Sidney UMC - Second Sunday after the Epiphany/Human Relations Day - 01/14/24 - Sermon - “Can Anything Good Come Out Of Nazareth?”

Sunday 01/14/24 - Sidney UMC 

Sermon Title: “Can Anything Good Come Out Of Nazareth?”                  

Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18                                       

New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Gospel Lesson: John 1:43-51 

         So, I remember as far back as thirty-years ago, and beyond seeing commercials for Pace Picante Sauce and Salsa. Pace Picante Sauce and Salsa, according to the commercials, was proudly made in San Antonio, Texas. The people of San Antonio, Texas, apparently know their picante sauce and salsa. According to these commercials though, you know who did not know their picante sauce and salsa? Well of course the people of New York City!

          In the majority of these Pace commercials, someone is eating one of the Pace Picante or salsa products and then they run out. The jar is empty, and they then ask for someone for more. Someone always then offers an off brand of picante sauce or salsa, which of course is inferior to Pace’s products. Further, the off brand of picante sauce or salsa is always also made in New York City. When it is discovered that this off brand is made in New York City, in one or more commercials someone says, “get a rope!” Specifically, to say that the man who offered the off brand of picante sauce or salsa should be hanged for offering these fine Texas cowboys salsa made in New York City.

          Now why did God put this example in my mind as I was preparing to write this sermon? I have no idea, as I have not even thought about one these Pace commercials in many years. Yet, it lends to the idea that some places are better than others. It seems age old that there is often a rivalry sometimes between the city and the country. Afterall, we have entire genre of music called “Country Music”. Why, well those folks from New York City clearly don’t understand what it's like to live in the country. Perhaps some stereo-types of people that live in rural areas are that we are less refined, we are less sophisticated, and we are more primitive. While there have been a lot of stereo-types for years between people that live in urban and rural areas, the Pace commercials definitely did not help these stereo-types!

          So divided at times have some rural folks and some urban folks in New York State been, that there have been pushes at various time to separate New York State from New York City. It is as if we are not all just people, and there is some sort divide between the city and the country. In my own life I have seen the reactions of some people when they ask someone where they are from. In fact, when I would go back to visit my home state of Illinois as a child, when I would tell people that I was from New York, some of them immediately assumed that I was from New York City. It seemed some people that asked me this were under the impression that the entire state of New York was New York City. In some times, and in some places, where you came from really seemed to be a big deal to some.

          I remember hearing stories about people from the north moving to the south years ago, and being called a “Yankee”. Maybe this is still the case for some, as I don’t know. The point of all of this, is it would seem for some people, where you are from is a big deal. Some people that are here this morning were born and raised in Sidney. Some of us were not. Maybe some of you were born in Bainbridge, or Unadilla, or Guilford. I wonder what some folks think of us. If the Pace Picante sauce was made in Sidney, New York in the commercial, would the cowboy say “get a rope!” I wonder if some people think because some of us were born and raised in this area that means something specific about us?

          When Melissa and I moved to Sidney, NY back in June, 2018, half of the people that I knew thought that our bishop at the time had appointment me to a church in Sydney, Australia. As proof, I literally have a framed map of the United States and Australia, which indicates Sidney, NY and Sydney, Australia on each map. I also have the two boomerangs that they gave me, and I seemed to have misplaced the safari hats! For those folks that did know where Sidney, NY was, I would often say its near Oneonta and Norwich. If they still didn’t know, I would say its near Binghamton, NY, and then they would know.

          William Shakespeare famously asked “What’s in a name?” Well, this morning, I want to ask us all to think about this question, “What’s in a place of birth?” Or another question, “What’s in a place you were raised?” I mean if you can get killed in Texas in the Pace commercials for eating salsa made in New York City, well then that seems like a big deal!

          In our gospel of John 1:43-51 reading for this morning, the gospel starts in 1:43, saying once again:

⁴³ The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, ‘Follow me.’ ⁴⁴ Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. ⁴⁵ Philip found Nathanael and said to him, ‘We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.’ ⁴⁶ Nathanael said to him, ‘Can anything good come out of Nazareth?’ Philip said to him, ‘Come and see’                           (Jn. 1:43-46, NRSV).

          Luckily after Nathanael asked Phillip if anything good can come out of Nazareth, and when Philip responded “Come and see,” Nathaniel did not say, “get a rope!” So apparently Jesus wasn’t raised as the term goes, not “in the big city”. Jesus was raised in Nazareth. Nazareth was a village, and maybe some would say a small town. Clearly though, this morning Nathaniel thinks that Jesus could not be the Messiah. I mean after all from little Nazareth. Why not Jerusalem or Rome? The savior of the world, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lord was raised in a small village or town. Jesus did not grow on Fifth Avenue, instead he grew up likely with a very basic life.

          What I would have us think about this morning further is this: “Can anything good come out of Sidney, NY?” “Can anything good come out of Bainbridge, NY?” “Can anything good come out of Unadilla, NY?” “Can anything good come out of Guilford, NY?” “Can anything good come out of Oneonta, NY?” Etc. Does your place of birth, and where you were raised determine who you are? I would say that sometimes it is very true that it can have effects, but is your place of birth and or where you raised alone define you? I think that the places some people are raised in have a lot of elements that can really affects us, but does it mean anything about you, or God’s love for you? No.

          I remember about five years ago or so watching a commercial for a dating website called “Farmers Only”. The commercials would generally end with “City folks just don’t get it!” The take away Sidney area folks, don’t marry someone from a city! Kind of crazy in a way, but maybe some people think that if you are in the country, you are different in every way from city folks. After all, “City folks just don’t get it!”

          So how does Nathaniel’s meeting of this “country bumkin” savior named Jesus Christ go? Well let’s look at the rest of the gospel of John reading for this morning. Picking up in John 1:47, it says, once again:

⁴⁷ When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him, he said of him, ‘Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!’ ⁴⁸ Nathanael asked him, ‘Where did you come to know me?’ Jesus answered, ‘I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.’ ⁴⁹ Nathanael replied, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ ⁵⁰ Jesus answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’ ⁵¹ And he said to him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man’ (Jn. 1:47, 51, NRSV).

          In an instant the village or small town in which Jesus was raised in no longer mattered. Nathaniel believed that he had just met the messiah, the savior of the world. Even though, Jesus was raised in Nazareth, and even though Nathaniel thought nothing good could out of a little village or town like Nazareth, he was wrong!

          I have also wondered if maybe Jesus thought for a minute as Philip and Nathaniel were approaching this morning, asking Nathaniel something like, “So you think I’m country bumkin huh?” You know what’s amazing about Jesus Christ our Lord though? Jesus doesn’t care where we are from, he only cares about where we are going. City, town, village, all worthy to Jesus Christ! Our place of birth, the place we were raised, are not important to Jesus, for he died for us all! How I wish the rest the world could understand this more.

          In our reading for this morning from Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18, were hear in Psalm 139:13-14, once again:

¹³ For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. ¹⁴ I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well (Ps. 139:13-14, NRSV).

 

          It sounds like we are all valuable to God, and that we all have meaning. Jesus died for us all. He was crucified, yes, in the big city of Jerusalem, but he was raised in the rural country. Jesus did not care about where someone was from, only where they were going. Before Jesus cleansed the leapers for example, he didn’t ask, “those folks aren’t from New York City are they?”

          In our reading for this morning from 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, the Apostle Paul tells us with our bodies and our very lives to live for God. Our past is not important to Jesus, only our future with Christ is what matters. It matters not where we came from, but where we are going. Living for Jesus, who died for us all, every person past and present.

Just for fun though, does anyone know what famous people have been born in Sidney, NY? What famous people have been born in Unadilla, NY? What famous people have been born in Bainbridge, NY? What famous people have been born in Guilford, NY? Etc.? Well, I do, and I am going to read them to you right now. The famous people that I found born in Sidney, NY are as follows:

·       Mary Jane Aldrich (1833–1909), temperance reformer and lecturer.

·       Evans Carlson (1896-1947), Marine Corps General, leader of "Carlson's Raiders." (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sidney,_New_York)

The famous people born in Bainbridge, NY are as follows:

·       Jedediah Smith (1799-1831) one of America's more famous mountain men and explorers of the west (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bainbridge,_New_York)

The famous people born in Unadilla, NY are as follows:

·       Spectacular Bid, Milfer Farms, retired champion racehorse in the Thoroughbred Hall of Fame

·       Edward S. Bragg, U.S. Representative from Wisconsin and U.S. diplomat

·       Thomas Carmichael, Wisconsin businessman and legislator

·       Billy Decker, racing driver

·       Edward Howell, former US congressman

·       Sybil Ludington, American Revolutionary War figure

·       Sherman Page, member of Congress and county judge (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unadilla,_New_York)

The famous people born in Guilford, NY are as follows:

• Solomon G. Haven, former US congressman (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guilford,_New_York).

Friends, to Jesus Christ, it doesn’t matter where we were born, where we were raised, or what we have done in the past. All that matters, is where we are going. All people, are welcomed into the arms of Jesus, for he died for us all. Turn to Christ, give him your burdens, give him your past, your future, your worries, your sins, and your doubts, and make him Lord and savior of your life. When you do this, it is not about your place of birth of birth or where you were raised, it is about you being a precious child of the living God!

Contemporary Christian artist, Francesca Battistelli, says this in her song “He Knows My Name”:

“I don't need my name in lights I'm famous in my Father's eyes
Make no mistake He knows my name I'm not living for applause
I'm already so adored It's all His stage He knows my name” (https://genius.com/Francesca-battistelli-he-knows-my-name-lyrics)

          My goal my friends is not end up on a list of famous or notable people, because guess what, I’m famous in my Father’s eyes. My goal instead is to be nameless to history, and faithful for eternity. Friends, it’s not about where we were born or where we were raised, all that matters to Jesus, is where we are going. Amen.