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Roger Tointon—February 5, 2022
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I want to start off with another little story. It's a movie that they made, I don't know how long back. It was probably a Hallmark series, but it was The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler.
That struck a bell with me. The movie certainly brought it out. This is a movie about the Holocaust in Europe during WWII. This was set in Warsaw, Poland, and a lot of it right there in the Warsaw ghetto.
The movie was actually very difficult to watch. Yet, in many ways I think that we in the Church, especially at this present time, it's good to watch something like that and realize what we might have to face.
We don't know individually, personally what we will have to go through. God knows, but we do not. We need to be prepared! God has certainly pointed that out to us in so many ways in Scripture.
If you've ever watched any documentary in the past on the Holocaust, life was absolutely beyond what we can understand, it was so bad. But this woman—Irena Sendler—was a young Polish woman not called of God, of course. She was a social worker, so she had access to the ghetto, which was off limits to everyone keeping the Jews trapped in there.
She could come and go through the gate, she had the papers. She began to notice these little children that were sitting in despicable conditions on the street, huddled in corners under boxes, whatever. Her heart went out to this one little girl.
Sendler made friends with her and began to communicate with her. She decided in her own heart that she needed to help that girl. She went to great lengths to get this setup to where she was finally able to help her. The only way she could help was to ferret her out of the ghetto. She had to do it secretly. She got some help in that, others who agreed to help when she told them what she wanted to do.
She final got the little girl out and got her placed with a Catholic family, because they were still letting them have their church and religion to some degree. They did a lot of things, teaching the little girl some things that were none Jewish.
These little children were raised as Jews, so it took a while. But finally they got her safely with another family so that she wouldn't be discovered and taken with the rest of the Jews little by little in the cattle cars, and you know what they did to them after that at the end of the line.
Every day Sendler would go into the ghetto and saw more and more children in the same condition. It became her absolute mission to try to save these children. She got more people to help her and they recruited more families who said they would risk their lives by taking in these children, because if they were discovered then they, too, were in deep, deep trouble.
Every day as she walked through the streets, the soldiers were always there, all around, all carrying rifles with bayonets on the end, and so on. We can't imagine coming out of our door to go wherever—the grocery store, work… They were still letting them work because they wanted to do work for the Nazis.
We can't imagine that! But there you are, that if you make one mistake, and they get their eye on you, there you go. You have the same end as the Jews came to. So, she was risking her life every day. But she went on and did it until she rescued—with the others helping her—2500 little children and got them into other families.
Eventually, she was found out and I forget how that happened. But the Gestapo came and that is like meeting Satan face-to-face! They got her and were trying to get the information from her as to where all of thee children had gone. Somehow they realized what she had done.
They tortured her for several months, but she absolutely would not tell them anything. Finally, they were going to take her on one of the trains to the end in those camps. She was able to escape, somebody helped her and she was able to escape. She actually lived until this century; she died after the turn of this century about 2006 or 2007 at 98-years-old.
That woman showed incredible courage! Incredible commitment! Here she was, just another woman and could have gone about her way trying to make sure that she did not get in trouble; That she could survive!
If we find ourselves in that condition, or if we find ourselves in that condition with what's coming down upon all the nations of Israel… Look what's going on in Australia, Canada, American and in Europe! We don't know! But Sendler said that she had to help these children!
She was thinking outside of herself. That is what God tells us, how we must help our brethren, how we must love them. But when you dig deeper into that, what is that saying? You have to be willing to give of yourself if you're truly loving!
God says that 'I want you to love your brethren, as I have loved you.' Isn't that what Christ told us? That puts much more depths and means to 'loving your brother.'
If you're really going to help someone, and you're really committed to God to where you are willing to let God's will become your will, and whatever He decides that that's okay with you and with me. That's what it's got to be! When you do that, what can that bring? Great peace!
I was thinking after watching that movie, what I saw is all going to happen again, only this time God says that it's going be much worse, worse than it has ever been!
I got to thinking beyond that, but that's not the rest of the story. There is good news, because God has something else and there will come peace. This time it won't be temporary! Yes, there's much to happen before then, but that good news is coming!
Who is the Author of Peace?
Isaiah 9:6: "For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government shall be upon His shoulders…"
We can look forward to that, and we know absolutely that that's going to be. We understand that, because God has opened our mind. We understand that so much deeper. It's beautiful in song! But they don't understand the full depth, and we've blessed to understand it.
"…and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace" (v 6).
God's peace is going to be a real peace and it's going to be a lasting peace. We have that to look forward to.
Isaiah 26:3: "You [God] will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You… [Why?] …because he trusts in You [Him]."
Yes, we trust God's will to be done! Not only for everyone, which it will be one day, but we trust His will to be done for us. That does give us peace, even now in the face of what we see coming down, and understanding what will come beyond today or tomorrow.
We can have peace now. Why? Because the Father had the mercy and love to call us as individuals! Think about how incredible that is. That's like finding 'the pearl of great price.' You know that parable! It is truly great.
What do we do in the Church of God? We've done this for years, especially in Christian Biblical—I don't remember doing this in Worldwide—we read the words that Christ said on the night before He died. That was a very, very intense night for Him. It was intense for the disciples, because even though they did not fully understand as He told them, the power of the Holy Spirit was undoubtedly working as such a depth that they were greatly moved.
He was preparing them for after He would go back to the Father, because He wanted His Church to begin and go forward. He knew! That's why He spent three and a half years with these men, the apostles that chose. He knew that they had to do great miracles and go on, then the Church could start and go forward. The gates of hell would never prevent it from going on.
John 14:27: "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give it to you…."
What is the world's peace? It's temporary at best! Generally it's not real peace. It's got all kinds of little conditions and deceptions involved.
"…Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it fear" (v 27).
Again, that goes right back that if our relationship with God is such that we trust Him implicitly. We do not have to fear! If you don't fear, what do you have? Peace!
I go out of my door every day in Sacramento and what do I see? I see people going around in fear! Not all of them, thankfully—it's getting a little better than it was—but I see this one neighbor that do not come out of their house until they have those masks on, and they only come out to walk their dog twice a day. They're in fear, and that is exactly what the evil ones in charge want!
But we don't have to be in fear! God has given us peace!
John 16:33: "These things I have spoken to you… [talking to the disciples before He had to suffer] …so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation…."
Isn't that what He tells us. Look at what James and Paul said. We can expect it! God wants it. Why? To make sure whether or not we have this kind of courageous heart as this woman in Poland! She wasn't called by God, but she had a courageous heart.
She was willing, like we have said that we are willing when were baptized, even if we didn't realize it; but we realize it now! She had that kind of heart. What did that show? That even in human nature there is a place to have a right heart for the people to make that decision!
You can look down through history and see people that have done similar things, because they decided to do the better thing, and to have love and compassion for their fellow man. That's definitely what started her on her mission; the compassion for others.
Philippians 4:6: "Do not be anxious about anything…" Nothing!
That's quite a chore! We can get anxious by all kinds of things, even mundane things. In Matt. 6 Christ goes over this. He goes through a number of different example there of what we should not be anxious about. Why? Because God can provide for us!
Right here Paul is talking more about whether or not we'll have enough food to eat.
"…but by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God in everything" (v 6).
That's trusting in God, and with the trusting of God you have peace! So, we are not to be anxious!
Verse 7: "And the peace of God…"
Not some false peace, not some hollow peace with deception lying within. NO! It's
"…the peace of God which surpasses all understanding…" (v 7).
- we are beginning to understand that
- we are beginning to understand
That's why we have to be so faithful, because God will be with us, and we can understand that the depth and level that is going to take to be counted worthy by God.
So, if we have a courageous heart to trust Him implicitly, we, too, can have great peace even now. We can have peace and joy forever in the Kingdom of God, in our case as a firstfruit with Christ forever and ever! Isn't it worth it?
Scriptural References:
- Isaiah 9:6
- Isaiah 26:5
- John 14:27
- John 16:33
- Philippians 4:6-7
Scriptures referenced, not quoted: Matthew 6
Also referenced: Movie:
The Courageous Heart of Irena Sendler
RT:bo
Transcribed: 2/9/22
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