Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

December 4, 2011

Second Sunday of Advent

Matthew 1: 18-24 (NIV)

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²²All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³“The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

²⁴When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.

As you all remember, we are taking a special Journey this Advent season, we are traveling the road to Bethlehem with Mary, Joseph, the shepherds and others, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Christ-child, and open our hearts to welcome Christ into our lives in a new and special way this Christmas. Last week, we spent some time with Mary, and we talked about Mary’s willingness to follow God’s will, even though it would take her through what would certainly be many trying circumstances. Mary was a humble servant who willingly said to God, “Here I am, use me. May it be with me according to your will.”

To a great degree, the same is true of Joseph. Here is a man who was prepared to marry this woman, who as we see, had just revealed that she was pregnant, and not by him. Joseph had decided to dismiss young Mary and move on with his life, but as Matthew tells the story, he didn’t. After the angel visited Joseph in his dreams, Joseph changed his plans. He set aside his bad feelings against Mary and he disregarded the future struggles that might come because of this unplanned path that had now been laid out before them, and he, like Mary, submitted himself to the will of the Father, and God’s new plans for their lives. We see that Joseph, too, was a humble servant of the Lord. But there is something more at work here with Joseph, and that is the mercy and compassion that he shows in the face of Mary’s unexpected news.

We heard again this morning the story of Joseph and Mary’s engagement, their pledge to be married. Among Jews at this time, the marriage vows were made at something called a betrothal, and the law required that only death or divorce could end them. The normal interval of time between this pledge to get married and the time that the husband and wife would live together and have a physical union was a year. But during this interval Mary became pregnant. And according to the law, this is a situation that could be punishable by death. Imagine what a difficult problem this must have caused! We talked last week about the challenges Mary would have faced, so let us think now about what this news means for Joseph. Mary was pregnant, but Joseph knew that he had nothing to do with it.

Can you imagine how Joseph would have felt? I mean, think of a time in your life when you felt you had been betrayed by someone you loved and trusted. You feel angry, frustrated, hurt, let down, wounded, heart-broken, sad, hopeless, perhaps jealous. I imagine that Joseph probably felt all those emotions, and maybe many more. Matthew tells us, “[Mary] was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.” (Period) “Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.” It seems like it was all so simple doesn’t it? Mary was pregnant. (Period) So Joseph decided to divorce her. But think of all that is not said. There is a whole lot that happens where that period is. Joseph has to sort through all those emotions. He may even think about what he’d like to do to that guy who got Mary pregnant. He has to think about the implications of this news, and his own actions related to it. If he turns Mary in for adultery, she could be put to death. If he claims the child as his own, they could both be punished for their failure to follow the marital laws. It’s not just that Mary was pregnant and so Joseph decided to divorce her. There was a lot to sort through, I’m sure Joseph lost some sleep over the decision, but finally, he decides what to do.

Matthew tells us, “Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.” And here’s where we get the first glimpse of Joseph’s deep level of mercy and compassion. Joseph could have decided to publicly accuse Mary—making a spectacle of her, and thus causing her to be stoned to death. He could have gotten his revenge! After all, the law was on his side. Joseph already had a career as a carpenter, and there were probably plenty of other fish in the sea. These thoughts must have crossed his mind. It would have made perfect sense, and the townspeople might have been more than happy to participate in a public stoning. Joseph could have been a hero in the eyes of the people. Joseph could have decided to do things the way most people would have done them, but instead, Joseph decided he would dismiss Mary quietly. This would allow him to save face, but it would also save Mary’s life. Joseph chose mercy over the law of retribution.

During his ministry, Jesus taught that God “desires mercy, not sacrifice.” Any righteous Jew, like Joseph, would understand that righteousness comes through obedience to the law. Emphasis was on following ritual, obeying regulations, and making sacrifices of burnt offerings. But even before Jesus is born, God teaches us about a new kind of righteousness; righteousness that is borne out of the mercy and compassion that we show to others. The way that we begin to learn about this new righteousness is through Jesus’ earthly father, Joseph, in his actions toward Mary. And look what happened!

When that spark of compassion ignited in Joseph, his desperate situation was completely turned around by the entrance of God. God’s will literally led Joseph in a direction that he did not expect to take! Once Joseph had made the decision to do the ‘right’ thing, we see that an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” What a shocker that must have been!

We only need to open the door of love and mercy just the wee tiniest bit, and God will take that opportunity to come marching through in a big way! Have you ever been beset with a moral dilemma? I think most of us have. What happened when you chose mercy and compassion over judgment and anger? Did you experience God coming through the door of your life once the decision was made, once the deal was sealed in your heart, mind and soul? Is this not how lives are re-created?

Miss Thompson taught Teddy Stallard in the fourth grade. He was a slow, unkempt student, a loner shunned by his classmates. The previous year his mother died, and what little motivation for school he may have once had was now gone. Miss Thompson didn’t particularly care for Teddy either, but at Christmas time he brought her a small present. Her desk was covered with well-wrapped presents from the other children, but Teddy’s came in a brown sack. When she opened it there was a gaudy rhinestone bracelet with half the stones missing and a bottle of cheap perfume. The children began to snicker but Miss Thompson saw the importance of the moment. She quickly splashed on some perfume and put on the bracelet, pretending Teddy had given her something special. At the end of the day Teddy worked up enough courage to softly say, “Miss Thompson, you smell just like my mother . . . and her bracelet looks real pretty on you too. I’m glad you like my presents.”

After Teddy left, Miss Thompson got down on her knees and prayed for God’s forgiveness. She prayed for God to use her as she sought to not only teach these children but to love them as well. She became a new teacher. She lovingly helped students like Teddy, and by the end of the year he had caught up with most of the students. Miss Thompson didn’t hear from Teddy for a long time. Then she began receiving notes with news from Teddy; he was graduating from high school second in his class, and then first in his class from college. Many years after Teddy had left Miss Thompson’s fourth grade classroom, she received this note, “Dear Miss Thompson, As of today, I am Theodore Stallard, M.D. How about that? I wanted you to be the first to know. I am getting married next month. I want you to come and sit where my mother would sit if she were alive. You are the only family I have now; Dad died last year. Love, Teddy Stallard.” Miss Thompson went to the wedding and sat where Teddy’s mother would have sat, and she was able to celebrate with Teddy because she let God use her as an instrument of mercy and compassion. And when she did, God went to work in a big way, not only in her life, but in Teddy’s life too!

The same was true for Joseph. Joseph’s life was changed when Mary told him that she was pregnant through the Holy Spirit. No matter how he responded to the news, his future was going to be radically different. He could have chosen to cast judgment upon Mary and sent her away to be ridiculed and ostracized, maybe even stoned. And that would have been a pretty miserable future, not only for Mary, but for Joseph as well. Instead, Joseph decided he would handle the news with as much compassion as possible, he would dismiss Mary quietly so no one would know of the scandal, and Mary’s life would be spared. That, too, would have led to a pretty miserable future; he would have to separate from his wife, this woman he loved and to whom he had devoted himself. And he probably would have worried regularly about the baby’s health and well-being without a Father to care for it.

But because Joseph opened a window of mercy, God’s work carried forward in the best possible way. He showed Joseph his plan, and before long, Mary and Joseph were the happy parents of the most important person who has ever been born. They were the parents of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah. And because of their devotion; because of Mary’s willingness and Joseph’s mercy, we are all offered hope for the future through our Savior, Jesus Christ!

Jesus Christ is a sign that we are not alone, that God himself is with us. Who needs to know that this Christmas? With whom do we need to share God’s mercy and compassion so that they too can have hope?

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

November 27, 2011

First Sunday of Advent

Luke 1: 26-38 (NIV)

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. ³¹You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. ³²He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴“How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

³⁵The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. ³⁷For nothing is impossible with God.”

³⁸“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her.

I imagine that as the Thanksgiving festivities wound down this week, several of us took the extra time and opportunity to begin decorating for Christmas. We pull the boxes of decorations from their storage places, we unpack the Christmas tree and assemble it again, paying careful attention to make sure all the branches are well-placed. Or maybe we pile the family into the car, with saw and rope handy, and head out to the Christmas tree farm in search of the perfect Christmas tree to adorn our home. And that’s part of the joy of decorating for Christmas isn’t it, finding the perfect Christmas tree; well-proportioned, symmetrical, with full branches, and that wonderful pine scent. Yes, when it comes to finding a Christmas tree, we typically walk past the short ones, or the thin ones, or the ones with lots of needles lying at their base, without even a sideways glance.

But perhaps some of you remember Charlie Brown’s quest for a Christmas tree in A Charlie Brown Christmas. Chuck and Linus have been charged by Lucy to find the perfect Christmas tree for the children’s Christmas pageant, a tree which reflects the “modern Christmas spirit.” As the two boys enter the Christmas tree lot, we see an array of Christmas trees in every color; pink, purple, orange. Linus knocks on one of the trees and we hear the rattle of hollow metal. But then the boys spy the tree they want; a short, spindly pine, with barely a handful of needles. Linus comments, “I didn’t know they still made wooden Christmas trees.” It isn’t much, but it is the “perfect” tree to Charlie Brown and Linus, and so they carry it back to the school where their friends are rehearsing for the pageant. Only, the Peanuts gang isn’t so enthusiastic, and they are quick to make fun of the pathetic-looking tree, and Charlie Brown’s poor choice. So, shoulders sagging and feet dragging, Charlie Brown takes the tree and heads home.

I suppose we shouldn’t be terribly surprised by the reaction of Charlie Brown’s friends, I mean, it really was a pretty pathetic Christmas tree, but Charlie Brown’s choice of a Christmas tree is a good reminder of God’s choice of a mother to bear the Messiah. And that woman, Mary, is going to be the focus of our attention today as we begin our journey to Bethlehem, our journey to Christmas, our journey into deeper relationship with this Messiah whose birth we celebrate each year.

So, it doesn’t take much to realize that Mary, was a lot like that little Christmas tree Charlie Brown picked out for the Christmas pageant. There was nothing special about her. She was not rich, she did not have a prestigious social standing. She probably lived in a very modest home, a cave, most likely. There would have been nothing to make her stand out from the hundreds of other women of her day, who went about regular chores of fetching water, cooking, cleaning, and otherwise looking after the well-being of their family. And, she was from Nazareth. At the time of Jesus’ birth, Nazareth was nothing more than a tiny, insignificant village. It would be what we might call “Podunk” today. There was a reason that when Philip shared with his friend Nathaniel that he had found the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, Nathaniel’s response went something like this, “Are you kidding me? Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” But something good did come from there, didn’t it?

Of all the places God could have gone, of all the women God could have chosen to bear the Messiah, God sent the angel Gabriel to this tiny village to knock on the door of a normal, humble, young woman, Mary. What does it mean that God went to Nazareth instead of one of the big cities of the day where there would be refined and cultured women? Even before Jesus is born, God is teaching us anew, reminding us of his long-established values. God favors the meek, the humble, those who “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God,” who love others as they love themselves, and who “take up [their] cross daily” to follow him. God saw in Mary the kind of humble servant, that he desires all people to be, and despite all the challenges, Mary did not disappoint.

Could you imagine being in Mary’s shoes? Some of us were sort of light-heartedly joking last week about what it would be like to be visited by an angel, a messenger from God, and told that you were going to become pregnant, not in the usual way, but because God has chosen you, and “the power of the Most High will overshadow you” until you conceive and bear none other than the very Messiah! This is nothing short of crazy! If we were to take such news out into the world today, people would call us crazy, we would be admitted into the local mental institution.

But here’s the thing, the scenario really wasn’t all that different for Mary. In her day, the penalty for pregnancy out of wedlock was death. At best, under normal circumstances, Mary would have been abandoned by Joseph because of her “infidelity;” and, assuming she made it through the dangerous ordeal of childbirth, she would have been ostracized by her family and left to raise her child as a single mother. She would have been mocked and ridiculed and become an outcaste. But that didn’t stop Mary; all those challenges didn’t keep Mary from doing what she knew in her heart was the right thing to do, and opening herself for the work of God that was to happen through her. As a humble servant, Mary “took up her cross” and followed this most unlikely path described by Gabriel, and in this early part of the gospel, Mary is the star of the show.

There is a pastor who tells of the annual children’s Christmas pageant at his church. Each year, as Advent approaches, the children are gathered, and the parts of the Christmas pageant are assigned. The children play all the parts; wise men, shepherds, stable animals, but none is more popular than the part of Mary. Only when the question, “Who wants to be Mary?” is asked, do all the little hands in the room fly up in eager anticipation. And yet, this pastor reflects, “I wonder if Mary wanted to be Mary?”

As a young woman, probably no more than 13 or 14, she compromised her entire future. She surrendered her body and carried within her the Christ-child for 9 months. Do you think Mary wanted to be Mary? She became Theotokos, the “God-bearer,” and she went through the dangerous ordeal of childbirth. Then she nurtured the child; she fed him, clothed him; she raised him, taught him scriptures, and modeled the faith. And 33 years later, after he had taught the world about the unfathomable love of God, she watched him die on a cross, in accordance with God’s will. The will of God which, she knew, requires so much of all of God’s servants. Do you think Mary wanted to be Mary?

Sometimes, when God calls us, what God calls us to is hard, not easy. It’s not what we want or what we dream about; it could be risky and dangerous, it could separate us from everything we know and love. And that is where we have so much to learn from Mary today. We cannot downplay Mary’s significance in history. No other person, besides Jesus himself, plays a greater role in the salvation of the human race than Mary. And it was all because of her faith in the God who called her, and her willingness to serve him.

So what is it we need to take from this lesson this morning? That God favors the humble and lowly, and that we need to make sure are hearts and minds are always in the right place to respond to God’s call? Absolutely. Perhaps the thing to remember is that nothing is impossible with God. That’s important too. Does this story remind us that God is the giver of new life? It certainly does! But the most important part of this story is that when Mary was asked to do something hard, when Mary was asked to surrender everything and serve God, her answer was “Yes!”

Are we so very willing? This Advent season, as we prepare once again for a Christmas celebration not only remembering Christ’s birth, but anticipating that day when he will come again, we need to take time to search our own hearts and minds. We need to ask the tough questions of ourselves and examine our values. In the midst of the chaos of Christmas shopping, musical programs, and holiday parties, we need to pause, and humble ourselves before God in prayer, crying out, “I am the Lord’s servant. God, I am your servant.” And then as we listen for that often unexpected call of God, we all need to explore our own willingness to say like Mary, “May it be with me according to your will.”

“Here I am, Lord, use me.”

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

November 20, 2011

2 Corinthians 9: 6-15 (NIV)

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. ⁷Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. ⁹As it is written:

“He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor;
his righteousness endures forever.”

¹⁰Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

¹²This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. ¹³Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. ¹⁴And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. ¹⁵Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

In mathematics, there is a theory that some of you have probably heard of called “the butterfly effect.” Now, there’s plenty of complicated ways to describe this theory, but what it basically boils down to is the idea that a single, seemingly insignificant change or event can have profound, large-scale effects later on. The most common example used to illustrate this theory is a butterfly, flapping its wings, which produces air waves that intensify over time to such a degree that it becomes a huge storm, perhaps even a hurricane.

It’s really interesting to me how the smallest things can have the biggest impact; how a single decision can send us hurdling down a path to a future that would have been completely different if a different choice had been made. Or how one prayer can reverse a terminal illness, or a simple note of compassion can bring hope into the midst of a seemingly hopeless situation. The things we do and the choices we make can have a significant impact not only in our lives, but in the lives of others as well.  And that is the point that Paul is driving home in our scripture lesson for this morning.

Paul is making a specific appeal for the collection for the Jerusalem Church, a collection which is important in the continued work of the early church. But Paul’s words have a much broader application, especially as we think about the continuing work of the church in the world today, and our call from Christ to make disciples of all nations. Basically, what Paul is saying is this: “Your ability to show gratitude to God for the work of grace in your life becomes the way by which many others can experience God’s grace firsthand.” And as we approach Thanksgiving 2011, this is an important lesson for all of us to keep in mind. Our embodied thanksgiving makes it possible for others to offer thanksgiving to God as well. It could even cause a “butterfly effect.” Just one act of generosity, just one show of thanksgiving to God, could be the spark that spreads a wildfire of God’s grace; and before we know it hundreds, even thousands, of people are lifting their voices in praise to God!

As a matter of fact, a life of thanksgiving may be positive in more ways than we realize! A growing body of research has tied an attitude of gratitude with a number of positive emotional and health benefits. An article in The Wall Street Journal summarized the research like this: “Adults who frequently feel grateful have more energy, more optimism, more social connections and more happiness than those who do not…They are also less likely to be depressed, envious, greedy or alcoholics. They earn more money, sleep more soundly, exercise more regularly, and have greater resistance to viral infections.” The article ends with, “The key [to benefiting from an attitude of gratitude] is not to leave it on the Thanksgiving table.” Continually giving thanks to God brings us joy, and it brings others joy as well! Our gratitude to God should be a whole way of life that infects others with the wonderful blessings of God’s grace!

We have much for which to give thanks to God, do we not? In this passage, Paul lifts up specifically the gift of God’s grace at work in our lives, but think of what all that means! We are here because God has brought us here. We are blessed because through Jesus Christ, God’s unconditional love has poured over us. God’s grace has opened so many doors for us, most of which we’ve walked through without even noticing! It is so easy for us to forget all the blessings in our lives. It is so easy for us to say, “Woe is me!” One of the great mistakes of life is to turn to God only in the overpowering emergencies or the shattering crises. It is so easy for many of us to curse God; to blame God when catastrophe strikes. But we have things upside down! We live in a fallen world! We all sin! And yet, by the grace of God we still have the good times and the good things that we do have! It’s not as if we deserve them! Where would we be without the help of the Lord, without the goodness of God, without the love and faithfulness of our Savior? We can try to live without God’s grace, but it really is an impossible assignment. Thanksgiving is about more than family gatherings and cranberry sauce; it’s about recognizing and proclaiming what our Savior has done for us so that others can do the same!

Have you ever given any thought to the possibility that, perhaps at times, the way we live our lives is a hindrance to others coming into God’s presence in thanksgiving? I believe this probably happens more than we are aware. Maybe because we don’t live the other six days in any way that reflects what we do on Sundays. Or perhaps people see us sinning, but never repenting. This may happen because we are a little like the Pharisees we talked about last week; we say one thing but do another. Or maybe because we are not generous in the way we should be, generous in the way Paul describes in our reading this morning. And the result is our behavior keeps others from being able to experience the generous grace of God.

You see, our generosity is an outpouring of God’s own generosity in our lives. It’s like the ripples that cascade out from a rock thrown in a pond. It’s like the butterfly effect. As Paul says, “He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever. Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” We do not deserve God’s favor, and yet we receive it. God graces and God sows. And grace received demands a response. The grace that comes from God finds its fruition as it flows through us to others.

As we prepare to gather around banquet tables this week and offer up words of thanksgiving for our family, friends, health, and other abundant blessings, we would do well to think about others who might not be feeling so blessed, who cannot so really lift up words of thanksgiving. And then to consider how we might live our lives more fully, generously sharing God’s grace with others, so that they too are able to lift thanksgiving to God for the blessings that truly matter.

As Christians, we are called to continually strive after the example of Christ and to grow in our image and likeness of him. One of the greatest ways we can grow and show our thanksgiving to God is by proclaiming God’s goodness and seeking to bring others into God’s presence. The writer, James, in the New Testament declares near the end of his letter that there is no greater good than to bring another into God’s presence. A great part of thanking God is sharing the Good News of God’s grace and love with all the people around us. You know how it is; when something great happens in our lives, we want to share the wonderful news with everyone we know, and perhaps even everyone we don’t know! This should be no less true of God’s blessings in our own lives. Actually, it should be even more true!

There was a man who served as a medical missionary for many years in India. He served in an area where there was progressive blindness. People were born with healthy vision, but there was something in that area that caused people to lose their sight as they matured. Well, this medical missionary developed a process that would stop progressive blindness. So people came to him and he performed his operation, and they would leave realizing that they would have become blind, but now they were going to be able to see for the rest of their lives. The people never said: “Thank you,” to this missionary because that phrase was not in their dialect. Instead, they spoke a word that meant: “I will tell your name.” So, wherever they went, they would tell the name of the missionary who had cured their blindness. They had received something so wonderful that they eagerly proclaimed it!

Have we not received something so wonderful that we eagerly proclaim it? God has been so good to us, God has poured his grace upon us, God loves us so much, and if we really want to thank God, we just can’t keep the wonderful news inside us! We have to be generous with others in the same way that God is generous with us, we have to go and tell the name of Christ in the world!

How can we thank God enough? We thank God by living as God would have us to live; by worshiping and praising, by studying God’s Word and communicating with God through prayer. We thank God by preparing our hearts and seeking to draw nearer to God, even as God in Christ Jesus draws nearer to us. We thank God by sharing the message of God’s great love, which has transformed and blessed us. We thank God by serving others in the name of Christ, and by bringing others nearer to God through our witness. We thank God by anticipating with great joy that day when we will celebrate “Emmanuel, God with Us,” as we all gather around the great Thanksgiving Table, with Christ the host in our midst, and young and old alike lifting voices together in praise of God’s Divine Goodness!

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

November 13, 2011

Matthew 23: 1-12 (NIV)

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: ²“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. ³So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. ⁴They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.

⁵“Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; ⁶they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; ⁷they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’

⁸“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. ⁹And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. ¹⁰Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ. ¹¹The greatest among you will be your servant. ¹²For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

There are many things I admire about John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. He was intentional about spending time with God each day, even getting up at 4 or 5 a.m. to do so. He took the gospel seriously and wasn’t afraid to remind the people of his day of many long-forgotten truths about Christ and discipleship. He wrote powerful sermons and beautiful prayers, and like his brother Charles, he even authored a few hymns. Yet, for all his writing, there is one lesser known quote from John Wesley, which stands out above all to me. When asked about the distinguishing marks of a Methodist, among many other things, Wesley said this, “As to all opinions which do not strike at the root of Christianity, we think and let think.”

I could almost imagine that John Wesley had Jesus’ words of warning about the Pharisees that we heard a few moments ago in mind when he said this. “As to all opinions which do not strike at the root of Christianity, we think and let think.” You see, just before Jesus begins speaking to the crowds here in this passage, he has responded to the lawyer’s question, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” And Jesus answered him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…and you shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Then Jesus ends by saying, “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

In essence, Jesus is saying, “Here it is; here is the root. When it comes to following God, this is what’s most important. Sure there are plenty of laws and regulations, but when it all boils down, this is what matters.” After answering the lawyer’s question, Jesus then turns to the crowd and speaks the words we heard a few moments ago. And basically, Jesus is telling his followers that the Pharisees are good in their devotion to God, and that what they teach is right, and good, and pure, but that when it comes to actual practice they’re not so good; they’re not focused on the root, but rather they’re worrying about other matters. They’re caught up in the mundane, they’re “majoring in the minors” as it were. They’re saying one thing and doing another, they’re talking the talk, but not walking the walk. They’re not practicing what they preach.

In short, in their insistence on strict adherence to laws and regulations, the Pharisees have neglected the most important things, which Jesus describes as “love of God and neighbor.” And instead, they’ve heaped upon their followers these “religious burdens” that do nothing to help people grow in their relationship with God. One biblical scholar translates the verse this way, “You see, they talk but they don’t do. They tie up heavy bundles which are difficult to carry, and they dump them on people’s shoulders – but they themselves aren’t prepared to lift a little finger to move them.”

Now, it is easy for us to read Jesus’ words, to nod our heads in agreement, and to think to ourselves, “those awful Pharisees.” But Jesus isn’t trying to throw the Pharisees “under the bus,” so to speak, if he was, he wouldn’t have complemented their teaching at the beginning of the passage. And so, we too must be careful about our rush to judgment. As with all of Jesus’ teachings, we need to ask the question, “What is Jesus saying to me?” That’s the question we always need to ask, and today we need to consider the possibility that, when it comes to our spiritual lives, we may be more like those Pharisees than we realize.

As Jesus is teaching the crowds about the teachers of the law and the Pharisees, in essence what he is saying is this: that they would load people down with guilt, judgment and condemnation; and then, having done this, they would condemn them as godless! Is it not true that God’s Word and law can be imposed upon people in such a strict way that any sense of mercy is lacking? All kinds of problems can arise out of a condemning and judgmental attitude toward others. We are all sinners, and we all fall short of God’s glory. None of us can stand up under the burden of the strict letter of the law. To try and do so, would be insane!

And yet, do we not go down that road sometimes? Do we, as the Christian Church, in the twenty-first century, make it difficult for others to turn to God by putting on them “a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear?” If so, then in what ways are we doing this? What judgments are we casting down upon our fellow human beings that make it difficult for them to turn to God; that make the Church of Jesus Christ look like a hypocritical, bigoted group of nutcases to much of the world?

I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be that way, I don’t even want to be viewed that way! When I was growing up, I was a tomboy. I still am, really. I was often ridiculed for my short hair. I was never known for my fashion sense. And I was never considered cool. But I also never cared, and that was probably because there were enough people in my life who loved me the way I was that it didn’t matter what everybody else thought. And that should be the way Christianity is. When the world is telling everyone else that don’t have this, or they’re not like that, or they’re not good enough, Christians should be the ones sending the message loud and clear, “we love you anyway!”

If we were to go out on the street and ask people I wonder how many folks would associate Christianity or churches with anything even closely resembling the love of God and love of neighbor which Christ urges upon the crowds? According to some new books by Christian research groups, what many folks feel is something like the burden of that Pharisaic law—zero tolerance, judgment, condemnation. Whether we are willing to admit it or not, Christians have managed to “tie up heavy loads” and burden many people of the world in such a way that, much like Jesus did to the Pharisees, they look at us and cry “hypocrite.” Many people are afraid of coming to church—lest they be judged or deemed unacceptable. I don’t know how many times I have encountered people from different walks of life, and when I invite the person to come worship, they say things like, “I don’t have any good clothes…” or “Do you allow people of a different color to come to your church?”

Allow? My goodness, I’d juggle swords if it would get them to come! It’s that important! Being a part of God’s body is that life changing! We have to better get the message out that we aren’t looking for “perfect people,” as if there were any, we want people to come just as they are because that is how God accepts them! And the way we show that is by showing our love for God and others, rather than “making our phylacteries broad and our fringes long,” rather than taking the places of honor, and exalting ourselves over others.

This world has enough judgmentalism and condemnation as it is. As Christians, we don’t need to be heaping more burdens on top of what is already there as it is. We often fall prey to the charge of hypocrisy because we have reduced Christianity to a list of moral benchmarks coupled with a good dose of judgmentalism. The message the world needs to see and hear is the message of God’s love. I don’t see in Jesus’ teachings a call to fake moral superiority. I’m a sinner following Jesus, how about you? I don’t have it all together, and this admission is precisely what we need in order to tweak the perception of hypocrisy. We all share the human condition with all its brokenness. And we have the hope that Jesus can really transform lives and redeem the future. People inside and outside the church need to know that it’s “okay not to be okay.”

Unfortunately, most people today assume they will not be accepted until they change, not by God and definitely not by church people. For a variety of reasons the “you’re not good enough” message is the prevailing message of Christianity. So as those who know that faith is not a burden but a wonderful joy, we must tell others the truth over and over and over. We have to say, “come as you are.” We have to clear out the confusing messages in order to make one thing clear: God says, “Come as you are,” and so do we; no strings attached.

Suppose that instead of being like the Pharisees, with their foolish insistence on rules and regulations that would make everyone look like them, we send out persistently a message that goes something like this:

Come as you are…You don’t have to dress up. You don’t have to be any particular age. We couldn’t care less who you voted for in the last election. And please, don’t feel the need to pretend about anything. Grace (Fairview) United Methodist Church is a place where God meets seeking people who are far from perfect. That means anyone is welcome, no matter where you are on your spiritual journey. So learn at your own pace. Ask questions. Seek. We believe you’ll find what you’re looking for. You’ll learn how to relate to God. You’ll experience Christian community. And here’s the big thing—you will change! Join us as we seek God together. Come just as you are!

Doesn’t that sound like Jesus! Isn’t that what makes following Christ an endeavor full of hope, peace, grace, and love. We don’t have to be perfect. We don’t have to do everything just so; no one does. We just have to try our hardest to be faithful; to love God and love our neighbors as we love ourselves. And when we mess up, as we all do at times, we only have to seek God’s forgiveness, and our record is wiped clean; no judgment, no condemnation, no heaping of more burdens. Just acceptance. Just grace. Just love.

“All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Praise be to God! Amen.

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

October 23, 2011

Acts 2: 37-47 (NIV)

When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

⁴⁰With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” ⁴¹Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

⁴²They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. ⁴⁴All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. ⁴⁶Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

One weekend in August of 2001, I was preparing to head to South Carolina for my senior year of college. With my car loaded, my plan was to get up Sunday morning and immediately head off for South Carolina. That would give me plenty of time to get there, unload, and settle into my apartment before student teaching began the next day. But on Saturday night, my Mom said, “You have to go to church tomorrow before you leave.” Obviously, I asked her why, and she said something vague about speaking briefly in the service and I needed to be there.

So the next morning, I left my loaded car in the driveway and headed to church with my family. Early in the worship service, my Mom stepped up to the lectern and began to speak to the congregation. She started by telling the church that that afternoon I would be leaving to begin my senior year of college, and that in a few days, she and my Dad would be taking my younger sister to North Carolina to begin her college career. My mother went on to share how proud she and my dad were of their two daughters and all our accomplishments, but that they were most proud of our strong Christian faith. Now, my Mom didn’t get up before the congregation and do this in order to pat herself on the back. She asked for this opportunity so that she could say “thank you” to the community of believers who had helped raise her children.

She thanked the congregation for being faithful in their own lives and modeling that faith for the children of the church. She thanked the congregation for fulfilling the covenant they took at the baptisms of me and my sister; for living according to the example of Christ, for surrounding me and my sister with love and forgiveness, for praying for us and teaching us, for leading their lives in such ways that my sister and I (and all the children of that church) grew in the knowledge and love of God. After 21 years of faithfully bringing us to church, my parents took a moment to say “thank you” to our church family for doing their part. My Mom ended by saying that her girls wouldn’t be who they are today if not for the faithful witness of that church family.

And that is why membership matters to me; because I wouldn’t be who I am today if not for the commitment of the members at my home church in Oak Ridge.

Membership is such an institutionalized concept. We think of membership as a sort of “rite of passage.” Being a member makes you a part of something: a yacht club, country club, fraternity, or team; the list could go on and on. You have to be a member to get into the club, or go to the meetings, or play on the team. With such concepts of membership, it seems strange that we would emphasize church membership. You certainly don’t have to be a member to attend a church, and you definitely don’t have to be a church member to be a Christian. So if you can go to church and be a Christian without being a member, why does membership matter? That’s the question we’re going to tackle today. But when it comes to church membership, we have to think about it a little differently from the way we think about membership in other organizations.

There is no greater example of the special nature of church membership than the witness of the early Christians, which we heard in our Scripture passage a few moments ago. This passage from Acts occurs only a short time after Christ’s ascension into heaven. The early Christians know that in Christ something special has begun, and they are trying to organize themselves in a way that reflects that. They want the Christian community to reflect the kingdom of God. You see, God’s kingdom is different from the world. God’s kingdom reflects unity and empathy rather than division and hierarchy, and so believers live together and have “all things in common.” This phrase about having “everything in common” was the Greek way of describing a very close friendship. Thus, we get this description from Acts in which the early Christians devote themselves to teaching, fellowship, and prayer. All of these practices are essential to the Christian’s continued formation as disciples, but they are also too demanding for the individual believer. The early believers knew that they had to do this together, sharing goods and practices, holding one another accountable in this new way of life called “Christian.” So together, these friends looked after one another, worshiped regularly in the Temple, and broke bread together in their homes.

What we learn from the life of the early Christian community is that membership in the church is not a rite of passage, but it is a covenant. It is a covenant not only between each of us and God, but also between one another. Unlike membership in clubs or other organizations, church membership is not a way that we gain some sort of special access. Rather, it is a covenant made between fellow Christians to establish and uphold one another in our journey as Christ’s disciples. Listen to the way that the United Methodist Book of Discipline describes church membership: “Faithful membership in the local church is essential for personal growth and for developing a deeper commitment to the will and grace of God…Faithful discipleship includes the obligation to participate in the corporate life of the congregation with fellow members of the body of Christ. A member is bound in sacred covenant to shoulder the burdens, share the risks, and celebrate the joy of fellow members.”^[1]

I think over the years, the church has downplayed the significance of membership. And I think that has happened because we think of it solely as membership, like membership in any other organization. Not to mention the fact that it’s especially easy to “church-hop” these days with a church on every corner. So, we have come to take membership lightly. But when we view membership more as a covenant, it cannot be taken lightly. You cannot walk out on the covenant you have made with friends because you don’t like the color of the carpet or because the pastor made you mad. You cannot let down your commitment to the people of the congregation because the church down the street has free all-you-can-eat Dunkin’ Donuts and coffee all day every Sunday. The church congregation has to be considered more like a family than a social club. You wouldn’t stop feeding your children because they disrespected you. You wouldn’t walk out on your spouse because they shrank your favorite shirt in the latest load of laundry. We have a commitment to our families: to care for one another so that we can all thrive, and the same is true in the church. Our membership makes us like a family, a group committed to one another so that together we all grow and thrive as Christ’s disciples.

The story is told of four people in the church whose names were Everybody, Somebody, Anybody and Nobody. The church needed help meeting its financial obligations and Everybody was asked to participate. Everybody was sure that Somebody would do it. Anybody could have done it. But you know who did it? Nobody. It ended up that Everybody blamed Somebody when Nobody did what Anybody could have done. When the church grounds needed some work, Somebody was asked to help. But Somebody resented being called upon because Anybody could have done it just as well. After all, it was really Everybody’s job. In the end the work was given to Nobody, and Nobody got it done. The process went on and on. Whatever the task that needed to be done, Nobody could be counted on to do it. Nobody visited the sick. Nobody gave generously. Nobody shared his faith. In short, Nobody was a very faithful member. Finally the day came when Somebody left the church and took Anybody and Everybody with him. Who was left? Nobody!

As followers of Christ, we all have an obligation to God and to one another, and our Christianity is incomplete without the Christian community. You see, as members of the body of Christ, the church, we are like the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Each piece has protrusions and indentations. The protrusions represent our strengths (gifts, talents, abilities), and the indentations represent our weaknesses (faults, limitations, shortcomings, undeveloped areas). The beautiful thing is that, when assembled, the pieces complement one another, fit together perfectly, and produce a beautiful picture. A picture that, as those early Christians knew, looks much like the kingdom of God.

That is why membership matters. When we attend church, we practice Christianity. But when we become members of a church, entering into covenant with the people around us, we grow as Christians, and we experience the kingdom of God in ways that would not otherwise be possible. And that’s exactly what happened for my sister and me in my home church. The members upheld their end of the covenant, and as we grew, we became part of the covenant as well, and together we shared the life of Christians and grew as Christ’s disciples. We experienced something of the kingdom of God, and we shared it in our community.

So, can you be a Christian without joining a church? Sure you can – it’s something like being a soldier without an army, a seaman without a ship, a businessman without a business, a tuba player without an orchestra, a football player without a team, or a bee without a hive. Certainly churches have their faults, and church membership can at times be quite a burden. But look at the people around you today. This is your Christian family. They need you, and you need them because we all need Christ.

Amen.

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

October 16, 2011

Mark 12: 38-44 (NIV)

As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplaces, ³⁹and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. ⁴⁰They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.”

⁴¹Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. ⁴²But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

⁴³Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. ⁴⁴They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Today we have come to that ever-dreaded sermon topic, money. I would like to tell you that I’m going to sugar-coat today’s sermon and make it easy to swallow so that we can all leave here feeling good about ourselves. But if we are going to be honest, really honest, about why giving matters, I can’t do that. And the matter of giving and generosity can’t be sugar-coated because ultimately, when it’s all boiled down, our giving reflects directly on our relationship with God. God’s mandates about giving are clear, and Jesus’ teachings about money and the poor number second only to his teachings about the kingdom of God. For all the uncertainty about the meaning behind certain themes and passages in the Bible, the message about our obligation to give to God from our first fruits is clear. Here, with matters of money, is one of our greatest opportunities to follow God’s commands and to reflect the generosity of Christ, and instead we always end up looking very human; very selfish instead of self-giving, very greedy instead of very faithful.

In case you are not aware, I am passionate about giving back to God. So let me share with you why giving matters to me. First and foremost, giving matters to me because God has given so much for me, for all of us; God in Christ gave himself for me, how could I not give back to him? It would be like receiving a gift from a friend and never saying “thank you.” God has given us clear instructions about how to say “thank you” to him, and that is that we return to him a portion of our first fruits; specifically, that we offer to God a tenth of the first harvest of our fields. And today that means that I give back to God right off the top of my income. My faith would be incomplete if I didn’t say “thank you” to God; not just through my prayers, worship, or devotional practices, but also through my giving. Similarly, my faith would be incomplete if I didn’t give to God because that says that I don’t trust God with my resources. More specifically, it says that I need my money more than I need God.

There has never been a time in my life that I have not given at least a tithe to the church. Before I was earning an allowance, my parents gave my sister and me each a quarter to put in the offering plate every week. Then when we started getting an allowance, we were taught to tithe, and we made a pledge to our church to do so weekly or monthly. Currently, between the two of us, Ken and I give a little over 11% of our total salaries. Please notice that I did not say “our total income.” I said our total salaries. That means that we are paying a tithe on the money that goes to pay our healthcare costs, and into our retirement fund, which we will give from again when that starts paying out after our retirement. If you calculate the amount we give compared to our actual income, it’s somewhere in the neighborhood of 14%. And we wouldn’t have it any other way. When we figure our monthly budget, this is the first obligation that is considered; it is our “first fruits.” If things are tight, we don’t cut what we give to the church, we make sacrifices in other areas; like eating out or going to the movies. Giving makes us better financial managers, and it also keeps us from getting too attached to “stuff” because often we have to say “no” to stuff so that we can fulfill our obligation to God. Giving is one of our ways of saying “thank you” to God. God has asked it of us, and it is the least we can do. Certainly, there are lots of things that I would love to use that money for. It would be nice to have cable TV and an iPad. But those are not necessities, and as faithful Christians, our devotion to God through giving is a necessity. Giving matters to me because God matters to me.

The same is true of the widow in today’s scripture reading. What matters most to that woman as she walks into the Temple that day is her relationship with God, and she shows that through her offering. She has given, literally, “her whole life”, two copper coins which were all she had to live on that day. One might have thought she was putting in merely two copper coins, but in fact she was putting in everything she had. How many of us would do that?

Sadly, most of us are like the rich people who walked into the Temple before the woman. Relatively speaking, we are quite well-off, and yet we give very little out of our abundance. This story poses the same challenge to readers today as it did in Jesus’ time. People usually think of giving to the church and to charities as an option. The money for giving back to God comes out of the surplus only after often unnecessary personal expenses; if it comes out at all. The contrast in this story between the offering of the widow and all the others who are tossing in what they can spare, exhibits the false values of a society that does not really offer sacrifice to God.

Jesus doesn’t ever mince words on this subject. He told the rich young ruler that he must sell everything he has and give the money to the poor. And on several occasions, Christ told the disciples that persons must be willing to renounce their own desires and take up the cross in order to follow him. And here, Christ makes clear that part of the call of disciples is not just that we give “a lot” or “enough.” but that we give sacrificially; not that we give out of our surplus, but that we offer from our first fruits. Giving matters because it is what God asks of us and it affects our relationship with God. We “cannot serve both God and mammon.”

One day a pastor was called to the house of a church member who was having financial difficulties. The pastor counseled him for a while and then stopped. “Let’s have a word of prayer and while I pray, you make a commitment to give one-tenth of your income to the Lord.” Thinking about his income, the man thought to himself, “That won’t be difficult. That’s only $1,800 a year—only $34.61 a week.” They prayed, and the man promised to give back 10 percent to the Lord and to the Lord’s work.

Years passed and the man’s income had increased to over $200,000 a year. He called for the pastor again. “Pastor, I’d like to be released from that 10 percent I promised the Lord several years back. A tenth of my income is now over $20,000 a year, and I have some plans for spending that.”

“That’s no problem,” the pastor replied. “Let’s pray.”

As they bowed their heads, the pastor began to pray, “Lord, You know what a problem this bigger salary has been to my brother here. I’m asking you to reduce his income, perhaps to the original $18,000 a year, so he’ll be able to afford his tithe once again…”

Here’s the thing. When we give to God out of our surplus, it means we are making decisions on how we spend our money based on societal pressures, which these days means “more, more, more.” We have to have the next great gadget or the new car. We have to have a bigger house with the highest speed internet and full digital cable with TiVo. We have to “keep up with the Joneses” as the saying goes. And we become so consumed with our desire for more that we really become slaves to our money. But when we give sacrificially to God and to God’s purposes, we have to detach ourselves from the “stuff,” which invariably means we are freed to serve God. We have to make decisions about big purchases instead of just “impulse buying.” We have to make sacrifices and determine what is really “necessary” and what is not. And when we make financial decisions with God in mind first, it also enables us to plan and save for the future, for the well-being of ourselves and our children. And it has been my true experience that in giving to God generously out of my first fruits, I still have all that I need.

So what is generous and sacrificial giving to God? The widow in today’s reading gave everything. The widow’s gift of her whole livelihood was unthinkable and even foolish. It seems as if she gave everything in exchange for nothing! But did she? She gave her whole life to God. She gave everything she had and everything she was. She was entrusting her whole self to God. Her two tiny coins were the final, foolish, unspeakable, humble, outward manifestation of that absolute gift. Her gift was so humble that no one knew its magnitude except for her Lord. She is, in fact, what we are called to be: a tiny, flashing, mirror that reflects the final, foolish, unspeakably humble and utterly self-giving of God to us in his Son Jesus Christ.

I know that we live in a culture which is so dependent on money. And in no way is this Scripture passage insisting that any of us literally give all our money away. What it is talking about is proportional giving and the priorities in our lives. I know that for many, tithing can seem a bit intimidating. But tithing is neither a floor, nor a ceiling. As I said, Ken and I give about 11%, and we plan to give more in the new year. If you don’t give now, how about giving one percent of your income? If you currently give one percent, try moving to two. You get the picture. And as you plan for giving to God, you will discover that so many other things fall into place for you as well.

We give to God because we are disciples of Jesus Christ. We give to God out of thanksgiving for God’s great salvation of our souls. We give to God so that the Church can use that money to reach others with the message that has so changed our lives. We give to God out of love for God and neighbor! And we give to God in order to be able to keep our own focus on Jesus! That’s why giving matters.

It’s only in giving our lives completely and totally over to God that we find life abundant. So today I challenge us all to grow in our giving to God! May it be so. Amen.

Grace and Fairview United Methodist Churches

October 9, 2011

James 1: 22-27 (NIV)                                 

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. ²⁵But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

²⁶If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. ²⁷Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

Matthew 25: 31-40 (NIV)

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly glory. ³²All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. ³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰“The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.’

Today we are going to talk about missions and why missions matter. But before I get into the importance of missions, I feel like I need to make a bit of a distinction between the kind of missions which I will be describing today, and a very specific kind of missions that might also be called “evangelism.” In a sense, the church as the “Body of Christ” in the world today creating opportunities for people to encounter Christ as we discussed it last week, is an evangelistic mission. We are serving in the name of Christ with the specific purpose of leading them to a saving relationship with Christ. But there is a broader type of mission in which we serve in Christ’s name simply because we are called to serve — to “care for the orphan and the widow,” the poor, the sick, the “least of these.” That is the kind of missions we will be talking about today — simply serving the needs of the world and the people in it in the name of Christ.

So why are missions important to me? To express my answer to that question, I want to share with you a portion of a sermon I preached at Wesley United Methodist Church in Alexandria, Virginia, in February of 2006, just one month after returning from a mission trip to Uganda. I have been on many mission trips, and all have been amazing experiences, but none more than that time in Uganda. And I think I expressed myself best when the memories of that trip were still fresh on my mind. Here’s what I had to say:

“We often talk about ‘mountain top’ experiences; those times when we feel ourselves somehow closer to God and we are inspired to devote more of our lives to God and to our Christian journey. I have certainly had my fair share of ‘mountain top’ experiences, which have spurred me on to a greater devotional life, to a passion for teaching youth, and even into ministry. I now rank my trip to Uganda among those ‘mountain top’ experiences, but this one was vastly different. It is here that I really have trouble expressing what was so profound about my trip to Uganda. In coming down from the ‘mountain’ of my other experiences, I have felt comfort and even ‘warm fuzziness.’ With Uganda, I came away with a feeling of deep pain and even heartbreak; yet I also felt closer to God than ever before. There is a song by the Christian band, FFH, in which the chorus goes, ‘Where you are is where I want to be, in your arms you will comfort me.’ These are the words that were in my head throughout much of my time in Uganda. There is so much that is not in Uganda, but God is there. There was never a moment in Uganda that God seemed to be absent; God is as much a part of the lives of the people in Uganda as God is a part of our lives. Perhaps even moreso because there is an openness in the lives of those people that seems often to be quashed by the ‘busyness’ of our lives.”

I share that with you to say this to you about why missions matter to me. I truly and deeply believe that it is through missions that we share the love and grace of God in Christ Jesus in some of the most real and tangible ways, and in so doing, we ourselves also experience Christ in new and profound ways. This is why James says to his readers, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Here’s how it works: when we are truly doing missions and serving the needs of the people in this world as Christ has called us to do, then we are making some sacrifices, perhaps even many sacrifices — sacrifices of our time, our resources, even our comfort and security. And it is through such mission experiences where we humble ourselves and make so many sacrifices that we come to a fuller understanding of the sacrifice Christ has made for us! Christ didn’t make salvation possible by sitting on his golden throne throwing back some potato chips and surfing the ‘net. Christ brought salvation to this world by hanging on a cross and dying in shame. Similarly, it’s hard for us to understand the power of Christ’s salvation in our own lives when we live day-in and day-out in the middle-class comforts of a first-world country.

Jesus teaches that God’s reign is characterized in the present, not by powerful works and miracles, but by deeds of love, mercy, and compassion, especially toward those most in need. If we cannot share freely and fully as Christ did, or if we do not make ourselves available to do so, this indicates that our relationship with God and the world is not as healthy and whole as Jesus’ triumph on the cross makes possible. It means we don’t understand the magnitude of love God showed to us as Christ died on the cross! Loving those for whom Jesus gave his life, particularly those who are undervalued, is a primary expression of our love of God and of our experience of God’s love for us. We have to give something of ourselves, something of our wealth, our comfort, our sweat and tears, just the way Christ did. And then I believe, I know, we will experience more fully the power of Christ’s death and resurrection; the significance of the sacrifice that he made for each of us!

And it goes the other way too. Think about the pictures of the children you saw earlier (of orphans and children in distress). Or the people starving in the midst of a great drought in eastern Africa right now. Or perhaps it is a family living in a tent in their front yard because their house was demolished in the tornados. Or think of a person who goes to sleep under a bridge every night, or wakes up to the sound of mortar fire in the neighborhood every morning. Imagine what it would mean to such people if you were to freely and generously address their need; to give a hungry person food, or build a new home, or offer shelter, and nothing is asked in return. It is a free gift, given because it is what that person needs the most. That’s like God’s love, is it not? That is what God’s grace is all about, right?

This is what it means to be a Christian, a disciple. We love those who probably can’t give anything in return. And we do that not with a goal of earning God’s love or anyone else’s, not to curry favor, or to make sure we are considered righteous at the end of time. We give as an expression of the love of God that is inside of us, bubbling up, spilling over, and flowing out! When Christians go out in missions and serve the needs of the people in this world with no expectation of anything in return, they are giving two gifts — one gift which satisfies a practical need, and one gift which opens a window to the love and grace of God. That is why missions matter!

As Jesus tells the parable of the sheep and the goats, he is seeking to convey the importance of serving the needs of the least, the last, and the lost. Because “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Serving Christ fully invariably means serving the world through missions. It means not only that we make sacrifices by giving to missions — such as the Change for Children offering or UMCOR projects, but also that we make sacrifices by making ourselves available to do missions. We take time to go and feed the homeless through Mustard Tree Ministries once a month, or we make arrangements to assist with disaster relief after tornadoes or flooding in our area or elsewhere. Or perhaps we even set aside the time and resources to travel to other places in the world where there are needs just as pressing if not moreso.

Christ’s ministry on earth was about establishing a whole new system of justice, a kingdom completely different from any kingdom the world had ever seen; a new social structure based on the God-given dignity and value of every human being. This parable of the sheep and the goats is a description of that new kingdom, and it is also a challenge to begin making that kingdom real today through our own works of compassion and mercy in Christ’s name. And this parable teaches that the greatest criteria for inclusion in this new kingdom is whether or not you saw Jesus Christ in the face of the needy and whether or not you gave yourself away freely in love in his name without concern for any return.

We may emphasize mission because we see it as a sort of “necessity;” a box that must be checked in order for us to gain eternal life. But that is not why missions matter; not at all. Missions matter because they teach us something about God in Christ Jesus in the most real way possible. We learn about sacrifice and most especially the sacrifice Christ made for us because in mission we have to give something of ourselves. All who are served by the generosity of others through missions learn about the abundant and unconditional grace of God offered freely to all people without any expectation of return.

Missions matter because they make a difference in people’s lives. God in Christ Jesus endured the most amazing, self-giving mission in the history of the world so that all people might have abundant life, so that we might have what we need most. Will we offer ourselves in missions so that others might have what they need most?

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

Octboer 2, 2011

Luke 24: 44-53 (NIV)

He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”

⁴⁵ Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. ⁴⁶ He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, ⁴⁷and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ⁴⁸You are witnesses of these things. ⁴⁹I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

⁵⁰ When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. ⁵¹ While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. ⁵²Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. ⁵³And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

Why does the Church matter? Why is Church important?

As we ponder such questions in the coming weeks, I am going to take time at the beginning of each sermon to share my answer to the question of the day. I will do this because I think on some matters, we express ourselves best when we speak from our own experience. But I also hope that as I share my story, it will help you think about your own story: how it is similar, or different, and why it is important to share your story with others.

So why does the church matter to me? To answer that question, I have to go back more than 31 years. I was born just a week after Easter Sunday, and as soon as I was allowed to be out of the house, I was baptized; sometime in May. Since my baptism to this day, I have missed relatively few Sundays at church — probably averaging no more than 2-3 a year except for my college years when I had trouble finding a church where I felt like I really connected. As many of you know, you don’t spend so much time in a church without it making a difference in your life. And church has made a difference for me.

Church is where I was cared for when I was a baby. It was where I went to preschool. Church is where I learned about Christ, and where I first learned to sing. Through the church, I learned my identity in Christ and gained confidence in who I am, a person created and loved by God. In the church I professed my faith in Christ on the day I was confirmed. During my junior high and high school years, I believe, the church kept me out of trouble because I was busy with youth and choir and handbells. Through the church I am sent out on missions, and I have learned to be always mindful of the needs of others and to serve others before myself. And I also learned that I am never doing those things well enough! (Ha!)

Through the church, I encounter God in Christ Jesus weekly in special ways through worship, study, prayer, and fellowship with the community of Christians that you see here. And from the church I am sent out with fellow Christians to serve Christ and serve others; sharing with the world the same love that we know and experience through Christ’s Church. In the church, I learn what it is to be a Christian; to value what Christ values and to follow Christ’s example in my own life.

We are here today because the church has meant something to each of us, or maybe because we are trying to learn more about why the church is important. And many of us can tell stories as I did about why the church matters to us. But as much as the church is about impacting and transforming the lives of individuals, it’s also about impacting and transforming the world. And here’s why:

Christ is not here anymore. That is, Christ is not physically present on this earth today as he was 2,000 years ago. Which means that if people today are going to experience Christ, it’s going to have to happen in a different way. And Christ knew that. So after his resurrection, as we heard this morning, Christ went to the disciples and he commissioned them, which is a really fancy way of saying that he told the disciples to go out and, in his name, do what he had been doing for the last three years of his ministry. He sent them out into the world as witnesses to do ministry in his name; to heal in his name, to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins, and to share the good news of salvation in Christ Jesus and God’s coming kingdom. Then he left them and ascended into heaven.

That was the beginning of the church, and it is also the key to why the church matters. What would have happened if Christ had ascended without commissioning the disciples; or if those first commissioned disciples had decided they were through with this Jesus-business and they were going to go back to home and get their lives back to normal? That would have been the end. Christ would have lived, taught, healed, died and been resurrected, and within a few generations he would have been forgotten; the healing would have stopped, the resurrection promise would have been lost, the hope would have faded away. Christ’s love and salvation never would have been known beyond those people who encountered him during his years on earth.

Fortunately for us, for billions of others, and for this whole world, it didn’t happen that way. The disciples got busy and they kept Jesus’ ministry going; they kept his message alive sharing the good news “to the ends of the earth.” And the church today can do no less. If we in the church do not continue Christ’s ministry, no one will. That is why the church matters! Christ made a difference in people’s lives. He healed the sick. He helped the poor. He forgave sinners. He shared God’s grace and love. And he died on the cross so that we might have eternal life with our loving God. We are talking about the difference between life and death, and it is the church’s task to get that message out into the world! Christ can transform people’s lives if only we will show people who Christ is and what he is about!

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” Paul says to the Colossians. “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church.” The church is the body of Christ. We are his mouth and his ears, his hands and his feet in this world! The church is the body of people who believe the good news and are chosen by God to bear witness to it. We are to bear witness to God’s grace revealed in Jesus Christ! And that means much more than that we just go out and say some words to people about this person named Jesus. It means that the entire life of the church is alive with Christ’s love and faithful to his gospel. Such that we can point to the church and say, “You want to know what the love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness of Christ means? Well, take a look at this! Look at what’s happening here! Look at how lives are being changed here!”

That is why the church matters! Our world hurts today. You walk through schools and you hear kids bullying each other. You turn on the news and everything is negative: murders, economic hardships, rising unemployment. You read in the papers about starving people in Africa and endless fighting in the Middle East. Relationships fall apart and work stresses us out. Everyday people lose their lives to cancer and AIDS and a host of other illnesses and diseases that we cannot yet prevent or cure. All around us is bleakness, despair, death. But through the church, God in Christ Jesus is able to offer something else to the world. Christ brings hope in the midst of all the hurt because Christ feeds the hungry, clothes the naked, heals the sick, and forgives the sinner. God in Christ Jesus offers justice, peace, and rich blessings. And above all Christ gives unconditional love and abundant life. Only in Christ can we find the strength to make it through all the difficulties of this life. Only in Christ can we find the joy of this life and the hope of the life to come. And the best way to encounter Christ today is through the witness of the church in the world! We are his light! We are his body ministering to this world in the same way Christ himself did so many years ago!

The Christian Church isn’t simply about a particular way of being religious; there’s lots of ways to be “religious” in the world today. The church isn’t even about a particular system for how to be saved here or hereafter. The church isn’t simply a different way of holiness. The Christian Church is about Jesus Christ! The church matters because the church makes it possible for people to have real encounters with Christ.

And one of the best ways to encounter Jesus is through the Lord’s Supper; to come to his table and to share in this meal of which he is the host. Today, we are going to do just that. And as you come, come praying — pray that you will encounter Christ in a special way today; pray that you will come to know him more completely; and then pray that through your own encounters with Christ you will be strengthened to work with the church and help others have life-changing encounters with Christ as well.

We are Christ’s body, let us do Christ’s work! Let’s show people why the church matters!

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

September 25, 2011

Matthew 20: 1-16 (NIV)

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire men to work in his vineyard. ²He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard.

³“About the third hour he went out and saw others standing in the marketplace doing nothing. ⁴He told them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ ⁵So they went.

“He went out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour and did the same thing. ⁶About the eleventh hour he went out and found still others standing around. He asked them, ‘Why have you been standing here all day long doing nothing?’

⁷ “‘Because no one has hired us,’ they answered.

“He said to them, ‘You also go and work in my vineyard.’

⁸“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’

⁹“The workers who were hired about the eleventh hour came and each received a denarius. ¹⁰So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. ¹¹When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. ¹²‘These men who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’

¹³“But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am not being unfair to you. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? ¹⁴Take your pay and go. I want to give the man who was hired last the same as I gave you. ¹⁵Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’

¹⁶“So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

For six years when I was in junior high and high school, I tried out for the East Tennessee regional clinic band every year. For those of you who are not familiar with how these clinic bands work; they are put together through an audition process, and they consist of the “best” young instrumentalists in the region. The audition consists of a prepared piece, which the young players receive in advance and have time to practice. They also have to play some scales, which ones are determined in the audition room, and then they have to sight-read a piece of music. Based on the performance in each of those areas, every person who auditions is given a score, and then those instrumentalists receiving the top scores in each section are awarded with a “seat” in the band.

Needless to say, it’s a great experience; an opportunity to play with some great young instrumentalists, to meet some new people, learn some new music, and to work with some fine conductors — among other things. But the audition process is pretty rigorous for a young person. It doesn’t matter if you are the top player at your school. It doesn’t matter if you’ve been taking private lessons for years. It doesn’t matter if you have the most expensive instrument out there. When you walk into that room to begin your audition, you are in the same boat as every other kid that has been in there that day, and every other kid that has yet to audition; everyone has an equal opportunity to make that band.

I’m sure that many of you have had similar experiences; maybe it was in sports, or on a test, or perhaps a job interview. There come times in our lives when we are put on par with everyone else, and it is a level playing field.

So it is, in a sense, in our scripture reading this morning. A handful of laborers have been working in the landowner’s vineyard; some of them have worked all day, some of them half the day, and some of them only an hour. But when the time comes to pay the laborers, the playing field is leveled, and everyone gets paid equally; one denarius for twelve hours, one denarius for one hour. It seems so unfair, doesn’t it? Today’s Workers’ Unions would have a field day with this one! “Why bother getting a full-time job when we can work quarter time or less and still get paid the same?” we wonder. This is very strange behavior exhibited by the landowner, and the manager just goes along with it.

But we have to remember that this is a parable, and Jesus’ parables take real life examples that people can relate to and modify them a bit to teach us something about God and God’s Kingdom. It doesn’t take too much thinking to realize that in this parable, God is the landowner, Jesus is the manager, and we are the laborers. But that presents as many problems as it does solutions. We believe God to be a God of justice — so why would God engage in such unjust behavior as to give equal reward for unequal work? Well, God is a just God, and there are parables to show that. But this parable isn’t about God’s justice. Much like the parable of the prodigal son, this parable is about God’s grace, and God’s grace puts us all on a level playing field.

Hard-working, “good” people have always asked: what kind of God would offer the same reward to those who have earned it, and those who have not? And this is quite nearly the question the disciples have asked Jesus prior to the telling of this parable. The disciples thought that because they were among Jesus’ closest followers, they would receive special benefits in God’s kingdom. They want to know what reward they will receive for dropping everything to follow Jesus. They want to know who will be greatest in the kingdom. This parable is one of Jesus’ many answers to that question. And I don’t think I have to tell you that this was a difficult answer for Jesus’ followers to swallow because it went against the accepted standard — more work means more pay. But God’s kingdom stands in contrast to the values of the world. No one receives special favor because they are a closer friend to Jesus or because they have been following Jesus longer. This parable makes clear that there is a radical equality before God. And as Christ’s followers, we are called to model that radical equality of God’s kingdom, this is another (and very important) way of being a truly hospitable church.

As we gather here for worship week in and week out, as we go out and serve meals to the homeless, or engage in regular Bible Study, it’s easy to assume that we are somehow favored. People who work in church circles can easily assume that they are the special ones, God’s inner circle. But in reality, God is not satisfied with just us, or just the folks at Fairview (Grace) or Dallas Bay or Calvary Chapel (Abba’s House) or any other church. God is always out in the marketplace, looking for more “workers;” seeking out the people everybody else tried to ignore, welcoming them on the same terms, surprising them (and everyone else) with God’s generous grace. God does not will that anyone’s life should be wasted, so God extends the invitation indiscriminately and repeatedly, in order to gather as many people as possible into his vineyard, his kingdom. God shows no partiality among persons; all are equally deserving–or undeserving–of the opportunity to work, so the reward for all workers is equal as well.

Are we so very gracious? I mean, if we are really being honest with ourselves, what thoughts cross our minds when a convicted murderer suddenly professes Christ as his Lord and Savior. When we see druggies or molesters, do we offer them an invitation to come and meet Christ, to work for God, or do we look down our nose at them and assume that they are too low for the kingdom of God. I think we tend to be more like those grumbling workers who had been in the fields all day than the landowner who continually goes out into the marketplace inviting more and more laborers to come and work in his fields. No matter the person. No matter their history. No matter where one comes from. Jesus is saying, “It’s not too late for you or anyone else! There is more than enough room in God’s purposes for everyone!” God makes no distinction, and we shouldn’t either.

The call here is to humility; it is an attempt to remind those who know the Gospel, who imagine they can teach and govern the whole world, and who thus imagine they are nearest to God, that their greatness is relative. Those who are first in the world’s eyes are not first in the eyes of God. So what does that mean for you and I, who sit in church today while millions do not? It means that we have to model the radical inclusivity of God out in the world. Just imagine what the church would look like if everyone did just that! If everyone was out in the marketplace inviting any and all who would listen and accept the invitation to come and work the vineyard, to enter God’s kingdom!

The Christian church in general does not have a very good reputation out in the world today. Recent studies show that among a host of negative traits, outsiders view the church as judgmental, hypocritical, insensitive, and not accepting. The church is viewed by the world as the exact opposite of what God’s kingdom is about! We are seen as exclusive instead of inclusive; judgmental rather than gracious!

One of my good friends left the church a decade ago because instead of being gracious and loving after my friend made some mistakes, the members of his church judged him and essentially kicked him out. Despite his continuing faith in God, I don’t think my friend will ever return to church because the church doesn’t look or act like the God he knows. I have invited him over and over again, and one time I did succeed in getting him to a Christmas Eve service, but as the years have passed and he has watched the church continue the same behavior time and time again, he has become more and more disillusioned. How many people out in the world are just like my friend? Or how many people may never know Christ because the church does not reflect Christ and they have no interest in being a part of something so negative?

My friends, I don’t believe I can press upon you enough the urgency of the task that is before us. The church is to be the model of God’s kingdom in the world, and we are not doing our job. We have to value what God values! We have to live like Christ lived. We must share God’s grace and love unconditionally with the world around us. It is not our job to be judgmental; to decide who gets paid what. At the end of the day, God will graciously bless all the faithful, and that is something to celebrate!

So let’s celebrate God’s radical inclusivity today. Let’s celebrate God’s grace! God’s grace is a free gift that is available to all of us. It is a free gift for all to receive even though none of us is deserving. It is about mercy, not fairness. And, it is for the last as well as the first. The field is level. Are we going to stingily hoard God’s grace for ourselves, thinking we have a “leg up,” or are we going to go celebrate the many blessings of God’s mercy for all people? This world needs God’s grace, so let’s share it!

Grace & Fairview United Methodist Churches

September 18, 2011

Matthew 10: 40-42 (NIV)

“He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives the one who sent me. ⁴¹Anyone who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and anyone who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. ⁴²And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward.”

Have you ever thought what the church would look like if we really, and I mean really, ministered the way Christ calls his followers to minister? You know, if we did things the way Christ did. It’s possible we wouldn’t even have church buildings! We would just be out in the world, preaching and teaching about the good news of God’s justice and mercy, and the promise of God’s coming kingdom! That’s what Jesus did, isn’t it?

So what exactly would it look like if the church really acted as the Body of Christ in the world? A few weeks ago at the Chattanooga District Conference, our new District Superintendent told of a colleague in ministry who made an observation that went something like this: “If the church was really being the church in the way that Christ calls us, we would never lock our doors. We might walk in and find homeless people sleeping on the pews and that would be ‘OK.’ We might discover that some of our Bibles or hymnals have gone missing, and that would be ‘OK.’” The list could go on. And, unfortunately, the truth of the matter is that issues of safety these days prevent the church from working in such ways. But that doesn’t mean that we should be any less hospitable. It doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t always be seeking radical ways to welcome the stranger, the sojourner, the least, the last, and the lost.

Our gospel reading from Matthew this morning invites us to explore in depth the quality of the welcome that we offer to one another within the Body of Christ, the church. But with it we must also reflect on the welcome we offer to those who are not yet a part of this body! As Jesus speaks to the disciples here, he is preparing to send them out to preach the message that “the kingdom of heaven is near.” He is giving them authority to heal the sick, to raise the dead, and to drive out demons in his name. Christ knows that he is sending the disciples into a difficult situation, as they will surely face much opposition along the way. And so Christ urges others to be hospitable to those who come in his name. During times of persecution, hospitality was especially important, and could even be dangerous; think “harboring a criminal.” So Jesus says to all who will hear that those who provide hospitality and show kindness to God’s people will be greatly blessed!

So who are God’s people? To whom, exactly, are we called to be hospitable? Obviously, this passage implores us to be welcoming to missionaries and those who carry the good news of Christ around the world. But Christ calls us also to serve the poor, the outcaste, the sick, the lost, the sinner. These are all people of God as well, these too are bearers of the Christian message, and they need our hospitality as much as any other!

Have you ever given much thought to what keeps you coming to this church? What is it that you love about this church? There are certainly many different factors that bring us into a certain church. But I think that when it comes to those things that keep us at a church, it boils down to the fact that this is the place where we experience the love of God in Christ Jesus in the most real and tangible ways. This is our family. They care for us when we are going through difficult times. We hold one another accountable when we are not living our lives in a way that is consistent with our Christian faith. We share with one another the love of Christ in the same way that we have experienced Christ’s love ourselves. I think it’s fair to say that we experience from one another genuine hospitality.

But just as much as the church is about serving one another, it’s even moreso about serving the world in Christ’s name! If we are really being hospitable and welcoming in the way that Christ teaches us to be, we would extend those acts we do for one another out into the world. We would build relationships with those we don’t now know. We would serve our neighbors in the way we serve one another. As you sit here, I imagine that each of you could name people you know who are not attending any church this morning. And each of you could probably think of as many people who are not in church as there are here! That’s hundreds of people WE know who are not a part of the Christian community!

More and more we find that people are drifting away from church; that young people are growing up without the love and unconditional acceptance which is experienced in the church of Christ. Children are raised thinking that “Jesus Christ” is a curse word and nothing else! So the question for us today is, as the faithful of Christ, how are we going to follow his example and serve those beyond these walls? Welcome others as we have been welcomed? Each one of us needs to look after the good of the people around us, asking ourselves, “How can I help?” That’s exactly what Jesus did. He didn’t make it easy for himself by avoiding people’s troubles. He waded right in and helped out! This too is genuine hospitality, and it is the kind of radical hospitality that Christian churches should practice!

If we take Jesus seriously about being hospitable and welcoming “the other” into our midst, it changes our behavior! It changes the way the church looks in the world! John Wesley and the early Methodists practiced hospitality in ways so radical in their day that many traditional church leaders found it offensive. Wesley preached to thousands on roadsides and in open fields in order to reach coal miners, field laborers, factory workers, the underclass, and the poorest of the poor; people that were all but forgotten. He invited them into God’s Kingdom and nurtured in them a strong sense of belonging as he organized societies and classes for mutual accountability, support and care. Those early Methodist’s lives were so radically changed that it actually staved off a violent revolution in England. It’s amazing the impact the Gospel can have on entire countries!

We are called by Christ to welcome others and practice hospitality because people are messed up and lost. And the only way to get straight and become un-lost is through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. We practice hospitality because we care. There is a right way and there is a wrong way. There is life and there is death. There is only one way to be in relationship with God, only one way to change lives, only one way to live in community with others. And when we are truly being Christ’s hands and feet in the world, we open that way to everyone we meet! We welcome them in the same way that we have been welcomed by Christ! We serve them in the same way that Christ has so sacrificially served us!

This is not just a membership drive! Hospitality means we pray, plan, prepare, and work toward the purpose of helping others receive what we have received in Christ. Hospitality is more than simple politeness to newcomers, name tags for greeters, or a few visitor parking spaces, though these things are important. Radical hospitality is a spiritual act, the practice of genuine graciousness and love that has nothing to do with self-interest.

Let’s face it; we are comfortable here, because this is where we are loved and accepted. But if we are being the church in the way that Christ envisions the church in this world, we would also feel a bit uncomfortable, restless, if you will. And we should feed such restlessness because we realize that so many people do not have a relationship with Jesus Christ. Do we have that restlessness?

We live in an inhospitable world. People simply do not go out of their way for one another. Many folks go to work day after day with little or no satisfaction from a job well-done. Whenever something goes wrong, we find someone to blame. Everyone is so busy taking care of themselves, they don’t have time to worry about anyone else. There has to be a place where people know they are welcome, loved, respected, wanted, and needed. And that place is the church, Grace (Fairview) United Methodist Church! Are we up to the task.

If we are welcoming to others in the ways we are welcoming to one another, it means that we will work together with an ever-present awareness of the person who is not present, our neighbors, our friends, and our co-workers who do not know Christ as Savior and Lord! In every ministry, we work on how to reach those who are not yet here. There is no place for the self-satisfied attitude that thinks, “Now that my needs are met, I’m happy.” No, we offer ourselves to Christ by offering Christ to others in everything we do! Good intentions aren’t enough! Too many churches want more young people as long as they act like old people, more newcomers as long as they act like old-timers, more children as long as they are as quiet as adults, more ethnic families as long as they act like the majority. We can do better. Little changes have big effects.

How are we doing with our hospitality? How can we make it more like the radical hospitality we see in the life, teachings, death and resurrection of Christ? Jesus has invited us all to join him in the Kingdom; he died in order to make that invitation possible. The least we can do is extend the invitation to others that he died extending to us! During the month of October, I will be doing a sermon series about why church is important. I think it’s a question that many people in this world have — why membership is important, why giving is important, why missions are important. This is a great opportunity for you to extend an invitation to any and all who are not yet a part of a church family. Such simple invitations should come naturally. We have no problem telling others where we get our hair cut, where we get our car fixed, where we like to eat.

When someone new starts at work or school or someone moves into the neighborhood, in addition to the regular gestures of welcome, let’s add: “And if you’re looking for a church, I’d be happy to tell you about mine. I love it, and it’s meant the world to my family, and we’d love to have you come with us sometime.” At other times, when we know someone is facing a difficulty in their marriage or is suffering the grief of loss, let’s not be afraid to say, “Something that helped me was talking to my pastor. I know she’d be willing to talk to you, too. If you want her name or would like for me to call her, I’d be happy to help and I know she would too.”

We pray to God for those people who are in our lives. Why not invite them so that they can have the kind of relationship to God that we have? Every member of the Body of Christ is the fruit of someone’s ministry and faithfulness. Who is the fruit of yours? It’s never too late to start…