Heb 2:14-18 & Rom 8:31-39

Mid-30’s AD – Stephen, is stoned by the people of Jerusalem.

155 AD – Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna, is arrested by the Romans. At this time, the Christians were being captured and martyred for their faith under the charge of atheism, because they refused to sacrifice to the Roman gods or proclaim the deity of the emperor. Knowing that the mob was searching for him, Polycarp fled the city to a nearby village, and when the people came there, fled to another farm. When the people searching for him could not find him, they tortured the people who were living there, and one young man gave up Polycarp’s location. When the officers came to arrest Polycarp, this bishop, having received a vision that he was going to be martyred, chose not to flee, but to remain in the house, offering food and drink to the officers, and praying for the church and the officers before willingly going with the officers. He was given chance after chance to “repent” and proclaim that he was not a Christian; to swear by Caesar and to curse Christ. Instead, Polycarp responded. “Eighty and six years have I served him, and he hath done me no wrong; how then can I blaspheme my king who saved me?”

The people demanded that Polycarp be fed to the beasts, but having already returned the beasts to their cages, Philip, head of the government in the province of Asia, agreed to burn Polycarp at the stake. “They surrounded him with those substances which had been prepared for the funeral pile. But when they were about also to fix him with nails, he said, "Leave me as I am; for He that giveth me strength to endure the fire, will also enable me, without your securing me by nails, to remain without moving in the pile." They did not nail him then, but simply bound him. And he, placing his hands behind him, and being bound like a distinguished ram [taken] out of a great flock for sacrifice, and prepared to be an acceptable burnt-offering unto God, looked up to heaven, and” he prayed. They lit the fire, but the fire would not consume his body, so they commanded an executioner to drive a dagger through his body. The people wondered that there should be such a difference between the unbelievers and the elect, of whom this most admirable Polycarp was one, having …been an apostolic and prophetic teacher, and bishop of the …Church which is in Smyrna.

16^th century Germany – The Plague has taken Europe by storm, driving deep fear into the hearts of the people. Remember the scene from Monty Python? Three men with a cart walk through a city with one man crying out “Bring out your dead.” A body is thrown onto the cart, and another man walks up to the cart with an elderly man flung over his shoulder, saying, “Here’s one.” To which the elderly man replies, “I’m not dead yet.” The scene is intended to be funny and deeply ironic, and it is. But there is much truth in it as well. The people were terrified, and anyone who appeared slightly ill was feared and ostracized because no one wanted to die.

Into this situation, Martin Luther writes to his people. Instead of fearing death, the church should be caring for the sick. At a time when hospitals were not really in existence, Luther told his people that they should be the hospitals, taking care of the people for whom no one else in society would care. They should either trust God to keep them healthy in the midst of the sickness, and recognize that if they did become sick, that their inheritance was not of this world but of the Kingdom of God.

21^st century America – A young man is diagnosed with cancer. After a long battle and series of treatments, the doctors determine that there is nothing else they can do. Along the way, he has kept a blog about his treatments and the faithfulness of God in the midst of all his struggles. He and his family have sent emails to the church, keeping the people updated and asking for their prayers. And they tell stories. Stories of this young man bringing joy and hope to people who had no hope. Stories of people hearing about Jesus from a person who had every reason to hide away from the world. The doctors and nurses who treated him were amazed by his joy. And the emails spread, from household to household, and people sent the link to his blog around the world. He was sharing quite a testimony with the world. As he left this world and received life in the presence of God, his peace in God’s presence remained a witness that God is faithful, even in the midst of great struggles.

They say that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church. But it isn’t just the fact that someone has died that draws others to Christianity. It is the way that the martyrs died and the way that they dealt with troubles. Instead of being consumed by fear, or resisting death, the Christians stood strong. They refused to curse Christ and refused to sacrifice to Caesar as their Lord. And they stood calmly as the beasts were sent out, the executioners approached, the stones were picked up, or the fires were lit. They knew that their treasure was in heaven and that nothing that people could do could remove from them the presence of God.

It is also the way the church deals with troubles that sets Christians apart. The church’s willingness to risk their own lives to care for the sick in the 16^th century distinguished them from the people who were terrified of the plague. The Christian’s ability to display joy in the midst of terminal disease sets them apart from the people on the same hospital floors who spend their days in deep depression and hopelessness. We are “more than conquerors through Christ who loved us.”

Note that Paul is not saying here that life will be easy. Christian or not, we still live in a very fallen world. We still suffer great atrocities at the hands of other human beings. We still have murders on the streets and gangs in our cities, and we still have less visible attacks. Heads of companies may ask their employees to engage in unjust or unethical business practices to bring in the next dollar, and they may retaliate against employees who refuse. Neighbors may speak ill of you. Bullies (either the child or grown up version) may abuse you with their destructive words and threats of violence.

Then we have the reality of fallen nature. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes, fires, and hailstorms. The flu, cancer, heart attacks, strokes, blindness, car accidents, and multiple sclerosis. No, this world is not easy, even if we never have to sacrifice our lives, our jobs, or our friends for our faith.

But Paul knows that as well. “What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? God who justifies? Who then can condemn? Christ Jesus who died – more than that who was raised to life? Who is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

Do you hear the absurdity of those questions? We are supposed to. We should be answering “Absolutely not!” and “No one!” to those questions. If God has chosen us, who else can be powerful enough to bring a charge against us? The God who justifies us? Absolutely not! If we are justified by God, who else can condemn us? Christ who died and was raised, and who actually intercedes for us at God’s right hand? No, no one can condemn us! What shall separate us from the love of Christ? Is anything strong enough to remove us from God’s love? Absolutely not!

Then why do we so often life as if we were defeated? Why do we so often live as though the devil, death, temptation, and other people have power over us? Not that I think things are always good. I know better. But then I read the stories of men like Stephen and Polycarp, and I get the emails from friends in ICU with a brain aneurysm, encephalitis, cancer, and car accident injuries, and I talk to people with multiple sclerosis, blindness, and lyme disease. And I wonder.

I don’t know if we’ve missed the truth the Paul writes, maybe we’ve never really been able to hear it before. Or maybe we’ve chosen to ignore it? Maybe we really like the pity party we’ve developed. Or maybe we’ve just not really known what this would look like in our context, in 2009 Los Angeles. Maybe we are afraid that we just aren’t really good enough for the promises that God gives us in this passage in Romans. Whatever the case, too often we have let other people and circumstances define who we are.

But we are not defined by our circumstances. You are a child of God, redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ and BELOVED. God himself became human flesh and blood, suffering just like we suffer, and being tempted like we are tempted, and sacrificing himself as high priest so that our lives would be transformed. NO ONE can take that away from you. As much as bullies and bosses and unfriendly store clerks and anyone else can attempt to minimize you to make themselves feel strong and good, they still cannot remove your identity as a child of the Father. As many attacks as the devil throws your way, he cannot remove from you the presence of God in your midst. As many fires, floods, and diseases that come, they cannot change who you truly are. We are more than conquerors through the blood of Christ Jesus. That is our identity. Do you believe it? Will you live like that?

God loves YOU. He wants your good. He wants your life to overflow with joy. Too often we settle for less. We wonder who we are to be loved? But the truth is, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. This belief that we should not be loved and experience joy and goodness is a lie of our culture, not a message from God. In The Weight of Glory, CS Lewis writes, “Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not to strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

God is offering us infinite joy, regardless of our circumstances, through his constant presence in our lives. This is why the martyrs could stand praising God’s name as the fires burned at their feet, the animals came roaring into the arena, or the executioner approached with his sword. This is why the church can care for the sick regardless of risk to themselves, and why the sick Christians can sing praises and walk the halls bringing hope to the hopeless, even as they remain in the hospital for the last days of their lives. God is with them. They know who they are. They know that they are God’s children, infinitely loved.

They can say with Paul, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

If you are beaten down, bruised, and battered the life and the world, hear this morning that you are a child of God. Take hold of your identity. God wants you to know that you are loved. Close your eyes for a moment. Whatever weights you are carrying, whatever keeps you from living in the fullness of life God offers, whatever hinders you from being a conqueror through Christ Jesus, turn them over to him. Then know that God is reaching his arms around you and holding you. God is telling you, “I love you.” Rest in that love. He may not change your circumstances, that is up to him to decide. But regardless, you will be changed in the midst of your circumstances if you live as the redeemed and chosen child of God that you are. Sometimes God calms the storms of our lives, and sometimes he calms his children in the midst of the storms.

Either way, when we rest in our identity as children of God, we too proclaim with Paul, “In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Amen.