7th Sunday of Easter, First Congregational UCC, Rock Springs, WY

There is no posting for the 6th week of Easter as the Women gave the service in honor of Mothering Day. It was a most inspirering worship and I look forward to this coming Fathering Day where I can get the men to lead the worship. Nevertheless, here is todays Reflection upon the scriptures read.

The Look of God’s Kingdom
By Rev Steven R Mitchell
First Congregational UCC, Rock Springs, WY 5/16/10
Based on Acts 16: 16-34 and John 17:20-26


The Gospel reading this morning opens with Jesus praying to God on behalf of his disciples, asking that they may be filled with the Holy Spirit in the same way that Jesus is filled, not for the benefit of His disciples but rather so that the world might “recognize” them as being representatives of God, and through this recognition become one with God, as Jesus was one with God. If you have ever wondered what the mission of the church is, you can read it here in Jesus’ prayer: Righteous Parent, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these (meaning the disciples) know that you have sent me. I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them. The single mission of the church is to make known the “love” that God has for us! Now, the big question then for us is, “how do we work that out in our community and in the greater world?”
Out of the many books that I have read over the years, there is one that seems to be very impactful in my life. It was given to me by my mother-in-law. This particular book was written in 1896 by a Congregational minister while he was pastor of what is now known as Central Congregational UCC in Topeka, KS. The title of this fictional story is In His Steps, written by Charles M. Sheldon. In fact, this book is so powerful in the life of Central Church; it is still being performed every 3 or 4 years as a play.
In this fictional story, we are at once introduced to Henry Maxwell, the affluent, mild mannered, and well spoken Pastor of the First Church of Raymond. We meet him while he busies himself with preparation for his weekly sermon. The theme of this week’s sermon: The Atonement and the fundamental link of Christ’s sacrifice being synonymous with our own sacrifice in his call to leave our old lives behind and follow Him. A "tramp" appears at Rev Maxwell’s door (tramps, or the poor in general, represent Christ in Christian thought) and is turned quickly away, though with a kind word. The tramp would later set the hearts of many of The First Church community alight with the fire of God's own Love. The Spirit would take this opportunity to teach them what true discipleship is; what it means to offer one's entire being to Christ. As usual, the well-dressed community expected a beautiful service, fine music, and, to end it all, an intellectually satisfying and well-presented sermon by Rev. Henry Maxwell.

After Rev. Maxwell delivers another fine sermon, the service is brought to an abrupt halt as the tramp we met earlier makes his way forward and addresses the people. The tramp expresses his nagging question: What does the Christian mean when he says that he gives all to follow Christ; that he suffers for Christ, while everyone lives in such comfort and dares not raise a finger in aid of the poor's plight? He then falls to the ground unconscious. This event touches and offends many, but in the end brings to birth the well known "What Would Jesus Do?" movement. Wikiepedia.com
“What would Jesus Do” seems to be at the heart of what Jesus was seeking in His prayer for the disciples and, ultimately, the church that has developed out of His ministry here on earth. It’s a simple question that each one of us should be asking at every movement of our life. I have to wonder if Rev Sheldon was thinking about the Apostle Paul and his actions when the young woman who was possessed by a spirit of divination kept following him around, and Paul finally exorcised her of this spirit.
Listen once more to this story: One day, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, ‘These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation.’ She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, ‘I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.’ And it came out that very hour.”
As we read this short tale of events, we might think this is another story of great healing, as Paul heals this young slave girl of the “evil spirit” that possessed her, yet there are some very haunting questions left in this story that beg our examination. One of the unanswered questions of this story is: what about this young girl’s life after this exorcism by Paul? Another question that comes to mind focuses on the motive of Paul in his “healing” of this young woman. Scripture says, Paul became annoyed with her, which prompts his exorcising this spirit of fortune-telling. Theologian Lawrence W. Farris asks the question this way: Isn’t she still a slave, and isn’t Paul moved to help her beyond freeing her from the spirit that possessed her? Paul and his assistants, do not invite her into the freedom of faith offered to Lydia earlier in Acts or the jailer later in the story. Not only does she continue in bondage to her owners, but also to her separation from the very God she names. UCC Study Guide
Curiously, Farris says that Paul is “implicitly” challenging “the economic system of the day,” but the text doesn’t really indicate that as much as it describes his annoyance at being interrupted, or perhaps heckled. Paul was on a mission, and he didn’t really see the girl or her healing as part of that mission, and certainly not as at the heart of it. UCC Study Guide
I think this is the question that we need to be asking of ourselves this morning: Are our acts of ‘Christian charity’ acts based on what Jesus would have us do or are they based on annoyance? Do we perform our mission of proclaiming God’s love out of a deep sense that comes from the movement of the Holy Spirit within us, or are we doing things in the “love of God” solely based on what we think we should be doing?
Picture it: Seattle, the Fall of 1990, a young preacher has just moved from his ministry in a small town to Seattle, where he was in the process of ‘rediscovering’ who he was and what his life was going to look like in his new found-personage. He was taking time out of the ministry as a preacher and working on himself, working in the secular world not in one but two jobs, trying to survive economically. One Sunday morning, as he is on his way to church, he stops off at a 7-eleven, for a cup of coffee and a donut, which is his breakfast. As he leaves the store, he is accosted by two Native Americans for a hand-out (a very common event on the streets of Seattle.) As he tries to brush by them with a “no I can’t help you” he then hears their plea for food as they address him “Oh great white father, can you buy us something to eat?” Out of embarrassment, the young former minister, finds himself going back into the 7-eleven and buying each of these people a couple of hotdogs and a drink.
Was I motivated out of the love that God wishes me to act upon by providing food for these two people who were in need at that point in time? No, not at all; rather I was helping them as a way of easing my conscience. Like Paul, in my trying to live out my Christian walk, I was being interrupted by an annoyance to my agenda to act out my Christian beliefs.
My question is, as a church that says we believe in the “Love” of God, how often are we motivated into action more out of “annoyance” than by the movement of God’s Holy Spirit? How often are we ready to help someone who is in need, without really walking through life with them? Meaning, we help someone with their rent, but are we there visiting with them in their home? I don’t need to belabor the point, as I’m sure you know what I mean.
The title of today’s reflection is, The Look of God’s Kingdom. Jesus was saying in His prayer that the Kingdom of God is here on earth, and that it is found within our hearts. My challenge to you this morning is to think about, “how God’s Kingdom looks” within your heart as you go throughout this next week. Does it look like “Love” or does it look like an act that comes out of “annoyance”? Will we act upon our Christian responsibility out of annoyance, or will we first ask ourselves “What would Jesus do”? Amen