Sermon at United Church of Beloit, Feb 24, 2013. 

Isaiah 61 The Year of the Lord’s Favor

61 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,

because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,[a]2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God,to comfort all who mourn,3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning,and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
and restore the places long devastated;
they will renew the ruined cities
that have been devastated for generations.
5 Strangers will shepherd your flocks;
foreigners will work your fields and vineyards.
6 And you will be called priests of the Lord,
you will be named ministers of our God.
You will feed on the wealth of nations,
and in their riches you will boast.
you will receive a double portion,
and instead of disgrace
you will rejoice in your inheritance.
And so you will inherit a double portion in your land,
and everlasting joy will be yours.
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
In my faithfulness I will reward my people
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their descendants will be known among the nations
and their offspring among the peoples.
All who see them will acknowledge
that they are a people the Lord has blessed.”
my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
11 For as the soil makes the sprout come up
and a garden causes seeds to grow,
so the Sovereign Lord will make righteousness
and praise spring up before all nations.
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 5 Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, 2 and he began to teach them.

He said:

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

13 “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.

14 “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.

The next few weeks, we are looking at the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus' famous speech or sermon given to his disciples and followers. It's found in the Gospel of Matthew, with a similar teaching in Luke. Matthew's Gospel was written specifically to Jewish listeners, to help them know that Jesus is indeed the Messiah. The Sermon in Matthew's gospel is detailed and helps remind the Jewish People of Moses' teachings. Luke's Gospel is written to Gentiles, so there is less of the traditional Jewish teachings.

Last week's lesson from Matthew 4, Jesus said kingdom of heaven is near.

This lesson, known as the Beatitudes, is where Jesus defines the kingdom.
Jesus was speaking on a steep hillside, the text says the side of a mountain. It was likely near the shore of the Sea of Galilee  The bowl-like setting of a hillside overlooking a large lake made a natural amphitheater in which sound would carry quite well on a spring or summer day :) imagine yourself sitting on the grass, listening to Jesus speak.

{READ GOSPEL LESSON}

Note that the first and last of the Beatitudes both say, “Theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. This is a literary device called bracketing. This bracketing is sign of completeness...and that everything included in this paragraph is also included in the The Kingdom of Heaven. That is, each of the things mentioned are aspects of the Kingdom of Heaven. Comfort, inheritance, to be satisfied, Mercy, to see God and be called a child of God, these are aspects of the Kingdom of heaven!
And to whom does Jesus say it belongs? The poor in spirit, those who mourn, who hunger and thirst to be right with God, the merciful, pure in heart and peacemakers.

This is not a kingdom that is like the world is it!? It wasn't 2000 years ago, either. then and now, society's view of the 'kingdom' belongs to those who are getting ahead, whether one is at the top of the class, the top of the heap, the top of the world.
Hebrew word Blessed, means to be blessed, favored by God, and it also means to be happy....that down deep joy that comes when we realize God is “Large and in charge'. But to be blessed also means to be guided, guided along a straight line, the image here is of a plumb line used by builders to ensure that their work is aligned well. So blessed means to be favored, have joy and to be guided along a straight path.

Jesus says in the kingdom of heaven says that those who recognize their weakness before God, and ask for help are the blessed ones! The poor in spirit, those who know that we are incomplete without God! When we come to God, we regret what has kept us away from God for so long...we mourn our sins and our other losses! And we receive comfort and crave more of this beautiful Kingdom! And as we find more of the kingdom of heaven through our developing faith, through worship, prayer, devotional time, through helping others, we learn compassion, and become merciful. And receive mercy in return. This growing love, faith, forgiveness, caring for others helps us to be more Christlike-pure in heart. We become peacemakers—working to bring about the Kingdom of heaven here on Earth. Helping to house the homeless, feed the hungry, caring for children and the lonely, these are just some of the ways we in this church do help live out our faith. This brings a glimpse of the Kingdom of heaven.

The kingdom of heaven is completely different than the kingdom of Earth. Something is upside down, topsy-turvy? Which is it?!

God put us here on Earth to be in relationship with God and with each other. The creation story in the Bible is one of intimacy! If that story is fact or a beautiful telling of an old story, it is a story that says God wants us to be up close and personal with God and with each other. That we are to love and care for each other! That is the Kingdom of heaven! That is the way things are supposed to be.

Our OT lesson, are words that were spoken by Jesus early in his ministry. This is a portrayal of that heavenly kingdom. The promises given here include freedom and release from darkness! Of beauty and praise, instead of grief!

Do we not hunger and thirst for these things?! The kingdom of heaven is what we are made for! The kingdom of earth only satisfies for a short time, if at all. The kingdom of heaven, satisfies for all time. This is Shalom, God's peace...perfect peace, wholeness, protection for all of God's creation. When all is right with the world. And what we get glimpses of, when we are caring for each other, when we worship together, and especially when we reach out to others to share what we have, our material blessings and that incredible Love. This is how the Kingdom of heaven comes near on Earth, through us! Through the Holy Spirit guiding us, empowering us to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Francis Chan in Crazy Love

We never grow closer to God when we just live life; it takes deliberate pursuit and attentiveness. When I pray, I sometimes ask God to make it the most intimate time of prayer I've ever had. Many times when I speak, whether at my church or another venue, I remind myself that I could die right after I finish, so what would I want my last words to be? Second, I remember that we are not alone. Even now there are thousands of beings in heaven watching what is going on down here-a "great cloud of witnesses," the Scripture says. It reminds me that there is so much more to our existence than what we can see. What we do reverberates through the heavens and into eternity. Try for a whole day to be conscious of heaven. Realize that so much is going on outside of this dimension and our existence. God and His angels are watching, even now.

Our cloud of witnesses is cheering us on, praying for us to help our relationship with God and each other, praying for us to help bring the kingdom of heaven to earth!

Richard Foster....Do we truly want life with God? This is the prime question in moving from intention to action in the spiritual life..... there are things for us to do! God wants an active partner in relationship. The spiritual life is just that—a life. We learn as we go. We learn as we do. As we go and do with God, we are changed along the way.

Could God make sure that all are fed, clothed, loved, treated justly? Of course. God could do that faster than you can blink an eye. So why doesn't God do this? It seems to be that relationship thing again. Evidently we are supposed to learn this stuff for ourselves.

Foster: Human beings are so important to God that the divine purposes are worked out through the messiness and sprawl of human history. Apparently, it is more important to God that human beings learn his ways in freedom than it is to get things done efficiently.

We are to learn God's ways and that is how we can help bring the Kingdom. When we pray, “thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” are we praying for God to snap those ever-powerful fingers and make the world a perfectly beautiful place of Shalom, or is Jesus teaching us to pray for God to help us make that happen!

We are called to become people of the Beatitudes. A person of the Beatitudes is to be the hands and feet of Jesus! The kingdom of heaven is what we were created for. The Kingdom of Earth is the upside-down kingdom, we are to help bring about the right-side UP kingdom.

Could it be that THIS is why this United Church of Beloit has been called to come together? To help 2 churches who love to care for others to do an even better job of it? To be a more powerful influence for good in our community? If so, and I believe it is, we can do so by becoming people of the Beatitudes!
During Lent, besides 'giving up' something, we encourage the taking up of something, like some extra Bible and devotional reading, Even a few extra minutes a day of prayer and Scripture will make a difference in your walk with God.

What does it look like to be a person of the Beatitudes? A person who so desires the Kingdom of heaven on earth? Someone who is poor in spirit, mourns, hungers and thirsts for more of God, someone who is merciful, pure in heart and is a peacemaker?

There is a powerful letter written by an African pastor some years back. It was found in his belongings after he had been killed for his faith. Quoted by Brennan Manning in The Signature of Jesus

I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I'm a disciple of His and I won't look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be still.
My past is redeemed. My present makes sense. My future is secure. I'm done and finished with low living, sight walking, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundane talking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.
I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, or first, or tops, or recognized, or praised, or rewarded. I live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor by Holy Spirit power.
My face is set. My gait is fast. My goal is heaven. My road may be narrow, my way rough, my companions few, but my guide is reliable and my mission is clear.
I will not be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed.
I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice or hesitate in the presence of the adversary. I will not negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity.
I won't give up, shut up, or let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause of Christ.
I am a disciple of Jesus. I must give until I drop, preach until all know, and work until He comes. And when He does come for His own, He'll have no problems recognizing me. My banner will be clear!

This is a person of the Beatitudes. This is someone who intimately knew Jesus as Lord. This is model of faith we can aspire to. Are we ready to draw closer to God this Lenten season and roll up our sleeves?

Let's Pray,
Help us to be people of the Beatitudes, dear Lord. Help us recognize our shortcomings and ask for your help and guidance. Help us to hunger and thirst for more of you! Help us to be merciful, to be peacemakers, bringing about Your kingdom of Shalom right here on Earth. Help us to stay up, store up, pray up, pay up, and preach up for the cause of Christ! Please bless us as we do these things in the Name of Our Lord Jesus, through whom we pray, Amen.

Thought, Word and Deed
Sermon given at 1st Congregational Church of Emerald Grove WI (UCC)

Click here to read the two Bible passages for this morning

Psalm 19 and 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a

Children's Letters to God

Dear God,
Thank you for the baby brother but what I asked for was a puppy. Joyce

Dear God,
my Grandpa says you were around when he was a little boy. How far back do you go? Love, Dennis

Dear God,
is it true my father won't get in Heaven if he uses his golf words in the house?
Anita

Dear God,
maybe Cain and Abel would not kill each other so much if they each had their own rooms. It works out OK with me and my brother. Larry

Dear God,
I didn't think orange went with purple until I saw the sunset you made on Tuesday night. That was really cool. Thomas

Psalm 19 is just beautiful isn't it., I wish we could take the time to spend to really study it. Both of these passages for that matter!

author C. S. Lewis said of Psalm 19: "I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world."

the Psalms have been called the Hebrew Hymn book and the Christian prayer book. The Psalms were songs, sung in worship :) This is a Psalm of David, the great king of Israel. David lived about 1000 years before the time of Jesus and of course Jesus is a direct descendant of King David.

the child who said “that sunset was really cool” is saying the same thing as the Psalmist...but David was a bit more eloquent. :) Psalm 19 is a more formal version of ....it's a song telling of God being revealed through all of creation, but especially in the skies above us. Just picture in your mind for a moment some of the views you have seen....A brilliant sun shining in the vivid blue sky, Or the power of an oncoming thunderstorm, the colors of a sunset, gazing at the moon and stars on a clear night...

We get a glimpse of the beauty and majesty and even mystery of God in the heavens. And elsewhere in creation too....mountains, the ocean, the forests, and even the rolling hills of Wisconsin...there is such a variety of creation. God created all of this for us! And then created humans, us, to be in relationship with God and with each other.

Of course we keep messing up those relationships. And we have to come back to God don't we. That is why God keeps giving us lovely sunrises and sunsets, or angry looking clouds, and starry nights....to help us notice.

When we recognize the power and beauty of God in creation, what is our reaction? We may stop and say WOW. We may express gratitude. We may just want to soak in the view in wonder. All of these are appropriate and honor God,. They help us reach out to God, just as God is reaching out to us.

The psalmist goes from worshiping God in creation to celebrating the Law...God's word. The “law of the Lord, the precepts, the commands” it says, all refer to Scripture! This is another way God is revealed to us, through Scriptures! And when we recognize God in our lives, we often also then recognize our failings. Because God is perfect, and we are so NOT! David says that keeping The word of God close is how we can keep pure...keep from sin-which is ANYTHING that separates us from God. We do know that David didn't always stay so pure...during his mid-life crisis with Bathsheba-he did indeed break a few commandments! But he repented, and confessed, pouring out his grief over that sin in another Psalm, 51, (create in me a clean heart..) David is a great example of the forgiveness of God and foreshadowing of Jesus, through whom we can obtain divine forgiveness.

Our Psalm concludes with a lovely prayer....May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, oh Lord my rock and my redeemer! In ancient times, the heart is the core of who you were, they did not know that the brain is where we think and process emotions and all that.

We are to honor God in thought and word! The Hebrew word here translated “acceptable” means something much deeper than our English word. It is a word that refers to worship...actually to sacrificial worship, bringing the best gift you can to the Lord. So this prayer means may my words and even my thoughts be more than OK, but honorable and reverent of God, something that can help bring the knowledge of God to others.

Keeping to the Word of God helps us to know God and to better be in relationship with God and with each other. Spending time with the Bible -prayerfully reading, is one of the most powerful things we can do. The Bible reminds us that no matter what, God is with us-always!

Author Richard Foster in Life With God...

{This} divine assurance .... is also a divine invitation: “I am with you—will you be with Me?” This dynamic is the absolute unifying center of the Bible. Every story in the Bible, no matter its twists and turns, whether the human characters are trustworthy or untrustworthy, whether the story is sad or happy, is built on this clarion call to relationship. “I am with you—will you be with Me?”

When we recognize this call to relationship, it is not a solitary thing. It is for us as individuals, but also for families, churches, communities. But of course it begins with each of us one to one. But our new Testament lesson reminds us that we are not in this alone. We humans are part of the Body...the Body of Christ.

We are all a part of the body and we all have different gifts and talents. It would be boring if we were all the same! And we wouldn;t get as much done! It takes a variety of gifts to make things work well!

Foster Human beings are so important to God that the divine purposes are worked out through the messiness and sprawl of human history. Apparently, it is more important to God that human beings learn his ways in freedom than it is to get things done efficiently.

Our gifts and talents are tools to be used in relationship! To help the rest of the Body of humanity find and worship and celebrate the Love of Christ.

No matter your denomination, your upbringing in or out of church, no matter gender, race or idealism, we are connected, we belong to each other!

My husband Martin and I are blessed to be able to travel as our church's delegates to National meetings in different cities each summer. And as we meet folks from all over the country, it's amazing how connected we are! Folks know of Wisconsin and even of Beloit and Janesville. In Massachusetts a traffic cop grinned at our Wisconsin plates, waved and hollered Green Bay Packers! A random conversation in New Mexico with a couple from California, whose son graduated from Beloit College! (What ARE the odds!) I got to meet the author who was the Bible lecturer at our national meeting. Her name is Marva Dawn. She is from Ohio and lives in Washington State. I actually encountered her in the hallway after breakfast one day. Introduced myself and said where I am from, she said, “Oh, Beloit!” in her sweet voice...I said, astonished, “you know us!?” and she said, “My grandfather, my mother's father, who lived to be 100 years old, was from Janesville!”

we are all connected...and being connected we share in each other lives.

If one member of the Body of Christ hurts, the whole body hurts. When one member of a church is grieving, we grieve with them. When there is suffering in our town, we all suffer, maybe not directly, but trouble in any community will affect all the other members.

But when things go well, we all get to rejoice! That's why we pray for each other! We pray in community, praying, sharing our pain and our reasons for joy! And these prayers bring us ever closer together and closer to the heart of our Creator God.

Henri Nouwen In the heart of God we find the true joy of being part of the human race. There we are truly connected, not only with God, but with ourselves and with one another.

As we discover the heart of God for ourselves, that incomparable love and joy

and find our connections, we become more and more like our Loving Lord, and our families, churches and communities will become the places of love and compassion and wholeness that they are meant to be.

Marva Dawn “God's revelation... unmasks our illusions about ourselves. It exposes our pride, our individualism, our self-centeredness - in short, our sin. But worship also offers forgiveness, healing, transformation, motivation, and courage to work in the world for God's justice and peace - in short, salvation in its largest sense.”

this is what real community offers and what I pray our churches, Here in Emerald Grove, in Beloit, all through Wisconsin, and all churches, everywhere!! can be. We find these things, this “forgiveness, healing, transformation, motivation, and courage to work in the world for God's justice and peace” ONLY in our Lord Jesus, the embodiment of God who came to earth to live as a human, born a tiny infant! Jesus lived his life to show us how to live and he chose to go to the Cross, the cruelest death that humankind could devise, out of that incomparable love for us. Through His life, death, and resurrection, we have the greatest gift.

We live and worship truly when we honor God in thought, word and in deed...living out the love of Christ, reaching out to the rest of the Body to help us all find that love, joy, healing and transformation. This is my prayer for each of us and for the world. 

Sermon for Dec 30, 2012. Sharing Stories.

Psalm 148
148:1 Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD from the heavens; praise him in the heights!
148:2 Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host!
148:3 Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars!
148:4 Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens!
148:5 Let them praise the name of the LORD, for he commanded and they were created.
148:6 He established them forever and ever; he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed.
148:7 Praise the LORD from the earth, you sea monsters and all deeps,
148:8 fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command!
148:9 Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars!
148:10 Wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds!
148:11 Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth!
148:12 Young men and women alike, old and young together!
148:13 Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his glory is above earth and heaven.
148:14 He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his faithful, for the people of Israel who are close to him. Praise the LORD!

Luke 2:41-52
2:41 Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day's journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety." He said to them, "Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" But they did not understand what he said to them. Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.

Sharing Stories

Psalm of praise –don;t you just love the imagery? When God is glorified, ALL of creation celebrates!

Pastor Bill is such great story teller, 

stories help us remember, help us figure out things and ideas, help us identify with one another, to find our common bonds. They help us laugh and cry together and learn together. Stories help us build community. Everyone has a story, everyone needs to be able to share their stories.

{READ GOSPEL LESSON}

Gospel lesson seems to be one of those family stories that gets told often, maybe every year as the family is again on the road home from Jerusalem.

Luke says at the beginning of his Gospel that he set out to write “an orderly account” and that he “carefully investigated these things” So he isn't just repeating tales that were floating around 30 years after Jesus’ life. He talked to the sources as much as he could. Scholars believe that Luke personally spoke with Mary, mother of Jesus. This is the only story we have in the Scripture from Jesus’ life from the time between his infancy and the beginning of his ministry. Maybe this was one of those family stories that got told every so often. And it gives us some insight into Jesus’ formative years.

The family had gone to Jerusalem for the annual Passover festival. This was, and is, the most important of holidays for Jewish people. The Passover commemorates the escape from enslavement in Egypt. Going to Jerusalem for the Passover was one of the things that a devout Jewish family did every year. So we see from this story that Mary and Joseph followed their faith, raising Jesus in their traditions.

In Biblical times, traveling could be a challenge. Ordinary people walked most places. And when making a lengthy trip, they traveled in groups.-extended families, neighbors. A trip like this, going to Jerusalem for Passover, would have had a lot of people going at the same time, so there could have been quite a contingent of people together. Women and children traveled together, the men together. So we can see that Mary and Joseph were not bad parents for losing him! Each would have assumed that Jesus was with the other group. Mary perhaps thinking Jesus, a young man of 12, was traveling with the men. Joseph, possibly thinking Jesus still a kid at only 12, was with the women and children, helping out with younger kids. Families traveled during the daylight hours and made camp at night so they didn't discover Jesus missing until then.

So - the Passover festival was done, at the end of a day's travel towards home, they realized that Jesus was not with them at all. He was lost. Knowing, as a parent myself, how anxious they must have been, they probably slept out of the exhaustion of travel, but wouldn't have slept well! So the next morning they hurried back . And on the 3^rd day, searching through the city of Jerusalem, finally they find him at the Temple! He is talking with the rabbis.The rabbis, teachers of the Jewish faith, would welcome men to join them in the Temple courtyard. The rabbi would sit to teach, the men could stand and ask questions and discuss points of doctrine. So here is Jesus, 12 years old, sitting with the rabbis, discussing and answering! And they were all astonished at the depth of his knowledge. I think this point is one of the main reasons we have this story in Luke’s Gospel. The next piece is why scholars believe that Luke got this story right from Mary. We see her reaction is very much the parent of an adolescent! “Why have you treated us like this?! Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you!” And Jesus' reply is, “Why were you searching for me?" he asked. "Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?"

This is an interesting family story isn't it?

Our 2 churches who've combined into one have great stories too. 2^nd Cong was founded as the new Beloit was growing. after a sturdy bridge was built across the Rock River, about where Grand Ave bridge is now. Businesses and homes were being built up on the west side of the river. And in February 1859 some of the West side residents thought it would be a good idea to build a church here too. since it was wintertime, I am convinced they were tired of slip sliding through ice and snow across a wooden bridge!

We have a new story to tell now. About how our 2 churches began to discuss a good idea, and share a passion for reaching out to others, and our love of good music and good coffee. And how we recognized that God was calling us together.

But we are still truly in the beginning of our story. We only have a few chapters done.
Bill's pastorate at 1^st and here, through this transition, is one of the more important chapters. Thank you again, Bill.

this United Church has a lot more chapters to write yet :)

When we hear a good story, we want to do 2 things. We want to tell one of our good stories too! And we want to tell somebody else the new story we just heard. When we share stories, when we tell a bit about ourselves, we are helping to know each other and understand where we've been and where we are going. We learn what we have in common. And how to work through whatever differences there are to embrace the commonalities. This is how we learn to truly love one another, as Jesus taught.

Going back to our Gospel lesson...

As I said, this story is the only one we have from Jesus’ formative years. And this story of Jesus’ life is the last mention of Joseph in the Gospels. Throughout the Gospels we see several mentions of Mary, but no more mention of Joseph. The traditional belief is that he died some time before Jesus began his ministry. And since this was a typical family of the times, most likely Joseph was several years older than Mary. Men followed their father’s trade and often would not marry until they were earning enough on their own to support a family. Women married not long after reaching child bearing age, so generally the husband was several years older than the wife.

So we learn from this story that Jesus grew up in a typical family. They followed the customs of their faith; they were parents who were anxious about their son. And after this, Luke writes that “as Jesus grew up, he increased in wisdom and in favor with God and people” This shows that Jesus grew intellectually, spiritually, and socially. So this was overall a healthy family.

Hearing this story, most of us who are parents or spend lots of time with kids, may find ourselves thinking about it from Mary’s perspective.

Don't you think Mary would have remembered this incident, maybe each year as they traveled again to Jerusalem for the Passover, certainly on the way home from there! “Jesus, are you with us?” “Yes Mother!” She would remember the terrible anxiety of believing her son was lost, and how lost she felt as well!

And I am positive she remembered this incident many years later, after another trip to Jerusalem for the Passover. Another morning when she had to go to look for Jesus, on the 3^rd day, for a much different purpose. This time the women were going to a borrowed tomb, to anoint his lifeless crucified body. What anguish must have been in her heart that morning.

The baby Jesus, whose story we told last week, the adolescent who aggravated his mother, was born to go to the Cross. That was His story, His purpose.

But it's not the end of the story.

Because of course when the women went to the tomb, they found it empty!

Jesus had risen! The birth, death and resurrection is THE story, the greatest story.

so when we hear a great story? we want to share it! Share that story today. Tell others about the incomparable love of Jesus Christ. Tell them about the love that is here in this United Church of Beloit, looking ahead to the New Year together, to reach out in Love.

Let's start our telling of that story, by singing together Go Tell It on the Mountain!

Sermon given at United Church of Beloit, Nov. 25, 2012. 

Psalm 93

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Lord Reigns

93 The Lord reigns; he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed; he has put on strength as his belt.
Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.
2 Your throne is established from of old;
you are from everlasting.

3 The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
the floods have lifted up their voice;
the floods lift up their roaring.
4 Mightier than the thunders of many waters,
mightier than the waves of the sea,
the Lord on high is mighty!

5 Your decrees are very trustworthy;
holiness befits your house,
O Lord, forevermore.

John 18:33-37

English Standard Version (ESV)

My Kingdom Is Not of This World

33 So Pilate entered his headquarters again and called Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34 Jesus answered, “Do you say this of your own accord, or did others say it to you about me?” 35 Pilate answered, “Am I a Jew? Your own nation and the chief priests have delivered you over to me. What have you done?” 36 Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” 37 Then Pilate said to him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.”

Make Way for The King!

Lectionary...3 year cycle of readings that will take a church through most of the Bible. The Lectionary year begins with the first Sunday of Advent, advent being the 4 weeks preceeding Christmas. So the lectionary year C begins next week. SO today is the end of the year...it is Christ the King Sunday or the Reign of Christ Sunday. This day, the end of the lectionary cycle celebrates the King of Kings, Lord of Lords. It makes for an interesting way to get into the holiday season doesn't it? Thinkign about Jesus as the Ruler of Heaven and Earth...and next week we start over, anticipating the story of the Nativity.

so today we celebrate that Jesus is KING.

Ok in the USA, we don't have a king, indeed royalty today mostly have limited influence, nothing like in centuries past. So it may be hard for us to think in terms of a king. When we talk in our society about a king, it's usually a pop culture person!

In Bible times, there were local kings, like Herod, who was king of Judea, the southern area of what we know today as Israel. And there was the Roman emperor, Tiberius. These were men who exerted a lot of power, for good or ill. In this time period, the Emperor, also known as Caesar, Tiberias, in the year 19-roughly a decade before Jesus' ministry and trial- had had all Jews kicked out of Rome, and so there was not a lot of love between Caesar and the Jewish people. And adding to the animosity, In these times, one of the titles of Caesar was son of god, which of course was not something that the Jewish people could take to, being worshipers of God, the One true God!

In our New Testament passage...one that we hear during Holy week, Jesus has been arrested and is before Pontius Pilate. Pilate was a Governor, employed by Rome. The job of a Roman governor in a place like Jerusalem was to keep the peace, to administer justice, to collect the taxes, and particularly to suppress unrest.

READ GOSPEL LESSON

this passage is titled, My Kingdom is not of this world. Indeed Jesus' kingdom did not Originate on earth did it...but in heaven.

Pilate, tho not Jewish, may have some familarity with Jewish traditions. He asks Jesus “are you the king of the Jews” Jesus asks Pilate, are you asking on your own authority? And Jesus says My Kingdom is not of this world.

All through the Gospels, Jesus spoke of the Kingdom.

Jesus said the Kingdom of heaven has come near! Repent and believe the Good news!

But seek first the kingdom of God...

If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.

“Let the little children come to me.... for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.

Jesus talked all the time of Kingdom.

This is not an earthly kingdom he is referring to. Our Gospel lesson is from John, who begins his gospel saying that Jesus was indeed present In the Beginning, at the creation of all things. Jesus is talking about the Kingdom of all...of all creation, of heaven and earth.

Jesus even taught us to pray for this...we pray Thy Kingdom Come... thy will be done ON earth as it IS in heaven...

we pray for this, how will it happen? The Kingdom come on earth...

can it be that we are to be part of the answer?

Jesus said For this purpose I was born...to bear witness to the truth. What truth? In biblical times, truth was the latest proclamation from the emperor. If it contradicted last week's truth, oh well. Today's statement is today's truth.

Jesus was not talking about a “truth” that changes from day to day. Jesus was talking about eternal truth. That God is ONE God, creator of all. That the Holy Scriptures are truth.. in fact the prophet Daniel refers to 'the Book of Truth.” Jesus prayed for his followers-- Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”

John's Gospel chapter 1, Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

and what else did Jesus say about truth? “I am the way and the truth and the life..”

Jesus was born to bear witness to the truth. The truth of the LOVE of God, for God so LOVED the world....all the world, all of God's creation, that God gave (See that? God loved, love spurs action, God gave....God's only begotten Son...that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” The WHOLE world!! and the word saved here means saved for eternity, but also healed, made whole. That is the Saving Grace of the Kingdom!

Jesus was a king, but not an earthly king. Jesus did not attain a crown through military action, through what we consider might and power. Quite the contrary. He came to earth as a baby, completely vulnerable. He served, and taught and healed, and loved. His life ended, on a cross, completely vulnerable once again—enduring the worst that humanity could dish out. His kingdom was not of this world. It originated in heaven-where there will be no mourning or crying or pain.

Jesus was born to bring people together in God. All people Jew and Gentile, slave and free, male and female..

when all people are together, and care ABOUT one another, they care FOR one another as well. When we love...love spurs action. We reach out to those around us.

In the holiday season, our culture may not encourage the Kingdom of heaven. Quite the contrary. We are encouraged to give more, spend more, to do more, to go to more places...and we may find we enjoy it less. Let us, this season, each of us, and as a church, this United Church of Beloit, make a good effort to remember the One whose kingdom we celebrate. Spend some time with the Word each day, to help keep our focus on Jesus. Think and pray about your giving and your charitable giving. Remember to give thanks for the little things, as well as the big ones. Remember that Jesus is King and Lord and He came for the sole purpose of bringing Heaven and earth--God and Humans, together. And when we follow...we can help others see that Kingdom in us and around us. WE can make the Kingdom happen, here on earth....as it is in heaven. We can be the answer to our prayer! Each of us, working together can help bring about the Kingdom for which Jesus was born. We do this by living our faith, by caring for others, as Jesus did in the Gospels. He took care of people, making sure their needs were met, feeding them, honoring their faith, helping them see the God of compassion. The peace of Christ, the peace that saves, heals, the peace of wholeness, and protection, right here on earth.

Jesus said, For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I have come into the world—to bear witness to the truth. Today we wrap up the Christian year, and we will soon look forward once again to the arrival of the New Born King. Let us seek and honor His kingdom, and make way for the King of Kings!

CLOSING PRAYER

Sovereign God, ruler of all creation,

you sent Jesus to testify to the truth:

that you alone are the Lord of life.

Help us to listen always to his voice

so that we may proclaim his realm

of justice, peace, and endless love;

through Christ, who reigns forever.

Sermon given as guest speaker at Arena Congregational Church Oct 21
An Attitude of Gratitude

Psalm 100

1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
2     Serve the Lord with gladness!
    Come into his presence with singing!

3 Know that the Lord, he is God!
    It is he who made us, and we are his;
    we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.

4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving,
    and his courts with praise!
    Give thanks to him; bless his name!

5 For the Lord is good;
    his steadfast love endures forever,
    and his faithfulness to all generations.

Philippians 4:4-9

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; 6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 Andthe peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

~~~

Do you have a favorite tool? 

I follow this rule—if it does not move, and should- use WD-40!

If it moves and shouldn’t—use Duct Tape!

You know, scientists who study behavior in animals say that the use of tools is one of the key definitions of intelligence. So, no matter what sort of tools you use every day, remember, you are being intelligent!

We have tools for our inner life too. For our spiritual, emotional lives. And I want to share with you one of the most powerful tools there is!  It is the tool of gratitude! Of giving thanks every day for the many many blessings we have, and through this thanksgiving, becoming even more aware of our blessings. This tool is the Attitude of Gratitude.

We see Gratitude all thru Scriptures. Especially in the psalms. Our passage today, Ps 100 is a prime example. As you remember, the psalms were hymns sung by the Jewish people on various occasions. This one was a song that was likely sung as people entered the temple for a worship service. Let’s look at our passage for a moment.

Shout for joy, to the Lord! Not to one another, not to the earth, but to our creator! And all the earth should rejoice like this. All of God’s creation needs to celebrate!

And yes, in addition to rejoice, we worship. And worship with gladness and with joyful songs. Worship happily, not out of duty but out of the joy of living. Living in community-in relationship with God and with each other, as we were created to be!

The Lord is God. He is the supreme being. AND He made us and we are his. We are his children! Or his sheep as the psalmist says. I used to really dislike the whole sheep metaphor. After all, sheep are not the brightest of animals! But then I found out that sheep have terrible trouble sleeping. Everything has to be just right for them, quiet place, nice soft grass to lay on, no insects, no scent of predators…or they have insomnia! (Do sheep with insomnia count people?)

As someone who has had insomnia for years, I realized that maybe we are closer to sheep than we like to think! So we are the sheep of God’s pasture.

so because he created all the earth, and we are his and his alone! We live and love with thanksgiving as God's beloved children and for the chance to worship, give thanks and praise him!

God is good, all the time. His love goes on forever…not just God but his love! For you and me and for all of his creation! And he is always the same, loving and faithful, through all generations. For all of us, forever. Isn't that wonderful!?

I love how this psalm is so lively, in just a few verses, you can really get a sense of a deep down joy-joy in being alive and in being a child of God, and deeply thankful to God for life and the opportunity to worship.

This is the sort of feeling is a true “attitude of gratitude”.

The Apostle Paul writes about this attitude in the letter to Philippians.

(READ new testament lesson)

Paul wrote these beautiful words of gratitude and hope while he was imprisoned!

We can not help but be struck by the depth of joy and confidence in the Lord expressed in this passage and throughout this letter.

Rejoice in the Lord! Could Paul have been singing psalm 100 to himself as he wrote? We can rejoice in the Lord every day as we go about our lives. The Lord is at hand, Paul writes. The Lord is everywhere, not just in church..at hand! As close as can be. What a comfort that is!

So...don't be anxious! Don't worry and fret...take your worries, your concerns to God, in prayer, Thanking God for God's presence and compassion, and give all of your cares to The Lord. And the Peace of God will guard your hearts and minds---it will protect you from your worries!

The Peace of God-- the Hebrew word is Shalom. Shalom means peace, but much more ..Peace is of course an absence of unrest...The idea of shalom also means “wellness,” “completeness,” “perfection,” “safety,” “soundness,” “success,” “wholeness,” “health,” and good relationships between people—all people! When there is shalom, everything is as it should be, our lives are as God meant them to be, our world is in the order he intended.

Shalom, that peace that passes understanding, is the gift of God, the God of Love, who promises to be with us always! No matter what we may go through, God is with us.

and then Paul goes on to guide us how to keep that Peace in our hearts and minds...by “thinking on these things.” “whatever is true, honorable, just, whatever is pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, worthy of praise”

these are qualities of God. Thinking on these things can help replace the “junk' that separates us from God. Thinking on these things helps us focus on God, help the Light of God's love shine in us, and out to others!

Jesus embodied these qualities of God, indeed Jesus said, do not worry about tomorrow, today has enough trouble of its own! Perhaps Paul had that lesson in mind as he wrote these words. And he taught us just how to live out those words. Keeping the qualities of God in mind, with gratitude, praying with thanks.

Our pilgrim forebears had this whole idea down pat. Over the years, we have gotten this idea that the Pilgrims were stern, rather mean-spirited people. That just isn't so. They loved God and loved one another as well as they possibly could. They had a strong work ethic, that was based in their gratitude to God for providing life, home, family and so on. One worked because it was taught in the Scriptures, and because in working, one was caring for all that had been given by God. and when they worked, they felt grateful to be able to work. They were grateful to have the tools to work well, and the ability to use them! They were deeply thankful people.

Being grateful for things in life, large and small, is as I said, a powerful tool for our lives. Gratitude can actually help you to “re-program’ your brain out of negative thought patterns. Now some people tend to see the glass as half full, some do not! By practicing gratitude, you can become a glass half full person!

I know this…by personal experience! And there have been scientific studies. People were asked to keep a Gratitude Journal.-a daily diary, where they were to write down things for which they were grateful.

The results of the study indicated that daily gratitude exercises resulted in higher reported levels of alertness, enthusiasm, determination, optimism and energy. Additionally, the gratitude group experienced less depression and stress, was more likely to help others, exercised more regularly and made more progress toward personal goals. According to the findings, people who feel grateful are also more likely to feel loved. {The researchers} also noted that gratitude encouraged a positive cycle of reciprocal kindness among people since one act of gratitude encourages another. ¹

I want to challenge you to try this-- write down something each day. Big things or small- the sound of a bird, or a child’s laugh! Or seeing the colors of the sunrise or sunset. And the ability to see. Or having a home. Having family, church family!

Now I have to admit, sometimes it is hard to see something for which to be grateful! There is a story of the little girl who hated certain vegetables. When asked to say the blessing, she refused, saying, “The Lord knows I’m not thankful for brussel sprouts.” Her mother told her she couldn’t leave the table until she thanked God for something. The little girl bowed her head and said, “Lord, I’m thankful this stuff didn’t make me sick. Amen!”

Each day brings something for which we can say thank you to God. and the more often we remember to say thank you for blessings, the more we recognize how blessed we are. And in so doing, we grow closer to God. When we focus on our blessings, we learn to see things as God sees them. And we learn to find God’s presence in those around us, in ourselves, and in the world. Having an attitude of Gratitude, is training yourself to find God. To find God every day, everywhere! In yourself and in others! This awareness of the presence of God in everything and is what the Pilgrims knew so well. This awareness is recognizing that you are a gift! That each of us is a gift-and that all we have is a gift—a gift given out of love. Out of the greatest love of all, the love of God. This is a gift to celebrate today, and every day! And the greatest gift of all, given by God to one of us, is His Son, Jesus Christ. Through Him, we have God within. Give thanks today-and every day- for Him and for his blessings to you.

Amen.

1 Study by Dr. Michael McCollough, of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and Dr. Robert Emmons, of the University of California at Davis, quoted by The Osgood File on the CBS Radio Network.

Where 2 or 3....

Sermon given Oct 14, 2012 as Second Congregational and First Presbyterian were about to vote to become one unified church!

Where Two or Three are Gathered

Isaiah 43:16-19
16 This is what the Lord says—
    he who made a way through the sea,
    a path through the mighty waters,
17 who drew out the chariots and horses,
    the army and reinforcements together,
and they lay there, never to rise again,
    extinguished, snuffed out like a wick:
18 “Forget the former things;
    do not dwell on the past.
19 See, I am doing a new thing!
    Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?
I am making a way in the wilderness
    and streams in the wasteland.



Luke 5:27-32
27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.
29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”
31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

~~~~~~~
This morning, I was on the internet, (shocking, I know) and on Facebook, one pastor friend was unintentionally funny because of a typing error. He posted, “All are welcome this morning in celebration of a baptism, with gratitude for the TIRES that bind us.”   

We are working through series on “Natural Church Development”. According to author Christian Schwarz, there are 8 characteristics of growing churches. Schwarz says that instead of asking 'how do we get more people to come to church?” we need to ask “how can we grow in each of these 8 quality areas?” Today we discuss Holistic Small Groups.

So what does that mean. First, small groups means yes, our Bible study groups, Sunday morning, Friday Prayer breakfast, women's groups, Youth groups certainly. But 'small groups' certainly encompasses more. Small groups can be any group that gets together regularly. This can include...Carl's Coffee, choir!...how about, church boards and committees? Of course! our work groups and teams who have been leading the process of the coming together of 2 churches?! You bet!--so, Are these holistic small groups? Well, what does that mean?

“Holistic” defined according to Merriam Webster online...: relating to or concerned with wholes (W-h-o-l-e-s-not a hole in your sock but the entirety -the complete being) or with complete systems rather than with the analysis of, treatment of, or dissection into parts. 
e.g. holistic medicine attempts to treat both the mind and the body. 
Holistic medicine knows that your emotions and spiritual life affect the physical being, and how you feel physically affects your mental, emotional and spiritual state.
holistic means to understand that we are more than just the sum of our parts, and also that we are integrated with all that is around us. In the body of Christ lesson Doug gave us last week, we learned that each single part of a body is important, we NEED every single aspect, even the baby toe, right? And holistic theory helps us integrate and celebrate the WHOLE, not just the parts! Holistic small groups deal with the whole person, caring for needs of all participants,  So that we remember –Re-Member...get it!? That each member of a small group is a key part of that group and each group is an integral part of the church, therefore a part of the WHOLE. And that the whole church is a part of, and key, to the larger community, and so on.

Holistic small groups in a church are groups in which the work of Jesus is evident. it's evident in the people and in what they do. The Love, the compassion, the hope of the future, and the knowledge that God is with us through the present. Holistic groups are made up of people who are following Christ. The groups are intentional about keeping Jesus at the heart of what is being done. These groups incorporate prayer, even bible time, discussion of how God is working in our lives, and where God is leading the group, and especially-- recognizing consensus in the group as being the leading of the Holy Spirit! Each of us can be a part of understanding where God is leading, but we really learn and grow together in a group. Each of us brings our own experience and understanding, which is a PART of the whole understanding and experience of God. So we can then complement each other and grow together.

How can we be sure a group we are in is a “holistic” group? Do you enjoy being a part of the group? Are Godly priorities part of the group? Or is there complaining, or other negativity? Recurring negative talk and feelings are a sign that this is NOT holistic, it is not about the work of the Lord! If you are feeling this, please take even a moment to pray within your heart, if not aloud, for people to remember that we are gathered IN Christ, and may the Spirit of Christ be a presence in your midst. The group may even need to refocus, to make a new commitment to Following Jesus.

I believe that our transition work groups and teams have been holistic small groups. The meetings that I attended always started at least with a prayer for guidance. Some incorporated a short bible reading or devotion, to help us focus on the mission of that meeting. To remind us that we are here for a much larger purpose. This transition isn't just about us. In this process, we have recognized that we are doing something new. That God is doing a new thing, right here. We started off thinking this change would be something special, but we've come to realize that there is much more than what we perceived at the very beginning. In this process, we began to realize that God is indeed doing a new thing. We are coming together, not just 2 mainstream churches, but we are becoming a new entity! We of course honor our roots, our history, but we are much more than that! Together we have an amazing capability to reach out in the Name of Christ. Just look at what we have done together just the past several months!

Together we are working with Hands of Faith, helping families on the path from homelessness to a stable lifestyle. We hosted a beautiful music concert, attended by well over 200 people- the donations from which went to Project 16:49 to help homeless teens. Our Vacation Bible school helped 30 some kids get a better grasp of what it means to follow Jesus. We hosted a book bag bash, getting bags full of school supplies to 162 needy kids! And giving many more lunch and time to relax and play in a safe, structured environment. Some of the kids who were there and at VBS have come on Sunday morning! Just think how much we are accomplishing already this year, and we haven't even formally merged yet!
How much more can we do together, if we are committed to following Jesus, and reaching out in His name?!
Our 2 churches proudly come from the tradition of the Protestant Reformation, with its emphasis on the Bible. Our 2 churches have this long history of compassion and caring for others. It is after all, what the Bible tells us! Our churches have thought long and hard about our sense of purpose and our vision for the future. A few years ago, both churches did vision statements. 1st's was at the beginning of their transition process. 2nd's was as we were moving into our 150th anniversary celebration. Both vision statements tell of churches who emphasize worship and music. Both statements tell of churches with a love of fellowship, coming together to share coffee, a meal and good company, churches who holistically care for our members and our community. Both statements tell of a commitment to reach out in the Name of Jesus, as the Bible tells us. We are honoring the long traditions of our churches, as we are forming a new one! We will continue to honor our history, but right now, in this merger process, we need every member to renew our commitment to Follow Jesus! This is the only way we will discern the vision that God has for this new church. A couple days ago there was some discussion of what our vision for the future is. And I believe that we are so entrenched in this immediate process that we have not seen a precise vision for the future. God has not revealed it yet, or we are not quite perceiving it yet! But a few years ago, during the process of crafting our vision statement, I was praying about the future of our church. And this image came to my mind...a beautiful image, it was there for just a moment, but I certainly remember it. It was this church building with beams of light shining out from it. You know how light from a lighthouse can be seen from miles and miles away..there's a light on Cape Cod that can be seen 30 miles out to sea! This is what that light looked like, but shining in every single direction! Bright, warm light, glowing, it could be seen shining over our community for miles! It was the Light of Christ. Emanating from this very place. It was light that tells of love, hope, peace, and healing, from our Lord Jesus.

These 2 churches coming together are the beginning of this vision coming true. There is more to be revealed, the light will only shine as it is meant to when each of us is fully committed to following our Loving Lord. Then this new Unified Church will indeed be a new thing for Christ, perceived far and wide, fulfilling God's dream for us and for the generations to come!


Please pray with me:
Holy Lord God,  we are here in Your name, yearning to better follow You. Help us today and every day, to Live in the love and light of Jesus. Help us to follow You more today than yesterday, and even more tomorrow! Help us to care for the whole person, the whole church, the whole community, as YOU would have us do. Guide us to help the Light of Christ shine ever more brightly from this place into the world. In Jesus' Holy Name, amen.

Forgot to post this sermon from Mother's Day 2012. title Mother Love.

1 John 5:1-6
5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child.

5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments.

5:3 For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome,

5:4 for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith.

5:5 Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

5:6 This is the one who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only but with the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one that testifies, for the Spirit is the truth.

John 15:9-17
15:9 As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.

15:10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.

15:11 I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.

15:12 "This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

15:13 No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.

15:14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.

15:15 I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.

15:16 You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name.

15:17 I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.

Happy Mother's Day!

A boy forgot his lines in a Sunday school play. Luckily his is mother was in the front row especially to prompt him.
She gestured and formed the words silently with her lips, but it did not help. His memory was completely blank. Finally, she leaned forward and whispered the cue, 'I am the light of the world.'
He beamed and with great feeling and a loud clear voice announced, 'My mother is the light of the world.'

The Gospel of John chapter 15, the words of Jesus, spoken to the disciples on the last night of Jesus' earthly life. Jesus is speaking from his heart, saying “abide in My love!” teaching to love as he has loved. Not as others love, but as Jesus himself loves! Maybe your parents had a hard time conveying their love. Jesus says very plainly here how much he loves and cares for his followers. And since we are so loved, we are to love others. We do not HAVE to obey, but we wish to, because of that love. Both of our scriptures today speak of this obedience to God because of the Love of God, through Jesus :)

Good parents give of themselves, loving and caring for the family, make sure kids have place to sleep, enough to eat, warm clothing in winter and so on....some parents are not able to do these things well. They have other issues that prevent them from doing better. FORTUNATELY we have a loving perfect parent in God!God loves us unconditionally, as we are and not as we should be, because none of us is as we should be. When we recognize how loved we are, we are better able to love others well. We can grow out of the trouble we may have grown up in, because of that profound love. And loving others means-as good parents do- to offer ourselves, and our gifts.

Here at church for example, we offer our gifts—our weekly monetary gift of course, but also our time, our talents -making music, making food, organizing events, wiping tables or washing communion plates, any number of ways to help out. We offer our gifts because we are blessed! When we put God first, everything we do can be an offering! So we are wiping tables, singing a song, to honor God. Since God is love, we want to do for God in loving ways!

When we are loved well, we feel cared for and want to care for others.

When our children are babies, we change diapers not because we want to, we do so because we love them! So we change them and clean them up well because they can't do it yet. We want to do well to keep them healthy and happy. Just out of love. When we were little kids we wanted to do what our parents asked because we loved them. Now we want to do as Jesus says, because of the incredible love shown us, even in spite of all we do that is not Godly. So we do what we can and do it as well as we can. To honor God. And that is a way that the Light of Christ shines through us to others.

We may think we will help others when we get all squared away. We can't give this week because we can't afford steak. Can we afford burger? Cottage cheese? Then we are ahead of many others. We are called to help others, regardless! We may not have much, but we can still help! Because there is always someone worse off, there is always someone who needs our help. Right now, each of us has a place to return to, a place to lay down at night. It may not be a palace, but it's home. It's a place where we are comfortable and feel safe. Thank you, God! Sadly, even today in the 21^st century USA! there are many people who do not have a place to call home. Over and over the Bible tells us to care for others, especially the widow and orphan. In those times the widow and orphan were the most likely to be homeless. And in a society in which men were well into their 20s before marrying a younger woman, there were apt to be a LOT of widows and orphans...therefore a lot of folks who were homeless or nearly so. Today it is often a single parent family, or a family of a military veteran who are homeless. You and I have homes. How can we not help those without?

A couple of years ago, Jeff Hoyt, executive director of Hands of Faith spoke here at 2^nd Cong. We were inspired, collected a good offering for the ministry and folks here were interested. 1^st Presbyterian has been involved in Hands of Faith and wondered as we began talks of coming together, if 2^nd would care to help with Hands of Faith. Several of us said YES! This is clearly something we were meant to do. A commitment from each of us of a few hours spent together, a home-cooked meal, can mean so much to these folks who are working hard to get their lives back on track! let's help them see that God is the ultimate safe haven, even in hard times. God is the perfect parent, the place of rest, of comfort. Jesus' light will surely shine through as we help.

Jesus says, “you did not choose me, I chose you!” now of course the disciples DID choose to follow Jesus, but Jesus, who was in the beginning, actually chose them---and us-- first. And he appointed the disciples..and US-to go and bear fruit! To show the Love of God by loving and caring for others!

We are in a time of sea change for traditional churches. More churches are the church not just OF the community but FOR the community. Churches reach out to others to be a blessing, showing the love of Christ. One of the interesting facets of this time of change is that young people are coming into churches, because they have first joined mission projects and then learned about the churches involved and they begin to attend. People who consider themselves “spiritual but not religious” are finding that some of us who are religious are actually spiritual too! that is the Holy Spirit, the gift of God, is the Truth. The truth of God.

Our Loving parent promises that

..for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory that conquers the world, our faith. OUR faith...can help conquer the world!? Can a few folks in a midwestern town make a difference in the world?! Yes! Absolutely! Two church families, coming together to share their love of God and compassion for others can make a difference right here and far beyond this corner of Beloit! What each of us does has a ripple effect. We can never be sure just how far our words and actions will reach. Our work together, to help the homeless, the hungry, to help children and to reach out to all kinds of people will fill our community with the Light of Christ! And who knows what effect this can have on those folks we reach out to!? At the very least, families will remember that a group of folks helped out when they were struggling. This church can become a beacon of the Light of Christ for people all over this area. When we abide in Christ, he abides in us. And we can accomplish so much together. God has surely brought us together for this day and time, for God's purposes.

Today, Mother's Day, can bring up complex feelings. You may be reminded of a wonderful relationship with your Mom or another relative, or your own kids. Or it may remind you of losses, of your mother or maybe a child. Or the loss of the nurturing that you didn't receive from your own mother. Can we think of today as a day to celebrate the love that runs all through life? The love that we experience holding a baby, the love that we may have found in family members or dear friends. An unconditional love..the love that we know comes from God :) Good parents offer a lot of themselves. Our Heavenly parent offered up the very best....God's own Son who laid down his life for his friends...and us.