Sidney UMC - Pentecost-Confirmation Sunday/Memorial Day Sunday - 05/28/23 - Sermon - “The Confirmation Of The Holy Spirit!”

Sunday 05/28/23 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title: “The Confirmation Of The Holy Spirit!”                              

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 104:24-34, 35b                                       

New Testament Scripture: Acts 2:1-21

Gospel Lesson: John 7:37-39 

          I know that I have mentioned it a couple of times already, and it is in our June church newsletter monthly calendar, and maybe in our bulletin insert, but this Thursday June 1^st to Saturday June 3^rd is our Upper New York UMC Annual Conference in Syracuse. This is the gathering every year where United Methodists in Upper New York worship, do church business, and fellowship with each other.

          I remember registering for the Annual Conference over a month ago, and when I did, I almost instantly got an e-mail alert. So, I checked my e-mail, and I thought, “I wonder what I just got sent”? Sure, enough it was a “confirmation” e-mail for me paying for and registering for our 2023 Upper New York UMC Annual Conference. You see I made a conscious and a free will choice. I chose to register and to pay for attending the Upper New York UMC Annual Conference later this week.

          Today, we asked Vincent if he had faith in Christ. Many of us that know Vincent already knew that he had faith in Christ, but that was “confirmed” before us all this morning. Vincent loves Jesus and is a follower of Jesus, but today he got the e-mail confirming that he is indeed a professing Christian. This e-mail of course is metaphorical, unlike the actual e-mail that got for registering for Annual Conference.

          Many Christian Churches do confirmations on Pentecost Sunday as today is the birthday of the Christian Church. On this day nearly two-thousand years ago, the Christian Church was born.  Since that time the Christian Church has grown substantially, in the biggest faith in the world, but it has also fragmented and turned into a variety of denominations and traditions. Baptists, Methodists, Lutherans, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Pentecostals, Quakers, Evangelicals, etc., all have their histories and their unique perspectives that makes them who they are.

          In some Christian traditions for example, infants are baptized, in some Christian tradition’s infants are dedicated. Many Christians, not all, believe that faith in Christ alone is what saves us, as I do. Generally speaking, though, most Christian Churches believe in some form of baptism and some form of profession of faith in Christ. In the United Methodist Church, we are willing to baptize infants, but we also can baptize believers, as well. We can baptize by sprinkling or immersion. In fact, most Christians believe that baptism is the universal entry point into the life of the Christian Church here on earth. In the United Methodist Church baptizing an infant does not save their soul, but it does make them part of the universal church. We covenant with the family of the child and the congregation to raise that child in the faith and with the love of Christ.

          In raising a child in the faith, the hope is, is that this child will come to know Christ as Lord and Savior. At an infant baptism in the United Methodist Church, we ask the Holy Spirit to fall on and fill this child, and we are making a covenant to love this child. We are praying, teaching, and working on leading this child to Christ.

          We have the ritual of remembering our baptisms, as we hope and pray that our baptisms were just the beginning of our journey with God through Christ. If we asked the Holy Spirit to fill the child being baptized, and if we were committed to praying for the child and leading the Child to Christ, then Confirmation is Confirming what the Holy Spirit stared at baptism. We remember our baptisms, because the seeds of God’s hope and love were planted in us on the day of our baptisms. Today Vincent confirmed that he in fact has faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.  

          So, it is true to say that different churches and different Christian denominations do baptisms and professions of faith differently. What is pretty much universally true though is that the vast majority of Christians have always believed that the birthday of the church was on Pentecost. Why do most Christians make this claim on this Pentecost Sunday?

          The general reason for this is in our scriptures from last Sunday in Acts 1:1-11 and Luke 24:44-53, among other scriptures, is that Jesus told the disciples to not start the formal work of the church yet. Well, why would Jesus tell the disciples to stay and Jerusalem and just wait? Well, Jesus tells the disciples in Acts 1:1-11 and Luke 24:44-53, that the Holy Spirit will come to the disciples soon. When the Holy Spirit comes and fills them, then the disciples will receive power, wisdom, and more truth. So, the disciples wait in Jerusalem, as Jesus told them to.

          Today though, on Pentecost is the day that Jesus told the disciples to wait for. Jesus said the Holy Spirit, the Helper, the Advocate would come, and today the Holy Spirit shows up in a mighty way. In fact, during the Jewish holiday of “Shavuot” or the “Feast of Weeks” the disciples are together in one place. They very well could have been in the same upper room that they shared the Last Supper with Jesus. Our daily United Methodist Church prayer book by the way, is called the” Upper Room”. As the disciples wait, the Holy Spirt shows up on this Jewish holiday of “Shavuot,” or the “Feast of Weeks,” as we often call it “Pentecost”. We tend to wear red on this Sunday and use red paraments on this Sunday, as red is a color for fire. The Holy Spirit of God burns within us, can feel the warmth, and we are filed with love.

          In looking at the Pentecost story in Acts 2:1-21 it says once again:

2 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. ² And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. ³ Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. ⁴ All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability (Acts 2:1-4, NRSV).

 

          Jesus told the disciples to wait for the Advocate, the Helper, the Holy Spirit, and on the day of Pentecost nearly two-thousand years ago, the Holy Spirt shows up. In a mighty way, I may add! Wind filled the house with a rush, divided tongues as of fire appeared among the disciples, and one of these tongues of fire rested on each of them. All the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit, and Holy Spirit had them speak in tongues. Specifically, on the day of Pentecost, the scripture tells us that disciples spoke in different languages that people in Jerusalem spoke. Since people were in Jerusalem for this Jewish holiday, they came from all over the Roman Empire. Since this is true, the people spoke all different languages, and this morning the Holy Spirit spoke these different languages through the disciples.  

          This enabled the people in Jerusalem to hear this message of God’s love through Jesus Christ in their native language. We have no reason to believe the disciples, most of which were probably illiterate, could speak all these different languages.

          So, the Holy Spirit moves, tongues of fire, and speaking in tongues. Picking up in Acts 2:5 it continues on saying:

⁵ Now there were devout Jews from every people under heaven living in Jerusalem. ⁶ And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. ⁷ Amazed and astonished, they asked, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? ⁹ Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, ¹⁰ Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, ¹¹ Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.” ¹² All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” (Acts 2:5-12, NRSV). 

 

          So, people from all over the known world, at the time, hear the disciples speak filled with the Holy Spirit in their own languages. They are amazed by this as they know these disciples do not know all of these languages. Further they hear of God’s love and glory, but it leaves all the various people listening asking “What does this mean?”

          Others accused the disciples of being drunk. As our reading from Acts 2:13 for this morning pick up saying:

¹³ But others sneered and said, “They are filled with new wine.” ¹⁴ But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, “Fellow Jews and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. ¹⁵ Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. ¹⁶ No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel: ¹⁷ ‘In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams. ¹⁸ Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit,
        and they shall prophesy. ¹⁹ And I will show portents in the heaven above
    and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist. ²⁰ The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day. ²¹ Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

          So, the Apostle Peter, you know the disciple that denied Jesus three times? The disciple that with all the others fled and hid on Good Friday, say for John, Mary, and the other female disciples. On this day though, the day of Pentecost, Peter emerges with faith and courage like a lion. The disciples are no longer hiding in the shadows, they are coming forth, launching the Christian movement, and most of them will pray dearly for it. They will be persecuted, tortured, arrested, and most killed for their faith in Christ. Peter’s sermon continues beyond our Acts 2:1-21 reading for this morning, and as Acts 2 continues, about 3,000 people repent of there sin, are baptized, are filled with the Holy Spirit, and become the first Christians.

          For all of this reason, Pentecost is an important day in the life the church, and it is the birthday of the church. It’s a day that some churches do confirmations or other things. To some extent it is tradition, but it is also true that on that first Pentecost about 3,000 people professed their faith in Christ. In keeping with this tradition, today, Pentecost Sunday, Vincent professed his faith in Christ to this whole congregation.

          To reinforce this Pentecost scripture from Acts 2:1-21 in our lectionary scriptures for this morning, we have John 7:37-39. In this gospel lesson Jesus says to those who were listening to him:

“Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, ³⁸ and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’ ” ³⁹ Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive, for as yet there was no Spirit because Jesus was not yet glorified (Jn. 7:37b-39, NRSV).

          Jesus in John 7:37-39 tells the crowd listening that anyone who is spiritually thirsty can come to him. They can be filled with holy and living water, but at this point in the gospel of John, the disciples had not yet been filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. This was foreshadowing of what would happen after Jesus rose, and ascended, as today on Pentecost the Holy Spirit shows up.

          My sermon therefore, is called “Confirmation Of The Holy Spirit,” because as I got a confirmation e-mail that I registered for Annual Conference, today the Holy Spirit that Jesus said would show up, showed up. Today, the disciples, metaphorically speaking received their confirmation e-mail. For on this day, the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit showed up. Thus, the disciples and all of Jerusalem, got “The Confirmation Of The Holy Spirit!” Happy Pentecost, Happy Memorial Day Weekend, and Amen.

Sidney UMC - Ascension of the Lord Sunday/Seventh Sunday of Easter - 05/21/23 - Sermon - “The Ascension of the Lord!”

Sunday 05/21/23 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “The Ascension Of The Lord!”                                   

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 47                                       

New Testament Scripture: Acts 1:1-11

Gospel Lesson: Luke 24:44-53

          What’s it like to lose your hero? What’s it like to lose someone who just made everything better, and who made the world seem to make more sense? What is it like to lose your best friend? Or your favorite sports player? Or that person that you greatly admired?

          Sometimes, and I think we have all been guilty of this, we can take people for granted, can’t we? We might think that they will always be there, but they won’t. There is a really good country song by Cody Johnson called “’Til You Can’t”. In this song, Cody Johnson among other things, says:

… You can tell your old man You'll do some largemouth fishing another time You just got too much on your plate to bait and cast a line You can always put a rain check in his hand 'Til you can't (LyricFind).

          Once again, what is like to lose your hero, a person you greatly admire, or your best friend?

          I still remember the summer of 2015, when my Grandpa Winkelman died. My father called me to tell me the news, which was an emotional moment for both of us. Then my father asked me if I would officiate the funeral for my Grandpa Harold. I had officiated the funeral service for my Grandma Winkelman, and now I was officiating the service for my Grandpa Winkelman.

          I remember, as I did, when I did my Grandma Winkelman’s funeral, that I was now the “family’s pastor”. As Melissa and I headed to Chicago, for both funerals in fact, we were of course saddened, but I felt a heavy weight on my shoulders. You see, my call to ministry became even more real, as I was asked to do the funeral for my grandmother, and then in 2015, for my grandfather.

          My Grandpa Winkelman was a great person, and was like glue that held the family together. Then he went to be with my grandmother in eternity. To lose a hero, a beloved family member, or someone else, makes us realize that we then have to step up to the mark. It makes us realize that this departed person’s gifts and talents are now gone from this earth. As a result, the duty now falls on us to carry on.

          When I was young and I had my grandparents there and my parents there, it felt really good. As you get older though, you slowly become the wise old one. You become the one that the family or friends look to as the person to give advice, help, etc. It is an important, but a humbling roll to play. I felt humbled to do the funeral services for my Grandma and Grandpa Winkelman.

          Now I tell you all of this on this Ascension Sunday, because this morning the disciples lose their hero. The disciples lose the greatest person that they had ever met in their lives. The disciples lose God in the flesh, Jesus Christ. It’s not necessarily a day of misery though, as the gospel of Luke for this morning says after Jesus ascended in heaven in Luke 24:52-53, once again:

⁵² And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and they were continually in the temple blessing God (Lk. 24:52-53, NRSV).

          Jesus had been crucified on God Friday, resurrected on Easter Sunday, and then had appeared post-resurrection to the disciples and hundreds of others for 40-days. In our readings this morning from the Book Acts 1:1-11 and the gospel of Luke 24:43-53, we hear that Jesus ascends to heaven. This is why we call this Ascension Sunday, as the actual Ascension Day was this past Thursday. This past Thursday and or this Sunday commemorates and marks Jesus ascending into heaven. In commemorates and marks Jesus no longer being physically on earth.

          In fact, we hear in our reading from Psalm 47 for this morning, once again, in 47:5-7:

⁵God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet. ⁶ Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. ⁷ For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm (Ps. 47:5-7, NRSV).

          Today, Jesus ascends to heaven, and will only be seen in the flesh again when he returns to earth in glory. While the scripture accounts speak of the excitement of the disciples this morning, I can imagine at points that they missed Jesus. God in the flesh, there Messiah, their teacher, physically gone until his second coming. Jesus promises though that the Holy Spirit will come to them soon, and that they will understand more of what Jesus taught them. Further, they will be empowered to go forth with the mission of the gospel, the mission of the church, which is the great commission.

          Next Sunday, we will celebrate Pentecost Sunday, which is the Sunday that the Holy Spirit shows up in a powerful way on the day of Pentecost. On Pentecost Sunday, which is next Sunday, the Christian Church will be born, and the disciples will be filled with the Holy Spirit. This is why our paraments will be red, and this is why we are encouraged to wear red next Sunday. This is to celebrate the fire of God’s love and the power of the Holy Spirit.

          Today though, or this past Thursday to be precise, Jesus goes up to eternity, as he came from eternity. Pretty simple in a way, Jesus was crucified on Good Friday, resurrected on Easter Sunday, then appeared to his disciples and hundreds for 40-days. This all culminates in Jesus’ ascension. In fact, the Book of the Acts of the Apostles begins with Jesus’ ascension, as this is the same story also told in our gospel of Luke 24:44-53 reading for this morning. Luke, who wrote the gospel of Luke, also wrote the Book of Acts.

          Let’s look at our reading from the Book of Acts 1:1-11 for this morning once again. It starts in Acts 1:1-5, giving a summary of the gospel of Luke, saying:

1 In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach ² until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. ³ After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. ⁴ While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait there for the promise of the Father. “This,” he said, “is what you have heard from me; ⁵ for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now” (Acts 1:1-5, NRSV).

          This summary of the gospel of Luke in Acts 1:1-5 sets the stage for the rest of the Book of Acts. In Acts 1:1-5, Luke says that he wrote about Jesus’ life, his teachings, his post-resurrection appearances, and Jesus telling the disciples to not leave Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit showed up, after his ascension.

          After this in this Book of Acts reading, Luke continues in 1:6 speaking about the actual moment of Jesus’ ascension into heaven. Beginning in 1:6 the scripture says:

⁶ So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ He replied, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” ⁹ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. ¹⁰ While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. ¹¹ They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

 

          Certainly, this is a powerful moment in the narrative, and the two angels tell the apostles who are in awe, that Jesus went to heaven the same way that he came down from heaven. Soon very soon, the Holy Spirit will come upon and fill the disciples, and when this happens, the Christian Church will be born. This is what we will celebrate next Sunday on Pentecost Sunday, which will be in the Book Acts 2. Once again, feel free to wear red!

          Even though our Book of Acts 1:1-11 reading for this morning ends with the disciples being excited and jovial about Jesus’ ascension, I can imagine that they were at the same time saddened that he was officially psychically gone from earth. Maybe not in those exact moments, but I can imagine throughout the rest of the disciples lives that they missed having Jesus psychically. I mean how could they not? Many of us miss our heroes or the people that we loved and admired. They have gone to glory like Jesus does this morning. We will see them again. sure, but it is still hard to not have them here with us. I can imagine then that the disciples had times when they just missed Jesus.

          In looking at our gospel of Luke 24:44-53 reading for this morning, Luke gives his second account of the ascension of Christ. Sometimes Luke and the Book of Acts is referred to as Luke-Acts, as both books are attributed to the Apostle Luke. So, in looking once again at out Luke 24:44-53 reading for this morning, it says:

⁴⁴ Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” ⁴⁵ Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, ⁴⁶ and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day ⁴⁷ and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. ⁴⁸ You are witnesses of these things       (Lk. 24:44-48, NRSV).

 

          Similar to his summary in the Book of Acts 1:1-5, where he mentions a convert to Christianity name Theophilus, Luke summarizes Jesus’ whole life and his mission on this earth. This summary, in fact, is the actual words of Jesus. Jesus explains that he came to earth to fulfill the law of Moses, and to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament and the Psalms. Jesus explains that he died for our sins, rose again, and that we are all called to proclaim repentance and forgiveness in his name. Jesus said to his disciples that they were all eye witnesses of all of these things that he said and did.

          After this summary of the life and the mission of Jesus in Acts 1:1-15, Jesus says in 24:49:

⁴⁹ And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high                                        (Lk. 24:49, NRSV).

 

          Jesus tells the disciples and us that he is psychically leaving this earth soon, to go to heaven and to sit at the right hand of God the Father. He then tells the disciples to stay in the holy city of Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit shows up giving them power form on high. Next Sunday on Pentecost Sunday, the Holy Spirit will show up, filling the disciples, and as Jesus said, clothing the disciples “with power from on high”.

          Our gospel of Luke reading for this morning then concludes with Luke 24:50-53 saying, once again:

⁵⁰ Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and, lifting up his hands, he blessed them. ⁵¹ While he was blessing them, he withdrew from them and was carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, ⁵³ and they were continually in the temple blessing God.

 

          Just like in our reading from Acts 1:1-11, Jesus is ascended, and similar to that reading, the disciples have a positive response to this. In fact, in our gospel of Luke reading, once again, it says that the disciples worshiped Jesus, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. Why? Well Jesus promised to send them the Holy Spirit soon, and as a result, they were constantly in the temple blessing God.

          Yet, may before Pentecost next Sunday, or maybe after, I can imagine that the disciples and all of the early converts to Christ missed him physically. I mean how could we not miss Jesus? How could we not miss our heroes, and those whom we love and admire more than anyone else.

          Whatever way that we look at it, today Jesus is sitting at the right hand of God the Father, and will be doing so until he returns in glory. The Holy Spirit is coming, Pentecost in coming. While many surely missed Christ being physically with them in the flesh, they still had joy in that he was alive, and heading back to eternity, as we will all one do, as well. In similar way, while we miss those we love, admire, and look up to that are no longer with us, it is not forever, it is just for now. Whether we go to be with Christ someday, or Christ comes to be with us, we will not be separated from the physical presence of Christ or those we have lost forever. Ascension Day, Ascension Sunday then, is not the end, but just the beginning. Amen.

 

 

 

Sidney UMC - Mother's Day/Sixth Sunday of Easter - 05/14/23 - Sermon - “To An Unknown God”

                                 Sunday 05/14/23 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “To An Unknown God”                                  

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 66:8-20                                     

New Testament Scripture: Acts 17:22-31

Gospel Lesson: John 14:15-21

          So, I have heard of different cultures and even different families leaving a chair empty at the dinner table sometimes. This happens for different reasons. Maybe at some special family gatherings, a chair is left open, just in case someone else shows up. Maybe the empty chair was for a family member or a friend that you hoped would show up, and perhaps never did.

          The idea of setting another place at the table and not knowing if that place will be filled, as I said, is something that some cultures and some people do on certain special occasions. I remember, for example, when I was a little boy leaving out cookies and milk for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. We also left out carrots for the reindeer, as well. I never saw Santa or the reindeer, but the cookies, milk, and carrots were always eaten, or mostly anyway. Well, the empty plates and the empty milk glass on Christmas morning did not disappoint!

          How many of us have ever made extra food, or planned for one or more person, just in case? I mean you never know when someone might stop bye, and it might even be a person that up until that moment was completely “unknown” to you. If you have an extra seat at the table, is it maybe for a guest, a family member, or a friend? Or is the empty seat symbolic? You might say, “this empty seat is for Jesus”. Whether this has even been a custom of yours or not, the idea of an empty seat, or preparing more room just in case is nothing new for some people.

          In the way of religious beliefs in the ancient world that Jesus lived in, some cultures believed not in one god, but many gods. So many gods in fact, it would seem that as time went on sometimes more and more gods would be added to the already large list of gods. In Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire, you generally could worship and believe in one or many gods. Yet, it was the custom and law, generally speaking, to create a physical representation of your god or gods. If you believed in “Zeus,” or “Aphrodite,” or “Atlas,” for example, well can show me what your god looks like? You might have believed in many gods, but can you show me what they look like physically?

          You see in much of the ancient world having carvings or statues of one’s god or gods was not uncommon. As Christians though we don’t have statues or carvings of our God, because generally we believe that our God is a spiritual being. Our God is bigger than any statue or object, as our God cannot be contained by a mere images or sculptures.

          In fact, our official definition of God is in our United Methodist Church Book of Discipline. This definition is part of what we call our “Articles of Religion.” Our first “Article of Religion” in fact, is our definition of God. Article one says this:

Article I — Of Faith in the Holy Trinity

There is but one living and true God, everlasting, without body or parts, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness; the maker and preserver of all things, both visible and invisible. And in unity of this Godhead there are three persons, of one substance, power, and eternity—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost          (UMC BOD).

          In ancient Rome, once again, you were allowed to worship God, provided you could create a statue, an image, or a likeness of God. Yet we cannot do this number one, because the Bible tells us not to create graven images, and number two, because our God is bigger than a statue, an object, or a carving. This then was the real offense in the Roman Empire, that as Christians we would dare to claim that there is only one God. This was insulting and as such, Christians and Jews were often persecuted.

          In our reading from Acts 17:22-31, once again, the Apostle Paul is preaching and evangelizing in Athens, Greece. In Ancient Greece, like many ancient places, the belief in many gods was common place. Part of this is because many people believed that one god controlled the weather, and another god the crops, and another god good health, and etc. The Apostle Paul declares in Acts 17:22-31 this morning however, there is no need for all these various gods. Instead, there is one God, and this God is bigger and beyond all others.

          Now remember that the Apostle Paul is in a city that believe in multiple gods, and the Apostle Paul this morning goes to the acropolis, or more specifically the Areopagus or “Mars Hills” as it sometimes referred to explain who God is. This again, is in Athens, Greece. According to one source that I read about our Acts 17:22-31 scripture for this morning it says this:

The Areopagus (/æriˈɒpəɡəs/) is a prominent rock outcropping located northwest of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. Its English name is the Late Latin composite form of the Greek name Areios Pagos, translated "Hill of Ares" (Ancient Greek: Ἄρειος Πάγος). The name Areopagus also referred, in classical times, to the Athenian governing council, later restricted to the Athenian judicial council or court that tried cases of deliberate homicide, wounding and religious matters, as well as cases involving arson of olive trees, because they convened in this location.^[1][2] The war god Ares was supposed to have been tried by the other gods on the Areopagus for the murder of Poseidon's son Halirrhothius (a typical example of an aetiological myth) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Areopagus).

 

          Athens at this time, nearly two-thousand years ago, had likely never heard of Jesus, or very little. The worship multiples gods, and having their likenesses carved was everywhere. The Apostle Paul however, wanted to tell him about God.

          In this sermon or this message, the Apostle Paul begins speaking our Acts 17:22-31 scripture for this morning, starting in 17:22 at the Areopagus in Athens, Greece, once again, saying:

²² Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely spiritual you are in every way. ²³ For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. ²⁴ The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, ²⁵ nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things (Acts 17:22-25, NRSV). 

          The Apostle Paul is telling the Greeks, number one he respects their spiritual nature. The Apostle is complimenting their devotion to their beliefs and their gods. At the same time though, the Apostle Paul notes that as he walked through the city that he sees all sorts of objects, carvings, and statues that were objects of worship. Specifically, the Apostle Paul saw an altar that had an inscription on it that said, ‘To an unknown god’. So many gods did the Greeks have at this this time that they figured surely, they must have missed one somewhere. Perhaps this was their version of an extra place at the table, an extra open seat, the cookies and milk for Santa, or making extra food just in case. I mean think about it, the Greeks have all of these various objects of worship, statues, carvings, and all of these other things to worship their various gods, and they even have an altar ‘To an unknown god’. The Ancients Greeks then, according to the Apostle Paul are leaving the door of there faith tradition opened just a little. I mean what if there is another god, what if there is a god that exists, but is unknown to them. This theological humility is what the Apostle Paul taps into in his sermon or message to the Greeks in Athens on the Areopagus this morning.

          Specifically, the Apostle Paul is telling the Greeks this morning, that he sees that they have created an altar in Athens ‘To an unknown god,’ and he is saying that he is here to tell them of the “Unknown God”. God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. After this sermon that Apostle Paul gives, some believe, and some scoff at him. Picking up in Acts 17:26, the Apostle Paul says of God, once again:

²⁶ From one ancestor he made all peoples to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, ²⁷ so that they would search for God and perhaps fumble about for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us. ²⁸ For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we, too, are his offspring’ (Acts 17:26-28, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul is attempting to relate to the Greeks and how they see the world and their beliefs. The Apostle Paul is trying to open the Greeks up to a belief in a God that is so much bigger than an object, a carving, or a statue. In fact, the Apostle Paul concludes this sermon with Acts 17:29-31 saying:

²⁹ “Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. ³⁰ While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, ³¹ because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:29-31, NRSV).

          The Apostle Paul tells the Greeks that God is much bigger than some object made of gold, silver, or stone. God is creator, God was in the flesh in Jesus Christ, and God is the Holy Spirit that fills and empowers us. The God that the Apostle Paul tells the Greeks about is the Lord of the all.

          If God has created all that ever was and is, and if God became human in Jesus Christ, then what happens when Christ ascends into heaven. After Jesus is crucified, resurrected, and is ready depart this world until he returns again, then what now?

          In our gospel of John reading for this morning, Jesus tells his disciples that when he is no longer physically on earth, he will send the Holy Spirit to be comfort, fill, and advocate for the disciples. In fact, our gospel of John 14:15-21 reading for this morning says once again, with Jesus’ speaking starting in 14:15:

¹⁵ “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. ¹⁶ And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. ¹⁷ This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him because he abides with you, and he will be in you. ¹⁸ “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. ¹⁹ In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. ²⁰ On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. ²¹ They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me, and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them”                 (Jn. 14:15-21, NRSV).

          Jesus is telling his disciples and us to love each other, keep Jesus’ commandments and teachings, and to live them out. Be like Jesus. Even if Christ isn’t here with us in the flesh, the Holy Spirit is with us.

          The Christian faith that hundreds and hundreds of millions of people believe all over the world largely believes in one God. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. One God in three, thee in one.

          Among the many people that taught me about God, the Father, Jesus the Son, and the power of the Holy Spirit, I can say that my mother taught me a lot about God. My mom always wanted us to go to church, and learn more about Jesus. Among the many things that I am grateful for my mom for and many other women in my life, I am grateful that my mother and other women in my life taught me who God is. I am grateful that my mom and many other women in my life taught me about Jesus, his gospel, and his love.

          While the Apostle Paul is preaching a sermon to the Ancient Greeks in Athens this morning, and while what he is saying is all new to them, many of us have heard about God. We have heard about Jesus. We have heard about the Holy Spirit. For some of us, we can say that because of the some of the women who are or have been in our lives that we know who God is. For many of us, our God is not unknown, because many people, including some of the women in lives taught us about God. Today the “Unknown god” is made known, and today we honor all women. Happy Mother’s Day! Amen.

Sidney UMC - Fifth Sunday of Easter - 05/07/23 - Sermon - “Growing Into Salvation!”

Sunday 05/07/23 - Sidney UMC

Sermon Title: “Growing Into Salvation”                       

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16                                 

New Testament Scripture: 1 Peter 2:2-10

Gospel Lesson: John 14:1-14

          So, I remember two things that I learned as a young child, among the many things that I learned as a young child. These two things that I learned as a young child just happened to “pop” into my head as I was preparing this sermon for this morning. What are these two things? Number one is learning to ride a bike, and number two is learning to swim.

          For most of us that know how to swim and or ride a bike this is not a big deal to us now, but it might have been a big deal to us when we were little kids. I mean, I am supposed to at about 5-6 years of age just get on the bike and ride it? Woah! What if it falls over and I get hurt? This of course was the farthest thing from my mind when I was 5-6 years old. Yet learning to peddle the bike takes a little skill and a little getting used to. At first the bike might be a bit wobbly or you just aren’t turning the peddles fast enough.

          For some of us our first bike may have been a free gift from our parents or someone else. We already had the bike, but maybe we did not yet know how to ride the bike. Further, once we started learning to ride the bike, it then took some time to get good at riding the bike. I cannot remember how long my first bike had training wheels, but the training wheels definitely helped me to not wipe out on the bike as much at first.

          So, then I got the training wheels off, which was good. I did wipe out a couple of times here or there and skinned a knee or two, but now I could go really fast! I even learned to do jumps and other things I never told my mother about. Some of my friends even put pegs on there bike wheels, did tricks, etc. I guess if I was really into it, I could have worked harder and harder, and gotten better and better.

          I also remember when I learned how to swim. Now when you are little kid, the kiddie pool and the shallow end is great. I mean you can stand up and the water as isn’t above your head. The deep end though, well that is a whole other story. The water is over your head and if you can swim, well we know what can happen. Not only was I taught how to swim with my arms and my legs, but also how to swim differently in the deep end or deeper water. I learned how to “Doggy Paddle” and all those others swim strokes. I remember as a little kid that was a bit nervous going in the deeper water at first, but within no time I was doing cannon balls off the diving board. I never had a competitive interest in swimming as a kid, but for those that did, maybe they swam in the high school or even on a college team. Some have even gone to massive competitions, like the Olympics. Going from the safety of the kiddie pool or the shallow end to deeper and more unknown waters.

          I tell you these examples of mine about learning to ride a bike and learning to swim, because I think that our faith in Christ is similar. Christ is a free gift offered to us all. We are all offered the free gift of repentance, accepting Christ, and being offered salvation and eternity. If our first bike was a gift to us, if it was given to us, and like Jesus, all that we had to do was receive this free gift, what did we do with this bike?

          What if though, we never learned to ride our first bike? I mean it may have been a free gift, depending on the circumstances. Yet, no one made us ride it, well mostly likely. We could have kept that first bike, and still have brand-new first bike. Yet what good is a free gift if we don’t use it, or learn to grow with it? What good would it have been if Olympic Gold Medalist swimmers decided that the kiddie pool or the shallow end of the pool was enough? Maybe we were given a kiddie pool as a little kid, or maybe we were in the shallow end as a little kid. We could have not learned how to swim, but would we be missing out if we did?

          Last Sunday I preached from 1 Peter 2:19-25 about becoming more like Jesus. In fact, like a first bike, I said that Jesus is a free gift to the whole world. If we never use a gift though, then what good is it? If we believe in Jesus, and stop right there, what good is that? Well, we have salvation, and “fire insurance,” as I heard pastor say once, but why not learn how to ride the bike? Why not learn how to swim in the deep waters?

          It is important then for me to define two terms this morning. The first Salvation is the free gift of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus Christ. The second term is Sanctification. Sanctification is becoming more like Jesus Christ. We got the free gift, we got the bike, we are in the kiddie pool or the shallow end, but do we learning to ride the bike and to swim?

          I really like how our reading from Psalm 31 ends this morning saying of God in 31:16:

Let your face shine upon your servant; save me in your steadfast love                    (Ps. 31:16, NRSV).

          In so many others ways in our lives we also strive to improve. Maybe you started a new job at some point, and at first you were overwhelmed. Maybe you didn’t know what you were doing. Then you learned, you got better, and maybe you even mastered doing the job.

          Maybe you learned a foreign language, a hobby, or something else. It was hard and challenging at first, but you gradually got better and better. There is a strong connection between all these examples and out faith in Christ. While Christ, like a bike, is a free gift, do we go beyond just the gift? Do we go beyond salvation to pursuing sanctification.

          This is why I took my sermon title literally out of our 1 Peter 2:2 for reading this morning, where it says:

“grow into salvation” (1 Pet. 2:2b, NRSV).

          Now again, many Christians refer to growing into salvation, sanctification. Let’s look more closely at our reading for this morning from 1 Peter 2:2-10 for this morning. Once again it says:

² Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good                               (1 Pet. 2:2-3, NRSV).

          In the same way that babies start out drinking milk and then move to solid food, as Christians we should not stay consuming spiritual milk. This is going from the free gift of the bike, from the kiddie pool or shallow end to the deep end, and from accepting Jesus to becoming more like is go from spiritual milk to solid spiritual food. Through prayer, bible study, serving others, loving others, and continue to follow Christ’s teaching we become more like him.

          Our reading from 1 Peter 2:2-10 goes on talk about how Jesus is a living stone, rejected by humanity, but precious in God’s sight. Peter then tells us to allow ourselves to be built into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, and offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Use the bike, learn to swim. Even though Jesus is a living stone that has been rejected, he has become the cornerstone, which is vital support for the strength of a house and our spiritual houses (1 Pet. 2:2-7, NRSV).

          When then hear that are called to be a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and God’s own people. We are to do this so that we can proclaim and live the excellence of Jesus Christ, who called us out of darkness into the marvelous light of Jesus. Lastly. Peter says we are God people, and we have received mercy (1 Pet. 2:8-10, NRSV).

          So whatever spiritual bikes, or whatever spiritual kiddie pools or shallow ends that you are currently in, strive to go deeper and to grow. We have opportunities in this church to lead Bible studies, prayer groups, visitation, and so on and so forth. Let’s capitalize on the free gift of God through Jesus Christ. Commit to pray more, visit more, give more, serve more, etc.

          In briefly touching on our gospel of John 14:1-14 reading for this morning, we have a gospel lesson that I read a part of in virtually every funeral, memorial service, and celebration of the life that I officiate. This is the gospel lesson where Jesus promises us a place in glory with him, if we believe in. In looking at our gospel of John 14:1-14 reading for this morning, it begins in John 14:1 again saying:

14 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. ² In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?  ³ And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴ And you know the way to the place where I am going” (Jn. 14:1-4, NRSV).

          Now as I said, I read what I just read from John 14:1-14 at virtually every funeral, memorial service, or celebration of life that I officiate. Jesus reminds us in this gospel reading that if we have faith in him, we will be with him for eternity. This is great comfort for family and friends when we are mourning the loss of someone who has just died and gone to be with Jesus.

          Given this, I don’t generally read this scripture at a baptism, a confirmation, or a wedding. Why? Well because as an older pastor said once, “We should not become so heavenly minded that we are useless here on earth”. Once again, this pastor said, “We should not become so heavenly minded that we are useless here on earth”.

          You see, I know the promises of Jesus, I know that he died for us, I have long ago received him and my Lord and Savior. I believe that I will be in eternity with him, but between now and then I want to become more like him. I want to learn to ride the free gift of the bike. I want to learn to swim, so I can go in deeper waters. I don’t want to sit on the greatest treasure and gift that I have ever been given and do nothing with it. I want to be more like, and I want to love more like Jesus. All of ministries of this church, and our mission statement is about bringing people to Jesus and equipping them to grow in faith and service to others. This is so that we can grow in perfect love, service, and mercy.

          Anyone else here want to go deeper in your faith? I know I do. I want to know him more, and I want to grow and ride my spiritual bike better. I want to learn to swim in deeper waters. If do, I will be a better pastor, a better husband, and a better person.

          After Jesus offers us the promise this morning of having a place in his Father’s house if we believe in him, the Apostle Thomas responds once again, saying:

⁵ Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” ⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷ If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him”    (Jn. 14:5-7, NRSV).

 

          Jesus is telling Thomas and us, that he is the way and the truth and the life. Our eternity, our salvation in him is secure if we believe in him, so go forth and strive to be more Christlike. Your eternity is all set, let’s do some great things between now and then!

          Well after Thomas chimes in, then the Apostle Philip does to. Picking up in John 14:8, it says, once again:

⁸ Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” ⁹ Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? ¹⁰ Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. ¹¹ Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, but if you do not, then believe because of the works themselves. ¹² Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. ¹³ I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴ If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it (Jn. 14:8-14, NRSV).

 

          Jesus is telling the Apostle Philip and us, believe in him, and go forth and live like him. Our eternity and our salvation are secure through him, and since we know this, let be about the mission of the church. Let us love, heal, forgive, and may people come to know and chase after Jesus Christ.

          This morning we are not only challenged to have faith in and receive salvation though Jesus Christ, we are challenging in “Growing Into Salvation”. Amen.