A newborn, a building, a Priesthood - repreach of 5/18/14

May 7, 2023 1 Peter 2:2-10 A Newborn, A Building, a Priesthood 5th Sunday of Easter Year A Prelude Welcome Introit Call to Worship L: Come, all of you who feel lost, alienated, alone. Right Side: At one time we felt that way – we didn’t belong anywhere. Left Side: We just wanted somewhere to be. L: Christ, the Strong Cornerstone of our house, welcomes you. Right Side: Once we were no people Left Side: Now we are God’s people. Right Side: Once we had no place to dwell Left Side: Now we live and abide in God’s love. L: Thanks be to God for God’s gracious love and hospitality. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Opening Prayer (Psalm 31, 1 Peter 2) O God of all creation, become for us once again the solid foundation upon which we build our daily lives. We gather before you, this first day of the week, to align our lives to the strong teaching and life of Jesus Christ, our Cornerstone. Receive our praise and thanksgiving as expressions of faith and love. We come to you, O Lord, as people who desire to learn and serve like Christ. We are ready to receive your blessing and direction today. Amen. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, John Brewer) Song His Eye is on the Sparrow TFWS 2146 Children’s Sermon Tell students, Like the other Apostles, Peter traveled to different towns and started churches in all the towns he visited. Then, later, after he left those towns, he would send letters back to the churches to teach them more about God. The lesson we’re going to learn today is part of Peter’s letter to one of the churches. The things Peter wrote in that letter to teach the church back then can also teach us today. (Read 1 Peter 2:9-10.) “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. “Peter is telling the people and us what we are. The first thing he says is that we are a chosen people. What do you think it means for us to be a chosen people? Who chose us? (God chose us to be His people.) God chose you. Think about that. God, who created everything—the sun and the stars, and everything there is—chose you! God loves you that much! Peter also says that we are a royal priesthood. What does the word royal mean? It means that you are a king or a queen or that you’re in the king or queen’s family. How are we royal? We’re royal because we’re in God’s family, and God is the King of the whole Universe. We’re His royal children, princes and princesses in God’s Kingdom. We are also priests. What does a priest do? A priest is another name for pastor. Priests and pastors pray to God for people and teach people about God. How can we be priests and pastors to other people? We can pray for people and tell them about God and Jesus. Peter says that we are holy. What does the word holy mean? (Special or different.) How are we supposed to be special or different from other people for God? As God’s people, we listen to God. We believe what God wants us to believe and do what God what God wants us to do. We obey God’s rules and do the right things, even if other people don’t. Peter says that God called us out of darkness into the light. What do you think he means by the darkness? (Our sins.) And what is the light? (Believing in God and having God forgive us for our sins.) Peter says that God gave us mercy. What does the word mercy mean? It means that we were supposed to be punished for something, but God didn’t punish us. He gave us mercy. What were we supposed to be punished for? We were supposed to be punished for our sins, but God sent Jesus to die on the cross to take our punishment for us so that we could be forgiven for our sins, for all the wrong things that we’ve done. Jesus took our place. So, Peter is telling us to remember how special we are. We are God’s royal children. He chose us to follow Him and to teach other people about Him, and He forgave us for all of our sins. (Ministry to Children.com, Stephen Wilson) Affirmation of Faith (From a Brief Statement of Faith) We trust in Jesus Christ, fully human, fully God. Jesus proclaimed the reign of God: preaching good news to the poor and release to the captives, teaching by word and deed and blessing the children, healing the sick and binding up the brokenhearted, eating with outcasts, forgiving sinners, and calling all to repent and believe the gospel. Unjustly condemned for blasphemy and sedition, Jesus was crucified, suffering the depths of human pain and giving his life for the sins of the world. God raised this Jesus from the dead, vindicating his sinless life, breaking the power of sin and evil, delivering us from death to life eternal. (Presbyterian Outlook, Terri Ott McDowell) Anthem Scripture 1 Peter 2:2-10 Sermon A Newborn, A Building and a Priesthood God in the Stone story Theologian Megan McKenna tells of a story that circulates in Italy about Michelangelo and stones. Whether it is true or not is debatable. What it means though is open to interpretation. This is how she heard the story. You decide what it means. Every day, it seems, God would look down from heaven on the earth to watch over his people and to see what they were up to. And every once in awhile God would go to visit his people and dwell with them, though usually no one recognized God. Sooner or later, however, someone would come along and find him and then he would disappear from their sight and return to the heavens. And it seemed that some of his best hiding and watching places were in rocks, stones, canyons, caves, wells, and tombs. Soon there were stories about a stone that Jacob used for a pillow and dreamed of angels ascending and descending to earth and where he wrestled all night before receiving a blessing from a mysterious angel. And the one about Jacob's well or Sinai's mountain and many about the Temple in Jerusalem. Then Isaiah the prophet promised the presence of a cornerstone (but was it a rock or a person?). "Therefore, says the Lord God: See, I am laying a stone in Zion, a stone that has been tested, a precious cornerstone as a sure foundation; the one who puts faith in it shall not be shaken" (Is. 28:16). Then, not so long ago, Jesus came and told his people that it wasn't necessary to worship in certain places anymore. He told a woman at a well: "Believe me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem... an hour is coming, and is already here, when authentic worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth" (John 4:22-23). But then Jesus died on the place of the skull and was buried in a rock-hewn tomb, but escaped from that cave to free us from our caves. It wasn't long, though, before people began building high places and piling stones up to go and worship there. Many years passed and God grew uncomfortable again. People were having trouble recognizing him; they seemed to be looking only in these places that they had built for his honor and glory for his presence and he wondered what he should do about it. One day God's attention was drawn to a commotion that was going on around a man in Italy. This man loved stones. All day he would chisel away at the barren slabs and after time, energy, and painstaking effort, the stone would live. It was almost as if he discovered something alive inside the stone and went about freeing it with a passion. He had set many people free already and this time he was attempting to set God himself free! For years he had been working on one huge piece of marble, and slowly over the years the figure of a woman holding the body of her dead son was emerging from the rock. And this time even God was surprised at what was being born out of stone. He went to Michelangelo and spoke to him. Michelangelo, God said, what are you doing? Lord, he answered, I am setting you free, so that everyone will recognize you not only in stone, but in everything, everyone that dwells on earth, but especially in all those who suffer unjustly and die violently at the hands of others and in those who mourn for the loss of such vibrant life. I don't want people to forget you. And the Lord spoke again to Michelangelo: Do I really dwell in that stone? I know in the past I have often gone to rocks and mountains, wells and tombs, but I don't remember going to dwell in the stone you are working on. And Michelangelo answered God: But my Lord, since your child came to us, you don't have to pick and choose your places of rest; he left your Spirit everywhere we just have to discover it, touch it and reveal it to others. That's what it means to live. The stone is rolled away. Don’t roll it back. Leonard Sweet Sermon, Leonard Sweet, ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., 2014, 0-000-1415 God is the bedrock We come to church looking for God. Where in this building do we find God? Is God embedded in the bricks of the building so that God cannot escape? Now before you think that is a totally crazy idea, consider Isaiah 28:16 which says - I lay in Isreal a foundation stone. A primodial stone, a rock that does not move. A rock that like this building isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. You can’t move it, or do anything with it. There is a town in the middle east called Petra. Petra means bedrock. And the town is build within the bedrock of a mountain. The people are long gone, but the structure is still there. Peter the rock When Jesus was talking to the disciples, he said to Peter, upon this rock I build this church. But the word for rock that Jesus used was not Petra – it was petro. Petro is a movable rock, a rock that can be picked up, that can be changed. Rock that is not reliable, but is still usable. Jesus did not build his church upon petra, but petro. Living Stones It is Peter’s words that I want us to consider this morning. He advises us to become living stones. Once again that is a strange term. Afterall stones are dead and lifeless. There is nothing that lives inside of a stone, except God. The story of Jesus reminds us that what was dead and lifeless can e bought back to life, with the power of God. Jesus calls himself living water. Now there is a such thing as living water. A river, a stream a creek is living water, because the water is moving. So a living stone is a stone that moves. Remember, Genesis says that he formed man by taking some dirt from the ground and breathing life into it. So there is regular dirt on the ground that does not move and breathe. And there is living dirt that breathes, walks and talks. You and me, we are God’s living stones. The church is not these concrete blocks, it is these living stones that do the work of God inside of here. GOD WANTS TO LIVE IN YOUR HOUSE C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity: "Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is he up to? The explanation is that he is building quite a different house from the one you thought of--throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself." Peter’s words of encouragement I Peter was not written to address a specific issue, it was written to all struggling churches to remind them of their task. To remind them of their faith. Peter believes that those who believe the gospel, must live the gospel. Cant read, and pray and go to church without being convicted of who Christ is. And when you know Christ, you love Christ, you live in Christ. When someone ask who you are – your answer is not about where your hometown is, it is not about what you do for a living, it is about who you are in the Spirit of Christ. God is the bedrock of your life, Christ is the cornerstone of your life, and you are God’s living stones. A piece of God lives in you. And you are a small piece of God. There’s a story that is often told in management textbooks about a man who was walking in the countryside one day. He happened upon a building site where three people were all working vigorously. Two were stonecutters; the third was an old woman, sweeping The traveler stopped and asked what they were doing. The first stonecutter answered, “I am making a living.” The traveler proffered his question to the second stonecutter. He didn’t look up, but kept on hammering while he said, “I am doing the best job of stonecutting in the entire county.” Then our traveler turned to the old woman with her broom. “What are you doing?” he asked. The old woman paused, set down her broom, and looked toward the heavens. With a visionary gleam in her eye she said, “I am building a cathedral to the glory of almighty God.” It’s a parable that rings true for us today, one that this extended metaphor of stones brought to mind. Of course, our text imagines us as stones, not as stonecutters. What could it mean to be a living stone? The first stonecutter thought he was his work, the second thought he was his own effort, but it was the third who realized that she was part of a larger whole. And that what she gave, contributed the the building of God’s kingdom. In this scripture passage, Peter uses three images to describe our relationship with God. He says that we are newborns, living stones and a royal priesthood. I think that Peter gives us the ultimate encouragement. You are a royal priesthood, a chosen people, a holy nation. All of these images are in the old testament. As a matter of fact, Hosea names one of his children nobody – to remind the children of Israel that when they don’t have God inside of them- they are nobody. But with God’s help – they are somebody. They are a royal priesthood set aside for a special purpose. A Royal Priesthood A priest is one who leads others to the glory of God. A bridge, an intercessor. When we live God’s word in our lives, we lead others to God. The basis message of 1 Peter 2 is to have hope, to live holy, to love one another, to seek God like a baby seeks milk. And to live as God’s spiritual house. Living stones reflect the bedrock of God, the cornerstone of Christ. We are building used for God’s purposes. Let us pray… Amen. Song The Church’s One Foundation UMH 545 Prayer of Intercession God of grace and light, Found within and out with the structures of humanity, You cannot be contained, But on occasion choose to dwell in hearts and homes. Glance lightly upon the hearts and homes dear to us, The people and places where we seek blessing. Build up our homes, Build up the places where we work, Build up our community, Build up our nation, loving Lord, Build up the Church, Help us all, this day, to be living stones, and not dead weights, Dreaming dreams, and living gloriously the joy and kindliness Of a faith that edifies everything that life should be. In the Name of our Saviour, our cornerstone, we pray. Amen. Written by Rev. Dr. Derek Browning and posted on the Church of Scotland’s Starters for Sunday website Stewardship Moment Followers of Jesus were given a variety of titles and names in the first century AD. In I Peter, titles mined from the early prophets tumble together to encourage believers to claim their own new identity: A chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Because we, too, call ourselves followers of Jesus, the Christ, we may step into these names and titles. However, these are not simply honorifics. These words describe our identity, and put a claim on our lives. As “God’s people” who continue to receive mercy, our response is to share God’s abundance, both here and with those living near “the ends of the earth”. Do you know this congregation ________________ (tell something which is true for your congregation’s financial giving beyond itself, or continue with the following.) Do you know this congregation is part of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) which helps support 15 colleges and universities around the US? Did you know some of our giving each year links us to helping refugees, those affected by weather disasters, and those suffering after disasters, through our Week of Compassion? Your financial offering today will help us here, but also with God’s people from here all the way around the globe! Let us joyfully share our gifts, as we remember we are one part of God’s own people! Prayer of Thanksgiving Living God, may you both bless and multiply the gifts provided today, that they may be one means by which we share Good News in a hurting world. AMEN (Disciples of Christ, Center for Faith and Givng) Communion Announcements Closing Prayer for Facebook Christ does not give to us as the world gives. We leave church today with Christ’s peace to have, to hold, to share with others. Do not let your hearts be troubled, do not be afraid. Christ is with us in all things. May the grace, hope, peace and love of God our Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer be with us all, now and forever. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Terri Ott McDowell) Joys and Concerns Benediction Go forth in peace, dear ones. Bring hope to this world. Go forth in love; bring joy to this world. Go forth in the knowledge that Goes with you, loving and guiding your steps. AMEN. (United Methodist Ministry Matters, Nancy Townley) Additional Illustrations

Rocks

May 10, 2020 Fifth Sunday of Easter 1 Peter 2:2-10 Rocks Year A Children’s Sermon And like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Object: Some stones and water paints. Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. Today we are going to build something that is really important. I brought some stones with me that I found around my yard, and we are going to build a house. This is going to be a special house, one that is different from any other house that you have ever seen. It is going to be called a spiritual house, and you are going to help build it. How many of you have always wanted to build a house? (Let them answer.) All of you. That's wonderful, because we are going to do it in a special way. Not only are you going to be the builders, but you are also going to be part of the spiritual house. First of all, we must take the stones that I brought with me and do something special with them. We are going to paint your names on the stones and then begin to stack them up as the wall to our spiritual house. (Begin by painting the names of the children on the stones and having them stack them one on top of the other.) That's very good. Our house is being built by you, and it includes you. I can see that we are going to need a lot more stones to finish our spiritual house, but that means that we are also going to need a lot more children's names. This is a house that is made for God. That's why we called it a spiritual house. Our house is going to be made by people who are willing to share their lives with God. People like you and me. God needs people, lots of people, who are willing to share themselves not only with one another but with him, so that the whole world will know about his love. Let's pretend that we had enough people to build a house. with each person's name on a stone. Then we must also suppose that everyone of these people will tell their friends about Jesus. This will mean that we will be building more houses, spiritual houses. But it also means that we will be doing the spiritual things Jesus taught us to do. When you live in a spiritual house, you worship God in faith and trust. You forgive the people who have hurt you. You take care of the sick and the people who cannot take care of themselves. You visit people who cannot leave their homes or who are in prisons. You share your food with the hungry and your clothing with those who do not have clothes to keep them warm. You do all of those things and more when you live in a spiritual house. We can't finish our house this morning, but we have made a good start. Maybe you will want to start another spiritual house at home. If you do, then put the names of your family and friends on a stone when they tell you that they will follow Jesus and do the things that Jesus asks you to do. C.S.S. Publishing Co., GOD'S STEPLADDER, by Wesley T. Runk Prelude Call to worship Alternative Call to Worship for Mother’s Day (from Isaiah 66:12-14) As a mother carries her child, and lets the child play on her knees, God carries us, and teaches us to stand. As a mother comforts her child, Our God comforts us. We shall behold and rejoice, flourishing like the green grass; Because God is with us, and we are with God. Come, worship God, who loves us as a good parent; Worship God: Mother, Father, Creator of us all. People: We light the candle of memory. (White-Lit from the Christ Candle or altar candles) People: We light the candle of honor. (Pink-lit from the Christ Candle or altar candles) People: We light the candle of peace. (Blue-lit from Christ Candle or Altar Candles) People: We light the candle of hope. (Green-litfrom the Christ Candle or altar candles) All: God, teach us to recognize Your light in all of its many forms as we remember, honor and reflect on especially the gift of Motherhood this day. Fill us with your hope that we might shine your light to the generations after us. Amen. Stewardship Moment Mother’s Day gifts Mother's Day/Father's Day Offering Prayer God of Great gifts, we give you these gifts today knowing that you are the Father of gifts. You mother us constantly providing for us, caring for us. As we have been abundantly provided for, so we give abundantly to the work that you give us to do, the work of the church, the care for those who are poor. Accept these gifts in Jesus’ name. Amen. Scripture 1 Peter 2:2-10 Common English Bible (CEB) 2 Instead, like a newborn baby, desire the pure milk of the word. Nourished by it, you will grow into salvation, 3 since you have tasted that the Lord is good. 4 Now you are coming to him as to a living stone. Even though this stone was rejected by humans, from God’s perspective it is chosen, valuable. 5 You yourselves are being built like living stones into a spiritual temple. You are being made into a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Thus it is written in scripture, Look! I am laying a cornerstone in Zion, chosen, valuable. The person who believes in him will never be shamed.[a] 7 So God honors you who believe. For those who refuse to believe, though, the stone the builders tossed aside has become the capstone. 8 This is a stone that makes people stumble and a rock that makes them fall. Because they refuse to believe in the word, they stumble. Indeed, this is the end to which they were appointed. 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people who are God’s own possession. You have become this people so that you may speak of the wonderful acts of the one who called you out of darkness into his amazing light. 10 Once you weren’t a people, but now you are God’s people. Once you hadn’t received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Footnotes: a. 1 Peter 2:6 Isa 28:16 Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible Sermon A seminar leader was speaking to a group of business students. To drive home a point, he used an illustration. He said, “Okay, time for a quiz." Then he pulled out a one-gallon, wide-mouthed mason jar and set it on a table in front of him. He produced about a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one at a time, into the jar. When the jar was filled to the top and no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, “Is this jar full?" Everyone in the class said, “Yes." Then he said, “Really?" He reached under the table and pulled out a bucket of gravel. Then he dumped some gravel in and shook the jar causing pieces of gravel to work themselves down into the spaces between the big rocks. Then he asked the group once more, “Is the jar full?" By this time the class was onto him. “Probably not," one of them answered. “Good!" he replied. He reached under the table and brought out a bucket of sand. He started dumping the sand in, and it went into all the spaces left between the rocks and the gravel. Once more he asked the question, “Is this jar full?" “No!" the class shouted. Once again he said, “Good!" Then he grabbed a pitcher of water and began to pour it in until the jar was filled to the brim. Then he looked up at the class and asked, “What is the point of this illustration?" One eager beaver raised his hand and said, “The point is, no matter how full your schedule is, if you try really hard, you can always fit some more things into it!" “No," the speaker replied, “that's not the point. The truth this illustration teaches us is this: If you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all." (1) The expert was giving the class a lesson in time management. Put in the big rocks first. Make sure you have your priorities straight. Take care of the essentials before you get bogged down in the extraneous. That is a good lesson in managing time. It is also a good lesson in managing life. Put first things first. Make sure your life is built on a strong foundation. I used this lesson when writing a youth study on time management. Today I tell that story because it demonstrates to us that there are all kinds of rocks in our lives. Rocks are different sizes, different textures, and used for many different things. Rocks are not only a huge part of our lives, rocks are also metaphors to the use to talk about life. For instance we can hit rock bottom, turn over the rock to discover something new, we have touchstones, capstones, cornerstones. Rocks are also an important part of our faith. A woman fought a long battle with cancer. Her brother, Dr. Earl Wolf, made the trip from Missouri to Pennsylvania to attend her funeral. While he was there, he spent some time leafing through his sister's Bible. He found this handwritten poem tucked in its pages: Often on the Rock I tremble, Faint of heart and weak of knee; But the steadfast Rock of Ages Never trembles under me.' (4) When you are battling life's fiercest foes, you want more than a dead hero or even a live but inadequate friend. You want the Rock of Ages. You want the precious Cornerstone on your side. You want a mentor who is present and who is powerful. From the Hebrew tradition of Isaiah (28:16), God is identified as a foundation stone. God is an immovable rock, the primordial solid stone. Peter himself had been identified as “petros,” the movable stone as opposed to petra, the immovable bedrock. Peter knew his own weaknesses all too well and chose to write about a new kind of “rock.” The image Peter offers is even weirder than the identity Jesus had given him as a “stone,” as a petros (me stone), and upon this petra (we bedrock) Jesus promised to build his church. The Me is built upon the We. In Christ Peter’s insecurities will be made solid, as will ours… Rocks are mentioned many times in both the new and old testament. Jesus Christ calls himself the cornerstone that was rejected, but became the most important cornerstone. Today is Mother’s Day. That usually presents a challenge for me- what do I preach about. And usually the scriptures for that day have nothing to do with mothers’ But 1 Peter is perfect – because it speaks of building a spiritual house. Whenever you build you always need a foundation and a stone that holds everything together and keeps all the other stones in place. For many of our households that person is mother. That is the whole lesson of 1 Peter. When I looked at that scripture last week I was not sure of how I was going to do this. But as I studied this scripture all week, it started to grow on me. Not only is does it work for Mother’s Day – it has a very rich lesson that I am just going to touch on. The lesson does not just speak to mothers – is a lesson about who we all are as the church. The last verse says – the church is a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people who are God’s own possession. Once you were nobody, today you are important. God is traditionally the foundation, the touchstone. The church is the house that God built. God is the head of the church. The house of God has certain boundaries to live by according to 1 Peter – the house code is to have hope, to be holy, to love one another, to long for spiritual nourishment and to be willing to be built into a spiritual house. The whole passage is about what it means to be a rock. Jody Felton remembers the day that her father passed in 2000 like it was yesterday. She says that a very great passed man on that day. Her father had alzheimer’s disease, so she says that she lost her father years before he actually died. When he was diagnosed, he spent a lot of time explaining the illness to his family. Things were difficult, when he could not remember things. There were times when he could remember what happened on a particular day 30 years ago, but he could not remember what happened ten minutes ago. He started to lose things, then he lost track of time, but the hardest part was when he lost track of people. She remembers the time when her brother John visited. He knew that it was his wife Wilma’s son that visited, but he made no connection that he was his son. He loved when his grandchildren visited, but he never made the connection that they were his grandchildren. He recognized his wife, he would smile every time he saw her. He asked her to marry him every day. One day Jody was visiting her dad in the nursing home, and as she was leaving he told her he wanted to give her something. He reached in his pocket and gave her a rock. He said that whenever he got confused, or anxious he would reach into his pocket and touch this rock. Now he wanted her to have it. She was touched, she felt that was her dad’s way of telling her he loved her, by giving her something that meant a lot to him. He was giving him a part of himself. Jesus is that rock that we keep in our pocket. This mother’s day that story really touched me because my mother died of early onset alzheimers. I too felt that I lost her long before she died. I too watched as she lost track of time and then people. I felt comforted that as she seemed to lose track of life, that she always knew me and who I was. Two days before she died, she called me maam – I knew then that I had lost her. She never gave me a stone to remember her by…….. But the good news for today is that in 1 Peter, we are called to be living stones. Not a stone in the pocket, but a stone in the heart. Christ is the Rock of ages, but we are the building built by Christ. Built by love. (i) The Christian is likened to a living stone and the Church to a living edifice into which he is built (verse 5). Clearly that means that Christianity is community; the individual Christian finds his true place only when he is built into that edifice. “Solitary religion” is ruled out as an impossibility. C. E. B. Cranfield writes: “The free-lance Christian, who would be a Christian but is too superior to belong to the visible Church upon earth in one of its forms, is simply a contradiction in terms.” There is a famous story from Sparta. A Spartan king boasted to a visiting monarch about the walls of Sparta. The visiting monarch looked around and could see no walls. He said to the Spartan king, “Where are these walls about which you boast so much?” His host pointed at his bodyguard of magnificent troops. “These,” he said, “are the walls of Sparta, every man a brick.” The point is clear. So long as a brick lies by itself it is useless; it becomes of use only when it is incorporated into a building. So it is with the individual Christian. To realize his destiny he must not remain alone, but must be built into the fabric of the Church. Suppose that in time of war a man says, “I wish to serve my country and to defend her from her enemies.” If he tries to carry out that resolution alone, he can accomplish nothing. He can be effective in that purpose only by standing shoulder to shoulder with others of like mind. It is so with the Church. Individualistic Christianity is an absurdity; Christianity is community within the fellowship of the Church. (ii) Christians are a holy priesthood (verse 5). There are two great characteristics of the priest. (a) He is the man who himself has access to God and whose task it is to bring others to him. In the ancient world this access to God was the privilege of the professional priests, and in particular of the High Priest who alone could enter into the Holy of Holies. Through Jesus Christ, the new and living way, access to God becomes the privilege of every Christian, however simple he may be. Further, the Latin word for priest is pontifex, which means bridge-builder; the priest is the man who builds a bridge for others to come to God; and the Christian has the duty and the privilege of bringing others to that Saviour whom he himself has found and loves. New Command on Mother's Day On this day when we’re trying to show our loving appreciation for all that love we’ve received from the special person called “Mom,” it is so fitting that we hear Jesus say what he said here in our text: “A new command I give you: Love one another.” Actually, Jesus’ command to love one another is appropriate for any day of the year, but it does take on special meaning on a day like today since included in that command to love, are those special ladies who brought us into this world and loved us in a way that only a mother can. Staff, www.eSermons.com. Unconventional Mother’s Day Gifts This Mother’s Day take a moment to think of all the mothers in the world who are in need. There are millions of women in the world living on less than a dollar a day. There are women in this country who are wondering how they are going to feed or diaper their children from day to day. There are children who need medical attention that their parents may not be able to afford. Anyone who has ever had to worry about such things can deeply sympathize. For those of us who have escaped such worries, we can only imagine the level of instinctive stress that uncertainty can provoke. There are many ways to celebrate Mother’s Day, but here are a few unconventional suggestions that will prove to your own mother that she did a good job raising you. How about dropping off a box of diapers and/or a case of formula to a local food bank or women’s shelter? If you have some baby furniture or clothing that your own children have outgrown, how about donating that stuff to a local charity? Does our local hospital have a fund for children who need care? Are there doctors in our community or city who volunteer in clinics overseas who might need supplies? There are countless ways to help support Moms locally and globally. Let your own Mom know that you were thinking about her and all of the many things she provided for you along the way…and that you did a good deed in honor of her. It will make her proud. Happy Mother’s Day. I posted a short film earlier this morning about how we celebrate Mother’s Day in America. I would encourage you to watch it as a part of this worship experience. It has a summarizes the point of my sermon perfectly. When I went to jewel, this year in the corona virus age, they put flowers and other presents in packages so that you could just leave them on the front step. And since there are no sit down restaurants open this year, everyone is having lobster tails, this is the first year that they were sold out everywhere. But the video encourages us to give to our mothers, but to also return to the original roots of the day – a day of service to others, and opportunity to make life better for all. Let our celebration of mothers not be an end within itself, but a beginning, a beginning of a life of service – building the house of love. Let us pray…….. Prayer Pandemic Mother’s Day Prayer: Another Kind of Mother’s Day Another Kind of Mother’s Day Dear God we pray for all the mother’s today. For this is a mother’s day just like every other, yet more pronounced. For every single one that can’t safely see their children. For the essential working mom, who is trying to do everything, we pray that they are able to receive some care themselves. For the mother’s who are ill, we pray for peace. For the mother’s who are given the duties of motherhood–the stepmothers, Godmothers, grandmother’s, adopted mother’s, aunties, mentor-mothers and the single fathers in the world, we pray that all of their work shines in their beloved children. For the lonely mother’s, we pray that they can receive moments of connection. For the mother’s who are stuck with their children at home, when it seems they should be launched into the world, we pray that you are able to be not just “mom” but your full differentiated self. For the estranged families on this day, we pray that they can maintain safe boundaries and celebrate with their found families. For the mother’s who are pregnant–probably equal parts mixed excited and scared to be bringing a baby into the world–we pray they feel strong roots beneath them to carry on. For the mother’s who are caretaking–similar to how they always do, yet having to absorb all of the changes and be a buffer for their charges–we pray that your work is appreciated. REPORT THIS AD For the single mother’s who are doing more by themselves than ever, we pray that you can receive support. For all the mother’s who feel overwhelmed, inadequate or stressed, we pray that you receive love. On this just another mother’s day where everything is the same, but different, we pray for all the mothers, sons and daughters, for all the families Close together or far apart, let us hold each and every kind of mother in prayer today. Reminding each of member of the family that we are each a child of God, and that God longs to hug us under her wings–caring for us, feeding us and sheltering us like a Mother Hen cares for her brood. We pray for this God to shelter us in her loving arms this particular Mother’s Day through the power of the Holy Spirit we pray. Amen. Feel free to use with credit to Pastor Katy Stenta Reflection Moment Announcements: We are still here in internet land. I am working on so me improvements to the ways we can connect. I am hoping to make those changes this week, but in Corona virus time things are a little slower, supplies are not readily available. Debbie has been calling and sending messages on congregational care. She will continue. I need to contact our church leaders this week, so that we can move forward with church business. Still waiting on the bishop and the governor for direction to when we will be back in the sanctuary -even then we will continue to meet on the internet. Continue to pray for our families during this difficult time. Next week’s scripture will be John 14:15-21 continue our discussion on what it means to be a part of God’s family Happy Mother’s Day – interesting conversation about this being a very confining day, not all women are mother’s. not all mothers are women. Interesting, but true – go out and show love to all of those who have shown compassion. Even our enemies and those who make us feel uncomfortable have taught us a beautiful lesson. Show love and say thank you to all! Peace out! Benediction Additional Illustrations In the fall of the year, Linda, a young woman, was traveling alone up the rutted and rugged highway from Alberta, Canada to the Yukon. Linda didn't know you don't travel to Whitehorse alone in a rundown Honda Civic, so she set off where only four-wheel drives normally venture. The first evening she found a room in the mountains near a summit and asked for a 5 A.M. wake-up call so she could get an early start. She couldn't understand why the clerk looked surprised at that request, but as she awoke to early-morning fog shrouding the mountain tops, she understood. Not wanting to look foolish, she got up and went to breakfast. Two truckers invited Linda to join them, and since the place was so small, she felt obliged. “Where are you headed?" one of the truckers asked. “Whitehorse." “In that little Civic?" one of them said. “No way! This pass is DANGEROUS in weather like this." “Well, I'm determined to try," was Linda's gutsy, if not very informed, response. “Then I guess we're just going to have to hug you," the trucker suggested. Linda drew back. “There's no way I'm going to let you touch me!" she said angrily. “Not like THAT!" the truckers chuckled. “We'll put one truck in front of you and one in the rear. In that way, we'll get you through the mountains." All that foggy morning Linda followed the two red dots in front and had the reassurance of a big escort behind as they made their way safely through the mountains. Caught in the fog in our dangerous passage through life, we need to be “hugged," says Chuck Swindoll. With fellow Christians who know the way and can lead safely ahead of us, and with others behind, gently encouraging us along, we, too, can pass safely. (5) How do you build a successful life? You build it on the rock. You build it beginning with a sure Cornerstone. You build it on Christ who is our model and our mentor and the mortar that joins us as believers together as a family--as living stones in his holy temple. n a park on the beautiful island of Bermuda there is a rock hanging on a rope with a large sign beside it. The sign reads: “Weather Station . . . Check the Rock . . . If it's wet, it's raining . . . If it's moving, it's windy . . . If you can't see it, it's foggy . . . If the rock is gone, it's a hurricane." Today we check the Rock . . . or better yet, to use the language of our text from I Peter, the Stone--the Cornerstone on which our lives are built.

In the Family of God

May 18, 2014 I Peter 2:2-10 John 14:1-14 Fifth Sunday of Easter In the Family of God God in the Stone story Theologian Megan McKenna tells of a story that circulates in Italy about Michelangelo and stones. Whether it is true or not is not debated. What it means though is open to interpretation. This is how she heard the story. You decide what it means. Every day, it seems, God would look down from heaven on the earth to watch over his people and to see what they were up to. And every once in awhile God would go to visit his people and dwell with them, though usually no one recognized him. Sooner or later, however, someone would come along and find him and then he would disappear from their sight and return to the heavens. And it seemed that some of his best hiding and watching places were in rocks, stones, canyons, caves, wells, and tombs. Soon there were stories about a stone that Jacob used for a pillow and dreamed of angels ascending and descending to earth and where he wrestled all night before receiving a blessing from a mysterious angel. And the one about Jacob's well or Sinai's mountain and many about the Temple in Jerusalem. Then Isaiah the prophet promised the presence of a cornerstone (but was it a rock or a person?). "Therefore, says the Lord God: See, I am laying a stone in Zion, a stone that has been tested, a precious cornerstone as a sure foundation; the one who puts faith in it shall not be shaken" (Is. 28:16). Then, not so long ago, Jesus came and told his people that it wasn't necessary to worship in certain places anymore. He told a woman at a well: "Believe me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem... an hour is coming, and is already here, when authentic worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth" (John 4:22-23). But then Jesus died on the place of the skull and was buried in a rock-hewn tomb, but escaped from that cave to free us from our caves. It wasn't long, though, before people began building high places and piling stones up to go and worship there. Many years passed and God grew uncomfortable again. People were having trouble recognizing him; they seemed to be looking only in these places that they had built for his honor and glory for his presence and he wondered what he should do about it. One day God's attention was drawn to a commotion that was going on around a man in Italy. This man loved stones. All day he would chisel away at the barren slabs and after time, energy, and painstaking effort, the stone would live. It was almost as if he discovered something alive inside the stone and went about freeing it with a passion. He had set many people free already and this time he was attempting to set God himself free! For years he had been working on one huge piece of marble, and slowly over the years the figure of a woman holding the body of her dead son was emerging from the rock. And this time even God was surprised at what was being born out of stone. He went to Michelangelo and spoke to him. Michelangelo, God said, what are you doing? Lord, he answered, I am setting you free, so that everyone will recognize you not only in stone, but in everything, everyone that dwells on earth, but especially in all those who suffer unjustly and die violently at the hands of others and in those who mourn for the loss of such vibrant life. I don't want people to forget you. And the Lord spoke again to Michelangelo: Do I really dwell in that stone? I know in the past I have often gone to rocks and mountains, wells and tombs, but I don't remember going to dwell in the stone you are working on. And Michelangelo answered God: But my Lord, since your child came to us, you don't have to pick and choose your places of rest; he left your Spirit everywhere we just have to discover it, touch it and reveal it to others. That's what it means to live. The stone is rolled away. Don’t roll it back. Leonard Sweet Sermon, Leonard Sweet, ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., 2014, 0-000-1415 God in the stone in this building I needed to tell that story this morning, helps me with a puzzle. As I have been looking at the narthex outside, fellowship hall, and even the walls here inside of the sanctuary. I have been trying to get into the mind of the architect, and I have been asking him for a few months – what in the world were you thinking when you built this whole structure with concrete. Why concrete? You cant do anything with concrete, but paint it white. The insurance company loves it. But for practical purposes – you cant do presentations in here, because the signal cant travel through the concrete. You cant decorate it. This part of the church will never burn down. St Benard hospital may have plans for the neighborhood, but there is no way that they could knock down these walls. This structure will stand forever. What in the world was the architect thinking. And after hearing that story – I got it. God is in the concrete. And once the building was consecrated, and God was in the building – there was no way he was going to be able to leave. He will be stuck here forever. God is the bedrock Now before you think that is a totally crazy idea, consider Isaiah 28:16 which says - I lay in Isreal a foundation stone. A primodial stone, a rock that does not move. A rock that like this building isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. You can’t move it, or do anything with it. There is a town in the middle east called Petra. Petra means bedrock. And the town is build within the bedrock of a mountain. The people are long gone, but the structure is still there. Peter the rock When Jesus was talking to the disciples, he said to Peter, upon this rock I build this church. But the word for rock that Jesus used was not Petra – it was petro. Petro is a movable rock, a rock that can be picked up, that can be changed. Rock that is not reliable, but is still usable. Jesus did not build his church upon petra, but petro. Living Stones It is Peter’s words that I want us to consider this morning. He advises us to become living stones. Once again that is a strange term. Afterall stones are dead and lifeless. There is nothing that lives inside of a stone, except God. The story of Jesus reminds us that what was dead and lifeless can e bought back to life, with the power of God. Jesus calls himself living water. Now there is a such thing as living water. A river, a stream a creek is living water, because the water is moving. So a living stone is a stone that moves. Remember, Genesis says that he formed man by taking some dirt from the ground and breathing life into it. So there is regular dirt on the ground that does not move and breathe. And there is living dirt that breathes, walks and talks. You and me, we are God’s living stones. The church is not these concrete blocks, it is these living stones that do the work of God inside of here. GOD WANTS TO LIVE IN YOUR HOUSE C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity: "Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on: you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently he starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is he up to? The explanation is that he is building quite a different house from the one you thought of--throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself." Peter’s words of encouragement I Peter was not written to address a specific issue, it was written to all struggling churches to remind them of their task. To remind them of their faith. Peter believes that those who believe the gospel, must live the gospel. Cant read, and pray and go to church without being convicted of who Christ is. And when you know Christ, you love Christ, you live in Christ. When someone ask who you are – your answer is not about where your hometown is, it is not about what you do for a living, it is about who you are in the Spirit of Christ. God is the bedrock of your life, Christ is the cornerstone of your life, and you are God’s living stones. A piece of God lives in you. And you are a small piece of God. There’s a story that is often told in management textbooks about a man who was walking in the countryside one day. He happened upon a building site where three people were all working vigorously. Two were stonecutters; the third was an old woman, sweeping The traveler stopped and asked what they were doing. The first stonecutter answered, “I am making a living.” The traveler proffered his question to the second stonecutter. He didn’t look up, but kept on hammering while he said, “I am doing the best job of stonecutting in the entire county.” Then our traveler turned to the old woman with her broom. “What are you doing?” he asked. The old woman paused, set down her broom, and looked toward the heavens. With a visionary gleam in her eye she said, “I am building a cathedral to the glory of almighty God.” It’s a parable that rings true for us today, one that this extended metaphor of stones brought to mind. Of course, our text imagines us as stones, not as stonecutters. What could it mean to be a living stone? The first stonecutter thought he was his work, the second thought he was his own effort, but it was the third who realized that she was part of a larger whole. And that what she gave, contributed the the building of God’s kingdom. In this chapter – Peter gives us the ultimate encouragement. You are a royal priesthood, a chosen people, a holy nation. All of these images are in the old testament. As a matter of fact, Hosea names one of his children nobody – to remind the children of Israel that when they don’t have God inside of them- they are nobody. But with God’s help – they are somebody. They are a royal priesthood set aside for a special purpose. A Royal Preisthood A priest is one who leads others to the glory of God. A bridge, an intercessor. When we live God’s word in our lives, we lead others to God. The basis message of 1 Peter 2 is to have hope, to live holy, to love one another, to seek God like a baby seeks milk. And to live as God’s spiritual house. Living stones reflect the bedrock of God, the cornerstone of Christ. We are building used for God’s purposes. Let us pray… Amen. Children’s sermon…. (From a sermon by Glenn Durham, I Simply Must Have, 4/4/2011) We Are The Church by Wesley T. Runk Passage: 1 Peter 2:4-12 • Lectionary: Easter 5 Item 8 of 12 | Back to Results Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house. Object: Toy building blocks Lesson: Good morning, boys and girls. How are you all today? (Let them respond.) Good. Do you see what I have with me today? What are these things? (Let them answer.) That's right. They are blocks. What do we do with them? (Let them answer.) Right. We use them for building things. What kinds of things can I build with these blocks? (Let them answer.) Yes, I could build all of those things, couldn't I? What if I wanted to build a church? Do you think I could do it with these blocks? (Let them answer.) Why couldn't I build a church with these blocks? (Let them answer.) That's right. I don't have enough blocks here. Besides that, I need blocks that are made out of brick or stone. These are too small and too weak to become part of a big building like a church. Boys and girls, did you know that Jesus and his disciples told us what to use when we are going to build a church? A long time ago we were told exactly how to put a church together. We don't use blocks like these, or bricks or wood. Can you guess what we should use to build our church? (Let them answer.) Those are good guesses, boys and girls. Jesus and his disciples told us that we are the blocks that are needed for our church! What do you think of that, boys and girls? (Let them respond.) That's right. You and I and your moms and dads and brothers and sisters -- all of us are the blocks that make up the church. That means each one of us is very important, doesn't it, boys and girls? Let me show you how important each one of us is. (Build a small pyramid, using your blocks.) Now, let's pretend that this is our church and that each one of these blocks is one of you. Every time we add one block we come closer to building our church. By ourselves we are only a block but when God puts us together we can be a wall and as he adds more and more we become a great building that Jesus calls his church. You see, boys and girls, that's just how important each one of you is to the whole church. Did you know you were that important, boys and girls? (Let them answer.) Well, you are! So let's all try to remember that every time we come to church. The whole church needs each one of us and we need one another. Will you try to remember that, boys and girls? (Let them respond.) Good. God bless you. Amen. WE ARE THE CHURCH, Wesley T. Runk, CSS Publishing Company, 1994, 0-7880-0101-9 Extra illustration You Know Your Master Is There There is a story told of a dying man who asked his Christian doctor to tell him something about the place to which he was going. As the doctor fumbled for a reply, he heard a scratching at the door, and he had his answer. "Do you hear that?" he asked his patient. "It's my dog. I left him downstairs, but he has grown impatient, and has come up and hears my voice. He has no notion what is inside this door, but he knows that I am here. Isn't it the same with you? You don't know what lies beyond the Door, but you know that your Master is there." Alan Carr, Biblical Facts about a Place Called Heaven