When you hear something in church that really makes sense and you’re proud of your father for saying it!
Sermon for Sunday, May 06, 2018
Sermon Texts:John 8: 3-11; 15: 14-17
Romans 1: 22 - 2: 16, 21-23
Sermon Title:“Everybody Has Something”
Sermon Topic:Tolerance within the Church
Sermon Purpose: to teach the need to tolerate even the most difficult person, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Sermon Prayer: God of love, your servant Jesus gave us but one commandment: to love each other. Help us to follow this commandment that our burdens may be like. Now, may the words of my lips and the meditation of my heart, the acceptable in your sight. In Jesus' precious name, we pray. Amen.
By a show of hands, how many of you have known people to either say, or seem to live by the adage: “Do as I say, not as I do”? (Raise your hands.)
And yet, I’ll bet that most of those people claim to be Christian, even though that’s not how Jesus commanded us to live.
To the best of my knowledge, there is no statement in all the Gospels that the Lord repeated more than this one: "Love one another … as I …have loved … you." In fact, in Matthew’s Gospel, when a lawyer of the Pharisees tried to trick Jesus by asking him which was the greatest commandment, He said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” And then, He went on to say, “And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
In John’s Gospel, when Jesus was asked to summarize all the law into only one, concise commandment he came up with: "Love one another as I have loved you."
For a long time, now, here at LPC, we have claimed to be “A family church for the whole family.” More recently, we changed that motto to what we see at the masthead of our Sunday bulletin and on the face of our newsletter, and other documents: “Constantly evolving to serve the Community and impact lives, bringing people to know Jesus and to experience God’s love.”
As a family in Christ, living and working and worshipping as brothers and sisters in the faith, do we really do that? I really don’t know!
As you know, by now, I am actively involved in our Presbytery and I am aware of many situations within various congregations within our Presbytery, our town, and elsewhere. I have pastor friends - across the denomination and across the country – with whom I am in regular contact. Permit me to share with you a real situation.
A particular church’s governing body has been asked for permission to use their sanctuary for the wedding of a couple – neither of whom is a member of the church. This is something that has taken place several dozen times, in recent decades, and permission was always granted – as long as the pastor of the church was willing to officiate the ceremony and the couple appeared to be truly committed to one another.
You must know that this particular congregation (like many others) is composed of people who claim to “Welcome everyone,” but are truly very close-minded when it comes to certain types of people.
They fuss at parents of young children who become restless during worship or meetings. They tend to hold themselves above others who might not be as educated, or have similar financial resources, or who seem a little more “common” than they can tolerate.
Meanwhile, the membership of the congregation is composed of liars, adulterers, slanderers, bullies, underhanded and scheming people, people who seem to worship money more than God or Christ, people who stir up dissension among the membership, thieves, alcoholics, addicts, gossips, jealous and envious people, ungrateful, bitter, judgmental, malicious, conceited, cruel and heartless, and spiteful people: all of whom claim to be willing to welcome people just like them into the congregation. These are people for whom Jesus died on the cross in order to purchase their redemption and to intercede on their behalf with God the Father so they will not go to hell – to eternal damnation - for their sins.
They are all too quick and willing to hurl insults and judgments at people who are different from them, but they’re not willing to demonstrate the grace they have received, themselves, to allow a same-sex couple to be married in their sanctuary. Some say, “It’s against the Bible!” Others say, “It’s sinful.” And, still others claim it will cause a split in the congregation. Some even make the ridiculous claim that these people will lure the church’s youth into adopting the same lifestyle.
No one is arguing the sinful nature of this couple’s lifestyle. But, likewise, no one is admitting to the lifestyles of those members of the congregation who are just as sinful and just as much in need of grace and forgiveness, in need of the tolerance demanded by Paul’s letter to the church at Rome, that we read as our Epistle Lesson, this morning.
“Therefore you have no excuse, whoever you are, … for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things. … Do you imagine, whoever you are, that when you judge those who do such things and yet do them yourself, you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you despise the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience? … God, through Jesus Christ, will judge the secret thoughts of all. …you, then, that teach others, will you not teach yourself? While you preach against stealing, do you steal? You that forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? … You that boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?”
If any members of that congregation would truly examine themselves, according to the scriptures, they would see that absolutely no one is pure enough, “without sin” enough, to be casting stones – casting judgment – against anyone else!
The shepherd of that congregation is a long-time friend of mine and has been around long enough to know – and to remember – the indiscretions of many of his sheep, but has been tolerant of them and their ways because he also remembers some of the things in his own past that were not perfect and pure. In addition, he has accepted the Call of the Holy Spirit to love these people into living out Christ’s claim on them.
But, this decision by the governing body, is pushing him closer to the point of speaking out against all those who are casting judgment: revealing histories he knows they want kept secret. In doing so, he would possibly face charges of breaching his vow of confidentiality, but – to him – it might … just … be … worth it! It would definitely mean being terminated as the pastor, even though he has already informed the board of the actual date of his departure to begin his next ministry.
To those being judgmental, it would mean embarrassment and ridicule. To the congregation, it would mean either dissolving or facing greater struggles to survive (as true Christians) than they have ever experienced. All of this would be the result of intolerance and the judgment received for the judgment given. All of this would teach a scriptural lesson that everyone would remember and needs to live by.
I continue to hold that congregation, its leaders, and its pastor in prayer: that they listen to the guidance of the scriptures and are guided by the Holy Spirit. As I said, it is a real situation and the final outcome has yet to be determined.
God’s grace is for everyone, not just for those who claim it for themselves but deny it for others. Christ went to the cross for my sins, for your sins, for their sins, for all sinners – that they might be forgiven by the God and Father of all.
This is the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the message we must carry into the world. And this is the standard by which we must live as Christians. This is what we must do in order to demonstrate our belief in what we say on that masthead of our bulletin, and in order to be that church that ministers to the whole family – the family of human beings that God created, whether we agree with his methods or not.
Jesus did not just command us to love. What Jesus said was, "love one another as I have loved you!" Remember what Paul says in Romans, chapter 5? "It was while we were yet sinners that Christ loved us." Christ loved us while we were yet sinners: his enemies.
I know that I'm somebody only a loving God – only a God who loves unconditionally – could love. So … are … you! And that's precisely the good news that we call the Gospel. By laying down his life for us, Christ made us his friends.
As difficult as we are to love, God has found it in his heart to love us. He calls us in Christ, to do the same, to reach out in love to those who are different, and yet are the same: sinners in need of some demonstration of God’s love and God’s forgiveness through Christ’s sacrifice.
Because of the way our world is going, there are those who speculate that Christ’s return is more imminent than we might imagine. There are those that say He’s coming very, very, very soon.
Given the message of this morning’s Gospel Lesson, who is willing to be caught red-handed, throwing stones as He arrives? Is there anyone who thinks he/she is beyond judgment and has the right to consider him/herself without guilt and above reproach? Is there anyone, here, who is willing to risk Christ’s judgment of your guilt or blamelessness, should He arrive and catch you with a stone in your hand – either physical or verbal: actually throwing a stone at someone or hurling judgments against someone without considering where your own guilt lies? I – for one – am not.
However, if you think you’re better than everyone else in this sanctuary, here’s a basket of stones for you to use.
But, be “darned sure” you have nothing in your life that will cause you to be damned, again. Remember: The judgment you give will be the judgment you get.
This is the season, at LPC, when we celebrate “the family:” Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, Children’s Day, Fathers’ Day, … Let’s reach out in love to the whole family; to all the members of the human family that God created. And, practice what Jesus commanded us to do: "Love one another as I have loved you."
Eternal lover of souls: grant us the strength of faith and the peace of your Holy Spirit to deal with our brothers and sisters as you would have us deal with ourselves. Grant us the wisdom to serve in a manner pleasing to your sight, and faithful to the Christ we proclaim. In His name, we pray. Amen
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