Sidney UMC - Transfiguration Sunday - 03/03/19 - Sermon - “Transfigured!"

Sunday 03/03/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “Transfigured!”

Old Testament Scripture: Exodus 34:29-35

                                            

New Testament Scripture: 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Luke 9:28-43a

          My brothers and sisters in Christ, welcome once again on this our Transfiguration Sunday! On this day, or close to it, nearly two-thousand years ago, Jesus ascended up a mountain to pray (Lk. 9:28, NRSV). On this journey, Jesus:

“took with him Peter and John and James” (Lk. 9:28, NRSV).

Jesus then of course becomes “Transfigured” right in front of them (Lk. 9:29, NRSV). Well I don’t know about you, but the word “Transfigured” is kind of a 50-cent word to me! I mean, what does “Transfigured” even mean?

          Well according to https://www.merriam-webster.com, the word “Transfigured” means:

“to give a new and typically exalted or spiritual appearance to: transform outwardly and usually for the better”

(https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/transfigured?src=search-dict-hed).

          So, if something is “Transfigured,” according to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, something or someone has a new and maybe even an exalted spiritual appearance. Or they could transform outwardly, and often it is a good transformation. So something has a new and often exalted or holy and spiritual appearance, or something has an outward and often good transformation.

          Now I know what you’re thinking right now, “Pastor Paul how can I use the word “Transfigured” in my daily life”? Well I have some examples for you! For example, if my wife Melissa just got a haircut, and yes I have been trained by her to notice such things, she might ask, “Paul, how does my hair look?” I could say, “Well Melissa, it looks ok”. Wrong answer! I could say “It looks nice”. Getting warmer! Or I could say, “Goodness Melissa, you look Transfigured!”

          If I come to our church early one day in the winter and the church parking lot is covered and snow and ice, and if Ron Nemire removes the snow and ice, then we can see the black top underneath. I should then say to Ron that he has “Transfigured the parking lot!” See how this works? Church words are fun right?

          It is very biblical in certain circumstance for someone’s appearance to change. For example, if anyone has ever watched the show “Undercover Boss,” the bosses change their outward appearance significantly. These bosses then go undercover and work with some of the people that they are the bosses of. These people aren’t supposed to know though that it is really their own boss. So are these bosses “Transfigured”? I would say in this case, probably not!

          I guess for me it is the idea that God is so amazing, so loving, and so powerful, that God can change how he presents himself visually, and he of course can change us.

          In our Old Testament or Hebrew Bible reading for this morning from the Book of Exodus, we have Moses or Charlton Hesston coming down Mount Sinai with the 10-Commandments (34:29, NRSV). As I heard one pastor say once, “Moses was the first person in the bible to use a tablet, and to download from the cloud!” Now for those of you that are here this morning that don’t know what “the cloud” is, my guess is that you do know who “Charlton Hesston” is, so you can explain that to each other after church!

In our Book of Exodus reading once again, Moses is coming down Mount Sinai with the 10-Commandment tablets, and the scripture says once again that

“his face shone because he had been talking with God” (Ex. 34:29b, NRSV).

This scripture reading towards the end, then says of Moses,

“that the skin of his face was shining” (Ex. 34:35, NRSV).

          I don’t think that Moses spent too long in tanning bed, rather I think that his skin was shining and glowing. The Israelites could see the holiness. Maybe this is like a bride on her wedding day, or what Melissa looks like every time after she leaves my presence!

          In our reading for this morning from the Apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul references the Moses story in Exodus 34 (2 Cor. 3:12, NRSV). At the end of the Exodus narrative, Moses veils his face:

“to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside” (2. Cor. 3:13, NRSV).

          Or another way to put it, Moses veiled his beautifully shiny and illuminated face, so that people would focus on God and not him.

          The Apostle Paul then says though regarding wearing veils that:

“when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:16-18, NRSV).

          Our transformation is Christ far exceed what Moses experienced. The people weren’t ready to see the full light of God in the way that it was shown to Moses, but Christ came to transform or “Transfigure” us. This means that through Christ, we are ready to be changed, and the world is ready to see that change in us.

          With all of this talk about “Transfiguration,” and transformation, what does our Gospel of Luke reading tell us again for this morning? Let’s look at our gospel reading that I just read once again. It says:

“Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white” (Lk. 9:28-29, NRSV).

So similar to Moses in the Book of Exodus, Jesus is transformed or “Transfigured”. More than Jesus’ face though, he had a wardrobe change, as his clothes became dazzling white. He only took Peter and John and James with him, so this must have been quite a sight for them! Perhaps Peter and John and James remember in this moment learning about the Book of Exodus from the Torah as children, and maybe they remembered that Moses looked transformed when came down from Mount Sinai.

This time though, unlike Moses, once again, this happens:

“Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him” (Lk. 9:30-32, NRSV).

This story is always depicted as Jesus being set up above Moses and Elijah, as he is elevated above the great Moses, and the great prophet Elijah. Jesus is greater than Moses, greater than the great prophet Elijah, and his “Transfiguration” is much more powerful than what happened to Moses in our Book of Exodus reading for this morning. Jesus was telling Moses and Elijah how he was about to die on a cross for our sins, and be raised again. This is what Jesus was going to accomplish in Jerusalem. Peter and John and James were tired and sleepy, but they were able to see this magnificent “Transfiguration” of Jesus Christ. Where Adam failed in the Garden of Eden, Jesus will prevail. Jesus is greater than Moses and greater than the prophet Elijah.

Instead of trusting Jesus though, Peter, as he often would, got nervous and impulsive. The gospel reading goes on to say once again:

“Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, “Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah”—not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen” (Lk. 9:33-36, NRSV).

          Sometimes when God reveals himself to us it can be overwhelming, scary, and even unexpected. Instead of trusting Jesus though, Peter asked Jesus if he should make a dwelling for him, for Moses, and for Elijah. Just then a cloud over shadowed them, and God the Father spoke to them. God the Father said to Peter and John and James this is Jesus, my Son, do what he says! Then right after this, Jesus went right back to the way he was before he was “Transfigured”.

          The gospel reading then ends once again with Jesus and Peter and John and James heading down the mountain (Lk. 9:37, NRSV). Jesus then heals a boy that was seized with demon (Lk. 9:38-43, NRSV).

          Friends, we serve a God, we serve a savior that can reveal himself to us in amazing and powerful ways. All throughout the two-thousand year history of the Christian Church, God has shown himself at different times and at in different places. Two-Thousand years ago there was no Methodist Movement or church, as that came in the 1700’s.

As we as the church continue into the future my friends, do we trust God when he is bringing us into something new? Do we stand upon that mount of “Transfiguration,” and unlike Peter, trust that Jesus will lead us? Do we look to our own understandings? Do we trust in our own instincts to build three tents, or do we fully trust in Jesus Christ our Lord?

          I believe that many of our churches that have a bright and a strong future, are churches that are captivated by and are trusting fully in Jesus Christ. They are not worried about building tents, they are worried about following Jesus. Do we trust Jesus? Do we trust Jesus with the future of the United Methodist Church? Do we find the unchanging truths of Christ through the Holy Scriptures and the tradition of the church, or do we seek other truths? Are we willing to trust Jesus as he leads us into a new and a faithful day living as his disciples in the world?

          Friends, Jesus might show up when we least expect it, and he might be transformed or “Transfigured” in front of us. He might transform or “Transfigure” us from the inside out. God’s Spirit might move, and lead us to a new a faithful future, where we are called to trust Christ, trust the scriptures, and spread scriptural holiness across the land.

          Brothers and sisters, on this day that Jesus was transformed, or “Transfigured,” let us call upon the Holy Spirit to transform us, so that we might draw ever closer to Christ. Or as part of the fourth verse of the great hymn, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” says:

“In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, with a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;” (UMC Hymnal, No. 717).

         

          On this day that Christ was transformed or “Transfigured,” we have heard how glorious it was, but we also know how he can change us. May God move in us, so that on this “Transfiguration” Sunday, we will call upon Christ to transform and “Transfigure” us in new and a powerful way! Happy “Transfiguration” Sunday and God bless! Amen. 

Sidney UMC - Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany - 02/24/19 - Sermon - “The return of Joseph!"

Sunday 02/24/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “The return of Joseph!”

Old Testament Scripture: Genesis 45:3-11, 15

                                            

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Luke 6:27-38

          Welcome again my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, on this the Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany. Seven Sundays after God in the flesh was born on that first Christmas, and was named Jesus. This is also seven Sundays after the Wise men came to Christ with gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh, and left different.

          With this said, this morning I want to talk about the potential that I have, that you have, that we all have, and that we have as entire United Methodist Church denomination. The potential that all people and churches have. As we sit here this morning, as many of you know, a very large and critical specially called United Methodist Church General Conference is happening right now in Saint Louis, Missouri. The United Methodist Church is prayerfully and delicately making decisions for the United Methodist Church, and for our future as a church.

          The ironic part about this specially called General Conference, is that it is occurring in the wake of what is likely the sharpest decline of church membership, church attendance, and church involvement, in the entire history of our country.

          Yet in the middle of all of this, God has given you, has given me, and has given us all potential. We have gifts, we have graces, we have abilities, and we can use them.

          Sometimes we go years in our lives not trying to do something, because we are afraid of failing, we are afraid that we might have wasted time, or we afraid in general. Yet God has given us all potential, has given us all gifts, and has given us all graces.

          Even though we are in the most precipitous era of church decline in our nation’s history, I am convinced, as we are seeing here at the Sidney UMC that the church has a bright future! I personally think that part of what is holding some churches back, is that some of the people, and maybe even some of the pastors, are for whatever reason, not fully using their potential, their gifts, and their graces.

          I fear that we have created some churches in recent years where the pastor has become the “Professional Christian,” and the rest of the church feels like that they have nothing to offer. Or perhaps you told your pastor an idea that you had once, and you were immediately told by the pastor, “No, you can’t do that!”

Part of my role as the appointed pastor of this church is not only to use my potential, my gifts, and my graces, but to help you to do the very same. It’s not about Pastor Paul, it’s about Jesus Christ. You see, in all of us, God has placed some amazing and varied things. I am called to pastoral ministry, but all of you are called by God. As your pastor, I want to unleash you on Sidney and the world, so that you can be all that God has called you to be!

          For some of us though, our potential, our gifts, and our graces, haven’t been affirmed. Instead we have been told, your potential, your gifts, and your graces are not needed or wanted here. The pastor or some other group of leaders in the church have said that they will do everything, and that they don’t need your help. Has anyone here ever experienced anything like this before? I know that I have.

          For those that have experienced this, I want to first apologize to you. You might be thinking, “but Pastor Paul why are you apologizing to me, you didn’t do anything to hurt me?” I might not have, but some of the people that I call brothers and sisters in Christ have. Perhaps, that person’s gift was not personal interaction! As a result, some of you want to be all that God has called you to be, but haven’t been helped in this process. Friends, as long as I am the pastor of the Sidney UMC, I want everyone here to be all that God has called you to be!

          This is why we started a “Visioning Team” so that with God’s help, I can help train and equip you to do ministry in this church, in this community, and in the world. I truly believe that part of the reason that many of our churches are failing, is because we are not using all of our potential, our gifts, and our graces. Maybe though we haven’t really been given the chance to do this. Well guess what, I am offering an open door for you to do this!

          Sometimes in the Bible people that were incredibly gifted were not always treated as such. In trying to preach a little more from the Old Testament or the Hebrew Bible, I decided to mostly preach on our reading from the Book of Genesis for this morning. This being our first book of the Bible, contains the creation story, Noah and his Ark, and many other things. It also talks about Joseph. Not Jesus’ father, but a different Joseph. This Joseph in Genesis 37, dreams of great things (Gen. 37:1-11, NRSV). Joseph according to Genesis 37:3, was loved by Israel more than of his brothers and sisters. In fact, Joseph was given a multi-colored tunic or coat, for those that have heard of the production “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” (Gen. 37:3, NRSV)!

          The reaction to the great love that Joseph’s father Jacob and all of Israel had for Joseph was great for everyone, except Joseph’s brothers. They were jealous of Joseph, and Joseph told them of dreams he had of how great he will become (Gen. 37:4-11, NRSV). This made Joseph’s brothers hate him more, and even seek to even kill him (Gen 31:18, NRSV).

          Joseph’s brothers then threw him into a pit, and then decided to sell him into slavery in Egypt. They then killed a kid or a baby goat, and put the blood of the goat on Joseph’s multi-colored tunic or coat (Gen. 37:19-36, NRSV). This multicolored tunic or coat was then sent to Joseph’s father Jacob, who then believe that Joseph had been killed by a wild animal (Gen. 37:32-33, NRSV).

          So Joseph is alive, and is now a slave in Egypt, yet God has given Joseph potential, gifts, and graces. Joseph quickly rises to be the head slave of the household he is in, but then Joseph was framed for a crime he didn’t commit (Gen. 39:1-20, NRSV).

          While in prison, Joseph quickly became the head of all of the prisoners. The leader of Egypt and even the Pharaoh eventually saw Joseph’s holiness, potential, gifts, and graces (Gen. 41:37-57, NRSV). The Pharaoh then put Joseph in charge of his whole house, and made him the most powerful leader under him (Gen. 41:37-57, NRSV). Eventually, a great famine came over most of known world, and Joseph’s father Jacob, sent Joseph’s ten brothers to buy grain from the Egyptians, as they were starving (Gen. 42:1:24, NRSV).

          After testing his brothers, who sold him into slavery, and who didn’t recognize the older and all grown up Joseph, by the way, Joseph sent them home with a lot food and all their money. They felt that God had blessed them, and the betrayed brother ended up helping them (Gen. 42:25-38, NRSV).

          Joseph’s brothers then return for more food, he feeds them, and then gives them plenty of food. His brothers still don’t know that he is Joseph (Gen. 43:1-44:17, NRSV). Joseph finally breaks down crying and tells his brothers who he is, and this is where our scripture picks up this morning (Gen. 44:18-45:1-2, NRSV).

          Once again, our scripture from the reading for this morning from the Book of Genesis about Joseph says:

“Joseph said to his brothers, “I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?” But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence. Then Joseph said to his brothers, “Come closer to me.” And they came closer. He said, “I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest. God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors. So it was not you who sent me here, but God; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt” (Gen. 45:3-8, NRSV).

          This scripture reading for this morning once ends with Joseph saying:

“Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, ‘Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay. You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children’s children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have. I will provide for you there—since there are five more years of famine to come—so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.’ And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him” (Gen. 45:9-11, 15, NRSV).

          This is really a powerful story of redemption, forgiveness, and God’s love for us all. It is also as my sermon title says, “The return of Joseph!” Joseph is alive, not dead, and is no longer a slave!

          Joseph, like all of us had potential, had gifts, and had graces. Instead of celebrating his potential though, his brothers first discussed killing him, and then sold him into slavery in Egypt. Yet, God had given Joseph such potential, such gifts, and such graces that Joseph used them even in the worse situations.

          I worry that one of the things that some churches have struggled with or have even failed to do in recent years is not help people to reach their full potential, the full use of their gifts, and the full use of their graces. Further, some of us are not like Joseph, in that if our brothers or the church tells us that we are no good, that we can’t do anything, and that we don’t have the ability, then we just never try.

          As the pastor of this church, I want you to fulfill your spiritual potential, use your gifts, and your graces. I want to help you to do what God has called you to do. As I said, this is part of why we have a church Visioning Team, so that we can all dream and move forward together.

          So, I want to help us to be a little more like Joseph, to maximize our potential, our gifts, and our graces.

          Now it’s interesting that after how terrible Joseph’s brothers treated and him, and even how they sold him into slavery that he forgave them and helped them. Jesus calls us to love and care for each other, and even to love those who hate us.

          Let’s look again at our gospel lesson for this morning from Luke 6:27-38. Once again Jesus says:

“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. Do to others as you would have them do to you. “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back” (Lk. 6:27-38, NRSV).

          I want a church where everyone here knows that they are loved, where your potential, your gifts, and your grace are celebrated and promoted. I want you to be all that God has called you to be in this church, in Sidney, and in the world.        As the General Conference convenes, this morning’s gospel may be God’s reminder to us to love everyone. People have deeply held beliefs, passions, and there are great divisions. Things sometimes can get mean, hurtful, and sometimes people begin to not like each other.

          This morning though, as I just read again, Jesus says to love those who hate us, and maybe even disagree with us. Jesus tells us to bless and pray for those who curse us and abuse us. Jesus tells us to turn the other check, Jesus tells us to give our shirt away if someone takes our coat, to give to those who beg, and so on and so for.

          Maybe the biggest message in this gospel reading, is Luke 6:31 that says once again:

“Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Lk. 6:31, NRSV).

          So we are to love our enemies, to not judge, be merciful, to forgive, and treat others as we want to be treated.

          Joseph, even after all of his terrible treatment from his brothers, forgave them and was generous to them, even after his brother tried to stop his potential, his gifts, and his graces. Friends, I pray that we will continue to live into being a church where all of us can realize our God given potential, our gifts, and our graces. As your pastor, I have here to help you with this, and not to hold you back. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany - 02/17/19 - Sermon - “Your faith has been in vain"

Sunday 02/17/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “Your faith has been in vain”

Old Testament Scripture: Jeremiah 17:5-10

                                            

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-20

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Luke 6:17-26

          Welcome again my friends, my brothers and sisters in Christ, on this the Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany. Six Sundays after the Wise Men came to visit Christ, and left changed and different.

          So, I have a question for us all to think about this morning? The question is this, how do we know what is true or untrue, and how do know what to believe? We are certainly living in an era where we are hearing truths and untruths.

          To be illustrate this, I wonder if any one of your family members, friends, or significant other has ever lied to you? Anyone here? I’m not just talking about any lie either, I mean the story that they gave you was really lame.  

          For example, when I was a little boy my parents put me in a pre-school or sort of a head start program. One day during this program, I discovered an amazing item. What was this item you might ask? Well smelly markers of course! As the class was settling into an activity, I grabbed a package of smelly markers, and I hid around the corner from the rest of the class. I wanted to smell all of the different marker smells. Apparently, in the process I touched most of the markers to my nose, and got marker spots on my nose. When my mother Susan picked me up for the day, my nose I think looked like a rainbow of colors. My mom looked at me like she was fighting laughing out loud. Then she asked me, “Paulie, were you smelling the markers at school today when you weren’t supposed to?” Of course, as a good person that would one day be a pastor, I lied to my mother. I shook my head and I said no. Little did I know that evidence was all over my nose!

          The point of the question that I asked for us to think about for this morning, and my story of my love of smelly markers, is this, we have all have to decide at some point in our lives what we believe and what we think is true. Within this church we have Democrats and we have Republicans, and we have people that have different views on various things. Yet, we are all good people. So what is true, and what should we believe? Further, as Christians what should we believe? What are the general beliefs of the Christian faith? Further, how do we even know what these beliefs are in the first place?

          The two general ways that we know anything about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, is from the Bible and the two-thousand year tradition of the Christian Church. When we quote Jesus from the gospels in the New Testament then, are the words that we are quoting true? Did Jesus say those things, or didn’t he?

          In Matthew 22:36-40, Jesus says:

“Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” 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. 22:36-40, NRSV).

          Jesus is also recorded this in Mark’s gospel, as well. I have never ever met a Christian that rejects this very basic and core teaching of Jesus Christ. We should love God and love each other. You think it would be hard to screw that one up right?

          The Bible, which is our primary source, along with the two-thousand year tradition of the church, tells us who God is, and everything about Jesus. The Christian understanding of the world is that we live in a broken, suffering, and sinful world. God sent his son Jesus Christ, to love, heal, forgive, to die for us, to be raised to new life, to ascend to the Father in heaven, and to return one day in glory.

          The Christian faith for two-thousand years has made large claims about us as people, and how we are reconciled to God. Some people really struggle and wrestle with the faith claims that Christians make, as did even Jesus’ first 12-disciples at times. Yet, the church didn’t then or now just believe the things that we believe because we were told to. Rather, we believe them because they are just as transformational today as they have always been. For nearly two-thousand years generation after generation of people have been transformed by Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit. For generations, for centuries, the broken, the hurt, the lost, the oppressed, have turned to Jesus Christ, and have been made whole through him.

          Some of us might say, “This is what Christians believe, because my pastor and my Sunday school teacher told me so!” I would argue the truths, the power, and the transformation of our faith is much deeper than anything that I or likely anyone here can tell you fully.

          This I do know though, no figure has transformed more lives, in more places, at more times, than Jesus Christ. Who we say Jesus is then, and how we regard him, I would argue is very important. Whatever our politics, or our other views are, do we believe that Jesus Christ was truly the one who came as God in the flesh, taught us to love, heal, forgive, and who died for us? Do believe that on that first Easter Sunday that Jesus was resurrected to new life and rose from the dead?

          The reason most Christians have their normal scheduled day of worship and Sabbath Day as Sunday, is because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Sunday. While our Jewish brothers and sisters have their Sabbath Day or Lord’s Day from Sunday down on Friday to sun down on Saturday, most Christians shifted this to Sunday. Why? Well because this is the day as Christians that we say that Jesus rose from the dead triumphantly. Over the centuries the Jewish Sabbath of Saturday and the Christian Sabbath of Sunday became known as what we now called the “Weekend”. The “Weekend” is historically a combination of the Jewish Sabbath Day and the Christian Sabbath Day. Every Sunday in the Christian Church therefore, is a mini-Easter, as we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ our Lord.

          Well you might be thinking, “Why is belief in the resurrection of Jesus so important to Christianity?” Well, while it’s peppered all throughout the Bible, the Apostle Paul offers us an answer in our scripture for this morning from 1 Corinthians 15:12-20. Once again this scripture that is subtitled in our pew bibles, “The Resurrection of the Dead” says:

“Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain”                        (1 Cor. 15:12-14, NRSV).

          In this scripture, the Apostle Paul tells the church in Corinth, or the Corinthians that giving up on the belief of Jesus Christ being raised from the dead defeats the purpose and the power of the Christian faith. The Apostle Paul goes even further, which is where I get my sermon title for this morning”

“and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain” (1 Cor. 15:14, NRSV).

          So the Apostle Paul is saying that our faith without the belief in the resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is why we gather to worship on Sundays, is in vain.

          The Apostle Paul goes even further and says once again:

“We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ—whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have died in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died,”                   (1 Cor. 15:12-20, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul is telling the church in Corinth, or the Corinthians that if you reject the resurrection of Jesus Christ, than everything we believe as Christians makes no sense. He even says, if we don’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ then we “are of all people most to be pitied.”

          Jesus Christ, as scripture calls him is:

“the firstborn from the dead” (Col 1:18, NRSV).

          You see, if we believe as Christians that Jesus Christ died on a cross for our sins, and if he was never resurrected from the dead, than he was never truly the savior, the Messiah. Why? This would mean that he was just a nice man who was crucified, but if he wasn’t resurrected, then he wasn’t truly who he claimed to be. The Apostle Paul is saying again then, that without resurrection we have nothing. We have no Easter. We have no hope.

          As Christians we are sometimes called “Resurrection People.” Yet some people that I have talked with, just have a hard time with believing that a dead Jesus could physically rise from the dead. I mean a dead body that had sat since Friday, rises on Sunday, how could this be possible? It’s a valid question. If God created the heavens and the earth though, could resurrection happen? I think so.

Did the people in the gospel narratives, including Mary Magdalene really see Jesus alive and resurrected? Did Thomas truly have an opportunity to not doubt his faith, and to put his finger in Jesus’s nail hole in his hand? Did Jesus truly offer to have Thomas put his hand in his side where the spear had been trusted into him? Did many others, who have testified truly see and believe that Jesus Christ was risen? His resurrection proves that he is who he says he is. It proves that he is alive, that he is alive in us, and that he is indeed the savior of the world.

          So, the consistent belief in the Christian Church for nearly two-thousand years, is that generation after generation has reaffirmed that yes we believe that Jesus Christ truly rose from the dead. This gives us hope, give us a future, and shows us that love and goodness win over evil and sin.

          As I often say on Easter Sundays, after I declare Jesus’ resurrection, I say that part of our faith tradition is being resurrected with Christ spiritually. We die to our old selves, to our sins, our brokenness, and we go from death to life, just as Jesus did on that first Easter.

          So, did I smell the smelly markers that day as a little boy? Well, I told my mom Susan that I didn’t, but there was great evidence to the contrary. As Christians, we have long claimed that an empty grave is there to prove my savior lives! We seek Christ and we can be spiritually resurrected and renewed this day.

          In briefly looking at our gospel lesson for this morning from Luke 6:17-26, we have not Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount,” but rather his “Sermon on the Plain.” Let’s hear again what it has to say:

“He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them” (Lk. 6:17-19, NRSV).

          At this point then Jesus delivers “The Sermon on the Plain”. The gospel then says of Jesus:

“Then he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets. “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. “Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. “Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets” (Lk. 6:20-26, NRSV).

          I would argue that nothing has changed this world more than the life, the death, the resurrection, and the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount,” and in this case Jesus’ “Sermon on the Plain” are central to teachings of Jesus Christ. These are the “Beatitudes.” In this “Sermon on the Plain,” Jesus is telling those who suffer, that their suffering will be ended in eternity with God. He is also telling them that God is with us. Jesus is also speaking here I believe to our moral obligation as Christians to help the poor, to feed the hungry, to minister to those who weep, to love those who hate us, to be generous if you have wealth, to not neglect others, and to be honest and truthful. Now these are serious and powerful moral and ethical teachings from Jesus Christ. Do we believe there true? Do we believe that Jesus actually said them?

          The Apostle Paul says this morning once again that if Christ didn’t rise from the dead, than it is all for not. For without resurrection we don’t have a living savior, and without a living savior, we have nothing.

          In the hymn from our United Methodist Hymnal, #364, “Because He Lives,” the first verse says:

“God sent his Son, they called him Jesus; he came to love, heal, and forgive; he lived and died to buy my pardon, an empty grave is there prove my Savior lives” (UMC Hymnal, Pg. 364).

Praise God, and Amen.

Sidney UMC - UMC Scouting Sunday/Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany - 02/10/19 - Sermon - “I am the least of the apostles"

Sunday 02/10/19 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “I am the least of the apostles”

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 138

                                            

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

                                                   

Gospel Lesson: Luke 5:1-11

          Friends, brothers and sisters, welcome again on this the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany, of the Wisemen coming to Jesus with gifts of Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh, and this our UMC Scouting Sunday. On this day, the church encourages us to take a moment or many moments to honor those who been in or have led in any way in our scouting programs. In one of the churches that I served before coming here, we had a special Scout Sunday service every year, and in these services, Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts helped to run the service. I hope and pray that in the coming years that we can work up to that here.

          With this said, what I want to talk with you about this morning, is our past. I don’t mean a history lesson. What I mean, is my past, your past, as in the events and choices of our own lives. I am sure that all of us can think about some choices that we have made that we regret. I am sure that we can all think about things that we may have said that we wish we hadn’t said. Sometimes our past can seem to haunt our present. The things that maybe we have said or done, however little or great, sometimes seem to be the rock that we carry around in our shoes. Yet, we just can’t seem to get that rock out of our shoe sometimes. Or sometimes, it’s the chains that we drag, or the suite cases of burdens that we lug around. We all have a past. Yet, the Bible tells us that in Jesus Christ our sins, and our past can all be forgiven.

          For example it says 1 John 1:9:

“If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 5:1

“Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,” (Rom. 5:1, NRSV).

          So through Jesus Christ, his life, his death on a cross, and his resurrection, we can be forgiven, we can repent of our sins and accept him as the Lord of our lives. We can have a relationship with him, and our sins are gone. So this then means that our past is forgotten also right? So often this isn’t the case, as I have heard so many people say the phrase before, “I can forgive, but I can’t forget”.

          Has anyone here ever forgiven someone, but you haven’t forgotten what they have said to you or what they did to you? I heard a much older and wiser pastor say once that, “We don’t forgive for the person who wronged us, but rather we forgive them for us. We forgive them to free ourselves, and we should let God deal with that other person.”

          Forgiveness is real and is powerful, but many of us have long memories, don’t we? One of my favorite movies about the Revolutionary War, is called “The Patriot,” starring Mel Gibson. I am sure that many of you have seen this movie. In this movie, the character played by actor Mel Gibson is reflecting upon his past in the beginning of the movie. The character that Mel Gibson played had fought in the French and Indian War, or the Seven-year war about 15-20 years before the American Revolution that this movie portrays. In this previous war, the character that Mel Gibson played, did some brutal things to people. Mel Gibson’s character regrets this all throughout the movie. In the very beginning of the movie the character that Mel Gibson plays says something like:

“I have long feared that the sins of my past would revisit me, and now the cost of this is more than I can bear.”

          We are all forgiven of all of our sins and our transgression if we ask Christ for forgiveness and believe in him. Do our sins ever revisit us though?

          They certainly did for the Apostle Paul, as he discusses his past in our scripture reading for this morning in 1 Corinthians 15:1-11. You see, before the Apostle Paul was the Apostle Paul, he was Saul of Tarsus. We was an educated Jewish Pharisee that probably had wealth and prominence. He hated Jesus and the first Christians, and he was determined to destroy them. On his way to Damascus, Syria one day in the Book of Acts, Christ appeared to Saul of Tarsus, and Saul converted to Christianity. Soon after, Saul became, Paul the Apostle. Saul had arrested and persecuted the early Christian Church heavily, and now he is one of us. Jesus had forgiven him, much like Jesus can forgive us, but does Paul forget what he did when he was Saul?

          Well, where I get my sermon title for this morning is from 1 Corinthians 15:9, where it says once again:

“For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God” (1 Cor. 15:9, NRSV).

          In this scripture reading for this morning, not only is the Apostle Paul saying that he isn’t great, but he is saying that he is the least of all of the Apostles. Jesus had forgiven him of all of his sins and transgressions, but yet he was the least, he said, because he had persecuted the Christians before he became one. Now the Apostle Paul wrote 14-15 of the 27-books of the New Testament, by the way. Let’s look again at this whole scripture from 1 Corinthians 15 for this morning. It says:

“Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain.”                                       (1 Cor. 15:1-2, NRSV).

The Apostle Paul is saying that Jesus saved him, and that he then became the Apostle of Christ to the gentiles or the non-Jews. He also says that he preaches the truth of the gospel with authority.

The Apostle Paul then continues on in this scripture to better lay this out. He continues on saying:

^“For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles” (1 Cor. 15:3-7, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul is telling the church in Corinth, or the Corinthians that this is who Christ is, this is his gospel, and it is a gospel that saves.

          The Apostle Paul then concludes this scripture by once again saying:

“Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me has not been in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them—though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we proclaim and so you have come to believe”                                   (1 Cor. 15:8-11, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul is saying that Jesus even appeared to him, and saved and restored him. He then says though, as my sermon title says, “I am the least of the apostles,” and even says that he is “unfit to be called an apostle”. He says all of this because he persecuted the first Christians, and as a result he is “unfit to be called an apostle”. Forgiven by Jesus Christ, restored to the grace of God the Father, yet “unfit” he says.

          So how are we to take this? Is the Apostle Paul showing guilt? Is he showing humility? Whatever our angle is on this, one thing is sure, the Apostle Paul is trying to lessen himself and trying increase the presence of God. This is to say, he is minimizing his importance, and is explaining that he is the least, that others are greater, and that he is nothing compared to God.

          A United Methodist Church pastor that I admire greatly has said that his goal in life, “is to be nameless to history, but faithful for eternity”. Coming to Christ means that we are forgiven and restored, but it doesn’t meant that the memories, the pains, and or troubles of our past will necessarily just vanish. They can, but they don’t always. You’re forgiven, but what we have done, cannot be undone. If someone does something terrible, they can be forgiven, but it doesn’t undo what they have done.

          So if you have forgiven others, if you have asked God to forgive, but you still sometimes feel troubled about your past, then you are not alone. You are forgiven through Christ if you ask him, but many of us will still struggle at times with our past. Being forgiven doesn’t make what we done go away, it just makes us forgiven for it. Certainly scripture tells to give it to God, to surrender it to Him, but this sometimes it is easier said than done.

          In looking at our gospel lesson for this morning again from Luke 5:1-11, it says once again of Jesus calling his first disciples:

“Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him” (Lk. 5:1-11, NRSV).

         

These disciples and others will follow Jesus for the next 3-years of his ministry. All but the Apostle John though, will abandon him on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. The Apostle Peter will deny knowing Jesus in public three times before the rooster crow, and yet Jesus forgives Peter and everyone else who asks him for forgiveness. I wonder how Peter felt for the rest of his life though when he heard a rooster crow?

Through Christ, we can all be forgiven, yet the things that we say and do, while forgiven still have consequences. Our challenge with God’s help, is to try to not let our past dictate the future that God has given us through Jesus Christ. This isn’t always easy though, as we see the Apostle Paul struggling with this, this morning. Many other people in the Bible struggled with their past to. Do you struggle with your past? Do the things that you have said and have done sometimes pop back up in your thoughts, or your life?

In closing, I would like to share a quick story with you called “Tomas Borge”. This story is about a man who struggled against a tyrannical government in Nicaragua. In having been on a mission trip to Nicaragua two years ago, this story jumped out at me. It’s a story about forgiveness. Here is how it goes:

“Tomas Borge was a leader in the struggle against the totalitarian regime that had dominated his country, Nicaragua. During the revolution, Borge was captured and put in prison. While there he was subjected to the most extreme torture for over 500 hours.” “After the revolution Borge was freed and become the Minister of the Interior. One day he found one of his torturers in jail. He walked up to this man who had inflicted such terrible, relentless and brutal pain upon him and said, “I am going to get my revenge from you”. He then held out his hand and said, “This is my revenge, I forgive you”                                                               (Reported by Ernesto Cardenal, The National Catholic Reporter, September 17, 1979).

Tomas Borge forgave, but did he forget? I wonder if his torturers carried around inside of themselves any guilt for what they had done to him? Friends we can forgive, we can be forgiven, but sometimes despite our best efforts, our pasts can come back to haunt us. I hope and I pray that we cannot only forgive, not only be forgiven, but that with God’s help our pasts don’t have to dictate our present our future. Amen.