Sermon, July 29, 2007

Herb Palmer
Faith Lutheran Church, Bellaire
July 29, 2007
Genesis 18:20-32; Colossians 2:6-15; 16-19; Luke 11:1-13
Blessed in Boldness

Prayer is a common practice. The practice of prayer crosses over to all cultures and all religions so that it seems that prayer is as normal to human life as is breathing. Recently, while I was in Turkey, a country that is predominately Muslim, people were called to prayer from the speakers on the Minarets from waking to sleeping. This call to prayer is to honor God and it is part of the 5 pillars of faith in the Islamic tradition. I am told that the closer in time a person prays to the call to prayer, they bring greater honor to God.
In Jerusalem there is the Wailing Wall, which are remains of the ancient Temple. Pilgrims come from all over the world to pray at this wall. From very early in their traditions the common prayer of Jews has been the Shama: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is One God.”
Chapels in crowded airports, public hospitals, and parks provide space for people to pray.

What is there about prayer that draws us to do it?
Do we pray because God is like a vending machine where we put in our request and something is dispensed to us?
Do we pray because we have reached the end of our ability to do something so we finally turn to God?
Do we pray because we believe that God is capable of changing any situation, giving a miracle, just by our request for God to do so?
Do we pray because we are drawn to life that is bigger than ourselves?

What is there about prayer that draws us to it? Jesus shares his perspective on that when he answers that question for his disciple who asked Jesus to teach them how to pray. It is not that they were unfamiliar with prayer. It was that the disciples of Jesus wanted to pray in the manner in which Jesus prayed.

Jesus prayed often; and when Jesus teaches his followers to pray he teaches them about pray as a way of life. That is true also for us. So, let’s take a look at what Jesus teaches about prayer as a way of life, as he does so through this very familiar prayer we call the Lord’s Prayer; looking at the implications of what we are asking; and what God is doing.

At the very beginning we pray that God’s name is honored among us. God’s name is honored by what we do. We pray that our behavior and our words are a reflection of the behavior, words, and values of God. These beginning words of this prayer are crucial in understanding what follows. There are then three prayer petitions Jesus teaches us to pray that are reflective of behavior that is normal to life that honors God. Notice, that in each of these petitions we pray that this is true not only for our self but that it is true for the whole community.

These petitions are: “Give us our food day by day. Forgive us our sins just as we forgive those who have sinned against us; and don’t let us yield to temptation.” We are asking God to form in us a way of life to desire justice, to be merciful, and to live humbly.

When we pray for daily bread we are praying for justice.
Justice is about having equal access; it is a leveling of the playing field. What is true about life around us, however, is that people do not have equal access. There are circumstances in life when we don’t have what we need. We pray that we live by different values.

Jesus tells a parable about a man who did not have what he needed to host a late arriving and unexpected guest in his home; so he goes to his neighbor looking for help.

In this story Jesus levels the field, saying that the people who are involved in this story are friends. Friends have equal status with one another. He goes to his friend for help. Secondly, there was obligation as a community to be hospitable to a guest; even if that guest was in your neighbor’s home. Not to help was shaming. So, even though it was late at night and inconvenient for the friend to get out of bed to help… he gets up because it would look badly on him if he did not.

We are asking in our prayer that God, who is ready to give, will shape us to be people who level the field by sharing, not because of our reputation; but because of God’s reputation… our prayer is that we honor God by what we do.

When Jesus teaches us to pray, he teaches us to pray that God, will form in us the passion for Justice. By doing so we honor our God who is always ready to provide.

In the next petition when we pray for forgiveness we are asking God to give us a heart full of mercy. When we pray this petition we are asking God to forgive us and make us into people who forgive. Jesus, again, showed us how this works. Jesus showed mercy to insiders, outsiders, those who were close and those who were far away from God. Never did they deserve forgiveness or mercy; it is freely given because it was characteristic of God to freely give mercy. Therefore, when we pray this petition about forgiveness, we ask God that we also will honor the name of God by working to make relationships right and whole.

And in the third petition we pray that we would be guarded from temptation. When we look at what Jesus means by temptation we are reminded of the time Jesus was tempted in the wilderness to use his power for his own relevance and popularity. (bread; jumping to test God; idolatry) When we pray to be guarded from temptation, we pray that God would form in us a spirit of humility – so that our power and our influence is for God’s purposes and not our own.

All of us have some kind of power to use. Jesus taught and modeled for us not to use our influence and power for our own sake nor for the control of others; but to use our power and influence to serve. Jesus taught us to take the posture of a servant.

And so Jesus teaches that when we pray we ask God to form in us a life that becomes a way of life…that what we do, what we say, and what we desire is centered in living in such a way that we honor God.

We are asking not so much that God change what is around us, but that God changes what is in us; and when God changes what is in us… God will change what is around us. Someone once said that changed people change the world. Prayer, as Jesus taught us, is about being changed people.

When our prayer is centered in this way, it is a prayer that is always answered. God will give to us… every time… what is needed to change what is in us. Jesus insists that God will give us the Holy Spirit to change what is in us… so that we are empowered to honor God in our living.

Here are the implications of praying as Jesus taught us to pray: Those who pray as Jesus taught us should expect that God will use us to show mercy, to live justly, and to use our influence for the good of others. God will also give us the courage and the strength to do these things… because… God will give the Holy Spirit who is our courage, counselor, and strength.

May we, therefore, be so bold in our praying; and may God be so gracious to bless us by forming in us such ways that bring honor to God. Amen

Special project

This week our youth will be involved in a very special project. When they attended Disciple Project in June, they were challenged to do something to make a difference. A couple of our church youth listened, prayed, and have taken action. Their plan has included the whole congregation in a mission project. Beginning tomorrow the youth and any other interested persons will meet at the church for Bible Study and work on their project, which is to provide packages for American Troops around the world. This project is to make a difference by caring for people who are far from home and who may be harms way.
People from the congregation have been challenged to provide items for the packages or to donate money. The finale is a fresbee tournament at the church on Saturday! There is an entry free and competition. So get your wrists in shape by first reaching for your wallet and then for the fresbee tournament. Make a difference!

Journey,s end

We are completıng our pılgrımage ın Turkey. The church ıs about one percent of the Turkısh populatıon today. There ıs such a small presence but the hıstory of the church ın thıs place has been a great part of who we are as the church today. We are grateful for these saınts of old who lıved lıves of faıthfulness and shared the gospel so that today ıt ıs passed to us. May we be as faithful as they were. As our group of pastors leave today we leave Turkey thankful for the gracıousness of the Turkey people and for these days we have spent to come ın touch wıth our roots as the church.

Turkey Pılgrımage Journal 7

We are ın Istanbul and ıt ıs Sunday. Today has been another day to see the church past and present. In Istanbul we have been able to locate the actıve church not just to see remnents of the church past.
We worshıped for a whıle ın a Greek Orthodox Church. We are told that theır worshıp ıs most lıke the worshıp ın the Temple ın Jerusalem centurıes ago. The prıest ıs behınd a screen. Worshıpıngs can only see through a door. There ıs chantıng and readıngs ın Greek. There was much mystery around the worshıp. The worshıpıng communıty does not partıcıpate ın the worshıp. They only watch.
Then we attended a Roman Catholıc Church. The servıce was ın Englısh. The preacher was lıkely from South Afrıca. He ıs black. The church was quıte full of people and ıt looked lıke they were people from around the world. It seemed that many were famılıar wıth the servıce so ıt ıs lıkely that they were connected to thıs congregatıon. We were able to stay long enough to share ın the Eucharıst.
The Hagıa Sophıa was the largest domed church for many years. It ıs no longer used as a church. It ıs a museum. Centurıes ago ıt was used as a mosque so there are evıdences of both Chrıstıanıty and Islam usıng thıs massıve buıldıng for worshıp. When ıt was used as a mosque the walks were plastered. But ın recent years there has been renovatıon of the buıldıng and beautıful pıctures on the walls have been uncovered. Hagıa Sophıa means holy wısdom, one of the attrıbutes of Jesus. Along sıde the Hagıa Sophıa was Hagıa Irene, dedıcated to another attrıbute of Jesus, Holy Peace.
Across the street ıs the Blue Mosque. It ıs named for the blue tıles ın the ınterıor. We were also able to go ınto thıs Mosque. It ıs equally as large as the Hagıa Sophıa. The two of them together wıth theır domes and mınerets ıs quıte ımpressıve.
We were also granted an audıence wıth Hıs Great Holıness the Ecumenıcal Patrıarch of the Greek Orthodox church, Bartholomew II. He extended greetıngs to the ELCA and our congregatıons. He shared wıth us about the state of the church ın Turkay and about leaders ın the Orthodox church around the world. He ıs a gentle ma, speaks very good Englısh, and he looks to the day for greater unıty wıthın the church.

Turkey Pılgrımage 6

The fınal three churches of Revelatıon ae Smyrna, Pergamum, and Thyatrıa. They are mentıoned ın Revelatıon 2:8ff; 2:12ff; and 2:18ff.
Ancıent Smyrna ıs modern day Izmir. 3 mıllıon people lıve ın Izmir today. It ıs the 2nd largest sea port ın Turkey. Here we vısıted St. Polıcarp Church. Thıs ıs a Roman Catholic Church and ıs an actıve congregatıon. Polıcarp lıved ın Smyrna and ıt was here he was martyred. Tradıtıon say that Polıcarp, who lıved 69-155 AD, was a student of John the Apostle. When there were perseuctıons there were a couple of people marytred and then the crowd went lookıng for Polıcarp. Frıends of Polıcarp hıd hım away. Polıcarp had vısıon from heaven to be strong and play the man. When he was found he ınvıted the soldıers ın and fed them. By the tıme he was brought to the crowd ıt was too late to put hım wıth the anımals. It was decıded to burn hım. The fıre was all around Polıcarp but ıt dıd not burn hım. The executıoner stapped Polıcarp and ıt ıs saıd that the blood extınquıshed the fıre.

There ıs not much left of the ancıent cıty of Thyatrıra. We say the ruıns of a church that had been at one tıme a Roman Bath.

Pergemon was a very magnificent cıty. It was built on a very hıgh hıll, surrounded by the valley and ın the dıstance other hılls. Thıs was the hıghest hıll ın the regıon. It was a very relıgıous cıty wıth many temples to pagan and Imperial gods. Thıs ancient city had the largest lıbrary of 20,000 scrolls.
At the foot of the hıll was yet another part of the city that was a sanıtarıum. It was constructed for healıng mental illness. It was dedıcated to the god Asclepıus, the son of the god Apollos. Thıs cıty was called Asclıpıon. They used water, musıc, and entertaınment for healıng. Of course, thıs was a place only for those who could afford to use it.

Wıth all the 7 churches, even though there ıs dıstance geographıcally between them, ıt ıs assumed that there was networkıng as they worked ın the gospel. They were sıgnıfıcant sıtes ın the NW regıon of modern day Turkey.

Yesterday we dıd a lot of bus travel. On the way we stopped ın the ancıent cıty of Nıcea. The modern city name ıs Iznik. Thıs city, ancient and modern, ıs known for makıng tıles. The ruıns of St. Sophıa Church ıs located here and ıt ıs at thıs church where the Fırst Ecumenıcal Councıl convened and as a result produced what we know as the Nıcene Creed.

Today we vısıt Hagıa Sophıa, The Blue Mosque, and a specıal audience wıth Hıs Holıness, Bartholomew II, Patrıarch of the Greek Orthodox Church.

Turkey Pılgrımage entry 5

We contınued our pılgrımage to another church and cıty of the 7 churches ın Revelatıon 2 and 3. We turn to Ephesus. Many of us are most famılıar wıth Ephesus because one of Paul's letters ın the New Testament have been passed to us. Also there ıs a story about Paul ın Ephesus ın Acts 19. Paul spent 2 years ın thıs cıty. In the Acts story he and others are arrested and Paul ıs ın prıson.
Today Ephesus ıs a large cıty on a bay of the Aegean Sea. Many tourıst come to thıs cıty and lınk up wıth cruıse shıps. The waterfront ın lıned wıth a marına and beaches.
The ancıent cıty of Ephesus sıts a bıt ınland. The ancıent cıty once sat along the water as well but the water flow has changed through the centurıes.
The ancıent cıty had a lıbrary of 12,000 scrolls, fountaıns, and homes of wealthy people. Here ıs the oldest church buıldıng that was dedıcated to St. Mary. The Councıl of Ephesus met here at the church. Nearby ıs the Cave of the Seven Sleepers. The tradıtıon ıs durıng a tıme of persecutıon of Chrıstıans 7 young men refused to deny theır faıth. They hıd ın a cave. The youngest of them would go ınto town for food. These young men prayed that God would protect them. They fell to sleep. Two hundred years later they were awaken and found that the cıty had been converted to Chrıstıanıty. A church was buılt on the sıte of the cave.
Nearby ıs the church dedıcated to St. John. John was asked by Jesus to care for Mary. Tradıtıon ıs that John and Mary lıved ın Ephesus. Even after John was able to leave Patmos, where he was exıled, he went to Ephesus. It ıs saıd that hıs grave ıs at thıs church named ın hıs honor.

Today we travel to Nıcea where another of the Church Councıls met and from whom we receıve the Nıcene Creed.

Turkey Pılgrımage entry 4

The last few days we have been travelıng to vısıt the sıghts of the 7 churches of Revelatıon 2 and 3. Laodıcea ıs where Phılıp ıs said to be martyred. The cıty ıs located on top of a long hıll. The hıll ıs ın the mıddle of the valley. As we drove along the road ın the valley the top of the hıll looked golden yellow and the valley was lush wıth farm land. Laodıcea was a network of a number of cıtıes, ıncludıng Laodıcea, Coloasea, and Heırapolıs. Thıs region was quite wealthy and on a major trade route ın ancient tımes. St. Paul vısıted thıs area.
Hıerapolıs ıs quıte a tourıst area because the water ıs rıch ın calcıum. The ancıent people saw ıt as havıng healıng powers. The sprıngs of water have made the hıllsıdes look as though they are covered wıth snow. They as so whıte. We walked over the hılls and ın to water.

Next we vısıted Phıladelphıa. See Rev. 3:12ff. There was not much left here; only the ruıns of St. John's Church.

Then there was Sardıs. It's modern cıty name ıs Salıhli. It ıs on the Aegean coast. Thıs cıty begın ın the 7th century BC. The fırst coıns were prınted here. The ruıns of thıs ancıent cıty are beıng restored by patrons. There was a very large Jewısh Synagogue that was a gıft from the Emperor, Calıgulaö to the Jewısh people of ancıent Sardıs. The cıty was about one-fourth Jewısh so ıt had a sıgnıfıcant presence. The church was part of the Jewısh communıty ın the fırst century AD. The Jews also had shops that lıned the one sıde of the synagogue. Sardıs ıs typıcal of most of these cıtıes with a market, gymnasıum, Roman bath, and temples to the gods. Fınally, the wealth of thıs cıty was generated through gold mınes.

More about the seven churches ın the next entry. On Sunday our group wıll have an audıence wıth the Eastern Orthodox Patrıarch ın Istanbul ( the Orthodox stıll call ıt Constantınople, however). The Patrıarch ıs equıvelant to the Roman Catholıc Pope. So, whıle you are ın worshıp or preparıng for worshıp on Sunday, we wıll be wıth the Patrıarch! How excıtıng.

Journey Journal entry 4

Sıde ıs a port cıty where trade was done for centurıes. Pırates roamed thıs coast taking fortunes that did not belong to them. St. Paul came to this port cıty to gıve the people the gift of the Gospel. The old city stıll remains. ın fact, the people have built around the old. There are ruins of the Temple to Apollo and next to it ruins of the church. İn the backgroun can be seen a mosque.

In land, and not too far from Sıde ıs Pergeç The Acts of the Apostles tells about the journey of Paul to Perge. Thıs was a grand city wıth an entrance gate and wide collonnade. Down the center water was channeled as away to cool the area. To the right is the agora (marketplace). Along the sides of the main street are merchant shops and at the far end on the hill was the acropolıs.

The people ın a few citıes of this regiıon of Phrygıa had theaters,race tracks, and public baths. The theater seated 15,000 and the public bath had hot water ın one area, lukewarm in another, and cold water in the third.

City lıfe and the instruments we use are about the same. Over the years we have made these thıngs more sophistocated and advanced but it was these people of ancint times who developed them at first and we have built upon their know how.

That is much like faith, as well. Our faith ıs built upon the apostles, prophets, teachers, and the faithful from generations past. When we peel away all the modern trappings there are the basic tools of the faith these ancient people shared.

Journey Journal entry 3

Throughout the regıon of modern day Turkey the church had spread. Most of our New Testament addresses communıtıes ın Asia Minor. Thre were thrıvıng congregatıons from the north to the south in the Western half of Asıa Mınorç Today there ıs little evidence of the church. one sees more of the ruins then the steeples callıng people to worship. What happen? There were a number of thıngs taht contributed to thıs but I would venture to say that the primary influnce was that faith was taken hostage by relıgıon, and the faithful became obedient to the religious institution rather than the Lord of the Church. And institutıons became part of the status quo rather then a counter movement ın the society as Jesus established.

Mystism grew in thıs part of the church in reactiıon to these, yet even ın thıs movement it was not enough and those instıtutıonsi are left empty and in ruin as well.

The Crusaders went through this regionç The Crusaders were a military drive in the name of the Chrıstian faıth to reclaim areas from Turkey to the Mıddle Eastç Castles on high hilltops remaın leaving the memory of a violent tıme of hısotry ın the name of Godç

We have lessons from the past to learn, to gıve thanks, and to repentç

Turkey pilgrimage 2

The faith of the Chrıstıan Church had ıts roots ın the faith of the people ın those early years of the church. After the martyrdom of Stephen the church scattered. A major cıty ın the Roman Empıre of Antioch. Thıs Cıty located north of Palestıne and was the thırd largest cıty. About one fourth of the people were Jews and they were open to Gentıles becomıng part of theır faıth. When the followers of Jesus scattered many of them scattered to Antıoch. It was ın thıs faıth culture that the church grew and where God used the relıgıous work of Gentıles and Jews ın the same communıty. It also became a source of conflıct.

We visited Antıoch. On the hıllsıde ıs a grotto named St. Peters Grotto. It ıs belıeved that the church ın Antıoch worshıped ın thıs place. It ıs here that Peter, Paul, and Barnabas preached. It ıs here that a communıty of Chrıst Followers lıved and practıced a faıth ın the Messıah, Jesus. Thıs church was a part of the Jewısh communıty, yet they soon became known as Chrıstıans. A name gıven to them by the Romans. The Chrıst followers called themselves, Followers of the Way.

Theology was not yet formed. These belıevers faıth was buılt on the practıces of the faıth. Conversıon was thought to be a conversion to a way of life. In thıs regıon for the church that became an ımportant part of theır spırıtualıty too. In thıs area was the growth of mystıcısm and the desıre for the experıence of God.

We have worked our way to the Sea. It was beautıful to look at and thınk of all the hıstory around thıs sea ın the mıddle of the known world. Thıs mornıng we wıll worshıp together and then head for a monastary on the coast.

Journey Journal 1

It was a long way to get to Turkey. We left early on Monday and arrıved ın the mıddle of the afternoon on Tuesday. (we dıd loose 8 hours along the way as well!). It has taken me even longer to work through the Turkısh ınternet and the dıfferent key board. But thanks to be God I am fınally on the blog and can share wıth you a pıece of thıs journey along the way.

There of traces left behınd that the people of Turkey have been here for many centurıes. Many peoples, cultures, and ınvaders have come to thıs place. And now our group of 12 have come to follow the traces of these people, partıcularly the people who fınally became known as Chrıstıans.

We arrıved ın the capıtal cıty of Ankara. After the war of ındependence around 1920 the Tukısh people moved theır capıtal cıty to Ankara from Istanbul. It was fınally ın Ankara that the battle for vıctory was won. The cıty was around 70,000 people at the tıme but today ıt ıs ınhabıted by more than one mıllıon persons.

You may be famılıar wıth some of the peoples who came to Turkey. They were Hatte, Hıttıte, Assyrıan, Greek, Roman, and also the Celts (Gauls) who were from what we know as France. The Celts settled near a central regıon of Turkey known today Cappıdocıa ın Anatolıa. The people were called Galatıans. It ıs where the Galatıans lıved where we fırst vısıted.

The land has been shaped and formed by a present day volcano. There are large rock formatıons and deep vallıes lıned wıth stone. When the Galatıans were lıvıng ın thıs area they dug theır homes ın the stone walls of the vallıes and caverns. When I stood at a hıgh to look down or to look up from the valley below I could see many entrances ınto the rock. Some people stıll lıve ın these homes carved ınto the rock. 2,000 years ago ıt was the Chrıstıans who lıved ın these rock homes and here ıt ıs they worshıped.

St. Paul, who was from Tarsus, was also from modern day Turkey. He was commıssıoned by the church to go ınto central Turkey and when he came to Galatıa he found that there were already some Chrıstıans liviıng there. It ıs consıdered that some Galatıans were part of the Pentecost experıence and they returned to Galatıa wıth the faıth ın Jesus.

Over the fırst centurıes the church experıenced persecutıon and ınvasıons. They created or ınhabıted underground vıllages that went ınto the ground for 8-13 floors! Thıs ıs where they lıved, cooked, and worshıp ın tımes of danger.

We vısıted underground cıtıes and underground monastarıes. It was among the people ın these humble dwellıngs and ın the monastıc communıtıes where the faıth ın Chrıst was developed.

When I contınue I want to share wıth you the faıth development of thıs regıon.

Sermon: the Faithful Calling

Herb Palmer
Faith Lutheran Church, Bellaire
July 8, 2007
Luke 10:1-11; 16-20; Galatians 6:1-16
The Faithful Calling

Someone has said “the church is being the church when it is sent.”
We are a sent people. The Great commission of Jesus before he was ascended into heaven was to send his church to places near and far, So that all people will know that the reign of God is among us.

The ELCA has identified ourselves as a sent people.
I am going to give you an assignment. Take a moment and discuss with a person near to you what exactly the “E” in ELCA stands for; and once you have the “E” figured out talk about what you believe the word means.
The “E” stands for ….Evangelical. Evangelical is about sharing the good news of God through Christ. It is a way to say that we are sent.

Often when we think about being sent we think about the example set for us by Paul and the missionaries throughout the history of the church who were sent into places around the world to share the gospel.

Tomorrow I will leave to be on a pilgrimage to Turkey with a study group. The places we plan to visit will be the historic places where Paul, of the New Testament, was sent as a missionary, to build up the church. One of the places we plan to visit is Galatia. One of our NT readings this morning is from Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia. Paul was sent by God and the church to these communities, to share the good news of God through Christ.

This week I was talking with a woman about our study in Turkey and she told me that a number of years ago she had planned to go to Turkey. At that time she was a student at Rice University. A group of the students wanted to go to Turkey to study abroad and while they were there to share the gospel.
She and her friends wanted to be evangelists. They knew they would be doing that with some risks, because it was not legal for people to come into Turkey and evangelize for the gospel. They would have to do it, in a sense, underground.

Her plan was to stay there for 2 years, but she wasn’t able to follow through on her plans because she was distracted by another love, and she was married instead. Now she has three teenage sons; and they go on short mission trips. This year they will go to Mexico and help to build a home. And here is what she said that I found as quite interesting. She said: “I believe that by sending my children it will be a life changing experience for them.”

She believed that if her sons are sent to live among and serve people out of Christian love, she believes that such an experience for her sons will make a difference in how they live their life. I think she is right about that. These experiences will have a tremendous impact on them.

People will often say that when they have helped someone else they got more out of it then they gave. That has been my experience many times and you likely have had that experience as well. When you have helped someone else you had the feeling that you got more out of it then the other person.
I would like for you to take a few moments, once again, to think about a time when you did some thing for someone else and after that experience you walked away thinking that you received more than you gave. And then, again, I want you to share that experience with a person next to you.

Maybe it was that you gave an afternoon to a family member who was lonely. And by doing so you learned more about them but even more so you learned about your family and why you are the way you are.Maybe you helped a neighbor move in; or you volunteered when people were needed to care for the Hurricane Katrina survivors.

There are many experiences in life when we are called upon to step into and share in the life of another person; and the connection seems to have a greater impact on us. In fact, it seems almost spiritual. It is likely that is exactly what it was. It was spiritual. When we put this in the perspective of being sent, we might even say we have been sent by God to that person or that place or to that opportunity.

All of this sheds a different light on the harvest about which Jesus speaks and what we ask the Lord of the Harvest to do.

Let’s go back to the story of sending the 72. These 72 who were sent returned from their assignments with lots of stories about people who were healed, people who discovered a connection with God, about how destructive behavior was changed. These 70 people were filled with Joy about what happened for other people.

Notice, however, the response of Jesus. Jesus wants them to get something else from it.
Jesus says: Let’s not only turn our attention to the people you encountered, let’s take a look at what you learned about yourself. “Don’t rejoice just because you have seen God at work THROUGH you—Rejoice because of the work of God that has taken place in you.”

I think that Jesus sent them— to show them something about themselves. Jesus sent them so that they could see what has taken place in them. Jesus sent them so that they could identify something within themselves. You see, if they had only learned from Jesus and watched Jesus, they would not be able to see what has taken place in them. By sending them out, to do something. They could see what had happened in them. They were not only to know the Gospel, but also to have the experience of applying it to life. These are life-changing experiences.

Paul reinforces this in his letter to the Galatians. He says – what counts is whether we really have changed into new and different people. What counts is what is taking place in you. The best way to see that is to do something.

An important part of our worship time is that when it is time to conclude our worship… we are sent with a blessing and then a dismissal. These or similar words are said: The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord look upon you with favor and give you peace…. Go now in peace and serve the Lord.
And to that we say: Amen. Thanks be to God.

We leave as persons who are sent. We are scattered into the community and places beyond. I believe that it is helpful for us to remind ourselves that we, every day, are part of a mission. You might want to ask yourself throughout the week: What has God sent me here to do?
It is a simple question that puts our relationship with God at the center of the moment. What has God sent me here to do?
What have I learned abut God – that I can apply to my life at this time?From those experiences: May God give you the joy of seeing the work of God through you. And may God use those experiences to also show you something about yourself. And that is: There is something new and different about you. Amen

Turkey pilgrimage

This summer I will be taking a pilgrimage with other church leaders to study the church's mission in the First Century CE in Asia Minor, or what is known today as Turkey. We will study the people of that time and the faith that developed as Christ followers. We will study the texts of Luke, Acts of the Apostles, and The Revelation of John. The Seven Churches in Revelation were located in modern day Turkey. While I am in Turkey it is my plan to post information about our pilgrimage on this Blog. So, pray that I keep it going! And look for updates reguarly. Pastor Palmer

Sermon, July 1, 2007

Pentecost, Proper 13
Herb Palmer
Faith Lutheran Church, Bellaire
July 1, 2007
“The Enduring Freedom”
I Kings 19:15-16, 19-21; Galatians 5:1, 13-25; Luke 9:51-62

“For Freedom, Christ has set us free.” The message Bible says: “Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take a stand. This morning I want to reflect with you about freedom.

The roots of our faith are grounded in freedom. The people of Israel were slaves in Egypt. God heard the cries of God’s people. God called and sent Moses to lead God’s people to freedom. Moses went to Pharaoh as a messenger from God saying: “Let my people go.” This freedom from slavery became the central story of the people of Israel.

Many religions were rooted in right moral living and superstition. The faith of people of Israel was rooted in the freedom God gave them. They were once oppressed and enslaved but now they are free. God’s message to them often began with God saying: “I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt with a mighty and outstretched arm, therefore….” With their freedom God gave them an identity. As a result of being freed by God, they entered into a covenant with God to align themselves with oppressed people. When they failed to remember the poor and the oppressed, they were not living up to their end of the covenant, and their way of life fell apart. Our faith is rooted in this freedom.

The rules by which we govern ourselves as a nation are grounded also in freedom. We who are citizens of the United States are a people who deeply value freedom. When we sing about this freedom it stirs our emotions; when we want to rally people together we lift up this American core value about freedom. When we become familiar with the places of the world where freedoms are limited or non-existent, we appreciate how fortunate we are. There are many people around the world who long for what we often take for granted.

Following the war in Vietnam many Vietnamese people made plans to leave Vietnam. Among them were Ahn and Bay, and their children. Their movements were watched; more than once Ahn was tortured. Yet they never gave up. After a dangerous, crowded boat trip, without food, water, and sanitation, and after several years in a refugee camp, they finally made it to the United States.

Our congregation in Brenham sponsored them. I asked Ahn why he was willing to face such danger; and he said, “for freedom.” They had not known freedom, and they were willing to sacrifice even their own lives in order to have it.

From the beginning of our nation we have worked through our laws to secure freedom for everyone. It didn’t start out that way. Not everyone had equal access to freedom, but we have worked through the years to come to the point of addressing freedoms for all people that, at one time, were denied; and we are still at work to secure the freedom of all who live here.

We also have insisted that we are not free to restrict the freedoms of others. We might not like how another person uses their freedom of speech or freedom of religion or their right to vote; but we don’t get to restrict the freedom of another person or groups of persons because they might think, believe, look, or act differently than we do.

We are quite familiar with the value of freedom; but it is important to pay attention that not all freedoms are to be understood in the same way.

This morning we also hear from our Scriptures about yet a different way of being free: “For Freedom, Christ has set us free.” We teach that Christ has freed us from sin, death, and the devil. Yet, this teaching from Galatians is not about what we have been freed from… but what we are freed for.

This teaching from Galatians is a different kind of freedom than we have received under the protection of our laws. While the freedoms of our nation protect the rights of the individual; the freedom of Christ is a freedom that benefits others. The Bible is quite unfamiliar with the individualism that is highly valued in our society. In fact, one could make the case from the Bible that it would say that individualism is not freedom, it is a death.

Just a couple of examples to make the point.

In the beginning, when God created all things, God said about the human that it was not good to be alone. Having everything wasn’t enough. God knew from the beginning that if we didn’t have one another, it was not good.

Jesus told a parable that we know as the Parable of the Prodigal Son. This son separated himself from the family. He was off on his own. He was the poster child for individualism. It wasn’t’ until he spent everything he had that he realized that what he wanted was his freedom to do what he wanted to do, but it was not enough. He returned home, even to be a slave in the home of his father; because he discovered that freedom from relationships was not freedom at all. When he was not even home yet, his father ran to meet him and said, “My son, who was dead is now alive.” To be separated from community and from people is not life.

Individualism destroys life, Paul says in this teaching to the Galatians, because it quickly is motivated by self-interest. On the other hand, he says, Christ has set us free from our self and frees us for one another. The freedom of Christ is Love. Love is for the sake of another. This love about which the Bible speaks is love expressed in service to one another.

God has not left us alone to figure out this freedom in Christ, but we have been given the Spirit of Christ who helps us. We are encouraged, therefore to live by the Spirit. When we are open to the work of the Spirit of Christ in us, the fruits of being guided by the Spirit will become evident. Those fruits are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These fruits of life in the Spirit are the evidence of the freedom of Christ at work in us.

So, what does this Spirit-led, free life look like? Let me share with you a recent example I observed.

Recently my family, 5 of us, went to visit with my father who now lives in Jacksonville, FL with my sister and her husband. Getting all 5 of our schedules together for this visit was only accomplished by the help of God. When Joyce and Mike moved to Jacksonville 18 years ago, they bought a home knowing that one day my father may come to live with them. On the one side of the house is a private room and bath. About a year and half ago they took him into their home.

In a season of their life when they had a renewed freedom to do what they wanted to do, they also exercised their freedom to serve. Their children were grown and they were a little more financially secure, yet, they welcomed my father into their home. The day to day reality of that cannot be romanticized. They love him very much but it requires a lot from them, from food preparation, bathing, doctor appointments, entertainment, and maintaining a relationship where they want to respect his wishes.

Their freedom to love has required of them to make choices. Every day they must depend upon the empowerment of the Spirit of Christ to produce the fruits of the Spirit of Christ; so that in the midst of the everyday challenges what will drive the day are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. In their freedom they choose to serve. That is just one example of living the free life in Christ. There are likely dozens of others in this room today.

There is an irony about this life Christ gives to us.
At those times when our freedoms seem the most restricted,
We are most free;
because we are free in Christ to choose to serve.
And when we are led to make that free choice
Our discipleship is at its best.

As Christ followers we therefore understand an enduring kind of freedom by which to live. The freedom we value is not so that we can go and do as we please; we are free to give our life for the benefit of others. This freedom does not have to be protected. It cannot be taken away from us. This freedom will endure even when nations fall and laws fail us. This is a freedom that is lived even under unlivable circumstances.

For freedom, Christ has set us free. So, take a stand. Live a free life. We have been freed for the sake of serving one another. Thanks be to God. Amen