Reflections on "Same Story, Another Version" I Corinthians 1: 10-18; Matthew 4: 12-23

The lectionary offered several unique opportunities this week.  We had a baptism, which fit well with the Corinthians passage.  It particularly fit because the former minister was back to baptize his granddaughter.  It also fit well in this context because the church as a long history of former ministers participating in the life of the congregation after their retirement.  

The Matthew passage was John's version of the calling of the disciples, which I find a little odd since that means parallel gospel stories are read one after the other when we follow the lectionary.  For me, it connected with the Corinthians passage and baptism being performed since it was a similar story, but told and heard differently.  If I had not been focusing on baptism, I might have pursued the geographic places in the Matthew passage (commentators seem to focus on that); or the idea that John's death prompted Jesus to initiate his ministry (it might be fun to think about what makes us take on ministry); or reflect more on how Jesus seeks us out (Matthew's story) vs. disciples seeking out the Messiah (John).

One move  in the sermon deals with the differences internal to a group; the other move focuses on the differences in time s we live out our calling in our context.  It sort of worked, but I might not tie those two together if I did it again.

“Same Story, Another Version” SAPC, January 22, 2017; I Corinthians 1: 10-18; Matthew 4: 12-23 

Now when Jesus[a] heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

“Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,

    on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—

the people who sat in darkness

    have seen a great light,

and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death

    light has dawned.”

 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen.  And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.”  Immediately they left their nets and followed him.  As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them.  Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news[d] of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Introduction:  January 22, 1984 First Presbyterian Church, rusk TX.  Alison Plunkett was baptized by her maternal grandfather, Rev. Thomas Currie, Jr.

Today in St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Denton, TX, Margaret Rose McStravick, Alison McStravick daughter (Kevin’s daughter, too) will be baptized by her maternal grandfather, Rev. Steve Plunkett.

Same baptism, different version.

Same baptism, because it is the same Lord and Savior with whom Maggie is united in baptism, with whom Alison was united in baptism, with whom each of us was united in baptism  

Different version, because it takes place in a different time frame, a different context.

but the different versions are all part of the same story of the God who claims us in the waters of baptism and sends us into the world to proclaim the good news.

move 1:  One of the challenges we face as the body of Christ  is not letting the different versions separate us.

a.  the Corinthians to whom Paul writes have a problem brewing in their church.

1. They are focusing on the different versions. 

2.  They are linking themselves up with the person who baptized them.

2. same baptism, different baptizer; and it is becoming a point of division.

3.  Imagine what that might look like here at St. Andrew.  

3. last week Lisa baptized Connor; this week Steve is baptizing Maggie; one of these Sundays, I’ll do the baptism.

4. what if as each child grows up, they see themselves as different based on who baptized him or her?

5. We could extend that beyond the last couple of weeks. If Fred Cassel baptized you, go sit with him; John Marvin baptized you, go over there;  Lloyd Hindman baptized you, go over here;  if John McCoy baptized you sit in front pews (since I’m in that category, we get that good seats) section;  Dick Nygren; Steve Plunkett; and so on.

6. We can divide over baptism, or lots of other issues connected to the different ways we live out our calling.  You can always find a reason to divide.

b.  But Paul is clear, the one baptizing does not matter; the one in whose name we are baptized does.

1.  Recasting the story of Jesus Christ in our context does not mean creating divisions; rather, it is an invitation for us to connect our calling in our particular context.

2.  Each of us lives out our calling a bit differently, but it is the same calling — the call to teach and proclaim the good news and bring God’s healing power to people in need.

Move 2:  For those of you who were here last week, we read the story of the calling of Pater and Andrew from the Gospel of John.  

a.  This week we read Matthew’s story of the calling of the disciples. 

1.  Same story, really, but another version.

2.  In some ways, a very different version.

3.  As John tells it,  Andrew is out looking for the Messiah and finds Jesus. Then, he goes and gets his brother, Peter, who has also been looking for the Messiah.

4.  In Matthew, Peter and Andrew are at work, the boat where they go fishing every day.   and here comes Jesus, walking along apparently looking for some people to join with him, so he calls them to leave their boats.

5.  In one version, the disciples are looking for the Messiah and find him.  In the other version, Jesus seeks out the disciples.

6. In both stories, disciples join with Jesus to tech, proclaim the good news, and heal people.

Same story, different versions.

b.  Henry Sloan Coffin, minister of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church, NYC, in Some Christian Convictions, pp. 21-22  “The life of men with Christ in God preserves its continuity through the ages; it has to interpret itself to every generation in new forms of  thought. 

1.  Coffin then offered the example of how old monarchies reminted coins when a new king or queen came to power.  

2.  The silver and gold remain, but the impress on them is different. 

3. Coffin suggested that “The reminting of our Christian convictions is a somewhat similar process:”  the precious ore (the call to follow Christ) of the religious experience continues, but it bears the stamp of the current” context [instead of context, Coffin says “ruling ideas in men’s view of the world.” Quoted by Bradley Longfield, The Presbyterian Controversy, (New York:Oxford, 1991), p. 88

b. Theologian Robert Jenson points out that our modern world looks and feels vastly different from the world that existed even a century or two ago, let alone a thousand years ago. 

2.  Our easy use of miracles like the telephone and computer, our understanding of planet Earth’s place in the larger scheme of outer space, our familiarity with cars and jets–all of this makes us very different from most of the people who ever lived.  Imagine the difference in communicating in Corinth and our world of tweeting, cell phones, and FB. 

3.  Jenson goes on to note that “If third-century Christians could see a modern church sanctuary, they would likely be stunned. But no matter how agog such folks would be to see electric lights or to hear a pipe organ, even still, if they could somehow across the centuries listen in on our worship, then we could only pray that the message that they would hear from us in the year 2017 would be the same gospel they heard back in the year 217. 

4. No matter how bizarre the setting of the modern world would be to Christians from the distant past, the message that gets proclaimed should still be so true to the Bible, that any Christian from any time or place would be able to hear what we say and respond, “Yup! that’s my calling too! [Jenson’s actual quote it “Yup, That’s my hope, too! That’s still the same gospel message of God’s love that changed my whole life so long ago!”]

 http://cep.calvinseminary.edu/sermon-starters/epiphany-3a/?type=lectionary_epistle

5.  Jesus still calls us, but it looks different in our particular context.

Conclusion: Same story.  Another version.  Go and tell it.

Reflections on "Standing Witnesses" Isaiah 49: 1-7; John 1: 29-42

The texts were the lectionary texts.  I did not include the Isaiah text in the sermon, and I really only needed to have read the second section of the John passage.  

the context of the sermon was a baptism in worship.  It was my first time to be here for a baptism, so i was intrigued by the congregation's tradition of asking, "who will stand with this child?" before the baptism.  I had never seen or heard of that tradition, but I find it powerful.  After the service, I learned that the congregation adopted this tradition based on a Michael Lindvall story about baptism.  If had known that, I probably would have included a reference to it in the sermon. 

This story built on last week's sermon about witnesses, although i did not explicitly make that connection in the sermon.

“Standing Witnesses” SAPC, January 15, 2017; Isaiah 49: 1-7; John 1: 29-42

The next day John the baptist saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!  This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’  I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.”  And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.  I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’  And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”

The next day John again was standing with two of his disciples,  and as he watched Jesus walk by, he exclaimed, “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.  When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and see.” They came and saw where he was staying, and they remained with him that day. It was about four o’clock in the afternoon.  One of the two who heard John speak and followed him was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother.  He first found his brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated Anointed).  He brought Simon[c] to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You are to be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter.

Introduction:  New minister in your midst

But, I also have experienced a few changes in how you do things.

Lisa and I have talked often about the different traditions and expectations we all have and have to adjust.

Worship.

Where are the baptismal font and Lord’s Table this week?

I was intrigued by a tradition you have here at St. Andrew that i have never seen or done.

Before the child is baptized, the minister asks, “Who stands with this child?”

And the congregation stands.

Wow. 

Move 1:  Standing up for baptism — what a powerful image

a. It reminds me of so many movies scenes when the beleaguered good guy is all alone facing the bad guys, and suddenly all the people who had been waiting on the sideline stand up and join the good guy.

1.  the bad guys will now be overcome.

2. the music in the background shifts to “Stand by Me.”

3. and somewhere in the audience tears trickle down.

b.  Standing at baptism is not just high drama, but it is also theological.

1.  In our practice of infant baptism, we not only celebrate the God who claims us in the waters of baptism (even before we know of God), but we also celebrate the role of the community of faith.

2.  No private baptisms in the Presbyterian church because the role of the community of faith is that important.

3. Someone once shared with me the story of their baptism as it had been related to him.

He had been baptized in the Presbyterian church he did not attend because his father forbid them to worship there or for him to be baptized.  

But the infant’s Presbyterian mother desperately wanted her son to be baptized.  so on a Monday morning at 10:00 am she arrived at the Presbyterian church where the minister had agreed to baptize her son.

But, in keeping with the Presbyterian tradition, they were not alone - the minister’s wife was there; the mother’s parents were there; and a couple of elders had left work to come to church to stand up for that child on behalf of the congregation.

A small group to try and keep it a secret, but the community was present in those elders. 

c.  My daughters and I have a running disagreement about whether they can be godmothers.

Family friends.

They stood up there with the parents for the baptism.

But I know they are not godparents.  Why?  Because I was there at the baptism.  I was there when the congregation took vows on behalf of the church universal to raise those children in the faith.

In the Presbyterian tradition no child needs godparents because the congregation plays that role.

Move 2:  The gospel story today is a little less dramatic than standing up, but no less powerful.

a.  Great story about Andrew.  

1.  simple story, really.  

1.  He finds Jesus, recognizes him as the Messiah.

2. what does he do with this information.

3.  He simply goes and tells his brother Peter.  

4.  Andrew, the one for whom this congregation gets its name, looking out for his brother.

5.   when you stand for baptism, you commit to pointing out again and again to the child where he or she can find the Messiah.

b.  Anne Lamott, Traveling Mercies, tells the story of a woman who shared her baptism story in worship.  She was a young child and was baptized in the Mississippi River in Louisiana.  The deacons go out early in the morning and find firm spots in the river and put poles in them so that those who gather to be baptized have a place to stand in the river (262). FPC, Troy, Chapel service, Feb. 15, 2004; Troy, Sanctuary, may 23, 3004

1.  I like that image — those who make up the community of faith, planting poles to guide the young children to the safe places in the water.

2.  when you stand up you commit to planting poles so that those growing up in this community of faith can find the safe places to discover Jesus Christ

3.  All the children and youth in our midst are at various stage of growing in their faith, and we as a community of faith are living out the baptismal vows someone took on our behalf when they were presented for baptism.

2.  not just touchy, feely.  It’s committing to show God’s love and teach the child about Jesus so that one day Connor, in this case, may profess Jesus Christ as his Lord and savior.

c.  when the congregation is asked the question, “Who will stand with this child?”  it is really being asked:

Who will tell this child about Jesus Christ?

Who will show this child unconditional love?

Who will welcome this child back after he has left the church for a while?

Who will hug this child when she desperately needs affirmation?

conclusion:  Are you willing to stand with this child?

Reflections on "Back Him Up" Acts 10: 34-43; Matthew 3: 13-17

Background to this sermon:  1. we ordained and installed Ruling Elders and Deacons after the sermon. 2. when I read the Acts passage in Peterson's translation The Message, I was captivated by witnesses backing up other Peter's witness.  I thought the passage and the installation might fit together.  Too late, I realized that Peter is talking about the prophets, not others, which did not work with my thoughts about ruling elders and deacons backing each other up with their witness. 

3. The focus on witness grows out of ongoing reflections on how we can best share the gospel.  it ties with some of my thoughts on storytelling.  Lillian Daniel has a good book on what it means to be a witness.  4.  The Ron Sider story was shared with me by Mark Hess, a ruling elder in the church I served in Troy, OH.  Like a blind pig finding an acorn, I realized Sunday morning that the final line of the story tied directly to the sermon title.    5. the allusion to the baptism of Jesus grew out of the fact that it was "Baptism of the Lord"  Sunday on the liturgical calendar, and we read the Matthew story of Jesus' baptism.

Reflections:  the witness part of the sermon worked well and elicited comments from several members.  The connection to ordination did not work very well, although the point about what the ruling elders and deacons say as they serve communion was meaningful.  The final story worked well, although it was not integrated into the sermon as well as it should have.  

“Backing Him Up” SAPC, January 8, 2017; Acts 10: 34-43; Ordination and Installation of Officers

Acts 10: 34-43  Peter fairly exploded with his good news: “It’s God’s own truth, nothing could be plainer: God plays no favorites! It makes no difference who you are or where you’re from—if you want God and are ready to do as he says, the door is open. The Message he sent to the children of Israel—that through Jesus Christ everything is being put together again—well, he’s doing it everywhere, among everyone.

“You know the story of what happened in Judea. It began in Galilee after John preached a total life-change. Then Jesus arrived from Nazareth, anointed by God with the Holy Spirit, ready for action. He went through the country helping people and healing everyone who was beaten down by the Devil. He was able to do all this because God was with him.

39-43 “And we saw it, saw it all, everything he did in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem where they killed him, hung him from a cross. But in three days God had him up, alive, and out where he could be seen. Not everyone saw him—he wasn’t put on public display. Witnesses had been carefully handpicked by God beforehand—us! We were the ones, there to eat and drink with him after he came back from the dead. He commissioned us to announce this in public, to bear solemn witness that he is in fact the One whom God destined as Judge of the living and dead. But we’re not alone in this. Our witness that he is the means to forgiveness of sins is backed up by the witness of all the prophets.”

Introduction:  Imagine you witnessed the baptism of Jesus.  Pretty amazing.  

Then you try and tell someone what happened.

“Listen to what happened today.

The son of God was baptized by John.  (“Really.  John baptized him, not the other way around?”)

The heavens opened and a dove flew down. (Really, a dove, just flew down.”)

A voice from the heavens announces “This is my Son…” (Really, now you’re hearing voices?”)

 Tough story to sell.

That’s the challenge Peter has.  He has seen the resurrected Christ, but how can he share what he has seen in a meaningful way.

At the end of the passage we read in Acts, he describes himself as a witness.

Move 1:  A little bit about witnesses in Acts.

a.  We remember that the Book of Acts is a sequel to the Gospel of Luke as the author of Luke writes again to Theophilus to share stories of what has happened since Christ has been raised from the dead.

b.  The Gospel of Luke finishes with the post-resurrection stories of Jesus meeting disciples on the road to Emmaus and then eating and revealing himself to them once they arrived in Emmaus.

    1.  Later gathering with other disciples and even ending some broiled fish.

    2.  Then Christ ascends to heaven.

    3.  In those stories at the end of Luke, Jesus calls the disciples “witnesses.” 

    4.  If we look to the opening verses of Acts, we again see the call for the disciples to be witnesses.

c.  we are reminded that God has called us to be witnesses.

1. Not experts.

2. not perfect followers.

3.  Not theologians who have resolved all the issues of Christology.

4.  Witnesses.

d. witnesses who share what they have seen and heard.

1.  how God has been present for you.

2.  How the Holy Spirit has transformed your life.

3. How following Christ has made a difference in your life. 

Like Peter, all we can do is witness to what we have seen.

Move 2:  We join together as witnesses.

a.  We are not alone as we witness to the resurrected Christ.

1.  Eugene Peterson translates the last verse of the passage — “Our witness that he is the means to forgiveness of sins is backed up by the witness of all the prophets.”

2.  Peter has the sense that his witness to the resurrected Christ joins with the witness of the prophets in times past and connects to the future witness of Christ’s followers.  

3.  you are not the only witness; I am not the only witness; 

3. we back each other up as we witness.

4. together we create a collage of how the resurrected Christ has impacted our lives.

  

b.  Today we ordain and install ruling elders and deacons.

1. they have been elected to lead the congregation - shape our vision for mission, worship, teaching, and pastoral care.

2.  But even more than those tasks, they are called to lead us as together we witness to the world that the resurrected Christ is alive.

3.  thus, their first act as ruling elders and deacons will be to serve as we celebrate the Lord’sSupper.

4.  You will come to the Table to meet the Risen Christ.

5. when you arrive, a newly installed ruling elder or deacon will look you in the eye and say, “this is the body of Christ, broken for you.”  

“This is the blood of Christ, shed for you.”

2.  A witness to the risen Christ. 

c.  Their ongoing task is to lead this congregation as we witness to the world about the God who changed our lives.

1. they are the named leadership in this task for the next three years, but it takes all of us being witnesses to the world.

2.  The task is great so we need to back each up.

conclusion:   Ron Sider — Imagine for a moment this astonishing, imaginary conversation that Jesus might have had with the archangel Gabriel upon his triumphant return to heaven.

"Well, how did it go?" Gabriel asks Jesus. "Did you complete your mission and save the world?"

"Well, yes and no," Jesus replies. "I modeled a godly life for about thirty years. I preached to a few thousand Jews in one corner of the Roman Empire. I died for the sins of the world and promised that those who believe in me will live forever. And I burst from the tomb on the third day to show my circle of 120 frightened followers that my life and story are God's way to save the whole world. Then I gave the Holy Spirit to those 120 and left them to finish the task:'

"You mean," Gabriel asks in amazement, "your whole plan to save the world depends on that ragtag bunch of' fishermen, ex-prostitutes, and tax collectors?" 

"That's right," Jesus replies.

"But what if they fail?" Gabriel persists with growing alarm. "What's your backup plan?"

"There is no backup plan," Jesus says quietly. Ron Sider's book, Living Like Jesus.

We are the witnesses Jesus sends into the world.