Sidney UMC - Reformation Sunday/Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost - 10/28/18 - Sermon - “Sola Fide"

Sunday 10/28/18 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “Sola Fide”                         

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 34:1-8, (19-22)

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 7:23-28

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Mark 10:46-52

          Welcome again on this our Twenty-Third Sunday after Pentecost, and on this our Reformation Sunday.

          The word Reformation, can be a mouthful. What is a reformation? Further, why do we have a Reformation Sunday? According to one source that I found, the word Reformation has a couple of basic definitions. One definition of Reformation is:

“1. The action or process of reforming an institution or practice”.

“2. A 16th-century movement for the reform of abuses in the Roman Catholic Church ending in the establishment of the Reformed and Protestant Churches” (www.google.com).

          According to another source that I found, the Reformation that I will be discussing this morning is:

“The Reformation (more fully the Protestant Reformation, or the European Reformation) was a schism in Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther and continued by Huldrych Zwingli, John Calvin and other Protestant Reformers in 16th-century Europe” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformation).

          Essentially then, five-hundred years ago last year, in 1517, the Christian Church began undergoing a massive set of changes, or reforms, or a Reformation.

          For some people that have celebrated this historic Sunday, they have seen it as the Sunday where we explain why we are right and the Roman Catholic Church is wrong. This is not what this Sunday is about, and in fact, the Roman Catholic Church today in 2018, is very different than it was 500-years ago.

          The problem 500-years ago was corruption, greed, and the over-reach of power. Today in some churches people sometimes still leave there church because they feel that the pastor has too much power, too much authority, or too much influence. What do we do to check the power of our clergy? Yes, I am asking you how do we keep our pastors and me in check?

          Well 500-years ago in Martin Luther’s day, there wasn’t much that you could do to check the authority of the church leaders. Martin Luther, a German Roman Catholic Priest, who preached and taught in Germany, witnessed some of the practices in the church as being not Biblical and not of God. The specific one that really infuriated Luther, was the selling of the forgiveness of sins. You heard me right, if you paid the church a set amount of money, then the church would guarantee that you and your family members would all go to heaven. To certify this, the church would give you a document called an “indulgence”. Well, this set the great reformer Martin Luther into a rage. Selling the forgiveness of sin, how awful! How corrupt!

          Well Luther was a good Roman Catholic and wanted to address the concerns that he had with the church. This culminated in a document called the 95-Theses that Luther nailed up in Wittenberg. Luther was hoping initially that within the Roman Catholic Church that these reforms could happen. He didn’t want to leave the Roman Catholic Church initially, but reform it.

          Last year on the 500^th anniversary of the start of the reformation, Roman Catholic Cardinal Arch-Bishop Timothy Dolan of the New York City Diocese and other Roman Catholic Bishops agreed with Martin Luther. They said that he was right to stand against the corruption that existed in the church at the time.

          Further, one Roman Catholic Bishop said that if the Pope had tried to reconcile with Martin Luther, we all might still be Roman Catholics today. The way the Roman Catholic Church has religious orders, like the Franciscans, the Dominicans, and the Jesuits, and etc., there could have been a Roman Catholic order called the “Lutherans”. Yet, the Roman Catholic Pope at the time, Pope Leo X kicked Luther out of the church or excommunicated him. At this point Luther had thousands of followers. Soon after this, King Henry VIII of England took the British Church out of the Roman Catholic Church. This church became known as the Church of England, or in America the Episcopal Church or the Anglican Church. The founder of the Methodist Movement, Rev. John Wesley was a priest or a pastor in the Church of England. This is why early on, the Methodist Church was called the “Methodist-Episcopal” Church, due to our connection to the Church of England, or the Episcopal Church.

          So with all of this said, what did the great reformers teach that was so different than the Roman Catholic Church? Did Martin Luther and the other Reformers not believe in our historic statements of faith like the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed, or the Athanasius Creed? Nope, they believed all of them. Did they not believe in the Holy Trinity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit? Nope, they believed that to.

          Luther became convinced of a few things, however:

1. We don’t need to buy our way into heaven, we get there through faith in Christ, and faith in Christ alone.

2. The Bible is the ultimate authority on earth for the church and for us.

3. There is not one sovereign head of the Christian Church, other than Jesus Christ.

          The disagreement wasn’t over the core beliefs of Christianity then, but more how it was being carried out. Martin Luther taught therefore that heaven, salvation, are free gifts offered to us only through Jesus Christ. There is nothing we can give or do, to earn the grace of God so freely given to us through Jesus Christ. All we have to do is repent of our sins and accept Jesus Christ. The church exists therefore to transmit the saving message of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. We then equip and train converts to serve and love our neighbors. Or as the mission statement of the United Methodist Church says, “to make disciples of Jesus Christ, for the transformation of the world”.

          So to just break this down, then tie this to today’s gospel lesson, there are five main points of the overall Reformation of the Christian Church. Sometimes we call these the “5-Solas,” or the 5-alone statements. (https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/the-five-solas-of-the-protestant-reformation.html). What are these “5-Solas”? They are:

1. Sola Scriptura (“Scripture alone”): The Bible alone is our highest authority.

2. Sola Fide (“faith alone”): We are saved through faith alone in Jesus Christ.

3. Sola Gratia (“grace alone”): We are saved by the grace of God alone.

4. Solus Christus (“Christ alone”): Jesus Christ alone is our Lord, Savior, and King.

5. Soli Deo Gloria (“to the glory of God alone”): We live for the glory of God alone (https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/the-five-solas-of-the-protestant-reformation.html).

Let me repeat these again:

1. Sola Scriptura (“Scripture alone”): The Bible alone is our highest authority.

2. Sola Fide (“faith alone”): We are saved through faith alone in Jesus Christ.

3. Sola Gratia (“grace alone”): We are saved by the grace of God alone.

4. Solus Christus (“Christ alone”): Jesus Christ alone is our Lord, Savior, and King.

5. Soli Deo Gloria (“to the glory of God alone”): We live for the glory of God alone (https://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/the-five-solas-of-the-protestant-reformation.html).

          So the Reformation that was started by the German Monk, priest, writer, and teacher, Martin Luther, would quickly develop into a movement focused on the Bible, faith in Christ, God’s grace, Christ as our only savior, and living for the glory of God. In general though, we share many of same beliefs that the Roman Catholic Church still has.

          In general though, the Roman Catholic Church has much more tradition than we have in the United Methodist Church. In the United Methodist Church for example, some pastors robe up every Sunday, some never. Some worship services like this one still look traditional, and some don’t. Some look like a rock concert. If scripture is the ultimate authority though, then how much tradition should we have? These are things to consider. Our robes are tradition, the seasons of Advent and Lent are tradition. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are tradition. Next Sunday being All Saint Sunday is tradition. Our parament rugs on the pulpit and lectern are tradition. How much tradition should we have and why?

          So to boil this all down, the Reformation became about faith in Christ alone, the Bible, and getting back to the basics of the Christian faith.

          To connect with our gospel of Mark reading for this morning. Once again the gospel lesson says:

“They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stood still and said, “Call him here.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.” So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way” (Mk. 10:46-52, NRSV).

          Now in this gospel lesson, Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, who is blind beggar, is shouting for Jesus to have mercy on him. He has no money, no power, and he certainly can’t pay to have his sins removed. In fact, the scripture says, “Many sternly ordered him to be quiet,” yet he shouted even louder (Mk. 10:48, NRSV).

          Jesus ordered that Bartimaeus come to him. Jesus then says, “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mk. 10:51, NRSV). Bartimaeus of course then asks Jesus to make him be able to see again.

          This gospel lesson ends once again with Jesus saying:

“Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way” (Mk. 10:52, NRSV).

         

          So what healed Bartimaeus and caused him to regain his eye sight? Was it that he paid a sum of money? Was it that he came from the right family? Was it that he did a certain number of good things for others? No, Jesus said, that it was his faith that made him well.

          The Reformation my sisters and brothers, on this Reformation Sunday is significant, because 500-years ago a movement started to bring us back to the scriptures, back to faith, and back to Jesus Christ.

          The church exists to be a beacon of Christ’s light in the world. It exists to bring people to the saving grace of Christ, to train and equip them to serve Christ, and then to send them out into the world to serve others in the name of Christ. This is what the Reformation and Reformation Sunday is all about. Amen.

         

Sidney UMC - Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost - 10/21/18 - Sermon - “to be first, you must be slave of all"

Sunday 10/21/18 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “to be first, you must be slave of all”                         

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 104:1-9, 24, 35c

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 5:1-10

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Mark 10:35-45

          Welcome again everyone, on this our Twenty-Second Sunday after Pentecost. Twenty-Two Sundays after the Holy Spirit moved on the day of Pentecost, nearly two-thousand years ago, and the Christian Church was born.

          So, have you ever known someone that just didn’t get it? I mean you told them, you explained it, and then repeated it over and over again. Then they did the same exact thing wrong. You told them over and over. You told this person or persons what they needed to know and what they were supposed to do, but they just didn’t get it. Have any of you here ever known someone that just didn’t get it? It can drive you crazy sometimes can’t it?

          This morning, in our scripture reading from the gospel of Mark we have an argument over who should get the most favor and love from Jesus (Mk. 10:35-40, NRSV). Specifically, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, want to sit at Jesus’ right hand and left hand. Essentially they want the two top spots next to Jesus. If Jesus was a general for example, James and John wanted to be his two top colonels.

Well many of us know what happens when a couple of people want to take over an office or a place of work. It creates conflict and jealousy. In fact, the other ten disciples in the gospel of Mark reading became very angry with James and John over the fact that they were trying to jockey for positions of power with Jesus (Mk. 10:41-45, NRSV). This, as I said, creates jealousy and conflict.

          This passage from the gospel of Mark for this morning has some connections to Luke 9:46-48, which says referencing the disciples:

^“An argument arose among them as to which one of them was the greatest. But Jesus, aware of their inner thoughts, took a little child and put it by his side, and said to them, “Whoever welcomes this child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me; for the least among all of you is the greatest” (Lk. 9:46-48, NRSV).

          Sometimes people just don’t get it.

         

In the gospel of Mark it says in 9:33-36:

“Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them,” (Mk. 9:33-36, NRSV).

          So we have another example of Jesus correcting the disciples, as they just are not getting that to be great it isn’t about being Jesus’ “top disciple”.

In the gospel of Matthew 18:1-4, it says:

“At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Mt. 18:1-4, NRSV).

          In the gospel of Luke 22:24-30 we have yet even another example of the disciples questioning who is the greatest. I didn’t read this scripture because there are too many examples of this.

We could even put this argument right here in this church if we really wanted to. Who among us here this morning is truly the greatest? I know that I am not.

          Sometimes people that we know just don’t get it. We tell them, we show them, but they just don’t get it.

          For example, take this story as an example of this. This story is called “Now that’s what I call stupid”.

Here is what is says, as this young woman tells the story:

“In my junior year of high school, this guy asked me on a date. He rented a Redbox movie and made a pizza. We were watching the movie and the oven beeped so the pizza was done. He looked me dead in the eye and said, “This is the worst part.” I then watched this boy open the oven and pull the pizza out with his bare hands, rack and all, screaming at the top of his lungs. We never had a second date” (https://thoughtcatalog.com/january-nelson/2018/06/funny-stories/).

          I think that this boy just didn’t get it. Also, when you take the pizza out of the oven, use oven mitts or a pot holder. How can you do that once and then keep doing that. He just doesn’t get it!

          Here is another example, as this is a story taken from Reader’s Digest. This story is about a little girl that just doesn’t get it. Here is the story:

“A little girl climbed up onto her grandfather’s lap and asked, “Did God make me?” Yes,” the grandpa replied. “Did he make you, too?” “Yes.” “Well,” the girl said, looking at his wrinkles and thinning hair, “he sure is doing a better job nowadays!” (https://www.rd.com/joke/practice-makes-perfect/).

          Maybe, just maybe, this little girl didn’t get it. How many times have we not gotten it, or how many times have your kids not gotten it? Well, as we see this morning in our gospel of Mark reading this is anything but a new problem.

          Let’s look once again at what the gospel of Mark reading says this morning. It says:

“James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” And he said to them, “What is it you want me to do for you?” And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They replied, “We are able.” Then Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared” (Mk. 10:35-40, NRSV).

          Jesus is telling James and John here, you don’t know what you are asking for. Jesus is saying, don’t you get it? They’re going to arrest me, try me, and crucify me, as Jesus said all throughout the gospels. Jesus is asking, how come you both are fighting over who will be at my left hand and at my right hand? Instead, follow me and learn from me.

          Not only this, then the other ten disciples as I said, grew angry with James and John that they tried to gain favor and power with Jesus. The gospel goes on to say to this effect:

“When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John. So Jesus called them and said to them, “You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, 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. 10:41-45, NRSV).

          So Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, the second person of the Holy Trinity says if you want to be great in God’s eyes then you must become a servant or a slave of all. This isn’t a race or a competition. Jesus is basically saying that you gain nothing more in heaven being at my right hand or my left hand. You may gain more here on earth, but the only thing that is eternal is God and eternity with God. Jesus is telling us focus on me, be humble, serve and love others, stop trying to earn grace and salvation, when it is a free gift through the cross.

          So is it ok to achieve and get ahead in life? Sure it is, but none of that in an of itself will save you, only faith, faith like a child, and being humble like Christ will get you closer to God.

          Well, I couldn’t resist telling one more funny story about people who just don’t get it. This is also taken from Reader’s Digest, and is called “Gone Fishing”. Here is how it goes:

“My 3-year-old granddaughter, Sydney, told my husband, Ted, and me that she was going fishing with her dad. Ted asked if she was going to use worms. “No,” she said. “I’m going to use a fishing pole.” (https://www.rd.com/joke/gone-fishing/).

          I think that this granddaughter just didn’t get it! So how do we please God, how do finish the race of faith and life in first place? We do this by serving and loving. We become great by becoming less, and when we do this we become more like Jesus. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost - 10/14/18 - Sermon - “A camel through the eye of a needle"

Sunday 10/14/18 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “A camel through the eye of a needle”                         

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 22:1-15

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 4:12-16

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Mark 10:17-31

          Welcome again my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, on this our Twenty-First Sunday after Pentecost.

          Today we have interesting topic in our gospel of Mark reading. In this gospel reading for this morning, Jesus Christ says once again:

“How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Mk. 10:23b-25, NRSV).

          I have heard before, depending on who that I talk to, that Jesus and the Bible condemns people that are financially rich. How many of you think that Jesus and the Bible condemns those who are financially wealthy?

          The reality is, is that the Bible does not condemn people having financial wealth, instead it is condemning an attitude or a mentality around that financial wealth. I don’t know about you, but I want the folks that are financially wealthy in this country and worldwide to be good and moral people. Don’t you? From a Christian perspective then, being financially wealthy can be seen not as a great gift, but rather as a great burden. For if God has blessed you with a large amount of money as a Christian, well then what do you do with it? Sure you will have enough to live the way you want to live, but then you have the burden of figuring out where to put some of the money that God has given you.

          It is when we are unloving, ungenerous, and uncaring, this is when having financial wealth is bad. Wealth, I would say then, can be a great burden if you are generous, loving, caring, and kind. I have had a couple of church members at the different churches that I have served though that have jokingly said, “Wealth might be a burden, but I am willing to try it out for a few years”.

          In the gospel of Luke, Jesus says in 16:13:

“No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth” (Lk. 16:13, NRSV).

          So wealth is bad? No, wealth is not bad, but greed is. Having wealth is not a sin, but if you try to accumulate wealth and hurt and harm as many people as you can in the process, then yes that is a sin. Having wealth as a Christian is a burden, as it says in Luke 12:48:

“From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded” (Lk. 12:48, NRSV).

          How many of us here would love to be financially wealthy? How many of us here would like to have millions and millions of dollars? I wouldn’t. How many of us would like to have enough to live, and if God blesses us with more than we are ok with that?

          How many of us have heard of the Christian financial expert Dave Ramsey? Dave Ramsey, has helped tens of thousands of people get out of debt, grow closer to God, build wealth, and work hard to be in a position to help others. He is generous, giving, caring, compassionate, and he has a net worth of 55-million dollars. That is a lot of money, but look at what he is doing with what God has blessed him and his family with.

          Some of us have heard the term “my rich uncle” before. Some have said things like, “well why don’t call your rich uncle to help you with that?” Has anyone here ever heard a statement like this before?

          Well in my case, I have a rich uncle, or at least I did. My uncle Frank who grew up in extreme poverty, founded a construction company with his brother in Northern Illinois, where I am originally from. This company grew into a massive operation, and my father worked for him for over 30-years. My dad had a good job, but wasn’t paid anything that would make him fabulously financially wealthy.

I remember when my uncle Frank and my aunt Diane has just completed building there 1.2 million dollar 6,000 square foot home. It was the largest house that I had ever been in. Their front doors looked like large wooden castle doors, and there living room was big enough to play football in. I think if was 40-feet by 45-feets. This house had three furnaces, for each of three zones in the house. I also remember that there shower in their master bedroom was so big, that it didn’t even have walls. It was like a waterfall and the stone floor came about 15-20 feet long, and about 10-15 feet wide. It was so long and wide that it didn’t even need walls. In my Uncle Franks garage was a massive collection of cars and antique tractors.

          I found out later when my Uncle Frank lost all of his money in around 2008, during our last recession, that he lost all 30-million dollars he had amassed. I didn’t know he had that much money, but I knew he had a lot. My Uncle Frank had owned various properties and he owned various stakes in companies. He had also told my father Ken in Northern Illinois that when he sold the company one day that he would reward my father’s decades of hard work with a cut of the sale of the company. When the company sold, and then my Uncle Frank lost everything, he gave my father nothing.

          My Uncle Frank then ended up living with my Aunt Debbie, until he went to a nursing home. I remember the last couple of times that I visited her, none of the rest of the family really ever spoke to him, but I came in and would chat with him for a few minutes. He always talked about the money and the possessions that he had once had. I was told that he rarely if ever had a visitor, as he really had no friends. He ended up penniless, lonely, and by himself. It was sad to see and watch. As far as I know, he is still in a nursing home.

          I bet though, if someone like Dave Ramsey that I mentioned above lost everything that many people would be there to catch him when he fell. Wealth is not the sin, but rather greed and selfishness is.

          I remember studying and teaching about Henry Ford, and his great auto manufacturing. Did you know that Henry Ford paid his workers very well? So well in fact that they could themselves afford to buy one of his Model-T Ford cars. Henry Ford was wealthy, but his workers loved and respected him. While he was wealthy financially, he took care of his workers, paid them well, and he was generous. I can’t imagine the stress that Henry Ford carried knowing that all of those employees were counting of him for their livelihood. Wealth is not the sin, but greed and selfishness is.

          I really like what our Book of Hebrews reading for this morning says. It says once again in 4:12:

^“Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart”(Heb. 4:12, NRSV).

          Jesus therefore, doesn’t pull any punches in the gospels. Let’s look yet again at what our gospel of Mark reading says again for this morning. It says:

^“As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.  You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; You shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.’” He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions”

(Mk. 10:17-22, NRSV).

          At first glance, one would think that Jesus took issue that this man was financially wealthy. Yet the fact that this man was financially wealthy, was not the real issue. The real issue was that Jesus wanted him to fully have faith in him, and the man might also have been arrogant and condescending. To test him then, Jesus told him to sell all of his possessions and to give away all of his wealth. In that moment, the rich man showed Jesus that his loyalty was not to him, but to greed and his money. Wealth is not a sin, but greed and selfishness is.

          For example, do we remember Bernie Madoff? He’s the guy that “Madoff” with 40-billion dollars of other people’s money. He stole billions and billions of dollars from many. My guess is, is that he doesn’t get many visitors in prison. I believe that this was the type of man that Jesus was talking to in the gospel lesson this morning. What I am saying to you therefore, is that if you chose Christ, God can chose to bless you with financial wealth, if he wants.

          The gospel then goes on say:

          “Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible” (Mk. 10:23-27, NRSV).

          At first glance once again, one could argue that Jesus is saying that rich people are condemned. What I believe that Jesus is saying once again, is that if you are rich, greedy, and selfish, then it is most assuredly hard to enter the kingdom of God. For example Jesus never condemned Pontius Pilate’s wealth.

          For example, in the gospel of Luke in chapter 16, we have the story of Lazarus and the rich man. This story starts by saying:

“There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. In Hades, where he was being tormented”

(Lk. 16:19-23).

          This scripture says that Lazarus, “longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table”. What is a sin that the rich man was rich? No, it was a sin that he was greedy, selfish, uncaring, and uncompassionate. Do you see the difference?

          Our gospel of Mark reading ends this morning by saying:

“Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first” (Mk. 10:28-31, NRSV).

          So my brothers and sisters, may we first seek first and foremost to follow Christ. May we then in whatever ways that God has blessed us, use some of those blessings to help bless others. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to stand before almighty God one day and have Him ask me, “Paul, how come I gave you so much, and you did so little for others?” Instead, may God say of us all, I blessed all you with much in different ways, and thus you have blessed others. May we enter his gates with the words, “well done good and faithful servant”. Amen

Sidney UMC - World Communion Sunday/Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost - 10/07/18 - Sermon - “A little while lower than the angels"

Sunday 10/07/18 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “A little while lower than the angels”                         

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 26

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-12

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Mark 10:2-16

          Welcome again my brothers and sisters in Christ, my friends, on this the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost, and this our World Communion Sunday. In your bulletins for this morning, you will find an inserted envelope for World Communion Sunday. The special offering that we will be taking this morning will “fund graduate racial-ethnic World Communion Scholarships, with at least one-half of the annual amount reserved for ministries beyond the United States. Donations also provide for undergraduate U.S. Ethnic Scholarships and Ethnic In-Service Training programs” (www.umcgiving.org/giveWCS). If you would like to give to this special collection, feel free to put your money or check in the inserted envelope in your bulletin, and then put it in the collection plate during our collection this morning. We will then make sure that it gets sent along to support this special giving effort.

          With this said, and I don’t know about you, I have seen our politics on the national level get pretty ugly as of lately. Am I the only one that thinks this? I have seen some of our political leaders lately say some things and act in certain ways that quite frankly have made me somewhat disappointed in how our political system is currently running. It would seem that for some we have forgotten how to respect and treat each other.

          In this church, and in many churches we have a mixture of people. We have people with different sports team allegiances. For example, we haven’t all figured out like I have that God is a Chicago Cubs fan. We have some people here who like Coke, and some who like Pepsi. We have Ford people, and Chevy people. We have people that prefer the bank, and people that prefer the credit union. We also have people of different political parties, and so on and so forth.

          What I love about this church though, is that we first seek to love each other, believing that we are all made in the image of almighty God. For we are all made in God’s image, meaning that we all bear the thumb prints of God.

          Imagine what our political discourse in our country would look like if we started with the premise that we are all God’s children. Now don’t get wrong, I’m still a Pepsi guy, but this in and of itself does not define me.

          I remember growing up as a little kid that my Grandpa Winkelman was a staunch Republican. In fact, in one of the windows of his garage he had a sign quoting President Harry Truman that said, “The Buck Stops Here”. My grandpa was proud to say that he was old enough to have voted for President Truman. Yet, my grandfather had good friends that were Democrats, sometimes they would have coffee together. These were FDR Democrats. They didn’t always agree, but my grandpa would always say that they were good and hard working men.

          I remember one time when I was really young, one of my grandma and grandpa’s cats had kittens. My Grandma Winkelman took a card board flat that had held soda cans, put a towel in the bottom of it, and put the kittens in there. Growing up my mom was a Democrat and my dad was a Republican. These kittens were very young and very small. In fact, their eyes were still shut. I asked my Grandpa Winkelman, being about 5-years olds at the time, why the kitten’s eyes were closed when they were born? He laugh and said, “didn’t you know that all cats are born Democrats. Eventually they open there eyes though”. Well, my dad thought that this was hilarious, but my mom not so much.

          My mother Susan, even today, would say that while she didn’t always agree with my Grandpa Winkelman politically, that he was one of the greatest men that she had ever known.

          This morning in our reading from the Apostle Paul’s epistle or letter to the Hebrews, the Apostle Paul quotes Psalm 8:4-5. What does Psalm 8:4-5 say? It says this:

“what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
    and crowned them with glory and honor” (Ps. 8:4-5, NRSV).

         

          Of course the Apostle Paul is talking about Jesus in this overall scripture reading from Hebrews, but he is quoting the Old Testament. He is saying that we are just a little lower than God.

          The translation that is used in my New Revised Standard Version reading from the Book of Hebrews for this morning says this:

“What are human beings that you are mindful of them, or mortals, that you care for them? You have made them for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned them with glory and honor, subjecting all things under their feet” (Heb. 2:6b-8a, NRSV).

          When I was picking out scriptures and sermon titles weeks ago for this Sunday and others, these couple of versus of scripture just kept jumping out at me. We are just a little lower than God, just a little while lower that the angels.

          This is powerful for me, because this morning the Apostle Paul reminds us all that we are all made in God’s image, and that we are just a little lower than God, just a little lower than the angels.

          From the Christian perspective then, we are called to value human life, to love each other, which means that all people are creations of God.

          Historically speaking, in cultures like that of the former Soviet Union, or North Korea, people were and are not viewed by their inherent worth and dignity, as people created by a God that loves them. Instead, they were and are measured by what they can do for the state. They were and are measured by what they are capable of, and often not seen as a child of God. The risk that we run as people, is to stop seeing the thumbprints of God in others, and instead see them as a number, or as something that can help of hurt us. Yet we are all created just a little lower than God, just a little lower than the angels.

          Some versions of Psalm 8:4-5 say that we are a little lower than God, and some say that we are a little lower than the angels. I really like having both for this sermon.

          Let’s look again at our scripture from Hebrews 1:1-4; 2:5-12 for this morning. In pointing first to Jesus Christ, the Apostle Paul starts by saying:

“Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs” (Heb. 1:1-4, NRSV).

          So the Apostle Paul is saying that God spoke truths through the Prophets of the Old Testament “in many and various ways,” but lastly that he has spoken through his Son. This means that God spoke through leaders, though prophets, but lastly through his Son Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul then says that God’s Son, Jesus Christ is “appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds” (Heb. 1:2, NRSV). Paul further says of Jesus Christ, “He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word” (Heb. 1:3a, NRSV).

          Jesus according to the Apostle Paul then, died for us, now sits at the right hand of God, and is now superior to the angels. To me this is powerful language.

          After this portion from the Book of Hebrews, the Apostle Paul goes on and says:

          “Now God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. But someone has testified somewhere,” (Heb. 2:5, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul then goes on to say, quoting Psalm 8:4-5 how we are little lower than the angels.

          The Apostle Paul then says:

“Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone” (Heb. 2:8b-9, NRSV).

          So when Jesus came to earth he became lower than the angels for us. This

 scripture then ends saying:

^“It was fitting that God, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. For this reason Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters, in the midst of the congregation I will praise you”

 (Heb. 2:10-12, NRSV).

          My friends, my brothers and sisters, God has made us just a little lower than him, just a little lower than the angels. Jesus also went down to our level for us, and to die for us. Since we are made in God’s image, how does this reality change us, and how does it change how we love and treat each other?

          This of course does not mean that we have to agree with each other, or that sin is ok. I for example, still respect the fact that most of you haven’t come to the light yet about the greatness of the Chicago Cubs. Yet, we are all humans made just a little lower than God, just a little lower that the angels, and to me this should impact how see and love one another.

          In our gospel of Mark reading for this morning, Jesus is tested by the Pharisees (Mk. 10:2-4, NRSV). Jesus responds by discussing marriage and the importance of marriage (Mk. 10:5-9, NRSV). This gospel then ends with Jesus loving the little children as they are being brought to him, and as Jesus tells us to have faith like a child (Mk. 10:10-16, NRSV).

          What is the best solution to the divides in our nation, in our town, in our families, in our churches, and etc. I believe that the one and best solution, is the gospel of Jesus Christ that offers us all hope and salvation. May we seek Christ this day and always, and may we seek to see each other as a little while lower than God, a little while lower than the angels. Amen.