July 7, 2013
A Jewish Rabbi and a Catholic Priest met at the annual
4th of July picnic. Old friends, they began their usual banter.
'This baked ham is really delicious,' the priest
teased the rabbi. 'You really ought to try it. I know it's against your
religion, but I can't understand why such a wonderful food should be forbidden.
You don't know what you're missing. You just haven't lived
until you've tried Mrs Warren's prized Virginia Baked Ham. Tell me, Rabbi, when
are you going to break down and try it?'
The rabbi looked at the priest with a big grin, and
said, 'At your wedding.'
Prayer:
After hearing our gospel
story today… I know what your thinking… You think I’m going to talk about doing
Evangelism…. That I’m going to insist on you going out and knocking on every
door in the city of Berkley and bringing in the harvest.
Well… your partially right…
there is an element of our faith in Jesus that informs us to share our faith
with others outside of this box. You know the Great Commission… that our faith
in Jesus tells us to go out and make disciples.
That faith in Jesus
demonstrates God’s love & grace for us. That faith in Jesus can and will
bring life & life more abundantly.
So… YES my friends you are to
share your faith with people outside this box… who often believe a Hodge Podge of
beliefs and a kind-of do-it-yourself religiosity need to hear & see
demonstrated our faith as grace and love found in Jesus.
So… YES… this story of Jesus
sending out his disciples 2 by 2 is just as relevant for our time and place as
it was then. And YES… there are risks and challenges, and obstacles in doing
this, but we are commanded to share the story nonetheless. So what do we have
to fear?... Franklin Roosevelt said, “Fear Itself”… but according to Jesus… Vs
19… “Nothing can harm you.”
I was reading the history of the merger between St.
Peter’s and Gethsemane to form Cana that took place in 1980. I found it
interesting and informative about the issues you were facing at the time. But
what was most interesting was a newsletter article from Pr. Hansen of St. Peter
who wrote, “We don’t have a financial problem… we have a people problem… it’s
our reluctance to share our faith with others.”
My friends… that picture
hasn’t changed in 30+ years… we still have the same issue today as you had back
in the 1970’s.
Our story today addresses the
lack of our readiness to share with others. However… there are a couple of
things that standout for me in this reading besides the obvious that I’ve
already mentioned, and which I believe are important just the same.
First… Jesus
sends his friends out in teams… and
Second… that
they are to totally rely on the Generosity & Hospitality of others.
Working Together.
I understand the team part of
Jesus’ message here. Jesus understands & knows this will be a challenge… so
he has them work together as a team. Working together makes the load lighter…
right! When everyone does their part the work gets done more effectively. When
one gets bogged down the other can lift up.It’s hard to roll the ball uphill by
yourself… when others help it rolls much easier. Working together is just a
smarter and more effective way to do things.
A great example of this I’m
told is your VBS week. It’s a week where young & old come together and work
together to share Jesus with the community. Did you hear what I said?
o
You come
together…
o
You work
together…
o
To share Jesus in
the community… TOGETHER!!!
Working together… Just makes
it better… RIGHT!!! However, I know our culture tells us that it all up to us
as individuals. That it’s up to ME… It’s up to the pastor… or the Chair of the
Learning Team… or whomever… We know that really doesn’t work… and I really
don’t see many Lutherans walking the streets of Berkley knocking on doors
sharing Jesus. But you’re sharing Jesus in the community during that VBS week
by working together… In what other ways
could we do this by working together?
Hospitality & Generosity.
Jesus told them not to take
anything with them. Vs 4… “Don’t take any money, or travel bag, or even a pair
of shoes.” Jesus’ friends must depend on the Hospitality & Generosity of
other. Most of us find this kind of dependency uncomfortable. We would rather
make sure we have everything covered before we venture out… after-all… we want
to be prepared.
When we depend on others we
become vulnerable and we don’t like that. We want to show that we have our
lives together… that things are good. All this makes me wonder… how might we
demonstrate Hospitality & Generosity more effectively?
What might it mean to be more
Hospitable & Generous to others?
-
Gather in small groups where your seated and for a
couple of minutes come up with some ideas on how you might do this.
Ask for ideas…See you have it
in you… You have great ideas…
When we do this work together
we gain confidence, when we are hospitable & generous we open ourselves to
sharing faith, life, and Jesus. This is the picture we get from the Apostle
Paul in Romans 12… where he writes about all of us being part of the body of
Christ. “No man, writes John Donne, is
an Island.” “The loss of any, he went on to say, diminishes each.” The same
is true that No Church is an Island either.
The church is
a community… meaning many… of faith.
It’s a
community of faith that shares faith together.
It’s a
community of faith that demonstrates hospitality & generosity together.
It’s a
community of faith that dreams… shares… works together for the kingdom of God.
Closing:
Thomas Merton wrote… “Every man is a piece of myself,
for I am a part and a member of mankind. Every Christian is a part of my own
body, because we are members of Christ.”
“What I do is also done for them and with them and by
them. What they do is done in me and by me and for me. But each of us remains
responsible for his own share in the life of the whole body.”
What I believe Jesus is
telling us this morning is that none of us are Lone Rangers… none of us is an
island… we are a community of faith… and we do this TOGETHER!!!
See You Out on the Road
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