The Perfect Church

Acts 2:42-47 The Perfect Church 4th Sunday of Easter Year A Prelude Welcome Call to Prayer (Based on John 10:1-10) Our Good Shepherd calls. He knows us each by our name. Our Good Shepherd leads. We are here to listen and to follow. Our Good Shepherd protects and provides. We give thanks and praise for our Good Shepherd. (Presbyterian Outlook, Terri McDowell Ott) Opening Prayer Caring God, we’re nurtured by you in every place, but today we give you thanks for this particular place where we gather. As we worship you, we’re filled with gratitude for your protective embrace. Encourage us, enable us, and then send us out with confidence, eager to do your will with our words and our deeds. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Song Precious Lord UMH 474 Children’s Sermon Title: Giving Together- Stewardship Lesson Scripture: Acts 2:42-47 Target Age Group: 3rd-5th grade Main Point: God (point upwards) uses his church (point at yourself and the kids) to spread blessings (spread arms in front of you.) Supplies: Bibles, paper and markers, giving coloring page Lesson Opening Ask: What are some ways that you care for your friends? How do your friends care for you? Ask: If you were in need, how do you think a good friend might help you? Say: In today’s story we’re going to hear about how the early church cared for each other during times of need. Pray that God would open their hearts to his word today and thank Him for the truth of our resurrected Savior! Tell the Story Ask: Have you ever experienced something so awesome that you just couldn’t wait to tell someone else about it? Say: That’s exactly what our story is about today! Our main point today is: God uses His church to spread blessings. Say: After Jesus rose from the dead and was taken up into heaven, He sent the Holy Spirit to the disciples. For the first time, God’s spirit actually dwelt within people! How amazing is that?! Say: The disciples were so excited about Jesus that they couldn’t wait to start sharing the good news. Ask: Have you ever gotten good news that you wanted to share with others? Ask: What good news did the disciples want to share? Say: They wanted to tell people about how Jesus died and rose from the dead to be the payment for sin. The disciples also wanted to share how Jesus wanted to welcome others into God’s Kingdom so they could experience a real relationship with God. That’s definitely good news! Say: In the Bible, God’s Word to us, we can read about the early church. It didn’t look much like our church building today. Let’s read from God’s Word together, and as I read, listen for the description of the early church. Read Acts 2: 42-47: “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers. Then fear came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude, praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.” Ask: What did you hear about the church? Say: The early church wasn’t about a building! It was all about a community of people who believed in and were following Jesus. The people loved God and they loved each other. Ask: What are some ways that the people took care of one another? Ask: What were some things that they did together when they gathered? Say: That reminds me of our main point: God uses His church to spread blessings. Say: God used the early church to spread blessings to others, so the church could continue to grow. The Bible tell us that more and more people were believing in Jesus everyday! God uses the church today for the same purpose! God wants His people to love Him and share His love with other people. Ask: What are some ways that we might spread blessings to other people? Say: Let’s pray together now and ask God to show us ways each day to love others and spread blessings to them! Pray Review Questions • What was the main point from our lesson? • What was our story about? • What do we learn about God from this story? • What do we learn about how God wants us to live as followers of Jesus? • How can we practice generosity this week? (Ministry to Children.com, Beth Steward) Affirmation of Faith UMH 885 Scripture Acts 2:42-47 Sermon The Perfect Church If we were to associate the church with a color, what color would it be? There are a lot of colors, but there is only one that fits the church. It is a grand color – not my favorite color, but the color that I have a lot of respect for because of what it represents. Purple! Purple is the perfect color to represent the church. Purple represents royalty. Historically it has always been very costly to produce. One of the first Christans, Lydia, was a dealer in purple dye – she became an example to many generations. It is also the color that we associate with the crucifiction of Jesus. Purple is the color that you get when you combine red and blue – two respectable colors within themselves, but when they are mixed together they make an even deeper color. Purple is the color of sacrifice, it is the color of compassion, it is the color of love for one another. On my fitbit, when it wants to show that I am calm and at peace – it shows me the color purple. All that the church represents is present in the color purple. Our scripture this morning is all about the church and what the church represents in the world. The lectionary has had us looking at Acts chapter 2 for three weeks now. These verses are so important to what the church is, that Willow Creek uses the first verse as their mission statement. The beleivers devoted themselves to the apostles teaching to the community, to their shared meals, and to their prayers. As the church we should devote ourselves, share everything but especially a meal, pray. Our scripture also says that we should be united and share everything, help those in need, meet together, eat together praise God and most importantly – demonstrate God’s goodness to every one. “ Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can. ” — John Wesley During lent, we had John wesley’s Love Feast – which I explained was a reenactment of the early church’s agape meal. They would gather together often in order to express their faith. They would share a meal with one another, but make sure that the whole community knew that they were free to attend and get something to eat if they needed it. During that meal, they would sing, pray, give testimonies of how God was working in their lives. And the most important part of the meal was collecting an offering in order to help those in need. In many ways the agape meal is still a part of our faith. There are many churches that still have a large meal after church. Many of our gatherings are around a common table. Every Sunday, we and many churches gather together in community in order to sing, pray and realize how God is working amongst us. The final verse says that as they had these fellowships meals amongst the community that more and more people came. Last week I talked about how 3000 people joined the church after listening to Peter’s Sermon. Sometimes when we read the story of the early church in the book of acts, we start to compare ourelves and we start to think that the spirit does not work in the same way today. We can never compare ourselves with what the early church did- because God works in each time and space in a different way. We start to think that perhaps we are doing something wrong – because we don’t see that kind of numbers in our church. So it was interesting when doing my research this week. That many people agree that Acts is an account of what happened in the early church. But not everyone agree’s whether it is true or not. Some people say that Luke was being idealistic – that he was giving an exaggerated view of the power of the church in order to tell a story. Some people say that Luke gives a view of all of the wonderful things that the early church did to get people to join. Everything was perfect for awhile, but eventually things fell apart. Others say that what we read in Acts did not happen at all. The book of Act is not a story of the early church, it is a story of how God used their actions to touch the lives of people. I think that it is important for us to read what the early church did, and to see the power of the church and to take account of how the Holy Spirit moves in our fellowship to make a difference in the world. It helps us to see how God is working today – Let's try an experiment. Look around you and find five things that have blue in them. Go ahead. It didn't take long did it. With a 'blue' mindset, you find that blue jumps out at you: a blue dress, a blue book, blue in the stained glass, and so on. Have you ever noticed how after you buy a new car, you start see that make and color everywhere. That's because people find what they are looking for. At times in our lives, God seems strangely absent or very distant, but the problem isn't that God has disappeared. The problem is that we simply lack a 'God' mindset. When we develop a "God" mindset through prayer, we begin to see God's work everywhere. The only church that ever matters is the church of here and now in the present. We don’t have to look back and compare ourselves with the past. But to see how God is working. Instead of looking for blue – look for purple. Where is the sacrifice, the compassion, the love today. We don’t have to be the perfect church, just strive to be the purple church. So earlier I said that the early church they devoted themselves to God, they shared meals, they prayed, they met together, they ate together, they praised God and demonstrated God’s goodness to every one. There is one more thing that they did that I left for last – They were in awe of God. Instead of talking about what the church did verse 45 says what God did to and for them – it says that a sense of awe came over everyone. God performed many wonders and signs through the apostles. When was the last time that you were in a sense of awe at what God has done in our lives? The world encourages us to look for what is not happening. To look for what we don’t see. The book of Acts encourages us to look for what is happening. It took me a while to choose my final story – but I think this one shows the meaning of what it means to demonstrate God’s goodness to everyone. It happened a few years ago at a high school football game between the Lions and the Tornadoes. The Lions belonged to a Christian school with supportive and involved parents, up-to-date equipment, and a 7-1 record. The Tornadoes were from a state juvenile correctional facility. Many of the players had convictions for drugs and assault. Many had been disowned by their families. Their equipment was old and worn. Their record was 0-8. Kris, the head coach of the Lions, decided that this game was an opportunity to show what the love of Jesus might look like. He sent letters and emails to Lion parents and fans asking for volunteers to cheer for the Tornadoes. In his mes¬sage, Kris said, “Imagine if you don’t have a home life; if everyone had given up on you. Now imagine what it would mean if hundreds of people believed in you and even cheered for you by name.” At game time, the Tornadoes took the field running through a 40-yard double line of screaming fans and cheerleaders yelling, “Go, Tornadoes!” During the game Tornado players heard hundreds of fans behind their team bench cheering for them by their first names. When both teams gathered on the fifty-yard line for the customary post-game prayer, one of the Tornadoes players asked to lead. Coach Kris still remembers it word for word: “Lord I don’t know how this happened and I don’t know how to say thank you. I would never have thought there were so many people in this world who cared about us.” As the Tornadoes got back on their bus, they were each handed a bag containing a fast food meal, a Bible, and a letter of encouragement from one of the Lion players. Before the bus left, the tornado coach hugged Coach Kris, thanked him and said, “You’ll never be able to know what your folks did for these kids tonight. Thank you.” But who won the game? Jesus of course. He has framed, changed, and challenged us to show the same compassion to others. If we just keep being faithful, remembering the lessons of the bible, and sharing and caring – God will do the rest. Amen. Song They’ll Know we are Christians by our Love TFWS 2223 Prayer of Intercession Jesus, you are the shepherd of us all. I pray that those who need you in this moment would not be found lacking. You lead them to calm waters, infusing them with new strength. You guide them on the path of justice for the sake of your name. Although they pass through difficult and dark trials caused by evil forces, may they not be afraid because you are at their side and with them. It is you who supplies all their needs, laying out a banquet for them, even when surrounded by their enemies, anointing them, continuing to fill them with your Holy Spirit so that they can know that your kindness and love follow them all the days of their lives, and in the house of Jehovah the Lord, they will live every day now and forever. Amen. Written by Cláudio Carvalhaes, Liturgies from Below: Praying with People at the Ends of the World,” (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2020), 154. Stewardship Moment Moment for Stewardship Most of us have little connection to sheep, open pastures, or sheepfolds. So rather than ask you to think about the Good Shepherd, let me as you to think about the Good Teacher. Do you know what often happens in a classroom of young students? Of course, if you’ve been, or are, an elementary teacher, you know. If you’re an elementary school child, an engaged parent, or active grand-parent, you know, as well. What’s the contrast between a classroom with a regular teacher, and that same classroom when the teacher is away? (tell a short memory of a moment you’ve experienced, or use the following description) A volunteer in a third grade classroom agreed to be the adult presence when the teacher left to pick up items at the school library. However, when the students realized their teacher was gone, the volume level of conversation escalated. Several students got up to get a drink, sharpen a pencil, retrieve something from their cubby…until the room was a loud, chaotic scene! Not a positive learning environment in that moment! So, imagine Jesus identifying the difference between a teacher and a volunteer. The volunteer finds the classroom descending into mayhem, until the teacher returns. The teacher flicks the lights, stands in the front, and declares “everyone in your seats NOW!” The teacher brings order and a return to a productive classroom. Jesus, the true teacher (the good shepherd), came so we all may receive what God intends for each one: abundant life! In gratitude for the abundant life we receive as followers of Jesus, let us offer our gifts! Prayer of Thanksgiving Holy God, you’ve provided for us with the wonders of creation, the blessing of community, and the covenant bonds of baptism. With thanksgiving, we return a portion of what we’ve received. Please accept these gifts as signs of our love and our desire to spread the Good News to all we encounter. May we put them to full use as we experience and share “Abundant Life”. AMEN Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook We stand in awe of our amazing God. We live guided by our Good Shepherd. We are commissioned for service by the breath of the Holy Spirit. We are a blessed people. Let us go and be a blessing to others. May the grace, hope, peace and love of God our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer be with us all, now and forever. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Terri McDowell Ott) Community Time Benediction We have been refreshed and restored. We have been called and guided. Let us go forth knowing who our true shepherd is, following his path, secure in the knowledge that goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our life. Amen. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Joanne Carlson Brown) Additional Illustrations The week before classes began, Harold, a high school history teacher, fell off a step ladder and injured his back. For the next three months he was forced to wear a plaster cast around the entire upper part of his body. The cast fit so well underneath his shirt and sport coat that it was not at all noticeable. On the first day of class, with the cast under his shirt, Harold discovered that he had been assigned the rowdiest and most rebellious students in the whole school. Walking confidently into his boisterous and disorderly classroom, Harold opened the windows and then busied himself at his desk until the bell rang to indicate the beginning of what looked like a very long history class. When a strong breeze started Harold’s necktie flapping in his face, Harold calmly picked up his desk stapler and stapled the unruly tie to his chest. That little demonstration got everybody’s attention. Harold had no discipline problems that semester. During the next few weeks, students began to look at Harold with new respect. Their grades improved, their attendance increased, and their number of detentions declined. Soon other teachers and even the school principal began to notice the changes in Harold’s students. One afternoon after students had gone home, some of Harold’s peers asked him how he had accomplished the impossible. Harold replied, “Well, I just did something ridiculous and humiliating that got their attention.” Then Harold described the tie stapling incident. Continuing on, Harold explained, “Well, you might have guessed that after a week or so, students began to realize that I was not a full-contact boxing champion and that I was actually wearing a cast. I was afraid that their old rowdy, disrespectful behavior would come back worse than ever. Fortunately, it did not. They had begun to appreciate the new respect from other teachers and students. Every day we challenged each other. It’s surprising, but we actually seem to like each other… most of the time anyway.” Hmmm… something ridiculous, humiliating, and impossible that changes everything. Sounds a lot like the crucified and risen Jesus, doesn’t it? On the cross Jesus framed us in the center of his love. Through his resurrection Jesus changed us from a people with little meaning and purpose into a new fellowship with mission and focus. Here is just one actual example of what that faithfulness looks like. Some of you may have heard about this. What was the secret of that magnetism? I believe it was that those early Christians saw their lives and their church, not as possessions to defend, but as gifts to be shared. Did you get that? They saw themselves and their church not as possessions to defend, but as gifts to be shared. Dr. Harrell Beck, professor of Old Testament at Boston University, tells a story that illustrates this point. He met a student one day in the halls of the university who seemed to be very sad. Dr. Beck asked the student what was wrong. “Oh, not much.” But when pressed, the student told his story. “My parents are both blind; have been since they were born. My father has had four seeing-eye dogs, the fourth one for ten years. His name was Scooter. “So?” “We lost Scooter yesterday. My father was going down town in Boston on the subway. When they came to the stop, Scooter, so anxious, wanting to help my father, didn’t wait quite long enough for the subway door to open, and his leg got caught and it ripped him from his thigh to his knee. Scooter didn’t even cry or whimper, so my father didn’t even know. They walked up the subway platform, and Scooter was bleeding profusely. A Boston socialite, you know they don’t care, she took off a white mohair sweater, wrapped it around the dog, and said “Sir, do you know you dog is bleeding profusely?” The young man continued. “A college student you know they don’t care came up and said, ‘Can I help?’ He went and got a taxi. A taxi driver you know they don’t care came rushing do a picked up the bleeding dog, gave his arm to the blind man and they went to the animal hospital. There the doctor said, “Your dog has lost so much blood, that I think he should be destroyed, but I cannot take his life without your permission.” The student said to Dr. Beck, “Do you know what it’s like to take the life of a loyal member of your family?” Then the student concluded - “That dog was more in the Spirit of Jesus Christ than I am.” You see that’s what was bothering the young man. He had seen a vision of selfless love which challenged him. That was the magnetisism of the Church of Pentecost: a people saw themselves and their church, not as possessions to defend, but as gifts to be shared; and I’ll tell you, when our church becomes that kind of church when that sort of Spirit permeates everything that we are - people will be drawn to us. We’ll keep praising God and having favor with the people who need us, who are looking for a fellowship in which they can find their life. A little boy came home after his very first Sunday School class; Mom asked who his teacher was. Little boy answered, "She was a real nice lady. I don't remember her name, but she must've been Jesus' grandma or something, because she didn't talk about anybody else all morning." (1) It's obvious this woman was a devoted teacher and a devoted Christian. The question this story and this passage asks us is: "Are we as devoted?" Do our actions and our conversation reflect our love for Jesus? Do our words and actions give away our relationship with the Savior? This passage is a living snapshot of the life of the early church. It reveals their devotion and faith. It reveals what was central to their lives and the character of their discipleship. The passage says they were devoted. But to what?