Series: “Loving Jesus”.... “Spiritual Hope”

Sunday Sermon July 29, 2012               
Eph. 3:14-21 – Mark 13:1-13

We continue in our series titled, “Loving Jesus”… if the core of living a life of faith is being faithful to Jesus, and if believing in Jesus helps us draw closer to Jesus, therefore, what we’ve learned thus far that having spiritual understanding and spiritual authenticity lead to loving Jesus more fully.

And... If having faith in Jesus is not about loving Jesus, and then Christian spirituality is nothing more than a ritualistic endeavor. It might be helpful for a time or season, but will never satisfy fully and will never draw you closer to God. In addition, w/o Jesus, I don’t believe you will ever experience the fullest measure of hope that God promises.

So… today our reflection will focus on how we can have greater “Spiritual Hope.”

Prayer:

I have a confession to make… it can be difficult to talk about hope when for many of us… me included… have difficulties seeing or experiencing any kind of hope in our lives. Yes pastors like all of you have difficulties experiencing hope. It is for the most part…difficult because of all the suffering we see around us… even the suffering we ourselves are experiencing. So… if you find yourself in this spot, then this sermon is as much for me as it is for you.

So to understand Hope we must first “Live with Suffering.”
In part, the human existence is filled with suffering. Some is the consequence of our own bad judgment or miss-deeds. This kind of suffering, while painful serves the purpose of making us wiser or better behaved.

     Theologian Peter Gomes says, “Hope doesn’t deny the circumstances of the present, and hope doesn’t help us get out of our difficulties. Hope doesn’t get us out, but it does get us trough.”

In contrast, what I call the Osteen Effect... your all familiar with Joel Osteen... he says, “You are supposed to live a victorious life — an abundant life. You are not supposed to live under your circumstances. You’re supposed to rise above your circumstances. I know God holds victory in store for the upright. You have not seen your greatest victories yet. You have not seen your best days — they are still out in front of you.”
Osteen claims in his book, “Your Best Life Now,” “If you develop an image of victory, success, health, abundance, joy, peace and happiness, nothing on earth will be able to hold those things from you.”

Of course we know that life is a bit more complicated and full of questions than Osteen suggests. So Osteen is only half right. There are still many questions because life isn’t nice & tidy all the time. In fact… suffering happens all the time and people with the best of intentions have difficulties understanding or seeing any hope. Then there’s the question that Rabbi Kushner asks, “Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?” That question is too long to tackle today. In fact… it hasn’t ever been answered that I’m aware of.

The point is… suffering will happen.

          It will happen to the best of us.
          It will happen because of us and it will happen through no fault of our own.
          Evil exists in the world and so will suffering.
The Bible says, “The whole world lies under the power of the evil one.”
Luther said, “God has put the devil on a leash,” from our perspective that leash is mighty long.

Mark Powell says, “The fact is, many bad things happen to good people simply because the universe is broken and needs repairing. Such suffering is not God’s will. It is not redemptive, and it’s not even necessary. It’s just bad. It’s horrible. And the bible really has one thing to say about such suffering: IT WILL END!!

“Let’s Find Hope”

A seminary prof told a story when he was at the subway. He met a Goth-punk type young man holding a very large book. He noticed the large book and asked what it was. The young man responded, “It’s a Bible.” Have you read much of it? The Prof asked. “Yes I’ve read parts of it. I especially read the end.” Then he whispered to the prof… “In the end… we win!”

This is the greatest Hope we have. In the end... we win! Jesus describes in our bible story all the trouble the world is going to experience. His followers will experience terrible events in their lives. They will be beaten and ridiculed. Life is not going to be easy. With all that Jesus describes he then tells them, “Keep on being faithful… right to the end.” Jesus gives them hope.

YES… even despite all the trouble we see in our world, our communities, our lives… remain faithful. In John’s gospel Jesus says, “remain connected to me… I am the vine and you are the branches.” You know the story.... Jesus tells us to remain connected to him, and when we do... we have hope.

What does God tells us…

“He will wipe away all tears, and there will be no more death, suffering, crying, or pain… these things are gone forever.” Rev 21:4

"No more Suffering… I am sure that what we are suffering now cannot compare with the glory that will be shown to us.  Rm. 8:18"

"God has promised us a new heaven and a new earth, where justice will rule. 2 Peter 3:13"
        
"All will be made New… At the sound of the last trumpet the dead will be raised.   We will all be changed, so that we will never die again. Our dead and decaying bodies will be changed into bodies that won't die or decay. 1Cor15:52"

"We will know all things… Now all we can see of God is like a cloudy picture in a mirror. Later we will see him face to face. We don't know everything, but then we will, 1 Cor. 13:12"

"We will be like Christ… we are already God's children, though what we will be hasn't yet been seen. But we do know that when Christ returns, we will be like him, because we will see him as he truly is   1John 3:2."

"More than we could imagine… "What God has planned for people who love him is more than eyes have seen or ears have heard. 1Cor. 2:9"

Hope is like a little girl waking up on Christmas morning and running out to the barn. She had wanted a pony for Christmas. Upon opening the door of the barn she saw no pony, only mounds of horse manure. Being hopeful she said, “With all this manure around there must be a pony in here somewhere.”

Closing:

You’ll know the story of Noah’s Ark… and you know the struggles Noah had with building this huge boat, and you know that this story beams with hope as well.

I received an e-mail from a guy about Noah titled,

 “11 ways to have Hope, I learned from  Noah.”

ONE:  Don't miss the boat.
TWO:  Remember that we are all in the same boat!
THREE:  Plan ahead.  It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.
FOUR:  Stay fit.  When you're 60 years old, someone may ask you to do
              something really  big.
FIVE:  Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.
SIX:  Build your future on high ground.

SEVEN:  For safety's sake, travel in pairs.
EIGHT:  Speed isn't always an advantage.  The snails were on board with
              the cheetaha.
NINE:  When you're stressed, float awhile.

TEN:  Remember, the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by
          professionals.
ELEVEN:  No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow

                  waiting.

 I hope you were able to see a bit of hope today… I did… I leave you with this last tid-bit of hope… There is a Native American saying that I really like.

             No matter the circumstance of life you are facing.
             No matter how tough your life might be.
             No matter how much pain and suffering you may be experiencing.
                                 “TOMORROW STILL COMES”


See You Out on the Road









Changing the Church from the Soft, Gooey Middle

I found this post quite interesting. I too find myself in the middle ground of the church. While there are aspects of the old faithful church I find meaningful, most of that old church is distasteful.

If you are reading this and writing it off, saying, “These are just the same complaints made by every group of young clergy,” I believe you do so at the Church’s peril. Perhaps the difference is that this cohort of clergy is that they aren’t critiquing an institution we just assume will still be here in ten years. They are calling us out of the cloud of denial - telling us that if we don’t act, it won’t be - and that we have to talk about it.

They can and will and some already have walked away from the ministry. If they do, the church will lose some great talent. It will also lose its cultural fluency - something it already struggles with. (In the same way when the church gives up on youth, young adult, or campus ministry.)

They are not going to “wait their turn.” Because, by then, it will be too late.


Between a Rock and a Hard Place in Today's Church

Changing the Church from the Soft, Gooey Middle

Yesterday, Keith Anderson, my friend and co-author on Click 2 Save: The Digital Ministry Bible, put out a blog post that’s been stirring a good deal of interest—and concern—across the blogosphere. Keith’s piece on “What Young Clergy Want You to Know,” has, I suspect, attracted so much attention because it dives right into the middle of the frustration, anxiety, and discouragement one increasingly finds among clergy of all ages and levels of experience, but that is amplified among younger clergy because they’ve made a vocational commitment to the Church at a time when such a choice seems crazier than ever. This, as Keith points out in the post, is because younger clergy “understand they are presiding over the death of American Christendom.”
Younger clergy, says Anderson, “are worried about job security—not just about getting paid (which is not always a given)—but whether they can do the job they feel called to do in congregations that don’t want to change.” He continues, “Being prophetic is an attribute we laud in seminary, but it can get you fired in the parish.”
Well, there you have it. The unvarnished truth of vocational experience in institutional contexts that over time wears out even the most patient, most tolerant, most enthusiastic of clergy. The wrenching responses to the post make clear that Anderson struck a nerve among his clergy colleagues.

But clergy are not, of course, alone in these feelings. So, too, are lay leaders and lay people more generally, who are struggling to remain faithful to a Church that is often decades out of touch with the spiritual needs and interests of its people. And, among young people who don’t muster the wherewithal to claim a place in the church by clerical vocation, the story is even grimmer. They have simply voted with their feet, spending their Sunday mornings hiking or cycling with friends, hanging out with their pets, and exercising their commitment to social justice by participating in one of the greatest decades of volunteerism in American history. These are all things that young adults tend to find deeply spiritually meaningful for which there often seems no space in most churches.

For the past year or so, I’ve been speaking with clergy and lay leaders across denominations about the ways in which the world is changing and what that might mean for churches. I tend to begin these conversations with these stark facts from the Pew U.S. Religion Landscape Survey:

If current trends continue:

• 32% of young people raised as Roman Catholics will leave the denomination
• 54% of young people raised as Evangelicals will leave the faith family
• 55% of young people raised as Mainline Protestants will leave the faith family

And then, I generally say this: Our kids are leaving our churches not because of something “out there,” not because of “the culture,” but because we are teaching them in our churches that faith is unimportant in everyday life, that religious identity is private and largely decorative, and that religious commitment is mostly about being nice and feeling good about oneself and others. This last bit I draw mainly from the work of Kenda Creasy Dean, whose starling book Almost Christian: What the Faith of Our Teenagers is Telling the American Church should be required reading for every lay and ordained leader in every church.

Dean advances the work of Christian Smith and Melinda Lundquist Denton, whose work with data from the National Study of Youth and Religion revealed a bland, feel-good, and ultimately forgettable version of Christianity offered up by most Catholic and Mainline Protestant churches. Dean contrasts this “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism” with a “consequential faith” grounded in a sense of authentic mission, sacrifice, and radical compassion.

But “consequential faith” is of course also consequential for congregations, who must make space available for kids, teens, and young adults to take up new ways of doing church and new ways of serving God in the world in communities largely shaped and governed by people who are just fine with the way things are—which is often the way they were in 1952. So, as we’re all too well aware, our young people just fade away.

I have to tell you, as much as I really do love talking with people in church communities around the country, it is six kinds of no fun to look into the faces of a room full of people in their 60s and 70s and tell them that the ways they have come to love and find comfort in the church don’t work for many of the rest of us. These are lovely, faithful, caring people who have often worked very hard to create the churches that remain today. They’ve given generously, as we say, of their time, talent, and treasure, and it has to be a bitter pill to be told, in essence, “thanks, but no thanks” to a lot of the way the experience of church is currently structured and enacted.

Indeed, I confessed to a group last week that I often wished I were one of those folks offering glowing example after glowing example of thriving Mainline communities or promising that a new emergence of church was just around the corner. There are thriving churches across the country, but we all know that they are not the norm. And, certainly, something new is emerging from among the disparate beliefs and spiritual practices swirling among the under-sixty set. But it’s not likely an emergence or an awakening that will find its way back to the valuable networks of built churches in neighborhoods around the United States and across the world. Rather, without a structure to support all the spiritual energy floating around the cosmos—and there remains much of it—it seems likely to swirl off into the ether, never fully channeled into the work of kingdom-making on earth to which God calls us.

For those of us in the generational in-between—no longer “young adults” in anyone’s imagination, but not much a part of the now-traditional structure and practices of the church—this is a particularly frustrating time. We want to open the doors to younger people, to turn over the liturgy, the music, and the priorities for service to them. But we also want to honor the gifts of our elders, to listen to their voices and value their wisdom as we work together to allow whatever might emerge to do so as the Spirit will have it do.

We’re stuck, many of us, between our kids and our parents. We understand, on the one hand, how alienating all the male god-talk of the church and the seemingly endless roiling about LGBT people is for almost anyone under forty. On the other hand, we grew up hearing our parents say “hallowED be THY name” when they prayed the Lord’s Prayer, so the stilted pronunciation offers a certain nostalgic comfort to us as well. For those of us in lay or ordained leadership, the stress of trying to please everyone, or the difficulty of being honest about what we know really must change with people we truly love and admire, often sucks the spiritual life out of worship and church community for us. We continue because we feel that we must, but sometimes it’s difficult to know exactly why or to what end.

“I feel completely spiritually dry in church,” a woman in her late forties said to me recently. “And yet I feel that this is the richest time spiritually in my life. My kids are on their own now, and I’m able to explore my own spirituality and serve based on where I feel most called in ways I never could before. I don’t want to do that on my own. I want companions, fellow travelers. But I’m just not finding that at church—in the choir, in the bible study group, on the grounds committee. That’s just not where I am spiritually. Am I really alone in this?”

I suspect she isn’t. I suspect that there are too many of us, lay and clergy alike, who want more from the experience of church. We want it to be consequential—to make demands of our lives, to work us over, to renew us as friends of God and servants of God’s people. And, we don’t so much want to be presiding over the death of American Christianity as participating in its renewal as well.

Many years ago, the poet Adrienne Rich, wrote about poetic “awakening” happening as a startling act of renewed imagination. For this renewal to happen, she wrote,

there has to be an imaginative transformation of reality which is in no way passive. And a certain freedom of the mind is needed—freedom to press on, to enter the currents of your thought like a glider pilot, knowing that your motion can be sustained, that the buoyancy of your attention will not be suddenly snatched away. Moreover, if, the imagination is to transcend and transform experience it has to question, to challenge, to conceive of alternatives, perhaps to the very life you are living at that moment.

Those of us who are “stuck in the middle” don’t have to remain so. If you’re over thirty and under sixty, your “in between” status gives you a unique perspective on what ails and what might help to renew the church. Now is the time to share your experience, insight, and imagination. What do you see as the alternatives to the very life we are living as a church right now? What might we be able to grow between the rock and the hard place in which so many of us find ourselves in the church these days?

Transitions

The transition at ### Lutheran is about half way accomplished. We've had wonderfully attended history reviews and accessments. In fact, people have been earger to share their stories in an open and honest ways. These conversations have lasted longer than I expected, but this has been good. The way the people here have shared the good and bad is a good sign of a healthy congregation.

The leadership is working during the summer months on evaluating its current ministries, updating its membership records, evaluating facilities, and looking at stewarship strateges. So... much is going on behind the scenes. So... the transition has been going well thus far.

Beginning in September we will begin looking at what they value as a congregation. This is a very important part of the transition process. Values are the foundation of who they are. Values are the componants of what we most believe in. Values describe who we really are.

I will be really pushing the congregation about their values. I hope they will be honest with themselves about this this part of the process. We will be spending the better part of the next 5 months on values. I believe this is really about their future.

As for me... I am feeling pretty good about how things have gone. I've been able to maintain a professional distance if you will, meaning being engaged, yet not overally engaged. Some have declared that I should be their pastor of which I've said I can't.

So... I continue to think about the future of my call to the church. While not anxious about what comes next, my wife is. It's often difficult to see what comes next. This is not what I had hoped for or had planned for my call to the church. In some ways, It seems like a failure... my call. But this is probally something for another post.

So... it's been good so far and I can see God's hands guiding me and us along the way.

See You Out on the Road.

Series: “Loving Jesus”.... “Spiritual Authenticity”

Sunday July2012                               
John 11:17-44

We continue with our series “Loving Jesus”… Last week we learned that loving Jesus is an important component to our spiritual growth and ministry of the church.

We learned that if we want greater spiritual understanding we need a close relationship with Jesus. And, we also learned that spiritual understanding comes when we have faith in Jesus and that as our faith and relationship with Jesus deepens we gain greater understanding.

Today our reflection will focus on "Spiritual Authenticity."

PRAYER:

How many of you are faking it today? … You’re trying to live your life trying to impress others? You’re putting on the happy face… but are feeling like a failure… or depressed… or well… just out of it? I’ll bet that at least one of you here came here and getting out of your car angry with your spouse, kids, job, or life and as soon as you opened the church door put on the happy face as if you were on top of the world. And… when you leave… will revert back to the way you came.

If we’re honest… we all admit that we’ve been there done that. Also if were honest… most of us desire to be ourselves… to be real, but often fall prey to the thought that we have to meet certain expectations. To be someone better than we are. To see ourselves as more valuable than others. In Luke’s gospel Jesus says, “Aren’t you worth more than birds, and look at how God takes care of them.” Why do we have such a difficult time being who God created us to be?

Today’s gospel has an over-arching theme of resurrection of life in the future. However… I want to look at this story in John as a way for us to understand that we can be authentic and our real-selves because in this story we see the raw emotion displayed in Jesus and Martha. I believe this is something we often miss or just fail to recognize in Jesus and those around him.

Our first glimpse of Martha is found in Luke’s gospel where Jesus goes to the home of Mary & Martha and Martha’s complaining to Jesus about her sister Mary not helping make dinner.
You know the story… Mary is at Jesus’ feet and Martha is slaving away in the kitchen and she’ mad because Mary is not helping. Martha is living out a set of expectations that she has to provide because it’s her duty. Mary on the other hand doesn’t care. To say that Martha is mad is an understatement… the Greek language is “infantic” meaning she’s really mad!

Now to today’s story... Martha’s brother Lazarus gets sick and dies. She sends word to Jesus to come and heal him… she’s seen the healings Jesus has done and given their friendship she expects Jesus to drop everything and come. Jesus intentionally stays away for 4 days and you can imagine Martha is not happy. The same language is used here in John as in Luke. Martha is an emotional wreck and she is, if I may say, “Dam Mad”. Jesus comes… and she is being quite authentic… real with Jesus…
       - If you’d been here Jesus!!! Lazarus wouldn’t have died!!!
       - Jesus tells her that your brother will rise again…
       - Martha replies, Yea… but that ain’t good enough!!!

We also see the raw emotion of Jesus in this story. People all around Jesus that day were grieving and crying. The displays of grieve were from the heart… they were real and authentic…. The people loved Lazarus. When Jesus saw this he was moved…. Then we Jesus’ emotion.

I think the picture we often have of Jesus is one of stoic compassion. We often have the picture of Jesus as not depicting any emotion. If you do a Google search of Jesus and click on images... you find that most of them have Jesus depictied very stoic. I remember showing a laughing Jesus picture and almost got stoned. Jesus doesn't laugh I was told. But, the image we see in our story is one where Jesus cry’s…. he is overcome with emotion
Vs 38 says Jesus was terribly upset. Jesus is being as real and authentic as it gets.
He then tells the people to have faith… then brings back Lazarus.

In this story we see Martha and Jesus as real authentic people.

What are some ways we can live more authentic and real lives?

Jesus is for Losers

I saw a young man wearing a t-shirt that said “Jesus is for Losers." At first glance I thought he was just being cynical and this was his way for putting down Christianity. But a closer look at the shirt I saw that he was witnessing his faith as it had a biblical reference on it… Matt 19:30, in which Jesus says, “The first will be last and the last shall be first.”

As I reflected… of course Jesus is for losers. Not against them… Jesus sought out the losers of society.Those who didn’t meet expectations. Those who fell through the cracks.
For Jesus it wasn’t about the rules and the rituals.
For Jesus it was about meeting people where they’re at.
For Jesus it was about you being your real-self.

Author Carol Kent in her book “Essentials of Spiritual Authenticity” writes about being at her grandmother’s home when she noticed that her grandmother exuded Peace & Joy. She asked, “Granny, how do you keep your joy & peace?” She responded, “Carol, your making too much work out of it. You just need to let Jesus love you and you love Him right back. Just enjoy His Presence.”

We often put too much effort in… think there must be more to it… when it’s all about just being ourselves with Jesus. Being authentic and real.
We often think we have to be perfect people all the time… when all that Jesus desires is that we be who God created… nothing more and nothing less.

Cultivate Honesty
We need to be honest about our sin & limitations. Have a heart for integrity. If we are going to do something… do it… if not say so. we need to demonstrate grace. We as Lutheran Christians have this wonderful understanding about forgivness and grace. It is part of our DNA as Lutherans… and really all of the church, we talk about this a lot, but rarely demonstrate it. Being honest about ourselves as creations of God puts us on a path to being able to experience the blessings of peace and joy.

The Practice of Spiritual Habits

Our mission to become disciples incorporates spiritual habits. To be about the practice of Prayer…. Worship… Learning… Serving… Relationships… Generosity. To not only pray as individuals, but as a group of followers of Jesus. To worship in authentic ways that draw us closer to God. To learn not only about Jesus to learn to have a relationship with Jesus, and to grow in understanding. To serve others and especially by going out of this box to engage where people are. to build relationships not only with those we know, but to discover our common bond with others by sharing our stories of faith. and to be generous with what God has provided us with. Practicing the spiritual habits helps us lead greater authentic lives.

In Closing:

Spiritual Authenticity means being connect to God through Jesus. Not connected to someone or something that makes us feel good. Actually living out what we believe on Sunday morning the other 6 days of the week. To be the same persons in public as we are in private. Our hope of being connected to, and drawing close, and being real with God begins by Loving Jesus.

See You Out on the Road.

Series: “Loving Jesus”.... “Spiritual Understanding”

Sunday July 15, 2012                        
John 3:1-18

Pastor Richard Lischer shares a story that one of the pillars of the congregation stopped by his office just before services to tell him he'd been born again.

You've been what? I asked.

Yes, he said, last week I visited my brother-in-law's church, the Running River of Life Tabernacle, and I don't know what it was, but something happened and I'm born again.

You can't be born again, I said, you're a Lutheran. You are the chairman of the board of trustees.

He was brimming with joy, but I was sulking. Why? Because spiritual renewal is wonderful as long as it occurs within acceptable, usually mainline, channels and does not threaten my understanding of God.
-Richard Lischer, Acknowledgment, Christian Century, March 3, 1999, 245.

Prayer:

We start a new series today… no… this isn’t in particular part of the transition process… unless you look at your faith as transitioning. We will spend today and the next 3 Sundays reflecting on Loving Jesus.

 At the end of John’s gospel Jesus asks Peter a very important question. It’s a question that’s often assumed by people that fill the church. It's a question all of us will have to answer someday. It’s a question I believe most of us say YES too, but often don’t understand what they’ve said yes too. It’s also a question that we will reflect more intently on in part 4. Have I peeked your curiosity yet? This is a dangerous, yet an important question I believe we all must answer; in fact, you may not want to answer, or at least not answer to quickly.

                                  The question is…. “DO YOU LOVE JESUS?”

At my ordination my mentor preached and made the statement to the congregation I was being called to serve; if they saw or didn’t believe I was leading them in a spirit-filled way they were to ask me… “Pr Dennis, do you love Jesus?” He told them that the ministry of this church depended on its pastor/ me and them “Loving Jesus.”

In the nearly 9 years of being a pastor, no one has asked me that question. No...  I’m not perfect at loving Jesus… I never claimed to being perfect, besides... Jesus never asked that we be perfect… just committed. So… today we will begin our series of “Loving Jesus” by reflecting on having “Spiritual Understanding.”

We know our story well today… Nic, a Jewish religious leader, a Pharisee, one who is close to the inner workings of the Sanhedrin, and sits on the council of the High Priest. He’s an insider… and he’s searching for some understanding of Jesus. He knows the Hebrew Scriptures. He knows the Law inside and out. By all accounts, he is considered a spiritual man. Yet… this Jesus brings all he knows and understands about God and faith into question, and he goes to Jesus, at night, searching and looking for some understanding about who and what Jesus is.

Nic is drawn to Jesus like a bug to light. He has seen some of Jesus miraculous signs and he even acknowledges Jesus must be from God because of the things he’s doing. Then… with all that… Jesus makes a statement that all but shatters Nic… Jesus says, “You must be born anew”… some translations say, “You must be Born Again.” And, not only with water… but also from the Spirit. Nic doesn’t know what to do with this… he doesn’t understand… “How can a man be born a 2^nd time?”

Nic’s not ready to concede… there’s something compelling going on. There’s something about Jesus that he can’t let go of, even though he doesn’t fully understand. I wonder how many of us truly understand Jesus’ words. Are we like the pastor in my opening story…? “You can’t be born again, you’re Lutheran.”

Searching for spiritual understanding is nothing new. Since the beginning of creation humanity has been searching for God, and in many ways trying to be like or become God.

Eugene Peterson states that current spirituality like that of the ancients has fostered 2 qualities Transcendence and Intimacy.

            Transcendence: There must be more that extends beyond me.

            Intimacy: A sense that deep within me there is a core being that is Inaccessible.

He continues, “This is why we long for Transcendence and Intimacy, but these elements suggest spirituality must be conceived as something we think up and must do. So… humans continue to exhaust themselves all the while missing the point.”

What I believe Peterson is saying, is that people seeking to find spirituality often have the tendency to try and make God into something of their own design they find fashionable.

How do we avoid this tendency? Vs 15-18 Read Text.

The core of having a spiritual understanding is “Being in a relationship with Jesus.

Theologian Mark Powell in his book “Loving Jesus” says,

“When we understand our spirituality as a relationship with Jesus our spiritual lives are grounded in a reality external to ourselves.”

Jesus was a real person… not someone or thing we make up. Jesus actually walked the earth, ate, drank, slept, died… not someone or thing we dream. Jesus was raised from the dead.

The Apostle Paul says,

“As all die in Adam, all will be made alive “in Christ” 1Cor. 15:22

“If anyone is “in Christ” they are a new creation” 2Cor. 5:17

When you are “in Christ” you are connecting to the core of the spiritual experience. When you are “in Christ” you “Love Jesus.” Jesus says this throughout the gospels… “Believe in me” “Stay connected to me” “Have faith in me” “Everyone who has faith in me”

When you love Jesus you will have greater understanding.

We will never have total spiritual understanding this side of the grave. Those who have had near-death experiences probably have a closer understanding because they come back with a different perspective about faith and life. Those of us who truly want to be in relationship with Jesus… to love Jesus will grow in understanding.

The strength of Christian spirituality is that God really does exist and became accessible to us in the person of Jesus, God has been seen, heard, and touched.

Mark Powell states it this way, “If Jesus really is risen, raised from the dead and living now with a spiritual body, then we can indeed have a relationship with Jesus who is real, not just imaginary. We can come to know this Jesus and be challenged by him. We can grow in understanding and to love this Jesus in ways that are both intimate and mature. And, we can experience what it means to be in a reciprocal relationship with a spiritual being who loves us back… indeed who loved us first.”

Over the coming weeks of this series we will reflect on ways we can grow and develop in “Loving Jesus.”

See You Out on the Road.

“Hometown Prophets”

Sunday Sermon July 8, 2012                
Mark 6:1-13

There is a Peanuts comic strip in which Linus is listening carefully as his sister, Lucy, boasts about her religious faith and her potential as an evangelist.

She says to Linus: "I could be a terrific evangelist. Do you know that kid who sits behind me in school? I convinced him that my religion is better than his religion."

Linus asks: "How did you do that?"

Lucy replies: "I hit him with my lunch box."

Prayer:

Our bible story today is in part a familiar one and in part one that we often don’t want to hear about. In part, Jesus goes home, gets snubbed by those who know him most, and quite literally gets tossed out of town. As Jesus leaves he tells them, “Prophets are honored by everyone, except the people in their hometown and their family.” Before he leaves he heals a couple of people, and to sort-of say, “Yeh OK,” then heads out to neighboring towns.

Jesus and his friends find respite in a neighboring town and talk about a new strategy. A shift will take place… Jesus is no longer going to be the only God-spokesman… Jesus is now empowering his friends with this new strategy to go out and tell people about the kingdom of God.
        OH NO!!!! I can hear you all thinking… it’s that dreaded word… EVANGELISM!!!!!

Before your blood pressure rises too far… RELAX…. I’m not suggesting that you go out and knock on doors or stand on the corner with a sign saying John 3:16 or repent! on it. However, I don’t want to leave you with the impression that this is only for the professional church people like me… “The Pastor” either. The truth of the matter is… our gospel lesson today is meant for all of us, not as something we need to do to gain points with God, but as a way to participate with God and what he is already doing in the world.

Lutheran Theologian David Lose states, “it’s about the role each of us are invited to play in sensing, experiencing, and making known God’s will and work in the world.”

However, many Lutherans have a knee-jerk fear about works righteousness and that “God” or more to the point “We” may think we are doing this for our salvation. Bill Hybel in his book, “Walk Across the Room” says, “One thing I’ve learned is that life’s great moments evolve from simple acts of cooperation with God’s mysterious promptings-nudges that always lean toward finding what’s been lost and freeing what’s been enslaved.”

Jesus makes the point to his friends, whom I believe were just as anxious as us about going out to talk about God’s kingdom, what Jesus is saying… there really are no special requirements to doing this work. Jesus empowers them to Force out Demons and heal the Sick and to share Grace. Has anyone kicked out any demons lately? But I’ll bet you’ve offered some grace!

Jesus tells them, I’ve taught you everything you need know….

You don’t need any money.

You don’t need to take food or a travel bag.

Some people will be hospitable and will care for you… if so, share God’s message… if not, shake the dust off your feet and move on.

And by the way… you can take a walking stick and some shoes.

Jesus’ instruction here is meant to free us from the cumbersome fears we’ve placed in front of us about sharing faith. The truth is… we are all more than equipped to share with others about our life of faith.

About a year ago a guy called me looking for some help. He had called a couple of previous times and I wasn’t able to help him. He didn’t live in our area and thus kind of blowing him off. But this time was different. I had a nudging from the Holy Spirit to respond differently on this day. His call was for help in getting a resume to a potential employer as well as some food help. I asked him where he lived. He told me on the North end of Flint. If you know anything about Flint, you know that the North end is the most dangerous part of the city. Flint is the murder capital of the country and most of them happen in the North end. So I asked him if we could meet at a McDonalds or something like that. A person needs to be prudent. So… we met and he began to share his story. You see he was just released from prison serving 25 years for attempted murder and robbery. I just got a bit more anxious after hearing that, but nonetheless I continued to listen to his story. The Spirit calmed my anxiety and I just listened as he shared his life. He knew I was a pastor, so sharing my story of faith just naturally came. In the end, I helped him get the resume to where it need to0 get and gave him a food card.

I don’t know what he is doing now. I don’t know if he got that job. I have never been contacted by him since. I just know that when the Holy Spirit nudges me… I need to pay attention. My point is that our story today opens up the path for us to share our lives with others, and Jesus empowers us to do so.

Closing:

Jesus sent out his friends two by two to share life and faith with others. Being a Hometown Prophet doesn’t need to be an unpleasant experience. It’s really about sharing life and being friends with people you meet. Then, waiting on the Holy Spirit to prompt you to share faith.

As Bill Hybels says, “it can be as simple as walking across a room… just a few ordinary Spirit-guided steps can have truly extraordinary outcomes.”

I’d like to finish with all of us praying this prayer together… this prayer is from Pr. Meredith Musaus from Holy Cross Lutheran, Menomonee, Wi.

L: Let us pray together.

C: Your church is composed of people like me.
   - I help make it what it is.
   - It will be friendly, if I am.
   - Its pews will be filled, if I help fill them.
   - It will do great work, if I work.
   - It will make generous gifts to many causes, if I am a generous giver.

   - It will bring other people into its worship and fellowship, if I invite and bring them.
   - It will be a church where people grow in faith and serve you, if I am open to such growth and 

     service.

Therefore, with your help Lord, we shall dedicate ourselves to the task of being all the things you want your church to be.    Amen.