And of course, doctoring bee stings.
I think he told me last year that he had dealt with about four-dozen bee stings.
While it wasn't Mark's last words at camp, it was his frequent warning: Watch Out For The Bees!
The Bible often urges us to be vigilant … to watch carefully … to be on the alert
HERE ARE SOME “KILLER” BEES TO BE ON THE ALERT ABOUT
In this instance killer means good.
BE A BIG BROTHER OR BIG SISTER
An award is given for this particular emphasis, but its good when all of our older campers excel at this.
I want to urge those of you who have been to camp to be on the lookout for rookies - - younger and/or older.
In Eph.5:15 Paul urges, be careful how you walk...making the most of your time.
Many of our campers have discovered that one of the most rewarding aspects of our week-long retreat is to be able
to look back and realize that you helped mentor others. As in past years we will have a number of rookies this year.
Eph.5:2 exhorts us to walk in love. Genuine love displays itself in having a spirit of self-sacrifice.
1Tim.4:12 states: Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but rather in speech,
conduct, love, faith and purity,SHOW YOURSELF AN EXAMPLE of those who believe.
BE ATTENTIVE
Camp includes lots of fun and games, but it is also about LEARNING. The study of God's work is central to the week.
Listen well. Js.1:19 admonishes us to be quick to HEAR.
Take notes. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Resolve to be a doer of the word, not merely a hearer (Js.1:22).
Come home from camp with a determination to change for the better.
BE OPEN
Camp provides a wonderful venue for the sharing of our struggles.
Camp 2:52 is not Camp Stepford - - we are all flawed. Not a one of us is perfect.
Rom.3:9-10 reminds us that all are under sin and there is none righteous, not even one.
All of us are sinners seeking salvation in Christ Jesus, but we are sinners nonetheless.
One of the beauties of camp is that it invites openness, it encourages us to open up our hearts to God.
In the sermon on the mount Jesus speaks a path to happiness.
We sometimes call these verses (Mt.5:3-12) the beatitudes.
Blessed are the poor in spirit (humble) … Blessed are those who weep … Blessed are the pure in heart.
The word blessed can actually be translated happy.
We will never find true happiness if we are haughty and proud or if we refuse to be sorry for our sins.
The pursuit of happiness requires that we be REAL (pure in heart).
Heb.4:12 says that the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.
Perhaps the better image here is a butcher's knife or a surgeon's scalpel.
Heb.4:13 adds, there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things
are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.
So, do be afraid to let Jesus do some surgery on your heart. He's The Great Physician.
BE FORGIVING
Last of all, but equally important, is learning to be forgiving.
Chances are pretty good that somebody is going to offend you this week.
It might be a counselor or it might be a camper. It might even be a cook.
(Years ago I was greatly offended (just kidding) when one of our cooks gave me about five or six potato chips).
When you live in close quarters with each other for a week, sometimes we tend to get cranky and/or easy irritated.
In your memory work for the week you will be required to memorize The Lord's Prayer.
Don't worry, David & Lara, will teach you a song that will make memorizing it a piece of cake.
In The Lord's prayer there is a verse that says (Mt.6:12) - -
forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
This is at the heart of being of a Christian - - learning to forgive others as Jesus has forgiven us.
In Mt.5:14-15 Jesus is crystal clear on the importance of cultivating this attribute.
If you forgive others of their transgressions (sins), your heavenly Father will forgive you.
But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your sins.
So don't you dare come home mad and upset because somebody wronged you.
Even if some guy steals your girlfriend, you must be willing to forgive them.
If you come home with an unforgiving heart then the whole week of camp will have been wasted.
In Eph.4:32 Paul says this - -
Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also have forgiven you.
These four “bees” - - being a big brother and big sister … be attentive to Biblical instruction … being open … and
being forgiving are essential if we are to be the salt of the earth (Mt.5:13), and light of the world (Mt.5:14-16).
The charge for us to be salt and light is the very core and heart of Jesus' sermon on the mount.
