Pastor Kelly's Refelction on United Methodist News

 On Friday, January 3, 2020 our Council of bishops issues a statement which you can find here regarding a proposal (which you can find here) which will presented to General Conference in May of 2020.  The WNC Bishop, Bishop Paul Leland issued a response to conference clergy following the release and his response can be found here.  There is also a list of Frequently Asked Questions that can be found here.  I invite you to read over each of the sources of information and then read below the sermon I delivered to my congregations today. I welcome any questions you may have of me by way of phone call or email.  You may reach me at 828-734-6548 or by email at kdotson@wnccumc.net.   

Sermon:                       Let the Light Shine      Pastor Kelly

Based on Isaiah 60:1-6 and Matthew 2:1-12

            Happy New Year!  And Happy Epiphany!  Technically tomorrow is Epiphany but since we do not gather for worship tomorrow, we are celebrating it today.  Epiphany is January 6^th and falls the day after the 12^th day of Christmas which is actually today, marking the end of Christmas tide.  Traditionally it is a church festival in commemoration of the coming of the Magi as the first manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as was just read to you.  What do we know about the Magi?  We know that they come from east, following a star, in search of Jesus.  It is significant that they are from the East.  This signified that they were Gentiles and that Emmanuel, God with us, appeared not just for the Jews but for ALL.  The part of the story I want to focus on today is the star.    That beautiful star of Bethlehem that led the Magi to the true light of the world, Jesus.  In the Gospel of John, the first chapter we are told that “in the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  In him was life, and that life was the light of all people.”  The light of the star led the magi to the light for all the world.  This light, it shines in the darkness and the darkness Does. Not. Overcome. It.

This directs us back to the Isaiah passage for today.  I want you to hear the first few verses of that passage again.  “Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the LORD rises upon you.  See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the LORD rises upon you and his glory appears over you.  Nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn.  Lift up your eyes and look about you:  all assemble and come to you. 

            It is a New Year and as the year 2020 has dawned we have seen the darkness of the world and perhaps we have anxiety about the darkness we see ahead of us.  We have heard news of an attack on the US embassy in Iran and a subsequent attack by the US Military which resulted in the death of at least two prominent Iranian Government officials and threats of more violence against the US. It is an election year and already our televisions, newspapers and social media news feeds are filled with political advertisements that shoot darts at the opposing parties.  Mud is being slung and will continue to be slung.  Then on Friday our beloved United Methodist church made national news again when our council of Bishops issued a report on a proposal for separation of the United Methodist Church being submitted to the 2020 General Conference in May.  I do not know which news outlet first broke the news but if you google it you will get 5, 810,000 hits.  The headlines reading United Methodist Church splits over LGBT issues. As the news broke we again found ourselves in the midst of a lot of mudslinging and perhaps some have felt the same pangs of anxiety as one feels with war looming.  We feel like we are walking in the dark of the unknown in places where people, children of God, are being harmed; are harming one another and it doesn’t feel good.  It feels dark.  For those of you who have not read the news and do not know what I am speaking of  I want to pause here and explain this a little further.     

            On Friday clergy received an email from conference office that was Bishop Leland’s response to a proposal for separation that was announced by the council of Bishops.  This proposal comes from a diverse group of representatives of all sides who had been meeting together with a mediator since the special called general conference in February.  The details of the proposal are available on line and I will send out an email and publish a Facebook post today that has a link to that proposal.  Despite what some of the headlines in mainstream media have read, the church has not decided to split.  Decisions of the United Methodist Church can only be made at General Conference which typically meets every four years.  This is, as it states, a proposal being sent to General Conference for consideration when it convenes in May of this year.  If you have ever watched General Conference then you know that very rarely does a proposal or petition get passed without first going through several amendments which change the original proposal or petition.  I will be spending time with our leaders on Saturday going over the major highlights of this proposal and making decisions about if and how we want to address this news.  I know full well how anxiety producing this is for everyone on all sides of this issue.  I say issue but I need for you to understand we are not talking just about an issue  We are talking about people.   You wonder what it means for your church.  Some of you wonder if the church is going to go in a direction that goes against your personal belief system?  Some of you wonder if there is going to be room at the table for you or your loved one?   I myself have been fighting anxiety with a lot of deep breathing and a lot of prayer over the last two days.  The charge to lead you through this time in our church’s history is a heavy charge to carry and I assure you that I do not take that responsibility lightly.  For now, I encourage you to go to our official United Methodist News sources for your news regarding the United Methodist Church.  The mainstream news does not always understand our structure and our way of operating and they mis-report the facts.  If your friends ask you questions only answer what you know to be fact and ask them to pray for our denomination.  First and foremost, I ask you to enter a time of prayer, study and reflection for yourself.   In your prayer, study and reflection I want you to reflect on the Three Simple Rules put forth by John Welsey:  Do No Harm, Do All the Good You can, Stay in Love with God. 

            So yes, as we enter 2020 there is a lot of darkness that looms and as the prophet Isaiah puts it:  it is a darkness that “covers the earth, a thick darkness over all the peoples.  It is the darkness of harm being done.  It is the darkness of our faith being challenged.  For some it is the darkness of being excluded from the table.  For some it is the darkness of feeling like the core of your beliefs have been challenged. The darkness is fear.   It is fear that has tenticles coming out of its being and grabbing you.  However, it is important that we not stay with the darkness , that we do not let fear have the last word. 

 Hear the good news of this passage.  “your light has come and the glory of the Lord is upon you” and “the darkness does not overcome that light.” That light is the power of Jesus Christ.  It is the same light that came into this world and turned the Pharisees on their heads.  It is the same light that came into the world not just to shine light on the Jews but to shine a light to all nations.  It is the same light that healed sickness and disease.  It is the same light that challenged the status quo.  It is the same light that shone a light on women appearing first to women after the resurrection and sending women to go and tell.  It is the same light that shined on the people in the margins.  It is the light of love for God is Love. 

 My challenge to you this morning as we walk into the new year together is to center yourself in that light and to take that light and shine it into each other and into this community.

Elaine Arrowood picks out the bulletin covers each week and there is no doubt in my mind that the Holy Spirit was involved in the picking of this week’s Bulletin cover that is titled “Focus on One Thing.”  On the back of the bulletin there is a reflection that talks about how many of us start the New Year off making resolutions about every part of our lives:  our health, our relationships, our finances, and our jobs.  It becomes very overwhelming and when we don’t see progress we just give up and feel like we have failed. The reflection encourages us then to focus on just one thing and that is to Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind and to Love your neighbor as yourself.  The focus there is love.  So, as we walk into this New Year as the body of Christ here at Nebo (Snow hill) United Methodist lets walk into it together with our focus on love.  How are we going to love our neighbors at Nebo Elementary School (Here in the Bridgewater community, how are we going to love our members with special needs and those with special needs in our community, how are we going to show love to the residents of McAlpine Adult care? How are we going to show love to the Nebo Community at large?  How are we going to show love to each other? 

            We are going to show our love right now by committing to the ways in which we feel called to serve this community by filling out the insert in your bulletin.  You will bring these inserts with you and place them in a basket as you come for communion.  It is okay if you feel like you need time to pray about this.  You may take them home and pray about it and bring it back next week and place it in the offering plate.  We are also going to show our love this morning by installing our leaders for 2020.  Finally, we are going to show our love this morning by taking communion together during which you will hear the cry out to God that is cried out every time we have communion: “Make us one with Christ, With each other and with the World.”  So, Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.”  IN the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

An Artist I am Not!

In 2013 when I was in licensing school I was given a devotional book published by the Upper Room.  It was called a Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God.  It has been my daily companion in my devotional time for the past 5 and 1/2 years.  It follows the liturgical calendar.  It follows the Lectionary and it has excerpts from the writings of many theologians both in antiquity and contemporary.  There is a rhythem to the devotional.  Each day there is an Affirmation that is read, a petition that is prayed, a scripture reading for the day, a time for personal prayers, a reading from one of the theologians, God's promise and my response.  The affirmation, petition, God's promise and response are the same every day for a week.  The week follows a theme.

I learned that there is a whole set of these books that have been written.  They include:

• A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and Other Servants-1987
• A Guide to Prayer for All God's People-1994
• A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God-2003

A Guide to Prayer for All Who Walk with God-2014

Having used this guide for several years now I decided to purchase the newest one to begin in Advent this year.  The format is a little different.  Following the Affirmation you read the same Psalm every day and there is a prayer based on the Psalm that follows.  The Daily Scripture reading is still there but that is followed by a time of silence, then the personal prayers.  God's Promise and my response were replaced by offering of self to God and a blessing.  I have enjoyed reading the same Psalm everyday for a week.  The most challenging and the best part of this time has been the practice of silence.  It is hard.  I started out with just 5 minutes and have not yet move beyond that 5 minutes.  I set a timer, close my eyes and try to be silent.  I will admit that more days then not nothing earth shattering comes from this practice.  Many days my mind wanders through my to do list or something that happened the day before.  However, there are moments when God does reveal to me a message in the silence.  I want to share two of those moments with you.

On January 2 as I sat with my head down on my desk and my eyes closed I had a vision of a daisy.  Daisies are pretty.  I like them okay but they are not one of my favorite flowers so I thought it odd enough that it was worth a google.  I googled daisy symbolism and found out that the daisy symbolizes innocence, purity and new beginnings.  It is often a flower associated with the birth of a baby.  It so happens that a member of one of my congregations had given birth to a baby the previous day so I knew that I had to go get her some daisies.  As I drove to Sylva to the hospital, I was thinking about the daisies and the new beginnings.  I remembered that my good friend had just moved her medical office to a new building and I said a prayer for her new beginning.  I also realized that I am on the cusp of a New Beginning as well.  Suddenly the flower took on meaning for me personally.  It became an icon that I wanted to focus on.  I felt like there was a promise in the New Beginning.  The Daisy closes itself up each night with the setting of the sun and opens back up with the rising of the sun.  It becomes new each day.  A couple of days later I read a writing of Saint Catherine of Siena.  In this writing she talked experiencing the love of Christ crucified as an experience that transforms one into a pilgrim and a teacher.  She talks of the pilgrim being focused on reaching her journeys goal.  While she doesn't say what the journeys goal is she says that a "good pilgrim will go forward bravely in love and in eagerness for the goal she hopes to reach."  Suddenly a motto accompanied the picture of the daisy that I had in my head.  I felt the urge to paint this.  Anyone who knows me, knows I am not an artist.  However, I wanted something to go on the wall of my sacred space so I painted it.  This is the result.

A couple of days later I received a vision of dandelion.  I learned they they symbolize perseverance.  Dandelions can grow and thrive in any conditions.    This too seemed to be a message of encouragement.  So, I painted it as well.

This was therapeutic and fun and I am so glad that I listened in the silence, even if it did seem bizarre.

I share this with you to encourage you in your own daily spiritual practices.  Some days there will be nothing.  You will read scripture and get nothing out of it.  You will sit in silence and the silence will be overtaken by your worries and burdens or there will be nothing at all and you will wonder what the point is.  But then, there are moments like this.  Life given moments.  Moments of epiphany.  Moments when you say AHA.  Those moments will never come if you don't practice the disciplines.

Wounds: The Portal of Entry for God's Light and Love: Jeremiah 31:31-34

Before this week there was only one movie I have ever thought so much of that I went a second time to the theater to watch it and that was the movie The Shack.  This week I will add two more movies to that list.  One is a Wrinkle in Time and the other Is ICan only imagine.  I was reflecting on what these movies had in common.  What is it that is so powerful that they draw me back to the theater to pay more money to see them again.  Why couldn’t I wait for them to come out on DVD or on Netflicks?  There are a couple of things. First the message of hope contained in each of these movies is a message that I want to share with others.  In each of these movies there was a situation that seemed impossible to overcome.  In each of these movies the power of God was able to take impossible pain and redeem it for good.  God was able to breath light into the darkness.  Also each of these movies showed the real human struggle of pain and suffering.  They showed that God could use our pain and suffering to transform. 

The Shack follows the story of a family that lost a child to tragic circumstances.  I knew only a taste of that pain from saying good bye to my nephew.  I can only imagine the pain that is being felt by Tripp Halstead’s family this morning.  Tripp was the little two year old boy whose story was followed by the whole nation when a tree limb fell on him in a freak accident at his daycare 5 years ago. This happened in Atlanta and I was going to Emory at the time.  We all followed his story and his miracle recovery was life giving.   Little Tripp died this week following an infection that his heart just couldn’t fight anymore.  As I read the announcement from his mother this week I could almost feel the pain that was coming through her words.  The pain of losing a child is one of those pains in life that seems unconquerable. 

A Wrinkle in Time is a science fiction story about a father who gets lost in the universe and his children’s journey through space and time to find him and bring him home.  It is a battle between the forces of good and evil.  The father is trapped on the planet Camazotz, held captive by the IT.  IT is the personification  of evil in the universe.  When I saw the IT portrayed on the screen I was immediately transported to my therapist’s office a little over two years ago.  My therapist is really good about personifying things and feelings. His work sometimes reminds me of the movie inside out where the emotions of a young teenage girls were personified as they all worked together to guide and protect her.  That particular day my therapist was asking me to describe a particular physical pain I was experiencing.  He asked me what shape it was.  I told him that it was the shape of a ball about the size of a softball.  He asked me what color it was.  I told him that it was black.  I described it as having a center but having tenticles like an octopus that would reach out and grab other parts of me and squeeze until I felt pain.  When I saw IT on the screen It was the exact replica of what I had described in his office and I was keenly aware that IT had tried to defeat me.  It had tried to overpower me.  IT had tried to shut me down.  One of the most powerful parts of the movie for me was when the daughter was told it was up to her to defeat IT and bring her father home.  There were three divine beings who had been guiding her on this journey and they each gave her a gift for the remainder of her journey.  One of the gifts was the gifts of her faults.  She had to embrace her faults and all the pain that came with them as part of who she was and as part of what would bring healing to her pain.  In the very beginning of the movie the famous 13^th century Persian poet, Rumi was quoted.  The quote was this:   “wounds are the place where the light enters.”    As I heard those words I immediately heard the words from the gospel of John:  In the beginning was the word and the word was God and the word was light.  What would it look like if we took the wounds of our life and allowed them to be the portal of entry for the light and love of God?

A similar message came through in the movie I can Only imagine.  This movie is the story of Bart Millard, the lead singer for the Christian group Mercy Me and the author of the best selling song, that is the title of the movie.  The movie is the story behind the song and it was a story of pain.  It was the story of a young boy who suffered a lifetime of abuse at the hands of his father.   As he was chasing his dream of being a top musician his manager gave him some advice.  He recognized that Bart  was running from his pain and therefore  not being authentic in his music.  He said this to him:   “Let your pain become your inspiration.”  Bart Millard believed that the transformation of his father was impossible.  He did not believe that even God could transform the monster of his dad into something good.  But here is the thing.  God did.  Bart Millard said that God took that monster and transformed him into the dad he had always dreamed of.  It was after his father’s death that he wrote the song I can only imagine.  That Song has touched the hearts and lives of countless people.  It broke through the charts on Christian radio and made its way to the charts on both country radio stations and pop radio stations across the world.  It was a message of healing people needed to hear.  So many people can relate to the story of abuse yet they suffer in silence.  What would happen if survivors of abuse let their wounds be the place where the light and love of God entered. 

The thread that knit these movies together into a genre of movie that I would want to see again was the thread of HOPE that God can take our wounds and our pain and use them as portals for the entry of love and light and for the inspiration that will transform the darkness to light, the pain and suffering to healing. 

What are you facing today that seems impossible to overcome.  Have you given up on God’s ability to transform your wounds and your pain?  Have you given up on God’s ability to transform another person in your life, a person who has caused the gaping wounds that leave you in pain?  Do you know someone today who has given up? 

I imagine that the Israelites had given up on more than one occasion during their journey. It was in a moment such as this that the prophet Jeremiah spoke the words you heard today.  The words were a word of hope to a people who felt abandoned by their God.  They had survived many things.  They survived the Great Flood, they survived captivity in Egypt, they survived 40 years in the Wilderness and finally reached their destination in the promised land of Cannan but their trials didn’t stop.  There was a constant battle between good and evil.  Sometimes the evil came from outside forces and many times the evil came within themselves as they sought answers in other places, as they put their faith and trust in things that were not of God and were not God.  At the time that Jeremiah spoke the words we heard from scripture today most of Israel had been exiled.  Their country had been taken over and their temple had been destroyed.  Most of them were living in Babylon, as immigrants in a land that was not theirs.  Jeremiah gave them hope.  Jeremiah spoke of a new covenant between God and the Israelites.  

In the book of Genesis we find the covenant that God made with Abraham.  It was a covenant that promised land, many descendents and a promise that through Abraham all people of the world would be blessed and redeemed.  God asked for loyalty in return and many times the Israelites failed in their end of the bargain.  However, God always forgave and God continued to be their everlasting God. 

Here Jeremiah promises a New Covenant.  What changes with the new covenant is this:  God says no longer will their have to be teachers to teach you about who I am for I will write all the laws on your heart.  You will know me.  You don’t have to learn the 613 laws.  You will know me and follow my way and that way will lead you to the light.  Here is the other thing God promises in the new covenant revealed to Jeremiah.  He says I will forgive their wickedness and I will remember their sin no more.  Did you hear that friends.  Let me say it again.  God said “I will forgive their wickedness and will REMEMBER THEIR SIN NO MORE!    Sometimes the hardest thing that we face is believing that God forgives us and to forgive ourselves.  We carry around the mistakes of our life inside us and we let them overtake us.  But God says it right here my friend.  I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more!  There is nothing, nothing, nothing, you can do that God can not and does not forgive.  Take that gift with you this morning.  In the name of Jesus Christ YOU ARE FORGIVEN!   Quit beating yourself up!  God loves you! 

The writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews identifies Jesus as the mediator of this new covenant.   Time does not permit me to read Hebrews chapter 8-10 this morning but I invite you when you go home today to get out your Bible and read it.  There you will find a description of what it means for Jesus to be the meditor of this covenant.  Hear these words though from Hebrews chapter 10 verses 14-18: 

 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

¹⁵ The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:

¹⁶ “This is the covenant I will make with them
    after that time, says the Lord.
I will put my laws in their hearts,
    and I will write them on their minds.”^[b]

¹⁷ Then he adds:

“Their sins and lawless acts
    I will remember no more.”^[c]

¹⁸ And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

We are approaching the time of Lent my friends when Jesus will enter into Jerusalem.  Hosannas will be sung but that dark moment of sacrifice will come as well when Jesus makes this final sacrifice, the sacrifice of his own life so that we may be made perfect in love. 

We are called this morning.  We are called to be the carriers of this light of love.   What would it look like for you to accept this gift.  What would it look like for you to believe that God has forgiven you and remembers your sin no more.  What would it look like if the darkness was transformed by the light into light.  What would it look like for us to open up our wounds for them to be the portal of God’s light and love. 

It may not always look like what we imagine.  Perhaps instead of God transforming you into someone different then who you are, God’s light and love will enter your wounds and let it be known that you were created in God’s image just as who you are and that who you are is exactly who God created you to be and wants you to be. 

Perhaps instead of reuniting you with the one who has wounded you God’s light and love will enter your wounds and give you eyes to see that you deserve to be treated with love and respect and give you the courage to move forward rather than looking in the rear view mirror. 

Perhaps instead of making your mound of debt go away and making your rich, God will enter the wound of your financial instability and show you that you can make it on what you have been given and give you peace with a simpler lifestyle.

Perhaps instead of making you forget the pain and the wounds you carry with you, God will shine a light on those wounds and use them to transform others who have survived just what you survived. 

Overcoming the impossible, overcoming the dark will look different for each of you but the good news is that we serve a God of second chances and third chances and twenty chances.  We serve a God who forgives and remembers our sins no more.  We serve a God who heals our impossible grief.  We serve a God who redeems our broken relationships.  We serve a God who overcomes the voices of our past that haunt us.  We serve a God who gave us his body and blood that through that body and blood we would be saved, we would be redeemed, we would be transformed.  We only have to believe.  We only have to say yes to this gift, say Yes, and follow him.

In her book “Gifts of Imperfection” author Brene Brown writes “We cultivate love when we allow our most vulnerable and powerful selves to be deeply seen and known, and when we honor the spiritual connection that grows from that offering with trust, respect, kindness and affection.”  Cultivate that love today and  take a step of faith. Open up your wounds and your pain to God this morning.  Let God pour God’s light and love into those open places this morning.  Let your wounds and your pain be a place where The hope that God gave us in the New Covenant of Jesus Christ can take up residence and grow and transform that which is impossible to all that is possible.  Let God use your wounds and your pain to inspire you.  Grab hold of the gifts of imperfection and embrace them as the gifts that only God can transform them to be.  God is here my friends.  He is only waiting for you to trust him and open yourself up to him.  Come to Jesus this morning, the altar is open and it is a great place to come before God .   We are going to sing our hymn of response this morning.  The hymn of promise.  Come this morning and renew God’s promise in your life.  In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Disaster Relief Information for South Macon Charge.

Disaster Relief Day of Caring 

South Macon United Methodist Charge

Asbury and Dryman's Chapel United Methodist Churches 

We will meet together Saturday, September 16, 2017

from 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM at Dryman's Chapel UMC to

Assemble Flood Buckets and Health Kits for Disaster Relief Needed 

from Harvey, Irma and Jose

We will have a cookout at Noon for all volunteers.  We will also be available to respond to  local clean-up needs.  

To see what items are needed click on Flood Buckets or Hygiene Kits.  Supplies may be dropped off in the entry way of Dryman's Chapel at anytime or can be dropped off at Asbury UMC on Wednesday September 13 from 3:00-6:30, Thursday September 14 from 9:00 AM-10:00 AM or from 3:00-5:00 PM or Friday September 15 from 9:00-12:00 or 1:00-5:00.  

Please stay safe during the pending storms and if you have a need call Pastor Kelly at 828-734-6548 or the church office at 828-369-8544

The Unshakable Kingdom: Hebrews 12:18-29

                I wonder how many of you reading this ever had fear instilled in you by your parents.  I’m not talking about fear of being injured by your parents although I know that some of you may have experienced that kind of fear.  Way too many of our world’s children suffer at the hands of abusive parents.  However, that is not the kind of fear I am asking about now.  I am speaking of a healthy fear.  That fear of knowing what is going to happen if you disobey the rules they have set out for good family living and for health and for safety.  You know that fear that you are not going to get to do that thing you wanted to do on Friday night, or that fear that is instilled when you hear those words “wait until your father gets home.”  You know when you hear those words that you are going to get something worse than a spanking, you are going to get that “I’m very disappointed in you speech” because the last thing you want to do is disappoint your father whom you love so much.  The same father that instills this fear in you is the same father who cleans your scrapes, who rubs your aching knees at night, who brings you sprite and coloring books when you are sick.  He is the same father who comes to your recitals and coaches your ball team even after he has worked 80 hours in a week to make sure you have food on the table.  The mother who warns you to always have clean underwear on in case you get in an accident, who warns you of the natural consequences that can happen when you make bad decisions such as getting pregnant, or getting a disease or getting in a car accident when you aren’t paying attention or getting assaulted when you choose to be in the wrong places is the same mother whose arms you run to when you fall down, who holds you during your first heartbreak, who you call once you are an adult anytime you run into a situation you don’t understand or know how to handle.  Parents play two roles.  They love us, nurture us and care for us and out of that love they also discipline us.  The author of Hebrews today reminds us that our Heavenly Parent is also one who not only shows us love, grace and mercy but out of that love also disciplines us.  God’s love and care and discipline leads to a Kingdom that cannot be shaken and we are called to respond with acts of gratitude through worship and service. 

                Before getting into the text let’s remember what we have learned so far from this sermon for the Hebrews.  We have learned that the Hebrews of the first century were facing many obstacles and trials in their life and that it was very tempting for them to give up on following Christ sometimes to even preserve their life.  We have learned that the book of Hebrews is a sermon given to those people who were suffering to encourage them not to give up.  We have learned that Jesus paid the ultimate price of suffering and became our high priest and our sacrifice.  He is the pioneer and perfector of Salvation.  We have learned that we should learn from the cloud of witnesses that have gone before us how to run the race with perseverance and leave the world a little bit better than the generation before. Today the author points us to two different attributes of God and encourages us to enter into God’s presence with Praise and gratitude. 

                In the first verses of today’s focal text we are transported back to the book of Exodus and the experience of Moses and the children of Israel as they approach God at Mount Sinai.  This encounter with God is one marked with fear much like that fear we get when we hear those words “wait until your father gets home.”  There were lots of restrictions regarding how close the people could get to the mountain.  There was fire and loud thunder and a voice so commanding you closed your eyes and covered your ears.  The author then tells the Christians of his day that is not the Mountain they are approaching.  The children of Israel, the ancients of our faith, our forefathers and Mothers are the ones that had waited at that Mountain to receive their instructions for faithful living and all through the centuries leading up to Christ’s birth they fumbled around the wilderness and the Promised Land breaking that covenant and being forgiven only to break it again.  Finally God shook things up by coming to earth in human form, in the life of Jesus.  It is through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection that a new covenant was born.  This covenant is more inclusive.  This covenant requires no high priest to mediate for us because in Jesus we have direct access to God.  This covenant requires no blood sacrifice to be brought to the temple because the blood of Jesus poured out was the ultimate sacrifice.  This covenant allows the Christian of that day to approach God directly at Mount Zion. 

                How is Mount Zion different?  Mount Zion is a place full of angels who are engaged in festive celebration, Mount Zion is full of those cloud of witnesses that have gone before us paving the way for us.  Mount Zion is the place where we approach God, judge of all.  Mount Zion is the place of all those who have gone before us and have been made perfect, fully sanctified.  Mount Zion is the place where we approach Jesus, our mediator.  This description reminds me of a song that the Hope Trio in the church of my youth used to sing.  At the chorus they sang “Heaven, I’ve had a little taste of heaven, I’ve had a little touch of heaven, I’ve had a little glimpse of heaven want to go where the milk and honey flow no more sorrow pain or woe.  I’ve had a little taste of Heaven and I want to go there.”[1]  When I read this description of the city of Zion I immediately think, yeah I want to approach God there.  But, to approach God there we must realize that we have to listen to God when he is on Mount Sinai too.  We must listen to the warnings and obey the commandments, the greatest of which are love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your might and your neighbor as yourself. 

                The sermon to the Hebrews continues by saying “see to it that you don’t resist the one who is speaking.  Just like when we don’t listen to our parent’s warnings, when we don’t listen to God’s warnings, we might not be able to escape ultimate disaster.  But, we have hope.  We have hope because the same God that shook the earth with his voice at Mount Sinai is the same God that shook things up when Jesus came to earth and was crucified and resurrected and is the same God that will continue to shake things up getting rid of everything that can be shakable, leaving us with an unshakeable Kingdom.  So friends, we must not let our faith be shaken by the troubles and hardships of this world.  We must run the race with perseverance toward this unshakeable Kingdom we are promised and we must do so with Gratitude, Praises and service to the one true God who is in control, who loves you so much that he sent his son to earth to teach us how to live and to die a sacrificial death as the pioneer and perfector of our salvation.  So, “enter his courts with thanksgiving in your hearts.  Enter His courts with Praise.  Say this is the day that the Lord has made.  Sing I will rejoice for He has made me glad.”[2]  In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

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[1] Lyrics found at http://www.newmusicgospel.com/legacy-five/a-little-taste-of-heaven/ accessed 8/22/2016

[2] Lyrics accessed at https://www.hymnal.net/en/hymn/ns/259 accessed on 8/21/2016

Hanging Onto Our Faith in the Midst of Hardships: Hebrews 11:29-12:2

                Last week I wrote about the Hebrew author’s definition of faith.  We saw examples of faith that the author brought forth and zoned in on the Faith of Abraham.  I concluded that faith is more than just believing something.  Faith is having the conviction of God so deeply set in our hearts that it defines who we are.  We are children of God.  It is an all-in faith.  We are willing to give our all to this faith. 

                This week we continue through the list of heroes of the faith in Hebrews chapter 11 verses 29-12:2.  Take the time to click on the link and read this passage of scripture now.  Here the author shifts from the example of what faithful living looks like to examples of “how faith in God made a difference in the response of a group of people in Crisis.”  Examples included the children of Israel crossing the red sea, the walls of Jericho coming down and Rahab’s life being spared.  It is worth going back and reading each of the stories that were referenced and reflecting on how God was present in each of those circumstances.  What the author of Hebrews here is doing is encouraging a community of believers who are going through deep hardships by directing them to remember the stories of the faith of their ancestors and what a difference that made in their lives. 

                I wish I could tell you that being a follower of Jesus Christ was a magical formula for protecting you from the hardships of life and that nothing bad would ever befall you but that is just not the case.  In fact, for many people, following Jesus creates hardships as it did to the community of believers in the first century.  Part of living in this fallen human world is that hardships are going to befall us.  Tornados are going to destroy houses, terrorists are going to blow up buildings and commit mass murder, children are going to die, tragic accidents are going to happen.  Some of us are going to fall into deep depressions that cause us not to be able to lift our head in the mornings.  Some of us are going to wonder where our next meal is going to come from.  Some of us are going to be robbed and cheated.  Some of us are going to feel like nothing good ever comes our way.  When we fall into these stages of life when one thing happens on top of another it is easy to disconnect from our faith and from our community of faith.  It is easy to lament and ask the questions of why?  If you have never been in that situation, don’t worry, you will.  I can almost promise you that.  I imagine that is what the community of believers in the first century were feeling.  This is the reason the author delivers this sermon to them.  The author wants to encourage them in this time of deep hardship to remember the God stories of their lives and of the lives of those who have gone before them.  It is helpful for us to look at these Old Testament stories but we also have our own cloud of witnesses we can look to. 

                I want you to stop for a minute and think about who that is for you.  Who has gone before you and shown you how to be faithful in the face of hardships.  Whose life can you look back to and say God was with them?  Stop reading right now and write down the names of those people.  For me it was my grandparents, my best friend’s mother, my son’s caregiver, an episcopal priest who befriended me, and one of my dearest friends.  My grandmother Dotson faced a cancer diagnosis when she was only in her late 40s.  The prognosis was that she would only live 6 months but she lived 6 years.  Those years were difficult on her body as she took chemo and radiation.  She was sick 3 weeks out of every month but I never heard her complain and she held tightly to her faith.  My best friend’s mom faced more adversity in the last few years of her life than anyone I have encountered but on her death bed at the young age of 47 she was singing praises to God and quoting the 91^st psalm which was her favorite.  My dear friend Cindy fought a courageous battle with cancer and never once did she give up hope.  As we watched her health deteriorate, we many times lost hope but she would fuss at us and never would she allow us to speak any negativity in her presence.  It helps when I go through the hard times of life to look back to these influencers of my faith and remember how they handled adversity and how God was present with them in the midst of their hardships.  Take some time and write down the God stories of your cloud of witnesses.  Go back and read them when you are facing hardships.  That is what the author of Hebrews is doing for the 1^st century Christians here.  The author is reminding them of the God stories of their history to spark hope in their adverse situation. He then offers them direction.

                As the book of Hebrews transitions into chapter 12 we are reminded who the “pioneer and perfecter of this faith is.  It is Jesus.  We are told to run the race that is set before us with perseverance.  We are told to get rid of the baggage that weighs us down and to fix our eyes on Jesus, follow his example and complete the race.

                It has been a long time since I have done any recreational running but I remember when I was in high school I had to run two miles to qualify to be able to go to a summer camp I wanted to go to.  Before even a mile was finished I was ready to give up and throw in the towel.  Camp became much less important when my lungs were hurting, my legs were hurting and my side was hurting.  I had not conditioned myself for running two miles.  I tried to just do it all at once and when hardships began to take over my body I just wanted to quit.  I think that is the way it is with our Christian journey as well.  When we don’t condition ourselves to be on the journey for the long haul it is very tempting to quit when we begin facing the hardships of life. 

                Because I am not a skilled runner of long distances, or of any distance for that manner I did a bit of research on what it takes to be in condition for the long run.  There are thousands of blogs and articles written on how to condition for long distance running.  Each one is different but the one thing that was common among all of them was a regular routine of workouts and taking baby steps.  To get good at anything takes routine and disciplined practice, whether it’s playing an instrument, learning  a new skill, or running a marathon.  You also do not take a person who has never run before and put them on the starting line of the Boston Marathon and expect them to finish. 

                To be able to complete the journey set before us as Christians and not give up- when we face hardships and trials we must develop routines that will give us the strength to run through the hardships.  John Wesley called such things means of grace.  We must institute spiritual disciplines in our lives such as reading scripture and praying on a daily basis.  We need to study the one who was the perfector of faith, Jesus.  We need to know him as well as we know ourselves and be able to react as he would react but to do that we must know him.  We cannot expect to come to church once a month or twice a year and never do anything else to feed our spirits and think we will have the strength to finish the race any more than we can expect to live sedentary lives 364 days a year and then go finish the Boston Marathon.

In September we will be beginning a sermon series at Asbury-Dryman’s Chapel call the Disciple’s Path.  I would encourage anyone in the Otto area who desires to learn more about the practices of being a disciple of Jesus Christ and thus having the tools to finish the race to come and join us for that series.  There will also be a bible study which will track with the sermon series where we can go deeper into the practices of being a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ.  Stay tuned for more details.  Perhaps you are facing hardships in your life right now and are ready to give up.  Please don’t.  Instead look to your cloud of witnesses and come and find out what practices you can put in place that will help you finish the race.  Perhaps you have never entered the race.  Come find out what it means to be on the Christian journey.  It takes practice, it takes remembering but it also takes community. 

                Back to my two mile run in high school.  I didn’t quit running and I finished the race.  Do you know how I finished the race?  I finished the race because there were people in my group who wanted to see me succeed and they ran alongside of me.  Every time I would stop running one of them would come up beside me and run with me, sometimes dragging me along as they cheered me on telling me that I could do it.  I did do it and there is nothing like the feeling of seeing the finish line and sprinting that last quarter of a mile to break through the tape and know you succeeded.  That is what church is about.  Church is about having those cheerleaders who will come up beside you, cheer you on, carry you when needed and never let you stop running.

                Where are you in the race of the Christian journey?  Have you never entered the race?  Have you stopped running?  Do you need to beef up your training to insure you can finish the race in spite of hardships that might come your way?  Wherever you are I invite you to take the next step in the journey and if you need to talk through what that next step is, I am always ready and willing to talk.  In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, Amen. 

Faithful Living-Part I-"I'm all in."

        Before I had to go out on medical leave for 4 weeks I had planned to do a sermon series on faithful living based on the Epistle lectionary readings for the 4 Sundays of August in Hebrews.  Since I am unable to preach that series I am blogging the first three sermons of the series and will preach the final sermon in the series on August 28, 2016. 

            While epistle is the Greek word for “letter”, the book of Hebrews, like the book of Romans is read more like a treatise or a sermon.  The author is not identified.  Because of it’s contents the dating of the book can go as far back as 35 C.E. or as far forward as 90 C.E.  What we can surmise from reading the book in its entirety is that the persons hearing this sermon were people who were of the Christian faith.  These people had experienced suffering because of their faith.  They have been or have known people who have been imprisoned for their faith.  They have known people or have experienced for themselves public abuse and affliction as a result of their faith.  They have seen their property destroyed because of their faith.[1]  The book of Hebrews was written to encourage them and give them hope by bearing witness to a hopeful Christian experience.  The central argument of the book of Hebrews is that in Jesus the people have a new High Priest and this high priest lives forever at the right hand of God.  Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant with God’s people.  This covenant does not exclude but includes all. 

            With this backdrop our focus over the next 4 weeks will be on chapters 11-13, which is the 3^rd portion of the book and addresses faithful living.  This week we will explore what faith really means, for to know how to live faithful lives we must be able to define exactly what faith is.  The text we will look at is Hebrews 11:1-3 and 6-18.  The first three verses define faith.  The other verses lay out an example of faith in Abraham, one of the forefathers of faith in the one true God.  The verses from chapter 11 that aren’t included in our focus provide more examples of faithful living in the lives of the forefathers of our faith. I would encourage you to go deeper into this text by going back and reading those examples at your leisure.  Our focal text for this sermon reads:

Faith is the reality of what we hope for, the proof of what we don’t see. ² The elders in the past were approved because they showed faith.

Acts of faith by God’s people

³ By faith we understand that the universe has been created by a word from God so that the visible came into existence from the invisible.

⁸ By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was going to receive as an inheritance. He went out without knowing where he was going.

⁹ By faith he lived in the land he had been promised as a stranger. He lived in tents along with Isaac and Jacob, who were coheirs of the same promise. ¹⁰ He was looking forward to a city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

¹¹ By faith even Sarah received the ability to have a child, though she herself was barren and past the age for having children, because she believed that the one who promised was faithful. ¹² So descendants were born from one man (and he was as good as dead). They were as many as the number of the stars in the sky and as countless as the grains of sand on the seashore. ¹³ All of these people died in faith without receiving the promises, but they saw the promises from a distance and welcomed them. They confessed that they were strangers and immigrants on earth. ¹⁴ People who say this kind of thing make it clear that they are looking for a homeland. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking about the country that they had left, they would have had the opportunity to return to it. ¹⁶ But at this point in time, they are longing for a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore, God isn’t ashamed to be called their God—he has prepared a city for them.

            The first verse of this passage is one that is quite familiar to many Christians, but I think the meaning of this text goes much further than where we sometimes take it.  I have heard this verse quoted to define faith as hope for that which we cannot see.  I have heard faith defined in belief in something we have not seen or experienced.  While those definitions provide us with a partial view of faith, I agree with John Wesley who says that faith is much more than belief.  In John Wesley’s Sermon 106, he uses this chapter of Hebrews and his own experience of a growing and evolving faith to lay out several “stages” (my word) of faith that one might go through before giving his definition of what he believes to be the most evolved form of faith.  I think each of us would recognize in our own faith journey at least some of these stages of faith. 

            Wesley speaks of those who believe that there is nothing but matter in the universe.  These folks only believe in what can be seen.  You have to show it to them.  There has to be solid evidence and proof.  Just like Thomas who had to see and touch the scars of Jesus.  Just like Sarah who didn’t sing a blessing to God until she actually gave birth to Isaac.  When she heard that she was going to have a child, she laughed out loud.  She thought it was preposterous. 

            Wesley then talks about those people who believe that there is a God who is distinct from matter but this person does not believe the Bible.  They have difficulty grasping the stories of the Christian faith.  

            Next he talks about those people who have the head knowledge of God.  They acknowledge God’s existence and they believe that God rewards those who seek him but they live out their faith very little. 

            Then there are those Jews who lived between the giving of the law of Moses and the coming of Christ.   We would not be among those people.  These are a specific group of people who were serious and sincere about their faith but didn’t live to experience Jesus therefore they could not know the fullness of faith. 

            There are those who, like John the Baptist, believe all God has revealed as necessary to salvation.  These folks are good at following rules and rituals. 

            Next, he speaks of those who fully embrace the truths necessary to salvation and that the things of both the old and New Testament which are plainly declared are of God and are to be followed. 

            Past all of these stages of faith are those people who recognize that faith is “such a divine conviction of God and the things of God, as, even in its infant state, enables everyone that possesses it to “Fear God and work righteousness.”[2]  These folks are those persons who have a conviction of God in their hearts.  The conviction that they have of God’s existence and the things of God is so strong that they must act.  These folks are spurred by their faith to do good and right things.  These folks can truly be called servants of God.  You would think that would be the end of the list.  What more could one ask for than to have the kind of faith that spurs them to action?  Well, it’s the kind of person that has a faith that identifies who they are to the very core of their being.

            John Wesley says this person has the “Son of God revealed in their hearts.”[3]  This person says “The life that I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me, and have himself for me.”  This person sees themselves as a creation of God.  This person recognizes the image of God within them.   This person recognizes their adoption as a child of God.  Faith for this person is acting within them out of love.  This love is the very love that is imaged to us by God and it is through God’s love in their hearts and lives that they take action.  It is not because it is the right thing to do, or because they might get rewarded, or because they need to do it to assure their salvation.  It is because of love.  Pure, true, abiding love.  It is this faith that keeps us seeking.  It keeps us seeking for love, justice, mercy and peace.  It keeps us seeking for that promised Kingdom. It keeps us praying thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. 

            What does that kind of faith look like in action?  Well, the chapter gives us many examples and in all the examples there are some things we find in common.  This kind of faith has people responding to small next steps, not knowing the final destination.  This kind of faith has people who live for a promise that they do not fully see in their lifetime.  We are limited by time and space so will only look at how the author of Hebrews lifts up Abraham as an example of this faith.  Again, I would encourage you to read the whole chapter and the stories of the Old Testament brought forth as examples.  For now let’s take a look at Abraham.  Abraham was the 10^th generation of Noah’s family and was born almost 400 years after the great flood.  God’s promise to Abraham comes in Genesis 12:1-3:

Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.  I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you.  I will make your name great and you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you and all the peoples of the earth will be blessed by you!” 

The first thing I want you to notice here is that God said Go.  He didn’t name the place that Abraham was to go to he only told him to go and that he would show him where to go.  Abraham was 75 years old when he received this call from God and he went.  Friend’s it’s never too late to listen to God’s voice.  You say yes and then you listen for the next step to take.  You do this because of the faith in God and the things of God that has been enacted in your hearts.

What is the passion of your heart? What has God gifted you for?  What is the calling on your life that you have ignored for too long?  How do you, by faith, use those gifts in service to God?  Listen, I wasn’t 75 when I began taking the next steps toward becoming a minister but I was too old by many people’s standards to be going back to school and starting a new career.  I was 37 years old when God first began speaking to me again about going into full-time pastoral ministry.  Just like Abraham wandered around in search for the Promised Land, I wandered around through the paths that lead to pastoral ministry until God showed me that path that I was to take.  It was 6 years from the time that I first began wrestling with that call until the time I understood the clear path that was ahead of me.  I was 43 years old when I made the decision to go back to school and to make formal ministry my vocation.  It was a scary time.  But I said yes and I will tell you that God was with me every step of the way.  It wasn’t easy.  There have been times when I’ve questioned if I had made the right decisions, taken the right steps.  Just like God had to remind Abraham over and over of the covenant he had made with him, he had to remind me over and over of the covenant he had made with me.  The beauty of it is that we serve a God who does that.  Our God doesn’t give up on us.  He gifts us and equips us.  He puts a passion in our hearts and he waits.  He pokes us and prods us and we ignore those prods.  Yet, he continues to wait and be present, ready to walk with us as we take that next step of faith we are being spurred toward whether we recognize it when we are 12 or when we are 75, he is there, waiting. 

The first thing Abraham did by faith was to go when told to go, not knowing the destination.

The second thing Abraham did was to continue to listen to God and take the next steps even when they didn’t make sense and he did this with much patience.  Verse 9 says “by faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise.”  Abraham reached the Promised Land but it was not yet his to take.  God told him to wait.   He gave him the not yet answer.  He heard this from God for 400 years.  I can only imagine it would have been very easy for Abraham to get frustrated and inpatient.  I mean he gave up his whole life to follow God’s direction and nothing was happening fast.  But, he stayed there and he lived there as a foreigner waiting, waiting for what verse 10 says is the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.  He knew, had faith that, it would be worth the wait.  He knew that the outcome was worth working toward. 

The writer of Hebrews reminds us that by faith Sarah received strength to conceive past the age she should.  Now here is something I want you to pay close attention to.  The writer of Hebrews brings out the faith of Sarah but if we know the story we know that Sarah did not originally believe that she would conceive.  No, when the strangers came and gave Abraham the news that Sarah would give birth to a son and that it was through that son that God would make many nations, Sarah laughed out loud.  She was ashamed for laughing, she denied it in fact but she did laugh.  Have you ever heard someone suggest something that you thought was impossible or ludicrous that made you laugh out loud?  This tells us something about faith. It tells us something that John Wesley knew.  Faith is something that God places in us.  It is a gift from God and sometimes faith comes before we see the outcome such as when Abraham said yes and moved away from home and his people to go toward a destination he did not yet know.  Sometimes faith comes about as the result of the outcome.  Genesis 21:6-7 records Sarah’s reaction to giving birth to Isaac:

God has blessed me with laughter and all who get the news will laugh with me.  Whoever would have suggested to Abraham that Sarah would one day nurse a baby?  Yet, here I am.  I’ve given the Old Man a Son.

            The faith was there but Sarah didn’t recognize it until she actually saw the fruit of it.  Sometimes we are like Thomas and Sarah and we have to see to really and truly believe but once we see it that passion ignites in us and we are all in. 

            I think that is the kind of faith the writer of Hebrews and John Wesley speak of.  It’s an all-in kind of faith.  When playing poker one of the bets you can make is to say all in.  What that means is that you are so confident of the hand you are holding that you bet all the chips you have on that hand.  When we have an all-in kind of faith, we are so confident of the Way of Jesus Christ that we put all the chips we have into following that Way.  Do you have an all-in kind of faith or are you hanging out in one of the other sorts of faith that John Wesley speaks of?  What will it take to move you the next step?

            Just like the Christians of the first century, we many times come across times when we feel like there is no hope.  We cannot see tomorrow.  Perhaps you are in one of those times right now.  In giving us all these examples of faithful persons the writer of Hebrews inspired hope in the people who were feeling hopeless by reminding them of the times in their history when God had acted, where God had been present.  What is your spiritual history?  When is a time in your life that you knew the presence of God and you knew God was acting in your life, in your community, or in your church.  I would encourage you this week to think about and write about the different times that you have seen God at work in your life or in the life of others.  Then, when you are feeling hopeless go back and read these God stories and remember. 

            In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

           

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[1] Johnson, Luke Timothy, Writings of the New Testament, (Fortress Press, Minneapolis, 2010) kindle edition location 6375-7167

[2] Wesley, John, On Faith, Sermon 106 1792 Edition, Global Missions accessed August 5, 2016, http://www.umcmission.org/Find-Resources/John-Wesley-Sermons/Sermon-106-On-Faith

[3] Ibid