Sidney UMC - Transfiguration Sunday - 02/27/22 - Sermon - “A Mountain Top Experience!”

                                   Sunday 02/27/22 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title:     “A Mountain Top Experience!”                                

Old Testament Scripture: Exodus 34:29-35                                     

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

Gospel Lesson: Luke 9:28-43a

          We all have had those moments in our lives that we wish would last forever. Maybe it was a graduation, a wedding, an award, or something else. In that moment, on that day, that week, or that month you were truly on the mountain top. You were on top of the world. Take a moment as I am talking and think about those moments in your life that you felt invincible. Those moments where everything seemed perfect, and you were filled with joy, hope, and love.

          A moment in the past five-years for me, was when I got ordained as an Elder in the United Methodist Church. I knelt before our bishop, and he put my red stole around my neck. I had spent 8-years training and preparing, and the day had come when I was an ordained pastor. I was told that I had an extra spring in my step-in church the day after that.

          While I am still honored and blessed to be an ordained pastor, “The Mountain Top Experience” faded. By this I mean, that excitement leveled out, as such things often to. Yet, having mountain top experiences is something that we all encounter. I have had mountain top experiences with God, and maybe you have to.

          It is different for everyone in their faith walks in this life, but I have noticed that for many of us, the strength of our faith sometimes has its peaks and its valleys. There are times in our lives where our faith in Christ is unbelievably strong, and there are times that it is not as strong. As I am talking, you can probably think of times in your life of trial and struggle. Maybe in that time you were closer to God than ever before, or maybe God seemed further away. For many people, our faith is like a light that seems to shine brighter sometimes and is not as bright in other times. I think sometimes that the slings and arrows of life can affect how close we are to God. The hope is that over time we stay close to God no matter what. Yet, some people I talk to tell me that sometimes their faith is strong, and sometimes it is not as strong. It is not a matter of no longer having faith, but the peaks and the valleys of our faith during our lives. Also, the church exists to encourage, minister to, and to love each other.

          This morning is a celebratory day in the life of the church. This morning on this “Transfiguration Sunday” we celebrate “A Mountain Top Experience!” While our faith journeys can lead us to places of stronger or weaker faith, this morning is one of strong and mountain top faith. It is interesting that in the bible, in both the old and the new testament that there are times in the scripture that Moses, Jesus, and others climb up to renew, or pray, or to rekindle. There is connection with going up there, as it is closer to the heavenly realm.

          Some churches have massive high ceilings, and some of these churches are painted beautifully, as to draw your eyes up, heavenward, as if you are gazing up a mountain. Some people have the bucket list goal of climbing the tallest mountain in the world, Mount Everest. There is just something powerful about “A Mountain Top Experience!”

          On this our Transfiguration Sunday, we have the miracle of Jesus being miraculously transformed on the mountain top, and we also have our old testament reading from the Book of Exodus, which talks about Moses going up the mountain. This mountain that Moses goes up, Mount Sinai, is where God gives Moses the 10-Commandments. The Book of Exodus reading, once again, picks up where Moses is coming down the mountain from communing with God. Moses was with God and was in God’s presence. Imagine what that “Mountain Top Experience” would be like?

          Starting in Exodus 34:29 it says once again for this morning:

²⁹ Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. ³⁰ When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. ³¹ But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. ³² Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. ³³ When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; ³⁴ but whenever Moses went in before the Lord to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, ³⁵ the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him (Ex. 34:29-35, NRSV). 

          So, when Moses comes down from Mount Sinai once again, with the 10-Commandments, after communing with God, the presence of God made Moses’ face shine brightly. This scared everyone, and as a result Moses began wearing a veil. He would remove this veil when speaking to God, but it put it back on after speaking to God, so his face would not scare the Israelites.

          The Apostle Paul even references this in our new testament reading from 2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2 for this morning. Once again beginning in 3:12 it says:

¹² Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, ¹³ not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. ¹⁴ But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. ¹⁵ Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; ¹⁶ but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. ¹⁷ Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. ¹⁸ 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. 3:12-18, NRSV).

 

          So, the Apostle Paul is saying that if Moses had to wear a veil to cover the bright shine of his face from being with God, then all the people saw was a veil. A veil or a mask can cover our face, but it can also hide who we are underneath it.         The Apostle Paul also argues that through Christ the veil is lifted. Through Christ we can see the fullness of God shining as the sun, as our choir anthem is called for this morning.

          The difference with Moses in our Book of Exodus reading, and the Apostle Paul discussing it in our 2 Corinthians reading for this morning, is that Jesus, God in the flesh in our gospel of Luke reading for this morning, once again, goes up the mountain. Jesus doesn’t go up the mountain to commune with God, but rather Jesus goes up the mountain as God in the flesh. Moses’ face shined bright after being with God on the top of Mount Sinai, and the Israelites were scared of this. The Apostle Paul, once again, criticized those that a fear of this, saying that with the veil on Moses’ face the Israelite people could not see the light of God. Through Christ the Apostle Paul says we can see the bright shining love of God.

          In looking at our gospel of Luke reading for this morning, once again, it says speaking of the Transfiguration of Jesus starting in Luke 9:28 this:

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

          For those people that have seen any Superman movies or television shows, you might remember that Clark Kent very quickly changes his clothes in a phone booth and comes out as Superman. For the very young here, a phone booth, is one of the ways that we made phone calls outside before cell phones. In the same way that Clark Kent in an instant became Superman, Jesus in an instant looked completely different. As Jesus prayed, suddenly his face and his clothes became a bright and dazzling white color. He was Transfigured or changed. According to www.dictionary.com, the word “Transfigure” means:

“to change in outward form or appearance; transform.

to change so as to glorify or exalt” (https://www.dictionary.com/browse/transfigure).

          Like Clark Kent emerging from the phone booth in an instant as Superman, Jesus suddenly is changed, and he looks shiny and amazing. The story does not end here once again though. Picking up in 9:30 the gospel continues on saying, once again:

³⁰ Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. ³¹ They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem”    (Ex. 34:30-31, NRSV).

 

          So, after Jesus is Transfigured, or miraculous and suddenly changed to a shiny bright white, then beneath Jesus Moses and Elijah appear. They were talking with Jesus’ about his coming crucifixion and resurrection.

          Moses, the man that went up Mount Sinai in the old testament Book of Exodus to commune with God, and came down with his face shining, is now talking with Jesus. The great old testament Prophet Elijah is also talking with Jesus. Moses and Elijah are on the mountain top, beneath Jesus, seeking his wisdom, his holiness, and his love. Moses communed with God the Father on Mount Sinai in the Book of Exodus, but this morning Moses and Elijah are communing with Jesus, the Son of God.

          In typical Apostle Peter fashion however, instead of just watching and taking it all in, Peter acted impulsively. Once again, our gospel of Luke reading picks up in 9:32 saying:

³² 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. ³³ 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. ³⁴ While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. ³⁵ Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” ³⁶ 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. 9:32-36, NRSV).

 

          Just like the Israelites fear of the shining face of Moses, Peter feared Jesus being Transfigured and talking with Moses and Elijah. A cloud then overshadows the mountain, as it also did in the Book of Exodus, and God the Father speaks. God the Father says this is my Son:

“This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”

 

          Then suddenly Moses and Elijah were gone, the cloud with God the Father’s voice was gone, and Jesus’ appearance returned to normal. In an instant the transfigured Christ returned to his normal appearance. The gospel then concludes with Jesus, Peter, James, and John coming down from the mountain, and Jesus healing a demon possessed boy. After the boy was healed, all the onlookers were astounded at the greatness of God.

          When I read through and studied and prayed about the three scriptures that we read for this morning from Exodus, 2 Corinthians, and the gospel of Luke, the big takes ways for me are: 1. Never underestimate what God can do, and 2. Never dismiss, hide from, or shy away from what God is actually doing right in front of you.

          When we encounter God’s love, God hope, and brightness of Christ, do we run away and hide? Are we fearful? Do we try to build tents for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, or do we receive the gift, the teaching, the blessing, the hope, the love, the life, and yes, the light that God is giving us?

          Jesus was transfigured this day, not to impress Peter, James, and John. Jesus was transfigured this day not to just show us how brightly he could shine, but rather he was transfigured this day, so that Peter, James, and John could see the splendor of God through Jesus. When we get a glimpse of the life, love, and light of God, then friends, this can change or transfigure us. The light of God shone through Jesus this morning, to show us the power and the love of God, but also to show us that the light of God is in us.

          Jesus was transfigured this day, to show us that the life, love, and light of God can change us. Let us not run from it, let us not high from it, and let us not try to work around it. I would like to close this message by reading a verse from one of my favorite hymns in our United Methodist Church hymnal. This hymn, number 717, is “The Battle Hymn of the Republic”. The Battle Hymn of the Republic was written in 1861 by Julia Ward Howe, and many Union soldiers sang this hymn during the United States Civil War. Verse four of this hymn says:

“In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea, With a glory in His bosom That transfigures you and me; As He died to make men holy, Let us die to make men free; While God is marching on” (UMH, 717).

          As our Union Soldiers sang in the US Civil War, and have been singing ever since, Jesus was transfigured, so that we might be changed, so that we might be transfigured. When we are changed, when we are transfigured, then God can use us to transform Sidney and the world. Happy Transfiguration Sunday. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany - 02/20/22 - Sermon - “Do You Turn The Other Cheek?”

Sunday 02/20/22 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:     “Do You Turn The Other Cheek?”                                

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 37:1-11, 39-40                                        

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

Gospel Lesson: Luke 6:27-38

          There have been times in my life where I was convinced that I was doing better at something than I actually was. Some of us have heard the term a “Big Fish in a Small Pond” before. This statement is meant to say that someone is big, important, or excels at something. In fact, maybe they are the best, but their area of there dominance is not very big.

          Some of us have been watching the Winter Olympics in Beijing, China, which includes many of the world’s nations best winter sports athletes. In a certain country however, you can say that you are unequivocally the best winter athlete in a certain winter sport. You then arrive in Beijing, China, and you are among other people from all different countries, who are also the best in their country at the same winter sport. Perhaps you will win a metal, or perhaps you are a “Big Fish in Small Pond.”

          I would hope that all the athletes from around the world who are competing in the winter Olympic games are humble. Maybe some though think that they are the best. Maybe some of them will be let down. I mean, possibly, maybe, they can still grow, and still learn? I hope that we all feel this way.

          I use this example to say this, sometimes I think that we are all convinced we are doing better at something when we are not. Sometimes we think we are further along, are growing the way we want to grow, and suddenly we have a realization that we have more work to do. You see none of us are finished products, in our work, in our lives, in our relationships, and in our faith walks. We can always continue to grow, to develop, and to improve, lest we become “Big Fishes in Small Ponds.”

          Sometimes for me these realizations come from holy scripture. As I was reading the lectionary scriptures over for this Sunday, it felt like God was cutting me open with a scalpel. You see God is continuing to do some spiritual heart surgery on me, so that I might continue to become more like his son Jesus Christ. While salvation in Christ, eternity in Christ is a free for the taking, becoming like Christ, or Sanctification is often a lifelong process of walking with Jesus. It is sort like a high jump bar at the Summer Olympics. The standard is really high, but as we train and as we grow the bar does not seem as high. We get over more and more bars, and we get closer to highest bar that is to be fully like Jesus Christ. The standards and teaching of Jesus are truly a high bar indeed, and they are not always easy.

          For example, do we love our enemies? As our Psalm 31 reading says for this morning in 1:1, once again:

Do not fret because of the wicked; do not be envious of wrongdoers,                      (Ps. 31:1, NRSV). 

          Is our response to human evil prayer, love, and generosity? I have to admit that mine is not always so, but I am striving everyday to be more like Jesus.

          In our reading from 1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50 for this morning, the Apostle Paul continues, once again, like the last two Sundays to talk about resurrection. The Apostle Paul very aptly separates the physical from the spiritual. The physical dies, but new life is raised. The physical dies, but the spirit rises. When we come to Christ and are forgiven, we put to death our sin, our darkness, our guilt, and our shame, but becoming like Christ is a process of spiritual wholeness, putting to death our sin and brokenness, and rising to new life.

          This leads me to our gospel of Luke lesson for this morning, once again. Like being “Big Fishes in Small Ponds” or believing we are further ahead than we are, sometimes the scripture, or something else hits us between the eyes. When I read over our gospel of Luke 6:27-38 reading for this morning, in preparing to write this sermon, I was convicted. Being convicted is Christian language for seeing where you fall short, seeing where you need to grow, or seeing if God is nudging you to do better.

          In looking at our gospel of Luke 6:27-38 reading for this morning once again, Jesus tells us starting in 6:27:

²⁷ “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you                            (Lk. 6:27-28, NRSV).

 

          Anyone here, convicted when I just read Luke 6:27-28? Let me read it again. It says, once again:

²⁷ “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you                            (Lk. 6:27-28, NRSV).

          If we are being honest, how many of us struggle to love our enemies? How many of us struggle to do good to those who hate us? How many of us struggle to bless those who curse us? How many of us pray for those who abuse us? Or maybe we thought that we were doing better with this, until we read Luke 6:27-28. Remember the standard and teachings of Jesus Christ are like an Olympic high jump bar. I am not to that bar yet, but I am much closer than I used to be. I sometimes struggle to do what Jesus tells us to do in Luke 6:27-28, do you? I am getting there, but the standards and the teachings of Christ can be hard. Through prayer, reading of scripture, serving, loving, healing, and forgiving, we become more like Jesus Christ.

          Let us keep going. Picking up in Luke 6:29, Jesus tells us:

 

²⁹ 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. ³⁰ Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. ³¹ Do to others as you would have them do to you (Lk. 6:29-31, NRSV).

 

          If someone slaps you in your face, is your first instinct to turn and offer to have that person slap the other side of your face? This is tough stuff, and a high jump bar that can seem way up there in the clouds. If someone stole your coat, would you then give them your shirt too? Do you give to everyone who asks you to give to them? If someone steels from you, do you forgive them and neither ask for your things back or try to take them back? Do we truly try to treat others as we want to be treated?

          The ethical morality of Jesus Christ is so high, that the high jump bar that Jesus has set can seem out of reach for many of us. I think if we are honest, probably most of us are convicted when we read Luke 6:27-38 for this morning. I know I was, and am. I am closer than I was, but I realize I still have a way to go. How are you doing with this?

          Continuing in our gospel of Luke reading for this morning, Jesus tells us, once again, that it is easier to love people that love you, because you already have love and care for each other. In fact, picking up in Luke 6:32, Jesus says, once again:

³² “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ 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. ³⁵ 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                             (Lk. 6:32-35, NRSV). 

          Jesus tells us to love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. The high jump bar of Jesus’ teaching and ethical morality is so contrary to not only the world, but to human nature itself. It is not easy, and while salvation, forgiveness from Christ, eternity with Christ is free for the taking, becoming more and more like Christ for most of us is a lifelong process. For I am not who I was, and I hope tomorrow I will not be who I am today. Eternity, forgiveness, is free through Jesus Christ our Lord, but the journey of faith with Christ is a process of becoming, of growing, and continuing to reach up for that high jump bar. If we ever got over that very high bar, we also would not want a gold, a silver, or a bronze metal. In fact, we would think that we are so unworthy of such an award, and we would likely sell it to feed the poor. To become like Christ is to surrender our lives, our wills, our resources, and our possessions to Christ, so that we might daily become more like him. As we become more like Christ, our impact in the community and the world improves, and more people will be drawn to Christ through us. For if Jesus is really so great, then Jesus’ people should have something living inside of them that makes you want some of what they have. Salvation is free, but Sanctification for many of us is process.

          In finishing our gospel of Luke lesson for this morning, once again, we finish with Jesus teaching us in Luke 6:36-38. This is what Jesus teaches us once again:

³⁶ Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. ³⁷ “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven; ³⁸ 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. 6:36-38, NRSV).

 

          How many of us sometimes are not as merciful as we should be? How many of us sometimes judge others? How many of us sometimes condemn others? How many of us here this morning are struggling with forgiving someone? How many of us give freely? Maybe the blessings we will receive, the “wealth” that we will receive, cannot be measured in dollars and cents or in possessions, but maybe some of what we receive will be even greater than that. I mean can you put a dollar value on how much you love your children? Can you put a dollar value on a beautiful sunset? Can you put a dollar value on those almost magical moments in your life?

          To truly “get it” is to live a life for others, to serve others, and to care for all people equally. This is not what the world teaches us, but it is the high jump bar that Jesus calls us to. Do you feeling deficient in any of the areas that we heard from Luke 6:27-38 for this morning? Well guess what, I do to, but I want to become more like Jesus. Not for fame, not for financial fortune, so that God can work fully through me. This is why I have always admired people like St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who sacrificed having what many of us would call a “normal life,” to live a life like Christ called us to live. Did Mother Teresa get over the high just bar? Well, I think she has gotten closer to it than me.

          I love Jesus, I believe that he is my Lord and savior, and I believe that his gospel is the hope of the world. While I am not there yet, I am not what was I was, and with God’s grace, tomorrow I will not be what I am today. If you were convicted and shaken up by this gospel, and if Jesus showed you this morning where you fell short, then I can relate.

          May we all continue to daily journey with Christ, so that when someone asks us the question “Do You Turn The Other Cheek,” we can say, yes, we do. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany/UMC Scouting Sunday - 02/13/22 - Sermon - “No Resurrection - No Christianity” (“1 Corinthians” Series: Part 5 of 5)

Sunday 02/13/22 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:     “No Resurrection – No Christianity”                                               (“1 Corinthians” Series: Part 5 of 5)

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 1                                 

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-20

Gospel Lesson: Luke 6:17-26

          This morning, I am finishing my five-week sermon series on the readings that we have had in recent weeks from 1 Corinthians. The Book of 1 Corinthians, once again, is a letter or an epistle that the Apostle Paul wrote the Christian Church in Corinth, Greece around 53-54 AD. Most experts believe that the Apostle Paul founded this church in Corinth, Greece around 50 AD and the Apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to be instructive, corrective, and encouraging. There is so much good scripture in 1 Corinthians that I put a sermon series together from our 1 Corinthians reading for the last four-weeks, and for this morning.

          So far in this sermon series, the Apostle Paul has told the Corinthians, as this is what the people of Corinth, Greece still call themselves today, and us, about spiritual gifts. The Apostle Paul told us that we all have gifts and graces from God, and when we bring those gifts and graces together, we form this thing called the body of Christ. When we bring our gifts and graces together like a human body, we have all the parts of the body of Christ that we need, and everything we need to successfully pursue the mission of the church.

          The Apostle Paul told the Corinthians and us in the third week of this sermon series that without love, we have nothing. God is light, life, and love, and without these, we have nothing. We can build, amass, collect, move up, gain, create, but without the love of Christ, we have nothing.

          Last Sunday, the Apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians and us what the original Apostles taught him about the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul said that Jesus died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, rose again in accordance with the scriptures, and that hundreds of people saw the risen Christ after his resurrection.

          This morning in last week of this sermon series on 1 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul drives home the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Even though the majority of Christians the world over celebrate the resurrection of Jesus every Easter Sunday, every Sunday is a “Mini-Easter.” You see, Christians do not just see the resurrection of Jesus Christ being physically raised from the dead, as only a historical event and a miracle, but it is also as a source of spiritual power, encouragement, and hope.

          If we all knew and believed, for example, that when it is all said and done, that goodness, mercy, holiness, and righteousness would defeat evil, darkness, wickedness, and corruption, how would that change how we lived today?

          What if something like the resurrection of Jesus Christ changed us so much, that we were able to daily grow in grace, love, hope, mercy, and righteousness? I think that if we are all honest, we all have days that we feel like the world is going to pieces, but we have the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We have God in the flesh overcoming sin and darkness and inviting us to follow him and to daily become more like him.

          In fact, in our reading from Psalm 1 for this morning, it says once again in 1:1:

Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; (Ps. 1:1, NRSV).

          We all know friends that there is darkness, pain, suffering, and brokenness in this world, but where, oh where, do we draw hope? Almost two-thousand years ago those first disciples and followers of Jesus Christ were witnesses to his resurrection from the dead. As a result of this, these disciples and these early followers of Jesus believed that we could build a better world. They believed that God loved them, despite all their flaws and brokenness, and they believed that Jesus came to save them and die for them. They believed that through Jesus they were worthy, beloved, and had an eternal future. Do we believe that Sidney, the Tri-Town area, our churches, our schools, our businesses, and our scout packs and troops have a future? We need a fresh wind of resurrection.

          You see, many centuries after Christ’s actual resurrection on that first Easter, the Christian Church, whatever the denomination or expression has gone through times of triumph, despair, and sometimes even corruption and sinfulness. Some people have stopped attending church, have lost their faith, or have become disconnected with the body of Christ because of some of the failures of some church leaders and some churches. We all know of the past incidents of abuse, and we have seen periodically different scandals or dishonesty with some church leaders or churches. Likewise, the Boy Scouts of America or BSA has been through quite an ordeal with all of the people that have come forth as victims of past abuse, as well.

          There is no question that mistakes and grievous sins have happened in the past from some clergy, some church leaders, and yes, some BSA leaders. Yet, most clergy, most church leaders, and most BSA leaders that I know have led and continue to lead in honorable, Godly, and trustworthy ways. We now have a system in place in the United Methodist Church and the BSA has a great system, to do everything in our power to ensure that we have and will continue to have safe churches and safe BSA’s packs and troops.

          In a way then, the power of resurrection, the power of hope, of new life, for some people in recent years has faded. It is important then that as clergy, church leaders, and BSA leaders that we do everything we can to show our kids, our leaders, and our churches that we are committed to the mission, vision, and values that have dedicated ourselves to. This being said, my friends, brothers, and sisters, I think that we need a new dose of that resurrection that those first Christians experienced so long ago.

          We know that both good and terrible things have occurred in the past, and I would say that more good occurred than bad. In this time, in this place and beyond we get to continue to build something new and something authentic, if we have the faith and the courage to do it. We get to be part of something that is loving, that family and community centered, and that is centered in power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. We need a fresh wind of resurrection. We need a new shot of life, and we need to recapture the resurrection anew. In fact, as the Apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 once again:

¹² Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; ¹⁴ and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain. ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. ¹⁷ If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. ¹⁸ Then those also who have died in Christ have perished. ¹⁹ If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. ²⁰ But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died (1 Cor. 15:12-20, NRSV).

          So, while as my sermon is titled “No Resurrection – No Christianity,” I would argue that we all need, once again, a fresh wind of that first resurrection. Maybe we have become complacent, maybe we no longer believe that our churches, that BSA, or anything can grow and be successful in Sidney and the Tri-Town area. Maybe we have resigned ourselves to believing that our churches, our scout packs, and our scout troops will just slowly wither and die.

          We need a fresh wind of resurrection! We need to believe anew, that God can do all things. Despite some things that have happened in the past, we can still build a new and a brighter future. Without strong churches, without strong scouts, where does that leave Sidney and whole Tri-Town area? Where does that leave our whole country and the entire world? We need a fresh wind of resurrection. We need to believe anew, like a child, we need to come together, as we need God, we need each other, and the community needs our gifts and graces. Despite everything going on in Sidney and the surrounding communities, God can still use us through power of the resurrection of his son to build stronger scout packs, stronger scout troops, stronger youth ministries, a stronger church, stronger families, stronger friendships, and I, you, your kids, and this whole community and world will be better for it.

I do not know about you friends, but as the pastor of the Sidney United Methodist Church, I know that thousands and thousands of people have been through our doors over the years. Countless people have been changed here through our ministries. Countless people have led, countless people have served, have given, and have sacrificed. The reality is this, is that we all stand in a line of heroes, and we all stand on the shoulders of giants. I believe that Sidney and this whole Tri-Town area is worth fighting for, and friends, I wonder if you are like me?

It is an honor to serve this church, to be part of this community, and we are so proud of our scouts and our leaders. Know that this pastor and this church supports what you are doing, and that we are thrilled to have you under our roof. Let me say that again, we are thrilled to have you under our roof. To the scouts that are here this morning, what you are learning, the time your spending, and the skills you are learning matter. They will serve you now and throughout your life. To the parents and the scout leaders, your time, and your sacrifice matters. You are not laboring in vain, and this church supports you, as the values of scouts are so similar to values of the church.

          In looking at our gospel of Luke reading briefly for this morning, we have the account of Jesus Christ, our Lord preaching the “Sermon on the Plain.” What Jesus teaches us is commonly called the “Beatitudes,” and in the gospel of Luke Jesus teaches four “Beatitudes.”

          In this “Sermon on the Plain” for this morning, Jesus tells us that the poor, the hungry, those who weep, and that those who are persecuted for the love and faith that they have in Christ, will be restored in God’s kingdom. Good churches, good church leaders, good scouting packs and troops, I believe are part of the process of making Sidney, the Tri-Town area, and the world better.

          My dear friends, brothers, and sisters, we stand on the shoulders of giants, and we stand in a line of heroes. I believe in what is possible now and into the future. I believe that this church can continue to grow and that it can continue to be strong, and I believe the same thing for our scout packs and our troops. We need a fresh wind of resurrection. Friends, I believe that these things are possible, and I wonder if you are like me? Happy Scouting Sunday. Amen.

Sidney UMC - Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany - 02/06/22 - Sermon - “The Basic Gospel” (“1 Corinthians” Series: Part 4 of 5)

Sunday 02/06/22 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title:               “The Basic Gospel”                                                              (“1 Corinthians” Series: Part 4 of 5)

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 138                                        

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Gospel Lesson: Luke 5:1-11

          This morning, I am continuing with our five-week sermon series on the Book or the letter of 1 Corinthians. As I have said for the past three weeks, the city of Corinth is an actual city in the modern-day European country of Greece. The Apostle Paul went to the ancient city of Corinth in Ancient Greece and planted a Christian Church there. Most experts would say that the Apostle Paul did this around 50 AD. Most experts would also say that the Apostle Paul wrote this letter to the church in Corinth or the Corinthians sometime between 53-54 AD.

          Since the Apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians to instruct, to correct, and to encourage, we have had some really good readings the past three weeks from 1 Corinthians. So far, we have heard about spiritual gifts and the many gifts and graces that we all have in the body of Christ. We all have gifts and graces from God, and when we come together with all of our gifts and graces the church can then fully pursue its mission.

          Last Sunday, comparing our 1 Corinthians reading to the movie “The Grinch” the Apostle Paul told us in 1 Corinthians 13:13:

¹³ And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love (1 Cor. 13:13, NRSV).

          As Christians we are called to have faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love. God is love. God is light. God is life. We get to share this love, light, and life with the world every day. A love so strong that it can even convert a grinch!

          This morning, we are talking about our scripture reading from 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, on “The Basic Gospel”. What are the basic things that the vast majority of Christians have believed for two-thousand years, regardless of the Christian denomination or the expression of Christianity?

          Before diving into this however, we hear in our reading for this morning from Psalm 138 once again, that:

⁸ The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands (Ps. 138:8, NRSV).

          God is with us, and God has and continues to fulfil his love and promises through Jesus Christ.

          Part of the problem though is that we sometimes over think things. Does anyone here ever over think something? I could be as simple as 2 + 2 equals 4, but then we add all sorts of variables and extra things to that simple math problem. Sometimes we know the answer, but we create all these other things that complicates what otherwise seems to be a simple solution. Sometimes we make compromises in our heads or in our lives that make an otherwise easy answer very hard.

          For example, has anyone ever asked you to do something very basic and very simple, and you then created something much more advanced and much more complicated? I know that I have. Sometimes, for certain things, there are simple answers and solutions, but we have at times created different variables and additional things that can make things more complicated.

          As I have been announcing, next Sunday is Scouting Sunday in the United Methodist Church. When preparing for Scouting Sunday every year, I often think of the Pine Wood Derby cars that I used to make with my dad in his shop in his basement. I mean you start with a block of pine wood, some nails, and some plastic wheels. Pretty easy right? Not complicated right? Well one would think so, as some complete their Pine Wood Derby Cars in short order. Then there are the kids who parents work for Nasa, and the making of the Pine Wood Derby Car takes twenty-hours, two pots of coffee, prayers, and high-tech computer equipment. Does it have to be so complicated? Do we intentionally take things that are simple, that are basic, and make them so much more complex and complicated? I know that many of us do. Sometime there are good reasons for this too.

          Take sports for example, when you think of major league baseball 100 years ago, do you think that all the variables in place now where in place then? Did people sign liability waivers? Did the baseball park need to carry millions of dollars of extra insurance? Was there the need to explain everything a million times? Where the players as worried about all of the protective equipment as they are today?

          Now maybe it is better that when you go to professional sports game that there are lot more factors, protections, or variables, but good or bad many people sometimes take something simple and make it much more complicated. Some things I think though are just simple and easy like 2 + 2 equals 4.

          With all of this said, many scholars believe that Jesus was probably born in 4 BC, and if Jesus was crucified and resurrected at the age of 33, then he probably was crucified in and around 29 AD. The Apostle Paul goes to the Ancient Greek city of Corinth in and around 50 AD, to plant a Christian Church. The Apostle Paul then writes 1 Corinthians around 53-54 AD.

          Within 15-20-years of Jesus’ crucifixion on the cross and his resurrection at age 33, the Apostle Paul begins traveling to various cities and places. The Apostle Paul is spreading and preaching the gospel and created Christian Churches in these various places. I tell you all of this, because the Apostle Paul this morning is telling us what the very first Christians believed. These Christian around 29-30 AD, who were mostly in Jerusalem and other places in Israel. What did they believe? Is what they believed complicated, or simple?

          We have every reason to believe that the Apostle Paul knew many or all of the original disciples of Jesus, and while Paul never meet Jesus when he was physically alive on the earth, Paul knew many or all of the original disciples of Jesus. As Paul was travelling to the city of Damascus, in modern day Syria in the Book of Acts, Christ appeared to him in a vision. Initially Paul, was Saul or Tarsus, a Jewish Rabbi who persecuted the church heavily. Jesus appeared to him, and he converted to Christianity.

          The Apostle Paul became a follower of Christ, but what do Christian believe? Is it complicated? Is it simple? Further, how do we know what the first Christians believed, and how do we know that what was written about Christ in the early church was true? Can we really know what those first Christians, who were originally called “The Way,” who then became known as Christians, what they believed, or is it all just lost to history? Further, do the majority of Christian Churches and Christian Denominations believe the same basic truths of the Christian faith? The answer is yes.

          So, what does the Apostle Paul tell us and the Corinthians this morning once again? The Apostle Paul once again says this:

15 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, ² 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).

          So, the Apostle Paul was converted to Christianity, as he had a vision of Christ. The Apostle Paul is then taught more about Jesus from the original apostles of Christ and the first Christians. The Apostle Paul is telling the church in Corinth that what he taught them about Christ, he himself was also taught about Christ. So, what is this set of teachings that the Apostle Paul was taught and that he then brought to many places like Corinth. The is what the Apostle was taught, and what he intern taught, starting in 15:3:

³ 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, ⁴ and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, ⁵ and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. ⁶ Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. ⁷ Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. ⁸ Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me (1 Cor. 15:3-8, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul writes 1 Corinthians within approximately twenty-five years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Apostle Paul started as a persecutor of the church, and then converted to Christianity. The earliest leaders in the church and some of or all of the first Apostles of Christ told the Apostle Paul the simple truth. We see this basic truth or framework in historic creeds of the Christian faith, like the Apostle’s Creed, and the Nicene Creed. These basic and yet simple truths. God created, his son came to save, and the Holy Spirit fills us and sanctifies us.

          How can we really know who Jesus was, and what he did then? The Apostle Paul this morning tells the Corinthians and us, this is who he was and who he is. He died for us, he rose again, and hundreds of people saw him after his resurrection. The belief that Jesus was fully God and fully human when he was here on this earth, is not new. It was not created by the Roman Emperor Constantine in the 300’s AD. Instead, this is what the very first Christians and Apostle believed, and as a result this what the Apostle Paul believed and taught. Further, this is what the majority of the world’s Christian have believed for nearly two-thousand years.

          The simple reality my friends is this, all of us within ourselves have the ability to do good and to do evil. How can we completely remove the evil within ourselves? Can we accomplish this daunting task on our own? The reality is that Christ came and died for us, so that we can be forgiven of our brokenness, and our sin. As we continue to fall and continue to turn to Christ, he continues to embrace us. Yet, we are forgiven if we but ask for it, and every day we can walk in the light, life, and love of Christ. In doing this, we are being spiritually resurrected to be more like Jesus. The light grows and the darkness fades.

          In completing our reading for this morning from 1 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul tells the church in Corinth how he once persecuted the church and hated Jesus. Picking up in 1 Corinthians 15:9 it says once again:

⁹ For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. ¹⁰ 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. ¹¹ Whether then it was I or they, so we proclaim and so you have come to believe (1 Cor. 15:9-11, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul tells the Corinthians and us that he has done wrong in the past, like we all have. Yet the Apostle Paul was saved and changed by Christ, and the simple truth of Christ can change us all. It is not complicated, it is not super elaborate, instead it is God loving us and the world so much that would die for us. It is grace and mercy beyond all human comprehension. It is being offered exactly what we do not deserve but is offered freely. It is here and offered if we are willing to ask for it.

          In fact, in our gospel of Luke reading for this morning once again, Jesus in a very simple way calls three of his first disciples. Jesus was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and people were crowding in on him. Jesus saw two empty boats on the shore and got into one of them. Jesus then asked Simon or Peter to put this boat out a little form shore, and this helped with the crowd pushing in on Jesus. Jesus then taught the crowd from the boat, to give himself a little more room. This may have been one of the first examples of social distancing. When Jesus was done teaching the crowd, he asked Simon or Peter to take the boat out to deep water. Then Jesus told Simon Peter to put his fishing nets into the water to catch some fish. Peter told Jesus though that they fished all night and caught nothing. Even so, Simon Peter trusted Jesus and cast out his net. When this happened, there were so many fish in the nets that the nets began to break. Other fisherman then came to help, and two boats were filled with so many fish that they began to sink. At this point Simon or Peter tells Jesus to leave him as he is a sinful man. Yet on this day, Jesus called Simon Peter, and James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Jesus said, you were fishing for fish, but he said he would make them fishers of men, and fishers of women.

          It is not complicated, it is not extremely elaborate. Jesus restoring lives and souls, dying for us, and raising again. Not complicated, not hard to understand, but so many of us have a way of complicating something so basic and so simple. In our broken and incomplete state, the endless grace of God in Jesus Christ reaches out to us, so that we may be forgiven, and daily become more and more like Jesus. This my friends, is “The Basis Gospel” that the Apostle Paul taught the Corinthians, and that he teaches us. Amen.