Sermons
10/4/07
EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
September 30, 2007
FIGHT THE GOOD FIGHT
1 Timothy 6: 6-19
“Don’t fight.” This is probably a phrase we have heard often, especially if we came from a family where there were two or more siblings. “Don’t fight with your brother.” “Don’t fight with your friend.” A little later in life, “Don’t fight with your bosses because they always win.” In our faith as well, this is not an unfamiliar message. “Turn the other check.” “How often are we suppose to forgive? Seventy times seven.” And yet today, our Second Reading takes a distinctly pugilistic turn. 12Fight the good fight of the faith; take hold of the eternal life, to which you were called and for which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Given our general tendency toward pacifism what can we gain from these unexpected words?
We need to fight the good fight, at least on some occasions. There is a misconception that practicing our faith is a relatively easy thing. It is not. Recently I have been reading an article about Mother Teresa, a Christian close to God if ever there was one. But guess what? For forty years she battled forces of disbelief that denied her any meaningful interaction with the Almighty. That was an incredible fight. And in our day to day living of the faith, do not be surprised that we often must fight the good fight to resist the temptation of being drawn into the seductive allure of materialism, to turn our backs on the forgotten in our society, to stand up against the pervasive force of selfishness that draws all of our attention back to ourselves.
One of the many lessons I have learned from almost four decades of pastoring is that there is a force of evil out there, call it Satan, call it whatever you will. Evil exists. And if you have a vision from God to grow the kingdom in a meaningful way, don’t be surprised when you discover this becomes a battle. One sobering truth acquired is that anything truly worthwhile and in obedience to God will be opposed. And so when a new opportunity for ministry comes along and there are suddenly forces that are in opposition, I often see this as a confirmation we are indeed on the right track. If a new idea is totally unopposed, it generally is just window dressing and will have no real part in growing the faith.
And since we know we are in a fight against evil, we need to fight with friends. Evil is just so encompassing, we need help in opposing it. Today we take a few minutes to thank our friends who have stood with us as we fight for the Lord. They have helped in so many ways from providing airline tickets that some of our members could help rebuild after hurricane Katrina, to a van for that trip, to bread and fresh produce to help us feed the hungry in our area. We have worked together and consequently are making a difference.
We need endurance. I like what the author of 1 Timothy has to say to the rich. 18They are to do good, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, 19thus storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of the life that really is life. He does not condemn the wealthy, but rather makes them a part of the team and urges them to grow in the good that they are doing. In like manner, when the fight is difficult and we are flagging, we should soldier on to make a difference in our Lord’s Name.
And gain the victory by His power because we need to depend on God. One of the most eloquent testimonies to the power of this trust comes from St. Patrick. When Patrick returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary, he found his way blocked by powerful druid and pagan forces. Sensing he would be successful in bringing Christianity to this heathen land, they gathered to oppose him at the hill in Tara. Before this historic confrontation, he offered the following prayer.
At Tara today in this fateful hour,
I place all heaven with its power,
and the sun with its brightness,
and the snow with its whiteness,
and fire with all the strength it hath,
and lightning with its rapid wrath,
and the winds with their swiftness along their path,
and the sea with its deepness,
and the rocks with their steepness,
and the earth with its starkness:
all these I place,
by God's almighty help and grace,
between myself and the powers of darkness
We know what happened. He fought the good fight and with God’s help won. With God’s help, may we win our good fights as well. Amen.
10/11/07
NINETEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
October 7, 2007
FROM ONE GENERATION TO ANOTHER
2 Timothy 1:1-14
3I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. 2 Timothy is one of three so-called Pastoral Epistles because they deal with pastors serving early congregations. Originally it was felt that St. Paul wrote these letters, but scholars point out that the church seems much more mature than it would be in the time of Paul with Bishops, Elders and Deacons so doubt has been cast on Pauline authorship. Even if the Apostle did not write these letters, however, he could have because they certainly reflects his thoughts.
This morning I would like to lift up a single verse. 5I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. Let’s take a look at the implications.
The first is that Christianity is a collective form of faith. There is a wonderful parable of a man who said he would not go to church because he saw no reason for it. One day the Pastor walked in and asked if he could sit for a bit. He took a seat by the man next to the fireplace. The Pastor did not say a word, but simply took a single glowing coal and separated it from the rest of the fire. Soon the once brightly glowing coal was cold and dead while the rest of the coals continued to burn brightly. The man got the idea and was at worship the very next week. Thus we gather together to offer encouragement to one another. And we work together to achieve things for God we could not accomplish signally. Later today our confirmands and other supporters will join with millions of other people across the country to participate in the Crop walk. Alone they could do very little to battle world hunger, but together they offer a powerful witness just as Lois and Eunice offered their collective witness to a whole new generation of Christians.
Christianity is built on the base of generational witness. Some feel that Lois and Eunice were not Timothy’s actual family, but rather important women in the church. No matter. There is that sense that we are all part of a much larger picture. The witness that we are parents and grandparents offer counts greatly because, for the most part, succeeding generations will return to the values with which they were raised. This is I think no small comfort for those who have offspring drift away from the church. Actually, most young people have periods in theirs lives when they rebel against the entire establishment, and that includes the church. But our witness remains deep within their temporarily secular souls and eventually, by the power of the Spirit, has its effect and the ecclesiastical prodigals return.
The Holy Spirit kindles our faith, but we can be open to the Spirit or thwart its work. When we join together and are open to the work of the Spirit allowing that faith to grow through the generations, who can tell what great things will be accomplished. 120 years ago, a young Lutheran Pastor by the name of Leander Zimmermann came to a small congregation in Inner Harbor, Baltimore. Christ Church actually was using a building purchased from an earlier Presbyterian congregation that had failed. Pastor Zimmerman was one of those church leaders blessed with a rare vision and virtually unlimited energy. As a result, the congregation grew from 100 to nearly 3,000 during his three decades of work. But the Christ Church story continues. Zimmermann retired but cut a deal with his successor, Pastor Denton to preach once a year. In return the venerated retired shepherd would ask the congregation to fulfill one of Pastor Denton’s wishes. After a few years the new Pastor said he had a vision so monumental that he wondered if even the great Pastor Zimmermann could succeed. He wanted the congregation to build a hospital. Three years later, the Denton Medical Center was completed. One generation of pastors succeeded another until a little over 25 years ago, my roommate in seminary, John Sabatelli, was called to the position. Things were changing rapidly in heath care and the Denton Medical Center was now past its prime. 5 years ago, it was sold. But the story continues. With the money received, Christ Church was not only able to fund two modern centers of communication at Philadelphia and Gettysburg Seminaries, but also able to provide support for a group of missionaries that are serving throughout the world. The beat goes on.
Like Lois and Eunice and Timothy then, let us continue to allow the Spirit to grow us that we may play our vital part in that great intergenerational witness of the church that extends through countless generations. Amen
10/25/07
THE TWENTY FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
October 21, 2007
THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT, PART 2
Galatians 5:22-23
Today we continue our consideration of the fruit of the Spirit as recorded in Galatians 5. You may recall that Paul describes the fruit of the Spirit in this fashion. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, 23gentleness, and self-control. Last week Pastor Stechmann considered love, joy and peace using the witness of her nuclear family. Today I would like to consider patience, kindness and generosity using the witness of some of our wider congregational family who now rest from their labors. Special Saints of the past whose memories continue to inspire.
The Apostle names patience. A Saint who taught me an important lesson about patience was Frank Schiro. Almost 30 years ago, when I came to Reformation as a relatively young Pastor, I was still filled with much of the egotism that is often characteristic of a young shepherd. I was going to do so much for the congregation and forcibly bring them up to speed. The reality proved much more challenging. Strategies that had worked well in my first congregation were not producing the expected results here. As another late Saint, Al Berich said during an early council meeting. “Stop trying to make this place into a Sayreville, South.” I soon became discouraged.
It was at this critical point that Frank Schiro intervened. A respected business leader and “pillar” of the congregation, he and Vivian invited us to their home where he could have a heart to heart with me. I still remember that conversation vividly. “Pastor,” he told me, “You are a good Pastor, but you need to learn to be patient. Look after us, especially when we are sick or facing personal crisis and people will respond. In time they will learn to trust you and listen to you and you will see what wonderful things will happen.” Someone once defined patience as learning to trust in God’s timing. How true. Even now, when I am sometimes discouraged, I think about the advice Frank offered to me so long ago and find the strength to go on.
The next gift is kindness. When I considered who might serve as a wonderful example of kindness, the name of Martha Mittermeyer came to mind. By Reformation standards, she was not a member a very long time, 5 or 6 years, but she touched so many lives. For many she was the older sister for whom they longed. A truly gentle person, Martha always had an encouraging word and was ready to lend a hand when this is what was required. She brought life and light to every portion of church life she touched and especially enjoyed providing hospitality.
The third manifestation of this fruit is generosity. The person who immediately comes to mind is Jim Heuss. Jim was one of those people who were deeply committed to Christ and whose life and opinions was an open book. Jim was one of those rare individuals who loved to talk about financial stewardship. I can still picture him striding confidently to the lectern for a temple talk. They were short and sweet. Basically Jim looked the congregation square in the eye and said, “I tithe and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The day I started to tithe, I stopped worrying about money. And guess what, God has always provided.” Jim was taken from us a while ago. But his witness of generosity continues to this day.
Patience, kindness and generosity three manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit and offered in a very special way by those who have preceded us and whose witness continues. Amen
10/31/07
REFORMATION
October 28, 2007
FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT, PART III
Dear friends, once again I rejoice to be with you. As I was making my journey to be with you, I heard a great deal about the Breeder’s Cup. Was this a new vessel for beer, I inquired only to be told it was a horse race that would bring in 10’s of millions of Tallers, that is dollars? How remarkable that a horse should be valuable because it can run quickly. I saw pictures of some of those horses and they looked pretty flimsy to me. In my day a horse was judged by its strength, how much land it could plow or if it could support the weight of a fully armed knight as he strove to preserve God’s law. How much things have changed.
But there are some things that never change and one of them is the Word of God. Here we can find the great constants in our life of law and Gospel. Your Pastor has asked me to preach on the last manifestations of the fruit of the Spirit listed by St. Paul in his great letter to the Galatians, and I am delighted to do it. They are three in number, faithfulness, 23gentleness, and self-control. Let us get to the task at hand.
We begin with faith. What is faith? It is trust in God and His grace and power. Where do we gain this most precious gift? Ultimately, the blessed Holy Spirit who provides us with every good and perfect spiritual gift that is from above. But the Spirit acts through others, namely the Saints that the Spirit calls together in the Church. As I once reflected, “This is the communion of saints in which we glory. Whose heart will not be lifted up, even in the midst of great evils, when he believes the very truth, namely, that the blessings of all the saints are his blessings, and his evil is also theirs? That is the very pleasant picture the Apostle paints in his word to the Galatians, “Bear one another’s burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ” [Gal. 6:2]. Is it not a blessing for us to be in a company where “if one member (as is said in I Corinthians 12 [:26]) suffers, all members suffer together, and if one member is honored, all members rejoice together?” Therefore, when I suffer, I do not suffer alone, but Christ and all Christians suffer with me, for Christ says, “He who touches you, touches the apple of my eye” [Zech. 2:8]. Thus others bear my burden, and their strength is my strength
The faith of the church comes to the aid of my fearfulness; the chastity of others endures the temptation of my flesh; the fastings of others are my gain; the prayer of another pleads for me.” How blessed we truly are with this shared faith.
We move to gentleness. Once again we turn to Christ not only for this gift but to see how this gift is shared among us. When I lectured on Galatians I shared the following thought, “(God seeks to comfort us) in order that we may know and believe that our dear Lord loves His own—those who cling to Him—so much that He can very easily bear with and overlook their naïveté and their weakness, their faults and their lack of understanding. It is the purpose of such motherly gentleness and patience to keep them with Him and to make them ever stronger. For, as the prophet Isaiah says (42:3), “a bruised reed He will not break, and a dimly burning wick He will not quench”; but He will fan the small spark into a fire, and He will support their weak faith and give it a lift…
In brief, Christ is to be known as the Man who is all in all. Whatever He says and does, all this shall be right and well done. We are to know that God is surely disposed toward us as we see and hear Christ showing Himself toward us with His words, His demeanor, and His miracles. And if God gives us grace, we are to take comfort in hearing this Man gladly, loving Him, and holding Him in esteem. Then there will be nothing but love in the Father, as Christ has just said: “The Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me.”
Finally, we consider self-control. Another translation reads temperance. They must have had the Germans in mind. As I once said, “One must make the best of the vices that are peculiar to each land. The Bohemians gorge themselves, the Wends steal, the Germans swill without stopping. How would you outdo a German… except by making him drunk—especially a German who doesn’t love music and women?”. Now mind you, I enjoyed my beer as much as anyone, but we must never forget moderation in all things save faith. If we are to be little Christ’s to those around us, we must assume a Christ like behavior.
Faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. These are three other marks of a Christian and ones for which we should constantly pray and into which we should constantly grow. Amen