February 1, 2004

Standing TALL Against the Past

Psalm 32

The year was 1998. It was only the second time in the 209 years of American history that the House of Representatives had conducted a presidential impeachment vote. President Bill Clinton was charged with obstruction of justice. Specifically in question was whether he lied under oath, attempting to conceal a relationship with a former White House intern. Charges were made against him by Independent Council Kenneth Starr, in a 445- page report containing 11 alleged impeachable offenses. That report cost the American tax payers $40 million dollars. At first the President denied the relationship but the pressure mounted. In August of 1998 Bill Clinton was forced to face his own past. He went on national television and confessed. He had misled his family and the nation.

Now if the President of the United States of America, the most powerful person in the world, has a few skeletons in his closet, then maybe there is someone here today that has a few skeletons in their closet? This sermon is about how we deal with the skeletons in the closets of our lives as disciples of Jesus Christ. Let us see what the Bible tells us.

This morning’s primary scripture lesson comes from Psalm 32. It is a psalm of David. It must have been written near the end of his life because David is reflecting back on his life. David had a good life but David also had some regrets. Even the great King David had some skeletons in his closet. The skeleton David seems to alluding to in Psalm 32 is recorded for us in Second Samuel, chapter eleven. To understand the psalm you must understand the David’s indigestion.

David’s story is not a long period of poor decision making. David lived a good life but he makes a great mistake one evening. It doesn’t take long to ruin your life. According to the scriptures it was springtime, the time when love grabs everyone’s attention. David is no exception. He was unable to sleep so he went for a little walk. He walked on the roof because the air was cool and he could be alone. It is at this point that the trap is set for his great sin. I am not saying that David was a peeking Tom but he saw a woman in a bathtub. It wasn’t just any woman. It was a beautiful woman. I will let you fill in the details. David should have looked away but David decided to enjoy the view. On that lonely night David discovers her name is Bathseba, the wife of Uriah. Her husband is off at war so David summons her. He should have looked away but instead he summons her, a night of passion follows. I short time later David discovers he is going to be a father. He should have looked away but instead he now has a scandal. In order to cover up the scandal David sends Bethesda’s husband to the frontline, so he will be killed. The plan works to perfection. Uriah is dead and the secret is safe.

My Aunt in New York is the last of her generation. She is in her early seventies and is not afraid to talk. She rolls from one topic to the next. She was the one who told me my family’s greatest secret. Do you want to hear the secret? My paternal grandfather was raised on a farm. He had two siblings, Ellen and Ned. Ellen stayed on the farm and married a farmer. I remember her as an old woman. I remember Ned a little. He stayed on the farm but he was strange. As a small boy I was afraid of him. I asked my aunt, "What ever happened to Ned?" She looked uncomfortable. She said, "Well, Russell, it has been a secret for years but I guess it doesn’t matter anymore. He has been gone for years. Ned was always different. Aunt Ellen cared for him until one day he picked up a pitch fork and threw it at her. He almost killed her so she called the sheriff. He lived the rest of his life in the Massillon mental hospital." She stopped talking and began to cry. She said, "I have been carrying that secret for a long time. I feel better telling you. I hope I didn’t shock you?"

Prussian king Frederick the Great once toured the prison in Berlin. All the prisoners fell on their knees and told the king they were innocent. All the men proclaimed their innocence but one man. The king looked at him and asked, "Why are you here?" His response was, "Armed robbery." The king asked, "Are you guilty?" The response was, "Yes, sir!" The king summoned the jailor to release the man. He said, "I will not have this guilty man influencing all these innocent men."

There is something about confessing that liberates us! When my aunt told me about Ned she cried. He had been gone for years but the burden of that family secret weighed her down without even knowing it. What is it in your life that you need to confess? Is there a broken relationship with a family member? Is there an experience that still haunts you? You hold the key to your own freedom. Take that skeleton in your closet from your closet and confess it to God!

Stephanie and Justin found my name in the phone book. They wanted to get married New Years weekend. He was twenty-two years old. She wasn’t twenty and hadn’t even graduated from high school. I met them for the first time in my office. We talk about nothing for about ten minutes when Stephanie confessed. She said, "I want to tell you the truth. I have a two year old son. Justin is not the father." "Where is his father," I asked. She said, "His father lives in California. He is a Marine." I said, "Well, tell me how you and Justin met? He said, "We were at a party and everyone got wasted. Stephanie and I had to drive everyone home and we just hit it off. We have been together ever sense." I asked, "How long have you been together?" He said proudly, "Six months!" I asked, "Why do you want a winter wedding?" She said, "I really want a summer wedding but we don’t want to wait." I said, "I need to ask you are you pregnant?" She said, "Yes!" and her eyes began to tear. It was about then that Justin cell phone sounded. He went outside to get better reception. I showed Stephanie around the building and we stood in the parlor looking at the poinsettias. I looked at Stephanie and said, "Stephanie, I like you. If you were my daughter I would give you some advice. You don’t have to use it but I do expect you to listen. You are a young pretty woman. You have made a few mistakes. You have a son, whose father is out of the picture. You haven’t graduated from high school. You are pregnant with Justin’s baby and you are rushing to marry him. I sure would hate to see you make another mistake. If you want me to officiate at your wedding I will want you to go home and think about what you are about to do." In other words, I said, "Have you learned anything from the skeletons in your past?

What have you learned from the skeletons in your past? It is impossible to live without making a mistake. Have you learned from your mistakes?

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter a married woman by the name of Hester and Rev. Dimmesdale have an affair. A child is born and Hester confesses to the community without revealing the father’s name. She endures the insults of the townspeople and is sent to prison. On her dress she sows a letter scarlet "A." She would wear that "A" the rest of her life. Rev. Dimmesdale stays quiet. He continues to preach and live with the guilt. Seven years later the guilt has grown too much. He stands in front of the town next to Hester and their seven year old daughter, Pearl, and confesses. He is the father. However, shortly after the confession the preacher grows ill and dies. The burden of the secret became too much. His secret became his spiritual tomb.