Bethlehem Lutheran Church

A pastor friend of mine was talking to a group of pastors and lay leaders, and he told the story of his friend Walt. This church had become immense over the course of the years, and my friend commented matter of factly that he didn’t do hospital calls anymore- he said, “how do you choose who to visit?” He was afraid of playing favorites.

But when Walt, who had been a charter member of the congregation, had a heart attack, he decided to go see him in the intensive care unit of the local hospital after church one Sunday. He arrived, and was immediately confronted by the charge nurse of the unit.

“I’m here to see Walt,” he said, “I’m his pastor.” “Well,” she replied, “how many pastors does that church have? He’s been seen by SIX pastors already today...” My friend said that in their church, members of small groups have permission to use the title when they visit group members in the hospital, so he replied, “You don’t understand. I’m THE pastor- himself- the big kahuna...” She said, “I don’t care who you are, you’re not going in there...”

So he waited for a moment, and waited until her back was turned, and slid into the room...

We are in week 2 of our new sermon series, “Life Together,” exploring what it means to live in a Christ-centered community- a community of love, care, mutual accountability that has been gathered by our Risen Lord Jesus Christ and his Holy Spirit.

We are, after some four months, taking one last look at John’s Gospel, and moving into the Book of Acts, the next installment in the Narrative Lectionary we have been working with. We are going to save the story of the birth of the Church for its traditional day, the Day of Pentecost, and launch right into Acts, Chapter 6.

And we are about to see how two very different authors, John and Luke, with two very different audiences connect in a very important and basic way as we move into this series on Christian Community. So- let’s have a look at the readings.

First, in John 21, we are looking at the epilogue to John. Last week, Ben pointed out how Jesus showed the disciples that he was alive, and then told them to share him with the world. Jesus had been dead- crucified. And here he was, alive- standing in front of them- showing them- and you and me that there is nothing- not even death that can come between you and God’s love for you forever!

In fact, he breathed on them- the Gift of the Holy Spirit, and said, flat out, “As the father has sent me, so I send you...”

I do have to comment on Jesus “breath,” and just how wonderful John is- think back to the story of Genesis 2- the second creation narrative: God fashions the man out of mud, and then what does God do? He breathes life into him. So when Jesus breathes on the disciples, he is literally breathing “new life” into them- new, resurrection life! This is why knowing- being fluent with the scriptures is so important!

When Evelyn/Agustine were baptized, the Holy Spirit was breathed into them- new life in Christ, for ever and for always! In your baptism, Jesus has breathed new life- resurrection life into you- recreated you, if you will, in his own image, as Jesus’ own child!

And so, empowered, strengthened with the Holy Spirit, the disciples leave the Upper Room, and boldly... go fishing!??!? With Peter leading the way- the story begins with Peter saying, “I am going fishing...”

They catch nothing, of course, and then Jesus shows up, they catch a ton of fish, John figures out just who it is standing on the beach, and Peter splashes in to greet him... After breakfast on the beach, we have the encounter in our Gospel reading...

This is Peter’s re-re-commissioning... Jesus asks him, “Peter, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord, you know I love you...” “Feed my lambs...” Simon, Son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” “Tend my sheep...” Then Jesus asks the question a third time, and Peter is hurt... I love this!

Peter is hurt- after misunderstanding Jesus throughout his ministry, denying him three times when Jesus needed him the most, running away when Jesus was crucified, and then bailing on the task Jesus gave the disciples AFTER his resurrection, Peter is hurt...

Peter should be on his knees begging forgiveness- or rejoicing in the fact that Jesus gives him yet another chance (Do you rejoice in that forgiveness? Chance after chance after chance? I surely do!). Instead, he’s “hurt,” poor baby, and Jesus says to him, “Feed my sheep...”

Now, and this is important: look at the sequence: Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep... Jesus is setting out instructions for what the leaders of this new thing- this Body of the Risen Lord- the Church- what they are supposed to do: feed the lambs- help them grow into maturity.

Then, tend them- care for them, make sure their needs for spiritual maturing are met. And then, once again, feed them- as mature sheep, they need to be fed, keep growing in their relationship with Jesus, and with one another- why? What do mature sheep do? They make new sheep- they share this relationship they have with the Good Shepherd with the people around them, and the cycle begins again.

Fast forward to Acts, Chapter 6, our first reading. Pentecost- the Birthday of the Church has happened. This small group of believers- Luke tells us around 120 people or so has expanded dramatically and rapidly. There are now over 3000 believers and growing. They speak different languages. They come from different cultures. And there are some problems- real problems...

 This is not just complaining, or grousing: there is a group of people whose critical needs aren’t being met: the Hellenists, or Greek speaking community, as opposed to the Aramaic or Hebrew speaking ones complain that their widows- women with no way to support themselves- are being neglected in the daily distribution of food.

 The problem is not a lack of food; it is that it isn’t being distributed fairly... And the twelve have a real organizational challenge: the old ways of the twelve doing everything for the community are at an end, and there are two choices: they can try and keep working the old system and see if it gets better (Einstein’s definition of insanity- keep doing the same thing over and over and hope for different results).

 The twelve can try and maintain the status quo, realizing that something will have to give- their preaching and leadership is what they mention, and the result will be burnout on their part, and the shrinking of the Church, as it divides under the strain of the unmet needs and the frustration that goes with it...

 OR- they can begin to give up some of what they used to do in order for them to do what Jesus wants them to do in the first place- feed the lambs, tend the sheep, feed the sheep...

They can give up their control over everything that happens- they can share the responsibility of tending the sheep with new leaders from the flock, and they can continue to feed- and lead this new community. And the community can accept this new responsibility of caring for one another.

It comes off a little harshly, but not inaccurately in the words they speak to the community gathered together: “It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables...”

They know they cannot meet the needs of 3000 or more people by themselves; there’s no way. And it is not their job to do so! So they invite the community to choose seven leaders from among them who will be responsible for seeing that the needs of the community are met fairly.

 And I would suggest to you that it is not the job of this new group to meet those needs themselves, either: they are responsible for the coordination of ministry needs... And I have no doubt that there were members of the community who were eager to serve!

 Luke, the author of Acts, actually doesn’t tell us how the task is accomplished; what matters is that it gets done... And it does!

 The Community- the Church- the Body of Christ- takes responsibility for the ministry of the Church. The Community cares for each other. It begins to live out the saying of Jesus, “By this shall all know that you are my disciples- that you have love for one another!”

 The Apostles lead and feed: they live out the command that Jesus gave to Peter in John 21, “Feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed my sheep...”

 And the result: the Church grows- the Community grows- there is the possibility of unlimited growth when care is not dependent on a few people, but is shared both wisely and widely.

 People want to be a part of something where they know they matter- where you both have your needs met, and can care for the needs of others- and where you see this as a response to the one who met your greatest need: the need for a relationship with the God who created you, and wants to love you forever!

 It is a Holy Spirit inspired, biblical model for how the Church is supposed to work! And yet as I look around the whole Church, I see example after example of the pastor doing everything he or she can do to meet the needs of all the people- doing all the visiting, all the hospital calls, all the care- either because he or she thinks that is what they should be doing- or because the people expect it from them!

 I see it in India when I visit there, I see it in Europe, and I see it in the United States, over and over again, and the result is exhausted pastors, a consumer culture that is really no different from the rest of the world and a Church that continues to shrink and lose influence when we have the best of all possible news for a world that is struggling with issues of meaning, significance, life and death...

 The Good News is that is not true everywhere- there are churches trying to live out that biblical model from Acts- and seeing the same results that Luke reports- health and growth- sometimes in spite of our selves...

 My friend slipped into Walt’s room- a member of his small group was there chatting with him. When Walt recognized his visitor, he sat bolt upright- and said, “Pastor, what are you doing here???” The subtext, of course, was that if the pastor was calling, Walt must be really, really sick... He chatted briefly with Walt, prayed with him, and then left...

 He said as he left, he felt tears welling up- Walt didn’t need him; Walt’s needs had been and were being met by the people who were closest to him in his church. That’s what the church is supposed to look like- it is how it has supposed to look since almost the very beginning, and when it does, it is both a thing of beauty- and far more effective...

 I have seen this happen at Bethlehem, too. More and more often, we see our members providing the love and care that can only come from Christ to and for each other.

 I called one of our church family before making a hospital visit- making sure that she would be there when I arrived, and as soon as she recognized my voice, she said, “My small group’s here, Chris, I can’t talk to you now,” and she hung up... on me... That’s just one of many examples, and again, like my friend said, it is how the Church is supposed to work!

 So, brothers and sisters, my question for you today, is how will you engage in sharing the care we have all been called to give to each other?

 Many of you are, I know- and there are possibilities and opportunities that are both formal and informal throughout the church. I know many of you have been caring for each other for years- for you, this is not new.

 There are small group possibilities, where you can get to know folks, be known, and care for each other... There is a new Career Transition and networking group getting going this week. Our Lay Eucharistic Ministry- folks who take communion to our housebound members will be having a new training session soon. Parish Visitors are those who share one on one conversations with people who are lonely...

 The first step is to make a note on your STAR card. We will see that you are called by the coordinator of the ministry you are interested in.

 Speaking for your pastors, we promise to lead and feed- to share with you what we are learning, and to help you grow and mature in your faith. And we are available 24-7 for those times when you need one of us- when a pastor is both important and necessary.

 The better we all are connected, the chance of anyone falling through the cracks diminishes enormously. I have said that no one needs to face a crisis alone- in this community, we walk together. I want that to be true 100% of the time... And I will be the first to admit that in a community like ours, I can’t- and your pastors can’t- do it alone.

 Let me finish with words from a sermon I preached in September of 2001- words that I believe are as true now as they were then and which illustrate what I have been talking about as we ponder the death of Osama Bin Laden: I posited that there were several choices after the attacks in the US, and laid out two.

 “It is the right choice to find the people who did this, the people who supported them, those involved with any kind of terrorism, and to make sure that they can never act this way against anyone again. This is simply seeking justice and protecting ourselves and our world from this sort of evil. Let’s not set up a false choice between working for justice and peace throughout our world, and the need to hold people accountable for their actions. It is not an either/or choice; it is both/and.

 Paul says this in Romans 13: “For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad... then do what is good, and you will receive approval, for the ruler is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for the ruler does not bear the sword in vain; the ruler is the servant of God...”

 Note that there is nothing about vengeance. This is not about revenge and striking back. This is not about Islam or people from the Middle East. Tuesday, September 11th is to Islam what the Crusades were to Christianity: an abomination... This is about evil behavior and the government’s responsibility to protect us from it. This will be grim work, not occasion for cheering and rejoicing at the capture or deaths of others, no matter how evil they might be. And it will be a time for mourning for all who die.

 Nor is this a sinless choice. The taking of human life is wrong. But there are times when the greater sin is to allow evil to continue. That was the choice faced by Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran pastor living in Nazi Germany during WW 2. He chose to be involved in the July 20th plot to assassinate Hitler because he was convinced the death of one could stop the death of multitudes more. But he knew the sinfulness of what he was getting into. He wrote about the need in this instance to “sin boldly, and trust in God’s grace all the more.” We face a similar choice today.

 The second choice is in some ways both far easier and more difficult, but essential in building a world filled with God’s peace and love. We need to choose to be together!

 We talk all the time about the need to share fellowship with each other- (that’s what I have been talking about today!) It’s part of our Christian walk; it is another reason for the church to be... In our sharing with each other, we have fellowship with God! “wherever two or three of you are gathered, there am I in the midst of you... So we gather in groups, where we can learn together, care for each other, pray with and for each other...What might happen if our groups were to invite people not yet believers- or committed to the Good News of Jesus Christ to be a part?

 And beyond our church, what might happen in our communities if we were able to build deliberate opportunities to get to know each other across religious, racial and economic lines? It is much more difficult to stereotype, to hate to kill people you have come to know...”

 We all need each other. That’s how our Lord structured His Church, leading us as we grow in him- walking with him, and sharing Life together, in Jesus’ Name, Amen!

 

 

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