Now listen again to one particular passage of Jesus in the Gospel Reading.
“Come to me, all of you who are tired from carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest. For the yoke I will give you is easy, and the load I will put on you is light.”
Did you notice a similarity between the text on the Statue of Liberty and the important message of freedom Jesus spoke in our Gospel Reading? The words which are a part of the Statue of Liberty and the words spoken by Christ are both addressed to “the tired” – those who need rest from their bondage – those who need freedom. In comparison to the freedom offered “the tired” in Emma Lazarus’ poem, the freedom offered through God’s Son, Jesus Christ, is much broader and deeper!
Let’s now compare the freedom words of Jesus in the reading from Matthew and the words of the Apostle Paul in his Letter to the Romans. It may at first appear they are talking about freedom from two different burdens or forms of slavery, however, they are actually very closely related.
About two thousand years ago Paul wrote about bondage to physical or worldly desires, and here we are today lured into the same. As Phillip Yancey said, “Flip through the ads in any current magazine and you’ll see temptations toward lust, greed, envy, and pride that make sin downright appealing. Like farm pigs, we enjoy a good wallow in the mud.” [What’s So Amazing About Grace? p. 186] What a dilemma - “lust, greed, envy, and pride.”
Paul saw humans as capable of having good spirits and minds but incapable of leading righteous lives because the body overwhelms the wisdom of the spirit and the mind with bodily desires. Describing this dilemma in his own life, Paul wrote,
“I don’t do the good I want to do; instead, I do the evil I do not want to do. If I do what I don’t want to do, this means that I am no longer the one who does it; instead, it is the sin that lives in me.”
Sounding desperate for freedom from his own addiction, Paul wrote,
“What an unhappy man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is taking me to death?” Immediately, the apostle joyously answered his own question declaring the solution to his bondage,
“Thanks be to God, Who does this through our Lord Jesus Christ!”
The one who grants freedom, our Lord Jesus Christ, presented an illustration closely related to the dilemma Paul described. In Matthew 11, Jesus shows how human beings oppress each other with their petty attempts to have power over one another by imposing one’s own desires on another.
Jesus set up his illustration saying,
“Now, to what can I compare the people of this day? They are like children sitting in the marketplace.” The group of children on the left shouts to those on the right,
“We played wedding music for you, but you wouldn’t dance!” Evidently, those on the right did not want to dance and were not about to let those on the left control when they would dance.
The group of children on the right shouts to the children on the left,
“We sang funeral songs, but you wouldn’t cry!’” Evidently, those on the left did not want to cry and were not about to let those on the right control when they would cry. Each group of children expects the other children to fulfill their desires and commands. That all seems very much like the partisanship of the left and the right in our society today.
There were important segments of Jewish society which rejected John the Baptist and those that rejected Jesus because they wanted to control Jesus and John. Jesus and John the Baptist were not intimidated by those who sought to control them. Instead, they were obedient to God’s claim upon them. Let’s look at Jesus’ description of how their elitist adversaries tried to control them,
“When John came, he fasted and drank no wine, and everyone said, ‘He has a demon in him!’ When the Son of Man came (meaning Jesus), he ate and drank, and everyone said, ‘Look at this man! He is a glutton and wine-drinker, a friend of tax collectors and other outcasts!’” John and Jesus were fulfilling God’s will or as Jesus put it, “God’s wisdom, however, is shown to be true by its results.”
And what were the results of God’s wisdom? – the ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection of God’s Son, Jesus Christ! Paul knew, and we know today that it is through Jesus’ victory that we are truly liberated – We are:
- set free
from bondage to the world’s selfish ways,
- set free
from bondage to our own selfish desires to control,
- set free
from demanding everything be in accordance with our own physical or personal desires, and
- set free
from fulfilling someone else’s demands.
Being made free by Jesus, we are called to be representatives of his freeing love to others. Our focus, as agents of Christ, is to share Christ’s love with those who need to be freed from the control of things that provide an illusionary web of happiness and instead bring about only pain.
Rev. Billy Strayhorn tells the story of a teacher named Ruth who was an agent of Jesus for a woman in prison named Eva. Ruth met Eva while helping inmates prepare for the GED. “…of all the men and women that Ruth had ever taught, Eva looked the least likely to be incarcerated… Over the months Ruth got to know Eva better. But it took awhile for Eva to begin to trust Ruth. But Ruth’s gentle loving spirit won her over.
“… Ruth found out that as a little girl Eva felt like she was never good enough for her father or mother. And she especially never felt good enough for the church they attended. There the preacher and the members kept piling on the
‘ought to’s’ and
‘shouldn’ts’ until she could hardly stand it. They kept telling her all the things she had to do to earn God's love. And if she didn’t, this God of theirs would get really angry and cast her out into the outer darkness or worse.
Consequently she felt like an outcast. And she looked for acceptance and love in all the wrong people, all the wrong places and all the wrong ways. That’s how she wound up in the County Jail.”
“When Eva was released, Ruth was right there. She helped her find a place of her own and even helped her find a job. It didn’t pay much but there was opportunity for advancement, especially since she had her GED.
Although she was reluctant, Eva even started attending worship with Ruth. And that’s when things began to change. For the first time, Eva began paying attention. At first it was with arms crossed in a defensive posture. And after that first service she looked almost shocked as if she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She even began reading the New Testament to see if the preacher was right.
One day at lunch with Ruth she said:
‘The few times I’ve attended your church, all the preacher has talked about is grace and forgiveness. He didn’t give us lists of things to do. He didn’t make me feel guilty. He didn’t make me feel like an outcast. He made me feel welcome and wanted. That’s something I haven’t ever felt much of.’
‘… I wanted someone to tell me I was a good girl who made a mistake. I didn’t want someone who would only tell me how bad I was and how horrible it would be for me if I didn’t do better. I keep trying to do better but for some reason I always seem to blow it.
‘My parents and their church just got mad at me if I blew it. But you don’t get mad. Neither do the people in your church. You’re disappointed, but you still love me. If you can do that, then maybe God can do that too. I want to know the Jesus you love. I want to know the Jesus who can love me even when I make a mistake. I want that Jesus to love me.’”
Eva was baptized in the church to which Ruth was a member. Ruth had been an agent of Jesus’ love for Eva.
When I found this story, it reminded me of Round Grove United Church and the uniqueness of the United Church of Christ denomination. God’s “extravagant love” and “generous grace” for us is at the heart our beliefs without the “guilt trip” or making someone feel like an “outcast.” Here at Round Grove, we attempt to practice “gracious hospitality” to make everyone feel welcome and wanted. Jesus and God’s love is here for each of us even when we make a mistake.
For Eva, Ruth was an agent of Christ. She brought liberating freedom to Eva whose life had been filled with darkness, unacceptance, and prison.
Today we celebrate our freedom!
- We celebrate
the liberty and blessings we have in the United States of America.
- We celebrate
that through Jesus Christ God has rescued us from bondage to our physical desires and from the obsession of trying to control one another.
- We celebrate
that as followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to be agents of Christ’s love like Ruth in her relationship with Eva.
- We celebrate
that we may live free and invite others to share in our freedom in Christ. Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, June 29, 2008
"Sing of God’s Constant and Steadfast Love!"
Based on Psalm 89:1-4, 15-18
Having just sung “Amazing Grace,” a hymn that actually made it to the Top Ten charts 200 years after it was composed, I ask you to think in your minds – “How amazing is God’s love and grace?” It is just that – “amazing.” Philip Yancey says, “The world thirsts for grace in ways it does not even recognize.” “ . . . . grace is indeed amazing – truly our last best word.” (p. 13)
Yancey in his book
“What’s So Amazing About Grace?” quotes David Seamands, a counselor at the Bible College he attended, saying
Many years ago I was driven to the conclusion that the two major causes of most emotional problems among evangelical Christians are these: the failure to understand, receive, and live out God’s unconditional grace and forgiveness; and the failure to give out that unconditional love, forgiveness, and grace to other people. . . . We read, we hear, we believe a good theology of grace. But that’s not the way we live. The good news of the Gospel of grace has not penetrated the level of our emotions. (p. 13)
Yancey explains there is a “parable of grace.” Grace “is a gift that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the recipient.” (p. 25)
In a short story, Jeff Walling brings to heart an example of grace – one that will remind you of God’s constant and steadfast love and grace.
“It’s Wednesday night and you are at a church prayer meeting when somebody runs in from the parking lot and says, ‘Turn on a radio, turn on a radio!!’ While the church listens to a little transistor radio with a microphone stuck up to it, the announcement is made, ‘Two women are lying in a Long Island hospital dying from the mystery flu.’ Within hours it seems, this thing just sweeps across the country.
People are working around the clock trying to find an antidote. Nothing is working. California, Oregon, Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts. It’s as though it’s just sweeping in from the borders. Then, all of a sudden the news comes out. The code has been broken. A cure can be found. A vaccine can be made.
It’s going to take the blood of somebody who hasn’t been infected, and so, sure enough, all through the Midwest, through all those channels of emergency broadcasting, everyone is asked to do one simple thing: ‘Go to your downtown hospital and have your blood type taken. That’s all we ask of you. When you hear the sirens go off in your neighborhood, please make to the hospitals.’
Sure enough, when you and your family get down there late on that Friday night, there is a long line, and they’ve got nurses and doctors coming out and pricking fingers and taking blood and putting labels on it. Your wife and your kids are out there, and they take your blood type and they say, ‘Wait here in the parking lot and if we call your name, you can be dismissed and go home.’
You stand around scared with your neighbors, wondering what in the world is going on, and that this could be the end of the world. Suddenly a young man comes running out of the hospital screaming. He’s yelling a name and waving a clipboard. What? He yells it again! And your son tugs on your jacket and says, ‘Daddy, that’s me.’
Before you know it, they have grabbed your boy. ‘Wait a minute, hold it!’ And they say, ‘It’s okay, his blood is clean. His blood is pure. We want to make sure he doesn’t have the disease. We think he has got the right type. Your son could save the world.’
Five agonizing minutes later, out come the doctors and nurses, crying and hugging one another some are even laughing. It’s the first time you have seen anybody laugh in a week, and an old doctor walks up to you and says, ‘Thank you, sir. Your son’s blood type is perfect. It’s clean, it is pure, and we can make the vaccine.’
As the word begins to spread all across that parking lot full of folks, people are screaming and praying and laughing and crying. But then the gray-haired doctor pulls you and your wife aside and says, ‘May we see you for a moment? We didn’t realize that the donor would be a minor and we need... we need you to sign a consent form.’
You begin to sign and then you see that the number of pints of blood to be taken is blank. ‘H-h-h-how many pints?’ And that is when the old doctor’s smile fades and he says, ‘We had no idea it would be a little child. We weren’t prepared. We need it all, sir.’ ‘But...but...’ ‘You don’t understand. We are talking about the world here. Please sign.’ ‘But can’t you give him a transfusion?’ ‘If we had clean blood we would. Can you sign? Would you sign?’
In numb silence you do. Then they say, ‘Would you like to have a moment with him before we begin?’
Can you walk back? You ask yourself. Can you walk back to that room where he sits on a table saying, ‘Daddy? Mommy? What’s going on?’ Can you take his hands and say, ‘Son, your mommy and I love you, and we would never ever let anything happen to you that didn’t just have to be. Do you understand that?’ And when that old doctor comes back in and says, ‘I’m sorry, we’ve got to get started. People all over the world are dying.’ Can you leave? Can you walk out while he is saying, ‘Dad? Mom? Dad? Why, why have you forsaken me?’
And then next week, when they have the ceremony to honor your son, and some folks sleep through it, and some folks don’t even come because they go to the lake, and some folks come with a pretentious smile and just pretend to care.
Would you want to jump up and say, ‘MY SON DIED! DON’T YOU CARE?’
Is that what God is saying? ‘MY SON DIED. DON’T YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I CARE?’”
Grace “is a gift that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the recipient.”
Yancey says that
“For many, romantic love is the closest experience of pure grace. Someone at last feels that I – I! – am the most desirable, attractive, companionable creature on the planet. Someone lies awake at night thinking of me. Someone forgives me before I ask, thinks of me when she gets dressed, orders her life around mine. Someone loves me just the way I am.”
The beloved hymns - “Amazing Grace” and “Just As I Am” – remind us that God cares for us – loves us – loves us to the full extent of the word “grace.” That grace being a gift that cost God the shed blood of Jesus Christ.
Our response to that amazing grace and love of God is like that of the Psalmist:
“O LORD, I will always sing of Your constant love; I will proclaim Your faithfulness forever. I know that Your love will last for all time, that Your faithfulness is as permanent as the sky.”
In our Reading, the author connected God’s constant love and faithfulness with God’s covenant promise to David that a descendant of his would always be king. Part of our singing about God’s constant and steadfast love is because our Divine Parent fulfilled that promise to David by giving us God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to be our King and our Eternal Protector. We can sing with the Psalmist,
“You, O LORD, chose our protector; You the Holy God of Israel, gave us our king.”
None of us deserve God’s constant and steadfast love. But God’s love is given to us as a gift – no strings attached. It is unmerited mercy – grace. Never doubt God’s love for you because you or someone else believes you have done something to make you unlovable to our Creator. God’s grace is free and abundant. God’s grace is forgiveness and love. God’s grace is a gift that cost the life of the giver’s Son. It is through that love and grace that we are transformed – made a New Creature in Christ.
Because of God’s amazing grace - because of God’s amazing love for us - we respond. We respond through singing which unites our emotions, intellect, and personal participation in the celebration and praise of what God has done for us. We sing with the Psalmist,
“How happy are the people who worship You with songs, who live in the light of Your kindness! Because of You they rejoice all day long, and they praise You for Your goodness.”
When we come together for Worship, let us allow the music to be part of our inspiration to increase our praise, celebration, and commitment to God. Even when we are apart from one another, our songs of praise for God’s constant and steadfast love lift us up and encourage us to be thankful and faithful participants in the loving and liberating invitation of Jesus Christ to one another and all of our family, acquaintances, and yes, even our enemies. Let us sing and pass on to our children, church family, and to all people the Good News of God’s constant and steadfast love in our Savior and King, Jesus Christ!
“O LORD, I will sing of Your constant and steadfast love.” Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, June 22, 2008
"Do You Dare Be a Disciple?”
Based on Matthew 10:24-39
Can you recall recruitment commercials for branches of the United States armed forces? Do you know who is looking for a few good men?
Uncle Sam wants new recruits and to win those new recruits rewards are promised. In commercials and on the web, each branch highlights the strengths and benefits of their division of the armed forces. Consider the Navy’s website which lists “the generous educational benefits, comprehensive medical and dental care, 30 days paid vacation each year, discounted travel, opportunity to reach advanced degrees at the Navy’s expense, and use of officer clubs around the world. All these benefits come with serving your country.”
Today’s Scripture includes a recruitment message by Jesus – not for the armed forces but for Christ’s disciple forces. Unlike the “feel good” recruitment messages presented by the armed forces, Christ makes it clear that his followers should expect to be ridiculed as well as experience significant hardship.
Peter Whybrow in his book,
American Mania: When More Is Not Enough, speaks of the self-centered focus of today’s Americans. He said, “When the American dream is magnified through the commercially tinted lens of a globalized, technology-driven culture, the neighborly impulse to serve the social good has little practical value and offers even less opportunity for economic reward. The accumulation of material wealth is now America’s yardstick of social success. In the race to ‘get ahead’ and to triumph as an individual, competitive struggle and conspicuous consumption dominate our daily experience.” (p. 36)
Given the fact that today’s Americans are encouraged by society to be very self-centered; Americans are inclined to be less committed to God’s service. Because of this “self-centeredness,” there is a temptation to dictate to God and Jesus the kind of service we, as disciples, should fulfill.
Are you guilty of dictating to God? Consider this humorous example of a prayer of “self-centered” temptation. “Dear Lord, I so much want to serve You. I’ve been on vacation and I’m more ready than I’ve ever been. What I need now is an assignment. That’s what I want to discuss with You.
I’ve been offered program chairperson for the women of the church, but I’m hoping You’ll agree with me that it’s not quite right. They need a teacher badly in the Junior Department in the Sunday School, but I know too many of the children. Wild bunch if I ever saw one.
I would love to help out in the nursery, but that could mean missing the worship service occasionally, and I know You would not want me to do that. Besides, my children, are too old for the nursery.
The woman next door can’t drive. She needs help with the groceries and she needs company, but she never lets go once she gets hold of you. How about something different?
No nursing homes, please, I can’t stand some of what I see in those places. I know You’ll think of something. I can hardly wait with all my love. Ima Servant”
For “Jesus’ recruits” who are truly committed, Jesus made it clear that as a disciple ridicule and mistreatment will come from persons belonging to worldly living. Do you dare to be a disciple of Jesus?
If you dare, what reason would you give for putting yourself through such suffering and hardship?
One very good reason to commit to being a servant of Jesus Christ is revealed in the life of “an eccentric and flamboyant elder” in a church in Tennessee. This story, told by an unknown source, reports the pastor talking about how this lady impressed him with her intense commitment to the faith. She did not have a pietistic bone in her body, but her devotion was nonetheless clear and articulate. The pastor explained, “One evening at a dinner party in her home we were animatedly discussing some theological idea. In the midst of the give and take her teenage daughter, probably frustrated with all of the high-blown discussion of religion, asked, ‘Mother, you talk about religion all the time. Why are you so religious anyway?’ This query brought a loud hush to the dining table.
Her mother paused dramatically, pushed her chair back from the table, stood and responded, ‘Every morning before you are awake, I rise and walk into the living room. I lift my arms and ask, ‘Who’s in charge here?’ The answer always comes back: ‘Not you!’ That’s why I am religious. Because I am not in charge!’”
Who is in charge in your life? Are you willing to accept that God is in charge?
In Jesus’ recruitment message he pointed out an important “perk” for those who recognize God is in charge. That “perk” or bonus is simply
freedom from fear of abuse and ridicule because of one’s faith in God. Christ said,
“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, Who can destroy both body and soul in hell. For only a penny you can buy two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father’s consent.”
To encourage us even further to put our trust in God’s love for us, to “let go and let God” be in charge, Jesus Christ continued his description of God being in charge by saying,
“As for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!” God’s love for us is so great!
I came across an amazing story this past week told about a father’s love for his child and the child’s trust in the father. This story, to me, paints the perfect picture of the way our relationship should be with God. The story reported by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen takes place at the time of “the 1989 earthquake which almost flattened Armenia. That earthquake killed over 30,000 people in less than four minutes. In the midst of all the confusion of the earthquake, a father rushed to his son’s school. When he arrived, he discovered the building was flat as a pancake.
Standing there looking at what was left of the school, the father remembered a promise he’d made to his son, ‘No matter what, I’ll always be there for you!’ Tears began to fill his eyes. It looked like a hopeless situation, but he couldn’t take his mind off his promise.
He remembered that his son’s classroom was in the back right corner of the building. He rushed over there and started digging through the rubble. As he was digging other grieving parents arrived, clutching their hearts, saying: ‘My son! My daughter!’ They tried to pull him off of what was left of the school saying: ‘It’s too late!’ ‘They’re dead!’ ‘You can’t help!’ ‘Go home!’
Even a police officer and a fire fighter told him he should go home. To everyone who tried to stop him he said, ‘Are you going to help me now?’ They didn’t answer him but he continued digging for his son stone by stone. He needed to know for himself: ‘Is my son alive or is he dead?’
This man continued to dig for eight hours and then twelve and then twenty-four and then thirty-six. Finally, during the thirty-eighth hour, as he pulled back a boulder, he heard his son’s voice. He screamed his son’s name, ‘ARMAND!’ and a voice answered him, ‘Dad? It’s me Dad!’
And then the boy added these priceless words, ‘I told the other kids not to worry. I told ‘em that if you were alive, you’d save me and when you saved me, they’d be saved. You promised that, Dad. ‘No matter what,’ you said, ‘I’ll always be there for you!’ And here you are Dad. You kept your promise!’”
Like that Dad, God’s promises to us are always kept as well as those made by Jesus. Jesus promised God’s love would be manifested for us. He said,
“If anyone declares publicly that he belongs to me, I will do the same for him before my Father in heaven.” The gospel message of God’s love for us is summed up in John 3:16,
“For God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not die but have eternal life.”
- Do we do our part to keep trusting, to keep believing that God is always there?
- Can we withstand the conflicts that may arise when family members reject Christ?
- Do we as disciples love him more than our own family members?
- Do we offer self-giving service for Christ over selfish motivations?
Jesus said,
“Whoever does not take up his cross and follow in my steps is not fit to be my disciple. Whoever tries to gain his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will gain it.”
- Do we bear our own crosses as we seek to serve Christ?
Bass Mitchell discussing Jesus’ call for his disciples to take up their crosses explained, “I found out about cross bearing from Frank Love (everyone calls him ‘Brother Love’). He started a mission for the homeless and hungry in East Orange, New Jersey. It has cost him a great deal of time, money, and even some threats to his life. He’s had numerous phone calls in the middle of the night, going down to the jail to be with someone or to get them out. He’s sent countless letters to worrying parents, letting them know their runaways were with him. No one forced this cross onto his back. He just saw it there one day laying in his community and picked it up.
I have a friend who works with AIDS patients. She’s a retired nurse but has volunteered her time for this special ministry. It carries some risk for her. No one coerced her. No one laid a guilt trip on her. She just saw a cross one day, and took it up.”
Here at Round Grove United Church, United Church of Christ, we have many ways members and friends can take up their crosses in service to Jesus Christ. We are seeking more and more ways to reach out to others with God’s love. Currently a good number of members and friends are involved in the Kids Eat Free program through which lunches are made for needy children twice a week during the Summer. Our Missions Group is developing numerous ways of helping others in the community. Camp Round Grove which begins in a couple of weeks will provide an opportunity to share God’s love with children in the community and the children of the congregation. There are many ways to be of service in the life of this local church.
Making a significant commitment to be a disciple of Jesus Christ will lead to self-giving, sacrifice, possible ridicule, and perhaps even conflict with family members and friends. God is the ultimate source of power and authority. God’s love is trustworthy. Jesus promises that
he will declare before our Divine Parent that we
belong to him and are very
valuable.
Do you dare be a disciple? Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, June 15, 2008
"Be a Harvest Worker for Christ!"
Based on Matthew 9:35-10:8-23
Charles Kirkpatrick said in a children’s sermon, “How many of you listen to the wise things that your father says to you? After all, your father is older, has far more experience, and is much wiser than you are. To prove” his point in humorous fashion he “made a list of the top ten sayings of a wise father.” Kirkpatrick continues, “I am sure that you have heard many of these wise sayings from the lips of your very own father.
10. Why? Because I said so, that’s why!
9. Just wait ’till you have kids of your own.
8. What did I just get finished telling you?
7. This is going to hurt me more than it does you.
6. Do I look like I’m made out of money?
5. Not now, I’m watching the game.
4. When you break your leg, don’t come running to me!
3. No! We are NOT lost.
2. Be quiet! Can’t you see I’m trying to think?”
“And number one on the list of the top ten sayings of a wise father is...
1. How should I know? Ask your mother!”
Kirkpatrick continues, “Well, maybe your father doesn’t always have all the right answers, but God has blessed most of you with a Godly father, and he has commanded you to show him honor and respect. You should also remember to pray for your father and ask God to give him the wisdom he needs to train you in the way that God wants you to grow.”
Concluding, Kirkpatrick says, “I think it would also be a good thing to say a word of thanks to your fathers. Thank him for providing for your physical needs -- the house you live in, the food you eat, the clothes you wear. Thank him for the wisdom he shares -- even though he may not always have all the answers. Finally, thank him for living a Godly life and setting a good example for you to follow.”
Although there are a few places in today’s scripture that give reference to fathers, parents, and children, the one part of the Reading that is most befitting of a Godly life is when Jesus Christ, in the midst of his ministry of teaching, preaching, and healing, looks around and
“his heart was filled with pity for them, because they were worried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Written in this way, it’s easy to assume the author of the Scripture felt Jesus was moved and filled with compassion.
This is where I see an important connection between the role of parents and other family members within the focus of the Scripture Reading. Fathers, mothers, and other guardians who believe and answer Jesus’ call are shepherds for their children, so their children will not be
“worried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Christian parents are, therefore, called to gather in the harvest of their children in the faith, so they have hope, empowerment, and guidance.
In a similar fashion, all followers of Jesus Christ share a role in being his representatives to those who are not in a believing relationship with Jesus – to those nonbelievers who are
“worried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” As Harvest Workers for Christ, we are called to invite all of God’s children to become citizens of the Kingdom of God – disciples of Jesus Christ. This call includes sharing Jesus’ message and offering everyone his healing and love.
Are you ready to be a Harvest Worker? Or at this point do you shut down, stop listening, put up resistance, and say – that’s not for me. Maybe the wise fatherly saying “#5. Not now, I’m watching the game” pops into your head! If that sounds like you – you’re in great company! Besides being pressed for time, you probably feel that God needs someone who knows all the answers; someone who lives an exemplary Christian life. Someone like Matthew – yes, Matthew, Jesus’ disciple. But he was a tax collector and as a tax collector he was most likely a THIEF! How about Peter? – Oops – He denied knowing Christ. Well how about Paul – oh yes, he persecuted Christians. Each of these, plus a long list of others, were God’s chosen ones to be shepherds – to bring others to Christ – to be Harvest Workers for Christ.
Despite their shortcomings, God called each of these individuals, and God has called each of us. God calls us to spread the Good News. Just as God empowered others before us for these tasks; God will empower each of us through the Holy Spirit. God chooses ordinary people – ordinary people like you and me.
An ordinary person, Maxine Dennis, provides us insight into how any of us can reach out to others for Jesus Christ. She said, “Cashiering in a supermarket may not seem like a very rewarding position to most. But to me it is. You see, I feel that my job consists of a lot more than ringing up orders, taking people’s money, and bagging their groceries. The most important part of my job is not the obvious. Rather it’s the manner in which I present myself to others that will determine whether my customers will leave the store feeling better or worse because of their brief encounter with me. For by doing my job well I know I have a chance to do God’s work too. Because of this, I try to make each of my customers feel special. While I’m serving them, they become the most important people in my life.
Sometimes a sincere smile helps me to achieve this goal. More often than not, however, it takes more effort on my part. Recently, an elderly man came to my register. I sensed immediately, by the expression on his face, that he was lonely. I wanted to brighten his day. But, how? I wondered. He had failed to respond to my smile, nor had he replied to my genuine greeting of ‘How are you today?’
As I began to ring his order, I spotted a box of birdseed. It was then that I knew I had found my opportunity. ‘Oh, I see you have a pet bird too. Aren’t they fun?’ I asked.
Suddenly a warm smile appeared on his face. Then he began telling me all about his parakeet. ‘You know, that little fellow is real company to me since my wife, Mary, passed away six months ago.’
‘It must be difficult to cope with the loss of a loved one,’ I commented thoughtfully as I placed his bundles into his shopping cart.
‘It certainly is,’ he sighed heavily. ‘We were married for fifty years, my Mary and me,’ he added - his eyes twinkling brightly from his memory.
‘How wonderful. Please come back and visit with me soon. I really enjoyed talking with you today,’ I told him as he started to leave.
‘You bet,’ he answered.
I noticed that although the loneliness on his face was still there, it had diminished somewhat. My heart felt light. For I realized that I had done something worthwhile today. I had taken a few minutes to care and listen to a fellow human being, succeeding in making at least a tiny difference in this one, precious life.”
What Maxine did sounds so easy that anyone of us here today could do the same! If it could only be that easy, well it can! As you leave the service today, you will be handed an invitation to the Round Grove 4th of July Celebration – pot luck dinner, ice cream party, Bingo, and fireworks which take place on July 4th beginning at 6:30 p.m. Take the opportunity to give this invitation to a friend this week. Your invitation may bring that sparkle into someone’s eyes and the warmth into someone’s heart because you cared enough to invite them to something special. You have the opportunity this week to make a difference in someone’s life with a simple invitation.
There’s a story told by Rev. Alex Stevenson about two shoe salesmen, who “worked for competing shoe companies. They were both sent to a new territory where neither company had any salesmen. They both arrived with a supply of shoes not knowing what their needs would be. When they arrived they both realized that this territory was unlike any they had ever been to before. It was the custom of the people in that area to go barefoot all the time. No one wore shoes. Quickly, as soon as they realized the situation, both of the shoe salesmen ran to telegraph their home offices to alert them to the situation. But their messages were quite different. One sent the message: ‘Don’t send any more shoes. No one here wears any.’ The other wired his office and said, ‘Send all the shoes you can. No one here has any.’”
Jesus saw the multitude of individuals and families, who were
“worried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” The gospel author indicates Jesus was motivated to take action and said to his disciples,
“The harvest is large, but there are few workers to gather it in. Pray to the owner of the harvest that He will send out workers to gather in His harvest.” The Gospel of Matthew then reported Jesus’ instructions to the twelve original Disciples as he sent them out to be Harvest Workers among the people of Israel.
Out of Jesus’ love for all people, he calls all of his followers to be Harvest Workers, who are his and God’s agents. There are so many people who are worried and helpless, so many who need a shepherd. Can you do God’s work? Can you be a Harvest Worker in the same way as the shoe salesman who responded “Send all the shoes you can. No one here has any.”? That shoe salesman was eager to fill the needs of people without any shoes. It’s our privilege to enthusiastically fill the lives of the worried, the helpless, and the shepherdless with love, hope, empowerment, healing, and guidance. The opportunity for harvest is large! Will you and I fulfill our call to be Harvest Workers for Christ? Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, June 8, 2008
"Why Come To Jesus?"
Based on Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
Here we have three remarkable situations in which a person, one who was among the least likely, came to Jesus!
In our society today, there are more individuals who choose to “not come” – to Jesus than those who do. Unfortunately, a large segment of those, who would say they “come to Jesus” - or in other words, they “see themselves belonging to Jesus,” do not respond to the least loveable in the same way Jesus did.
Have you “come to Jesus?” Do you feel like the tax collectors and other outcasts or sinners? Or do you come to Jesus after the loss of a loved one through death, or separation, or divorce? Maybe you’re more like the woman who came up behind Jesus seeking healing.
But what about those who are like the tax collectors and other outcasts who are unwilling to come to Jesus? Or those who are suffering a great loss or who are consumed with illness and are unable to come to Jesus? It is my belief that those who have not come to Jesus make that choice because they feel unworthy or believe they are viewed as unwanted by society and/or the Church. It is the privilege of those who have “come to Jesus” to in turn welcome and accept those who have not come to Jesus. At the same time, those who “come to Jesus”, knowing they were unacceptable, will recognize Christ calls all of us in our unworthiness and unloveableness to be agents of his welcome, love, forgiveness, grace, and healing.
Rev. Tony Compolo has been instrumental in showing extraordinary expressions of Jesus’ love and welcome for outcasts of society. For example, Tony learned it was the birthday of a 39 year old prostitute named Agnes. Although she confided to her supposed friends that she never had a birthday party, there seemed little sympathy.
Tony learned from the café owner that the girls came into the café about 3:30 every morning. Tony got the owner to assist him in decorating the café and preparing a birthday party for Agnes. Word spread throughout the street of the planned party and by 3:15 a.m. a crowd had arrived. When Agnes arrived and everyone screamed, “Happy Birthday!” she was overwhelmed. It has been reported that this expression of welcome and unqualified love led the café owner, who found it hard to believe there were churches that would do this sort of thing, to say he would be prepared to join such a church.
Throughout the four Gospels, Jesus unexpectedly and shockingly loved and welcomed the outcasts and the sinners – those who were considered unloveable by society. Tony Compolo clearly followed Jesus example of scandalous and loving behavior toward outcasts.
The UNWANTED and UNLOVED of the Jewish society were among the first to recognize Jesus did not follow conventional prejudice and vindictiveness.
- Matthew was one of these people. He was a “tax collector.” He created financial hardship on others by requiring the payment of taxes to primarily support the oppression of the Jewish people by the occupying Roman Empire. Like most tax collectors, Matthew was probably a “thief” because he demanded more than the required tax and pocketed the difference. You might say, Matthew, the tax collector, was one of the most disliked people in the Jewish society, but Jesus called Matthew to come follow him. Jesus did not wait for Matthew to come to him for help. Instead, Jesus provoked Matthew’s response of discipleship by inviting him to become a follower!
Jesus calling someone like scandalous Matthew, the tax collector, to be his follower was the perfect example for Jesus to use to teach against the prevailing Jewish belief that God only loved and welcomed the righteous and the deserving. The self-righteous religious legalists, the Pharisees, were constantly attacking Jesus because of the simplicity of God’s outrageous love. To rebut their self-righteous thoughts Jesus responded saying, “People who are well do not need a doctor, but only those who are sick. Go and find out what is meant by the scripture that says: ‘It is kindness that I want, not animal sacrifices.’ I have not come to call respectable people, but outcasts.”
- Next we have the Jewish official who comes to Jesus for help because his daughter has just died. Normally, the official would have sided with the views of the Pharisees and their attacks on Jesus and his teachings and claims. However, the death of the official’s daughter left him vulnerable and forced him to recognize that he and his daughter, like everyone else, need God’s help and God’s love which cannot be earned nor do we deserve.
When Jesus eventually came to the official’s house and touched the deceased daughter, he redefined reality. Everyone knew the little girl was dead, yet Jesus declared she was sleeping! Why Jesus made that claim is not explicitly stated. I suspect he wanted to reduce the impact the miracle of raising the girl would have on his public ministry and chose to compare her condition to her impending resurrected state as being like sleep and then waking up. The gospel reports the news of this event “spread all over that part of the country.”
- Finally we have the woman, who had suffered severe bleeding for 12 years. Jewish religious laws dictated Jesus should not touch nor associate with her. Fearing Jesus would refuse to heal her, the woman sought to secretly take power from him by touching the edge of his cloak. Being extraordinarily aware of his own power and environment, Jesus immediately knew someone touched him seeking his help. After Jesus turned around and saw the woman he declared she would receive the help she sought from him. He said, “Courage, my daughter! Your faith has made you well.” The woman became well at that moment!
About a week ago while on vacation, Margaret and I were on an elevator in a hotel. The subject of our denomination came up in a brief conversation with a lady riding with us. I explained we were part of the United Church of Christ, which is different than the Church of Christ. Her response was, “When you get right down to it, we are all the same. We just each have different problems.”
Matthew, the Jewish official, and the woman each had a problem – a different problem, but in all three situations Jesus responded by fulfilling their needs – needs such as:
- to be loved and accepted,
- to be forgiven and to have one’s child given life,
- to be encouraged and healed.
As the woman on the elevator said, “We all are the same. We just each have different problems.” whatever your problem or need, Jesus IS the answer, if you come to him. That’s it in a nutshell! Maybe it just sounds too simple, but the truth of the Gospel and the purpose of the Church and the Christian community is: (Pause) God loves and transforms our lives WHEN we come AND belong to Jesus Christ.
Rev. Robert Schnase has written, “People need to know God loves them, that they are supreme in value, and that their life has significance. People need to know that they are not alone; that when they face life’s difficulties, they are surrounded by a community of grace; and that they do not have to figure out entirely for themselves how to cope with family tensions, self-doubts, periods of despair, economic reversal, and the temptations that hurt themselves or others. People need to know the peace that runs deeper than an absence of conflict, the hope that sustains them even through the most painful periods of grief, the sense of belonging that blesses them and stretches them and lifts them out of their own preoccupations. People need to learn how to offer and accept forgiveness and how to serve and be served.”
Why come to Jesus?
- Come to Jesus if you are in need of love and acceptance.
- Come to Jesus if your injuries from mistreatment and prejudice are in need of healing.
- Come to Jesus if you have never before trusted in Jesus Christ.
If you are searching for love, acceptance, and healing in your life, let Round Grove United Church, United Church of Christ be an agent of Christ’s scandalous love and care to you as you “come to Jesus.”
If you have already “come to Jesus,” you are called to follow the way, the teachings, and the example of Jesus Christ in order to continue to receive the love, acceptance, and the healing you will need. All who “come to” and “belong to” Jesus are called to be agents of Christ’s scandalous love and care to those who have not found their way to him, to those who need to come to him, to those who need love, acceptance, and healing.
Somewhere this week you will most likely encounter someone who needs love, acceptance, and healing – someone who needs to “come to Jesus.” It is your call to express Christ’s love and welcome in the way you greet and relate to them. Invite that “someone” to come to church with you next Sunday so they too might “come to Jesus” to find love, acceptance, and healing. Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, May 11, 2008
"Is God’s Spirit Poured Out on You?"
Based on Acts 2:1-21
Robert Fulghum, the author of the best-selling books about “All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” preached for many years in Washington State. He wrote about Mother’s Day, “For twenty-five years of my life, the second Sunday of May was trouble… I was obliged in some way to address the subject of Mother’s Day. It could not be avoided… The congregation was quite open-minded and gave me free reign in the pulpit. But when it came to the second Sunday in May the expectation was summarized in the words of one of the more outspoken women in the church: ‘I’m bringing my mother to church on Mother’s Day, Reverend, and you can talk about anything you want, but it had better include MOTHER, and it had better be good!’” (It was on Fire when I Lay Down On It [1991], 100)
This year Mother’s Day and Pentecost, for the first time in about 30 years, are on the same day. These two occasions seem quite unrelated with one being a Hallmark holiday and the other being one of the most important dates on the liturgical calendar. As far apart as these two may seem, there is a strong commonality.
- First, our Mothers gave birth to us on our birthday and the Holy Spirit gave birth to the Christian Church on her birthday, Pentecost.
- Second, most of our Mothers fulfill the important role of guide and nurturer, just as the Holy Spirit guides and nurtures all Christians.
By examining the responsibilities of Mothers we can actually get a better understanding of the tasks of the Holy Spirit. I came across an adaptation of a Job Description for Mother by Leonard Sweet on the internet. It is too long to quote in its entirety but I want to share a portion of it:
“JOB DESCRIPTION: Long term team players needed for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment. Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call. Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in faraway cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Must provide on-the-site training in basic life skills, such as nose blowing. Must have strong skills in negotiating, conflict resolution, and crisis management. Ability to suture flesh wounds a plus. Must be able to think out of the box but not lose track of the box, because you most likely will need it for a school project. Must reconcile petty cash disbursements and be proficient in managing budgets and resources fairly, unless you want to hear, ‘He got more than me!’ for the rest of your life. Also, must be able to drive motor vehicles safely under loud and adverse conditions while simultaneously practicing above -mentioned skills in conflict resolution. Must be able to choose your battles and stick to your guns. Must be able to withstand criticism, such as ‘You don’t know anything.’ ...” There is much more to this Job Description but I believe you have the idea. Like our Mothers, the Holy Spirit teaches, guides, trains, and encourages us to grow into faithful and loving children of God.
On the day of Pentecost, after the Holy Spirit worked the miracle of the disciples all speaking in numerous languages at the same time as they proclaimed the great deeds of God, an important question was raised,
“What does this mean?” It was the eldest disciple, Peter, who stood up to address this question. Now here’s where I find the greatest connection between Mothers and Pentecost. See if you can find it. Peter quoted the prophet Joel saying,
“This is what I will do in the last days, God says: I will pour out My Spirit on everyone. Your sons and daughters will proclaim My message”.
Mothers and fathers, it is
“Your sons and daughters” who
“will proclaim” God’s
“message.” Parents and the Holy Spirit are essential to properly equip and enable children to become agents of God’s message. In fact, all adults in this church family will from time to time provide the children of this congregation the encouragement and support they need to grow in their understanding and experience of God’s love and the Holy Spirit. Earlier in the service the children presented each woman a flower to honor her and show appreciation for the nurture and love given to the children of our church.
The role of the family – mothers, grandmothers, fathers, and grandfathers is crucial for our daughters and sons to be ready for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in their lives. The parental nurture of Christian Faith and Life, along with the ministries of our local church, set the stage for our children to experience, understand, and live out the New Life in Christ. The Holy Spirit is a partner with mothers, fathers, and grandparents leading children to be living testimonies of God’s love for us as shown in Jesus Christ.
On the day of Pentecost, only those who had already received God’s message from the Risen Jesus Christ were given the gift of the Holy Spirit. Today it is the mothers, family members, and our church family members, who have believed and received the Holy Spirit, who make the testimony to our children, so they come to faith and receive the Holy Spirit and the gifts which come from it.
The question I want to put before you today is this:
“Is God’s Spirit Poured Out on You?” Are you an agent of God’s message of Self-giving Love shown in Jesus Christ? Are you helping others, especially children of the congregation, to come to faith by sharing God’s message both in word and deed?
The Church, the Body of Christ, and the message of God’s Love shown through Jesus Christ, are always only a generation away from extinction. If any generation fails to nurture faith among its children and the Holy Spirit is pushed aside, then the New Life in Christ and the Message of God’s Self-giving Love for us will die and future generations will be deprived of the gifts of Faith and the Holy Spirit. Teaching our children, our sons and daughters, the Good News and the New Life in Christ, is therefore of critical importance!
Jane Shepherd raised some important insights about people of faith and the Holy Spirit. She wrote, “Do we have the first fruits of the Spirit? Can someone coming into our door to visit for the first time recognize these traits in us?
Love - do we love each other, and do we love those who are different from us? Do we love and welcome visitors, no matter who they are? Do we try to make their acquaintance, so that we can love them? Do we put their comfort above our own?
Goodness - Peter tells us (2 Peter 1:5) to support our faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge. Our salvation is the result of God’s goodness. Likewise, other persons should benefit as a result of our goodness. Our mission work should clearly show our faith in God’s goodness.
Peace - Is there peace between us, and peace within us? Can someone tell by being with us that we have a peaceful soul, based upon God as the source of all that we have?
Faithfulness - Is our steadfastness to Christ’s church based upon an enduring loyalty that is true to God, no matter how we feel about the pastor, the district, the conference, the women’s group, the organist, or any other facet of our organization?
Gentleness - Do we exhibit care and protection for all of God’s creation? Are we gentle with the environment, with each other, and with ourselves?
Joy - Do we look joyous to the outsider? Do we feel joy inside? True joy in being a child of God should be able to override all unhappiness and bitterness we feel, and should be reflected in our total involvement in our worship.
Kindness - This action word can be directed outwardly or inwardly. Do we show compassion and generosity to others and ourselves?
Patience - How many of us are willing to let others (and ourselves) come along at each one’s own pace? How many of us can forgive seven times seventy?”
Ms. Shepherd concludes with the final trait of the fruit of the Holy Spirit which is: “Self-Control.” She said, “This is one of the hardest, and may include all of the others. This requires an inner discipline only manageable with the grace of God’s Spirit to sustain us in our trials. Do we constantly pray for help in this area, and constantly call on God to help us? If not, we should.”
Remember that Job Description for a Mother? Well, now for the Benefits which include: “While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered, the job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right. Every mother … knows that mothering brings more joy and love and fulfillment than seem possible.”
Or as a familiar commercial might say: A vacation to Hawaii - $10,000; A dinner for two at a nice restaurant - $85.00; the role of a Mother - priceless! Whether you are a mother or not, if you believe in Jesus Christ, then the Holy Spirit is poured out on you – empowering you to live the New Life in Christ in a corrupted and broken world!
Are you living so that your life shows the fruits of the Holy Spirit? Are you enabling and encouraging the children of this church to grow up in the faith, so they too will receive the gifts of the Holy Spirit and live out the New Life in Christ? Will we, as people led by the Holy Spirit, continue to welcome others and exhibit the spiritual traits of
love and goodness,
peace and faithfulness,
gentleness and joy,
kindness and patience,
and self-control? Amen.
Sermon for Sunday, April 27, 2008
“He Asked for a Helper!”
Based on John 14:15-21
One Sunday a woman woke up with the flu so she sent her young son to church by himself, with strict orders to listen to the sermon.
When he came home she asked him, “What was the minister’s sermon about?”
“Oh, mom, it didn’t make a bit of sense!”
“Well, tell me anyway!”
“It was ‘don’t worry, you’ll get your quilt!’”
No amount of quizzing could deter him from insisting that this was correct. To answer her curiosity she phoned the minister. After the minister assured her that the child was indeed very well behaved the mother asked what the sermon had been about. The minister wanted to know first of all why she was asking. When the mother told her what the son had said the minister burst out laughing. When the minister explained it to her, the mother understood her son’s confusion. It was, “Fear not, your comforter will come.” (http://www.angelfire.com/in/preachrcl/q.html)
Jesus did promise us that “Comforter.” Our Scripture takes place on the same night Jesus was betrayed and arrested. Earlier that night, he promised his disciples that God would give them “another Helper.” Some translations use the word “Comforter” and still others use the term “Advocate” instead of “Helper.” No matter what translation, the promised Comforter, Advocate, or “Helper” is the Holy Spirit.
To better understand the importance and value of Jesus making that promise of “another Helper,” it will be helpful to review some facts about the context.
- First, Jesus was in what you might call “the hot seat.” HE was the person who faced betrayal, arrest, beatings, and an execution! From a worldly perspective, he was the one who truly needed help. Here was Jesus midst his last moments of freedom and he’s concerned about the welfare of his disciples and followers – anticipating their suffering in the days and years ahead! That example of love and concern by Jesus was an expression of God’s Self-Giving Love for us.
- Secondly, Jesus said the promised Holy Spirit would be “another Helper.” Notice the word “another.” Clearly, Jesus recognized HE was the FIRST Helper of the disciples. Jesus HAD BEEN a COMFORTER, an ADVOCATE, a HELPER as he personally nurtured the disciples during his three years of public ministry. As the first Helper of the disciples, Jesus had greatly invested HIMSELF in their preparation, but it was never an ego trip for him. To ask God to provide the disciples and each of us with the Holy Spirit at the time he was facing his own death was a demonstration of his great love for them and us!
That all being the case, would it surprise you to find this promised “Helper,” Comforter, and Holy Spirit is also a great expression of God’s Self-giving Love for us? God’s presence through the Holy Spirit is constant and continuing. Children can be very perceptive about that constant presence of God, as it was in the cas