Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - World Communion Sunday/17th Sunday after Pentecost - 10/01/17 Sermon - “Being the Church"

Sunday 10/01/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Being the Church”

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Philippians 2:1-13

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 21:23-32

          Welcome again my friends, my sisters and brothers, on this World Communion Sunday. This Sunday that millions and millions of Christians all over the world symbolically share Holy Communion, or the Lord’s Supper. We will not all kneel at the same altar rail, but this World Communion Sunday is a day that we declare our unity as Christians, and our unity in the Lordship of Jesus Christ. We declare this with millions and millions of Christians around world, as we celebrate the gift of Holy Communion or the Lord’s Supper.

          This Sunday therefore, is very much about church unity. This Sunday is about how we as the church are supposed to live and function.

          In some parts of the world, the Christian Church is growing like wild fire. In fact, the United Methodist Church is growing so rapidly in Africa, that in recent years, entire new Annual Conferences were created, and new Bishops elected, to ensure the leadership of the fast growing church.

          In other parts of the world, which includes us in the United States, the Christian Church in general, is in steep decline. This means, many of our churches are shrinking, and some are even closing.

          In fact, in the early October edition of “The Bridge,” which is a publication that attempts to connect our local church to the entire Upper New York UMC Conference, it was announced that that Earlville UMC, after 202 years, will be closing. The reason this article is in “The Bridge,” is because the church is donating money for missional purposes, as part of its closure.

          Melissa and I have friends that are members of this church, and this is a church according to the article, began in 1815.

          As you have probably seen, the title of my sermon for this morning is called “Being the Church.” The few things that I have just told then, are primers or ideas around what I will be talking about this morning.

          As I said, in some parts of the world they literally cannot build church buildings fast enough, to capacitate all the people in them. Yet in the United States, Western Europe, and in other places, we sometimes have large and beautiful churches that have very few people in them. The United States is one of richest countries in the world, we have the biggest and the most powerful military, we have some of the most beautiful churches, and yet so many of them are shrinking.

          The question I have for us to think about this morning, is why is this happening? Why in the United States, in Western Europe, and in other places, are many churches shrinking, while in other places they are growing rapidly? I don’t about you, but when a church like the Earlville UMC closes after 202 years, it catches my attention.

          Some would answer this question, by saying that we need to change how we worship. We need to have screens, televisions, a rock band, a fog machine, track lighting, and etc. Some would argue that traditional worship is better. Some think that the church needs to be transformed into a “mega-plex” with a coffee shop, a book store, a gymnasium, a life size Noah’s Ark, a burning bush, and etc.

          It is also important to note that in this area of New York, about 25% of people polled have no faith beliefs at all. Meaning they believe in nothing around faith or religion.

          We live in a culture therefore, that is not seeing a church grow in most cases, but instead is seeing the opposite. How is it then, that in some places the church is growing rapidly, but not many places in the United States?

          An answer to this, which is one of many I believe, is in “Being the Church.” We probably have heard this statement before that the church just needs to “Be the Church.” Well does that mean, “Be the Church”? I hear this a lot, and I don’t really know what the person means when they say this. Or the famed United Methodist Church campaign of “Re-think Church.” Well what does it mean to “Re-think Church?” Or the campaign of “Open Doors, Open Hearts, Open Minds.” What does that mean exactly?

          To me, the church is supposed to be a place that you go, that is safe, loving, and where the people you encounter have a legitimate concern for you, for your family, and for your well-being. A place that you hear the gospel of Jesus Christ. For some people though, their faith is coming to a church service on Sunday morning, and they then hire a pastor to do all the rest of that “Jesus Stuff” that they don’t want do.

          What I am trying to say, is that strength of Christian Church, the growth of the Christian Church, to me, has never been rooted solely just in our style of worship, not just in the type of coffee that we serve, which is good by the way. To me, one of the strongest components of a successful, growing, and flourishing church, historically speaking, is that we are “Being the Church”.

          Well how do we define the church? Is it an institution? Is it a building? Is it God moving through us? Just what is the church?

          Well I have been reading and re-reading a lot of books to “Bone Up” as it were, for my ordination interviews next March. In his book “Major United Methodist Beliefs,” by Mack B. Stokes, Mack defines the church in this as an institution. This is what he says:

“The Church of Jesus Christ is an institution of upmost importance. Why? Because it proclaims the eternal gospel from generation to generation” (Stokes, 101).

Mr. Stokes goes on to summarize his arguments and says:

“The church is the body of Christ. It is his instrument. It is his servant. It is the bearer of the eternal treasure, the gospel. Because Christ is the foundation of the church, “the gates of Hades will not prevail against it” (Stokes, 108, Mt. 16:18)

          So why this heavy emphasis of the transmission and the focus on the gospel of Jesus Christ? This is where we find salvation, hope, new life, and the blue print of how live daily in the world.

          Jesus tells us to love each other, care for each other, to even serve each other. I wonder how many of churches are seeking to actively do this every day?

          I remember when I was attending for my last two years of seminary, at the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. While there, there were four pastors from the African Country of Sierra Leone. I was speaking to one them one day at lunch, and he told me that he pastored a small church in Sierra Leone of about 700 people. A small church! Yet there Sunday was one of worship, togetherness, and sharing a meal. His entire village shut down every Sunday he said, and the people worshipped together, loved each other, and broke bread together. Throughout the week, they cared for each other, loved, and each other, and in every way, were seeking to “Be the Church”. Their commitment to their faith went far beyond just a Sunday morning worship service. Instead there faith was lived out all the time, as they constantly sought to live our teachings of Jesus Christ every day. When the founder of the Methodist Movement, Rev. John Wesley was asked by his bishop, why he was doing ministry among the people, and outside of his church or parish, he told his bishop, “the world is my parish.”

          Some of us think back to fond days of togetherness in the church. We remember going over to help a widow, or doing this, or doing that. We were building community, we were loving, caring, reaching out, and letting folks know that there were welcomed here. We were truly united in “Being the Church.” “Being the Church” to me then, means that everyone here, or yet to come here, matters, they have worth, and God loves them. This means, are response to the gospel of Jesus Christ, and how we live our faith, and how we are “the Church,” I believe will have a strong and a direction correlation to whether the church flourishes or fails.

          This past Tuesday, we had a district clergy meeting with our bishop, Bishop Mark Webb. Before serving communion to all of pastors, Bishop Webb asked us where we have seen God’s grace in our lives. I raised my hand and said that I was so proud to be part of a church that claims UMCOR, or the United Methodist Committee on Relief as our own. I said to the bishop, we sit here today, as hundreds and maybe thousands of our brothers and sisters are working in the areas affected by hurricanes. Are UMCOR people are loving, serving, and “Being the Church.”

          Our ability to love like Jesus, to serve like Jesus, and to reach out like Jesus, will be, in my opinion, one the biggest factors in what the future of this church will look like. After all, if we are Christians, if we believe in Jesus, if we believe that he died for us, if we believe that he taught us a new way to live and love, are we willing to live that out daily? Or is that what we pay the pastor for? We pay them to be the Christian.

          The Apostle Paul speaks about being the church in his letter to the church in Philippi or the Philippians from this morning. The Apostle Paul says:

“If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross” (Phil 2:1-8, NRSV).

 So what does Jesus say to us again? He says:

“make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others” (Phil. 2:2-4, NRSV).

          Our ability to love, to care for, and to be there for each other, is us “Being the Church”. It is us living out the gospel of Jesus Christ, the hope of the world.

          This morning, in the gospel of Matthew reading, Jesus has his authority challenged, and gives us a short parable talking about his upcoming crucifixion. Jesus proclaims his Lordship, that he is the Messiah, the savior, and that in him we have hope, peace, love, caring, and the incredible ability to “Be the Church” that he has called us to be (Mt. 21:23-32, NRSV).

          My challenge to myself and to all us this week is to “Be the Church,” even more. Well how can we do that? Call someone, visit someone, or send someone in this church a card, just because. Let them know you love them, just because. Pray for and give to hurricane relief. Visit someone in a nursing home or a hospital. Let someone know you love and appreciate them. Help a neighbor, do a good work for someone else, and share the hope of the gospel of Jesus Christ. For when we do this, we are “Being the Church,” and when we do it well, the church flourishes. I know, because I have seen it.

          I leave you with a quote that I love, that is attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi. Here is the quote,

“Preach the Gospel at all times. When necessary, use words” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jamie-arpinricci/preach-the-gospel-at-all-times-st-francis_b_1627781.html).

 My brothers and sisters, when we preach the gospel, when we live it, we are then “Being the Church.” This is I believe one of the biggest ways that Christian Church has grown and flourished over the last 2,000 years. For “they will know we are Christians, by our love, by our love.” When this happens the church flourishes and we transform the world. Amen.

         

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - 16th Sunday after Pentecost - 09/24/17 Sermon - “Is Jesus Unfair?"

Sunday 09/24/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Is Jesus Unfair?”

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Philippians 1:21-30

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 20:1-16

          Well my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, I have a question for you on this Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost.

          This question is, how many of you don’t like it when things are “Unfair?” Sometimes in our lives, we see, we witness, or we hear about “Unfairness.”

          Maybe we have been working hard at a job for years and years, hoping for that promotion. Instead of us getting that promotion though, the boss’s son gets the promotion. We have worked much harder and we have done more for the company, than the boss’s son gets the job. After all, he is the boss’s son.

          Sometimes we say things like, “why do bad things happen to good people, and sometimes good things happen to bad people?” I think of the recent hurricanes.

          I don’t know about you, but this really gets at the core of Christian justice, of biblical justice, of gospel justice. What is fairness, and how should we as Christians practice fairness?

          Sometimes, someone breaks the law, and they get as the term goes, “a slap on the wrist”. Other times when someone commits the very same crime however, they then go to prison. Is that fair?

          A strong area of biblical and Christian justice for me, is being accountable to God for our actions. Do I believe that we will one day be held to account by God? I do. For if I didn’t, then Adolph Hitler doesn’t have to be accountable for all of the terrible things that he did. Then the young man who shot all of those children at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut has no reckoning for his actions. I believe in justice.

          In preparing for this sermon this week, I asked a few people the following question. The question was this, if you died and went to heaven, and Adolph Hitler was in heaven, what would you think of that?

          Well some people that I talked to went as far as to say that they would leave heaven altogether, but most said that that would not be right, or that it would be “Unfair.”

          Justice, fairness, righteousness, these are things of God, of Jesus Christ. Perhaps growing up, our parents were much more lenient with one of our brothers or sisters than there were on us. Maybe we got “the brunt of it” as the term goes. Was that fair?

          In the gospel of Luke 15:11-32, we have the famous story of the Prodigal Son. This is the story where a rich man has two sons. One son asks for his inheritance early, and the rich father gives the son half of his wealth. The son then goes off and spends all the money on dissolute living. The son is then penniless and homeless, and comes home begging to be one of his father’s servants. The father instead runs down the road when he sees him coming, puts sandals on his feet, a robe on him, and ring on his finger. They then have a feast in his honor.

          As you might remember though, the older brother who did not take his inheritance early, and who stayed and worked for his father, was angry. He was angry that his younger brother did what did, and was welcomed with so much. It was “unfair,” the older brother might have said to his wealthy father. The wealthy father then told the older brother, but you have never gone without, and you have always had what you needed with me.

          Justice, righteousness, and fairness, these are things as Christians that are or should be important to us.

          In our gospel reading this morning, Jesus tells us the story or the parable of the vineyard owner. Anyone here by the way, like to drink to wine? Well a vineyard is where they grow the grapes, to make the wine.

            So let’s dissect and look again at the gospel reading for this morning from the gospel of Matthew. Once again, this gospel reading is Jesus giving us the story or the parable of the vineyard owner. This story or parable, discusses how the vineyard owner hired and paid workers.

          Now Jesus also compares this story or parable to what the Kingdom of Heaven should look like. Jesus says,

“For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard” (Mt. 20:1-2. NRSV).

My guess is, is that vineyard owner hired these workers for the day, at maybe six or seven o’clock in the morning.

The gospel then continues with the vineyard owner hiring more workers. It says:

“When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; and he said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard’ (Mt. 20:3-7, NRSV).

So to review, the vineyard owner hired workers first thing in the morning, then at about nine o’clock, then at noon, then at three o’clock, and then at five o’clock. The vineyard owner therefore, hired workers throughout the day to work in his vineyard.

The gospel then continues with:

  ^“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.’ When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ (Mt. 20:8-15, NRSV).

          If we’re being honest though, how many of us would feel that it would be “Unfair” if we worked hard all day, and is those who worked less than we did, got the same pay? As I said earlier, we have multiple experiences in our own lives like this. Experiences where we say of something, “Well that is just unfair”.

          Looking at this story or parable that Jesus told us this morning then, as my sermon title says, “Is Jesus Unfair?”

          Well I think of two things, first, that God has a different standard in dealing with people, than we do (African Bible Commentary). Second, that this story or parable is also about forgiveness and salvation.

          For my first idea about God’s standards, is the idea that God can choose to bless us differently. We by our very natures might be jealous, or envious, or angry that some “have it so much better than us,” but God’s blessings, at least in the way of possessions and material wealth are often not equal for all of us. Is that “Unfair?” Or does God chose to bless us differently, with different gifts and graces, and in different ways? Now not all gained wealth and possessions are because of God’s blessings, some have been ill gotten. Believing in “Divine Justice” though, I believe that those persons will have to answer to God one day. Yet, God can chose to bless us differently.

          In the parable of the vineyard owner for this morning, the vineyard owner, who represents God, gives all of his workers the same pay. Is God a socialist? No, I think Jesus is just showing us how God is generous, but can bless us differently.

          I have met some couples for example, that wanted to have children, but weren’t able to. Sometimes these couples had more money without children, and were thereby able to pursue missionary activities, or they chose to adopt children. We are all blessed differently, but God is generous. God’s generosity and love is something we can all have, but God blesses us differently sometimes, and in different ways.

          To be honest though, because I am just so human, and because I am just so flawed, if I worked in the vineyard all day, and got paid the same amount as those who worked much less, I would be angry. Yet the vineyard owner told me first thing in the morning that he would pay this much. He gave me work, he blessed me, and he pays me. What’s the problem then? Well it’s “unfair.”

          Perhaps this is story or a parable on being grateful for what God has given us, even if we think it’s not enough, or if it’s “unfair.” This is a tough story.

          The second take I have this parable is that of forgiveness and salvation. Generally speaking, in most Protestant Christian denominations, including the United Methodist Church, we believe that our salvation is based on faith. This means, that if we ask God for forgiveness of all of our sins and wrong doings, and if we believe in his son Jesus Christ, and what Jesus has done for us, then when we die on this earth, we pass to heaven. We go from earth to eternity with God, with Jesus.

          Who hear believes that your faith in Christ, is how you go from earth to heaven when you die on earth one day? I do.

          So what is my point? My point is, if you believe in Jesus at the crack of dawn, you will be given eternity with God, with Jesus. You will also get the exact same thing, if you believe at nine o’clock, at noon, at three o’clock, or at five o’clock.

          I have heard stories of people who lived rather selfish and destructive lives. Yet as they lay in their beds old and dying, they decided that they needed to ask for forgiveness. That they finally acknowledge the harm, the pain, and the hurts they have caused. In that moment they asked God to forgive them. They accepted Jesus, and they believed in what he had done for them.

          I have heard these sorts of stories be called “Death bed conversions”. Given this, is eternity, is heaven, as we believe it as Christians, based on faith and forgiveness? I believe it is. If this eternity and this heaven is a free gift, can’t we receive at five years old, or at ninety-nine years old? I believe that the answer to this is yes. Only God knows our hearts, and only God will judge us on our faith and our lives.

          If someone though, lived a long and a destructive life, and then two days before they died asked God to forgive them, accepted Jesus, and were truly changed, do they get this free gift of heaven, or eternity? Well in most Protestant Churches, including the United Methodist Church, we would answer this with, yes.

          Is it fair though, that someone lived a terrible life, and right before they die, they gain faith and get the same reward?

          Is Jesus this morning in the gospel of Matthew reading “unfair?”

The example question I gave to some this week was, what if Adolph Hitler, shortly before he died, feel on his knees and begged God for forgiveness. Would he have it? I believe he would. If Adolph Hitler had done that, could he be in heaven? He could.

          To be honest though, I get angry when I think that Adolph Hitler, or the kid that shot all of those children at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut could be in heaven. The question though my brothers and sisters, is how forgiving is our God?

          The answer is to me, is that our God will always forgives, always embrace us, if we but ask and repent. This doesn’t always seem fair, yet the grace of our God is simply put, beyond our comprehension. The love and mercy of our God. is beyond what we are capable of understanding. Forgiveness, Jesus, eternity, well those are free gifts, and we need to do is repent and ask for it. It may seem “unfair,” but like vineyard workers getting paid the same for different amounts of work, our God is simply that loving with grace and mercy.

          While the earthly blessings that we may receive will be varied, forgiveness, salvation, and eternity, I believe, are free gifts, and all we need to do is repent and ask them.

          As for this morning’s gospel of Matthew reading, it ends with the vineyard owner saying, or God saying:

“So the last will be first, and the first will be last” (Mt. 20:16, NRSV).

          For our God is that loving, is that mighty to save, and is that mighty forgive. Amen.

          

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - 15th Sunday after Pentecost - 09/17/17 Sermon - “Forgiveness"

Sunday 09/17/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Forgiveness”

Old Testament Scripture: Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Romans 14:1-12

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 18:21-35

          Welcome again my friends, my sisters and brothers in Christ, on this the Fifteen Sunday after Pentecost.

          Last Sunday, in our gospel of Matthew reading, Jesus gave us a blueprint of how to forgive each other. In this blueprint, Jesus told us to go to the person who has harmed us or sinned against us, and then try to be reconciled with them (Mt. 18:15, NRSV). If this didn’t work, Jesus said to then take one or two other people with us, to then try to reconcile with the person again (Mt. 18:16, NRSV). If this failed to work, then Jesus said for us to make the sin or the harm against us, an issue to be put before the whole church.

          As I said last Sunday, following the gospel of Jesus Christ, specifically, the teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, is not always easy. In fact, I would argue that for many us, there are days that the gospel can just be plain hard.

          The things that Jesus has commanded us to do, and the ways in which that Jesus has commanded us to live, are as such, that if we truly did them, if we truly took them seriously, I believe that the world around us would be transformed.

          This is why the mission of the United Methodist Church, is “To make disciples of Jesus Christ, for the transformation of the world.”

          A problem that I see very commonly in our culture though, are Christians who believe in Jesus, but who maybe don’t take the gospels or the Christian life very seriously. The famous German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer, called this “cheap grace.”

          This is the idea that you believe that Jesus Christ died for your sins, you believe in Jesus, but we do so because we believe that we will go to heaven one day, as a result of these beliefs. Perhaps we don’t take the teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels very seriously, or for some of us, maybe we believe in Jesus, because it is a “fire insurance policy.” It is as if we could have this “fire insurance policy” in our safes at home. This means we believe in Jesus, and we believe that this belief will one day propel us to heaven, and we will then avoid fire. A “fire insurance policy.”

          So there is a big difference between believing in Jesus for eternal life in heaven, and living the Christian life. I admit, as I said, living the gospel, the teachings of Jesus Christ, is not always easy.

          While last Sunday, as I said, we were given a blueprint from Jesus about how to reconcile with each other within the church, for sins and harm committed. This Sunday, Jesus goes even further with how we are to forgive.

          Before getting into the gospel reading from Matthew however, I want to first just highlight some the basic teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels. These are far from being all of the teachings of Jesus Christ, but I just wanted to give you a few examples. Here they are:

-         In the gospel of Mark 10:44-45, Jesus says:

“and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mk. 10:44-45, NRSV).

-         In the gospel of Mathew 23:12, Jesus says:

“All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted” (Mt. 23:12, NRSV).

-         In the gospel of Mathew 5:43-44, Jesus says:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,” (Mt. 5:43-44, NRSV).

-         In the gospel of Mathew 22:37-40, Jesus says:

“He said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Mt. 22:37-40, NRSV).

-         In the gospel of Mathew 25:35-40, Jesus says:

“for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me’ (Mt. 25:35-40, NRSV).

-         And one more, In the gospel of Luke 3:11, Jesus says:

“In reply he said to them, “Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise” (Lk. 3:11, NRSV).

          These are but a few of the many things that Jesus teaches us, so that we know how to best live the Christian life.

          Do I believe that Jesus died for our sins? I do. Do I believe in what Jesus taught us in the gospels? I do. I admit though, that it isn’t always easy.

          This morning my sermon title around our gospel of Matthew 18:21-35 reading, is called “Forgiveness.” I supposed I could have done a series on this topic, for last week and this week.

          Last week, again, we heard how to forgive, and this week Jesus goes even further.

          The gospel begins this morning with Peter asking Jesus more about forgiveness. Here is what the gospel says again:

“Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times” (Mt. 18:21-21, NRSV).

          You might be thinking, “well seventy-seven times,” that’s not so bad. Except some bible translations say, seventy times seven times, which is four hundred and ninety times. So this is how many times we are supposed to forgive each other. Has anyone here ever forgiven someone seventy-seventy times? How about four hundred and ninety times? The gospel is hard sometimes, isn’t it?

          Jesus, as Jesus often did, then explains himself more, by telling a story, or a parable. Jesus then says again:

“For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt” (Mt. 18:23-34, NRSV).

          The teachings of Jesus Christ in the gospels, to me, are a blueprint for human behavior and morality. How we are supposed to live, and how we are supposed to treat each other.

          In this parable from Jesus that I just read, Jesus is telling us that if someone forgives us, in this case a debt, who are we to do the opposite.

          For example, supposed you knew a family with many children, and it was dead of winter, and you owned a fuel oil company. This family has a large bill owed to your company, and knowing that they will go without heat, you forgive the debt, so that they can get more fuel oil, to heat their home. That family then turns around and sues someone who owes them a $1,000 dollars. You see how this works?

          Where my oldest brother lives in southern Wisconsin, there is a pastor there that he knows. This pastor contracted a very serious illness that effects his long-term brain function, and perhaps even his speech. This pastor’s church fired him after he got sick, and my brother has been doing all kinds of good things for him. This is how Jesus taught us to live.

          The gospel of Matthew reading ends this morning with this, in reference to what forgiven slave had then done to another slave who owed him money:

“So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart” (Mt. 18:35, NRSV).

          Jesus tells us this morning, we need to forgive, we need to be generous, we need to be loving, and presently in this case, we need to try to help the hurricane victims. Do we do this just because it’s a nice thing to do? Perhaps, but even bigger than this, we do this, because our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, said in the gospels this is how you are live and to treat each other.

          I told a story about forgiveness last week, that I borrowed from Rev. Bob McCune. Jesus goes even further this week with the idea of forgiveness, so I picked a story of forgiveness that if you haven’t heard, might stretch you spiritually.

Now this story is 11-years old, and what I am about to read is part of an NPR article, entitled, “Amish Forgive School Shooter, Struggle with Grief.” For those that remember this 11-year old story, a shooter went into an Amish School House, and shot 10 girls, killing five of them. Here is the story as NPR reports it:

“It's been a week for quiet reflection in the Amish communities around Nickel Mines, Pa., which one year ago experienced tragedy.”

“It was in the tiny community that a man stormed into a one-room schoolhouse and shot 10 young girls, killing five. He then killed himself. That old school has since been demolished. The new school was closed on the one-year anniversary and families met privately in prayer.”

“Since the tragedy, people around the world have been inspired by the way the Amish expressed forgiveness toward the killer and his family. But while their acts of forgiveness were inspiring, they also caused a misperception that the Amish had quickly gotten over the tragedy.”

Forgiving the Killer

“Charles Roberts wasn't Amish, but Amish families knew him as the milk truck driver who made deliveries. Last month, it was announced that the Amish community had donated money to the killer's widow and her three young children.”

“It was one more gesture of forgiveness, gestures that began soon after the shooting.”

“Donald Kraybill, is a sociologist at nearby Elizabethtown College and co-author of Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy.”

"I think the most powerful demonstration of the depth of Amish forgiveness was when members of the Amish community went to the killer's burial service at the cemetery," Kraybill says. "Several families, Amish families who had buried their own daughters just the day before were in attendance and they hugged the widow, and hugged other members of the killer's family."

Last week, I told you a story that Rev. Bob McCune told about forgiving a bully, and giving him a Boy Scout knife. Yet this story of forgiveness, goes, I would argue, even deeper. Jesus tell us this morning to forgiven seventy-seven times, or in some bible translations, four hundred and ninety times.

If we are being honest, my sisters and brothers, how many of us could forgive the way these Amish families did? The gospel is hard sometimes isn’t it? Yet, I believe that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the hope of the world. May we this day, this week, and always do our best to love, heal, and forgive. May we immerse ourselves in the scriptures, in the gospels, and with the help of the Holy Spirit become more like Jesus each and every day. Amen.

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - 14th Sunday after Pentecost - 09/10/17 Sermon - “Working through our struggles"

Sunday 09/10/17 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Working through our struggles”

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 149

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Romans 13:8-14

Gospel Lesson: Matthew 18:15-20

          Friends, sisters and brothers in Christ, welcome again on this the Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost.

          If you remember from last Sunday, I spoke about the church being open to all different kinds of people. The idea that Jesus loves us all, that he has come for us all, and that he has died for us all. This then of course includes people that suffer in all different sorts of ways. We want to be loving and open to all people.

          Sometimes though, some of the suffering within the church occurs because we sin against or harm each other. In fact, sometimes we don’t even realize that we are doing it when it happens. It might be a case where we have said or done something, and perhaps we don’t think that we did anything wrong. We then maybe find out later that someone was hurt or negatively affected by what we said or by what we did.

          I certainly know that I have been guilty of this as a lay person, and then as a pastor. There have been times as a lay person and as a pastor that I have been well meaning, but still struggled with what I like to call “foot in mouth” disease.

          Perhaps I made a joke, or maybe I said the wrong thing at the wrong time. Generally speaking though, when this has happened, if I have been made aware of what I said or what I did, then I usually with great immediacy wanted to reconcile with the person or persons that I have harmed, or have sinned against.

          I remember for example, when I was in my first pastoral appointment in the Adirondack District. One Sunday morning, I was joking around with one of the pillars of one of the two churches that I was serving. This person told me that their daughter only went to church on Christmas and Easter. I then joked with this person that their daughter was a “C&E Christian,” or a “Christmas and Easter Christian.” Now I thought that this was a funny and a harmless joke.

          What happened though, was that I got a call later that day from the PPRC Chair of the church, telling me that this person was very hurt and offended by my joke. Apparently, it really bothered this person that their daughter didn’t go to church more regularly. I didn’t know this. This person was so bothered by what I said in fact, that they were considering not going to church anymore.

          After hanging up the phone with this PPRC Chair, I then called the person whom I offended, or sinned against. This person was unbelievably shocked, in a good way, that I had called him. We talked for a while, and he seemed to be grateful and appreciative that I called him and apologized to him.

          The next Sunday in church, my PPRC Chair approached me before church and said to me, that the person whom I had sinned against or harmed, called him immediately after I had called him to apologize to him. The PPRC Chair then told me that this person had been hurt and offended by different pastors throughout the years, but he said that he rarely if ever had a pastor immediately reach out to him to reconcile with him. This man whom I offended, whom I sinned against, was extremely touched and appreciative that I cared enough to reconcile with him.

          After that, this person that I sinned against or harmed, became one of my biggest supporters, and one of my most ardent defenders. This person was also one of the people who was the most upset when I was moved to the appointment that I presently serving in, with all of you.

          So why I do I tell you this story of my “foot in mouth” disease? Why is my sermon called “Working through our struggles?”

          Well the answer to both of these questions is, this morning Jesus Christ talks to us about sinning against each other. Jesus tells us how we should handle this, both in this week’s gospel reading from the Gospel of Matthew, and in next week’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew.

In this week’s Gospel of Matthew reading, we begin with Jesus saying this:

“If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector” (Mt. 18:15-17, NRSV).

          So Jesus tells us this morning, in regards to the church, and I would say in general, that if someone in the church sins against us, or harms us, that we are to go to that person and let them know that they have hurt us or sinned against us. If they listen to us, ask us for forgiveness, and we are reconciled to them, then this is great! If not however, Jesus says that the next step is to take one or two others with us to talk to them, so that they may hear what we are saying. Specifically, these one or two others that we bring with us will confirm that we told the person how they sinned against us or hurt us. They can then also witness being forgiven, or the lack of being forgiven.

          If this doesn’t work though, Jesus then says, tell the whole church about the hurt or the sin. Now in our United Methodist Church system, we can tell something to the whole church, or we can go through the Pastor Parish Relations Committee, or the PPRC. At this level of the conflict, or sin, or harm, it becomes a church wide struggle. From there, which is not listed in the gospel reading from this morning, we can then move such problems to the district level, or to the conference level, or to the regional level, or to the national level, and even to the worldwide church level. No one generally speaking, usually ever wants something to go to that level of mitigation.

          The hope that Jesus is pointing out this morning though, is that we will be able to reconcile with each other one on one. This isn’t always an easy thing to do, however.

If we can’t do this one on one, then perhaps we can do this in a small group. If not in a small group, then the whole church, or in our case the PPRC. In not then, it then goes higher and higher.

          Just to clear the air here a little bit, I am not preaching on this topic because someone has sinned against me or has harmed me, or because someone else here has done this to someone else in the church. I am preaching on this, simply because this is our lectionary scripture for this morning. If anything then, it is just a good reminder from Jesus of how to mitigate sins and conflicts in the church, and in general.

          Jesus then finishes today’s gospel lesson by saying:

“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, truly I tell you, if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them” (Mt. 18:18-20, NRSV).

          Jesus is then encouraging us to reconcile with each other, to forgive each other, if we have harmed, hurt, or sinned against each other. Jesus says again, “whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Mt. 18:18b, NRSV). To forgive and to reconcile here on earth then, is something that is heavenly.

          Jesus tells us further, “if two of you agree on earth about anything you ask, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven” (Mt. 18:19, NRSV). This idea about two of us being reconciled and forgiving each other, to Jesus, is a very heavenly concept.

          Jesus then says again, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them” (Mt. 18:20, NRSV).

Some people have used this scripture to say that whenever even the smallest group of believers are gathered, that they are in a matter of speaking, “in church”. That if you have two friends over to your house, and if you are spending time together in Christian Community, then in a way, you are in church, and are being the church.

          People that are angry, that are offended, that are hurt, and or that are sinned against by others though, are not nearly as likely to be gathered together. The idea that if two or more are gathered together, that God is in the midst of them, usually only occurs if two or more people are willing to gather in the first place. This of course means that we are to reconcile and to forgive each other.

          So this Sunday’s gospel lesson and next Sunday’s gospel lesson have a lot to say about forgiving, and the power of forgiving.

          In closing, I want to tell you a story that I heard preached by a retired United Methodist Elder, Rev. Bob McCune. Maybe I have told you this story before, but I just thought that it fit perfectly for the gospel reading for this Sunday. So as it happened, Rev. Bob McCune was preaching one Sunday at the Dryden United Methodist Church, when I had a week off in January, 2016. That Sunday he also happened to be preaching on reconciling with each other, and forgiving each other.

          In his sermon, Rev. McCune told the church, about his time in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Rev. McCune told us that we was blessed to come from a good home, and a home where didn’t want for much. In fact, he told us about one his prized possessions as a boy, his coveted Boy Scout pocket knife. This knife had different fold out features, and even had the official scout logo on the knife.

          Either as a gift or for another reason, Rev. McCune was then given a second Boy Scout pocket knife, as he now had two of them.

          Well, a large boy in the scout troop that Rev. McCune was in, had constantly picked on him. This boy was pretty terrible to him. Bob, now Rev. McCune realized though, that this boy lived in a poor family, and that he didn’t seem to have much. Bob, now Rev. McCune, even though this boy had picked on him, and even though this boy had been terrible to him, was thinking about ways to reconcile with him.

          What Bob, now Rev. McCune realized, is that since this boy came from a poor family, this boy’s family couldn’t even afford to buy him the coveted Boy Scout pocket knife.

          Now I don’t know how young Bob, now Rev. McCune received his call to ministry from God, but what I am about to tell you certainly didn’t hurt.

          Young Bob, now Rev. McCune, showed up one day to a scouting meeting or event, and sure enough, this big kid, this bully, saw him. They were across from each other a ways, and this big kid, this bully, looked at young Bob, as to say, I going beat you up.

          Young Bob, now Rev. McCune, then walked right up to the boy, who was still looking at him as if we was going to pummel him. Young Bob then said to this bully that he forgave him for picking on him and for doing all the terrible things to him that he had done.

          Well as you can imagine, this boy was like a deer in head lights, just so shocked that you Bob was saying this.

          Then after this, the bully still in shock, watched as Bob reached into one of his pants pockets, and pulled out his second Boy Scout pocket knife. Young Bob, now Rev. McCune said to the bully, that he noticed that he didn’t have a Boy Scout pocket knife, and that he wanted to give him his pocket knife.

          Rev. McCune said in this sermon that I heard him give at the Dryden United Methodist Church, last January, 2016 that everything changed between him and the bully that day. Instead having a bully, young Bob now had a great friend. So great in fact, that this former bully and now friend would defend and protect Bob if anyone else tried to bully him.

          What Rev. McCune said next, really stuck with me. He said, “that when you forgive people, you disarm them.” He said that we forgive others, we take can take the anger and the hate right out of them.

          This story that I just told you that I heard from Rev. Bob McCune is another good example of what Jesus was talking to us about in the gospel of Matthew reading from this morning.

          So today, this week, and always, may we seek to forgive, to offer our forgiveness if needed, to be reconciled with each other, and to come together as a group, as a church. This group will be of two or more, and Jesus Christ tells us that when we come together in his love like this, well then God will truly be amongst us. Amen.