Tag: god

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South  St. Petersburg, FL  33712 on the Gulf of Mexico
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961

lakewooducc.org

lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: May 18, 2025   
Scripture Lesson:  Acts 9: 36-43
Sermon:  Arise!

Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Just to be clear, like Peter in the story we heard from Acts, I have been in a room alone with a dead body.  On numerous occasions, actually.  And with a nearly dead body.  Yes, it is sacred space.  But the last thing I can imagine is praying, “So and so, arise,” and then helping what was the corpse, out of the bed.  Many of you have been with dead bodies, too.  In your work with hospice.  Or in the presence of loved ones.  In a hospital or care home, they give you time with your loved one.  Some of you worked in the funeral home business and were with many dead bodies.  And no one has ever told me that they prayed and the person came back to life.  

But there are many ways to die.  Many deaths, happening all the time.  The death of loss of dignity.  The death of loss of rights.  The death of loss of freedom.  Ask someone in prison.  Or someone made poor.  There is the death of the loss of certain abilities, mental or physical.  There are relationships that essentially die.  Some so dead that it is easier to imagine a resuscitated corpse than reconciliation between two living, breathing people, in this life.  There are the deaths when we struggle to find a job.  And get no reply.  To inquiry after inquiry after inquiry after inquiry.  The death of the ability to imagine a future.  Especially in a place like Gaza.  There is the dying of hope, all around us, every day, as people see their food, and medical care, and transportation, and activities, and income, being taken away.  Away.  Away.  There is the death of a common culture.  And the death of common values.  And the death of commitment to the common good.  And one can make a case that we are witnessing the death of democracy in our country.  One blow after another.  

When you look at the numbers, we could also say that we are witnessing the death of the church.  The numbers of believers, let alone those who actually participate in a faith community, are going down, down, down.  At least in the US.  It is projected that the country with the most Christians in the years to come will be – brace yourself – China.  We heard this from a presenter this past week at the Festival of Homiletics in Atlanta, Georgia.  China.  Oh our dear Chairman Mao must be turning over in his grave.  

So, let’s turn to Tabitha.  The one in the story we heard today.  The name Tabitha, Dorcas, actually means Gazelle.  Maybe she was lean and lanky when she was born.  We are told that she is a leader of a circle of friends, one of exemplary faith and compassion.  Devoted to good works.  Helping others.  The guild of widows presents a pageant of the tunics and clothes she has made for these otherwise poor, abandoned women.  And with two words, “Tabitha, arise,” she is back at it.  No conjuring or pleading or elaboration.  No arm waving or posturing.  No flash and dash.  No wand or cape.  Just two words.  Oh, yes, and the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead.  And Tabitha is restored to her community.  And Peter stays with a tanner, someone considered unclean according to Jewish law because the tanner does unclean work involving blood.  But Peter has been taken over by the love of God revealed to him in Jesus.  Love for everyone, no exclusions, no exceptions – despite what religious authorities may say about it.  

But God’s power is not limited by our lack of imagination.

So let me tell you about another Tabitha.  She was a young girl with a sister.  And her family situation was precarious.  Her parents weren’t able to properly care for and provide for their children.  So, every summer, someone in her church took care of her and her sister for the summer.  This woman was a teacher and so she did not have to work over the summer.  She was not married.  But she knew these girls and their family.  And all agreed that the girls were better off with the teacher.  So, when she was out of school for the summer, she took care of the girls.  One summer.  Another summer.  And then, by the time Tabitha was in kindergarten, this teacher had adopted the two sisters.  They lived with her full time.  She was their parent.  Their mother.  We know about this because Tabitha was a best friend of our son, Sterling, in elementary and middle school.  These two girls were essentially rescued from death.  They were given a new life.  A life with a loving, capable, responsible parent who could see that the girls thrived.  This kindergarten teacher, Miss Peaseley, saved these girls from hardship and misery, maybe worse than death.  Oh, and Miss Peasley’s first name is Grace.  “Oh to grace how great a debtor daily I’m constrained to be,” we sing in the hymn.   Grace essentially saved the lives of those two little girls.  

So, now we see that in different ways death is all around us. And in this resurrection season, we remember that the power of death, it cannot hold a candle to the power of God, the power of Love, the power of grace, for good.  And Peter, oh Peter, who was always trying to set Jesus straight:  Remember, Get thee behind me, Satan.  Peter, who denied Jesus three times.  Peter, feed my lambs.  Tend my sheep.  Feed my sheep.  Oh Peter, he has surrendered.  He allows himself to be a conduit, a vessel for the power of God.  Tabitha, arise.  And she does!

The power is there.  Love reigns supreme.  It is always looking for a crack, an opening, a circumstance, a person, to let it in.  To work.  To overcome even death.  

Huey Newton was a founder of the Black Panther Party in 1966.  The platform of the Panthers was a demand for freedom, land, bread, housing, education, clothes, justice and peace.  Basic needs.  Newton knew the importance of these basic needs because he grew up in circumstances of deprivation.  In the book A More Perfect Party:  The Night Shirley Chisholm and Diahann Carroll Reshaped Policies, author Juanita Tolliver tells us about Huey Newton’s childhood:  “A Louisiana native and the youngest of seven children, Newton’s struggling family moved to Oakland, California, when he was three years old.  The family bounced from apartment to apartment during the next ten years, barely able to keep food on the table.  The local public school system failed Newton; he was functionally illiterate while still being passed through each grade of school.  In his memoir, Revolutionary Suicide, Newton wrote, ‘Not one instructor ever awoke in me a desire to learn more or question or explore the world of literature, science, and history.  All they did was try to rob me of the sense of my own worth, and in the process they nearly killed my urge to inquire.’” [Tolliver, p. 44.]

Yes, death is still all around us.  And we are here because we want to surrender.  We want to bring life.  We want to save those around us.  Save ourselves.  From languishing.  From despair.  From being overcome by death which prevents us from seeing the beauty, the joy, and the delight in this life.  We hear the invitation. Arise.  

We, too, can be bearers of life: 

To a dying democracy, we can say, arise.

To a despairing immigrant, we can say, arise.

To a failing student, we can say, arise.

To a grieving friend, we can say, arise.

To an unemployed neighbor, we can say, arise.

To a drug dependent loved one, we can say, arise.  

To our deeply wounded, despairing planet, we can say, arise.  

To the white supremicist, we can say, arise.

To those addicted to war and violence, we can say, arise.  

To the arrogant and ignorant, we can say, arise.

To those obsessed with self-importance, we can say, arise. 

To those degraded and defeated and demeaned, we can say, arise! 

There are so many deaths around us, and we can embody the power of Divine Love, when we say, arise!

In closing, I invite you to listen to this poem by Lucille Clifton called won’t you celebrate with me:

won’t you celebrate with me

what i have shaped into

a kind of life? i had no model.

born in babylon

both nonwhite and woman

what did i see to be except myself?

i made it up

here on this bridge between

starshine and clay,

my one hand holding tight

my other hand; come celebrate

with me that everyday

something has tried to kill me

and has failed.

Here that once again, 

come celebrate 

with me that everyday

something has tried to kill me 

and has failed.  

Death, where is your power?  Where is your sting?  Friends in Christ, arise!

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.

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South St. Petersburg, FL 33712
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: March 30, 2025
Scripture Lesson: Luke 6:46-49
Sermon: Connections: Grounded
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Why do you call out, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi,’ but don’t put into practice what I teach you?  Those who come to me and hear my words and put them into practice — I’ll show you who they’re like:  they are like the person who, in building a house, dug deeply and laid the foundation on a rock.  When a flood arose, the torrent rushed against the house, but failed to shake it because of its solid foundation.  On the other hand, anyone who has heard my words, but has not put them in to practice, is like the person who built a house on sand, without any foundation. When the torrent rushed upon it, the house immediately collapsed and was completely destroyed.” 

There is a series of novels by Alexander McCall Smith, of Number One Ladies’ Detective Agency fame, that takes place in Edinburgh, Scotland.  It is the 44 Scotland Street series.  In the book The Importance of Being Seven, one of the characters is in the process of buying a new flat; Scot’s speak for apartment.  Matthew has married Elspeth and they are expecting triplets and they decide to buy a bigger apartment on the ground floor instead of their current third floor walk up.  After having his offer accepted on a large apartment in the chic complex, Moray Place, Matthew must have the dwelling assessed by a surveyor.  The person who turns up to do the job is someone Matthew knows and does not like.  Here’s how the inspection goes.  

Matthew and Bruce meet outside the building.  They greet each other.  And then:

“Let’s go in,” said Bruce.  “Let’s go in and see what’s wrong.”  . . . “Let’s ` take a look at this place.”. . .  “Let’s go through here. . . . Hold on, hold on.”

Matthew watched as Bruce looked up at the ceiling.

“Odd space,” said Bruce.  “Usually you find . . .”  

“I think they did some alterations,” said Matthew.  “The lawyer said something about not having had permission.  I thought that it wouldn’t matter too much as we weren’t planning to sell it again in the short term.”

Bruce frowned.  “Hold on. . . Look, you see up there?  There?  Yes.  That’s where a wall used to join the roof.  That’s what they took away.  And it went all the way to where that Chinese thingy is — that cabinet.”

Bruce pointed to the far side of the room where a large Chinese display cabinet reached all the way up from floor to ceiling.

“Yes,” said Matthew.  

Bruce turned to look at him.  He lowered his voice.  “That wall, Matthew, was a supporting wall.  You see — look up there.  You see that bulge in the ceiling?  That’s your proof.”

“A supporting wall?”

“Yes,” said Bruce.  “And you know what a supporting wall does?  It supports.  And you know what happens when you take away a supporting wall?  You have no support.”

“But if that were the case,” said Matthew, “then wouldn’t the ceiling have come down?”  Bruce nodded.  “It should have.  But you see that cabinet over there?  That, I think is holding up the ceiling.  Move that and the whole thing comes down.”  

Matthew stared at Bruce in horror.

“And here’s something else,” said Bruce.  “If the ceiling comes down, then that could bring down the ceiling above it, and so on — all the way to the top flat and the roof.  And if that happened, then the flats next door could lose vital support and come down as well.  So the whole of Moray Place could fall over like a house of cards.”  

“Oh,” said Matthew.

“So the fact of the matter,” Bruce said, relishing his newly found Jeremiah role, “the fact of the matter is that all of Moray Place is probably being supported by one Chinese cabinet.  Quite a thought, that!”

“So what do we do?”  asked Matthew.

Bruce smiled.  ”Don’t move the Chinese cabinet.”  

[Alexander McCall Smith, The Importance of Being Seven, large print, pp. 363, 365-367.]

Ah, an unstable situation caused by the bad judgment of people choosing expedience and expense over wisdom.   We know about that.  And they did in Jesus’ day as well.

Jesus saw this again and again.  The teaching we heard this morning comes at the end of the Sermon on the Plain in Luke.  Jesus has offered his most important teachings.  Laid them out.  Given a direct account of the Word and ways of God.  Shared with people the basics for a good life.  For a community that is intended to thrive and flourish.  And his followers are still chasing after him, pleading, Rabbi, Rabbi!  Like, what do we do?  Like, we’re having trouble.  Like, we need your help.  Like, the sky is falling.  

We know this reality.  We, too, have been given all we need to live lives of purpose, meaning, peace, and compassion.  And yet, look at the state of things in our country and our world.  

If there is anyone that can relate to the image used in the gospel of a house built on the sand versus a house built on the rock, it is we the people of Florida.  We live in a state that is essentially a sandbar atop porous limestone.  Not a very firm foundation for building.  In Luke, there is reference to the threat of flood waters.  We KNOW about that.  In Matthew, the same image includes mention of not only flooding but wind and rain as well.  Oh, yes.  This teaching was meant for Floridians.  We know the risks of unstable building practices.  What about Surfside in Miami?  And we know the perilous power of wind, and rain, and floods.  We know how things can be washed away in a storm.  Our homes.  Our belongings.  Our dreams?  

And we know first hand how rights can be washed away in a political storm.  And how healthcare can be swept away.  And how sound educational practices and books can be whisked away in a bluster of fear.  

We see in our state, our country, and the world, the sweeping power of greed for money.  We see the damage caused by greed for power.  We see the devastation wrought by lies.  Our happiness ranking is falling in the world.  We who are promised life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in our Constitution.  We see division and discord each day.  We know that things are not right.  And lives are at stake.

And there are still people, in this very state, after all of the weather cataclysms recently and the billions of dollars in damages, who say, it was a one hundred year anomaly.  That will never happen again.  Ah, no.  It’s actually human induced climate change.  And if you think pursuing sustainability is expensive and inconvenient, look at the bills for the storms, floods, and fires.  There is NO comparison.  There is only intractability.  And blindness.  And greed.  We are not standing on solid ground.  We are not building a future on solid ground.  Our cities and communities along the coast of Florida are like sandcastles on the beach.   And we just keep building more.  If only it were as easy as – Don’t move the Chinese cabinet.  It’s all falling down.  Around us.  Literally.  Add to climate destruction the devastation to society and culture.  

 We can well image those followers of Jesus, pleading, Rabbi, Rabbi.  Save us!  Help us!  It’s all going down.  And what does he say?  I have saved you.  I have helped you.  I have given you all the teachings you need to thrive.  The Sermon on the Plain, like the Sermon on the Mount, basically says it all.  Who is your model?  Jesus.  Follow him.  Emulate him.  Tend to your own faults before worrying about the faults of others.  Have a good heart.  A good heart bears good fruit.  Bless the poor.  Warn the rich.  Love your enemies.  Love generously.  Be nonjudgmental with others.  There is no place for smug superiority.  Dig deeply.  Lay the foundation of your life in the word of God, the teachings of Love.  

You see, it has been all laid out for us.  We have been told all that we need to know to build our lives on a stable foundation.  A foundation that nothing can shake.  All it takes is hearing Jesus’ words and PUTTING THEM INTO PRACTICE. 

The putting them into practice part must be the challenge because there are numerous places in the writings of the New Testament where there is an emphasis on doing not just hearing Jesus’ teachings.  So, already, the people who actually heard the first century Jesus were struggling with this.  Jesus is aware of the inherent nature of humanity, and still we are called into relationship with God.  Maybe because of our inherent nature, Jesus makes the plea to us to listen to and follow the word of God.  

Here is a story of someone who did choose to follow the word of God; the teachings of Jesus:

During World War II a German widow hid Jewish refugees in her home.  As her friends discovered the situation, they became extremely alarmed.

“You are risking your own well-being,” they told her. 

“I know that,” she said.

“Then why,” they demanded, “do you persist in this foolishness?”

Her answer was stark and to the point:  “I am doing it,” she said, “because the time is now and I am here.”

[This story is in 25 Windows into the Soul:  Praying with the Psalms, from the writings of Joan Chittister, p. 338.]

It is not always easy to follow Jesus.  It can require boldness and courage.  Yes, times are challenging for us, and we know the teachings of Jesus.  So, we can take encouragement from the wisdom of the 16th century saint, Ignatius of Loyola, who said, “In times of desolation you should never make a change, but stand firm in the resolutions and decisions that guided you the day before the desolation.”  Our deep foundation, laid upon the rock of the word of God spoken through Jesus will see us through.  We are facing so many challenges and desolations today.  Yes, we have been given all that we need to be agents of good, of love, of compassion, of justice.  We have been given all that we need to create a society with engaging education, a fair and just economy, a culture of compassion, with thriving arts and recreation, and readily available healthcare for all.  And, we have been given all that we need to tend to the health of our dear mother, Earth.  

Our spiritual teachings tell us to have reverence for all life.  We are told of the earth as a precious gift given to us that we must cherish and care for so that it can continue to sustain us.  We have been given the knowledge to stop global warming with its increasing storms, rains, winds, and fires.  We know what we need to know.  It has all been given to us.  Including the wisdom to see what the consequences are of ignoring the teachings we have been given.  The basis of the word of God is reverence for God, creation, and each other.  All sacred.  Let us not be afraid to dig deep.  To build on the rock of the gospel of Jesus.  To live grounded in the ways 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.

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South  St. Petersburg, FL  33712
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: March 16, 2025   
Scripture Lesson: Luke 6:39-42
Sermon:  Connections:  Following Our Leader
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Jeff and I like to walk the Camino de Santiago in Spain.  And people wonder how we know where we are going.  Walking through unfamiliar territory for hundreds of miles. Well, we follow the signs.  Scallop shells posted everywhere. But when the way seems ambiguous for some reason, which does happen, I wait to see where someone else is going.  Then I follow.  One time my brother, Mark, and husband, Jeff, left ahead of me in the morning.  When I left, I went down the correct road.  Then I knew I needed to make a right turn.  I came to the place I thought I should turn.  But I wasn’t sure.  Some people were coming toward me on the main road.  I waited to see if they would turn.  Then I looked closer.  It was Jeff and Mark. Why were they coming from the opposite direction?  And they were closely followed by two Canadian women we had met the day before.  Well, apparently Jeff and Mark missed the turn, where I was waiting to see if others turned.  They walked on.  When they met up with the Canadians, they got things straightened out.  When the Canadian women saw me, they said, “We fetched them for you.”  And I said, “Many thanks!”

We really need to be aware of where we are going and who we are following and where that will lead.  And this extends in our world of connection from people in the flesh to social media.  Who are you following on your social media accounts?  Are the people or organizations you are following  leading you to somewhere you want to go?  Is the information being disseminated accurate?  Helpful?  What kind of influence are you letting those you follow have over you?  Yes, this can be media, but it can also be mentors, friends, historical figures.  Our son had an obsession with Stalin for several years.  Stalin?  Is that someone you want to follow?  A tyrant responsible for the deaths of thousands or was it millions?  

This may seem benign but people can be highly influenced and get into the clutches of those who do not have the best intentions.  This could be some kind of financial scam.  Investing in something that promises great dividends but turns out to be only taking your money and not giving anything in return. This could be involvement with an organization that seems to be doing good but is really involved in something like human trafficking.  This could involve a relationship online that turns into an in person relationship that is abusive or worse.  

Maybe now more than ever, we need to be careful about who we are following and what influence we are giving them in our lives. 

Many years ago someone from the church got involved in a group on line that was about male identity and family responsibility.   It seemed like it was about building strong families.  But there was a subversive agenda.  It turned out to be about male superiority and domination of women.  The man involved started getting dictatorial toward his wife and trying to limit her freedom.  The marriage ended in divorce.  Because of who the husband started following online.  

It is very important to be aware of who we are following.  Who we are giving power to in our lives.  Are we letting ourselves be led by someone who is blind?  OR worse, someone devious and deceptive?  Someone with ill intentions who is devoted to doing harm but making it look like good?

Who are we following?  What are we connected to?  This is a question that Jesus addressed.  Make sure you choose a teacher worthy of your devotion.  A teacher in sync with the purposes of God.  A teacher devoted to love.  Other-centered love.  Not someone who is self aggrandizing or sycophantic.  A self promoter.  A user.  

And let’s be honest, people in the religion business are infamous for abusing power and trust.  It was no different in Jesus’ day.  Religion is a prime domain for people getting other people to do what they want.  There are so many aspects of religion that lend themselves to manipulation – the threat of hell, the promise of heaven, retribution, connection to otherworldly power, the promise of miracles or the threat of cataclysms.  Oh, yes, religion is rife with tools that can be used for manipulation.

Here’s one of my litmus tests when it comes to those who profess to being leaders in the Christian church.  Do they seem rich?  Are they driving a fancy car?  Wearing expensive clothes?  Eating at pricey restaurants?  Living in a big house? That kind of thing.  If they are, I am suspect.  Because Jesus was poor.  If you are following Jesus, if he is your teacher, you are not headed to an opulent lifestyle.  And where is all that money coming from?  Parishioners?  If so, it should be used to help people in need.  

Jesus warns us to pay attention to who we are following, especially when it comes to religion.  He had plenty to say about the religious leaders of his day.  In fact, the only scathing remarks that are associated with Jesus are about religious authorities  because they are supposed to be working to implement the realm of God not using their position for personal gain.  

So, who are we following?  Who are we connected to?  Who do we give authority in our lives?  Celebrities?  Sports figures?  Politicians?  While I am likely to look at the money side of things to assess integrity and purpose, there are other gauges to pay attention to.  We heard of another integrity factor in the lesson read today:  judgement.  Those who follow Jesus are to be nonjudgmental.  Worry about the log in your own eye not the speck in someone else’s. 

Now, ask a random person on the street and the general impression is that Christians are known for being judgmental.  And this is not just fallout from the Salem witch trials.  This comes from current behavior.  Christians are known for holding up a high moral standard and condemning those who do not live up to that.  Even when they themselves do not live up to that standard.  Oh, but they are forgiven because they have been washed in the blood of Jesus.

But what do we hear from Jesus about judgment?  The teaching is clear.  Do not judge.  Do not judge people.  Do not condemn people.  Judge the evil or morality of behavior, but do not judge the person.  Do not look for fault in another.  Instead, look for the fault in yourself and resolve that.  Worry about yourself and your behavior.  Look at how you are following your teacher and living up to the call of the gospel.  Don’t impose judgment on others.

Again and again in the gospels, we see Jesus extending the unconditional, universal love of God.  He doesn’t condemn people.  Rail at them.  Decry and abuse them verbally for their transgressions.  Even those responsible for his crucifixion.  Even those who betray and desert him.  He forgives.  He heals.  He comforts.  He restores.  He has compassion.  He invites people to follow him.  Not to be punished.  But to follow him on the path of life – full, abundant, free.  Not controlled and manipulated by others.  But a path of Love not condemnation.

Yes, we must assess our own actions.  And judge their conformity with the gospel of Love.  We must judge ourselves by a high standard of morality.  We are to judge our own behavior.   But we are to renounce judging, condemnation, resentment, and especially violence and hostility toward others, whoever they are, whatever they have done. This is what our teacher, Jesus, shows us.  Compassion and understanding toward others.  As God has for us.  This is what Jesus models to those who are following him. 

So often in the world around us we see judgment.  Criticism.  And condemnation.  Scathing, in the political realm, at least.  It is horrible.  Who are they following?  Certainly not Jesus.  It doesn’t have to be this way.  We actually can treat each other with dignity and respect.  We can conduct ourselves in ways that honor our deeply held commitments without condemning those who may not agree with us.  

I recently heard a story on the radio last week about a woman in the Boston area who was concerned about global warming.  She decided that she wanted to heat her house with geothermal energy instead of the commonly available natural gas to help reduce her energy footprint.  When she looked into the particulars she found out that geothermal heating for her house would cost upwards of $40,000 which was prohibitive for her.   She ended up working with a a group of women, Mothers Out Front, who are concerned about climate change.  They studied the geothermal issue and decided that they wanted to get the local natural gas company to offer geothermal energy to homes in the Framingham, Massachusetts area. 

The Mothers Out Front group arranged a meeting with the gas company. The gas company had no idea what to expect.  They not only had lawyers at the meeting but bodyguards as well. They were ready to be attacked – verbally and literally.

The Christian Science Monitor tells us of the beginning of the meeting:

But as the meeting started, Zeyneb Magavi and each of the other mothers calmly explained their passion to Mr. Akley, the president of gas operations at Eversource Energy: “I have three kids,” Ms. Magavi said.   “I’m worried about climate change.   And I’m worried about their future.”   When the women finished, there was a pause.  Mr. Akley broke the silence.  “I have three kids, too. I’m worried about climate change. And I am also worried about their future.”

“That was our little sliver of common ground that we started to grow,” recalls Ms. Magavi. 

[https://www.csmonitor.com/Environment/2024/0828/geothermal-energy-renewable-power-utilities]

The gas company has since installed an experimental geothermal service in Framingham and it is being explored for use in other areas as well.

Notice, the mothers did not attack the gas company.  They did not condemn the executives.  They did not judge and vilify them for continuing to use natural gas despite the high methane content involved and the severe contribution that makes to global warming.  Instead, they shared their concerns for their children and the future.  And they found common ground.

Jesus is our teacher.  And instead of condemning other people, he teaches us to LOVE others.  To treat people with dignity and respect.  To find our connection and our common ground instead of creating division and rancor through judgment that is often hypocritical.  

May we open our eyes, our own eyes, and may we see who we are really following.  And the path of abundant life that Jesus offers.  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.

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South  St. Petersburg, FL  33712 on the Gulf of Mexico
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: February 23, 2025  
Scripture Lesson:  Luke 6:27-36
Sermon:  Faith Is Absurd
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Love your enemies.
Do good to those who hate you. 
Bless those who curse you.
Pray for those who abuse you.
Turn the other cheek.
If someone takes your coat give them your shirt also.
Give to everyone who begs from you.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting NOTHING in return. 

Do not judge or condemn.  Forgive.     [See Luke 6: 27-36]

Do we hear this?  This is a radical shift from the common wisdom of the society and culture around us – it was in Jesus’ day and it may be even more so today.  This is a call to ending complicity with a culture of violence and injustice and intolerance, economic and social.  The gospel is a call to engaging in a completely different kind of living in which you let go of resentments and grudges and you don’t seek revenge.  Where you seek to understand and help those who harm you.  You, as an individual.  You, as a community.  You, as a country and a people.  The form of the word ‘you’ in the verses we heard today is plural.  So, this admonition is not just for the individual but for the community, the society.  This is a call to ending self-obsession and narcissism and greed.  It is a call to other-centered living.  This is a call to wild compassion, generosity, and love expressed in community.

These are core teachings of Jesus.  Perhaps among the best known. The foundation of the gospel. The basis for morality in the reality of God.  Yet, let’s be honest.  These teachings are, well, absurd. 

Other spiritual paths have the moral dictate ‘do no harm.’   Well, that in and of itself is a challenge.  But Jesus does not stop at the already almost inconceivable declamation, do no harm.  No.  Jesus goes even further.  Do good.  And do good to those who hate and revile you.  And let’s remember that in the first century there were plenty of people, Roman and Jewish alike, who reviled the followers of Jesus; who were persecuting the followers of Jesus; who were doing physical, social, and economic harm to the followers of Jesus.  So these words that we heard from Luke are not ‘theoretical.’  They are given to people who were actually very much experiencing harm at the hands of those around them for their devotion to Jesus. 

And Jesus does not just say, do no harm.  Don’t hit back.  No.  He says, turn the other cheek.  Let them hit you again, if they will.  Help these people.  Give to them.  More than they ask for.  Forgive them.  Don’t judge them.  Don’t become consumed with hatred or fear of those who hate you.  And for heaven’s sake, don’t use violence, force, to solve your problems or take revenge.

Jesus teaches us to do not just the easy good.  Like a buck to the guy panhandling at the end of the exit ramp.  But give to those who have wronged us.  And not just giving away something ‘extra.’  Remember John the Baptizer saying, if you have two coats, give one away.  Jesus says, if someone takes your coat, give them your shirt, too.  Give away your own necessities.  In our time, that may not be clothes.  It may not even be money.  It may be time.  Take the time to help others despite all you think you have to do and should be doing.  If someone asks for an hour, give them a day.  

With Jesus, it is not just about do no harm, difficult as that is.  But it is do the good.  Do more.  Go further. 

Why?  Why would Jesus ask this of his followers?  We are told in the verses we heard this morning.  Because you are ‘children of the most High:  For God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.  Be merciful, just as God is merciful.”  There it is.   This is the nature of God.  To do good for all.  No matter what we have done.  This is what God is like – giving us more than we could ask for or imagine.  Providing for us.  Loving us unconditionally.  Showing us infinite mercy.  So this is to be the character of our nature as well because we are created in the Divine image. 

The teachings of Jesus completely shatter other images of God as a God that is violent, hateful, mean, angry, punishing, and war-like.  These are images of God that are used to justify human behavior mirroring these traits.  Jesus presents us with a template for a God that is merciful, kind, generous, forgiving, non violent, and compassionate.

 And we are created in the image of that God.  So, to be fully ourselves, to be true to ourselves, to experience our highest freedom without constraint, we are to emulate the character of God.  Jesus is calling us to our highest good.  Our deepest joy. 

There was a very beautiful story in the New York Times last week about an evangelical pastor whose brother and then son come out as gay.  This upends the pastor’s faith, life, job.  Everything that has made him who he is.  In 2013 before he knows that his son is gay, he writes in his journal,  “I think down deep, I hate homosexuality.  I hate it more than just about anything else in the world.  I hate it because it seems sometimes to be stronger than you, God.  Yes, that’s what I said.  It seems that way.  I am sure there is plenty of good in the gay community, but my experience tells me otherwise — I see the isolation, the craving, the insecurity.  Father, you have to spare Timothy [his son] from that.  You have to.”  [This quote and the ones to come are from “How My Dad Reconciled His God and His Gay Son,” by Timothy White, The New York Times, 2/16/25.]

The son, Timothy comes out 2 years later in 2015. The pastor starts to explore his theology and faith around inclusion.  He considers the authority of the Bible and the church as he knows it.  He questions the foundation he has built his faith and his life on.  And as his foundation begins to crumble, he notes in his journal, “Life and morality and God and religion were a lot clearer then than it is now.  And yet the strange thing is that I’ve never felt closer to Jesus — more intimate, more interested, more willing to sacrifice for him, and more free to be a Christian.” 

There is it.  The freedom.  Jesus wants us to be free to fully express the good that is within us with no restrictions or constraints. 

The pastor writes a letter to the governing body of his denomination telling about what his church is going through and their exploration of welcoming and including LGBTQ people into the church.  He says:  “Let me put it very plainly; I don’t think City Church Long Beach will be here in a year if we don’t live into the mission God has called us to.  If we turn away the people he is bringing to us, our Sunday service will shrink and die.  On top of that, if we can’t live into our convictions, our very souls will shrink and die.  We will close our doors and shut down our hearts.” 

This is what Jesus is trying to stop when he teaches:  Love your enemy.  Do good to those who hate you.  Give and give and forgive.  Asking nothing in return.  Do not condemn.  Do not judge.  It seems too much.  Scary.  Beyond our capacity.

Certainly Timothy’s father found the journey to acceptance of his son and a transformation of his theology and world view threatening and scary.  And yet as things resolve, he comments in his journal, “I entered this journey unwillingly, but as it draws to a close for me I find myself flooded with gratitude.  I’m grateful to God loving me along the way, changing me along the way.  And although it’s uncomfortable, I am grateful for the call to become radically welcoming — not just of those with whom I agree but welcoming of those with whom I disagree.” 

Let’s be honest, our country, our communities, our families are fraught with disagreement at this time.  There is severe polarization.  Last night we went to another high brow event with our friends that administer an endowment for the arts.  We were part of a table of eight at a gala.  Our friends let us know, ahead of time, that one couple at the table did not share our political views.  We were being warned so that we could behave accordingly.  I told our friends, don’t worry, we’re ok with that.  We’re Christians after all.  We’re the ones who are supposed to be understanding and kind in our dealings with others, whoever those others may be. 

I saw this same generosity of spirit from a neighbor recently.  Her political leanings are different than mine.  I was talking with another neighbor who shares my views.  The other neighbor came up to join in the conversation.  We told her we were discussing politics.  She responded, “Then I’ll listen.”  She is a devoted church goer.  Again, she is being very Christian about the whole thing.  And we need more of that.

True freedom.  To be good.  To be nonjudgmental.  To be loving and kind.  Because that is who we fundamentally are as creatures created in the image of God.  We are free to be generous and loving.  To everyone.  Not just the people like us.  This is true freedom.

It is not the freedom to stand your ground and kill someone.  It is not the freedom to own a gun.  Or to lower the taxes on guns so that more people can buy them.  That is not freedom.  Christian freedom is not the freedom to kill a killer, even if it is legal. 


Jesus challenges his followers, the church, to embody the true ways and spirit of Divine Love.  To seek peace.  And reconciliation.  To give more than we are being asked for especially to those who are regarded as less than.  We are to conduct ourselves with grace and generosity and good will toward all. 

This description of the nature of the way of Jesus is so far from much of what we see in the church in this country.  So much of Christianity today is self-centered, not other-centered.  It is focussed on receiving blessings not giving blessings to others.  It promotes amassing wealth and comfort instead of meeting the needs of others.  Much of the church in America today is about giving a God-veneer to consumer capitalism, sexism, racism, and ethnocentrism.  Jesus invites us to be free of all of that.  To live unencumbered by hatred or malice or greed.

And, the church also readily accepts and promotes violence – encouraging armed conflict, military service, promoting gun ownership, even hiring armed guards as security for church services, supporting the death penalty.  This is all completely contrary to the way of Jesus.  We are to love all of our enemies, all those who consider us enemy, all those who would do us harm.  Love them not just in our hearts, but by helping them, listening to their stories, honoring their experience and their humanity.  Certainly we are not to mistreat or inflict violence upon another.  I love the story about the church in California where a shooter appeared on Sunday morning and some church members tackled him and tied him up with an extension cord.  They restrained him.  For safety reasons.  Someone did not whip out a gun and shoot him. 

The way of Jesus puts us completely out of step with the society around us.  Jesus tells his listeners that if they follow him they will be hated, reviled, excluded and defamed.  This goes for Christians today.  If we were really taking the Sermon on the Plain seriously, there’d be fallout.

Oh, we can’t invite her to the Met Gala.  She’s a Christian.  She won’t wear an obscenely expensive designer outfit.  Oh, he’s a Christian.  We can’t accept him in the police academy because he won’t fire a gun at a criminal and that might put the lives of colleagues in danger.  Oh, she’s Christian, we can’t have her as a diplomat because she will try to help all the countries even those that hate us instead of just helping our allies.  We can’t hire him to work on this political campaign because he’s a Christian.  He won’t design ads that smear the other candidate. 

I mean there are all kinds of ramifications that go with actually following the teachings of Jesus that we heard today.  You could lose your job, for instance, even if you are a pastor. 

Some 6 years after his decrying of homosexuality, Bill White, the pastor whose son was gay, entered this in his journal: “As Katy [his wife] prayed last night she thanked you for the remarkable gift of Timothy coming out — and how we thought it was the end, but it was only the beginning of a full, true, vibrant life in Christ.  Father, thank you that you created our son gay.  Forgive me for how poorly I received that gift.”  Maybe next Pastor Bill White will be led to examine patriarchy and male imagery for God!

The teachings of Jesus were absurd in the first century.  And they may be seen as even more absurd now.  But they are life-giving.  And when we water them down, we negate our reason for being as a church.  And we deny the gift we are being given and that the church has to give the world.

We close with a story from a monk of the 13th century and how he navigated the waters of the extreme teachings of Jesus and the watered down version endorsed by his monastery.  Apparently, Brother Juniper, a companion of Francis of Assisi, was notorious for constantly giving his possessions away, including his clothes.  Remember the verse, if someone asks for your coat, give them your shirt as well?  Well, Brother Juniper took Jesus at his word.  But his superior in the monastery was not happy about all the clothes and other things that were being given away.  At one point Brother Juniper was ordered by his superior not to give away his coat to beggars anymore.  Shortly after that order, he met someone in need who asked for some clothing.  Apparently, Brother Juniper is remembered for responding:  “My superior has told me under obedience not to give my clothing to anyone.  But if you pull it off my back, I certainly will not prevent you.”  Francis is said to have joked that he wished for a forest of Junipers!  [This story is in Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Enuma Okoro, p. 278.]

May we not be afraid or selfish when it comes to the power of love within us.  May we be open to being transformed.  May we transform the world.  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.

LAKEWOOD UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST
2601 54th Avenue South  St. Petersburg, FL  33712 on the Gulf of Mexico
On land originally inhabited by the Tocabaga
727-867-7961
lakewooducc.org
lakewooducc@gmail.com

Date: February 23, 2025  
Scripture Lesson:  Luke 6:27-36
Sermon:  Faith Is Absurd
Pastor: Rev. Kim P. Wells

Love your enemies.
Do good to those who hate you. 
Bless those who curse you.
Pray for those who abuse you.
Turn the other cheek.
If someone takes your coat give them your shirt also.
Give to everyone who begs from you.
Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting NOTHING in return. 

Do not judge or condemn.  Forgive.     [See Luke 6: 27-36]

Do we hear this?  This is a radical shift from the common wisdom of the society and culture around us – it was in Jesus’ day and it may be even more so today.  This is a call to ending complicity with a culture of violence and injustice and intolerance, economic and social.  The gospel is a call to engaging in a completely different kind of living in which you let go of resentments and grudges and you don’t seek revenge.  Where you seek to understand and help those who harm you.  You, as an individual.  You, as a community.  You, as a country and a people.  The form of the word ‘you’ in the verses we heard today is plural.  So, this admonition is not just for the individual but for the community, the society.  This is a call to ending self-obsession and narcissism and greed.  It is a call to other-centered living.  This is a call to wild compassion, generosity, and love expressed in community.

These are core teachings of Jesus.  Perhaps among the best known. The foundation of the gospel. The basis for morality in the reality of God.  Yet, let’s be honest.  These teachings are, well, absurd. 

Other spiritual paths have the moral dictate ‘do no harm.’   Well, that in and of itself is a challenge.  But Jesus does not stop at the already almost inconceivable declamation, do no harm.  No.  Jesus goes even further.  Do good.  And do good to those who hate and revile you.  And let’s remember that in the first century there were plenty of people, Roman and Jewish alike, who reviled the followers of Jesus; who were persecuting the followers of Jesus; who were doing physical, social, and economic harm to the followers of Jesus.  So these words that we heard from Luke are not ‘theoretical.’  They are given to people who were actually very much experiencing harm at the hands of those around them for their devotion to Jesus. 

And Jesus does not just say, do no harm.  Don’t hit back.  No.  He says, turn the other cheek.  Let them hit you again, if they will.  Help these people.  Give to them.  More than they ask for.  Forgive them.  Don’t judge them.  Don’t become consumed with hatred or fear of those who hate you.  And for heaven’s sake, don’t use violence, force, to solve your problems or take revenge.

Jesus teaches us to do not just the easy good.  Like a buck to the guy panhandling at the end of the exit ramp.  But give to those who have wronged us.  And not just giving away something ‘extra.’  Remember John the Baptizer saying, if you have two coats, give one away.  Jesus says, if someone takes your coat, give them your shirt, too.  Give away your own necessities.  In our time, that may not be clothes.  It may not even be money.  It may be time.  Take the time to help others despite all you think you have to do and should be doing.  If someone asks for an hour, give them a day.  

With Jesus, it is not just about do no harm, difficult as that is.  But it is do the good.  Do more.  Go further. 

Why?  Why would Jesus ask this of his followers?  We are told in the verses we heard this morning.  Because you are ‘children of the most High:  For God is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.  Be merciful, just as God is merciful.”  There it is.   This is the nature of God.  To do good for all.  No matter what we have done.  This is what God is like – giving us more than we could ask for or imagine.  Providing for us.  Loving us unconditionally.  Showing us infinite mercy.  So this is to be the character of our nature as well because we are created in the Divine image. 

The teachings of Jesus completely shatter other images of God as a God that is violent, hateful, mean, angry, punishing, and war-like.  These are images of God that are used to justify human behavior mirroring these traits.  Jesus presents us with a template for a God that is merciful, kind, generous, forgiving, non violent, and compassionate.

 And we are created in the image of that God.  So, to be fully ourselves, to be true to ourselves, to experience our highest freedom without constraint, we are to emulate the character of God.  Jesus is calling us to our highest good.  Our deepest joy. 

There was a very beautiful story in the New York Times last week about an evangelical pastor whose brother and then son come out as gay.  This upends the pastor’s faith, life, job.  Everything that has made him who he is.  In 2013 before he knows that his son is gay, he writes in his journal,  “I think down deep, I hate homosexuality.  I hate it more than just about anything else in the world.  I hate it because it seems sometimes to be stronger than you, God.  Yes, that’s what I said.  It seems that way.  I am sure there is plenty of good in the gay community, but my experience tells me otherwise — I see the isolation, the craving, the insecurity.  Father, you have to spare Timothy [his son] from that.  You have to.”  [This quote and the ones to come are from “How My Dad Reconciled His God and His Gay Son,” by Timothy White, The New York Times, 2/16/25.]

The son, Timothy comes out 2 years later in 2015. The pastor starts to explore his theology and faith around inclusion.  He considers the authority of the Bible and the church as he knows it.  He questions the foundation he has built his faith and his life on.  And as his foundation begins to crumble, he notes in his journal, “Life and morality and God and religion were a lot clearer then than it is now.  And yet the strange thing is that I’ve never felt closer to Jesus — more intimate, more interested, more willing to sacrifice for him, and more free to be a Christian.” 

There is it.  The freedom.  Jesus wants us to be free to fully express the good that is within us with no restrictions or constraints. 

The pastor writes a letter to the governing body of his denomination telling about what his church is going through and their exploration of welcoming and including LGBTQ people into the church.  He says:  “Let me put it very plainly; I don’t think City Church Long Beach will be here in a year if we don’t live into the mission God has called us to.  If we turn away the people he is bringing to us, our Sunday service will shrink and die.  On top of that, if we can’t live into our convictions, our very souls will shrink and die.  We will close our doors and shut down our hearts.” 

This is what Jesus is trying to stop when he teaches:  Love your enemy.  Do good to those who hate you.  Give and give and forgive.  Asking nothing in return.  Do not condemn.  Do not judge.  It seems too much.  Scary.  Beyond our capacity.

Certainly Timothy’s father found the journey to acceptance of his son and a transformation of his theology and world view threatening and scary.  And yet as things resolve, he comments in his journal, “I entered this journey unwillingly, but as it draws to a close for me I find myself flooded with gratitude.  I’m grateful to God loving me along the way, changing me along the way.  And although it’s uncomfortable, I am grateful for the call to become radically welcoming — not just of those with whom I agree but welcoming of those with whom I disagree.” 

Let’s be honest, our country, our communities, our families are fraught with disagreement at this time.  There is severe polarization.  Last night we went to another high brow event with our friends that administer an endowment for the arts.  We were part of a table of eight at a gala.  Our friends let us know, ahead of time, that one couple at the table did not share our political views.  We were being warned so that we could behave accordingly.  I told our friends, don’t worry, we’re ok with that.  We’re Christians after all.  We’re the ones who are supposed to be understanding and kind in our dealings with others, whoever those others may be. 

I saw this same generosity of spirit from a neighbor recently.  Her political leanings are different than mine.  I was talking with another neighbor who shares my views.  The other neighbor came up to join in the conversation.  We told her we were discussing politics.  She responded, “Then I’ll listen.”  She is a devoted church goer.  Again, she is being very Christian about the whole thing.  And we need more of that.

True freedom.  To be good.  To be nonjudgmental.  To be loving and kind.  Because that is who we fundamentally are as creatures created in the image of God.  We are free to be generous and loving.  To everyone.  Not just the people like us.  This is true freedom.

It is not the freedom to stand your ground and kill someone.  It is not the freedom to own a gun.  Or to lower the taxes on guns so that more people can buy them.  That is not freedom.  Christian freedom is not the freedom to kill a killer, even if it is legal. 


Jesus challenges his followers, the church, to embody the true ways and spirit of Divine Love.  To seek peace.  And reconciliation.  To give more than we are being asked for especially to those who are regarded as less than.  We are to conduct ourselves with grace and generosity and good will toward all. 

This description of the nature of the way of Jesus is so far from much of what we see in the church in this country.  So much of Christianity today is self-centered, not other-centered.  It is focussed on receiving blessings not giving blessings to others.  It promotes amassing wealth and comfort instead of meeting the needs of others.  Much of the church in America today is about giving a God-veneer to consumer capitalism, sexism, racism, and ethnocentrism.  Jesus invites us to be free of all of that.  To live unencumbered by hatred or malice or greed.

And, the church also readily accepts and promotes violence – encouraging armed conflict, military service, promoting gun ownership, even hiring armed guards as security for church services, supporting the death penalty.  This is all completely contrary to the way of Jesus.  We are to love all of our enemies, all those who consider us enemy, all those who would do us harm.  Love them not just in our hearts, but by helping them, listening to their stories, honoring their experience and their humanity.  Certainly we are not to mistreat or inflict violence upon another.  I love the story about the church in California where a shooter appeared on Sunday morning and some church members tackled him and tied him up with an extension cord.  They restrained him.  For safety reasons.  Someone did not whip out a gun and shoot him. 

The way of Jesus puts us completely out of step with the society around us.  Jesus tells his listeners that if they follow him they will be hated, reviled, excluded and defamed.  This goes for Christians today.  If we were really taking the Sermon on the Plain seriously, there’d be fallout.

Oh, we can’t invite her to the Met Gala.  She’s a Christian.  She won’t wear an obscenely expensive designer outfit.  Oh, he’s a Christian.  We can’t accept him in the police academy because he won’t fire a gun at a criminal and that might put the lives of colleagues in danger.  Oh, she’s Christian, we can’t have her as a diplomat because she will try to help all the countries even those that hate us instead of just helping our allies.  We can’t hire him to work on this political campaign because he’s a Christian.  He won’t design ads that smear the other candidate. 

I mean there are all kinds of ramifications that go with actually following the teachings of Jesus that we heard today.  You could lose your job, for instance, even if you are a pastor. 

Some 6 years after his decrying of homosexuality, Bill White, the pastor whose son was gay, entered this in his journal: “As Katy [his wife] prayed last night she thanked you for the remarkable gift of Timothy coming out — and how we thought it was the end, but it was only the beginning of a full, true, vibrant life in Christ.  Father, thank you that you created our son gay.  Forgive me for how poorly I received that gift.”  Maybe next Pastor Bill White will be led to examine patriarchy and male imagery for God!

The teachings of Jesus were absurd in the first century.  And they may be seen as even more absurd now.  But they are life-giving.  And when we water them down, we negate our reason for being as a church.  And we deny the gift we are being given and that the church has to give the world.

We close with a story from a monk of the 13th century and how he navigated the waters of the extreme teachings of Jesus and the watered down version endorsed by his monastery.  Apparently, Brother Juniper, a companion of Francis of Assisi, was notorious for constantly giving his possessions away, including his clothes.  Remember the verse, if someone asks for your coat, give them your shirt as well?  Well, Brother Juniper took Jesus at his word.  But his superior in the monastery was not happy about all the clothes and other things that were being given away.  At one point Brother Juniper was ordered by his superior not to give away his coat to beggars anymore.  Shortly after that order, he met someone in need who asked for some clothing.  Apparently, Brother Juniper is remembered for responding:  “My superior has told me under obedience not to give my clothing to anyone.  But if you pull it off my back, I certainly will not prevent you.”  Francis is said to have joked that he wished for a forest of Junipers!  [This story is in Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, Shane Claiborne, Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove, Enuma Okoro, p. 278.]

May we not be afraid or selfish when it comes to the power of love within us.  May we be open to being transformed.  May we transform the world.  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.