Ride or Die Faith

June 7, 2026 Genesis 12:1-9 Ride or Die Faith 2nd Sunday After Pentecost Year A Prelude Greeting Call to Worship Like Abram and Sarai, God calls us to go into the unknown, trusting that God’s promises are true. Whether we are certain or full of doubts, God blesses us that we may be a blessing. God sends us into the world to journey by faith, believing that God’s blessings are greater than anything we can imagine. Whether the path is straight or winding, God blesses us that we may be a blessing. God gathers us today with trusted companions, those who also follow God’s call, even when it does not make sense to the world around us. Whether we journey with friends or feel all alone, God blesses us that we may be a blessing. As we gather to worship, may we remember that we are God’s people, blessed by God to be a blessing to our world that is hurting and desperately in need of good news. God, form us today as a family of faith, that your blessings might flow out of us and into our world, drawing all people into your promise of abundant life and flourishing. Amen. Written by Dr. Lisa Hancock, Discipleship Ministries, December 2025. Invocation Wonderful God, we delight in your presence. We find shelter in your abiding and enduring love. You humble us, Holy Love, by gathering us as a people. Thank you for being our Companion and Guide on this journey. Receive our songs, prayers, and openness. Nourish us from the fountain of your word and the hospitality of your table. May we find hope and inspiration, courage and direction, community and resolve as we worship you. Amen. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Cheryl Lindsay) Song I Come with Joy UMH 617 A Sermon for all Ages There are 3 faithful people. The first likes sports and has athletic ability. The person joins several teams, eats foods that build a strong body, exercise regularly, watches sports events on tv, and reads about sport heros. The second person likes to draw and draws well. This persob belongs to the art club at school, takes painting lessons, spends birthday money on paints, pays more attention to the pictures that the words in books and reads about great artist. We can see that these two have god given gifts, have accepted those gifts and are enjoying and developing them. They are faithful to their gifts. A third person believes that god made him or her a part of a family that includes everyone in the world. So this person treats everyone with kindness, stands up for other kids, refuses to laugh at jokes about people’s color or nationality, and contributes Christmas money to build a house for a family living in a shack. This person is faithful to God’s gift and promise that we are all one family Responsive Reading Psalm 33:1-12 UMH 767 Scripture Genesis 12:1-9 Sermon Ride or Die Faith Another legend: Abraham as a boy saw the multitudes of flocks surrounding his father’s tents, and he asked his mother, "Who is the Lord of these?" She answered, "Your father, Terah." Then the boy asked, "And who is Lord of Terah?" She responded, "Nimrod, the King." Then the boy pushed the quest one step further: "And who is Lord of Nimrod?" His mother answered, "Don’t push questions too far." But the lad, Abraham, "was already reaching out to the God who is the God of all." No one really knows why Abraham walked away from a successful life in search of something more. Why he listened to the voice of a God that he didn’t even know in search of something different. But we can all be glad that he did. Abraham is considered the father of our faith. In his hometown Ur, they worshipped the sun and the moon. And judging from the names of his family members, his family who all have moon related names, their family was deeply religious. Their family was held in high regard and well established. His family had many animals and servants. His dad had concubines who had many children. We know that Abraham had 2 other brothers. More than likely he was the youngest. His older brother Haran dies. Haran’s son Lot adopted his uncle Abraham to be his father figure. To Abraham, his father Terah was everything. His world. It was the father, Terah who got the vision to break away from the family and to travel to a new land. To his dad, traveling to a new land meant traveling to the next town. When Terah left – he took his younger son, Abraham, his daughter (now married to Abraham, Sarah, and his grandson Lot. As they were living in his father’s house – Abraham heard a voice of a new god – telling him that there was something else out there. In Genesis 1-3. God calls Abraham to walk away from his country, his relatives, and his father’s house. In those days – you had no reason to leave your father’s house. Your livelihood was there, you would marry a spouse from there, your mother was there, everything. As a younger brother, however, he must have realized that his father’s house would never be his. And even though he was doing well, he had no kids beside his nephew who was determined to carry on his own father’s name. So in the prime of his life, aged 75 – he hears the call of Yahweh, the Hebrew name for God. He follows God’s voice wandering throught the desert, with no idea of what his future would be. One night as he is camping in the sand, he looks up at the countless stars and God makes a promise that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars. That his house will be bigger than anything that his father ever dreamed of. With that promise and no guarantees he steps out in search of his destiny in an unknown land. Thousands of years later, another son will leave the realm of his father’s house. Jesus comes to earth to teach us to listen to the voice of God and to trust God’s plan for us. We are told to follow God on a journey, to form a new family, to love and care for one another, to build a world on earth just like the Father’s house in heaven. Jesus gives us a new promise – in my Father’s House there are many mansions – enough for all of us to live happily. When I think of Abraham’s story I also think of my stepfather. Who is not much older than Abraham when he embarked on a new journey. As he has to discern a new way of life and a move into an unknown future. Presently he is contemplating moving our of his house of 53 years and going into assisted living. He is not happy about leaving the life that he built for 53 years, the memories of family, the familiarity to enter into a new life. It is a very hard and painful decision. And just like for Abraham – there are no guarantees only faith and promises. It is not faith until it is all that we have to rely on In our scripture – God made 7 promises to Abraham The seven promises God made to Abraham are: 1. "I will make you a great nation": God promised to take a childless man and grow his descendants into a vast, distinct nation (Israel). Christ Over All +1 2. "I will bless you": God promised to provide Abraham with divine favor, protection, and provision throughout his life. GospelBells Radio 3. "I will make your name great": God promised Abraham an enduring legacy of honor across generations and cultures. Christ Over All +1 4. "You shall be a blessing": God chose Abraham not merely to receive blessings, but to actively be a channel of divine favor to others. Christ Over All +1 5. "I will bless those who bless you": God promised His favor to anyone who supported or aligned themselves with Abraham and his descendants. Christ Over All +1 6. "I will curse those who curse you": God promised to bring judgment upon anyone who opposed or oppressed Abraham and his family. Christ Over All +1 7. "In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed": The ultimate promise, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, declaring that the lineage of Abraham would eventually bring salvation to the whole world. Christ Over All +1 Abraham trusted those promises. But it didn’t become faith – until it was all that he had to rely on to step into the future. The truth is we all have those moments in life. When we have to move forward. We have no guarantees that things are going to turn out the way we expect. We have no guarantees that things are going to get better. All we have is Abrahams faith. We all have those moments in life, when we have to leave what we are comfortable with, and embrace our faith. Sometime it is a big step in our lives, but in reality no matter what stage of life we are in, moving forward everyday is a choice. Our Faith opens the door in the human spirit that allows an individual to step from one dimension of living into a higher dimension of living. Dr. Charles Allen tells of a desperate layman who called him one morning over the phone and urgently requested him to come to his office. The businessman continued, "Would you tell me what it means to be a Christian? I have got to know." We ministers are challenged by such a request, but how do we answer the question? It all begins with faith. Faith is a personal response to an inner glimpse of God. Faith is risking all of my life on what I believe about God. Once I was visiting in the home of a young adult couple. The husband asked: "When do I become a Christian when I believe or when I become perfect?" I had to answer, "Neither." You can believe and do nothing about it, and if you wait until you are perfect, you will never get there. You become a Christian when you launch out on a life pilgrimage committed to what you see of God in Jesus Christ. Faith is not being trapped in a static definition of life. It is a launching out in a new direction which you believe will unfold as you go. What do I believe in so much that I am willing to live by it? What is the basis of my decision-making? Whether it is true or false, good or bad, that is my faith. The scripture tells us they "journeyed on by stages toward the Negeb" (12:9). In that sense, we are always moving through some stage of life. Living is a continual journey. It is futile to think we can arrive at a certain place where everything will be safe and secure. We are on a pilgrimage from birth to death to eternity. We never get it all together. We never solve all the problems or remove all the dangers. Even if you arrive at a place called, "I got it made!" you soon discover it is not a permanent residence. It is only a rest stop on the road to whatever comes next. Even if we somehow attain a goal of making life safe and comfortable, it is an empty, meaningless victory. For life at its best is an on-going spiritual journey toward loving God. They say that the universe is constantly growing, that the number of stars continues to grow, may we take our place in the heavens among the stars- working to increase the children of Abraham through love and kindness. Song Rescue the Perishing UMH 591 Prayer for the Day Long before the change of name, before the first signs of new life showed the beginnings of promises fulfilled, You asked Abram to make his home among foreigners, and share the blessing that was to come. And now, O God, you ask the same faith of us: The faith to count ourselves among the least, to find our place alongside the poor and broken; The faith to trust in your mercy and your promises, and to share what we have received; The faith to wait expectantly for your reign of justice and equity, together with those who most need its gifts. Teach us to be children of Abram, sharers of the blessings we enjoy: The blessing of plenty shared with those who have need, The blessing of healing shared with those who are sick and wounded, The blessing of joy shared with those who celebrate and of tears shared with those who grieve, The blessing of friendship shared with those who are excluded, and of solidarity with those who fight injustice, The blessing of peace shared with those in conflict, and of confrontation shared with those who bring harm; And in some small way, may our faith and our sharing, help to bring your promises into being in our world. Amen. Written by John van de Laar on his Sacredise blog. Reposted at the Pilgrim WR Uniting Church website at https://pilgrimwr.unitingchurch.org.au/?p=11174. Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment The Gospels tell us story after story of Jesus as “healer.” The Matthew 9 text today tells of healing the daughter of a leader, and a woman who had bled for 12 years. He healed with a word, a touch, his own spit and dirt of the earth. In many cities around the world, we see hospitals, nursing homes, churches, and therapy offices where followers of Jesus use their gifts to bring healing today. Here, week by week, we invite you to share your gifts to help heal the hurts of the world through the work of this congregation and the work of the wider church. Time, talent, and treasure all are needed. Will you share your gifts this morning? You can do that by… [Describe several ways giving can happen – the offering plates, a note to offer help for a specific need, speaking to a leader.] We are one part of the body of Christ, still in the healing business! Prayer of Thanksgiving Blessed are you, Lord God, for the ways you inspire and encourage each of us to follow Jesus. We offer these gifts to you, grateful for the varied ways each and all are contributors to the health and well-being of the world you continue to love. Help us utilize each gift to the max, enabling Good News to be embodied here and now. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith ad Giving) Communion Invitation to Communion Do not Print just title Matthew reports (Mt. 9:10) that Jesus shared dinner one evening in a house where he sat with his disciples, tax collectors, and sinners. I wonder what a reporter might describe about us? That is, if someone could identify the activities of each and all of us, what might show up? How marvelous to have Jesus’ response: “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” ALL of us are welcome to share in this meal. Our identities, both those visible and those that are invisible, do not demand that we should be excluded. Rather, we are each welcome and invited to share in bread and juice, remembering Jesus and gaining strength To see thee more clearly, Love thee more dearly, Follow thee more nearly, day by day. (lyrics from “Day by Day,” 1971 Godspell) The table is prepared and there is a place for you. (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Sending Prayer for YouTube Like Sarah and Mary, Abraham ad Aaron, we take those steps of faith offered by our God. With Jesus, as well as foolish and fallible followers, we dare go into those unknown places where hope is absent, where grace is empty. With Paul, with Phoebe, with people we know, we are willing to follow the Spirit on adventures into justice and compassion. (Lectionary Liturgies, Thom M. Shuman) Community Time – Joys and Concerns Benediction Go now as the people of God, a family. (United Methodist Board of Discipleship) Additional Illustrations One never knows what's beginning and what's ending. Looking back we may, or we may not, be able to recall the insignificant little events -- a passing comment, a glance across a room, words on the page of a book, a thought as we stared out a window -- minor events which were the beginnings of something which shaped a significant aspect of our lives. What loving gesture, repentant prayer, word spoken or purposely not spoken, what discipline exercised, might indicate a new beginning in your spiritual life this week? Once, an elderly couple, hearts quickened by the promises of a living and gracious God, packed their belongings and set out with their family for a promised future. God works wanders! CSS Publishing, Caught In The Acts, by Gerald Whetstone It has been reported that there are some 33,000 promises in the Bible that God has made to his people. Would we not be wise to find the ones that apply to our present needs and situation and claim them for ourselves in the name of our Faithful Promiser? While it is unclear exactly what prompted Terah's initial move from Ur to Haran, there is absolutely no ambiguity about what inspired Abram's move. The Lord's directive to Abram is straightforward, both in its demand and in its promises. Genesis 12:1 does not try to sugarcoat or soft-pedal the things Abram is asked to give up. In fact, the text itemizes them. God commands Abram to leave his country, kindred and father's house - everything, in fact, that gave Abram his personal identity. In the tight-knit family/clan-oriented culture of this people, leaving family meant leaving not just personal or sentimental attachments. Abandoning the clan meant leaving one's only source of law, morality, safety, security and identity. For Abram to leave the enclave of his family was to put his future survival - both psychological and personal - very much at risk. This call from the Lord is unique in grammatical structure as well as in content. The phrase invoked by the Divine in 12:1 is lech lecha - literally an emphatic "Go, you!" There are only two instances in the entire Bible where God addresses anyone with direct personal command. The second occurrence of lech lecha, "Go, you!" is also spoken to Abraham - this time in Genesis 22:2. Although English translation almost invariably fails to reflect this parallelism, both God's initial call to Abram in Genesis 12:1 and God's shocking command to Abraham that he offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice are phrased with this lech lecha, "Go, you!" directive. This parallelism is significant. In both cases, Abram/Abraham is being asked to give up his own identity as a symbol of his commitment to the Lord Yahweh. In Genesis 12:1, Abram is asked to give up his entire past - his family, his land, all that has shaped him into his own self. In the case of Genesis 22, Abraham is asked to give up his future - the new identity he has carved out for himself but which is intimately tied to his beloved "miracle" son Isaac. God's command, "Go, you!" severs Abram/Abraham from everything human he would cling to for security and identity. In both cases the lech lecha order leaves Abram/Abraham solely with God - no past, no future, no family, no land, no people. Just God. This is not to suggest that Abram was emotionally detached from old family ties the moment he responded to God's covenant-command. The very aged Abraham orders his servant to find Isaac a wife among his own people - his old clan - not from among the Canaanites (Genesis 24:4). But after his call from God, the old loyalties, the old ways, the controlling definitions of family and culture failed to dictate Abram's life any longer. The covenant relationship God established with Abram began the process of creating a world of free but ethical behavior between God and all creation. Unlike the capricious or whimsical behavior of the gods in other ancient Near Eastern religions, the constancy of Yahweh's pledged word gave Abram and his followers a standard of security and a basis for living with enduring faith and ethical commitment. ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., Collected Works, by Leonard Sweet Abraham and his nephew Lot had prospered in the land of Canaan. They had many flocks and herds and their herdsmen had begun to quarrel among themselves, and the two owners were in danger of becoming involved also. But Abraham said to Lot, "Let there be no strife between us for we are kinsmen." Then very generously he told Lot to make his own choice of the land where he would like to go and find pasture for his cattle and sheep. How greatly is the spirit of peacefulness needed in our world today. Quarreling, fighting, and killing seem to be the order of the day. Within the past two weeks the radio reported three such horrible events right within the families where there should be peace and harmony. "Be ye kind to one another, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ has forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:31, 32; 5:1) Young Ben's family was quite active in a church that emphasizes a personal commitment to Christ. Even though he was quite young, Ben had heard more than one sermon about the importance of surrendering one's life to Christ. And so, one morning as the family sat around the kitchen table eating Cheerios, little Ben announced that he, too, was ready to give his life to Christ. He then got up from the table and went upstairs. His mother and father looked at each other and then decided to follow Ben. They thought they might find him on his knees in prayer. They didn't. Instead, they found him folding his Star Wars pajamas into his Sesame Street suitcase. They asked, "Ben, what are you doing?" He answered, "Packing." "Why?" they asked. "To go to heaven," he said. In Ben's young mind, giving one's life to Christ was no small step. It meant the willingness to leave his family and travel immediately to be with Christ. (1) As I read this story told by Ben's mom I thought of that old Testament figure, Abraham. The picture we get of Abraham is of a man with the same kind of complete and unreserved faith in God that little Ben had. Booker T. Washington was a dreamer who backed up his dreams with action. Abraham must have been a man like that as well. We don't know how God spoke to Abramfor that was his name before he accomplished his dream. Could it have been an audible voice? Perhaps. A still small voice within the heart? Maybe. Somehow Abram knew that God was telling him to leave his homeland and to move to land which God would show him. There he would found a new nationa great nationa nation that would be a blessing to the world. What a dream! What a vocation! I don't know about you but most of my dreams seem inadequate and pathetic compared to Abram's dream. I believe in airplanes, but if I do not ever fly, it is probable that I have no faith in airplanes. Only when I fly do I have faith in planes. My life is defined by my faith. The one certain controlling thing at the center of my consciousness is my faith. I live by what I believe in. The questions are: What is truth? What is reality? What is the true purpose of life? What is God really like? What is God calling me to be? All of these questions have to do with faith. Others had asked questions: but Abraham acted on his questions. This is when faith becomes real. He put his life on the line. He dedicated his life to finding this God whom he had glimpsed. "And he went out, not knowing whither he went ... for he looked for a city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." (Hebrews 11:8,10 King James) This God revealed himself to Abraham throughout the journey. And the Judeo-Christian faith was launched and became the most creative stream of life that has flowed through human history. What was there about the promise of this God, Yahweh, that attracted them? What would motivate a 75-year-old man whose family had lived in the area for generations to pack everything and move to an unknown place called Canaan? We must conclude something significant was missing in their lives. Old Testament scholar, Walter Brueggemann, suggests the family of Abraham must have felt as though they had no viable future in Mesopotamia.2 Their barrenness was more than childlessness. Their lives were empty. They were cut off from real meaning and joy. They had no foreseeable future, and cut off from God, they were without potential. They may have felt safe and comfortable in the Tigris-Euphrates River valley, but their lives were barren. To pump meaning into an empty existence they had no alternative but to step out in faith and go to Canaan. They had to leave security behind. They had to abandon the familiar. They had to trust God and step into the unknown. If they wanted a future, that was the only possibility. It was frightening and it was risky, but faith is always a scary, risky business. The story of Abraham and Sarah is also our story. If you want to get out of this life all it has to offer, you need to risk leaving what seems safe, secure and comfortable in order to trust God and step out in faith. loving people and serving the needs of others. To live any other way is to come up short. Robert Bly in his poem, "Snowbanks North Of The House,"3 uses the image of the "great sweeps of snow that stop suddenly six feet from the house." Unless we risk and keep striving on this journey, we become like the boy who never reads another book after high school graduation or like the child who loses contact with the family and quits calling home. We are cut off from the past and have no tools to open a future. For others, some event shatters the comfortable cocoon. The children are grown. They want nothing more than to settle back and enjoy life. Then one of their children dies. She was 33, but still their child. No pain surpasses that of burying one's child, no matter the age. They move through their grief in different ways and at different paces. They lose touch with one another. Before they emerge from the pain, they have lost their marriage as well as their child. For others, it can happen differently. One night at a party, the wife sees her husband across the room and realizes she loves him no more. There was no problem, no crisis. The caring simply left. They took their marriage for granted and the warm glow of love drowned in neglect. We are fellow travelers on this pilgrimage that goes from birth to death to eternity. We always move from place to place and stage to stage. It can be a frightening journey. Certainly it always involves risk. The alternative, however, is not promising. To fail to take a risk can make us like the woman who puts down her rolling pin and bakes no more. We know people like that. For reasons not fully clear, they run out of enthusiasm in mid-life. By the age of 40 he has no other work-related goal than retirement. She no longer even dreams of an exciting vacation in a faraway place or even relishes a simple task like cooking a meal. Life comes up short. They failed to grasp that life is a spiritual journey requiring risk to move from stage to stage, step to step. What a terrible thing when people give up on life. What a shock it can be to think you have it together only to discover there is always one more hill to climb, one more problem to face, one more crisis to endure. What a terrible thing to exist even for 70 or 80 or 90 years, but not to know the abundance of life. To live to the fullest means accepting that we are on a spiritual pilgrimage. We don't have the option of comfort and security. God always calls us out of the present moment to risk moving into the future. Like Abraham, we always go by stages toward the Negeb. We don't know what comes next. We only know that our security is in our relationship to this God who will not abandon us. This is the God who is in Christ Jesus calling us over the tumult of life's wild restless sea saying, "Christian, follow me." ________________________________________ 1. Gibson, Volume 2, p. 6.2. Brueggemann, p. 116.3. From The Man In The Black Coat Turns, (New York: Doubleday, 1981). CSS Publishing, Tenders of the Sacred Fire, by R. Robert Cueni It happened a couple of months ago. I was struggling with personal direction issues, but had also begun to think of the assignment of preaching on this occasion. The words of a young man named Nicholas in The Magus, a novel by John Fowles, popped into my mind. I went back into my files and retrieved it. “It poured rain the day I left. But I was filled with excitement, a strange sense of taking wing. I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew what I needed. I needed a new land, a new race, a new language; and although I couldn’t have put it into words then, I needed a new mystery.” (John Fowles, The Magus, (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 965, pg. 150) The Promises of God Are True Tom Long says that while he was at Princeton, he went to a nearby Presbyterian church that prides itself on being an academic, intellectual church. Early on, he said, he went to a family night supper and sat down next to a man, introduced himself, told him he was new, and said, "Have you been here long?" "Oh yes," the man said. "In fact I was here before this became such a scholarly church. Why I’m probably the only non-intellectual left. I haven't understood a sermon in over 25 years." "Then why do you keep coming," Tom asked? "Because every Monday night a group of us get in the church van and drive over to the youth correctional center. Sometimes we play basketball, or play games. Usually we share a Bible story. But mostly we just get to know these kids and listen to them. "I started going because Christians are supposed to do those kind of things. But now I could never stop. Sharing the love of God at that youth center has changed my life." And then he said this profound statement. "You cannot prove the promises of God in advance, but if you live them, they’re true, every one." During this Lenten season how are you living the promises of God? Where is it that God is calling you to go? Our ancestors came from a very long way for us to get where we are – but we still have a long way to go – especially in our hearts and souls. The seven promises God made to Abraham are: 1. "I will make you a great nation": God promised to take a childless man and grow his descendants into a vast, distinct nation (Israel). Christ Over All +1 2. "I will bless you": God promised to provide Abraham with divine favor, protection, and provision throughout his life. GospelBells Radio 3. "I will make your name great": God promised Abraham an enduring legacy of honor across generations and cultures. Christ Over All +1 4. "You shall be a blessing": God chose Abraham not merely to receive blessings, but to actively be a channel of divine favor to others. Christ Over All +1 5. "I will bless those who bless you": God promised His favor to anyone who supported or aligned themselves with Abraham and his descendants. Christ Over All +1 6. "I will curse those who curse you": God promised to bring judgment upon anyone who opposed or oppressed Abraham and his family. Christ Over All +1 7. "In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed": The ultimate promise, fulfilled in Jesus Christ, declaring that the lineage of Abraham would eventually bring salvation to the whole world. Christ Over All +1