Be Courageous and Strong and Be Careful

Sermon Notes – June 30 - Be Courageous and Strong and Careful

Joshua 1:1-9

1 After the death of Moses the Lord’s servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant. He said, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. 3 I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you— 4 from the Negev wilderness in the south to the Lebanon mountains in the north, from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, including all the land of the Hittites.’ 5 No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For, I will be with you, as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.

6 “Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

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This Annual Conference of our denomination was the first for Rev Young Jin Cho as our new Bishop. In his address to us Sunday morning he said these words "The Lord is here with us. We are sitting on holy ground. As the presider of this Annual Conference, I feel a sense of awe and I want to do well before the Lord. I want you to have the same sense of the Lord’s presence and seek the will of God in our decision-making." 

I have had the good fortune to have prayed with Rev. Cho alone and in small groups before he became our Bishop. I felt very close to him at that moment and I say to you here and now – that the Lord is here. We are on Holy Ground. As your pastor now for two years I feel a sense of awe and I too want to do well before the Lord. I hope that you have the same sense of the Lord’s presence and seek the will of God in all that we, as a congregation say and do.  That we treat each other with respect. That we acknowledge that we each have our peculiar ways and it is not up to us to judge others. Let he who has no sin cast the first stone against his neighbor.  As God told Joshua – be courageous and be strong. Be confident. We do not need to be certain about all matters, just have the confidence that we are children of God, loved by God and move ahead in our lives. Move ahead across our River Jordan to new opportunities.  

Moses has died. This is a new generation. Things are different now. The mantle of leadership is now in the hands of Joshua. Moses did his part and tried to prepare the next generation for leadership.

God says to Joshua – OK now – listen up. Remember what Moses has taught you. Remember the law that I, your God have given to you. You are to lead this people to new opportunities. Always study the law and practice it whatever you do and wherever you are. I, God will always be with you, I will never leave you. Be strong and courageous. Be very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave to you.

These instructions include the 10 commandments and other laws and commands concerning righteous behavior and thoughts. Do good. Do not harm life. Love your neighbor as you love yourself.  And love God. Honor life that is granted to you as a gift.

Be strong and courageous. I came upon this incredibly touching story of courage the other day about a young boy who was willing to give blood to his older sister who was facing death due to a rare and serous disease. ("On Courage" by Dan Millman from Chicken Soup for the Soul, written and compliled by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen) The doctor explained the situation to the parents and of course to the 5 year old who had the right blood to save his sister’s life. The doctor asked the little boy if he understood and was willing to give blood to his sister to save her life. The little boy took a deep breath and said – Yes, I’ll do it if it will save my sister’s life.-  As the transfusion progressed, he lay in a bed next to his sister and smiled. The color began to return to his sister’s cheeks. Then the little boy’s face grew pale and his smile faded. He looked up at the doctor and asked with a trembling voice, - Will I start to die right away? – the little boy thought that by giving his blood to his sister would end his own life. And yet he had courage and strength and deep love and compassion. Even unto death.   

Most of us, regardless of age may not ever be in similar situation. But, courage and strength ultimately can be found in our faith because in that faith we feel safe. Assured that God loves us. That does not take away fear, or hurt or anger or doubt. We are allowed our times where we feel these emotions and may feel lost, afraid and alone. But, when we stop and breath and then pray – any kind of prayer, even when we might yell at God – when we stop and breath and acknowledge God in our lives we slowly turn and feel the arms of embrace. The embrace may come from a family member, a friend or even a stranger – but God has listened and through our human family God has responded.    

Be courageous and strong and be careful. Careful – to be full of care. Be full of care in your ways. In your thoughts and actions.   We each have our Jordan River crossings. Joshua knew his decisions would impact the lives of others. And we too impact the lives of others as we journey and cross the Jordan River. With God as our guide, expressed through the laws of old and the life of Jesus as our example, may we journey well and be strong and courageous and full of care. Amen.

Sermon notes  May 19  Pentecost  Acts 2:1-21 and John 14: 15-17,25-27

Good morning.  When I was a much younger man I was on a week-long retreat at a center of the Church of the Brethren. After dinner one evening I went out onto a hill overlooking a beautiful valley. It was autumn and the sky was clear and the air was crisp. As I sat and meditated on that day spent in prayer and fellowship I felt a cool breeze come over me. My arms began to tingle with delight and I felt and heard the voice of God. The Holy Spirit, God’s breath had visited me. I had spent much of the day in prayer alone and with others. My heart and being was open to this calling, this gift showered upon me. The presence of God through the Holy Spirit had broken into my life and I was transformed.

In a similar way the disciples and others gathered in a house in Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish festival of the Pentecost, they experienced a rush of wind from heaven, sounding like a roaring and mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit. New and strange things happen. Flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them.  The Holy spirit as promised by Christ described from our reading from John’s gospel was present.   God will send the Advocate, the HS to remind the disciples of everything Jesus had said and done. The HS breaks into their lives and they are never the same. They begin to proclaim the good news in all the languages spoken by Jews who were scattered around the Mediterranean world. They become passionate about their mission, about the risen Christ and what it means to each other and to the world.  From that moment the life of the church, in all its goodness, diversity, differences, and challenges begins to emerge and change the world.   We are the inheritors of this movement. Do we hear and sense the presence of the HS in our lives, here in this place?  Are we called today to proclaim the good news? 

Are we called today to be in this community as leaders of hope and goodwill? If churches do not produce people characterized by communion with God, Christ like character and bear the fruits of the Spirit people have every reason to ask why we stay in business.  

The Holy Spirit appears to each of us in different ways. For some, like the story in Acts the HS comes like a mighty wind, with a roaring vibration and noise inside a house.  For others, like me the HS comes in nature as a gentle breeze on a cool autumn evening .  Our awareness of the HS can happen whenever we open our lives to God and God’s path. The HS brings passion and purpose.

The passion of my faith and mission in life often comes to me when I sing certain hymns and anthems, when I read scripture, as I participate in communion, as I pray alone or with you, or as I participate in a mission project.

The Holy Spirit shakes things up. We are so used to the ways we have done things in the past. The past is familiar and comfortable. Are we blocking our faith’s journey for the today and the days to come? Are we letting the past get in our way of the church’s journey in this community by clinging to the way it has always been done? The HS shakes things up.

Church of 12, fed by the HS now feeds over 800 families a month. A Presbyterian church in Covesville, fed by HS now is home to a day care center that services 30 families in the community.

 When the HS came upon these men and women in that house they did not know what the future held, but they knew their lives had been changed with a purpose. So they slowly, with bumps, valleys, sunshine and all set about to establish a community, a church in which the ways of God are paramount.  Where love and service to the world are instilled in their hearts and actions.

They struggled as we do today to figure out what all this means for their lives. One of the first things they did was elect some to be deacons, to lead the effort to address the needs of the poor, the orphaned and the widows. Those persons who were on the outskirts of society, were hurting physically, emotionally and spiritually. Those persons who were vulnerable to whims of the greater exterior world.

As time went on they tried to figure out how to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ and to whom. Some wanted the movement to remain Jewish while others wanted to open up the movement to non-Jews. This was difficult for it upset their comfort zone. The Holy Spirit will upset our comfort zone. The Holy Spirit breaks into our lives and sets things loose.  

Let us open our hearts and selves to hear the blowing of God’s breath, to feel the fire of the Spirit of God and make us move to enrich our lives and make disciples of Jesus Christ by doing no harm, doing  good and always staying in love with God.

In our story today God breathed life into a community of once timid disciples and gave them fire of heart and mind to begin creating a new world.  Their former lives ended and their new lives began.

Though we may or may not hear or feel the rush of a mighty wind we are gathered here to worship as the worshippers in the story of Acts were gathered, to worship and praise God. 

The HS calls to us today to rekindle our hearts and actions to make disciples, to bring a heaven on earth, God’s Kingdom through acts of goodness and through acts of prayer and devotion. The Holy Spirit dwells in us, when invited by us through prayer, worship, service and other spiritual disciplines.  We are the hands and feet of Jesus in the world. But we can only be this body if we are a Spirit-filled people. This is our new Pentecost.

We have an Administrative Council meeting following this service. Let us bring the HS to our gathering. Let us turn our church and community upside down, light a fire and move.  Amen.

Sermon Notes April 7 – The Second Sunday of Easter -  John 20:19-31

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I often try to imagine what Jesus looked like, how he walked and the sound of his voice. He was a Jewish man of first century Palestine so he was most likely of brownish-olive complexion with dark hair and eyes. He was by all accounts a carpenter or stone mason, so I imagine his hands were those of a laborer. He was familiar with the scriptures of his time, our Old Testament. He was, I imagine charismatic, confident, healthy and with a voice that was firm and yet gentle and non-judgmental most of the time.  He spoke about the things many people yearned for then and now – a promise of God’s love, a caring heart, compassion, justice for the outcast, those living on the margins of society and the weak and of God’s Kingdom. He was open to all who approached him. Imagine you are one of those who traveled with him, watched him, and heard him. You are in a tight group. And then he is taken away, brutally executed like many thousands of others over the course of the life of the Empire.

The story from John’s Gospel tells us that the disciples, all but Thomas (so, where was he?) had gathered in a locked room on the evening of that first day. Were they there to worship, to pray and sing praises?  No, they were afraid for their lives. They had just heard Mary Magdalene tell them she had seen the Lord. Yeah right (cynically) some of them might have said or thought. This is nonsense.   

 And then suddenly Jesus came and stood among them. Peace be with you, he tells them.  They are excited and filled with joy. But, in disbelief too. How can this be? You are dead!!  Aren’t you?  OK, so now what?!  They may be asking themselves.

But, in a few moments they hear Jesus say again – Peace be with you.  And he continues - As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.  Oh, OK. This is great, we see you, hear you, and it is all quite unbelievable! Yet, our questions and disbelief are still the same, –so, Now What?!  What are you sending me, us to do?  We cannot do what you did?! Can we?  And what do you mean – Peace be with us? We are frightened to death.

Then he breathed on them, “Receive the Holy Spirit” he says to them. 

There are four things that strike me in John’s story.  1) The initial disbelief of all the disciples, not just Thomas, 2) three times Jesus says to them – peace be with you; 3) He breathed the Holy Spirit on them, and 4) Jesus says he is sending the disciples out as the Father had sent him.

1)   The initial disbelief of all of the disciples, not just Thomas is quite evident. Imagine you are there the first time Jesus enters the room. Whoa!  You might say. This is quite something, but I need to know more. I am hiding in this room with my friends and colleagues because I am afraid for my life. Today, you and I, we all have our moments of fear, disbelief and uncertainty.  And we ask – what now!?

2)   Peace be with you. On Sunday mornings we often pass the “Peace of Christ” before worship begins. Many of us greet one another with a handshake, a hug and a how are you, good to see you and maybe make plans to get together, etc. and that is great – it is a recognition of one’s presence in worship in fellowship. It is a joy to see you here.

But, the time is called “Passing the Peace of Christ”.  “Good morning, I greet you with the peace of Christ.”  – Peace be with you.  

In ancient Greek and Hebrew, the languages spoken and written at the time – Peace in the sense that Jesus spoke it is Shalom in Hebrew. In the ancient Greek, which the Gospels are written peace is in this context is eirene (ee-ray-na). Both the Hebrew and Greek words connote wholeness and well-being, especially through restoring individual and corporate relationships with God and relationships between people.  

In that locked room Jesus is saying to his followers – May Wholeness and well-being be with you. May your soul be well with God and with your fellow human beings.  When we pass the peace of Christ to one another, this is what we are saying –I wish for you to be whole, to be enriched by a relationship with God and with your fellow human beings.  I honor the God within you.

3)    Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on them. In the first few verses of Genesis the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the waters. At the very beginning of the formation and ordering the universe and life we hear of the presence and the work of the Holy Spirit. A Divine energy and presence. The Hebrew word for this spirit and presence is ruakh.  In ancient Greek word is pneuma.  Wind and breath. An energy source.  God’s wind, God’s breath.  It is a difficult concept to grasp. We tend to think linear, in blocks with boundaries. God’s Spirit is boundless.  God’s breath pulls everything together and adds life to the void. It comes alive with a soul.  

I believe the Holy Spirit teaches us how to find our path to God. The Holy Spirit moves in us, around us and through us. It is an unseen force of pure love and energy. We know it when we feel it. It makes us move with God in the world. We may sense the Holy Spirit move within us when we pray – in solitude or in community such as worship together. When we are in loving and caring service to others we may sense this unseen, unheard power of God’s Spirit.  

4)   Jesus says he is sending the disciples out as the God, the Father had sent him. This is where it all comes together I believe. It is in the activity, the doing of the words of God through Jesus that brings it to fruition. Jesus is clearly sending us, his disciples today to walk with him. Even in our moments of doubt and uncertainty we look to God who walked the earth and breathed life and a soul into people and into the world. When we work to do justice, to walk humbly, and to practice kindness the Peace of the Christ, the wholeness of life begins to take hold in us and in our community.  Jesus commissions the faithful to continue the work God sent him to do.

I am reminded of a saying by John Wesley, one of the founders of Methodism – he writes – “Do all the good you can. By all the means you can. In all the ways you can. In all the places you can. At all the times you can. To all the people you can. As long as ever you can.”   

Amen.