Sunday
05/28/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s
Sermon Title: “The Early Church, Take One!”
(“The Early Church” Series – Part 2 of 3)
Old Testament
Scripture: Psalm 68:1-10
New Testament
Scripture: Acts 1:6-14
Gospel Lesson: John
17:1-11
My friends, my sisters and brothers in Christ, welcome
again on this our Memorial Day Sunday, and on this our Ascension Sunday. With
Memorial Day being tomorrow, part of our worship today focuses on this national
holiday. This is the holiday that we honor those men and women who have died in
the armed forces, while serving our country. I also use this Sunday as an occasion
to honor all of our troops, as well as all men and women who wear a uniform to
serve and protect.
So again, today, and then tomorrow nationally, we honor
those men and women who gave their lives for their country, and we honor all men
and women who have served, or continue to serve. On behalf of the church,
again, I say thank you, and God bless you!
This Sunday is also Ascension Sunday, which is the Sunday
that we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus Christ from earth into heaven. In this
being our last Sunday in the Season of Easter, today Jesus’s 40-days of post-resurrection
or port-mortem appearances have come to an end. This end is written for us this
morning in our reading from the Book of Acts, as this is the scripture that I
will primarily be focusing on today.
As I said last Sunday, the day that the church formally
recognizes the Ascension of the Lord, was a few days ago on Thursday. Some
Churches every year on Wednesday night that week, or on Thursday, have an Ascension
of Lord service. I am open to doing such a service in the future.
Last week, I started a three week preaching series on “The
Early Church, leading up to Pentecost Sunday, which is next Sunday. Last week,
in the first week of this preaching series, I discussed how the world that
Jesus was born into was largely polytheistic. By polytheistic, I mean that most
people, short of the Jews, believed in many gods. Not only this, most people
who believed in many gods, would often carve, shape, or forged an image of their
god. These idols or “graven images,” would sometimes become the object of
worship.
For the Jews and then us the Christians, we have always believed
that our great God is beyond any idol or “graven image”. Historically speaking,
we have believed that our God, the God of Israel, is a spiritual being, and
because of this, cannot be contained by anything, or anyone. This very Jewish,
and then Christian view of faith and religion was a big part of what early
church preached.
In addition to this, the early church preached the “Good
News” or the gospel of Jesus Christ. The early church believe that God’s plan,
God’s love, and God’s forgiveness was made manifest through the life, death,
and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
So while we as Christians share a lot in common with our
Jewish brothers and sisters, we believe that forgiveness is offered through the
cross of Christ. AS Christians, we believe in one God in three persons, and
that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior.
I can imagine that being one of the original twelve
disciples of Jesus Christ was much easier when Christ was actually there for the
three years of his life that he taught, loved, healed, and forgave. What
happens though I wonder, when the messiah, there great teacher or “Rabbi”
leaves? What happens when the leader goes?
Well for the disciples, this meant that they were now the
pastors, the priests, and those whom God has called through Jesus Christ, to
set up the Kingdom of God on earth.
I can imagine on this Memorial Day Sunday that for some
soldiers there is, or was a comfort in being in basic training, or at the
academy. For when you are in basic training, or at the academy, you have
leaders instructing you and telling you what to do. When you leave the training
grounds or the school though, there is often much more that is expected of you.
While you will still be under the authority of your superiors, you are then
expected more and more to take what you have learned, have seen, and have
experienced, and put it into action.
This morning, in this my second sermon in my three week
sermon series on “The Early Church,” we have the Ascension of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus will leave this earth after his 40-days of
post-resurrection or post-mortem appearances, and now the disciples, the
apostles, are running the church. This is why I called this morning’s sermon, “The
Early Church, Take One!”
This title is a little tongue and cheek, as if a film
director was reading the title of this sermon the moment that Christ Ascended. In
this moment of Christ’s Ascension, I jokingly thought of a film director
slapping the clapboard down and saying, “The Early Church, Take One!”
Remember these are the same disciples that argued over who
was the greatest, who doubted, who denied Christ, and all but one who literally
abandoned him on the day of his crucifixion. These men and these women that are
present on this day, are now in charge of the early Christian Church.
I liken this experience to some of the depictions that I
have seen in movies of a new crop of recruits coming to basic training. Sometimes
in these movies the drill sergeant will say something to the recruits like, “you
are the sorriest bunch of recruits I have ever seen!”
The eleven disciples, minus Judas Iscariot, plus Jesus’ mother
Mary, Mary Magdalene, and other Christian women, are now in charge of the early
church. This is because Jesus ascends to heaven, and he will only return one
day again in glory.
Next Sunday on Pentecost Sunday, the disciples and other
early church members will receive the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem, in that Upper
Room, on the day of Pentecost. Jesus had told the disciples that the Holy
Spirit would come and fill them, and the day of Pentecost next Sunday is that
day. So next Sunday, on the day that we celebrate the birth of Christian
Church, please wear red to celebrate the fire of the Holy Spirit.
In the gospel of John reading from this morning, Jesus is
praying after the Last Supper he had with his disciples. The gospel says:
“After
Jesus had spoken these words, he looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the
hour has come; glorify you Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have
given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have
given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the
work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence
with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed” (Jn.
17:1-5, NRSV).
In this scripture, Jesus Christ is preparing for his
crucifixion, then resurrection, and then today his ascension to heaven.
Towards the ends of the prayer, Jesus then concludes with
the foreshadowing of his ascension into heaven. Jesus says:
“And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in in
the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that
you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one” (Jn. 17:11, NRSV).
As Jesus is preparing for his crucifixion, resurrection,
and then ascension, Jesus is praying to prepare the early church for their task
ahead.
In looking at our reading from the Book of Acts for this
morning, we have one of the Ascension of Christ accounts. Other accounts of
Christ’s Ascension are in the gospels of Mark, Luke, and John, and the
ascension is mentioned in various other places in the New Testament.
This account begins by saying:
“So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord,
is this the time when you will restore the kingdom of Israel?” He replied, “It
is not for you to know the times or periods that Father has set by his own authority.
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will
be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and the ends of the
earth” (Acts 1:6-8, NRSV).
In
this scripture, Jesus Christ is saying that he is about to leave the earth. He
tells the disciples to not worry though, as the Holy Spirit will be coming to
fill them very soon. This great out pouring of the Holy Spirit is what we
celebrate on Pentecost Sunday next Sunday.
After
saying this, the scripture then says:
“When
he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him
out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven,
suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, “Men of Galilee, why
do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from
you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven” (Acts
1:9-11, NRSV).
So
Jesus has just ascended in heaven, and then the scripture says:
“Then
they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near
Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they
went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter and John, and James, and
Andrew, Phillip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and
Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting
themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of
Jesus, as well as his brothers” (Acts. 1:12-14, NRSV).
So
Jesus ascends into heave, and then the disciples and other early Christian head
to Jerusalem. When they arrive, the go back to the Upper Room that they had the
last supper in, and they will remain there until the day of Pentecost.
On
the day of Pentecost, the disciples and the early church will be filled the
power of the Holy Spirit, and they will be so changed, that it will be the
birthday of Christian Church.
We
have then a Jewish and then an early Christian tradition that believes that God
was and is a spiritual being. A God that cannot be contained in idols, graven
images, or buildings, and a God came to us in the form of Jesus Christ, and the
Holy Spirit.
While
Jesus was teaching, loving, and healing on this earth, the disciples and the
other early Christians saw, heard, and witnessed many amazing things. Today,
there basic training, there time at the academy has come to an end.
These
first disciples and the other early Christians, will briefly go back to
Jerusalem, but soon, very soon, they will receive, like so many soldiers do,
there marching orders.
On
this day, Jesus is no longer on the earth, and the early church now waits to be
filled with the Holy Spirit. When this happens, which will be on the day of
Pentecost, the disciples and early church members will be filled with the Holy
Spirit. On this, the early church will then set off to build God’s kingdom on
earth, and bring all the world to saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.
This
my brothers and sisters, is part of the story of “The Early Christian Church,”
from which we are part of, and are co-heirs of the glory of Jesus Christ. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment