What is more Important than Christ for you?

July 27, 2025 Colossians 2: 6-19 What is more important than Christ for you? 7th Sunday after Pentecost Year C Prelude Greeting Call to Worship (in response to Psalm 85) One: In the heat of summer we gather, seeking to be restored by God to our full humanity. Many: May God revive us, so we might rejoice in each day of life. One: Today may we hear as God is still speaking peace to us and to the whole of God’s creation. Many: Today may we recognize where steadfast love and faithfulness meet. One: Even as we worship, we trust the Lord will give us what is good. Many: Together let’s celebrate God’s salvation for each and for all! (Disciples of Christ Center of Faith and Giving) Opening Prayer God of our salvation, as we gather today, renew in us a deep awareness of your desire to make a path for us. You yearn to speak peace to us and to the world you have created. In our worship, we claim your promise to forgive us and draw us back to you. So speak your steadfast love to us once more, that your glory may dwell in us and in our land. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Song I want Jesus to Walk with Me UMH 521 A Sermon for all Ages Established in the Faith By Lois Parker Edstrom The Bible teaches us to become “established in the faith” (2:7). Do you have an idea of what this means? We know that “faith” is our belief in God. It means that we accept his love. What does it mean to become established in the faith? That may be a difficult question. Let’s think about other things that become established. I think of schools. Schools don’t just happen. Someone has to have the idea to build a school. Then work needs to be done to actually build the school. The school needs to have good teachers and a plan to offer important classes and teach many different things in an interesting way. After all of this has happened and continues for a period of time, we can say that a school has been established. People continue to come to the school to learn exciting new things; the school grows and becomes better and better. To become “established in the faith” first you decide to accept God’s love. Then you must decide to study and pray and become strong in what you believe. Each day, as you give thanks for God’s love, and share that love with others, you become established in your faith. You grow and learn more and more about God. Just like a plant that grows in good soil, you become “rooted and built up” in God (2:7). You become established in your faith. Scripture quotations from the World English Bible Copyright 2012, Richard Niell Donovan Colossians 2:6-7 hand movements • Therefore as you have received – cross hands over heart • Christ Jesus the Lord – spread hands out • So walk in him – walk with hands • Rooted and built up in him – 2 opposite fist • And established in the faith – open hands with fist • Just as you were taught – bring palms together • Abounding in thankgiving – hands in the air • Walk with him – walk with hands Affirmation of faith (from The Confession of 1967) In Jesus Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself. We confess that Jesus Christ is God with us, the eternal Son of the Father, who became human and lived among us to fulfill the work of reconciliation. We believe that the risen Christ is present in the church by the power of the Holy Spirit to continue and complete his mission. This work of God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the foundation of all we say about God, ourselves, and the world. (Presbyterian Outllook) Passing of the Peace Prayer for Illumination Almighty God, your Word is our comfort in distress. It holds your prom- ises that give us life. Give us ears to hear your hope and call. In the name of Jesus Christ, your Word made flesh, we pray. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Philip Gladden) Scripture Colossians 2:6-19 Sermon What is more important than Christ for you? Quite frankly, I know a lot of people who just don’t care for Paul’s teachings. Sometimes he can be a little dated, and patriarchal in his teachings. He truly believes that everything that he says is just for males. It is Paul who says that women should be silent in church. If they have a question, then they should discuss it with their husband when they get home. He says that women are not allowed to be teachers, especially not to men. And now in this scripture passage he says that we have all been spiritually circumcised through Christ. He says that we have been circumcised not by human hands, but the whole body was removed by Christ. I am not even sure of what that means, and for half of the population that is just not a helpful metaphor. I think that Paul is really trying to help us to think of ways that we are connected to the divine in our lives. What are the things that put us in touch with Christ? Luckily he goes on to use to other important ways to connect to Christ – baptism and prayer. Baptism is a sacrament – a sacrament is something that opens the door for God’s grace to work in our lives. Now I move to a very crucial point in our understanding. Baptism is not only a means of grace for the one baptized. It is a means of grace for the whole church. Whether it is the baptism of an infant or the baptism of an adult – the entire congregation celebrating that baptism goes back to the memory and meaning of their own baptism. Examining themselves to see what degree they have kept the faith into which they were baptized, and how firmly they have clung to the cross which purchased their salvation. In a practical sense, the whole church undergoes baptism whenever some person is baptized. I plead with you – to capture that meaning of baptizing. When we baptize an infant, as we’ll do later today in the church, or when we baptize an adult or a young person – we should do, each one of us, should do within our own consciousness again what we may have experienced unconsciously when as infants we were baptized. Or we should recall when we self-consciously made our decision of faith, our commitment to Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. That means, my friends, that you are never a spectator to baptism. Never. You assist in baptism. You not only assist, you participate in baptism. We take up our baptism again, remembering who we are, named as God’s people. Dear old Martin Luther, whenever he was depressed and undergoing strong attack from the devil, or sensed his courage and spiritual strength failing, he would lay his hands on his head and say aloud to himself, I am baptized. And so do we, and our identity through baptism becomes a means of grace. I close with this. In the earliest baptismal liturgies, after the person had been baptized, he or she appeared before the bishop. The bishop embraced the new Christian then did something of great significance – the bishop dipped his finger into oil and made the sign of the cross on the Christian’s forehead. This was known as the signation, the signature. The sign of the cross upon a person’s forehead was like a brand to show ownership. As sheep are marked to show ownership, so Christians are marked by baptism to show who owns them and to what flock they belong. By baptism, Christians are branded to show who chose them and who now owns them. Remember your baptism. Maxie Dunnam, MaxieDunnam.com, by Maxie Dunnam When we are baptized, not only do we put Christ on like a garment. But we are also given a new spirit, new energy and we have access to an unlimited supply of inspiration and support to help us with any situation that we may face in life. Baptism gives a purpose in life, and a legacy to pass on to others. Prayer is another way to connect to the divine. Prayer is our way of communicating with God and listening to what God has to say. There is a bumper sticker which says ‘Life is fragile, handle with prayer”. There is evidence that many people in America heed that advice. While 42 percent of Americans state that they attend worship. More than half of all Americans say that they pray at least twice daily. 75 percent say that prayer makes a difference in their life. And nine out of ten say that they have prayed at some point in their lives. While the statistics are great. They do not reveal the attitude which some people pray, or to whom the prayers are address to. Many people who say that they pray, do not know how to pray as Jesus instructed us in the bible. Just like many of the people who drive cars everyday, still don’t know the rules of the road. When it comes to genuine prayer where are feel connected to God, we still have a long way to go. Paul wants us to think of the ways that we connect to the divine. There is prayer, baptism, there is worship, or mission service, or fellowship, forgiveness, love, grace. Anything that helps us to grow in faith – helps us to connect. This part of the passage above the white space is about matters of the heart. These two verses are about our relationship to the risen Christ. They are about building our faith, a sense of trust that comes from within us. A recovering drug addict, writing to her pastor about the faith she and her husband — also an addict — had found, described faith in terms as eloquent as we can find anywhere. For us, faith is not a warm, comforting, fuzzy, feel good. Faith was gritting our teeth, walking through the agony and helplessness of addiction recovery, and continuing to put one foot in front of the other, doing what we were told was the right thing to do, and trusting, praying, and hoping that God was in control, that our tortuous journey would end, and that on the other side was a life worth living. Faith happens when we are at our most desperate moments, and we hold our heads up, doing what we hear God tell us in our hearts, and trusting that he will take care of us. Faith is not smarmy and glowing with happiness. It is an action, not words. It is a very small space we go to within ourselves, among all the bad emotions and feelings and self-loathing — a place that we cling to, while listening to that small voice, the voice of a loving, forgiving power greater than ourselves, outside of ourselves, that will, eventually heal the bad, walk us through the emotions, help us feel better about who we are and what we stand for.1 I was watching a news story this week about two nuns who has started a ministry to help migrants in Chicago to get established. One of the nuns passed away and the other wanted to give a tribute to her. She talked about how committed she was to the ministry. She talked about her faith in Christ. She said that the last words that she has said to the nun as she was dying to hospice – when you get to heaven and you are face to face with Christ. Pray for us, pray for the ministry and whatever you do, don’t take no for an answer. Pray fervently and tell God, that God has no choice but to bless us. Tell God that there are some faithful people who need you down here on earth – and tell God that God has to help him. I was impressed, because it taught me that is what prayer, baptism and faith is all about – not taking no for an answer- trusting in God in all circumstances. What are the ways that you connect to the divine in your life? What are your prayers? Where is your faith. Paul really didn’t mean any harm in his teaching. He wanted us to just get in touch with our faith and the ways in which we know that God is there. He wanted to make sure that when we go through life, that we are deeply rooted in christ when challenges come. Life is not easy and if we are not careful we can easily become discouraged. We can easily wonder if God really cares. Paul reminds us that Christ was there, granting us grace way before our problems came along. And that we should not only remember our faith, we should put Christ first in everything that we do. A recent pew research center study projects that the number of Christians in the US might decrease from 64 percent to between 54 and 35 percent by 2070. At the same time, the number of religious nones is expected to rise from the current 30 percent to somewhere between 34 and 52 percent. Christianity faces a lot of challenges. Faith is no longer becoming important in our society. There are many reasons why the church is no longer relevant. – the secular world is taking over, politics is creeping into the church, people are distrustful of clergy and others, church scandals are rampant, people are disillusioned with religion. The reasons mount up each day. But Paul’s message to us, there is nothing new under the sun, those things were happening back then. Paul tells us that the greatest way to stop that – is to stay established in the faith. Our children’s sermon tells us – to live in Christ Jesus the Lord in the same way as you received him. Be rooted and built up in him, be established in the daith and overflow with thanksgiving as you were taught. Verses 6 and 7 tell us to live in the faith that we were taught. Verse 8 tells us to not get caught up into our own beliefs. When we get discouraged, then we start to accept that is just how life is and there is nothing that we can do about it. We start to believe the statistics. And we forget not to take no for an answer. Our own faith starts to have to compete with other things going on in the world. How can we get others to come back to church? First, we have to stay rooted in our on faith. Before God can make a difference in someone elses life, God has to be the center of our life. Prayer, fellowship, study, worship, social justice, and helping others are wonderful as long as they don’t become a means to an end. Everything that we do has to be in the name of Jesus Christ. We do it not because it is important, but because Christ calls us. Christ is the center of everything that we do. Christ is the anchor of our lives. A few months ago I received a letter which illustrates this in a poignant way. Let me say something parenthetically before I share the letter. This past week, dear Dr. Grant, founding pastor of this church, our Minister Emeritus, said to me with tear mists of joy in his eyes -- "A revival is taking place in this church." I believe that friends. Persons' lives are being changed. Persons are seeking to bring their lives into harmony with God's Will -- they are changing their life styles. Literally, miracles are taking place in our midst -- This letter witnesses to one of them: "Dear Maxie: I am writing you this to let you know I heard your sermon on "With or Without Miracles" on Christmas. God has done a great miracle for me everyday. This past fall I attempted suicide. I thought life was not worth living and that I had no purpose for being alive. But since then I have had people come forward and tell me how I have shown them to go on when things get tough. They have told me I have courage that many people don't have. And these people knew nothing about my attempted suicide. And God has given me friends that each day watch out for me. I still don't know why I am here but I know that God has a plan and a purpose for me or else He would have let me die this past fall. He would also not have sent friends to me that told me they love me and that I make a difference in their lives. So I thank God for working a miracle in my life by saving it and for giving me the miracle of friends. So God does exist and He does come through when you need Him the most. I had rather not leave my name, but I am a Christian that is fighting for life with the help of God. The past is dead, the future is alive -- and I praise God!" So, to live a life hidden with Christ in God, we are united in Christ's death. I like that In Christ, the past is dead, the future is alive and I praise God! So it is with us: cross-centered purpose gives us meaning. Viktor Frankl was a psychiatrist who spent two years in a Nazi concentration camp. Out of that experience he discovered and developed logotherapy, a therapeutic approach to healing and health, by discovering meaning. Meaning, he says, comes from three sources: love, suffering, and doing a deed. All of these are gathered upin the cross and in the cross-life to which we are called. No wonder Paul could sing, "I rejoice in my sufferings" (v. 24). Because of the love he had received from the cross, his purpose was to love, even if that called for suffering. The cross was the driving force of his life.His burning desire was for all persons to experience the love of Jesus Christ which he had experienced. The cross gave him meaning for it gave him the cause for which to live and die. Finally I want to leave you with this poem to ponder You remember that old poem: Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today; He has no feet but our feet to lead men in His way; He has no lips but our lips to tell men how He died; He has no help but our help to bring them to His side. What Christ has been and done for us, we must be and do for others. Let everything that we do be in the spirit of Christ. Let’s Pray……. Song It is Well with my Soul UMH 377 PRAYER OF INTERCESSION Just God, we sense your anger at the injustice that thrives in the world. We share your grief at the discord that rages among your children, the rejection of those who bear your image, and the oppression of those you know by name. We turn toward you for strength and guidance to turn away from the norms of this world, the lure of self-righteousness, and the appeal of comfort over justice. Embolden us to believe that another world is possible and empower us to participate in its creation. Amen. Written by Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay, Copyright 2022 Faith INFO Ministry Team. https://www.ucc.org/worship-way/after-pentecost-c-july-24-2022/. Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment What are the ways that we connect to the divine power in our lives, what the are ways that we can feel close to God. We can care about the things that God cares about, we can follow the teachings of Jesus, we can put God first, we can worship God with all that we are. We now come to our time of giving, and we have a chance to do all of those things. We are in the misdt of summer and our stewardhip drive. There are many avenues to give to God and to make a difference. We can give what we have – and know that God’s blessings and grace makes the most of it. Jesus often makes comparisons from the lesser to the greater. In Luke 11, we hear the comparison from the way parents give to children to the ways God will give the Spirit to all who ask. Think of the best parents you know… (Your own parents? Perhaps your children as parents or others right in our midst?) Now, let’s make the comparison. As marvelous as THESE parents are as they provide for their children, how much more will God provide for those who seek God’s favor? Because God loves and provides for us, we’re invited to share that love, translating abundant agape into our morning tithes and gifts. See? These symbols of coin, check and electronic deposits come from the labor of our hearts, hands and minds. When collected, they allow us to care not only for our church community, but for others who yearn to share in God’s abundance. With joy-filled spirits, let us share in our morning offering. Prayer of Thanksgiving God, thank you for our daily bread, and for so much more which you provide. Thank you for this opportunity to return a portion of what we’ve been given. Open our eyes to see your love made visible. Open our spirits to respond in love to the needs which surround us.9 May we clearly see each sister and brother in Christ and respond to each one in love, remembering all are made in your image. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Sharefest Closing Prayer for Facebook Go, into the world Proclaiming the many names of the Sovereign God Living the lessons of Good News Sharing in support and solidarity Opening doors And giving good gifts (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Cheryl Lindsay) Community Time Joys and Concerns The results of the vote Pam’s brother. Benediction Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Philip Gladden) Additional Illustrations Rehearse what I’ve said. To be alive in Christ means: 1) not only is the presence of God in Jesus Christ only to be experienced on occasion, the indwelling Christ is to become the shaping power of our lives; 2) what Christ has been and done for us, we must be and do for others; and 3) the working power of God in the past is to be brought into the present. Someone wrote of Mother Theresa: “She gave her life first to Christ then through Christ to her neighbors. That was the end of her biography and the beginning of her life.” So I’m going to continue my ritual, “Maxie, the secret is simply this, Christ in you, yes, Christ in you, bringing with Him the hope of all the glorious things to come.” Maybe -- just maybe -- my biography will end and my life will begin -- as I become more alive in Christ. MaxieDunnam.com, MaxieDunnam.com, by Maxie Dunnam I heard a cute story about one pastor who told his congregation that there were 700 different sins listed in the Bible. That afternoon he received three dozen requests for the list. Everybody wanted to know what they were missing out on! Paul tries to turn this whole thing around and calls the people to forget the notion of rules and to simply begin living in relationship to Christ. Paul tells them that rules have no ability to change the heart, but a life that looks to Christ will soon turn around and reflect his glory. Think about a person in your life that you care deeply about. Haven't you made it a point to learn all about them? Don't you want to spend time with them, listening to what they have to say? It is natural to want to be with the one you love and know all about them. So it is with Christ. When you stop wanting to know all there is to know, you better watch out. It is a sign that the embers of love are beginning to burn out. Paul reminds us that if we want to find out what pleases God, then we need to be sitting at his feet. In his book, The Gospel For The Person Who Has Everything, William Willimon tells of a young friend, age 4, who was asked on the occasion of his 5th birthday what kind of party he wanted to have. I want everybody to be a king and queen, Clayton said. So, he and his mother went to work, fashioning a score of silver crowns – cardboard and aluminum foil, purple robes – crepe paper, and royal scepters – sticks painted gold. On the day of the party, as the guests arrived, they were each given a royal crown, a robe, and a scepter, and were thus dressed as a king or a queen. It was a royal site - all kings and queens. Everyone had a wonderful time. They ate ice cream and cake, they had a procession up to the top of the block and back again, and then when it was all over, everyone knew it had been a royal, wonderful day. That evening as Clayton’s mom tucked him into bed, she asked him what he wished for when he blew the candles out on the birthday cake. I wished, he said, that everyone, everyone in the whole wide world could be a king and a queen. Not just on my birthday, but everyday. My friend Willimon closed this story by saying, well Clayton, baptism shows that something very much like that happened one day at a place called Calvary. We who were nobodies became somebodies. Those who were no people became God’s people. The wretched of the earth became royalty. Two or three years ago, I saw the death door at St. Peter’s Cathedral in Rome. Some of you may remember that the great Pope John XXIII, bless his memory, commissioned the eminent artist, Geacoma Manza, to sculpt a new door for that great basilica, and the artist depicted on that door a series of death scenes. There was death by falling, death in war, the martyred death of Peter upside down on the cross, and others. Death by drowning is there, death by water. And I reasoned as I looked at that door, that this was behind the sculptor’s theme – we enter the church by death. Baptism – our acted entrance into the church is by water. So death by water is a challenging and authentic understanding of baptism. The early church even built its baptismal fonts in the shape of tombs to make that meaning graphic. So we cannot underscore the meaning of baptism too much if we’re going to save ourselves from approaching casually that event in a person’s life which is so crucial. Being buried with Christ in baptism – having the sign and the seal of our salvation placed upon us with water and the laying on of hands. Haven't we all known Christians with whom we disagreed, but whose trust, thankfulness and joy we admired? Haven't we known people who faced grief, or disability, or some setback in life with courage and serenity? Didn't they inspire us, even if we didn't see eye to eye with them on every point of biblical interpretation or theology? A pastor friend once told me of a woman named Betty who came to every Bible study the church offered. She and the pastor frequently disagreed on interpretation, but my friend said that her faith was moving. She had arthritis, causing pain with every step she took. Nevertheless, her face glowed with a deep joy that came from within. She taught her pastor that verses 6-7 unite all Christians. Now, if we leap across the chasm between verse 7 and verse 8, we are in different territory. We are not so much in the realm of our hearts as in the realm of our heads, our intellect. We are not talking so much about the sense of trust, joy, and faith that we feel deep in our souls as we are about what we think in our heads. What we think in our heads is not totally unrelated to what we believe in our hearts. If we believe in an implacably angry God with our heads, we may feel the wrong kind of fear of God in our hearts. We will not have the fear of God that is healthy respect, but the fear that sees God as unapproachable. Nevertheless, two Christians can have different belief systems and still have deep faith in their hearts. Here, Colossians urges us to be careful about what we think. When we probe to the core depths of our being, when we get down to the base level of our identity, we discover four absolute needs, apart from physical survival needs. There are burning emotional/spiritual/relational needs which, when unmet, leave us less than whole, often crippled, sometimes sick to the point of being cut off from reality. The needs are common to all persons. Even though we may not use the same words to label them, the reality is the same. The needs are 1. To receive forgiveness 2. To love and be loved 3. To experience community 4. To have a cause for which to live and die. Other descriptions of our needs -- acceptance, affirmation, security and freedom, purposefulness and self-esteem -- are rooted in these four. The Cross meets us at the point of these deepest needs. Let's explore these. One day, another girl at the orphanage came to the superintendent to report that the girl was sending notes to someone on the outside. The superintendent thanked the child for the information, and asked her to come and tell them if it ever happened again. Two days later, the girl returned. She reported that a note had been place in the crook of a tree just outside the door of the building. Hastily, the superintendent called one of the social workers, and they raced outside to the tree. She grabbed the note and tore open the envelope. As she read the contents of it, her face fell and her shoulders sagged. She passed the note to the social worker. It read, simply: "To whoever finds this, I love you." (Bauknight, "Love is Linkage!", September 21, 1986). Dr. Parker Palmer, one of the creative leaders in spiritual formation and Christian community, told a group of YMCA workers "about a good friend of his who labors in an especially difficult assignment at the New York Catholic Worker House. One day Dr. Palmer said to her, "All the facts that I can gather and all the feelings I have feel me this work you're trying to do is just impossible. There's no success in it. There's no gratification. The tide keeps rolling over you. Why do you keep doing it?" Looking earnestly at him, the woman answered, "Parker, the thing you don't understand is this: Just because a thing is impossible -- that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it." (Discovery YMCA, July/August 1985, p. 15). The Cross calls us to take up our cross, to pray and live the petition "Thy Kingdom come". This meets our need for a cause for which to live and die. Four of our deepest needs: for forgivenessfor lovefor communityfor a cause for which to live and die. ...all met in the Cross.Do you see it?Do you feel it? Try to picture it, again with Charles Wesley: Behold him, all ye that pass by,The bleeding Prince of life and peace!Come, sinners, see your Savior die,And say, was ever grief like his?Come, feel with me his blood applied:My Lord, my Love, is crucified.("O Love Divine, What Hast Thou Done") And how will we respond: Hopefully, with Isaac Watts, in total commitment: Were the whole realm of nature mine,That were an offering far too small;Love so amazing, so divine,Demands my soul, my life, my all.("When I Survey the Wondrous Cross") Maxie Dunnam, by Maxie Dunnam Mickey Rooney, the famous American actor, made witness to this in a television interview. Rooney has been crass, crude, often drunk in such appearances, usually angry and insulting. But the interviewer knew something had happened, and questioned Rooney about his recent past when he hit bottom emotionally and financially. Rooney calmly answered, "I don't mean to sound ecclesiastical, but recently I gave my life to the Lord Jesus Christ and now my past is gone." I heard a story recently about a boy who was walking home with his mother from church one Sunday. He had obviously listened to the preacher because he said to his mother, "Mommy, the preacher's sermon this morning confused me. Can I ask you something?" "Sure thing," replied the mother. "Well, he said that God is bigger than we are. Is that true?" "Yes, that is true," the mother replied. "And he also said that God lives in us. Is that true, Mommy?" Again the mother replied, "Yes". "Well," the boy continued. "If God is bigger than us, and if God lives inside us, shouldn't He show through?"

Forgiveness and Beyond

September 17, 2023 Romans 14:1-12 Forgiveness and Beyond 16th Sunday After Pentecost Prelude Welcome Call to Worship (Inspired by Psalm 103) One: Bless the Holy One with our whole selves. Praise the Maker of our being! Many: Remember the mighty deeds and the good works of our God. One: The Sovereign One endows us with many gifts and equips us to do good work. Many: Remember the mighty deeds and the good works of our God. One: Holy Love entered the world without condemnation but with grace and forgiveness, mercy and compassion, redemption and restoration. Many: Hallelujah! We give thanks for the mighty deeds and the good works of our God! (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Invocation God who calls, it is you who gathers us together and forms us as a community. It is you who makes us uniquely individual and who designs us for companionship. Let us journey together this day in your presence reminded of our interdependence with one another. May we see your glory and be inspired to demonstrate your goodness and care through our lives. Amen. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Song. There is a Wideness in God’s Mercy. UMH 121 Children’s Sermon Romans 14:1-12 Choices Made in Peace By Lois Parker Edstrom Suggestions: Play tug-a-war if appropriate to your setting and situation. Teenagers playing tug of war Tug of war is a game that was first played hundred of years ago and it is still a sport enjoyed in many parts of the world. At one time a tug of war competition was part of the Olympic Games. It is a good game to play at a family reunion or other events where several people are gathered together. You need a long, strong rope. Then the people divide into two teams with the same number of people on each team. A line is marked on the ground and the purpose of the game is to pull the opposite team over that line. The two teams move back and forth as each team pulls in opposite directions. The team that causes the other team to step over the line is the winner. Playing tug of war reminds me of what it is like when two people argue. In an argument each person thinks they are right and they try to get the other person to come over to their side and agree with them. Arguments often happen when we are angry. Perhaps someone did or said something hurtful. The argument goes back and forth and, now and then, cruel things are said to one another. The Bible asks us this question: “…why do you judge your brother?” (14:10) and reminds us that “each one of us will give account of himself to God” (14:12). When you are angry it may be helpful to remember that we are all accountable to God. Instead of fretting about the actions of another person, we should try to make good choices for our own behavior. Choices made in love and peace honor God. Scripture quotations from the World English Bible Copyright 2013, Richard Niell Donovan Prayer for Transformation and New Life God of grace, we need your strength in our weakness. We confess that we can be judgmental and hyper-critical of our neighbors, family, and friends. We project our own shortcomings on others in order to deflect attention from our mistakes. We withhold and condition forgiveness, mercy, and grace from those who wrong us at the same time we seek it for the wrongs we have done. Even still, we struggle to forgive ourselves. You have shown us the better way. Help us to follow your path–receiving and extending forgiveness in a world in need of an infusion of grace for transformation. In your mercy, O God, hear our prayer, and let us forgive as you forgive. Amen. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Words of Grace Beloved, grace has always been part of God’s relationship with humanity. God does not want you condemned or held captive by unresolved anger leading to bitterness. Rather, Creator desires you to be released as both forgiven and forgiver so that all may live a life that is whole, free, and flourishing. (United Church of Christ Worship Ways, Rev. Dr. Cheryl Lindsay) Passing the Peace Prayer for Illumination Open us, Eternal God, to you Word read and proclaimed. Help us not to turn from your truth or avoid your message. Help us to be receptive to the wisdom that you offer. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Teri McDowell Ott) Scripture Romans 14:1-12 Sermon Forgiveness and Beyond As we come to understand nutrition, our diets have evolved. As a matter of fact, we have lots of healthy choices for a diet. Is there a diet that is healthiest for us? Which diet brings us closer to God? Does God prefer meat eaters or vegetarians? Romans 14 starts out by saying that being a vegetarian is a weaker choice, and eating meat is a stronger choice. Really? Well when Paul talks about eating meat that has been blessed at the temple, he is not concerned about diets, but about how we like to judge the choices of one another and them separate ourselves accordingly. Sometimes it is hard for us to accept the choices of people that we do not understand. All summer, as we read through Matthew, Jesus has been preparing us for ministry to new people. Jesus led the disciples across the lake, out of their comfort zones to meet new people and to change their lives. What the disciples did not expect was the fact that the experience would change them just as much. As they got new people to take on their faith, they started to wonder if God puts us all under the same standard. Do you have to become a Jew before you become a Christian? With new people, came a whole new standard for the church. A new understanding of what grace really means. All throughout the history of our church, we have had to find a new standard of grace. Do we force new people to accept new rules? When we bring new people in, do we mold them into who we are, or do we let them be? If we are a culture where the women wear dresses to church, is it okay for young girls to come to church in shorts? And when they do come to church and don’t quite understand the rules, how do we treat them? With judgement or with grace? A certain pastor was visiting one of his parishioners, and as they were talking the conversation began to lag. The lady of the house, wanting to pick up the conversation, pointed out her window to her neighbor's back yard where the wash was hanging on the line. She said: "See that lady next door and the wash she hangs out, see how dirty it is, she never hangs out a clean wash." The pastor felt somewhat uncomfortable and tried to change the subject and quickly drew the visit to a close. As he was departing from the house the lady of the house walked out on the front porch with him and again the wash next door was clearly visible to both of them. They both realized at the same time that this wash was sparkling white, just as white as any wash could ever be. The truth began to dawn on them that it wasn't the neighbor's wash which was dirty, rather it was the window through which they had viewed the wash. (4) How clean are your windows? Where Do You Live? Which house do you live in? Judgment House or Grace and Mercy House? You and I have been challenged to deviate from the world, to be abnormal. We've received a prescription for holiness and we've put on Christ. And now we are called and challenged to live to the Lord. But we can't do it by ourselves and we sure can't do it in Judgment House. We can only do it in Grace and Mercy House. How clean are your windows? Where Do You Live? Our lesson for today – is how to give people grace and not judgement. It is about making sure that the church is a house of grace and not a house of judement. God’s grace not only welcomes new people with new ways, but it also reminds us to find joy in ourselves and what we do to serve God. Welcoming Grace In our experience "no vacancy" happens. We sometimes hear the words "no room," but we also hear a different voice. "Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be open to you" (Matthew 7:7). Lewis Smedes writes: "Why do we call grace amazing? Grace is amazing because it works against the grain of common sense. Hard-nosed common sense will tell you that you are too wrong to meet the standards of a Holy God; pardoning grace tells you that it's all right in spite of so much in you that is wrong. Realistic common sense tells you that you are too weak, too harassed, too human to change for the better; grace gives you power to send you on the way to being a better person."2 We can welcome him because he first welcomed us. This past summer a group of radio control model airplane pilots had a public demonstration of their skills: flying aerial acrobatics hundreds of feet in the air, explaining the techniques of flying, and building the model planes. The highlight of the day was when the children in the crowd were invited to become "pilots." With an instructor by their side and with special dual controls, the children flew the planes high into the sky -- two mistakes high. This implied that there was little a child could do to place a plane in irretrievable danger (beyond an expert instructor's ability to recover) if it was high enough. And it was almost a perfect rule that day, until a child and an instructor crashed the club plane, the one which had been purchased by club members so that young people could learn the sport without incurring at first the expense of a plane. Club members didn't seem to mind much. After all this is what the club plane is for: to bring along another generation in the sport they love. Risking what you have to share your joy. A welcoming grace which creates free space, welcoming space for those who will come. Thus, welcoming grace is the hospitality of which Henri Nouwen speaks when he writes, "Hospitality, therefore, means primarily the creation of a free space where the stranger can enter and become a friend...."3 And Paul instructs: Welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you (15:7). So two travelers offered lodging to the stranger who had joined them on the road to Emmaus, and he made himself known to them as their Savior and Lord in the breaking of bread (Luke 24:13-35). When "No Vacancy" or "No Room" is converted into welcoming, hospitable grace, "fearful strangers can become guests revealing to their hosts the promise they are carrying with them." Welcoming grace diminishes the distinction between guest and host and allows sharing of gifts precious.4 I like that story because it turns the table on judgement and shows us that grace is possible to new people. When reaching out to people in some way we have to accept them for who they are and love them as God would love them. It is beyond love the person and hate the sin. But bringing out the God in them, and seeing God in a whole new way. Grace Chooses Love Storyteller Bill Harley tells a simple story about a children's T-ball game he witnessed a few years ago. On one of the T-ball teams was a young girl named Tracy. Tracy ran with a limp. She couldn't hit the ball to save her life. But everyone cheered for her anyway. Finally, in her team's last game, Tracy did the unthinkable. She hit the ball. Tracy's coach began hollering for her to run the bases. She landed on first base, only to be told to keep on running. She rounded second base, and the fans stood to their feet and cheered. With one voice, they were all urging Tracy to head home. But as she neared third base, Tracy noticed an old dog that had loped onto the field. It was sitting near the baseline between third plate and home. Moments away from her first home run, Tracy made a momentous decision. She knelt in the dirt and hugged the dog. Tracy never made it to home plate. But the fans cheered for her anyway. Tracy had made her priorities clear. Love was more important than winning. And the fans cheered for her anyway. That is Grace. Those fans were living a life of Grace before the entire world In Romans, Paul is telling us that we are all different. That being a disciple means learning to accept that everybody is different. We have to accept those differences in love. When we lead people to Christ, that we let grace lead the way. And that each of us in on our own faith journey, where we have to stand before God on our own. We judge ourselves and love others. In the matter of choice, we let others chose. In the matter of faith, we all come together. In practice we are many, in discipleship we are one. I love to use the words of Romans 14 a lot in ministry – every knee shall now every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord. Vegetarians and meat eaters can worship the same God and sit alongside one another. The Joy Will Be Our Own Frederick Buechner has often said that as much as anything, one of the things that finally made him turn his life over to God was something that the preacher George Buttrick said in a sermon one Sunday. Buttrick said that every time Jesus is crowned as Lord and King within someone's heart, this wonderful moment takes place amid "confessions, and tears, and great laughter." Buechner says that it was the joy of that last item, the "great laughter" that caused something within him to awaken and led him to want to have this holy hilarity in his own heart. Such holy mirth and deep delight should be true of everyone who receives the gift of grace. Barbara Brown Taylor imagines that in the parable, when the farmer improbably hands the one-hour pickers a whole day's wage, there must have been hoots of laughter and some "ain't we the lucky ones" good-natured back-slapping going on. But on that great and final day when Christ shall come again and bring us to himself, we should pray not only that we will indeed discover that the grace of Jesus is more than enough to get us into the kingdom. We should also pray thatwhenwe discover that eternally joyful fact, the great laughter and joyful back-slapping will be our very own. This is the last lesson that we will learn from Romans this year. Romans tells us all that we need to know about believing in Christ, about following Christ and about being together in Christian fellowship. The closer we get to following Christ, the more obvious is becomes that we are not the same. It is impossible for any of us to love together in harmony about anything – we can never agree about anything. We will never accept the same diet, or follow the same rules, or get anything done. Unless we honor the power of grace. It is God’s grace the brings us together as the church, it is God’s grace that holds us together. It is God’s grace that works in each of our lives that keeps us devoted to Christ. One day each of us will have to stand before God and give an account of our life and of our faith. Paul’s message to us – work on our faith, create a space where others are free to do the same. Each of us lives a life where we delight in God, so that God can delight in us. The holiness of laughter reminds me of a story about C. S. Lewis. A group of theologians and scholars approached the great Christian thinker and asked him, “What is the most important theological discovery you have ever made?” Lewis smiled and responded, “I exist to enjoy God’s enjoyment of me.” I came across a wonderful quote from Nadine Stair, an 85-year-old woman from the hill country of Kentucky: “If I had to live my life over again, I would dare to make more mistakes next time. I would relax. I would be sillier… I’ve been one of those persons who never went anyplace without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a raincoat, and a parachute. If I had to do it over again, I’d travel lighter.” What would you say if you had to finish this sentence: “If I had to live my life over, I would ...”? Don’t wait to experience God’s joy in your life. Do it now! Learn to play again. Enjoy God’s enjoyment of you. Remember Paul’s words: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13 NRSV). Amen! CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lose the Cape: Cycle A sermons based on second lessons for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany, by Charley Reeb The real question is not even what is a “guilty pleasure” or what is a “sacred pleasure.” The real test of discipleship is whether we use our lives, our hands, our heads and our heart “to bring God pleasure,” to “honor the Lord,” to “glorify God and enjoy God forever” (as the Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it). Does your life bring the God who is just pleasure? Does your life bring the God who is love pleasure? Does your life bring the God who created a world overflowing with “milk and honey” pleasure? Enjoying the tastes, colors, sights, smells, textures, sounds of all that caused the Creator to proclaim “it is good” — thatis what “honors” the Lord and “glorifies” God. Too many times we get sucked into piling up “pleasantries” instead of enjoying sacred pleasures. Every lesson that. Jesus teaches us in intended to give us a sense of hope to move forward You may know that the great comedian W.C. Fields died with money in hundreds of bank accounts which were never located. Wherever he went he opened a bank account. Often he used fictitious names and kept no records whatsoever of his deposits. At one point, Fields told a friend in confidence that he had over seven hundred accounts and knew exactly where they were. Unfortunately he died without telling anyone else the locations of those accounts or the name in which they were held. He had one account in Berlin that alone was said to have $50,000 in it. During the bombing of that city, however, all traces of that bank and the money were destroyed. Fields attributed this strange behavior of storing money in all these cities to a dream he had repeatedly in which he saw himself stranded in a strange city without money or friends. The dread which this dream produced in Fields’ heart caused him to open these strange, anonymous accounts in every city in which he played. (1) Still, we all want to belong to someone. If we feel we have no one to love us, no one who cares, no one to whom we belong, life becomes drab and meaningless. Mary Gordon, in her novel, Final Payments, introduces a character who represents humanity in microcosm in this need. Mrs Riesart is a patient in a nursing home where she receives generous, personal care, yet she is a deeply unhappy old woman. One of the other characters in the novel, Isabel, asks her why she is so unhappy. Mrs. Riesart replies, "I’m alone I’m old and I’m dying. There’s no one who loves me enough ... What I want is to be with someone who wants me. Wants me. Or else I want to die. I don’t seem to be dying fast enough." St. Paul speaks boldly from the pages of the New Testament to Mrs. Riesart and to all the rest of us lonely people to remind us that Christians belong first of all to Jesus Christ The key to joy within ourselves and within our community is when we find our life inside of Christ. Romans 14 says that we are never alone, our lives do not belong to us alone, we belong to Christ. When we live, we live in Christ and when we die we die in Christ. Romans 8 says that there is nothing that can separate us from Christ. Not even the judgement of another person. When I was at a craft fair yesterday, I saw a cute baby onesie that said I still live with my parents. That is true – when we are children, we belong to our parents, we are a part of a family unity that takes care of us. When we get older, we belong to our spouses – they are the ones to take care of us. When we get sick, it is the doctor who has the responsibility of taking care of us, when we die the funeral director has a legal responsibility to take care of us, and during the funeral – the pastor says a prayer and gives us back to God. In life and in death, there is someone who has the responsibility to care for us and to be with us. But all along the way, Jesus has been with us. Jesus cares for us, Jesus gives us strength Jesus gives us grace, and our hope is in Jesus. Jesus prepares a place for us in life and in death. As we stand here today – it is only through the grace of God that we stand together. Romans 14:13 says Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another, Instead make up your mind not to put any stumbling block in the way of a sister of brother. Amen. Song Freely, Freely UMH 389 Prayer Loving and merciful God, we come before you this day, fresh from a week in which we have been challenged. Some of the challenges have caused us worry and strife; other challenges bring to us clear directions for our lives. In all of this, you are with us bringing healing and peace for our lives. We offer to you names of those who are ill, who mourn, who feel lost and alienated, wondering if anyone cares about them. [Congregation may offer name of someone in the above categories for prayer]. Hear our prayers, O Lord. Bring your healing mercies to all these people we have named with our hearts and our voices. We also bring to you, loving God, names and situations of great joy and celebration, for you have been in our midst during these times as well as during the difficult times. [Congregation may offer name of someone in the above categories for prayer]. Hear our praises, O God. Bring your loving presence to all these people we have named with our hearts and our voices. For it is in confidence of your abiding love and mercy that we offer this prayer. AMEN. (United Methodist Worship Ways, Nancy Townley) Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment Invitation to Generosity Romans 14:7 tells us, “We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves.” We are in covenant with God and joined in community with one another. Let us give of our resources as those who live for the good and well-being of all. Prayer of Thanksgiving Holy God, it would have been enough if you had just breathed into each one of us and given us life. It would have been enough if you had sent Jesus to show us the Way of Love. It would have been enough if you had poured blessings into our lives and challenged us to be a blessing. And yet…you continue to lead us into lives of gratitude and service. Thank you for this opportunity to share a portion of what we’ve received. Help us be spurred on to greater acts of giving and forgiving. AMEN. (Disciples of Christ, Center for Faith and Giving). Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook Go in peace into God’s world to serve and help others. Go in confidence of God’s presence with you. Go into this world with messages of hope and reconciliation. Go in love. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Community Time Benediction God does not abandon us. God’s love is steadfast. May this love inspire all our relationships as we leave this house of worship, knit together in God’s love, bound as a community of Christ, guided by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Teri McDowell Ott) Additional Illustrations Sacred Pleasures by Leonard Sweet – Romans 14:1-12 There is an old Hasidic tradition. You may have heard of it before. A large drop of honey is placed on the first page of the Torah the first time a Jewish child opens the Bible to read and study it. The child is instructed to lick the honey from the page, forever imprinting the young scholar with the memory-paste of pleasure, the conviction that the study of God’s “Word” is sweet. It is what we are calling a “sacred pleasure.” “Pleasure” in life is not something most of us immediately connect to the “sacred.” Instead the word “pleasure” is more typically coupled with another word, “guilty,” as in “guilty pleasure” or even “naughty pleasures.” It’s almost as if we think that to find some activity enjoyable, or pleasurable, means it must also be suspect. Here’s my proof: an extra rich, extra dense chocolate torte. What is it usually dubbed? “Chocolate decadence.” And of course there is the old standby favorite of “Devil’s food.” AOL just came out with a list they dubbed “Ten Guilty Pleasure Movies” — meaning movies you know you shouldn’t like, but you do anyway! (Maybe like “The Blob,” or some really weepy “chick flick,” or anything with Steven Segal). What are your “guilty pleasures?” Anyone? [This is a opening for you to get interactive here if you wish.] Let me tell you one of mine . . . . My “therapists” are named Bill and Gloria Gaither. Whenever I’m depressed, I take out from hiding one of their homecoming videos, and spend the next hour or so weeping my eyes out and cleansing my body of all those built-up toxins. Come on, now. I’m not alone here. I know some of you listen to Barry Manilow when no one else is listening. I even suspect that some of you actually like music that involves an accordion. You’d just never admit it to your kids or pewmates. For some of us, a day dug into a sandy beach, listening to the waves and scanning a stack of magazines, is our guilty pleasure. For others of us, it might be making way through an eight course, five-star meal with a two-inch-thick wine list. “Guilty Pleasures.” Why do we think we have to feel guilty about our pleasures? Are we secretly convinced that deep down God doesn’t want us to have a good time and enjoy life? Are we under the impression that our Creator couldn’t possibly take pleasure in watching us creatures savor all that creation has to offer us?... . Billy D. Strayhorn, Luxuriate In God's Grace First, read the scriptural promises. The message of hope is not really going to do us much good unless we read about it. I know that millions of Bibles are printed each year. You can find a Bible almost anywhere you go. But is the Bible read? Someone has said that if all the neglected Bibles were dusted simultaneously, we would have a record dust storm, and the sun would go into eclipse for a whole week. Perhaps the situation is not quite that bad; nonetheless, it is serious. You probably have heard about the test given to students in a prominent New England high school. Asked to give answers to simple factual questions about the Bible, among the replies were: Eve was created from an apple. Sodom and Gomorrah were lovers. Jezebel was Ahab's donkey. Jesus was baptized by Moses. The New Testament gospels were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Johnny Appleseed is a folk hero in the American heartland. Born in 1774 he traveled through the frontier country planting apple trees. What is not as well-known is that he also was a great student of the Bible and further that he shared his enthusiasm for the Bible with others. As he went about his travels he often would be welcomed to stay the night in the home of a kindly settler. During his sojourn he was observant of the personal needs of the host family. Many of these people living on the harsh, bleak frontier were lonely, frustrated and worried. Before Johnny left the home in the morning he would rip out a page in his Bible and leave it with the family. Not any old page would do but one that he thought would fit the condition of this particular family, a passage that would exude hope. In this Advent season we can be certain that God's Word has a promise to suit our personal need. Let us make this scriptural hope our own. Let us believe that the light will shine again, spring will come again, the birds will sing again, and we will hope again. Paul's final words in the lectionary text consist of a prayer or a blessing: "May the God of hope fill you with joy and peace in believing that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." All we can say is -- Amen! CSS Publishing Company, EMPOWERED BY THE LIGHT, by Richard Hasler Second, study the scriptural promises. It is not enough to read the Bible; we also must study it. Now, I know that the common complaint is that the Bible is too difficult to understand. But I have always liked the method of Bible study proposed by D. L. Moody, the Chicago businessman turned evangelist. He said that he studied the Bible the way he ate fish. When he came to a bone he did not throw away the whole fish. Instead, he put the bone aside and finished the rest of the fish. Even so, if he came across a difficult passage in the Bible, he did not cast away the whole Bible. He just put those verses aside for the moment and went on with his reading. Inevitably he discovered that the additional knowledge he gained could be used to go back and help explain the previously obscure passage. Third, memorize the scriptural promises. Read, study and also memorize the Bible. Why do I say that? You probably know someone like the person I met once during a hospital visit. Despite his serious illness he radiated calmness, a cheerful spirit and hope in the future. He told me his secret. He had memorized the 23rd Psalm, and each day in the morning and in the evening he repeated these words to himself. Although we have just noted that millions of Bibles are available, yet there are circumstances when we do not have ready access to the Bible. For example, in the middle of the night when we cannot sleep, when we are so sick that we cannot read, and at numerous other times the Bible itself may not be handy and we desperately need to hear God's Word. The words of scripture that we memorize will be invaluable to us in those critical moments, and further they will be with us a lifetime. Fourth, and last of all, incarnate the scriptural promises. Read, study, memorize and incarnate. In other words, let us put flesh on these words of hope, and live out in our daily existence what we say that we believe. Everyone wants to belong to someone. None of us want to go through life alone, with no one to love us, no one to care. We human beings are social creatures, made for fellowship with one another, intended to live in a community. Without someone with whom we can share our lives and our love, our hopes and our hurts, we are incomplete. God was aware of this from the very first moment of creation. "It is not good that the man should be alone," God mused after his creation of Adam. "I will make him a helper fit for him" (Genesis 2:18) - and he did! God made Eve, the first woman, and Adam knew that he would never he lonely again because Eve was "bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh." Adam knew that Eve was forever his, and Eve knew that Adam was forever hers, and they both knew they belonged to somebody. The problem, however, is that we human beings have forgotten to whom we belong first of all. When we are children, it is assumed that we belong to our parents. When people become adults, many assume that they belong first of all to their husbands or wives, or in these days of easy morality, to their live-in companions. A popular song of the seventies was entitled, "You Belong to Me," and its theme was that the object of the singer’s love belonged to him exclusively. Certainly this is not a But Paul also says we Christians belong to Jesus when we die. "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord." Not only do we belong to Jesus first of all while we live as Christians, but we also belong to him first of all when we die as Christians. This sort of statement sounds strange to many people because the prevailing opinion today is that when we die, we belong first to the attending physician and then to the undertaker. When a person dies, nothing can be done until the attending physician pronounces that person officially dead. Even when that is accomplished, the physician must sign a release before anything else can be done. It is as though the dead person belongs to the doctor. Then the undertaker takes charge and the dead person belongs to him. It is the undertaker who prepares the body for burial and who makes all of the arrangements. Only when the dead person is lowered into the ground is the minister allowed to give the body back to him to whom the person belonged all of the time. The minister intones, "Forasmuch as the spirit of the departed hath returned to God who gave it, we therefore commit his (her) body to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust ..." - and at last, the dead person is formally given back to God to whom he (she) belonged first of all. Years ago there was a Jules Feiffer strip that went something like this: A man is speaking into the telephone and you hear only his side of the conversation. "Yes, mother, I've had a hard day. Gladys has been most difficult ” I know I ought to be more firm, but it is hard. Well, you know how she is. Yes, I remember you warned me. I remember you told me she was a vile creature who would make my life miserable, and you begged me not to marry her. You were perfectly right. You want to talk to her? All right." He looks up from the telephone and calls to his wife in the next room, "Gla Comedian Danny Kaye frequently entertains at the Palladium in London where he draws standing-room-only crowds. On free afternoons, he loves to roam around the city or take in matinees. On one such afternoon, he took in a play that was being received with the reserve we've come to associate with the British. As the play was letting out, Danny overheard the play being discussed by three British army officers who were standing stiffly to one side: "Ghastly," said one. "Beastly," agreed the second. The third was tight-lipped. He didn't say a word. One of the vocal ones turned to him. "And what was your opinion, Colonel?" he asked. The Colonel explained that he had come on a pass. "Hardly cricket to speak out under the circumstances," he added. "But if you gentlemen will excuse me . . ." and with that he strode to the box office a few feet away and bought a ticket. He was back in a moment with a ticket. "A stinker, gentlemen," he said tersely, "a stinker." (6) I like that third man's approach. Until he bought a ticket he felt he was in no position to criticize. When you are tempted to complain about what kind of parent someone else is, first ask whether you are entirely the kind of parent you ought to be. Before criticizing someone else's character, ask if you have arrived at perfection yourself. If we put our criticism to that test, most of us will be mute. For we, too, are sinners saved by grace. Do you know all the facts? Have you earned the right to pass judgement? There is a little story that actually comes from the Islamic religion that sums up the biblical attitude toward the very human tendency to pass judgement on others. There was an old man who earned his living by selling all sorts of odds and ends. It seemed as if the man had no judgment because people would frequently pay him in bad coins, and he would accept them without a word of protest; or people would claim they had paid him when they hadn't, and he accepted their word for it. When it was time for him to die, he raised his eyes to heaven and said, "Oh, Allah! I have accepted many bad coins from people, but never once did I judge them in my heart. I just assumed that they were not aware of what they did. I am a bad coin too. Please do not judge me." And a Voice was heard that said, "How is it possible to judge someone who has not judged others?" (7) Do you know all the facts? Have you earned the right to judge others? Only One has earned the right to judge others. He did it on a cross 2,000 years ago. And the amazing thing is that he was the most tolerant, loving, accepting man who ever lived Our natural human tendency is to homogenize our surroundings and our acquaintances so that they are virtually indistinguishable from ourselves. But this is not a healthy environment for a body of Christ. In order to remain fit, we've got to stretch and grow, reaching out to and welcoming all God's children home to Christ even those we dislike and find distasteful. While walking along a street with one of his disciples, a sage met his rival. The sage politely greeted his rival, but the man arrogantly disregarded the greeting. The sage's young disciple was furious, condemning the ostentatious behavior of the rival sage. Waiting for a while, the sage asked his disciple a question: "Are you angry at a person with an ugly face?" "No," replied his disciple. "Then, why are you angry at a person with an ugly heart?" the sage calmly reasoned. (AndrewSunghoPark, et al., "Epiphany 6: Anger," Korean Family Devotions [Nashville: Upper Room Books, 1994], 31. Where is Christ calling you to go right now to spread the gospel? Where is the "anywhere goes" in your walk with Christ? In the irreverent comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which is a send up of the King Arthur tales, there is a scene where one of the knights, Sir Bedevere is confronted by a group of villagers. It seems they have gripped one of the local women and claim she is a witch. It's very obvious that her long crooked nose is fake and has been tied on and she's been dressed up to look like a witch. Sir Bedevere questions the evidence and the people confess that they made it all up. But they still want to burn the woman as a witch. You know, we may not judge people as witches anymore, but we do judge them by everything else under the sun. We judge people by their clothing, jobs, friends, the kind of car they drive, the music they listen to, their hair style, their family and even where they live. We love jumping to conclusions, don't we? Sometimes that's ALL the exercise some of us get. That's what normal people do, right? But don't forget, we're not the normal people. We're the abnormal people. We've given our lives to Christ. And through Christ, we're called to live by different standards. God calls us to love each other and treat each other the same, no matter what. (1) The movie Coach Carter, starring Samuel L. Jackson, is based on a true story of a basketball Coach who locked his players out of the gym and the game until they focused on their schoolwork. But in the process taught them how to play, how to succeed and how to be champions on the court and in life. There's one scene where, after quitting the team, Timo Cruz wants back on, but the price to rejoin the team is impossible to pay. Coach Carter requires him to do 2500 push-ups 1000 suicide sprints within a week. Committed, Cruz hits the deck and begins. The week is over, and Coach Carter goes to Cruz to give him the assessment of his work. Carter tells him, "I'm impressed with what you've done, but you've come up short. You owe me 80 suicides and 500 push-ups. Please leave my gym." Cruz is crushed. He's worked hard every day to try to complete the impossible task, but he failed. Coach Carter turns to his team and says he'll see them tomorrow. As the coach turns to leave the gym, one of the players says, "I'll do push-ups for him. You said we're a team. When one person struggles, we all struggle. One player triumphs, we all triumph, right?" He goes to the floor with Cruz and begins doing push-ups. A moment later, another teammate says, "I'll do some. I'll run suicides too." And then, one by one, every player but one has begun to do push-ups or run for Cruz. And even though he is weary beyond belief, Cruz continues to participate along with his teammates. And finally, the last player chooses to join in as well, saying, "I'll do some..." While Carter is encouraged by their attitude, he doesn't let them off the hook. He tells his assistant coach to, "Keep countin'. Call me when it's done." But as he leaves, you know he's proud of the boys. And you know they finally get what being a team is all about. That scene teaches us a couple of things. One, like Timo Cruz, the task of standing accountable and blameless before God is impossible. There is no way we can be perfect and not sin in a fallen world. We can give it our best shot, but we will always come up short and alone. But the Good News is that we don't have to do it alone. Christ Jesus stepped into the scene and said, "I'll take his burden of sin. I'll take her burden of sin. When they triumph, we all triumph." Or as the apostle Paul writes The great writer, Pirandello once told a story about a man filled with so much dread that it drove him mad. When he fell in love with the woman of his dreams, he pretended that he did not care about her. He was afraid that if he gave in to his feelings of love for her he would lose her. He kept up this display of disinterest so long that he nearly did lose her. When he did finally ask her to marry him and she accepted, he nearly went crazy planning the honeymoon. He told everyone that they would be going to Florence and Venice. Instead he took his bride to Naples--in the opposite direction. This way he felt he could trick the misery he knew would be awaiting him in Florence and Venice. That was the only way he could enjoy the honeymoon in Naples. (2) There are some people who live with such a feeling of dread and doom about their lives that they dismiss the possibility of joy. Even when life is being good to them, they just know that it cannot last. Somewhere--sometime--somehow--something out there is going to happen to them that will wreck their best-laid plans--that will frustrate their fondest dreams--that will crush everything they hold dear. H.G. Wells once wrote a story titled “In the Days of the Comet.” Well’s story is a somewhat typical science fiction fantasy. A mysterious green vapor of unknown origin descends from the clouds and covers the earth. The vapor has the immediate effect of putting all the earth’s people into a deep sleep for three days. When they finally awake, something amazing has happened. Their inner nature is radically transformed. Petty quarreling comes to an end. Instead of seeking fame, power and wealth the people of the world seek to serve one another. Love, kindness and generosity become more important than greed or success. In short, the perfect society emerges--a society in which the dignity of every human being is honored. (3) The God of Hope. You and I are free to choose the attitude with which we confront life. We can believe that there is a five per cent chance of today and tomorrow or we can believe the Good News of Christmas that God is alive and well and at work in our world bringing in a kingdom of love and justice and freedom. We can face the future with fear and foreboding, or we can trust in the God who has sustained us through the years and has promised us that He will never forget us nor forsake us regardless of our situation. We can choose to live in continued darkness, or we can step out into the light of hope and triumph and eternal victory. We can live for ourselves alone, or we can make the world a better place to live for all persons. Doesn’t the Good News of Advent and Christmas change your attitude about life? Doesn’t it make you anticipate that sometime--somewhere--somehow--something good, not evil, is out there waiting to happen in your life? That is the kind of change that takes place when the Christ Child is born anew in our hearts.

Living Beyond Our Divisions

August 2, 2019 Colossians 3:1-11 8th Sunday after Pentecost Year C Living Beyond our Divisions Exegetical Aim: To demonstrate that there is no partiality in Christ. Key verse: 11. Props: A bowl of plain M&M's. Lesson: Today I want to share with you some of my favorite candy. Show them the candy. What kind is it? (M&M's) Right! M&M's! Let's all say, yea! (response) I'm going to give each of you some of this, but first you have to tell me which color you like the best. (response) I personally like the brown ones. Who likes green? (response) Red? (response) Orange? (response) The new blue? (response) Well, here's what I want you to do. Each of you can get three. But when you get them, close your eyes or turn your head away and reach into the bowl and don't look at them. Keep them closed in your hand. Okay, come and get them, and remember, don't look at them. When everyone has their M&M's: Now on the count of three, without looking at your M&M's, open your mouth, and eat them. 1, 2, 3! Make sure everyone follows the instructions. After the children have eaten: What colors did you eat? Who ate a red one? (response) Who ate a green? (response) Keep asking until someone says, "We don't know," or "They all taste the same." Application: That's right. Inside the different shells they all taste the same. Did you know that in a way Christians are like those M&M's? That's what the Apostle Paul said. He said that when Christ is in you and you are in Christ, there are no differences between us. We're neither black nor white, rich nor poor, or even male nor female. It doesn't make a difference to God what kind of shell we have -- the inside is what counts to him. And it shouldn't matter to us either. We should treat everyone the same no matter what color their shell. Let's Pray: Dear God, thank you for loving us no matter the color of our shell, and thank you for Jesus Christ, who makes us all children of God. Amen. CSS Publishing Company, Children's Sermons A to Z, by Brett Blair Colossians 3:1-11 New International Version (NIV) Living as Those Made Alive in Christ 3 Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ, who is your[a] life,appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.[b] 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.11 Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised,barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all. Footnotes: a. Colossians 3:4 Some manuscripts our b. Colossians 3:6 Some early manuscripts coming on those who are disobedient New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Three Kinds of Givers There are three kinds of givers: the flint, the sponge, and the honeycomb. Which kind are you? To get anything from the flint, you must hammer it. Yet, all you get are chips and sparks. The flint gives nothing away if it can help it, and even then only with a great display. To get anything from the sponge, you must squeeze it. It readily yields to pressure and the more it is pressed, the more it gives. Still, one has to squeeze it. To get anything from the honeycomb, however, one must only take what freely flows from it. It gives its sweetness generously, dripping on all without pressure, without begging or badgering. The honeycomb is a renewable resource. Unlike the flint or the sponge, the honeycomb is connected to life; it is the product of the ongoing work and creative energy of bees. If you share like a honeycomb giver your life will be continually replenished and grow as you give. When we share we freely give and we acknowledge that all we have is on loan and others have as much right to the things of God’s creation as we do. Keith Wagner, But, I Need It! It has been said before that we are not flesh and blood beings seeking a spiritual life, but that we are indeed spiritual beings seeking and earthly life. God made a point to come into our lives through Jesus Christ to remind us of who we really are. We are all children of God with enormous power, given an amazing gift to give to the world, and when we are done, we return to the spiritual realm. That is the point that Paul makes for us in the book of Colossians. Paul gives us two important messages in all of his writings. First there is a difference in the quality of life of those who think beyond this world and those who are convinced that this is all that there is. Paul says that when we follow Christ, we should be the first of these. Putting spiritual things before earthly things. The second message that Paul gives us is that Christ is our life. For some people their life may be baseball, or their life may be their job, or their family, or their appearance. And it is nothing wrong with being involved in any of those things – but they are not our life, being a Christian is an all encompassing life. it touches everything it affects everything, and ultimately it changes everything. Because when we follow Christ, we not act differently, we respond to life differently. It was popular in Paul’s time for teachers to give list of virtues to live by. The virtues that Paul list are carefully chosen, they are the virtues that were present in the life of Christ. He says that we shouldn’t be unfaithful to people or our task, and that we should not be greedy and think only of ourselves, how do our actions affect other people. Oh and we should not respond to people in anger, but in understanding. We should be pure, kind and true in all that we do. Sometimes it gets hard to preach on the letters of Paul. Paul has a poetic way of explaining some very lofty beliefs. He is a genius in the ways that he convinces us that Christ should consume our life. I always choose these Paul text, and then when I am writing the sermon I get stuck, because I can never find any good stories to demonstrate his points. Today was not any different. I searched all weekend, and came up with nothing. But sadly I think that the reality of our life – is the best story of Paul’s last point. The one I wanted us to focus on today. Paul says that Christ was radically inclusive – he made a point to include everyone in what started out to be an pretty exclusive circle. Paul’s last point is that the differences that we create amongst our earthly life, all disappear in the spiritual world. In our visioning session, our last conversation was about who was welcome in our church – we decided that we would welcome all races, genders, ages, sexual orientation,economic backgrounds – because these are the people who Jesus would welcome into the kingdom of God. we still have a little work to do before we can adopt that as its own, we want everyone to be aware of the statement – and to think about what it means to be an inclusive church. But I think that none of us would argue that we live in a divided world. The headlines seems to show our differences each and every day. We go to a divided church, we have divided families, we have a divided community. Divisions are every where. But Paul tells us that when we follow Christ, those divisions disappear. Christ is life for all of us. What would that world look like? Until we are all united in spirit – we pray. Amen.

Never Give Up

June 7, 2015 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 2nd Sunday after Pentecost Year B A cowboy out west was in a heap of trouble. A wild bull was after him. Head down and nostrils snorting, the bull charged toward him. The cowboy dove into a convenient recess in the ground. As soon as the bull passed over the hole, the cowboy leaped out. The bull came back, madder than ever. Right before the bull reached him, the cowboy ducked back into the hole. Then, when the bull passed, he popped back out again. He did this several times. A passing stranger watching this scenario shouted, "Hey, cowboy, why don't you just stay in the hole?" Leaping out again, the cowboy yelled, "There's a bear in that hole!" That's how it is some days. We get caught between a bull and a bear. Have you ever had one of those days, when you are caught between a bull and a bear? When you are already having a bad day and then things get worse? One fellow tells about being on an airliner making its way from New York to San Francisco. One of the engines caught fire. The captain came on the speaker system, calmly reassuring his passengers that the fire would soon be out. Besides, the plane could fly as well with three engines as with four. Unfortunately, a second engine burst into flames. Once again the captain assured the passengers that two engines were sufficient. Then a third engine was suddenly ablaze. The captain said no more. There was only silence from the front of the plane. Soon the captain appeared in the cabin with a parachute on his back. As he opened the exit door, he said calmly to the passengers, "Don't anyone panic, I'm going for help." And out he jumped. That didn't really happen, of course. Still, when the pilot leaves to go get help, you're in trouble! That will absolutely ruin your day. St. Paul knew what it was to have a bad day. He had many of them--shipwrecks, beatings, imprisonment. But he knew his Pilot would never bail out. That is why he could write: "But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, to show that the transcendent power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be also manifested...." (RSV) My next question is when you have those days, how do you handle it? Does it ruin you mood and you are not able to function or do you take it all in stride, and are you able to move on? When you come face to face with some huge obstacle, some daunting problem, something frightening in which the odds are stacked against you, what is your first step? Do you go around it? We learned that as a kid walking home, didn't we? If there were a big, mean dog on the route, we would walk blocks around it to get home safely. How about now? Do you still walk around those big, mean dogs? Some people go over them. That is, you know the problem is there but you just scratch the surface, gloss over the problem, brush up against it but don't really address it. It's just always there and you minimize the danger. "It's no big deal. I'm fine." Some people decide to go under it. They bury their heads into the ground and don't even acknowledge it, don't even name it. "If I don't talk about it, maybe it will just go away." But pretty soon the problem suffocates you with its weight. People with eyes of faith go through it. They can see what others cannot see. They name the problem, identify the problem, stare that problem right in the eye, and decide that the only way to conquer this problem and to get to the other side is to go through it. That is the lesson for today on 2 Corinthians – Paul tells us that as Christians we have to the power to go through anything. Christ gives us the power to handle it. There is a difference between those who give up and those who who keep going, and that difference is faith. Not just any faith, but faith in Christ. Faith that Christ was raised from the dead. Not Everybody likes Paul, many says that he is too patriarchal to women, But I really like Paul, because after studying him, I think that his advice on faith is very solid. He teaches life on Christ. That we should live inside of the promises of Christ. The cool thing about Paul’s lessons, is that his actions teach us Just as much as his words. When Paul gave his life to Christ, he did not have a happy, easy life. He was shipwrecked, he was put in prison, he was often run out of town, and he was put on trial and eventually killed, all for his faith in Christ. And yet he never stopped preaching and teaching. I would imagine one of his biggest pains, was pouring his life in establishing Christian communities, and trying to tell them the right way to life, and instead of them saying thank you, they turned against him. Today we just have 1 and 2nd Corinthians. But there is a belief that there was also a 3 and 4th Corinthians. When Paul visited, the Corinthians at first they listened. But eventually they turned against him. They felt that there was other evangelist who were more charismatic then he was. They started to follow these other people and to reject Paul. So Paul wrote other letters to the people of Corinthians. But it is believed that those letters never survived, because Pauls words were a little too harsh. What we know as 2 Corinthians is the the final letter, as Paul tried to repair his relationship with this congregation. Paul’s lesson to them and to us is to have faith. Have complete faith in Christ and to give our complete life to Christ. The power that raised Christ, will be present for us.If we do, we can stand in any situation. He says that there may be times in life when we are falling apart on the outside, but we are coming together in the inside. Jesus talked about his death many times, but whenever he talked about death, he talked about resurrection. They say that triumph is just a try, with a little umph behind it. As Christians we are triumphant over the challenges of life. When we are using our faith. Just like we have to exercise our bodies in order for our muscles to get stronger, we have to exercise our soul in order for our soul to get stronger. We exercise our spirit by having a relationship with Christ, by not just reading the bible, but also living according to it., by being in service and putting our faith in action. We have to learn to forgive and move on, and there are just some times when we have to give whatever it is to God and trust that God will take care of it. In order to do that we have to learn to believe in things that we cannot see with out eyes. When we are at our wits end in life, we are not at hopes end. If our hope is in Christ. Archibald Rutledge tells of seeing a bird build its nest. Patiently and hard it worked all day. That night a storm came and the next morning the little bird's home lay on the ground in pathetic ruin. The bird was there, too, however. It was not mourning over the destruction. It was busily rebuilding. The first words of M. Scott Peck's helpful book, THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED are, "Life is hard." And it is. The people who have made the most significant contributions have been people who have confronted that truth head on. They not only coped, but they conquered. Are you familiar with Wedgewood pottery? It is some of the world's finest. Did you know that Josiah Wedgewood was forced to leave school when he was only nine years of age? At thirteen he was stricken with smallpox, which crippled him for the remainder of his life. Nothing came easy for Josiah. Nothing could defeat him either. Today his pottery is known world-wide for its consistent beauty. Do you love the music of Beethoven? When Beethoven's famous "Ode to Joy" was first performed it was instantly acclaimed. Beethoven could hear it only in his imagination, though. When he was first diagnosed as facing deafness, Beethoven reacted with angry outbursts. He wrote to a friend, "Your Beethoven is most unhappy and at strife with nature and the Creator." At first he withdrew from others and refused to tell them of his problem. He knew, though, he could never be happy if he did not compose music. And compose he did, even if he could not enjoy the sound of his own work. That is the story of the cross. A symbol of shame transformed into a means of salvation. It can be the story of your life and mine as well. We will face opposition in life. By God's grace, however, opposition can be turned to opportunity. If nothing else, we will be drawn closer to Him who is our Life. Paul says that our temporary minor problems are producing an eternal stockpile of glory for us that is beyond comparison. There is salvation in our suffering. That does not mean that we should suffer intentionally. But anybody who keeps on living, will soon realize that life is hard. No matter what we do – life is hard. But with Christ – bad news is never the final answer Paul’s advice to us is to look toward eternity in all situations. Things will turn out okay for those who love God. The final victory belongs to Christ, in the meantime we are to keep up the fight. My final story is about Winston Churchhill. If it wasn’t for his will to fight, we would all be speaking german and not English. Later in his life,he was asked to speak at a graduation ceremony. The students waited in anticipation at what he would have to say. They were on the edge of their seats. He walks up to the podium. There is complete silence. He says nothing. Then he speaks and says never give up. And then there is more silence. He speaks again, never give up. And he walks off the stage, the crowd bursts out in applause. Paul says I have been hard pressed on every side, but not crushed, I have been perplexed but not in despair, persecuted but not abandoned, struck down but not destroyed, Have faith in christ, and never Give up. Let us pray…. Children’s sermon… Let light shine out of darkness. (v. 6a) Object: a regular light bulb Good morning, boys and girls. I want to talk about the light bulb this morning. What can you tell me about this bulb? (Listen and repeat answers. Your conversation may have some of the following items.) It is used in a lamp or an overhead light. It shines. It sometimes burns out and needs to have a new one put in. It hurts your eyes if you stare at it. It gets hot. Is this the only kind of light bulb you have ever seen? (Let them respond.) No, there are lots of sizes. Can you name some for me? (Let them respond.) Some of them might be: lighthouse, strobe light at airport, flashlight, sewing machine light, light in refrigerator, light on vacuum cleaner, night light, desk lamp, Christmas tree lights or gas light in yard. What do you think makes these lights shine? (Let them respond.) That's right, they either have to be turned on or hooked to a battery or plugged into the electrical box in the wall. They have to have what we call a power source. Their power to shine comes from electricity or a battery. Our lesson today from Corinthians talks about a light shining in the darkness. Paul said that people are like lights. Do I look like I'm shining like a light? (Let them respond.) No, but if you could see inside me you would see a special kind of light. My heart shines! Not like this light bulb does when we connect it to electricity. But it shines with the love of God. I know God loves me, so I can share that love with others just like we share a flashlight in the dark. God is my power source just like a light needs electricity. Can I use this lightbulb in a flashlight? (Let them respond.) No, a flashlight uses a tiny light. Can I use a strobe light from the airport in my refrigerator? (Let them respond.) No, each bulb fits in a special spot. Each light has a special job to do. That's just how people are! We each have our own kind of job to do and we shine in a certain way. We come to church each week so God can give us the power to shine. Then we can be a light too to show God's love to others. Other illustrations….. Don’t Give Up Now! – 2 Corinthians 4:13-5:1 Have you noticed that some people can’t seem to win, no matter what they do? It’s like one lady I heard about. True story. In 1957 Richie Ashburn, center fielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, swung and hit a foul ball that went into the stands and hit a spectator named Alice Roth. As she was being taken away on a stretcher, Ashburn slammed another foul ball . . . and hit her again. (1) Poor Alice. I guess it just wasn’t her day. I’ve had days like that, haven’t you? I would guess we all have. Pastor Alan Carr tells about an advertisement that once appeared in the newspapers in New York City. The ad was sponsored by the Hayden planetarium. It was an invitation for anyone who would like to make the first journey to another planet to submit an application. Within a matter of days, over 18,000 people applied. These applications were then given to a panel of psychologists, who upon reviewing them concluded that the vast majority of those who had applied wanted to start a new life on another planet because they were so discouraged by life on this one. (2) I wonder if anyone here today can relate to that? Are you so discouraged with life that you would like to go somewhere--even another planet--and make a new start? The loveable loser Charlie Brown in the Peanuts cartoons often felt that way. Once he told Linus, “Sometimes I feel like I want to run away from everything.” Overhearing the conversation, Snoopy reflects, “I remember having that feeling once when I was at the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm. I climbed over the fence . . . but I was still in the world!” That’s the problem with running away from your problems, isn’t it? You are still in the world. And your problems seem to always follow you. And, of course, the real problem is that you are still you. St. Paul had as many problems as anyone--and more than most people. He never had the comforts of family life. He spent years traveling under the most primitive conditions. He was persecuted, shipwrecked, beaten, thrown in prison and probably martyred. He made enormous sacrifices for the cause of Christ and yet he was constantly criticized by people both inside as well as outside of the early church. And yet he never seemed to get discouraged.. Training to Hear the Voice of God There is a positive message to be learned from these words of Jesus. The lesson is that we must keep ourselves alert to the way God is working in the world. Remember that those who were seeking to discredit Jesus were religious people. Their problem was that they just didn't expect God to be acting as Jesus said he was acting, so they missed the movement of God in their midst, and in fact, they called it evil. Today God may be speaking to us in causes that are unpopular, or in political events that cause us to feel threatened and insecure. The cries for justice and fairness in the world may come from quarters that we are not accustomed to listen to. We need to exercise diligence so that we don't miss the voice of God today just because it happens to be spoken by unfamiliar lips. I once sat in on a class my wife was taking in music appreciation. The instructor was asking the class members to listen for the recurring theme as it was passed from one instrument to another and was modified. I quickly lost it, but others in the class, who had benefited from their training, were able to keep track of the theme and even state which instrument was playing it. It is a law of life that we hear what we have trained ourselves to hear. What we must do is to train ourselves to listen for the voice of God in areas where we have not expected to hear it. We hear that voice only by attentive listening: by asking ourselves whether there is a valid message in those things which make us uncomfortable. Jesus spoke of an unforgivable sin, not because any act is unforgivable, but to warn us that our own hardness of heart can close the channels through which God's forgiveness flows and, as a consequence, leave us feeling alienated. Let us, therefore, affirm the good that is in others, so that our own hearts become generous and accepting of others, even as God is generous and accepting of us. David G. Rogne, Sermons for Sundays after Pentecost, CSS Publishing Company “A Winning Streak of One!” 2 Corinthians 4:16-17 Key verse(s) 16“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” It’s important to make sure that every day of our lives we practice gladness and condition ourselves to finding even the smallest bit of “glad” amongst the bad. That calls for a conditioning, a practice and a routine that assume a regimen of daily, consistent focus on keeping a happy heart. We spend so much time these days keeping our bodies fit; yet we often spend little or no time making sure that our hearts, although physically in tip-top shape, are kept in good spiritual shape. The Bible tells us to “not lose heart” when everything around us seems to “wasting away.” That’s not easy to do when you’re down to you last dollar or last medical hope. Keeping a stiff upper lip and persevering even when there just doesn’t seem to be any good reason to be happy is a great prescription to buy into but often a bitter pill to swallow. We rely so much on everything going right in order to keep us in a cheerful mood that it is a tall order to expect anyone to be happy, not lose heart, when most everything is going wrong. Keeping a winning attitude even when you are losing is a tall order, to be sure. Nonetheless, that’s exactly what God expects of each one of us. In the personal things of this life, God wants to remind us daily that we should always be prepared to Keeping a winning attitude even when you are losing is a tall order, to be sure. Nonetheless, that’s exactly what God expects of each one of us. In the personal things of this life, God wants to remind us daily that we should always be prepared to come face to face with defeat, loss and disappointment. We need to condition our hearts to persevere, to endure when our happiness is invaded from time to time by sorrows; to treat defeat as nothing more than a stepping stone to an eventual victory. Life’s happiness “winning streaks” are real highs but we need to remember that no one, not even the most devout Christian, always turns out to be the winner. There comes a time in every Christian’s life when there just is no getting around it; a time of defeat is at hand and we just have to be able to deal with it as best we can. That dealing happens best when we consider first our ability to endure in Christ, learn from the moment, and then be willing to step up the effort to get our lives back on track again. I remember reading about a girl’s volleyball team in a small, obscure midwest town that had assembled an unbelievable winning streak of 65 games. What was so incredible about the feat was this––the school had only 18 girls total and 16 of them were on the volleyball squad and a 17th was the scorekeeper. Although it was one of the smallest Class B high schools in the state, it won the Class B volleyball championship for three years running. Then, after 65 victories, they were eventually defeated. The local paper reported the defeat with a large headline one night. Then, two days later, another headline appeared in the small paper “Team Rebounds With a Winning Streak of One.” The key to not “losing heart” is making sure that we understand and believe that even in defeat we are renewed in Christ. Defeats come and go in this life and that will never change. Yet, for the Christian, defeat is one of those things that we strive to manage in the sweet expectation that even in defeat we are victorious in Christ. Christians are always on the rebound. When one foot is mired in defeat, the other is already moving on; looking for that “winning streak of one!” Archibald Rutledge tells of seeing a bird build its nest. Patiently and hard it worked all day. That night a storm came and the next morning the little bird's home lay on the ground in pathetic ruin. The bird was there, too, however. It was not mourning over the destruction. It was busily rebuilding. The first words of M. Scott Peck's helpful book, THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED are, "Life is hard." And it is. The people who have made the most significant contributions have been people who have confronted that truth head on. They not only coped, but they conquered. Are you familiar with Wedgewood pottery? It is some of the world's finest. Did you know that Josiah Wedgewood was forced to leave school when he was only nine years of age? At thirteen he was stricken with smallpox, which crippled him for the remainder of his life. Nothing came easy for Josiah. Nothing could defeat him either. Today his pottery is known world-wide for its consistent beauty. Do you love the music of Beethoven? When Beethoven's famous "Ode to Joy" was first performed it was instantly acclaimed. Beethoven could hear it only in his imagination, though. When he was first diagnosed as facing deafness, Beethoven reacted with angry outbursts. He wrote to a friend, "Your Beethoven is most unhappy and at strife with nature and the Creator." At first he withdrew from others and refused to tell them of his problem. He knew, though, he could never be happy if he did not compose music. And compose he did, even if he could not enjoy the sound of his own work. We are told that the greatest door-to-door Bible salesman of all time stuttered. He made up his mind that he was going to turn his disadvantage into advantage. After making the presentation with a lot of stuttering, he would close with these words: "Do you want to b-b-b-buy the Bible now or do you w-w-want me to r-r-read it to you?" (3) That young man turned what could have been a stumbling block into a stepping stone. . Final story – Winston Churchill. Never give up. Amen.