North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Christmas 1 - December 29, 2002

Text: Isaiah 61:10-62:3

Galatians 4:4-7

Luke 2:22-40

Title: Keeping Christmas

A cartoon that appeared in the New Yorker magazine says it all. In the middle of the floor is a dried up, withered, Christmas tree. The calendar on the wall reads December 26. Dad is sitting in his chair with an ice pack on his head. Mom is in a bathrobe and her hair in rollers. The floor is a virtual mountain of torn wrappings, boxes, and bows. Junior is reaching in his stocking to be sure that there is no more candy. In the background we see a table with a thoroughly picked turkey still sitting there. The caption on the cartoon reads simply: The morning after.

Well, perhaps we feel a little that way. Perhaps we feel somewhat let down. If you feel that way it is quite understandable. Over the past weeks our emotions have been wound tighter than a compressed spring. Our festivities have led up to near fever pitch. And then, suddenly, it is all over. Is it any wonder that it is somewhat of a let down? Psychiatrist even have a word for it. They call it Christmas-slump.

A number of years ago, when Lou Holtz was at the University of Arkansas, he was taking his team to play a bowl game in Tempe, Arizona. The game was to be played on Christmas day. He was asked how he felt about playing a game on Christmas, rather than being with his family. The coach answered candidly: "I would rather be in Tempe. After all, once you have been to church, had Christmas dinner, and opened the presents, Christmas is the most boring day of the year."

Is it possible to lose the spirit of Christmas that quickly? Let us be
candid that as we take down the decorations for another year, there is a
sinking emptiness and an emotional let down." Long ago I gave up live Christmas trees in favor of artificial. I remember trying all the tricks to keep it alive. We put aspirin in the water, then we would try sugar, but regardless of the solutions the tree would always wither. Why? Because it had been cut off from its roots.

Maybe that is our problem this morning. Maybe we have trouble making
Christmas last because we have become cut off from our roots. Or, to put it
another way, maybe our celebration of Christmas is not deeply rooted enough.
How do we deeply root our celebration of Christmas so it will last?

I believe we need to be serious about our Tradition. Sometimes it's hard to be serious about Christmas. I mean our culture just doesn't allow it. Many of us drive ourselves crazy every year trying to have a Martha Stewart's Christmas? As hard as you try you're never able to achieve it. It always turns out to be an Erma Bombeck Christmas doesn't it? It is too easy for us to get cut off from our tradition.

In the Christian church there are two Sundays of the year when attendance is generally lower than at any other time. One is the Sunday after Christmas - which, by the way, liturgically is really Christmas Sunday. The other is the Sunday after Easter. In both cases, it seems we build up to a grand celebration and then collapse - and forget what the celebration was all about in the first place. Now, since you are here, you are probably the wrong people for me to be saying this to. However, I’m probably not too far off base with the observation that many of you are still feeling that sense of let down. Our hopes and expectations seem to fall short of the reality. If you are anything like me, you dread the thought of taking down all of those decorations. It feels like Christmas Day is the focus and the end of the celebration. But it’s not the end. It was - and is - only the beginning.

In his gospel, Luke firmly grounds the proclamation of Jesus’ life in the tradition of Judaism. Luke’s Gospel begins and ends in the temple. He is quick to point out to us that Jesus was raised in a home which meticulously observed the law of Moses. In today’s Gospel we hear about the trip that Joseph and Mary made to the temple forty days after Jesus’ birth. This was part of the ritual and tradition of their faith - the presentation and dedication of a first born son.

What happened in the temple that morning was extraordinary. Two different people saw Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus and immediately recognized him as the Messiah, the Son of God. Two people filled with the Holy Spirit separately confirmed what Mary and Joseph had been told by the angels in the announcements to them, and which Mary’s relative Elizabeth and her unborn baby had also proclaimed when Mary early in her pregnancy went to visit her.

We often hear that Christmas is for the children. But Simeon and Anna were both elderly persons who spent many many hours in the temple worshipping and praying. It had been revealed to Simeon that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah - and the Holy Spirit led him to identify the baby Jesus as the long awaited one. Simeon had hoped for and expected this day for many years, as had the rest of the Jews. However, Simeon’s proclamation revealed expectations of the Messiah which were different than those of the Jewish nation. Simeon prays to God, speaking beautifully of the child’s future. "My eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all the people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel." The Messiah has come not only for the Jews, but also for the Gentiles - for us!. Jesus will bring truth to light. However, as anyone who has ever turned on a light will realize, a light also creates shadows.

Jesus will bring truth to light, but will also create shadows. The light, the salvation will come but not without a great cost. This becomes clearer in Simeon’s remarks to Mary. "This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed - and a sword will pierce your own soul too."

There is a tendency and a desire among many of us to associate Jesus’ name only with what is positive, and satisfying, and blessed in life. We cherish the promises of Christ’s presence with us during times of difficulty. We embrace the promise of peace that Christ brings in times of sorrow. We grasp hold of the courage that Christ gives us in times of fear. Faced with indecision we seek guidance from the One who was, and is, and always will be - the One who brings light into darkness. When everything seems to be falling down around us and we aren’t even sure how to place one foot in front of the other, we have been known to wonder how people make it through such horrible times without knowing the presence of Christ with them.

We celebrate and relish the light which Christ brings, but we often try to overlook the shadows. As early as Jesus’ presentation in the temple, the shadows begin to appear. Luke weaves the dark threads into what has been a bright tapestry of hopes, inspired songs, and prophecy. Mary has already proclaimed some of the transformation that she knew would occur. She has sung about how God has chosen her, a lowly poor girl, for this incredible honor. She has proclaimed the powerful being brought down from their thrones and the lowly being lifted up; the hungry being filled with good things, and the rich being sent away empty. She has praised God’s great mercy and the promises that God made to our ancestors. But even she is probably not prepared for Simeon’s words, for his warning about the falling and rising of many in Israel, about the inner thoughts of many being revealed, and most of all, about a sword piercing her own soul too. In that reversal of nature which carries in it a pain unlike any other, the parent will bury the child.

The shadows come in the reminder that not all in Israel will accept the Messiah; not all in our world will believe him and accept him into their lives. An even greater shadow however, comes, I believe, to those of us who profess to believe, but then pick and choose what it is we wish to follow. There have been many horrible things done throughout history in the name of Christianity. There have also been many things not done because many of us who have believed have chosen to be comfortable and safe. We have thought that we were staying in the light, rather than venturing into the shadows, but in fact, we have lingered only on the edge of the light, reluctant or afraid to let all of our actions, and thoughts be exposed to the true light.

The child who comes in the silence of the Holy night, is also the one who hangs upon a cross and who comes forth from death leaving behind an empty tomb. He is the one who calls us to welcome the stranger in our midst, to honor the spirit of each of our sisters and brothers, to reach out in compassion and love to all of God’s children. He is the One who reminds us that there will come a day when we are called to account for our actions - when what we have done or not done for the least of God’s children will be treated as if we had done it or not done it for God.

When we celebrate Christmas we celebrate much more than a day of fancy food, decorations and gifts. In fact, if that were all we celebrated, I dare-say, it would not be worth the great effort we expend on it. We celebrate that God’s love came to us to bring peace - a peace that goes far beyond a lack of bombs and weapons. We proclaim that Christmas is a time of celebration not only for those who are happy but especially for those who are feeling crushed under life’s load, who toil along life’s path with steps that are painful and slow. For to all of us comes the message that this child is the Son of God, the one who is destined for the falling of many - but also for the rising of many - the one who will reveal to God - and also to ourselves, our inner thoughts. The One who comes seeking us in love and reaches out his nail-pierced hand to invite us to walk the path into a life of peace as only God can give.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Advent 4 - December 22, 2002

Text: Luke 1:26-38

Luke 1:46b-55

Romans 16:25-27

Title: Blessed with the Impossible

Five years ago at this time I was recuperating from surgery. Surgery that almost didn’t happen because of an impossible pregnancy. Or at least that’s what the pre-admission tests showed. My response was to laugh when the doctor’s office called - I was convinced that someone was playing a joke on me. It never occurred to me that it could even be a possibility - because I knew it was impossible. So, I went back to the hospital for more tests that proved that the tumor which was scheduled to be removed had gotten itself confused and was sending the wrong signals to my body. There was no pregnancy - I had known that all along.

It created some thoughtful moments though - here it was, a little over a week before Christmas. I was a Christian pastor who had just preached on the angel’s announcement to Mary about an impossible pregnancy. Of course there was a big difference - that was then, this was now. Mary had an angel come to tell her the news - I had a questionable lab report. Still, I thought if that were to happen again, who would ever believe it? I could see my ministry and life being destroyed - my life changed forever in ways that were not of my choosing or desiring. If it happened to someone I knew I’m reasonably certain I would not believe the story. But then again, being a Christian I believe that the Messiah has already come - I am not waiting for him to come - at least not in the way Jesus came over 2000 years ago.

We’ve heard Luke’s story of the angel’s announcement to Mary so many times that it’s easy for it to lose it’s mystery, it’s impact. It’s very difficult for us to imagine what it must have been like for Mary - a young girl to hear the words of the angel Gabriel. The Jewish people had been waiting for the Messiah - and waiting, and waiting. In fact, today, they still wait. In each time and place there is the hope that this will be the time when the Messiah will finally come. In the movie - and play - Fiddler on the Roof, there is a poignant scene near the end when all the families are being forced to leave their beloved village of Anatevka. Tevya almost prayerfully asks the Rabbi, "Rabbi, we have waited all our lives for the Messiah. Wouldn’t this be a good time for him to come?" The Rabbi replies, "We shall have to wait for him someplace else."

Mary and her family and friends lived with that same kind of yearning hope. But they had been waiting for a long time. It was a normal day and Mary was deep in the plans for her upcoming marriage to Joseph when everything changed. Here is God’s announcement that the Messiah is coming. It is an announcement complete with the angel to herald it - and not just any angel, but Gabriel! Announcements don’t usually call for a response. They are statements of immediate fact that concern everyone present. Yet, this announcement involves a conversation between Mary and Gabriel. It allows time for her to react, to question, to be answered, and assured. It allows for Mary’s response. She agrees to be part of things, to buy into the vision.

In Luke’s account, this appearance follows another announcement about another impossible or at least, highly improbable pregnancy. It is an announcement to Zechariah, the priest, that his wife Elizabeth, an old woman who has been childless will bear a child - a son - who will prepare the way for the Messiah.

In some ways, the two stories couldn’t be more different - an old couple, and an unmarried virgin. Yet, there are very close parallels. Both are stories of God’s initiative of grace and power. They are stories of God’s grace, that what is about to happen expresses God’s favor toward the world. They are about God’s power - God can work through the least likely of persons, in this case - an old couple and an unmarried girl. Elizabeth and Mary will have sons, not because of anything they have done, but because God is able and because God loves humanity.

Gabriel’s message to Mary - a message of the impossible - does not leave Mary to face this alone. "Think of the fear that must have gripped Mary. Her first reaction was, "You don't know what you are talking about. I am still a virgin." But Gabriel assured her that it was the work of the Holy Spirit. That God was with her. Her next thought must have been, "My father will kill me." It was hard enough to get a good girl married off but one that has lost her purity, that
will never do. But the Angel reassured her in a very special way. He said, your relative Elizabeth, in her old age, is going to have a child as well. It was a miracle, unlike Mary's but a miracle nonetheless. That's wonderful isn't it? God did not leave Mary alone in this miraculous event. Someone else in her family was going to experience the unexpected work of heaven in the womb."

But Mary's heart must have skipped a beat when her thoughts turned to Joseph. Fear has a way of gripping us, telling us that what we are about to do is impossible. Mary must have felt that way, even with all of Gabriel's convincing words. Mary surely thought that her fiancé Joseph would not endure the public disgrace. But an Angel appeared to him as well and told him not to fear. What a great surprise is Christmas. Joseph, do not fear to take Mary as your wife. Mary, do not fear, you have found favor with God. Zechariah and Elizabeth do not fear; your prayers have been heard. Do not fear! It's the great surprise of Christmas. God's great light coming into the world this season banishes the darkness and drives the
fear from our heart. As a final word of assurance to Mary, "the angel recalls the creed behind all creeds, the very words spoken to Abraham and Sarah when they doubted the word that they were to have a child: `For with God nothing will be impossible.’"

Abraham and Sarah had been blessed with the impossible. Zechariah and Elizabeth were about to be blessed with the impossible. Mary and the world would soon be blessed with the impossible. The least, the most unlikely choice was the one to be gifted with the blessing of the impossible. But then that is God’s way.

God chose a young shepherd boy named David to be the king of Israel - and it is from his family that the Messiah was to come - so we hear that Mary was "engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David." (Luke 1:27) Through Jesus, God chose an impulsive stubborn almost pig-headed fisherman named Peter to be the rock upon which the church would be built. A man who set out to kill the followers of Jesus was chosen to be the greatest missionary of the early church. After a dramatic experience on the road to Damascus Saul the persecutor became Paul the missionary evangelist. A woman exhausted after a long day of work, too tired to get out of her seat on a bus and stand in the back became a household name, Rosa Parks - the spark of the civil rights movement in this country. A quiet nun in Calcutta spent most of her life caring for those who were the least among the least - Mother Theresa was given the impossible to do and was blessed in the doing.

We all know others who have faced the impossible, people who have labored tirelessly or in spite of their tiredness, people who have in their own quiet way made a difference in the lives of others and probably wouldn’t even believe it if you tried to tell them about it. We know people - people like us - who have been blessed with the impossible. Blessed, because when the impossible comes to us - whether it is something sent from God as a challenge or something imposed upon us by external circumstances of the world, we are never left alone to face it. We are blessed with the presence of the One who came to us as part of God’s initiative of love.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Advent 1 - December 1, 2002

Text: Isaiah 64:1-9

I Corinthians 1:3-9

Mark 13:24-37

Title: Hope for the Future

During the four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I sometimes feel a bit schizophrenic, pulled in many different directions at the same time. There is a prayer that I use during this season that reminds me that this is a time when we worry if everything will get done, if relationships will blossom or break under the strain of all the pressures we place upon ourselves during this season.

While everyone is running around preparing for Christmas, we in the church call this the season of Advent which is a season of anticipation and preparation. As we lit the first candle in our Advent Wreath this morning we called it the candle of Hope. We all know what it means to hope for something - it always involves a period of waiting for the fulfillment of that for which we hope. The first definition in the dictionary says that to hope is "to desire with expectation of fulfillment." That is the quality of hope that we see in the Scriptures for today and the quality of hope with which we approach Advent. "Expectation of fulfillment."

During Advent we are certainly preparing for Christmas celebrations. So that our gifts may reach the children, teens and elderly connected with Project Outreach and with United Methodist Elder Care, we have our giving tree set up this morning. The children are practicing for the Christmas pageant and the choir is rehearsing Christmas music.

However, even while we are deep into our Christmas preparations, we remember that Advent is really a time of spiritual preparation for the indwelling of Christ in our lives in a new way. Father John Mack of SS Peter and Paul Antiochan Orthodox Church in Topeka Kansas warns, "Let us not become preoccupied with the external preparations so as to miss the preparation of the heart. Better a poorly trimmed tree than a poorly trimmed heart! Better an empty refrigerator than an empty soul!"

The prophet Isaiah hoped, yearned for God’s presence. "O that you would tear open the heavens and come down," he cries on behalf of everyone who yearns for God’s powerful presence - and in his case, particularly on behalf of the Israelites after their return from years of exile in Babylon. In his cry is also concern about whether or not the community of believers is ready for God to appear and for Jerusalem to be fully restored. We hear this in his plea, "we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand."

Clay has to be malleable in order to be worked. If it is too dry or too rigid it will crack or simply fall to pieces when the potter tries to work with it or change its shape. In the places of our life where we yearn for God’s presence, the question becomes are we willing to be changed? Are we willing to submit ourselves to God so that we can be changed? Are we willing to give our habits and our attitudes to God - willing to look at them and admit to where they are destructive to us or others? Are we willing to be molded by God’s life-giving and life-changing hands?

Each year I listen to people complain that Christmas has become too commercialized, that we spend far too much money on gifts for people who already have everything they need. By the time we get to Christmas Night we breathe a frustrated sigh and vow that next year will be different. But are we really willing to change - to be changed?

One of my favorite poets is Ann Weems. In a poem called "The Christmas Spirit" she wrote:

The Christmas spirit

is that hope

which tenaciously clings

to the hearts of the faithful

and announces

in the face

of any Herod the world can produce

and all the inn doors slammed in our faces

and all the dark nights of our souls

that with God

all things still are possible,

that even now

unto us

a Child is born!

That is what we proclaim as we light the Advent Candle of Hope. As we wait in this season we feel hopeful. Hopeful that this year things will be different. Hopeful that this year we will slow down and pay attention. Hopeful that this year we will put first things first - keep our priorities in order - remember why we really celebrate this season.

The apostle Paul in writing to the church in Corinth urged them to be faithful and hopeful in waiting for Christ’s return. Listen to the way Eugene Peterson expresses it in The Message and as you listen, think about Christmas and the gift giving and receiving and the busyness. "May all the gifts and benefits that come from God our Father and the Master, Jesus Christ, be yours. Every time I think of you - and I think of you often! - I thank God for your lives of free and open access to God, given by Jesus. There’s no end to what has happened in you - it’s beyond speech, beyond knowledge. The evidence of Christ has been clearly verified in your lives.

"Just think - you don’t need a thing, you’ve got it all! All God’s gifts are right in front of you as you wait expectantly for our Master Jesus to arrive on the scene for the Finale. And not only that, but God himself is right alongside to keep you steady and on track until things are all wrapped up by Jesus. God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure, shares with us the life of his Son and our Master Jesus. He will never give up on you. Never forget that."

Isn’t that the best Christmas present any of us could ever hope for - the sure knowledge that God has given us everything we truly need - and will keep us steady and on track if we are willing to be the clay and let God be the potter. We have the confident assurance that God does not give up on us.

In the face of whatever Herod’s the world can produce - in the face of impeding war, in the face of terrorism, in the face of illness, unemployment, loneliness, we wait with hopeful anticipation for the fulfillment of God’s promise once again every day.

Ann Weems writes:

The night is still dark,

and a procession of Herods still terrorize the earth,

killing the children to stay in power.

The world still knows its Herods,

but it also still knows men and women

who pack their dreams safely in their hearts

and set off toward Bethlehem,

faithful against all odds,

undeterred by fatigue or rejection,

to kneel to a child.

During Advent prepare your heart and soul for the presence of Christ in your life each and every day.

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November 24, 2002

No sermon this week due to special worship service.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

November 17, 2002 - Consecration Sunday

Text: I Thessalonians 5:1-11

*Matthew 25:14-30

Title: "It’s Not About Money"

Robert Fulghum, who wrote All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, says that he placed alongside the mirror in his bathroom a picture of a woman who is not his wife. That's risky business! Every morning as he stood there shaving, he looked at the picture of that woman.

The picture? The picture is of a small humped-over woman wearing sandals and a blue eastern robe and head dress (sari). She is surrounded by important-looking people in tuxedos, evening gowns, and the regalia of royalty. It is the picture of Mother Teresa, receiving the Nobel Peace Prize!

Fulghum said he keeps that picture there to remind him that, more than a president of any nation, more than any pope, more than any chief executive officer of a major corporation, that woman has authority because she is a servant.

We know about Mother Teresa and the work that she did in Calcutta. We know how she worked on the streets with sick and poor people in a ghetto amid stench, filth, garbage, disease, and poverty that was just unbelievable. We also know about the deep, warm glow on Mother Teresa's face and the deep, warm love in her eyes.
Mother Teresa described this as her mission, the way that she loved and served God. It is something she did faithfully for over 45 years. She considered it a privilege to be with the people whom God had given her to love. Obviously, we can't all be Mother Teresa, but we can all live in that spirit.

The Gospel passage is called the Parable of the Talents and it certainly sounds like it’s about money so the finance committee is probably trying to figure out what I’m doing today. It’s a great passage for Consecration Sunday but I think that while it’s partly about money, it’s more about how we live in the kind of spirit that Mother Teresa embodied. But then again, that is what stewardship is really all about - how we live in the Spirit of Christ, how we live in relationship with God.

The servants in the story were entrusted with a great amount of money. Even the one who received only one talent received the equivalent of 15 years wages for an average day laborer, today somewhere around $400,000. This servant who got into so much trouble with his master guarded his master’s property very well. In fact, he actually guarded it better than the other two servants who must have taken some serious risks with what was entrusted to them. They could have lost everything.

Did you notice how the third servant described his master - that he was harsh in his judgment, that he reaped where he had not sown. He was afraid of his master so he guarded the money very well, burying it in the ground until he could safely return every last penny of it. He got in trouble precisely because he was a guard; he was not a steward. A steward is not the owner, but is the manager. A steward is entrusted with the master’s possessions, but is expected to act on the master’s behalf and for the benefit of the household as a whole. The owner could be trusted to renounce a bad steward who placed the household in jeopardy simply to protect his own claims. This servant was filled with fear. Fear and guilt create guards - not stewards. Grace and love, create stewards.

During a financial stewardship campaign we have to recognize some hard truths. While we have responsibilities as a church to meet certain obligations, and the finance committee and Administrative Council are charged with the responsibility to help us be fiscally responsible - our stewardship campaign is truly not about money. People who tithe out of a sense of fear, afraid that God will be angry if they do not do so, are guards, no matter how much they give. Those who love God and God’s world, who respond out of gratitude for the grace of God, those people are stewards. The steward takes risks, the guard does not.

The steward acts as he or she believes Christ would, if he were here, believing that faithful behavior will bring Christ’s blessing. Phyllis Faaborg Wolkenhauer who has served parishes in North Dakota and Iowa, wrote a series of sermons for this season. In one of them, she reminds us that when Jesus told this story he used images of masters and slaves, money and investments to make his point about what God expects of his disciples. Jesus used images that people would understand.

She retells the story using images and illustrations that we, as twenty-first century Christians, can understand. I think she did a wonderful job of it, so I want to share her retelling with you.

"Jesus was preparing his disciples for the time when he would have to leave this world. He told them that his departure would not be permanent - that he would return. Before he left, he wanted to entrust each of his followers with his special talents. To one he entrusted the talent to teach. To another, the gift of compassion. To another, the ability to faithfully interpret the scriptures.

He entrusted his servants with the abilities to listen attentively to others, to make music, to be hospitable, to do acts of kindness, and to be understanding to those who are often misunderstood. One follower received five talents, another received two and the third disciple received one talent. Jesus instructed them to use what he had given them. He asked them to use their talents as often as they could. He promised that as they used them, others would come to know him and be saved. Then Jesus departed from his followers, for a long time.

When he returned, he called his disciples to him, and asked each person, one at a time, what he or she had done with the talent he had entrusted to them. The first was excited about what had happened when she used the gifts Jesus had given her. She said, "I used my talents to teach as often as I could. I taught children, young adults and the elderly all about you, Jesus. I was able to get through to them. They seemed to understand. At first I was a little afraid that I didn't know enough about you and about the Bible, but the more I taught, the more I learned. The more I used my gifts to help others come to know you, the better I got at it. I must have taught hundreds of people about God's love." Jesus responded, "Well done, my trustworthy follower! Because you have been so faithful with these talents, I will give you more abilities that will enable you to become an even better teacher. You will be able to reach still more people with my love on an even deeper level."

The second disciple was excited, too. His gifts of compassion and empathy had allowed him to touch the lives of people in a way he had never experienced before. He told Jesus, "When you entrusted me with the gifts of compassion and empathy, I was a little shocked. As I was growing up, people would always tell me that it wasn't manly to hug, or share feelings, or cry. But after you gave me the gift of compassion, I found myself wanting to reach out to my son, at times, with a hug rather than a handshake. I began noticing what other people were feeling and sometimes I had to hold back tears when someone was crying in my presence. I resisted those instincts for quite a while.

"Then I remembered. Before you left, you entrusted me with the gifts of compassion and you told me to use them. It took a while, but it finally dawned on me that you said if I hugged and felt and cried with people, they would come to know you. So I began trying to do as my instincts guided. At first I was kind of clumsy at it, and it made me feel nervous. But the more I expressed my compassion to others, the easier it got, and the better I became at being with people wherever they were." Jesus responded, "Well done, good and trustworthy disciple. The more you use your gifts of compassion, the more effective you will become at showing my love to others. Because you have been faithful with these talents, I will give you more."

Then the third disciple came to Jesus, head bowed low in reverence. He said, "All these years, I protected your talent to interpret the scriptures. I kept it to myself. I didn't discuss my insights with anyone, just in case I was wrong. I didn't want to upset you by leading people astray. I kept my mouth shut whenever there was a Bible study. I know that you wouldn't want people disagreeing, so even if I thought someone's interpretation of scriptures made your gift of salvation into something they could earn, I didn't say a word. I know that it makes you angry when people misuse the gifts that you give them, so I was careful not to use mine at all."

Jesus responded in anger, "I entrusted you with the talent of faithfully interpreting the scriptures so that you could help others learn more about me and my love. Just think how many people never heard my message of love and forgiveness because you wouldn't use your talent. All the people whom you encountered in your life who were questioning and wondering about me never experienced my presence because of you and your unwillingness to share your talent. You live your life as if I hadn't given you a thing. My work is too important to waste on such an unfaithful disciple. Because you have not been a good steward of the talent I have given you, I will take it away and give it to the teacher. She will use the ability to interpret the scriptures faithfully. She will use that talent to reach people with my love."

Notice the power of fear. The reason the servant didn’t risk was because he was afraid. Frequently we don’t respond to God, not because we don’t want to, not because we don’t have the gifts, but because we are afraid.

The more you use the talents that Jesus entrusts to you, the stronger those abilities will become. You will become better at what you do and more effective at proclaiming the Word of God. When you show faithfulness in the use of the gifts Jesus gives you, he will entrust you with still more. So go, good and trustworthy disciples. Use your abilities. Don’t hide your talents in the ground somewhere. Put them to work and be involved in proclaiming the love of Jesus!

Stewardship, discipleship is about being a faithful follower of Jesus Christ. It is not about measuring your ability. It’s about how much of your ability you are willing to use and how much of a risk you are willing to take when God calls you to faithful action whether it be in this church, or at home, at school, at work, or in the marketplace. It is about how you use all of the resources entrusted to you, in whatever measure you may have them, - your finances, your health, your brain, your sense of humor, your compassion, your ability to listen, and to speak. It is about how you use everything that makes you a child of God and a disciple of Jesus Christ.

May our prayer not be that of the Pew Potato who prayed, "Dear Lord, please leave me alone. Just let me sit here in my pew on Sunday, and Lord guard my seat. Please don't let anyone else try to sit here Lord... You know that's my seat and dear Lord please get me home quickly after the service on Sunday, before these church people try to recruit me to actually do something that I don't want to do. Lord make them understand that I'm happy and content just to show up on Sunday. Heavenly Father, thank you for hearing my prayer but I've got to Go! The Pastor was long-winded today and kickoff is only a minute away!! You understand. See you next Sunday Lord. Amen.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

November 10, 2002

Text: *Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-18

Psalm 78:1-7

*Matthew 25:1-13

Title: Choose This Day

Every time we turn around we are being asked to make choices. What to eat. What to wear. The cable company keeps adding new channels and more options. On the Internet there are millions of web-sites available to us. I went into Google - a search engine on the Internet to look for a piece of information the other day. For those who are not familiar with Google and search engines, it’s kind of like looking in the card catalogue at the library for a particular subject - but much more extensive. Anyway, Google came up with about 223,000 matches for my topic. My search might have been too broad because the first 20 or so didn’t even come close to giving me the information I needed. So I finally gave up. All of these options can be overwhelming.

It’s even true of religion. I understand that there are over ten thousand religious denominations in our country. If we wanted to, we could actually switch churches every two or three days.

In our country we’d like to have it all and we resent it when limitations are imposed upon us. However, the reality is that we have to make choices. We can’t say "yes" to everything that comes along. We have to choose where to focus our energy, time, and resources. Making a decision to do one thing closes out other possibilities.

This is especially true of our faith. Can we really say that we are Christians without giving up some contradictory behaviors? The story is told of a little boy at the beach. He walked up to a woman sitting on a blanket and asked her if she went to church every week. She said, "Yes". "Do you read the Bible?" asked the little boy. "Yes, I do," she replied. "Do you pray?" he asked. Again, she replied that yes, she prayed. Finally the little boy said, "Then would you please hold my quarter for me while I go swimming?" He expected certain kinds of behavior from someone who went to church, read the Bible and prayed on a regular basis. He expected that her faith would impact the way she acted.

Joshua knew that the most dangerous time for our faith is when we have many choices; when we are in a time of affluence and freedom. After slavery in Egypt the people of Israel had wandered in the desert for 40 years. They had finally crossed into the land where they would live. They had battled the inhabitants of the land and won. Things were going to get easier for them now. It is at that point that Joshua gathered them together and told them that they had to make a choice. They had to decide which God they were going to follow.

Would it be the God who had led them out of slavery? Would it be the idols - the gods - that the people around them were worshipping? Did they realize that this was a truly important decision? Joshua pressed them on it. Did they understand that they couldn’t have it both ways? Joshua goes on to tell them that the God they say they will worship is a jealous God and they had better be sure of their choice. We don’t like to hear about a jealous God - but we meet jealous gods all the time.

Do we understand that in a land of freedom and affluence it’s easy for us to become apathetic? Do we recognize that there are an abundance of gods for us to choose from? Money and possessions are jealous gods. When we worship them we want more and more of them until we might be willing to do anything for more money and more possessions. We all know the danger of worshipping the god of power. Nationalism is a jealous god. Even the god of being able to make choices won’t tolerate any situation in which we might give up some of our choices to someone else - for any reason.

Money, possessions, power, nationalism, the freedom to make choices, and the many other gods we might worship are not bad things. Much good can come from their proper use. But when they become our god, we are headed for trouble. Each year the major religious denominations report a decline in membership. When we have so many choices around us, when we have such freedom and affluence, it is easy to become lethargic about our faith. One of the basic commandments of our faith is, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and soul, and mind." A faith that demands our love, our heart and soul and mind cannot be just a hobby for the times when we have nothing else to do. A marriage or a true friendship cannot be strong if it comes after everything else. Our faith cannot be strong unless we make it the first priority in which and through which everything else has its meaning. It is so easy for us to relegate our faith to the margins of our lives instead of integrating it into the very core of our being. That was what Joshua was warning the Hebrew people about.

I think it’s also a big part of the message of the Gospel reading that we just heard from Matthew. This story of the ten bridesmaids is traditionally understood to be a story about the second coming of Jesus. But I think it’s also a story about our religious life. Sometimes our religious life begins with the thrill and joy of a party, with great enthusiasm. But then as time goes on, we face the challenges of what it means to be a Christian every day, day after day. There will come a time when we will be asked to give an account of our lives and at that time - if not long before - we will realize that the real question has been how have we lived on a daily basis. Our choices and decisions do make all the difference in the world.

The bridesmaids waiting by the side of the road made some decisions about the amount of oil they would bring with them. Some of them thought ahead and realized that they couldn’t count on everything going completely according to schedule - they had to be prepared for the unexpected. I think of that so often when I see people trying to make sense of life on the basis of a second grade faith. We would never send our children out into the world and expect them to be able to live a meaningful life based only on the skills they have learned through second grade.

Yet, so many of us do exactly that with our faith. And it might work, as long as everything goes according to schedule. It might work as long as life is just and fair. It might work if our spouse, children or we, ourselves, never get really sick. It might work if the love we give to others is returned in appropriate ways. It might work as long as we live in a fairy tale world. But in the real world where there are illnesses, unemployment, accidents, violence, discrimination, wars, limited resources and an abundance of need - in the real world, we need a faith that has grown beyond the second grade level.

We need a faith that is strong enough to light the way in the darkness. We need to use our faith and our resources to light the way of the coming Christ instead of making excuses. In this church, we work hard to light enough lamps so that we can glimpse what the coming celebration of God’s kingdom will be like. We work hard to light enough lamps so that at least some of God’s kingdom can be a reality in our world. We work hard to make sure that at least some people will not go to bed hungry tonight or have to rummage around trying to find a shelter.

We light our lamps and use our resources to provide some children in our town and around the world with bread, and our own children with a place where they know they are welcome, safe, loved, and accepted. We provide visits to persons who are alone and help to families going through difficult times. All of this takes resources. All of this involves making choices about what is most important in our lives.

This past week we went to the polls and cast our ballots for government leadership. When I was leaving the polls, I was asked to participate in the Channel 10 Exit Poll. After filling out the form, I was told to put it inside an envelope so that no one would know who I had voted for. I wondered what it means when we are so concerned with keeping our choice a secret.

If you look at your checkbook, you will also see a record of your choices. Will your check book show that you spent more on tickets to sporting events or entertainment than for the work of God? When you put your cash or check in the offering plate or in your envelope the only one who really pays attention to the amount is God - but that seems to me like someone of great significance.

I’ve never had this experience, but the story is told of a pastor who made an appeal in church for a great and worthy cause. A certain woman, "a member of the church, came to him and handed him a check for $50, asking at the same time if her gift was satisfactory. The pastor immediately replied, `If it represents you.’

"There was a moment of soul-searching thought and she asked to have the check returned to her. She left with it and a day or two later she returned handing the pastor a check for $5,000 and again asked the same question. `Is my gift satisfactory?’ The pastor gave the same answer as before, `If it represents you.’ As before, a truth seemed to be driving deeply. After a few moments of hesitation she took back the check and left.

"Later in the week she came again with a check. That time it was for $50,000. As she placed it in the pastor’s hand, she said, `After earnest, prayerful thought, I have come to the conclusion that this gift does represent me and I am happy to give it.’"

That is a question which each of us is asked to answer. Joshua places it before the people of Israel, "Choose this day whom you will serve." We answer it each day in the way we make choices, the way we use our resources of time, energy, talents, and money. We answer it each day in our behavior - does our faith make a difference in the way we act toward each other, in the way we reach out to our brothers and sisters? May Joshua’s response be ours: As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

November 3, 2002

Title: Lessons Learned from the Geese

Text: *Joshua 3:7-17

I Thessalonians 2:9-13

*Matthew 23:1-12

In a couple of days we will go to the polls to cast our ballots for those who will lead our state & town government for the next few years. We have heard debates and advertisements. We have heard what each candidate promises and doesn’t promise and what the opposing candidate thinks about him or her. If we don’t have any major glitches in the electoral process, if we mark our ballots correctly, and the machines read them correctly, we will know shortly after the polls close who the winners and losers in the election will be. Based on the results, we may have varying opinions about whether we, the voters, are winners or losers. It’s all part of the political process that we Americans have come to know and for which we feel varying degrees of support.

In our Gospel reading today, Jesus has a lot to say about leaders and authority. It sounds to us as if he is blasting those scribes and Pharisees - and in some sense he is. He readily affirms that they are good teachers. He says, "Do whatever they teach you and follow it." However, as a Jew and a follower of Judaism - an insider, rather than an outsider - he critiques their value as role models. "But do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach."

Jesus is big on let your actions truly reflect the words you speak. He has no patience with several practices of the Pharisees which he identifies. Eugene Peterson in The Message puts it this way: "The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God’s Law. You won’t go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don’t live it. They don’t take it into their hears and live it out in their behavior. It’s all spit-and-polish veneer.

"Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help.,,, They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions, preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees......"

I often wonder how Jesus would critique our political system. Or, an even more pertinent question for us might be, "How would he critique the leadership within the church?" It’s something I’ve been thinking about a lot recently as we prepare for our annual meeting and the nominating committee has been preparing their recommendations for next year. It’s something I’ve been thinking about as we begin our annual stewardship effort. As I’ve been thinking about it, I noticed the birds on the flyer that I hope many of you received this week. They remind me of the flocks of geese that we sometimes see flying overhead during the fall. I’m reminded that geese flying in formation is sometimes viewed as an image of the church - and when I think about it, I can understand why.

There are several lessons we can learn from the geese - lessons that are consistent with what Jesus is teaching about leadership. First, you have noticed that geese generally fly in a v-formation. Flying in formation this way helps geese fly an estimated 71% further than any one of them might fly alone. Air, moving from the flapping wings of the front goose, provides the goose behind with uplift. That says to me that we can do more together than any of us can do on our own. That’s a theme that we find in some of Paul’s letters to the early churches. He talks about a collection for the people in Jerusalem. He reminds the people in the churches that at times they have needed help and that now they are able to help someone else. That is a model for me of the connectional system which is part of the United Methodist Church. Many of us have come to dread the word apportionments. That term has been recently renamed so that it is now called "mission shares." It is a reminder that together we are able to do more than any of us can do on our own. Together we can support mission projects throughout the world. Together we can provide training opportunities that we could not afford alone. Together we can sponsor hospitals, retirement centers, schools of theology.

In the local church the value of being in a formation of some sort means that we can pool our ideas, a little work on the part of many people can produce wonderful results. Together we provide a Christian Education program available for everyone. Together we support a building where we gather for worship, for celebrations of new life, for the beginning of new families, for the times of grief at the death of a loved one, for study, for the celebration of the sacraments, for fellowship, for a base from which to go out into the community and world in mission.

Geese continually honk while flying in formation. Researchers believe this encourages the lead goose to maintain its speed. Sometimes we honk too. The question is are we honking words of encouragement or criticism? I’ve seen some wonderful examples of our honking encouragement. When a new ministry is proposed, I see people getting on board and supporting it. The Advent and Lenten Devotional booklets which many of us have come to look forward to have only been a part of our congregation for a few years. The Harvest Stew coming up next week is a great time of gathering, encouraging, and it’s also only a couple of years old. Big Cookie Cafe has provided us with some wonderful music and great fellowship - as well as delicious big cookies. That too is a new outreach and fellowship opportunity. These are not times of people seeking the place of honor as Jesus criticized the Pharisees of doing. They are times of companionship and inclusiveness. I’m pleased to say that I hear much more honking of encouragement here than I do of criticism.

When an individual goose is sick or injured and drops out of formation, two other geese will also drop out of formation and stay with the impaired goose until it regains its strength or dies. Only then will the other two geese rejoin their formation. When I think of this church, this is one attribute of the geese that I can easily identify. I’ve seen this congregation come together to raise money when one of our children faced a liver transplant. I’ve watched people pray week after week for a little boy known only to us as the nephew of one of our members and then saw spontaneous applause the week the baby was finally allowed to go home from the hospital. This congregation rallied around a family in need of multiple kinds of support during the last weeks of a terrible illness. Many times meals have gone to people who were ill. Prayer requests filled out by individuals here are prayed for by others. Cards are sent to people we know and people we do not know personally. I think this church does a really good job of supporting one another during times of illness or difficulty.

Jesus criticized the Pharisees for tying up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and laying them on the shoulders of others, and being unwilling to lift a finger to move them. We are not the ones laying burdens upon the shoulders of others, but we are tying to help lift them or help others while they carry them.

Finally, no goose leads the formation for the entire time it is flying. Each goose leads until it tires, then it falls back into the formation and another goose takes the lead. This is the piece I’ve thought about the most as the nominating committee has prepared its recommendations for next year. It is a big part of any stewardship effort. Stewardship involves much more than our financial resources - it includes the wise use of our time and abilities as well. In that area, there will be many changes in official positions of leadership. This church, as much as is practical, follows a three year rotation for many committees. That means that each year 1/3 of a committee is new to that area, the other 2/3 have 1 to 2 years experience in that specific ministry. In addition several others have requested to leave the positions they have held for varying lengths of time. In almost all cases though the person also said that he or she would like to do something different. In a few cases people are needing to take some time off and rest or focus on other concerns in their lives. This is a healthy way for leaders to be and we can be grateful that we have enough geese in the formation to take the lead while others are able to receive the benefit of the uplift from the air of other flapping wings.

As we begin our financial stewardship effort, this lesson from the geese is also true. Our financial situations change throughout our lives. There may be times when our jobs are secure and income is good, health is good and the demands upon us are quite manageable. At those times we are able to contribute more toward the ministry and mission of our congregation and the larger church. At other times, our job may be shaky, or non-existent, health problems consume a large amount of money, or the furnace breaks down the same day the car dies and the washer quits. When that happens we may need to cut back on the level of financial support which we can provide. We may be able to give back to God in other ways - through our time, or knowledge, or it may be a time when we need to simply stay in the formation and honk our encouragement.

In the Bible Jesus talked about a lot of common things to help people understand what he was trying to teach them. He talked about sheep, seeds, servants and vineyards to name a few. As far as I know, he didn’t talk about geese - and quite frankly I don’t really know if there are geese in Israel - but if he were talking with us about how we should be together as a church, I think he might well use geese as an example for us to follow. 

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

October 27, 2002

Text: Deuteronomy 34:1-12,

Psalm 90:1-6, 16-17

I Thessalonians 2:1-8

Matthew 22:34-46

Title: A Law to Balance Life

Some years ago, an older friend told me about her son’s interview for admission to medical school. In the middle of the interview, with all of the standard questions that one might have anticipated, came the totally unexpected. One of the interviewers said, "Sing a song for us." Without missing a beat, he sang, "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so." As he explained later, he was totally caught off guard and responded with the first thought that came into his head - a song that he had learned almost before he could speak.

In today’s Gospel reading the Pharisees questioned Jesus, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" In Mathew’s gospel this is to be seen as a test and comes in a series of challenges issued by various groups, each hoping to trick Jesus and to discredit him. Among some first century Jews it was believed that since all laws came from God they should all carry equal weight, and so it was considered sinful to argue that one commandment was more important than others. In other circles it might have been a standard and frequent debate - just as we might discuss what are the truly essential things to believe if you are to consider yourself a Christian.

Jesus’ answer was the equivalent of my friend’s son singing "Jesus Loves Me." Jesus quoted the Sh’ma, which means "hear or listen" from Deuteronomy 6:4-5. "Hear O Israel! The Lord our God the Lord is one! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might." That passage continues, "Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." (6:6-9) Jewish people did exactly that, it was - and still is - the first sentence to open Jewish worship. It was the first Scripture memorized by children. It was prayed many times during the day.

Then Jesus quoted another law found in Leviticus 19:18 "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." Love of God. Love of Neighbor. Love of Self. Three points of commitment - of action - of life. In Matthew we read, "On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." Jesus had said that he did not come to destroy the Law, but to fulfill the Law - and this was the Law which he lived.

"The law of love is the law that governs Jesus’ life. It is the law that has him break Sabbath rules and heal on the holy day. The law of love causes him to touch the untouchables, eat with sinners, befriend prostitutes, and restore all of these to community and into relationship with God. This law of love is also our calling and is the heart and soul of our faith."

Loving God, loving neighbor and loving ourselves might not be too difficult - at least in theory - particularly if we can decide who we call our neighbor. It might be easy to be nice to the person who is nice to us. However, if we ask, "who is my neighbor?" we might not like the answer. A lawyer asked Jesus that question in the 10th chapter of Luke’s gospel. Jesus responded with a story, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead." This is the well known story of the Good Samaritan where it turns out that the man who is neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers was the one who showed him mercy. The catch was that this man was a Samaritan - a despised group of people.

The commandment to love your neighbor as yourself becomes much more difficult if our neighbor is someone whom we despise. Does our neighbor include John Allen Muhammed and John Lee Malvo, the men who have been arrested and charged with murder in the Washington Area sniper case? Does our neighbor include the terrorists who flew airplanes into the towers of the World Trade Center and the Pentagon? Does our neighbor include Saddam Hussein? I believe that yes, these people are our neighbors. In that case, what does it mean to "love your neighbor"?

It’s important, I believe, to understand what Biblical love is - and what it is not. In English we use the word "love" to mean many degrees of attachment - everything from a parent’s love, to romantic passion, to a fondness for chocolate. In Greek there are different words for different kinds of love - and the kind of love here is not a warm fuzzy feeling. It is agape - not a feeling of affection, but a commitment - a stubborn, unwavering commitment. To love our neighbor - including our enemies - does not mean that we must feel affection for them. To love the neighbor is to imitate God by taking their needs seriously.

These two commandments involving loving God, loving neighbor and loving self are interconnected and, as I understand them, interconnected to a point where they cannot be separated. They are like the three legs of a tripod. When any one leg is longer - or shorter - than the others it is out of balance. Let’s think about that for a few minutes.

There are some people who seem to love themselves so much that we might say that they are full of themselves. They think that everything they have is because they deserve it. If others are lacking financial resources it must be because they are lazy or careless. They do not see any reason to help those who are less fortunate - and often do not even acknowledge their existence. Such people seem to think that they are the center of the universe - that everything that happens relates to them. If there is an accident on the highway the only concern is about how it will make them late. They are like this conversation overheard between a 6 year old who asked a 5 year old, "Are you in Linda’s room at school?" The other child replied, "No, I’m not. But she’s in my room!" Love of self without love of God or love of neighbor makes life unstable or at best lop-sided.

There are people who love God - or think that they do. They may read the Bible faithfully and prayer fervently. They may attend worship regularly and keep all the commandments. Actually, that was what the Pharisees were doing. They were experts in understanding and following the law of God. What Jesus wanted them to understand was that loving God meant much more than eating the right kinds of food and observing the Sabbath rules

When we love God, we love the things that God loves. We love the people whom God loves. We are committed to doing what is best for all involved - what would be consistent with the will of God. When we look at Jesus we discover that this includes not only the ones we want to love - but also those whom we consider unlovable. In Jesus’ day this included the Samaritans, the tax collectors, the prostitutes and even a Roman Centurion and his family. Loving our neighbor involves thinking of them as people who are also valued by God - not just as people somewhere "out there."

In Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians he described this kind of love. He wrote, "So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us." Paul makes a distinction that loving our neighbor in this way doesn’t necessarily mean doing what they want - it means doing what God wants. He wrote, "we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts."

We can readily identify that there have been times when we have said or done something that another person didn’t like, but that we knew we had to do out of our love for that person and our love for God. Those who are parents will be quick to recognize that there have been times when we have prevented our children from doing something that they wanted to do because we loved them enough to know that it was dangerous or not in their best interest. Loving one’s neighbor - whether individually or corporately - does not mean we let our neighbor do whatever they want or that we give them anything they want. Even more it does not mean that we sacrifice our own well-being out of a misplaced sense of self-sacrifice or even worse out of a lack of love for ourselves - thinking the other more important and more valuable in the eyes of God than we are. This is a trap that all too many of us have fallen into. In many ways it is something that has been taught to us as a false sense of humility - something that Good Christians do because we are supposed to care about other people. In many societies - and often in ours - women especially, have been taught openly and subtly that their primary purpose is to make others happy. Judith Duerk in her book Circle of Stones writes about women, but I suspect that what she says could be applied to many men as well. "Woman has learned to ignore her own feeling needs, learned to be a `good sport’ hurrying along in a pressure-filled production-oriented life. She has learned to brush her feelings aside as she pushes ahead for university honours, to pack them out of her briefcase as she heads, in a three-piece suit, into the professional and political realm. "

Then she asks, "What if a woman trusted her own tears enough to listen to them, to make real changes in her individual schedule, and to see if those changes spread to her office, her committee, her religious group?"

I would ask, what if women and men were to truly understand how much we are loved by God and then to love ourselves. Wouldn’t that make a difference in the way we relate to other people and the way we love other people? Wouldn’t that make a difference in the way we love our neighbor?

Love God. Love neighbor. Love yourself. These are the three legs of a law that can balance our lives - a law which calls out the best in us and helps us to walk in the way Christ calls.

On my desk at home is a small rock with the word "Balance" on it. That has become a kind of watch word for me through the years and something that helps to keep me from running off too quickly in any one direction - or calls me back to the center when my life gets out of balance. Jesus response to the Pharisees question, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest" is one which when lived and acted upon can balance our lives. "`You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’" This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: `You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."

Let us pray:

O God, you teach us to love you with all our heart, and soul and mind, and love our neighbors as ourselves. Because you have loved us so perfectly, we can do no less than obey this, the greatest of your commands.

Plant your Spirit in our hearts so that: we provide a fresh chance to those whose hope is gone; we accept people on the content of their character, rather than the color of their skin; and we release old hurts, forgiving those who have wronged us.

Let your love grow within us so that: we recognize our neighbor’s burden, and lend our strength to their need; we have compassion on those drowning in sin, no longer treating them as filth to be swept away; we meet violence with peace and anger with patience.

You are love, O God, and everyone who loves is born to you and knows you. Each morning brings a new day for writing your message of love to the world. May we be faithful scribes, accurately translating your hold essence, O Author of Perfect Love. Amen.

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Sunday October 20, 2002 is not available online

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

October 13, 2002

Text: *Exodus 21:1-14

*Matthew 22:1-14

Title: Who Will Be Your God?

When life gets difficult where do you turn? Where do you go to make sense out of confusing situations? For those of us who take our faith seriously there often comes a time when we find ourselves asking, "Where is God?"

We might learn something from the story of the Hebrew people in our reading from Exodus this morning. They had been slaves in Egypt but God had rescued them and brought them out of slavery. They were learning how to be a people on their own and the road was often bumpy. They complained frequently to their leader Moses about lack of food or water - and each time, God met their need.

But in today’s reading, they have become frustrated yet again. They have been camped in one place for a long time and Moses isn’t with them. He went up the mountain to talk with God and he hasn’t come back. It seems to them that even God may be gone - they no longer see the thick cloud that has gone before them during the day or the pillar of fire that went ahead of them at night signifying God’s presence. Of course, the daily provision of manna continued - the seed or grain they gathered off the ground each morning and made into bread - but apparently they have become so accustomed to it that they no longer remember that this is a gift from God, a sign of God’s presence and provision for them.

They were experiencing probably the greatest of all human fears - the fear of being abandoned - of being left totally alone to find their way. They wanted a god who would be with them - a god they could count on - a god they could see.

So they went to the second in command, Moses’ brother Aaron, and demanded that he build them a god that would always be with them - a god they could count on - a god they could see. Aaron had them bring all the gold they had taken from the Egyptians. He melted it down and built them a god - a golden calf.

It may sound ridiculous to us to substitute a golden calf for God, but we need to ask ourselves who, or what do we make our god? When towers came crashing down - where did you turn? When the doctor says the word "cancer" where do you run? When our congress authorizes military action against Iraq, and a sniper kills people in what appear to be random attacks, where do you place your trust? How do you make sense of what’s happening?

The life of faith is a lot like this episode. "If you are serious about your faith in God and your understanding of who you are - and who God is, eventually you will experience this crisis in your own journey. The question is will you seek something less, something easier than a relationship with God, and set up for yourself a system that is concrete, a golden calf? Or will you let God be God and let the ambiguity remain, fighting off the desire for everything to make sense and be easily understood?"

I often think of a professor I had in Seminary. Jerry Handspicker is a brilliant man who, among other things, did a lot of work relating to the effects of gambling. He told us that one day a woman came to him and asked him a question about evil in the world. Now, quite frankly, as you well know, you can’t put the answer to that question on a bumper sticker. Jerry responded, "I don’t know." The woman became quite agitated and said, "You have to know. You’re a Seminary professor. You should know the answer." Jerry simply responded, "Yes, I am a Seminary professor. I have struggled with that question for many years, and I have earned the right to say, `I don’t know.’" Jerry knew that there are some things that we, humans, simply cannot explain. There are some unknowns with which we simply have to live.

We can try turning to the golden calf of possessions, social status, financial security, military might, diplomacy, patriotism or any thing else. But there will come a time when we will have to recognize that they are only golden calves. They do not provide the manna - the nourishment for every day. They do not give us the answers to the really tough questions of life. When Cibby decorated our altar for today, she took several golden calves and placed them in a garbage can to show that there comes a time when we must discard the golden calves and turn to the One True God - the Creator of Heaven and Earth.

While Aaron and the Hebrew people were making a golden calf, they apparently forgot that their very freedom from Egyptian slavery and the food they were eating each day came to them from God.

The story as we have it in Exodus tells us that God saw what the people were doing and became very angry - so angry that God threatened to destroy them. There’s one of the pieces of the story that we don’t like - one of the pieces that doesn’t make sense to us. Yet, how quickly some people have used this to explain what happens in our lives. I’ve heard people say that the reason they have contracted a terrible disease is because it is a punishment from God. You probably remember after September 11th, that certain well known preachers claiming to speak for God, said that the events of that horrible day were God’s punishment on us as a nation for turning away from God, for allowing abortions, accepting homosexuality, and a variety of other activities. One of the important things that I believe they overlooked, was that God did not destroy the Hebrew people . There was a turning from divine justice to divine mercy. God’s action is compassion rather than judgment.

Are there consequences for us when we turn away from God, when we build golden calves? Absolutely! But the consequences are not a result of God’s wrathful judgment or desire to get even or hurt us, but rather the effects of putting our trust in something that will let us down, that cannot truly be counted on in times of trouble.

Moses stands as an example of an appropriate way to handle the difficult times in a relationship - and especially in our relationship with God. According to the story, God told Moses that He would destroy the people and build a new nation from Moses. Moses had been through the ringer with these people. He had been frustrated more than once. There were times when he pleaded with God to act because we was afraid the people would kill him. It might have seemed attractive to say, "yes, let’s get rid of them and start all over again." but Moses didn’t do that.

Moses argued with God. The Psalm says that Moses "stood in the breach". In ancient times most cities had walls built around them to protect them from invaders. When a hole was finally made in a wall, when a crack or opening appeared wide enough for men to get through there would be those who would run from inside to fill the hole, to fight to protect the hole so that the enemy could not get through. It was a dangerous place to be but an absolutely necessary one if the city were to be saved. Moses stood in the breach, he took the risk of facing God and arguing with God. He refused to throw up his hands and walk away. He refused to take the easy way out. Moses had the courage to stay in the tension and confront God.

The Psalms have many passages of people questioning or arguing with God. Most of the prophets argued with God from time to time. The readings of the early church mothers and fathers are full of people questioning, arguing, struggling to stay in the tension. It is such an important thing to be able to question God, to talk to God, that I suspect our ancestors had some of this in mind, when they insisted that this nation be based on the right of all citizens to have freedom of speech.

There have been times in the history of the church and in branches of Christianity where we have acted as if it were a sin to question God. There have also been times in our country when we have challenged those who dare to speak out. I was struck by a statement that Bob Edgar the General Secretary of the National Council of Churches made on a show with Bill Moyer Friday night. He said, "It is very loyal in the United States to speak your mind, to voice objections. That’s not Un-American, it’s very American." We might remember that it is also not Un-Christian to question God, to express our frustration and our concerns - it is very Christian. Indeed, we remember that hanging on the cross, at one point, Jesus cried out, "My God, My God, why have you forsaken me." These are also the words of Psalm 22. Questioning God is often an important part of honest prayer and Moses gives us a great example.

If we were to read on further in Exodus we would discover that one of the results of Moses debate here with God is a deepening of their relationship, not a fracturing of it. When we encounter God, when we engage in debate with God we discover that our relationship with God becomes stronger, deeper, something we can depend upon even more than before. To my way of thinking, this is preferable to choosing the easier way out as the Israelites did, by choosing a lesser level of intimacy, choosing a different god, We are changed by any encounter with God.

I think that’s an important clue to understanding the last part of today’s Gospel - the story of the wedding banquet - another piece of Scripture that can be very confusing, very tempting to leave alone. In fact, it’s precisely because it can be so easily misunderstood that I dare not skip over it today. In the story Jesus told, everyone is invited to the banquet - just as everyone is invited into a relationship with God. Some could not be bothered. Some had made their own golden calves that were more important to them. Many came - and they all donned the wedding garment - all except one person.

Some of the commentaries tell me that when a king threw a banquet, he would provide the guests with the appropriate wedding garment. In that case, there are only two reasons why the guest in Jesus story would not have been wearing a garment. The most obvious one is that he refused to put it on. This was a concern that Matthew had about the people to whom he wrote the gospel. Some of them were claiming to believe in Christ but were living immoral lives, breaking all of the rules, treating others unfairly, and in general failing to make any changes in the way they lived. As Matthew records Jesus’ story, those people who rebel, who refuse to live their lives according to God’s directions will find themselves on the outside looking in.

The only other reason I can think of for the guest to not wear the wedding robe provided by the king was that perhaps he didn’t see it when he came in, or didn’t understand the importance of wearing it - or in our language, the importance of being clothed in Christ’s attitude of grace, mercy, and love.

Maybe he didn’t know about the robe - just as many people do not know about God’s grace. I wonder whether any of the other guests cared enough about him to tell him about the robe, to show him how a wedding guest was expected to behave.

When I was little I remember adults in the congregation who taught me how to worship. My grandmother used to help me find the page in the hymnal and showed me the words, even when I couldn't read them well enough to keep up. My mother taught me to fold my hands when it was time to pray. There were Sunday School teachers who taught me how to live on Monday through Saturday and my parents reinforced those lessons at home. They were all teaching me how a young Christian was supposed to live.

When we first come into the banquet, the wedding garments may not fit very well. They may seem uncomfortable. But as time goes on, we discover that we grow into them and they begin to feel more like garments we want to wear all the time.

We discover that like Moses we are changed by our encounter with God. Like the Hebrews we may forget all that God has done for us, and start looking for, or creating other gods to be with us. There are many good things in our lives, and we should celebrate them. However, they are not God, and they should not come before God. When God comes first in our life, then the other pieces will fall into place. When God is first then we will give our families, our health, our jobs, and all the other good things, the respect and the priority which they deserve - but we will not let them become our god.

When we come to the Lord's banquet, when we come to worship the God who gives us life, let us take the time to clothe our hearts and minds in the garments of hope, humility, faith and reverence as we approach God. If Christians gathered here and everywhere were to really prepare ourselves for worship with prayer, self-examination, and an openness to the Holy Spirit, then worship would be worship indeed - the kind of worship in which and through which things happen in our souls and in the life of the Church and in the affairs of the world.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

October 6, 2002 - World Communion Sunday

Text: Exodus 20 selected verses

Philippians 3:4b-14

Matthew 21:33-46

Title: "One Day of Unity - A World of Hope"

"When we return to the source, what do we find? A table of welcome; bread and wine.

"Here is the place of our returning, where we live our deepest hope, the image of God that we give birth to: a table of welcome and joy. Here is where the lowly gather, a place where the last are first. The humble rejoice and are glad. Our God is present in our midst....

"When we return to the source, what do we find? A table of welcome; bread and wine."

These are the words of a song by the Monks of Weston Priory in Vermont. In profound, yet simple words, they express a foundational truth of our faith. The Source from which we draw strength, and to which we need to keep returning, is this table, a table of bread and wine, a table where all are welcome, a table where we remember and celebrate what Christ did for us.

Today, as you know, is World Communion Sunday. It is a day when Christians all around the world celebrate Holy Communion. This particular day of celebration came out of one of the darkest times in our history. "World Communion Sunday was born out of the misery and deprivation of the Great Depression. In the winter of 1935, a group of Presbyterian ministers met to discuss the church's response to the tragedy. The result was the first World Communion Sunday, celebrated Nov. 1, 1936. The offering that day was dedicated to the relief of the suffering of the dispossessed. In the early 1940s, the observance of World Communion Sunday crossed denominational lines, and the stewardship generated by the special day helped to alleviate the deprivations resulting from a world gone mad with war."

In some ways, the conditions don’t sound very different than we find them today. When our newpaper headlines remind us that weapon inspections, ultimatums, and threats of violence on an international scale, we need more than ever to return to our source.

This is one day, when we Chrisitans throughout the world unite. Within our own churches and our own denominations, for this day at least, we return to the source, we proclaim our unity as the Body of Christ. We remember that we worship the God who has always provided for God’s people. The Israelites learned this in the desert when God provided them with manna (the food which they were to gather and eat each day) as they journeyed through the desert.

Despite God’s provision for them, they constantly complained and grumbled. Eventually, God called Moses up to a mountaintop where Moses was given instructions or laws to help the people live together in harmony with God and with each other.

The Ten Commandments, which we heard today, were not a set of abstract regulations thundered down from the mist-shrouded heights of Mount Sinai by some tyrant of a God. On the contrary, they came from the same God who heard the Hebrews crying out in their captivity, who reached down with merciful hands so that these people could be lifted up, and who lovingly bestowed the gift of life on those struggling to find any meaning in their own. The Commandments are direct and intensely personal.

They were not intended to be reference material for people to go to when life became complicated. They were intended to be remembered, to be repeated, to be taught to the children and to be lived. They are not about a set of rules to follow, but about a relationship. A relationship which is both vertical, between God and us, and also horizontal, between each of us. They are theological and social. They tell us about God and about how we should live, because God has created us, brought us out of slavery, and desires a relationship with us. They offer us an opportunity for life, both with God and with each other. As the Psalmist proclaims, the laws of God are more desirable than the finest gold and sweeter than the purest honey.

These are the commandments from the God who gives us life. but as we well know humanity has not always accepted that life. We have not always lived in a relationship with God, and through the years, people have responded to God’s commands not with love and unity but often with division or violence. Fortunately for us, God did not give up!

God continued to send authorized representatives despite the hostility and opposition of humanity. Throughout the Old Testament we read of the prophets sent by God to remind people about the God who created them, who rescued them from slavery, brought them to freedom and wants a continuing relationship with them.

Like the servants in today’s Gospel, the prophets sent by God were often seized, killed, stoned, ostracized, and in some cases simply ignored. Still God didn’t give up.

Finally God sent his son with the hope that humankind would recognize the rightful authority of God in the presence and person of God’s Son. There were some who listened, just as there have always been some who listened to the prophets before him. But still, our ancestors acted most disrespectfully toward God by rejecting and killing Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God.

You'd think that would be the last straw. Who could blame God for responding by sending fire and disaster upon the earth? Who could blame God for destroying the earth and all of its people and starting over again? Jesus told this story because he knew that he had already been rejected and would soon be killed. Jesus wanted us to know, that even this action would not be enough to cause God to turn away from us.

Hear his strange words, "The stone that the builders tossed aside is now the most important stone of all. This is something the Lord has done, and it is amazing to us." (Matthew 21:42) God does not get reasonable revenge; God's ways are not our ways. Humans may reject God's son, even killing him, but God is not bound by human actions. Indeed, God took the very one rejected by humanity and exalted him in a most amazing way.

God reached beyond the people who were then called God's people, and reached out in love and grace to all of humankind. God caught all of us in a wonderful grip of grace, in a way that we can't fall beyond God's love - although we still have trouble hearing that message and living in that grace.

Francis Dorff told a story of a large monastery which had fallen on hard times. "In years past, the abbey had housed many young monks eager to follow God; the sanctuary had resounded with choral anthems and Gregorian chant; and each Sunday a steady stream of villagers traveled from the surrounding countryside to be nourished in prayer and praise. Now only a handful of monks remained, shuffling aimlessly through the cloistered hallways, weary and discouraged. The sanctuary - once filled with worshippers - echoed only an eerie silence.... And those few visitors who ventured to the abbey on Sunday mornings came more out of curiosity than conviction.

"On the edge of the monastery woods, an old rabbi had built a small hut. From time to time, he would go there to fast and study Scripture. No one ever talked to him, but whenever he appeared, the word quickly passed from monk to monk: `The rabbi walks again in the woods.' For as long as he resided there, they would feel sustained by his presence.

"One day the abbot decided to visit the rabbi and open his heart to him, As he approached the tiny hut, the abbot was surprised to see the old man already standing in the doorway, his arms outstretched in welcome. Although the two of them had never met before, they seemed to share a special kinship, and soon were conversing like long-lost brothers.

"`I wanted to express my gratitude,' the abbot confided. `We have felt the strength of your prayers at the monastery.' The old rabbi nodded, `I know that your ministry has not been an easy one.' The abbot stared at the ground in silence. For awhile neither of them spoke. `You have come seeking my advice?' the rabbi finally asked. `Yes,' the abbot admitted.

"`Then I will give you a teaching that has been revealed to me,' he said cautiously, `but you can only repeat it once. After that, no one must mention it aloud again.' The abbot looked intently at the old man. Taking a deep breath, the rabbi moved closer - almost as if the weight of his message demanded leaning forward. With a low voice, he whispered, `The Messiah lives among you.'

"`What do you mean?' the abbot started to ask. But the rabbi shook his head, `That's all I can tell you. You must go now.' Still puzzled by the statement, the abbot reluctantly got up and left without a word.

"The next morning he gathered the monks together. `I have received a teaching from the rabbi who walks in the woods.' the abbot explained, `but you must promise never to speak of it again.' Everyone agreed. `The rabbi told me that one of us is the Messiah!'

"A startled hush fell over the room, as the monks looked questioningly at one another. The could scarcely believe what they were hearing. In accordance with the rabbi's wishes, though, nothing more was said concerning the strange message, and they quickly dispatched to their work. But secretly, the monks wondered to themselves: `Can it possibly be true? The Messiah is one of us? Who might it be? Is it Brother John? or maybe Thomas?'

"Nobody really knew for sure. However, as time went on, the monks began to treat each other with a very special reverence. There was a gentle, warmhearted quality about their life together, which, while difficult to describe, was easy enough to notice. Indeed, occasional visitors found themselves deeply moved by the evident love they saw exhibited at the monastery. Gradually people started to worship there again on Sunday mornings to be nourished in prayer. The sanctuary resounded once more with anthems of praise. And countless young men, eager to follow God, asked to become a part of the abbey."

Isn't that a beautiful story? Here we have a community of people who discover the wondrous truth that obeying the Lord and serving each other go hand in hand - that loving one's neighbor is an expression of love for God. This is the truth to which the Ten Commandments Point. This is what gives us our identity as God's people. The Ten Commandments and God's actions are signs of grace. We are not defined by what we do, but rather by what God has already done. "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery .... Therefore you shall....." This is the truth which the prophets proclaimed. This is the truth which Jesus lived. This is the message of World Communion Sunday, as we return to the source and gather together as brothers and sisters around the table of our Lord.

The Gentle hands of God reach out to each and every one of us - not to shake us down and scare us into obedience - but rather to lift us up, embracing us with the offer of life itself. This is the God who gives and keeps on sending messengers to us, to help us understand and accept the gift of God's love and grace extending to each and every one of us.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

September 29, 2002

Text: Exodus 17:1-7

Philippians 2:1-13

*Matthew 20:1-16

Title: Grumblers and Grace

"In some parts of Mexico hot springs and cold springs are found side by side - and because of the convenience of this natural phenomenon the women often bring their laundry and boil their clothes in the hot springs and then rinse them in the cold ones. A tourist, who was watching this procedure commented to his Mexican friend and guide: `I imagine that they think old Mother Nature is pretty generous to supply such ample, clean hot and cold water here side by side for their free use.’ The guide replied, `No, senor, there is much grumbling because she supplies no soap.’"

The Israelite people had experienced the wonderful miracle of being led safely out of Egypt, being set free from slavery. In our reading last week they complained that they should have stayed in Egypt rather than go out into the wilderness to die of starvation. In an incredible miracle that lasted for many years, the Bible tells us that God provided manna - a kind of seed or grain that could be made into bread. Each day a new supply was available to them. On another occasion they complained because the water they found was bitter, but God showed Moses how to make the bitterness go away. In today’s reading they are complaining yet again that there is no water.

Now, I certainly understand the need for water and their concern - however, as Moses tried to point out to them, God had brought them out of Egypt. God had set them free from slavery. God provided food for them every day. There was ample evidence of God’s intentions toward them so they could know that God was not going to let them die of thirst in the desert. Moses asked, "Why do you test the Lord?" The result we see is yet another miracle. Moses is instructed to strike a rock and water pours out of it. Moses called the place "Massah and Meribah" meaning "testing and quarreling" because they quarreled and tested the Lord saying, "Is the Lord among us or not!" Fortunately God had a lot more grace and patience with them than they had with God, otherwise God might have left them to fend for themselves in the desert in return for their ingratitude and grumbling.

The Israelites were playing a game that is very popular among humans. Eric Berne, in his book Games People Play, says it’s one of the most popular games ever. It’s called "Ain’t it awful." Take away that game and some people don’t know what to do. When faced with God’s grace in every corner of our lives, we manage to find the one place where we think it’s not - and focus on that.

Jesus told a story in which the participants played that game well. In the verses that precede today’s Gospel, Peter had asked Jesus, "We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?" Have you ever asked yourself or God that question? What’s the point? What’s in it for me?

Jesus’ answer to Peter was given in three parts. First he promised the apostles a spectacular reward. Then he applied that reward to all who followed him, reminding them of the sacrifices made by other followers. The apostles were not to overestimate what they had done!

Then came the third part of Jesus’ answer which we just read - the parable of the Workers in the Vineyard. For many people this is not a "feel good" parable. Many of us, if we are honest, will find ourselves identifying with the workers who were hired first. We will find ourselves, with them, complaining that it wasn’t fair to pay the same wage to the workers hired later in the day - especially those hired during the last hour. It doesn’t match our sense of fairness. The workers hired during the last hour did not deserve the same wage as those who had been hired in the morning and had worked under the hot sun all day.

But Jesus’ story isn’t about fairness. It’s about giving people what they need. All of the workers in the parable needed a wage which would give them enough money to buy food for their family for the next day. Anything less than the normal daily wage would have meant hunger. They may not have deserved a full day’s wage for working half a day, or only a few hours, or even just one hour. They didn’t deserve it. But it was what they needed. The landowner had the right to give each person what was needed, even if it was more than they deserved - much much more. Giving the workers hired later in the day a full day’s wage did not take anything away from the wage which those hired in the morning received - the wage for which they agreed to work.

This is a parable about what we need - not what we deserve. It is a story of God’s grace - given to each of us, whether we have been working in the vineyard all day, or only a few hours. It is not about what we deserve - because if the truth be told - we do not deserve God’s grace. We cannot earn God’s grace - no matter how many hours - days - weeks - months - years we work in God’s vineyard.

This parable makes the reward that Jesus’ disciples were looking for far less important than God’s grace. Yes, the sacrifices of the apostles and other followers of Jesus would be honored by God, but the reward would be so much greater than what they deserved that it could be seen only as sheer grace. Some of us may feel that our years of serving God should qualify us for a higher or greater rate of pay in God’s kingdom, but if we are honest with ourselves and with God, we will realize that everyone of us are like the eleventh hour workers. Not one of us deserves the glorious future that God has prepared for us.

It’s kind of like going shopping for a car knowing that all you can afford is a small used car - something dependable enough to get you back and forth to work. You go to the dealer and instead of the car you can afford, he brings out one far more luxurious than you can imagine. It’s not a mistake. It’s yours! It is a gift - an incredible, unbelievable, and totally undeserved gift. That is God’s grace. That is the future that God has prepared for us.

And it’s not only about the future. It’s not just about heaven. It’s about yesterday. It’s about today. It’s about tomorrow. It’s about knowing God’s presence in our lives everyday - every minute of every single day. It’s about knowing that we never have to face anything alone because God is always with us - to comfort us, support us, sustain us, guide us, love us, forgive us, and walk with us every step of every day.

Instead of grumbling with the workers in the vineyard, or with the Israelites in the desert, our attitude should be one of gratitude; of celebrating God’s great gift of grace to us. Grace and fairness are not at all the same thing. If we had to choose, we would come out ahead if we picked grace over fairness. Do we really want to be given what we deserve. when God is standing by waiting to give us so much more? We spend our time grumbling about what someone else was given, when the miracle is that we have been given what we need for the day - for life - for the future.

How easy it is for us to grumble to ourselves or to others when newcomers to the church, or recovering alcoholics, or ex-convicts, or people who are different than us receive more recognition than we who have worked so long and so hard. Such resentment can be overcome only by fixing our gaze on the goodness of God who is generous to all.

A life with Christ at the center is so full of meaning - so full of grace - that we will want others to have that same experience. We will rejoice when someone else comes to know Christ. We will celebrate when others recognize and accept the gift of God’s grace in their lives. We will applaud like crazy when someone else receives what they need rather than what they deserve.

As workers in the vineyard, we are called to live the way Paul described in his letter to the Philippians. The accomplishments of another will be important to us. That’s what humility is about. It is genuine enjoyment of another’s success, rather than jealousy. It is genuine love for each other. Serving God is not a competition between those who have been working in the vineyard for many hours and those who have just arrived. It is about a genuine partnership - working together with each other for God.

Listen to Paul’s words to the Philippians as Eugene Peterson paraphrases them in The Message.

"If you’ve gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care - then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don’t push your way to the front; don’t sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don’t be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.

"Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to the advantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death - and the worst kind of death at that: a crucifixion.

"Because of that obedience, God lifted him high and honored him far beyond anyone or anything, ever .....

"What I’m getting at, friends, is that you should simply keep on doing what you’ve done from the beginning. When I was living among you, you lived in responsive obedience. Now that I’m separated from you, keep it up. Better yet, redouble your efforts. Be energetic in your life of salvation, reverent and sensitive before God. That energy is God’s energy, an energy deep within you, God himself willing and working at what will give him the most pleasure.

"Do everything readily and cheerfully - no bickering, no second guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night ....."

Let us pray:

God of overflowing grace, help us to remember that you love the first and the last and all those in between. Unpredictable God, whose generosity exceeds our imagination, grant us the opportunity to work in your vineyard. We want to be involved in your purposes, not for recognition and prestige, but because we want your ways to prevail. We pray that more people may join in your service and find the rewards and fulfillment we discover when we are faithful. Amen.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

September 22, 2002 - Nominations

Text: Matthew 21:23-32

Title: Promises, Promises

The two brothers in today’s Gospel have different reactions to being told to go out and do their father’s work. We are called to do God’s work, and one of the forms, among many, that this takes are the positions of responsibility and leadership within our church. Since we are beginning the work leading to filling these positions for the coming year, I thought, I would invite you to listen in on one of the preliminary conversations in that process. Rev. Garland, a retired pastor and member of our church community acts as a consultant.

(Dialogue: With apologies to Abbott & Costello)

The conversation was fun, but there are some important truths in it. Whether you recognize it or not, everybody has talent. And certainly anybody can do something anytime. Whoever it is, nobody should be left out. Somebody has to do the job. So, in the line up of church leader’s we’d like to know, who’s on first? Anybody who’s served on the nominating committee knows how hard it is sometimes to get somebody to say yes. Everybody’s busy and sometimes it feels like nobody wants to do anything anymore. Certainly there is a better way, and our Gospel points us in that direction.

Before Jesus tells the story about the two brothers, he is involved in a confrontation with the religious leaders who are challenging his authority to teach and perform deeds of healing. They are challenging his provocative and triumphal entry into Jerusalem on what we now call Palm Sunday, and his cleansing of the temple, throwing out the money changers. Essentially, they are asking if his authority comes from God, from Satan or from himself.

Jesus asks them a question about John the Baptist - perhaps partly as a way of diverting the trap they had set for him, but also as a way of gauging whether or not they could recognize the possibility of God acting in new ways in the world. When they refuse to answer his question, he tells them the story of the two brothers.

In this story, the primary question is also one of authority and honor. The first son rejects his father’s authority and dishonors him by refusing to go out and work in his father’s vineyard. The second son appears to accept his father’s authority and honor him by saying, "I go, sir" but he shows dishonor by never doing what he had been told to do and what he had committed himself to do. Neither son makes a good choice. It is not enough to simply intend to do the right thing.

The question is still ours today. Who or what has authority in our lives? Who or what gives meaning to our lives, sets our priorities, guides our path? I would suggest to you that at times we have been, or are, both brothers.

I grew up in the church and have for most of my life professed that Jesus is my Lord and Savior. But, I admit that there are times when I have all the good intentions in the world but do not always follow what God tells me to do. We do this not only with God but in much of our daily lives. Sometimes we say, "Yes" to someone but don’t really mean it. Perhaps we are trying to keep the other person happy, quiet, or off our back. Sometimes we do it because we are honored to be asked to do something, pleased that someone thought enough of us to ask, but then discover that realistically, there are not enough hours in the day to add one more thing without eliminating or rearranging something else. What sort of things interrupt our good intentions: a big game, laziness, work, someone else’s demands on our time and energy? Where do our priorities lie?

Had things stayed with the first son saying, "no" and the second one saying "yes" but not doing it, the grapes would have rotted on the vines and there would have been no harvest. However, the first son, although he initially rejected his father’s authority, later changed his mind and went. We might wonder what was so important for him to do that he said no to his father. (Which by the way, was not something a first century Mediterranean son would do lightly.) Do we find something important suddenly when we’re asked to do something we don’t want to do? Why did he change his mind: guilt, loyalty, weakness?

There was one very memorable time when I was the first brother, the one who said, "No." There was a time in my life when I believed that God was calling me to ordained ministry. I didn’t just say, "no". I argued, and turned a deaf ear and went about making my own plans, doing what I thought was best for my life. God let me have my way for awhile - actually about 7 years. Eventually God started with the prodding, urging or, as I thought - nagging again. This time I not only argued, I threw a temper tantrum and told God that this was some great big mistake. I claimed to know more about what was better for me than God did. I ignored the grapes in the vineyard crying out to be harvested.

Eventually, I realized that on one hand, I was acting like the son who said, "Yes", but didn’t go. I was saying, ‘yes" to Jesus as the Lord of my life, but not doing what I was being told to do. When in this area, belief moved from theory to action, I was acting like the other son and screaming, "No". Finally, I realized I couldn’t have it both ways. So I got up from the things that I thought were more enjoyable that doing what my God told me to do, and I went out into the vineyard and went to work.

I wish that were the only time that I’ve found myself being both brothers - but it isn’t, and I’m pretty sure that there will be other times to come. We all have our stories. There are times when we’ve said, "no" and then changed our minds. There are times when we’ve said, "yes" but not acted upon our words.

God calls each of us, not only to talk the talk, but to walk the walk. Jesus wants us to do something, to change, to take a risk in doing something. You just don’t know what’s going to happen when you say "yes" to Jesus, but taking the step is the important thing.

As the meditation note in our bulletin says: Entering the church to worship signals that we might believe Jesus has God-given authority, but what we do outside the church testifies to whether we accept this authority for ourselves. It has become almost so trite that it bothers me, but the popular mantra, "What would Jesus do?" is a good one for us to follow in our daily lives as we ask God to help us set priorities, make decisions, and juggle the many demands placed upon our time, energy, and resources.

Our opening dialogue was about positions of leadership or responsibility in the church but it was also about much more. God is seeking somebody, anybody, everybody and whoever to go out and work in the vineyard of God’s world. How easily "church work" degenerates into little more than simply maintaining the institution, with no excitement concerning what God’s active grace is doing. When that happens it is hard to generate enthusiasm for evangelism and renewal! We say that we are going to work in the vineyard, but instead of harvesting the grapes we spend our time rearranging the stones along the path! Sometimes God is telling us to say, "yes" to a particular area of ministry within the church and sometimes God is telling us to pay more attention to our God-given work as parents, partners, friends, employees, or citizens of the community and world. What we do outside the context of this worship experience testifies to whether we accept God’s authority for ourselves.

Let us pray:

God of power and right, you have told us to work in your vineyard. But we are too much like the son who said he would go, and then did not work. We claim to be faithful and obedient to your will, but when you do a new thing among us, we resist it like it was the work of the Devil. We see others joyfully responding to you, and we look down our noses at their foolishness. Instead of stepping out in faith, we sit solidly on the status quo. God, forgive our blind stubbornness, and save us from our proud and willful ways.

We are grateful that you are the same powerful and righteous God who accepted the repentance of tax collectors and prostitutes, and also accept our repentance. Help us to put down our pride, and pick up the same obedient humility that is carried in the hearts of other forgiven children. Your vineyard still awaits, help us to say, "Yes" and to go where you call us. Amen.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

September 15, 2002

Text: Romans 14:1-12

Matthew 18:21-35

Title: Calculating Forgiveness

The sign at the check-out register clearly says, "12 items or less". You have only bread and milk, and you are in a hurry. The person in front of you has much more than that - it looks like more than 12. Sure enough, you count the items as they go through the scanner and they number 15. Do you yell at the offending customer for breaking the rule and being inconsiderate of your time? Do you follow the person out to the parking lot and beat her up? Do you spend the next several days complaining to anyone and everyone about the inconsiderateness of some people? Do you decide not to sweat the small stuff, pay for your bread and milk, go home, and continue the plans you had for the rest of the day?

Coming out of the parking lot, the traffic is heavy and you have to wait for what seems like a long time before you can pull out onto the street because no body stops to let you out. Do you mutter under your breath about how rude they are - everyone in too much of a hurry to stop and be polite? Finally out on the main street, you stop at a traffic light. Just as it turns green for you to go, a car comes barreling through the intersection against the light. Do you take off and chase the offending driver? Do you shout an obscenity? Do you let the anger boil within you and then take it out on your spouse, children, pet or friend? Do you decide it’s just been a series of frustrating episodes and refuse to invest your energy in dwelling on things you can’t do anything about?

Living in a world where there are other people, we find ourselves frequently in a position of reacting to the behavior of other people. We discover the need to forgive others of offenses which are often trivial and perhaps unintentional. We quickly learn that forgiving minor indiscretions by strangers or people close to us is essential if we want our lives to contain any measure of peacefulness and harmony. There are some who seem unable to forgive these things and they often become walking time bombs waiting to explode. For most, however, forgiveness becomes problematic only when these trespasses are more serious, when they are intentional, or especially when they become repetitious.

This might have been what Peter had in mind when he asked Jesus, "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive?" He might have been thinking about what Jesus had said earlier about going to the other person and discussing what had happened. Did Jesus expect him to do that every time someone offended him, or only when it was repeated, or serious? Peter had been around Jesus long enough to have a pretty good idea of what Jesus thought about things. He was pretty sure that Jesus didn’t expect him to make a big to do about something little or thoughtless. But he must have also figured that Jesus didn’t expect him to repeatedly just take someone else’s insults without confronting them with their anti-social behavior.

There was a rabbinic teaching that said that you should forgive someone the first time they offended you, and also the second time, and again the third time; but the fourth time you should not forgive. Peter must have thought he was being very generous when he suggested that he should forgive his fellow believer as many as seven times. He probably expected Jesus to say, "Yes, Peter, you get an A+ for your understanding and generosity." One thing Peter knew about Jesus was that he was full of surprises and this was no exception. "Not seven times, but I tell you seventy seven times." or "seventy times seven" depending upon which English translation we are reading. Time to call out the accountants. Get a set of ledger books to carry around with you and record each time you forgive until you reach this ridiculously high number and then finally let the offender have it. No! That wasn’t what Jesus meant at all. Jesus might have been remembering Lamech, a man in the Jewish scripture - We can find him in the 4th chapter, 24th verse in Genesis. He was a descendent of Cain’s - of Cain and Abel fame. Lamech remembered the family stories that if anyone took Cain’s life - seven lives would be demanded in payment for it. Lamech told his wives that if anyone dared to attack him then seventy seven lives would be required as revenge.

Jesus seems to be presenting forgiveness as an antonym, the opposite, of revenge. Followers of Jesus must renounce the very human intention of getting even with someone who repeatedly injures them. We are to be the polar opposite of Lamech. The first part of Jesus response to Peter has, I believe, been so misused and misunderstood that I think it’s important to stop here and look at it for a few minutes. I had never really heard about Lamech before - and it was helpful to me to think about what he was calling for. He was calling for massive revenge if someone attacked him. Jesus is telling Peter to forget about the revenge. Forget about getting even and focus on forgiveness.

I’ve known many people who have felt guilty because they couldn’t forgive some horrible offense against them. Often it seems to me that they are confusing forgiveness with something else. Let me tell you what forgiveness is not.

Forgiveness is not the same as forgetting. When we have been deeply hurt, the memory of these events can rarely be wiped out of one’s awareness. Minor events can be more easily forgotten. it is also possible that over a sufficient period of time, the memory of a serious offense may become fuzzy. It may stop being a constant memory and it might become a vague memory. However, I believe it is not necessary to forget in order to forgive.

Often times when an offense is committed, there is a breach of trust and that must be taken seriously. Trust takes time to restore. So forgiveness is not the same as dismissing the event. Forgiveness involves taking the offense seriously, not passing it off as inconsequential or insignificant.

Forgiveness is not the same as condoning. Forgiveness does not necessarily excuse bad or hurtful behavior. Offenses are real - and they do have consequences in terms of how they affect others - as well as ourselves.

Another important thing that forgiveness is not - is that forgiveness is not reconciliation - although it may lead to it. Reconciliation requires two people. Sometimes the other party is unwilling to do the work necessary for reconciliation. There are times when it may not be safe to reconcile with the other person, and there are times when it is not even a possibility because the offender may have died. However, an injured person can forgive an offender even without reconciliation.

A final thing that forgiveness is not is pardoning a person’s actions. A pardon is a legal transaction that releases an offender from the consequences of an action, such as a penalty or a punishment. Forgiveness is a personal transaction - not a legal one. A pardon releases an offender - forgiveness releases the one who has been offended.

We can see this in many ways that I described earlier where we might need to forgive. If we are not able to forgive in these kinds of situation, our anger builds inside of us until it consumes us - or injures someone else. So Jesus is telling Peter to develop an attitude of forgiveness - instead of an attitude of revenge or bitterness.

It would be great if we could do this by ourselves, but that’s just not realistic for humans. So Jesus then gives Peter the second half of his answer - the theological grounding for unlimited forgiveness. This comes in the form of a parable - story. Peter’s question addresses a human problem from a human perspective. Jesus grounds the whole question of forgiveness in the nature of God.

On the story level - Jesus tells of a king - an Oriental sultan -who conducts an audit of the operations of his ministers of state. One of his administrators has embezzled an immense amount of tax revenue - the equivalent of a day’s wages for one hundred million laborers! Clearly restitution is not even a possibility. The king could have him executed immediately but instead pronounces a more degrading and protracted punishment - the man and his wife and children will be sold into slavery. By the way, this would indicate to the Jewish audience that the story is about Gentiles because Jewish law did not allow the sale of a wife for her husband’s debts.

The embezzler pleads for time to make restitution - although both he and the king know that this is impossible. Incredibly, the king abruptly reverses his decision, forgives the crime and issues a pardon, letting him go free. The King doesn’t even require any attempt to make restitution.

We would expect the forgiven and pardoned man to be ecstatic after being forgiven such a huge offense. Instead he goes out and meets another of the king’s administrators. this man is delinquent on a small loan - the equivalent of one days wages for 100 laborers. He begs for an extension just as the first man had begged for one. In this case though the promise to repay is credible. We would expect the pardoned man to be so grateful at being forgiven such a large debt that he would be more than willing to forgive a small one owed to him. But he doesn’t. He has his fellow administrator thrown into prison.

I can almost hear the incredulous Peter. Only moments early he had suggested a generous plan for forgiving someone else. And now in Jesus’ story is a man, forgiven a huge offense, who refuses to forgive a small one. The king responds in fury and orders the servant to be tortured for the rest of his life - an understandable response from a human perspective.

The concluding statement, "So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart" is really tough to hear - and even harder to understand.

We need to be careful to remember that this a parable - not an allegory. Although on some level the king serves as a reference for God - this does not mean that all the details of the king’s behavior can be taken as statements about the nature of God.

We would certainly not expect God to sell women into slavery as punishment for their husband’s sins. So we might also believe that the concluding detail about unending physical torture is not indicative of the behavior of God.

Although the story focuses on the heartless behavior of the pardoned criminal, the theological center is really the astonishing gift of the king in forgiving the servant. We are reminded that we have been forgiven so very much by God. We are like the pardoned criminal, who has been forgiven more than he could ever repay. We cannot even come close to earning our way into God’s favor. In so many ways, every day we fall short of what God dreams for us and has created us to be. Yet, God tenderly and lovingly accepts us as we are, forgives what we are not, and encourages us to move closer toward the people we can be with God’s help.

God does not stoop to dealing with us on our level. I believe that the conclusion of this parable is a solemn warning that we must pray fervently for the strength to resist the temptation of getting even with those who have hurt us. We must pray for the grace to reflect the majestic generosity of the kingdom of heaven.

Christians are sometimes guilty of forgiving too much and too quickly, of thinking that unlimited forgiveness is the same as toleration of hurtful behavior - and that is not true. Misbehavior is not to be laughed off. Earlier in this chapter Jesus has shown us that this is the case. He has shown us how to deal with unacceptable behavior. However, this passage does serve as a necessary corrective for those who might apply the preceding instructions too zealously. Yes, offenses are to be confronted, but only in a spirit of gentleness. Even when people are stubbornly unrepentant, we are still to remember how much we have been forgiven and pray for the grace and the strength to be ready to forgive as we have been forgiven.

Let us pray.

Merciful God, Jesus taught us to pray, "Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who have sinned against us." We pray instead that you not measure your mercy against our unforgiving hearts.

Rather, pour out once again your abundant forgiveness upon us. let it melt our icy behavior. Let it tear from our minds the lists of grievances we keep. Let it correct our short-sighted vision, that we may see the peace and joy that comes from forgiving others. It is knowing how much you have forgives, that moves us to forgive others. Amen.

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North Kingstown UMC

September 8, 2002

Text: Romans 13:8-14

Matthew 18:15-20

Title: Peace Between Brothers and Sisters

At some point in my schooling, I remember being told that when writing, it was a good idea to write about the things you knew about. So, with apologies to whomever it was who taught me that - I want to begin this morning talking about two things I really don’t know very much about.

The first is something we’ve all been exposed to recently, and will continue to be exposed to for the next couple of months. It is almost impossible to turn on the television without catching a political advertisement. My observation recently has been that most of the advertisements are not about the person running for office and where he or she stands on the issues that are of importance to me. Most of the advertisements seem to be about accusing the opponent of lying about the candidate in question. My impression formed through the years is of a political system which encourages adversarial roles and discourages cooperation between people who are not members of the same party. I get the impression that most of what takes place is not about what a person truly believes, but about following the party line and doing what those in greater power expect you to do. I have seen and know of examples of people in political office who follow a different - and I believe, higher - set of rules, but again, my personal impression, is that these people are probably in the minority. My point is not to discuss politics but to draw to our minds, the ways that one occupation seems to set its rules.

Now, the other subject that I don’t know very much about is the way a different occupation defines its rules of being and working together. Let me share with you some sections of how Dennis Halberstam describes it. The particular group that he describes happens to be composed of only men. "Keeping calm was a critical part of the job. ... Doing the right thing was equally important. When the men speak of a colleague who does the right thing, they mean he will stay at his post under terrible conditions and not panic. (They) define each other by their codes of honor, which because of the nature of the job, are mandatory and must be instinctive. The men have to be able to count not just on their officers, but on their buddies. Doing the right thing also involves small, seemingly unimportant things .... It means following certain customs, such as being the first one to the sink to wash the pots and pans after the meals. ... It is based on doing little things right, because if someone does not do the little things correctly, then he probably won’t do the big things correctly. Moreover, ... if you do not do your share of the routine work, someone else has to do it for you, ... You do not wait for someone to tell you to do it, you just do it." David Halberstam is describing life in a particular firehouse in New York, Engine 40, Ladder 35, located on the West Side of Manhattan. On the morning of September 11, 2001, two rigs carrying thirteen men set out from this firehouse; twelve of the men would never return.

I don’t know if this code is as universally true among firefighters as Mr. Halberstam describes, but it is certainly the rule of behavior rather than the exception - and the reason is primarily because of the need to truly be community together. He says "love is a critical ingredient of the fireman’s code, which demands that you are willing to risk your life for your firehouse brothers." Their very lives and the lives of others depend on how well they work together as a team.

Setting aside the occupations and the exceptions, I wonder which group you would rather be a part of. As Christians, we are called to be part of a community which should describe itself much like the way Halberstam describes the firefighters. The Apostle Paul spoke about that. Hear the way Eugene Peterson paraphrases some of Paul’s message to the Christians in Rome. "Don’t run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code - don’t sleep with another person’s spouse, don’t take someone else’s life, don’t take what isn’t yours, don’t always be wanting what you don’t have, and any other `don’t` you can think of - finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can’t go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love."

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we truly acted that way toward each other - all the time? We know it is part of the expectation that Jesus had for us, and it seems to be an expectation we have for other Christians. I think that is why we can sometimes be hurt so deeply by pastors or people at church when they don’t behave that way. Many of you have read one or more of Jan Karon’s book’s in the Mitford series. In the first book, The priest, Father Tim, has a telephone conversation with a man who, a year earlier, he had helped make a first time commitment to Christ. The man, somewhat discouraged, says, "`Well, I’m going to church. But I’ve got to tell you that it’s full of hypocrites.’ Father Tim laughed. If there was ever a popular refrain in modern Christendom, that might be it." Then he offered these words of wisdom. "`My friend, if you keep your eyes on Christians, you will be disappointed every day of your life. Your hope is to keep your eyes on Christ.‘" We expect a high standard of behavior - and rightly so. When we are hurt by the behavior of a fellow Christian it seems to hurt even more than the same actions done by someone at work or in the community. We expect that the church - and our Christian friends - should be part of a safe place where we can be ourselves and be accepted and not hurt by someone else.

Unfortunately, sometimes while we are busy being ourselves, we may forget that someone else - being him or herself, having a bad day, or in a hurry, or for any number of unknown reasons - may unintentionally hurt us or we them. When that happens or when the hurtful action has been intentional, Jesus has given us a model to follow - it’s a good model but it can be difficult. Again, listen to the way, Eugene Peterson paraphrases it; "If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him - work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you’ve made a friend. If he won’t listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again."

Being human, all too often, we practice it differently. We act as if it says, "If another member of the church hurts you, go and tell someone else first, and the two of you consult a third and a fourth person and get their advice. If the person doesn’t make it up to you then keep talking to others until it’s pretty much all around the church, and then go to the person that you had the grievance with or just ignore him or her until they finally leave or everyone lines up on opposite sides."

One reason it might be easier to tell someone else, is that if we go to the person who has hurt us, we might find out something about what we did that partially or fully justified the actions of the other person. Most of us don’t want to know that. It’s more comfortable to go to someone who wasn’t there, who didn’t see what happened, and who will only hear our side of the story. There’s a greater chance that the person will be sympathetic to us when only our perspective on the situation is known. This is so contrary to the way that Jesus taught his disciples. For Jesus the goal was reconciliation not estrangement.

This doesn’t mean that we reconcile by voicing forgiveness and sweeping everything under the rug and pretending it didn’t happen. Actions do have consequences. However, it does mean that whenever possible we engage in conversation, sometimes education, with the goal of restoring a relationship not only of peace, but also of love, between brothers and sisters of the faith.

There’s a part of Jesus’ instructions, in Matthew’s gospel, which have been interpreted in various ways. When attempts to discuss the situation have not met with success, there is a provision for bringing the issue before the entire church - and "if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector." (18:17 NRSV) You may remember that Jews did not associate with Gentiles and tax collectors. So, in some churches and in the minds of many people, this instruction has been taken to mean that the person should be ostracized or excommunicated from the church. In some cases it has also meant treating the person as if they were dead - refusing to acknowledge even seeing or hearing the one who has offended. For me, this action seems contrary to so much of the Gospel, so much of what Jesus taught, and definitely contrary to the way Jesus lived.

How did Jesus treat Gentiles and Tax Collectors? Well, there was Zacchaeus - the tax collector who climbed a tree to see Jesus. When Jesus saw him, he called Zacchaeus to come down out of the tree and he went to Zacchaeus’ house for dinner. Zacchaeus responded by giving large sums to the poor and returning several fold all that he had taken wrongly. So, rather than ignore Zacchaeus, the tax collector, Jesus’ actions brought about a change in him.

Then there was Matthew, another tax collector, who was chosen by Jesus to be one of his disciples. There was a Gentile soldier, a Roman centurion, who’s servant was healed by Jesus. There was Syro-Phoenician woman, a Gentile, who pleaded with Jesus to heal her daughter - and he did. What did Jesus do with tax collectors and Gentiles? Jesus made the circle bigger. He didn’t give up. He kept working on them. Perhaps that’s the direction we are supposed to go. I believe it is.

Eugene Peterson’s paraphrase says, "If he won’t listen to the church, you’ll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God’s forgiving love." Paul would have agreed with that. He believed that it was absolutely critical to get people to understand God’s great love and to make a commitment to Christ - now, rather than later. He fully expected Christ to return at any moment. This is another reason why the Code of Love was so important for Paul.

"Make sure that you don’t get so absorbed and exhausted in taking care of all your day-by-day obligations that you lose track of the time and doze off, oblivious to God. The night is about over, dawn is about to break. Be up and awake to what God is doing! God is putting the finishing touches on the salvation work he began when we first believed. We can’t afford to waste a minute, must not squander these precious daylight hours in frivolity and indulgence, in sleeping around and dissipation, in bickering and grabbing everything in sight. Get out of bed and get dressed! Don’t loiter and linger, waiting until the very last minute. Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about!"

Paul expected Christ to return at any minute. In almost two thousand years, we’ve become more complacent, more in danger of forgetting how truly important it is for us to live our lives every single day the way Christ wants us to live. Sometimes we forget Jesus promise that "when two or three of you are together because of me, you can be sure that I’ll be there." We act as if Christ were not present, as if our actions did not matter.

David Halberstam writes that another reason why the code of the firehouse is so important is that "Between moments of fearsome danger, there is often a lot of slack time at a firehouse, and if you do not have codes like this, then it would be very easy for people to become lazy and get in a rut, and for the entire house to lose its sense of cohesion and its purpose."

I believe that is the danger that Paul is reminding us of - the danger of becoming lazy, getting in a rut, and losing our sense of cohesion and purpose - our identity as Christians in action, not only in name.

There is a poem attributed to Mother Teresa which reminds us of the way we are to behave with each other. It’s called, "Love Them Anyway"

"People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered; Forgive them anyway. If you are kind; people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives; Be kind anyway. If you successful, You will win some false friends and some true enemies. Succeed anyway. If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you; Be honest and frank anyway. What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight; Build anyway. If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous; Be happy anyway. The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow; Do good anyway. Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough; Give the world the best you’ve got anyway. You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God; It was never between you and them anyway."

Our behavior is all about our relationship with God. "When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. .... Dress yourselves in Christ, and be up and about!"

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

September 1, 2002

SERMON

Text: *Exodus 3:1-15

Romans 12:9-21

*Matthew 16:21-28

Title: Call and Consequence

It’s a scene right out of a Hollywood movie. A man, out in the desert, tending his sheep wanders across a bush that‘s on fire - except that the bush is not being consumed by the fire. Desert heat can play tricks on your eyes, so he decides that he should check this out. As he approaches the bush, he hears a voice calling to him from the flame, "Moses, Moses." If a bush can be on fire, but not be burning up, that it’s not much of a leap to have the flame calling your name, so Moses responds, "Yes, here I am."

Thus begins, his encounter with God. A normal working day, becomes a life changing event. Of course, Moses has had a pretty eventful life up to this point, anyway so he’s ready for almost anything. Moses was born to a Hebrew woman at a time when the king of Egypt had declared that all Hebrew boy babies were to be killed. His sister and mother concocted a plan which saved his life and allowed his mother to raise him as a young child. When he became older, he moved to the palace where he was the adopted son of the princess.

His mother had taught him about his people, and about how they were being oppressed by the Egyptians. As a young man, of Egyptian privilege, he saw an Egyptian supervisor kill a Hebrew slave and when he thought no one was looking, he killed the Egyptian. The next day he discovered that his deed had not gone unnoticed and he fled for his life. Now he was living in the desert, married and a father himself, when he saw the fiery bush.

The voice coming from the bush identified itself as belonging to God and, as you heard in today’s reading, told Moses of the plan to free the Hebrews from Egyptian rule and oppression - and Moses was to be the key spokesperson in this process. I don’t think Moses is much different from the rest of us. He wasn’t buying into this plan. His life had taken on a routine and he didn’t want to change that. So he argued with God.

Have you ever argued with God? Let me tell you that God can be very persistent. When God decides that you should be doing something, there isn’t any argument in the world that will make sense. Moses tried them. "I’m nobody. How can I go to the king and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"

You have to hand it to God. There isn’t any discussion about why Moses was chosen for the job. There are no motivational speeches, no listing of his talents, and reassurances that he can handle it. God’s reply, to Moses, and to us is, "I will be with you."

Moses experienced God’s presence in a powerful way. He knew God was present, knew that he was called to a profoundly important mission, and was frightened as any thoughtful man or woman would be at first. God reassured him, "I will be with you."

Moses argued some more, "When I go to the Israelites and say to them, `The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ they will ask me, `What is his name?’ So what can I tell them?" God’s answer is simple, "I am who I am". "I am God, the one who created the world, who has been with my people since the beginning of time. I am sending you to lead them, and I will be with you." Moses had several other arguments and objections, but as each was raised, God had an answer which assured Moses that God would in fact be with him. Eventually Moses agreed. The book of Exodus tells much more about the story of the Israelites, and Moses’ part in leading them out of Egypt, but for today, we focus on God’s argument, or rather God’s assurance, "I will be with you." "I AM is the one who is sending you."

This isn’t really a story about Moses, it’s a story about God. It’s a story about how God comes to us. God comes to meet us where we are. It might happen while at work, at school, while driving down Boston Neck Road, or even while sitting in church.

God comes to us. We don’t need to know God’s name, because God is already, and always, present in our midst. This is a story about the dialogue that takes place between Moses and God. Moses had problems, fears, and hesitations, and they talk about it for a long time. I find that comforting and hopeful. We are Moses, encountering the presence of God and raising all the same objections. "Who am I to speak to my boss about unfair labor practices? What makes you think that congress will listen to me when I tell them that we need more money for affordable housing? I’m only a kid, no adult will ever listen to me if I try to tell that Johnny’s father is beating him every night."

Oh, we’re good with the objections. Send someone else - anyone else - but not me. That was Moses’ final plea. God told him what the plan was going to be. God gave Moses miraculous power to prove that he was sent by God. God even promised to tell him what words to say. But Moses persisted. "No, Lord, please send someone else."

We are all Moses. Some of us argue with God more than others, but I imagine we all do it. "Yes, Lord, I know that the child next door is being abused, but I don’t want to get involved. Can’t somebody else report it?" "I know drugs are bad for me, but I’m afraid that my friends will call me weird if I don’t go along with them." "I know that Sunday School is important, and we need teachers, but please not me!" "I know the family next door is hungry, but I don’t want to embarrass them by bringing food to them, after all that’s what the Food Pantry is for, isn’t it?" "Yes, I know Joan is sick, but it’s the pastor’s job to go to the hospital and visit."

God requires work on our part. In Paul’s letter to the Romans, among other places, we have heard that. "Love one another ... Work hard and do not be lazy. Serve the Lord with a heart full of devotion... Share your belongings... Ask God to bless those who persecute you." And so on. Paul’s instructions would require immense effort for most of us, self-discipline, squashing some less-than-admirable impulses, expenditure of energy and resources for the sake of others. God calls us to a mission of one sort of another when we see our burning bushes. When God calls, God persists until we answer.

God comes to us. God requires work on our part. And God is active in the real world. Moses was out there taking care of the sheep and goats, his mind almost surely on something other than God. God is not a far away, withdrawn deity. God is present with us. When you recognize that God is there calling you, there’s always a next step. There’s a call, a challenge, or an invitation. Moses recognized God in the bush. Once he recognized God, there was a next step. Once you’ve recognized God, you can’t just walk away.

Peter is one person who didn’t walk away when called. He had jumped at Jesus’ invitation and in today’s Gospel had become such a close friend and follower of Jesus’ that he assumed that he had the right to advise Jesus on what he should be doing. Jesus had been telling his disciples that he would soon suffer and be killed, and then raised. Peter took Jesus aside and tried to convince him that a different approach was necessary.

Jesus’ words to Peter here are important - to him, to us, even to Moses. "Get behind me." Jesus didn’t tell Peter to go away. He didn’t fire him from his position or withdraw the call. Rather, the words that Matthew records here, "Get behind me" are the same words Jesus used when he called Peter. "Come, follow me!" He is reminding Peter of the place of his calling - following Jesus, not in front of Jesus.

We can understand Peter’s anxiety. Jesus was the support and security of a new community - a new way of life. His death would be a threat to the community - possibly even the end of it. In Jesus’ rebuke to Peter he reminded him to focus on God’s way, not the way of humans. Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me."

This concept of cross-carrying when placed on individuals, has brought much harm in history. Theologian Chung Hyun Kyung, whom I have had the privilege of listening to and being with this week, "observes that the church’s teachings about this passage to Asian women are very similar to what they are taught by their fathers and brothers - endure suffering on earth with patience and look toward the resurrection, which is not really what Jesus is saying in the gospels."

Abused people should not continue to be abused based on the notion that this is the "cross" they must bear. People who are ill should not be told that this is the "cross" they must bear. The cross reminds us that sometimes it can be hard to follow Jesus, but that it is always the right thing to do and that Jesus is with us to help us and guide us.

The call to take up the cross and follow Jesus is to a way of living where everyone is treated fairly and justly. The call is to share so that everyone has enough - but sadly, some people don’t like Jesus’ ideas about fairness and sharing and loving others. The Egyptians didn’t like this idea. They had felt threatened by the Hebrew people and had made them slaves, but God heard their cries and sent someone - Moses - to be the human who with God’s strength, guidance, and help, would set them free.

God continues to call us to a life of following in Jesus’ way. When calling us, God always empowers us to do as we are asked. God will never ask any of us to do something that we cannot do with God’s help. The key is that God, the great "I AM" is, and will be, with us, helping us in whatever it is we are being called to do.

Let us pray.

Jesus, our Master,

We did not accompany you as you healed the blind and the lame, but you still call us to bind up wounds and to comfort the brokenhearted.

We did not sit with you as your taught your disciples, but you still

expect us to feed those who hunger for your truth.

You did not chose us to be apostle, but you have sent us to serve our brothers and sisters.

You inspire us to be your people, walking in your way. Amen.

Prayers of the People

I invite you into a time of prayer as we reflect upon the words of the Apostle Paul and his instructions for living in God’s way. If you are not familiar with it, would you turn please to page 2193, in the Faith we Sing, "Lord, listen to your children praying." During our time of prayer there will be opportunities to raise joys and concerns silently or aloud. Please do not be concerned if two or more people are speaking at the same time, because God has perfect hearing. At the end of each section of prayer, we will gather those prayers together in our sung response.

Let us pray.

Our loving God, we know that the guidance the Apostle Paul gave to your people so long ago is also your word to us today. Sometimes it is hard to follow your way. It may be easy to hate what is evil, but there are times when we do not recognize the evil around us. Our love is not always genuine. We find it hard to hold fast to what is good. We may try to outdo one another, but not usually in showing honor and serving you. Often we take hope for granted, rather than rejoicing in it. We find it hard to be patient in suffering and rather than persevere in prayer we want instant answers. Help us to walk more closely in your way.

Our desire is to get even with those who wrong us or harm us in any way. Your servant Paul reminded us that following your way calls us to bless those who persecute us, to feed our enemies and to give them refreshing drinks to satisfy their thirst. Aloud or silently, we pay for those who have harmed us, those who are our enemies, personally and nationally,

........... "Lord, listen to your children praying ........

Loving God, it is easier for us to rejoice with those who rejoice. We raise those celebrations to you. ............ "Lord, listen to your children praying .............

Compassionate God, there are times when we do weep with those who weep. At other times, we are uncomfortable with their sorrow or fear. We may try to minimize their feelings and their concerns so that we are more comfortable. Help us to walk with, not away from, those who need your comforting touch and your presence, especially as we may help them to know your presence with them. We name those who are weeping, who are afraid, who need God’s strength and peace . ....... "Lord, listen to your children praying ..........

And all God’s people said, "Amen."

==============

August 18, 2002

The Family of the Lord, By Mark DerManouelian, Lay Speaker

What an interesting combination of selections for today's readings. It took me a few times reading these verses to understand why they were selected to be read together and what their connection was to each other. It was only after several days of contemplation and in sharing ideas with others expressed during the bible study on these varied readings, that I was able to see the connection and shared meaning- that each of the passages read has to do with the joy and blessings of being part of a family.

Before I get into the passages, I have a confession to make. Whenever I am asked to prepare a service and deliver a message, I feel quite anxious. There is the positive anticipation of learning more about the Bible and God's love, which I always experience during the preparation of the service. But, along with that, there also something I learn about myself that I need to do more of, or refrain from, to improve my relationship with God and Jesus in my life. It is usually something I would rather not choose to do or admit to as a shortcoming. But more about this later. Let's look at what today's readings are saying to us.

It was the Psalm reading that helped me see the connection. It states that it is wonderful and pleasant to live together in harmony as part of God's family. Some translations say to live as brothers, some as kindred and some say God's people. I find the fact that there is various wording used helpful in showing that the actual bloodlines are not as important as the community relationship that exists among God's children. And while it's not wholly important for us to understand the relevance of the oil running down Aaron's head and beard or the dew on Mount Hermon, it is important and clear that the Psalmist considers these to be joyous things indeed. And that the people, at the time this was written, would recognize the magnitude of just how wonderful the experiences are and understand the references clearly.

The choice of using Joseph and his brothers as positive role models for a harmonious family leaves a lot to be desired, at first blush. In fact, you might expect them rather to be used as examples of a classically dis-functional family and what happens to those who scheme against each other. To fully appreciate the irony involved here, let us review the passages we have been hearing the last few weeks, the story of Joseph's father, Jacob. Jacob, we remember, cheated his older brother, Esau, out of his birthright (which included his share of any inheritance) and then, with the help of their mother, even cheated Esau out of their father's blessing. Much of this was due to Jacob's jealousy of Esau, because their father favored Esau over Jacob.

Rather than perhaps learning a lesson from the effects of preferential treatment to one brother over another, Jacob himself shows great favoritism to Joseph, who is the 11th of his 12 sons (plus a daughter). Not surprisingly then, Joseph's brothers resent his special treatment by their father, then grow to really despise Joseph when he tells his family about his dreams, where he holds rank over them. This became so unbearable to them that they decided to kill Joseph, or at least leave him in a pit to die. They planned to bring the torn coat that their father had given Joseph (and which was another source of their jealousy) to their father and tell him that Joseph had been attacked and eaten by a wild animal. Perhaps feeling a little guilty about following through with this plan, but certainly recognizing the opportunity to make some money for each of them, the brother's instead sell Joseph into slavery to some passing Ishmaelites.

Joseph's next 22 years are full of adventures. The Ishmaelites, in turn, sold him to an Egyptian captain. After refusing the advances of the captain's wife, he was falsely accused and imprisoned. It was while he was in jail that he interpreted other prisoner's dreams, who in turn told the king, who then took Joseph as his personal dream interpreter and then made Joseph governor of Egypt and ruler over the great storehouses of the grain and food during the seven years of plenty and seven years of drought.

It is because of the drought and lack of food that Joseph's brothers journey to Egypt in search of food to bring back to their families. They are, of course, completely unaware that Joseph has not only survived, but has come to such prominence in Egypt. When Joseph reveals himself to them, they are quite afraid of what he will have done to them. They realize that he not only has the power to do as he wishes to them, but they could not blame him for whatever revenge he chose to exact upon them. They must have tried to prepare themselves for the worst. In fact, Joseph had given them reason to worry. He had not told them who he was on their first trip to Egypt, then upon their return, planted a silver cup in with their possesions to make his brothers think they would convicted as thieves.

They certainly could not have envisioned Joseph's response. When his brother, Judah, offers himself in place of their youngest brother, Benjamin, as punishment, Joseph could not keep up the charade any longer and breaks down and reveals himself to be their brother. Not only did Joseph forgive and embrace them all, he assured them that they had actually helped to fulfill God's plan for him to save his family and others in their greatest time of need. He then told them to bring their father, families and all their posssesions back to Egypt where they could have land of their own and prosper together. It was only after they all became reconciled, that God again spoke to Jacob and assured him that his family would be able to continue to receive the promise that God had made earlier, to make Jacob's family a great nation.

So it is that the story that begins with treachery and betrayal leads to fulfilled promises and blessings for a reunited, reconciled and loving family. When I look back on it, I can't help but see how much it resembles the way God works in our lives. We may wander off the path , sometimes for just a little while, and sometimes for a long time. In our sinning, we separate ourselves from God and expect Him to punish us, or at the very least to no longer bless us. Yet, when we becomed reuinited or reconciled with Him, we find that He offers total forgiveness and welcomes us back with open arms. We are once again part of His family, sons and daughters of God, one of God's people.

Who are God's people and how do you become one? It is in Paul's letter to the Romans that the concept of the inclusive family of believers is reiterated. Paul reminds the Romans that he himself is a Jew, a direct descendant of Abraham, Jacob and of the tribe of Benjamin. He assures them that just because God has welcomed all who believe into His family, He has not forsaken the Jews or His covenant with them. Although it was their own disobedience that led to Jesus turning to the Gentiles as well as the Jews with the saving word, God did not and has not turned His back to them. In fact, the argument could be made that the Jew's rejection of Jesus as the Messiah served God's plan to bring salvation to all who would believe. Just as Joseph's brothers helped, although unwittingly, to fulfill God's plan for saving and blessing Jacob's family, the Jew's unacceptance of Jesus opened the way for others to become part of God's family of believers.

So, Paul claims that if he is saved, it is not because he is from a Jewish family, but rather because he is a member of Christ's family. That is the heritage that matters. It doesn't depend on nationality or race or gender or station in life. As the scripture says, "Everyone who calls out to the Lord for help will be saved."  

God is always ready to forgive sins and accept reconciliation when repentance is sincere. God has, and always will, consider the Jews to be His own. Through their bloodlines they are able to lay their claim to be God's people. However, we Gentiles have been adopted by our faith, to be sons and daughters of God. We can all share in God's kingdom, none of us more or less worthy or acceptable to receive the mercy and blessings that come by the grace of God, our Father. And, if God is our Father, then by definition, we are all brothers and sisters to each other, all part of the same family.

The Gospel reading from Matthew serves to help drive home a couple of points. The first is to tackle the issue of improper food preparation or selections making a person ritually unclean or sinful. It is Jesus' contention that less time should be spent on worrying about what goes into someone's mouth and more time being concerned with what comes out of their mouth. All food goes into the mouth, through the stomach, and out again. But Jesus says that it is the things that come out of the mouth, that come from the heart and are therefore under the control of the person, that make a person clean or unclean.

This is where my personal lesson became apparent to me. One of the traits I have is that I have been known to answer a question or give information in a way that, while technically may be correct, is purposely vague or is not really the answer being sought. I usually think I am clever for doing this, even though I know it bothers my family, friends and others when they realize I have not been open and complete in my response. Although I have justified this to myself by saying that I wasn't actually lying, I have come to realize that I am being deceptive in my actions, and therefore not being truthful and loving. Now that I am aware of this, I need to work on it. This falls into the category of being unclean by virtue of things that come out of the mouth.

With a little extension of this principle, if God doesn't judge by what goes into the body, then it also shouldn't matter what type of blood is in the body. Being of a certain bloodline or heritage does not make one more or less acceptable to God any more than eating or refraining from certain foods does. If uncleanliness is determined by the evil within the heart of a person, then the acceptance and salvation of a person is dependent on their true and sincere heart.

Jesus was consistent in his teaching that following the religious laws and rituals was not as important as one's faith. The Pharisees were diligent in following the letter of the laws regarding the Ten Commandments, the Sabbath and food preparation but were greatly lacking in their faith and love of God. Jesus welcomed fishermen, tax collectors and other so called lowly people because he recognized the faith and love in their hearts, above their ritualistic actions.

The rest of the Matthew reading involves a Canaanite woman who comes to seek healing from Jesus for her daughter. The disciples are inclined to send her off because she is not a Jew. Even Jesus himself rebukes her, telling her that he is there for the people of Israel, the Jews. Not only does she have an answer for his dismissal, but she shows the extent of her belief through her persistence. When Jesus recognizes this, he lets her and his disciples know that her great faith has been rewarded with the healing of her daughter, as she asked. Even though she is not a Jew, her strong faith allows her to be accepted as a true believer to Jesus and therefore, as we say, a member of the household of faith.

Allow me, if you will, to close with a little lesson about my name. DerManouelian is an Armenian name. It is easy to tell it is because like most good Armenian names, it in ends in I-A-N. It was originally Manouelian, with the Der added on later, but that's another story. The I-A-N traditionally meant "son of". Just as so many other names like Johnson, Michaelson, Peterson, originally reflected just that- son of John, Michael or Peter, my ancestor would have been the son of Manouel. With the age of political correctness and the recognition of the value and rights of all people, the meaning has evolved from the limiting "son of" to a more inclusive "family of". So now it would mean "of the family" of Manouel. Why do I raise this? Is it just to fill my time alloted for the sermon or can you guess where I might be going with this? When Paul said he belonged to Christ- when any of us say we belong to Christ- we acknowledge God as our Father and Jesus as his Son. We claim to be the sons and daughters of our Father in Heaven and brothers and sisters in Christ.

We say we are Christian- "of the family" of Christ.

And how do we show it? Let us join in singing #2223 from the Faith We Sing book,

"They'll Know We Are Christians By Our Love." 

======

North Kingstown United Methodist Church

August 11, 2002

Title: Stepping Out in Faith

Text: *Matthew 14:22-33

I’m told that there is a warning sign posted at a Seminary swimming pool that reads: "First year students are not allowed to walk on water at the deep
end." This is one of many attempts to poke fun at today’s Gospel. You’ve probably heard some of the others. One is the old joke about the priest, the rabbi and the preacher: They’re out fishing. One of them, realizing that his favorite fishing pool had been left on shore, got out of the boat, walked to shore, retrieved it and walked back to the boat. The second one realizing that the tackle box was still on the shore, also walked to the shore, picked up the tackle box and walked back to the boat. When they discovered that they had left their lunch back on the shore, the third one, not to be outdone, climbed out of the boat and promptly sank into the water. The first two turned to each other and said, "Do you think we should have told him where the stones are?"

People like to joke about being able to walk on water like Jesus did. I even heard that an engineer had made plans to build a 28 foot bridge two inches under the water on the Sea of Galilee for tourists who’d like to have the experience of walking on the water. All of these point out how far off we can be in talking about this story as a miracle of walking on water.

I’ve come to believe that this is really a very practical story that relates to everyday living. The disciples are out in a boat on the Sea of Galilee. The wind has whipped up as it often does quite suddenly on this body of water surrounded by mountains. In fact, the Greek that Matthew uses here describes a ship being "tortured" by the waves. After several hours of being alone by himself in pray, Jesus came to the disciples. Douglas Hare, one of the commentators on this passage from Matthew says that Jesus came to them in this way, not to show off who he is, but to come to the aid of his threatened disciples. As the Messiah, he is the one charged and empowered by God to guide and to care for God’s people.

At first the disciples didn’t recognize Jesus. You can’t really blame them. It was somewhere between 3 and 6 a.m. It might have still been very dark, or perhaps there was the hint of daylight returning. Matthew tells us that they thought he was a ghost and screamed out in fear. How many times do we find ourselves not recognizing when God comes to us? How frequently God has to remind us not to be afraid; we are not alone no matter how hard the winds of life whip around us, or the waves rock our feeling of safety.

Here, Peter seems to represent all of us who dare to believe that Jesus is Savior. We take some first steps in confidence that Jesus is able to sustain us, but then we start to look around us and see the waves churning under our feet, and feel the wind whipping against our bodies and, like Peter, we forget to keep our gaze fixed on Jesus. Instead we focus on the towering waves that threaten to engulf us - the hectic schedules that control us, the demands of family and employment, the never ending pile of bills in the mail, and we take our gaze off Jesus. We start to find ourselves going under, not quite sure how it happened.

I imagine if we are really honest, all of us have done that from time to time, and perhaps still do it. It’s so easy for it to happen. Many of you who are parents have stood where Alexandra’s parents stood a few minutes ago, whether here or in another church. You professed a faith in Jesus Christ and you promised to teach that faith to your children. When you and I did that, we probably all had really good intentions. Sometimes the demands of taking care of one or more little children, and perhaps juggling a job at the same time seemed overwhelming. You remembered to feed and clothe your child, and to play with him or her, and to teach your child many many things. You intended to teach them about Jesus - just as soon as they were old enough; perhaps forgetting that the toddler who wants to be up front during the children’s sermon is old enough, even if he or she doesn’t understand everything that’s being said. Perhaps you didn’t know the words to say. Maybe you can look at where your children are now as young children, teenagers, or adults and honestly say, "I kept those vows, I taught my children about Jesus." Maybe your gaze held fixed on Jesus, maybe it wandered from time to time. Maybe you found yourself sinking like Peter.

Maybe your first tentative steps toward Jesus occurred as an adult or a teenager. Perhaps they occurred during a storm of life when illness, unemployment, depression, addiction, busyness threatened to overwhelm you. Your gaze held steady for awhile, but soon you became a little confident and started to look around and thought you could do it all by yourself. Before you knew it, you were sinking.

When Peter started to sink, he became afraid and called out "Save me, Lord!" How often we do that when the waves threaten to sink us, when the wind is so strong we can’t seem to fight against it any longer. How often we do that when the doctor utters the words we have been dreading, when the voice on the other end of the phone tells us that our life has just been changed forever. We cry out, "Save me, Lord!"

With Peter, we discover that "Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand and caught him." Sometimes Jesus’ hand feels like the hand of a friend. Sometimes it is a bird appearing just as we ask for a sign; it might be the words of a hymn that suddenly speak to us in a way they never have before; a verse of Scripture that springs to mind when we most need it.

Jesus’ remark to Peter, even as he reached out and caught him and prevented him from sinking, may seem harsh at first. "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" I discovered that when Matthew uses that phrase, it is always addressed to those who already believe. It is never spoken to unbelievers. These words, "you of little faith" are meant to warn those who do have some faith, that they must exercise even that little faith or it will wither away like an unused muscle.

Like Peter, we must be willing to step out of the boat, out of our homes, to get up off the couch, away from the TV, computer and telephone, and exercise our faith - discover how that faith works. Faith is not a possession, it is an activity. It grows best when it is used.

Peter took the step of faith in stepping out of the boat, in coming to Jesus and when he started to sink, Jesus did not abandon him, but came to him immediately and caught him, and lifted him up. The other disciples stayed in the boat, but Jesus came to them too. Matthew tells us that when Jesus and Peter "got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, `Truly you are the Son of God.’"

Jesus comes to us, wherever we are, whatever the storms of life may be, whether they seem relatively minor or like hurricane or tornado winds. Ho comes, catching us, stilling the winds. He comes to us in our greatest fear. He comes even in our doubts, and when he comes the storms subside. The problem may not go away. The cancer patient may still have cancer. The injured person is still injured. The victim of injustice or abuse may become a survivor rather than a victim. Schedules are still hectic; demands are still great, but the inner storms which such things cause can subside when Jesus is with us.

Let us pray:

Lord of beating wave and howling wind,

when storms assail us and safe harbors are far off,

you pierce the dark raging and come to our aid.

When terror strangles all other emotion,

and fear dictates every act,

you stop the storm and revive our courage.

Even when we mistake your coming rescue as another menace,

your voice reassures our ears

like the sweetness of a new morning.

Hope is reborn and life begins again.

You are the only port we seek,

and the landfalls of your kingdom our only goal.

Now and forever let it be so. Amen.

=========

North Kingstown United Methodist Church

August 4, 2002

Text: *Matthew 14:13-21

Title: Loaves and Fish to share

You couldn’t blame the disciples for being concerned. It had been a long, exhausting day. People had come from all around to see Jesus. They came with their aches and pains - both physical and emotional. Jesus, who had just received word that his cousin John the Baptist had been killed, had tried to go away to be by himself for awhile. But when the crowds came, he had compassion for them, and he spent the day healing them.

But now it was getting late. The crowd was very large. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John all tell us that there were about 5,000 men. Matthew reminds us that there were also women and children - so the number was probably closer to 20,000. There were no Stop & Shop or Shaw’s markets near by. Not even a Ryan’s or Dave’s. People were getting hungry but the line of people waiting to see Jesus seemed to be never ending. The disciples were justifiably concerned - and they knew Jesus, he would keep on going until everyone’s needs had been met.

They advised Jesus to send the people away so that they could return to their homes or go visit relatives or something and get themselves some food. Jesus’ response must have frustrated them, "They don’t have to leave. Why don’t you give them something to eat?"

They must have thought that the sun had finally gotten to Jesus. Sometimes he wasn’t very practical, but this time he made no sense at all. "We have only five small loaves of bread and two fish." These would have been small loaves. The amount of food they had wasn’t even enough to feed the twelve of them, plus Jesus. In John’s Gospel, it isn’t even the disciples who have this small amount of food, but a small boy who was part of the crowd.

This is a story with which we can easily identify. There are so many hungry people in the world. There are so many hungry people here in our country - our state - and even in our town. There are people with so many other needs, that it is truly overwhelming. Where can we even begin to meet the needs? We can’t do it by ourselves! We have so little to offer and the needs are so great! So with the disciples we raise our concerns.

When I was in Israel the streets were full of people trying to sell us all sorts of little trinkets for absurdly low prices. When we said, "no" they would lower their price even more - such was the desperation to sell their product and earn some money. In some places especially we were warned to be careful of pickpockets. As I left the Mount of Olives, the garden where we believe Jesus prayed on that night when he was betrayed, a man met me on the street trying to sell me a string of postcards. As he stretched them out in front of me, he reached for the pocket of my blouse and attempted to grab the money that was there. Had he been successful, he would have gotten only $2 from me, but I was angry that someone would try to steal the money from me. When we went to Bethlehem it was only two days after some bombing had occurred. The streets were deserted and most of the stores were boarded up. It felt as if we were in a ghost town - until the bus stopped. Immediately, men and children descended upon us trying to sell us their products. One man stuck close to me and kept trying to sell me three necklaces for $10. He pleaded with me to buy the necklaces so that he could feed his ten children. Was he telling me the truth or not? I don’t know. I do know that the situation was bad; the people seemed desperate; most of them were unable to work, and tourism had all but stopped. I gave him the $3 I had in my pocket in exchange for 1 necklace. A woman at the Western Wall, the most holy of places for Jews in Jerusalem asked me for a $1 donation for Jewish widows and even offered me a receipt. An elderly woman at the same location begged me for anything I could give her. I realized that I could have given away hundreds of dollars, or much more if I had it, and it wouldn’t have even begun to make a dent in the needs of the people in that area. The needs were so great. The resources so few. There wasn’t enough to go around. Do you know how that feels?

It’s a sharp contrast with another event which Matthew describes just before this. The earlier event was a Birthday Party for Herod the ruler. There was dancing by beautiful women, liquor flowing freely and food in great abundance. The extravagance was such that one of the dancers who especially pleased Herod was promised a reward of whatever she chose. Her choice cost the life of a man - John the Baptist. It was the news of this which had initially caused Jesus to seek some solitude.

Here with thousands of people gathered - the abundance of Herod’s party is lacking. However, there is a different kind of abundance. Where Herod would give the life of another person as a reward for fine dancing, Jesus would give of himself and his compassion to spend the day healing the sick. But now they were hungry and Jesus’ response to his disciples’ concern was an emphatic, "you give the food to them to ear." The disciples were faced with the impossible and they knew it. They were justifiably overwhelmed when all they could produce was five small loaves and two fish.

This story reminds me of another time when Jesus faced great hunger - but that time it was his own hunger. It was just after he had been baptized by John. Jesus had gone into the wilderness where he spent 40 days in prayer. During that time - when his hunger became overwhelming - he had been tempted to turn stones into bread - but he had not done so. His response to the temptation had been "Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God."

But now, surely the same compassion which had led him to spend the day healing people would not permit him to send these people away hungry. They had been fed by the Word of God - now they needed physical bread. They needed the same bread that Jesus spoke about when he taught them to pray, "Give us this day our daily bread."

Still, Jesus did not turn the stones into platters filled with mouthwatering entrees. He didn’t produce luxurious fruit or even good wine like he had at the wedding in Cana. Could he have? Probably. But most of the time, Jesus involved other people in the miracles he performed. He required some action, some response from others. So he told the disciples, "you feed them."

When they brought Jesus all that they had, he took it, looked to heaven, and blessed it. He broke it and he gave it back to them. Then the disciples started walking among the crowd, now seated on the ground. They took the bread and broke off pieces handing it to the hungry people Did the bread and fish multiply as they were broken? Did people start to pull out the food they had concealed in the folds of their garments? Does it really matter?

They were fed - every last one of them. Not one person went hungry. On that day, they were truly given their daily bread. This wasn’t the only time God had taken care of peoples’ basic needs. When the Hebrew people escaped from slavery in Egypt and wandered in the desert, God provided manna, bread from heaven, enough each day for that day’s need. During a prolonged drought, the prophet Elijah told a woman to use the last of her oil and flour to prepare a small loaf for him - and for herself and her son. She did; and each day there was enough to prepare food for one more day until the drought ended. The prophet Elisha was given 20 loaves of bread during a famine. He told the people who gave them to him, to share them with 100 men gathered there, who ate, and had some to spare.

God uses what we bring, even if all we have to offer is five small loaves and two dried fish. When we pray, "Give us this day our daily bread" we participate with others in the privilege and the responsibility of God’s multiplication and God’s provision of the basic needs of humanity.

The twelve baskets of leftovers that were collected are a super abundance compared to the almost minuscule amount of food with which they began. We often think of them as pointing to the super abundance of God’s care. However, they also warn us against waste. Twelve baskets of leftovers after so many thousands had eaten suggests a very narrow margin; roughly equivalent to one package of hot dogs left from a large family reunion. This seems to suggest that God will provide enough and a little to spare. We, however, must not be greedy or wasteful - or some will go hungry.

We come here to be fed and we are sent forth to feed others physically and spiritually; knowing that God takes whatever we have to offer, blesses it, breaks it so that it can be shared, and gives it to us to share with others.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

July 28, 2002

Title: "Expecting the Unexpected"

Text: Genesis 29:15-28

Psalm 105:1-11

Romans 8:26-39

Matthew 13:21-22, 44-52

Many of you know that I spent most of this week attending a convocation in Williamsport Pennsylvania for the Fellowship of United Methodists in Music and Worship Arts. As you might imagine there was a wealth of opportunities - the music was spectacular; the worship inspiring and it truly was a fulfillment of the meditation note in our worship bulletin this morning: "Gathering with other Christians to worship God is like tasting the great kingdom banquet that is coming." Many of the gifts offered to us as part of our worship were received with the only response that said it all, either a hushed or an enthusiastic "Amen".

Throughout the week I thought a little about the sermon waiting to be prepared for this morning. I trusted that there would be ample inspiration from the Holy Spirit throughout the week, and the title, "Expect the Unexpected" kept floating in and out of the experiences. One soloist was, for me, surprisingly phenomenal. Throughout her solo, tears filled my eyes. I think I heard someone say that she was 83 years young. I don’t really remember the words of the song - but I think I will always remember the look on her face, the grace in her body, and the witness that she proclaimed. Our response to her solo was not to say, "Amen," although many of us did. Our response was to raise our arms toward heaven and to shake our hands - you see, she wouldn’t have heard our spoken "Amen" or even our clapping had we done so, because she was deaf. She didn’t need to have a response from us because she had not offered her solo for our approval, but as worship to God. Still we had to respond. We had to share in her witness, so we responded by thanking God for her gift in a way that she would also understand. The words of her song were communicated to us by her hand and body movements - as she used the language of deaf persons to sign the words calling for the Holy Spirit to come. An interpreter spoke the words for us so that we, who relied upon the sound of words to give meaning, could understand.

When I went to a convocation about music and worship arts, I never expected to witness a concert by a choir from Christ UMC of the Deaf in Maryland. The experience reminded me of how God uses the unexpected to get our attention, to explain to us what the Kingdom of Heaven is like and to help us experience a part of it here in our earthly life. There are many examples in our Scripture readings for today of how we see, hear, feel and touch God in surprising and unexpected ways. They are examples of how God works through the unexpected to transform everyday life into kingdom living.

Jesus liked to use examples from everyday life to help people understand what he was talking about. In one of these examples he told them that the kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until it was leavened. At first this reminded me of the days back in the early 70’s when I was into being very domestic and I used to make all my own bread. It would take about 8 hours all told from beginning to end to make the batter, give the yeast time to rise, punch it down and let it rise again, and so forth. However, Jesus was talking about more than the one or two loaves of bread I might make. Three measures of flour was about a bushel, or about 50 pounds. It was enough flour to make bread for over 100 people! This would have caused the women in the crowd to sit up and take notice. This was more than what they would have expected. Jesus wasn’t just talking about bread for a family’s daily meal, he was describing a festive occasion - a banquet - a huge celebration.

We have a tendency to think of ourselves as the yeast. When we combine this with the parable just before it, about the very small mustard seed that grows into a large bush, big enough to attract birds, there is a tendency to make these stories about church growth. Often we think of them as encouraging us to see ourselves, and the church as gradually growing and becoming more powerful, or as leavening the world. There have been many sermons preached on how we need to get out there and be leavening among the world - and while that may be true - listen again, "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed..... The kingdom of heaven is like yeast."

This changes the perspective a little. I believe that these are stories about God. Stories about God’s action - not ours. The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took - that God took - and mixed in with three measures of flour - with the whole world - until all of it was leavened. These very brief stories proclaim God’s action in the world - something almost imperceptible, or hidden, but nevertheless real, alive, happening.

The flour cannot escape the leavening action of the yeast. Once it is mixed together it cannot be separated out. Paul proclaims this in his letter to the Romans, when he witnesses that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. The deafness of the woman who shared her tremendous solo with us, and that of the other spirit filled people in the deaf choir could not separate them from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

That is wonderful! It is absolutely incredible! Nothing in this world can separate us from God’s love - not trouble, suffering, or hard times, not hunger or nakedness, or danger - not even death. Nothing in all creation can separate us from God’s love for us in Christ Jesus our Lord!

When you realize this, you can understand the next two brief parables that Jesus uses to describe again the kingdom of heaven. "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it."

These parables are about our response to what God is doing. Our response to this great unexpected and unearned love. There is an overwhelming response by the one who discovers, who realizes, what God has done and is doling. In the parables, the finder sells all he possesses in order to take possession of what he has found. We cannot possess or own God’s kingdom, but we can participate in God’s kingdom - and our participation must be total. We can’t just sign our name on the dotted line and be a stockholder. We are to be active participants.

Remember the mustard seed which grows to be large enough that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches. In the Scripture, birds are often used as an image to refer to Gentiles - to those people who were outside of God’s kingdom. In this parable they - we - will be included in the kingdom - they - we - will find a home in the strong branches of God’s love.

So what are we to do with all this? How are we to participate in God’s kingdom? You can probably think of many ways - but hear what the Psalmist says. First we are to give thanks to the Lord. We are to be people of thanksgiving - people who instead of complaining about what we think God is not doing for us - should be opening our eyes, our ears, our hearts and looking in the unexpected places to see what God is doing and then to give thanks.

We are to call on God’s name. Instead of calling on the name of financial security, possessions, health, relationships, or anything else, we are to call on the name of God as the center and the focus of our lives.

We are to make known God’s deeds among the peoples. We can do this by talking about what God has done - in fact the Psalmist says, "tell of all his wonderful works." We can make God’s deeds known by our actions - by living a life which shows that we are people who have discovered the treasure in the field, the pearl of great price and that we have committed all of our life to living as participants in God’s kingdom. During the troubles which are part of life, we can witness that even these things do not have the power to separate us from God’s love.

We can sing praises to God. It doesn’t matter whether our voices are sweet and melodious or monotone or off tone or whether we are able to make oral sounds or not. We can sing praises to God with our voices, with the movement of our bodies, with signs, with bells, with instruments. I’ll let you in on a little secret. When you are feeling really down and think that you have nothing to praise God for - you can usually find one thing - simply being alive is something for which we can praise God. Once you’ve found that one thing, it won’t take long to think of a second and then a third. Soon you’ll find yourself doing something else the Psalmist tells us to do: "Remember the wonderful works he has done." If you read the psalms you’ll discover that many of them are songs of remembrance - remembering the things that God has done for God’s people. Many of our hymns do that same thing.

Every day we are to "Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually." Many of us seek God’s strength during times of trouble - when we are feeling like we can’t hang on any longer. The Psalmist reminds us to seek God’s presence continually. That is when we will remember and affirm once again with Paul that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In a world where too many corporate executives are letting down their stockholders and employees; in a world where there is a danger of being injured or killed because you are in the wrong place at the wrong time; in a world where life is often not fair - there is one thing that is not fair but which we can celebrate. It is the unexpected and marvelous work of God through Jesus Christ. It is not fair because we don’t deserve God’s love, but it is ultimately and abundantly fair because it is a gift poured out on all of us. God is at work leavening the world, working in the world. Let us seek the treasure, the pearl of great price, the kingdom of heaven and then respond with total participation with God in the work of the kingdom.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

July 21, 2002

Title: Finding God in Unexpected Places

Text: *Genesis 28:10-19a

*Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24

It’s like a story out of a soap opera. Twin brothers are born and are rivals even in the womb. The first born is Dad’s favorite. Mom dotes on the second born. When they become older, the second born of the twins, Jacob, convinces the first born, Esau, to trade something of great value for something that Jacob has and Esau wants. Sometime later as their father lays dying, he sends Esau out to get him something to eat and promises that when he comes back, they will sign the papers giving the family business to Esau. Mom devises a plan and Jacob sneaks in and signs the contracts before Esau returns. When Esau arrives both father and son realize that they have been tricked and Jacob flees for his life.

The details are slightly different, but essentially that is the story of Jacob, son of Isaac, grandson of Abraham to whom God had promised that his descendants would become a nation as numerous as the stars in the sky or the grains of sand on the earth.

Today we find Jacob on the road. He has already traveled about 60 miles of what would be a trip of over 400. "Jacob took the long way around to come back to the promises given to his grandfather and father by God. Along the way, he encountered God in unexpected places and in unexpected ways. Jacob’s journey can help us understand our own more fully."

Jacob is fleeing the only home he has ever known. He is on his way to where his mother came from, hoping to find a wife; but mostly he is running from his brother’s quite understandable anger. He has little hope that he will return home soon, despite his mother’s promise to send for him when it is safe. He is far away from anything familiar.

There are many in our world who are far away from anything familiar, far from extended family, far from familiar customs. Sometimes this is because of the distance required to travel for school or work. In times of crisis, there is no extended family to shelter one from the storms of life. New families must be developed, or as we sometimes call them today, networks of friends, associates, people with similar interests or connected by something other than blood. Our Navy families especially know the bond that commits them to being family for each other.

For many though the separation is not only physical - and sometimes not even physical. Some of us find ourselves in a foreign place spiritually, wandering through life, "without a goal in mind, with no belief to sustain us, and no God to guide us. Some of us, like Jacob, have been brought up since birth to know the God of our parents. Yet, like Jacob, we wander restlessly, until we become so weary we simply cannot go on. "

One evening, exhausted, and unable to travel any further he set up camp near a town called Luz. He used a stone as a pillow and quickly fell asleep, feeling terribly alone. Here in this place of desolation, he felt cut off from God and everyone else. He had a dream in which he saw a ladder or staircase with angels going up and down from heaven to earth. In his dream God revealed to him that he was not alone. God came to stand beside him and reassure him, "I am the Lord, the God of Abraham and Isaac." God proceeded to tell him that all of the land there would belong to him; that his offspring would be as plentiful as the dust of the earth, and that all of the families of earth would be blessed in him. This was the same promise which God had made to Jacob’s grandfather Abraham. But there was an added piece, "Remember, I will be with you and protect you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Jacob awakened inspired, "Surely the Lord is in this place - and I did not know it. ... This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." So Jacob made a shrine and called that place Bethel, which means "house of God." Jacob continued on his journey, but now he was on two journeys at the same time. One was physical and would take him a great distance. The other was spiritual and would also cover much territory. Through the years it would bring him to a point where he became the father of twelve sons and one daughter. His name was changed to Israel and he sought God’s guidance in all that he did. - However, that is another story.

"Surely the Lord is in this place!" "What a strange place for God to be revealed - alongside a road, in a camp of a wanderer. Not just any wanderer, either; this was the camp of a deceitful, thieving exile. The very strangeness of this appearance is this story’s greatest sign of hope for today."

God does not appear only in churches and holy places. God is with us wherever we are, journeying with us until we come to the places and the promises that God has prepared for us. God’s presence can be made known to us on the mountaintop of joy, in the valley of despair and in the prairie when the days stretch endlessly before us.

We need never fear that we are too low for God to be interested in us. This story of Jacob is but one example of the way God chooses the people we would consider least worthy, least likely. This is a story about God’s extravagant grace! Jacob is not a particularly nice character. He’s not even likable - except to his mother - but God loves him anyway. Jacob doesn’t deserve God’s love. He does nothing to earn it, but God loves him, not because of who Jacob is, but because of who God is.

I’ve recently been introduced to a book by Anne Lamott called Traveling Mercies. She describes a life growing up where "none of the adults in our circle believed. Believing meant that you were stupid. Ignorant people believed, uncouth people believe, and we were heavily couth." As a young adult she tried to keep the extent of her drinking a secret and would walk along a bike bath to find a trash can where she could dispose of her bottle. She noticed a church and remembered attending Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve, but says, "I wasn’t remotely ready for Christianity, though - I mean, I wasn’t that far gone." She writes, "Then one afternoon in my dark bedroom, the cracks webbed all the way through me. I believed that I would die soon, from a fall or an overdose. I knew there was an afterlife but felt that the odds of my living long enough to get into heaven were almost nil. They couldn’t possible take you in the shape I was in. I could no longer imagine how God could love me. But in my dark bedroom at Pat’s that afternoon, out of nowhere it crossed my mind to call the new guy at St. Stephen’s"

We know that this wasn’t out of nowhere, but was God seeking her out, reaching out to her. Wouldn’t we like to think that calling the church was the most obvious and best thing for her to do? It almost wasn’t. The pastor was on his way out and tried to get her to promise to call back the next day - but then he must have also been open to the movement of the Spirit, because he quickly changed his mind and told her to come in right away. Thus began a new journey for Anne Lamott. Her life didn’t change overnight, but it was the start of a journey which would bring her to a very different place today.

God can be found in the most unexpected places of our lives - actually God can be found in every place in our life. That is what the Psalmist proclaimed. Jacob didn’t write this Psalm, but I imagine that in his later years, if he had been alive when it was written, he would have been able to identify with it. From what I can tell of my so far limited reading of Anne Lamott, she would join in its proclamation.

Often times we don’t let people get to know us completely because we are afraid that they will discover something about us that they won’t like. God already knows everything about us, even to the number of hairs on our heads and still accepts and loves us. Sometimes, like Jacob we think we can even run away from God. The reality is that God is with us through every situation, in every trial, protecting, loving, guiding. God knows us and loves us completely.

"O Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. ... Such knowledge is too wonderful for me."

There really are no unexpected places to find God because God is as close to us as our breath and more aware of everything about us than even we are. Such knowledge is either too wonderful for us to imagine, or somewhat frightening, or at least disconcerting. If, however, we pray with the psalmist, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." then we will be opening ourselves to God’s exploratory surgery and complete healing. If we pray this with sincerity, God’s knowledge of us will indeed provide comfort, direction, and be so wonderful that we will want others to know about it.

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North Kingstown UMC

July 7, 2002

Text: Romans 7:15-25a

*Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Title: Strength for the Journey

"Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore,

Send these the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

"The New Colossus"

November 2, 1883

Emma Lazarus 1849-1887

These are familiar words. They are the last five lines of a longer sonnet written by Emma Lazarus on November 2, 1883 and called "The New Colossus." She wrote them to describe the Statue of Liberty or what she called the "Mother of Exiles." They are words which some of our ancestors may have seen as they entered this country. They are words of welcome; words of promise; words which have become associated with the American Dream. They gave hope to millions who came seeking a new life, a better life, who came looking for opportunity and dreaming of success.

There are few words more inviting, more capable of producing a yearning or desire in the hearts of humanity - unless perhaps, they are the words which come at the end of today’s Gospel reading, words of Jesus. "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." (Matthew 11:28-30)

In our fast paced society where there is intense pressure to juggle demanding employment on top of demands of home and family these words have an almost fantasy quality about them - can it be possible? Is there a place where there can be rest? For teenagers struggling to find their way into the adult world balancing part time jobs, school work and trying to fit in socially, these words may be like a quiet park in an urban jungle. For children busy with school work, music lessons, sports, and a schedule which can boggle the mind of most adults these words might sound like permission to just sit out on the back steps and listen to the birds.

Now of course there’s a lot more to it than this.

People coming to this country discovered that the streets were not paved with gold; jobs were not always readily available, and often they did remain poor and tired. The invitation and welcome to this country did not mean that they had entered into a fantasy world where people waited on them and all of their needs were provided; and where cares disappeared. Still there was a fulfillment of the promise in terms of freedom and opportunities that made the dangerous trip and sometimes leaving family behind worthwhile.

Jesus’ invitation to us does not mean that our lives will be perfect and that all we have to do is sit by the water resting and smelling the salt air. We know better than that. Still this invitation is full of very important truths. These truths cause these words to make our hearts yearn for what Jesus is offering.

We, too, still face a journey which is often difficult, but Jesus’ invitation is to come and find strength alongside him. When he tells us to "learn from him" he means more than simply listening to what he says. He means to watch him, to walk with him and to learn from his actions. We are to pay serious attention to the fact that he is "gentle and humble in heart". Service to God and to humanity requires a spirit of gentleness and humility that is exhibited at its best by Jesus. The yoke which Jesus asks us to put on is not one which Jesus imposes on us, but rather one which he also wears!

The yoke was a common wooden instrument that yoked two oxen together and made them a team. There is a good possibility that as a carpenter one of the things that Jesus did was to make yokes for oxen. These are not a one size fits all device. It wasn’t like going over to Wal-Mart and picking one off the shelf. First the oxen were brought tot he carpenter for careful measurement. Yokes were tailor made to fit each animal and were not interchangeable. The yoke was designed to fit comfortably over the neck of the animals. The wood was planed and sanded carefully so that there were no rough places that would irritate the neck of the patient beast. A final fitting was necessary before the yoke could be put into use. At that time, it was carefully inspected again to make sure that the load would fall evenly upon the two animals and be comfortable for them to wear together.

This is what Jesus is talking about when he talks about his yoke being easy and the burden light. The yoke which we are asked to put on is well-fitting. It has been designed for us. Our abilities - as well as our limitations - have been taken into account. Before He offers the yoke to us, the One who loves us has carefully considered our personalities, our life situations, all of the circumstances of life. It is adjusted periodically to fit our changing conditions so that it is always "well-fitting" and kind to us.

The purpose of the yoke was to guide the animal, to keep it from running away, or going on the wrong path. Most yokes were designed for two animals - a team that would work together. Ours is no exception. Jesus is inviting - or rather urging us - to become his yoke-mate. He is telling us that we are to learn how to pull the load by working alongside him and watching how he does it. Jesus is telling us that the heavy load will seem lighter when we allow him to help us with it.

This is something with which we often struggle. Part of the American Dream and the Protestant Work Ethic teaches us that if we just work hard enough we can accomplish anything. In many ways we are not used to being part of a team. We have often been taught not only to pull our own weight but also to be on guard watching carefully to make sure that others are making a comparable effort.

One person who made such a Herculean effort was Paul. He was the most committed Jewish man you could ever find. He followed the law precisely - he was the best of the best. Later when he began to follow the teachings of Jesus he exerted that same kind of commitment. He was probably the greatest early Christian missionary. He is either directly or indirectly responsible for many of the letters in the New Testament - including the letter to the Romans which we have been reading recently.

In today’s reading we get to hear Paul in the midst of what for him is a real struggle. He tries so very hard to do what is right. He wants to follow all the rules. He is the epitome of the type A+ personality and a serious workaholic. Yet he is not satisfied with what he has accomplished or what he does. He has a super highly developed conscience and grieves even the most minor indiscretion.

So we hear him lament, "I don’t understand why I act the way I do. I don’t do what I know is right. I do the things I hate...." Since I know a fair amount about Paul I find it comforting that he lets us see this side of him. I know that he is not talking about things that we would think of as being truly horrible. He is not an ax-murderer or a bank robber. He is simply an ordinary man recognizing and owning his own limitations. He is describing a universal human condition. When I translate his concerns into my life it is likely to come out in things like, "I hate it when I get impatient with people, I know that’s not what God wants me to do. It’s terrible that so many people can’t find affordable housing, I know that I should be more active in advocating for it, but I just can’t get myself to do more." For some it might mean facing the struggle to give up smoking or drinking, or any of the many things that we struggle with during our lives. Often it means the daily problems of getting angry and yelling at someone or keeping silent when we should have spoken up.

Paul finally cries out, "Who will rescue me from this body that is doomed to die?" And then he answers his own question. "Thank God! Jesus Christ will rescue me." The One who volunteers to be our yoke-mate is the one who will rescue us. What Paul could not accomplish by his own willpower, Christ could help him accomplish. This was what it meant to be a disciple. He did not have to follow Christ’s way all by himself. Instead the power of Christ - which comes through the Holy Spirit - would be with him. Paul alone could not do it. Paul plus Christ could.

Jesus promises a journey where he will be our companion and guide. God gives us rest for our souls by offering the wisdom of Christ and the companionship of Christ. The burden is light because Jesus shares the burden with us. The yoke is easy or well-fitting because Christ offers compassion and kindness to us in all of the changing circumstances of our lives.

The Great Invitation is great indeed, for it is an invitation to share a difficult journey with a God who loves us and walks with us each and every day.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

June 30, 2002

Text: Psalm 13

Title: "An Act of Bold Faith"

Long enough, God -

you’ve ignored me long enough.

I’ve looked at the back of your head long enough.

Long enough I’ve carried this ton of trouble

lived with a stomach full of pain.

Long enough my arrogant enemies

have looked down their noses at me.

Take a good look at me, God, my God,

I want to look life in the eye,

So no enemy can get the best of me

or laugh when I fall on my face.

When you heard this what was your initial reaction? What did you think?

Did you think that this was blasphemy? How dare anyone yell at God like that! How dare anyone accuse God of ignoring them! Did you even momentarily imagine bolts of lightning coming down from heaven to strike the speaker dead?

Have you ever had these thoughts or feelings yourelf and screamed them out loud? Have you ever had these thoughts and feelings yourself but been afraid to say them out loud; maybe even afraid to acknowledge them to yourself; afraid to admit you could feel that way?

Have you rushed immediately into, "Oh, God, I didn’t really mean that! It’s just that with all these horrible things happening, I was getting kind of down, feeling a little sorry for myself. Please forgive me! You know I didn’t mean it. I know you’d never turn away from me. I know you’re still there. I know you hear me. It’s just that I don’t understand why these things are happening. I guess you must have your reasons. I probably don’t have enough faith."

Too often we hear these challenges to God as a lack of faith or a failure on our part. Sometimes we think of them as an act of failure on God’s part. God must have momentarily lost control or fallen asleep on the job, otherwise these things wouldn’t have happened - not to us. Wasn’t that a little bit of what many of us did after September 11th? We cried out "how could God let this happen to us?" We even heard from some well known religious leaders that God’s protection had been withdrawn from us. We almost stampeded to get to churches to pray - to wake God up, to remind God to protect us. "God Bless America" became our mantra.

In our culture we’ve become uncomfortable with addressing complaining or pleading talk like this to God. We prefer to read passages from the Bible that are comforting and full of assurance. We want our faith to be both important and satisfying. We prefer life and faith to be settled and beyond doubt, so that we are not living and trying to believe in the midst of overwhelming anxiety. Generally we prefer a "well oriented faith in a mood of equilibrium". Walter Brueggemann, Professor of Old Testament at Columbia Theological Seminary, in Decatur, Georgia calls the Psalms that reflect this kind of life and faith "Psalms of Orientation". He suggests that by and large, in the church we prefer to sing "songs of orientation in a world increasingly experienced as disoriented." He says that when the "church goes on singing `happy songs’ in the face of raw reality it is doing something very different from what the Bible itself does."

There are many Psalms which do not express this nice easy well-settled faith, but rather are full of "lament, protest, and complaint about the incoherence that is experienced in the world." Psalm 13, which we read this morning is just one of these. Brueggemann says that "the use of these `psalms of darkness‘ may be judged by the world to be acts of unfaith and failure, but for the trusting community, their use is an act of bold faith," a transformed faith.

As I read his words this week it was like a breath of fresh air, an affirmation of what was deep in my heart. His words resonated with what I find myself feeling and saying so often, "that the world must be experienced as it really is and not in some pretended way." He says that these psalms and the use of them in our worship is an act of bold faith because it is an insistence that "all such experiences of disorder are a proper subject for discourse with God. There is nothing out of bounds, nothing precluded or inappropriate. Everything properly belongs in this conversation of the heart. To withhold parts of life from that conversation is in fact to withhold part of life from the sovereignty of God.... These psalms make the important connection: everything must be brought to speech, and everything brought to speech must be addressed to God, who is the final reference for all of life."

Think about it. If we really believe this then our faith can stand in the face of all of the horrible junk that is all too often part of life. Anything and everything that happens can and should be discussed with God. All of our feelings whether we like them or not can be shared with God. We do not need to be afraid that God will strike us dead because we are angry, or feeling isolated and alone, or because we are feeling abandoned by God and want to know where God is and why God isn’t paying attention to us. In the Bible - particularly in what we call the Old Testament, and especially in the Psalms, we meet people who are completely committed to God, who believe that the whole gamut of expressions of life no matter how scandalous and without redeeming social value they may be can and must be addressed directly to Yahweh who is Lord of the human experience and partner with us in it.

In our human experience one of the most difficult experiences for people to share with others is the experience of abuse. Rather than admit that someone else had control over part of their lives, people who have been abused have frequently tended to somehow place the blame upon themselves thinking that somehow they could have prevented it from happening. This is one area where secret keeping has been abundant. We are experiencing the effect now of this secret keeping when it has involved abuse that has been perpetrated by someone who was believed to be a person of God. Too frequently a person who has been abused will also turn away from God not understanding why God didn’t prevent the abuse from happening, and almost afraid to question God about it, to complain to God fearful of more or a different kind of abusive response.

The Psalmist gives us not only permission to do this in the many psalms of lament, protest and complaint but also by example leads us into the dangerous acknowledgment of how life really is. The Psalmist leads us into the presence of God where everything is not polite and civil. These Psalms cause us to think unthinkable thoughts and utter unutterable words. As Brueggemann points out, Perhaps worst, these psalms lead us away from the comfortable claims of modern religion in which everything is managed and controlled.

One of the most striking things about these Psalms is the surprising shift that happens near the end. Somehow things are different. Something is changed. We do not know whether the circumstances have changed, or the attitude has changed, or a combination of the two. We don’t know if someone has spoken, but abruptly the speaker changes from complaint, lament and petition to something that can only be described as praise. There may have originally been a long wait between the two parts of the psalm. Perhaps something happened in the worship experience. Perhaps the time of talking, complaining, petitioning has allowed a feeling of release from pent up feelings.

Something has happened - and a relationship with God that has been very strained and broken is healed and made whole. I would compare this to the experience of sitting and talking with someone we know and trust. What may start out as a time of expressing sadness, frustration, fear or other emotions can in the presence of someone whom we know and trust lead to a point in the conversation where we know we have been heard, where our feelings have been accepted as valid, and where we start to look ahead to the "what next." Even if the outward circumstances have not changed we may be more focused. We may have a sense of direction. We have remembered that we have faced difficult times before and we have come through them. We feel more hopeful, more confident. In the Psalms since the complaint has been addressed to God, the psalmist now remembers the stories of the faith in which God has consistently been present helping God’s people. The psalmist remembers times in his life when God has helped him through and is confident that God has heard him and will help him again.

Hear how Peterson, in The Message, conveys this in the last two verses of Psalm 13. "I’ve thrown myself headlong into your arms -

I’m celebrating your rescue.

I’m singing at the top of my lungs,

I’m so full of answered prayers."

Hear these verses in the New Revised Standard Version:

"But I trusted in your steadfast love;

my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.

I will sing to the Lord,

because he has dealt bountifully with me."

The language reflects a new liberated self-confidence. God’s salvation and steadfast love are celebrated. The Psalmist is clear that the source of help is God. Life is broken loose in doxology - in praise.

When we give name to our feelings and speak them to God, we discover that we have been heard. We remember God’s faithfulness in the past. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit to move into a future that while still filled with the unknown and with danger is also filled with the assurance of God’s presence.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

June 23, 2002

Text: Romans 6:1-11

*Matthew 10:24-39

Title: "Good News/Bad News"

When I was growing up, it seems to me that I heard a lot about a God of judgment, a God who hated sin and would punish the sinner. If I needed a human image of what I thought God was like I found it in the principal of my elementary school who carried a rubber strap that would come down loud and hard on students who did wrong. Fortunately, this is no longer allowed in most schools. I was terrified of her. My mother's common sense approach that if I didn't do anything wrong I had nothing to fear didn't do much to reassure me. It was one of those good news/bad news situations. The good news was that if you followed the rules and didn't get in trouble you didn't receive the strap. The bad news was that the strap was an ever present reminder of what would happen if you did something wrong. And at that point in my life I also associated God with the bad news part of life.

Through the years, the theological trend has been to get away from the God who punishes, and talk more about God and specifically Jesus as the warm loving accepting savior who preached kindness, tolerance, equality, patience, faith, hard work, and above all - love. The trend has become to proclaim the good news. Matthew Woodley wrote in Good News magazine some time ago that we've done a very good job of proclaiming the Good News Jesus.

During a confirmation class he showed the ninth graders a video version of Jesus cleansing the temple. "His face flushed with anger, Jesus proceeded to thrash money boxes, tables, and pigeon cages." Then he asked the 15 year olds to describe Jesus in five words. "They rattled off the usual answers: `Jesus is loving, caring, gentle, nice, sweet, kind ...' After a few minutes of sharing, Aaron, who was normally the quietest kid in the class, couldn't stand it anymore. `Hey, you guys,' he blurted out, `are you describing Jesus Christ or Barney?'"

He goes on to write, "This `Barney-fied' Jesus contains a comforting truth. Christ's heart is full of tenderness for all who are wounded and sinful. Jesus is kind. He accepts us as we are. How could anyone read the gospels and deny these simple truths? How could anyone with compassion for the brokenhearted, the damaged, and the unaffirmed fail to preach this message?"

Indeed, this is the "good news" Jesus and I like him a whole lot. Unfortunately in today's Gospel, while Jesus proclaims the good news of a God who is always watching out for us there is a whole lot in this passage which is not warm and comforting. In fact there's a lot that sounds like bad news. It's definitely not one of my favorite passages - but it is an important one for us to hear and to struggle with.

This seems to be a collection of short sayings or perhaps warnings about what will happen, or what we might expect if we follow Jesus. The good news is that God is God of all creation. If God cares for sparrows and hair follicles, God will certainly care for Jesus' followers.

Then comes the bad news. Saying yes to God will not make things easy. Mary discovered that quickly. Luke's gospel tells us that an angel appeared to her and announced that she was to bear a child who would be called the Son of God. "Good news!" "Great News!!" The prophecy which every Jew awaited would come true and she was the one chosen to bear the Messiah. "Bad news." She wasn't married yet and who would ever believe this story!

"Good news." An angel appeared to Joseph, her fiancé, and confirmed the story. She was saved from the humiliation of being charged as an adulteress and sentenced to death by stoning. "Bad news." The Romans were taking a census and she and Joseph would have to travel a great distance to Bethlehem - a long hard journey for a very pregnant young woman.

"Good news" The baby was born and angels appeared in the skies announcing the birth to shepherds who came and worshipped him. Mary, the young mother listened to their description of what had happened and treasured the words in her heart. Soon, Luke tells us, it was time to bring the baby to the temple in Jerusalem and once again Mary and Joseph heard words of prophecy from a man named Simeon about their son, words that amazed them. "Bad news" The last words of Simeon spoken to his mother were, "And a sword will pierce your soul too."

Being Jesus' mother was not an easy task for Mary. Being his earthly father was not an easy task for Joseph. There were many good times, but their were also times of heartache and fear, and for Mary the horrible pain of watching her son die a criminal's death on a cross. Being a parent is always a combination of "good news/bad news." It is a combination of joy and sadness, excitement and frustration. Sometimes we stand by helplessly watching our children learn the difficult lessons of life and wishing we could make it easier. Yet we know that love requires that we let them learn the difficult things too.

In today's Gospel, Jesus warns his disciples that following him, is a combination of "good news/ bad news". "Good news" God loves you dearly. "Bad news" following Jesus will not guarantee you a smooth road in life. In fact, it will guarantee you a rocky often difficult road because there is more to following Christ than warm fuzzy feelings.

Jesus told his disciples that if he was insulted and misunderstood, and treated unkindly, then, they, who were following his example could expect the same kind of treatment. Following Christ means standing up for the same kinds of things that Christ stands for. It means speaking the hard word in love when it needs to be spoken. It means standing on the side of honesty and integrity - even when those around us want us to stand somewhere else. It means asking first, "What does God want me to do at this time in this situation?" That's often a hard question to ask, because the answer may not make life easy for us. But it is the question that is of utmost importance. It has a higher priority than, "What will make my boss happy?" It is more critical than, "What will make my children like me, my friends honor me, and my family think I'm great?" Jesus tells us that it is a question which has eternal consequences.

In the gospel, we read that Jesus says he didn't come to bring peace, but a sword; that following him will bring division in our family. Wow! That sure isn't something we want to hear. That is definitely in the "bad news" category. But it is something we need to look at.

I don't think for one minute that Jesus' intention or desire is to cause trouble for the sake of causing trouble - that just doesn't fit with the rest of what we know about him. Jesus does wish to bring peace - we see that all through the Bible. Remember that Jesus said, "I give you peace, the kind of peace that only I can give. It isn't like the peace that this world can give. So don't be worried or afraid." (John 14:27 CEV)

I believe that Jesus came to bring us a special kind of peace - a peace that surpasses understanding - but he was stating a fact that at times following him would make our lives seem anything but peaceful and harmonious. What Jesus did say was that nothing in our lives can be more important to us than our relationship with him - and that includes all of the other wonderful things in our lives.

We certainly know times in our history when families have been torn apart because of their stand on particular subjects - a glaring one in our country was the Civil War where brothers literally fought against brothers. Seldom in most of our lives will we face that extreme kind of division within our families, but the early Christians did. They faced the possibility of death because of their beliefs and the very real chance that it would be a family member who turned them over to the Roman authorities.

Nevertheless, there are times when our faith stance may cause division or disagreement within our families. Some of you know the joy of being in relationships where the other people believe as you do and you can rejoice in being able to worship and pray together, study Scripture together, and be companions on your faith journey. However, others of you come to worship alone; leaving at home someone who either just doesn't care to come with you, or doesn't understand why this is important to you. Some of you may experience open opposition or ridicule because of your beliefs and can easily identify with the pain that sometimes comes from following Christ. However, if pain were the only thing coming from following Christ, you would probably walk away from him. The pain becomes bearable because of the promises that God has made to us, because of the peace that we can't explain but which Christ does in fact bring to those who follow his path, and because of the strength and guidance which gets us through the difficult times of life.

Jesus tells us that we must love him more than anything or anyone else in our lives. That does not, in any way, mean that we are not to have warm, loving and very meaningful relationships. It simply means that these relationships are to be seen through our relationship with Christ. It means that sometimes we will have to leave family or loved ones behind to do something for Christ. Sometimes we will have to take a stand or disagree with our loved ones because of what we believe God wants us to do. But God does not call us to neglect or abandon our family. Remember that one of the ten commandments is to "Honor your father and mother". Entering into a committed relationship with another person is part of a covenant that we make with that person, and before God. In all things we are to ask first, "What does God want me to do at this particular time in this specific situation?" Sometimes that will mean saying "no" to some church things in order to follow God's will in caring for our relationships and nurturing those whose care has been entrusted to us.

Many people face complex issues in their places of employment and it may be here that you find yourself called to take a difficult stand. A friend faced a serious vocational problem. He had discovered some very unsavory business practices on the part of his boss. With a child in college and another to follow, and without a college degree of his own, this man was in a quandary about what to do. There were very few companies which did the same kind of work and the owners were all buddies. He suspected that they all did the same thing anyway. Entering middle age, he was at a loss as to where he could turn. It was the only kind of work he knew how to do. What would you have suggested to him? What do you think you would do in a similar situation? Places of employment may be where we continuously face the good news/bad news conflict. The bad news may be that we have to take a stand that will be unpopular. We may be misunderstood, ridiculed, opposed. We may lose friends, our standing in our families, community, employment. We may have to take risks in order to follow Christ.

The "Good News" is that even in the midst of what seems to be the worst possible scenario we are not alone. Jesus promises us that if we do not deny his claim on our lives here among the earthly conditions, he will certainly not deny us before God in heaven. The "good new" is that in the eternal scheme of things standing for what Christ stands for is always the right decision to make.

When all is said and done what will matter is not how much money we made, how many toys we owned, or how much power we had. What will matter is how we acquired our money and our toys, how we used our power and influence, and whether we did it all seeking to be faithful to Christ’s call.

Because of God's great love for us, because of Christ's great sacrifice for us, because of the Holy Spirit's sustaining power within us, we are never alone.

"J. Wallace Hamilton told a delightful story of the time his little boy, still barely more than a toddler, was vacationing with the family at a favorite lake place. It bordered a small forest, and when Mother went to town on a shopping expedition, leaving the son with Dad, Hamilton said he instructed his son to stay close by ... However, the boy left to go exploring... Hamilton saw the boy leave and instead of calling him back, followed him. The child had a great time, watching animals, seeing new sights, feeling independent, an explorer. But eventually, the little fellow became tired and looked around for the way home. Hamilton had remained just out of sight, and the boy, alone, lost, sat down on a log. At this point, his dad stepped out and Hamilton reported that the boy was not particularly surprised. He more or less assumed that if he got lost, his Dad would soon find him. So home they went. And Dr. Hamilton observed that here was a perfect illustration of the part God often plays in our lives."

"Bad News" following Christ does not mean that our lives will be easy, and free from trouble. It means that we will need to take stands that are unpopular with others in our world. "Good News" "Great News!!!" Whatever happens in our life, we are not alone. God is always with us, even if momentarily just out of sight. It is God who holds our very soul in the palm of a loving hand. No matter what may happen - when you follow Christ, you have the confidence to proclaim, "It is well with my soul."

When the late Bishop Fulton J. Sheen appeared at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, DC in January 1979 he began his address by turning to President Jimmy Carter and his wife and saying, "Mr. President, you are a sinner." A hush fell over the audience capturing its attention just as the bishop had intended. He then pointed to himself and said, "I am a sinner." He looked out at the audience, the sophisticated and influential spectators gathered and continued, "We are all sinners, and we all need to turn to God."

Except for the infants and very young among us, we too are all sinners. Men or women, clergy or congregation, we are all sinners. Fortunately, as we heard in the scriptures, we have all come to the right place today … a place for the sick … a place to be healed. As we heard in our scripture readings, Jesus performed many miracles, healing the physically ill, but he also healed the spiritually ill.

We heard how the tax collector Matthew was called. Now Jesus had called fishermen to follow him before, but calling a tax collector like Matthew was something quite different. Being a fisherman in Jesus’ time was an honorable profession, but a tax collector was not. Not only did he work for the Roman government, but he made his living by the amount he could charge over and above what was required by the Romans. A tax collector like Matthew was considered in the same league with robbers and even murderers. Dining with tax collectors just wasn’t accepted.

But Jesus looked beyond Matthew’s current character and when he asked Matthew to follow him, he rises and follows. The same story we heard today is also in the gospels of Mark and Luke where Matthew is called Levi. Whether we call him Matthew or Levi, it doesn’t change the message. When called, Matthew did not take time to ask about who this Jesus was. He didn’t question his mission or reflect on the consequences of following him. Just like God’s wonderful servant Abraham, in our lesson from Genesis, he obediently followed.

How much time would we need to follow Christ’s call?

For me, it has taken almost 55 years to get to this point – standing before you preaching from the pulpit for the first time. Several years ago, I was the liturgist at a Sunday service. And after the service, Eleanor Bourn, one of our charter members of this church came up to me and pointing her finger at me and gently scolding, said, "Larry, you must have been asleep when God called you because you are in the wrong line of work!" It was one of the nicest compliments I’ve ever received. And I thanked her, quickly dismissed it, but never forgot it. Since that time others have encouraged me to become a lay speaker. But the lay – speaking course was always at a time that conflicted with my business travel and it was always convenient to tell myself I didn’t have time.

When my brother died two years ago and my nephew passed last year, our family asked me to deliver their eulogies. I felt inadequate, but I did it. And it made me feel as if I had helped not only myself, but others to cope with the grieving. I learned that death is not an end, but a celebration of life.

This spring another member of our congregation, Diane Gledhill, twice encouraged me to become a lay speaker. The course was being offered again but it was five Wednesday nights, right in the middle of my business travel. How could I do it? Finally, I admitted to myself, "After all these years, if not now, when?" So I enrolled. And, you know what, it was one of the most spiritually-rewarding experiences of my life. I gained more confidence through the scripture lessons and our teacher’s encouragement to respond to God’s call.

I still feel inadequate, but Eleanor, I’m here today to tell you that I am now finally awake and hearing God’s call. I don’t expect to change my line of work any time soon, but I’ve also learned we don’t have to be ministers, we don’t have to be lay speakers to answer God’s call. We just have to listen and follow what’s in our heart. We have to put aside our self – imposed objections, accept God’s call and use our God-given talents to learn and share God’s word with others. If we do that, we are filled with joy by the Holy Spirit.

Too often we are like the Pharisees--- too much in love with our own confining rules and objections and yet unable to love our neighbor or serve the God who made us. When the Pharisees saw Jesus dining with tax collectors, they questioned his methods. And how did Jesus respond? "I have come to call not the righteous but sinners."

Now in researching our scripture, I learned that we should try to understand the Pharisees. When questioning Jesus’ recruitment of sinners, the Pharisees were upholding centuries of teachings -- much like a parent might caution a child to choose your companions wisely. They too welcomed the repentant sinner. What was so different in Jesus’ approach was that he was actually seeking out the sinners. And that’s why our lesson from Matthew has such power. Jesus reached out to those who were lost, at great personal risk to himself, in the hope of saving people whom many thought were not worth saving. And we can rejoice in that because it is the foundation of our belief that anyone of us can be saved. Salvation is a gift given freely by God because of Jesus Christ. How we choose to respond is the gratitude we offer for this free gift.

One sinner who thought he himself was not worth saving was John Newton. You may know his name … you may not. But you’ve probably heard his story before. John Newton was a sea captain, but not just any sea captain. John Newton was a slave trader—an active participant in one of the ugliest chapters in history. While he had religious training, he had long since given up any religious convictions. On a homeward voyage, while trying to steer his ship through a violent storm, he experienced a great deliverance. He recorded in his journal that when all seemed lost and the ship would surely sink, he exclaimed, "Lord, have mercy upon us." Newton survived the storm and forever marked the date of May 10, 1748 as the day of his conversion. He later went on to become a minister and a prolific composer of hymns. If you don’t know his name or his biography, you know his works, including that beautiful hymn called Amazing Grace. Listen again to the words:

Jesus’ call of Matthew, like John Newton’s conversion, is shocking. It says to us that God loves and can redeem anybody. To be called by Christ is an act of pure grace---amazing grace.

We are NOT chosen because of who we are, but despite who we are. We are not chosen because of our personal worth or social status, but because we are all worthy in Christ’s eyes.

It is the message that Christ’s disciples carried with them throughout the world. Jesus was seeking disciples and the disciples in turn sought other disciples throughout the world – also at great personal risk.

What caused these disciples to go everywhere telling the message of the risen Christ? It was not prestige. It was not a hundred thousand dollar speaker’s fee, increased social status or material benefits of any kind. What was their reward for their efforts? The early Christians, for all their efforts, were beaten, stoned to death, thrown to the lions, tortured and crucified. Every conceivable method was used to stop them from talking. And yet they laid down their lives as the ultimate proof of their complete confidence in the truth of their message.

That to me is a very important legacy of Christ’s teachings. One man ignited the spark of Christianity and it has spread to millions around the world.

So what do we want to do with our lives?

In my travels I once heard a lecture on the radio by a noted Pastor, Dr. James Dobson. He was discussing what he wanted his life to mean after his death. What he would want on his tombstone? He asked his father the same question. His father thought and said simply, "He prayed."

He then asked his mother what she would want on her tombstone. She said, "I told you I was sick." She had the sense of humor in the family. When the laughter had died down, Dr. Dobson went on to say what he wanted his life to mean. What he said is so simple, so eloquent and yet is so difficult to achieve. This is what he said:

"I have concluded that the accumulation of wealth, even if I could achieve it, is an insufficient reason for living. When I reach the end of my days ... I must look backward at something more meaningful than the pursuit of houses and land, of machines and stocks and bonds. Nor is fame of any lasting benefit. I will consider my earthly existence to have been wasted, unless I can recall a loving family, a consistent investment in the lives of people and an earnest attempt to serve the God who made me. Then, nothing else makes much sense."

Nothing else makes much sense. A pretty good philosophy of life.

We’ve all heard the saying that when we reach the end of our days, no one says, "I wish I had spent more time at the office." God wants us to work hard at whatever we do, but he also, like any father, wants us to spend time with Him. And we all too often fail at that.

Christ is alive and living with us today. And through Christ we can trust God by faith through prayer. Prayer is simply talking with God. And the words are not nearly as important as knowing what is in our hearts.

Let us pray. Lord Jesus, we need you. Thank you for this opportunity today. Thank you for dying on the cross for our sins. We trust you as our savior. Thank you for forgiving our sins and giving us eternal life. Make us the kind of people you want us to be, Lord. Let us love and serve you and seek out others just as you have sought us because we understand that nothing else makes much sense. Amen.

As we sing that beautiful hymn 378, Amazing Grace, let us think of Christ’s pure grace and how he seeks us every day in so many ways.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

June 2, 2002

Text: Psalm 46

Romans 1:16-17, 3:22b-31

Matthew 7:21-29

Title: "Though Mountains Shake"

A young couple from the hills of Arkansas got involved in a church where there was a lot of shouting and clapping and running for Jesus. They were trying to convince Grandma that she should attend. "You should have seen it," the young man said to Grandma. "The Holy Spirit was really there!" Grandma kept rocking and didn’t say a word.

"And, Grandma," said the young woman, "you should have seen the preacher. He really got with it. He was screaming at the top of his voice and the people were popping up like popcorn to praise the Lord. It was unbelievable!" Again Grandma kept right on rocking. Finally, the young man said, "Grandma, don’t you like our church? You never seem to say."

Grandma finally spoke, "Honey, let me just put it this way. I don’t care how loud they shout, and I don’t care how high they jump. It’s what they do when they come back down that counts."

What they do when they come back down really does count in Jesus’ book. In Matthew’s gospel the 5th chapter to the 7th chapter contains what we call "The Sermon on the Mount". It is a collection of many of Jesus’ teachings and has been called the Christian Magna Carta, the Design for Life, and the Rules for Christian Living among others. It contains the Beatitudes, the Lord’s Prayer and the Golden Rule. It deals with a large variety of human behaviors.

The sermon concludes with the section we read this morning - a parable about Wise and Foolish Builders. Jesus warned the people that listening to him was not enough. Talking about their faith was not enough. What really mattered was how they lived it - what they did with it on a day-to-day basis.

To drive the point home, Jesus told the story of two builders. One built his home on rock, the other on sand. When Jesus talked about houses and foundations he knew what he was talking about. It is likely that he and his family were in the construction business.

The people listening to Jesus’ teaching, understood the significance of building upon rock verses sand. Living in the rocks was not easy in ancient Palestine. It meant grading the side of a slope and hauling up materials. It made travel more difficult. Some how water had to be carried up the hill and winter winds were colder. It was more pleasant to build along the rivers. Although flooding was a danger, most of the year it was not a real problem. But on rare occasions, perhaps once a generation, the 100-year flood would come. There would be a combination of an unusually heavy snow, a quick spring thaw and a torrential downpour. The result was a vicious flash-flood which swept away everything in its path. One of the strange sights that I saw in Israel was a road in the middle of the desert which had been washed out by one of these flash floods. The people understood Jesus’ story.

There are several points we can conclude from this story.

First, we are all involved in building and the house we build is built according to a code. What code are you using to build your house? In constructing a house there are an incredible number of regulations which are written and rewritten. They vary from place to place.

In our community that we call the church, we have a common language and a uniform building code - the Bible. Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount are a solid foundation on which to build your life. Our worship together is a strong foundation for a life where there are flash-floods. The education program of our church helps children, youth and adults to lay a strong foundation and then to build upon it. The children constantly amaze me with their insights about what God expects of us. They are building on a good foundation. At the 10:00 service, we will be presenting certificates to many children who have been involved in Sunday School during this year. 13 children who are going from 3rd grade into 4th will be receiving Bibles of their own to help them in building their lives of faith. 8 youth will be confirming the Baptismal vows made by their parents and one will be making those vows for herself. Two adults will be reaffirming their faith and officially joining our congregation.

It is no coincidence when Jesus ends his teaching by saying that there were those who were wise and they built their houses upon the rocks and there were those who were foolish for they built their house upon the sands. I believe that Jesus is saying that we determine what kind of persons we become. We are all building our homes. We may be influenced by external causes and some people try to place the responsibility for the kinds of lives we build upon these external causes. However, in the final analysis, everyday of our life, either consciously or unconsciously, we are involved in building our lives. The crucial question is will we build according to the timeless teachings of Jesus or will we build on the sands of civilization.

The wise person is the one who anchors his or her life upon the word of God.

The second point we can take from Jesus’ teaching here is that everyone must occupy the house they build. Physical property may be leased or sold, but our souls cannot. In the end we must live with ourselves.

The story is told of a contractor who wanted to reward a carpenter for the good work he had been doing for him. He sent for the carpenter and placed in his hands the blueprint for a nice home. He ordered that the house be made beautifully and sturdy and that only the best materials be used, regardless of the price. He explained that he would be going on an extended trip and wanted the house completed when he returned.

Seeing the chance to make a huge profit, the carpenter skimped on materials, hired inexperienced workers at low wages, and covered mistakes with paint. When the rich man returned the carpenter handed him the keys to the house and told him that his instructions had been carried out to the letter. Good, replied the rich man as he returned the keys to him. This is your new house. I’m glad you built a house that you deserve to live in.

Thirdly, the real test in life comes when the storms are upon us. Who or what do we turn to when the flash-floods of life come crashing down? Do we go running for the sandbags desperately hoping to keep the waters from destroying us, thinking that if we keep busy and do what we can to protect ourselves then we will be safe? Do we run as fast as we can in the opposite direction believing that we can outrun any problem and keep it from getting to us? Do we sit quietly in our living room, watching television, and saying, "what flood?" believing that denial will keep us safe? The Psalm which we read this morning proclaims, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea."

When the mountains shake, when the flash floods come, the strength of our foundation becomes more critical than ever. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew destroyed thousands of homes in South Florida. Yet in an area where the wreckage looked like a war zone, one house remained standing, still firmly anchored to its foundation. When a reporter asked the homeowner why his house had not been blown away, he replied, "I built this house myself. I also built it according to the Florida state building code. When the code called for 2" x 6" roof trusses, I used 2" x 6" roof trusses. I was told that a house built to code could withstand a hurricane - and it did.

Jesus talked about the importance of building our lives on a solid foundation. Jesus said that the person who obeys His Word is like "a wise man who built his house on the rock." If we build according to Christ’s code we will not be swept away when crises hit with hurricane-like force. The tempests of temptation and the storm of suffering will not be able to sweep us off a solid foundation of faith and obedience. Adversity may, and will, come into our lives, but building on and holding onto the unshakable Rock, Jesus Christ, we will not be swept away.

One of the things that amazed me in Israel were the remains of buildings that had survived through the years. In many places excavations have uncovered the remains of many previous eras. I was amazed to look at mosaic floors which were hundreds of years old. In 1972 a bulldozer chipped a part of a mosaic floor in Ein Gedi. Excavations discovered a floor in a synagogue more than 1500 years old composed completely of mosaic tiles. In Megido among Herod’s palace are the remains of a mosaic floor that is over 2000 years old. Today we don’t build our houses or any of our buildings with that kind of attention and expectation that they will remain intact over such a long period of time. I suspect that most of us do not put that kind of attention into our spiritual lives either.

While grace is a free gift, a strong spiritual foundation still requires maintenance, spiritual disciplines, the encouragement of a faith community, and action based on faithful convictions. All of these strengthen our foundations. Past neglect of the life of the spirit can be retrofitted and repaired through present attention.

Our spiritual bedrock is the steadfast love of God. Psalm 46 offers fabulous images of God, our refuge and strength. Trusting in God as our strength is a good place to be when the mountains shake, the hurricanes hit, or the flash floods come crashing in.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Trinity Sunday - May 26, 2002

Text: Genesis 1:1-2:4a

Psalm 8

2 Corinthians 13:11-13

Matthew 28:16-20

Title: Stewards of the Word

A friend of mine is the pastor of a church which received a multimillion dollar bequest from the estate of a woman who had once been a member of that church. He told me about some of the debate that the church had about what to do with the money. There were some members of the church who wanted to invest the entire amount and continue to re-invest the interest it earned. They wanted to hold onto every penny of this huge amount in case they ever had need of it. Others thought they should spend a portion of the money to do the many repairs that were needed on their very large building. Some people thought that there would be no reason to ever have a financial stewardship campaign again. Others saw the money as an opportunity to begin many new ministries that had previously only been a dream. Still others thought they should give portions of the money to existing missional projects around the world. The basic question for the congregation was how to be good stewards of the money that had been entrusted to them.

Near the end of the creation story in Genesis, humankind is told to "fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." In far too much of human history we have done exactly that without regard for the effect that our actions have upon the earth, the air and other creatures. Now we find ourselves in the midst of several global crises as rainforests are destroyed, waterways are polluted, land is left depleted and barren and the ozone layer is in trouble. The question for us is how to be good stewards of the creation that has been entrusted to us.

At the end of Matthew’s Gospel the torch is also passed to humanity - and specifically to eleven, humble fishermen. Jesus had worked in a very small corner of Israel, but they were to go to all nations. They were given a huge job. They were to baptize and to teach people what to do. Although much good has been done in the name of Christianity, throughout history many hurtful and abusive things have also been done. The question for us is how to be good stewards of the Word of God which has been entrusted to us.

The people at my friend’s congregation discovered that there were many options to consider and a good many temptations to confront in deciding how to use the large amount of money which they received. We have been entrusted with the care of the world and we have many options to consider and a good many temptations to confront in determining what we do with Christ’s great commission to "Go and make disciples of all nations."

We can be like the people who wanted to hold onto every penny that the church had received. They were the recipients of a multi-million dollar estate. We are the recipients of a Gospel which makes their windfall look like pocket change. We can choose to hoard the Gospel - to keep the good news to ourselves. I grew up being taught that it was a good idea to avoid two subjects in polite conversation - politics and religion. Repeatedly I learned that religion was a private affair - something between the person and God and not something to be discussed with others - and certainly not something to try to convince another person to accept.

I’ve been in too many situations where people have been really quite obnoxious about the ways they have shared their faith and tried to ram it down the throats of other people. That is certainly one of the temptations to avoid, but for most of us, I think the greater temptation is to just be quiet.

I’ve discovered great meaning and purpose for my life in following Jesus. I’ve found strength and healing and hope during the dark times. I have experienced all kinds of life-giving, life-renewing stuff. I trust that many of you have too - or you wouldn’t continue to come here week after week. I’d love for everyone to be a Christian disciple and experience abundant life. However, there’s no instant formula for making that happen. One thing I know for sure, however, is that people will not discover what we have known and experienced, if we are afraid to open our mouths - if we are unwilling to share what we have learned.

Jesus told his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations. Disciple is a word that was once used more frequently than it is now. A disciple is a follower, an adherent to a doctrine - but most importantly a disciple is someone who learns - that is the root meaning of the word "disciple". Large tent meetings and great evangelistic gatherings may produce a large number of converts - but being a disciple goes beyond conversion. Discipleship is a process - it is a journey of faith with many companions along the way. Discipleship is learning how to live your life as a follower of Jesus Christ and it doesn’t happen overnight. Mostly it is the way we live our faith that attracts people or turns them off. When Jesus sent his disciples out to make disciples of all the nations, he was sending them out to be mentors. Yesterday I attended the memorial service for a retired pastor. The pastor who preached talked about how this man had taken an interest in him and in many many others, and how he had helped awaken him to the call of God in his life. He was a steward of the word sharing it with others - neither ramming it down their throats, nor withholding it and hoarding it for himself. One of the words that was used to describe him was "scholar". He was a student - a true disciple. Many people were touched by his life and he mentored large numbers through his actions as a faith-filled disciple. Most of us can think of people in our lives who have been stewards of the word - people who have shared God’s word with us, people who have mentored us in the faith, people whose faith-filled lives have inspired us.

In order for us to be stewards of the word, we must also be students of the word. One of the things that I keep telling the Confirmation Class is that Confirmation is not graduation. It is not an end. It is a marker along the way - one place along this life-long journey of learning and growing in our faith - or learning and growing as Christian disciples. I listened yesterday to several conversations that involved subjects about which I knew very little. It awakened in me a desire to know more. When we are in a conversation with someone about the effect that an illness, a divorce, or unemployment is having on their life it would be good for us to know what we believe and why we believe it, before someone starts talking about God’s will and expecting us to get involved in the conversation. Those are the times when we can gently witness to our faith - if we know what it is, if we have discussed it with others so that we know how to explain what we believe.

When my son talks about accounting he mentions terms that don’t necessarily mean a lot to me - but they are terms he understands. We, as Christians, have our own vocabulary which seems to just roll off our tongues sometimes. The next time you catch yourself using a "religious word" stop and see if you can explain what it means so that someone who has never heard it before will understand.

We would not undertake to be an accountant, or an engineer, or a scientist without the proper training and education. Although it doesn’t require any special training to accept Christ, being a Christian disciple does require a willingness to learn, to grow, to be a good steward of the word which has been entrusted to us.

Humanity is starting to learn that it is critical for us to be good stewards of the earth. We are starting to learn that we cannot assume that there will always be enough oil, that waterways will stay pristine and healthy while we dump toxic wastes into them, that the air will be healthy to breath while we pollute it daily. We are learning that we have a responsibility to care for the earth.

"Bob Cox inherited an 80-acre farm as a young man. It was not much of a gift because it was about as worn down, and neglected as land could ever endure. Bob once said that a rabbit would have to pack a sandwich or face certain starvation if it intended to cross his farm.

"Some 50 years later, Bob Cox was awarded the prestigious `Soil Steward of the Year Award’ by the Michigan Department of Conservation. He had spent his entire life restoring what earlier generations had mined from the land. It was now lush, productive, and restored, because of Bob’s half-century of stewardship.

"His acceptance speech may be as short as any in history. Bob simply said, `I just wanted to leave it better than I found it.’"

That’s a good approach to follow when it comes to sharing God’s word with others. Always leave people better than when you found them. Be willing to share a word of hope, to witness to what God has done in your life. Allow your life to be one that shows that your faith does make a difference in how you live. Let you life be one that will attract people, not turn them off.

Remember though, that we are not alone. Think of the people who have had a positive effect on your faith journey. We have each other, and we have the Holy Spirit supporting us. Our mission field is our back yard.

You have concerns for this wonderful earth God gave us. You know people yearning for a more satisfying life. What is the Spirit urging you to do? How might you respond to the challenge of God’s word today? How will you be a good steward of the Word which has been entrusted to you?

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Pentecost Sunday- May 19, 2002 --WITH GREAT POWER COMES GREAT RESPONSIBILITY
(AND GREAT JOY) By Al Brown, Lay Speaker

19 May 2001

Sermon 8

Scripture:
Acts 2:1-21
Psalm 104:24-34
1 Corinthians 12: 3b-13
John 20: 19-22


Have liturgist skip the Psalm; "We are going to use it later in the service."

CHILDREN'S SERMON. Use a mirror--a magical picture that shows a person who God loves. In the bible story today, all the apostles are happy. They were afraid that God didn't love them any more because Jesus was gone. But the Holy Spirit came to them, and like you found out when you looked in the mirror, they realized that God loved them. LORD'S PRAYER

Sing "This Little Life of Mine"

SERMON

THE GIFTS OF GOD

When we sing like that, we feel the strength of the community of faith, the power of the Spirit, and the joy of belief. We get a glimpse of what the apostles felt on that joyful day in Jerusalem, when the spirit burned so bright, you could see it dancing like flames, when everyone understood the TRUTH, no matter what words were spoken. The grief of Christ's death was finally broken, once and for all.

A movement was born that spread throughout the ancient world; a movement so large and so powerful that the mighty rulers in Rome could not ignore Christians only a few decades later. Men and women who hid in fear now moved freely around the world, telling their message to all who would listen.

That message of joy, that spirit of love, still binds us together today. The Spirit helps us all look in that magic mirror, and see that the person God loves is US. That love is a force that defies logic, defies death, and defies time itself. The spirit is with us, and will be with us forevermore.

FROM DIVERSITY TO DISSENT

BUT, the joy and unity that the apostles felt was sometimes compromised as the message went out into the world.

I'm going to enlist you all as actors in a little drama that will illustrate what happened.

READ Psalm, at end of each verse, have half the congregation say, "halleluiah," and the other half say, "praise God." Last verse, both at once. Interview "random" people in audience, "suspicious" people from each side, who don‘t trust those people who worship "strangely."

As we read about in the Corinthians passage, God gave us a diversity of gifts. But diversity can be frightening as well. People see differences as problems. And over the years, these differences have divided the church. The church has fractured over different approaches to faith. The Orthodox Church split between Roman and Eastern Branches, the Lutherans started the Protestant movement, the Anglican Church split over secular power issues, and the Methodist faith split from the Anglican Church. And although many Methodist sects came back together to form the United Methodist Church, many of the blacks who were segregated from their white brethren, have remained in the separate African Methodist Episcopal Church. And our churches today face deep divisions over other issues, in controversies that may fracture our faith yet again. Even within the community of faith, we have found many things that divide us.

Our human nature can lead us toward intolerance, and suspicion. We can come to mistrust the diversity of talents that the spirit brings us. But we need to learn how to appreciate those diversities, and learn from those who are different. The Lord has given us great power, the power of the spirit. This spirit leads to great strength of conviction. It is sad to reflect upon, but today, even among those of us who speak the same language, often don't understand each other. How different from the day when all understood, no matter what was spoken. We need to remain open, to realize that the Christian life is a life of constant growth, and that each day brings us something new to learn.

John Wesley was a major proponent of openness and diversity. He believed that each person had the power to decide for themselves what God's message is, through the study of Scripture, the application of reason, the lessons of experience, and the voice of tradition. Wesley did not want the Methodists to become a creedal sect, one that requires its believers to subscribe to a particular set of beliefs or laws. That is why, if you turn to the end of the hymnal, you find the Apostles Creed, the Nicean Creed, the Social Creed, and creeds from churches around the world. These creeds are starting points that help us understand God's nature and purpose, not ending points that fence in our minds. Wesley believed that at the very center of our religion was the PERSONAL relationship between a person and their LORD.

At the center of our religion, on that powerful day of flames and inspiration in Jerusalem, in the days of John Wesley, and even today, is the personal message that God loves us, and charges us to love in return. The LORD has given us great power, and with that power comes great
responsibility.

Some of you might recognize that last phrase, "With great power comes great responsibility." That is because it has been repeated in movie-houses around the country lately--it is the motto of Spiderman.

[Tell story of Spiderman. Getting spider power, using it in wrestling match to try to get money for car to impress girls, letting thief run past him (even though he had the power to stop him), a thief that later kills his beloved Uncle Ben.]

Now, Spiderman learned the importance of using his power to help others, and from a bitter personal lesson, the danger of limiting his actions to his own personal gain. As Christians, we need to do the same. God has given each of the gift of love (we all appear in that mirror). He has given us the power of the Spirit. But we also have a responsibility to share that love with others, to be open to those around us, to share our gifts.

A POWER TO CHANGE THE WORLD

Now, many people get bogged down by all that responsibility. Because human nature sometimes leads us to do wrong, they forget that it is the human nature that God gives us that also leads us to love. They tend to focus on the responsibility, instead of the power. They focus on differences in thinking, instead of the diversity of the gifts. They look forward to the day when they can lay their burdens down, and experience the joy of the kingdom of the Lord. They tend to be suspicious of strong emotions. In New England Methodist churches, we are sometimes hesitant to express that JOY. The word Pentecostal tends to remind us of fanatical believers, who we look at with skepticism. But there is another way to look at this.

There is a poem I read recently, written by Emily Dickinson; "Some Keep the Sabbath Going to Church."

"Some keep the Sabbath going to Church--
I keep it, staying at Home--
With a Bobolink for a Chorister--
And an Orchard, for a Dome--

Some keep the Sabbath in Surplice--
I just wear my Wings--
And instead of tolling the Bell, for Church,
Our little Sexton--sings.

God preaches, a noted Clergyman--
And the sermon is never long,

So instead of getting to Heaven, at last--
I'm going, all along."

Now, you might think that poem is about how we don't need church. But poems are like diamonds, you just twist them around a little, and when you look into another facet, you can see them in a whole new light. To me, this poem is not about me staying away from church, it's about how God is with me, no matter where I am. Like the Psalm says, the Glory of the Lord is all around us, reflected in every aspect in the natural world. We don't have to wait for it, the kingdom of God is already here, and we are helping to build it.

There can be joy and responsibility at the same time; one doesn't have to contradict the other. The Spiderman motto is "With great power comes great responsibility." But the reverse is also true; with that responsibility comes great power. There is a reward for the burden and responsibilities we bear as Christians, it is the power of love, and the joy of faith fulfilled.

In the center of it all is the same SPIRIT, and the same JOY, that the Apostles felt that blessed day of Pentecost. It is the spirit of LOVE, the spirit that fills us all, that lifts us up. Its glow can still be seen in our faces when we gather together. Brothers and sisters, I can see it all around the room in front of me.

And now, let us celebrate that love, sharing our joy in song again, by singing hymn number 89, "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee."


PRAYER
Lord, as we come together in prayer, we thank you for the gifts of the spirit, that let us know that YOU are always with us, no matter where we go, what joys we experience, or what trials we face.
Today we lift up the following people, who are in need of your spirit, your healing hand and your loving touch:
And we thank you for all the joys you bring to our lives.
We thank you for your gift of love, and dedicate ourselves, as YOUR people, to share that love with the world.
In your name we pray. AMEN

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Ascension Sunday - May 12, 2002

Text: Acts 1:1-14

John 17:1-11

Title: Don’t Just Stand There

A friend of mine called me this week and described the situation in which she found herself. She was in the middle of her living room - just standing and looking around. The task before her seemed overwhelming. The movers are coming in a couple of weeks. Despite the fact that she has packed and transported three carloads of boxes to her new home, she feels as if nothing has been accomplished. She was just standing there looking at the shelves of knick knacks, the closets of clothes, the piles of paper in her office and feeling paralyzed; completely without a clue about how to proceed. She wanted someone to tell her what to do, where to begin. She described wandering from room to room and packing a few things from each room and then stopping to sort through some papers and finally finding herself just standing there again.

There are times when I can identify with her dilemma. I start to think about all the things I hope to accomplish on any given day and then the phone rings with an unexpected need to be attended to, and I catch myself just standing there trying to figure out where to go, what to do next, and how to stay focused on one thing at a time.

I imagine that this is a small glimpse into how the disciples felt that day. They had been on the roller coaster ride to top all others. They were standing there probably asking themselves, "What are we supposed to do now?" Can’t you just hear them? "Every time I think I understand what Jesus is telling us, he pulls another stunt like this. He takes us to Bethany because his friend Lazarus is dead and then he makes him come alive again. He leads a great parade into Jerusalem like a king and then he acts like a servant and washes our feet. If ever there was a good time for a miracle it was that Friday when he was hanging on the cross - but, no, he died."

"Just when we start to realize that he really is dead, what does he do, but show up again. Everything is so topsy turvy that it almost makes sense that this would be the time to restore the kingdom to Israel - but he won’t even give us a straight answer about that. Something about only God knowing the time and us receiving power from the Holy Spirit, whatever that is."

"Yeah, and what about this stuff about being witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the rest of the world. It’s not even safe in Jerusalem right now - no way am I going to Samaria."

It was a confusing time for the disciples. They knew they should be doing something, but they really weren’t sure what. Then the two men dressed in white spoke to them and told them, "Don’t just stand there." So they went back to Jerusalem and held a prayer meeting.

Jesus had told them that they should return to Jerusalem and wait until they received the Holy Spirit. Then they would receive the power to witness in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. It wasn’t going to be easy or safe to be a witness for Jesus and they knew that. I wonder if any of them thought about just giving up, forgetting everything that had happened, and going home where it would be safe. We don’t know what went through their minds or what they prayed, but we do know that they stayed together and prayed.

And then they made a decision - an intentional decision - to be witnesses for Christ. We are all called to make that same decision. It is important for us to pray - to spend time talking with God, and even more importantly listening to God - it is important for us to wait for direction from God. But once that direction has been received it is also important to get up and do the work which is given to us. Christianity is not simply a faith of meditation - a time of standing and looking up to heaven. Our work is to be done on earth not in heaven.

Christianity is a faith for "working people". It is a faith which helps us face the worst of life as well as the best of life with courage, strength, and integrity. The disciples stood gazing at what they could no longer see; they were uncertain of what the future would bring. When the disciples received the Holy Spirit they were empowered to be witnesses in both word and deed. In the meanwhile, they were to return to Jerusalem and get ready.

We, too, are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be witnesses in both word and deed. In John’s Gospel, as Jesus was praying for his followers who would soon be left behind, he said that glory had come to him through them. The lives of Jesus’ disciples would reveal his character and so he would continue to be present to the world, through them, through us. Jesus prayed that their lives would continue to reveal his character and his presence.

The disciples had the opportunity to spend time with the living Christ and to become convinced about the resurrection. By reading the Bible, we too can sit with the resurrected Christ in his school of discipleship. By believing in Him, we can received his power through the Holy Spirit. By joining with other Christians in Christ’s church, we can take part in doing his work on earth.

There is work to be done and we are to be doing our share. We are to be witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth. Witnessing is not showing what we can do for God, but it is showing and telling others what God has done for us. It is speaking out of personal experience. I remember a teacher in school who was always telling us to write about the things we knew. That’s what Christ is asking us to do - share what we already know - share what God has done in our lives, how being a Christian has made - and continues to make a difference. We are to do this not only with our words, but also with our actions.

Jesus sent his disciples out in an ever widening circle first to Jerusalem, then to nearby Judea, and then to Samaria and finally to the ends of the earth. He sends us out also to an ever widening circle - to Jerusalem, to those close to us, the people with whom we feel really comfortable. Our Jerusalem is the people with whom it’s easy to talk about our faith.

Then to Judea. These are the people you could discuss God with as long as they brought up the subject first; people you would offer to pray for if there was a crisis in their lives. They may include members of your family, your co-workers, friends at school, people within the church. Our Jerusalem or our Judea includes the children whom we baptize whom we promise to raise in the faith until they are ready to make a faith commitment for themselves.

The group of people who make up your Samaria may surprise you. Is there someone with whom you have fairly regular contact, but whom you do not really like? Is there someone whom you almost have to force yourself to be nice to? This person or persons might even be a family member or someone from the church. Sadly, Samaria is not always far away.

Being a witness for Jesus, means far more than telling people about him. It means living our lives the way he taught us to live - and regrettably, we often fail to do that, especially with people we really don’t care about. Oh, we aren’t openly hostile. We are polite enough, when we have to be. But we fail to treat them with compassion. We really don’t care what happens to their lives as long as it doesn’t affect us.

Probably the hardest thing for us to remember about those people in our Samaria, is that God loves them every bit as much as God loves us. Their lives are just as important to God as ours and what happens in their lives does in some way affect us. Maybe the difficulties they have faced are different than ours. We may not understand why they act the way they do. Perhaps we don’t know about the abuse in their past, for the deaths that have wounded their spirits, or the history that has made them believe that they have to hurt you before you have the opportunity to say or do something that will hurt them.

Being a witness to those in Samaria, means creating a safe place where they are allowed to be themselves, to share their story and to be accepted as one of God’s children - like us, even if different. It means sharing a vision of what God offers each of us, and believing that the person has the potential to reach toward the vision God has. Perhaps it means holding the ladder while the person takes the first tentative steps. It is something we do, not by our own power, but by the power of the Risen Christ in us, guiding us and giving us the courage to face the uncomfortable, knowing we are not alone.

Being a witness to Samaria involves recognizing what God has done for us, and being willing to be uncomfortable enough to share that with someone else, in whatever way seems appropriate at the time. God’s gospel has not reached its final destination if someone in your family, workplace, school or community has not heard about Jesus Christ.

The disciples were told not to stand looking off into the sky looking for Jesus. We should not be standing around gazing off into the distance, but should be working hard to share the gospel so that others will be able to share in God’s great blessings.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Fifth Sunday of Easter - April 28, 2002

Text: *Acts 7:55-60

*Psalm 31 (p.764 Response #1)

*I Peter 2:2-10

John 14:1-14

Title: Rock Talk

When we sing "The Church’s One Foundation" or "We are the Church" we have a pretty good idea of what we are singing about. We know that the church is more than a building - although we often have to admit that we are very attached to our buildings. We know that the church is the people - people who are actively trying to live out our faith, but who frequently need a little prodding to move into areas which require a little more effort on our part. At this time in history, the Christian church is quite well established - in fact sometimes too well established - sometimes we need our foundations shaken a little to remind us who we really are and whose we are. In the time shortly following Jesus’ death and resurrection, his followers struggled with trying to figure out what it meant to follow Christ, how to be the Church of Christ, and how to do that faithfully when he was no longer physically with them.

Much of the book of the Acts of the Apostles and many of the letters that we find in the New Testament reflect a tension within the Jewish-Christian community and tensions between those who believed Jesus was the Messiah and those who did not. Sometimes those tensions came out in powerful sermons or in dialogue with others. Frequently, however, those tensions boiled over into mob scenes, riots, trials, imprisonment, and sometimes even death. Those early Christians sought strength from God and I’m sure that they cried out as King David had done many times when his enemies threatened to overtake him, when he found it difficult to be faithful to God. The early Christians probably turned to the songs that were familiar to them - what we call the Psalms. They probably cried out as David had, "In you, O Lord, I seek refuge; .... Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me. You are indeed my rock and my fortress;"

In Biblical times people would build a wall around a city as a way of protecting themselves from attackers. A walled city with its gates closed was really quite secure. People came to use this also as a metaphor to understand God’s protection or God’s presence with them. God would be like a wall of strong rocks, a refuge, a fortress, a place of protection. The Psalmist trusted so much in God that he proclaimed "Into your hand I commit my spirit;"

Much later, hanging on a cross, Jesus would also speak those words. He was so firmly grounded in God that even when faced with imminent and excruciatingly painful death, he could call out the witness of faith, that into God’s hands he deposited or committed his spirit. God was his refuge, his fortress, his rock, his strength - even though his body would die, his spirit could not be damaged because it belonged to God.

After the resurrection, after the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit they began to preach and to teach and many people came to follow the way of Christ. Soon there were so many that the church experienced growing pains. Some people began to grumble that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Disciples gathered together and chose seven men to be in charge of this ministry. It is significant that the criteria for choosing these men were that they must be "known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom". They had to be operating out of the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. They had to be people whom they could trust, who could be commissioned for an important responsibility, people of wisdom. One of these men was Stephen who is described as "a man full of God’s grace and power, (who) did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people." (Acts 6:8) One might not have expected wonders and miraculous signs from a man chosen to distribute food and to take care of the widows, but Stephen’s faith permeated every ounce of his being, every moment of his waking, every breath of his life.

Soon opposition arose against Stephen and some people were persuaded to lie about what Stephen was saying. There are echoes here of the trial that Jesus had before the Sanhedrin - the High Court of the Jews - when witnesses also came and lied or twisted what Jesus had said and done. Luke tells us that "all who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel." Then Stephen began to speak. His speech is the longest recorded in the book of Acts - and shows how important it became to the history of the early church.

Most of what Stephen said could not be argued with, it was a retelling of the history of the Jewish people, but then he talked about Jesus and about how they had betrayed and murdered him, and they became furious. He angered them more by calling Jesus the Son of Man whom he said he could see standing at the right hand of God - the place of great authority - a clear proclamation that Jesus was the Messiah. At this they covered their ears and yelled at the top of their voices so that they would not hear any more of what he said. They dragged him outside the city walls and began to stone him - the punishment for blasphemy.

Even then, even when being pelted by stones, Stephen’s response was to pray. He prayed to the one who was his rock - his fortress, his place of strength. As the rocks destroyed his body, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." As the Psalmist had declared, "Into your hands I commit my spirit" as Jesus on the cross had proclaimed, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit," so now, Stephen also prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."

Then he did something else that Jesus had done. In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus had told people to "pray for those who persecute you." (Matthew 5:44) On the cross Jesus had prayed, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34) Stephen had so internalized what Jesus had taught, that even at the moment of death he could not hate those who were killing him. He also prayed, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them."

Stephen somehow understood that they were acting out of what they believed to be right, they did not know or understand who Jesus really was. They were acting out of what they believed to be right motives - to keep their faith from being corrupted by blasphemy. This continued to be the tension throughout the early church.

The stones which were used to kill Stephen - to stop his message - had the opposite effect. After Stephen’s death, Luke tells us that a general persecution broke out against Jesus’ followers and many of them fled from Jerusalem and were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. Jesus had told his followers that they would be his "witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth." (Acts 1:8) That witnessing began.

Luke tells us that "Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went. Philip (one of the seven men chosen to help serve tables with Stephen) went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there." (Acts 8:4-5) The stones of death, became in a strange way instruments that caused the spread of the word rather than the death of the word.

In fact, Peter writing to Christians scattered throughout much of Asia Minor called them "Living stones" who were being built into a spiritual house. He called Jesus the cornerstone for this spiritual house which was patterned on the way Jesus had lived his life. Peter said that to those who believed Jesus was like a precious stone or jewel, but to those who didn’t believe he was like a stone that caused men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. These were words used in the prophet Isaiah to describe God. As Peter described it, either Christ is the cornerstone of our lives - the foundation that gives our life meaning - or Christ is the rock over which we fall.

Through the years people have had many reactions to the Christian faith. For some it has been a stumbling block - something that they do not understand and perhaps do not want to understand. It is something totally irrelevant - like a rock off in the woods to be ignored. Some have tried to understand, or have been brought up influenced in one way or another by Christian teachings. They may have even tried to make sense of them but when they couldn’t make things come out in a neat geometric formation they rejected the teachings.

Even those who call themselves Christian have had a wide diversity of responses. For some being a Christian means that your name in on the rolls of a church somewhere and if you ever have need of the church or its services it should be there to respond. It’s like putting money under the mattress and saving it for a rainy day or taking a pretty rock and putting it on a display shelf not to be disturbed.

Many people have tried to follow Christ - have tried to understand - have wanted to believe. But somehow what they were taught was only a part of the truth - only part of the story. Somehow they were led to believe that following Christ meant that your life would go smoothly, that there would be no obstacles and no problems. They might have be led to believe that if they had enough faith they or their loved ones would never get sick, would never have marriages that fell apart, would never be victims of abuse, or have children who disappointed them. When their fervent prayers didn’t reverse these situations Christ became for them a stumbling block - a rock over which they fell - a confusion. For some their faith became a rock to be used as the rocks were used against Stephen - to destroy. Their bitterness may have caused them to reject completely anything remotely Christian and to use the rocks against those who continued to profess the faith.

For some there is an awareness that all of the answers are not always logical - that God is much bigger than we are and that therefore there is mystery which we cannot understand. There is acceptance that faith in Christ does not guarantee a problem free life. There is, in fact, an understanding that there are times when being a follower of Christ means that you may be hit by some of the rocks that others throw, you may have to take a stand that is unpopular.

As you study the Bible more you realize that much of the story of faith has been a story of tension between a way of life with Christ as the center, a way of life with Christ on the fringes, a way of life without acknowledging the presence of Christ, or a way of life which completely rejects Christ. It is then that you realize that God is indeed our rock and our refuge the One who helps us during all the problems of life - the one who is our strength in time of helplessness - the one upon whom we lay our burdens. There is the calm assurance that God was present with you before you were born, when you were but a child, when you wandered off to explore other paths, in your middle ages and older ages, and will be with you when you close your eyes for the last earthly time.

For many - as in the communities to which Peter was writing - there is a profession that Christ is the foundation which gives life meaning - Christ is the cornerstone. We are the living stones being used to build a spiritual house. We are living breathing acting stones helping to fashion a life and a world where people live following the example of Jesus the Christ.

Each of you were given a stone when you came in here this morning. I invite you to take that stone home with you as a reminder to think about how you are relating to Christ. Is Christ as stumbling block or the cornerstone of your life? Are you like an inanimate rock when it come to the living and practicing of your faith or are you a living stone being built into a spiritual house following the pattern of Christ? Is God your rock, your refuge the One to whom you flee in times of trouble and the One whose hand you hold as you walk each day?

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

4th Sunday of Easter - April 21, 2002

Text: Acts 2:42-47

*Psalm 23

I Peter 2:19-25

*John 10:1-10

Title: A Shepherd to Lead Us

At the beginning of the week Pope John Paul II summoned the 13 United States Cardinals to Rome. You know as well as I do why they were called and that is not the focus of our time together this morning. The Pope was acting as the Leader of the Roman Catholic Church when he issued his summons and that is what I want to talk about today - Leadership.

People are saying in Boston, in Palm Beach, and in towns throughout our country that there must be something wrong with the church. Why has the religious leadership failed?

That’s not the only place this question is being asked. In Israel, in towns familiar to us because they are biblical towns there is war going on in the streets. In Bethlehem where I was just a few weeks ago, the Church of the Nativity is the center of a hostile standoff. Both sides profess to be deeply religious and yet they are at each other’s throats.

We know all too well that there have been too many horrendous things done in the name of religion - and so we should not be surprised when there are many people who do not want anything to do with religion. We should not be surprised when people believe that religious leadership has failed.

We all want good leadership. Good shepherds to lead us in and out of green pasture. We vote hoping to elect it, we apply for jobs hoping to work for it, and we go to school hoping to be educated by it. But we do not always find it. The trust we place in our leaders can be broken. Currently our newspapers and television are filled with the news of the PlunderDome trial as leadership is once again called into question. So what do we do? Where do we find good leaders?

John 10 holds the answer. Look at the picture Jesus gives us in this chapter. It’s a wonderful picture of a shepherd caring for his sheep. Many of us may not know much about sheep, but those living in Jesus’ day understood clearly what sheep were like and what a shepherd was expected to do.

A shepherd would often lead his sheep out to distant areas and stay there for days. He would create a temporary corral to keep the sheep in at night. Using the crude stones of the field - and believe me in Israel the fields have an overabundance of stones - he would put together a four sided structure with an opening in it for the sheep to enter. During the night the shepherd would lay his body down in the opening of this corral making himself the door. No sheep could wander away at night unless it stepped over the sleeping shepherd. No wolf could come in to do harm without waking the shepherd. He was the gate.

Do you see what is happening here? More than any other duty the goal of the shepherd is to protect the sheep. This is how you know a good shepherd from a bad shepherd. Does the Shepherd .... does the leader have the best interest of his or her people at heart? How do you know whether or not he or she is a good shepherd? You know by looking at the sheep.

As we look at Jesus’ teaching here in John 10 - and also the familiar23rd Psalm, I want to ask a few questions and see what the answers might be.

The first question is: What are the needs of the sheep? The first and most obvious answer is: protection. Jesus says that there are predators always trying to get into the sheep pen, trying to devour the sheep: coyotes, bears, wolves, or cougars. There are thieves who will try to steal the sheep. The sheep near protection from the predators.

They also need protection from themselves. You have probably heard that sheep are not very smart. They are creatures of habit: They will graze the same hills until there is no more grass and then die of starvation rather than seek other places to eat. To their own destruction they will not move on. They are creatures with heavy coats: Their fleece can grow very long and become weighed down with mud, manure, burrs and debris. And they when lie down they can roll over. Once on their backs they cannot right themselves unless a shepherd comes and puts them back on their feet. This is called being cast down. Within a couple of hours the gas will build up in the sheep’s body and it will die if the shepherd does not rescue it. To their own destruction they become burdened with things.

Sheep need to be protected from predators and from themselves.

Sheep by their nature are followers. Cattle are driven from behind, but sheep have to be led. If a shepherd goes behind the sheep and starts calling to them, trying to make them move ahead, they will circle around and get behind the shepherd. A story is told of a young woman who wanted to go to college, but her heart sank when she read the question on the application blank that asked, "Are you a leader?" Being both honest and conscientious, she wrote, "No" and returned the application expecting the worst. To her surprise, she received this letter from the college, "Dear Applicant: A study of the application forms reveals that this year our college will have 1,452 new leaders. We are accepting you because we feel it is imperative that they have at least one follower."

Most of us do not like to think of ourselves as followers. We don’t want someone else telling us what to do, and we think of ourselves as leaders, but most of us are not really leaders. Outside of parenthood we rarely are placed into positions of ultimate care over others. Jesus recognizes that we are by nature followers and that we need others to provide some leadership. Sheep are followers.

They recognize the voice of their shepherd and he is the only one they will follow. They will not follow the voice of a stranger. When you think about it, sometimes we aren’t even that good at following the right voice. How often are we distracted by different voices - voices offering us success, possessions, praise - voices which do not really belong to the one we should be following.

So, what are the needs of sheep? They need to follow someone and they need protection?

The next question then is this: Who will be given the responsibility to care for these creature? Will it be a good shepherd or a bad shepherd? Someone will step into this void and the health of any given flock of sheep depends on what kind of a shepherd or leader it is. What are the traits of a bad shepherd or a good shepherd - a bad leader or a good one?

Again John 10 and Psalm 23 give us the answer. Jesus says that the shepherd calls his own sheep by name. A good shepherd cares about his sheep; he takes time to get to know them. They are individuals to him, not just a flock where all the sheep look alike. He knows which ones are particularly timid and need extra encouragement. He knows which ones have an adventurous streak and might be tempted to wander off and need extra protection. A good shepherd knows them by name - he knows them as individuals.

After he calls them by name, he leads them out... he goes ahead of them. Sheep will not go anywhere that someone does not go first - the shepherd must go ahead of them to show them that everything is all right. This is especially important when the shepherd wants to lead them to new pastures. He will have already checked out the pasture. He knows where the good grass is and where the poisonous plants are. A good shepherd - a good leader - is a visionary willing to lead in new paths and willing to go into those new paths ahead of or with the sheep, not sending them off on their own to places of danger.

The 23rd Psalm says "he restores my soul". The shepherd has the best interest of the sheep at heart. He restores their souls, he does not destroy them. Remember the gate of the sheepfold. A Good Shepherd will literally lay down his life for the sheep. He will encounter the wolves or the other predators first - and is willing to die for the sheep. The ultimate example of this was Jesus’ life. He did willingly lay down his life for us. As John 10 tells us, "I came that they may have life and have it abundantly."

A good shepherd knows when one of his sheep is lost and he goes out and looks for it. A bad shepherd is more likely to say, "Well, I still have 99, why should I spend time looking for that one that wandered off."

A Good shepherd is able to calm the fears of the sheep. Because they know they can trust him, they do not need to be afraid.

Are we following the Good Shepherd? Do we respond to the voice of Christ, or to the multitude of voices calling to us, luring us not into good pastures but into places where the grass is poisonous, or in the very least not very nutritious. Is the name of our shepherd "peer pressure" or "status" or "comfort" or "apathy"? How well do we know the voice of our shepherd and follow it? How can we know that voice better? Regular worship, Bible Study, prayer are all helpful in teaching us to recognize the voice of the one who is the Good Shepherd, who leads us into the right paths.

We are not the Good Shepherd. We are not the world leaders who hold the power to make the decisions about peace or war. Most of us are not corporate giants but we might be middle or lower level managers in the way the corporate world understands those terms. In our daily lives we do have the opportunity to influence a lot of people. Those of you who are teachers face classes who are not only learning content from you, but are also learning about how to treat people over whom you have some degree of authority or power. Those who chair committees are responsible for more than the tasks of your committees; you are also responsible for modeling ways of listening to the other people on your committees and encouraging them to express their ideas knowing that they will be honored, not ridiculed. Those who work as part of teams, those who are members of families, those who have friends have a responsibility to behave in the same way as the Good Shepherd.

In our relationships with each other and with those outside of our congregation, do we act in ways that we have learned from the Good shepherd or ways which we have learned from bad shepherds? While we are not the Shepherd in the ultimate sense - in many ways we may be the only example of the Good Shepherd others will see. So..... do we embody the characteristics of the Good Shepherd?

Do we know the other sheep by name? Nametags help, but it’s more than being able to read someone’s name. When you look around do you see people you don’t know? Usually I do. Did you know that on Monday of this week someone in this congregation ran in the Boston Marathon? Did you know that someone else has hiked in the Alps? Some of you at the Memorial Service yesterday discovered a lot more about a woman you thought you knew pretty well. There is nothing wrong with privacy and, indeed, we should be careful about what we share about ourselves, but the real question is, do we care enough to really engage in conversation with someone?

Several years ago, I noticed that the pastor with whom I was working seemed quite distracted during the service, not himself. Afterwards, I went to his office. When I walked in, I asked, "How are you?" His response was, "Fine, What can I do for you?" He knew that typically, when we ask that question, it is a polite inquiry, to be followed by the expected response. When I said, "I don’t need anything, I really want to know how you are." he sat back in his chair and talked for a long time about the concerns that he and I both knew were on his heart. I’ll be the first one to say that I don’t always make the time for that kind of conversation. But we can all try a little more.

The Good Shepherd took care of the sheep whose coat was matted and filled with burrs and dirt. He showed patience and caring. We can care for others and love them even when, and especially when, they are matted down with the concerns of the world and may not seem particularly loveable.

The Good Shepherd was willing to protect the sheep from predators even at the expense of his life. Most of us won’t find ourselves in that situation and we often can’t protect others from the dangers of life. However, we can be willing to walk into those dangers with them. I talked with someone yesterday who told me how much it meant to her and her family when they received cards from people in this congregation last year when her father was dying. They were walking in a frightening and sorrowful valley, but they knew that they were not walking in that valley alone.

The blue cards in our pews are a good way to reach out to someone who needs to know that they are being held in prayer - that they are not walking alone. Taking the time to write notes to people is a way of showing the love of the Good Shepherd to others who might not have experienced that love before - or who need an extra measure of it right now. There is a group of people in this congregation who try very hard to be intentional about being shepherds of caring for others - you might consider becoming part of that group or being more intentional about caring in your own way .

Jesus came that his sheep may have life and have it abundantly. The Psalmist said, "I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever." We have a shepherd who leads us. The question for each of us is, "Are we following?"

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

Easter 2 - April 7, 2002

Text: Acts 2:14a, 22-32

I Peter 1:3-9

John 20:19-31

Title: Believing without Seeing

Have you ever missed out on some surprising event, arriving after it was all over and had to rely on someone else’s explanation of what took place? Actually we all do that daily. Through the wonders of modern communication we can be at the White House, on the streets of Ramallah, in Manger Square in Bethlehem or anyplace else in the world that our newscasters want to take us. Sometimes we can be there as events are happening - not physically there, perhaps - but observers nevertheless through the lens of the cameras. More often we catch up with events by watching the news reports or reading the newspapers and seeing the pictures that someone else has taken, listening to the words that someone else has chosen to help us understand.

We know all too well, that the accuracy of the information presented to us is dependent upon the perspective of those who do the reporting. Nowhere has this been more evident than in recent weeks when we have been getting reports about the escalating hostilities in Israel/Palestine. Having been in Israel recently has made a difference in how I hear the news. I have become even more aware that the information which we receive is filtered to us through the perspective of those conveying the reports.

That’s how it was for Thomas. He wasn’t with the disciples that evening when the Resurrected Jesus suddenly appeared to the disciples. For this one incident, Thomas has been chained with the name Doubting Thomas - a name which through the years has become almost synonymous with someone who refuses to believe the evidence right in front of their eyes. We are all far more complex than any one incident can describe and in my opinion, this event does not even begin to give us a fair evaluation of Thomas.

Thomas was a man who asked questions. In fact, I think Thomas was sort of like that student in a class, or that person in a meeting, who asks the question that most people are thinking about but haven’t gotten up the nerve to ask.

Near the end of Jesus' life, when Jesus was trying to explain the Cross to his disciples, Thomas was the one who piped up with the question, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way? (John 14:1-6) It was to Thomas, that Jesus replied, "I am the way, the truth and the life." Thomas could not live with an unasked question, and he had the courage to ask the questions.

We don’t know where Thomas was when Jesus appeared to the disciples, but we do know that the other disciples were in a room with the doors locked because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. This is only speculation on my part, but It may say something about Thomas’ courage that he wasn’t there with them at that time. Perhaps he was the only one who was brave enough to venture out into the streets to get some more food.

That would be a real possibility, I think, because Thomas was a man who showed courage. Earlier when Jesus’ friend Lazarus had died, his disciples had tried to talk him out of going to Bethany where Lazarus lived because there were people there who wanted to kill Jesus. Thomas was the one who spoke up and said to the other disciples, "Come on. Let’s go, so we can die with him." Thomas demonstrated courageous loyalty.

For whatever reason, Thomas was not with them when Jesus came that night. When Thomas arrived the other disciples greeted him with the exciting news that they had seen the Lord. Wouldn’t it have been wonderful if Thomas had said, "That’s incredible, but if all of you saw him, then it must be true. I believe you." But he didn’t. Thomas had believed in what Jesus was doing. On at least one occasion, as I indicated, he had been willing to follow Jesus to his death. He had been present when Jesus had called the dead Lazarus to come out of the tomb, and Lazarus had come.

But now it was not a question of Jesus raising someone else from the dead - Jesus was the one who was dead, and Thomas just could not allow himself to risk being hurt again by believing what the disciples said. He may have thought that the disciples had started talking about Jesus, had perhaps remembered when Jesus had raised Lazarus and others from death, and that as they talked and remembered they had said, "Wouldn’t it be wonderful if Jesus came back to us?" He probably thought they had conjured up this image of Jesus in their minds. In fact there have been many people who have tried to dismiss the Resurrection as a mass hallucination on the part of the disciples.

Thomas’ doubt was reasonable. His hesitation to believe was more than understandable. He insisted that he would not believe unless he saw and touched the nail scars in Jesus’ hands and put his hand where the spear went into Jesus’ side. You know, I think there was perhaps one other thing that kept Thomas from believing. Despite the fact that the disciples had seen Jesus and he had given them a job to do, their lives do not seem to have been changed by their experience. Even a week later - they were still in the room, with the door still locked.

At that time Jesus appeared again and spoke to Thomas directly. He offered Thomas the very proof that Thomas thought he required. He was willing to meet Thomas where he was, to help him remove the doubt so that he could believe. At that Thomas made one of the greatest declarations of faith, "You are my Lord and my God!" There was no longer any doubt in Thomas’ mind.

The end of today’s Gospel reading tells us John’s motivation behind what he wrote, "So that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name." John was writing to people, who like us, had never met Jesus face to face; people who, like us, have to rely on the witness of others. John’s challenge and ours is how to encourage people in their faith when Jesus is no longer around to be seen and touched. The story of Thomas’ experience, his doubt, the resolution of it, and his affirmation of faith are an important part of that process.

Thomas’ experience, his doubt, and Jesus’ reaction to it proclaim that there is nothing wrong with questions and doubts. Jesus understands the need that we humans have to be reassured, to be convinced. When Thomas had asked him the burning questions before Jesus’ death, Jesus had replied to him patiently. In his reply, I think Jesus was saying, "I know you don't understand. No one does. But no matter what happens, you have me." In this world, the bottom line is that in order to believe, we don't need an analysis, or an argument, but rather a presence. Arguments seldom convince anyone. What Jesus offers is not an argument, but himself.

When he first appeared to the disciples, he did not scold them for their lack of courage, for deserting him when his time of crucifixion came. In fact, he had told them that this was exactly what would happen. This second appearance it seems was specifically to meet Thomas’ need, to meet him in his doubt and to offer him the proof he needed.

However, it is at that point that Jesus takes it one step further. He says to Thomas, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." That meant the people who would read what John and others wrote. That meant the people who would hear the disciples tell their story. That meant us.

The disciples and the followers of Jesus knew that it was up to them to keep the story alive so that their children and their children’s children could participate in these wonders. So they wrote down all the stories they could remember about Jesus - even the ones that troubled them and even the ones that portrayed themselves in a less than favorable light. As John says, Jesus did many other miracles and taught many other things and if they were all written in books, there would not be room enough in the whole world for all the books, but these things are written "so that you will put your faith in Jesus as the Messiah and the Son of God. If you have faith in him, you will have true life." (CEV)

One of the great proofs that we have is what finally happened to the disciples afterwards. They went out teaching, preaching, and healing. The reading from the Acts of the Apostles takes place just after Peter, and Thomas, and the other disciples experienced a powerful presence of God, in what we have come to know as the Pentecost experience - something we will be talking about more in a few weeks. Peter, the man who had denied even knowing who Jesus was, now stood in front of a huge crowd of people to tell them the story of Jesus’ life, his death, and his resurrection. This is a dramatic change from the disciples who were hiding behind locked doors because they were afraid of the religious leaders. It wasn’t much longer before the disciples were preaching and teaching to Gentiles and to people in other areas - following Jesus’ directive to "tell everyone about me in Jerusalem, in all Judea, in Samaria, and everywhere in the world." (Acts 1:7b CEV)

What about Thomas? Once convinced, Thomas was with the disciples on the other occasions recorded in the gospel when Jesus appeared to them. Thomas was with them when the Holy Spirit came upon them in a powerful way at the time of Pentecost. Thomas after making his great affirmation of faith, went out and acted upon it. It is generally accepted that Thomas ended up in India where he founded the Christian church there.

The Mar Thoma church was cut off from the rest of the world due to Moslem Conquest for about eleven hundred years. The Christians in India lived a peaceful Christ-centered life. Today they still emphasize the joy and peace to be found in a life committed to Christ and to each other. Imagine the surprise in the middle ages when Christian missionaries went to evangelize the west coast of India and found that the church had been there since Apostolic times! All this from the same person who is called Doubting Thomas because he didn’t initially believe the other disciples account of the resurrection.

Today we can be grateful to people like Thomas who, through the years, have asked the tough questions, have not been afraid to express their doubts in a sincere desire to discover the truth, and then have made a sincere and profound pronouncement of faith which they put into action.

We are free to believe or not, but this story tells us that seeing is not superior to hearing. We can trust either sense. Only a comparatively few actually saw Jesus, but millions have discovered him through the power of the Word. That’s why we call the Bible the Living Word of God. The story is alive with or without us. God wants us to be part of it. God wants us to cheer on Palm Sunday, to wash feet on Holy Thursday, to sob on Friday, to laugh out loud and rejoice on Easter and in a thousand ways to be part of Jesus Christ’s risen life on earth.

We proclaim this every time we gather together for worship and each time we celebrate the baptism of an infant, a child, or an adult. We celebrate the Risen Christ whenever we gather around the table to celebrate the Lord’s Supper and every time that we reach out to another person as a child of God. We have seen the Lord!

In the flesh? No

In the story? Possibly

In our life together? Absolutely!

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

March 17, 2002 - Fifth Sunday in Lent

Text: Ezekiel 37:1-14

Psalm 130

Romans 8:6-11

John 11:1-45

Title: "Coming Back to Life"

Yael was my tour guide in Israel last week. She stood at the top of a mountain called Masada and told us that whenever she stands there she thinks about the prophet Ezekiel and his vision of the dry bones which we heard this morning. Masada is a very dry mountain in the middle of the desert. We walked among excavations of a palace dating back to Herod the Great in 36 BC More than that, we heard the story of a group of Jewish people called Zealots, who had taken refuge here on Masada in 70 AD around the time that the city of Jerusalem was taken over by Rome. This group of people fortified themselves on Masada and for three years watched as the Roman soldiers compelled their slaves to build a ramp or road leading from the valley below to the mountain. Literally bucket by bucket a mountain was relocated to form an incline by which the Romans would be able to penetrate the fortress on the top of Masada.

The men of the community gathered and decided that the only way they could be free - the only way they could prevent their wives and children from becoming Roman slaves was to kill all of their community. When the Romans breached the fortress the next day they found the bodies of about 960 people. It is a tragic story. Found in the synagogue on Masada was a scroll from the prophet Ezekiel - a scroll which contained the vision which Ezekiel had of dry bones - a vision meant to bring hope and life to the Jewish people who at that time, more than 500 years earlier, were living far from their homes under the control of the Babylonians. It was a vision that proclaimed that someday God would bring them back to their own soil again. Now this group of Zealots chose to die rather than to become slaves to another nation.

"Mortal, can these bones live?"

"O Lord God, you know."

A little girl named Karen, barely 5 years old, was been sent from her community, far away from her family, to America to live with her grandmother. Her parents were fearful of what was happening in Europe. They sent Karen away so that she would be safe. It wasn’t long before her parents fears were realized. The soldiers came and they and the rest of their family, friends, and neighbors were rounded up and transported to concentration camps where they met their death during the Holocaust. Karen’s grandmother remembered a story from the history of her people and told Karen and her friends the story of Masada. For her it was a story of hope - a story in which the dry bones did indeed live; a story which during another horrible period of history, gave hope to a grandmother and a young child.

Her best friend thought the story so incredible that she was convinced that it must be a fairy tale - a story told by an old woman. Now many years later, knowing that the story was true, this woman and many others stood in the place where the grandmother’s story took place. The bones seemed to live as their story was told yet again.

Twenty miles away in Jerusalem is Yad Vashem, a research center and memorial to the victims of the Holocaust. Located here is a section known as the "Valley of the Communities". If you have ever visited the Vietnam Memorial in Washington DC you are aware of how incredibly powerful it is to walk along that path and see the names of each of our soldiers who died in Vietnam. In the Valley of the Communities you walk in what is almost a maze. The construction is like that of the walls you would find among ancient ruins. But with each corner you turn you come upon yet another large panel that is part of the walls. On the panel are the names of - not individuals - but communities which were obliterated in the Holocaust. They are over 100 panels in this memorial, each one full of names of communities. Karen died several years ago, but we found the name of her village near Strasbourg Germany. This memorial is dedicated to "telling the story" of the people and communities who died during this tragic period of history.

"Mortal, can these bones live?"

"O Lord God, you know."

On September 11th, tragedy hit our soil as terrorists attacked not only our buildings, but also our feelings of security. What will rise from the ashes of that place is not yet known. But we can be sure it will be something to help us remember, to help us tell the story. It will be something that will proclaim that those who died on that day, will continue to live in our hearts and will have a legacy which makes a difference in the world.

"Mortal, can these bones live?"

"O Lord God, you know."

So often the question comes not from God but from us. From the depths of despair we cry out to God seeking life, seeking assurance that we are not alone, that life is not without meaning. It is then that the Ezekiel story takes on special meaning to us, as God knows the heart of those who are in despair. God knows the fears and the sorrow and the questions that arise. And so, in this vision, it is God who raises the question, "Mortal, can these bones live?" Ezekiel looking at a valley of bones - very many of them, "and they were very dry," must want to scream out, "Of course not! How could dry bones ever live!" Yet, Ezekiel’s response is a more subdued, more controlled, perhaps even hopeful, "O Lord God, you know."

Then the Lord said, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.... and you shall know that I am the Lord." What is impossible to us, is not impossible to God.

In all of these stories which I have told you, it seems that God’s concern is for the community, for a large group of people - and that is so. We have a tendency to make our religion so personal that we tend to forget that God has a vision of the big picture - a wide lens camera, if you will, that sees a much larger picture than we can imagine. And yet, God is also concerned for the individual. And so, we have another story of coming back to life - a much more personal story from John’s Gospel.

"Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, "Lord, he whom you love is ill." But when Jesus heart it, he said, "This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was."

God’s timing is not always the same as ours. Our instinct would be to rush to Lazarus, but Jesus knew that there was much more to this event.

"Then after this he said to the disciples, "Let us go to Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were just now trying to stone you, and are you going there again?" Jesus answered, "Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Those who walk during the day do not stumble, because they see the light of this world. But those who walk at night stumble, because the light is not in them." After saying this, he told them, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I am going there to awaken him." The disciples said to him, "Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will be all right." Jesus, however, had been speaking about his death, but they thought that he was referring merely to sleep. Then Jesus told them plainly, "Lazarus is dead. For your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him." Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."

"When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days." According to Jewish belief for the first couple of days after death, the body and the soul were still one, but after the third day there could be no doubt that the person was dead and not merely in a coma. The soul would have departed from the body. Make no mistake about it, Lazarus was capital D-E-A-D, DEAD!

"Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him." Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again," Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this? She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world."

Do you hear this wonderful profession of faith; this affirmation and recognition of who Jesus is!

"When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him."

By the way, burials always took place outside of the village. Jesus was going to the grave, not to the home of the family.

"The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?"

"Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days." Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, "Father, I thank you for having heard me. I know that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to him, "Unbind him, and let him go."

"Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him."

Here we have the profound and very personal story of Jesus great love and God’s great concern even for the individual.

"Mortal, can these bones live?"

On that day, they would have said, "No. He has already been dead for four days. His soul has already left his body." But Jesus knew. These bones could live - Lazarus could be called forth to life. This story in many ways foreshadows Jesus own death and resurrection. Jesus put himself in danger to go to the needs of a friend. Soon he would give his own life to save the lives of you and me. He would give his life not only for you and me but for the sake of the whole world. He would give his life not only for the sake of the whole world, but for you and for me.

Lazarus was raised from the dead, but it was only temporary. He would die again. With Christ’s death we have the promise that yes, "These bones can live." Our death is not permanent - our life is permanent - our life is eternal! No matter what has happened in our lives; no matter what is happening in our lives; regardless of the depths out of which we cry, no matter how dry and parched we may feel, Yes, these bones can live, and more importantly, our souls can live!

"Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. .... I will put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord." Ezekiel prophesied to the bones, to the very dry dead bones, and in his vision there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, and then there were sinews on them, and flesh, and skin had covered them, but there was no breath in them.

How many times our lives may seem dry and dead. As Paul says in his letter to the Romans it is only when we have the Sprit of Christ within us that we are truly alive. To Ezekiel the word went out, to continue to prophesy, don’t be confused by bones and sinew and skin. There is more to life than just the appearance of a physical body. So Ezekiel continued to prophesy and the "breath came into them and they lived and stood on their feet a vast multitude." These bones were symbolic of the whole house of Israel feeling dried up and without hope, and cut off completely. They are a reminder that no matter what the depths of despair, we are never alone, we are never really separated from God.

We are to prophesy to each other, to the world, to the dry dead bones of the world who are without hope. We are to witness to what God has done in our lives and what God continues to do. We are to sing our Great Redeemer’s praise, the glories of our God and King, the triumphs of his grace! But we do not need to do this alone, because as we will be singing, we also pray, "Assist me to proclaim, to spread through all the earth abroad the honors of thy name."

March 10, 2002  Sermon, Following the Good Shepherd, By Cibby Gardiner

Like many of you, I memorized the 23^rd Psalm when I was little…I don’t remember if I learned it in Sunday School or from a grandparent or when, but I do know that I find it a comfort to be able to speak it aloud with others, and I’m sure you do too. I’ve never studied it in detail until these past few weeks when I was preparing to do this sermon. I now hear and see it in a very different light! It’s a great psalm ……. one I’m sure many of you have spoken or turned to in times of trials. It really does minister to our deepest needs and gives us great comfort and hope! To reword a popular commercial: "It’s not just for funerals anymore!"

This psalm was written by David. When he was younger he was a shepherd as we heard in 1 Samuel 16:11 "Jesse answered, ‘I still have my youngest son. He is in the fields watching the sheep.'"

I like to think that one day as David was watching his sheep, the idea came to him that God was like a shepherd, and he ..and all humans, were like sheep. He must have thought of the constant care that sheep require. How helpless and defenseless they were. He thought of how they were always straying from the safe paths and how they constantly needed to be guided. He remembered the times he had to lead them through danger as they huddled close to his heels. He thought about how he had to think for the sheep, fight for them, guard them and find them pastures to eat from and still waters to drink from. He remembered how hurt they got and how he had to mend their wounds and how often he had to rescue them from danger. Yet…not one of his sheep was aware of how well they had been watched over. Yes, David must have thought…God is very much like a good shepherd. He must have felt like standing on the hillside and boasting aloud, "Look at who my shepherd is! The Lord is my shepherd!"

This is a great psalm for people who are experiencing an upheaval in their life and want to feel hope and comfort. Maybe you are having challenges with your children, or you are facing an illness or death of a loved one. Maybe your home life is in turmoil or your finances are shaky or you just feel blah. If so, have I got a Psalm for you!

The Psalm begins with a sentence that is the theme of the entire passage:

Because He is my shepherd, I lack for nothing. He satisfies my needs. As I was studying this psalm it struck me that I have 2 options to take. If the Lord is my shepherd then I shall not want, but if I want, then He must not be my shepherd! How simple, yet troubling! If something else is ‘shepherding" us then we’re not satisfied. If our jobs shepherds us, we feel restless and frustrated. If another person is our shepherd then we feel disappointed and are ultimately left empty. If material things Shepard us then we feel disillusioned. But, if the Lord is our shepherd, we shall not want.

So, if God is our shepherd then that makes us sheep. Pretty to look at but oh boy, are they dumb! Not only dumb, but they are defenseless, helpless and timid. …and now I have God telling me that I’m one! If I’m honest with myself, I know it’s true. I know I lack wisdom and strength and that I’m inclined to be self destructive .I know I can be stubborn and will go along with the crowd when push comes to shove. Isaiah said it best "We are like sheep who have gone astray, we have turned in every direction." Okay……..So…..I’m a sheep! And, If I want Jesus in my life and to lead me, then I guess I have to admit that I need a shepherd and that I will give up my fickle and foolish way of life. It’s hard to admit but when we do, we’ll know that what David says is true, that we belong to Him and we will thrive and flourish no matter what life may bring us and……..We shall not want. 

He maketh me lie down in green pastures, He leadeth me to still waters. It’s a joke in my family that I always get the flu right after Christmas. I haven’t celebrated a New Years Eve in years because I’m usually in bed sick. It dawned on me that this was God’s way of making me rest after the hustle-bustle of the Christmas Season. "He maketh me lie down" A shepherd starts the sheep grazing in the early morning and they will graze steadily, never resting. By noon the sun is high and they are hot, tired and thirsty. A wise shepherd knows that the sheep must not drink when it’s hot or when it’s stomach is full of undigested grass. He makes the sheep lie down in green pastures, in a cool spot. Sheep won’t eat lying down so they chew their cud, which is natures way of digestion.

The biographies of great men and women of God repeatedly show that their spiritual life’s success was attributed to the "quiet time" they spent with God. There, alone and still, they are gently led to rest and ‘lay down". In Psalm 46:10 it says "Be still and know that I am God." Even Jesus took time alone to pray. This is probably the hardest thing for us to do. We can work for God, we sing for God, preach, teach and visit shut-ins. We even suffer and sacrifice. But we do all this while moving and on the go. Before Jesus sent his disciples out to spread the Good News he told them to tarry for prayer and to receive the power of God.

Sometimes, like me after Christmas, God puts us on our backs in order to give us a chance to look up. Many times we are forced by circumstances of one sort or another to lie down. It can be a blessed experience if we take advantage of it.

Did you know that sheep are afraid of running water? They will only drink from a still, quiet pool. The shepherd doesn’t laugh at the sheep’s fears, instead he is constantly looking for still waters where the sheep’s thirst can be quenched. Like a good shepherd, God knows our limitations and He doesn’t condemn us because of our weaknesses. He doesn’t force us to do anything beyond our abilities and strengths. He is always ministering to our needs. And so the shepherd leads the sheep into places where they can eat, drink and even rest. What a calming, tranquil picture! How comforting to know that even while we, the sheep, are resting and sleeping, God, our shepherd is working to prepare for our needs tomorrow.

Being a good shepherd, David knew that every morning the sheep start out with the same routine, they graze, each taking a place in line and they hold that position all day .Sometime during the day each sheep individually, leaves its place in line and wanders over to the shepherd so he can rub their nose or gently scratch their ears. Reassured and encouraged, the sheep then goes back to its place in line again. David remembered how close he once was to God, how God protected him from the giant Goliath, how God chose him to succeed Saul as king, how God guided him to success. Then David got too busy. He gave himself credit for his success. He felt no need for God. He lost his nearness to Him. He sinned, he became unhappy and when his burden of grief became to awful to bear he repented. God heard him and forgave him and restored his soul.

If you recall the stories of Jesus, you’ll remember how wellHe understood the needs of humans. He repeatedly acted as the Good Shepherd picking up His lost and scared sheep. One example is the tenderness, love, and patience He used to restore Peter’s soul after he denied knowing Christ. Think how awful Peter felt….how unworthy, unfaithful…but Jesus came to him quietly, gently and reassuringly and restored his soul. He will do the same for you and me too…no matter how tired or discouraged we are, no matter when, where or how we are lost.

For over 8 years I’ve attended a small Bible Study on Wednesday nights. No one really teaches the class, we simply ask God to open our minds and we make observations about whatever we’re studying. It’s a wonderful group and we’ve come to share not only our desire to know God better but our lives as Christians to each other. Some nights I’m so tired that I think….."well, maybe I won’t go tonight.: But, I always do because I know that when I leave I’ll feel like I’ve been filled up with God’s love and been ‘restored" with nourishment.

The Hebrew word "path" means "a well defined trail". This tells us again how dumb the sheep are. .Even with a well made path they still tend to wander and get lost! The shepherd knows the trails because he’s been there before. The sheep trust him, even when the shepherd leads them up steep and difficult places, they know that he will lead them to safety, not peril. Notice that the psalm says He Leadeth me" God doesn’t drive, he’s climbing the same hill that we are – we are not alone. As we take life one step at a time, we can walk with Him on the right paths. David says that God will lead us in the right path for His name’s sake. It isn’t our name that’s at stake, but God’s. It’s His character, His reputation that’s at stake. He will lead us and give us wisdom to act. It’s so easy to nod our heads and say "Oh yes, I’ll follow!" but the truth is, most of really don’t want to. We want to stick to the same old habits we have, we want to do things our way even though we know it will take us to trouble and isn’t what God wants us to do. What a great source of hope and well being we’d have if we choose to truly follow our Shepherd,God.

We’d know that the decisions we make today and tomorrow, as we follow our shepherd, will be correct. The events that follow may not necessarily be what we think they should be or expect, but the decisions will be right. That’s God’s promise and we can count on it.

David also tells us that a good shepherd will provide protection:

The "Valley of the Shadow of Death" is actually a place called the Wadi Qelt in Israel. It’s a long, deep, narrow ravine just outside Jerusalem in the Judean Wilderness on the way to Jericho. When David talks about the "Valley of the Shadow of death" he isn’t talking about the experience of death itself, but the danger and possibility of death. If Bev saw this ravine in her travels this past week, she might have noticed the dark shadows that were cast across the valley by the towering walls of Jerusalem. Sheep in this ravine are in danger of other animals lurking in these shadows and attacking them but the shepherd protects them, the same way God will protect us. The sheep trust their shepherd and we must trust God to fight our enemies for us. We must trust Him to take us to a higher, safer ground. Notice the verse says "Yea though I WALK through the valley…". It doesn’t say I die there or I stop there, but rather "I walk through". This verse is often used during a funeral but for us Christians death is not an end but merely the door to a higher, safer life. It isn’t something to fear, but an experience we must pass through to get on the path to an eternity of joy with God.

With his rod and staff David guided the sheep safely through the valley and warded off attacks from enemies. The appearance of the staff and rod brought a sense of comfort to the sheep. The rod was never used on the sheep but was merely a tool used to protect them from predators. The staff was a slender pole with a crook on the end. It was used to pull the sheep from harm or to direct them to where they should go. When we go astray, God doesn’t say "Oh no, there goes Cibby wandering away again." And then WHAP! Down comes His rod on me. No, His attitude is, "Welp.. there’s Cibby starting to wander again.. How can I help her? How can I comfort her and supply what she needs?" He may have to discipline, but He does it in love. His rod and staff are used against our 2 biggest enemies. Our enemy outside, who is Satan, is working through the world to destroy us. The other enemy is inside….it’s us. Like the comic strip Pogo said, "We have met the enemy and it’s us." God’s staff is used to subdue that enemy within by giving us confidence that we have nothing to fear because He is with us always. Like the sheep, we will never lack for anything because God is always with us. He is here, guiding, leading, correcting and comforting us. No matter what, He hears us when we call Him.

In verse 5 David changes the good shepherd to a gracious host.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. God spreads a scrumptious meal of love, safety, eternal life, restfulness and more before David, a great banquet and it’s right in front of his enemies! It allows him, and the sheep, to get nourishment without fearing the enemy. That God will feed and provide and protect and lead, is all bound up in this symbol of a gracious host. In the pastures where David tended to his sheep were poisonous plants that were fatal to the sheep if eaten. Each spring the shepherd would dig out these so called "enemies" of the sheep and burn them. Thus the pastures were safe for the sheep to graze. Like the sheep wanting to eat the poisonous roots, we somehow feel that we have to try everything that comes our way. We have to "taste life", sample this or that just to know what it’s like. We may know that some things aren’t good for us, that they’re destructive or even deadly but for some reason we try them anyway. Don’t forget…. that the Good Shepherd has gone before us and has encountered every situation that we might come upon and is anticipating what danger we might face and is praying for us to overcome the enemy. We all, as parents, teachers, politicians, doctors and as a society as a whole need to act like shepherds and prepare a table that will destroy our enemies so that the good life that God wants us to have can be safely nourished for our children and grandchildren..

Sometimes as the sheep grazed it’s head would get cut by a sharp stone hidden in the grass or thorns and briars in the bushes. They would also be tired and spent from walking the hills in the heat of the day. The shepherd would stand at the gate and examine each sheep as it came in. If one was hurt he would apply a soothing, healing oil so the cut wouldn’t get infected. He also kept a large earthen jar full of cool water . As the sheep came in, he would dip down into the water with a big cup and let the tired sheep drink from it. Remember as little kids we would cut our finger or stub our toes and go running to mommy who would kiss it and mysteriously, the hurt would go away? As older children, we still get hurt. A broken heart, feelings can get hurt, we get discouraged, sick or tired. Sometimes things can seem unbearable. Remember that the tender shepherd, who understands His children’s pain, is always there to minister to that pain.

Another thing I find interesting is that David said "thou anointest MY head, and MY cup…" He didn’t say "Our heads" or "our cups". He was speaking as an individual. All day long the shepherd tends the entire flock but as the day ends He tends to them one by one. I had a teacher in school once who never knew any of our names. It really bothered me. Jesus said "He calls his sheep by name." I like that……. it makes me feel special.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life David was an old man when he wrote this psalm and had seen many tragedies and disappointments, but he also came to truly know and trust God. In spite of dark clouds looming up ahead, because of the faith he had in God, David knew the sun would shine tomorrow. I don’t know about you all but,It’s easy for me to be so sure goodness will be with me when everything is going well. But what about when sickness strikes and I have to watch a loved one suffer? What’s my reaction going to be if there’s no money to pay our bills? What would happen if your children started running with the wrong crowd? Theses things can test a person’s confidence in the care of Christ. When our little world falls apart and hope crumbles can we honestly declare "surely goodness and mercy shall follow me?" Today much of the world is at war with each other and evil seems to be abundant. We watch bombs being dropped on cities on TV, we read of neighbors fighting against neighbors for centuries because they have different beliefs. I look back on things that happened in my own life during the times I was dealing with depression and remember thinking "why me?". I felt anxious and worried and sad. I wondered if God really was watching over me and if He really did care. I am so glad that He didn’t give up on me, that He allowed goodness and mercy to follow those dark times. He picked me up with great tenderness and returned me to the fold. I know now that if I allow myself to be cared by Him, no difficulty is too great, no disaster will come down on me that won’t eventually turn into something positive. I try to fill my mind with the picture of the loving Shepherd leading His sheep and this gives me confidence that He will lead me to safety through any dark valleys I may encounter. ,. Try not to start out your day with negative thoughts, don’t look at tomorrow with fear and worry. Begin the morning with hope. Start your day by saying "surely goodness and mercy shall follow me" and you know what? They will!.

David closes the 23^rd Psalm with a great leap of faith by saying

He didn’t have an empty tomb, as one of my friends in Bible Study once said so profoundly, to prove to him of eternal life. He didn’t have the insights that we have. He never heard the words from John 10:27-28. "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they shall never perish"

Just knowing the God David describes in this psalm gave him the assurance that at the end of his life on earth he would go home with God forever.

What an incredible hymn of faith, praise and thanksgiving!

When I look out at all of you, I realize how blessed I am to be in a flock with such a wonderful mix of God’s children! We aren’t just sheep but we are also shepherds….when we promise to love and guide our children by bringing them to church and by teaching Sunday school, by taking care of our church building , by opening the doors to anyone who wants to feel the comfort of God, by welcoming visitors and new members, by the Food Pantry, Big Cookie, The Prayer Groups, the postcards we send to people who are written on the yellow prayer requests, the people who bake and set up for coffee hour, all the committees who make our church run so smoothly, our choir and the bell choir, all of us singing hymns and the heartfelt praise and thanksgiving of our prayers. I could go on and on but you get the idea. We are on the right path together. We listen to God’s word together. We try to live as faithful disciples together. We are sheep and shepherds at the same time. And, we belong to God.

So, now let’s ask ourselves how this psalm has spoken to us. The very first line invites each of us to make a personal affirmation. "The Lord is my Shepherd." What does that mean to you? If we’re able to submit to the love and care that God offers, then we will come to know the peace and joy so beautifully expressed by David, instead of the feeling of fear, anxiety or worry .. So, let’s conscientiously surrender ourselves to the will and leadership of God as we say the 23^rd psalm aloud together. As we do, remember that Jesus wants us to do more than just read it, He wants us to live it and believe it! He wants us to know that with Him we won’t ever be disappointed again, that there’ll never be another heartache, never another worry because as soon as something evil comes towards us, HE WILL STEP IN, and with his rod and his staff, HE WILL TAKE IT AWAY! Like the shepherd who takes care of his sheep, Jesus will take care of us. Praise God!

(Read Psalm 23 aloud together.)

PRAY: Thank you God for constantly taking care of us……even when we don’t know it! We come to you as lost sheep in need of a shepherd. We need you to hold and comfort us and to give us the rest that only you can give. Heal our wounds and give us the strength to follow you. Amen.

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North Kingstown United Methodist Church

February 24, 2002 - Second Sunday in Lent

Text: Genesis 12:1-4a

Psalm 121

Romans 4:1-5, 13-17

John 3:1-17

Title: "Lenten Conversations ... about New Life"

Abe and Sarah gave away what they couldn't sell at the garage sale. They packed up everything else that was left and set out for literally, God knows where. They didn't know where they were going and even if God had told them, the name wouldn't have meant much, because nobody they knew had ever been there. As Sarah checked the lists and tried to keep things looking organized, she probably sighed in frustration and asked, "Abe, tell me again why we're leaving this land. We're settled here. The animals are happy. Nobody bothers us here. Why would God want us to move who knows where? And speaking of that, are you absolutely sure it was God that said to move, and not just indigestion from eating too fast?"

They started out without a road map. No AAA TripTik for them. No travelers checks in case they needed something on the way. There was no advance search on the Internet to check on the weather, local customs, or pictures of the land. There was definitely no preview trip to find a place to live when they got there. God asked them to become homeless nomads and they did. They packed up and left everything that was familiar and God was their only guide.

"This is a powerful and touching story for many people. The story of leaving a homeland in search of a better life is the story of numerous families who, recently or long ago, left their original homes to build a new life in a new land. Being uprooted and displaced, whether by war, disaster, or choice, is part of our human heritage. It is certainly the experience of millions of people living as refugees in our own times. The writer of Genesis helps us to recognize that this seeking of new life among strangers has played a significant part in the development of our faith story right from earliest times."

For Abram and Sarai it was a time of starting a new life and that can be both a joyous opportunity and a time of challenge and risk. Anytime we face a change in our lives - a new chapter, if you will - we have an opportunity, but also face a challenge and a risk. The Lenten Season, when we are called to self examination is often a time of recognizing the need for changes - a time of beginning a new phase in our lives.

Whenever we change our lives, we can find ourselves faced with a new awareness of how attached we are to our old ways, and how difficult it can be to put down new roots and grow in new directions.

Nicodemus was a man who discovered how difficult this kind of change could be. He was a fine upstanding religious leader, a man who prided himself on following all the religious laws. But when he came to talk to Jesus he discovered that following the rules wasn't enough. Jesus talked to him about being born again. Nicodemus was a logical person - a left brain thinker, conversant in the law - understanding of logic, but not big on symbolism. He couldn't comprehend the idea of being born again.

Of course, in some ways it's easier for us to think we've understood it because it's become a big religious term so we think we know what it means. Unfortunately, we often associate it with certain factions of Christianity - and may still miss much of the point that Jesus was trying to make.

Donald Schmidt did a wonderful retelling of the story of Nicodemus that explains this whole idea of being born again and why it is important. He wrote:

Jesus smiled gently. "Start Over."

The old man was a little taken aback. "Well, as I said, we believe that you are..."

"I mean your life."

"What?"

"Start your life over. Be born again."

"But ... but I'm an old man!"

"That doesn't matter. God is more concerned with the quality of our actions than with the number of our years."

"But what do you mean be `born again'? I can't go back inside my mother's womb! Perhaps I'm thick-headed, but I don't have the foggiest idea what you're talking about."

"When your mother gave you birth, you had no faults, no shame, no preconceived notions, no mistrust, no hatred. You were a new creation. I'm sure your mother thought you were the most beautiful, innocent being she'd ever seen. And while you don't remember, you probably looked up at her with the purest love and trust imaginable."

"With all due respect, sir, so what?"

"God is like your mother. God wants you to be new, and beautiful, and innocent. God wants you to have a child-like trust, to live your life without fear, to know that you are good, to know that you are never alone."

"It's too late. Too many years have made me who I am."

"Who you are is a beautiful creature, a child of God."

"I'm not, you know. I'm a sinner. I'm weak-willed and short-tempered...." Whispering, he added, "Sometimes I have evil thoughts and desires. I am not a good person."

"So start again. God's Spirit - the same one that hovered over the waters of creation and brought forth life - hovers over each one of us, yearning to bring new life out of our tired, old selves."

It is this Spirit - It is God - who is with us whenever we discover that our life is going to change, whether it be because of something we have chosen or something that has happened to us. It is God who promises to be with us during the uncertainty of change, during the unfamiliarity of new directions, during the fears and frustrations, during the questions and answers.

When I was little, my family would sing in the car whenever we went anywhere. We had a whole repertoire of songs ranging from serious to hilarious, from religious to irreverent. The Jewish people also had songs that they sang as they went from one place to another - many of these are found in the Book of Psalms - the Book of Songs. One of them is the one on which our Call to Worship today was based - the 121st Psalm.

It's familiar to many people, and it's used frequently during funeral services and other times when people are in need of comfort. I happen to like the mountains or hills and I think of them as being majestic and strong. For many years, I understood this Psalm to mean that as I look to the strong majestic mountains, my help comes from one who is even stronger and more majestic - from God. I’ve also come to realize that the hills were dangerous places. This was where the wild animals were and where thieves might lie in wait.

As people traveled then, they might look at the hills ahead of them, the journey ahead - the dangers (real or imagined) ahead of them and ask, "Looking at the dangers ahead of me, from where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord. No matter what happens in my life, the Lord will keep me for eternity - there is nothing that can harm me enough to get me beyond God's presence, help, and care."

What a good thing for us to remember! No matter what happens in our lives, no matter what kind of changes may come, whether we are uprooted physically or emotionally, our help comes from God - the same God who created humanity, who told Abram to go to a new land, begin a new life and that God would make a great nation from him. Abram believed God enough to pack up and go - and God did bring forth a great nation. It's the same God who tried over and over again to get our attention and finally became human so that communication with us might be easier. It's the same God who, as Jesus of Nazareth, spoke to Nicodemus and explained to him that no matter what his life looked like, he could start over again, because God wanted him to have a child-like trust, to live his life without fear, to know that he was good, and that he was never alone.

It's this same God, who as Jesus of Nazareth, died a criminal's death on a cross so that we could live the life of the innocent and have the promise of eternal life. He did this because, and so that, nothing, not even death could separate us from the love of God.

It's this same God who promises to walk with us through the hills not only when they look beautiful and majestic but also when they look frightening and dangerous. You know about this God. You've already experienced God's presence in your lives and in the lives of your family and friends in many ways. Remember when someone you loved died and you didn't think you could get out of bed in the morning. It was that God who gave you the strength to get up and face the day. It was that God who nudged a friend to call you and remind you that someone cared.

Remember when you moved to a strange place and didn't know anyone. It was that God who helped you walk into a strange church and stick out your hand and say, "Hello, my name is ...." Remember when your child let you down, and you wondered if it was because you had done something wrong. It was that same God who whispered, I also know what it's like to have your children reject your love, or make decisions that you know are wrong. I know your heartache and I share your pain.

People like Nicodemus and people like me sometimes have trouble understanding a God like this because we want things to be logical and orderly. We are primarily left-brain thinkers. But God cannot be easily understood - and God’s faithfulness and love for us require not our understanding, but only our acceptance. As we read in this passage, it’s like the wind. You hear the sound but don’t know where it comes from or where it is going. There is a time to put your computer and bank balance and the cost of your car out of your mind.

Think in terms of a concert of your favorite music rather than the key signature, the harmony or discordance of the notes and how many beats to a measure. Think of taking a walk in the sun on a warm sprint day rather than analyzing the temperature and relative humidity. Think of the day you fell in love. Put that part of your mind in charge for awhile.

Being born again means coming to a point in your conscious existence when you allow god’s Spirit to move within you and you say, "Yes!" and mean it.

Nicodemus needed to let another part of his being play a bigger part in his religious life. By the way, in case you’re wondering, Nicodemus shows up two more times in John’s gospel. In the 7th chapter, the Pharisees sent the temple police to arrest Jesus. They returned without doing so. When chastised by the Pharisees, Nicodemus who was a Pharisee, tried to stand up for Jesus’ rights - even though it earned him sarcasm and ridicule for the other Pharisees.

Nicodemus is mentioned by John one more time. In the 19th chapter, after Jesus has died, Nicodemus came with Joseph of Arimethea who is described as a "disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear...." Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. Together he and Joseph of Arimethea wrapped Jesus’ body and prepared it for burial. It seems that Nicodemus had gotten the message.

During this Lenten season when we have conversations with God about the changes in our lives - the new chapters in our lives that are beginning - remember that we never walk into those chapters alone - we always walk with God.

Melvin Miller wrote, "What I have learned, as part of my journey of faith, is that the more I listen and respond with faith - even being willing to pull up the roots that have grounded me - the closer I walk with God. There is a sense that uprooting as a faith response provides deeper roots for my faith journey."

When we feel as if our lives have been uprooted, it may be that we are simply moving to another planter, one with more room for our roots to go deeper and to spread out and become stronger. Let us walk through this Lenten Season knowing that our Lord is a risen Lord, that our God is greater than any mountain or obstacle in our lives and that we do not walk alone.

There is a song which has been speaking to me during my Lenten preparations. It proclaims Jesus’ great love for us. The second verse especially speaks the word of hope and faithfulness that we so often need to hear.

"Jesus to Calv’ry did go; his love for sinners to show. What he did there brought hope from despair, O how he loves you; O how he loves me; O how he loves you and me!."