Sermon Texts – Page 60 – Lakewood United Church of Christ

Sermon 1.6.13 – Follow the Light

Date: January 6, 2013
Scripture Lesson: Matthew 2:1-12
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Hushpuppy decides that she needs to find her mother. In the movie, “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” we see Hushpuppy being raised by her father because she has no mother. But her father is sick and dying. The water is rising on their rural bayou community because of global warming. Their homes and lives are threatened. Things have gotten desperate so desperate measures must be taken. Young Hushpuppy decides to find her mother. What does she have to go on? She’s been told that when she was born, her mother’s heart burst with love, and then her mother swam away. So Hushpuppy and a few of her friends head to the beach. As she scans the horizon, she sees a bright light. A beacon. The children head into the water and swim toward the light far off the shore. They risk their lives in search of love. They are picked up by a kindly man in a cabin cruiser. He takes the children to a restaurant/bar/brothel on the water up the bayou. There the women take the children in with their own style of affection, love, and care. The light has led Hushpuppy and her friends to motherly love. Then the children are taken back to their community and Hushpuppy has the strength and courage to face her father’s death and the peril of the rising water.

For Hushpuppy, the flashing light of a distant buoy was the star to be followed that led to the love she needed to ground her life and go on. This morning we heard the familiar story of the wise men, the magi, following the star with led them to Jesus. Our familiarity with this quaint tale may obscure some of its meanings. Where were these magi from? Scholars speculate that perhaps they were from modern day Iraq, Iran, or even western Russia. Their journey may have been 1000’s of miles and could easily have taken many months. All that time away from home, family, familiarity. Facing the unknown, sometimes friendly, sometimes hostile. Remember the story of Herod? At great personal as well as financial expense they went on their trek. In this epic journey, we are meant to see the extreme gleigel or their devotion, commitment, investment, and risk. The magi undertake their long, arduous, perilous, and I’m sure some thought hare-brained, trek and for what? They are following a star leading them to the birth place of a leader of a small, foreign, oppressed tribe. Who are the Jews? When this story is told they are an insignificant ethnic minority in the vast Roman Empire. Their trip really does seem like a wild goose chase.

But in Celtic spirituality, the wild goose represents the Holy Spirit! So, the wise men are on a wild goose chase, of sorts. Their story shows us that following the spirit doesn’t necessarily look rational or reasonable. And it isn’t necessarily safe and secure. It can be risky business at great personal cost. Well, look at what it cost Jesus.

In this story we are told that following the light of God transcends culture, geography, nationality, and even religion. The Messiah is born as the Savior of the Jews. And the Jews, living faithfully according to God’s justice, are to be a light to the nations. And here are the magi, foreigners, even historic enemies of the Jews, following the star to find Jesus. That’s as it should be. The unconditional, expansive love of God transcends any one religion or culture. It is truly universal. The whole cosmos is imbued with the divine. The compassion, peace, and love of God cannot be confined by culture, language, geography, or even religion.

The story of the magi confronts the exclusivist attitudes of first century Jews – some of whom believe, “He’s our Messiah; sent to liberate us, the Jews, not the whole world. We’re God’s favored people. We’re the chosen ones.” This story shows the attraction of divine love for all peoples, all nations, and all religions. The story also confronts first century Jews with the faithfulness and devotion of their historic enemies and oppressors. It is also interesting to us as twenty-first century Americans that the magi come from the distant lands of our enemies – Iraq, Iran, and Russia. Not only our political enemies, but lands largely Muslim today. So for us, the magi represent those who many see as enemies not only of the United States but also of Christianity. Yet the magi are lifted up in this story as paragons of extreme faithfulness, discernment, devotion, and generosity. Even if they are playing for the wrong team!

We also want to note that the universal nature of divine love is not limited to the human family, but is evident in all of creation. In scripture, particularly in the Psalms and the prophets, God’s love and faithfulness are conveyed throughout nature. We heard many examples in the scripture readings of Advent:

portents in the sun, the moon, the stars and the earth. . . the roaring of the sea [Luke 21:25]

every valley filled and every mountain and hill made low [Luke 3:5]

In other passages we are told the desert shall blossom, dried streams surge with water, the crops thrive, and the animals flourish. Divine love infuses all of creation and nature. God’s love is expressed to us through the natural world. And the magi give gifts of the land to the Messiah; gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These are not human inventions, but gifts of creation. Creation itself honors Jesus through the agency of the magi.

So this story invites us to consider God’s faithfulness in creation and our response. How do we show our commitment, our devotion, our love for God by honoring creation? How do we help the natural world to fulfill God’s intents and desires that creation flourish and thrive?

The magi show us a journey over vast distances through unfamiliar places facing political controversy at great personal risk and sacrifice. In our journey to renew creation, we, too, must be bold and courageous. We must make vast strides in new sources of energy. We must face the perils of reversing the effects of pollution and abuse of the environment. We must engage the challenges of new modes of transportation. Camels, anyone? We must be open to new patterns of consumption of energy, material goods, and food. We, too, must be willing to confront new circumstances and ways of doing things that heal the earth. We must be shrewd and clever in navigating the political perils of this journey. And given our present habits and situation, this will seem like strange, exotic territory. It is a journey through unknown terrain, and yet it is a trek we must make if we want to pay homage to divine love, to honor God’s self-giving, to celebrate the wonders of the universe, and to find our deepest joy, our highest good, our healing and wholeness.

On this holy day of Epiphany we ask ourselves where are we on our journey to care for creation? Are we following the star of sustainability? What are our guideposts for restoring the earth and promoting the flourishing of all species as well as the land itself?

After worshipping the Messiah, Jesus, we are told that the magi return home by a new way. They are changed by their journey and by their encounter. They are no longer the same. To give ourselves over to divine love is to risk being changed. We cannot stay the same. We must be open to changing, learning, and growing if we follow the star. But isn’t the greater risk to stay home, to stagnate, to die?

Epiphany is a celebration of the light of God coming into the world in Jesus revealing the light that is at the heart of all of creation: all peoples, all places, all cultures, and all religions as well as the actual land, flora, and fauna of the earth and the cosmos. Epiphany is about God’s love made manifest in all of creation with its profusion, expanse, and diversity. In the story from Matthew the magi see this. They are following a star – an enormous explosion of hydrogen gas burning by fusion into helium gas, likely over 50 trillion miles away. Maybe it’s a super nova, a star in its death throes, beaming even by day. The magi are not following a parochial, anthropocentric, exclusivist, myopic map, but a star, a light of infinite energy shining across eons in the cosmic universe. That’s how big our vision should be. Worthy of our complete devotion, commitment, and sacrifice. Source of pure joy and awe. Oblivious to the risk, to the effort, to the fear of the unknown, the light beckons.

Look to the horizon of this New Year. Search for the light. Look for the glimmer. Be dazzled by the blaze. And head off.

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.

Sermon 12.9.12 The Poor Have Good News Preached to Them

Date: December 9, 2012
Scripture Lesson: Luke 3:1-18
Sermon: The Poor Have Good News Preached to Them
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

“What do you think is the biggest human rights issue today?” Our son, Malcolm, asked me this question in the car driving home from school recently. First of all, I was surprised at such a significant topic of conversation. Secondly, I was surprised that he wanted my opinion. Then there was the matter at hand. I had to ask for some clarity. Were we talking about human rights or civil rights? Human rights. And are we talking about the US or the world? The whole world. OK. There are issues around immigrants and immigration. There are issues around race and religion. There are issues around sexual identity and sexual orientation. But I decided the most pressing human rights issue is gender: Full human rights for women is the most pressing human rights issue in the world.

Malcolm told me that his sister said the same thing. When he asked Jeff, his father, he got the same answer. Malcolm thinks the biggest human rights issue is around sexual orientation.

Ever since that conversation, I have been thinking about the question. And I am having second thoughts about the most pressing human rights issue being the rights of women. On further reflection, I am thinking that the biggest human rights issue of the day might be poverty. If you have money, you have more access to human rights regardless of your gender, sexual identity, race, religion, etc. Money gives you rights and access to those rights. But if you are poor, really poor, even if you are a white, heterosexual man in the US, you might be denied your human rights. And I think it is pretty much the same the world over. If you are poor, you have less access to your rights – legal, civil, and human. And this is nothing new. It has been this way for all time and in all cultures and all settings. Money is power. No money can mean no power. Poor people are routinely denied human rights.

Just this week we heard about how people in developing countries who have cancer often die in extreme pain and suffering because they don’t have access to relief. In the US, people in the last, painful stages of cancer are usually treated with morphine. It reduces the pain and is easy to administer through oral medication or an IV. While the cost of morphine to treat a dying patient is only about $2 per week many people in the developing world have no access to this treatment. Lack of funds, lack of medication, and other issues prevent the poor from dying comfortably and in peace. Given that this issue could be remedied, it is almost as if those who are dying in pain are being tortured. It is immoral and unconscionable. The human right to basic health care is being denied to those who are poor.

We also heard this week about the death of Oscar Niemeyer, the Brazilian architect, who designed the capital city of Brasilia. In the original design for this planned city there were apartment buildings for all economic levels. The intent was that ministers of the government and janitors would live together in the same buildings that offered differing kinds of apartments and accommodations. What happened was that the rich people chose to live out of town, in single family homes on the lake. And the poor were never welcomed into the planned housing. The issue wasn’t money; it was the stigma against the poor. The poor being treated as less than, second class, degraded and demeaned. Not welcome.

There is great prejudice in our world against those who are poor. It is not just that poor people don’t have money and thus certain things that create the appearance of respectability. The subliminal message is that if you are poor you are deficient, lazy, and stupid. You are not worthy of dignity or respect from others. The underlying assumption is that if you are poor, there is something wrong with you.

Of course this kind of attitude is completely at odds with the teachings of Christianity. Our central spiritual figure, Jesus, was poor and chose to associate continuously with people who were poor. He told stories about welcoming poor people to feasts and banquets. He singled out a poor widow as an example of generosity and faithfulness. He preached about laborers and those with no jobs. He shared food with the poor, he healed the poor, the invited the poor into the faith community. In the story of the last judgment in Matthew we are told that when we are in solidarity with the poor, we are in solidarity with Jesus. On practically every page of the gospels, there is a story about Jesus and people who are poor. Throughout the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Testament, there is the declaration of God’s preferential option for the poor. One of the characteristics so compelling about the early communities of followers of Jesus was that they included rich, poor, and those in between. This was glaringly radical and subversive. It undermined the structure of society. So in ancient times as well as today, prejudice and stigma against those who are poor is completely contrary to the values and ethics of the Christian gospel.

And, of course, we see this theme of concern for the poor in the Christmas story itself. Mary and Joseph are poor peasants. In the story of Jesus’ birth, they stay in the barn with the animals. They are visited by shepherds who are on the bottom rung of the socio-economic ladder. They are dirty, smelly, people who live out in the fields away from human society. This might be like Jesus being born under an overpass where some homeless people crash amidst scurrying rats and the ever present smell of urine. But in the Christmas story, it is those shepherds who are sought out by the angels and given the message to go and see Jesus, who is glad tidings of great joy to all people. The invitation signals that God is including everyone, welcoming everyone into the community.

This season, we are reflecting on the Christmas proclamation, “Glad tidings of great joy to ALL people.” This morning we will think about how the message of the gospel is glad tidings to those who are poor, as well as those who are rich and those who are in between. The reading about John the Baptizer illumines this for us.

First let’s look at John. We are given specific details about when he was preaching. It was in the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the regions of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas. All these leaders are mentioned, both Roman and Jewish. This was the power elite of the day. It would be like saying when so and so was President of the US, and so and so was Secretary of State, and so and so was Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and so and so was Secretary General of the United Nations, and so and so was Pope, and so and so was Bishop. We are told immediately of the power structure of the day. And yet we are told that God chooses to speak through John, a random person who is poor and who lives out in the wilderness, not in the center of power. We’re told elsewhere that he ate wild locusts and honey and that he dressed in animal skins. He is the epitome of poor and unrefined. He is beyond a country bumpkin. He has no sophistication or class. And yet we are told that the people are leaving the city and the Temple precincts, and heading out to the hills to listen to John and to be baptized by him. So in the very person of John, as a messenger of God, we see God’s affirmation of the poor. That in itself would not escape the notice of those who are poor. They see God working through the poor and for the poor. And the selection of this unlikely messenger would not escape the notice of the rich and powerful either. They felt that God should be working through them not through this eccentric religious fanatic. And yet we are told that God chooses to speak through John.

Now let’s look at what we are told that John says. John is preaching about drastic change: A transformation of the lay of the land – social, political, religious, and economic. How are people to prepare for this drastic in-breaking of God? For this salvation? This restoration? This healing? Interestingly, John doesn’t tell the people to fast, pray, or go to services. He doesn’t tell them to straighten out their theology. He doesn’t advocate putting God first in your life. He advocates specific behaviors of an ethical nature. If you have two coats, give one away. And the same with food. The message is: Share. If you have more than you need, give something up. See that those who are in need have their needs met. John is advocating for equity and justice. The presumption is that if you have two coats it is because you have one that should rightfully belong to someone else who needs it. If you have more than you need, you are depriving someone else. If everyone has a coat, then enjoy the two you have. In God’s economy everyone has what they need.

Then John tells the tax collectors to take only their due. Well. This amounts to doing what is fair, and no more. Don’t take advantage of people. Don’t abuse your power. Don’t be greedy and selfish. Don’t cheat. Because that amounts to stealing from others. Think of the message here for CEO’s making millions while workers have no pension or health insurance. Think about banks and financial institutions charging enormous fees and interest rates. Think of auto dealers and other financiers who take advantage of those who are poor by charging exorbitant fees and interest rates. To all this, John says: NO. Do what is decent and fair. Take no more than you need. Don’t take advantage of others, especially the vulnerable and poor.
And John has a word for soldiers, for those in the military. Don’t abuse your power. Don’t harass and bully people. Don’t take advantage of people. Be satisfied with your wages. No false accusations. Don’t extort money. John would have plenty of fuel for his fire today. What about those WMD’s? Talk about a false accusation! What about those oil execs and their interests promoted through war? What about perpetuating armed conflict to serve the business interests of the weapons companies? While individual soldiers in our day may not be abusing their power or extorting, the military complex is certainly abusing its power and economically hurting many on the bottom tiers of society. The billions poured into the military are depriving citizens of housing, jobs, food, education, job training, and many other necessities. Military spending is a significant force that’s holding the US economy hostage. And this is largely driven not by the military, but by politicians who want to maintain their power and standing with voters.

John is advocating dramatic reconfiguration of government, military, and business interests. He is promoting a drastic transformation of the structures of human life and the institutions that hold society together. He is talking about moving mountains and filling valleys! And all of this is good news to the poor who are the victims of the corrupt systems driven by power and greed.

Notice that this word of God that John proclaims involves radical change in the behavior of people and the social structures that govern human behavior. And John’s admonitions are all addressed to those who have – who have power, who have money, who have jobs, who have economic influence, who have material wealth.

We want to be sure to notice what is not said. John does not tell the poor people to get over their laziness. He does not tell them to apply themselves. He does not tell them to be more industrious. He does not tell the poor to work harder. The implication is that poverty is not the result of the deficiency of the people who are poor, but is a result of the greed and abuse and selfishness of others. Poverty is caused by some people taking advantage of other people for personal gain. It is due to the immoral, unfair, unethical behavior of some. The people who have more than they need have it because they have taken advantage of those who have little. We still see this today. We can have a closet full of clothes because there are people in developing countries working for a pittance. Our material wealth and comfort is at the expense of others. And there is a complex system that maintains this injustice and some benefit from it while others suffer because of it. As Archbishop Dom Helder Camera observed, “When I fed the poor, they called me a saint. When I asked why the poor had no food, they called me a Communist.”

It’s o.k. to help the poor with charity because that doesn’t change the system. But justice is about changing the system. All people thriving, not some people flourishing at the expense of others. In the gospel of Jesus Christ there are no victims. The realm of God that Jesus shows us has no victims, no abuse, no degradation, no oppression.

In the Universal Declaration of Human Rights created by the United Nations and adopted on Dec. 10, 1948, there are several specific articles that address economic issues, because basic economic opportunity is a human right:
Article 23.
(1) Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
(2) Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
(3) Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
(4) Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

By addressing economic issues, the Human Rights Declaration is promoting peace because there will never be peace when there is poverty and lack of access to economic opportunity for sustaining life.

The Bible tells us that God is about leveling the playing field and advocating for those who are made poor by the system. John’s message, as we heard this morning, for those who are benefitting from unjust systems is: Change. Change your behavior and that will change the systems that victimize others. Scientists, economists, social scientists, agronomists, and others tell us that the earth can sustain the current population with food, clothing, shelter, and water if there is fair distribution and if consumption is moderated by those in developed countries. The ability is there. The problem is the will. John is exercising influence over the will of people. He is saying that they have to choose to change. He is preaching to Jews and Romans alike, to all factions and strata of society. There is good news. There are glad tidings. And as repentance takes hold and behaviors change, the fruit of transformation will appear. God will be seen breaking in. Glad tidings will be heard by all.

One day, as usual, a young waif of a girl stood at the street corner begging for food, money, or whatever kind of help she could get. She was wearing tattered, dirty clothes. Her hair was uncombed.

As usual, a well-to-do young man passed the corner without giving the girl a second look. But when he got to his comfortable home, and his happy family, and a wonderful dinner, his thoughts returned to the young girl and he became very angry at God for allowing such conditions to exist.

That evening in his prayers, the man reproached God: “How can you let this happen? Why don’t you do something to help this girl?”

Then he heard God, in the depths of his being respond, saying, “I did. I created you!” [The Sower’s Seeds: 120 Inspiring Stories for Preaching, Teaching and Public Speaking, Brian Cavanaugh, p. 28]

Instituting justice is good news for all. For those on the bottom, it means access to life-sustaining resources and the ability to make a contribution to the well-being of all. And for those in the middle and on the top, it means security and lack of fear; freedom from greed, selfishness, and control which drains abundant life and undermines mutual relationships. Justice means fullness of life for all. And our faith tradition makes it clear that we all have a role in establishing God’s justice. Everyone can help eradicate poverty and unfairness which leaves people behind and leaves people out so that others unduly benefit.

This season is one of glad tidings of great joy for all people. John reminds us that we all can respond. God welcomes our repentance, our change of behavior, attitude, and heart. The beautiful image of the mountains brought low and the valleys lifted up affirms that society, structures, institutions, economic systems, government, business, and even the military, can be reconfigured and transformed. And in this process, all flesh, all people, all animals, and all of life will experience the saving, the healing, and the restoration of God. No one is left out. Everyone hears the glad tidings of great joy for ALL people. 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.

Jesus Saves (text)

Date: August 26, 2012
Scripture Lesson: Luke 19:1-10
Sermon: Jesus Saves!
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

In the fabulous novel, The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963, Christopher Paul Curtis tells the story of an African American family living in Flint, Michigan in the 1960’s from the perspective of a young son in the family named Kenny. Kenny is smart and so his older brother, Byron, and others at school take to calling him, Poindexter or Professor or Egghead. He got teased for being smart and more until the day he was saved. Listen as Kenny tells us about it:

The other thing that people would have teased me a lot more about if it hadn’t been for Byron was my eye.

. . . Ever since I’d been born one of my eyeballs had been kind of lazy. That means instead of looking where I tell it to look, it wanted to rest in the corner of my eye next to my nose. I’d done lots of things to make it better, but none of them worked. . .when I went to look in the mirror the eye still went back to its corner. . .

Even though my older brother was Clark Elementary School’s god that didn’t mean I never got teased or beat up at all. I still had to fight a lot and still got called Cockeye Kenny and I still had people stare at my eye and I still had to watch when they made their eyes go crossed when they were teasing me. It seemed like one of these things happened to me every day, but if it hadn’t been for Byron I know they’d have happened a whole lot more. . .

The worst part about being teased was riding the school bus on those mornings when Byron and Buphead [his best friend] decided they were going to skip school.

We’d be standing on the corner waiting for the bus. . . When we saw the bus about three blocks away we all got in a line – old thugs, young thugs, regular kinds, then me. It wasn’t until the bus stopped and the door opened that I knew whether By and Buphead were going. I hated it when By walked past and said, “Give my regards to Clark, Poindexter.” Some of the time those words were like a signal for the other kids to jump me.

But the day I stopped hating the bus so much began with those same words. . . “Give my regards to Clark, Poindexter,” By said, and disappeared. . . I got on the bus and took the seat right behind the driver . . for the most protection. . . . after everyone was picked up we headed toward Clark. But today the bus driver did something he’d never done before. He noticed two kids running up late. . . and he stopped to let them get on. Every other time someone was late he’d just laugh at them and tell the rest of us, “This is the only way you little punks is gonna learn to be punctual. I hope that fool has a pleasant walk to school.” . . .

That was part one of my miracle, that let me know something special was going to happen. As soon as the doors of the bus swung open and two strange new boys got on part two of my miracle happened.

Every once in while, Momma would make me go to Sunday school with Joey. Even though it was just a bunch of singing and coloring in coloring books and listening to Mrs. Davidson, I had learned one thing. I learned about getting saved. I learned how someone could come to you when you were feeling real, real bad and could take all of your problems away and make you feel better. I learned that the person who saved you, your personal saver, was sent by God to protect you and to help you out.

When the bigger one of the two boys who got on the bus late said to the driver in a real down-South accent, “Thank you for stopping, sir,” I knew right away. I knew that God had finally gotten sick of me being teased and picked on all the time. . .

As I looked at this new boy with the great big smile and the jacket with holes in the sleeves and the raggedy tennis shoes and the tore-up blue jeans I knew who he was. Maybe he didn’t live a million years ago and maybe he didn’t have a beard and long hair and maybe he wasn’t born under a star but I knew anyway, I knew God had finally sent me some help, I knew God had finally sent me my personal saver!

As soon as the boy thanked the driver in that real polite, real country way I jerked around in my seat to see what the other kids were going to do to him. . .

I knew they weren’t going to waste any time with this new guy. . . He was like nobody we’d seen before. He was raggedy, he was country, he was skinny and he was smiling at everybody a mile a minute. The boy with him had to be his little brother, he looked like a shrunk-up version of the big one.

Everyone had stopped what they were doing and were real quiet. . . The older one got an even bigger smile on his face and waved really hard at everybody, the little shrunk-up version. . . did the same thing. Then they said, “Hiya, y’all!” and I knew that there was someone who was going to be easier for the kids to make fun of than me.

Then Larry Dunn said, “Lord, today, look at the nappy-headed, down-home, country corn flake the cat done drugged up from Mississippi, y’all!”

. . . Larry Dunn threw an apple core from the back of the bus and the new kid got his hand up just in time to block it from hitting him in the face. Little bits of apple exploded all over the kid, his brother and me. The other kids went wild laughing and saying to each other, “Hiya, y’all!”

The bus driver jumped out of his seat. . . “You see? You see how you kids is? This boy shows some manners and some respect and y’all want to attack him, that’s why nan one of y’all’s ever gonna be nothin’!” The bus driver was really mad. . .

The bus was real quiet. We’d never seen the driver get this mad before. He pushed the two new kids into the same seat as me and told them, “Don’t you pay no mind to them little fools, they ain’t happy lest they draggin’ someone down.” Then he had to add, “Y’all just sit next to Poindexter, he don’t bother no one.”

I sat there and looked at them sideways. I didn’t say anything to them and they didn’t say anything to me. But I was kind of surprised that God would send a saver to me in such raggedy clothes.” [p.25-31]

You know, Zacchaeus might have said the same thing. He knew God would send a savior, but it didn’t happen as he expected, and he probably didn’t expect the raggedy clothes, either. So what do we expect and what does it mean to be saved?

We say, “Jesus is my savior.” “The Lord is my salvation.” We talk about Christianity as a path to salvation but what is salvation? Who is our savior?

The story of Zacchaeus is one of my favorites and always has been, since childhood. What child doesn’t resonate to the prominent business man who climbs a tree with the street urchins. And he is short, which children can identify with. And when I was growing up, “The Singing Nuns” were popular, and they

had a song about Zacchaeus that I loved! Zacchaeus, unpopular with his people, yet singled out by Jesus for special favor. And in the story, we are told that after eating at Zacchaeus’ house, Jesus says, “Today salvation has come to this house.” There’s that word – salvation. And this story illuminates the concept beautifully. The word that is translated as “salvation” implies rescue, deliverance, safety, and health. In other places in the New Testament, it is translated to be cured, to be made well, to be whole, to be healed. So this word, “salvation”, implies all of these things. Jesus is telling Zacchaeus, you have been made well, you have been cured, you are healed, you are whole, you have been delivered. You are healthy and safe.

What has happened to Zacchaeus? The story tells us about a change of attitude, a change of heart, a change of circumstances that is made manifest in a joyful outburst of economic re-orientation.

You see, Zacchaeus is a tax or toll collector. He is a Jew who is working collecting taxes to underwrite the Roman occupation of Israel. Here’s how that works: The Romans would contract with a tax collector to collect taxes, tolls, tariffs and fees. The tax collector would pay the Romans in advance. Then the tax collector and others he would hire, would collect the fees plus as much as they could possibly extract out of the people, keeping the take over and above what went to the Romans. So the system was set up for corruption and abuse. And evidently, Zacchaeus is good at it because he is rich and he is hated. He is seen as a sinner and he is ostracized, excluded, and condemned by the community. Did people spit on the ground when they saw him? Hurl epithets at him? Or just mutter obscenities under their breath? He may have been rich, but I can’t imagine that he was happy when he was hated so. The crowd grumbles that Jesus is going to HIS house. Why not to the house of someone righteous and upstanding? Why bring honor to the house of a corrupt, despicable cheat? Why not reward someone

who is busy trying to be good?

Because, we are told, that Jesus has come, “to seek out and to save the

lost.” [v. 10] And that is just what happens with Zacchaeus. And how do we know that Zacchaeus is saved? He doesn’t have a physical ailment that can be seen to be healed. Perhaps the evidence of his healing, his salvation, is even more impressive. He presents a dramatic monetary commitment as evidence of his transformation.

Evidently it is this economic reorientation that signals a change of heart and values and identity. He goes from being a crook to being a generous, compassionate, just philanthropist. That’s a pretty big change. And there is more: Zacchaeus goes from being a nobody or worse to the people of Israel to being a child of Abraham and Sarah. He goes from being ostracized and vilified to being part of the community. He goes from being greedy to being generous. He goes from taking advantage of his power and position at the expense of others to empowering others. “Today salvation has come to this house.”

Jesus says this in response to Zacchaeus’ drastic reorientation and transformation. This tells us that salvation is about being changed and transformed here and now. Today. In ways that are clearly evident in new behavior. And the drastic transformation is marked by joy, happiness, and delight.

This story provides a marked contrast to another story just a chapter earlier in this gospel, the story of the rich young man. In that story a devout, rich young man comes to Jesus seeking salvation. Jesus tells him he must sell all that he has and give the money to the poor and the man walks away sad. But in the case of Zacchaeus, supposedly a bad man, he embraces Jesus’ invitation and willingly, of his own accord and initiative, joyfully gives away half of what he has and volunteers to compensate anyone he may have cheated four-fold, well more than required restitution by the law.

Zacchaeus’ salvation is evidenced in his reorientation including his joy. He abandons his identity as one who is greedy, dishonest, and an oppressor, and embraces generosity, honesty, justice, and community. His salvation is evidenced in his economic activity and in his joy.

We see similar instances of such salvation, such reorientation, in the lives of other important Christian figures. We are told of St. Francis of Assisi, from a wealthy, noble background, taking off his lavish clothes and stripping naked in the town square to show his renunciation of wealth and the power that goes with it. From then on Francis led a materially simple life and was filled with joy and peace.

In modern times we think of the story of Millard Fuller who founded Habitat for Humanity giving up his considerable wealth, and choosing a materially simple life devoted no longer to making money but committed to making shelter for every person on the earth as a sign of the divine dignity and worth of each person.

So what about our salvation and re-orientation. Are we saved? Is there evidence in our economics, in our service, in our joy?

A recent survey of senior financial services executives in the US and the United Kingdom indicates that 26% have observed or had first hand knowledge of wrongdoing in the workplace. Twenty-four percent thought that financial services professionals need to engage in unethical or illegal activity to be successful. Thirty percent said their compensation packages pressured them to engage in unethical or illegal behavior. [The Christian Century, 8/8/12, p. 8] It sounds like the corrupt tax collecting system of the Romans. A system set up to foster greed and graft. And where is the joy? Relatively speaking, people in the finance industry are comfortable and well off, yet where is the joy when so many feel they have to resort to unethical behavior to stay above water? There is certainly room for transformation, healing, and deliverance of our financial system, our financial expectations, and of the power we give to money and wealth. And the gospel offers the invitation to just this kind of transformation. We can imagine a mortgage banker paying off the mortgages of all who were take advantage of. Now that’s salvation!

In the story of Zacchaeus, we see that salvation can alter our relationship with money, with morals, and with others, as well as with ourselves. Think about being asked, “Are you saved?” and giving your checkbook, your credit card statements, and your tax returns as evidence one way or the other. How many of us could say that salvation has come to our house? Most of us are scraping by with too much, while many others are not scraping by with enough. And given what the world needs from the church, as we mentioned last week, are we really funding the ministry of the church as people who have embraced Jesus’ salvation with its life-changing world view?

If the Christians of this country embraced the life-saving, health giving power of the way of Jesus, the way we see it in the story of Zacchaeus, I think we would have a vastly different society. Can we say, given that the majority religion in this country is still Christianity, that we as a country are embracing the economic view of Jesus and Zacchaeus? Are we helping the poor and exhibiting extravagant generosity? What would it be like if red states and blue states were focused on using public money where there is human need not human greed? What if the focal point of government and politics was truly the common good, not popularity, getting elected, gaining power, building a stock portfolio, or garnishing kickbacks?

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. observed, “A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual doom.” While we have been sitting here this morning, the US has spent $88 million for war and defense. [Statistics from the American Friends Service Committee] Where are the millions for the jobless, those who are hungry and homeless, those without healthcare, the drug babies, and all of the other human needs that surrounds us? In the proposed budget for 2013, 60% is designated for defense with only 6% designated for health and human services and 6% for education. [American Friends Service Committee] Remember those gospel words, “Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” As a country, our heart is evidently in the military. And yet, sadly, we read of the increasing suicide rate among those serving in the military. Where is all that money going if it is not even helping those most in need within the military? As a country, our heart needs to be transformed and re-oriented. We have definitely not accepted the salvation, the healing, and the deliverance of the way of Jesus as a country because salvation puts the focus on need not greed.

When Zacchaeus encounters Jesus, the love, the respect, the invitation, the grace, the hospitality, the friendship that he experiences is transforming. His life will never be the same again. That is salvation. Today, here and now. Jesus rescues us from whatever is holding us back from being filled with generosity and joy. He saves us from being absorbed by greed and self interest. He saves us from being captivated by power. He saves us from taking advantage of others. He saves us from isolation and pride. He saves us from victimhood and self-pity and despair. He saves us from our past and from what others think of us, and even from the negative view we may have of ourselves. Salvation is about overcoming addiction, despair, and all the other things that deprive us and drain us of full and abundant life. With Jesus, transformation is possible. True healing, rescue and deliverance can take hold. Salvation is about major conversion and transformation of every aspect of the living of our lives – so that it is congruent with the life and values and teachings of Jesus and consistent with the ways of God that honor each and every person as a precious child of God. Zacchaeus gives us the assurance that this is possible because we see where his treasure is. He gives it away. It no

longer controls him or defines him.

Jesus frees us by inviting us to be fair and honest in our dealings. By calling us to be generous and invest ourselves in the well-being of others and of the community. He saves us and offers us healing, wholeness, rescue, protection, and safety by freeing us from the tyranny of self-interest and self-absorption. Jesus invites us to be transformed by the gospel to a life of joy and generosity of spirit, time, and, yes, money!

So, are we saved? Has salvation come to our house? We can look at what we are doing with our money. We can look at how we are connected to others. We can look at how we feel about ourselves. We can examine what we are doing for the betterment of the community at large. And we must not forget to assess our joy. If we have truly accepted the salvation offered by the gospel of Jesus Christ, our lives will resonate with JOY! We will be excited, energized, and inspired. Jesus has offered us salvation. Like Zacchaeus and like Kenny in The Watson’s Go to Birmingham, it may not be what we expected. And we may be surprised by a saver in such raggedy clothes, but nonetheless, the rescue, the deliverance, the healing, and the joy abound. Jesus does save! 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.

Jean Johnson: My Faith Story (text)

I was brought up as an MK and a PK – missionary kid and preacher’s kid. And from my earliest days I wanted to go back to the land of my birth, China, and be a missionary. So after graduating from a Methodist college, Ohio Wesleyan, I went on to Yale Divinity School with the blessings of the Board of Missions of the Methodist Church. As some of you know, Yale is a liberal theological school where one is taught to think for one self. Right now they have a student body composed of 37 different faith affiliations. I graduated from Yale with a B.D., now a Master of Divinity. I married a Presbyterian minister and moved to a parish of 4 churches in the Adirondacks in northern NY. My goal was to continue studying 2 hours a day, but that was quickly changed after the births of our two oldest sons. I was the dutiful wife, going to women’s meetings and playing the piano for services when needed, and anything else that would help my husband in his role. It was in 1953 that the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian Church asked if we would be willing to go to Thailand as fraternal workers under the authority of the indigenous church, the Church of Christ in Thailand. I liked the term of fraternal worker much better than missionary. “Missionary” had its own connotations and not all of them good. Our role was to learn the language and the culture and to be in a supportive role to the nationals. We were not there to preach on street corners and exhort people to follow “the way of Jesus Christ.” We were there to quietly live our lives as we thought Jesus would have us, and by example and learning others might follow. Jay was in the youth department and worked under a Thai. I was in home economics education and worked in training teachers and writing curriculum that was suitable for the Thai culture. I did not talk about washing machines but I created a cone shaped plunger from tin with holes in it and a long pole with a cross piece at the top. A woman could stand over her tub or pail and use the plunger to get clothes clean. This was particularly important for women with leprosy so they did not have to scrub their clothes, bruising their hands, and getting them infected. Part of the home economics program was to help train young women with marketable skills. I became very much interested in the handicrafts of Thailand. That is another story.

When we moved to Pinellas Park in 1975 I joined Good Samaritan Church. It was a forward looking church with a social mission. Within 13 years it became a “More Light Church” meaning that it was fully open to gays, lesbians, bi-sexual, and transgender people. And they really meant it. In the meantime the Presbytery kept voting down the motion to accept such people as ministers or elders. How could that be? We all believed in a loving God. Did God discriminate?

It was in 1993 that I was elected Moderator of the Presbytery of Tampa Bay. It was a momentous occasion for me and as they asked me the official questions I could answer them with my whole heart. Yes!

But as the years moved on I began to have big doubts about what the Church was teaching.

The serving of communion was a problem for me. Our Presbytery wanted to approve the elders who went out with pastors to give communion to people at home. Why? One day Kim Wells, pastor at Lakewood UCC Church where I have an affiliate membership said, “Would you take the service and preach on one particular Sunday? Oh, and by the way, it is communion Sunday.” I immediately responded by saying, “I cannot serve communion. I am not ordained.” She said, “You can serve in the UCC Church.” I stood there at the altar offering the bread and wine on that Sunday. We were having a meal and remembering Jesus. Everyone was invited to participate. No one was excluded – even I could stand at the altar and offer the elements. I was worthy to serve.

Then there is the problem of sin. Don’t tell a mother as she looks into the face of her newborn that the child is sinful. No way. I do not follow the Pauline-Augustinian belief in Original Sin. I believe that human beings are basically good. When God created the world – if that is what one believes – it was good. Why would God look around and say the world was good but human beings were full of sin? Well, because it follows that if we are sinful we must receive salvation, so our church fathers said.

For years I struggled with the idea of salvation. We are being saved from what, for what? One Sunday I heard a sermon that spoke about salvation as being wholeness. That definition made a lot of sense to me. Wholeness is a positive term and a freeing term. I was so excited about my new understanding that I came to Sunday dinner and told my tablemates my new thought. One person glowered at me and said in no uncertain terms, “That is not the meaning of salvation at all.” I smiled and said, “There are many ways of viewing it,” and I changed the subject.

If we do not believe in the total depravity of human beings we do not need the cross. For on the cross the Church has said that Jesus atoned for our sins. I do not believe that Jesus had to pay a price for our sins. The cross is no longer a meaningful symbol of my faith. The cross for me is a terrible act against a human being.

Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the light.” There is no other way. I do not accept this. If God is love, which the Bible tells us, then God is an inclusive God. God does not say to God’s people, “only if you are Christian will you be able to be a part of my family.” Don’t forget, Jesus was a Jew. Do you mean to tell me that a Hindu Saddhu who has been committed his whole life to follow a path of devotion, or a Buddhist monk who can sit for hours chanting, striving for nirvana, or my oldest son and daughter-in-law who are involved in a new age religion that believes in God but considers Jesus a prophet, but practice their faith by going to instruction 2 ½ – 3 hours a week, and each of them has gone on a silent retreat for a whole month. Because they do not believe Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, they will not be permitted in the accepted group?

My God is not that small.

Which brings me to another belief. Who is God? What is God to each one of us? For years God was that Being beyond us. We prayed to God to do all kinds of things for us and to us. He was like the great Santa Claus and some thought of him like the Grand Puppeteer – directing everything going on in the world. How easy it is to say “It’s God’s will”. As if we can possibly know the will of the Infinite. How can I say in a few words how I perceive God when volumes are written about God.

To me the importance of Jesus is what he taught us about God. I believe that Jesus had a very special relationship to God. Jesus talked about the immediacy of God’s presence. Is that the divine spark within each of us? For me, God is the inner divine essence in each one of us that makes sense. As Jesus had that divine essence within him, so can we have that divine essence in us. The question is, how do we relate to that inner Spirit and develop that sense of relationship to the infinite, to the God within?

Which brings me to prayer. If I don’t believe in the Great Other out there, to whom do I pray? To the inner self? To the divine essence in each of us – the divine spark? And how do I pray? “Please make my friend well? Please get me out of this scrape? Please save me from the tornado that is almost on top of me?” That’s what we have been doing over the centuries – praying for help of all kinds as though the great magician will act. It removes all responsibility from me. I wait for God to intervene. That does not fit with the idea of God being within.

I am praying to the God within me. I need to center myself and attune myself to the best that is within me. It can be through meditation or other forms of centering. Our bodies, our spirits, our minds are wonderful and awesome. When we tune into them we can gain insights and understandings far beyond our wildest thoughts. Sometimes we fall asleep with a problem on our minds. When we awake the answer seems to be so evident. Our minds are working, miraculously, even when we sleep, or especially when we sleep.

How do we pray for someone else or for a concept like peace or justice? We can send thoughts. We can send energy? Send energy? I can’t do that. Yes you can. Energy is a tremendous source in our world. It is everywhere and extremely powerful.

I was shocked when I read in Dan Brown’s book, The Lost Symbol (page 500) “Within a matter of years, modern man will be forced to accept what is now unthinkable: our minds can generate energy capable of transforming physical matter….We are creators and yet we naively play the role of ‘the created’: Once we realize that we are truly created in the Creator’s image, we will start to understand that we, too, must be creators.”

It sent me to the book The Intention Experiment by Lynne McTaggart. Let me encapsulate the book by what the back says ”using cutting-edge research conducted at Princeton, MIT, Stanford, and many other prestigious universities and laboratories, The Intention Experiment reveals that the universe is connected by a vast quantum energy field. Thought generates its own palpable energy, which you can use to improve your life and, when harnessed together with an interconnected group, to change the world.”(back of book)

Cleve Backster was among the first to propose that plants are affected by human intention. He wanted to know if he could elicit alarm in a plant. Using a polygraph chart and electrodes fastened to the leaves he tried immersing one of the leaves in hot coffee. It did not affect the needle on the chart So he thought he would get a match and burn the leaf with the electrodes attached. At the very moment he had the thought the recording pen swung to the top of the polygraph chart and nearly jumped off. He had not burned the plant. He had only thought about it and the plant responded with extreme alarm. (pg. 37 in McTaggart)

There are experiments going on continually that will help us understand our interconnectedness with all parts of the world. Scientists have discovered that telepathy is carried on between every living thing and its environment (McTaggart pg. 41) Fritz-Albert Popp, another scientist, discovered that living things are exquisitely in tune with their environment through light emissions. (McTaggart 43) For me, this helps to explain how we can affect another person through prayer, thoughts, energy, because we are all interconnected. It also helps to understand events that we call “serendipity” – unexplainable coming together of people and events. How does it happen? Is it because of the intercommunication of all things?

Climate change is the big picture, but it is the individual and his or her affect on the environment surrounding them that can have a telling effect. If we are co-creators with God we need to understand as much about the universe as possible so that we can act in tune with it. When we are out of harmony with the world as we are now, devastating actions can take place to the detriment of the whole human race. We thought the Bible told us that we were lord of all we saw. We are not the rulers of the earth but the care-givers that become an integral part of the whole.

This is but a miniscule presentation on ideas that are absolutely mind-boggling. No one has “the truth”. We are all searching for ways to live in harmony with the universe. The only way we can do that is to keep asking questions about God and searching out the secrets of the world and ways in which we can be a positive force in the life of the universe and in the lives of each other.

May it be so.

Jean S. Johnson Chapel May 30, 2012

Sermon Pentecost 5.27.12 Why Church?

Scripture Lessons: Acts 2: 1-21 and Romans 8: 22-27
Pastor: Rev. Kim Wells

I belong to the Newfoundland Club of Florida. No, it is not a club for a people who have an affinity for the beautiful maritime province of Canada. Rather, it is a club whose primary objective is, “To encourage and promote the purebred Newfoundland dog in the State of Florida.” [Constitution of the Newfoundland Club of Florida, Inc.] As the owner of a newfie, I take an interest in the activities of the club, particularly relating to rescue and placement of these wonderful dogs since this is how we got our beloved Fergus.

Someone who loves gardening may belong to a garden club to learn more about gardening, participate in civic beautification projects, and make friends with people who also share an affinity for gardening. Maybe you are part of a golf club, or a tennis club, because of your interest in those sports. Perhaps you enjoy playing bridge and belong to a bridge club. Maybe you have joined a club promoting to your political views, like the Democratic Club of Pinellas County. If you are concerned about the environment, you may be a member of the local Sierra Club, or a nature group like the Audubon Society. Whatever our interests or passions, we can probably find a group or form a group of like-minded souls especially with the internet to facilitate this kind of bonding.

So here we are at church, a group of people, joined with other groups of people all over the world in a huge religious organization. With its many expressions, the church is one of the largest, most prominent organizations in the world. And today, Pentecost, we celebrate the formation of the church. The Pentecost story tells us of a group of Jesus’ followers who are gathered together after his death for the Jewish festival of Pentecost, a celebration of the first harvest of the season. With people from all over the known world gathered in Jerusalem for this holy festival, Peter takes to preaching and souls are stirred. The people all hear the moving message in their own languages. The spirit speaks to all. No one is left out. All hear the good news of God’s love in Jesus Christ. Our story tells us that the Pentecost festival was not only an agricultural harvest, but a harvest of souls. Over 3,000 people are moved to be part of the Jesus community. And with this glorious beginning, the church is born. And we are still part of that same church today because the spirit is still stirring people, still calling folks, still speaking an invitation that cannot be denied.

But what is the purpose of the church? Is it a club for people with an affinity for Jesus? Is it a group for people who like to sing hymns? Does the church exist to promote the reading and study of scripture? Why does the church exist?

Here we turn to the reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans. We are told that, “the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now. . .” [Romans 8: 22] The world, the cosmos, is longing for new life. All that is, all of life and all of nature, is struggling to be born; to be freed. Creation is in labor, in the birth process, seeking to emerge as a world of justice and peace sustaining the flourishing of all life. In Jesus, this birthing process, this liberation has moved forward, and now the church has been created to fulfill what was begun: To assist in this birth process, to be an agent of the liberation of the cosmos. The church is called into being to give new life to the world.

Here we can draw upon two familiar images. Romans tells us that the whole creation is moaning in birth pangs, that creation is in labor. So this invites us to think of the church as a midwife. We are helping God’s creation to come to fruition in its fullness as a haven of peace and beauty; assisting in birthing this new reality. We are to foster peace, healing, and well-being. We are to care for creation and all life. The church exists to help the world become that beautiful iconic Eden, the garden, life-giving and life-sustaining for all. A place without fear, threat, or hostility. A place of abundance and delight. The church was created to help bring that kind of world to birth. So we can think of the church as a midwife doing all that is necessary to ensure the forthcoming of this beautiful, healthy, robust reality.

The other image suggested in Romans is freedom and liberation. And our Biblical model for that, of course, is Moses. We are told that God hears the cries of the Hebrew people in slavery in Egypt and Moses is deployed to transform the situation. His mission is unpopular and dangerous. With his brother, Aaron, and his sister, Miriam, Moses challenges the ultimate power of the Empire and leads the people to freedom. This calling to new life necessitates a monumental transition in lifestyle, mindset, attitude, and values. Our tradition tells us of the Hebrew people coming into the promised land: a land flowing with milk and honey, a land where everyone lives under his or her own vine and fig tree in peace and unafraid.

The story of Moses helps to illumine the calling of the church to free the cosmos from its servitude and enslavement to the forces of violence, oppression, destruction and death. The cries of creation, of humanity, are heard and in response, the church is sent as an agent of liberation. As was the case with Moses, this calling is unpopular, dangerous, and involves challenging the authority of the principalities and powers of this world. It also involves creating completely new assumptions, values, and ways of organizing human life and culture. The calling to liberation and freedom invites transformation of all of our assumptions that perpetuate the former reality. This is what the church is called to do and be.

This Memorial Day weekend invites us remember the need for the transformation of our culture of violence. The horrors of war still plague us and healing is needed. Columnist Nicholas Kristoff tells us that about 25 American soldiers will take their own lives for every one killed on the battlefield this year. Twenty-five to one. More than 6500 veteran suicides take place every year, more than the total of American soldiers killed in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars. [Quoted in The Christian Century, May 16, 2012, p. 9] The world cries out for a culture of peace and anti-violence. Creation is groaning, desperate for new life and liberation. And the church has been deployed for the job.

So, this morning, we got up and we came to church. Some of us even wore red. Our presence here is a manifestation of divine blessing of the entire cosmos. As part of the church, we are bringing new birth to the world. We are creating life that is sustainable and abundant; life that is just and peaceable. Our being here in the church today is liberating the world from all that holds it back from being the Eden of divine intention. Our presence as the church, is freeing the world from greed, from selfishness, from corruption, from evil, from misery, from violence and from war. We are rescuing creation from bondage to all that oppresses and harms and abuses, not just people, but all of life, and the very cosmos itself. We are here in service to creating a new reality that values the life and well-being of creation above personal gain and self-interest. We are here as agents of the healing of creation. That’s what the church is about. That is what we are celebrating today, on this birthday of the church.

The church was created to bring new life and freedom to the cosmos. We are blessing each and every rock and tree, river and stream, whale and grasshopper. We are blessing each sun and quasar, every planet and black hole. We are blessing every person in the world, of all cultures, languages, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and gender identities. The fact that we are the church, the body of Christ, means that we are making the world a better place for people who are Buddhist, for people who are Muslim, for people who are Hindu, for people of every religious and spiritual path. The church is called to make the entire cosmos Eden for everything and everyone.

Yes, that is why the church exists. That is why we are here. And it is a monumental calling. But take heart from a student at the Inanda Seminary for Girls, in South Africa, a school supported by the United Church of Christ. Naledi Luthuli writes:

Walking down the street of my country
I observed so much
Lovers, friends, children having fun
I could see they were happy

As I turned around the corner
My grin faded
I took a giant step back
I felt traumatized

He was raping a five-year-old child
She screamed for help but no one helped
I turned around
Only to turn to a gun pointed at me
He commanded all I had or see no tomorrow

I gave him all
My cell was gone,
I couldn’t call 911
I felt helpless

Crime is our everyday meal
People have no respect for others
Most are miserable and in pain
What has South Africa become

Self-discipline is gone
Violence is a way to make money
We are no longer safe
We don’t recognize those in pain

We care only about me, myself, and I
No one is trustworthy
Unity and peace is no more
We do the opposite of what we are supposed to do

But my goal is to change South Africa
Slowly over time
And bring life back into my country.

[“Life in My Country,” by Naledi Luthuli, Inanda Seminary (High School), Durban South Africa, quoted in Gifts in Open Hands edited by Maren Tirabassi and Kathy Wonson Eddy, p. 258]

We began this morning talking about clubs. Clubs are good. They bring people together, create community, promote friendship, and get things done. But the church is so much more. The church exists to transform reality as we know it. God’s dream for the church is to bring a new world to birth and to liberate the world from all that holds it back. In the poem, “What to Remember When Waking,” David Whyte writes, “there is a small opening into the new day/which closes the moment you begin your plans.” Whyte goes on, “What you can plan is too small for you to live.” [Quoted in Water, Wind, Earth and Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements, Christine Valters Painter, p. 31]

This is what we as the church need to remember. Our calling is so grand, so expansive, so wild. There is nothing more important in our lives than our calling to be part of the church of Jesus Christ. We are the midwives, we are the liberators of the cosmos. Yes, we. The church.

The Pentecost images of flame and wind encourage us. Run your finger through flame. Nothing there. Yet – what fire can do! Destroy all that impedes divine intentions for the world. Take down greed, selfishness, prejudice, hatred, violence, lust for power. The Holy Spirit of God through the church can destroy it all. Wind, immensely powerful, yet we can’t touch it or control it. Wind fanning the flames of liberation and new life for the world through the church. That is the Spirit, so awesome, at work in the church. We can’t control it. We can only be driven by its power bringing forth a new world. That’s what brings us together here, now, in this space, as this gathering. Happy Birthday, church! 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.