Sermon for July 21 from Acts 7

So…

Sometimes, God uses disasters to do miracles.

Last week we saw the incredible wonder of the early church taking on the problems of the unequal distribution of food. The leaders immediately jumped in and found a solution that really met the needs.

Instead of denying that there was a problem, that some widows might have been being treated differently because they weren’t the right kind of Jews, a subtle racism, they immediately picked the best disciples among them who spoke Greek and all had Greek names, and put them to work to fixing the problem!

It was amazing!

Of course, we also noted that they were all men, those Deacons, suggesting that while fixing one problem they may have missed another because widows it turns out are all women.

But soon they even fixed that, because as Todd noted in his sermon last week by the time of Paul’s Letter to the Romans, Paul was having the letter hand-delivered by a Deaconess named Pheobe!

It was all good! The church was growing. Even priests were joining the church! It was crazy, it was wonderful!

And then Deacons started preaching! Well kind of.

The truth is, some folks outside the church decided that the church was a threat to traditional Judaism, and because Stephen was a bold and eloquent speaker, they decided that he should be arrested and put on trial.

And when Stephen said that he saw Jesus standing next to God, that was enough for some to argue that Stephen had committed blaspheme and needed to die.

And they dragged him out to an open area, and they stoned him to death.

It turns out living faithfully for Jesus can be very dangerous.

It also turns out that righteous indignation can be fatal. Because as this story illustrates, it is always possible to be very pious and very wrong.

Because we have lived our lives in a time and place that values freedom of speech and freedom of religion, for the most part people of faith from all walks of life have lived at peace. Not always, but for the most part.

I have lived long enough to remember the presidential campaign between Jack Kennedy and Richard Nixon and the open conversations about how afraid some people were that a “Catholic” would become president.

It seemed so odd to me, living in a neighborhood of Polish immigrants who were all Roman Catholic and wonderful neighbors.

And I remember the adult class in Sunday School at the church I grew up in that talked with great concern about all the cults and -isms around us, making sure we all knew how bad and different they were, like those who practiced Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and cults like the Mormons.

That in spite of the fact that the Governor of Michigan was George Romney, a Mormon and a Republican, the father of Mitch Romney, the current Senator from Utah.

And all the guys and girls I hung out with in Junior and Senior High were for the most part Jewish. We played together in band and orchestra and jazz band and took classes together and pretty much all had our first beers at a party together, behind Aaron Weizbrat’s house!

He was an amazing drummer. And now a doctor. And he had beer!

And who knew back then, that my sister would marry Sanjay Gillani, and have three amazing kids, Jay, Nikki, and Arun! Sanjay was born and raised in New Delhi, India, and who as a good Hindu went to a good Jesuit High school. Only he can rock tie dye crocks!

And now, I am learning to live next door to a Buddhist Community on the West and a Hasidic Community on the North and I think, thank God I live in a nation that believes in free speech, and the freedom of assembly, and the freedom to worship as you choose.

Not one where if you testified that you saw Jesus standing on the right hand of God, you would be dragged out of the Temple and stoned to death.

It turns out living faithfully for Jesus can be very dangerous.

It also turns out that righteous indignation can be dangerous.

There was no opportunity for sanity in that mob. There was no discussion of different views. There weren’t any facts that both sides could agree to as truth. There was just anger.

Stephen knew his Old Testament. He was a very smart literate follower of Jesus. He spoke with passion and wisdom. But in the end, it didn’t matter, and because the anger had been inflamed, Stephen became its first victim.

And Saul, who was later to be called Paul was there.

And the fledgling church was squeezed out of Jerusalem, like toothpaste out of a tube.

But here’s the thing. Sometimes God can even use what looks to us to be a disaster, as a beginning. Because…

Soon in Samaria…

And soon in Syria…

And soon in Ethiopia…

And soon in Ephesus, and Corinth, and Rome and beyond …

There were new followers of Jesus being added to the church.

Sometimes God can use a disaster, to make a difference. Just saying.

Amen.

Sermon for July 14 from Acts 6:1-7

So...

When presented with a problem, what is your go to solution?

Fear and trembling? Anger? Denial? Or thoughtful 

action?

Remember last week when I mentioned that while the community around the followers of Jesus loved them, they were a bit intimidated by them?

So much so, that they didn’t join in because they weren’t really sure if they were at the same spiritual level, if they were holy enough?

It sounds crazy. We are not more spiritual, we Otisville Church folks!

But maybe, without intention, that is the vibe we give off? Sigh!

We want to be open, available, approachable, because we have something to share, to teach, to help others learn about, Jesus!

We are not more holy!

But we probably should be looking for more ways to share the amazing grace we have discovered with the community in less intimidating ways.

So, I guess I can understand some of the community’s awe. We are amazing. But what folks don’t see and didn’t see in Jerusalem was the problems of a growing church.

It turns out that some of the Greek speaking widows had begun complaining that in the distribution of the food, they were getting less than the Aramaic speaking widows.

And the irony is overwhelming!

On the one hand, lots of people were afraid to join the church because their perception was that the church people had their lives together and were way holier than them, while at the same time inside the church things were getting uncomfortable as some folks realized that part of the church’s basic mission failing.

And the problem was growth.

As a church grows the systems needed to keep it going, the leadership needed, even just the resources needed, have to grow as well. When you have a group of twelve disciples, one leader works.

When you have a community in the hundreds, you need all twelve of those Apostles teaching and leading smaller groups. But when you get to thousands, you need to expand the leadership exponentially.

In Jerusalem, there were now at least 2000 followers of Jesus!

And if those 2,000 were in house meeting groups of 20 people each, they would need 100 leaders, who knew and understood the gospel, including its amazing invitation to treat each and every person, no matter what, as if they were brothers and sisters of the Messiah, you know, just like Jesus did!

No exceptions because of their profession, their gender, even their status. In Christ there is no Jew nor Greek, no male nor female, no slave nor free.

You must treat them as siblings of Christ, even if _________. They are family! And it was going to get tougher.

Right now, the issue was widows, poor and in need, unsupported by their families, who needed food. But at least they were Jews who were following Jesus.

Yes, some had grown up as Jews in Israel and spoke a kind of a street Hebrew called Aramaic, so kind of like real Jews. And then there were the others, who might have been converts to Judaism, or who grew up outside Israel, who spoke Greek, so kind of like second class Jewish followers of Jesus.

And those kind of like second class followers of Jesus noticed that somehow in the crazy growth in leadership, the idea that all followers of Jesus are sisters and brothers to the Messiah was somehow being missed, particularly in the distribution of food, because the “real” Jewish widows were getting more and better food, than the “less real” Jewish widows.

The Apostles had a problem! A big problem!

And they needed quickly and definitely to establish that in the community of faith, no individual or group was to be treated with anything less than honor. They needed to find additional leadership that understood the faith clearly including it’s call to folks very different than the Aramaic speaking disciples.

Because the reality was that soon the faith community was going to include Samaritans, and Gentiles, and former soldiers, and even an Ethiopian government official.

They needed to find the best of the best of the followers of Jesus to see to the task of caring for the poor. So, they chose Deacons, that is servants.

They chose seven men, all who if you notice had Greek names, to lead the ministry. They were more than qualified by faith, but were chosen as well for this task because they could speak to those widows in their native language Greek, and assure them that their complaints had been heard and solved.

The seven: Stephen, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and also Nicolaus, were joined later by others, including women (sometimes it takes the church a while to see that while dealing well with one issue, we might be missing another – widows are women don’t you know).

And the church grew as more and more were being added daily to its number, So the need to grow more leaders was growing too; leaders who not only knew the gospel well, but who were willing to lead small groups in order to teach and share the faith.

Just the twelve were not enough!

Even in a church the size of ours we are badly under leader-ed.

Just to disciple and care for our 350 members, plus the many folks who are part of our family who are not members, we would need between 20-30 small group leaders. And to be honest, an additional pastor.

Not because the one you have isn’t amazing, but because this community of faith is itself so amazing that it needs an additional pastor to continue to grow. And what stands in the way of that additional preacher/teacher, money.

Our youth are going to Purdue! Thank you, Kelly! Our Mission Team is going to North Carolina. Thank you, Allison! But there are so many other opportunities to put our faith to work. Are you ready to lead? Let’s talk!

Amen.

Sermon for July 7 from Acts 5:12-16

So…

Is it possible that no one outside our church group would join us because we are so fabulous, just too cool for school?

I don’t know if you were aware, but there are studies out there that suggest that some of the folks who do not come to worship, who do not participate in a church, don’t because they think they aren’t worthy!

Did you hear that?! They think we have our stuff together, and so, since they perceive themselves as not having it all together, that they can’t come, wouldn’t be welcome, wouldn’t fit in, would stick out like sore thumbs.

And remember, it doesn’t matter at all if we think they shouldn’t feel that way. They do. And so the task of the church fellowship is to open every possible avenue of interaction so that folks outside the church feel like being inside the church is like coming home!

There was a story about a poor family that was struggling to get by. They didn’t have enough food, enough clothing, and their house was cold and drafty.

Finally, some folks for the Methodist church nearby noticed and came to help. They brought some good healthy food. They brought clothes for the parents and the kids. And best of all, they got the house insulated and set up a fund so the family would have fuel to heat the house.

By now the folks from the church were so excited by how everything had worked out, they somehow got it in their heads that perhaps the family would show up for worship the following Sunday.

And when they didn’t they were a bit curious, so one of the more nosy of the members (not that a church like this would have nosy members) checked to see just what had happened.

And it turned out that the family realized that in their new clothes that they looked so good, that they went upscaled and visited the Presbyterian Church instead! Welcome, welcome, welcome! You’re looking good! Just saying!

The story is a bit of fun, but to be clear, not exactly what is happening here. In fact, almost the opposite is happening. Many non-church folks feel like their current way of living not be welcome in a typical church. The #tiedyechurch. The #comesharemypew church! What’s a pew?

Some of these folks are amazing, wonderful, gracious, loving, but in relationship to a church wildly self-conscious, uncomfortable and nervous.

They think that they are not traditional enough to be thought of as just one of the bunch.

They don’t have grey hair, they do have tattoos. They don’t know any of the songs we sing, but they love some rock and roll, country, alternative, and pop. Not much of that sounds like church music.

We followers of Jesus can be a bit stuffy. A bit aloof. Sometimes less than accepting. A bit judge-y, perhaps. Not mellow or open or loving, or most of all, much like Jesus, who could sit with tax collectors and sinners, and be loved and admired by them.

It turns out it is not necessarily a new problem. Peter and the crew, it seems, were also scaring off people, although it seems for a different reason. They were scaring off people because God’s power was so obvious in them.

And the people in the community loved them, but they weren’t sure if they would be welcomed, if they were holy enough, if they would fit in.

So maybe, just maybe, today, as we approach the table of the Lord, we should think about how we would bridge that gap, how we could bring to this table everyone who ought to be here to experience God’s love and forgiveness who isn’t.

Who is God calling you to reach out to, and what would have to be different to enable them to get here?

Let’s band together to by this time next month make sure that we have invited one more to come.

It’s not likely that the community will line up the sick so our shadows will fall on them and heal them. But maybe, we should be striving to be a community that is so known for God’s presence in its midst that people want to come.

May it be so today as we, God’s faithful people, make a difference, in Jesus Name!

Amen.

Sermon for June 30 from Acts 4:32-37

So…

What has God given you to use for his glory?

Challenging question don’t you think. Most of us are perfectly happy with the idea that God has blessed us and given us stuff.

On the other hand, that God may want it back, or want for us to use it on God’s behalf is a bit touchy.

We live in times where everybody is either mad or scared that someone is going to take their stuff, and potentially use it badly, to do stuff they don’t agree with. That’s the political reality. But it can also challenge and change the way we read and hear scripture and God’s call to us, so we need to be really vigilant in listening to what God is saying through the Word.

It turns out that reading this passage without considering the context in Jerusalem right after Pentecost, or what God has blessed you with to use for God’s glory, is to miss the wonder and joy of this passage.

They had just experienced Jesus’ resurrection and the amazing gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. They were literally on fire and ready to make a difference. And so, they did!

So, I have a story for you!

It turns out that at Rachel’s school in Namibia, a donor from Britain made sure that all the boys on the boys’ soccer team got uniforms. What a cool gift! That is fantastic.

But what if I also told you that there have been no donations for the girl’s netball team.

Well, you could say, “hmm, that’s unfortunate”. Or, “ahh, that is not my thing”. Or you could say, “there are kids here in the US that need uniforms, I want to do something about that first”.

Or you could say, “Huh, I wonder how much uniforms cost, because I might be willing to make some sacrifices in order to see that a child, even one far away, even from a different country, even a different race, even a different economic group, gets a uniform.”

You see, I was over at the Otisville Convenience store by the gas station when this woman approached me and said, “You are Reverend Farley aren’t you!” My first reaction was to run! But I fessed up.

She said, “Orrin and Kelly and Evangline came to our church to tell us about Rachel in Namibia, and we were wondering how much school uniforms cost.”

So, I texted Rachel in Namibia and said, “How much are uniforms?” And she told me the story above. Imagine Rachel, the collegiate volleyball player being cool with the idea that the girls don’t have uniforms? Makes you want to do something!

Now, think about those apostles and followers of Jesus meeting in small groups and hearing that folks right there at the table, widows, orphans, servants, slaves, children, seniors, didn’t have enough to eat, were sleeping on the streets without shelter or blankets, that some of them didn’t even have the basic necessities of life.

They wept, they prayed, and then they got busy. Doing exactly what we do, and even more. They took what God had given them as resources, and began using them to make a difference.

They even took money out of the bank to do it, since in Jesus’ day - like our own, some wealth was kept in owning land and property, so they cashed out some of what they had, to do what they knew God wanted them to do.

And they did it unafraid, excited, full of hope, because everyone in the community of faith was doing what they could.

So, what has God given you to use for his glory?

Maybe a family, a car, a house, an income, children, teenagers, some talents, skills, and abilities. Maybe you have time during the day to help feed hungry folks, or time on the train to and from NYC like Elizabeth, to make cool projects, email a person who needs a pick me up note, or write a little testimony about how God has touched your life.

Maybe you are blessed to have started your “giving” early in life, and are tithing, or working on it as God leads you. Maybe your kitchen table like Janet’s could host a bible study.

Or maybe you love teenagers and can’t wait to corrupt some teens in Youth Group once your 2-year-old is a bit bigger. I got to tell you, there is no more fun than bringing a two-year-old to a youth group meeting and watching the older kids play with and care for that little one.

Maybe you are a great photographer, or a graphics artist. Did you see this week’s tie dye “O” on our Facebook page! We are #tiedyechurch! Many thanks to Sue West and her daughter for that!

What as God blessed you with?

Deep faith, a love for struggling people, amazing organizational skills, that in the context of this community of faith could help us do what God has called us to do to make a difference?

“In a powerful way the apostles told everyone that the Lord Jesus was now alive. God greatly blessed his followers!”

May it be so today, as we, God’s faithful people, Make a difference, in Jesus Name!

Amen.