Responding When the Spirit Comes, Mountain View United, 5/27/2012 by Rev Steven Mitchell

Responding When the Spirit Comes By Rev Steven R Mitchell Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 5/27/2012 Based on Acts 2:1-21 It is often said, “The only constant in life is change.” In the book “Future Shock” the author, Alvin Toffler explored the topic of “how much change can the human psyche handle before it has a meltdown? The Twentieth Century experienced radical shifts in social structure, dramatic shifts in global power. As we moved from industrialization into the “space age” we have seen radical change in the way we communicate with others. Times are not just changing, they are radically changing! Our lesson from Acts this morning is a story of radical change. Sometimes referred to as the beginning of the Christian Church, it is both the conclusion to and beginning of the next phase of God’s restoration of humanity. The conclusion is of the story about one man’s life, who was known as Jesus the Nazarene. Those who had become inspired by Jesus’ words and actions, now find themselves left alone, as Jesus dies and ascends into heaven. Yet Jesus had promised the disciples that they would not be left alone and in this story we see the coming of the Holy Spirit, the one that Jesus said was the comforter and guide. It is in the descent of the Holy Spirit that radical change is seen and through this change the disciples find the strength to start sharing the message that the “Kingdom of God” truly is alive in this world. It is no longer a concept of something to strive toward, but is a reality to live in. Modern Christianity has come to refer to Pentecost Sunday as an original title, meaning, on the day that the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples it became known as Pentecost. In reality, the descending of the Holy Spirit came during the Jewish festival of Pentecost also known as Shavuot or Harvest festival or festival of weeks. This festival was the celebration of the receiving of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, which came fifty days after the exile. In Luke’s narration, the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples came fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus from the grave. You can look at these two events and say that the author was manipulating events, but I think it was a way of emphasizing the reality that God was once again doing something very dramatic in the world. Leading church historian, Diana Butler Bass in her latest book, “Christianity After Religion” proposes some startling similarities to where Christianity is at today and the story of Pentecost. We can say the word “Pentecost” in and of itself refers to, “a beginning period of great awakening at a spiritual level.” We have experienced this within the Christian Church periodically, the “Reformation” being one example. Historians of American religion generally recognize three significant awakenings in the United States and Canada: the First Great Awakening, 1730-60; the Second Great Awakening, 1800-1830; and the Third Great Awakening, 1890-1920. During each period, old patterns of religious life gave way to new ones and, eventually, spawned new forms of organizations and institutions that interwove with social, economic, and political change and revitalized national life. Christianity After Religion, Diana Butler Bass, pg 29 The First Great Awakening marked the end of European styles of church organization and created an experiential, democratic, pan-Protestant community of faith called evangelicalism. The Second great Awakening ended Calvinist theological dominance and initiated new understandings of free will that resulted in a voluntary system for church membership and benevolent work. And the Third Great Awakening had two distinctive manifestations; the social gospel movement, with its progressive politics, and the Pentecostal movement, with an emphasis on miraculous transformation. Pg 29, Christianity After Religion I shared with those who met this past Tuesday at the Sacred Grounds study, my belief that we are in the midst of a new Awakening. One that isn’t just happening within North America but is happening worldwide, starting in the 1960’s, and in this country referred to as, “the Jesus movement.” Interestingly, it was stifled in the 1970-80’s with the reactionary rise of fundamentalism. So how do we recognize this new Awakening? It can be seen in the collapse of many of our traditional institutions ranging from fraternal organizations, to the lack of trust in our financial and governing bodies, and in the demise of “organized religion.” In a 2004 survey, the Barna organization found that young adults who are outside of church hold intensely negative views of Christianity: 91% think the Christianity is “antihomosexual, 87% say Christianity is judgmental, 85% accuse churchgoers of being hypocritical, and 72% say Christianity is out of touch with reality. Only 41% think that Christianity seems genuine or real or makes sense, while only 30% think that it is relevant to your life. Pg 86 Christianity After Religion How often do you hear someone say, “I’m spiritual, not religious?” Millions throughout the world are on a “spiritual” quest. If we compare a 1999 Gallup poll asking Americans whether they understood themselves to be spiritual or religious to a 2009 poll asking the same question, we see a dramatic shift in several categories: 30% Spiritual only was consistent over the decade, Religious fell from 54% down to 9%, Both Spiritual and Religious increased from 6% to 48%, and a stable 9% as Neither spiritual nor religious. Pg 92 Christianity After Religion What do we mean when we use the words Religious and Spiritual? Religious is a European definition which has come to mean a system of ideas or beliefs about God. In modern times, religion became indistinguishable from systematizing ideas about God, religious institutions, and human beings; it categorized, organized, objectified and divided people into exclusive worlds of right versus wrong, true versus false, us versus them. The root word of Religion is Religio which means faith – living, subjective experience including love, veneration, devotion, awe, worship, transcendence, trust, a way of life, an attitude toward the divine or nature. Pg 97 Christianity After Religion The word Religio is actually more in tune with our modern understanding to Spiritual. This then explains the major shift in just a decade to the majority considering themselves both Spiritual and religious. These people are using the institution (their denominational affiliation) as a part of their Spirituality. Our story in Acts ends with Peter saying, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” The word salvation has come to mean “eternal life” in most religious circles, but the root word for salvation is salvus, meaning “whole,” “sound”, “healed,” “safe,” “well,” or “unharmed”. The spirituality that is found in the word salvation then brings us into well-being or an authentic sense of personhood, an asking of “who am I” in relationship to the “I am” who addressed Moses in the form of the burning bush. Pg 183 of Christianity After Religion The significance in this Pentecostal story isn’t in the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples, or that they were able to speak in a language that those who were in hearing distance could understand, although all this was definitely important. To me the significance comes in the act that Peter ceased the moment to tell onlookers what was going on. He didn’t just stand by, bathing in the moment, but rather shared with those who were observing, about God’s love for all people. What is happening within this story is the shift from God being found in the temple, to God acting outside the confines of four walls. The temple has now become established inside human bodies, being connected together through the Holy Spirit. It started with the story of God dwelling within the man called Jesus, and now has moved into all humanity through the person we identify as the Holy Spirit. Mountain View is in essence a story of Pentecost. We were formed as a radically new idea! Dare I say during the Jesus movement of the 1960’s! We are the recipients of a radical belief that as Christians of differing religious backgrounds, we can use the gifts, talents, and the wisdom that three differing denominations can provide to reach out as Peter did and begin a new conversation asking the starting question of “Who am I in God?” Truly we are a group of people who were planted with the understanding of “religio.” We are a people of longing to bind ourselves to God and others that enfold rituals and theologies with experience and wonder! A spirituality that enlivens the heart, opens the soul to others, and to creation. The world is in the early stages of a New Awakening. Mountain View is a child that was birthed in this New Awakening. The awakening going on around us is not an evangelical revival, it is not returning to the faith of our fathers or re-creating our grandparents, church. Instead, it is a Great Returning to ancient understandings of the human quest for the divine, reclaiming a faith where belief is not quite the same thing as an answer, where behavior is not following a list of do’s and don’ts, and where belonging to Christian community is less like joining an exclusive club and more of a relationship with God and others. A religio and experience of the salvus. I challenge you on this Pentecost Sunday to once again ask the question, “Who are you in God?” It is the beginning question on the journey of spirituality. Amen

What's In a Prayer? Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 5/20/2012

What’s In a Prayer? By Rev Steven R Mitchell Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 5/20/2012 Based on John 17:6-19 and 1 John 5:9-13 As my first child was learning to speak, her mother and I started teaching her some very simple prayers that we would say at meal time as well as at bedtime. Prayers such as, “God is good, God is great, let us thank him for this food we eat”, or “As I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep…” Surprisingly, my mother-in-law was disturbed that we would be teaching her grandchild prayers by rote. As I inquired as to why this was not appropriate, I was informed that “prayer” was supposed to be spontaneous and from the heart. I had to agree, that prayer should be of the heart. I also felt that my child would benefit with specific prayers that were prayed for specific purposes: to create ritual and consistency, to understand that there was someone greater beyond her family or herself, and would have a foundation for augmenting prayers to fit her needs as she grew older, making them more personalized. There are many reasons why we feel the need to pray. In the 23rd Psalm, “The Lord is my shepherd…” gives us that security that God is walking along side of us, although we tend to use this prayer most often when we are experiencing periods of great strife and mega shifts in our lives, it is also a prayer that gives us comfort, strength, and insight during times of meditation. The Disciples of Jesus came to him one day and asked to be taught a prayer, just as John the Baptizer had taught a prayer to his disciples. The beginning instruction of this prayer is, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hollowed is your name…” On Easter Day 2007, it was estimated that two billion Catholic, Anglican, Protestant, and Eastern Orthodox Christians read, recited, or sang this short prayer in hundreds of languages.[7] Although theological differences and various modes of worship divide Christians, according to Fuller Seminary professor Clayton Schmit, "there is a sense of solidarity in knowing that Christians around the globe are praying together..., and these words always unite us." Wikipedia Is anyone able to say that this prayer taught and said by rote, does not inspire the heart? If not, then why do so many people of faith say this prayer? In today’s Gospel reading, we have another prayer being shared, this time by Jesus petitioning for those who believe in him. We hear Jesus asking God to protect those who believe in him from the evil that dwells in the world. “15 I’m not asking that you take them out of this world but that you keep them safe from the evil one.” “17 Make them holy in the truth; your word is truth.” The writer of 1 John picks up this point by saying, “10 The one who believes in God’s Son has the testimony within;” “11 And this is the testimony: God gave eternal life to us, and this life is in his Son.” 1 John 5: 10-11 And what is this truth? The truth is this: love is from God, because God is love. 10 This is love: it is not that we loved God but that God loved us and sent his Son…. 18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear expects punishment. 1 John 4:9, 10, & 18 This prayer takes place shortly after Jesus has shared with his disciples that once they arrive in Jerusalem for the Passover festival, he would be arrested and killed. Jesus was sharing these things because he didn’t wish his disciples to be blindsided by what was going to happen. This foretelling by Jesus comes on the heels of the disciples and the seventy being sent out to the surrounding countryside to preach in Jesus’ place and returning in triumph of how they had done such wondrous acts in God’s name. The “good times” were about to end. Life for those who had been following Jesus was about to be turned upside down. The Gospel of John was written to those believers who had lost their place of worship, with the destruction of the synagogue and the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD and were being threatened by the Roman Empire, having to navigate in a world that was built by violence and evil. So from a prayer by Jesus for his disciples as they face the future death of their leader, Jesus was again speaking to those who follow his teachings as they face the cruelty and uncertainty that comes through Roman domination. As Rev Kathy Huey writes, “Don’t worry, Jesus tells them, turning to God in prayer, asking that they will be protected, entrusting them, and all who would follow, into God’s care. Jesus asks that they will be one that they will be made holy. More than that: that they will experience joy. In some mysterious way, perhaps all of that is what it means to abide: to trust, to love, to be one, to be holy, to know joy. And this is also what it sounds like when Jesus prays for us.” UCC Lectionary Study, May 20, 2012 by Kathy Huey At some point in our lives, all of us experience the crashing down of our world around us. Whether it comes through broken relationships, financial crisis, lose of health, the death of a significant individual in our lives, or through a faith crisis, we all walk through that valley of shadows, where we experience fear, uncertainty, and aloneness. It is through this prayer that Jesus has prayed for his disciples, this prayer that has been prayed for those who believe and trust in his “truth”, this prayer that was prayed for us, that gives us strength while we walk through our dark times and know that God is protecting us. It is through these experiences, that our knowledge of God is fortified and becomes our “testimony” about God’s unending love at work for us. The Rev Bonnie Miller-McLemore, professor of Pastoral Theology at Vanderbilt University of Divinity in Nashville, TN shares this observation about differing practices of “testimony” within faith communities. “After visiting a church with more orthodox beliefs, a youth in my own congregation observed, ‘they didn’t just say, ‘We believe.’ They said, ‘We know!’” Other youths felt uncomfortable with the certainty of those in a more evangelical and proselytizing tradition than their own. Many Congregations do not practice testimony, at least not self-consciously, in part for fear of inappropriately imposing beliefs on others. [I understand this.] Other communities keep it at the heart of their practice. [I understand this as well.] Lest we immediately assume that testimony involves the community only in Spirit-filled truth telling through word and song, some testimony moves beyond words and appears in concrete acts of compassion. Rev Miller-McLemore goes on to say, “I received a letter from a good friend asking for a contribution but she also testified: ‘I reached a point where I just couldn’t stand it. I couldn’t stand what was happening to so many children, women, and men…in large part because they were unlucky to be born poor.’ She is working to build a health clinic in a poverty-stricken town. This also testifies to faith in the promise of life – life given eternally through God in Christ’s love alive in the world.” Jesus’ prayer for protection of those who love God lives on generation from generation, in the stories, in the “testimonies” of his followers, in the testimonies and actions of you and me, as we walk in the path of God’s love. It is important that we share our stories with one another, whether through words or through our actions because that is what gives hope to a world that is constantly being brutalized by power, greed, and self-interest; a world willing to do harm to anyone that stands in it’s way. It is ‘truth’ that we are called to proclaim! And that truth is: God is love and love gives life. “What’s in a prayer?” We will find in prayer: hope, comfort, joy, solidarity. We find strength through ‘prayer’. It is through prayer we are able to “abide”, to trust, to love, to be one, to be holy, to know joy, and to testify the truth of God! Amen

Rooted In Love, by Rev Steven R Mitchell, for Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 5/6/2012

Rooted In Love By Rev Steven R Mitchell Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 5/06/2012 Based on John 15:1-8 and 1 John 4:7-21 “10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that God loved us…(V) 11 Dear friends,(X) since God so loved us,(Y) we also ought to love one another.” 1 john 4. This past week, I received an article on Facebook that I found quite disturbing. The first paragraph of the article reads: A virulently homophobic and anti-gay preacher on Sunday derided parents who don’t “squash like a cockroach” the gay out of their children. Pastor Sean Harris told parents they are “authorized,” and that he was “giving them a special dispensation” to attack their children. “Give them a good punch,” and “crack that wrist,” Harris told parents, if their four-year old boy, for example, “starts acting a little ‘girlish’.” Pastor Harris added that parents should tell their four-year olds to “man up, son, get that dress off you get outside and dig a ditch because that’s what boys do.” By David Badash, May 1, 2012, The New Civil Rights Movement In light of what 1 John is writing about “love”, I have to call “bull pucky” on Pastor Harris and anyone else who promotes this type of behavior. It matters not whether you are in agreement or disagreement with a person’s sexual orientation, or their politics, or religious affiliation as for examples, liberal or conservative, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, or nationality or the type of fashion one chooses to wear, no one has the right or privilege to promote violence and hate. When those who feel like they have the responsibility to do so and also call themselves Christian, then they have violated not only the commandment that Jesus gave, “love one another as you love yourself…” but they most seriously misrepresent God! Yet many pulpits would condone such rhetoric. After the initial shock of the 9/11 attacks by terrorists on our shores, many pulpits started hate campaigns against peoples whose religion is Muslim. Anyone who wore a cap or a scarf on their head, if their skin color wasn’t white, became the objects of this same type of hate that Pastor Harris preached this past Sunday. From many pulpits, we were being told this type of violence against us was punishment from God for practicing acceptance of our children who were gay. I have titled today’s reflection, “Rooted In Love”. The two lection readings for today, speak about what “Love” produces and what happens in the absence of “love”. Continuing on in 1 John 4, verse we read: 12 No one has ever seen God;(AA) but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.(AB) So, what are some of the attributes of “love”, so that we might have some sense of whether our actions and our thoughts are in line with how scripture teaches about “abiding” in Jesus and thereby “abiding” in God? The word “discipline” often is misunderstood. Some of us were raised with the teaching by our parents that “if you spare the rod, you spoil the child.” So, spanking your child was condoned as an appropriate way of administering discipline. Maybe that’s what Pastor Harris is referring too. In the 1950’s, a new approach was introduced by the physician Dr Spock, challenging the former idea of discipline, and whether or not accurately interpreted, millions of families began to think of discipline as a negative tool in their children’s up bringing. Many parents stopped not only spanking their children but hesitated in setting boundaries in fear of “damaging” their children for life. In the Gospel of John we read starting of chapter 15: “I am(A) the true vine,(B) and God is the gardener. 2 The gardener cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit,(C) while every branch that does bear fruit(D) the gardener prunes[a] so that it will be even more fruitful.” I do apologize for “text proofing” but when I see the concept of being a vine and of producing fruit, and this vine because it is producing fruit gets pruned, I cannot help but relate it to the concept of Discipline. The idea of discipline is to develop a foundation of habits, skills and/or principles that will enable one to navigate through life experiences with desired out comes. This is a broad set of skills, such as language, mathematics, science, psychology, philosophy, manors. Most anything that we learn can loosely be labeled under the idea of discipline. The unfortunate thing is that somewhere we have understood discipline only in the negative and forget the positive aspects. Pruning is another way of presenting the understanding of discipline. Discipline is an act of love. There are people who think that it is okay to break a child’s arm as a form of discipline, as a way of trying to make a child be someone other than who they are, whereas we can read in both sets of today’s scripture that the act of pruning is done in order that more fruit may be produced. It is not done to change, but done to enhance. Parents are not alone in having preconceived ideas as to what is right and wrong for their children, the church also has preconceived standards of right and wrong, not only for it’s members but for the rest of the world as well, and because of these preconceived ideas, feels that it has the right and obligation to try and alter everybody’s behavior. As Christians, it is not our job to decide how a person is or is not to be. Our job is to do the activities that nurture others into becoming who they are meant to be. A dad wants his boy to be a quarterback in pro football, the son however dreams of becoming a concert pianist. The father who loves his son will put aside his dream , and will do whatever is necessary to help his son develop into that concert pianist, so that through the son, many others will receive the gift that the young man can provide through music. Somewhere in Christian philosophy, we have altered the message of God’s love toward humanity. In the story of the prodigal son, we see God’s love acted out in a father running out to greet and welcome the son who had left home. Most of us however, too often act more like the son who never left home, refusing to rejoice and understanding the concepts of God’s grace. In Rob Bells book, “Love Wins”, Bell states: Grace and generosity aren’t fair; that’s their very essence. The father sees the younger son’s return as one more occasion to practice unfairness. The younger son doesn’t deserve a party – that’s the point of the party. That’s how things work in the father’s world. Profound unfairness. Pg 168, Love Wins So just possibly, the fruit that we as the vine are supposed to produce is “unfairness.” The most profound understanding that anyone of us can have about love comes in the realization that “God first loved us” – Period! God’s love for us isn’t because we love God, but rather our love for God comes because of God’s love for us! And how do we know if we truly practice the love which God shares? By practicing “unfairness” toward others. “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love.” Let us live not in fear but in love! Amen

"Where One Lives", Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 4/29/2012

Where One Lives By Rev Steven R Mitchell Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 4/29/2012 Based on 1 John 3:16-24 and John 10:11-18 How many of you have ever spent extended time, meaning from several weeks to years, caring for a sheep? Very few people in today’s culture have spent much time around sheep or a sheepherder, for that matter. As our society moves more and more into urban settings and has less and less contact with the agrarian life style, examples that we find within scripture, such as today’s lection readings make it harder to relate to the messages that those first hearers about Jesus would have understood. When taken out of context, we too easily can read this passage in John 10 through the lens that Romanizes what is truly going on. As an example, we know through history about the great battles fought on our grassy plains between the cattle and sheep barons, but have little emotional attachment because of our distance in time. Reading this section by itself gives us a Norman Rockwell picture of Jesus walking with a wool wrap around his shoulders, accompanied with four hoofs, a tail wagging, and a bleat coming from a sense of safety and love. Jesus of course is a clean cut, blue-eyed, well groomed with dark wavy locks of hair, father figure from next door. When in reality, even if our father had blue eyes, he came home from work smelly, in dirty closes, his hands and face not washed, and his hair was definitely in serious need of Vidal Sassoon! Another stumbling block with this section of scripture comes with the too often comparison of the church’s pastor to that of Jesus. When this is done, several disastrous expectations are set into play. First of all, there can be an elevating of the pastor onto an unrealistic pedestal, which eventually becomes an altar of sacrifice. The second situation, which occurs simultaneously and is just as great a crime, comes with the removal or distancing of accountability on the part of the congregation of their responsibilities in ministry. The sad truth is, many pastors love this comparison because in effect, it separates them from the congregation, giving them an edge, a degree of importance that somehow is greater than those the pastor is serving; in other words a “Jesus” complex. Congregations easily like to give this responsibility to the pastor because it lets them off the hook in respect to their responsibilities within the church setting. How would we as the church measure up to the ideals, the expectations that we have of the “good shepherd”, if the “good shepherd” is not just the pastor, but actually includes the whole congregation? Would this have any significant change in how we at Mountain View would approach ministry? This Gospel story is not coming out of a pastoral setting, where Jesus is speaking to his disciples or a large crowd about the love of God as they sit along the grassy shores of the Galilean Sea. Rather, Jesus is under attack by the religious leaders for healing a blind man on the Sabbath. Not only had he broken the law, but he also was challenging the religious leaders about their abusive interpretations of the Mosaic Laws, which were given as a guide to the Hebrew people. In chapter nine, Jesus healed a blind man on the Sabbath; it is significant that the person healed was blind, for the implication is that after the healing, he could then recognize Jesus as being from God, doing the things of God. In chapter 10, we have the confrontation between the Pharisees and Jesus, and the Pharisees are being accused by Jesus of not being the “good shepherd” to the sheep. With this small addition of facts about the setting of our text, we who claim Jesus as our role model, can begin to explore a different message, other than “pastor” as the good shepherd. When I was in my early twenties, my mother-in-law gave me a book that has become a guiding post within my spiritual walk. The book, In His Steps, written by Rev Charles Sheldon, explores the cost of following Jesus’ teachings when a young pastor challenged the members of his congregation to simply ask themselves the question, “What would Jesus do?” before acting upon any situation that they encountered. As I have contemplated that question through the years, as well as using the scriptures as another part of the basis for making decisions, I have had to wrestle with a reality that, “where two Christians are present, there you will find three opinions!” How can two people, read the same text, both identifying themselves as followers of Jesus, come up with two differing ways of interpreting scripture? The reality of the situation is, since no two people have exactly the same experiences in life, the lenses that they use to view a situation will never be the same, and in actuality, this is very good news! It is good news because this then allows a platform for discussion, an opportunity for exploration of possibilities that live outside of our own circle of reality. This past Tuesday evening, those who had gathered for the Sacred Grounds discussion of today’s readings, the questions which came up centered on “what does it mean to be open and welcoming?” This is not a new question for Mountain View, after all we state in our bulletin that we are an open and welcoming, ecumenical people. So let’s take a look at ourselves here at Mountain View. Let us look through the lens where the pastor is not the “good shepherd” but rather the congregation is the “good shepherd”. If we are all the “good shepherd” then where is the sheep pen that Jesus is speaking about? Is it within these four walls or the boundaries of this property? By changing the understanding that Mountain View is the “shepherd”, does this not also change the boundaries of where the pen is? Take a look around this room; who do you see? Who do you see not being represented here? Is the community that lives within a one square mile of this church represented here? Does the community that lives within one square mile of this church know us? I don’t mean by the name of the church, or the fact that we have a community garden available to anyone who is willing to pay to use it, but truly know who we are, our values, our hopes, our dreams? More importantly, do we know who the community around us is, their hopes, their dreams, their concerns, and their needs? As I have mulled over this week’s lectionary readings, two words seemed to present themselves to me, “emulate” and “abide”. The definition of “emulate” is: to imitate with effort to equal or surpass. It seems to me that many of us who call ourselves Christians work hard at trying to “emulate” what we understand the “word” of God to be. The church in general works hard at teaching the words and actions of Jesus; we try to emulate Jesus! Could this possibly be a reason for so many differing opinions about what it means to be a follower of Christ? Abide, has a differing slant than emulate. Abide is: to remain; continue; stay, as to continue in a particular condition, attitude, relationship. In the Hymn “Abide with Me” we hear an understanding of how Christ abides in our hearts: Come not in terrors, as the King of kings, But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings; Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea. Come, Friend of sinners, thus abide with me. I have not touched on our other reading this morning, 1 John 3, but in this Epistle we learn that it isn’t in the study of God’s word alone that makes us Christians, but also in our actions. The love of God wasn’t in word alone, but also in the action of self sacrifice as shown through the life and death of Jesus. It is the action of love, the love that “abides” within our hearts, not the “emulation” of God’s love that the sheep will recognize, but rather the voice that “abides” in the love of God. I wish to send you away this morning thinking about us as being the “good shepherd”. Are we as “good shepherd” emulating Christ or are we “abiding Christ?” Not to one another in this room, but to the sheep that are on the other side of the gate? That is just the starting question. All the answers to the questions that follow depend on how we answer this question. Amen

A Faith That Touches, Mountain View United, Aurora, CO, by Rev Steven R Mitchell

A Faith That Touches
By Rev Steven R Mitchell
Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 4/15/2012

Have you ever thought about “how you are known” or “how you are recognized” beyond your given name? All fifty states of these United States has a state name, yet if I said, “the evergreen state”, most people would relate that to Washington state, if I said, “big sky country”, people would immediately assume I am speaking about Montana. When I tell people that I’m a “Jayhawker”, you know that I come from Kansas. Missouri is often referred to as the “show me state.”
I have come to believe that the apostle Thomas must have come from Missouri. “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Come on guys, do you really think I’m so naive as to believe what you are telling me? Nobody comes back from the dead. Or do they?
In the movie, Young Frankenstein, the grandson of Baron Von Frankenstein, young Fredrick Fronkenstein, (he didn’t wish to be associated with his crazed grandfather) takes up the family business of trying to create life from dead tissue. So with the help of his assistant Igor, they find a freshly executed criminal and prepare the body for a transplant of the brain of deceased Hans Delbrook, a brilliant scientist. As Igor attempts to steal this brain for his employer, lightening flashes, scaring Igor so much he drops the jar which contains the brain. Igor quickly grabs the closest jar, which contains another brain and takes it to the young Fronkenstein, at which time the Dr transplants this brain into the body of a seven foot corpse. After the Dr. completes his experiment and brings the body back to life, the new creation is determined to have a flawed brain, at which point Igor admits to not bringing professor Hans Delbrook’s brain, but rather the brain named “Abby Normal.”
In this morning’s Gospel reading we find a continuation of the Easter Sunday story of Jesus being alive after he was determined to be dead and buried. In the first part of this chapter, Jesus appears to Mary Magdalene, she runs to the disciples and tells them that she has seen and talked with Jesus. They do not believe her.
Our reading this morning takes up on the evening that Mary shared this unbelievable news. The disciples instead of running out to the tomb to check out her story sit behind locked doors, in hiding, not believing Jesus has risen from the dead. Then mysteriously, Jesus appears among those safely behind locked doors and bringing belief to those present. When Thomas shows up, they like Mary, tell Thomas that Jesus is alive. Thomas like the disciples does not believe their story and goes so far in his resistance to say that before he will believe this outlandish story, he would have to personally touch the wounds that Jesus had from his crucifixion. A week later, as scripture reads, Thomas was with the rest of the disciples, still behind locked doors and Jesus appears to them all again, specifically singling out Thomas, who immediately exclaims, “My lord and my God!” Now all of the disciples have had the opportunity to see Jesus post resurrection.
We in the church love Thomas. He is the incredulous nonbeliever who hides inside every believing Christian – the questioner in us that resists easy answers to hard questions of faith, who always wants a little more proof. Feasting on the Word, yr B, Vol. 2, pg 400 Serene Jones As Western Christians, who live in a world that demands empirical evidence in order to prove an event or substantiate a belief, stories like this still come up short in proving a fact that Jesus physically raised from the dead. But if we look to this story as one that shares the unique character of resurrection faith and its relationship to doubt, then we can start to relate what this story can mean to us personally.
We have a group of people who are riddled between guilt, fear, and doubt as they hid for their lives behind closed doors. Guilt for deserting Jesus in his greatest hour of need, fear that they too might be killed as followers of a man who had been pronounced a criminal against the state and the religious community, and doubt about the future of the movement that Jesus had been teaching, a movement about a world lived out through love.
Then Jesus shows up, somehow gaining passage through closed, locked doors. These men do not recognize Jesus until Jesus speaks to them saying, “Peace be with you”. After showing them his wounds, Jesus once again says, “Peace be with you. As God has sent me, so I send you.” Then Jesus breathed on them and gave them the Holy Spirit. A week passes by, a second time Jesus, passes through closed doors and this time goes up to Thomas and offers Thomas the proof that is needed before Thomas can believe.
The interesting thing is that the disciples, after encountering Jesus a week earlier and being given the gift of the Holy Spirit, still were behind closed doors. They still didn’t recognize Jesus on the second visit. When Jesus went specifically to Thomas, it is Thomas who says, “My Lord and my God!” We did not hear this proclamation from the disciples.
How often are we like the disciples or Thomas in particular, demanding proof that Jesus is alive and not recognizing the presence of Jesus when Jesus is right in front of us?
Referring back to the movie Young Frankenstein, there is a scene in which the young Dr, finally accepts his birthright and identifies himself no longer a Fronkenstein, but rather a Frankenstein. With this claim to his blood line, he then goes to the creature that he has created, the creature that has become known as the “monster” and proclaims to the creature that he is not unloved, unwanted, or evil as the world labeled him, but rather is worthy of love and is accepted and loved by the one who created him. Then they learn a song and dance routine to prove to the world just how lovable the monster can be. Yet, this wasn’t enough; there was no transference of what the creator possessed to that which was created. But finally, in a final act of desperation, the Dr hooks himself and the monster together through a machine and performs transference of a part of the Dr to the creature and vice versa, thereby allowing a part of the Dr to stabilize and normalize the creature into a whole human being.
This is what the Easter story is saying to us through the telling by John of Jesus coming to his disciples behind closed doors that are locked. It is not a story about these men going out looking for Jesus. Rather, it is the story of Jesus again and again, seeking out his flock, those who are filled with guilt, with fear, or doubt, yearning for him that Jesus will come to, over and over to help give strength, direction, and the ability to move beyond the perils of daily living. This story about Jesus’ resurrection cannot be based on empirical evidence, but rather through experiential encounters. It is Jesus who refuses to let heart’s hiding behind the dead bolts of guilt, or fear, or doubt to block the movement of God’s love toward those one who lack faith. It is a story about Jesus coming again and again to those of us who are scared and confused in a world which is full of hate and death. It is a story of a Jesus who offers himself to those who long to see him. It is our story of faith in the one who comes through locked doors touching anyone who is yearning for the peace that comes through pure love. Amen

Loose Ends, Mountain View United, Aurora, CO, by Rev Steven R Mitchell 4/8/2012

Living Stones
By Rev Steven R Mitchell
First Congregational UCC, Rock Springs, WY 5/22/2011
Based on 1 Peter 2:1-10

When driving into the parking lot of the church, one of the very first features of this build that catches your eye, is the use of stone. One each corner of the exterior walls of the sanctuary there are massive stone buttresses, which gives the sense that this building being solidly anchored to the ground. Inside, at the center of this sanctuary, stands the alter or communion table; it is built on stone that is cemented into the floor. Again, this table is permanent because of the stone foundation that it rests upon. Stone is an amazing material. It is no accident that the architect of this facility used stone in strategic areas. He didn’t use stone as an accent material, but rather, he made subtle statements based on scriptural understandings. Stone is not only beautiful, but it has great strength and can support a mighty structure. Stone gives both a feeling of security and permanency, as well, as shelter.
Remember the story of the three little pigs and the big bad wolf! The first pig built his house out of straw, the second pig built his house out of sticks, and the third little pig built his home out of stone. Enters in this tranquil scene is the Big Bad Wolf, who is hungry for a pork sandwich. He comes up to the first pig and his house of straw; the wolf huffs and puffs and blows the house of straw down. Then he comes across the second pig’s house and still being hungry, he again huffs and he puffs and he blows down the house built of sticks. The wolf still hungry and looking for dessert, pig flambeau, goes to the third pig’s house. He again huffs and he puffs, but the house stays standing. Perplexed by this, the wolf huffs and puffs himself into despair and eventually leaves, and the third pig is safe and sound in his home that was built of stone.
Scripture uses a number of stories that deal with stones in them to help relate the idea’s of the steadfastness of God to those who recognize Him within their lives. Stones were used by the early patriarchs to signify their devotion and remembrance to the God who carried them through difficulties. King David, as a shepherd boy, used a stone to bring down the giant Goliath, thus ending the battle and bringing victory to the army of the Israelites. When Jesus made his entry into Jerusalem, the week before Passover, and the Pharisees were telling Jesus to quiet the crowd, Jesus responded with: “even if the crowd was silent, these stones would sing out in Praise of Gods work.” While at the temple, Jesus compared himself to the stones of the temple, saying once destroyed, in three days, they would be rebuilt, meaning his death and resurrection.
Here in 1 Peter, we read this beautiful metaphor about a relationship between God and his people. There is this play on words of “living stone”, where Jesus is not only the corner stone, that piece which anchor of any structure, but is also as a resurrected savior is “the living stone.”
This past Monday was the memorial service of Donna Morad, in which some of you attended. I chose for the text of her memorial this reading from 1 Peter specifically because of the powerful imagery that is found within these ten verses. I am struck by two ideas in particular, which are the phrases, "though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God's sight" and "Like living stones."
Jesus and his teachings, his message, were rejected by the religious authorities of his day; those who were the establishment and held the power. These idea’ were rejected because those in power thought they would lose not only their control and position, but that Israel itself would fall if Jesus’ teachings were accepted. We talk a lot today about the “liberal” and “fundamentalist” Christian points of view. This is so wrong. There is no such thing as a “liberal Christian” and there is no such thing as a “fundamentalist Christian”. If we are true in our following of Christ, then as Disciples of Christ we all should be seen as “Radical Christians”. The founder of the Christian movement was a “radical”. We are called into a “radical lifestyle”.
A part of this radical lifestyle is stated in the very first verse of this morning’s text. Eugene Peterson says it this way: So clean house! Make a clean sweep of malice and pretense, envy and hurtful talk. This is radical because it goes against human tendencies to back bite, hold grudges, put on false airs, and to get even when we’ve been wronged. But Peter is telling us that, when we have had a taste of God, like infants at the breast, we are to drink deep of God's pure kindness. Then we'll grow up mature and whole in God.
The other part of this morning’s text that captures my imagination is that of “Living Stones”. The idea of "living stones" brings images such as solidness; stones are used in building structures that weather through time. The things that we do throughout our life are the stones that we lay for future generations. None of us lives in a vacuum. Each generation that is born comes with the good and the bad of the previous generation; some might say we come into this life with our parent’s baggage. When I think about all that I enjoy today, it comes from the sacrifices, the teachings, even from the mistakes of those who have come before me.
In the same respect, my theology, my understanding of God originates with what I was taught by my parents and grandparents. It came through watching their actions and how they related to others. I learned respect for people of all races because my parents and grandparents taught me that the color of some ones skin did not make them either better or worse than any other person. My concepts of a loving God, or of a judgmental God, or of an accepting or rejecting God, came from Sunday School teachers and from what was said from the pulpit. These are the living stones that I grew up with.
But once I started to personally read the bible, once I started to personally study and contemplate what I was reading, once I started to formulate my prayer life beyond the prayers that I learned as a child, once I started to read writings of great theologians, I then became more hungry for a deeper relationship with God. All these idea’s that I was reading were from God’s living stones that had been laid before my birth, and through these living stones, I have had the opportunity to learn, be shaped into what I am today. And the reality is, that I too am a living stone that is being placed into this marvelous building that God is creating for those who come after me. You too are living stones, and are also being placed into this marvelous building that God is building, so future generations may continue to build and shape their own lives.
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Can you image, the immigrant who leaves their home country and comes to live here. There is a time period where they are not a part of this country, but after a lot of hard work, of learning a new culture, they take and pass a test, then they are sworn in as new citizens of this country. We as children of God are very much like the immigrant. We leave our old ways behind, and we work hard and study hard the teachings of Christ, to learn what this new world of God’s is all about, not just the rules, but more importantly we learn about its potential, then we become active citizens of Gods kingdom, the one here on earth. Once we were not a people, but now we are the people of God.
We are no ordinary people, but rather, we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession. We are not only the product of earlier generations, but we are the living stones that are laying the foundations for future generations, whether we like it or not. So let us live up to being the people that we truly are, God’s chosen people, who are not ordinary, but are of royal descent, and work toward creating a holy nation, God’s kingdom here on earth, for we are Gods’ Living Stones! Amen

It's Not About God..., Mountain View United, Aurora, CO, 3/25/2012, by Rev Steven R. Mitchell

It’s Not About God…
By Rev Steven R Mitchell
Mountain View United, Aurora, CO 3/25/2012
Based on Jeremiah 31:31-34

“The time is coming when I will make a brand-new covenant…” This message was delivered from God, by Jeremiah. The actual reading says, “The time is coming when I will make a brand-new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah,” who were living as captives of the Babylonian Empire. I have chosen to broaden this declarative by not directing “who” this promise is being made to.
Jeremiah is giving this new promise to a people, whose understanding of their captivity is a direct result of their disobedience, their turning away from the God who brought them up out of Egypt, a turning away from the God who gave them the “law” in which to live by, a turning away from the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. As a people who live on this side of the Cross, a resurrection peoples, rarely do we interpret disasters or attacks upon our nation by foreign entities as “judgments” from God. So what importance do books like Jeremiah have for folks like us?
In last week’s reflection based on the book of Numbers, I bought out the idea of “trust”, which develops by acting in faith. This week the theme is “hope”. “The days are surely coming, says the Lord…” this statement is talking about the future, a future that consists of a new covenant. Again, as a people who live on this side of the Cross, what does this have to do with us? Isn’t the cross the fulfillment of that new covenant? I don’t think it is. I think that we are still waiting for this new covenant to come to fruition.
The Epistle reading for this week comes out of Hebrews, where it speaks about Jesus as being appointed as the “High Priest”, yet I when I read this promise from God, I think we would be better informed about what this promise entails if we were to read Paul’s message to the church in Corinth as written in 1 Corinthians 13, which is more commonly referred to as the “Love” chapter.
I view what this promised covenant means through these words:
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
God tells us that this new covenant will be placed within our hearts, no longer having the need to teach one another, for we shall all know God, from the least to the greatest and God will forgive us of our iniquity and remember our sin no more. These are powerful words! What is happening with this new covenant isn’t just another set of new rules to follow, rules that are placed on a tablet that we can go to, read, and know about, rather, the day is coming when the law will be engraved in our hearts and displayed in our lives. No longer will we know about God – all the right words, all the right theology. The days are surely coming when we, from the least to the greatest, will know God – with all the intimacy that is entailed with personal knowledge. Feasting on the Word, Yr B, Vol. 2, Richard Floyd, pg 124
This new covenant is best compared to that of a couple who are totally in love with one another. Their minds are filled throughout the entire day about the other. Thoughts of what their beloved has said to them, thoughts about what they will be doing in the future together, thoughts that are totally focused on the other. Their actions will be loving actions toward their beloved, working for the betterment of the one their love is focused upon. They are in a state of being where their heart is totally open and focused with their beloved. This is an example of an intimate relationship.
Now let me take us into the other direction for deeper contemplation. Consider an intense relationship between two people, locked in a degenerating fight for power and recognition. The law of love, as written in the Ten Commandments, is easily forgotten in the heat of the struggle. But if that law were written on their hearts through the agency of the Holy Spirit, they would be filled with enough positive sense of self and enough fulfilling goodwill that they would not have to fight to steal it from the other, but could give love to the other from the overabundance in their hearts.
Consider religious prejudges, whether between Christians or those of other faiths. When people of a particular religious outlook see themselves as having a lock on the truth and are convinced of their own virtue and of the others apostasy, their self-righteousness leads to hurt and divisiveness. If the law of God were written on the hearts of all concerned, a new day of peace and freedom would dawn.
Consider ways that Western humans currently exploit the creation. We walk as if our trampling of fragile vegetation has no value within our eco-system. Through a ravenous consuming lifestyle, we overuse the earth, leading to global warming, habitat destruction, species extinction, and the general fouling of our planet, which is home to us. We violate the law of God given in Genesis to “till the garden and keep it.”
What would it be like if God wrote the law on our hearts so that we would live within the creation, not above it, so that we would cherish our neighbors, the birds, animals, and fish? What would this creation look like if we lived with restraint and humility, living for the whole creation, not just for our singular, insular selves and our own narrow corner of creation?
Here at the end of the season of lent, this passage begs us to explore the ways that we need the law of love to be written on our hearts. Feasting on the Word, Yr B, Vol. 2, pg 127, Woody Bartlett As we continue living our lives on this side of the Cross, Jeremiah is telling us through this promise, “it isn’t knowing about God”, that will help us live in the love that we have seen exhibited through Jesus, it is in “knowing God”! It is “this knowledge” of God that moves us from reading the outside tablet, to “knowing” this promise found on the inside tablet that we call the “heart”. It doesn’t happen with the head, it comes from the heart. As we develop our trust in God’s leading, we walk with the hope that, “The time is coming when God will make a brand-new covenant…” A covenant that will be laid deep within all of humanities hearts. Amen