Category: Sermon Texts

Date: Sept. 19, 2021. Charter Sunday
Scripture Lesson: Psalm 1
Sermon: Well Watered
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

In 1967, the year this church was founded, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. declared: “There is a fire raging now for the Negroes and the poor of this society. They are living in tragic conditions because of the terrible economic injustices that keep them locked in as an ‘underclass,’ as the sociologists are now calling it. Disinherited people all over the world are bleeding to death from deep social and economic wounds.” [The Radical King: Martin Luther King, Jr., edited and introduced by Cornel West, p. 147]

1967, It was a challenging time. Things were breaking open. Things were falling apart. There were race riots in many major cities including San Francisco, New York, Tampa, Los Angeles, Buffalo, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Washington D.C., and Detroit – where the riots were the worst in US history with 43 people killed and 342 injured and 1400 buildings burned. There was a prison riot in Jay, Florida and 37 were killed. And there were huge protests against the Vietnam War. Muhammad Ali refused military service and was barred from boxing for 3 years. There was disruption and turbulence not only in the streets of the US, but around the world.

In the face of such turmoil and upheaval, Lakewood United Church of Christ was founded and the charter was opened on Sunday Sept. 17.

Evidently, despite the chaos in the country around race and the war in Vietnam, along with the movements for gay rights and women’s rights and indigenous rights, a group of 31 people, 27 from All Saints Lutheran Church which had begun a ministry on these premises and constructed these buildings, along with 4 other brave souls, signed the charter to begin a new congregation forming Lakewood United Church of Christ. I said, despite the times, but maybe it was really because of the times!

Dr. King offered this challenge to churches in 1967:

“The Church has an opportunity and duty to lift up its voice like a trumpet and declare unto the people the immorality of segregation. It must affirm that every human life is a reflection of divinity, and that every act of injustice mars and defaces the image of God in man.” [The Martin Luther King, Jr. Companion: Quotations from the Speeches, Essays and Books of Martin Luther King, Jr. selected by Coretta Scott King, p. 25]

King saw the need for the church to help guide society through these travails and to help birth a new society with freedom, justice, and opportunity for all. Keep in mind that in 1967 most churches, white or Black, were not involved in the civil rights movement or the anti war movement. These initiatives were extremely controversial, dividing families and neighbors, and churches for the most part did not want to be involved but wanted to keep the offering plates and the pews filled.

I believe those who founded LUCC, the original 67 charter members, the Florida Conference of the UCC which financially supported the new church, and Rev. Richard Wiggins, the first pastor, I believe that they had in their hearts founding a new church because of the times not in spite of the times. I think they believed that the church was needed to be a voice of empowerment and justice and community in those changing, challenging times. They wanted to step up to Dr. King’s challenge and seize the opportunity to be a witness to the true values of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In a time of drastic social change, the church was needed to help people feel grounded and inspired to be constructive participants in creating a new society.

This can be seen in the early ministry of the church. There was worship each Sunday beginning the first Sunday of September in 1967 with the charter officially opened on the 17th. Sunday after Sunday, praising, preaching, and praying. Week in and week out. Providing spiritual guidance and sustenance in the intensity of the days of the civil rights movement and the anti war movement. There were other usual church activities: Sunday School and youth group for young people. Picnics, retreats, outings. Church camp. Vacation Bible School. Women’s Circles. A lunch and learn group. A Kupples Klub. Outreach efforts offering material aid in the community.

But here is something that is very telling about the early life of this congregation and its roots. A newsletter from January 1968 shows the desire of the congregation to have a broader view and impact: There was a group formed called Great Decisions Discussion Group. This group met weekly for dinner and discussion. [That was before we wasted so much time online. . .] The discussions were led by people in the congregation. Here were the topics for the first few sessions of 1968:

The Middle East
Brazil
Upheaval in Communist China
Britain after Empire
The “Other War” in Vietnam
The Two Germanies
Dollars, Trade and Aid
American Power and Foreign Policy

But this group was not limited to discussion alone. The newsletter tells us that, “Opinion ballots will be provided each participant at close of each session, which will be tabulated and results sent to Congressmen and the State Department.” This church really did want to embrace King’s vision of the church lifting up its voice like a trumpet.

And what you don’t see in the church archives is the effort that was made just after the church was founded to integrate the church. The church was founded by members who were all of Euro-American descent. But founding pastor, Richard Wiggins knew that the church should reflect the community and Lakewood Estates was one of the first intentionally integrated communities in St. Petersburg. So Rev. Wiggins went calling. Visiting the homes of African Americans that were built in Lakewood Estates, inviting the new residents to church. One home he visited was the home of James and Mary Byrd. James was a pharmacist at Bay Pines and Mary was an educator in Manatee County. When he visited, Rev. Wiggins was told that they went to Bethel Community Church. Finally after Wiggins’ third visit to the Byrd household, James told Mary, “We better visit that church so that pastor can stop coming by here.” And they did visit. And at the end of the service, James looked at Mary and said, “One hour, one offering. We’re coming to this church.” And every Sunday James sat in the seat nearest the door so that he could get out as soon as the service was over to smoke a cigarette. The Byrds were the first Black members of LUCC but not the last. At one point about one third of the congregation was Black. And, yes, some of the white members left because the church embraced integration.

These beginnings, this initial identity of the church, has continued to inform the ministry of the church ever since. Though the projects and formats have changed, the witness has continued. We see this in the church embracing the covenant process to become a Just Peace Church actively committed to anti violence and creating peace in the world. We see it in the Open and Affirming Covenant, an intentional welcome to all regardless of ethnicity, economic status, background, sexual identity or orientation. And in the more recent Creation Justice Covenant, making a witness to the single most important issue of our time, environmental destruction and climate change.

This church has been a haven, an oasis, for people who are deeply engaged in social service, community uplift, and movements of justice and peace. Today, the church doesn’t have to do as much educating because we have the internet to educate us about the issues that we care about. But we still need a community to ground us in the values of Jesus. To inspire us to take action. To guide us in our service and advocacy. And to sustain us, spiritually, on the journey especially when it is grueling and we feel defeated and spent.

Being a loving, caring person and wanting to make a difference, it’s a hard road in today’s world. Wanting to be compassionate and an agent of reconciliation; feeling called to make our voices heard. It can be a lonely place. One can easily give up or give out.

And here is where the church is still needed. In the weekly worship, still praising, preaching, and praying. In the social interaction and relationships. In the events, in person and on line, that bring us together for mutual support and inspiration. In the work we do together, for the community, building community. In our worship, activities, gatherings, relationships, all of it, typical church stuff, yet sustaining us to be the kind of church King encouraged us to be – making a witness. Sounding
the trumpet.

During the process of becoming an Open and Affirming church, there was concern among some in the church that this kind of declaration would mean the end of the church. It was too controversial. The church would lose members. It was a fear based intimidation tactic masking homophobia. A member of the Open and Affirming Task Force said to me, “Well, if the church does not endorse Open and Affirming, it’s ok if we close. People can go to other churches.” In other words, if we aren’t fulfilling our mission, if we aren’t sounding the trumpet, as King put it, and affirming “that every human life is a reflection of divinity, and that every act of injustice mars and defaces the image of God in man,” then we don’t really need to be here.

But Lakewood Church did embrace Open and Affirming. And yes, some people did leave. But the church did not close.

Here we are. On this 54th anniversary of Charter Sunday. Now, given the trends in society, given the number of members, and the finances, well, that is actually a surprise if not a miracle. From a statistical standpoint, Lakewood United Church of Christ should not be here. We should be at home reading the paper, or mowing the lawn, or at the beach, or sleeping in, or attending services at another church. But we are here. And the church is here.

And I believe Psalm 1 gives us some insight as to why this is so:

Happiness comes to those
who reject the path of violence,
who refuse to associate with criminals,
or even to sit with people who belittle others.
Happiness comes to those
who delight in the Law of Our God
and meditate on it day and night.
They’re like trees planted by flowing water —
they bear fruit in every season,
and their leaves never wither:
everything they do will prosper.

It’s interesting to note that the church chose the image of the tree for its 25th anniversary, Branching Out in Faith and Service. See the banner in the back. And for its 30th anniversary – Out on a Limb for 30 Years. And for its 50th anniversary -back to Branching Out in Faith and Service. LUCC is like the tree planted beside the flowing water, bearing fruit in every season. Because of the commitment of the church to the God of Love and the way of Jesus, here we are. Sustained by Divine Love. Inviting our faith community to be nurtured by faithfulness to the dreams of God and seeking to grow and bear fruit.

This nourishing has sustained the church through times of challenge and change in part because the church has been accepting of change. Changes in society have necessitated new programs and ministries. We have been flexible and embraced adaptation. We have let the Spirit lead and guide.

With the emergence of new scholarship in religion, social science, and hard science, the church has adapted its worship and theology to be more open. Branching out. Growing. This is what happens when we are fed by the stream of Divine Love. We are letting that stream feed us and our church. We are embracing the new growth. As a congregation and as individuals.

As new issues and problems and injustices have emerged, the church has endeavored to sound the trumpet, affirm the sacredness of each and every life, and the life of the planet.

I think LUCC persists because the roots are deep in the gospel and the branches are reaching out to stretch and soar. And so we find a haven here, where we can grow and be challenged and comforted. Where we can be sustained and inspired. Where we can heal and hope. Where we can receive succor as well as be encouraged to serve. Here we are nourished to live full and free.

We are not like a tree existing next to a river polluted by industrial waste. We are not like a tree located next to a dried up stream bed evidence of a persistent drought caused by global warming. We are not like a tree planted next to a toxic pond fouled by agricultural run off.

We are like a tree growing next to clear, flowing, life-giving water. Sustained. Flourishing. Season after season. Bearing fruit. Strong. Resilient. Because of the water. Because of the flow of Divine Love. Because of being rooted in the way of Jesus, who is remembered as living water.

This is a church where from our roots we draw spiritual sustenance from the way of Divine Love and with our branches we reach out to one another and to the world in love. This church is like that tree planted by the fresh, nourishing water. And this church has a vital, flourishing ministry. Continuing to grow from the trunk established at its founding.

We, too, like those first charter members in the 1960’s live in challenging times. Global warming, terrorism domestic and international, gun violence, racial injustice, economic inequity, the growing threats as the balance of power changes among nations, and the deep divides within our country make these exceedingly difficult times.

Dr. King’s words still ring true: “The Church has an opportunity and duty to lift up its voice like a trumpet and declare unto the people the immorality of segregation. It must affirm that every human life is a reflection of divinity, and that every act of injustice mars and defaces the image of God in man.”

As people become more individualistic and isolated, more concerned with the self, and more apathetic and afraid of the wider world, this church continues to encourage us to find health and wholeness in deep spirituality intertwined with meaningful service that contributes to societal transformation. That is what makes a strong and healthy congregation. And that has characterized the 54 years of ministry of this church.

The words of Dr. King remind us of the living water that sustains us:

“‘I’ cannot reach fulfillment without ‘thou.’ The self cannot be self without other selves. Self-concern without other-concern is like a tributary that has no outward flow to the ocean.” [The Martin Luther King, Jr. Companion, p. 57]

May we, as a church, continue to grow and make a witness sustained by the flow of Divine Love. Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Date: Sept. 12, 2021
Scripture Lessons: James 3:1-12 and Mark 8:27-38
Sermon: Take Up YOUR Cross
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Twenty years ago yesterday, we, in this country, witnessed the most cataclysmic event of the 21st century, perhaps until the spread of this pandemic – we don’t know yet. 9/11 changed our lives, our country, and our consciousness in ways that we are still discovering and coming to grips with. And there are still lessons to be learned from that horrific day beyond security screening at the airport and the monitoring of terrorist groups around the world. 9/11. Towers fell. And our world fell – apart. And we have not yet been able to put it back together. In fact, it seems to be further fragmenting, so that even former president George W. Bush warned yesterday, “that domestic terrorism could be as much of a threat as terrorism originating from abroad.” [George W. Bush compares ‘violent extremists at home’ to 9/11 terrorists in 20th anniversary speech, by Amy B Wang and Caroline Anders, September 11, 2021 at 4:23 p.m. EDT, washingtonpost.com ]

Today there are shrines and memorials to 9/11 all over the country including here in St. Petersburg. There is a piece of steel from the World Trade Center towers on 66th Street North. And another memorial was added in the Warehouse Arts District. And many of these memorials are to honor those who died in the 9/11 attacks as fallen heroes.

Now let’s look at that for a moment. If you went to work that day, showed up at your desk, and began your day and the building was destroyed by hostile forces, does that make you a hero? Are the people who went to work in the Pentagon that were killed heroes because they went to work that day and happened to be in harm’s way? It’s a terrible tragedy, yes. But most of those people did not choose to die. They were innocent victims. And their families and loved ones forever bear the scar of grief that goes with such a horrific loss. But they did not choose to do something that they knew would end
in their being killed.

So I don’t think we can say across the board that everyone who was killed on 9/11 and in the aftermath was a hero. BUT there were many who were heroes on that day and the days that followed. There was the woman in her office in the World Trade Center who knew they needed to get out of the building while others in her office were hesitating. She insisted. They resisted. Finally she said she wouldn’t leave until they did. And they reluctantly joined her in exiting the building and they lived. She chose to risk her life, to jeopardize her safety, to use her life as leverage, to save others. She was laying down her life for her coworkers, knowingly, voluntarily.

There were the people on flight 93 that crashed near Shanksville, PA who took it upon themselves to confront the hijackers and managed to divert the plane so that it could not do greater damage as planned. Yes, they died, but they thought beyond themselves and helped to spare the lives of others.

That is what we might characterize as taking up your cross. Doing what is right, doing what is consistent with the realm of God, surrendering your own self interest for the wellbeing of others. Being obedient to the good, the right, the true, unto death, if need be. And there were countless first responders who also chose to risk their lives to save others. Yes, it was their job, but they took extra shifts, they took extra risks, they volunteered and came from distant districts to help. Ron Bucca was the only fire marshal from the city of New York to die in the 9/11 attacks. His son reflects, “He was exactly where he was supposed to be in life, doing what he loved to do.” [Man remembers firefighter father whose military service set his own unanticipated path, Jada Yuan, 6:08 p.m. Sept. 11, 2021, washingtonpost.com ] That kind of sacrifice actually has inspired others to want to become firefighters. We want to give our lives to something. That is taking up your cross. Choosing to risk your life to save another.

There were also the people in Canada who with no advanced planning provided comfort and hospitality to the people on the planes that were forced to land in Canada when the US, the entire country, became a no fly zone. Their efforts are celebrated in this recent Twitter exchange:

I am so down on the human race right now, help me out here.

Tell me about one person you know personally who restores your faith in people. Tell. me about them.

And here is a response:

My friends in Newfoundland Canada. 20 years ago they provided shelter, food and friendship after my plane was diverted to Gander NFL on 9/11. We are friends to this day and have been back to stay with them 8 times since. They restored my faith in humanity.

Now many times when we hear the phrase, ‘it’s my cross to bear,’ it is referring to some kind of hardship or calamity over which we have no control. A spouse dies of a rare cancer. The family has the cross to bear. Someone dies in a freak drowning accident. That is a cross to bear. A child is born with serious disabilities, that is a cross to bear. But this is a distortion of what Jesus is talking about in the story we heard today from the gospel. When we hear of Jesus saying take up your cross, he is talking about willingly laying down self interest and choosing to invest oneself in creating the realm of God on earth, whatever the cost. It is a choice. Intentional. It is not about being a random victim of something horrible.

Many, many people lost loved ones in 9/11. And they are innocent victims. It is a horrible loss. Devastating beyond measure. It is suffering to be endured. Maybe beyond healing. But it is not a cross to bear.

In the gospel, Jesus tells his disciples and the crowds that if they want to follow him, they must take up their cross. They must make a willing decision to try to overcome self interest. He is offering rescue from the tyranny of the self. He is offering freedom from the despot of self interest. He is offering liberation from the small world of me and inviting people into the vast universe of we. Jesus is offering meaning and purpose and community as part of a larger reality. He is reaching out and inviting us to lives of joy, community, and peace. The goal is wellbeing, the wellbeing of creation and of community. And when we work toward that we find our own personal wellbeing on that path. We all need meaning, purpose, awe, wonder, and relationships to live and thrive. Jesus is inviting us to find that fulfillment and wellbeing and wholeness by taking up our cross. Giving ourselves to something bigger than meager self interest and personal satisfaction. That is what truly makes us whole as human beings.

Now let’s pivot a moment to those who hijacked the planes on 9/11. It seems that they were led to believe that they were sacrificing themselves for a greater good, for God’s purposes. They seem to have believed that they were doing this for the benefit of their community. That they were laying down their lives in service to God. Because, like all of us, they had a need for something to give their lives to. They were looking for a sense of meaning and purpose. They wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves. And this was the way that they were trying to meet those needs, sad as it is.

And here we turn to the clash between Peter and Jesus that was part of the story we heard today. In the story, Jesus tells the disciples that he must suffer and die. Peter is horrified. He wants to follow a glorified messiah not a crucified messiah. So, he takes Jesus aside to set him straight. So much for his belief that Jesus is the messiah. If he truly believed that would he be trying to correct Jesus? But Peter tries to dissuade Jesus. And we hear of Jesus responding with the famous line, Get behind me, Satan. Not just, No, Peter, you don’t understand, let me explain it to you. But Get behind me, Satan. This is similar to the reaction that we see from Jesus in the story of the temptation in the wilderness. In that story, Satan tries to tempt Jesus into turning stones into bread for food. Satan lures Jesus to accept worldly power over all he can see, think of the good he could do! Satan tempts Jesus to leap from the Temple to show people his power in a spectacle. All of this Satan offers trying to get Jesus to show his power so that he can supposedly do more good for people. And Jesus rebukes Satan in that story, just like he rebukes Peter in the story we heard today. Get behind me Satan. It is not that what Satan proposes is always bad, evil, like the killing of the Jews in the Holocaust. But Satan often offers things that look like are good, or at least benign. Can’t hurt anyone. Won’t have any negative consequences. But as we heard in the gospel, if it is not of God, in obedience to good, constructively contributing to God’s dreams coming to fruition, then it is of Satan. There is no benign for the follower of Jesus. Either you are taking up your cross or you are saying yes to Satan, however you may conceive of Satan or evil.

The people who hijacked the planes on 9/11 were victims of a very powerful influence convincing them that what they were doing was of God when it wasn’t. God, Allah, Jehovah, whatever term you want to use, is not about killing innocent people who went to work for the day to get a point across. Period. This is certainly not consistent with the God of Jesus.

Jesus is making it very clear that to pursue the joy, peace, and community of God’s kindom requires complete surrender to the dream of God. Whatever the risk. Whatever the cost. There is no half way. Part way. Partial buy in. You commit completely and then deal with the lapses and departures.

The world is offering happiness, satisfaction, and comfort that does not fulfill. That leaves us empty. And searching. We find a sham behind the curtain. Money. Physical beauty. Luxury. Expensive possessions. Power. Access to all kinds of elitist delights. It doesn’t satisfy. It just leaves us wanting more. Or something else. Or something newer. Or something faster. Or someone younger. Or better in some way. The way of the capitalist world around us kidnaps our souls and torments us. Makes us victims.

Jesus offers freedom. Liberation. Take up your cross. Choose to lay down your life. For something that matters. Then it cannot be taken from you. Needlessly. Because you are giving it in service to a greater good. Take up your cross. Jesus is showing us the path to resurrection – to new life, healing, wholeness, right relationship with the Divine, however we may understand it, with ourselves, with each other, and with the natural world.

Jesus is laying it out. To the disciples. To the crowds. Plain and simple. There are forces that can twist the message into an offer of power, money, and comfort. Into looking like the way of God. But Jesus makes it clear, to save your life, you must lose it. Surrender and you will be free. Anyone promising that Jesus will make you a millionaire, will make you thin and sexy, will give you a big house and a fancy car, doesn’t know the Jesus of the Bible.

But we can take heart in the remembrance of 9/11. There were many who did give their lives for the greater good. Who did save the lives of others. Who did risk their lives to make sure others lived. They were random people. Who were living average lives. Who chose to put the common good ahead of their personal safety, their personal interest.

Mike Low, spouse of a flight attendant on one of the planes that crashed reflects, “My memory goes back to that terrible day, when it felt like an evil specter had descended upon our world, but it was also a time when many people acted above and beyond the ordinary.”

There are so many people struggling today – victims of racist policies, victims of economic injustice, victims of the criminal injustice system, victims of lack of access to healthcare, people who are victims of substandard education, people who are entrenched in thinking that diminishes and harms, people who cannot find a way to peace in this life and turn to drugs and substance abuse. There are so many suffering from loneliness, from abandonment, from neglect, even children. There are many suffering from poverty of spirit, without meaningful relationships, without being needed by someone, anyone, for something that matters. There is still hostility against people of the Muslim faith and of Arab background. There are those who have no hope, nothing to look forward to, who see no reason to go on. There are people depressed by the climate crisis and the constant barrage of horrific natural disasters, really human caused disasters which relate to global warming. There are people who can’t live where they are from and can find no where to go. And into this desperate, hurting world, God sends Jesus with a message of life and hope and redemption. There is Jesus promising joy and abundance. If we would take up our cross. Choose to engage in bringing to fruition the dreams of God, in whatever way we can, wherever we are. Take up your cross and find life.

We are all church goers. Trying to say yes to Jesus. Trying to follow, otherwise we would be at home reading the paper this morning. So, we ask ourselves, How are we risking our lives? How are we surrendering – power, comfort, wealth for the wellbeing of the world, of the community, of others? What is it we have chosen to do to further the realm of God on Earth? What are we willing to die for? Can we name our cross? When we can say, this is the cross I have chosen, and describe it, it is not bragging. It is an affirmation of Jesus. We are saying yes to Jesus, yes to the way of life, yes to love, yes to the wellbeing of creation.

Glenn Vogt was the manager of the Windows on the World restaurant at the top of the World Trade Center. He survived the attack, but 79 of his employees did not. That came after he survived the death of his brother. Now, there is the pandemic. Glenn reflects:

“I had a purpose after Greg died. I had a purpose after 9/11.” “As terrible as 9/11 was, I found some happiness afterward because I could help those people. People needed me —“ [He helped to distribute funds to people from the restaurant industry that were in financial need.] “And now — I just don’t know. I hope there’s something else for me, something else that’s fulfilling, before it’s my turn to leave. I always felt like I needed to be strong for others who can’t be strong for themselves. But I don’t feel so strong anymore.” [‘I WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE PEOPLE’, by Tim Alberta, The Atlantic, 9.10.21] Glenn expresses that need for something to give your life to. A cross.

So I have this picture that I keep on my desk in my office. It’s Jesus, sitting, looking despondent, surrounded by hundreds of crosses. It makes me think of Jesus, making his offer to the crowds. Bringing life. Full and free. Offering joy and comfort in community. Just take up your cross. And he has all these crosses. And no one wants to take one. No one wants to let Love have claim over their life. No one wants to surrender servitude to the self to service to the greater good. No one wants to take their part in making manifest the dreams of God. And Jesus is sad. Tired. Did he give up his life for nothing?

Life full and free awaits us. When we surrender to the saving power of love. May we take up our cross. Amen.

The quotes relating to 9/11 in this sermon that do not have a specific attribution came from ‘American reflects, and mourns, on 20th anniversary of Sept. 11 attacks,’ Live Updates by Washington Post staff.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

Date:  Sept. 5, 2021

Scripture Lessons: James 2:1-17  and  Mark 7:31-37

Sermon: Opened Up

Pastor:  Rev. Kim P. Wells

This week I went to make a purchase at a local store and when the clerk looked up my rewards points, she gasped and said, ‘You have six hundred and sixty six points.  Six. Six.  Six.  Would you like to use them.”  I said, “Yes.”  She said again, “Wow, 666.”  “Well,” I said, “with the weather issues and the pandemic, it kind of feels like 666.”  She considered, and then agreed. 

It’s pretty clear we are living in momentous times, some kind of shift, turning point.  Believe it or not, people felt that way in the first century, too.  When the writer of the story that we heard today remarks about Jesus, “He has done everything well;  he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak,” it is a direct reference to the prophecy of Isaiah.  In Isaiah, we are told,

“Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,

         and the ears of the deaf unstopped;

then the lame shall leap like a deer,

         and the tongue of the speechless sing for joy.  [35:5-6]. 

This indicates the coming of the redemption of God manifested in a special leader, a messiah.  Attributing these activities to Jesus is a way of telling readers that he is the messiah.  This is the beginning of the messianic age.  A turning point.  A new reality is breaking in.  God is doing a new thing.  So in this healing story, we are being given a clue to the greater workings of God in the cosmos.  This wasn’t just about one person being able to hear and speak, this was about a drastic new divine social/historic era emerging.  The hearers in the first century would not limit this story to literalism, a trend of the 19th century and surprisingly continuing today.  The people of Bible times were not literalists.  They knew that stories were meant to have multiple meanings and function in various ways for the benefit of the community. 

So we heard a story about one person being made able to hear and to speak clearly.  Surely a wonderful blessing in his life.  But this story shows us so much more.  In family therapy, there is often one person that is healthier than the others in a dysfunctional family.  And if that person can stay steady and grounded, they can help to restore health in the whole family system.  One strong, steady manifestation of health can effect a system.  We can think of Jesus as that one.  Strong, steady, bringing the love, grace, and power of God to people.  And then we see their lives transformed, and they become an agent of further transformation, and the whole social system can begin to shift.

In the story we heard today, we are told of the ears being opened, unstopped.  Being made to hear.  Open.  Hearing.  Aware.  Conscious.  We are being told of the person becoming open to the love and power of God.  Of becoming aware of another reality.  The kindom of God.  But the person does not just become open to the awareness.  We are also told that the person also becomes able to speak.  To proclaim.  To share.  To tell.  To witness.  So this story tells us about becoming aware of the truth of the presence of the reign of Divine Love and speaking out about that reality. 

To be aware, to view experience with the consciousness of Love, as Jesus did, means understanding the many, maybe I should say, pervasive, deceptions and lies that are perpetuated in the society around us and even in church.  If we truly hear, if we truly see, if we are really open, we become aware of the lies around us.  And there are many.  And I hesitate to even begin to name them because where do you start and where do you stop?  But I will make a few comments about this –

On a recent road trip, we saw a billboard that said “Genuine Christians obey Jesus’ teachings.”  Well, I like that, I thought.  Then further down the road was another billboard:  “Pro God Pro Life Pro Gun.”  Well, there seems to be a bit of a problem between the first and the second billboards.  Obey Jesus’ teachings, like Love your neighbor and Love your enemy, doesn’t quite compute with Pro gun.  Maybe you can convince yourself to be so literalistic that you believe that nothing Jesus said has to do with guns because there were no guns in Jesus day, so you can’t disobey anything he said about guns because they didn’t exist.  Talk about mental gymnastics!  [Billboards on I 75 south of Punta Gorda, FL]

What other lies and fallacies can we name that are perpetrated today?  There are those who deny the validity of critical race theory and don’t want the teaching of systemic racism incorporated into the school curriculum.  That is like saying you are going to teach science without ever mentioning the force of gravity or the existence of the atom.  Or like teaching math without reference to multiplication.  You can’t teach what is accurate and factual about the history of the United States without reference to race and racism.  And it’s continuing impact on society this very minute.  You can’t.  William Carlos Williams speaking of America and the conquest of the Gulf of Mexico says it straight:  “History begins for us with murder and enslavement, not with discovery.”  [Cited by Jack E. Davis in The Gulf: the Making of an American Sea, p. 73-74]. What does it mean to be a country that is founded not only on genocide and slavery but on lies about that very foundation?  It’s not a stable structure by any means.  And it is not honest or free.  The truth is what sets us free, not lies and coverups and manipulations.

How about telling the truth about the new abortion law in Texas.  Here’s what I know.  I  have never had an abortion.  But if I lived in Texas, I would feel that I was being denied my human rights.  I would feel that the law assumes that I am not capable of making the healthcare decisions that are right for me.  I would feel that my freedom was being taken away and that I was being judged not only incompetent but as a morally inferior semi-person.  If a woman does not want to have an abortion, she does not have to have one.  It is her choice.  Do we get to say, as women, that we are sick and tired of men telling us what to do with our bodies?  No legislature, no law, no authoritative body would dare in a millions years to treat a male human being in that way.  Ever.  Period.  It is demeaning and insulting.  It is an attack on the image of God in each and every woman.  That is my reality.  That is my truth.  That is what Jesus shows me.  Can we imagine Jesus telling the woman who had her period for 12 years, no, this should not be healed; you do not know what is best for you.  Of course not.  Jesus respects women.  He would not approve of this recent attack on women.   Can we say this in love?  Love of self?  Love of other women?  Love of men who are defiling the image of God within them?  If we have been healed and freed by Jesus, I think we can.

What can we say about poverty?  People are lazy and don’t want to work.  Really?  I know people who would love to work and can’t find jobs.  I know people who work, one job, two jobs, sometimes three jobs, and can’t make the rent.   As we see in James, poverty is not only a social problem, it is not only an economic problem, it is a spiritual problem  because those who have taken the label Christian have an obligation to serve the poor and to transform the systems that create poverty.  Poverty is a manifestation of the spiritual sins of greed and self centeredness.  And Christians, church-going people who believe in Jesus, have not demanded laws and an economic system that meets the needs of all people especially those most vulnerable, including children.  It’s shameful.  It’s sinful. 

Can we say something about covid and the ridiculous notion that it doesn’t exist, that masks don’t make a difference, that it isn’t straining the healthcare system, that the self interested decisions of politicians are not responsible for people dying making them essentially murders?  The former president bragged that he could shoot someone in cold blood in the middle of 5th Avenue in New York and nothing would happen to him.  Well, he can be seen as responsible for hundreds of thousands of covid deaths, and he was right.  Nothing has happened to him.  No accountability or punishment.  He maintains his popularity.

I read an article this week examining the supposedly Christian aversion to the wearing of masks.  Apparently, the parents say that the wearing of masks hides part of the face, of the person made in the image of God, so it is obscuring God.  That is why the mask cannot be worn.  The commentator Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons of NBC News Think offers this rebuff: 

“Are mask mandates a form of Christian persecution?  That’s the argument a California man is making after his two teens were sent home for violating their high school’s mask policy.

“‘The Bible says we’re made in the image of God and Satan tries to cover that up. A mask is a sign of oppression,’ Gary Nelson told NBC News. And then it gets worse. He claimed that Muslims and Jews would have been accommodated but that the school administrators ‘feel safe’ persecuting Christians.

“These claims are laughable. Nothing in the Bible says you can’t wear masks. And you don’t see anti-masker Christians arguing against wearing clothing or hats or sunglasses.  When these conservative Christians start mandating nudity, then they might have a claim about not covering up what God has created.”  [Guthrie Graves-Fitzsimmons, fellow, Faith and Progressive Policy Initiative, Center for American Progress | NBC NEWS THINK]

There are MANY more things that could be mentioned that show the gap between the teachings of Jesus and our behavior as a society as well as individuals. 

Oh, how we love our self deception!  Our excuses.  Our mental and spiritual gyrations and rationalizations.  Jesus is bringing on a new age.  But we seem to like the one we’re in just fine, thank you very much.  666 and all.  Global warming and all.  The pandemic and all.  We don’t really seem to want to change. 

So, is there hope?  In the story we heard today, the person who is brought to Jesus is not just made to hear.  He is made to speak.  And I think that is where we find the hope in this story.  It is not just about seeing clearly, understanding, having your heart opened to Divine reality, knowing what truly is.  That is important, but the man is also made able to speak.  Clearly.  Speak.  Tell the truth about what he sees.  It is not enough to see.  The hope is in the speaking.  The telling.  The sharing of the stories and the naming of the fallacies and the dysfunctions and lies.  The pointing out of the self deception.  That is where there is transformative power in this story to me. 

Now we have a two year old grandson who is just learning to talk.  It’s a precious stage of development.  We were just visiting the children for their baptism, and what with covid, we haven’t seen each other for a long time.  So, Soren became reacquainted with his uncles.  Uncle Malcolm.  And Uncle Sterling.  One day, he came into the kitchen the there were Sterling and Malcolm, but Soren was looking for his favorite – Baba.  Grandpa Jeff.  Soren took one look at the two guys at the kitchen table and declared,  “No uncles.  No uncles.”  He kept repeating it.  He wanted Baba, not the uncles.  A few days later, Malcolm left.  There was only one uncle.  Uncle Sterling.  Again, Soren was looking for Baba.  And he saw Sterling.  And he declared, “No uncle.  No uncle.”  Now, this was very telling about his speech capabilities.  First of all, he knew that Sterling and Malcolm were both Uncles.  And when he addressed them both, he used the plural.  But when there was only one, he used the singular.  So he is really advancing in his language skills.  We can tell in these small steps and statements.

And I think that is how it might go as we advance in our ability to speak the truth in love.  To tell the truth.  To not only see and hear and understand, but to proclaim the truth of what we see.  We learn in steps.  In increments.  We practice.  We learn more.  And we get better at it.    We see more.  We say more.  And we learn from watching each other.  And listening to each other.  And encouraging each other.  Holding each other accountable.  Remembering that one person, one, can initiate change in an entire system.  And we are many people, not just one. 

For these harrowing days of covid and climate change to be a time of the birthing of a new reality, of a new awareness, of a new system of justice and peace, we need to be like Jesus, practicing what we preach, with no separation between our beliefs and our ethical commitments and our behavior.  We need to be like the healed person in the story not only aware, but vocal about it.  About our becoming aware.  Not judging of other people, but sharing about our transformation.  How we have been changed.  How we are seeing the world differently because of the gospel. 

While we were in Massachusetts recently, there was a story in the local small town paper about River Dave whose cabin was burned down in the New Hampshire woods.  The next week, we saw an article about Dave in the Tampa Bay Times.  Several things struck me about the story.  Yes, the one thing he wanted from the ruins of his dwelling was his Bible, saying, “The main thing I wanted out of the whole thing was my Bible.  Hopefully, Canterbury police took it home. . . I had the keys to camp and the camp’s just ashes.  So I have the keys to God’s heart, and that’s all I got.”  It’s also heartening to note that a nearby Quaker congregation is talking about providing River Dave with a place to live on their property.  Heartening to see a church acting like a church.  But what I found most interesting was the attitude of River Dave about the destruction of his camp.  In the articles I read, he did not express any anger about what happened.  He was not determined to rebuild his home where it was, despite outstanding legal issues.  After being a hermit for 27 years, and estranged from his family, River Dave is thinking that maybe it is time for him to lead a different kind of life.  He reflects, “Maybe the things I’ve been trying to avoid are the things that I really need in life,” says David Lidstone, 81.  He goes on:  “I grew up never being hugged or kissed, or any close contact. 

“I had somebody ask me once, about my wife:  ‘Did you really love her?’  And the question kind of shocked me for a second.  I. . . I’ve never loved anybody in my life.  And I shocked myself because I hadn’t realized that.  And that’s why I was a hermit.  Now I can see love being expressed that I never had before.”  He is referring to all the people who have expressed a willingness to help him.  To me, this story is a beautiful expression of being opened, of coming to a new understanding, of being in a new reality.  The experience of the fire instead of ruining River Dave’s life seems to be giving him a new life, and he is open to it.  Seeing it.  And speaking about it.  Honestly.  [Quotes taken from “‘River Dave’ grateful for help after fire ravaged his home,” by Kathy McCormack, Associated Press in Daily Times Chronicle, 8.9.21, B6, and “Former hermit in N.H. ponders his next move,” by Kathy McCormack, Associated Press in Tampa Bay Times, 8.22.21, 24A]

I find great hope in that story.  And I hope that as we navigate the challenges that we are facing, the changes in our lives – sought, and unwanted, alike – that we may be open to learning, to understanding, to seeing in new ways.  Allowing a new reality to open before us and that we might open our mouths to speak about that new reality.  So may we be part of ushering in a new age of justice and peace for all.  Amen. 

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

GATHERING MUSIC

WELCOME and ANNOUNCEMENTS

LIGHTING THE PEACE CANDLE                 Claire Stiles, liturgist

When we step back and recapture what around us is truly awe-inspiring – like babies and sunsets and storms and rivers and life and art and bird music – then we will feel enough love for our world not to want it violated, by non-peace, by violence. There is a way to truly love our world, that is to rediscover its wonder.

Source unknown

PRELUDE                   

CALL TO WORSHIP    Soren Kierkegaard, 1813-1855, Denmark

God in heaven, when the thought of you wakes in our hearts,

Let it not wake like a frightened bird that

Flies about in dismay, but like a child waking

From its sleep with a heavenly smile.

MUSICAL REFLECTION

SCRIPTURE READING

Let us prepare ourselves for the word of God as it comes to us in the reading of Holy Scripture. Our hearts and minds are open.

Matthew 13:45-46

For the word of God in scripture, for the word of God  among us, for the word of God within us. Thanks be to God.

MODERN READING             Nathaniel Hawthorne, 1804-1864

SERMON                       Treasured                 Rev. Kim P. Wells

The Olympics are taking place. Did you know? Do you see it in your newsfeed? Do you hear about it on the radio? Are you watching the events on TV? Have you seen Suni Lee and her gold medal winning routines? Did you watch as Florida wonder Caeleb Dressel took the gold? Again and again and again! And how about Florida’s Bobby Finke winning the gold in the 800 meter AND the 1500 meter freestyle events? Pulling ahead in the last of 30 lengths of the pool? Did you see Danusia Francis from Jamaica and her 11 second routine  living her Olympic dream?

We can certainly count on the Olympics for moments of compelling competition and glory! We appreciate the hard work, the countless hours training, the sacrifices made. The effort and commitment. Every athlete at the Olympics has worked incredibly hard to get there.

While I am not a sports fan, I don’t even watch the Super Bowl, I do love the Olympics. I enjoy watching the events. I like hearing the interviews. I enjoy learning about the host country. My family knows not to expect much from mom during the Olympics. I know that the Olympics is fraught with issues among them sexism, corruptions, politicization, doping, commercialization – and it is especially contentious this year, during the pandemic, but I still love the Olympics.

As I think about all I have seen so far – the stunning opening ceremonies with the amazing drone display and Imagine, and the mimed symbols for each sport in the Olympics, and the Japanese pianist who played, the creative commercials, the incredible competitions and athletes – there is one image that has really taken hold and stayed with me. There is one salient moment. The scene in the high school gym in Seward, Alaska when Lydia Jacoby, 17 years old, won the gold in the 100 meter breaststroke. The explosion of joy. The unrestrained elation. The raucous celebration. The sheer abandon of the scene. All those teenagers overcome with happiness for their friend. I could watch that clip over and over and over again.

The sense of community, of love, of support, of these usually self conscious teen agers simply bursting with joy as their friend’s dream comes true. It’s not even their success or their accomplishment or their dream. Which is what makes the joy so pure. Their delight is for someone else. It’s selfless joy. There is no benefit to them in her win. And yet they are overcome.

It is that kind of joy. That abandon. That characterizes the Kindom of Heaven. We heard about it again this morning in the story of the pearl. Another parable. A story with many facets and meanings. A story that is told to help us see something of the realm of God. Something so compelling it eclipses everything else. Period.

In the story, there is the merchant, searching. Looking. Desiring. And finding. Yet in the story before, a worker stumbles upon a treasure in a field. So, it can be sought, it can be stumbled upon. In the pearl story, there is no drama, like in the story of the rich young man. It’s not portrayed as an agonizing sacrifice. The disciples, too, left home, family, and job, to follow Jesus. There is no protracted analysis in this story of the pros and cons. Weighing the potential consequences and outcome. All of these practical considerations just fall away. There’s no saying no.

The commonwealth of God is an all encompassing reality of social, economic, and religious values that encompass the personal good and the communal good into one glorious whole. No fragmentation. Or distraction. Or dilution. It’s a full immersion experience. Not dipping the toe in.

And to be honest, we’re not good at that, these days. We keep our lives balanced, compartmentalized, time for family, time for work, time for re-creation, time for religion, time for exercise. Like a boat with carefully stowed ballast to keep things even to avoid tipping or being swamped. And we have planners and apps and calendars and monitors on our phones to tell us how we are doing keeping everything properly aligned. FYI, there is none of that in the story of the pearl. The experience of the realm of God, of Divine Love, simply eliminates all of those calculations.

In a recent editorial in Christian Century, Peter Marty Talks about being centered. He refers to the 1943 book, On Being a Real Person, by Harry Emerson Fosdick, America’s premier pastor of the mid 20^th century, that talks about what it is like to live with a “loss of centrality.” Marty tells us: “A scattered individual lacks wholeness and consistency. Multiple selves compete for attention within. Internal fragmentation makes for no serenity. ‘The fundamental sin of our being is to be chaotic and unfocused. . . The primary command of our being is to ‘get yourself together.” [See editorial by Peter W. Marty, in Christian Century, 7.28.21] Amen to that! And I fear we are far more fragmented now than we were in the 1940’s when Fosdick wrote his book.

We have so many more competing activities and relationships and commitments. With supposedly more money and more free time, there simply seems to be more to do. More options. More opportunities. More distractions. And then introduce the internet and social media and our many devices and the fragmentation just escalates exponentially. We are chaotic and unfocussed. We are falling apart, or being pulled apart, and trying to keep it together. Some of this. Some of that. Limits on this. Make sure to include that. It’s an endless battle. An every changing realignment. As we seek to keep things under control, find the optimal balance. Often without a true center.

In his editorial in Christian Century, Peter Marty goes on to discuss priorities and this I found very interesting. He tells us: “The word priority has been in the English language for at least 600 years, and for most of that time it meant simply the very first or prior thing. Only in the last 80 or so years have we pluralized it to priorities. The suggestion that we can have multiple first things may actually indicate that nothing ends up being our priority. To speak of a ‘top priority’ only serves to confuse.”

I found that very insightful. We live in a time of extreme fragmentation. We are being pulled in many directions. We receive so many messages about who we are to be and what we are to do and what we should look like and where we should go on our next vacation and what we should eat and how we should spend our money and how we should behave and what should matter to us and on and on and on. All of this fragmentation. Pulling us apart. While as Fosdick reminds us, the primary command of our being it to get ourselves together.

And that is what we see in the story of the the merchant and the pearl. Only one thing. No fragmentation. And the Psalmist talks about this many times in Psalm 119: “Give me understanding, that I may keep your law and observe it with my whole heart.” [v. 34]

The kindom of God is the one thing. It is the reality of goodness and love for all of creation. It is all encompassing. Complete. All of our experiences and feelings and desires are incorporated into this one reality. And while we may be engaged in many relationships and activities everything is part of a unified reality of Love. The realm of God, the Kindom of Heaven is the antidote to fragmentation and falling apart or being pulled apart. This story gives us the image of one pearl. Priceless. Precious. Beautiful. With no contention or competition. Just sheer joy.

I’ve seen that kind of joy. Here. At church. More than once. Like the first Sunday we came back for in person worship, outside on the lawn, after 8 months of the covid shut down. It wasn’t like the exuberant, ecstatic expression of joy in the gym in Seward, Alaska after the Jacoby’s win. But the feeling, the look in people’s eyes, the glow, the charged energy in the air, as we sat outside . . . It was pure, unadulterated joy. I can’t remember what the service was about or if the mic worked or what the weather was like. And none of that matters. Really. All I can remember is the intense joy of the experience of the kindom of God. The one true thing. We have been given the treasure. The pearl.

Amen.

A reasonable effort has been made to appropriately cite materials referenced in this sermon. For additional information, please contact Lakewood United Church of Christ.

UNISON READING                          Dongxia Shi, China

In the dawn

You walk toward me

When I am confused

You shower me in Love

In the darkness

You bestow light

When I am hesitant

You show me Your Words

In my days

You grant a mission

When I am weak

You lend me Your Power

In sickness

You are by my side

When I am suffering

You offer me the Cure

In conflicts

You increase my strength

When I am in pain

You grace me with Peace

In all my life

You leave your footprints

When I am empty

You give me Your All

MUSICAL INTERLUDE               

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of Lakewood United Church of Christ, as part of the Church Universal is to:

• Celebrate the presence and power of God in our lives & in our world.
• Offer the hospitality and inclusive love of Christ to all people.
• Work for God’s peace and justice throughout creation.

MORNING OFFERING and COMMUNION OFFERING

Morning offerings may be brought forward and placed in the plates on the altar.

Offertory      

Prayer of Dedication               Bruno Manser, Switzerland

You —

The power of creation

Giver of life —

Guide us on our way.

Where there is pain —

Bring comfort. You!

Where there is hunger —

Bring food. You!

Where there is quarrel —

Bring love. You!

You —

All of us together!

PREPARATION FOR COMMUNION

You are invited to write your prayer requests on the sheets provided in the bulletin and bring them forward and place them in the basket on the altar.  Please observe physical distancing.

CELEBRATION OF HOLY COMMUNION

Invitation

Communion Prayer- Savior’s Prayer

Our Creator, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory for ever. Amen.

Blessing the Bread and Cup

Sharing the Meal

Giving Thanks

* BENEDICTION                                                                      Asian Proverb

Pearls do not lie on the seashore,

If you desire one you must dive for it.

*POSTLUDE       

For the safety and comfort of all, please wear a mask. Thank you!

Circle of Concern:  Earl Waters, Bill Parsons, Dave Radens, Richard Wiggins and family, Carol Shores, Sherry Santana, William Owen-Cowan, Jen Degroot, Carolyn Moore, Ann Quinn, Maggie Brizendine, Janet Hall

GATHERING MUSIC

WELCOME and ANNOUNCEMENTS

LIGHTING THE PEACE CANDLE                        Barbara Donohue, liturgist

There lies before us, if we choose, continued progress in happiness, knowledge, and wisdom. Shall we, instead, choose death, because we cannot forget our quarrels? We appeal, as human beings, to human beings: Remember your humanity and forget the rest. If you can do so, the way lies open to a new Paradise; if you cannot, there lies before you the risk of universal death.

Albert Einstein, 1879-1955 and Bertrand Russell, 1872-1970

PRELUDE                   

CALL TO WORSHIP        

Cathedral of St. Paul the Apostle, Los Angeles

All humankind are one vast family

this world our home.

We sleep beneath one roof,

the starry sky.

We warm ourselves before one hearth,

the blazing sun.

Upon one floor of soil we stand

and breathe one air

and drink one water

and walk the night

beneath one luminescent moon.

The children of one God we are

brothers and sisters of one blood

and members in one worldwide family of God.

MUSICAL REFLECTION

SCRIPTURE READING

Let us prepare ourselves for the word of God as it comes to us in the reading of Holy Scripture. Our hearts and minds are open.

Matthew 20:1-15

For the word of God in scripture, for the word of God  among us, for the word of God within us. Thanks be to God.

CONTEMPORARY READING                      In the days, Ruth Burgess

SERMON                    Beloved                       Rev. Kim P. Wells

This story has many messages, perspectives, and meanings. Scholars throughout the centuries have noted many interpretations. And there is still little consensus today about this story. In fact, the divergence of meanings may be growing as we become more aware of economic and social biases and systems then and now.

Among the many insights about the land system, labor rights, the landowner, the manager, the boss as a God figure, how the workers are manipulated, and on and on, one thing stands out and will always stand out from this story. What is most unexpected and most jarring is that the workers are paid the same for different amounts of labor.

Why an economic image? Why labor and money and not education or good looks or taking turns or something else? Jesus uses an economic example because it shows how much competition and conflict there is between the values of the gospel and the values of the economy and the society around us. This economic scenario is most likely to upset us and also most likely to drive the point home. Jesus intentionally picks a hot button issue to give the story impact. And it works.

And that is what makes this story one of the most significant stories in the New Testament. Who can forget the story where the people work for different amounts of time but are given the same pay? It is supposed to be provocative and it is.

So, we are going to try something interactive this morning. I am going to ask you to count off by 3’s. Then we are going to ask Barbara to read the story again. And all of you who are one’s, I want you to listen to the story with the ears of someone who was hired in the middle of the day. Those of you who are two’s, I want you to listen with the ears of someone who was hired at the end of the day. Those of you who are three’s, I want you to listen with the ears of someone hired first thing in the morning. Then after we listen to the story again, we’ll discuss what we notice after listening in this way –

Barbara reads the story again.
Discussion and comments from the congregation

This story with the same pay for different amounts of work is disturbing and inspiring. And it works on us. Here are some of my impressions of this story.

Then as now, money is an indicator of value. So, when everyone gets paid the same, the implication is that everyone is of equal value. Exactly. And the way it is put, it is surprising. It is scandalous. Every single person of equal value. Sacred. Holy. Beloved. Period. Regardless of station, behavior, choices, age, abilities. Regardless of work ethic. Screw ups. Grades. Income. Education. Background. Every single person equally loved in the commonwealth of God. Each life. Equally valued. Elites and expendables alike. In the realm of Divine Love. Yes, people are diverse: good, bad, ugly, saints, sinners, lazy, smart, slow, creative, annoying. But all are equally loved and valued in the economy of God. Period.

This is scandalous. And fundamental.

Carolyn Hax made this point in a recent column. Someone wrote in about having low self esteem. And in her reply, Hax says: “Throw away all measures of value, period. Your value is absolute. You exist therefore you matter. No more than anyone, and no less. That’s it. Breathe.” [Tampa Bay Times, 7/14/21, 1F]. That is a core message in this story of Jesus. Everyone of equal value as a human being.

Evidently, that message is needed as much today as it was in Jesus’ time. Maybe even more because of our continued fixation on money as a determinant of value and wealth. We still have the elites and the expendables. In our community. In our country. In our culture, and in the world.

So, we get the message that God loves everyone. Period. Ok. So what? Around the anniversary of the murder of George Floyd, there was an editorial that I saw, “George Floyd’s life mattered to God.” And the follow up, “Black lives matter to God.” Frankly, I wanted to scream. God. So what? George Floyd is dead. As are countless other black bodies. Often at the hands of Christians. What the story of the workers says to followers of Jesus is that every life is beloved by God and that
the commonwealth of God is a community where every person is treated as holy, sacred, and beloved. Every life is valued equally. Every single person is precious. And the implication is that we are to implement this basic foundation that every life is equally sacred in all of our choices, behaviors, and actions. And in all of our institutions, systems, and social and economic arrangements. Followers of Jesus are to put this commitment that every person is equally beloved and valued into play in everyday life just as Jesus did. And it got him killed. Because we love our hierarchies, and classes, and stratifications, and divisions, and pecking orders. And in this country we know all too well about privilege and class. Elites and expendables. Our culture is built on the inhuman, unChristian foundation of slavery. Where not only were people not equal, some were not even considered people, human beings. The residue of this legacy is still very much with us today.

And it is harming everyone. We are all diminished because of it. When one human life is considered of different value than another, everyone suffers.

Michelle Obama expressed this in a commencement address. She said: “In an uncertain world, time-tested values like honesty and integrity, empathy and compassion — that’s the only real currency in life. Treating people right will never, ever fail you. Now I’m not naive. I know that you can climb a long way up the ladder selling falsehoods and blaming others for your own shortcomings, shunning those with less privilege and advantage. But that is a heavy way to live. It deadens your spirit and it hardens your heart.” [Tampa Bay Times, 6/14/20, Perspective, p.4] Deadens your spirit and hardens your heart. That is not the way of the gospel. The gospel brings the spirit to life and opens the heart to flow with love.

Valuing human life according to productivity, or financial wealth, or education, or status, or class, or identity, or ethnicity, or race – it deadens the spirit. It hardens the heart. It diminishes life. It suffocates life.

It even has negative implications practically for people. It saps society of energy, creativity, and community. It makes things unsafe for everyone. It imposes competition, fear, and a need to protect, that impedes “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” In an editorial about hope in the midst of the pandemic, journalist Nicholas Kristof says: “Why is the United States about the only advanced country to lack universal health care and universal paid sick leave? Many scholars, in particular the late Alberto Alesina, a Harvard economist, have argued that one reason for America’s outlier status is race. Investing in safety nets and human capital became stigmatized because of a perception that African-Americans would benefit. So instead of investing in children, we invested in a personal responsibility narrative holding that Americans just need to lift themselves up by their bootstraps to get ahead.”

Kristoff continues:

“This experiment proved catastrophic for all Americans, especially the working class. Marginalized groups, including African-Americans and Native Americans, suffered the worst, but the underinvestment in health and the lack of safety nets means that American children today are 57 percent more likely to die by age 19 than European children are.”

Dr. Jonathan M. Metzl calls this “dying of whiteness.” This valuing lives differently leads to the devaluing of all lives. [New York Times, 7/19/2020]

It’s not enough that everyone is equally beloved by God in some theological, theoretical sense. Followers of Jesus need to be living that out in our individual personal lives and creating a society that is based on that foundation. The Constitution of these United States declares that, “All men are created equal.” We need to be aiming for that.

Jesus tells this story of the unfair wages not so that his followers will suffer. Not to punish. Not to condemn. He is jarring us into seeing reality in a new way. He is trying to jolt us into the commonwealth of God so that we will experience joy and abundant life. Love, fundamental worth, is not a zero sum game in the commonwealth of God. It’s not that if you get lots of love and favor and forgiveness there is less for me. Divine Love does not work like that. It’s that it is here for all of us, more than we could ever hope for.

And Jesus specifically uses money to make the point because money is one of the main ways that consciously or subconsciously we value lives differently. Financial earning ability is one of the biggest impediments to our seeing everyone equally as a child of God. So Jesus uses this burning situation of equal pay to emphasize how we let the ability to earn money influence the value we place on a life and that this is wrong. Jesus wants to take us out of that system all together. Jesus is inviting us to be part of the commonwealth of God. He is inviting us to choose the gospel – a way of solidarity and community where the commitment is to the well being of everyone. Everyone having access to what they need. A reality in which everybody can thrive and flourish.

So, can we imagine a scene at the end of the story, after everyone is paid, where the workers don’t grumble or complain, but, well, celebrate? ‘Hey, Joe, you’re going to have food tonight. Maria, you’ll be able to feed the kids. Oh Joshua, you were so discouraged and hungry, and look, you’re going to make it. Hey, let’s all have dinner together and celebrate and we’ll share with the others who weren’t hired today.’ That’s what the kindom of heaven is like. . . Amen.

UNISON READING                                           Anwar Fazal, b. 1941, Malaysia

We all drink from one water

We all breathe from one air

We rise from one ocean

And we live under one sky

Remember

We are one

The newborn baby cries the same

The laughter of children is universal

Everyone’s blood is red

And our hearts beat the same song

Remember

We are one

We are all brothers and sisters

Only one family, only one earth

Together we live

And together we die

Remember

We are one

Peace be on you

Brothers and Sisters

Peace be on you

MUSICAL INTERLUDE               

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of Lakewood United Church of Christ, as part of the Church Universal is to:

• Celebrate the presence and power of God in our lives & in our world.
• Offer the hospitality and inclusive love of Christ to all people.
• Work for God’s peace and justice throughout creation.

MORNING OFFERING

Morning offerings may be brought forward and placed in the plates on the altar.

Offertory      

Prayer of Dedication                        Riane Eisler, b. 1931, Austria

Together let us create a world where love is manifested through a

politics and economics of caring, where caretaking is the most

honored and rewarded work, where all children are safe

from violence in their families and in their communities.

Let us liberate our Mother Earth from those who would conquer and

despoil nature. Let us remember that we all share the DNA of one Eve

who lived in Africa millions of year ago. Let us treat one

another as who we are: sisters and brothers in the miracle

and mystery we call life. Amen.

PREPARATION FOR PRAYER

You are invited to write your prayer requests on the sheets provided in the bulletin and bring them forward and place them in the basket on the altar.  Please observe physical distancing.

MORNING PRAYER-SAVIOR’S PRAYER

Fathering and Mothering God, lover of us all, most holy one.

Help us to respond to you

To create what you want for us here on earth.

Give us today enough for our needs.

Forgive our weak and deliberate offenses,

Just as we must forgive others when they hurt us.

Help us to resist evil and to do what is good.

For we are yours, endowed with your power to make the world whole.

Amen.

* BENEDICTION (unison)                                                           Ram Dass

May we recognize the Spirit

in each of us, and the Spirit

in all of us.                                        

*POSTLUDE       

For the safety and comfort of all, please wear a mask. Thank you!

Circle of Concern:  Earl Waters, Bill Parsons, Mae Wiggins, Dave Radens, Richard Wiggins and family, Carol Shores, Sherry Santana, William Owen-Cowan, Jen Degroot, Carolyn Moore, Ann Quinn, Maggie Brizendine, Janet Hall