Monday, November 11, 2019

God's Messengers - Dog leash Evangelism!


Sermon for November 10, 2019Proper 27C RCl – Track 1



Some Sadducees, those who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and asked him a question, "Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man's brother dies, leaving a wife but no children, the man shall marry the widow and raise up children for his brother. Now there were seven brothers; the first married, and died childless; then the second and the third married her, and so in the same way all seven died childless. Finally the woman also died. In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had married her."
Jesus said to them, "Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. Indeed they cannot die anymore, because they are like angels and are children of God, being children of the resurrection. And the fact that the dead are raised Moses himself showed, in the story about the bush, where he speaks of the Lord as the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Now he is God not of the dead, but of the living; for to him all of them are alive."
Today we continue with the temple authorities challenging Jesus and his interpretation of scripture and practice.  It started with the question about by whose authority was Jesus doing his healings and teachings.  It went on to challenge Jesus interpretation of paying taxes or tithing using coins with the picture of the emperor on it.  Now we have the test with a group that Luke says do not believe in the resurrection who spin a story that seems strange to us.  We can’t imagine – or at least I can’t imagine – a society in which the women’s sole purpose is to produce an heir for her first husband to continue his name – and when that doesn’t happen, she is required to marry successive brothers trying to produce such an heir.  The patriarchal society that we hear about values the production of a male heir over the humanity of the women. It sounds like a crazy scenario with the final question to test Jesus orthodoxy, from those people we are told do not believe in resurrection – when the women dies and is resurrected whose wife will she be?”

Just like with the questing regarding the paying of taxes Jesus does not directly answer what his inquisitors thought they were framing as a simple question with just one choice.  Jesus turns their question around and says that resurrected life is different that earthly life.  That we are more like angles and are children of God.  Jesus then goes to say that God is the God of the living and that to God all are alive – even those who have passed thru the veil and have become resurrected.

Emerson Powery, professor of biblical studies at Messiah College said, “Jesus’s response that this woman—and all embodied individuals—are the “children of the resurrection” (and, so, lose attachments’) is also striking. On the one hand, it seems to be a denigration of embodied faith, a statement that implies that human relationships do not matter. On the other hand, “children of the resurrection” ought to care about more than their own; this is not American-style “family values.” Resurrection’s children ought to be God’s children (Luke 20:36) and live as if their relationships can expand, becoming like the “angels”—God’s messengers and actors in the world—living in God’s service...[1]

What would it look like if we lived our lives as “God’s messengers and actors” in this world? 

This weekend was our Diocesan Convention. The theme was New Beginnings.  In her opening address Bishop Megan talked about the deep roots that we have in our diocese.  About the deep roots that our churches, including this church of St. Matthew, has in our communities and in the world.  Bishop Megan told the story of her family’s apple farm – and her grandfather’s gift in taking branches from other trees and grafting them onto a new tree – the gift of grating new shoots onto old roots that can lead to some amazing fruit. 

Bishop Megan is inviting the diocese to celebrate our deep roots and to look for opportunities to graft new branches onto those roots.  New branches that will help us become God’s Messengers and actors in our world. 

To help us in honoring our deep roots and look for ways to grow new shoots Bishop Megan invited Mary Foster Parmer – from the Beeken School of Theology at the University of the South in Sewanee (which some of you may know as the home of the EFM or Education for Ministry Program).  Mary came to talk to us about her ministry of “Invite, Welcome, Connect  A ministry that calls all of us to look outside our doors into the world around us.

Mary takes the scary word for Episcopalians – “Evangelism” and prods us to recognize that Evangelism is nothing more than inviting people.  Inviting people into our midst.  Mary said that the deep truth of invitation is courage.  Courage that others might want to experience God in the unique way that our congregations experience God’s presence.  She challenges the church to move from passively waiting for people to find us to actively inviting people to come into our doors.  A challenge that we have been working with at St. Matthew’s.  Not only do most Episcopalians have trouble inviting people into our midst – here people who might want to stumble upon this hidden gem can’t even find the right door to enter.  We are being invited to look at how we invite people and the obstacles that prevent people from joining us.  What can we do in our church to invite people in and to make it inviting to come and worship with us?

I have an “evangelism” story.  The leash I use for my dog is one that has the Episcopal Church shield on it.  One Saturday we were at the farmers market with Eddie the Wonder Poodle when a couple stopped me and said That’s the Episcopal Church Shield on your leash.  It turns out that they were new to the area and were looking for an Episcopal Church to attend.  They asked me if I was an Episcopalian.  I said “yes I’m a priest  The conversation continued and I let them know about St. Paul’s in downtown and invited them to attend.  Several weeks later I got a message that the people who talked to me because of the leash had indeed come to check out St. Paul’s.  Something as simple as an Episcopal Church dog leash started the conversation.  

The second part of Mary’s ministry is that of welcome.  Once people come into our midst do we “teach, preach and model a theology of welcome and hospitality?”  Every church that I have been a part of in our diocese says that they are a welcoming and friendly church.  But I also can tell you that I have attended episcopal churches where no one really does more than say good morning and hand me a program.  Mary challenged us that some churches that say they are a “friendly community” are really a “community of friends.” 

St. Matthew’s does a good Job of welcoming the stranger.  In part that is because we are so small right now that there is no way for someone to sneak in and out of the back door without us noticing them.  In addition, the way that you all do coffee hour with all of us sitting around the common table invites conversation.  There are still things that we can do to improve our welcome.  We can create an intentional way of welcoming people that ensures that we have a comprehensive strategy/system for welcoming and following up with newcomers.

The third pieces of Mary’s ministry is to Connect - a ministry of belonging.  She says that we all need to “Model Connect, helping people discern their giftedness vocation; then empowering, equipping, entrusting and affirming them for ministry.”  Mary said that the church needs to hone our ability for deep spiritual listening.  We not only need to learn how to invite people into the wonderful ministries that are happening we also need to listen to where people are in their life and ministries.  We need to connect at a deeper level to those who walk in our doors.

Mary also cautioned us against falling on a newcomer like the stereotypical used car salesperson.  Yes, we need to take our ministries and as Jesus said to put them on the lampstand for the world to see, but we also need to listen deeply to what those who come through our doors need.  The need to feel welcome.  But sometimes that welcome is felt by our providing a place of sanctuary and rest.  Our churches probably shouldn’t try to recruit everyone who walks through the door to join every ministry group on their first day.

Mary also reminded us that we need to connect with our com-minutes.  St. Matthew’s has a unique strength here in that we have invited our communities onto the campus for food, healing and education.  We are inviting them for these things but how do we connect to them on a spiritual level? 

One way we can do that is by remembering that we are the members – the very limbs and heart of Jesus.  We are called to be the messengers of God in our world.  To be the angels.  We are called to model a different economy.  To model a resurrection economy where we truly see all of our fellow inhabitants as children of God.  A tall order I know. 

But we have deep roots.  Deep spiritual roots that will provide food for the new things that will be grafted onto our hearts and souls.  We can find new ways to invite people, welcome people and connect with people and connect and foster the ministry gifts that all of us are given by God for bring about God’s resurrection economy into our world. 

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