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Sunday, May 4, 2003 Sermon:
"Children of Faith"
Scripture: I John 3:1-7 Reverend Larry Gerber
Recent
research shows that every person in the Western world is descended from Charlemagne,
emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. His genes are not the only genes of a king
that we share, however.
It's a well-known truism that — according to the Bible — we are the
children of God. If you're of European ancestry, you've got royalty in your
blood. You're a descendant of Charlemagne, a distant relative of this master
of Western Europe known as "Charles the Great." Living from 742 to
814, he ruled as King of the Franks and Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, and
worked tirelessly to spread commerce, education and Christianity. Granted, today
our congregations are multi-culturally, and multi-ethnically diverse, creating
a wonderful mosaic of cultural, generational and ethnic traditions. Yet, the
question is an interesting one: How can this particular ethnic strain —
the European — of which there are hundreds of millions of persons, be linked
to and through Charlemagne? It doesn't seem plausible. The secret is our shared
genetic material. Think for a minute about how many ancestors you have. Sure,
you know that you have two parents and four grandparents, but as you go back
in time the numbers grow quickly: eight great-grandparents, 16 great-great-grandparents,
32 great-great- great-grandparents. Go back 40 generations, or about a thousand
years, and each of us has, theoretically, more than a trillion direct ancestors.
And since our family trees are not independent, but are inevitably going to
overlap and intersect within that period of time, we are all swimming in the
same genetic pool. At some point, we're all family, sharing the same genetic
material! But how do we connect to Charlemagne? Yale statistician Joseph Chang
has made some discoveries about the common ancestors of all present-day individuals.
His research reveals that the most recent common ancestor of every European
today was someone who lived in Europe in the surprisingly recent past —
only about 600 years ago. In other words, all Europeans alive today — except
for recent immigrants — have in their family tree the same man or woman
who lived around the year 1400. This common ancestor was swimming in Charlemagne's
genetic pool, and so it is through this person that every European has a connection
with Charles the Great. But what about those of us in America? We're part of
this same family. According to Chang's analysis, almost everyone in the Americas
must be descended from royalty — even people of predominantly African or
Native American ancestry, because of the long history of intermarriage in the
New World. Through this complex web of relationships, we can all connect ourselves
to Charlemagne. These links can be found around the world as well. The most
recent common ancestor of all six billion people on earth today probably lived
just a couple of thousand years ago. This means that through this single person
we can all trace our family ties back to Confucius, Nefertiti and just about
any other ancient historical figure who ever lived. At some point, all six billion
of us are family. We all share some of the same genetic material.
Well, enough about Charlemagne and genetic connections!! Let's take a look at the text in 1 John. Here a very different kind of family is described. This family is not made up of people who trace their lineage back to Charlemagne or to Confucius, but to Christ — through Jesus Christ to God. It is a family of those "who have been born of God" (1 John 3:9) — people who have been born "not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God" (John 1:13) — people who have the same spiritual genes. So what are the significant markers on a "God-child's" strand of DNA? For starters, this family has the very same Father. As you know, it's often said that "you can't choose your parents," and in the family of God this is certainly true. We have not chosen God, but he has chosen us. We did not first call God "Father"; instead, he first called us his children. We have not earned a spot in this family by our good deeds or by our noble thoughts or by our winning ways, but by one thing, and one thing only: the generous love of God the Father (v. 1).
Now,
there are some people in the world that insists that there is no God, let alone
a loving Father. Listen to this practical analysis:
A man went to a barber shop to have his hair and his beard cut as always.
He started to have a good conversation with the barber who attended him. They
talked about so many things and various subjects. Suddenly, they touched the
subject of God. The barber said: "Look man, I don't believe that God exists
as you say so."
"Why do you say that?" asked the client.
Well, it's so easy, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God
does not exist. Oh, tell me, if God existed, would there be so many sick people?
Would there be abandoned children? If God existed, there would be no suffering
nor pain. I can't think of a God who permits all of these things."
The client stopped for a moment thinking, but he did not want to respond so
as to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the client went out
of the shop. Just after he left the barber shop he saw a man in the street with
long hair and a long beard (it seems that it had been a long time since he had
his hair cut and beard trimmed).
Then the client again entered the barber shop and said to the barber: "You
know what? Barbers do not exist."
"What do you mean they don't exist?" asked the barber, " I am
here and I am a barber."
"No!" the client exclaimed. "They do not exist, because if they
did, there would be no people with long hair and scraggly beards, like that
man who walks the street."
"Ah, barbers do exist, what happens is that people do not come to me"
exclaimed the barber.
"Exactly!" affirmed the client. "That is the point. God does
exist, what happens is people don't go to God and do not look for God.. That
is why there is so much pain and suffering in the world."
Another DNA marker of the child of God is that he or she is growing, developing
and maturing. What we are becoming is not yet completely clear, but John tells
us that when our growth is finished we will be like God's son Jesus (v. 2).
Growing in the image of Christ means finding new ways to share the gospel, speak
the truth, serve the poor, heal the sick and bind up the brokenhearted. It means
walking the self-denying, cross-carrying path of discipleship and following
Christ's example of eating with outcasts, forgiving sinners, loving enemies
and turning the other cheek. It means swimming in the gene pool of Jesus, opening
ourselves further to the movement of the Holy Spirit and allowing ourselves
to become ever more effective channels for the ever-flowing love of God.
This growth and development happens not only in individuals, but in communities
as well. In fact, maturation is often seen most clearly in groups of Christians,
in communities that understand themselves to be the Body of Christ in the world
today.
Today is Native American Sunday. A portion of your gifts, through the communion
envelopes will enhance that ministry. One example of what this offering does
is related in this short story:
"I fought the call to ministry as long as I could, but it's too big of
a call," admits Walter D. Quoetone, a Kiowa. "So now I'm in Seminary."
That Walter has served as a licensed local pastor since 1999 probably is no
surprise to those who know his family history. His great-grandfather founded
Mount Scott Kiowa United Methodist Church near Lawton, Oklahoma., an dedicated
his son - Walter's grandfather - to Christian service. Three generations of
the Quoetone family have answered God's call to the ordained ministry.
Today Walter wears two hats. He is a student at Perkins School of Theology,
Dallas, and pastor of J.J. Methvin Church, Anadarko, Ok. The diverse, small-
member congregation gives Walter opportunities to reach out across generational
lines. Striving to attract younger people, he recently began a youth group,
and a Sunday School class for teen-agers. Your communion offering on this, Native
American Sunday will help Walter and many others who could not say "Yes"
to God, if we didn't also say yes to God's calling with our offering, and our
prayers.
In many other ways, Sun Lakes United Methodist Church is a body of believers
who are active channels of God's ever-flowing love: We have a faith statement
that proclaims, we are A Window to the World. Our mission is to serve as an
open, accessible, and friendly window to the world, reflecting His light and
love through service to all people in our community, nation, and the world.
We are offering Christ to those along the Riggs Road Corridor who are in search
of a guided spiritual life, and a spiritual place where they can raise their
children. We cannot make this physical plant accessible to the needs of children,
youth, and young adults. But we can place ourselves in strategic places along
Riggs Road, and we can be a window to the world, in mission to serve or community,
reflecting the light and love of God, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
We are already meeting some of the needs of the younger families. They are welcome
to worship with us. Just today, we witnessed, and took part in a baptism, promising
to uphold this family with our prayers. Gods richest love is flowing from this
church.
We are reaching to our brothers and sisters on the Gila River Reservation, as
they search for a more meaningful spiritual life. Our Church and Society committee
has been meeting with some of the people next door to us, who are hungering
for a fuller spiritual life.
We offer food, clothing, and services to UMOM, Wesley Community Center, and
beyond. We take special offering for urgent needs and disasters for people of
all walks of life, throughout the world.
Like Jesus, we believe in the power of transformation, and we will continue
to focus our mission on the needs of the world around us. We're not experimental,
we're here to stay, and to serve.
The Body of Christ may try new things, but it's never experimental. It's here
to stay. That's its destiny. That's its DNA. It must evolve, grow, develop and
mature. A final marker of the child of God is a commitment to purity and righteousness.
In today's text, John challenges us to purify ourselves, because God is pure
(v. 3), and he calls us to strive to do what is right, because God our Father
is righteous (v. 7). The goal of everything we say and do is the advancement
of God's own justice, based on the vision we have of God's everlasting kingdom.
The key is good genetic material, and good divine parenting. God "is at
work in you," says Paul to the Philippians, "enabling you both to
will and to work for his good pleasure" (2:13). God is at work in us, insists
Paul, always at work in us — this is the secret to any spiritual success.
But we need to realize that our progress toward purity and righteousness is
never an isolated human activity, but is instead a response to God's action
in our lives. We cannot reach maturity on our own, any more than children can
grow into healthy and responsible adults without good genes and good guidance.
Like mothers and fathers who conceive and nourish and nurture and support their
children, God is always working to mold us into the kind of people he wants
us to be. The initiative is never ours — it is always God's! But, like
the good barber, if the one in need does not respond, there will be no haircut.
That does not mean that there are no barbers, it means there is no response
to the barber. There is a God who initiates love, justice, and righteousness;
but if the recipient does not respond, the gift from God goes unnoticed. So
let's feel good about our family tree. Just as everyone in the world is descended
from Nefertiti and Confucius, everyone in the church is related to one gracious
and loving heavenly Father. We share the spiritual genes of God's own Son Jesus,
and we are maturing in the faith right along with John and Paul and every other
follower of Christ who has ever lived. Charlemagne can keep his crown. We're
children of an even greater king.
Our King offers himself today through Holy Communion, and some of you will be taking this serivice to those who could not be here today. The ministry continues, as long as we respond to the Giver of the Gift. Let us pray the Prayer of Humble Access.
Let me know what you think. The church Email is: SLUMC@att.net, Phone: 480.895.8766