“Living Stones”
a sermon preached by the Rev. Linda Kuhn, Sand Bur Consulting October 31, 2010
scripture readings: Genesis 12: 1-4a Now theLordsaid to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”So Abram went, as theLordhad told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
I Peter 2: 4-5, 9-10Come to him (Christ), a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, andlike living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. . . (Y)ou are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
When Dave and I met with your Session last summer to talk about our working with you on a discernment process to set a direction for your church, it was not lost to us that the day chosen for the congregational meeting would be October 31, known on the church calendar as Reformation Sunday. As a Presbyterian church with United Church of Christ affiliation, your identity anchors you in the Reformation heritage, that movement sparked by the priest Martin Luther in the year 1517 when he tacked his 95 Theses on the door of the community church in Wittenberg, Germany. In doing so, he publicly challenged the Church to change, notably to do away with the sale of indulgences, the idea that people could buy their salvation. He called for reform, essentially called the Church to press a re-set button that would bring it back to the essentials of faith and away from distractions and corruption and unfaithfulness. This legacy of Martin Luther and the Reformation has shaped all Protestant churches that have since come from this branch of the Christian tree, including this church, whose Presbyterian heritage was further shaped by the persons of John Calvin and John Knox. Reformation principles are part of who you are -- so much so that you may not realize that not all churches do not necessarily share them: they are embedded in the way you approach scripture with educated judgment, your understanding that God is God and we are not (the sovereignty of God), the way you value shared leadership between pastor and people (the priesthood of all believers), your understanding of the reality of sin as a force in the world (human depravity) and in our lives while focusingon grace rather than guilt or salvation by human achievement (salvation by grace).
Did you know that the motto of the Presbyterian church is “reformed, always reforming”? Our Book of Order opens with our historic principles: The church affirms “Ecclesia reformata, semper reformanda,” that is, “’Thechurch reformed, always reforming,’ according to the Word of God and the call of the Spirit.” (Book of Order, G-2.0200)We may be a denomination characterized by the public as rigid, slow-moving and stuck in our ways. but our spiritual heritage is otherwise. If we take seriously this claim – the church reformed, always reforming -- change is essentially our middle name, a willingness to change what we have been doing and where we have been when we discern God’s call to do otherwise. Our very principles as a Reformed people tell us that we do not vest our building, our structure, our pastor, our precious ways of doing things with sacred significance -- but subject all these things to evaluation and possible change under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It means, we are a people -- and a church -- committed always to self-examination.
Historically, the United Church of Christ stems back to similar branches as the Presbyterians but with a slightly different motto: “united, always uniting, ” based on John 17:21 where Jesus appeals to his disciples “that they may all be one.”– all of one spirit, all of one accord. With your UCC affiliation, you have essentially embracedthis heritage as well, that of a united church, always seeking ways to put aside distractions and divisions in the body of Christ that get in the way of common mission and ministry. The UCC is always on the forefront of inter-church and inter-faith efforts to work together in covenant relationship with others of faith to get on with the task of doing the work God calls us to -- doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with our God. This motto, also conveys a sense of movement and momentum, pushing aside distractions and diversions that get in the way of doing what you are called to do.
Today, on this Reformation Sunday, you are being asked to deliberate on a momentous decision about your direction as a church. Dave and I do not in any way want to minimize the significance of what is being asked of you. To even consider giving up your building, even consider exploring a relationship with another church, to even think of worshipping somewhere else, finding new roles and ways of doing things is enough to send any congregation into a tailspin. It is a huge thing to ask of anyone, any congregation. Change is not easy, for any of us. The thought of giving up or letting go of what seems so dear to us is bound to conjure up sadness and frustration and maybe confusion. But sometimes change comes to us unbidden. Sometimes our funds, our resources, our energy, our membership, and most importantly our faith calls us to do things we would not otherwise choose to do in order to be faithful. The session is asking whether you are willing to support a particular direction -- no blueprint yet, but a direction, a movement. We know this recommendation does not come to you from out of the blue and in fact some elements have come before you before. But today the recommendation comes to you as a result of the discernment process we have experienced together these past few months.
It is clear that you cannot stay the way you are. The writing is on the wall. Funds are dwindling. Your building is in need of major repair and expensive maintenance. All of this can burden a church your size. Something has to give. Wishful thinking will only prolong the end and sap resources. The session is recommending that your support their effort to explore giving up your building and take your core values on the road, investigating where you might find a destination, perhaps with another church. The question for you as you deliberate and vote is whether you also discern that this way is “of God.”
A plan would develop afterwards – a plan that keeps your core values at the center, a plan that seeks to preserve and strengthen your commitment to offer worship that is refreshingly traditional, emphasizing grace over guilt, biblically informed preaching, confession and assurance of pardon; that values your choir and musical talents; that provides a safe environment for spiritual inquiry; that supports your mission work together and individually; that encourages fellowship and your connections with each other; and that is intentional about being welcoming of all. This is a direction, a movement, without a lot of details yet. We know this treads on comfort zones big-time. It is not unlike what Abraham and Sarah faced when God called them to leave the comfort of their homeland to take off on a journey -- destination unknown. They had to rely on God big-time, trust this God who claimed them and graced them and promised fruitfulness. Abram and Sarai were called by God to live into a new identity, even receiving new names, based on their relationship and commitment to be on a journey so that they might be a blessing. Did you catch that in the scripture reading? They set off in a direction in order to be a blessing to others. You need to decide if this journey you will be voting on has within it the potential of making you a blessing for others.
If you do decide to journey forth, it might be helpful to imagine what it was like for Abraham and Sarah to start off on the road with a caravan. They faced the task of gathering a huge extended family, tents, belongings, livestock and getting them moving on the road, together. There were no doubt those -- family, livestock, who had a tendency to slip away or lag behind; others who were impatient and wanted to run ahead; some probably got tired early on, some got grouchy. Choices needed to be made as to what could be taken as baggage and what needed to be left behind. As a group they needed to find ways to sustain themselves on the journey, meet daily needs, find ways to keep their energy up, remind each other of their hope and why they had committed themselves to this direction. They no doubt had feelings of grief and sadness and anxiety about the future mixed in with a sense of adventure and excitement and energy. It wasn’t just Abraham and Sarah’s job, it took everyone in the tribe to be attentive, vigilant, watch out for and care for one another, help each other process their feelings, work together, keep the momentum going, hold each other up. Should you decide to take this step, this kind of job becomes the responsibility of all of you, together. The hope with any direction you take is that you do not fracture, but can stay together as much as possible, cherishing the relationships you have with each other.You may end up in a different space, you may be functioning somewhat differently, but you will have each other, if you value sticking together and commit to working toward that purpose.
Dave and I walk a fine line with you here. We designed a discernment process for you – with Bible study, worship, workshop, and homework to get you talking with each other through the weeks. Each month had a focus: 1) to help you recognize and claim the power of God at work within you; 2) to identify the mission and ministry to which God was calling you; and 3) to think about the resources God had given you and your willingness to offer these for God’s use and direction. Now on this day, Dave’s and my role is not to advocate a particular outcome as much as we are trying to hold you to certain criteria as you discuss and deliberate, that this time be anchored in what you have learned and experienced in this discernment process, that your next steps might be framed in terms of what God might be leading you to do as a church, as far as you can see. The question is not what do each of you want, but what does God want of and for this church? We would all like a crystal ball to see into the future, with everything all planned and spelled out. Sometimes we’re given is to be to see what’s there in front of our headlights on a dark night.
The passage from I Peter is a kind of “charge” to the early church, a commendation, reminding them of their identity, who they were called by God to be – a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people. It was not for the purpose of just surviving or existing, but rather, (see vs. 9-10) “in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” The scripture writer challenges the church to be “living stones, built into a spiritual house.” When you think of it, that metaphor is an oxymoron – living/stones. What could be more life-less, more inanimate than stones? Only God’s power can give life to stones. This recommendation that comes to you from the session comes because they are privy to all the financial figures and have wrestled long about the future of this church. And they fear that these stones, this building, will suck the lifeblood out of this congregation if you go on as you have been. So, as you deliberate about this recommendation, however you vote, be sure you are keeping your eyes on how you can be living stones, built into a spiritual house.
And so hear these words from I Timothy: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power, love, and of a sound mind.” And as you deliberate, do so with confidence "in the power of our God who at work within you is which is able to accomplish far more than we can ask or imagine, to God be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever." Amen.